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@msf, thanks for the linking tip. Some of this site's features are not intuitive or are hidden.
I should have thought of clicking on post date for link to a post - a FB like trick.
Threads here open to the "latest" post by default and I figured …
Good point about insurance companies in general.
But I have personally seen an insurance RUN - Mutual Benefit Life (MBL). It was a provider in my 403b. My BIG mistake was that when I first heard the news of the run, I tried to alert out HR person i…
I could just repeat what I said in a nearby thread on BAMBX (LINK).
These multi-strategy funds (ALL alternatives; a formal M* Category under Alternatives) should NOT to be confused with multi-asset funds discussed elsewhere (SOME alternatives; not…
Good point about OppenheimerFunds (thankfully merged away now into Invesco/IVZ) that was NOT following the script and had put lot of junk/HY in its core bond and allocation/balanced funds. Its Oppenheimer-Rochester funds were the junkiest of the jun…
These days, a typical core-plus bond fund can have up to 35% in below investment-grade bonds.
So, insurance companies having 35% in below investment-grade (and illiquid alternatives) doesn't sound so alarming. Leaving aside companies such as BRK th…
I have an update on PDI in the M* link above.
"PDI is starting to look interesting. It is under pressure from the upcoming merger and tax-loss selling. I am watching $24-25 area in trading ahead of Friday, December 10 merger date (PKO and PCI will …
BAMBX has SD of 4.6% (high). Turnover of 500% is high, so is ER. About 11% in stocks, rest in bonds & others (probably convertible). Don't treat is as cash or CD proxy.
There are discussions on the merger of PKO and PCI into PDI at other sites. This has been a long convergence theme with the merger finally effective on December 10, 2021 (about 3 weeks). https://community.morningstar.com/s/feed/0D53o00005UznTdCAJ
Thanks. That is a relief, I think.
Media references to GoDaddy WordPress confused me. I wonder why WordPress hasn't issued a clarifying release.
I learned more about WordPress.org and WordPress.com from this link. It seems that people can run WordP…
Although no SC index funds have been mentioned so far, I would like to add a caution about R2000 (IWM) and extended-market (VEXAX /VXF, FSMAX, USMIX) indexes. These have too much garbage and almost 40% of their components have losses. Moreover, R200…
GARP approach and term were widely used at one time. The approach was also tied to using PEG - or P/E-to-growth ratio and many managers said to pay PEG up to 1-2 (well, in today's environment, forget that when highflyers trade for high P/S, and some…
Some of these deals that I have seen are for 1-2 years! If find those (they flash for a while periodically), then may be get a new subscription in the name of a family member and cancel the current one.
@msf, great info. You may want to write to ICI.org. After all, it is a fund industry trade association led by fund industry leaders, economists, historians, lawyers.
ICI Board & Leadership https://www.ici.org/board-and-leadership
ICI Experts h…
@crash, may be you meant international DODFX instead of closed PRIDX? DODIX is a bond fund. PRWCX (closed at 3rd party brokers), DODBX, FBALX, BRUFX may be comparable and multi-asset FMSDX is also a candidate.
This chapter on CEFs of the ICI Factbook shows that CEFs are a rather tiny segment of funds - there were 494 CEFs with total AUM of $279 billion only as of 12/2020. They are the oldest form of funds that have existed since late 1800s but are rather …
Predictit has Powell at 69%, Brainard 29%. Biden better decide soon to get Senate confirmation by Feb 2022. My guess is that it may be tied to the votes for soft-infrastructure bill.
https://www.predictit.org/markets/detail/7398/Whom-will-the-Senate…
Just as a clarification, those Barron's summaries are just pointers or extended abstracts or like TV Guide type notes for movies/shows or like CliffsNotes. To avoid copyright issues, there isn't any copy-and-paste. Only about a year's worth of summa…
Thanks.
Gensler also has his own short-topics video series, Office Hours With Gary Gensler
https://www.sec.gov/page/sec-chair-gary-gensler-launches-office-hours-video-series
@BaluBalu, let us see what @TheShadow says.
On search, I found that ETFs from BlackRock/iShares, Hartford, Schwab, Vanguard (integrated list) are already listed. So, from my short list, only Invesco and SSGA remain to be added.
As many firms offe…
Vanguard list includes ETFs.
Typically, you have to go to ETF sponsors' sites. There are so many ETFs and ETF sponsors. But I suppose that a thread can be started with the major ETF Sponsors, BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, Invesco, Schwab. But …
Transactions within Roth IRA don't create taxable event, nor do transfer from one R-IRA to another.
Some like to do in-kind transfers, but that is not possible when funds or fund classes are not supported by the new R-IRA platform/sponsor. And then …
Schwab has a team of professionals that puts out these pieces. More familiar may be Liz Ann Sonders, Carrie Schwab-Pomerantez, Cathy Jones.
https://www.schwab.com/schwab-experts
This is an example of the tracking of the AAII Sentiment Survey that I do. It is available elsewhere and my intention is not to start the series here.
AAII Sentiment Survey, 11/17/21
For the week ending on 11/17/21, there was a decrease in the bul…
That is precisely my experience. I don't see dismissed Announcements at the top on login, but see them at the top without login; feature is like Sticky or Pin at other sites but those cannot be altered by readers, only by their creator or administra…
Chrome allows selective cookies removal. So, I removed all "mutualfundobserver" cookies, and that logged me out, but when I logged back in, it still didn't restore the missing Announcements.
So, good suggestion, and should have worked, but didn't.
@derf, it is kind sad that VG is touting only the lower ER overall and has not mentioned tax aspects of this merger. May be some holders of the affected funds should call VG about tax details and why their yearend CGs are different.
TIAA has 2 kinds of RMD services.
1st is informational RMD calculation but TIAA doesn't act on that. If one has multiple 403b, their RMDs can be combined and taken from any one 403b. TIAA doesn't know about investors' plans.
2nd is contractual RMD…
mREITs are highly leveraged portfolios of MBS (bonds), so quite rate sensitive.
Equity real estate funds, including REITs, are totally different. VNQ etc.
Fido has a unique real estate hybrid FRIFX that is less volatile than VNQ.
Make use of stable-value (SV) within 401k/403b/457. Good options at TIAA, OK at Federal TSP & elsewhere.
Don't overlook I-Bonds although limited in amounts - but $30k/yr possible for an average US family of 3.15.
People should of course be careful. But realistically, some 3rd party may be involved in such back-office/processing fin-tech stuff. Not every institutions will have in-house/internal capabilities on this fin-tech. So, it comes down to the trust one…
I have encountered requests to enter login info for financial institution when trying to link 2 financial institutions (neither Vanguard).
It is a newer technology.
Remember the old way that some institutions still follow? 2 tiny deposits were mad…
