GenVec, Inc.

(Public, NASDAQ:GNVC)

StocksHaven Investments profiles a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing gene-based therapeutic drugs and vaccines. Its lead product candidate, TNFerade biologic (TNFerade), is being developed for use in the treatment of cancer, and is currently undergoing Phase III trials which are expected to be completed by Q1 2010. In addition to its therapeutic product development programs, GenVec is working with collaborators to develop new applications for its technology through its vaccine development programs. The Company is developing a vaccine in animal health against foot-and-mouth disease and preventative vaccines for malaria, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), respiratory syncytial virus, and Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 (HSV-2). Surrounded by cash infusions through grants, mutual and institutional investors, multi-purpose products with billion dollar market potential, and an already flowing revenue stream – GenVec is one company you shouldn’t pass by.

About

Genvec

“… a social epidemic is supporting renewed confidence. This confidence can keep growing by contagion, as a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy, and we may see the markets and the economy recover further. But in an economy that is still unstable, the stories could also morph into different forms, the price feedback could turn downward and the dynamic could turn ugly again - just as it has in the past,” said Yale professor Robert Shiller via The New York Times.

More of Shiller’s views are discussed in the recent CNBC interview below.

Source: CNBC, August 31, 2009 and The New York Times, August 29, 2009.

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By Robert Folsom

Editor’s Note: The following article discusses Robert Prechter’s view of the Efficient Market Hypothesis. For more information, download this free 10-page issue of Prechter’s Elliott Wave Theorist.

When a maverick idea becomes vindicated, there’s a good story to tell. It usually involves a person (or small group of people) who courageously challenge the orthodoxy of the day — and, over time, the unorthodox yet better idea prevails.

A “good story” of this sort has surfaced during the current financial crisis. A chapter of the story appeared in a recent New York Times article, “Poking Holes in a Theory on Markets.” The theory in question is the efficient market hypothesis (EMH), which the article suggested is so hazardous that it “is more or less responsible for the financial crisis.” This quote tells you most of what you need to know:
“In the last decade, the efficient market hypothesis, which had …

Stock markets recorded another strong week as further signs of economic stabilization emerged. The S&P 500 Index worked its way back to above the 1,000 level on Friday, and more upside lies ahead said Abby Joseph Cohen, Goldman Sachs’ market strategist, as she expected the Index to reach the 1,100 mark by year end.

This week’s batch of video clips not only covers the outlook for stock markets, but also discussions about the economy’s transition from recession to recovery and other topical issues. Appearing on camera are Jeffry Sachs, Robert Shiller, Larry Summers, Lakshman Achuthan, Joseph Stiglitz, David Rosenberg and David Hickey.

The selection starts off with two academics - Jeffrey Sachs and Robert Shiller - and concludes with a discussion about the “man-cession” - older white male workers being among the hardest hit by job losses.

Fora.tv: Jeffrey Sachs - global effects of crisis “Jeffrey Sachs, Director

The Gone Fishin’ Portfolio: The Best Low-Cost, Tax-Efficient Investment System

by Alexander Green, Advisory Panelist

Seven years ago, I created The Gone Fishin’ Portfolio for The Oxford Club.

The goal was to develop a low-cost, tax-efficient investment system based on the only strategy to ever win the Nobel Prize in Economics.

The portfolio has generated high returns with low risk while doing a complete end run around Wall Street’s high-priced products, self-serving advice and mountain of fees. Yet it is so simple to implement that you can do it yourself in less than 20 minutes a year.

Still, a lot of investors just don’t get it.

A prime example is a Mr. Talmadge O’Neill. Posting a customer review of my book “The Gone Fishin’ Portfolio” on Amazon, he writes that the portfolio “is only going to give you the basic market return. Nothing fancy. We’re not talking endowment returns.”

It’s true that

This week in WealthTrack’s series on Great Investors, Consuelo Mack features the never-before-aired portions of her wide-ranging interview with Yale’s renowned endowment chief, David Swensen. Among the topics covered are Swensen’s assessment of the new investment reality and where he is investing his and his family’s money.

Note: The transcript of this interview is not available yet, but will be posted here as soon as it arrives.

Source: WealthTrack, July 10, 2009.

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I am experiencing Internet problems and have difficulty accessing my data sources. This week’s video compilation is therefore posted without the usual introductory paragraphs. But I’m sure the interesting clips will speak for themselves.

Wall St Cheat Sheet: AIG - writing stories about people who play “it” safe “Evidently, AIG is a company that plays ‘it’ safe (whatever the hell that means) and knows how to manage risk better than anyone else in the known universe. Don’t believe me? Take their word for it. We let corporations falsely advertise all the time, and here is a perfect example of the cost.”

Source: Damien Hoffman, Wall St Cheat Sheet, July 15, 2009.

Bloomberg: Shiller, Roubini discuss “anemic” economic recovery “Nouriel Roubini, professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, and Robert Shiller, chief economist and co-founder

Last month the first ETF adhering to strict Islamic beliefs, Dow Jones Islamic Market International (NYSE: JVS), began trading.  Following Shariah law, the index excludes anything close to investing in “sin stocks” or firms that produce or market alcohol, tobacco, gambling, weapons, or pornography.

Investors are further assured that the stocks held in the index have nothing to do with borrowing or lending, women’s fashions, cosmetics, modern cinema, popular music, or pork.

Personally, I wouldn’t touch this fund with a barge pole. It is virtually guaranteed to earn sub-par returns.

Here’s why…

Investing in Sin Stocks vs. Socially Responsible Stocks

If you were given the choice six years ago between investing in the environmentally and socially responsible Sierra Club Stock Fund (Nasdaq: SCFSX) or investing in sin stocks with the Vice Fund (Nasdaq: VICEX), which invests primarily in tobacco, alcohol, defense and gambling, which would you have chosen?

I’ll give you a hint.

Investing in Sin Stocks: How to Oppose Radical Islam in Your Portfolio

by Alexander Green, Advisory Panelist

Last month the first ETF adhering to strict Islamic beliefs, Dow Jones Islamic Market International (NYSE: JVS), began trading.

Following Shariah law, the index excludes anything close to investing in “sin stocks” or firms that produce or market alcohol, tobacco, gambling, weapons, or pornography.

Investors are further assured that the stocks held in the index have nothing to do with borrowing or lending, women’s fashions, cosmetics, modern cinema, popular music, or pork.

Personally, I wouldn’t touch this fund with a barge pole. It is virtually guaranteed to earn sub-par returns.

Here’s why…

Investing in Sin Stocks vs. Socially Responsible Stocks

If you were given the choice six years ago between investing in the environmentally and socially responsible Sierra Club Stock Fund (Nasdaq: SCFSX) or investing in sin stocks with

With the S&P 500 Index after yesterday’s surge again slightly above the “neckline” (of the head-and-shoulders formation referred in a post last week), I will be monitoring things very closely over the next day or two to see if the impressive bounce was just a one-day wonder or something more enduring.

Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is now fairly valued on a long-term cyclically adjusted P/E (CAPE) basis, according to Robert Shiller (as reported by Yahoo Finance, Tech Ticker). Shiller is economics professor at Yale and author of, among others, Animal Spirits, Subprime Solution and Irrational Exuberance.

In order not to work with notoriously unreliable forward-looking earnings estimates, I have always preferred using Shiller’s CAPE methodology, or normalised earnings, as they average ten years of earnings. This measure provides a good picture of the market’s value