Sitting beneath the $15 trillion that global investors have sunk into private capital, a burgeoning pool of investments that covers everything from private equity and private credit to venture capital and real estate funds, is a mind-numbing accounting problem. Investment firms make countless bespoke deals with their deep-pocketed clients, creating the need for highly complex, custom calculations to figure out the investment firms’ management fees and who will reap what share of the profits. “It doesn’t matter if you manage $50 million or $250 billion across venture capital, real estate or private equity. All of this is managed in Excel,”…

Both positive and negative earnings surprises—that is, reported earnings above or below analyst expectations—can have lingering long-term effects. Therefore, tracking analysts’ revisions to their earnings estimates can be a rewarding investing strategy. AAII tracks four screens that look for earnings estimate revisions: one that looks for upward revisions in annual earnings estimates; one that screens for companies with downward revisions; one that screens for companies that have had at least a 5% increase in annual earnings estimates over the last month; and, finally, one that screens for companies that have had at least a 5% decrease in annual earnings estimates…

In this article I use AAII’s A+ Investor Stock Grades to provide insight into three retail stocks. With retail sales data beating market expectations, should you consider the three stocks of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA), Dillard’s (DDS) and JD.com (JD)? Retail Stocks Recent News Retail sales in the U.S. increased 0.4% month over month in October 2024, surpassing market expectations of 0.3%, as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau. This builds on the 0.8% increase in September, highlighting persistent strength in consumer spending. Deloitte’s annual holiday retail forecast predicts a 2.3% to 3.3% increase in holiday retail sales for…

With Bitcoin bumping up against $100k, crypto enthusiasts are once again frothing at the mouth. The election has given a boost to crypto sponsors, miners, and owners—and anyone else who has a vested interest in that corner of DeFi. Although Bitcoin has never really proven itself to be a reliable medium of exchange given its extraordinary volatility, it has shown itself to be an alternate store of value similar to gold. Every time it gets clobbered (and boy does it get clobbered: it lost nearly 80% of its value in 2022), every big step down has been followed by several…

Most people think inflation will rise in a second Trump term—we can see it in the jump in 10-year Treasury rates over the last few weeks. But that trade is getting just a little bit crowded—and we contrarians are going to take advantage of that with a 10.4%-yielding closed-end fund (CEF) that’s come back to earth as a result. This situation reminds me a little of October 2023, when investors were also betting on “inflation forever.” We didn’t buy it then, either. Instead I named the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (DLY), payer of a 9.5% yield at the time, as…

Key News Asian equities were mixed overnight as South Korea underperformed in an unexpected political development, Taiwan and Indonesia outperformed, and the US dollar was weaker overnight while Thailand was closed for the King’s birthday. Hong Kong and Mainland China had a lifeless session lacking catalysts as investors appear to be waiting for next week’s China Economic Work Conference (CEWC) for more economic policies and clarity around stimulus. Gaining clarity on the timing of the Politburo meeting would be helpful as a release coming out of it would help investors understand the policy trajectory. Today was a sequel to yesterday’s…

SpaceX may now be valued at $350 billion, making it the world’s most valuable startup. In a tender offer expected to occur later this month, insiders are looking to receive a dramatically higher valuation than the $210 billion figure reported earlier this year. As a private company, SpaceX does not disclose its financial details publicly. However, industry analysts have made informed estimates regarding its revenue and earnings growth. For instance, Morgan Stanley’s models indicate that a $350 billion valuation would imply a price-to-sales ratio of 23.6 and a price-to-earnings ratio of 308 for 2024. With SpaceX’s rapid growth trajectory, these…

When you’re seeking new opportunities, hoping to increase your knowledge, or aspiring to enhance your professional career trajectory, pursuing a Master of Business Administration (MBA) can be a valuable step. While it’s important to consider the investment involved, the benefits of an MBA can be significant. Here are some factors to consider when deciding if it makes financial sense to pursue an MBA. Understand Your Goals Before you begin to think about programs, you want to understand what you want to achieve by going through schooling. You want to narrow your goal to a specific job title and industry to…

The Federal Open Market Committee is most likely to cut interest rates again to 4.25% to 4.5% on December 18 according to fixed income markets and the tone of two recent speeches from Federal Reserve governors. Prediction site Kalshi, currently gives a similar 73% chance of a cut. There is more economic data on jobs and inflation to come before the FOMC meets, but with subdued inflation and a somewhat softening jobs market, a cut appears likely. Recent Fed Statements The FOMC did cut interest rates at its two previous meetings in September and November after holding rates at peak…

Key News Asian equities had a strong day as Indonesia was up more than 2%, while Japan, Pakistan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand were up more than 1%. Early in the trading day, CNH, offshore traded renminbi, fell versus the US dollar, closing at 7.29 and hitting an intra-day low of 7.31 versus yesterday’s close of 7.28. US Treasury yields were lower overnight, so the move doesn’t appear to be driven by interest rate differentials, as the probability of a December Fed cut of 0.25% basis points remains high. President Trump’s most recent 100% tariff threat toward the BRICS+ countries…