Has This Summer’s Sell-Off in Energy-Related MLPs Changed Their Appeal to Investors?
For value-biased investors, energy master limited partnerships (MLPs) are (somewhat suddenly) more appealing than they have been in several years.
Authored by: Sean McLaughlin
The Investment Compass Points Due East: Asia’s Appeal to Emerging Markets Equity Investors
Valuations, fundamentals, and a more appealing macro picture make tilting emerging markets equity exposure toward Asia a sensible proposition.
With Headline Inflation in Negative Territory, Should Investors Be Concerned About the Potential for Persistent US Deflation?
In this edition of C|A Answers, two members of our research team debate the potential for persistent deflation in the United States. Sean McLaughlin: No. The recent dip into deflation for the “headline” US Consumer Price Index (CPI) is likely to be short-lived and does not significantly increase the likelihood of persistent deflation. Headline inflation…
Assessing the Liquid Alternatives Landscape
The fast-growing but still limited liquid alternatives product suite is unappealing today for most institutional investors, when compared to the broader hedge fund landscape. In certain limited instances the strategies could have a role to play in some portfolios: For investors with small pools of assets that cannot access hedge funds directly, liquid mutual fund…
Feeling Energetic About Natural Resources Shares Amid an Oil Rout
The current decline in oil prices may offer long-term return opportunities for patient investors that can tolerate volatility Current oil prices appear sufficiently low as to encourage production declines over time as drilling activity wanes, even absent shutting-in of existing wells. The time required to move from production growth to production decline may be shorter…
Given the Sharp Fall in Commodity Prices, Should Investors That Have Been Avoiding Commodity Futures Now Reverse Course?
Not yet. Commodity prices have indeed tumbled this year, with crude oil falling by one-third while prices of copper, corn, and other key commodities also declined. And while as value investors we typically look to increase exposure to an asset as prices fall, in this case it is useful to review the broader picture, including…
Oil Prices Can’t Find Their Footing, Even Amid Geopolitical Turmoil
Imagine that during a single year, the following events all took place: a country that produces 13% of the world’s oil became engaged in armed conflict; the United States and other nations fought a self-declared caliphate looking to quickly spread its influence in the oil-rich Middle East; and a nation that produces 3% of the…
Momentum: Replacing Growth Indexes as a Healthy Menu Option
Quantitative price-momentum strategies can be sensibly employed by long-term investors, particularly when paired with value-oriented strategies Growth indexes, by systematically screening out the most attractively valued stocks, have underperformed their broad market counterparts more often than they have outperformed, and we believe that will continue to be true. Rather than pairing their value-oriented managers with…
Is the Market’s Expectation for the Pace of Future US Policy Rate Increases Correct?
In our research publications we aim to provide you with insights from a variety of different viewpoints while maintaining an official Cambridge view on asset allocation and portfolio construction in our quarterly VantagePoint publication, written by our Chief Investment Strategist. In this edition of C|A Answers, two members of our Capital Markets Research team debate…
Alternative Beta Strategies: A “Smarter” Way to Invest in Equities?
Executive Summary Alternative beta indexes strive to aggregate market securities based on objective criteria, weighting them in a way that is not limited to their share price or market capitalization. The weighting factors can include company fundamentals, share price volatility, earnings sustainability, or price momentum, in addition to a naïve equal-weighting approach. Alternative beta strategies,…