It is odd that a company like Boeing could fall apart while others like Toyota can continue to build very reliable products, but I think it is due to a common factor GREED
The same ongoing disasters are very common in health care where the bean counters and private equity have been allowed to take over, putting profits as their only priority
Barron's article on HCA is a good example, but even non profit hospitals have thrown the professionals out of the window and make decisions based on margins only also
Doctors are told what to do, how many patients to see, what medical devices to use or not use based on economics.
Occasionally they object and get fired. But this whistleblower won.
https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/news/2024/05/16/cardiac-procedure-medicare-claims-cape-cod-hospital-richard-zelman-tavr/73721900007/
Patients ( ie customers) suffer
My wife and I are going nuts tying to ensure our daughter's procedure at a major Medical Center is authorized and paid for. It has been almost a month and we are both experienced health care professionals and know what to ask.
And the CEOs of these crappy places make thousands of times more than the workers

@sma3 & @Sven
I have been fortunate in my life time to have made several trips into the BWCA (or BWCAW as it's labeled now). A handful of those trips were made well before cell phones or even SAT phones were in existence. To me the BWCA is called a 'wilderness area' for a reason and you accept that knowing that it's the price you pay for admission. I go there to escape all of societies(?) conveniences and to experience life by one's skills, wits and knowledge. It's glorious.
I can see where it gives many pause however and just within the last month SAT phones were used to summon Search & Rescue assistance for two groups of canoeists HERE. The first ended tragically while the second fared better. My guess is that many more SAT phones will be rented out to canoeing parties in the coming years.
As for cell and/or smart phones, I've always left mine in my vehicle upon entry. Cell service in the BWCA is very spotty at best and most definitely should not be relied upon. Smart phones are good for taking great photo's though and they tend to be small and light weight.

Just noticed - it’s at 4.366% as of 9 AM today. That’s down from over 4.5% last week. Was off sharply yesterday. Don’t pay a lot of attention to bond funds. My two “bond” holdings, PRIHX and LSST both gravitate to the short end of the curve. It hasn’t escaped me that PRWCX has suffered this year due to its bond holdings, as have virtually any other funds with exposure.
Mainly posted FYI

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) -Boeing's new Starliner astronaut capsule was poised for launch on Monday night on a much-delayed first crewed test flight to orbit, as the company scrambles to compete with Elon Musk's SpaceX for a greater share of lucrative NASA business.
The CST-100 Starliner with two astronauts aboard was due for liftoff at 10:34 p.m. from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carried atop an Atlas V rocket furnished by the Boeing-Lockheed Martin joint venture United Launch Alliance (ULA).

Hoping for the best on this one.
Background Info from Wickipedia:

Atlas V is an expendable launch system and the fifth major version in the Atlas launch vehicle family. It was originally designed by Lockheed Martin, now being operated by United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Boeing. It is used for DoD, NASA, and Commercial payloads. It is America's longest-serving active rocket. After 87 launches, in August 2021 ULA announced that Atlas V would be retired, and all 29 remaining launches had been sold. As of January 2024, 17 launches remain. Other future ULA launches will use the new Vulcan Centaur rocket.
Each Atlas V launch vehicle consists of two main stages. The first stage is powered by a Russian engine manufactured by Energomash and burning kerosene and liquid oxygen. The Centaur upper stage is powered by one or two American RL10 engine(s) manufactured by Aerojet Rocketdyne and burns liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. Strap-on solid rocket boosters are used in most configurations.

”This column should not be read as a criticism of low-risk investments. They aren’t required for younger investors, who need not worry about redeeming their funds at the wrong time (at least, if they are sensible), but they are critical for retirees who are withdrawing their assets. Ballast prevents them from entering a bear market spiral in which they spend ever-larger percentages of their portfolio to realize the same amount of money. Do that for long, and you are in real trouble.”
Do younger investors (ie ages 25-45) really pay much attention to portfolio construction / hedging? Sure, some do. And likely if they’re reading this board they pay greater attention than the average working stiff with a job, kids in school, a big mortgage and 25 + years to retirement.
Good article. Hopefully (as the author suggests) well considered portfolio specific hedging may reduce short term volatility for those already in the withdrawal stage. In no way, shape or form would I ever argue that hedging improves longer term performance. And … there’s always the option (hedge) of moving a big chunk into cash and / or CDs, as one well-heeled poster appears to have done recently. As a sometimes landscaper / gardener, I’m aware that hedges come in many different shapes and colors.

Might be worth building a small short on Trump Media. Markets so crazy I’ve actually got smallish short positions using PSQ & SDS. Under 2% of holdings, but allowing me to stay invested in some less frothy areas (including David’s pick - LCORX).
FD may rightly observe that 2% isn’t enough to “move the needle.” However - it does contribute to better sleep. BTW - I believe the investing landscape is likely to look a lot different after November, regardless of the outcome.

@sma3: I take an occasional winger on a M* undervalued stock, but the proof of the methodology is MOAT, my largest single equity holding. I note the space devoted to the index/fund in the linked M* article. Other flavors of ETF equity LCB funds have come along (BFOR, CAPE, and all manner of « quality » entries), yet MOAT is still out front besting the SPY. 2022 performance demonstrated the resilience of the method in down markets. In its bottom-quintile 2021, it still returned 24%. Members are understandably miffed at M* for various misdeeds; moat investing deserves praise.

It was 12% of my bond holdings. Now I need to figure out how I want to rearrange the chairs on the bond deck

@WABAC, DSEEX is an equity fund following the CAPE process, isn't it? What am I missing here?

Companies such as Amazon.com Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google are Nvidia’s largest customers, accounting for nearly 40 per cent of its revenue , as they rush to invest in hardware for AI computing.
Talk about CONCENTRATED. That's freaky-scary. Unhealthy. These companies which I love to hate "own" more and more (and MORE!) of the Market, every time you just turn around. But it's the only (unethical) game in town. Can't stop my Fund Managers from investing in them. The FMs would say they're just trying to make money for me. Oh, well. Stuck in this web, along with everyone else who has not yet managed to escape to a different planet.

Lunch time back East, and TS continues to rise. Nice. No white knuckles here, just a smile. I'll get me some "joe" and catch up with the news. But what MATTERS is the share price at the END of the day. Looks like a very good week, overall. Pretty sunrise reflecting and shining off the tall buildings in our Honolulu cityscape today. 70, partly sunny at 7:38 a.m. Headed for 81 degrees today. Showers later.

Link to Jan 27 Episode:

… dive into the real risks facing the markets with global value investor Matthew McLennan. As markets climb a wall of worry, McLennan shares his insights on protecting yourself from inevitable declines and sticking to a disciplined investment approach.
We explore the key concerns and opportunities in the financial landscape. Stay tuned for valuable insights from McLennan, Co-Head of the global value team at First Eagle Investments, discusses the multiple risks facing “complacent” markets and his strategies to navigate them.

Barron’s Subtitle: “The Market’s Gains Won’t Come Easy From Here”
This is the first of two sessions. This year’s participants are: John W. Rogers Jr., Todd Ahlsten, Meryl Witmer, Rajiv Jain, Mario Gabelli, Scott Black, David Giroux, Sonal Desai, William Priest, Henry Ellenbogen, Abby Joseph Cohen.
It’s an insightful free-wheeling discussion. Short on specific buy recommendations but an exhaustive look at how investing is likely to be affected by domestic / geopolitics (in the broadest sense) along with the economic backdrop. Most foresee a flat to down year for U.S. equities. David Giroux expects a range of +5% / -5% this year - but looking out 5 years sees annual returns in the 6.5% area. He wasn’t too explicit, but seemed to be referencing his own fund (PRWCX) which he termed a “balanced” fund.
Giroux’s list of “likes” is long (excerpt): ”We see good value in managed care, life-sciences tools, utility stocks, and waste. We still see good value in companies like Microsoft, Intuit, and Salesforce, which has a low valuation … we are seeing good value in energy now as some supply-and-demand dynamics have changed.” And he’s still likes “high quality high yield bonds” (The latter struck me as a bit of an oxymoron.)
Graham Holdings (GHC) was recommended strongly by Witmer. Others joined in and much time was devoted to its numerous components including broadcasting, education and health care. It hurt a bit because I recently unloaded this one after what I thought was a nice run-up. Knowing when to sell a stock is a skill that escapes me. Deere (DE) is another stock that received favorable comment.
Participants noted that the economists / market prognosticators were nearly 100% wrong a year ago when recession was widely seen as “baked in the cake” and the market appeared headed for another bad year. Someone quipped that every year one of them says “It’s a stock picker’s market.” (When isn’t it?) Much was said of the approaching U.S. election and mostly with foreboding. One of the “optimists” (Witmer) predicted the U.S. will somehow “muddle through” without significant damage. Some think the markets will rebound late in the year after the election. The eternal optimism of Buffett and Templeton were noted in this regard. But the general feeling was far from optimistic. Most (if not all) find big cap valuations too rich, while small cap value is greatly undervalued. “De-globalization” is seen by some as a headwind, reducing efficiencies and adding costs for consumers. Franklin’s Sonal Desai says the “real interest rate” (inflation +) is in the 4-5% range - much above what the market currently assumes - implying rates will rise by year’s end.
Really recommend this article!

Jan 13th Episode:

In this interview, Sebastien Page shares his insights on how this new regime differs from previous periods and how it requires us to rethink traditional approaches to asset allocation. Join us as we explore the strategies and considerations for building and protecting your wealth in this changing financial landscape.

"Diversification may not be a free lunch, but maybe more like a 'tasty' lunch."

Interesting guys.
I’ve felt rightly or wrongly that Dow 37,000 (reached 2 years ago) is a decent marker of sentiment and valuation. That’s about where it still is today (I’m guessing that’s about neutral today). So, FWIW, I’m pretty much stuck in neutral - where I’ve been all year long. I recognize the Dow doesn’t represent the greater market or have any special significance. But over the years it’s been a half-decent guide for me (of euphoria vs bust). At least as good as 75% of the market prognosticators.
Did unload BINC a few days ago and move into an IG short term (1-3 years) bond ETF. Not a market call. I expect the former will continue to perform well. Just trying to reduce overall risk profile as a decent year ends and with potential distributions in mind. It seemed as good a place as any to take a little risk off the table. (Equity exposure fell slightly from 48% down to 46% as a consequence of the move.)
I’m structured into 10 equally weighted static segments (all but one represented by a single holding), so selling / replacing any one position is a pretty significant move, Also limits my ability to add or reduce risk incrementally. So far so good. But it’s a relatively new methodology for me.
There are so many cross-currents regarding the financial landscape now it’s hard for me to form an opinion on the future course of the economy or stock valuations. Wars, Sino-tensions, disfunction in DC, consumer attitudes re prices, and the approaching elections. All of this has to weigh heavily on investor sentiment.

Giroux = contrarian as ever. Back to seeing yoots as an interesting moneymaker these days, again. He describes how the fundamental landscape has changed over the course of several years for the yoots.
(" What is a yoot?" ---- Fred Gwynn.)

Another excerpted comment from the thread I previously referenced, this one straight to the point(s) by the venerable "dickoncapecod":
Well, you shouldn't be surprised that the financial relationship is between you and the bank that YOU deposited money at. If it is FDIC insured (or even not) institution, you'll surely receive what you are due eventually. However, the smaller the bank and higher the rate, the more likely the bank has antiquated systems and annoyances like this occur. Sometimes it's worth actually computing the dollars and cents gained by chasing "opportunities" in the risk-free rate world versus a good old (floating rate) money market funds.
====================
I responded to Dick's post:
To dick's very worthy point about "chasing 'opportunities'":
Per Fido (bold added):
Fidelity offers a wide range of issues, rates, and maturities to help you find the certificate of deposit (CD) that fits your needs. If a fixed income security is sold or redeemed before maturity, it may be subject to substantial gains or losses. Your ability to sell a CD on the secondary market is subject to market conditions. Fidelity doesn’t decide the creditworthiness of the issuing institution.
Read: If the bank defaults on the interest or principal, it's the account holder's ultimate responsibility to do the FDIC filing.
==============================
Dick's first comment should answer the question being kicked around here.
If it's me in the OP's position, I would ask Schwab if they have a policy like Fido does related to issuing a brokerage "service request" at the 10-day mark if the interest still has not been received.
I would also obtain the best phone number possible and speak directly to a person at the bank who is directly involved/has direct knowledge of the interest payment in question.
I would NOT blow this out of proportion and would NOT start to doubt CDs.
As Dick noted, you WILL get your principal repaid timely.
As my scenario played out, I learned that this is a possible issue at the BOY and the EOY, every year.
And if there is an issue, it is usually the normal, possibly slow payment cycling related to the BOY or EOY, or there is a specific reason why the interest payment was missed.
In my case, the bank manager I spoke directly to was very helpful, NOT aware of the issue yet and thanked me for calling it to the bank's attention. She also immediately remedied the issue. She even gave me her direct phone number in the event it was not resolved.

Checking the stock investor's landscape:
Small Caps Rockin' the Casbah again today!
Equal weighted S&P outperformed yesterday.
The arguably best T/A poster on investment forums recently stated we could see S&P 5,500 by Turkey Day 2024.
All systems appear to be GO for US stock investors heading into the New Year!
"The crowd caught a whiff
Of that crazy Casbah jive"

Is it too early for a long term (10-15 yrs) investor to reallocate to small caps? The SCG landscape has been beaten down and some of the most reputable MF/ETFs have fallen to the middle of the pack (performance-wise). I've owned BCSIX for over 10 years and looking back, glad I took profits when I rebalanced (several times). Also, own PRNHX and the recent 3 yrs has been tough due to the Fund's aggressive nature.
Any MF/ETF's that you are considering or own?

According to M*, "Vanguard and Fidelity Go stood out as the best options, although [it] also assigned above-average scores to Schwab Intelligent Portfolios, Betterment, and Wealthfront." Vanguard scored 4.8 out of 5, Fidelity Go 4.0, Schwab 3.6, Betterment and Wealthfront 3.5, with a couple of others at 3.4. Then there's a big drop off.
As M* points out, one must take care when comparing "all in" costs. Fidelity Go costs 35 basis points, though that is the "all in" cost since it uses 0.00% bp ER Fidelity Flex funds in its portfolios.
Vanguard Digital Advisor costs 20 basis points including underlying fund fees (i.e. this is an "all in" figure), but its hybrid PAS service costs 30 basis points plus underlying fee expenses. (It has recently shifted from Admiral shares to ETF shares, shaving perhaps one basis point from its "all in" cost.)
Schwab doesn't charge a wrap fee (i.e. you pay just the cost of the underlying funds), though as Yogi notes there's a cash drag (opportunity) cost.
Services vary significantly between offerings. Some are pure robo, others are hybrid. A few, including Vanguard, build in a glidepath rather than sticking with a fixed allocation based on risk tolerance.
The full report is worth reading, if for nothing else, its dozen+ exhibits comparing in tabular form the availability of different features, services and investment options, as well as costs, of all the different offerings.
There's a link to the full report in the M* piece referenced in the OP. (You do have to inform M* that you're an individual investor and provide email address to gain access.)
Full report

Andrew Foster and his team have posted extensive views on emerging market investing and it is not trivial matter in order to get meaningful gain. The investment landscape is changing fast and some countries are rapidly becoming “uninvestable”.