Following yesterday’s post about the great website Stockchase.com in which I mentioned that a cynic might suspect an investment manager might give away free stock picks for dubious reasons… Here’s a conspiracy theorist’s short list of some strategies one might use:
- Pound the table on a stock because they already bought it and it’s been going down and they want to pump the price up before dumping it. A case of hot potato.
- Espouse staying away from a stock at all costs, recommend selling it if you have it. Why? So they can pick it up more cheaply.
- Scream the sky is falling – because they have many short positions.
On another note – if your fund manager got up there and starting giving away his top picks for free, wouldn’t you be inclined to ask for a discount? You might be paying an arm and a leg for active management, but viewers who don’t hold units of his/her fund are getting some of his/her best ideas for free. :)
Mind you, if you look at some of the calls as listed on stockchase.com that might be more in line with the value. Thank You! I’m here all week… try the fish. :)
Giving away top picks after having bought a full position is beneficial to the advisee. There’s no reason to request a discount.
@ Mark – In that case yes, I agree. However if they are mentioning that they are accumulating it in the future once they fall to certain targets then that’s another story. Nonetheless, my post was meant to be more humorous than anything else. Have a great New Year’s and perhaps we can do another blog interview in 2009! Cheers
Hi Preet,
Over the last 8 years that I have been watching managers interviewed on BNN, I’ve compiled a list of those who have made accurate calls about the economy or about stocks I follow. From this “short” list, I often listen to the first part of a particular show to glean thoughts on the market that I might not have considered. And, too, at Stockchase, I will check comments on a specific stock that lead me to further research.
Both BNN and Stockchase are only two of many factors that I look at when evaluating a stock, but they have both been useful to me over the years. I don’t have the resources that these managers do, and they sometimes mention some information that I couldn’t have known or they bring bits of information together in a way I wouldn’t have thought of.
Thanks for a terrific site.
All the best for 2009!