Howdy,
A thank you to all who post the links, start and participate in the many fine commentaries woven into the message threads.
For those who don't know; I ramble away about this and that, at least once each week. The perspectives and investments are based, not upon a formal economic studies background; but from the "School of Hard Knocks & Studies", in which, we are still enrolled.
NOTE: This portfolio is designed for retirement, capital preservation and to stay ahead of inflation creep. This is not a buy and hold portfolio, and is subject to change on any given day; based upon perceptions of market directions. All assets in this portfolio are in tax-sheltered accounts; and any fund distributions are reinvested in the funds. Gains or losses are computed from actual account values.
While looking around.....J & E, jealously and envy. What a perfect first week of the equity market year to bring forth and stir these emotions. Neither has to be or have a negative affect upon a person. The cheap and easy advice is to use any such feeling for further insight and study. Poster Ted related to one of these emotions in another post and I blipped a note here to the subject. Good gosh, talk about J & E; who else at this board has started the year in the negative, eh? Even our straight forward 529 account of 50/50, VITPX and VBMPX is at a + 2.55% YTD. Well, our house can't support that VITPX or another broadbased U.S. equity index is on pace for a + 132% year. 'Course the scary part is that we added an equity fund this week (below). Yikes, a short term equity sell signal if there is one, from this action. We'll temper the J & E to the positive side of life, as always, and continue to sort through some of our short list of equity considerations for 2013 (below). We anticipate a reversal in both directions for some bond and equity sectors from the first week of the year moves. Worse case, if we move more monies into other positions; will likely find selling chunks of 1/3 of a given holding (averaging).
As to sector rotations below (Fidelity funds); for the past week: (Note: any given fund in any of these sectors will have varying degrees of performance based upon where the manager(s) choose to be invested and will not directly reflect upon your particular fund holdings from other vendors.) Sidenote: The average weekly return of 200 combined Fidelity retail funds across all sectors (week avg = +2.9%, YTD +1.8%).
--- U.S. equity + 3.1% through + 6.1%, week avg. = +4 .8% YTD = + ...%
--- Int'l equity + .7% through + 4.1%, week avg. = + 2.4% YTD = + ...%
--- Select eq. sectors + 1.3% through + 7.7%, week avg. = + 4.8% YTD = + ...%
--- U.S./Int'l bonds + .1% through - 3.6%, week avg. = - .67% YTD = - ...%
--- HY bonds - .10% through + .84%, week avg. = + .47% YTD = + ...%
A Decent Overview, M* 1 Month through 5 Year, Multiple Indexes
You may consider our portfolio to be quite boring, but you may be assured that it moves and bends each and every day; from forces beyond our control.
I have added a few blips related to our portfolio and market observations at the below SELLs/BUYs and Portfolio Thoughts.
SELLs/BUYs THIS PAST WEEK: = Some of both FBNDX and FINPX were sold, with proceeds moving a new fund; FSHOX and an old friend of FAGIX.
Portfolio Thoughts: Our holdings had a - .05 % move this past week. Bond funds generally ranged as follows for the week: IG, -.50%, TIPs, - 1.0%, Long term gov't, -3.5%, GNMA/MS, +.1% and high yield, +.50%. No losers in equity sectors of consequence. The U.S. equity area strongly outpaced international equity sectors. Although numerous equity sectors had some strength in the last quarter of 2012 and in particular, the last week of 2012; a few sectors are of note, although these may only be trading houses and machine plays going into the new year. Most energy funds returned less than 5% for all of 2012, and this first week of 2013 found these funds returning as much as 7.7%; and most funds reviewed found a larger % return in this first week; than they returned for all of 2012. Perhaps this will be the year of equity value plays or the 2012 dogs, however many there remains. As a group, it appears the overall winner relative to Fido funds was the small cap area.
We'll continue to watch; and do have plans, at this time, to add some equity this year, 2013. Our current short list, not in any order, of equity fund watches include: PAUDX, PAAIX, MAPIX, MACSX, SFGIX, GPGIX, ARTHX, FMIJX, FTIEX, FBALX, FTEMX, FEDDX, FIREX, FJPNX, FSVLX, FLPSX, FGHNX, PMZDX as well as some other Pimco funds, as PSTDX, etc.
Still plodding along, and we will retain the below write from previous weeks; as what we are watching, still applies.
--- commodity pricing, especially the energy and base materials areas; copper and related.
--- the $US broad basket value, and in particular against the Euro and Aussie dollar (EU zone and China/Asia uncertainties).
--- price directions of U.S. treasury's, German bunds, U.K. gilts, Japanese bonds; and continued monitoring of Spanish/Italian bond pricing/yield.
--- what we are watching to help understand the money flows: SHY, IEF, TLT, TIPZ, STPZ, LTPZ, LQD, EMB, HYG, IWM, IYT & VWO; all of which offer insights reflected from the big traders as to the quality/risk, or lack of quality/risk; in various equity/bond sectors.
The Funds Boat is at anchor, riding in the small waves, watching the weather and behind the breakwater barrier. To the high praise of MFO and the members, it is very difficult to find a topic to note here that has not been placed into the discussion boards. Excellence, as usual.
I have retained the following links for those who may choose to do their own holdings comparison against the fund types noted.
The first two links to Bloomberg are for their list of balanced/flexible funds; although I don't always agree with the placement of fund styles in their categories.
Bloomberg Balanced
Bloomberg Flexible
These next two links are for conservative and moderate fund leaders YTD, per MSN.
Conservative Allocation
Moderate Allocation
A reflection upon the links above. We attempt to establish a "benchmark" for our portfolio to help us "see" how our funds are performing. Aside from viewing many funds within the balanced/flexible funds rankings (the above links), a quick and dirty group of 5 funds (below) we watch for psuedo benchmarking are the following:
***Note: these week/YTD's per M*
VWINX .... + .96% week, YTD = + ...%
PRPFX .... + 1.22% week, YTD = + ...%
SIRRX ..... + .13% week, YTD = + ...%
TRRFX .... + 1.66% week, YTD = + ....%
VTENX ... + 1.33% week, YTD = + ...%
Such are the numerous battles with investments attempting to capture a decent return and minimize the risk.
We live and invest in interesting times, eh? Hey, I probably forgot something; and hopefully the words make some sense. Comments and questions always welcomed.
Good fortune to you, yours and the investments.
Take care,
Catch
---Below is what M* x-ray has attempted to sort for our portfolio, as of Nov. 1, 2012 ---
From what I find, M* has a difficult time sorting out the holdings with bond funds.
U.S./Foreign Stocks 2.9%
Bonds 92.9% ***
Other 4.2%
Not Classified 0.00%
Avg yield = 3.99%
Avg expense = .57%
***about 18% of the bond total are high yield category (equity related cousins)
---This % listing is kinda generic, by fund "name"; which doesn't always imply the holdings, eh?
-Investment grade bond funds 27.2%
-Diversified bond funds 22.4%
-HY/HI bond funds 14.5%
-Total bond funds 32.4%
-Foreign EM/debt bond funds .6%
-U.S./Int'l equity/speciality funds 2.9%
This is our current list: (NOTE: I have added a speciality grouping below for a few of fund types)
---High Yield/High Income Bond funds
FAGIX Fid Capital & Income
SPHIX Fid High Income
FHIIX.LW Fed High Income
DIHYX TransAmerica HY
---Total Bond funds
FTBFX Fid Total
PTTRX Pimco Total
---Investment Grade Bonds
ACITX Amer. Cent. TIPS Bond
DGCIX Delaware Corp. Bd
FBNDX Fid Invest Grade
FINPX Fidelity TIPS Bond
OPBYX Oppenheimer Core Bond
---Global/Diversified Bonds
FSICX Fid Strategic Income
FNMIX Fid New Markets
DPFFX Delaware Diversified
LSBDX Loomis Sayles
PONDX Pimco Income fund (steroid version)
PLDDX Pimco Low Duration (domestic/foreign)
---Speciality Funds (sectors or mixed allocation)
FRIFX Fidelity Real Estate Income (bond/equity mix)
---Equity-Domestic/Foreign
FSHOX Fidelity Select Construction & Housing

Reply to @AndyJ: To correct the "2013 dividend" mention in my post just above this one, Vanguard has accounted for the 12/31 dividend paid in January as 2013 income, and that's not right -- here's what IRS Pub 550, Investment Income, says on the subject:
"Dividends received in January. If a mutual fund (or other regulated investment company) or real estate investment trust (REIT) declares a dividend (including any exempt-interest dividend or capital gain distribution) in October, November, or December, payable to shareholders of record on a date in one of those months but actually pays the dividend during January of the next calendar year, you are considered to have received the dividend on December 31. You report the dividend in the year it was declared."

I own PCRDX (Class D) and it did pay a very small div on 12/27/12.
On 12/12/12 it also paid Long and Short-term gains (again, very small).

Hi Bud. I missed this and just re-posted...I apologize.
In any case, good to see T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation PRWCX back on top with David Giroux leadership.

Reply to @scott: ok, neither one is quite correct.. it is technically the same it was for all households making less than 250K (200K for individuals) and many indeed fall into this bracket. above these amounts, divs are getting the health care tax on 'unearned' income of 3.8%... (this applies to all unearned income, including rents, cap gains, etc.) finally, those households with income (or AGI?) of 450K (400K individuals) will have their lt cap gains and divs taxed @20% for a total of 23.8%. phew.

Right, phil, applicable Pimco funds had cap gains 12/12, the 'bonus' dividend 12/27, and the regular dividend 12/31. The latter just showed up as paid in my Vanguard account this morning ... and it's accounted for as a 2013 dividend, fwiw.

Catch: Pray do tell us what's in that smoldering pile of leaves you seem fixated on? Might it be altering some of your perceptions.?
I think trying to make sense of short term market moves is difficult. But I'll admit to the same proclivity. Just a snippet on the news about long term cap gains going to 20% - hope I got that right. If correct, not as bad as some expected. That might explain why the NASDAQ sold off before the "deal" and than yesterday recaptured some of the loss. These securities tend to offer higher cap appreciation (vrs income yielding equities) so probably dance more to the tax tune.
Nothing smoldering around here except the glow In the fireplace this morning. Regards

Yo, Ted. What's up wit dat? Catch 22 has shared his portfolio here and explicitly told us that it's a portfolio intended for capital preservation in retirement. He's holding so MANY different funds, it would leave me overwhelmed. But forget that. I don't see why he should not be able to just come in here and contribute whatever he feels like offering, or asking, or evaluating or sharing or..... whatever. If you're just trying to get a giggle out of the rest of us, you're being much too blunt.

Burning leaves
So, this image is a pretty decent fire, without much smoke at this time. For those who have burned leaf piles; you know there are many factors of the physical sciences world that affect the burn; and for that matter, the start; and the continued burn, which may be without flames eventually, but with enough heat energy to continue to change the physical condition of the remaining leaves; albeit perhaps, with much smoke. The burn stops eventually, when the leaves are no longer leaves.
Evening,
Today was a real rip-tear for equity markets and one may suspect a further transistion to Asia again. I'll be watching Japan; although no money is parked there for this house.
The smoldering equity markets; or at least the big trading houses who really itch for some movement to make a trade and hopefully money, were likely happy today; if they were indeed on the good side of the trade.
Not doubting that some of the rally was in relief to some issues being removed from the work tables in D.C.-land. Also, that those holding short positions were forced to unload those positions.
The question(s).
1. how much of the gains will be shaved back;
2. and after how many days of an equity rally?
Or do some feel there will be a straight line rally for the month of January and beyond?
I'll guess a 50% equity retreat within 5 trading days. Gotta a guess?
Ah, heck....have some fun and take a guess. No prizes will be awarded.
Regards,
Catch

Quite right, I'd say. It took nerves of steel to stay the course and to even just be IN the market after the '08 Crash, but that's what I did, and have been adding and reinvesting gains, too. I'm not unhappy about that today, especially, Mr. Market can be exceedingly pleased with himself today. Everything did well, virtually everything. I am especially glad about owning my small-cap fund today. The Russell 2K is now at a new 52 week high. I'll take it! But of course, we'll see profit-taking tomorrow, eh?

market weekly news - RBC website
Market Week: December 31, 2012
The Markets
Ending with a whimper: As the year wound to a close with no grand bargain out of Washington, equities took their own trip over the fiscal cliff last week. The last positive day for the S&P 500 was the Thursday before Christmas, and five straight down days took the Dow back under 13,000, the Nasdaq below 3,000, and the S&P 500 perilously close to 1,400. Though all four domestic indices are in far better shape than they were on last New Year's Eve, they also seem likely to end in negative territory for the quarter, handily outpaced--at least for Q4--by a resurgent Global Dow.
Market/Index 2011 Close Prior Week As of 12/28 Week Change YTD Change
DJIA 12217.56 13190.84 12938.11 -1.92% 5.90%
Nasdaq 2605.15 3021.01 2960.31 -2.01% 13.63%
S&P 500 1257.60 1430.15 1402.43 -1.94% 11.52%
Russell 2000 740.92 847.92 832.10 -1.87% 12.31%
Global Dow 1801.60 1998.76 1984.57 -.71% 10.16%
Fed. Funds .25% .25% .25% 0 bps 0 bps
10-year Treasuries 1.89% 1.77% 1.73% -4 bps -16 bps
Equities data reflect price changes, not total return.
Last Week's Headlines
With the fiscal cliff dead ahead, last-minute negotiations seemed to produce more questions than answers. The stalemate left the country facing tax increases and spending cuts and wondering what fresh uncertainties the new year might bring.
Orders for new durable goods orders rose 0.7% in November despite a drop in defense-related aircraft orders, according to the Census Bureau. It was the sixth increase in the last seven months, and the best news was a strong jump in new orders by businesses for capital goods, which were up 2.7% for the month.
Home prices measured by the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city index in October were up an average of 4.3% from a year earlier. Though 12 cities saw price declines from the month before, many of the cities showing the strongest improvement--Las Vegas, Detroit, Phoenix, San Francisco--are the ones that had been hardest hit by the housing collapse. Average home prices represented by the 20-city index are now at roughly the same levels that they were in the fall of 2003.
Sales of new homes soared 4.4% in November. According to the Commerce Department, that's the highest level since April 2010 and 15.3% higher than a year earlier. The $299,700 average sales price was up almost 20% from last November.
As it did in 2011, the U.S. Treasury will have to adopt "extraordinary measures" to avoid problems once the country hits the debt ceiling on New Year's Eve. A letter to congressional leaders from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the accounting measures are expected to extend the deadline for roughly two months.
Eye on the Week Ahead
Friday's monthly unemployment numbers and reports on both the manufacturing and services sectors may paint the last portrait of the pre-cliff economy.
Key dates and data releases: Federal Open Market Committee minutes, U.S. manufacturing, construction spending, auto sales (1/2); unemployment/payrolls, U.S. services sector, factory orders (1/4).

Howdy,
A thank you to all who post the links, start and participate in the many fine commentaries woven into the message threads.
For those who don't know; I ramble away about this and that, at least once each week. The perspectives and investments are based, not upon a formal economic studies background; but from the "School of Hard Knocks & Studies", in which, we are still enrolled.
NOTE: This portfolio is designed for retirement, capital preservation and to stay ahead of inflation creep. This is not a buy and hold portfolio, and is subject to change on any given day; based upon perceptions of market directions. All assets in this portfolio are in tax-sheltered accounts; and any fund distributions are reinvested in the funds. Gains or losses are computed from actual account values.
While looking around....."The bells are ringing for me and my bonds" or perhaps "Bonds on the Run" (from; Me and My Gal, Judy Garland/Gene Kelly, 1942, & Band on the Run, Paul McCartney/Wings, 1973). Numerous bond death announcements continue; and causes one to wonder whether they may awake from a deep sleep to find a neat stack of paper bonds upon their bed with blood streaming down the paper edges, not unlike hot chocolate poured upon one's favorite cake top. There has been a 10% increase in the yield of the 10 yr Treasury during the past few weeks. Is this a sign from the great bond gods? I don't know. All of us enjoy a well thought critique of an investment area. Whether I read a report about the equity or bond sectors; and an author states that this or that is go'in to hell in a hand basket, I will surely expect supporting details. Be as critical and watching of supporting evidence as possible; not just a statement from a perpetual equity bull. Yes, I include myself in this, too; be it equity or bond articles. I am picking on bonds and related stories now, because of all of the banner chat and headlines recently.
A few data trinkets related only to Fido funds and year 2012: U.S. oriented equity funds (51) returns ranged from +11.3 through +29% (avg.=+17.4%), Int'l equity funds (29) returns ranged between +4.1 through +36% (avg.=+19%) and Fido's select sector funds (39) ranged between +2.4% through +38% (avg.=+17.2%) (excluding their gold fund).
Equity or bond; there will be the happy and not so happy among them.
In the end, some bond funds will be happier than others with a sustained yield increase. Too many variables exist among active managed funds, etf's or indexes to determine the winners today.
As to the bond fund choices for us and their resulting managers, or lack of management; the range is far and wide, not unlike the equity world. Would you prefer government, corporate, muni or high yield? Where on the planet would you like the bond mix; U.S., Europe, Japan, perhaps emerging market debt? Quality. Would that be investment grade or down the ladder of qualilty into the junkiest stuff around? The same questions have to be asked of equity investments. For a taste of each area, one could get a little of each. Buy Verizon equity for quality of the stock and bond issues. Buy Frontier Communications (who bought, among other stuff; the throw aways of Verizon) and get a bit junker equity and bond offering. The same applies between Comcast and Charter Communications (cable provider). Comcast is in cruise mode at the time, more or less. Charter is playing in bankruptcy land. One pretty good and the other is trying to dig out of a hole. Combining the four, one may find a comfort zone between the stock and bond issues.
Stock etf list
Bond etf list
Perhaps a fully happy list of funds blended between bonds and equities; with the selected funds having their own balance, too; bond and equity funds with the full flexibility to "go with the flow" for their given mandate. Make a list of 10 each; to compensate for management problems here and there, and plant the money.
Lastly, as to the death of some bonds via a substantial and continued yield increase. I can not add anything further to what I or others have already detailed here during the past several months.
The futures have a real equity fire going as of Jan. 1, 5pm EST and perhaps some bonds will get burned tomorrow or for the remainder of this week, month or year.
Added note: Our 529 educational account is a straight forward 50/50 of VITPX and VBMPX, and managed an average of 10.4% for 2012. Our house will have to continue to review the more laggard funds we have, potential impacts and the hardest part; whether and/or what to sell and where to move the monies.
As to the funds list below, I had added after the tickers; the year return data. As to be expected with any holdings; there were some helpers and some laggards.
Good fortune to you, yours and the investments.
Take care,
Catch
---Below is what M* x-ray has attempted to sort for our portfolio, as of Nov. 1, 2012 ---
From what I find, M* has a difficult time sorting out the holdings with bond funds.
U.S./Foreign Stocks 1.9%
Bonds 93.9% ***
Other 4.2%
Not Classified 0.00%
Avg yield = 3.99%
Avg expense = .57%
***about 18% of the bond total are high yield category (equity related cousins)
---This % listing is kinda generic, by fund "name"; which doesn't always imply the holdings, eh?
-Investment grade bond funds 28.2%
-Diversified bond funds 22.4%
-HY/HI bond funds 14.5%
-Total bond funds 32.4%
-Foreign EM/debt bond funds .6%
-U.S./Int'l equity/speciality funds 1.9%
This is our current list: (NOTE: I have added a speciality grouping below for a few of fund types)
---High Yield/High Income Bond funds
FAGIX Fid Capital & Income +16.4%
SPHIX Fid High Income +14.9%
FHIIX.LW Fed High Income +14.3%
DIHYX TransAmerica HY +14.9%
---Total Bond funds
FTBFX Fid Total +6.5%
PTTRX Pimco Total +10.4%
---Investment Grade Bonds
ACITX Amer. Cent. TIPS Bond +6.1%
DGCIX Delaware Corp. Bd +14.9%
FBNDX Fid Invest Grade +6.2%
FINPX Fidelity TIPS Bond +6.5%
OPBYX Oppenheimer Core Bond +10.2%
---Global/Diversified Bonds
FSICX Fid Strategic Income +10.9%
FNMIX Fid New Markets +20%
DPFFX Delaware Diversified +7.1%
LSBDX Loomis Sayles +15.1%
PONDX Pimco Income fund (steroid version) +21.9%
PLDDX Pimco Low Duration (domestic/foreign) +5.9%
---Speciality Funds (sectors or mixed allocation)
FRIFX Fidelity Real Estate Income (bond/equity mix) +18.9%
---Equity-Domestic/Foreign
NONE outright, with the exception of equities held inside some of the above funds.

PETDX is one of my larger holdings with at over 10% of my portfolio. I started buying it two years ago and it has performed very well. It is a difficult fund for many to understand since its list of holdings is usually all Treasuries. But is uses its cash to buy Treasuries or other fixed income assets and then that, in turn, is used as collateral to buy derivatives that track the Dow Jones US Select REIT index. That index is composed of equity REITS with a lot of commercial REITS, but with very little agency backed mortgage REIT exposure. I follow that index then to monitor PETDX. Like a lot of PIMCO mutual funds it usually pays out high dividends and capital gains and is best placed in a Roth, if possible. I have mine in both a Roth and a regular IRA.
I also own REIT stocks with RSO and NCT. RSO has a higher yield than NCT but NCT has outperformed with appreciation and its total return is higher. Neither is invested significantly in residential mortgage backed securities. RSO gets a bad rap, but it has paid a "meaningful" dividend quarterly all through the worst of the recession. It has a reduced dividend from 2008, but it still yields +14%. I have a lot of confidence in management and in their model. Same for NCT.
If you're interested in healthcare you might look at Schwab's own Healthcare Fund - SWHFX. It had a nice end of the year cap gain. It has performed well and has very low expenses.
For healthcare REITS you might check: http://www.wikinvest.com/industry/Healthcare_REITs
I watch HCP and MPW.

Reply to @bee: I believe sales of municipal bond fund shares are subject to capital gains tax (or loss), just like sales of any other mutual fund. Only the interest income (distributions) from municipal bonds are tax exempt.

Thanks Ted,
USAA has three flavors of national munis...USSTX (Short), USATX (Intermediate), and USTEX (Long)...They are available through Vanguard brokerage NTF. They also have a fund USBLX, USAA Growth and Tax Strategy, which blends munis for tax purposes with growth companies (like Apple) for capital appreciation.
One could do this themselves by pairing a growth fund like USNQX (Nasdaq Index) with one of these three munis.
The chart below attempts to illustrate the strategy. As the growth fund (USNQX) outperforms USTEX profits would be taken. When the growth fund (USNQX) underperforms the bond fund, (USTEX) would be sold and DCA back into the growth fund (USNQX). Also, on a periodic basis the Muni Bond fund can be sold to provide tax free income.
I Like to position my growth funds in my Roth account to avoid LT and ST capital gains taxes when USNQX is periodically sold. I take distributions from my Roth account when my taxable account needs replenishing. These distributions are considered tax free so long as one follows the IRS guidelines for Roth distibutions. I try to keep the taxable account funded to provide 6 months of income needs. This taxable account can also buy (DCA) into any new growth funds during the next tax year. These growth funds can later be rolled over into the Roth account "in kind" as a Roth contribution for that tax year. Since these growth shares are not sold but rather "rolled over" "in kind", there is no taxable event. Know your Roth contribution limits.

Good article & provocative. But, remember that while investors were "loosing out" on $200 Billion in stock gains, many were doing quite well riding the bond market higher. Ted appreciates more than most that hindsight is always 20-20. Yes - we'd all like to load up on equities at March '09 prices. But (as I think Anna suggests), the future looks a lot less certain when you're sitting up to your armpits in mud than three years later after a shower and shave.
A related point: As humans we gravitate to what's worked lately. I suppose our caveman ancestors who ventured off in a different direction in search of food probably didn't fare too well. In '08 & early '09 what seemed to work was dumping equities and running to cash or Treasuries. Remember the cry as we bailed out of equities? "Last one out please turn off the lights!" Those slow to bail paid a hefty price. Human nature hasn't changed much since than. So, as interest rates hover near zero, "investors" continue to pile into bond funds driving prices even higher. This won't end well - for most anyway. (Last one out please turn off the lights:-)

I liked your question enough to post it (as recommended by others)...hope you are O.K. with the imposition. I am also very curious what other see as investment prospects over the next 1-3 years.
I am in the camp that bonds continue to provide capital appreciation through most of 2013 with the belief that there's still a lot of deleveraging that needs to happen. 30 Year treasuries move from 2.8% to 2%...the 10 year treasury moves to 1%. This equates to a 10 percent capital appreciation on say BTTRX (American Century Zero Coupon Bond Fund 2025). I still like PONDX and use it's performance as a chart tool to chart other funds I hold.
Thinking positively, I believe job growth will continue to be muted as we put on a new pair of "tax pants" that will feel a lot tighter than the wardrobe we've been wearing for the last ten years. Eventually, the government will take some of this "tax revenue" and redirect it back into the economy with the intention of growing jobs by incentifying Infrastructure (Construction), Manufacturing, Energy, and Education. Our country's new found energy sources will play a big part in our economic turnaround and I believe benefits will be felt in US manufacturing and chemical production sectors due to lower input costs. Many of these jobs will not require a college degrees, but instead, highly competitive technical training which the government will incentify the training costs. Germany and Japan will colaborate with the US in the quest to develop lean manufacturing plants (energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and highly technical) that will be a model for the world...probably already in place in China except for the environmentally friendly piece.
I see these dynamics as being good for all investments across the board which will pull investors out of bonds and into equities...but income investors will have to see it gain momentum first...eventually providing enough growth to raise interest rates. All this may be in the 3-10 years time frame. Buy dividend paying Global equities (Global Equity Funds) on market pull backs.
In the meantime, be patient...wait for buying opportunities and hold your "sleep buddy" investments...investment party yet to be announced.

Thank you sir, my pleasure. Yes, I agree, there is a very broad mix in the batch analyzed.
Honestly, I'm just scratching a itch started by MJG...hopefully, will not fuss it too much and trust further due diligence will come from the very capable readers on this site.
I actually prefer the broader, more actively allocated funds, like WBMIX. Attracted I'm sure to the risk management enabled by the wider discretion you mention in both manager and method...at least in principle. Similarly for risk parity funds like AQRIX.
I think just about all of us here on MFO are into the WHO part, individual manager and firm. It is appealing to me to see funds like T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation PRWCX endure a good manager departure, like Richard Howard, but the fund seems to be doing quite well now under David Giroux. On the other hand, Fidelity Magellan FMAGX has never really regained its stride after the legendary Peter Lynch departed. In fact, I do not think it has performed well in the last 15 years, yet it retains $14B AUM.

Like, David, I am also concerned with the prospects for the traditional bond fund. I would prefer the managers have a pretty wide latitude in what they invest. For that reason, we use OSTIX, BSIIX, and LSBRX as core holds in most accounts. We have owned OSTIX almost since its beginning, and have never been disappointed in Carl Kaufman's efforts. Rick Reider's team at BlackRock is continuing to keep durations super low, but still turning out strong numbers. And Loomis just keeps going. Its potential volatility is a concern, but until rates start moving up (and maybe even when they do), the flexible mandate of this fund provides a pretty good base. We allocate 50% of bond holdings to specific foreign bond funds, and we continue to employ TGBAX, GSDIX, and GIMDX.
As for dividend income stock funds, we are starting to use GSRLX, a new Goldman fund run by a talented subadvisor group Dividend Assets Capital out of South Carolina. We are cautious about owning stocks that pay the highest dividend yields, since their prices have been bid up pretty high. But GSRLX and TIBIX are attractive since they look for GROWING dividends. GSRLX offers a chunk of MLPs, which is a plus.
And you might also look at PAUIX, which has had a very good dividend yield, currently at more than 4%.