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.
The reason for shutting down HAUBX looks like simply lack of interest. Same team managing it as PFIUX (which is a little cheaper than the Harbor clone). Somewhat similar lackluster performance over the long term, and just $19M AUM (vs. $4.8B for…
@Maurice It's interesting to observe what is allowed to be called "ice cream" (there are laws regulating this), and what the faux manufacturers say.
In the US, to be ice cream, the product has to be at least 10% dairy fat.
In India (I gather from …
May have been temporarily missing. Works for me.
But all the comparison columns - Category, Index, Difference - are N/A. Might be in the process of coming back online?
I respectfully disagree. While much of the content superficially resembles motherhood, the column is supported by references and encapsulation that is seen too infrequently.
Mr. Zweig reports on the acceptance status of a professional code of cond…
Vanguard is doing if not the same thing, something very similar.
"With Vanguard Voice Verification™, you'll be able to call us, verify your identity, and let us know who you are with just the sound of your voice. The service records your voice spea…
The devil, as usual, is in the details. While Pew's summary talks about the middle class, the full paper clarifies that the study is about income, not class:
The terms “middle income” and “middle class” are often used interchangeably ... But being…
@Maurice - I'm no beer connoisseur (do not and in most cases cannot drink it), but your ice cream discussion is something I can speak to.
It's not just foodstuffs where manufacturing is consolidating. For example, look at commercial aircrafts. …
"A number of broker-dealers and insurance companies have said 'We can live with this new rule.' Does anyone wonder why?"
Michael Kitches doesn't wonder. He writes about how insurance companies will finally be able to compete on the quality of thei…
I'd looked at that. Google doesn't tell you this, but these are on different dates. The NASDX list of top holdings is as of 3/31 (see M* summary page), and the USNQX list is three months older.
USNQX uses the e-mini NASDAQ 100 futures contract …
Thank hank. Though I'm a buy and hold type, I agree with you that there's a certain gambling aspect to investing. Which is why as a youngster I would look at people in the market and think "you're putting money where?"
A difference between gamb…
As this ICI paper states, 401(k) plans are complex to maintain and administer, and are subject to a slew of regulations. You can find some detail about this on p. 3.
This costs money, and 401(k) plans charge fees to recoup the costs (and to make …
From the WSJ (12/8/2008), writing about the Reserve Primary MMF: in 2006, with the Primary Fund underperforming rivals, it went on a commercial-paper buying spree. It acquired so much of this higher-yielding but riskier asset that by September 2008…
Oppenheimer Rochester funds strike me as high risk funds. What the article describes is the same liquidity trap that ensnared Third Ave Value Focused Credit TFCVX - too much stuff they can't unload (without severely aggravating their problem), an…
There's a lot of stuff Mr. Burns isn't telling you. Got to dash, so for now I'll just say that with TRP, he's looking at two different funds and comparing costs. One is T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Fund TRBCX, and the other is T. Rowe Price Bl…
The problem is that the URL contains () as in 401(k), that MFO seems to strip out. Here's a URL that works (with escape sequences):
https://assetbuilder.com/knowledge-center/articles/how-good-is-your-401(k)-plan
Lots of small differences happening. I don't know how much impact each has.
SPY is an "old style" ETF. It is structured as a UIT. UITs, unlike mutual funds, are only allowed to distribute the income they earn, they are not allowed to put it to …
VTSMX has outperformed VFINX from 4/27/92 to 5/5/16, returning 710.70% cumulative vs. 695.03% (dates chosen by M*'s system).
Over the past 10 years (5/6/06 to 5/5/16), VTSMX has outperformed 90.28% cumulative vs. 89.28% (yes, exactly 1.00% diffe…
It looks like you're right about K shares being for supermarket platforms. It's a particularly nasty example of an NTF fund, though.
Most NTF funds add 25 basis points (often via a 12b-1 fee) to pay for the NTF platform. This one adds 50 basis …
Usually these are just fluff pieces, but this one makes playing "spot the error" too easy.
"Every investor should have some exposure to the S&P 500 index"
Why should I bias my portfolio toward large cap vs. say, VTSMX?
"Your return [on $10K] i…
Thoughts on using benchmarks/graphs:
- For benchmarking small cap value funds, a small cap value index would appear most appropriate
- If the benchmark is an index, graph the index itself
- If the benchmark is a fund, graph the cheapest share c…
If we're including multi-billion funds, one I like is American Century Mid Cap Value, ACMVX. (Before anyone writes that this is closed, look again. It is only closed when purchasing through a third party, e.g. Schwab.)
I ran a search for small f…
Thanks for the background. It explains why Putnam is giving up on Voyager.
Years ago, it used to be a well respected, well known fund. For part of the 90s, it was the largest holding in my 401k plan (until my company dumped Putnam for Merrill Ly…
Sometimes you can do a distribution in kind from your IRA to your taxable account and bootstrap an institutional share account that way. (Occasionally the fund company will require you to pony up enough to meet the high minimum or it will convert t…
Very good explanation. The only thing I'd add is that PR is not the only entity that gets tax-exempt status for its bonds in all fifty states. So do some other US territories, including the US Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islan…
According to M*, PRVIX return for Q1 2016 was 3.19%, right on the nose.
http://performance.morningstar.com/fund/performance-return.action?t=PRVIX®ion=usa&culture=en_US
Likewise, RPTIX for Q1 2016 was -0.38%, again matching what your 401k…
Can't resist - BLVAX, another load fund. Ignore the load (which you can do by purchasing it NTF at places like Fidelity) and its rating improves from 4* to 5*.
http://www.morningstar.com/funds/XNAS/BLVAX.lw/quote.html
Somewhat related ...
The mini…
Just wanted to chime with regard to Roth 401K plans.
Roth 401k plans grow tax free and can be withdrawn tax free, but must follow RMD (required minimum distributions) rules after age 70.5.
Individual Roth IRA plans do not have RMD requirements.
…
The second sentence grated. The legislation is not providing a safe harbor for information that might otherwise be considered an "unregistered offering", but rather a registered offering.
For the wonks among us - securities offered to the public …
When you sell shares, you realize a capital gain or loss regardless of how you're paid (in cash or in stocks that Sequoia gave you instead). If you get stocks, their basis is what you "paid" for them, i.e. the value of the Sequoia shares you just …
One of the "complaints" investors were raising is that their larger ($250K+) redemptions were being paid in-kind. Just like an ETF. While it is quite likely you're correct about the existence of gains, it's not so clear that the gains have remain…
One thing I really like about a couple of Skeet's funds is that they are load funds from load families. Not just ordinary load families, they're run by insurance companies. And they merit consideration.
Principal offers some pretty solid funds…
I return to employer Roth because this thread is entitled salary deduction/reduction (retirement plan contributions). Of course that doesn't preclude raising the question (as you did) of whether one wants to do either, or instead (or in addition) …
Matching shouldn't have much to do in deciding whether to contribute to an employer plan (e.g. 403(b)) as a salary reduction (pre-tax) or a salary deduction (Roth option). You get the match either way. (See this IRS FAQ on Roth contributions to e…
As Hank wrote, salary reduction is a pre-tax contribution to an employer-sponsored retirement plan (401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, etc.) that allows you to defer income. In contrast, salary deduction does not reduce your current income.
A salary …
Is Your Mutual Fund a Climate Change Denier or Climate Champion?
http://ecowatch.com/2016/03/15/mutual-fund-climate-change/
T. Rowe Price increased its support for company climate change proposals (not just the disclosures discussed in the original…
Is Schwab going to stop selling load funds from Franklin Templeton (e.g. TPINX) or Oppenheimer (e.g. OIGAX)? Of course not, even though these are not only load funds, but load classes - if you go to E*Trade, they'll gladly sell you the Templeton f…
Wording - you're right, I meant to match your word, i.e. it's been miscategorized.
A slight difference in what we're saying - I'm suggesting that it cannot be properly categorized unless it is put in a class by itself, or arguably a class so sma…
I think Morningstar is pretty clear that star ratings are scorecards, while medals are buy recommendations. Neutral and negative seem to be hold and sell recommendations, respectively. So I wouldn't try to map star ratings into buy/sell/hold. …
