FYI: Bill Miller remains the only mutual fund manager in memory to beat the S&P 500 fifteen years in a row. He did it while he was managing Legg Mason Capital Management Value Trust from 1991-2005. After a couple of episodes of serious underperformance in 2006-2008 and 2010-2011 Miller left the fund and in 2016 left Legg Mason to launch his own independent investment advisory firm, Miller Value Partners.
Regards,
Ted
http://wealthtrack.com/miller-hedge-fund-timing/?action=edit
M* Snapshot LGOAX:
http://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/lgoax/quote.html
M* Snapshot LMCJX:
http://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/lmcjx/quote.html

Finally! Someone talking some sense. It doesn't matter if one does not agree with every reason provided in the article for making this argument.
Unless you are invested with absolutely incompetent manager over the long run it is going to matter diddly. The quest to measure against index is futile. One needs to focus on absolute returns and permanent loss of capital. What I call ANALysis. This lets me navigate my retirement accounts even when I get locked out of repurchase when I am forced to sell on whipsaws in index funds. I just go into another "large cap" fund or a target retirement fund.
What I like is a "smooth" line going upward all the time and I'm okay if the slope of that line is below the index slope. I just need my slope to be smoother and I have been achieving it for the past 10+ years. I'm perfectly fine seeing a "flatline" in my portfolio before my models tell me to start moving "upward" again, and I don't try catching the index slope.

FYI: So far so good?
On May 25, Wall Street closed the 100th trading day of 2017, with the S&P 500 having risen 7.9% over that period. That’s a strong start to a year—the fourth-best start of the past 20 years—but don’t worry if you didn’t miss the rally. According to data from LPL Financial, not only has the market never ended a year with a negative return after such a start, but such a beginning typically augurs well for gains through the rest of the year.
Since 1950, there have been 23 years, not including 2017, where the S&P rose at least 7.5% over the first 100 trading days. In all those instances, the market ended higher on the year, with an average annual gain of 23.4%. Based on where the market ended 2016, such an annual gain would mean the benchmark index SPX, +0.76% ends the year around 2,760.
Regards,
Ted
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-sp-500-has-never-had-a-down-year-after-a-start-like-2017-2017-05-31/print

FYI: The average stock in the S&P 500 was up less than 1% in the month of May, but there were obvious winners and losers. Basically, the stocks that had the most upside momentum coming into the month continued to post nice gains, while the stocks with the most downside momentum continued to post losses.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.bespokepremium.com/think-big-blog/winners-remain-winners-losers-remain-losers/

There are, it seems to me, two arguments at work in this article.
1. Investors routinely ignore politics, unless and until they impact economics. That seems about right.
2. All is well in the market and the economy since profits are at record levels. That seems rather shakier. Three researchers from Research Affiliates, Rob Arnott's firm, released a paper today which argues "the ‘Trump bump’ reveals market expectations of continuing public policies prioritizing stability, inhibiting creative destruction, depressing yields and wage growth, and inflating a profits bubble. If instead the Administration delivers reforms that allow creative destruction, invigorate growth, and raise returns to capital and wages, then the lofty profits of corporate incumbents will be at risk."
Cheers,
David

Yesterday Janus and Henderson announced the completion of a merger to form Janus Henderson Group plc.
I have a position in Perkins Small Cap Value Fund Class T shares (JSCVX) but have not received any communication from Perkins, Janus, or Janus Henderson about what will happen to this fund. It now seems Perkins exists exclusively for institutional investors, of which I am not one. Retail investors have to go with Janus Henderson but the Small Cap Value Fund (JNPSX) is closed. Will my shares be exchanged?
Anyone know what is going on or heard any news?

But ciovacco capital frequently does this. and as far as I known them which is only in the last market, they are using charts to make the "bull" case and actually making one feel sanguine. So what is okay one way, should be okay the other way too. No one should claim ownership of charts.

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1318342/000139834417007124/fp0026108_497.htm
497 1 fp0026108_497.htm
Oakseed Opportunity Fund
Investor Class (SEEDX)
Institutional Class (SEDEX)
A series of Investment Managers Series Trust
Supplement dated May 31, 2017, to the
Prospectus, Summary Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, each dated May 1, 2017.
Jackson Park Capital, LLC (the “Advisor”), the Fund’s advisor, has given notice of resignation as investment advisor of the Oakseed Opportunity Fund (the “Fund”), effective on or about June 30, 2017. The Board of Trustees of the Trust has therefore approved a Plan of Liquidation for the Fund which authorizes the termination, liquidation and dissolution of the Fund. In order to perform such liquidation, effective immediately the Fund is closed to all new investment.
The Fund will be liquidated on or about June 30, 2017 (the “Liquidation Date”), and shareholders may redeem their shares until the Liquidation Date. On or promptly after the Liquidation Date, the Fund will make a liquidating distribution to its remaining shareholders equal to each shareholder’s proportionate interest in the net assets of the Fund, in complete redemption and cancellation of the Fund’s shares held by the shareholder, and the Fund will be dissolved. Shareholders redeeming Fund shares worth over $250,000 on or before the Liquidation Date may request redemptions by “in-kind” distributions of portfolio securities (instead of cash) from the Fund. Any shareholder wishing to redeem its Fund shares in kind must contact the Advisor at least 15 days prior to the Liquidation Date or date of redemption, as applicable. If a shareholder receives an in-kind distribution, the shareholder could incur brokerage or other charges in converting the securities to cash.
In anticipation of the liquidation of the Fund, the Advisor may manage the Fund in a manner intended to facilitate its orderly liquidation, such as by raising cash or making investments in other highly liquid assets. As a result, during this time, all or a portion of the Fund may not be invested in a manner consistent with its stated investment strategies, which may prevent the Fund from achieving its investment objective.
Please contact the Fund at 1-888-446-4460 if you have any questions or need assistance.
Please file this Supplement with your records.

FYI: In early 2014 charts were circulating around the internet comparing the 2014 market to 1928-1929. One such chart is shown below. The below chart was taken from an article that highlighted the fallacy of these comparisons. In fact, this type of scare tactic infiltrated the main stream media where a MarketWatch.com article warned about the similarity of the '28/'29 market to that of 2014 and that “trouble lies directly ahead.” Since that 2014 article was written, the S&P 500 Index is up over 30%.
Regards,
Ted
http://disciplinedinvesting.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-unfortunate-rise-of-misleading.html
Mark Hulbert MarketWatch Article: 2/11/14:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/scary-1929-market-chart-gains-traction-2014-02-11/print

FYI: U.S. stocks edged lower on Tuesday as weakness in the energy and financial sectors outweighed gains in technology shares.
Regards,
Ted
Bloomberg:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-29/asia-stocks-face-mixed-start-euro-down-on-draghi-markets-wrap
Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-stocks-idUSKBN18Q14O
MarketWatch:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-futures-hold-steady-but-analysts-say-the-bull-market-is-back-2017-05-30/print
IBD:
http://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/stocks-close-slightly-lower-microsoft-reaches-record-high/
CNBC:
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/30/us-markets.html
AP:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FINANCIAL_MARKETS?SITE=AP
WSJ: Markets At A Glance:
http://markets.wsj.com/us
SPDR's Sector Tracker:
http://www.sectorspdr.com/sectorspdr/tools/sector-tracker
SPDR's Bloomberg Sector Performance Pie Chart:
https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/sectors
Current Futures: Mixed
http://finviz.com/futures.ashx

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1494928/000139834417006972/fp0026057_497.htm
497 1 fp0026057_497.htm
RiverPark Funds Trust
RiverPark Structural Alpha Fund
Supplement Dated May 30, 2017 to the Summary Prospectus, Prospectus and the
Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) Dated January 27, 2017
This supplement provides new and additional information beyond that contained in the Prospectus and SAI and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus and SAI.
Liquidation of RiverPark Structural Alpha Fund
On May 26, 2017, the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of RiverPark Funds Trust approved a Plan of Liquidation for the RiverPark Structural Alpha Fund (the “Fund”) pursuant to which the Fund will be liquidated on or about June 30, 2017 (the “Liquidation Date”). In approving the liquidation, the Board determined that the liquidation of the Fund is in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders. To arrive at this decision, the Board considered factors that have adversely affected, and will continue to adversely affect, the ability of the Fund to conduct its business and operations in an economically viable manner, including factors such as low asset levels and limited future prospects for growth.
Accordingly, the Adviser may begin positioning the portfolio of the Fund for liquidation, which may cause the Fund to deviate from its stated investment objective and strategies. It is anticipated that the Fund's portfolio will be positioned into cash on or some time prior to the Liquidation Date. Effective immediately, the Fund is closed to new shareholders and additional purchases by existing shareholders.
Any shares outstanding at the close of business on the Liquidation Date will be automatically redeemed. Such redemption shall follow the procedures set forth in the Fund's Plan of Liquidation. Final dividends will be paid in advance of the Liquidation Date. Any capital gains will be distributed to shareholders, if necessary, prior to the Liquidation Date.
Any time prior to the Liquidation Date, the shareholders of the Fund may redeem their shares of the Fund pursuant to the procedures set forth in the Fund's Prospectus. Shareholders may also exchange their shares of the Fund into shares of the same class of another RiverPark fund if the shareholder meets the eligibility criteria and investment minimum for such fund.
Any income or capital gains distributed to shareholders prior to the Liquidation Date or as part of the liquidation proceeds will be subject to tax. All investors should consult with their tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of this liquidation.

MJG may be like the permabears he describes. If one hits all the bears and many bulls as well, one will cut one's losses during market slides as he described. That doesn't mean one can time the market.
Taken to the extreme, just keep most of your portfolio out of the market. You'll "suffer a loss in a Bear, but typically not as much as the market itself experiences."
Unless you get back into the market at the right time, your "round trip" (through the bear and the subsequent bull market) can underperform simple buy-and-hold. Though by cutting one's losses (and gains) one may sleep better.
Then there are the bull markets one may hit inadvertently. Lightening up through those create sure losses relative to buy-and-hold, no matter how fast one reenters the market. How many people have tried timing the bond market for years, going shorter and shorter on duration as long bonds have continued to do well?

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1041673/000119312517184532/d394774d497.htm
497 1 d394774d497.htm NUVEEN INVESTMENT TRUST II
NUVEEN NWQ JAPAN FUND
SUPPLEMENT DATED MAY 26, 2017
TO THE PROSPECTUS DATED MARCH 31, 2017
Nuveen NWQ Japan Fund will be liquidated after the close of business on July 24, 2017.
Effective June 19, 2017, the fund will stop accepting purchases from new investors and existing shareholders, except that defined contribution retirement plans that hold fund shares as of today may continue to purchase fund shares until July 17, 2017. Existing shareholders may continue to reinvest dividends and capital gains distributions received from the fund. The fund reserves the right to modify the extent to which sales of shares are limited prior to the fund’s liquidation. After the close of business on July 24, 2017, the fund will liquidate any remaining shareholder accounts and will send shareholders the proceeds of the liquidation.
PLEASE KEEP THIS WITH YOUR PROSPECTUS
FOR FUTURE REFERENCE
MGN-NWJP-0517P
NUVEEN NWQ JAPAN FUND
SUPPLEMENT DATED MAY 26, 2017
TO THE STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION DATED MARCH 31, 2017
Nuveen NWQ Japan Fund will be liquidated after the close of business on July 24, 2017.
Effective June 19, 2017, the fund will stop accepting purchases from new investors and existing shareholders, except that defined contribution retirement plans that hold fund shares as of today may continue to purchase fund shares until July 17, 2017. Existing shareholders may continue to reinvest dividends and capital gains distributions received from the fund. The fund reserves the right to modify the extent to which sales of shares are limited prior to the fund’s liquidation. After the close of business on July 24, 2017, the fund will liquidate any remaining shareholder accounts and will send shareholders the proceeds of the liquidation.
PLEASE KEEP THIS WITH YOUR STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FOR FUTURE REFERENCE

@expatsp
Yeah... had about 6 GREAT years of tax loss carryover... followed by @5 years of not so great capital gains in my brokerage account!

@expatsp.
Lucy recently woke me up from my sleep in the pumpkin patch and walked me into shelter. I've sold-out of FAAFX, which I first bought in 2011.
The experience is marked by much downside interrupted by very few upward periods.
Six years is not really a long time, but it sure feels like it with this fund! This allocation fund has existed entirely in a bull market.
The table below shows the sad numbers since inception through April (click on image to enlarge):

So far in May, FAAFX is down another 10%.
The firm has never touted "The Fairholme Effect" on performance charts for FAAFX.
DODBX, which I have owned since 2003, is now my longest holding.
Of the many fund investing mistakes I've made, including WBMIX and AQRIX, invariably because of misguided expectations, I think FAAFX is the most disappointing.
Expectations for the fund were built-on my favorable experience with FAIRX in 2000's, which I held from about 2002 through 2011.
But the two decades (or the two funds for that matter) don't compare. I examined them back in 2013 with Fairholme Fund (FAIRX) – What a Difference a Decade Makes, but I do not think it's improved much in the four years since, as evidenced in M*: Liquidity Risk Increases At Fairholme.
Which helps explain my disappointment. But four years ago, I wrote:

Yet, if I had to bet on one fund manager to deliver superior absolute returns over the long run, it would be Bruce Berkowitz. But many of us have come to learn, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride. Like some other deep value money managers, he may simply look beyond risk definitions as defined by modern portfolio theory…something fans of Fairholme may need to do also.

Good grief!
If I remember, Mr. Berkowitz stated during a Consuelo Mack interview on the eve of Trump's election that he can see light at end of tunnel ... and for a short time, it looked like maybe he did. But since about February, FAAFX is down another 20%, yet again.
Each quarter FAAFX reflects an ever increasing focus on extremely distressed, speculative, and illiquid securities.
Remember MBIA?
Remember St Joe?
Today, its Fannie/Freddie and SHLD.
Mr. Berkowitz hitched his wagon to Mr. Lambert and Mr. Mnuchin. I believe the latter was on SHLD's board while heading Trump's campaign finance committee, before becoming Treasury Secretary.
Has BB changed his stripes?
For years, he was heavy BRK and LUK.
The individuals behind all these entities are part of a billionaire's club: Lambert, Mnuchin, Buffet, and Cumming.
FAAFX is currently at $183M AUM, down substantially, half owned by Mr. Berkowitz. Flagship FAIRX is at $2.3B, about one tenth of peak.
Took me a while, as usual, but I'm joining kevindow, Sven, and others to be on sidelines going forward with Fairholme Capital Management, LLC.
Yesterday, SHLD popped 30% initially after a good earnings report, suspect short squeeze in play, but closed up "just" 14%. FAIRX and FAAFX jumped over 3%. But it is little solace to long-term investors.
This morning SHLD is down another 9%.
Maybe it's still possible for these bets to pay off.
Maybe it's just being part of what our friend Wes Gray calls "The Value Pain Train" and I've just fired god.
Maybe these really are the only deep-value investments, the "best ideas" Fairholme can find in the current elevated market.
But I don't think these are the investments that once earned Fairholme "Fund of the Decade" accolade or praise for being the next SEQUX (during its heyday).
So, after some 14 years investing with Fairholme, I'm out of the pumpkin patch and back in the crowd.
Hopefully, I've not disappointed you expatsp or other BB fans on the board. But if I have, my apologies. And if there are any friends still in FAAFX, I do hope the "Great Pumpkin" finally arrives.

For one reason or another there are those who don't want to manage their finance and retirement. In these situations, robo-advisors would serve their purpose. Personally I would choose a well run balanced fund such as Vanguard Wellington or TRP Capital Appreciation.

There has definitely been a rotation out of U.S. small value to U.S. large growth this year...I have captured those gains with HACAX. Anyone else???

FYI: The market has seemed pretty top-heavy lately. We think the concerns around weak breadth have been a little bit overstated, though, as we mentioned in our Chart of the Day yesterday. But it’s still worth asking the question: how much of the market’s gain is attributable to the largest stocks? Below we show three series. The light blue line is returns for the S&P 500 YTD. In the dark blue line, we strip out the performance contribution of the five largest stocks in the S&P 500: Apple (AAPL), Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT), and Alphabet (GOOGL). As shown, while the overall index is up almost 8% so far in 2017, it’s up only 4.6% if you strip out the five largest stocks. In the red series below we show the spread between the two, in other words, the cumulative performance contribution from those 5 stocks. At the start of the year, these five stocks accounted for 11.6% of the index’s market cap, so you’d expect a non-trivial percentage of gains to come from them. That share stands at about 13.7% today. Generating nearly half of the index’s gains with less than 15% of its market cap is an out-sized contribution and shows just how painful it can be in terms of relative performance if you’ve been underweight these mega-Tech behemoth
Regards,
Ted
https://www.bespokepremium.com/think-big-blog/five-largest-stocks-account-for-nearly-half-of-2017s-gains/

FYI: U.S. stocks rose on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite hitting new highs, helped by gains in the consumer discretionary sector after strong reports from Best Buy and other retailers.
Regards,
Ted
Bloomberg:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-24/asia-stocks-look-mixed-as-dollar-slips-on-fed-markets-wrap
Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-stocks-idUSKBN18L1HC
MarketWatch:
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-poised-for-6-wins-in-a-row-but-opec-lies-in-wait-2017-05-25/print
IBD:
http://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/bullish-session-beefy-gains-netflix-gaps-up-ulta-spikes-after-close/
CNBC:
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/25/us-markets.html
AP:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FINANCIAL_MARKETS?SITE=AP
Bloomberg Evening Briefing:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-25/today-s-top-stories-a-secret-plot-to-sell-banned-oil
WSJ: Markets At A Glance:
http://markets.wsj.com/us
SPDR's Sector Tracker:
http://www.sectorspdr.com/sectorspdr/tools/sector-tracker
SPDR'S Bloomberg Sector Performance Pie Chart:
https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/sectors
Current Futures: Positive
http://finviz.com/futures.ashx

Solution.. Voluntarily agree to having your investment gains (LTCG, STCG, Dividends, interest. etc.), and income, taxed at 50%; you will be doing your country, and political ideology, a HUGE favor!!!