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Low-risk ETF-based investing strategy that earned +26.1% returns in the past decade, while the S+P 500 was losing 37.4%
Master the Low-Risk ETF-Based Investing Strategy That Gives You the Chance to Make Money in Any Market Climate
“Tom Lydon has been a leader in the ETF business for many years. His new book walks through the basics of ETFs investing and shows why professionals–and increasingly, individuals–are turning to ETFs.”
–Bob Pisani, CNBC Reporter
“Our complex and global financial system has created a powerful need for guideposts for investors and traders alike. Tom Lydon provides an excellent tool to help navigate the current economic environment in a clear, concise, easy-to-understand way.”
–John L. Jacobs, EVP and CMO, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.
“There are hundreds of writers, speakers, and advisers clamoring to get a seat aboard the ETF bandwagon. However, if you’re looking for genuine insight from a real pioneer, then read Tom Lydon. Not only is Tom’s The ETF Trend Following Playbook a principled how-to guide for individual investors, it is requisite reading for money managers.”
–Gary Gordon, Editor of ETFExpert.com
“Tom Lydon has put together a concise handbook for the active ETF trader outlining the key drivers of successful trend investing. The ETF Trend Following Playbook provides sound advice for traders as well as a comprehensive and up-to-date tour of all the ETF world has to offer.”
–Scott Burns, Director of ETF Analysis at Morningstar
Trends Are an Investor's Best Friend
Download the sample pages (includes Chapter 1 and Index)
Acknowledgments . . . xii
About the Author . . . xiv
Introduction: Buy—and—Hold: Rest in Peace . . . xv
Chapter 1 Trends Are an Investor’s Best Friend . . . 1
Buy-and-Hold’s Funeral March . . . 4
Getting in Touch with Your Emotions . . . 7
Never-Ending Opportunities . . . 9
Chapter 2 Risk and Disaster Don’t Have to Go Hand-in-Hand . . . 11
Greed and Fear and Stocks, Oh My! . . . 12
Running Scared . . . 13
What Kind of Risk Level Can You Tolerate? . . .14
Types of Risk . . . 16
Staying Grounded . . . 17
Is Time on Your Side? . . . 17
The Go-Getter (Aggressive) . . . 17
The In-Betweener (Somewhat Less Aggressive) . . . 18
The Almost There (Moderately Conservative) . . . 18
The I’m Outta Here (Conservative) . . . 18
Chapter 3 Spotting Trends . . . 23
Tools of the Trade . . . 23
Learning to Identify Trends . . . 24
The Rules of the Game . . . 25
Understanding the Moving Average . . . 26
Exiting Safely and Profitably . . . 27
Avoiding a Bursting Bubble . . . 29
Learning to Live with “the Sell” . . . 29
Finding the Trends . . . 30
Up, Down, and Flat as a Pancake . . . 31
Timing Is Everything . . . 35
Chapter 4 Why Trend Following Can’t Be Beat . . . 39
Never Look Back . . . 42
What Happens After You Sell? . . . 43
Conquer Volatility, Don’t Let It Conquer You . . . 44
Do You Have Any Better Ideas? . . . 44
Buy-and-Hold: Does It Work Like It Should? . . . 45
Where That Leaves Us . . . 46
Chapter 5 The Nuts and Bolts of ETFs . . . 49
Why ETFs Are a Better Solution . . . 50
A Fast-Growing Industry . . . 53
Evaluating ETFs . . . 54
Employing ETFs . . . 56
Chapter 6 Tools You Can Use . . . 61
News . . . 61
Analysis . . . 62
Looking Under the Hood . . . 63
Charting . . . 64
Chapter 7 Navigating U.S. Markets . . . 65
Choices Galore . . . 66
Dow Jones Industrial Average . . . 67
The S&P 500 . . . 69
Russell Mid-Cap Index . . . 70
The Russell 2000 . . . 70
Growth Versus Value . . . 72
Value: Slower but Steadier . . . 72
Trends in Value and Growth . . . 73
Domestic Market ETFs . . . 74
Digging in Even Deeper . . . 75
Chapter 8 International Opportunities . . . 77
The Land of the Rising Sun...and Profits . . . 79
The Beginning of the End . . . 80
Emerging Markets . . . 82
China’s Dragon . . . 84
Investing in Emerging Economies . . . 86
Another BRIC in the Wall . . . 87
International ETFs . . . 88
Developed Markets . . . 89
Emerging Markets . . . 90
Chapter 9 The Best-Looking Sector in the Room . . . 93
Technology: High Highs and Lower Lows . . . 95
The Bubble Springs a Leak . . . 96
Passing Around Blame . . . 98
One Big Financial Mess . . . 99
The Beginning of the Global Crisis . . . 100
Sector-Specific ETFs . . . 101
Power Up with Utility ETFs . . . 103
Checking Up on Healthcare ETFs . . . 104
Banking on Financials . . . 104
Chapter 10 The Luster of Gold and Crude . . . 107
Oil: A Slippery, Yet Profitable Slope . . . 110
Turning Trends into Profits . . . 113
Owning Your Share of Commodities . . . 114
Agriculture . . . 116
Energy . . . 117
Metals (Precious, Base, and Industrial) . . . 118
Broad-Based Commodity ETFs . . . 119
Going the Roundabout Way . . . 120
South Africa . . . 120
Chile . . . 121
Russia . . . 121
Australia . . . 121
Commodities: A Valuable Part of Your Portfolio . . . 122
Chapter 11 The World of Currencies . . . 123
Monitoring the Ups and Downs of Money . . . 123
A Rocky Road for the U.S. Dollar . . .124
Citizens Suffer . . . 124
The Dollar Bucks Its Trend–Will It Last? . . . 126
Making the Most Out of Currency ETFs . . .129
Squeezing the Most from Your Dollars . . . 131
Chapter 12 Trends in Fixed Income . . . 133
Factors to Consider . . . 137
The Yield Curve . . . 139
Recent Trends Spotted . . . 141
Taxes and Municipal Bond Trends . . . 142
High-Yield Opportunity . . . 144
Fixed-Income ETFs . . . 144
Who Wants Bonds? . . . 146
How to Choose Bond ETFs . . . 147
Chapter 13 Getting Leverage in the Markets . . . 149
The Long and Short of ETFs . . . 150
Pumping Up Returns . . . 154
Chapter 14 Conclusion: Let’s Get to Work . . . 159
Switching from Mutual Funds to ETFs . . . 161
Working with Your Advisor . . . 162
Wrap—Up . . . 164
Glossary . . . 165
References and Resources . . . 181
References . . . 181
Resources . . . 197
Books . . . 197
Services . . . 198
Index . . . 199