Geoff Considine's  Instablog

Advisor Perspectives, an online publication that I contribute to, just published their list of the ten most read articles for 2010.  This list is of considerable interest to me--to see how the readership responds to different themes--but it is also very interesting in terms of what we may imply about advisors' concerns and thinking. 

The most-read article for the year is called Jeremy Grantham Guarantees Gold Will Crash, published on May 18.  Grantham reports that he has just bought gold himself, but that he is also very concerned that the current run-up is unsustainable.  The popularity of this article surely reflects the fact that Grantham has been one of the few prognosticators worth paying attention to over the last decade.

The second most popular articles is called Ten Retirement Lessons From The Smartest People I Know, by Paul Merriman.  While I often disagree with Merriman's investment themes, this article is more more of a philosophical treatise on life choices.  The fact that this article is so popular shows that people are looking for some broader grounding for their decisions and choices.  Common sense is, as they say, not all that common.  Perhaps people are looking for more, here.  I also wonder whether advisors reading this article are looking for straightforward ways to create a framework to help clients understand their financial outlook. 

The third most popular article for the year is by--shameless plug--me.  This article is called The Ultimate Income Portfolio.  In this piece, I explore a new approach to designing and judging income-oriented portfolios.  I received a lot of feedback from this article--including a nice mention by Scott Burns in his syndicated column.  In a low-yield environment, many investors and advisors are trying to figure out how to generate income without taking on too much risk.  This is a hugely important challenge for income-oriented investors.  As Boomers reach retirement, this issue will only get more attention.  I also attribute some of the popularity of this article to the fact that it brings covered call strategies into the income mix in a consistent way.  I feel that this type of strategy is starting to get more attention among advisors--and deservedly so. 

The fourth most popular article for 2010 is also by me.  This article is called Asset Allocation for Grantham's Seven Lean Years.  In this article, I explore Grantham's rather negative outlook for equities as a whole, as well as his expected bright spots.  My own analysis using portfolio simulation tools often lines up well with Grantham, and this case is no exception.  His argument is that we are entering an extended period of slow growth and that high-quality equities will trump risky, leveraged assets.  My analysis agrees, and I discuss the types of portfolios that look most attractive in such a framework. 

The other articles in this list highlight a range of major themes that advisors are concerned with--and they are worth perusing.  This list is, in some sense, a vote on the themes that advisors see as their largest concerns.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I have recently written an article on Advisor Perpectives that looks at the risk of under-performance in equities over extended periods of time:

The Retirement Portfolio Showdown: Zvi Bodie vs. Jeremy Siegel

I am increasingly struck by the fact that people do not understand Bodie's key point with regard to equity risk--that while the probability of under-performing bonds decreases with holding period, the risks of severe under-performance increases.  Bodie's thesis (published in 1995) is well worth understanding.  Bodie concludes that stocks are too risky for retirement planning, but I do not find that this is the case.  That said, the potential for long-term under-performance of equities is real, and investors need to be aware of this.