EB 340 – Investing Analysis
Final Week Reflection
From the beginning of the semester, I learned a lot from the class. First of all, I learned that I could not do anything if I do not save money. I learned this fact from the very first day that I am in the class when I read the article called “If You Can: How Millenials Can Get Rich Slowly” from William Bernstein. In the article, the author helps me realize the importance of saving to my life. When I was at home, everything that I paid was the money from my parents so I did not really appreciate it. Actually, I am not a lavish person, but sometimes I paid for what I did not really need. My parents never asked me about what did I pay for, but I realized that the money I used was …show more content…
In this book, he mentions a lot about how to manage a portfolio and analyses of assets class, which is very helpful. There is a total of 13 chapters that I went over in the book. Everything started with the first chapter which is about the basis of asset allocation. In this chapter, he mentions about key concepts which are critical to a long-term success. These concepts are investment planning, asset allocation, discipline and commitment, and shortcuts. I learned that I have to have a long-term goal, prepare a good plan and then stick to it to have a great portfolio. There is no short-cut for a long-term gain, and I can have mistakes when because I am young now. When I am old, I will not have a lot of time to recover from mistakes. I will put money in a retirement account like 401(k) or 402(b) as soon as possible because I can have the advantage of compounded interest over time. I will also need to put money in an index fund like the Vanguard SP500 Index because it has a very low cost with a great return in long-run. I realized that I should not totally rely on advice from professionals because Ferri states that that advice is really a “hit-or-miss.” The second chapter of the book is information about investment risk that people should know. In Ferri’s believing, there is no representation of a risk-free investment. There is a misconception that the T-Bill is usually called risk-free, but …show more content…
In this part, I learned a lot about asset-class selections and understand more about each asset’s market. The very first thing before I start to have a portfolio is a plan for it. In chapter five, Ferri suggests me with a four-step process which is very helpful for my asset allocation progress. The process contains four steps. The first step is determining the investing portfolio’s risk level based on long-term financial needs. The second step analyzing asset classes and select those that can fit the portfolio based on their risk, return, etc... The third step is choosing best represent for each class selected in step 2. Finally, the last step implements asset allocation immediately and completely. When applying these steps, I need to keep in my mind that I have to be flexible about their decision because correlations can change sharply between investment. In another chapter, I learned specifically more about many other asset classes and how to analyze them. I learned that it is safer for me to choose asset classes which are more liquid and has a low cost. I can also go invest globally by invest in mutual funds that holding international assets like EAFE or MSCI to reduce cost. Fixed income investment like bonds can be a good investment in long-term because long-term bond can have a good return, but the interest rate of bond can be changed because of economic factors at the different time by the different