Commentary

OSAM offers views on issues and events shaping the market, emphasizing the importance of investing with a cool head and disciplined, time-tested strategies.


March 2013

Combining the Best of Passive and Active Investing

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
—Mark Twain

Should investors pay higher fees to active managers in an attempt to beat the market? Or should they instead buy cheap passive index funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs)? The choice between the passive or active approach to investing can have a huge impact on long-term results. In this paper, we evaluate the arguments for each style, and argue for an approach that combines the strengths of both the passive and active approaches.

October 18, 2012

Stock Crashes are Money-Making Opportunities

As appearing on The Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch

Twenty-five years after the crash of 1987, in a MarketWatch guest commentary, Jim O’Shaughnessy shares his research of the market’s long-term behavior in order to determine equity performance following crashes of similar magnitudes.

June 2012

Enhanced Dividend® Commentary

Jim O'Shaughnessy offers his thoughts on our Enhanced Dividend strategy and the importance on focusing on the long-term when investing.

March 2012

Why U.S. Investors Should Look Beyond Dividend Yield

Though U.S. stocks with high dividend yields have become very popular with individual and professional investors, OSAM makes the case for shareholder yield, a factor the Research Team has long advocated that has provided considerably stronger returns for U.S. stocks for more than 80 years. Shareholder yield is the sum of a company’s dividend yield plus its buyback yield (the percentage of shares outstanding that have been repurchased or issued over the last year).

December 2011

The Top Stock-Market Strategy of the Past 50 Years

As appearing on The Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch

Jim and Patrick O'Shaughnessy describe the benefits of compositing value factors.

November 2011

Anatomy of a Winning Investment — 2 Keys to Success

As appearing on TheStreet.com

As guest contributors to The Street, Jim and Patrick O'Shaughnessy discuss how the fourth edition of What Works on Wall Street can reveal ways to improve return and reduce volatility.

August 2011

Market Commentary

OSAM offers its thoughts on the current economic and market environment, and why the two don't necessarily correlate.

April 2011

Inflation and the U.S. Bond and Stock Markets

“By a continuing process of inflation, government can confiscate, secretly and unobserved, an important part of the wealth of their citizens.” —John Maynard Keynes

Jim O’Shaughnessy looks at historical returns for stocks and bonds in various inflationary environments, and what investors might expect going forward.

September 17, 2010

The Economy and the Stock Market

“The most common cause of low prices is pessimism—sometimes pervasive, sometimes specific to a company or industry. We want to do business in such an environment, not because we like pessimism but because we like the prices it produces. It’s optimism that is the enemy of the rational buyer.” —Warren Buffett

In the face of so much grim economic news and uncertainty about the future, the OSAM Research Team reviews the historical implications of low economic growth, high unemployment, low consumer confidence and top marginal tax rates on future stock returns.

September 8, 2010

Enhanced Dividend for Income

“Follow the course opposite to custom and you will almost always do well.” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Jim O’Shaughnessy contends that income seeking investors should prefer high yield equities over traditional fixed income investments. In a study covering 1962 to 2009, Jim discusses why an income investor would have received substantially more income while also protecting principal purchasing power by investing in a high dividend strategy instead of traditionally recommended fixed income.

May 21, 2010

Thoughts on the Correction

“The rational man—like the Loch Ness monster—is sighted often, but photographed rarely.” — David Dreman

The return of fear has created an opportunity for the long-term equity investor to buy stocks at a major discount. This commentary by the OSAM Research Team may persuade clients to stay calm and, if possible, add to the equity market.

January 2010

The Same Old Bear

OSAM’s Research Team studies the performance of the market and our strategies during and after all bear markets since 1926.

September 2009

Asset Allocation Mistakes

Jim O’Shaughnessy shows how a move to overweight bonds versus stocks may prove to be disappointing over the next ten years.

June 2009

What Numbers Can Tell Us About Where the Market Is Going

Jim O’Shaughnessy reveals specific factors involved with the market upswing and shares the belief that over the next three, five and ten years, equities may be the best performing asset class and that investors might want to take the opportunity the market has given them.

March 2009

A Generational Opportunity

Jim O’Shaughnessy studies how rare the current market downturn has been—and why it may present a once in a lifetime buying opportunity.

February 2009

Advisor Client Conference Call

Jim O’Shaughnessy discusses opportunities in the current market conditions.

January 20, 2009

Change Your Focus, Change Your Future

Jim O’Shaughnessy comments on what we might expect to happen in the coming 11 years. His analysis suggests that it is during this timeframe that we may find the silver lining that should give investors hope and encouragement.

January 2009

Why We’re Still Bullish

Jim O’Shaughnessy comments on how investors might miss a buying opportunity of historic magnitude by letting market fear obscure the importance of a long-term perspective.

September 2008

The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself

Jim O’Shaughnessy comments on the emotion of the current markets and what could happen next.

April 2008

The Silent Storm

Jim O’Shaughnessy’s recent market research reveals that the current decade has been among the worst for investing in the past 110 years. See how investors in disciplined asset allocation strategies would have fared much better.

January 2008

Predicting the Markets of Tomorrow—An Update

Jim O’Shaughnessy provides an update to his 2006 book Predicting the Markets of Tomorrow.

September 2007

O’Shaughnessy 2.0

Read how to avoid the most common roadblocks to successful investing. Jim O’Shaughnessy's commentary explores the importance of knowing the facts and understanding history in order to overcome the seduction of rhetoric and emotion—common pitfalls that trip up many investors.

Investors should keep in mind that there is no certainty that any investment or strategy will be profitable or successful in achieving investment objectives. Past performance is not an indication of future results.