Monday, March 28, 2011

Greatest Investor: John Templeton


John Templteton is the pioneer of the global mutual fund industry. No one before him had heard of investing overseas. Today, the Templeton Group's combined assets stand at $25 billion plus. Know more about this great investor...

Templeton earned his billions by introducing globally diversified mutual funds. He founded the investment fund Templeton Growth Ltd in 1954.

Beginning a Wall Street career in 1937, Templeton created some of the world's largest and most successful international investment funds. Termed 'arguably the greatest global stock picker of the century' by Money Magazine (January 1999), he sold his various Templeton funds in 1992 to the Franklin Group for $440 million.

Through the John Templeton Foundation, based in Radnor, Pennsylvania, he donates about $40 million a year -- especially to projects, college courses, books and essays on the benefits of cooperation between science and religion.

One of Templeton's earliest investors was Leroy Paslay. He gave him $65,500 to invest in 1954. Forty years later, Paslay was worth over $37 million.

After making billions through his innovative approach to investing, Templeton has become one of the world's greatest philanthropists. In 1987, he founded the $14 billion John Templeton Foundation.

He was born in the town of Winchester, Tennessee. He attended Yale University and graduated in economics in 1934. He was a Rhodes Scholar to Balliol College, University of Oxford.

Now a British citizen living in Nassau, the Bahamas, Templeton was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1987. He is one of the creators of the world's richest award, the $1 million-plus Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual Realities, presented annually in London since 1972.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Greatest Investor: Peter Lynch


Lynch coined some popular mantras of modern investing strategies. His most famous principle is: 'Invest in what you know,' popularising the economic concept of 'local knowledge.'

Before joining Fidelity as a stock analyst, Lynch served in the United States Army for a couple of years and studied at Boston College and at the Wharton School of the University of Philadelphia.

He was born on January 19, 1944. Lynch was hired as an intern with Fidelity Investments in 1966. Lynch's greatest successes occurred in a vast array of stocks, including Fannie Mae, Ford, Philip Morris, MCI, Volvo, General Electric, General Public Utilities, Student Loan Marketing, Kemper, and Loews.

Lynch has written (with co-author John Rothchild) three essays on investing, including One Up on Wall Street, Beating the Street, and Learn to Earn. The last one was written for teenagers. Lynch also wrote a series of investment articles for Worth magazine.

Currently Lynch is concentrating on philanthropy. The Lynch Foundation, which had $74 million in assets in 2003, supports education, religious organisations, cultural and historic organisations, hospitals and medical research.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Greatest Investor: George Soros


George Soros is the founder and chairman of a network of foundations that promote the creation of open, democratic societies based on the rule of law, market economies, transparent and accountable governance, freedom of the press and respect for human rights.

For someone who started his life as a railroad porter, story of Soros' life is stuff dreams are made of.

Born in Budapest, Hungary, in 1930, his father was taken prisoner during World War I and eventually fled from captivity in Russia to reunite with his family in Budapest.

Soros was 13 when Adolf Hitler began deporting the country's Jews to concentration camps. He emigrated to England in 1947 and earned his living by working as a railroad porter and a restaurant waiter. He graduated in 1952 from the London School of Economics and obtained an entry-level position with an investment bank.

At the London School of Economics, Soros was much influenced by philosopher Karl Popper. The latter's critique of totalitarianism, The Open Society and Its Enemies, in which he maintained that societies can only flourish when they allow democratic governance, freedom of expression, a diverse range of opinion and respect for individual rights paved Soros' future course of life.

In 1956, Soros immigrated to the US wherein he worked as a trader and analyst until 1963. During this period, he adapted Popper's ideas to develop his 'theory of reflexivity,' a set of ideas that seeks to explain the relationship between thought and reality.

Soros began to apply his theory to investing and concluded that he had more talent for trading than for philosophy. In 1967, he helped establish an offshore investment fund.

In 1973, Soros set up a private investment firm that eventually evolved into the Quantum Fund and became the source of Soros' fortune.

In 1979, Soros provided funds to help black students attend the University of Cape Town in Apartheid South Africa.

Soon he created a foundation in Hungary to support culture and education and the country's transition to democracy.

Soros distributed funds to the underground Solidarity movement in Poland, Charter 77 in Czechoslovakia and the Soviet dissident-physicist Andrei Sakharov.

In 1982, Soros named his philanthropic organisation the Open Society Fund, in honour of Karl Popper, and began granting scholarships to students from Eastern Europe.

Most recently, Soros provided $50 million to support the Millennium Villages initiative, which seeks to lift some of the least developed villages in Africa out of poverty.

In 1993, Soros created the Open Society Institute, which supports the Soros foundations working to develop democratic institutions throughout Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.

In 2003, Soros said that removing US President George W Bush from office was one of his main priorities. During the 2004 campaign, he donated significant funds to various groups dedicated to defeating the President.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Greatest Investor: Warren Buffett


The 76-year-old Buffett, who is known as 'the Oracle of Omaha,' topped the world's greatest investors list. Buffet made an enormous fortune from astute investments, particularly through his company Berkshire Hathaway, of which he is the largest shareholder and CEO. Berkshire Hathaway has about $2 billion in holdings.

With an estimated net worth of about $46 billion, Buffett, often called the 'Sage of Omaha', is ranked by Forbes as the second richest person in the world, behind Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

As a child, Buffett was a paper boy for the Washington Post and attempted to cover more than one route at the same time. Showing a spontaneous talent for making money, Buffett also started earning that early by collecting and selling lost golf balls.

He even started playing the stock market with one of his sisters at 11. At 12, he was betting on horses and by high school he started a business (pinball machines) with a friend, which earned him $50 a week.

Not only did he own a business by the time he graduated, he also had bought himself 40 acres of farmland in Nebraska. During his graduation, Buffett met Benjamin Graham, an economist. Buffett was strongly influenced by Graham's theory that it is wise to look for stocks of companies which are undervalued as they will probably prosper with a little time.

Thus began Buffett's unconventional approach to portfolio management. After working for his father's investment banking company for three years after business school, Buffett returned to Graham and worked as a security analyst at Graham's company until 1956.

Buffett started his investment company, the Buffett Partnership, at 25, using $5,000 of his own funds and collecting $100,000 from friends and family. One of the smartest moves made by Buffet's company at that time was to invest in American Express.

In June 2006, Buffett made a commitment to give away his fortune to charity, with 85% of it ($30 billion) going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Buffett's donation was the largest act of charitable giving in the world's history.

Buffett also pledged one million shares to a foundation established by himself and his late wife, Susan, and 350,000 shares each to the foundations of children Howard, Susan and Peter.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Greatest Investors: Philip Fisher

Philip A. Fisher

Born: San Francisco, California in 1907; Died 2004
Affiliations:
  • Fisher & Company
Most Famous For: Philip Fisher was one of the most influential investors of all time. His investment philosophies, recorded in his investment classic, "Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits" (1958) are still relevant today and are widely studied and applied by investment professionals. It was the first investment book ever to make the New York Times bestseller list. Fisher's son, Kenneth L. Fisher, wrote a eulogy for his father in his regular column in Forbes magazine (March 11, 2004):

"Among the pioneer, formative thinkers in the growth stock school of investing, he may have been the last professional witnessing the 1929 crash to go on to become a big name. His career spanned 74 years, but was more diverse than growth stock picking. He did early venture capital and private equity, advised chief executives, wrote and taught. He had an impact. For decades, big names in investing claimed Dad as a mentor, role model and inspiration."

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Pakej Easy-ASB 2011

Pakej Easy-ASB terkini oleh RHB menawarkan promosi yang sangat menarik. Kini pelabur hanya perlu membayar kadar minimum (bayar faedah sahaja) untuk 5 tahun pertama. Ini bermakna, kadar pulangan ASB akan semakin tinggi.

Untuk pinjaman 100K misalnya, bayaran bulanan hanyalah RM450, iaitu berjumlah RM5400 setahun. Dengan kadar dividen ASB 7.5%, pulangan ASB melalui pakej Easy-ASB akan melebihi 40%.

Contoh pengiraan:

Kadar dividen ASB: 7.5%
Bonus: 1.25%
Amaun pinjaman: 100K

Kos pinjaman: RM450 x 12 bulan = RM5400
Amaun dividen + bonus: 100K x 7.625% = RM7625

Kadar peratus pulangan: RM7625/RM5400 - 1 = 41.2%

Jelas, pulangan yang sangat lumayan untuk skim pelaburan yang risikonya sangat rendah. Marilah melabur dalam ASB melalui Easy-ASB.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Kenanga Syariah Growth vs MAAKL Syariah Index vs Public Islamic Select Enterprises

KeydataKenanga Syariah GrowthMAAKL Syariah IndexPublic Islamic Select Enterprises
Company Kenanga Investors BhdMAAKL Mutual BhdPublic Mutual Bhd
Category Equity Malaysia (Islamic)Equity Malaysia (Islamic)Equity Malaysia (Islamic)
Launch Date 2002-01-292002-01-042008-08-14
Approved Fund Size 200,000,000300,000,0001,500,000,000
FeesKenanga Syariah GrowthMAAKL Syariah IndexPublic Islamic Select Enterprises
Sales Charge 5.0% 6.5% 5.5%
Redemption Charge NoneNoneNone
Annual Management Fee 1.5%1.5%1.5%
MER (Management Expense Ratio) 2.87%1.63%1.68%
Transaction DetailsKenanga Syariah GrowthMAAKL Syariah IndexPublic Islamic Select Enterprises
Minimum Initial Investment RM1,000RM500RM1,000
Minimum Additional Investment RM100RM100RM100
Minimum Units Held 1001001000
Redemption Frequency Limit 0
0
Minimum Redemption RM1,000None1,000 units
Regular Investing YesYesN/A
Minimum Initial Regular Investment RM100RM500N/A
Minimum Additional Regular Investment RM100RM100N/A
Fund Switching YesYesYes
Switching Frequency Limit 000
Minimum Units per Switch NoneRM1,0001,000 units
Free Switches 22
Switching Fee RM100 / 1% (Whichever is lower.)RM25 (for switches to any other Equity/Balanced/Money Market Funds.)RM25 (To Equity/Balanced Fund: NAV + RM25; to Bond Fund: NAV + RM25; to Money Market Funds: at NAV.)
Distribution Reinvestment YesYesYes
Fund Return
(as at 2011-03-04)
Kenanga Syariah GrowthMAAKL Syariah IndexPublic Islamic Select Enterprises
1 month %%%
6 month 14.48%8.31%14.37%
1 year 27.74%13.65%17.85%
3 year 42.34%7.16%%
5 year 114.61%67.37%%

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Apple iPad 2 Review

Steve Jobs himself officially presented the new tablet. Now as things have settled down a bit, here is an Apple iPad 2 Review, with an in-depth analysis of the key features.

Apple iPad 2 Review

Apple iPad 2 A5 Chip

This A5 chip obviously makes the Apple iPad 2 twice faster than its predecessor, while it also touts up to 9X better graphics.

Apple iPad 2 Slimmer Then Original iPad

It was also previously rumored that the Apple iPad 2 will be slimmer and considerably lighter than its predecessor. Well, that’s true, as Steve Jobs told the audience about its dimensions. The iPad 2 is around 33% thinner than the previous Apple tablet. The width of the Apple iPad 2 is only 8.8mm down from 13.4mm. It is even slimmer than the iPhone 4!

iPad 2 White

Some users like it white and someothers like it black, so Apple decided to design the iPad 2 in both colors. The audience at the event was so really excited when Steve Jobs announced that the white iPad 2 will be shipped from the very same day than the black iPad 2, meaning that there will be no delay in the delivery of the white iPads.

Apple iPad 2 Front Camera

The previous iPad did not have a front camera, so there was no video conferencing capability, but the face camera has been confirmed for the Apple iPad 2.

iOS 4.3

Yes that’s right! The iPad 2 will be running iOS 4.3, which will be soon available to download for your iPhone 3Gs, iPhone 4, iPad and iPod Touch 3G & 4G on March 11.

Apple iPad 2 Gyroscope

Personally, the thing which has left me awestruck is this new feature. As the iPad is thinner and for it to have Gyroscope, which is aware of the movements of the device in space, is something huge!

Also the built-in accelerometer will give both the portrait and landscape views for games, photos and ebooks. Now when the three-axis gyroscope, accelerometer and compass will all work together then games, maps, and other apps know your every twist, tilt, and 360. It will be an ultimate experience!

As for the price of the Apple iPad 2, it looks like a smart move by Apple to keep the prices unchanged. On the internet, whatever we have read about the features of the Apple iPad 2, Steve Jobs gave an excellent impression of this new tablet. Let us see when we get our hands on one of them to get more details on the Apple iPad 2. Thanks for reading this short yet interesting Apple iPad 2 Review!

Friday, March 4, 2011

Dana Public Ittikal vs Kenanga Shariah Growth

KeydataKenanga Syariah GrowthPublic Ittikal Fund
Company Kenanga Investors BhdPublic Mutual Bhd
Category Equity Malaysia (Islamic)Equity Malaysia (Islamic)
Launch Date 2002-01-291997-04-10
Approved Fund Size 200,000,0001,000,000,000
FeesKenanga Syariah GrowthPublic Ittikal Fund
Sales Charge 5.0% 5.5%
Redemption Charge NoneNone
Annual Management Fee 1.5%1.5%
MER (Management Expense Ratio) 2.87%1.58%
Transaction DetailsKenanga Syariah GrowthPublic Ittikal Fund
Minimum Initial Investment RM1,000RM500
Minimum Additional Investment RM100RM50
Minimum Units Held 1001000
Redemption Frequency Limit 00
Minimum Redemption RM1,0001,000 units
Regular Investing YesYes
Minimum Initial Regular Investment RM100RM500
Minimum Additional Regular Investment RM100RM50
Fund Switching YesYes
Switching Frequency Limit 00
Minimum Units per Switch None1,000 units
Free Switches 20
Switching Fee RM100 / 1% (Whichever is lower.)RM25 / 0% (To Equity/Balanced Fund: NAV + RM25; to Bond Fund: NAV + RM25; to Money Market Funds: at NAV.)
Distribution Reinvestment YesYes
Fund Return
(as at 2011-03-03)
Kenanga Syariah GrowthPublic Ittikal Fund
1 month %%
6 month 14.48%10.26%
1 year 27.74%6.34%
3 year 42.33%2.04%
5 year 114.61%58.19%

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Harga Emas Pulih Naik 4% Bulan Februari 2011


Pada bulan lepas, harga emas kembali pulih, naik 4%, dibantu oleh krisis politik di Timur Tengah.