Three Winners???

I never think of the future. It comes soon enough. - Albert Einstein

I know of no way of judging the future but by the past. - Patrick Henry

I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph. - Shirley Temple

Over the last two days, the news has been flying. So much to cover and so little time. Let’s start with our “Men of the Year.” Time Magazine has announced that Ben Bernanke is the “Person of the Year for 2009.” This announcement has brought a tremendous amount of criticism. Politicians, pundits, financial commentators and analysts are all killing this decision as if Ben picked himself. What’s more amazing is that the big award winner may not get a second chance at the job many people feel he has failed miserably at. He has a fight on his hands in winning another term.

Another ironic nod is Tiger Woods’ winning the AP Athlete of the Year award for 2009. The man is losing everything in his personal life, but still winning awards. Here’s hoping for both his and our sake, we will see and hear less of him in 2010.

Third and most definitely worst, we have Citigroup. Where everything Goldman Sachs touches seems to turn to gold, Citigroup has turned everything to garbage. The stock offering was a disaster. News of the new tax breaks they received has sparked new controversy and they just can’t seem to get out of their own way. The new year will be an interesting one for them.

On to the good stuff. A first timer for the blog, the Hidden Values Alert is a monthly newsletter that focuses on undervalued companies that “are trading 50 cents on the dollar.” The latest release, “Some of the Best Investments Never Made,” editor Charles Mizrahi discusses an article about Warren Buffett and a very simple thing the investing genius does to analyze companies. The publication also profiles stocks that are considered undervalued.

At Eric Dany’s Stock Prospector, “Santa Claus Came Early This Year.” According to the publication, “the lesson here is investors that stayed the course with their investments and strategy are much better off than those that pulled out of the market last year and are still on the sidelines.” Dany also profiles some of 2009 picks as well as some for 2010.

Walter Frank’s Moneyletter is giving a “2010 Outlook.” Come check out their take on what the future holds for the domestic and international markets. You’ll also get a couple of portfolios and a mutual fund scorecard. You’ll also see a few new ETFs for the list.

Chances are news will slow down over the next week, but we’ll be here. So, if you are done shopping for Christmas or wrapping the tube socks for Hanukkah, come back here and learn something that can help in 2010.

For more information, go to http://www.zepinvest.com.

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Mutual Funds: The Other White Meat

I think you'll do as well as most professionals. Most professionals don't beat the market. Let's not over-rate my industry. But if you have time, you can be in good mutual funds that have good records. -- Jim Cramer

Mutual Funds and ETFs have become a tremendous asset to the investing public. They have given people an opportunity that they would not have had a generation ago. While there are many who take advantage of $7 trades and build their own portfolios, many people do not have the time, resources or interest in doing the due diligence it takes to effectively manage their own investments.

Armed with Morningstar snapshots and their Barron’s, these people dump cash by the barrel into the mutual fund industry. Not everything is crystal clear though. This is why people come to ZepInvest for knowledge. Let’s see what the wise ones have for us today…

The Moneyletter is celebrating 30 years in print. This monthly piece written by Walter Frank, provides market commentary, has a mutual fund scorecard as well as portfolios built into the newsletter. It also provides a mutual fund profile. The November 20th edition focuses on the PRIMECAP Odyssey Growth & Aggressive Growth funds.

Bob Carlson’s Retirement Watch brings a conservative approach to investing and focuses on using mutual funds. In the most recent release, there is some great information on estate planning, as well as information on annuities and the upcoming tax season. You will also see market commentary, graph comparisons of different mutual funds as well as updates on both mutual funds and ETFs.

The Mutual Fund Strategist by Holly Hooper-Foumier uses technical strategies to “capture mutual fund profits when the market is advancing and protect gains during times of uncertainty.” The newsletter provides six month charts showing both 50 & 200 day moving averages for many of the major indexes. A market timing strategy using ETFs with Buy/Sell recommendations are available as well as information on many mutual funds.

Three more great examples of what is available to you if you are willing to look for it. Of course every single analyst and money manager has a differing opinion and what is going to happen and how to take advantage of it. As you look through these newsletters, find the one that you connect with, that you believe in. Please remember that not every recommendation or idea has to be followed. Make sure you are making the decisions for the right reasons, not just because you read it somewhere.

Tomorrow will be the fifth and final post of the first week here. I’m going to leave it as a wild card for now and see what is interesting tomorrow. I hope the three of you that have actually read this have found some interest here. I’m just here as a guide to point you in a direction, but would love to know if there is anything specific you might want to see.

For more information, go to http://www.zepinvest.com.

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