What we’re reading (3/17)
Happy St. Patty’s Day!
“Investing In Bonds Has ‘Become Stupid,’ Ray Dalio Says. Here’s What He Recommends Instead” (MarketWatch). “The founder of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge-fund firm, decried the ‘ridiculously low yields’ of bonds in a LinkedIn blog post Monday, while urging a diversified portfolio…Dalio has never been a fan of holding cash either — and he still isn’t.”
“P/E Ratios And The Case Of The Dueling Denominators” (Fisher Investments). “[I]f a ratio holds steady while the numerator rises, then the denominator must also be rising. That is the case now: Even as earnings were falling last year, analysts looked to the future, to lockdowns ending and normal(ish) economic activity returning, and penciled in a strong recovery. Stock prices rose alongside expectations, in a sign investors were looking to that same future.”
“Learning Apps Have Boomed in the Pandemic. Now Comes the Real Test.” (New York Times). “After a tough year of toggling between remote and in-person schooling, many students, teachers and their families feel burned out from pandemic learning. But companies that market digital learning tools to schools are enjoying a coronavirus windfall. Venture and equity financing for education technology start-ups has more than doubled, surging to $12.58 billion worldwide last year from $4.81 billion in 2019[.]”
“Commodities Boom Hits Home” (Wall Street Journal). “Prices are surging for the raw materials used to build American homes. Lumber, one of the biggest costs in home-building after land and labor, has never been more expensive and is more than twice the typical price for this time of year. Crude oil, a starting point for paint, drain pipe, roof shingles and flooring, has shot up more than 80% since October. Copper, which carries water and electricity throughout houses, costs about a third more than it did in the autumn.”
“U.S. Housing Starts Fall Sharply In February” (CNBC). “Housing starts dropped 10.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.421 million units last month, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast starts would drop to a rate of 1.560 million units in February.”
