Columbia Threadneedle

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Jun 12, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , ,

This week’s best blogs range from a Q&A about stock picking to finding opportunity in volatility.

  • Columbia – Most FAs we encounter  have sold volatility (as a situation) to their clients. We hear “these are volatile times” or “it’s a period of unprecedented volatility” very often. This post, especially the bold text provides an interesting stance on what to look for in today’s volatile markets.
  • Russell – Is there any asset management metaphor more cliche than the sailboat? A compass. I’d agree with that. Anyhow, this post relates an important (and simple) sailing innovation to investing in a new (hence, not cliche) manner.
  • Wells Fargo – This post provides an interesting stance on why the time for active equity may be now. We’re fans of the Q&A style, especially when used selectively.

[Apologies for the extra day]

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on May 21, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , ,

Diversification and beyond! This week’s best considers diversification, preferred funds, and Greece.

  • BlackRock -In our recent marketing and product work, there’s been a recent uptick in discussing preferred stock as an attractive position in the capital structure. I imagine FAs are hearing a bit about it and this post provides some of the counter-argument.
  • Columbia – This post explains the cause of and effect of a diversifying asset class and significant inflows (to said asset class). This is great fodder for an FA to consider when re-balancing clients’ portfolios.
  • MFS – Greece? Don’t worry, but worry about precedent re: Italy, Spain, & Portugal. That’s a helpful nugget for FAs getting anxious client phone calls.

 

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Apr 23, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , , ,

Four interesting blogs taken from the 80+ blog entries posted over the last two weeks.

  • Columbia -This post supports the idea that the best-rewarded investors are the ones that avoid timing investments. From our FA proprietary research, we hear FAs say this theme comes up time and again.
  • Pioneer – We all like to know “worst case” scenarios. Well this post provides a succinct list of potential worst cases for the US economy. It’s such a strong post because the author reminds and enables advisors to discuss these topics with their clients. And those clients will appreciate knowing “worst case.”
  • Russell – This time of year, there’s a lot of tax-related blogging. This post provides a helpful chart and investing tie-in when contemplating the potential tax changes.
  • Wells Fargo – Gasoline. The TV talking heads, politicians, and economic pundits talk about gasoline prices too much. But this post provides logic (and two charts!) around what to consider if prices increase.

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Apr 09, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , ,

In this week’s post, we return to recommending three posts (we’ve only found 2 posts each of the last two weeks).

  • BlackRock – There’s so much inertia and discussion on seeking yield in today’s financial news, this post posits a case for exercising caution in that search.
  • Columbia – I think many FAs appreciate cause and effect commentary. Those commentaries facilitate easy discussions. James Carlen posts about the cause and effect related to higher oil prices and emerging markets.
  • Wells Fargo – This post shares a straightforward example and background on the cost of “fear.” While dense (Wells isn’t big on graphics or charts), it’s one of the better posts of 2012.

The “best blogs of the week” will be on spring break next week. We’ll be back on April 24th.

Best Blogs of the Week

Posted by Anu Heda on Mar 19, 2012, in Best Blogs of the Week , tagged with , ,

A big rally last week has the Dow well over 13,000 and firms blogging about it. We selected two interesting takes on the upswing and a post providing a framework on selecting technology investments.

  • Columbia – I enjoyed the way this post explains investing in technology stocks.
  • MFS – This post provides three reasons to be optimistic about the current equity market upswing.
  • Pioneer – The author provides an interesting way to look at the market performance. This post speaks well to the FA with still-nervous clients.