Every year it’s the same, lots of people go on a trip to New York as if it was THE dream destination par excellence and that you absolutely had to go there to be someone cool. When in fact it’s just a city, and there are many other cities near you. In a completely objective…
What Is the Portable Alpha Strategy? The portable alpha strategy focuses on investing in stocks or other assets that have demonstrated little or no correlation with the markets. To do this, investors separate alpha from beta by investing in securities that are not in the market index from which their beta is derived. Key Takeaways…
We know that stars are very lucky to be rich, famous and adored by everyone, but for nothing in the world would I want to be in their shoes. After being harassed, even tracked, by fans as reckless as paparazzi, some celebrities have decided to stop posing for fan photos or signing autographs. After reading…
Life is made up of little daily hassles, more or less re-hired. If in some cases, we are all in the same basket (and a basket that is not in good shape, if you ask me), tell yourself that there is always worse. I swear. So think for 5 seconds about the life of left-handed…
What Is Price Talk? Price talk is the discussion of the appropriate price for an upcoming security issue. During the price talk phase, the investment community will discuss and debate a reasonable range of prices within which it’s estimated the new security should be sold. Price talks commonly occur before an initial public offering (IPO)…
I could spend a thousand years pointing out all the inconsistencies of the French language, but I won’t. Why ? Because no, I don’t have a thousand years ahead of me. I made an abuse of language, and I apologize for it, but it was a question of introducing the subject of the day: the…
What Is a Risk-Free Asset? A risk-free asset is one that has a certain future return—and virtually no possibility of loss. Debt obligations issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury (bonds, notes, and especially Treasury bills) are considered to be risk-free because the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. government backs them. Because…
We have all heard lately of the movement calling for a boycott of the next FIFA World Cup in Qatar for many valid and legitimate reasons: respect for human rights, the treatment reserved for workers on site to build the stadiums, ecology… But there are also plenty of objective reasons, and more trivial ones of…
What Is a Compulsory Convertible Debenture (CCD)? A compulsory convertible debenture (CCD) is a type of bond which must be converted into stock by a specified date. It is classified as a hybrid securityas it is neither purely a bond nor purely a stock. A debenture is a medium- to long-term debt security issued by…