Practically every zoo has a giraffe, and they all look alike: long neck, tan spots, four legs. Until around 2007, scientists thought there was just one kind of giraffe. But then a team of geneticists at UCLA discovered that there are actually at least six and maybe even 11 different species of giraffes. Those different species, it turns out, really are different, and some are quite rare — a finding that has helped scientists and conservationists rearrange their giraffe priorities. It just goes to show the dangers of thinking “They’re all the same.”#-ad_banner-#… Read More

Practically every zoo has a giraffe, and they all look alike: long neck, tan spots, four legs. Until around 2007, scientists thought there was just one kind of giraffe. But then a team of geneticists at UCLA discovered that there are actually at least six and maybe even 11 different species of giraffes. Those different species, it turns out, really are different, and some are quite rare — a finding that has helped scientists and conservationists rearrange their giraffe priorities. It just goes to show the dangers of thinking “They’re all the same.”#-ad_banner-# It’s a common misperception investors have when it comes to stocks, too: Many people think a stock is a stock is a stock. But actually, there are several different kinds, and you ought to know how to tell them apart so that you too can get your priorities straight. Here are five types of stocks to know about before you invest. Common Stock Common stock is the most popular kind… Read More

Today’s essay is a little different than you’re used to. I’m not going to talk about any specific investment. Nor am I going to tell you about a stock that I think is about to take off. Frankly, what I have to tell you is much bigger… and much more important to your success as an investor. It all begins back nearly three decades ago. You see, I began my investment career while I was still… Read More

Today’s essay is a little different than you’re used to. I’m not going to talk about any specific investment. Nor am I going to tell you about a stock that I think is about to take off. Frankly, what I have to tell you is much bigger… and much more important to your success as an investor. It all begins back nearly three decades ago. You see, I began my investment career while I was still in the U.S. Air Force. I spent 20 years in the service, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before retiring. During those two decades I served in Spain, Germany, Japan, Korea (at least 10 times), Iceland and Guam. In my spare time, I earned my MBA and became more serious about investing. I taught myself the ins and outs and read anything about the topic that I could get my hands on. (When I was stationed in Iceland, I would study the Financial Times for hours on end while my station was… Read More

A sharp plunge on Monday, Aug.8, a stunning rebound on Tuesday, another pullback on Wednesday. When will it all end? It’s increasingly clear that very low price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios aren’t grounds enough to bring out value investors. Instead,… Read More

Traders have long admired the performance of Steve Cohen, the manager of hedge funds at SAC Capital. Recently, Cohen and his firm have been in the news because of an… Read More

Every stock investor has heard about the importance of diversification. In fact, I have emphasized many times in my articles just how critical being properly diversified is when managing a successful long-term portfolio. Diversification is not just critical for a long-term portfolio — it is the primary key for survival in the stock market. Massive bull markets, like the one taking place now, can have the negative effect of causing investors to become complacent, take too many risks, and… Read More

Every stock investor has heard about the importance of diversification. In fact, I have emphasized many times in my articles just how critical being properly diversified is when managing a successful long-term portfolio. Diversification is not just critical for a long-term portfolio — it is the primary key for survival in the stock market. Massive bull markets, like the one taking place now, can have the negative effect of causing investors to become complacent, take too many risks, and not diversify correctly. I know from experience that it is difficult not to go “all-in” on a hot stock. During the dot-com boom of the late 1990s, one Internet stock in particular just seemed to be going up day after day.#-ad_banner-# Noticing the uptrend, I decided to liquidate my portfolio and go all-in with this stock. Ignoring everything I knew about diversification, I used all of my capital and leverage, purchasing a large number of the… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise crew — is that the word “sabotage” comes from “sabot,” a French word for shoes or clogs. During the Industrial Revolution, protesting workers threw their wooden sabot into machines designed to replace them, intending to destroy the machines. (A Vulcan crew member — played by a pointy-eared Kim Cattrall, long before “Sex and the City” made her a star — shared this piece of wisdom.) Sabotage is often associated with subtle methods of destruction, although throwing shoes into a machine isn’t particularly subtle. Sabotage can even take place in your finances. You might even be perpetrating financial sabotage on your… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise crew — is that the word “sabotage” comes from “sabot,” a French word for shoes or clogs. During the Industrial Revolution, protesting workers threw their wooden sabot into machines designed to replace them, intending to destroy the machines. (A Vulcan crew member — played by a pointy-eared Kim Cattrall, long before “Sex and the City” made her a star — shared this piece of wisdom.) Sabotage is often associated with subtle methods of destruction, although throwing shoes into a machine isn’t particularly subtle. Sabotage can even take place in your finances. You might even be perpetrating financial sabotage on your… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise crew — is that the word “sabotage” comes from “sabot,” a French word for shoes or clogs. During the Industrial Revolution, protesting workers threw their wooden sabot into machines designed to replace them, intending to destroy the machines. (A Vulcan crew member — played by a pointy-eared Kim Cattrall, long before “Sex and the City” made her a star — shared this piece of wisdom.) Sabotage is often associated with subtle methods of destruction, although throwing shoes into a machine isn’t particularly subtle. Sabotage can even take place in your finances. You might even be perpetrating financial sabotage on your… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise crew — is that the word “sabotage” comes from “sabot,” a French word for shoes or clogs. During the Industrial Revolution, protesting workers threw their wooden sabot into machines designed to replace them, intending to destroy the machines. (A Vulcan crew member — played by a pointy-eared Kim Cattrall, long before “Sex and the City” made her a star — shared this piece of wisdom.) Sabotage is often associated with subtle methods of destruction, although throwing shoes into a machine isn’t particularly subtle. Sabotage can even take place in your finances. You might even be perpetrating financial sabotage on your… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise… Read More

Long before director J.J. Abrams made Star Trek cool again, I was a fan.#-ad_banner-# I’ve seen all of the movies — from the first ones with Captain Kirk and his crew to the ones with Captain Picard and the “Next Generation” cast all the way through the latest, younger, hipper version that currently dominates the box office. Some are campy fun. Some are thrill rides. Some, frankly, aren’t that great. And sometimes, I even learned something while watching. One of the things I learned while watching “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country” — the last one with the original Enterprise crew — is that the word “sabotage” comes from “sabot,” a French word for shoes or clogs. During the Industrial Revolution, protesting workers threw their wooden sabot into machines designed to replace them, intending to destroy the machines. (A Vulcan crew member — played by a pointy-eared Kim Cattrall, long before “Sex and the City” made her a star — shared this piece of wisdom.) Sabotage is often associated with subtle methods of destruction, although throwing shoes into a machine isn’t particularly subtle. Sabotage can even take place in your finances. You might even be perpetrating financial sabotage on your… Read More