Quote of the day

“When it comes to returns, we are all Beardstown Ladies at heart.”  (Systematic Relative Strength)

Comic of the day

On the absurdity of the standard 1% asset management fee.  (Dilbert)

Markets

A sign that investors have become too complacent:  a return to individual stocks.  (MarketBeat)

Natural gas prices may be falling, but the drillers are doing just fine thank you.  (Bespoke, WSJ, FT also Money Game)

Another look at the platinum/gold ratio.  (Minyanville)

The hedge fund game is getting tougher.  (The Reformed Broker)

Strategy

Where billionaires are parking their cash.  (Bloomberg via TRB)

The power of passive asset allocation.  (Capital Spectator)

Why every investor needs a devil’s advocate.  (the research puzzle)

Companies

Sears Holdings ($SHLD) has become quite the battleground stock.  (MarketBeat)

The economics of iPublishing.  (Atlantic Wire)

Can we now declare Google+ a success?  (SAI)

Carl Icahn wants a piece of troubled wireless company LightSqaured.  (WSJ)

Finance

The question for Wall Street is whether this slump is cyclical or secular.  (Dealbook)

Bank investors should get used to low returns.  (Term Sheet)

In its time of need MF Global got no favors from JP Morgan ($JPM).  (Reuters via naked capitalism)

Financial models are almost always open to manipulation.  (Finance Addict, Dealbreaker)

Startups

SecondMarket has a Facebook problem.  (MarketBeat)

2011 was a big year for startup funding.  (GigaOM)

ETFs

The first mover advantage in ETFs is real.  (IndexUniverse)

Where’s the love for the VelocityShares Daily Inverse VIX Medium-Term ETN ($ZIV)?  (VIX and More)

Would the low volatility investment boom survive a big up year?   (Total Return)

Is the ETF industry selling the myth of ‘smarter beta‘? (Rick Ferri)

Economy

Hold the phone, the ECRI WLI is bouncing back.  (MarketBeat)

The signs of a self-sustaining economic recovery are coming together.  (Bonddad Blog)

How the Fed earned its independence.  (Gavyn Davies)

High levels of political spending by corporations are associated with weak corporate governance.  (The Atlantic)

Existing home inventories continue to decline.  (Calculated Risk)

You can’t have a bubble without cheap credit:  hello farmland.  (InvestmentNews)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

Traders are highly influenceable creatures:  be aware of your surroundings.  (Abnormal Returns)

What you missed in our Friday morning linkfest.  (Abnormal Returns)

Mixed media

Are pirate ransoms tax-deductible?  (Freakonomics)

What to do with a wrecked 1,000 foot cruise liner?  (Slashdot)

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