Insightful Insights

We are moving forward in an age where information is shared more freely than ever before, largely, in no small part, to the rise of social media. These days, social media is about much more than connecting with old acquaintances, and the need to harness its power for business purposes is growing. continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Insightful Insights.

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The Australian market, excluding reinvestment of dividends, rose 14.8 per cent in the year to 31 December 2013, from 4,664.6 to 5,353.1. The vast bulk of this gain came in the December 2013 half-year, and reflected the rally in many international markets coupled with the record low cash rate of 2.5 per cent and the declining Australian Dollar.

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by David Buckland Posted in Insightful Insights.

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Now that’s a headline to grab attention.

Normally at Montgomery we consider ourselves somewhat unconventional – but nevertheless focused – members of the financial advisory space. Today, however, we tap into the rich vein of journalistic license afforded to authors during summer holidays and advise on something we are comprehensively unqualified to speak on – education. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights.

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As small holders of Cash Converters (ASX: CCV), we watched with interest yesterday’s 11 per cent share price rise on volume that was 50 per cent greater than the daily average, as there appeared to be no developments to warrant this movement.

Or so we thought… continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Companies, Insightful Insights.

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Whenever I have been asked to nominate the worst industries to invest in, I have always cited car manufacturing and airlines. Car manufacturing is an exercise in labour and capital intensive fashion design, while airlines suffer from being input price takers, are beholden (pun intended) to unionised labour, irrational competition and competitors who can secure their fuel for free. And if a commodity is anything that is purchased purely on price and where brand isn’t a consideration, then airlines are selling a commodity too. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Airlines, Insightful Insights, Manufacturing.

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You have heard it dozens of times. Soothsayers, market commentators and prognosticators sharing tales of impending doom.

And all sorts of charts and variables are trotted out to explain why, how or when the market will crash.

A particular favourite of ours is what we call the ‘Overlay’. In the Overlay, a chart of the 1987, 2000 or 2007/08 stock market crash is displayed and then a chart of the current market is lined up against the original to demonstrate just how closely the two periods are mimicking each other. The insinuation is that the market will soon crash just as it did all those years ago. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights.

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Here’s a question for you. Can playing poker be considered investing, or is it necessarily gambling? continue…

by Tim Kelley Posted in Insightful Insights.

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Well, it’s that time of year again. The time I traditionally throw a cat amongst the pigeons to get everyone to think carefully about what they are doing and to question whether they should continue with it next year. This year, I have deliberately fired up the ether with a claim that a particular stream of charting or technical analysis is rubbish… Let’s see whether anyone can conjure up evidence that ‘support’ and ‘resistance’ stands up to the scrutiny of mathematical and statistical evaluation. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights.

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One of the things that keeps the equity markets interesting is the way different investment attributes fall in and out of fashion. For example, in recent times we have seen a marked preference for large, dividend paying stocks, which we expect is a reflection of record low interest rates, and a quest for better income returns with low perceived risk.

A slightly less obvious development has been a move by the market away from high quality companies and into lower quality issues. continue…

by Tim Kelley Posted in Insightful Insights.

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Christmas is a magical time of the year – a time for the Christian world to celebrate all that is good in mankind. The magic I am referring to is also linked to incredible power bestowed on parents during the month of December. Children that were unruly for the previous eleven months are suddenly transformed into models of good behaviour as they endeavour to stay off Santa’s naughty list. continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Insightful Insights.

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