Investing Fads and Themes by Year, 1996-2011

Another year in the books and I’ve updated my Investing Fads and Themes by Year guide accordingly.  It begins with 1996 because that was my first summer working on The Street and my earliest exposure to the market.

So what was 2011 about?

Well, it was basically about Risk-On Risk-Off.  Stocks were the most correlated they’d been in 80 years and by the fall it was shown that 84% of S&P 500 stocks were moving in the same direction as the S&P 500 each day.

This meant that investors could skip out on doing intense stock-specific research and just focus on getting the market right.  In order to get the market right, one needed to pay closer attention to the euro versus the dollar more than anything else.  When the euro was in favor, so were stocks and risk assets, when the dollar was in favor, stocks and commodities were schmeissed almost universally.

This seesaw arrangement meant paying attention to the headlines coming out of Europe – and none were more important than those mentioning Angela Merkel.  As the chancellor of the Euro’s strongest economy (and shotcaller), Merkel has held the key to whether or not Europe’s monetary union and common currenc y would survive.  We still don’t know as of this posting.

Dividend stocks were all the rage this year as interest rates remained low and bond yields remained paltry.  This was easy to foresee and many of us positioned in the highest-yielding and most consistently paying sectors.  The big winners this year were those who overweighted Healthcare, Telecommunications, Consumer Staples and Utilities.

Social media IPOs were also a major trend this year – on the bull side and the bear side.  I correctly predicted this at the end of 2010 and I was not disappointed with the hype and headlines of these deals.  LinkedIn, Groupon, Pandora and Zynga were the most talked about deals of 2011.  Spectacular opening valuations gave way to gravity for many of them but the incessant interest in them has not yet abated.  Besides, Facebook and Twitter are still waiting in the wings.

Anyway, here is my updated guide to the Investing Fads and Themes by Year, 1996 – 2010.  Enjoy!

Follow Me on Twitter

Tags: $LNKD $GRPN $ZNGA $P

 

Tags: , , ,

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.

Wealthcast Media, an affiliate of Ritholtz Wealth Management, receives payment from various entities for advertisements in affiliated podcasts, blogs and emails. Inclusion of such advertisements does not constitute or imply endorsement, sponsorship or recommendation thereof, or any affiliation therewith, by the Content Creator or by Ritholtz Wealth Management or any of its employees. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. For additional advertisement disclaimers see here: https://www.ritholtzwealth.com/advertising-disclaimers

Please see disclosures here.

What's been said:

Discussions found on the web
  1. نصب دوربین مدار بسته تحت شبکه commented on Feb 09

    دوربین

    Hi just wished to give you a short heads up and enable you know a handful of of the images are not loading appropriately. I’m not certain why but I consider its a linking problem. I have attempted it in two diverse world wide web browsers and the two p…

  2. resume builder commented on Feb 09

    resume builder

    […]although websites we backlink to beneath are considerably not related to ours, we really feel they are really worth a go via, so possess a look[…]

  3. سیستم حفاظتی commented on Feb 09

    سیستم حفاظتی

    Wonderful site! Is your theme personalized manufactured or did you down load it from someplace? A layout like yours with a few straightforward adjustements would actually make my blog stand out. Remember to allow me know the place you acquired your lay…

  4. برند داهوا commented on Feb 09

    دوربین

    I was curious if you ever believed of altering the format of your web site? Its extremely nicely prepared I enjoy what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of material so men and women could hook up with it much better. Youve…

  5. خرید دوربین مدار بسته commented on Feb 09

    خرید دوربین مدار بسته

    Howdy just wished to give you a short heads up and enable you know a number of of the photos are not loading properly. I’m not confident why but I believe its a linking concern. I have attempted it in two diverse net browsers and equally demonstrate th…

  6. گوگل adwords commented on Feb 09

    تبلیغ در گوگل ادوردز

    I’m truly loving the theme/layout of your web web site. Do you at any time run into any world wide web browser compatibility issues? A small number of my website viewers have complained about my blog not doing work properly in Explorer but seems to be…

  7. کولر صنعتی commented on Feb 10

    خرید کولر صنعتی

    The data talked about inside the report are some of the most powerful available.

  8. سیستم حفاظتی commented on Feb 10

    سیستم حفاظتی

    Check underneath, are some entirely unrelated internet-web sites to ours, nonetheless, they are most dependable sources that we use.

  9. تستر دوربین مدار بسته قیمت commented on Feb 10

    دوربین

    My developer is making an attempt to persuade me to move to .web from PHP. I have always disliked the idea due to the fact of the fees. But he’s tryiong none the much less. I’ve been utilizing Movable-type on a number of websites for about a calendar y…

  10. کولر صنعتی commented on Feb 10

    خرید کولر صنعتی

    We totally really like your site and discover practically all of your post’s to be what specifically I’m looking for. Does one supply guest writers to create content for you? I wouldn’t brain creating a put up or elaborating on a lot of the topics you…

  11. سیستم حفاظتی commented on Feb 10

    سیستم حفاظتی

    Hey! I know this is relatively off matter but I was asking yourself which site platform are you utilizing for this internet site? I’m acquiring unwell and exhausted of WordPress simply because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m seeking at choices for…

  12. خرید vpn commented on Feb 10

    vpn ایفون

    I know this if off matter but I’m searching into commencing my very own weblog and was curious what all is needed to get set up? I’m assuming having a blog like yours would cost a rather penny? I’m not really net savvy so I’m not one hundred% certain.…

  13. کولر صنعتی commented on Feb 10

    خرید کولر صنعتی

    Superb weblog! I discovered it even though searching on Yahoo Information. Do you have any ideas on how to get detailed in Yahoo News? I have been striving for a whilst but I by no means appear to get there! Thank you

  14. خرید دوربین مدار بسته commented on Feb 10

    خرید دوربین مدار بسته

    Hello there colleagues, how is all, and what you want for to say about this put up, in my look at its really remarkable developed for me.