Evaluation of "The Moneyball Method" by Mark Shupe - A Critical Analysis of the Financial Baseball Analytics Approach
Mark Shupe, a wealth management and trust expert, has written a new book titled "The Moneyball Method: A Middle-Class Manifesto for Objective Investing." The book, inspired by the baseball strategy that emphasizes data-driven decision making, aims to provide a practical and reliable approach to investing for middle-class and affluent investors.
The Moneyball Method promotes an objective investing approach, encouraging investors to measure and manage investments based on empirical data and evidence, rather than emotional biases or market noise. This means adopting a disciplined, fact-based strategy that avoids common pitfalls such as chasing trends or overreacting to short-term market movements.
According to Shupe, money does not reward force, but rather production. Producers decide what monetary forms circulate based on the need for roughly equal amounts of product for the product they bring to market. In this context, the dollar circulates all over the world because it is considered real money only when producers say so.
Shupe rejects the idea that aggressive creation of money instigates stock-market rallies. Instead, he sees so-called "monopolies" as price signals that summon competition. Market prices, including equity prices, provide information about what is needed, what is not, and what could be. Prices are seen as information, and new sellers will continuously enter the marketplace to capture some of that business.
Shupe's book promotes an approach to investing that focuses on objective data and navigating markets based on historical data, rather than trying to predict the future and beat the market. He believes that markets themselves inform us about markets, including how to best hedge against downturns.
The book positions index funds as the best fit for investing, while intermediate term (7-10 years) Treasuries are seen as the best historical hedge against stock market risk. Shupe's client-focused approach is to find out "how much downside market risk can be absorbed without changing the spending goals, saving habits, or the timing events for the investor."
The notion that central banks could manipulate the money supply is seen as insulting common sense, as production is money. Treasuries are seen as a riskless income stream, while equities represent an ownership stake in the brilliant work of productive minds.
Shupe sees a connection between the Moneyball metaphor in baseball and money management, as both involve choosing to live in harmony with reality. He believes that markets gain vitality from periods of weakness, as money relentlessly puts out to pasture what is no longer meeting and leading the needs of the people.
In conclusion, Shupe's "Moneyball Method" offers a refreshing and practical approach to investing for middle-class and affluent investors. By focusing on objective data, rational analysis, and avoiding common behavioral biases, investors can improve their investing outcomes and build and preserve wealth across market cycles.
John Tamny, in his book reviews, has commended Mark Shupe's book, "The Moneyball Method: A Middle-Class Manifesto for Objective Investing," for its practical approach to personal-finance and investing. This book, delving into education-and-self-development and entertainment, offers insights on finance, economy, and the role of production in determining the value of money. The book advocates an investing strategy that is data-driven, fact-based, and devoid of emotional biases or market noise, making it a valuable addition to books on the subject.
