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.
Many of you probably remember Armistice Day, VE Day, and VJ Day. I think the amalgamation of those "victories" into Veterans' Day is relatively recent. Columbus Day in New England was always a holiday and recent attempts to eliminate the celebration…
Based on the performance of the LG equity funds, all of which are managed by groups of mangers, there is no reason to predict that the new fund will beat any benchmark. LG gives the hook to managers in a manner that resembles the style of George Ste…
The Villere boys are similar to some other managers of dubious distinction who manage to get lots of media coverage for run-of-the-mill results. They pronounce their name "Villerey" as opposed to the appropriate Cajun/French "viyair." An accent mark…
This is timely because I just happened to turn on CNBC when a former manager-of-the-year was getting undeserved air time. David Rolfe, whose principal claim to fame these days is the enormous distributions his Wedgewood Growth fund is paying, used t…
Have to agree with @AndyJ about the length of games. I have been taping playoff games and then fast-forwarding between pitches, pitching changes, and between innings. At one point I had David Price taking 30-40 seconds between pitches. I thought MLB…
ORNAX appears to be the clear winner in National Muni High Yield. NTF at Schwab and TDA. I could have done a better job screening before buying PTRMX which I bought because of decent rating and satisfaction with PTIAX. So, @Crash, I own both Perform…
Happened to have a tennis buddy who managed the local KMart and was a career employee. When EL took over, all long-term managers were forced to retire. Similar treatment of the manager of the pharmacy in the store; he was younger but got shafted equ…
Not to overstate the obvious, but I have to say that it really matters who wins a presidential election. The man at the top doesn't know what goes on at the many government agencies, yet if he conveys the message to his underlings that all governmen…
@VF: The institutional Kopernik International fund gets 5 stars from M*; your $1M minimum buys you 36% cash and 60% basic materials (read gold and oil). The fund went to the top of the class in 2016, then promptly did a complete turn-around in 2017.…
I've read other Lewis pieces on the same theme; very frightening stories of the Department of Energy which really is responsible for an amazing array of programs, many of which, if unmanaged, threaten our safety and well being. Lewis also wrote of w…
In our case, we used both 529's and Uniform Gift to Minors Act brokerage accounts, although the latter are more useful as the child gets older. The 529's are the best for college savings, the UGMA's for teaching kids how to save and invest.
@johnN: I remember listening to the radio broadcast of the Giants getting stomped on by the Steelers in about 1953. By 1956 they had Sam Huff and a real team. I have never abandoned them, although there have been some lean years.
That's funny, @msf. By the time the Vega was making its mark as one of the worst cars ever, I had long before sold my last American car. A colleague, however, had the misfortune of buying a used Vega in the mid-70's; needless to say it did not turn …
For me the experience of living for long periods in France and in South Korea does not really inform what constitutes a country I'd live in in retirement. In previous overseas residencies I/we were "living on the economy" and our needs and expectati…
It's hard enough to figure out what global value funds Artisan offers without them dividing things up even more. The "Growth" team is charged with running four different funds, the global one of which I own (ARTRX). It's gotten so confusing that M* …
Who would stand to gain from writing this piece? First, someone who wants to stay on the job in a post-impeachment or post-resignation administration. Second, someone who wants to sow discord and chaos. If the Times had not said they know who the pe…
The previous posts suggest to me that "global" covers so much ground that it would take more than one fund to cover it: global equity funds follow different styles of investment (growth, value, equity-income); global allocation funds are also very d…
Thanks, @Ted, for making it clear that others were wrong in taking shots at you for how you voted in 2016. You are true to your principles. In 1968 I cast an absentee write-in ballot for my favorite candidate and I learned from a press clipping my …
Interesting speculation on MSNBC late EDT; two participants picked Dan Coats, another a combination of 2 or 3 people, and a third said a "deputy something" at one level lower than the senior WH personnel.
@PRESSmUP: Did you sell ROSOX because GSIHX has done so much better over almost equal time since their inception dates? I sold the former a few months ago.
My take is that the Times vetted this person carefully before publishing the piece. The existence of a resistance movement squares with repeated previous reports of massive leaking from the WH. You can keep calling the Times "failing," but it's obvi…
@Hank: I think Honda got the memo. Our 2017 Accord Hybrid does not have any volume or tuning knobs and learning the touch screen is not easy, surely not while under way! I have learned to use the controls on the steering wheel for volume, preset sta…
I could envision funds making early distributions to avoid a spate a selling. I dare say that even most experienced long-term investors are not thinking about year-end distributions on Labor Day, thereby giving an opening to less-than-scrupulous fun…
I think it was Bush II whose administration proposed privatizing a part of SS (25% IIRC) and making wage earners participate in 401K-like vehicles. I recall that idea going nowhere. It may be that many Americans who could benefit from investment sav…
BOA, where I have checking, calls transfers to accounts at other banks ACH Transfers. The current fees are $3 for 3 business days, $10 for next business day, and $30 for a wire transfer, same day. BOA does not charge if you transfer to another perso…
I think @Nod has a good point. Healthy eating and enough exercise are in this country the domains of those who have the means to pursue the proper lifestyle. Lousy, unhealthy food is cheap, widely advertised, and easily procured. You don't have to b…
@MikeW: I’d be interested in any conclusions you might reach regarding Harbor’s success hiring and firing sub-advisors. I used to also own Harbor Mid Cap Value and Harbor Global Growth. I’m pretty sure Harbor fired Marsico from the latter. Beyond th…
It seems the capital gains will be long term, so that would be the best type of gains to have for tax purposes. However, funds are not required to distribute in the most tax-favorable manner.
I used to own the fund until it became a stinker. I thin…
Ease up. It’s not rocket science, as the saying goes, and a liberal arts major can certainly learn to suggest mutual funds precisely because liberal arts majors are taught how to learn in a serious undergrad program. Better their advice than that of…
