The Intelligent Investor

Change in Total Reserves

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:47:00 +0000

Reported earnings don’t tell the whole story of a company’s profits. They are based on accounting rules designed for debt investors, not equity investors, and are manipulated by companies to manage earnings. Only economic earnings provide a complete and unadulterated measure of profitability.

The Intelligent Investor

Non-Operating Income Hidden in Operating Earnings

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:40:00 +0000

Non-operating items in operating income are unusual gains that don’t appear on the income statement because they are bundled in other line items. Without careful footnotes research, investors would never know that these non-recurring income items distort GAAP numbers by artificially raising operating earnings.

The Intelligent Investor

How to Find the Best Style Mutual Funds

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:56:00 +0000

Finding the best mutual funds is an increasingly difficult task in a world with over 6000 to choose from.

The Intelligent Investor

Non-Operating Expenses Hidden in Operating Earnings

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 18:17:00 +0000

Non-operating expenses are unusual charges that don’t appear on the income statement because they are bundled in other line items. Without careful footnotes research, investors would never know that these non-recurring expenses distort GAAP numbers by lowering operating earnings.

The Intelligent Investor

Danger Zone: “Passive” Investors

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:59:00 +0000

Unless you are investing in the whole market—e.g. the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI)—you are making active management decisions. Here’s why.

The Intelligent Investor

More Upside From Western Digital (WDC)

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:09:00 +0000

Investors could be forgiven for thinking that now is the time to cash out on Western Digital (WDC). After all, the stock is up 49% year-to-date and 112% over the past 12 months. Such dramatic gains might lead some to believe that the stock has run out of steam. Such thinking, however, ignores the fundamentals of the company. WDC is more profitable than ever and remains significantly undervalued.

The Intelligent Investor

Asset Write-Downs Hidden In Operating Earnings

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 16:19:00 +0000

Asset write-downs are unusual charges that don’t appear on the income statement because they are bundled in other line items. Without careful footnotes research, investors would never know that these non-recurring items distort operating earnings by overstating core-operating costs.

The Intelligent Investor

How To Avoid the Worst Sector Mutual Funds

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Picking from the multitude of sector mutual funds is a daunting task. In any given sector there may be as many as 229 different mutual funds, and there are at least 631 mutual funds across all sectors.

The Intelligent Investor

How To Find the Best Sector Mutual funds

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 13:45:00 +0000

Finding the best mutual funds is an increasingly difficult task in a world with so many to choose from.

The Intelligent Investor

Wal-Mart: Still Offering Great Value

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 14:46:00 +0000

If you followed my advice in June of 2011 to buy Wal-Mart (WMT) because of its attractive valuation and solid fundamentals, you can truly see that diligence pays. Driven by Wal-Mart’s savvy management and intelligent capital allocation, the stock has risen over 45% since my article, outpacing the S&P 500 (up 30%).