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.
Some big moves have already occurred. Notable is the absence of Magnificent 7 from the top 10 list.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/07/best-performing-stocks-of-2025-dont-include-alphabet-nvidia.html
Top 10 performers in the Russell 1000 in 2025
Lume…
No issues.
But if you have a problem connecting to the forum,
(i) Try direct link, not the saved bookmark,
https://big-bang-investors.proboards.com/
or
(ii) Try global sign in for ProBoards and then click the forum.
https://www.proboards.com/
As noted, DepositAccounts is a good resource for local banking info.
https://www.depositaccounts.com/banks/rates-map/
Also be on the lookout for unusual terms, 11 month, 17 month, etc. FDIC watches banks that routinely appear on the top CD rate lis…
Audio
At 0:14:30 - Short Intro of David SNOWBALL.
At 0:34:00-0:56:50 - Discussions: 1940 Act OEFs are history, ETFs are in. MFO focuses in ACTIVE management, but the name MFO stays - too expensive to change name & URLs & do related PR. Ign…
Connecting what TRUMP and PULTE said, the purchases would be by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buying back some of their outstanding bonds.
Pulte is the Director of FHFA who overseas Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In his spare time, he also looks through …
@Crash, I checked, and the rule for IRAs is that any % withholding is allowed, but if not chosen by the IRA owner, then 10 % is default withholding.
This may or not be useful for @Ben - the amount distributed and the amount withheld (to be refunded…
There was a prospectus supplement dated 12/5/25 that should have been also received in mail by the holders of POPFX. Liquidation was on 12/31/25.
As for IRA, withholding is required for any distributions not rolled into another IRA.
It's too late i…
A judge has approved Elliott's underbid for Citgo-US that's at 50% of the value. There was another higher bid that wasn't accepted due to some concerns about closing.
It's a distress sale after debt default.
There are now appeals by the bid-loser…
Most refineries need medium grade crude, so they mix heavy/sour crude with light/sweet crude. This is why US has to import crude even when it's the top global producer (#1-US, #2-Saudi Arabia, #3-Russia, #4-Canada, #5-China). Another reason is that …
SSA trust fund is basically Treasury IOU - in exchange for all of the FICA going into the general Treasury fund. The SSA benefit cliff is expected around 2033 when the Treasury IOUs reach 0 and SSA benefits drop to 70-75% to match SSA inflows and ou…
SSA payout should be looked at pre-deductions, not post-deductions.
Assuming that @Old_Joe provided pre-deduction amounts, puzzle for SSA reductions beyond FRA remains. I don't know of WEP/GPO offsets applied - they went away in 2025.
It is typically a few months from the time you apply for Social Security to the time SSA payments actually begin. You may be overthinking this for possibly 1-2 months earlier than your FRA. IMO, just aim for your FRA. People who want to take it earl…
"If you will reach full retirement age in 2026, the limit on your earnings for the months before full retirement age is $65,160, we deduct $1 in benefits for every $3 you earn above this limit."
If I am reading this correctly, They will only tax SS…
A diversified precious metal miners play is GDXJ - now a blend of LC/MC/SC gold-miners as well as silver-miners. It's still called Junior Gold Miners, but it isn't that anymore. It got too big (AUM $9.3 billion), so it had to go into mature LC miner…
As for annual 529 limits, the annual gift exclusion (now $19K) is the personal limit for contributors. Up to 5x can be contributed forward (super-funding) by completing Form 709.
For couples, normal annual limit is 19x2 = $38K, and 5x super-funding…
PREVIEW/REVIEW. One oz of SILVER now costs more than one barrel of crude oil – that happened last time in 01/1980 when Hunt brothers cornered the silver market. Average oil:silver ratio is 3.8 since 1975, but now only 0.79. Some say there is a silve…
Sven's link somehow goes back to the OP.
Here is the URL https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/65167/any-suggestions-for-investing-for-a-new-great-granddaughter
GREAT Vanguard service! Got this VG Flagship email TODAY, 12/31/25. I heard in the OP interview that they are trying to bring back old services such as Flagship, etc. But do they have copy editors?
From: Vanguard Flagship Services
Sent: Wednesday…
"In a vaguely worded NYFed policy change on Dec. 10—which not one of the major financial news organizations has reported—the Fed flung its vaults wide open to troubled banks."
Powell's new QE announcement on Dec 10 is as loud as it can get. This QE…
Wayback Machine archives may open most 1st/top level links, but not the links within. This is by design.
BTW, when I visit Wayback Machine to archive some of my stuff, I also archive the websites that I visit often, including MFO. Wayback Machine h…
"chute angle gear (also known as the chute drive gear or worm gear)"
Worm gear or "worm" would be the drive gear. It's not possible to drive the unit the other way.
A simple trick to boost heating effectiveness is to set fan to ON (vs Auto) in very cold weather. Then, the fan runs at lower speed as air-circulator during the typical OFF heating cycle and that also captures all of the residual heat. I think that …
There was a thread on BOXX in 02/2024. It uses box-spreads but the discussion then focused in tax deferral aspect that BOXX claimed. But some in media were skeptical that BOXX holders would pay gains on sale only and not the imputed interest that ap…
Schwab has a good explanation of box-spreads that are combo call- and put- spreads (4 options in total) for indexes. Tax treatment is by Section 1256 using 60/40 long/short-term rule. They are marked to market at the yearend - so taxes are due wheth…
Barron's STREETWISE. GOLD had a spectacular rally in 2025 (+69% YTD), but who beat gold? Silver +140% YTD, platinum +133% YTD, palladium +95% YTD. Precious metal ETFs are GLD, SLV, diversified DBP, etc. Next may be Dr Copper +36% YTD. The whole meta…
"The Fund’s investment strategy is to generally invest in equity securities of companies that exhibit strong capital appreciation potential. Snowball Advisors, LLC (“Snowball” or the “Sub-Adviser”) assembles the Fund’s portfolio based on applying fu…
Plan now seems short-end QE (By Fed) & starving the ling-end with reduced supply (i.e. Treasury to issue more ST debt than LT debt).
Interesting to see Fed & Treasury cooperation despite all of the tensions. Or, may be there is a story to b…
Court disputes may now move from contract pauses/cancellations to long-term lease pauses/cancellations.
Some land-leases are for 50-100 years and if they can be pauses/cancelled on short notice, many businesses will be affected.
Ages ago, ETFs SPY, QQQ etc started out as UITs, i.e. ETF-UITs - they didn't know any better.
Later, regular ETF structures proved to be better. So, their firms introduced SPYM, QQQM.
There are important differences between ETF-UITs (rigid) and r…
Fed watchers keep an eye on Fed President who vote at FOMC although all participate in FOMC discussions and are talkative in the media. NY Fed President always votes (more equal among the equals - origin Animal Farm) and the rotation of 4 of 11 Fed …
Janus Henderson/JHG bought by Trian (already owned 20.6%), General Catalyst and others including Qatar Investment Authority, Sun Hung Kai & Co. Limited, MassMutual, etc.
JHG Press Release https://ir.janushenderson.com/News--Events/news/news-det…
