04/10/10 Henley Smith of Commonwealth Asset Management Tells Town Investment Leaders To Get Their Advice From A Kid Instead A Pack Of Lemmings

Greenwich News - April 10, 2010

Municipal leaders learn how to leap (Connecticut Post)

Twenty-seven municipal investment leaders gathered Thursday to hear about the risks and potential rewards in a low-interest environment that is being stalked by the spectre of inflation

Twenty-seven municipal investment leaders gathered Thursday to hear about the risks and potential rewards in a low-interest environment that is being stalked by the spectre of inflation.
"We're starting to see some risk-taking," said Henley Smith, chief investment officer of Greenwich-based Commonwealth Asset Management, who lectured on making investment decisions while interest rates are low to the half-day symposium at the Fairfield Museum and History Center.....

.....But he also named investments he would consider in this environment -- and some he said should be avoided. He said people should consider U.S. Treasuries, but gold makes him nervous, partly because there are so many people pushing it.

Smith told an anecdote about Joe Kennedy's decision to sell stocks after a shoeshine kid gave him a stock tip. Put another way, he said, it's a good idea to get away from a pack of lemmings, they're only headed for a fall......

.....Setting clear goals and strategies is part of how a municipality can invest wisely, according to another event speaker, Guy LeBas, chief fixed-income strategist for Janney Montgomery Scott in Fairfield, which organized the symposium.

LeBas said investors should act more like the "smart money" in the market, hedging risk like the big banks and insurance companies......

.....Carolyn Frzop, a Fairfield resident and a vice president with Janney Montgomery Scott, said the idea was to get the municipal investment professionals together to discuss trends in the market.....

COMMENT:

Greenwich Roundup Hopes that Town Of Greenwich Employees Missed This Pitch To Put Taxpayer Funds Investments With A Higher Level Of Risk.

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