@BenWP, interesting observation on EM. For now I stay put and watch the treasury yield as it is settling down this week. Read earlier that 10 years treasury will reach much higher than 1.5% by year end if inflation is rising. Nevertheless I am just watching ARK etfs. Have you considering the more value oriented EM funds instead of the growth type? They have been very volatile lately.
@catch22, no bitcoins here as I don't understand the risk and reward aspect enough.

Stacey Tevlin is the most important person in U.S. economics that you have probably never heard of. She leads a team of 357 people in the Federal Reserve’s Research and Statistics division, which is entrusted with the forecasts for policy makers as they weigh interest rates every six weeks.
Her work appears in a document called the Teal Book, which is kept confidential for five years. She doesn’t go on television, give speeches, or even talk to reporters very often. Yet her team’s work has so much influence on the policy debate that one former Fed governor calls the staff forecast “the 13th member” of the Federal Open Market Committee.

keeper-of-secret-teal-book-lifts-veil-on-new-forecast-era

I do, it just depends on what your long/short term objective is. I owned PVFIX prior to 2010 and it never did stellar, probably mediocre at best. This year has probably been its best year in years. The manager used to work at Royce Funds.
Plus, 2021 is still young.

This leaves 15% of my cash in low to no yield places such as money market mutal funds and cash savings. My highest paying money market mutual fund PCOXX has paid out a measley yield of 0.53%. Carry this out and for the full years it projects to a yield of less than one percent.
With this, I ponder ... What to do in my quest for better returns with some of my cash as it builds?
Option 1) Sit tight and build cash while I await the next stock market dip (or pull back) where I can put an equity special investment position (spiff) into play. Generally, in the past, I'd look to make at least five percent off my spiffs when engaged. For me, this will work.
Option 2) I can buy more of my commodity strategy fund (BCSAX) which has a yield of better than 2% and as inflation rises usually the price of commodities rise. This fund holds some gold and gold mining stocks as well. It should do well if the US Dollar continues to decline and the price of commodities rise. For me, this will work.
Option 3) I can buy more of my real estate income fund (FRINX). As the US Dollar declines generally real estate values increase plus long term this would act as a hedge against inflation. Woops already have a full allocation to real estate and high yield securites. No go here.
Option 4) Buy more of my convertible (FISCX) and preffered (PFANX) securities funds. Hold up ... already have a full allocation there.
Option 5) Buy more in my asset allocation funds and let my fund managers find opportunity. This would also work because it would spread the funds's asset mix among those I'm already invested in thus maintaining my asset allocation. Two funds that I'm thinking of are CFIAX & INPAX.
So, for me, going forward, over the near term, it looks like my better choices are numbers 1, 2, & 5 of the options I covered.
I am also wondering what you might have thought of and where you might be positioning new money in this low yield environment?
Thanks for stopping by and reading.
Take care ... be safe ... and, I wish all "Good Investing."
I am ... Old_Skeet
Stay Safe , Derf

RE: US News Rankings...
You really don't need to go any further than looking at their #1 ranked SCV fund, DFFVX.
http://performance.morningstar.com/fund/performance-return.action?t=DFFVX&region=usa&culture=en-US
How is a M* 3* fund that ranked in its SCV category
2011-YTD
72-23-10-65-46-40-40-55-52-45-24
even REMOTELY regarded as Best in Class?
Seriously, ONCE in the Top Ten percentile in 11 years, and it's magically the #1 ranked SCV fund?
This is NOT a one-off comparison. I've made these comparisons for YEARS with their rankings and I've NEVER been able to justify any more than a glance at them.
Kind of reminds me of some of the old stock "Supervised Lists" from back in the 80's, some of which required the company to fund the inclusion of their stock on the list, if you get my drift.

I used to own PVFIX for many years almost since inception, but sold it this year to use the proceeds to acquire LLSCX. The fund is definitely a SCV fund but it used to hold a lot of cash and was very conservative.
BRSIX has done well with the small cap rally. QRSIX has also done well of late (I own both BRSIX & QRSIX via FPPTX consolidation).

Thanks @JohnN.
Just skimmed this. Looks interesting. Problem I have with specific advice like this: Is this free investment advice from Merrill Lynch the same as what they tell their wealthy clients? Something tells me it’s inferior to what their paying customers get. Perhaps “stale” advice that others have already acted on?
Reasonable I suppose is their recommendation to own short duration bonds now. What I’m doing. But it raises the interesting question of when, if ever, will U.S. investment grade bonds be a good investment again?Conventional wisdom seems to suggest that longer dated bonds only make sense during bond bull markets. Well - We’ve been in a 36 Year Bond Bill Market - dating back to 1982 when rates began falling.
Surely investors won’t need to wait 36 years until the current bear market in bonds ends? 36 years until bonds become reasonable value? I’d like to think fixed income of varying duration can be a productive asset within a portfolio even during periods of generally rising rates. Much depends on manager and techniques used. Just some thoughts.

Value funds of all stripes have been drifting toward and into blend for the past few years. In moderation this doesn't worry me, so long as they keep a value tilt. My thinking is that funds that move around within reason can be holding true to their general mandate while still seeking out the more attractive areas to invest in.
At the same time, I agree that where a fund's portfolio is positioned skews performance numbers and needs to be considered when comparing funds. The style purist sidesteps this problem by focusing on funds that home in on their declared style box.
It is quite possible that value funds that have wandered into the blend category may start wandering back, especially if their managers perceive a rotation into value. If that happens, it may not be so important to look for funds that are currently pure value.
That said, comments about a few of the funds mentioned:
American Century (ASVIX) has been in small cap value for the past few years (per M*); though it is just on the value side of the value/blend divide. It hasn't yet migrated to blend. (Lipper however does classify it as core, i.e. blend; it's that close to the line).
The only TRP fund I know that purported to be SCV was, well, TRP SCV, PRSVX. That fund drifted into blend so many years ago that it is now leaning toward growth.
BRSVX - a fund I've always rooted for (I like the fund company) but had a rough decade. Its style purity should help should we see a real rotation into value. There's also BRSIX if you're interested in micro caps.
QRSVX drifted over the line to blend a couple of years ago but is still in the value half of the equity universe. It's too late now, but the better (read cheaper) way to have invested in it was to have purchased FPPTX and waited for it to convert into QRSIX, the cheaper shares of Queens Road SCV.

>> Ken Heebner at CGM was briefly a god in the 1990s
huh?

CGMFX was a hot fund back in the 2000s. I might have been off by a few years (or a decade) when I posted "1990s".

Hi @JonGaltIII
FBALX has been a solid performer for many years. We've been in and out of various bond funds over the years. Not to chase a yield UP for the sake of earning money from yield, but when yields are moving DOWN to obtain the price performance from this circumstance. This is where the money is made, IMHO. After 40 years of good times, for the most part, I'm now resigned to the likelihood of a much more difficult period forward making decent returns with investment grade bonds. YUCK scenario for me.
Bonds were named as dead "again" in 2009 or so. This was another bad call from the big kids. A lot of money was made from bonds until towards the end of 2020. Today, there isn't much wiggle room for yields; although a big market melt will drive folks to the good stuff...AA bonds.
As to Bitcoin. I expected formal push back from central banks a few years ago. Obviously, this has not taken place.
I have a partial draft sitting about Bitcoin, but not enough time for a full adventure.
What I had in mind was a "Bitcoin for Dummies". So, grab this title and run, or what ever your choice may be for wording.
I have a 13 minute video (Bitcoin/Dummies) I'll add to your thread.
My primary interest was to have a better understanding of this digital currency.

Great discussion! https://www.morningstar.com/articles/1028671/bill-bernstein-were-starting-to-see-all-of-the-signs-of-a-bubble
Here’s a clip”

Benz: Earlier on when we were discussing the whole bubble phenomenon, you referenced the entry of a star manager or star funds as being a characteristic of the bubble. So, I wanted to talk about the ETF, ARK Innovation, which has grabbed headlines and investor dollars over the past year. It's recently hit a rough patch of performance. What's your take on that fund?
Bernstein: Ah,here's where the parlor game comes in. And then I'll get to it when we're done with the parlor game, which is there's three of us here, and I'm going to start off with what puts me at a disadvantage, by naming a historical star manager, who was an absolute superstar who then planted their face, and then you each have to go and name your own. The last person standing is the one who wins. So, I'm going to start with the easiest one, which is Bill Miller of Legg Mason Value Trust--readers who aren't familiar with him--know beat the S&P 500 not just over 15 years, but for 15 straight years, every single year. And people thought that he was the financial fountain of youth. And then, he lost it all within the next three years after that. That's my entrant.

Rbrt

Dow ends at a record high while Nasdaq remains in correction — That hasn’t happened in over 20 years.....
The Dow has not notched a record high while the Nasdaq Composite has been in correction territory since around the time of the dot-com boom and bust on Aug. 23, 1999, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Eeesch....
The four listed funds include two Morgan Stanley funds, one Fidelity fund, and one Artisan Partners fund. All four funds are top funds in their respective categories and some could easily be regarded amongst/as Best in Class.
Morgan Stanley and Artisan Partners are recognized leaders in world stock and bond investments. MS and Fido have offices all across the globe. FSEAX may very well be Fido's best foreign fund (EM specifically) with a very experienced EM PM.
RE: AP...
https://www.artisanpartners.com/individual-investors/investments/global-equity-team.html
Excerpt:
The investment team combines the benefits of strong leadership with the creative ideas of experienced research analysts.
The portfolio managers are supported by 15 analysts that average more than 15 years of investment experience and have significant experience within their sectors/regions of expertise.
The team is supported by a dedicated Chief Operating Officer, who oversees all non-investment related matters so the team can focus on investments.
The team is supported by an experienced global trading desk that averages more than 16 years of experience in global markets.
The team is located in San Francisco and New York with research offices in London and Singapore.

Muddy waters claimed tal education overstated their income by over 43% over two years 2018
Due your own homework
Baseball fan

I share JonG's conservatism, though mine is based on additional concerns.
The fund is submanaged by Orange Investment Advisors. The day-to-day managers of the fund are the Orange ones: Jay Menozzi and Boris Peresechensky. Both came over from Semper where they worked together. IMHO that's the first clue about the kinds of risks one might expect with this fund. Not that SEMMX didn't do well when they were there, but that they may manage in a style (or part of the market) that does well until it doesn't.
Then there's the fund family James Alpha. A dozen funds, mostly in non-mainstream categories: Long Short Equity, Long Short Bond, Market Neutral, four Multialternatives, two Options Based, a Managed Futures. Then there's its largest fund, a Global Real Estate fund (80% of the family's AUM), and this one.
M*'s analysis of the family is consistent with what one might guess from this lineup. The family is a liquid-alt shop with expensive funds. Five funds were launched in 2017, and two others were liquidated in the past couple of years.
These are the reasons I would tread carefully.
Regarding the numeric comparisons:
- I don't find anything magical about 0% return; I would much rather have a fund that lost a quarter point in each of a few months and did well in the others than a fund that chugged along earning little in most months and never having a losing month.
- Until this year M* classified the fund as nontraditional. In comparing with its peers, are people comparing against its newfound peers or funds in its nearly lifetime category? For that matter, I have more general issues with comparing nontraditional funds, as that category is somewhat of a grab bag for funds that don't fit elsewhere.
- JASVX's 2019 return was 8.97%, per M*.
http://performance.morningstar.com/fund/performance-return.action?t=JASVX
Its prospectus (and M*) report that the 2019 calendar year return for the cheaper (I) share class JSVIX was 7.31%. I get concerned when numbers that should be very similar aren't close. Needs more research.
https://info.jamesalphaadvisors.com/l/660023/2021-01-11/2d98t/660023/1610405927j8bMUFZj/2020_03_30_SAT_JA_Structured_Credit_Value_Port_Class_A_C_I_Final.pdf

@Derf
Open the link again and the very first ETF in the list today is QQQ. Click this to move to another Barchart page. This page has various data including the closing price at the top as well as post-market and pre-market "next day" pricing when available. Down the page is other information. To the right edge is a large green BUY for QQQ. Just below this you will find a "See More" box. This will move to another page with more technical data/indicators.
Also at the top of this QQQ example page is a quote box. You may place any valid ticker here to display the results. Save the page and "play".
NOTE: the green BUY for QQQ is the current technical/opinion indication. The box may range for STRONG SELL "red" to STRONG BUY "green".
Lastly, I do find value with the technical indicators, as this does show money flows via pricing; and I have to blend my own other observations of market/central bank and political actions . Example: We've invested in ZROZ (a zero coupon bond ETF) at various times over the years. Changes in the technical indicators have presented valid turning points for our buy or sell.

JASVX has a mix of structured credit. Per JAN-2021 Fact Sheet:
RMBS (26.4%)
CORP (18.9%)
CLO/CDO (16.3%)
Cash (14.4%)
CMBS (13.5%)
Govt (8.0%)
In it's short 30 month life, JASVX has had only 1 negative calendar month (-6.3% in March-2020).
Bucking the trend so far this year, it has managed a +2.6% return YTD. It had posted +9% and +13.7% returns in the prior 2 calendar years.
Would I be performance chasing if I slanted my Bond allocation towards this fund? Is this the type of fund that could easily implode if the U.S. housing situation falls apart?
Any comments appreciated.

That is not unexpected, as they were a great source of mutual fund advice when they first started, for a very reasonable fee. Several years ago they stopped publishing their NLFA newsletter and the only way you could get their advice was paying a 0.7% fee to manage mutual fund accounts. It is not surprising that adding 0.7% fee on top of mutual fund fees did not prompt large inflows.
Actually when they moved to separate managed accounts I went back and calculated the performance of their four portfolios and compared them to indexes. They usually managed to trail the asset allocation of indexes, but with some less volatility
They were a great firm to help me learn all the ins and outs of mutual funds and asset allocation.

Thanks @Crash - I think you are right! ... I LOVE Chateau Frontenac / Quebec but regrettably I have never been to Montreal and I hear that I am missing out! Perhaps when everyone is vaccinated and flights are allowed from the USA ... I will make it there some day. Eh? Cheers!
Hijack away... I'll up your Canadian bank with a US one ... that is only up 80 percent since IPO at $10 for bank customers and BTW IMHO has more room to grow in the next 2 years - when they can then purchase or be bought... EBC or Eastern Bank Corporation

I took just a small pinch of money from bonds and put it into PRIDX and PRDSX at the high. (Shit!) But I bet it will be a positive move, when we look back upon 2021. So, all I've done so far, is to bump-up my cost-basis. Groan. Glad I was prudent with the amount. Canadians say: "When the US sneezes, Canada catches a cold." Same with Emerg. Mkts. I think if I were you, I'd let those "losers" ride. When they become winners, you'll be glad... But needless to say, if after 2 years or so they do NOT start winning for you, then you'll have a decision to make. ...Eh?
@hank has shared that right now, "bonds are poison." Yes, I quite understand. Yet my long-term plan stops being a long-term plan if I react and make wholesale changes very often. For DIVIDENDS, rather than growth, the biggest Canadian banks would be first on my list. If they fall again sufficiently, it will surely pique my interest.
CM ..... Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
TD.... Toronto Dominion
RY Royal Bank of Canada
BNS.... Bank of Nova Scotia "Scotiabank."
BMO...... Bank of Montreal
oops, I just hijacked your thread.