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.
It seems I am using I bonds differently from several other people. So far, I haven't sold any, though I suggested a "swap" (buy new one with higher rate than an older one I would sell).
I regard them as long term cash, since they only accumula…
T. Rowe Price overhauled its investor benefits a couple of years ago. The newer Summit program provides "Complimentary Morningstar Premium membership" at the Select Services ($250K) level and above. The old program used to provide this perk at $…
You are on the board of your HOA and of course the one knucklehead in your neighborhood doesn't like the decision the board made...and sues....
That's what D&O insurance is for.
NOLO, What HOAs Need to Know About D&O Insurance
If you have…
When entire large contiguous communities are at risk because of one single loss situation (especially weather or fire related) that model simply doesn't work.
ISTM dental insurance is a similar situation - there the insurance operates more like pre…
I don't worry about government m-mkt funds with $1 NAV. Without the fear of gates, retail-prime m-mkt funds with $1 NAV will be fine too.
For the most part, I agree with Yogi. My qualification is that liquidity is somewhat in the mind of the beho…
VUSXX has virtually the same yield as VMFXX (this has been true for several months), and is mostly state tax exempt.
In a moderate (5%) to high (10%) income tax state, the fund can save 20-40 basis points in taxes (assuming the fund is 80% inves…
There was indeed confusion in early-2021 and there were revised versions of IRS Publication 590-B [
As you wrote in the cited link, "So, this new 590-B dated 3/25/21 makes things clear."
Hence the original two year transition waiver through the end…
To be clear here (somewhat ironic choice of words), the IRS is rewarding failure to read the rules by waiving a rule for another year.
Some individuals who are owners of inherited IRAs ... [misunderstood] the new 10-year rule. ... Specifically, […
IIRC he only gets those extra 30m shares if the price is above 17.50 for a certain period of time. Based on recent price action, that floor may be breached in a few weeks. LOL
Not a chance that those shares will not be granted. As @Mark wrote abo…
options/warrants typically have exercise prices ABOVE the current prices
Typically, one expects a stock's price to increase.
Historical prices for DJTWW (warrants).
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/DJTWW/history
The prices seem to be moving in …
I can still recall the Columbia record deal insert from the weekly TV Guide. It was something like "$.01 for 10 records". You later had to buy 1 additional album per month for life at approx. $14 each - that was a lot back then.
What's a "TV G…
Brokerages often have different (usually but not always lower) mins for funds. The Vanguard Treas MMF (VUSXX) has a $3K min (same as at Vanguard) but at ETrade you need only a buck to invest in WMPXX.
https://www.etrade.wallst.com/v1/stocks/snaps…
According to E*Trade's mutual fund screener, there are 103 MMFs of various types available at E*Trade. Under Fund Category, select Money Market, All Categories.
https://www.etrade.wallst.com/research/Screener/MutualFund
The last column displayed …
I wrote that no number provided was wrong, but that they were representing different quantities. When reporting figures, it helps to be clear about what those figures measure. Otherwise it's easy to get tripped up using different metrics (such as …
It has six managers four of whom have Ph.D.s.; the 2.62% ER is kind of justified! Joking aside, I generally do not pay attention to ER if a fund has return history. The ER includes acquired fund fees.
https://funds.aqr.com/funds/alternatives/a…
Generally I don't use margin or pay much attention to it. So my experience with 30 day waits for securities to become marginable is limited.
That said, as I think about it, the last time I purchased additional shares of an ETF those new shares…
That last sentence is NOT new and has been in place, "Please note that ETFs that are supported by their provider through an asset-based fee (and exempt from the service fee) will not be marginable for 30-days after purchase."
The fee schedule you li…
If you're thinking of redemption gates, the SEC is eliminating that. If your concern is liquidity (redemption) fees, the SEC is imposing a mandatory liquidity fee on institutional MMFs (other than government funds) if daily redemptions exceed 5% o…
It doesn't make any sense to include the effect of waivers (which reduce expenses), but not the effect of the expenses themselves. Say a fund has waivers amounting to 0.3%. The effect of those waivers is to boost returns by 0.3%. IOW, but for t…
In a few states (NY, Conn, Calif), if at least 50% of the MMF's assets are not invested in state-exempt Treasuries each quarter, then none of the divs are state exempt. For taxpayers in those states, it's doubly important how much of a Treasury fun…
I think Yogi answered the question about the significance of 7 day yields. Just to reiterate, seven day yields are simple interest rates (no compounding). If you leave the divs in the MMF, then the interest compounds and you get more annual yiel…
The 7-Day Yield represents the annualized fund yield based on the average income paid out over the previous seven days assuming interest income is not reinvested and it reflects the effect of all applicable waivers. Absent such waivers, the fund's …
Finance Professor:
First, a piece of advice. Don’t believe much that you read (including what I write), especially about buybacks. The mythology on buybacks is staggering, including the claims that they are funded mostly with debt, that they come a…
The notion that because you or I invest in a Blackrock ETF, we give our proxy to Larry Fink is absurd. And its anti-democratic.
The notion that because you or I invest in virtually any mutual fund, we give our proxy to ISS or Glass-Lewis is absurd.…
Parnassus Funds 2016 Annual Report (Feb 9, 2017):
I’d like to give you an update on Wells Fargo and its unauthorized opening of accounts. While some of our shareholders have urged us to sell our shares, we believe that Wells Fargo is a far better ba…
Keep in mind I'm not a lawyer, so take this for what it is worth, i.e. you're on your own.
"Fidelity decided to pass them into B's estate".
That sounds like Fidelity followed the beneficiary designation of A's defined contribution plan. So long a…
Could you clarify the situation? It sounds like the defined contribution plans did not indicate a beneficiary, so by default the estate inherited the assets. Further it sounds like the assets are still in the DC plans, just owned by the estate of…
Dec 2023, matures late Sept 2024, callable (with interest) late June.
The quoted price is the price I would get on the secondary market. A bond usually won't get called if it is trading below the call price. For example, a bond callable at par …
Einstein (among others): Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.
How about callable bonds or CDs? If interest rates stay higher, longer, then they won't get called and you may be able to eek out a slightly higher yield t…
I dont think it is the employee's fault as I suspect they are rushed through training and put to work ASAP
although I have to say there are some strange things going on at Fidelity.
My wife and I moved a small (LT 10%) of her account to Schwab to …
Thanks. To clarify further, the trading page I use (one must be logged in) is:
https://invest.firstrade.com/cgi-bin/main#/cgi-bin/mf_order
As soon as I enter a ticker I see info for the particular fund (min, subsequent, and open/closed). I coul…
at Firstrade ... To check on other funds the only precise way is to open an account and put in a test trade which will tell you if it the fund is available and the minimums which for the majority is way under 10k.
I still have a login there many y…
My recollection is that 5% is dead average for the 10 year note over the past century. Good news: I recall hearing it from Kai Ryssdal on a Marketplace podcast. Bad news: can't track it down
TheMarketplace piece was actually written by Sabri Ben-Ac…
I-Bonds can only be bought and sold online through Treasury Direct.
You can still get paper bonds with your 1040 refund (up to $5,000 per year). But you have to hope that they don't get lost in the mail (one of mine did). Then to cash them in yo…
I think it {TreasuryDirect] should also mail 1099 for transactions
TreasuryDirect is not getting special treatment. Any business that issues 1099 is permitted by the IRS to deliver the forms strictly electronically (via email or web access) upon …
If you inherit savings bonds, make sure that you know whether the deceased has already paid taxes on savings bond interest up to the date of inheritance.
That can happen in two ways.
https://www.irs.gov/publications/p559#en_US_2023_publink100099…
From my following and researching CGBL, I have been pleased with its behavior. Its fixed income sleeve Core Plus. The only reason I have not invested in it is because of potential high distributions from its fixed income sleeve (bonds with market…
"My guy" At Schwab is investigating BRUFX's willingness to do "trustee to trustee" transfer. So it IS an option.
Is "your guy" just investigating, or has he confirmed with the Bruce Fund that they will allow you to create a new account (via transfe…
