I am curious about opinions relating to this subject, particularly from those of you that may be active and/or institutional traders who observe patterns of buys/sells and money flows.
Although I am selectively trimming some positions based on valuation, and do not qualify the ongoing stimulus payments, the market will continue to trend upward as long as these funds are being distributed. Less certain to me is the impact once they cease.
Comments
https://www.investors.com/news/robinhood-investors-charging-into-stock-investing-what-could-go-wrong/
And some 2020 stats that another more learned poster may add some color to:
https://www.businessofapps.com/data/robinhood-statistics/
Excerpt;
Robinhood Total Transactions
2015 $500 million
2017 $50 billion
2018 $100 billion
2019 $150 billion
The above link is the only one I kept for review. But, Motley Fool or Seeking Alpha from my recall had a decent write a few weeks ago about the dollar impact of RobinHood and related. I have to leave for an appointment, but this would be easy to search.
Having knowledge of (young ones we know well) the expansive use of social media platforms that foster some of this investment area is of benefit. We've kept up with the social platforms from our involvement in local community/school projects. If one searches or discovers a Twitter or Redditt feed, one is able to read and expand a post without having to login....no account needed; except if you want to post a comment.
Here is the current Redditt feed for stocks (investing and trading for all).
The problem for me becomes not enough time in the day. But, one may gain some insight into some of what is pushing some investment areas. An occasional peek may be worth a bit of your time.
Search away......as your time allows.
Regards,
Catch
Link
When I hear about thematic ETFs, the word gimmick springs to mind.
Assets in thematic ETFs quadrupled in the past five years.
This probably will not end well for many investors.
Relative to the thematics of the day.....
Through year end of 1987, Fidelity had 35 select/sector mutual funds; with several of these beginning life in 1981. Eight of the 35 were added in 1985, and another 12 were added in 1986.
As I noted previous in another thread, IMHO, thematic investing is not new for availability to the retail investor; but it has evolved. The sector funds became thematic etf's.
The Fido select funds started as and are mutual funds usually holding a large number of companies within. Etf's may also have a large number of holdings, but some are very focused, with 30 or so holdings.
Info only Sidenote: Fidelity unveiled same-day trading of its 31 Select/Sector Portfolio funds, which enabled investors to get quotes on an hourly basis and redeem or purchase shares between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. rather than waiting until after 4:00 p.m. to get a fund's closing net asset value. Later eliminated.
Amateur opinion: Yes, some of the numerous thematic, factor and flame thrower etf's that have come to market during the past several years will have problems and cause portfolio damage at some point. The best one can do with these investments is to fully understand the areas of investments and why you feel there is a positive path forward in a given sector for investment. Yes, there are some "dot.com" types out there that are not proven and without profit.
We've held two very narrow focused etf's; one which is no longer held, ZROZ, and the other still remains, BOTZ.
The 36 holdings within ZROZ, Pimco long term treasury(s) are rock solid holdings, but the etf can be as volatile as a narrow focused equity etf. Obviously, the etf performance is subject to long term interest rate fluctuations and what the bond players in this area perceive. BOTZ has about 39 holdings in the robotics area. We still have faith in this market area and the companies within the fund.
The fickle markets, trends and whatever else can and may have various unknown impacts in all of these areas.
We retail investors are an interesting group of thinkers, eh?
Take care,
Catch
"GameStop’s Reddit-fueled rally, explained. Video game retailer GameStop is up more than 20x since March lows (and +79% in just the past 2 trading days). What’s going on?"
https://thehustle.co/01262021-gamestop/
But to manipulate the broader markets would take a lot more ammo than Robinhood (or Reddit) has.