Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Dear Abby

Here I am once again at SFO waiting to hop on board a plane. I thought I'd dash off one last little post before the day ended.

So what's the appeal of this person?


Yes, that's right: Abby Joseph Cohen. Omnipresent panelist on Barron's Roundtable. Persistent guru of all things equity. Head strategist for Goldman Sachs.

So how does this person merit her seven-figure salary every year? Is it her rugged masculinity? It's certainly not her track record. Any analyst that was as consistently bearish as Abby has been bullish would be labeled a crackpot. Such is the bullish bias of our fading republic.

6 comments:

downosedive said...

Aye, this is a typical example of the fact that analysts earn revenue by encouraging stocks, shares and corporate activity to continue and ideally on an ever upward trend. If they dare to say sell, they potentially risk loosing clients. Its a blatent conflict of interest that the average person doesnt realise and so they blindly follow these analysts advice....and buy, buy, buy. Also the average person still doesnt understand how to make money in a falling market, consequently the average person hears what they want to hear from these analysts, which is buy, buy, buy and you will make money because its going to go up, up,up!! Cheers Tim......bye way I see the DJA Sept futures are a bit wobbley today, a reversal looks possible

John Wheatcroft said...

Running out of ideas Tim? Shame on you - such an easy target - what next - an expose of Cramer?

GS is a retail shop, it has to sell stocks - that is their inventory - in order to sell them they need salespeople - hence AJC. It really is that simple.

Let's maintain perspective - people such as AJC make your life on the dark side that much easier since you can fade her at will. That is - you have a choice in what you will do - she has no choice - her job is to sell stocks and, as expected of her, that's what she does.

I have no skin in this game - and it's your site and you can print what you want but keep in mind - not only does our fading republic have a bullish bias - we have it for good reason. We are a nation of can-do optimists. That might be old-fashioned and maybe even a little trite but it is true. It is reflected in everything we do.

(The old man climbs slowly off his soapbox and wanders away)

Tim Knight said...

Cristi, I'm simply trying to wake you up and get you ready for the trading day ahead. For really rough days, I've got my nude pictures of Ernest Borgnine ready to go. And John, no, I'm not running out of ideas. It's just that every time I see Cohen interviewed somewhere, I think "Kee-Rist" and grit my teeth.

Anonymous said...

Abby JOSEPH Cohen
The middle name tells it all. Her Dad was (is) a Partner of Goldman many years ago..This is his (her) annuity.
Bill V.

Tim Knight said...

I think the name was Feschbach.

Anonymous said...

Abby is my dart board poster child - and has been for five years. If her salary was based on her accuracy instead of drumming up commissions by being the head cheerleader for the Wall Street Bulls, perhaps her calls would be as good as Marc Faber's, another of Barron's Roundtable members - but one who 'gets it'.

Greenback Bear
Los Angeles