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15 January 2025
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AI is affecting ever expanding fields of human activity, and the way we invest is no exception. Here's how investors, advisors and investment managers can better prepare to manage the opportunities and risks that come with AI.
Data science is increasingly embedded into the research process of investment teams with the resources to exploit new technologies. The way the data is integrated and interpreted is crucial.
Should sin stocks, those companies who engage in activities that are considered unethical or immoral, be excluded from a portfolio, or would this compromise potential performance?
Many large investors pay higher brokerage fees, hoping to gain favour with brokers to gain access to IPOs. Are rare IPO gains worth the loss of quality execution at the best price every day?
Financial advisers spend an inordinate amount of time selecting fund managers for their clients, but is the impact/effort matrix worth it. It's hard enough for good managers to even beat the index.
The main benefit a financial adviser can give clients is not in stock picking or selecting an outperforming manager, but acting as a wealth coach and helping to control emotions.
Chasing higher market returns inevitably comes with higher risk, but is there a portfolio 'sweet spot' that accepts some risk in exchange for better performance, while keeping fees under control?
Choosing a fund manager who outperforms the market on a pre-tax basis is good, but if you also consider the tax effect on that performance, you really start to identify who the best managers are.
Market performance and outperformance can come from many sources, but the main thing to watch for is that you're not paying high 'alpha' fees simply to achieve market 'beta' returns.
The term 'alpha' may be financial jargon, but for fund managers, it's the highly sought-after prize for successful active management that justifies fees charged. But how do you select a good manager?
Last year, I wrote an article suggesting returns from ASX stocks would trample those from housing over the next decade. One year later, this is an update on how that forecast is going and what's changed since.
The housing market was subdued in 2024, and pessimism abounds as we start the new year. 2025 is likely to be a tale of two halves, with interest rate cuts fuelling a resurgence in buyer demand in the second half of the year.
The renowned investor has penned his first investor letter for 2025 and it’s a ripper. He runs through what bubbles are, which ones he’s experienced, and whether today’s markets qualify as the third major bubble of this century.
Key lessons include expensive stocks can always get more expensive, Bitcoin is our tulip mania, follow the smart money, the young are coming with pitchforks on housing, and the importance of staying invested.
Check out the most-read Firstlinks articles from 2024. From '16 ASX stocks to buy and hold forever', to 'The best strategy to build income for life', and 'Where baby boomer wealth will end up', there's something for all.
2024 was a banner year for equities, with a run-up in US tech stocks broadening into a global market rally, and the big question now is whether the good times can continue? History suggests optimism is warranted.