Financial and Investments Articles Blog

Northgate Arinso Great Job

noreply@noemail.com (Bill Watson) — Thursday, March 01, 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Northgate Arinso Granada (NGA Granada) es una empresa líder en el mercado de software y servicios de Recursos Humanos en áreas clave como la administración de personal, nóminas, beneficios, contratación, formación y la gestión del talento que proporciona innovadoras soluciones de negocio a compañías con plantillas de todos los tamaños. La empresa cuenta con una plantilla total de 8000 trabajadores y más de 300 oficinas en los cinco continentes (entre ellas en Granada). Puedes obtener más información de la empresa en: great job northgate arinso *northgatearinso. es

Northgate arinso views
Actualmente, la empresa Northgate arinso se encuentra en proceso de expansión, por lo que tiene abierto en este momento un proceso de selección para cubrir 50 puestos de "Administrativo de Nómina con Idiomas" para sus oficinas de Northgate Arinso Granada.

Las funciones del puesto de trabajo northgate arinso great job son:
• Apoyo telefónico y por correo electrónico a los empleados y al departamento de Recursos Humanos para mantener sus datos personales y profesionales en el sistema.
• Introducción y modificación de datos maestros de los empleados de sus clientes (como por ejemplo: cambios salariales, seguridad social, absentismo, jornada laboral, cambios organizativos).
• Comprobación de la documentación y gestión en las distintas bases de datos.
• Procesamiento de la nómina: ejecución de la nómina, informes jurídicos.

Los requisitos mínimos de esta oferta para Northgate Arinso son:
• Diplomado en Relaciones Laborales o finalizando Licenciatura en Ciencias del Trabajo.
• Nivel alto de Inglés IMPRESCINDIBLE.
• Conocimientos Ofimáticos.

Otros requisitos Deseados para NGA Granada:
• Conocimientos de otros idiomas como francés, alemán, italiano o árabe.
• Buenas habilidades comunicativas.

Las personas interesadas pueden enviar su CV a la dirección:
nga. grx. hr@northgatearinso*

Otras características de Northgate Arinso son entre otras opiniones:

Northgate Arinso granada es un proveedor global líder en el mercado de software y servicios de Recursos Humanos con más de 4500 empleados en 31 países del mundo.
Ofrece soluciones de negocio innovadoras en Recursos Humanos a compañías con plantillas de todos los tamaños, incluyendo las empresas de la lista Global Fortune 500 y múltiples organizaciones pertenecientes a la Administración Pública.

La visión de Northgate Arinso Granada (NGA Granada) es sencilla: convertirse en el partner de referencia de los responsables de Recursos Humanos con el fin de perfeccionar los servicios de Recursos Humanos a través de la optimización de procesos , una tecnología innovadora y eficaz, capaz de soportar áreas clave como la administración de personal, nóminas, beneficios, contratación, formación y gestión del talento.

Northgate Arinso views está dedicado a la excelencia de los Recursos Humanos a través de actividades de consultoría estratégica de negocio, servicios de outsourcing, integración de sistemas y las mejores soluciones de software del mercado.

Servicios prestados en casi 50 países
8 centros de prestaciones BPO (externalización de procesos de negocio) alrededor del mundo
Más de 2. 5 millones de trabajadores gestionados en Outsoucing
Más de 800 implantaciones ERP (SAP, META4, Peoplesoft) en materia de RRHH a nivel mundial.

Start Forex Tradind To Earn Some More Money

noreply@noemail.com (Forexcellent) — Monday, January 09, 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Who could do with some extra money? Seems a fairly silly question, right? Virtually everyone in the world could do with a bit more cash. Times are tight and it seems that no matter who you talk to, no matter what they do, they are struggling more now than ever. The global financial crisis has been hard on everyone and while prices for everything have been going up, earnings and work available having been dropping or staying static. If you want to earn some more money, if you want to be able to do it when you want from home, then maybe you should start trading. ECN Forex is a great way to earn some extra dough, so get onto it today and start making more tomorrow.

Forex is short for the foreign exchange market with a daily trading volume of around four trillion dollars. It is a worldwide financial market that is focused on trading currencies. It operates around the clock, except for weekends, and is a really easy way for anyone to make some extra money. The foreign exchange market helps facilitate international trade and Forex traders can also make money by speculating on the various exchange rates as the trade deals go through.

The best thing is that you can do it all from home thanks to the wonders of the information and communication revolution. All you need is a computer, a few dollars to spare and automated Forex trading software. The set up costs are virtually nil and you can be up and running in no time. There are virtually no limits and almost anyone can turn a tidy profit in no time.

You can start of small and grow as your experience and confidence grow. That way, you can be sure that you are trading in a sustainable manner. It makes sense to gain an understanding of how the market works and what effects currency rates, then to start increasing the amounts you are trading. By starting small you will be able to learn how the market operates without risking anything, and by the time you are ready to trade larger amounts you will be able to make big money.

There are a number of different Forex trading strategies and it makes sense to trade through a reliable company that will be able to guide you through. The best way to find a good company is to do some research online and then check out a variety of the best sounding companies.

Demand Prints

noreply@noemail.com (Bhatt S) — Wednesday, January 04, 2012 13:30:00 +0000

10 Ways to Use QR Codes in Direct Mail Advertising
You’ll find plenty of creative ways to use QR Codes in marketing all over the web, but they have particular value when integrated into a direct mail advertising campaign. QR Codes can enhance the effectiveness of your direct mail in a number ways:
• First, telling the reader to scan the QR Code with their smartphone is a call to action they can act on immediately, when they are most receptive to your message.
• Secondly, once you’ve engaged the person, you can provide more details about your product or service, offer exclusive coupons, discounts or unique content to further entice them.
• And finally, you can track usage of the QR Codes to figure out what works and what doesn’t, and make adjustments accordingly.
No doubt about it, QR Codes are the next big thing in direct mail marketing. It is an exciting development, especially for small and medium-sized businesses, because they can be implemented so easily and affordably. Here are 10 ways to use QR Codes in your next direct mail advertising campaign:
1. Have the consumer scan the code and enter their contact information to be entered into a drawing for free products and/or services.
2. Send a postcard advertising a property for sale or rent and include a QR Code that launches a virtual tour of the property, then offer a premium for scheduling a showing or attending an open house.
3. Post real-time event information, e. g. a calendar of events, on a mobile website which can be updated without changing the QR Code it’s linked to.
4. If you sell a particular brand of product, have the consumer scan the code to open a link to the manufacturer’s website where they can read the specs, reviews, compare the features and prices of various models, etc.
5. Trying to register people for an event? Print a QR Code on a postcard mailer and have it open the registration form when scanned. Let them pay the registration fee after completing it.
6. Own a restaurant? Print a QR Code on your menu mailer. Have the code generate a text message or email that signs the user up to get the Soup of the Day via text message or the weekly specials via email.
7. Include a QR Code in your design that opens a mobile app that allows consumers to search your inventory.
8. Have the code launch a mobile website featuring testimonials from recent customersand offer a special discount for calling or emailing from there.
9. Advertising the grand opening of your salon and spa? Send a mailer with a QR Code that automatically dials your number to schedule an appointment.
10. Simply offer an exclusive coupon, good for a limited time, to drive traffic to your business’s location. Compare the number of scans to the increase in sales to see if you need to sweeten the offer.
DemandPrints* offers the ability to generate a QR Code, print it on your direct mail, and track the results through their website. Click here to get started on your next direct mail advertising campaign.
DemandPrints* is a leading OnDemand design, print, copy, and direct mail advertising company with services tailored for small and medium businesses. We provide affordably priced and professionally designed printing and direct mail marketing materials, including brochures, newsletters, postcards, stationery, menus and ads. Customers are able to produce their marketing materials and entire direct mail advertising campaign for a fraction of the cost and time previously required.

For more information on DemandPrint’s products and services, please visit *DemandPrints*, call (888) 566-1350, or email Info@DemandPrints*.

Harnessing Stock Market Volatility

noreply@noemail.com (Steve Selengut) — Wednesday, November 16, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

If you were to Google "Stock Market Volatility", you would find a wide range of observations, conversations, reports, analyses, recipes, critiques, predictions, alarms, and causal confusion. Books have been written; indices and measuring tools have been created; rationales and conclusions have been proffered. Yet, the volatility remains.

Statisticians, economists, regulators, politicians, and Wall Street gurus have addressed the volatility issue in one manner or another. In fact, each day's gyrations are explained, reported upon, recorded for later expert analysis, and head scratched about.

The only question I continue to have about all this comical hubbub is why don't y'all just relax and enjoy it. Jon Methuen nailed it in his August 15, 2011 parody of the financial world's ridiculous obsession with "volatility". "A Reasonable Guide To Stock Market Volatility" is a must view --- but only for mature adults with a semi-sick sense of humor.

Decades ago, a nameless college Statistics professor brought me out of a semi-comatose state with an observation about statisticians, politicians, and economists. "In the real world", he said, "there are liars, damn liars, and any member of the groups just mentioned". An economist or a politician, armed with a battery of statistics, is an ominous force indeed.

Well, now all the economists and statisticians have high powered computers and the ability to analyze volatility with the same degree of certainty (or is it arrogance) that they have developed with regard to individual-stock risk analysis, economic and geographical sector correlation dynamics, and future prediction in general.

But the volatility (and the uncertainty it either causes or results from, depending upon the expert you listen to) persists.

Modern computers are so powerful, in fact, that economists and statisticians can now calculate the investment prospects of just about anything. So rich in statistics are these masters of probabilities, alphas, betas, correlation coefficients, and standard deviations that the financial world itself has become, mundane, boring, and easy to deal with. Right?

Since they can predict the future with such a high degree of probability, and hedge against any uncertainty with yet another high degree of probability, why then is the financial world in such a chronic state of upheaval? And why-o-why does the volatility, and the uncertainty, remain?

Why the Volatility and Uncertainty Remain

I expect that you are expecting an opinion --- yet another opinion --- on why the volatility is as pronounced as it seems to be compared with years past. I'll do that next. But, first a sentence or two on "uncertainty" --- the playing field of the NFL (National Financial League). An uncertain environment is the only "for real" certainty you will ever experience in investing. Every investment has some form of risk and uncertainty.

Volatility, on the other hand is simply a force of nature --- one that you need to embrace and deal with constructively if you are to succeed as an investor.

But this new force of nature, this extreme volatility that we have been experiencing recently, has been magnified by the darkest forces of the Dismal Science and the changes that it has encouraged in the way financial professionals view the makeup of the modern investment portfolio.

On the bright side, enhanced market volatility enhances the power of the equity and income security trading disciplines and strategies within the Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) methodology --- an approach to market reality that embraces market turbulence, and harnesses market volatility for results that leave most professionals either speechless or in denial.

But, with no statistical data necessary (or available) to support the following opinion, consider this simplistic rationale for the hyper-volatility of today's stock market.

Volatility is a function of supply and demand for the common stock of a finite number of dirty, evil, greedy, polluting, congress corrupting, job creating, product and service providing, innovation and wealth developing, foundation supporting, gift giving, tax-collecting corporations to finance their growth and development.

"Tax collecting" raise an eyebrow? Look at a rental car statement or your next hotel bill. Those greedy corporations collect more money for state and local governments than the income tax collectors --- but that is a whole 'nother issue.

Those of us who trade common stocks in general, IGVSI stocks in particular, owe a debt of gratitude to the real volatility creators --- the hundreds of thousands of derivative products that bring an entirely speculative kind of indirect supply and demand to the securities markets.

Generally speaking, the fundamental, emotional, political, economic, global, environmental, and psychological forces that impact stock market prices have not changed significantly.

Short term market movements are just as non-predictable as they have ever been --- they continue to cause the uncertainty you need to deal with using proven risk minimization techniques like asset allocation diversification and trading.

The key change, the new kid on the block, is the impact of derivative betting mechanisms on the finite number of shares available for trading. Every day on the New York Stock Exchange, thousands of stocks are traded, a billion shares change hands. The average share is "held" for mere minutes.

On top of derivative trading in real things such as sectors, countries, companies, commodities, and industries, we have a myriad of index betting devices, short-long parlor games, option strategies, etc. What's a simple common share of Exxon to do?

Market volatility is here to stay --- at least until multi-level and multi-directional derivatives are relocated to the Las Vegas markets where they belong.

Modern Portfolio Theory --- The Root Of All Evil

noreply@noemail.com (Steve Selengut) — Wednesday, November 16, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

Rumor has it that a group of economists were sitting around their super-computers one day, smoking a "pot-pourri" of perfect statistics, when they came to the fairly-easy-to-support conclusion that not too many professional investment managers were able to "beat the market averages" consistently.

With the right statistics (and widely accepted assumptions) this was a simple suit of imperial clothing to weave. And with a ready audience on both Wall Street and Main Street (don't you just hate that expression), this conclusion laid the framework for the passive investment mentality that has overrun the markets.

Armed with some pretty impressive theory, the economists "poipetrated" the very first occupation of Wall Street!

We now have more derivative betting mechanisms masquerading as common stocks than we have common stocks themselves --- 'nuff said on volatility. So long as derivative chips are in play, it (high volatility) will run the casino.

Clearly, the MPT creators were once Mutual Fund investors, looking for something better after years of disappointing investment returns. True, mutual fund managers rarely beat the markets --- but why? And also true, private, individual, portfolio managers rarely fail to beat the market averages over significant time periods.

Mutual Fund managers were destined to failure on the day that the first "self-directed" retirement/savings plan was created. This transfer of management responsibility to inexperienced "main streeters" spelled disaster from the get-go.

At about the same time, market cycle analytics (Peak-to-Peak, Peak-to-Trough, etc) were scrapped in favor of a competitive, calendar year, racetrack scenario.

When the going gets tough, professional Mutual Fund managers become sell-order-takers. When bubbles develop, they are "prospectusly" required to join the lemmings in their race up to and over the cliff. Open-end Mutual Funds are managed by the mob, quite literally.

Independent managers (particularly MCIM practitioners and CEF portfolio managers) have no push-pull relationship with the mob. Management rules are applied to economic realities; probabilities being left to statistical Monday morning QBs. Real managers call the shots, taking our profits before the mob panics and selecting bargains while the cyclical rout is in progress.

The Probability Of Winning The Bet On Probabilities

MPT (Modern, lazy if you will, Portfolio Theory) has other erroneous ideologies and assumptions in its DNA. It wants investors to believe that short term growth in portfolio market value is the be all and end all of investing activity, and that the proper alignment of any number of speculations is an acceptable investment strategy.

The creation, development, and growth of a portfolio's income component is systemically ignored and left to chance in the MPT portfolio design process, while an all consuming battle is waged against the simple fact of a rather simple to deal with reality called the market cycle.

Economists are just naturally averse to admitting that they can neither predict, nor control, nor cope with market, interest rate, and economic cycles as well as a seasoned professional investor just has to. They observe and study the past --- managers, and actual investors, operate in the present, and deal with an unknowable future using rules and disciplines --- not probabilities.

But MPT promoters, university funded economists, and Wall Street have deeper pockets than small and independent investment professionals. The ability to create all manner of securities (and theories) from thin air is clearly more profitable and less risky (from a law suit perspective) than dealing with the intricacies of individual stocks and bonds.

There is no real question about the prospects for market volatility --- it is here to stay. The real question is how to deal with it profitably. The most obvious solution is rapid trading for fun and profit, a conclusion that most readers of this article will nod their heads to.

But long term, portfolio development-wise, looking to a more secure retirement or other objective, there is a non-MPT, non short-term-trading solution --- one that embraces both the extremes of volatility and the repetitive (if not predictable) nature of the market cycle.

Market Cycle Investment Management, with its core equity trading discipline, and mandated "base income" growth mechanisms, is a proven common sense methodology that no self respecting economist will ever appreciate.

The K. I. S. S. principle is just not as sexy as standard deviations, correlation coefficients, alphas, and betas. But basic investment principles, applied with professional decision-making and risk minimization skills, have fared far-better without MPT mumbo-jumbo than they ever will with it.

And, for the record, market volatility is nothing to be afraid of, really --- just bring it on!

Market Meltdown!

noreply@noemail.com (Mike Conlon) — Wednesday, November 09, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

There’s really only one story to discuss today and that is Italy. Italian bond yields are soaring and I mean soaring and the market reaction is not pretty. In a story of “be careful what you wish for”, Italian Premier Berlusconi is said to be stepping down next week but today’s crisis may actually reverse those wants and return him to power.

Since the announcement that he would step down after austerity measures were implemented, bond yields jumped to above 7% for the first time in the Euro-era. This is an unsustainable level and the uncertainty over the new Italian government is weighing heavily on the market.

Stocks are lower in Europe and in the US, as are commodities. Risk aversion is high right now as Italy is the third 3rd largest Euro zone economy, as well as the world’s 8th largest. It is clearly too big to fail and it is doubtful whether or not it could be saved.

As bond yields rise, it becomes harder for them to service their debt and creates market dislocations as everyone runs for the exit.

Making matters worse, there is no news on the docket that could potentially save us today, with the exception of a Bernanke speech later this morning. I wouldn’t be surprised at this point if his speech today is not the one he started out with earlier this morning.

And that is the problem with contagion; at first it was Greece and now it is Italy. As the size and scope of the indebted nations gets bigger, the larger the problem occurs. And guess who is up next?

The United States. That’s right, the good ol’ US of A. The budget super-committee is working right now to attempt to fix our problems and if this is not a wake-up call, then nothing ever will be. The only thing keeping US yields low right now is the threat of Bernanke and the Fed tanking interest rates and the Dollar much lower.

While it will be a difficult task to do that, the potential of QE3 may mean negative real interest rates which could be disastrous for the markets.

For the sake of global harmony, let’s hope that the situation in Italy comes to a close rapidly. Just don’t be surprised if Berlusconi is the one who comes out on top!

By Mike Conlon, ForexNews

Forex Market Outlook 11/3/11

noreply@noemail.com (Mike Conlon) — Thursday, November 03, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

Once again all eyes are on Greece this morning as we are running the gamut of Greek theater. First we saw the drama unfold during the painstaking debt crisis resolution and now we’re watching the comedy of errors that is taking place with misstep after misstep. Will we eventually see the tragedy? And whom would it end up being tragic for: the Euro zone or Greece itself.

The G-20 meeting now taking place has essentially been hijacked by the recent events taking place in Greece and now a series of additional hurdles must be navigated in order for the Euro zone to survive in its current form. The first hurdle is tomorrow’s confidence vote which may end up seeing the current regime ousted, including the Prime minister Papandreou. This could prove disastrous as they scramble to form a new coalition and to determine who is actually in charge. Rumors and false headlines are now hitting the wires saying everything from Papandreou resigning to the referendum may be canceled.

This brings us to the second hurdle, should they survive the confidence vote tomorrow, which is the idea of the referendum on the bailout. While Greece may have been intending for this vote to decide on just the bailout, EU leaders have now made it perfectly clear that this referendum would be over whether or not Greece wants to remain in the Euro zone. All aid money that Greece was supposed to receive is now being withheld until this vote.

So there is a much greater possibility that Greece will not be a member of the euro zone by year- end. Who this hurts more remains to be seen. The problem of contagion though is starting to rear its head again as yields in Italy are increasing as they rush to cut deficits.

This all comes ahead of this morning’s ECB rate decision, the first under new chief Draghi from Italy. There is some speculation that he could issue some sort of statement to the effect that the ECB will be the lender of last resort for the EU or that he could even go so far as to reduce interest rates. As I mentioned yesterday, there is a distinct possibility he could do the latter.

**Edit for breaking news** Draghi cuts interest rates by 25bp!

However, yesterday’s FOMC statement was quite different with Bernanke lowering the Fed’s economic forecast yet again as they have been miserably behind the curve. Later in the day in his speech, he said that QE3 was a potential option which gave the market hope of the free-money trade being able to continue. Europe has continued to run with this theme as US dollar weakness is driving the forex markets this morning, despite all of the risk emanating for the Euro zone.

On the data front, there isn’t a whole heck of a lot going on, with the US initial jobless claims expected to show another 400K unemployed. Later this morning ISM Non-Manufacturing figures are due to be released. Tomorrow’s NFP report is the big one to watch.

Last night, New Zealand’s unemployment rate ticked higher to 6. 6% from an expected 6. 4% showing signs that economy is potentially cooling.

Other than these reports, the focus of the markets will be on what happens in Greece and how the Euro zone and the world reacts. Pressure on the Greek PM to withdraw the referendum has to be immense and whether or not he is even in power next week remains a mystery.

In the meantime, the anonymous rumors will dominate the internet so take them with a grain of salt. This could produce very choppy market action over the course of the next few days, which is a short-term trader’s dream, but a long-term investor’s nightmare.

So remember to take what the market gives you and to cut losses quickly and move on to the next opportunity. With uncertain markets conditions, one small error could turn into a huge mistake in not dealt with swiftly!

By Mike Conlon, ForexNews

Forex Market Outlook 11/2/11

noreply@noemail.com (Mike Conlon) — Thursday, November 03, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

How does one get invited to that ultra-ritzy resort town of Cannes, France? Apparently by upsetting G-20 leaders as you potentially re-neg on a deal that may be the most important economic event of the past year. Yet that’s where Greek PM Papandreou will be as he has been “summoned” to the G-20 meeting to explain what the heck is going on in Greece.

For the record, Greece is not part of the G-20 so his presence is unwelcome to say the least. Both European and G-20 leaders have been blind-sided by the referendum vote in Greece and it has the potential to derail all of the wheeling and dealing that has taken place over the last month as the Euro debt resolution was announced. Picture this—say you owe a lot of money and your creditor agrees to reduce the amount you owe by 50%. What to you do? You take it of course and say ‘thank you’. What you don’t do is say let me get back to you.

Yet that’s exactly what Greece has done, which is essentially a slap in the face to Euro zone leaders and by proxy, the rest of the world. If Greece does not back away from this action or mitigate its impact, then the rest of the world may suffer. Don’t be surprised if this referendum turns into an “opinion poll” which has little consequence. Yet this may go down as one of the biggest idiotic blunders in the history of geo-politics.

Despite this SNAFU, the markets are up-beat to start the day as anticipation of today’s FOMC meeting may give markets hope that there is more free money on the horizon. It is unlikely to produce any change to policy, as the last change dubbed “Operation Twist” hasn’t had enough time to work. But, Bernanke may officially open the door for QE3 if he deems the economic environment to be worsening. So far, the Fed has been way behind the curve and their economic forecasts and estimates have largely missed the mark. This can be problematic when you consider that they use these estimates to make policy.

In the meantime, economic data is trickling in and is mixed. In Germany, PMI manufacturing figures came in better than expected, but the unemployment rate ticked higher to 7% from an expected 6. 9%. Italian PMI figures were a lot worse than expected.

Tomorrow the ECB is having its first rate policy meeting with their new chief Draghi at the helm. Will this produce a change of policy? Market expectations are that there will be no change, but if they fear a weakening they could be prompted to cut rates. This is one of those times that a rate cut might make sense, so I’m a bit surprised more people aren’t talking about it. A rate reduction in Australia just took place, so we could begin to see the start of some ratcheting down.

But the most important data to round out the rest of the week is on unemployment figures, with New Zealand reporting later tonight and Canada reporting on Friday. Today marks the first day of the US employment reports with Friday’s Non-Farm Payrolls report being the most important of the bunch.

This morning, the Challenger jobs cuts figures came in better than expected, as did the ADP employment change figures. The ADP report shows private payrolls changes and today’s report of 110K net new jobs was better than the expected 100K.

However, one cannot make a direct correlation between today’s ADP number and Friday’s NFP. Friday’s figure is the official government report and takes into account both government and private payrolls. So it will be interesting to see what that figure is, as it is one of the most significant economic barometers we have. Expectations are for a gain of 95K with unemployment rate to remain stubbornly high at 9. 1%.

For now, the markets are content to drift higher and hope for some Fed love later today and are also hopeful that the G-20 summons for the Greek PM will remove the uncertainty surrounding the deal. Should Bernanke fail to produce or should the G-20 fail to change Greece’s intended course of action, then we could slip back into risk aversion mode in a heartbeat.

As a result of these uncertain prospects, I am content to keep the trading to short-term and am not looking for the home-run trade

By Mike Conlon, ForexNews

Principle In Investing In Stock Market

noreply@noemail.com (joe) — Wednesday, November 02, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

Mr Graham, the great investor recommends investing in large and prominent companies because it is not easy to evaluate small and less known companies. Their financial statements are less reliable, and they may be more easily affected by unforeseen circumstances. In other word, the risk involved in investing in small and less known companies are high. Regarding to Graham position and point of view, the company should be conservatively financed as well. However, whether the company is conservatively financed will be immediately clear if inspect from the company short and long-term debt levels in relation to it total assets.

To make it simple to understand, let's make an example of the carbonated drinking company like Cola. Berkshire Hathaway is a major holding for Cola. A large established company such as Cola, with a market capitalization of about $100 billion at the end of 2008, has only about $3 billion of long-term debt. It is not difficult to conclude that the company is conservatively financed. Berkshire Hathaway has always been conservatively financed. Why is conservatism important? Because it is difficult to predict when funds will be suddenly needed for profitable investments or for claims. A conservatively financed company can raise funds in short order, and a liquidity crisis in the economy would not affect the company. For example, in 2008, large and prominent companies but not conservatively financed such as Citicorp, Goldman Sachs, and General Electric suffered significantly, and several others were merged, declared bankruptcy, or were on the verge of bankruptcy. On the other hand, Berkshire Hathaway used this as an opportunity to invest in companies such as Goldman Sachs and General Electric. Thus, in the long run, conservatively financed companies are likely to produce higher returns as they are in a position to take advantage of such opportunities.

While I consider this two principles or guidelines to be most important, they are principles and not specific rules. For example, not all large companies may lend themselves to sound financial analysis because of the complexity of their business. It may not easy to define which company is prominent and which is not. Thus, you will have to use a fair amount of judgement in selecting your investments even in your application of these principles.

So, in this important principle in investing, you should select the company who are large, prominent and conservatively financed.

Volatility In Stock Market As Opportunity

noreply@noemail.com (joe) — Wednesday, November 02, 2011 13:30:00 +0000

A smart investor sees the volatile as a risk and will avoid volatile stocks, however this may not be the correct investment approach in my opinion. In contrary, I would like to suggest an opposite method as a true investor like Warren Buffett in which he welcome the volatility. By considering the volatility from the size of the firm or company, a smaller company normally is more volatile than larger company. This is probably because of the smaller number of buy and sell orders that can affect the company stocks dramatically. But think of this way, small company do not need to be fundamentally risky especially if the management of the company is good and they invest very carefully. In fact, smaller company offer great opportunity because the amount of money is easier to manage thus generate higher returns. So, a small company or firm does not necessary be a more volatile investment if you are asking.

However, many have thought that increase in the volatility mean increase in risk, but for me, i personally feel that is not necessary true. The volatility and risk do not increase in proportionally does not imply because volatility might cause by many other factors that might not have anything to do with risk. One has to differentiate this and make a good judgement out of the volatility that is causing the fluctuation. For an example, normally after an earning is announce, a company stock price will become more volatile. Such a rise in volatility does not mean that the stock has become risky. Volatility can cause a sharp decline in stock prices and this might offer an opportunity in the end. However, unless you know the reason of the sharp decline, you should not increase your investment in stocks simply because their prices have declined and it is cheap to buy. A careful study will keep you out from catching a falling knife and always apply the value investing and growth investing skills to your study for stocks assessment.

History teaches us that when a price rapidly goes down, the probability of finding good stocks or businesses at lower prices goes up because it has caught your attention in the first place. So, study the fundamental and do research of the stock you are picking is important and always remember that even though you cannot predict the downfall just as we cannot foresee a coming crash, we should not feel comfortable predicting a quick recovery.