Dalton, Mass. — On Monday, Nov. 9, Pfizer announced results regarding its COVID-19 vaccine. The Monday after that, Moderna reported good news regarding its own vaccine. Then AstraZeneca came out with more coronavirus vaccine news on Monday, Nov. 23. This column will be published Monday, Nov. 30. Who knows what new medical news we might receive that day? We will get past the shutdowns and the social distancing that crushed the global economy earlier this year. I’ve said all along that the pandemic is driving the timeline of the economic recovery. That remains true. Is this good news already priced into…
Insights & Advice
Allen Harris
Negotiating the market in a pandemic
Dalton, Mass. — I made a couple more trades in my portfolio last week, so I wanted to dedicate the bulk of today’s column to keeping you in the know. A couple of my put/call hedged strategies reached a hair’s breadth of achieving their maximum return cap. The way these things work, as the prices go higher, the potential downside is reset. While the downside protection remains from the starting point of the ETFs’ anniversary date, you could “lose” the appreciation you had made up until that point. That was wonky. Let me rephrase. I invested in some things that could…
Build a house in China
Last week I made some changes to my moderate and aggressive portfolios. I’ll share those changes with you at the end of this column. But let’s not bury the lead — we are close to a COVID-19 vaccine! On Sept. 23 I gave a rundown of what I expected regarding the timing and distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine. I stated, “Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla says that the ‘likely scenario’ is that the company will be able to distribute a vaccine by year’s end (pending FDA approval).” Further, I said: “The odds of a safe and effective vaccine being created relatively soon…
Purpose as a competitive advantage
Once upon a time, the sole purpose of a business was to make the owner rich. Today, it’s considered “mainstream” for a company to also have a more humane purpose. If done authentically, doing so will make the owner even more wealthy. Purpose is motivation, and motivation is a competitive advantage. A corporate purpose explains how its team makes a difference in the world. It also gives your employees meaning and gets them to dive into projects with more energy and enthusiasm. Purpose attracts and inspires employees. You can’t invent a corporate purpose. It already exists, and you need to…