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Advisor Perspectives
Insights into the world of high- and ultra-high net worth investing
June 2, 2009- Vol 3, Issue 22
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Of the thousands of investment
letters penned in the industry, only one draws as much readership as Warren
Buffet's annual letter to his shareholders: The quarterly
commentary written by Jeremy
Grantham. Grantham, the Chairman of the Boston-based
investment firm Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo, was a featured speaker at
Morningstar's Investor Conference last week, and he spoke at two breakout sessions.
Those who, like me, attended both were richly rewarded, as he gave two distinctly different talks,
addressing many subjects not covered in his commentaries.
George Tamer, Director of
Institutional Sales at TD AMERITRADE
Institutional, discusses the innovative
strategies advisors are using to add clients and improve profitability. Tamer is also
seeing an upturn in merger activities,
and describes how advisors looking to buy or sell a firm can best position
themselves. We thank them for their sponsorship.
The last 18 months have challenged
advisors, as they now wait for the market and economy to stabilize. Despite
the generally bearish sentiment, Janus believes many individual investment opportunities in the market today
offer compelling valuations and
risk/reward profiles. We thank them for their sponsorship.
In his remarks at the Morningstar
conference last week, Vanguard founder
and index fund pioneer John Bogle criticized many aspects of the mutual
fund industry. Bogle, who turned 80 this year, is primed
to fight his next battle - reducing
investor reliance on past returns - which he likens to a lantern on the stern of a ship.
Over the past few months, we've all read about "the
new frugality" that has become part of our culture.
Consumers are rethinking their spending plans - yielding some surprising results about how people decide their
priorities in tough times. Dan Richards looks at the implications of this trend for financial advisors.
We publish a number of responses to Ted Wong's article last
week, What the "Missing Out"
Argument Misses.
We must all ask how well run ('healthy') are our businesses? Are we well-positioned
for long term sustainability? Will we continue to be around for
our clients when they need us most? In this guest contribution, Terry Bell shares data his firm has collected
from hundreds of US advisory firms that can help answer these
questions.
Lastly, we highlight submissions to Advisor Market Commentaries.
We welcome guest submissions from our
readers. For more information, here are our guidelines.
If you are experiencing problems
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version. Please send an email to feedback@advisorperspectives.com requesting the "text-only" version.
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Grantham says the US
equity market is now fairly valued, with the exception of one sector - high-quality
growth stocks. But investors must beware of several risks, which he
spelled out in his two talks at the Morningstar Advisor Conference last
week.
Jeremy Grantham's Warnings to
Investors
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Now more than
ever, advisors want to grow their businesses while keeping a lid on expenses.
For many, this requires thinking more strategically about how they operate.
George Tamer, Director, Institutional Sales, at TD AMERITRADE
Institutional, oversees a team that works to help registered investment
advisors create operational efficiencies by assisting them on workflow
processes, technology usage, and best practices.
Helping Advisors Grow
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Market
Perspectives from Janus' Seven Global Sector Teams
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In Janus' March
2009 Market Perspectives whitepaper, the firm's seven global sector teams
provide their bottom-up views on a range of topics, from short-term cyclical
developments and the new U.S. administration's policies, to secular themes
that they believe will drive long-term performance.
Market Perspectives from Janus'
Seven Global Sector Teams
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John Bogle and the Lantern on the Stern
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Bogle's latest crusade is helping investors who "give far more
credence to past returns in the stock market than they deserve.' He
said it is the sources of the returns that determine the future, and
investors should rely on reasonable expectations based on those sources of
returns
John Bogle and the Lantern on the
Stern
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Building Personal Connections with Clients
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Your paramount goal is to ensure clients are well-served in the financial
advice they receive. Yet, in many cases, your personal connections to
clients are just as important as the advice they receive. To build truly deep
bonds, focus on both the professional and personal aspects of your
relationships.
Building Personal Connections with
Clients
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Letters to the Editor - What the "Missing Out"
Argument Misses
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A number of readers comment on Ted Wong's article last week, What the
"Missing Out" Argument Misses.
Letters to the Editor - What the
"Missing Out" Argument Misses
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Are Advisors Prepared for the Future?
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Given the current and likely future market conditions, it's now time to
take stock, objectively review your business and take whatever steps are necessary
to ensure you capitalize on the undoubted opportunities ahead.
Are Advisors Prepared for the
Future?
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Highlights
from Advisor Market Commentaries
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John Mauldin of Millennium Wave Advisors says this time it will be
different. The choices we make as to how to fund, or not fund, the increases
in spending that are our clear and sad destiny, will have a major impact on
not just the US
but the world economy. As US consumers have been a major part of the growth
of the developing world, and especially Asia
(China),
a slowing of consumption in the US
will mean a very slow recovery for the rest of the world.
Read the commentary
The investment management team at Fortigent writes that gold continues to
garner tremendous attention as the favored trade of the year. Over
the course of the past 15 days, gold rose from $910 to nearly $980 per
ounce. Noted hedge fund managers such as John Paulson revealed they
are buying the precious metal in a big way. One of his funds has a
near 30% allocation to the SPDR Gold Trust (ticker: GLD), representing an
ownership stake of 8% of the fund itself.
Read the commentary
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Advisor
Perspectives
Box 380
Lexington, MA 02420
(781) 376-0050
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