Argent Quarterly Investment Commentary – January 2011
“When you have an elephant by the hind legs, and he is trying to run away, it is best to let him run.”
-Abraham Lincoln
Frequently, the best returns for stocks are when expectations are lowest. So it was this past summer when a sudden resilient private sector, combined with positive income tax legislation, led to run away stock market returns for both the third and fourth quarters of 2010. This was quite a turnaround from May and June when the stock market hit the proverbial wall. Worries primarily over problems in the Euro-zone had led to a second quarter bear market, but such fears were fleeting, and stocks had rediscovered their audience by Labor Day. It was not that the economy was doing so well; rather that the valuation in the stock market simply reflected too much bad news and other investment options offered so little upside.
