July was a bright spot for mutual fund managers who insist that stock picking is the way to make money. Sixty-seven percent of large-cap stock pickers beat their benchmarks while small-cap managers did their best so far this year, with 43% of them beating their index. Deal me in, right? Except that those July numbers were… Continue reading →

Funny how obvious things can be in the rear-view mirror. Jeff Bezos, founder of online retail giant Amazon, recently saw his wealth surpass that of investing legend Warren Buffett. Separately, Buffett’s own wager on the broad stock market index against a collection of hedge funds continues to embarrass the supposed “smart money” at those funds. There are some very… Continue reading →

What’s going to hurt investors the most over the coming years? You might come up with any number of investment trends to worry about — inflation, debt, politics or terrorism, to name just a few. John Bogle, the founder of investment giant Vanguard, sees another trend, one he calls “highly negative” for investors and worth… Continue reading →

Lawsuits are piling up on the desks of HR directors around the country, all with a common theme: The employee retirement plan was too costly and the company should have known better. Retirement investing is not an expensive process. There are only a few variables and the marketplace is fairly transparent. Unless, of course, you are… Continue reading →

You might not know John Oliver. He’s British, first of all, and his comedy program “Last Week Tonight” airs on late-night cable. The segments on the show are long (22 minutes long!), very wonky and tend to tackle subjects most of us actively avoid — international affairs, payday lending, the downside of the U.S. energy boom, infrastructure spending.… Continue reading →

John Bogle, founder of passive investing giant Vanguard, believes that the animating force behind the stock market is to make money — just not for investors. In a recent interview and a separate letter to the editor, Bogle makes the case that virtually all stock trading benefits the handlers of that money and not retirement savers.… Continue reading →

John Bogle, the longtime champion of low-cost investing and founder of the Vanguard Group, is not one to rest on his laurels. You would think that the recent Department of Labor “clients first” fiduciary standard ruling — earned after decades of fighting an investment industry focused on profits over people — would qualify as a big win. Don’t get me wrong, it… Continue reading →

If you’re like most investors, you likely believe that stockbrokers with checkered pasts get drummed out of the industry. Certainly, out-of-work stockbrokers would like you to believe that. But the data tells a different story: Of brokers fired for misconduct, 44% are back at work within a year. That’s the conclusion of researchers at the… Continue reading →

It’s gospel in some circles that government is the problem, not the solution. Yet it is possible, even today, to find clear examples of political leadership coming together to get something right. That happened just this past month with the announcement by the Department of Labor of a rule that will make retirement investment safer and more transparent for millions… Continue reading →