FYI: There’s a lot to like about Vanguard U.S. Multifactor ETF (VFMF). (Full disclosure: I own this fund.) It targets stocks with the best combination of value, momentum, and quality characteristics. Each of these characteristics has historically been linked to market-beating performance, but they each go through extended periods of underperformance. Combining these factor strategies in a single portfolio helps diversify risk, making it easier to stick around long enough to benefit from these bets.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.morningstar.com/articles/943625/a-compelling-multifactor-etf

FYI: (This is a follow-up article.)
Managers overseeing trillions in exchange-traded funds have been quietly meeting around Wall Street this week to check the quality controls on their funds, rattled after Vanguard Group Inc. mistakenly added shares of 11 companies, including a gun manufacturer and a private prison operator, to its $578 million socially responsible ETF.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=Z6JfXc74CILetQXa_o7QAg&q=Vanguard+social-investing+error+prompts+funds+to+check+controls&oq=Vanguard+social-investing+error+prompts+funds+to+check+controls&gs_l=psy-ab.3...3950.3950..5237...0.0..0.79.79.1......0....2j1..gws-wiz.lbfA-EQChAI&ved=0ahUKEwiOyMmeyJjkAhUCb60KHVq_AyoQ4dUDCAc&uact=5

FYI: Emerging markets stocks will bury U.S. equities over the next seven years, according to GMO.
The asset manager has predicted that shares of large U.S. companies will lose 3.7 percent annually over that period, while emerging equities will deliver a 5.2 percent real return on an annual basis. With international equities expected to post relatively small gains, the firm predicted that emerging value stocks will have the strongest annual returns at 9.8 percent.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/b1gtwj5y79j84k/GMO-Says-Emerging-Markets-Stocks-Will-Trounce-U-S-Equities

@MFO Members: Same article via Financial Advisor.Com with Bloomberg as its source.
Regards,
TEd
So You Can Read John's Link" InvestmentNews,Com
https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=WoxfXaC4FurI_Qbh8KzABA&q=Stock+volatility+spurs+worst+run+of+ETF+withdrawals+in+six+months&oq=Stock+volatility+spurs+worst+run+of+ETF+withdrawals+in+six+months&gs_l=psy-ab.3..35i39.4235.4235..6794...0.0..0.76.76.1......0....2j1..gws-wiz.YEttKXTmkB0&ved=0ahUKEwigzfeas5jkAhVqZN8KHWE4C0gQ4dUDCAc&uact=5
Financial Advisor.Com:
https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/52164/stock-whiplash-spurs-worst-run-of-etf-withdrawals-in-six-months#latest

Maybe volatile going forward having /seeing signs slow down vs small recessions... Would not be surprise if dji drop another 25+%

FYI: Major US index ETFs have seen a major bounce off of oversold levels over the last week. You can see the big jump in the snapshot from our Trend Analyzer tool below. Even with gains of 2-3% across the board over the last week, however, all of the ETFs shown remain below their 50-day moving averages. Bulls still have work to do to put the onus back on the bears.
As stocks sit higher versus last week, defensives are once again overbought with Utilities (XLU) at extreme levels and Real Estate (XLRE) not far behind. Along with Technology (XLK), these ETFs are the only ones that are currently above the 50-DMA. Meanwhile, more cyclical sectors like Energy (XLE), Financials (XLF), and Materials (XLB) all remain oversold. Granted, as with the small and mid-caps above, these three ETFs in addition to Industrials (XLI) and Health Care (XLV) were sitting at extreme oversold levels this time last week.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.bespokepremium.com/interactive/posts/think-big-blog/trend-analyzer-8-22-19-overbought-oversold-see-saw

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/751173/000119312519226658/d93664d497.htm
1 d93664d497.htm MANNING & NAPIER FUND, INC.
MANNING & NAPIER FUND, INC.
(the “Fund”)
Equity Income Series – Class S, I, W and Z
Income Series – Class S, I and Z
International Series – Class S, I, W and Z
(the “Series”)
Supplement dated August 22, 2019 to:
·the Summary Prospectuses dated March 1, 2019 for the Series (“Summary Prospectuses”);
·the Prospectuses dated March 1, 2019 for the Series (“Prospectuses”); and
·the Statement of Additional Information dated March 1, 2019, as supplemented June 4, 2019, for the Series (“SAI”)
This supplement provides new and additional information beyond that contained in the Summary Prospectuses, Prospectuses, and SAI, and should be read in conjunction with the Summary Prospectuses, Prospectuses, and SAI.
The Board of Directors of the Fund has voted to terminate the offering of shares of the Equity Income Series, the Income Series and the International Series and instructed the officers of the Fund to take all steps necessary to completely liquidate each Series. Accordingly, effective immediately, each Series will be closed to new investors. Effective November 6, 2019, each Series will stop selling its shares to existing shareholders and will no longer accept automatic investments from existing shareholders.
Each Series will redeem all of its outstanding shares on or about November 20, 2019 and distribute the proceeds to its shareholders (subject to maintenance of appropriate reserves for liquidation and other expenses).
As is the case with other redemptions, each shareholder’s redemption, including a mandatory redemption, will constitute a taxable disposition of shares for those shareholders who do not hold their shares through tax-advantaged plans. Shareholders should contact their tax advisors to discuss the potential income tax consequences of the liquidations.
As shareholders redeem shares of each Series between the date of this supplement and the date of the final redemptions, and as each Series increases its cash position to facilitate redemptions, a Series may not be able to continue to invest its assets in accordance with its stated investment policies. Accordingly, a Series may not be able to achieve its investment objectives during the period between the date of this supplement and the date of the final redemptions.
The Income Series, which generally pays dividends quarterly, will suspend its dividend scheduled for September in anticipation of its liquidating distribution.
PLEASE RETAIN THIS SUPPLEMENT FOR FUTURE REFERENCE
Supp EI_INC_INTL Aug 2019

another interesting datapoint about lower SWR probabilities in a time of high p/e; from a place I do not know:
https://www.crestmontresearch.com/blog/excerpt/5/
(appears to conform with a kitces piece bee posted a year ago
https://finpage.blog/2018/02/28/cape-and-safe-withdrawal-rates/ )

FYI: Every summer for the past several decades I have organized a series of Friday lunches in eastern Long Island for serious investors. More than 100 people attend the four sessions, with 25–30 at each one. The participants include hedge fund, private equity and real estate billionaires, venture capitalists, an academic and some corporate leaders. I moderate a discussion of the key issues facing the financial markets for the better part of two hours. This year, several significant events occurred between the first two and the second two sessions. First, the Federal Reserve cut the Fed funds interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point; second President Trump announced a 10% tariff increase on $300 billion of Chinese goods; third, China allowed its currency, the renminbi, to decline to more than seven to the dollar; and fourth, the Hong Kong disturbance took place.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2019/08/22/plenty_to_worry_about_but_not_much_for_investors_to_do_103868.html

It is true that while Merrill Lynch invented cash management accounts (CMAs) 42 years ago, Vanguard takes the opposite approach and focuses strictly on brokerage services. It was just three weeks ago that it discontinued its Vanguard Advantage CMA service. A service that it only offered to Voyager Select ($500K+) customers for $30/year and to Flagship ($1M+) customers for free.
But I wouldn't get too excited about Merrill Edge. This is a brokerage that sometimes sweeps free cash into a 0.05% APR bank account (Vanguard pays 2.11% on its VMFXX settlement fund), and sometimes just leaves the cash siting in the brokerage earning 0.00%. Even when it pays that paltry interest on the sweep money, it deposits that interest back into the 0% brokerage account where it may sit earning nothing. (What other bank refuses to credit interest on an account directly to the account that earned the interest?)

fascinating discussion. It's been a good 10 years in the market so I have reduced equity holdings to about 50%. More of a tactical move though. Probably more driven by my fears of what the great idiot is going to do. I have alot in money markets and short term treasuries right now. Waiting for some kind of move and will probably open an initial position in IOFIX. @bee what are you doing with your "income milk."

It is closed unless you purchase directly from Vanguard. (M* lists it as limited, not closed.)
From the summary prospectus:

Important Note Regarding Vanguard Wellington Fund
Vanguard Wellington Fund will be closed to all prospective financial advisory, institutional, and intermediary clients (other than clients who invest through a Vanguard brokerage account).

Vanguard fund page: https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/profile/VWELX

If I want to move money into or out of my Vanguard account, I have to initiate the transfer at Vanguard. I cannot have another institution initiate the transfer.
My preference is to initiate all transfers (in and out) and all bill pays at a central institution. That makes it easier for me to track. It also means that regardless of where I want to move money to or from, I know I can do it from a single place.
Here's a Bogleheads thread on how Vanguard restricts ACH transfers from an external account:
https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=125763
And how to set up ACH transfers that you initiate from the Vanguard side:
https://personal.vanguard.com/us/whatweoffer/accountservices/banking

@Crash, if you want to play you can get in at any amount of whole shares. At $1.15 per share on that stock you can spend $11.50 for 10 shares (without trading costs). Have some fun!

@Bee, I have a large cash pile from account consolidations in recent years that for the most part has yet to be deployed into anything other than rolling-over t-bills. I've been using that dry powder to buy new / add to existing positions in recent weeks to my otherwise rather healthy longterm portfolios and am becoming more aggressive b/c I hate to have it just sitting there.
(I don't consider that cash as part of my investment 'holdings' per se, which is why I say that 90% of what I'm invested in are stocks and stock funds -- I don't own much FI or alts or commodities, etc.)

@rforno, if you are presently 90 % invested in equities and your equities tank, how will you by equities hand over fist? One needs cash or non-equity correlated assets to exchange into equities when they fall in price.
Over the last couple of years I have milk my equity cows when they have out performed. That milk represents growth above the long term average for that investment ( for example I use yearly growth above 10% as my trigger for Large Cap).
This "milk" is stored for future retirement income to pay for things) or, as you mentioned, to potentially buy things on sale.
So far I have enough stored "income milk" for 3 - 5 years. This should keep me from selling my equities when they temporarily tank.
My next goal is to store some dry powder from out sized gains if equities continue to out perform.

@rforno, if you are presently 90 % invested in equities and your equities tank, how will you buy equities "hand over fist"? One needs cash or non-equity correlated assets to exchange into equities when they fall in price.
Over the last couple of years I have milk my equity cows when they have out performed. That milk represents growth above the long term average for that investment (for example, I use yearly growth above 10% as my "milking trigger" for Large Cap).
This "milk" is stored for future retirement income (to pay for things) or, as you mentioned, to potentially buy things on sale.
So far I have enough stored "income milk" for 3 - 5 years. This should keep me from being forced to sell equities when they are temporarily under valued.
My next goal is to store some dry powder from out sized gains if equities continue to out perform. This could serve as a source of money to buy equities when they temporarily go on sale.
Your thoughts?

@Crash, try BDRBF, without the dot. That's the symbol at Schwab.
This stock is down 65% since last October. What makes it interesting to you? Just curious.

I wish I had some "play money." I might go after Bombardier. I've looked at its stats. And I've seen a couple of very recent news items about the company and its stock. It used to be spread all over from hell to breakfast. The Province of Quebec had to come to its rescue. Bombardier is currently busy getting focused again on just a couple of money-making avenues. Analysts like what they see. This is a company which is restructuring and seemingly has nowhere to go but up. It has been around since 1951, if I recall correctly, making snow-go machines and specialty Arctic transport vehicles. No more. Corporate jets are one emphasis. And I see Bombardier has a contract to service a bunch of trains over in England. The company is pulling out of military and commercial aircraft products, too. Quebec has too much at stake to let this established, legacy name just fail.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rail-deal-to-help-keep-bombardier-on-track-rlmtl9m5j
https://dsm.forecastinternational.com/wordpress/2019/08/19/a-new-bombardier-aviation-is-formed-as-it-exits-commercial-aerospace/
https://www.morningstar.com/stocks/pinx/bdrbf/quote
Morningstar rates it at a -37% discount to fair value right now. "Simply Wall Street" rates it currently at a -50% discount to fair value.

I have been reading about all the woes about to befall the junk bond market because of how levered companies are, the maturity wall, etc. for several years now. I would love to exploit it but the opportunity of a lifetime and most likely to never be seen in anyone’s lifetime was 2009 when the Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II Index was up something like 56%. Back in 2008 junk bonds were predicting a default rate (21%) much worse than what occurred during the Great Depression (16%). The next recession may be shallower than most predict and junk bonds at worst will be down more akin to late 2015/early 2016 when oil prices crashed. We heard this same pessimistic song and dance about junk bonds in late 2018 but in reality what occurred was all times highs in 2019.

@Crash, try BDRBF, without the dot. That's the symbol at Schwab.
This stock is down 65% since last October. What makes it interesting to you? Just curious.