Q. “Timon you were right about the delay in the voting in the USA, due to the counting of hand mail.
But now the big question is.
What can we expect with the US stock markets, with Joe Biden becoming the next American President?”
A. I did some research on the weekend. When I went to back-test the US stock markets over the last 23 election years, what I found might surprise ... ››› more
The only thing on investors' minds right now is the US election.
At the time of writing the final votes have yet to be tallied. Right now, many battleground states are still up for grabs, with Pennsylvania looking like the key to victory.
Trump has already claimed the win and approached the courts filing multiple lawsuits in most of the swing states. He's demanded a recount in Wisconsin. A... ››› more
Q. “Hi Timon, with the gemors going on in South Africa, I really want to just be able to trade overseas. Could you please tell me how I can open an offshore trading account, how much money I'll need and which brokers are the easiest to trade with?”
A. I fully understand where you’re coming from.
It’s not safe anymore to keep your money in just one place – especiall... ››› more
Right now everyone's talking about the US presidential elections. While the US president doesn't directly affect us - what happens to the US economy affects the entire world. So, there's definitely some merit in keeping an eye on the Americans…
Similarly - in 2021 we'll have local government elections again in SA as well.
So how do elections affect the stock market? And is there anything... ››› more
I bought my first shares in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis.
My first buy was Old Mutual shares, and the price rose by more than 211% in the 18 months following my buy…
I rolled some of my returns into a property company, and an industrial stock - in the end I turned a couple thousand rand as a student into enough money to pay for my studies, put down a deposit on my first propert... ››› more
***What's a circuit Breaker?
Q. Circuit Breakers? This is a new term that I've been seeing on Bloomberg lately. Could you explain what it means and does it apply to the JSE as well?
A. A circuit breaker is a safety device which stops the flow of electricity by switching itself off, if anything goes wrong.
The same applies in the financial world…
A circuit brea... ››› more
Over the course of 2018 the crypto market shed around $700 billion, or about 84% of its value. But while many were focused on the crypto crash, there was a major announcement in the crypto market that went unnoticed.
In July 2018, Switzerland's stock exchange announced it was building a fully integrated trading, settlement and custody infrastructure for digital assets.
Their g... ››› more
It's no secret that US stocks are flying.
Even if there's a small correction, share prices always seem to bounce back and keep going higher.
In fact, US stocks have gone up for almost 10 years now - without a losing year. This has led many people to think that they're extremely expensive.
But what if I told you US stocks are actually cheap?
You'd probably be surprised and call me crazy. ... ››› more
In 1954, 24-year-old Warren Buffett received a phone call that would ultimately change his life.
The person on the other line offered Buffett a job in New York City and he accepted without asking about the salary.
It was arguably the smartest - and most profitable - decision he ever made.
That's because Buffett knew the man who had just employed him. A man he studied under at Columbia Uni... ››› more
AB InBev (ANH:JSE) has steadily fallen from it's R2,000 high in Feb 2016 down below R1,100 today. The fall is as a result of them processing the massive take-over of SAB, the Rand strengthening and the market pricing in a dividend cut in the full-year results to December.
ANH's emerging market exposure will provide it with superior growth over the long-term, and with Trump likely to strike a tr... ››› more
Last week, Richemont (CFR:JSE) announced its joint venture with Alibaba. An opportunity for mass distribution like this could see Richemont's sales soar over the coming years. Especially in China, where Alibaba has a strong presence and China is expected to account for nearly 50% of the luxury goods market in the next six years.
... ››› more
At first glance investing seems inaccessible, confusing and sometimes even scary.
But the concept really is simple - investors (like you) buy small pieces of companies called shares.
The amount of money you make will be based on how well the company's share price does, and whether it gives you any share of the profits it makes (called dividends).
... ››› more
“Francois, where should I take my money? ‘They' tell me to take as much as possible offshore right now. Is that the right place to invest?”
With the three year return on the JSE sitting at a grand total of 9.49% many investors are asking me whether it is still relevant investing in the JSE.
Perhaps inve... ››› more
Following on the theme of buying shares at a discount, today's company is trading at a discount to its net asset value as well as paying over 6.5% in dividends.
You will get paid to patiently wait for the company's share price to return to a premium to its net asset value (NAV).
The biggest reason for the discount is that it failed to comply with credit regulations in the past. These issues... ››› more
Buying shares at a significant discount provides some downside protection.
Knowing you bought R1 of assets for 79 cents gives you comfort, and one investment holding company is trading at exactly that.
While investment holding companies typical trade at a discount to their some of the parts value, when these companies sell or distribute assets, the benefit is received at full market value.
... ››› more
Did you know in a 200-year period, nothing has come close to matching the long-term compounded returns of stocks?
In a study conducted by University of Pennsylvania finance professor, Jeremy Siegel,
showed that every $1 invested in:
• Treasury Bills, grew to $5,061
• Bonds were worth $18,235
• Gold rose to $32.84 204
And stocks returned a phenomenal $12.7 million.
But do... ››› more
Back in 2015 I made a quick 56% return from Trustco Holdings. Back then, the share looked like it had a lot of promise.
And had I held on, I could've made even bigger gains as the share continued rising - now sitting at R10 a share from its 2015 lows of 255c.
But my reasons for selling the share were, and are still valid.
The CEO sold personal assets to the company under questionable cond... ››› more
Last week was a busy week with the market sailing through a gauntlet of central bank meetings, escalating trade tensions and a historic meeting between the US and North Korea.
Surprisingly the JSE held up relatively well buoyed by a weaker Rand. We've also seen volatility (measured by the VIX) drop back towards 12, a level that signals the market might not be pricing in the risk of a “Trump ... ››› more
Extremely wealthy people don't invest in ETF's. They don't buy properties from estate agent listings… They buy into private deals. They buy businesses before they even list on the stock market…
And, they typically do the opposite of what textbooks tell you to do…
They don't invest in hundreds of businesses and ‘diversify' their holdings by industry, country and market… They tend to... ››› more
Q1 GDP coming out at -2.2%, the worst since Q1 2009, reflects that the Ramaphoria optimism has not resulted in any tangible results and likely kept investors complacent.
The rand strength is hard to explain and perhaps it will weaken while investors and portfolio managers digest the impact of these GDP figures on their investments.
Look to pick up the quality rand hedges that have been sol... ››› more
Home
Search
Menu
Our products
