In this PMC Vantage Point video, Brooks Friederich, Director, Fund Strategist Portfolios at Envestnet, discusses "The Tactics on Tactical Strategies".  Learn about the different types of tactical strategies, how to use them within client portfolios, and how to set proper performance expectations. [...]Read More >

January 2, 2015 By Steve Blumenthal Each month, I like to look at the market’s valuation to get a sense of potential upside reward relative to downside risk. Today, let’s look at three valuation measures, one based on reported earnings through 12-31-2014, one based on operating revenue, and the [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2084 By Steve Blumenthal December 31, 2014 The weight of evidence continues to support the continuation of the current cyclical bull market trend. Risk is high as the equity market remains overvalued and the cyclical trend aged. Investor sentiment has once again reached [...]Read More >

December 26, 2014 By Steve Blumenthal All cycles eventually come to an end.  In the case of commodity bulls, 16 years is the average duration.  The longest lasted 24 years (1896–1920), the shortest lasted 8 years (1972–1980), and the most recent secular bull ended in 2011 after 12 years. What [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2082 By Steve Blumenthal December 24, 2014 The weight of evidence continues to support the aged cyclical bull market. Click here for my recently published Forbes article discussing the probabilities for 2015. Risk is high and the equity market is expensive. Let’s keep a [...]Read More >

12/18/2014 @ 3:16PM Steve Blumenthal , Contributor I wrote often throughout 2014 about the danger signals flashing from an excessive run up in debt and derivatives. We have a repeat of the scenario we suffered in 2008, only much worse (Watch Junks Bonds For Early Warnings Of New Financial [...]Read More >

December 12, 2014 By Steve Blumenthal "Unselfish acts are the real miracles out of which all the reported miracles grow." - Ralph Waldo Emerson Have you watched any of the great Netflix TV series House of Cards? Set in present-day Washington, D.C., House of Cards is the story of Frank Underwood [...]Read More >

December 17, 2014 By Aparna Narayanan Investor's Business Daily Russian markets took a fatal fall Tuesday after a massive hike in interest rate sparked instability in the ruble.  Despite President Vladimir Putin assuring the economy will be cured, the country's stock has been slammed in recent [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2012 By Steve Blumenthal December 17, 2014 It didn’t take long for the extreme optimism to diminish. I remain in the buy the dip camp. Sentiment is nearing extreme pessimism and we have entered the seasonally favorable time of year. Oil and geopolitical risk is front and [...]Read More >

December 12, 2014 By Steve Blumenthal "That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.” Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894-1963) Put me down as a long-time Philadelphia Eagles fan. But let's just say I'm on the good [...]Read More >

December 12, 2014 By Steve Blumenthal "That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.” Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894-1963) Put me down as a long-time Philadelphia Eagles fan. But let's just say I'm on the good [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2060 By Steve Blumenthal December 10, 2014  “We are 5.75 years into the mega-bull market that began in 2009. That is a very long period for even mega-bulls. Compare it with bulls from 1923 (5.83 years), 1994 (5.75 years), and 2002 (5.0 years).” Ned Davis (Ned’s Insights [...]Read More >

December 5, 2014 By Steve Blumenthal "Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do work you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2070 By Steve Blumenthal December 3, 2014 Volatility is picking up in high yield. The decline in the price of oil has heightened concern for the survivability of energy related high yield bonds. Our high yield bond strategy hit its stop-loss level and we moved to short-term [...]Read More >

S&P 500 Index 2069 By Steve Blumenthal November 26, 2014 In short summary: Trend evidence remains positive as measured by Big Mo and the 13/34-Week EMA on the S&P 500. Sentiment is far too bullish suggesting short-term caution. Sentiment has reached the extreme bullish state about [...]Read More >