Quote of the day

David Merkel, “Size matters, and for investment purposes, smaller is better.  And for the most part, less complex is better too.  Don’t demand liquidity from markets, or you will lose.  If liquidity come to your door, and it seems to be a good deal, wave it in.”  (Aleph Blog)

Chart of the day

European shares are looking cheap relative to bonds.  (Reuters also FT, Bloomberg)

Markets

What risk-off looks like in practice.  (All Star Charts)

The Loonie is the new Aussie dollar.  (MarketBeat)

The market is bubbling up some new dominant memes.  (Minyanville)

The Oslo exchange is cracking down on ‘quote stuffing.’  (FT)

Strategy

Yet another example of why dividends matter.  (Money Game)

Going global with a low-volatility strategy.  (Morningstar)

MS, “So stop worrying about how Wall St is screwing you and work on creating an edge of your own.”  (Mortality Sucks)

Are the best traders one trick ponies?  (The Crosshairs Trader)

Companies

Apple ($AAPL) CEO Tim Cook turned down a big wad of cash.  (AllThingsD)

Three problems Apple faces.  (kickingbear via Daring Fireball)

Don’t worry about Dell ($DELL) execs, they are doing just fine for themselves.  (footnoted)

Is there any value in Sony ($SNE) on a sum-of-the-parts basis?  (The Brooklyn Investor)

Are we witnessing the death of the big box store?  (Time)

Hedge funds

Seven “edges” hedge funds claim that aren’t necessarily edges.  (ClaritySpring via @researchpuzzler)

Tired investors are giving up on the Euro.  (FT)

The hedge fund manager who took Las Vegas for $700,00 playing blackjack.  (AR+Alpha)

Finance

Morgan Stanley ($MS) is now blaming Henry Blodget for the Facebook fiasco.  (Business Insider)

Risk oversight at JP Morgan ($JPM) was suspect, at best.  (Bloomberg)

JP Morgan would do well by its shareholders by breaking itself up.  (Sheila Bair also Felix Salmon)

Did Facebook chill the IPO market?  (Term Sheet)

Nasdaq ($NDAQ) has really shot itself in foot with Facebook trading problems.  (Business Insider)

Wall Street is playing a dangerous game by burning its individual investor clients.  (Interloper)

Economy

Why QE3 is not on the table.  (Economist’s View)

Continued US economic growth depends on car owners continuing to replace their junkers.  (FT Alphaville, The Atlantic)

Two dueling books on the future of the American economy. Which one wins? (Economist)

Earlier on Abnormal Returns

On the importance of compounding experience, not just interest along the way.  (The Reformed Broker)

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

Space

SpaceX Dragon successfully docks with the ISS.  (New Scientist)

Don’t let SpaceX lull you into thinking space is a good investment.  (Marketwatch)

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