A “red herring” is known as something that distracts from a more important area of focus. There are numerous different attributions to the etymology of this saying. From 17th century fox hunters deceiving dogs with herring; to 19th century bandits using herring to throw bloodhounds off their scent; to early New England settlers leaving bits of red herring along their trail to confuse the wolves that were following. In equities today, perhaps “income yield” is the red herring – throwing investors off the scent of “total returns.”
This is exclusive content to subscribers on rogermontgomery.com. View the full article via your subscription or sign up for access.