Filed under: Books in General, Economics, Investing | Tags: books, Business, business books, Economics, Financial/Accounting, Investing, mergers
You’ve got to give credit to Warren Buffett for a good turn of phrase. While sourcing this quote is a bit tough, America’s most famous investor is credited with saying, “When people are greedy, be nervous. When people are nervous, be greedy.” Companies that apply this logic often look at unstable economic times as an opportunity to make bold moves.
Today’s headlines indicate that Kraft Foods is one such company looking to make a move. In an acquisition attempt that’s on par with a lunar eclipse in terms of size, the food giant is bidding to take over British confectioner Cadbury. According to a company profile, Kraft is the second largest food company in the world and the largest in the United States. If you didn’t bother to click on the link in the previous sentence, go back and take a look at the brands Kraft controls. Stunning isn’t it? How much of your grocery cart is devoted to Kraft products? If you’re a parent, your purchases of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, Oreo cookies and Kool-Aid are probably a large factor in why Kraft is able to make such a bold move. I know I’ve done my part with my love of Ritz crackers and Philadelphia cream cheese.
Now Kraft is looking to become parent to yet another organization. However, as press reports indicate, Cadbury is attempting to resist the acquisition. While I’m not certain that the move will affect the taste of the Dairy Milk bar (a Cadbury staple), investors and business analysts are keeping a close eye on the proceedings.
If this deal touches off a resurgence in mergers and acquisitions (also known as M&A, which tend to occur during periods of economic recovery), executives may want to brush up on the basics of M&A. For that, I’d recommend a book we summarized a short time ago whose advice remains timeless. Scott Moeller and Chris Brady authored Intelligent M&A, a title that gives executives a strong survival guide to the intense, high-stakes world of mergers and acquisitions. It’s one of the most clear-cut books on the subject and would serve any executive well prior to being given a role in a company’s M&A efforts.
According to John Wiley & Sons’ Winter 2009 business catalog, we can finally have something else than the Jeff Foxworthy-hosted Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? to makes us feel a little dim between the ears. Due out in April, author and founder of Wealth Logic LLC, Allan Roth brings us the story of his eight-year old son Kevin in How a Second Grader Beats Wall Street: Golden Rules Any Investor Can Learn.
In second grade my children were in Little League and Girl Scouts … not learning how to invest and diversify their stock portfolios!
Roth shares the story of how he was able to teach his son simple, common sense techniques and strategies for investing. Wiley’s catalog copy mentions that Roth and his son share “fresh, new approaches to investing, along with some of the tried-and-true existing but rare approaches.” Though this book might not be groundbreaking, it seems to be an enjoyable read, and if the investing techniques are so simple that a child can understand and follow them, then I’m sure many of us could benefit from them as well. Considering the fact that Roth’s company advises clients with portfolios ranging from $10,000 to $50 million, I feel it’s safe to say he has the credentials.
Filed under: Books in General, Financial/Accounting, Investing | Tags: Business, Financial/Accounting, Investing
Panic is too mild a word for what many investors are experiencing right now, with banks closing or being bought at an alarming rate, the stock market dropping drastically, and the success of the government bailout questionable at best. So the question of the day is “Where do I put my money?”
One possible answer is found in the new release The Gone Fishin’ Portfolio , published by Wiley and written by Alexander Green. Green is the chairman of Investment U and the investment director for The Oxford Club. He brings his 23 years of investment experience to this book, which details his proven investment strategy, based on the mathematical formulas of Dr. Harold Markowitz, who won the 1990 Nobel Prize in Economics for his work.
Green’s contention is that if you follow his investment advice, made up of a simple mix of mutual funds, you can let it run and go fishing. Although this may sound too good to be true, by following this formula Green was able to retire from the securities industry at age 43 having gone from a net worth of zero to financial independence. The key to his success is Asset Allocation, developing the most effective, optimal mix of investments. By optimal, he means “that there is not another combination of asset classes that is expected to generate a higher ratio of return to risk.”
Of course, investment strategies are everywhere, so we recommend you do your homework before buying into Green’s advice. Here are a couple of opinions on Green’s investment strategy out in the market place: Daily Wealth, and Stock Gumshoe. We’d love to hear your thoughts as well.
