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FYI: Artisan Partners Asset Management - board of directors of Artisan Partners Funds, Inc has approved a plan to liquidate Artisan Global Small Cap Fund. Regards, Ted http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC09JSZ
Hah! This is nothing but an admission fund was "started" at right time and stock picking be darned, international small caps WILL go down, period.
This is what is especially shameless...
Strategy will reopen to new separate account investors as well as to investors in pooled vehicles
Basically, it means "at the bottom of that market, we will start a fund and build a record and then again sell it to the retail investors touting its performance". Since Artisan went public, I was dreading such a situation. This is what happens when a mutual fund company goes public. TRP is an anomaly.
Artisan Global Equity I think is going to follow. Yockey is toast, like I had opined few days back.
Artisan Small Cap Value - they couldn't hold on for the upturn, and it is not too late to start anew.
Stock picking prowess is pretty much nonsense. I'm just glad I don't re-invest dividends and have gradually reduced my Artisan holdings over time every year because of that. Have to find a new fund company for my Fido portfolio. I used to think Parnassus would be it, but after WFC, I dunno.
Unfortunately, ARTWX has only $68 million AUM as of October 31, 2016 as the fund commenced on June 25, 2013. Hopefully, ARTJX will remain around for some time.
I am sure that GP's fund didn't help ARTWX either.
Second find to liquidate, but this never really got off the ground and didn't accumulate AUM like there other offerings. Right, GP is a lot more tempting. Even with the opening of ARTQX, I don't see the appeal that much. Artisan really needs to start reinventing themselves if they're going to remain relevant in the future. I see better stewards out there and I used to think they were at the top.
It seems a little odd to offer an international small cap fund, but not offer a global small cap fund. I have owned ARTJX prior to its closure many years ago. Hope, the closure of ARTWX is not a sign for ARTJX.
fund companies need to stay private i tell you. to me when they launched artyx i started getting concerned. compare with artzx. while artyx got invested it slightly overperformed artzx. as soon as it did it has underperformed. it is just a more aggressive version of its plder sibling and artisan tried to time its launch hiring another bull market only "bully" because older fund couldnt garner assets. one of these funds has to become toast. if dollar goes up and recession hits with interest rage increase, it will hit emerging markets hard.
like i said, i need to get out of my "buy any artisan fund" mode. need to buy each fund on merit.
Am wondering if the time is coming to get out of artkx. Had a great run, but nothing lasts forever, and if the parent company is losing its culture, could be time to take profits
There are still few good funds at Artisan, but many has peaked and declined. For now I don't see many compelling reasons, either on their perforamce and management fees, to want to invest with them. There are always better alternatives elsewhere.
When my ANALysis tells me to reduce holdings, all open Artisan funds get sold immediately en masse. All closed Artisan funds either get sold or I keep a toe in. I think Artisan funds already distributed year end dividends. I should have acted sooner.
Am wondering if the time is coming to get out of artkx. Had a great run, but nothing lasts forever, and if the parent company is losing its culture, could be time to take profits
ARTKX has been in the top 10% of its category almost every year. After a poor 2015 and a mediocre start to 2016, Morningstar now has it in the top 10% YTD, and in the top 5% for all other periods. ARTGX, run by the same managers, is also doing well.
Artisan may be going through some changes, but I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a worthy alternative to ARTKX.
@claimui. Isn't ARTGX doing well because it has some US stocks? higher dollar is what is killing international stocks. One would expect ARTKX to underperform ARTGX.
Once again, stock picking prowess is not non-existent, but way overrated.
@expatsp You got me thinking. Need to take closer look this weekend at Artisan et.al. It is very difficult to distinguish between good managers and inception date of fund luck. I need to see consistent upside / downside captures. Instead of comparing 1,3,5 year returns, need to compare them against charts of other funds over exact periods.
@expatsp What would you choose to replace this fund in your portfolio if you need another in the international multi-cap value space and have some degree of confidence that it would perform as well or better?
I get it that nothing lasts forever. However, as claimui says, ARTKX has beaten its EAFE value benchmarks from inception with top decile performance. Moreover, as shown at MFOP, it has beaten its peers significantly during all types of markets with superior RAR throughout its 14-year history. The empirical evidence is compelling, and if its PMs are correct that closing the fund will help keep the performance competitive by shutting the cash window, then that too is a positive.
Also, the fund usually has some domestic portfolio component, which is a diversifying characteristic in an otherwise international fund that has been often geographically allocated to Europe, which we know has struggled, and to the U.K. whose forecast growth rate continues to be lowered for 2017-2018, making it hard for fund owners to forebear.
But If any fund in the Artisan "culture" needs to be evaluated on its own merits, this one deserves it. I'd persevere along with Samra -- and with the cash he has to put to work.
I'm still bitter Oppenheimer killed QRAAX. Anybody notice commodities have been on a tear ever since they pulled the rug out from under us (dozen or so) loyal investors last spring? Herd mentality. Folks dumped it after a few bad years. Now it would be way up. Patience folks!
Thanks for everyone's thoughts on ARTKX, and yes, I'll hold on, it's been one of the best foreign funds out there since its founding (and I bought it near then), and I'm sitting on a lots of capital gains in a taxable account. But I am keeping a closer eye on it. Most active funds fall prey to mean reversion sooner or later, and if the company culture is changing, it could be a warning sign.
Another fan here of ARTKX and its mgmt. Holding it since 2006. I also held ARTGX for a few years and but then sold it to reduce redundancy between the two. I have numerous other US based funds and I need them for their international expertise.
Tempted to split the money into ARTJX in the last 1-2 years, but never took the step.
@claimui. Isn't ARTGX doing well because it has some US stocks? higher dollar is what is killing international stocks. One would expect ARTKX to underperform ARTGX.
To clarify, I meant that they are doing well compared to their respective categories. ARTKX is in the top 5-10% for the "foreign large blend" category; ARTGX is in the top 10-20% for the "world stock" category.
You are correct that ARTGX is doing better than ARTKX (presumably because of the better performance of US stocks) on an absolute basis, but ARTKX is doing better than ARTGX when compared to their categories/benchmarks -- although both are doing well in general.
Comments
This is what is especially shameless...
Strategy will reopen to new separate account investors as well as to investors in pooled vehicles
Basically, it means "at the bottom of that market, we will start a fund and build a record and then again sell it to the retail investors touting its performance". Since Artisan went public, I was dreading such a situation. This is what happens when a mutual fund company goes public. TRP is an anomaly.
Artisan Global Equity I think is going to follow. Yockey is toast, like I had opined few days back.
Artisan Small Cap Value - they couldn't hold on for the upturn, and it is not too late to start anew.
Stock picking prowess is pretty much nonsense. I'm just glad I don't re-invest dividends and have gradually reduced my Artisan holdings over time every year because of that. Have to find a new fund company for my Fido portfolio. I used to think Parnassus would be it, but after WFC, I dunno.
I am sure that GP's fund didn't help ARTWX either.
like i said, i need to get out of my "buy any artisan fund" mode. need to buy each fund on merit.
Artisan may be going through some changes, but I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a worthy alternative to ARTKX.
Once again, stock picking prowess is not non-existent, but way overrated.
@expatsp You got me thinking. Need to take closer look this weekend at Artisan et.al. It is very difficult to distinguish between good managers and inception date of fund luck. I need to see consistent upside / downside captures. Instead of comparing 1,3,5 year returns, need to compare them against charts of other funds over exact periods.
I get it that nothing lasts forever. However, as claimui says, ARTKX has beaten its EAFE value benchmarks from inception with top decile performance. Moreover, as shown at MFOP, it has beaten its peers significantly during all types of markets with superior RAR throughout its 14-year history. The empirical evidence is compelling, and if its PMs are correct that closing the fund will help keep the performance competitive by shutting the cash window, then that too is a positive.
Also, the fund usually has some domestic portfolio component, which is a diversifying characteristic in an otherwise international fund that has been often geographically allocated to Europe, which we know has struggled, and to the U.K. whose forecast growth rate continues to be lowered for 2017-2018, making it hard for fund owners to forebear.
But If any fund in the Artisan "culture" needs to be evaluated on its own merits, this one deserves it. I'd persevere along with Samra -- and with the cash he has to put to work.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tempted to split the money into ARTJX in the last 1-2 years, but never took the step.
You are correct that ARTGX is doing better than ARTKX (presumably because of the better performance of US stocks) on an absolute basis, but ARTKX is doing better than ARTGX when compared to their categories/benchmarks -- although both are doing well in general.