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Understanding Volatility
One measure frequently used to to describe behavior of a stock is volatility. Volatility indicates the dispersion of returns for a particular security, usually in relation to returns from the same security or a broader market index. In simpler terms, volatility expresses how much risk or uncertainty is associated with a stock’s value. The higher […]
Posted in Finance Glossary
Inside the Dow
The Dow, or the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), is the most watched stock index on the planet. It is a price-weighted average tabulated from 30 high profile stocks traded on the NYSE and NASDAQ, including those of the world’s most influential companies. The Dow is such an important measure of market performance that both […]
Posted in Finance Glossary
Investors sweat dets of DowDuPont deal
Some people are hard to please… Andrew Liveris, the CEO of Dow Chemical, has been busy… He is merging the company with DuPont, and then promptly splitting the company into three pieces, something activist investors have been advocating for years… But instead of being happy, the activists are carping about the details… David Benoit of […]
Macroeconomic Terms: Free Rider Problem
In economic policy, a free rider, is a type of market failure in which a person or entity takes advantage of a public good without paying for it, like a bus passenger that does not pay their ticket. The free rider problem only applies when supply is not significantly diminished by the number of people […]
Posted in Finance Glossary
Big challenge looms for Republicans
President Trump and the Republican Congress have failed to pass any significant legislation over the past six months… Kate Davidson of the Wall Street Journal asks the next logical question: What if they cannot pass the debt ceiling increase in September: Next Up for GOP Congress: Raising the Debt Ceiling…
Utility help their customers compete
There is a growing trend for local electricity utilities to encourage local and residential power… It takes pressure off the grid, and the utility can still earn a reasonable rate of return… Diane Cardwell of the New York Times has an example: Utility Helps Wean Vermonters From the Electric Grid
Spain re-emerges
Spain is starting to grow again, from a very low base… The country is once more competitive in the world economy… It’s a reasonable place to do business again for two reasons: A decade of recession has made skilled labor and rents competitive in price… And the low euro has made the prices affordable… Peter […]
Reorg whispers dog tech giant
How the mighty have fallen… Anonymous “people involved in talks over the workout” have told the Wall Street Journal that Toshiba may file for bankruptcy: Toshiba Bankruptcy Filing Pushed by Some Involved in Workout… Rumors like this can become self-fulfilling prophecies…
Twitter has a simple problem
Twitter continues to have the same issues, an inadequate revenue model… Miriam Gottfried of the Wall Street Journal has the story: Investors Don’t Believe in Twitter’s Turnaround…
SPECIAL: Lessons learned in direct lending