Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Reply to @Maurice: Interesting. In my neck of the woods it's pretty much just the opposite wherein folks drive by Walmart to shop at Target. On department store items we really don't see much of a price difference, some more or less at each outlet b…
Reply to @David_Snowball: Oops, I should know better. My apologies. Fat-fingered calculator entries or something. Anyway, I doubt he's sweating too much about the $10 million as he also stated in his update that he expected the value of shares in th…
Seriously, if you want exposure to the precious metals, it is probably better that you just purchase the bullion outright and and stick it in the backyard or a safe deposit box somewhere.
Reply to @TSP_Transfer: Not quite. Up to $1000 of UTBI can be earned without tax complications but that's a different source of income than dividends, capital gains or return of capital.
Reply to @STB65: Nope, no need to hide. Very well stated, thank you. It's always good to get an intimate, insiders view. Even if a two-tiered system wasn't part of an original plan I have no doubt that it would surface in short order.
It's always s…
Reply to @scott: you might not believe it but the S&P has actually gone up less this year than it did the past two years during the same time period. I'm not buying much at the moment but I'm not selling either.
For someone who doesn't want to learn or manage they might be best served by choosing one of the portfolio's recently described in the margarita investing article and let it be. See here:
http://assetbuilder.com/scott_burns/for_couch_potato_investo…
1. Personally I've often found mid caps to be the sweet spot of the market, maybe because its often ignored. However, if you own large & small cap funds you'll most likely find mid caps mixed in with them. Sometimes what's large becomes smaller …
Reply to @andrei: My answer would be Yes!, examine it on a case by case basis. I invite you to look at FCNTX (considered by many to be a proxy for the S&P 500) in a M* graph compared to VFINX and the S&P 500 over any time period but especial…
Reply to @scott: "I've become a lot longer-term in nature with my investments..." Precisely!!! Consider the market investment road you traveled to reach that point and how long it took you to reach that end. I'm assuming that it's a radical departur…
Well that's a nice tale but I'm not buying it as the sole answer. Why? Frankly I think a lot of people are afraid of the stock market. Loss aversion to be sure but many simply don't trust the stock market anymore and/or they don't understand it. I t…
I'm somewhat astounded (but not really) that this dog still has $1.2 billion in assets under management despite negative returns for 1,3 and 5-yr time periods and barely ekeing out a gain over 10-yrs. Furthermore it has under performed close to 98% …
PRPFX alone might constitute a good Roth IRA account for wifey. See here:
http://investingforaliving.wordpress.com/2012/10/08/the-permanent-portfolio-the-best-alternative-to-ivy/
You're more knowledgeable about the miners than I am since I do not…
If you're okay investing in CEF's you might take a peek at UTG Reeves Utilty Income Fund. Currently selling at a discount to its NAV (net asset value) and you'd double your yield.
I almost added this back during the last market meltdown but couldn'…
Am I the only one who believes that these no-fee deals are not really fee free? Must be the skeptic in me that thinks these free fees are baked in somewhere along the way. Nevertheless trading ETF's beats trading mutual funds on many levels.
To me this is nothing more than a shareholder trying to manipulate a holding in their favor. Seriously, how many of these activist rants ever end in favor of the greater good? Einhorn has probably had mor failures than successes in these matters but…
Reply to @DavidF: Thanks for that bit of info. I find it hard to believe that they made no money in 2012 but a fiscal year end in June would explain losses.
Mona, it's OK to play around the edges. Most of my portfolio is fairly static these days but I maintain a bucket of play money. House winnings I call it.
Thought you might like to take a look at the attached article:
http://blogs.stockcharts.com/jo…
Reply to @scott: Speaking for this long time shareholder I do want them closed. I'd also like to see Berkowitz step out of the media headlights and just stick to managing the funds.
The trouble is I don't know if at present he has a stable base of …
Reply to @Maurice: OR - he's a little short of free cash now to pile into his next great idea and he wants folks to storm the fort before the end of February.
I'm always dubious about these fund closings that are announced with substantial lead tim…
Simply because, for probably 98-99% of the investing public, that is what will work best. As MJG rightfully noted, for many "... folks with little savings, almost zero investment knowledge, and no time to devote to learning the rules and disciplines…
Reply to @Skeeter: Thank you for your reply, my inquiry was sincere. Like I said I am not here to hassle you, we all have our own reasons for carrying on like we do. As long as you have a goal and a plan, and they seem to be working for you, then th…
