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.
rjb112: I would not hesitate to take Ted's advice for now. I was put in the very same position 3 1/2 years ago, but we had not discussed investing my inheritance since we both were active investors, its how we met. He led a class on investing tha…
@ron: I recently added GIBIX (GIBLX is the retail version) as 1/2 of my muni bonds got called and wanted to find a suitable fund with similar income stream. I also like MWTRX, it is generally all higher quality, and I found GIBIX a bit more diversi…
One of my signs is that they all don't go up and down together. I don't mind seeing some red on the up days, those are the ones that usually go up on the down days. Just saying.
Speaking of asset manager commercials, I still remember this one the most:
Don't know if it actually brought in more business, but its been 40 years and I recall it clear as a bell.
One of the better discussions on MFO I have seen recently. Like a primer on high yield bond funds. Thanks for a lively discussion, with a variety of viewpoints that made sense :)
I also hold ARTGX and have been pleased with it. I too like global funds, as I also hold IWIRX, although a current underperformed but will hold on to see whether it can go back to winning ways. At least my small cap intl seems bright, so not all o…
I have been holding what is effectively mostly Europe: OAKIX, have been patiently waiting for some sign of positive return, starting to get a bit disappointed in this fund. But I know if I sell it, that's when the rebound will happen. I am sure the…
I use VCSH, which is a short term corporate etf. It has more risk than a government bond fund, but at 2% yield, fits the bill for me. I have some cash parked there now. You can get more yield with an intermediate fund, but at 10 basis points expe…
@Ted: I had originally purchased PRHSX back in early 2013, but when they had a change in managers, I decided to sell it. Probably should have kept it, as it is now closed, but took PHSZX instead, which has done well, but its a bit more volatile. …
I am anxiously waiting to see if 2 of my muni bonds get called June 1, first call date. Hoping they don't, since they have 4.2 -4.4% yield, maturities 2020 and 2024. These were inherited, and they were issued in mid 2000s. I still pay state tax o…
@Hawkmountain: One nice thing about a roth is that if she holds it for 5 years, she can use up to $10,000 (one time limit) towards the purchase of her first home. Admittedly, you lose the compounding of that money if you withdraw it, but for some, …
Try not to compare funds that are not in the same category. VDIGX targets large caps with growing dividends, not always the highest dividends, and the S + P does not all have growing dividends. Comparing an equity income fund like RIMHX should not…
You can always find funds that outperform in the short term, and we all have been tempted to go to the dark side when we see them :) It looks like a fine fund, but I would suggest you look at VDIGX for that category. Many equity income and dividen…
@shipwreckedandalone: There are always funds that members like here, but hard to beat Vanguard's allocation or balanced funds. They are consistent, low cost and very well managed.
@ Ted, I just called TRP and can buy it directly and then transfer it to ML. Never thought of that before. Columbia fund is good, but not as good as this one. It is closed to all brokerages, so cannot buy it through ML or recently transferred ira…
Ted, I have been very disappointed in their tech fund ISTIX and it's manager in the last 30 months. I finally sold it in favor of CMTFX which I held in equal value. Safran seems to hAve lost his touch judging by returns over the last 30 months. I…
@shipwreckedandalone: I agree. Some like international, small cap, sector funds I expect to pay up, even on etfs. For instance, I have a couple of Guggenheim etfs that are more than the average cost, but they also return higher than average for th…
Since reading this thread, I decided to do a bit of research myself in this category. PFORX ( or the D class available at Fidelity PFODX) caught my attention. Have never ventured into Pimco Funds, but this one certainly looks worth mulling over. …
@Old_joe: Normally VWINX costs $75 at Fidelity, but because I transferred monies to them, they are giving me some free trades. I asked for them before I transferred my ira.
Vanguard generally does not participate in revenue sharing with brokerages…
I recently added it to my Ira after transferring it to Fidelity from merrill. They did not offer some funds I wanted to add to my ira, like VWINX and SFGIX so switched to Fido and bought them.
Thanks for the best laugh I've had in a long time. I almost forgot how much fun he was to watch after the circus we seem to have now. He was amusing, trump just makes me shake my head.
I too do not dabble with the so called defensive or stable funds. I do, however keep an allocation to utilities via FRUAX in my Roth and XLU in my traditional Ira along with RHS and XLP in both. It provides nice ballast when all else is tanking. …
@Ted, still holding my biotech and hc positions, although must say its a test of my patience. Today this sector for some reason is on a tear. More volatility to follow I'm sure. I hold all my health care positions in iras, a bit easier to cope wi…
Good article Ted, thanks for posting. I have two of the more basic smart beta funds, one with equal weight RHS and the other is PKW, which follows the Buyback Index of those repurchasing shares, not approving repurchases of 5% or more in a given y…
I recently switched part of my portfolio (ira) back to Fidelity from ML. All of my funds can transfer except for one, and I can keep the "I" or "A" shares I own, just cannot add to them Will have to buy the load waived A shares if I want to add. …
Looks like so far, so good, but I like MWTRX for total bond fund. One of my muni bonds matures this June and my remaining ones have a first call date in June. Don't know if they will get called in June or not, so keeping my eyes open. May get more…
The article is correct, but dividend funds have less downsize risk, such as in 2008 when VDIGX ( my largest fund) was down 26% instead of the S + P's 37%. I have more than one fund to cover the large cap arena, including S + P index ( finally succu…
As a follow up, for those who are unfamiliar with Pat Paulsen, here are some of his gems:
You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can only make a monkey out of the voters every four years!
Pat…
Next thing you know we will start seeing Pat Paulsen for president buttons and I bet there will be plenty of people who will write him in, despite the fact he has been dead for almost 20 years. This has become such a circus; wonder what the other s…
