Quote of the day

David Merkel, “Gold does nothing, and that’s good.  We need some things in this hectic world that do nothing.”  (Aleph Blog)

Chart of the day

The rise and fall of Legg Mason ($LM).  (Barron’s)

Markets

Stocks are no longer cheap.  (WSJ)

The permabears are once again having their day in the sun.  (NYTimes)

Just in time for the summer, a shift in the trend of economic surprises.  (Pragmatic Capitalism)

The stock market tends to rally going into Tax Day.  (Barron’s)

Strategy

Dividend funds are not bonds, redux.  (Jason Zweig)

How underinvested investors react in a bull market.  (Phil Pearlman)

What does technical analysis mean to you?  (All Star Charts)

Apple

Meet the analyst who has a “sell” rating on Apple ($AAPL).  (Telegraph)

More on the potential warring factions of Apple shareholders.  (Aswath Damodaran)

Is CEO Tim Cook overpaid?  (Apple 2.0)

What Apple should be doing five years hence.  (Xconomy)

Finance

The best hedge funds in Q1 2012.  (Insider Monkey)

What the “London Whale” is likely up to.  (Sober Look, FT Alphaville, Dealbook)

You can’t tell the Goldman Sachs ($GS) strategists without a scorecard.  (Money Game)

According to Morningstar, Charles Schwab’s target date mutual funds are a hot mess. (InvestmentNews)

Global

Investors reaching for yield are reaching for emerging market bonds.  (NYTimes also InvestmentNews)

It’s hard to tell an upbeat story about the Italian economy.  (Money Game)

Euro banks are giving up on using US money market funds.  (Sober Look)

Economy

Jobs market optimism has once again given way to weakness.  (WSJ, Money Game, Free exchange, Tim Duy)

On second thought jobs growth was pretty good in March.  (Calafia Beach Pundit, Rational Irrationality)

The ECRI WLI is growing once again.  (dshort)

Have home prices hit bottom?  Barry Ritholtz is skeptical.  (WashingtonPost)

What the “the end of retail” means for younger workers.  (The Atlantic, Money Game)

Time for the US to follow Canada and drop the penny.  (NYTimes)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

Top clicks this week on the site.  (Abnormal Returns)

What you missed in our Saturday morning long form linkfest.  (Abnormal Returns)

Books

The neuroscience of Bob Dylan’s genius: an excerpt from Jonah Lehrer’s Imagine: How Creativity Works.  (Guardian via The Browser)

A review of Tyler Cowen’s latest book An Economist Gets Lunch: New Rules for Everyday Foodies.  (WSJ, Marginal Revolution)

Abnormal Returns is a founding member of the StockTwits Blog Network.

More Posts This Week

This content, which contains security-related opinions and/or information, is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon in any manner as professional advice, or an endorsement of any practices, products or services. There can be no guarantees or assurances that the views expressed here will be applicable for any particular facts or circumstances, and should not be relied upon in any manner. You should consult your own advisers as to legal, business, tax, and other related matters concerning any investment.

The commentary in this “post” (including any related blog, podcasts, videos, and social media) reflects the personal opinions, viewpoints, and analyses of the Ritholtz Wealth Management employees providing such comments, and should not be regarded the views of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC. or its respective affiliates or as a description of advisory services provided by Ritholtz Wealth Management or performance returns of any Ritholtz Wealth Management Investments client.

References to any securities or digital assets, or performance data, are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. Charts and graphs provided within are for informational purposes solely and should not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The content speaks only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others.

Please see disclosures here.

Please see the Terms & Conditions page for a full disclaimer.