Municipal Securities Question and Answer
Recent headlines raise issue with municipalities’ ability to manage their finances.
“I don't think Moody's or Standard & Poor's or I can come up with anything terribly insightful about the question of state and municipal finance five or ten years from now, except for the fact that there will be a terrible problem and then the question becomes will the federal government help.” – Warren Buffett

“What are the real risks of holding municipal bonds when states and municipalities are struggling to pay their bills?” – The New York Times

November 2010 - > View White Paper(PDF)

Did the Doomsayers Really Get it Right?
With global markets in turmoil and investors facing historic declines in the market value of their investments, the investment world is looking to the past for indications on how we got where we are today and who saw it coming. Jeff Opdyke’s article in the January 2nd, 2009 edition of The Wall Street Journal entitled “Doomsayers Who Got It Right” highlights three select individuals who accurately predicted portions of the current economic crisis. The article discusses the accuracy of some seemingly bold predictions by each of the three individuals, but fails to assess the financial impact, or benefit, of these predictions’ accuracy for the individuals, their strategies, or their clients.

February 10, 2009 - > View White Paper(PDF) | > Contact Us For A Reprint

Structured Products Wall Street’s Newest Idea
The market for structured products has quickly become the latest boom for Wall Street, international banking firms and broker/dealers alike. Annual structured product sales comprised only a small portion of the investment offering line-up in 2003 with approximately $28 billion in sales. Sales in 2007 jumped a whopping 78% to a total of $114 billion. According to the Structured Product Association, a
New York based trade group, this huge increase in demand pleased and surprised everyone involved.

September 16, 2008 - > View White Paper(PDF)

On Golf And Investing: An Analogy
As the 2007 PGA Tour came to a close, Tiger Woods topped the leaders earning a total of $10,867,000 in prize money. By contrast, golfer Charley Hoffman rounded out 2007 ranked number #50, with total winnings of $1,689,000. Charley Hoffman’s total take for the year was roughly one-tenth of Tiger Wood’s.

July 7, 2008 - > View White Paper(PDF)