15th November 2016
The more experienced fund managers are, the worse they perform
One of the reasons for the enduring popularity of active fund management, despite all the evidence that for most of us it’s a thoroughly bad idea, is that the case for using active funds sounds so very plausible. It seems … Continued
Read Post14th November 2016
World record-breaker Mark Beaumont toasts Carbon’s charity cycle challenge
The ‘Carbon Fivers’ charity cycle has been toasted by Scots round-the-world cyclist and Winning Scotland Foundation ambassador Mark Beaumont at a celebratory event held at Edinburgh’s Botanic Gardens. The Carbon team, who completed climbs totalling 33,500 feet while negotiating the scenic but … Continued
Read Post9th November 2016
You’re hired!
Donald Trump used to utter these words in the hit cross-Atlantic TV show The Apprentice. Today, the American electorate have given the same endorsement to him: “You’re hired”. Despite having recently experienced our own ‘surprise’ victory in a two horse … Continued
Read Post8th November 2016
Carbon’s fourth investment principle: active buying and selling adds significant cost and erodes value.
The hunt for Lord Sugar’s next business partner continues in the hit TV show The Apprentice. This year’s batch of ‘wannabe’ entrepreneurs were tasked with spotting the desirable items amongst a batch of curios and collectibles and then selling them … Continued
Read Post24th October 2016
Ignore the scaremongers — indexing won’t break the market
There’s been quite a controversy recently about a paper produced by the New York based investment research firm Sanford C. Bernstein. It carries the rather emotive title The Silent Road to Serfdom: Why Passive Investing is Worse Than Marxism. Perhaps … Continued
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In Monday’s Press & Journal, Carbon’s Investment Director, Barry O’Neill explains that the beauty of well-functioning investment markets is all the available information is processed by market participants and finds its way into security prices. Barry demonstrates this by explaining how … Continued
Read Post26th September 2016
Mark Beaumont congratulates Carbon Fivers on their Highland 500 Challenge success
It was the equivalent of scaling Everest and Ben Nevis back-to- back but our “Carbon Fivers” team certainly rose to the challenge. Over the course of five days on remote Highland roads assailed by wind and rain, our group tackled … Continued
Read Post23rd September 2016
Carbon Fivers 500 Highland Challenge – Day 5
“102 miles, 3,800 feet. Good day. Job done.” (Tweet, Day 5) In his final blog about taking on the Carbon Fivers 500 Highland Challenge, lead cyclist Richard Wadsworth and the team wave goodbye to Britain’s remotest hotel and head for … Continued
Read Post22nd September 2016
“Include better ingredients so your cake wins the bake-off” – Carbon’s third Investment principle
Carbon advises clients to buy and hold shares in ‘small’ companies and ‘value’ companies as part of their portfolios. The definition of what constitutes a ‘value’ company is more complicated to explain than that of a ‘small’ company, which is … Continued
Read Post22nd September 2016
Carbon Fivers 500 Highland Challenge – Day 4
“Another 90 miles, 5,850 feet climbing. Needed teamwork to get through the windy moorland.” (Tweet, Day 4) In the fourth of his blogs about taking on the Carbon Fivers 500 Highland Challenge, lead cyclist Richard Wadsworth recalls more biting wind, … Continued
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