In a move that CBS (CBS) hopes will help it expand its audience (and revenue, of course) the venerable media institution has announced that it is acquiring CNET (CNET). Mashable reports on what CBS says about the deal:

Leslie Moonves, President and Chief Executive Officer at CBS Corporation, said this about the acquisition: “There are very few opportunities to acquire a profitable, growing, well-managed Internet company like CNET Networks. CBS stands for premium content and unparalleled reach, and CNET Networks will add a tremendous platform to extend our complementary entertainment, news, sports, music and information content to a whole new global audience.”

This could be a very savvy move for CBS, who is buying CNET (whose properties also include ZDNET, GameSpot.com, BNET, Search.com, TV.com and UrbanBaby, among others) for $1.8 billion. This amount has CNET stock up, while CBS stock is down.

CBS expands its reach

Recognizing that the old way of doing things with regard to media and — perhaps especially — news, CBS is looking to broaden its reach. Indeed, the move will mean that CBS instantly becomes one of the top ten Internet companies in terms of popularity, reach about 200 million users around the world.

In the long run, this could mean good news for CBS. The company is looking to the future, and rather than focusing on social media sites as so many others are doing, CBS is going for an established company that already has established sources of revenue.

For CNET, this means extrication from an increasingly unpleasant position that might have culminated in a shareholder revolt.

Disclaimer: I am not an investment professional. Nothing in this piece or on this Web site should be construed as investment advice. Before making investment decisions, do your own research and/or consult with an investment professional. All investment comes with the risk of loss.

It is true that one of the main rules of investing is to include diversification. Indeed, diversification can be a good way to protect your investment portfolio from devastation, and it can provide a way for you to create more solid returns overall. But, like so much in life, too much of a good thing can actually be bad. This applies to diversification as well.

Money Talks reports on what Bankrate says about having too much diversification:

Financial industry experts agree that over-diversification can actually thwart your investment goals in the long run, as too many securities or mutual funds can diminish portfolio performance, increase costs and create an overwhelming amount of work for advisers and investors.

The idea is moderation. You don’t want to diversify your investment portfolio to the point that everything is diluted and the administrative fees pile up.

Instead of focusing primarily on achieving diversification, you should consider asset allocation. Create a plan that allows you to determine what you need to do right now, and it has you look at your individual needs. This includes looking at your risk tolerance, and deciding what kind of risk your investment portfolio has — and what it can handle.

Choose a few diversified investments

Instead of choosing a lot of investments, hand-pick a few that offer you a reasonable amount of diversification. Many experts agree that 10 to 12 individual stocks are sufficient, and mixing it up with a couple mutual funds, ETFs and other investments is fine. There is no need to go crazy and “diversify” with 40 or 50 stocks.

In the end, the key is moderation and planning. Whether you make the plan yourself, or enlist the help of a professional, you need to look at your needs and find a direction for your investment portfolio.

Disclaimer: I am not an investment professional. Nothing in this piece or on this Web site should be construed as investment advice. Before making investment decisions, do your own research and/or consult with an investment professional. All investment comes with the risk of loss.

Tags: stocks, diversification, investing blog, investing,
investment portfolio, investments, mutual funds

In this age of the Internet and the 24 hour news cycle, we often look at what candidates for political office do in their personal lives in order to get an idea of what they would do while in office. Interestingly enough, if one looks at the sort of investing Barack Obama does, he would probably be an extreme fiscal conservative. BloggingStocks points this out about investing and Barack Obama:

Voters worried that Obama is a tax-and-spend liberal should take some comfort from the conservative — Slate says too conservative — approach in his portfolio that it is too weighted toward bonds and not enough toward stocks. Unlike former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Obama has no hedge fund investments or much of anything else exciting. Most of his money is in mutual funds. …

I know conservatives often snipe that liberals would rather risk the government’s money than their own. But Obama’s portfolio shows that he is hardly an elitist.

Indeed, when expounding on his plans for the economy Barack Obama often makes sure that he includes what he would do to offset costs of some of his programs. And he is the only serious contender for president with the guts to point out that a gas tax holiday makes poor economic sense.

But does that mean he is truly a fiscal conservative? Does the investing Barack Obama is partial to (with most of his holdings in a blind trust) really indicate thathe would whip the country into fiscal shape? Is that even possible at this point?

At any rate, if I were advising Barack Obama on his investing plan, I’d have him mix it up a little bit. The man has the risk tolerance to absorb a few riskier investments. Lets try some more stocks, and maybe even an ETF or some forex trading.

Disclaimer: I am not an investment professional. Nothing in this piece or on this Web site should be construed as investment advice. Before making investment decisions, do your own research and/or consult with an investment professional. All investment comes with the risk of loss.

Tags: Barack Obama, investing, investing blog, Fed rate decision,
economy, investments, forex trading