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Should bonds owned within a fund like PRWCX or VWENX be viewed differently?
Likely, that’s a rhetorical question. But, to set the record straight, I’ve always held some bond funds - and always will. Is that the same as owning bonds directly? Of c…
@MikeM- thanks for the suggestion, but I really don't like bond funds because I have no control over the duration or market value at any point. At our ages I just use CDs or TBills, and hold to maturity.
I rarely cite Bill Fleckenstein here. His dai…
It's been so long since I used a MMF with Merrill …
It’s been a long time since I remember folks getting excited about money market funds. About 40 years. The 80s as I recall. :)
BTW - If anybody missed it, this week’s Barron’s notes that municip…
”Jeremy Grantham had a long piece years ago, predicting dramatic increases in price of food and agricultural products for a number of reasons.”
Yep - I’ve been thinking that way. But most of this stuff has really run up in price the past several ye…
Thanks for all the ideas. Big help. @sma3 - Nice write up. I was slow in noticing the ETFs you tossed out, but picked them up on second look. RTM has certainly been hot. Some resource funds do include consumers staples - to buffer the volatility fr…
I don't think it's any easier today for a fund to corral heads of steer than it was in 2006 :-)
Good point. You’d need some pretty high boots I suppose. :)
Casks of single malt wouldn’t appear too hard to store. Price and quality increase with a…
Thanks Yogi. Can’t confirm - but I get the impression Forsyth enjoys time away from that duty. It’s a demanding role. Must take a toll on one over time.
PS - The (alleged) comments Serwer attributes to NYC real estate magnates comparing their pr…
Interesting “Up & Down Wall Street” column this week written by Andy Serwer (whom I can’t recall ever reading before). Writes with a nice flair.
Extended excerpt: “To my mind, Dimon is essentially making the point that no amount of regulation …
@hank, only the precious metal funds may own physical commodities.
Thanks. Guessing it’s a SEC limitation? I hadn’t thought about it, but any I’ve ever owned were based on derivatives. And I remember riding one into the ground at Oppenheimer dur…
Yes, pulling up the holdings in RAAX looks promising. Nicely diversified using sector ETFs. That it was pretty much flat in 2022 is a plus. Not looking for hottest thing on the block. I wonder what the real % in precious metals is. Shows 8% in a g…
Thanks guys. Actually, for my needs, GRES looks attractive with a .30% management fee. But I’ve tried a number of their other low cost “IQ” funds (New York Life Investments) and they’ve proven utter losers - yet they look so good on paper. :) I d…
Thanks for commenting @Observant1 - I appreciate links so much more when folks add a personal comment. Generally, the only time I’ll watch a linked video is if the poster has commented on it.
Benz’s “Buckets” conjure up an image of somebody in a B…
Does sentiment have anything to do with the extent to which cable networks like Bloomberg cover the markets? More and more Bloomberg’s evening programing consists of taped interviews or hour-long paid commercials. Sometimes that’s the major portio…
@hank, REMIX is like every other alternative fund I've ever encountered, it's good till it ain't. The minute one of these funds have done well enough to get a lot of press here at MFO it is the time to sell, not buy. Just another learning experience…
Of course if you are going to buy one thing you have to sell something else. I've been selling the alternative fund REMIX as I buy gold. That I did not make money on.
I’ll have to look at REMIX some time. Your point rings true. A month ago I “boug…
@yogibearbull -
I don’t dispute your historical data on gold or gold miners. (Silver actually peaked sometime in the 70s at double where it is today.) However, in the context of the broader markets, gold’s surge in 2020 wasn’t as remarkable / not…
Yes, a good time to add a bit more IAU? I think so.
@MikeM - I can’t comment on that. I know you’ve held some precious metals and nearly asked you in another thread if you’d made any money on them. :)
They can be fun and exciting, but can also…
As they say it’s “a market of stocks” rather than a “stock market”. Always opportunity somewhere if you can find it. There’s an important jobs report out tomorrow which is Good Friday. The stock market will be closed so traders will need to wait un…
”Certainly a lot of talk and excitement for this ETF, but do we know when it is scheduled to come to market?”
I’m hearing July 4 to coincide with fireworks displays nationwide. Plans are for a brilliant laser light show featuring Giroux’s larger-…
+1
In fairness, I don’t anticipate TRP doing that. What I see is investors chasing performance and the fund has been hot and attracting interest / money for a long time now. And Giroux, for better or worse, has claimed a lofty perch next to Gabe…
Reality check - How many of your current holdings (aside from cash) did you possess …
- 20 years ago?
- 25 years ago?
- 30 years ago?
None of mine date back 25 years (1998 or earlier). But three go back over 20 years. Two are multi-a…
Nice exchange. Thanks gentlemen. I’ve mostly avoided TIPs because I find them difficult to understand / analyze. Thats’s admittedly a stain on me rather than the product or its proponents. However, I have two possibly related thoughts: (1) Any inve…
Good read. Don’t bet the farm on any particular point. Conventional wisdom. Wish the 10-year would get back up above 4% where I’d plunk a portion of cash back into GNMA. Just a hunch that that’s a more profitable (in & out) trade than at the …
I’ve always considered Mutual Fund Observer a place where intelligent minds shared thoughts and ideas in a civil manner - a place that’s a cut above the name calling, baiting of opposition and trash-talk that permeates so much other online space. …
It’s a serious matter. My hope would be that everybody - red / blue alike - can try to be as objective / restrained as possible. Let the laws and courts proceed. It’s ironic, to say the least, that even several judges he appointed have ruled agai…
Honestly, I don’t get the feeling that we’re in a nasty bear market or that things will worsen a lot. Of course there will be a recession at some point. But I don’t think we’ll re-test the lows of 2022 - unless the economy really falls off a cliff…
Fascinating. Thanks @yogibearbull.
Somewhat bemused this morning to hear the talking heads on Bloomberg pronouncing that the NASDAQ is now in “a new bull market.” Can’t seem to verify that anywhere else. Wonder if they’re basing that call on the p…
Thanks for insights. I hadn’t realized the equity side is concentrated in income producing stocks. Explains a lot, as ISTM that segment is prone (like any other segment) to hot and cool periods. I sorta remember once a year ago referring to funds …
I enjoyed (wrong word perhaps) looking at the color-coded map LB’s linked source in the investing section contains (Reasons for investing in EM X-China thread). Golly - To think that the UK is in the same camp as Spain and Italy is a bit troubli…
Thanks @larryB / Last year’s unusually big hit was understandable as bonds slid along with stocks. But it can’t seem to get out of its own way this year. The ”secret sauce” for so many years no longer working it seems. I wonder if money has bee…
LOL - Funny. To be honest, I did a little “pruning” today (sold a bit). But by no means is that a bearish call.
Oh. I wouldn’t worry about Schwab’s survival. But financials / brokerages can be a bumpy ride. TRP nose-dived about 50% last year if …
Well, whatever you call it, it’s proven you can round up enough unprincipled jerks from among a population of 333 million people to fill a stadium somewhere in Texas. Before cable news and the internet such a feat would have been highly unlikely. Bu…
I’ll say again I am struck by the unfairness. Consider the following scenario:
- Being the frugal responsible type, I drive a $12,000 Chevy Spark for which I pay and receive collision insurance coverage.
- My irresponsible next door neighbor …
I watched an hour’s worth - off and on. What strikes me is the unfairness of the situation. Why Oh-why were the owners of uninsured assets at SVB bailed out while no such blanket guarantee extends to others who might find themselves in a similar s…
Added - I think it’s accurate to say that the very best of today’s high school grads are far ahead of where I and my peers were in our high school days. It’s astounding and rewarding to see how much the top students with solid support at home and …
