The Alpha Architect Round Up

We talked with Brent Sullivan, chief editor at Tax Alpha Insider, about the history, use cases and future of the 351 exchange. Brent is one of the most respected voices in the investing tax space.

Can stocks really underperform for bonds decades?! In this special Alpha Architect Round Up celebrating 3,000 subscribers, we sit down with Meb Faber to dig into surprising market truths, diversification challenges, and why buy-and-hold doesn’t always work outside the U.S. In this episode, we discuss: • Why stocks can stagnate or trail other assets like bonds and gold for decades • The hidden role...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Are tariffs coming back—and is the market ready? The global trade landscape just got more complicated. With key tariff extensions expiring and deal-making in limbo, investors are left wondering what’s already priced into the market—and what might still catch them off guard. In this conversation, the Alpha Architect team to break down what these...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Is Tail Risk Hedging Still Worth It? And What’s Up With Trend Following and International Stocks? In this episode of the Alpha Architect Roundup, we tackle the recent market dip, the muted VIX, and what that means for tail risk hedging strategies. While investors hoping for a crash were left disappointed, the conversation turns to whether prote...

Can Apple really be safer than the U.S. government? In this episode of the Alpha Architect Roundup, we explore the odd disconnect between credit ratings and market pricing. Apple holds a higher rating than the U.S.—but Treasury yields suggest otherwise. What does that say about risk perception, inflation expectations, and the role of bonds in your portfolio? In this episode, we discuss: – The disc...

What stocks should you own in a trade war? That’s the question I posed to Kai Wu, founder of Sparkline Capital, after reading his latest blog post. His answer? It's not what most investors expect—and it goes way beyond headlines about tariffs and retaliation. We discuss: • The two key dimensions of trade exposure: sales and supply chains • Why global firms have historically outperformed—despite hi...

Can large value stocks hold their own against small value stocks? The answer might surprise you! In this video we challenge the narrative that small value stocks dominate, explore what really matters for long-only value investors, discuss the impact of liquidity, rebalancing, and portfolio weighting, and examine evidence from U.S. and international markets by examining Jack Vogel's academic paper,...

The Trump Bear Trap: Volatility, Tariffs, and Factor Frustration Markets whipsawed through April, with sudden drawdowns, massive rebounds, and political catalysts fueling confusion. In this episode of the Alpha Architect Roundup, we break down whether this is a true bear trap—or just the cost of being a long-term, evidence-based investor. Key Topics Covered: •Is this a bear trap or just market noi...

Is option hedging worth it — or just an expensive insurance policy? We sat down with Joe DeSipio, Chief Market Strategist at Arin Risk Advisors, to explore how professional investors think about using options for hedging, portfolio construction, and opportunistic trading. In this conversation, we cover: • Why put options are often overpriced, and what to do about it • The rise of retail interest i...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Welcome to the Alpha Architect Round up, where we talk market news, trends and answer any questions you may have through an evidence-based lens. In this special edition, we dive deep into trend following, macro momentum, equity valuations, and the market reaction to major trade policy shifts. In this episode: •Does the 200-day moving average st...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Welcome to the Alpha Architect Roundup! In this episode, we dive deep into: Factor investing strategies – How much should you concentrate a portfolio? Separate vs. combined factor funds – What’s the best approach? Regression vs. characteristics – Which method is more effective? Rebalancing factor portfolios – How frequently should you adjust? U...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Welcome to the Alpha Architect Roundup! In this episode, we dive deep into: NVDA's $500B stock wipeout – What happened and why? AI investing risks – Is the AI bubble bursting? Tariff wars & macro trends – How will they impact markets? Portfolio strategies – Should investors adjust their holdings? Momentum investing risks – Could Nvidia’s drop s...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com Welcome to the Alpha Architect Roundup! In this episode, we dive deep into : - Rising treasury yields and bond market signals - Inflation risk - iShares filing for a managed futures ETF - Everyone's desert island investment factors - Factor investing outlook for 2025 - How GameStop (GME) may be a value stock - DJT stock and the underlying play...

To subscribe to the Alpha Architect blog head to alphaarchitect.com/subscribe How to invest in 2025? If you're setting goals for the new year, one of them might be to start investing, improve your investment strategy, or simply manage your money more effectively in 2025. To help, we’ve invited our CEO and CIO, Wes Gray, to share insights on how he started his investing journey, the opportunities h...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: https://x.com/alphaarchitect Jack Vogel, PhD: https://x.com/jvogs02 Ryan Kirlin: https://x.com/RyanPKirlin Jose Ordoñez Jr: https://x.com/JOrdonezJr The Economist Article: https://www.economist.com/finance-...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: https://x.com/alphaarchitect Jack Vogel, PhD: https://x.com/jvogs02 Ryan Kirlin: https://x.com/RyanPKirlin Jose Ordoñez Jr: https://x.com/JOrdonezJr Jack's paper "Long Only Value Investing: Does Size Matter...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog.
www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Follow us on X:
 Wes Gray, PhD: x.com/alphaarchitect
 Jack Vogel, PhD: x.com/jvogs02
 Ryan Kirlin: x.com/RyanPKirlin
 Jose Ordoñez Jr: x.com/JOrdonezJr Welcome to the Alpha Architect Round Up. Every month the Alpha Architect crew gets together a...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Financial Repression Blog: "Low or High Inflation? Nope, Stealthy Government Debt Liquidation!": https://alphaarchitect.com/2015/03/stealth-government-debt-liquidation/ Jack's "Long-Only Value Investing: Does Size Matter?" Paper: https:/...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Read Jack's paper on transaction costs: https://alphaarchitect.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Factor_Investing_and_Trading_Costs.pdf Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: https://x.com/alphaarchitect Jack Vogel, PhD: https://x.com/jvogs02 Ryan...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Long-Only Value Investing: Does Size Matter? by Jack Vogel: alphaarchitect.com/wp-content/uplo…ueInvesting.pdf Should You Combine Value and Momentum? with Ryan Kirlin: www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwrYP1AaSF0 Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: x.com/alph...

Submit your questions! Email: jose@alphaarchitect.com For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: https://x.com/alphaarchitect Jack Vogel, PhD: https://x.com/jvogs02 Ryan Kirlin: https://x.com/RyanPKirlin Jose Ordoñez Jr: https://x.com/JOrdonezJr Welcome to the Alpha Architect Round Up. Every month the...

For more educational resources, check out the Alpha Architect blog. https://www.alphaarchitect.com/subscribe Follow us on X: Wes Gray, PhD: https://x.com/alphaarchitect Jack Vogel, PhD: https://x.com/jvogs02 Ryan Kirlin: https://x.com/RyanPKirlin Jose Ordoñez Jr: https://x.com/JOrdonezJr Welcome to the Alpha Architect Round Up. Every month the Alpha Architect crew gets together and talks financial...

This week we discuss Ryan’s article examining the Enterprise Multiple, EBIT/TEV, or Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) divided by the firm’s Total Enterprise Value (TEV). Article Links: What’s the Story Behind EBIT/TEV https://alphaarchitect.com/2020/05/01/whats-the-story-behind-ebit-tev/

In this video, we examine two articles highlighted on our site. The first article, written by Larry Swedroe, examines the Value and Momentum performance over the past two years ( highlighting great research by the AQR team). The second article, written by Nicolas Rabener, examines portfolios combining either (1) Low Volatility and Momentum or (2) Value and Momentum. Article Links: Is There Somethi...

Last week, there were some pretty big dislocations between bond mutual funds and ETFs. I picked one specific example I found interesting, comparing the Vanguard high-yield muni bond mutual fund to two high-yield muni bond ETFs in the marketplace. Ryan and I discussed my example, which hopefully gives some information on how, within the bond market, ETFs can at times act differently than mutual fun...