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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.

One Fund for A Small IRA
If I were making such an investment today I would choose MSFBX.

Too rich for Mrs. Ruffles’s blood - suffered a 40% drawdown in 2008-09
Not according to Yahoo, MSFBX has been steady from the data I have seen.
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/MSFBX/performance?p=MSFBX

Got the data straight from the MFO Premium Profile. No need to go outside the family.
Plus I think some international exposure is warranted at this time.............

Nice idea but not really necessary as she has a good chunk of international in her other accounts.

MrRuffles September 2020 in Fund Discussions
What's going on at the Matthews funds?
Take a look at Fidelity Emerging asia. Provides exposure to China and other key Asian emerging markets like India but that is balanced out by holdings in Japan. The portfolio manager has a stong background as a technology analyst and thus both tech and communication services are well represented. What I really like is the consistency of the fund. It rates in the top 10% of its category for the past 1, 3 , 5 and 10 year periods. I plan to add it right after the election. Here is the report from morningstar..
Fidelity® Emerging Asia (FSEAX) Performance | Morningstar
https://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/fseax/performance

MikeW September 2020 in Fund Discussions
One Fund for A Small IRA
If I were making such an investment today I would choose MSFBX.

Too rich for Mrs. Ruffles’s blood - suffered a 40% drawdown in 2008-09
Not according to Yahoo, MSFBX has been steady from the data I have seen.
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/MSFBX/performance?p=MSFBX

MSFBX, how could I resist? :-)
Look instead at 2007-2008
Yahoo:
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/MSFBX/history?period1=1197244800&period2=1227225600&interval=1d&filter=history&frequency=1d
M* chart

msf September 2020 in Fund Discussions
One Fund for A Small IRA
If I were making such an investment today I would choose MSFBX.

Too rich for Mrs. Ruffles’s blood - suffered a 40% drawdown in 2008-09
Not according to Yahoo, MSFBX has been steady from the data I have seen.
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/MSFBX/performance?p=MSFBX

wxman123 September 2020 in Fund Discussions
If you invest $750 every month for 20 years at a 7% return, how much it will be worth?
The current U.S. minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. An 8-hour 5-day work week nets $290. A month’s work nets about $1160.00. Those $750 monthly contributions would consume 65% of the individual’s pay. (Hopefully, there’d be minimal payroll taxes.) After contributing the $750, the individual would have about $400 left over - or $100 per week to survive on.
Any suggestions for living on $100 weekly? In the early going I’d watch at groceries for the 50% clearance sales on hot dogs and other packaged meats when the marked date was about to expire. Still perfectly fine eating. For drinking? There’s Old Milwaukee in a pinch. Haven’t tasted it in years. Rough around the edges. But in this case, you’d be drinking to your eventual riches. Might make it more palatable.
BTW - Attempts to raise the minimum wage are met with admonition by some that the lower wage is better for workers because if they were paid more they’d be replaced by automation or a foreign worker. So the lower wage is being kept in place to benefit them. Chop-logic. Gotta love it!

hank September 2020 in Other Investing
Can You Relate?
I'm more comfortable losing $1000 in a mutual that losing $500 in stocks. There is no logical explanation but that's how I'm wired and why I only trade stocks hours to days.
LOL. I am the same. I think I get annoyed at the work it takes to have conviction about one stock....then it doesn't work out.

ProtonAnalyst33 September 2020 in Other Investing
David Giroux, Finding Overlooked Opportunities in the COVID-19 Market
Thanks @Sven - For some reason I’ve always read the paper fund reports they arrive in the mail, but rarely online unless I have a specific need. Recently shifted to 100% online account info (for security reasons), so don’t get Price’s reports mailed to me anymore.. As of January, as I understand it, funds will no longer be required to mail them unless you specifically request it.
On a related note, I replaced the mining fund in my static allocation a month ago with Invesco’s infrastructure GIZAX. Hasn’t done much yet, but I know it holds some utilities. Giroux gives me reason to be optimistic. Infrastructure funds must be a tough road. Price had one for a few years but gave up on it and shut it down several years ago. (Of course, you can also buy utilities funds.)

hank September 2020 in Fund Discussions
Can You Relate?
I'm more comfortable losing $1000 in a mutual that losing $500 in stocks. There is no logical explanation but that's how I'm wired and why I only trade stocks hours to days.

FD1000 September 2020 in Other Investing
Distribution Of U.S. Stock Returns In 2020
A bird's eye view of stock market performance in 2020:
I decided to examine year-to-date returns of every component in the S&P Total Market Index (ITOT), including large caps, mid caps, small caps, and even smaller listed companies that do not qualify for the small-cap index.

Of the nearly 3,664 listed stocks with full year 2020 returns, the median return (e.g. the 1832nd ranked return) is -14.75%. There is a large gap between the median return for U.S. stocks in 2020, and the weighted average mean performance for large cap stocks that are up between 4-5% on the year.
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4377000-distribution-of-u-s-stock-returns-in-2020?utm_medium=email&utm_source=seeking_alpha&mail_subject=ploutos-distribution-of-u-s-stock-returns-in-2020&utm_campaign=rta-author-article&utm_content=link-0

davfor September 2020 in Other Investing
David Giroux, Finding Overlooked Opportunities in the COVID-19 Market
Thanks for the articles(it's from Sep 10th).
David Giroux is one of my favorite managers ever and someone who really knows his stuff with good insight and recommendations which is rare.

FD1000 September 2020 in Fund Discussions
Can You Relate?
Yes - but only when the fund that “blew up” is held within my speculative sleeve (the equivalent of gambling). That represents anywhere from 0-15% of investments. One of the spec holds, PRLAX, has gotten shelled the past 3 or 4 sessions after rising in value for several months. WTF do I know about what’s currently going on in Brazil, Mexico or Argentina? ... Nothing!
Peter Lynch said to invest in things you understand. I went and did the opposite. :)
The torture process doesn’t carry over to the other 85-95% that’s held inside the static allocation. On any given day, some parts will shine while others fizzle. That’s an accepted part of being widely diversified.

hank September 2020 in Other Investing
If you invest $750 every month for 20 years at a 7% return, how much it will be worth?
@LewisBraham
My key point: Trump is the first president since 1998 to increase the median income significantly but I can't find it in the Lib media.
You are absolutely correct about the gap. It started decades ago under both Dems+GOP presidents and will continue that way.
- Jobs in STEM will continue to make more while most others will not.
- CEOs now are making 250-300 times their average employee while they used to make about 30 times in the 80"
- We are in a global comparative world where goods/services have been going to cheaper places.
- Easier repetitive jobs are replaced by automations and robots. The scary thing, more complicated jobs have been replaced too and median jobs disappeared.

FD1000 September 2020 in Other Investing
What are your 5 or 6 largest holdings? *Or where are the bulk of your holdings?*
@FD1000; I'm guessing you bought in around 3/25/20 ?
Derf

Nope, I sold over 90% at the end of 02/2020 and the rest days later.
Made several good trades with QQQ+PCI in 03/2020.
Start investing back in bond funds to over 99+% in 04/2020.
I had a huge % in GWMEX for several months. I owned IOFIX only in the last several weeks.
I wish I was brave enough to buy IOFIX on 3/25/2020. It made over 50% since then.

How do you square owning IOFIX with your later comment in this string to avoid risky funds?
I'm a trader and don't recommend what I do to others. My posts are generic unless someone asks me specifically about my portfolio.
This thread isn't about avoiding risky funds. Please read the original posts "What are your 5 or 6 largest holdings? *Or where are the bulk of your holdings?"
BTW, I don't believe in just lower risk funds, I believe in great risk/reward funds. You should look for funds that have good performance but also good risk attributes(SD, Max Draw, Sharpe, Sortino).
For allocation my go 2 funds are:
Moderate=PRWCX. In the last several years VLAIX is good too.
Conservative=VWINX,VWIAX

FD1000 September 2020 in Fund Discussions
One Fund for A Small IRA
PLBBX is a balanced fund with no transaction fee at Fidelity.
That’s one that’s slipped below my radar but the downside capture of 125 gives me pause.

MrRuffles September 2020 in Fund Discussions
If you invest $750 every month for 20 years at a 7% return, how much it will be worth?
@FD1000

LewisBraham September 2020 in Other Investing
David Giroux, Finding Overlooked Opportunities in the COVID-19 Market
From Giroux's article:
DG: One of our favorite sectors continues to be utilities. The equity market has yet to fully grasp just how attractive utilities are today relative to the past. The emergence of low-cost renewables is a game changer for the industry. This megatrend will likely continue for the next two decades to drive an elongated cycle for replacing coal, nuclear, and inefficient natural gas with wind, solar, and battery solutions that can drive mid- to high-single-digit rate base growth, mid-single-plus earnings per share growth with attractive dividends, only modest growth in customer bills, and a dramatic reduction in carbon emissions. Given this very attractive long-term outlook combined with this significant underperformance, we believe the long-term opportunity for utilities is compelling.
Utilities is the one sector in which higher taxes don’t negatively impact earnings, as taxes are a pass-through item from a regulatory standpoint. Utilities would also benefit from a likely extension, and potential expansion, of wind and solar tax credits for renewables.
Also discussed opportunities in fixed income.
https://troweprice.com/personal-investing/resources/insights/finding-overlooked-opportunities-in-the-covid-19-market.html?cid=PI_Investment_Pilot_CAF_NoRM_EM_NonSubscriber_202009&bid=506188743&PlacementGUID=em_PI_PI_Investment_Pilot_CAF_NoRM_EM_NonSubscriber_202009-PI_Investment_Pilot_CAF_NoRM_EM_NonSubscriber_202009_20200929

Sven September 2020 in Fund Discussions
One Fund for A Small IRA
Likewise, I neglected to mention that even IRAs inherited from the same person can't be combined if they are of different types. However, there may still be a way to combine accounts (again, assuming inherited from the same person), because some of them are 403(b)s.
Here's a 2016 article from Kitces that covers rolling over inherited 403(b)s. Take it with a grain of salt, as the more recent SECURE Act has changed some things (e.g. eliminating stretch IRAs if the original owner died after 2019, but extending the non-stretch period allowed from five years to ten years).
https://www.kitces.com/blog/non-spouse-beneficiary-stretch-of-inherited-ira-and-401k-or-403b-employer-retirement-plans/
One of the things Kitces points out is that one has (or had?) the option of doing a rollover Roth conversion of the 403(b). That is, rolling the inherited T-403(b) directly into an inherited Roth IRA. Of course taxes would be due upon conversion. This could provide Mrs. Ruffles a way to increase the assets in that small inherited Roth IRA, assuming both the 403b and Roth IRA were inherited from the same person.
Of course this would not eliminate RMDs.
Even if the 403(b)s could not be combined with existing inherited IRAs (Roth or Traditional), rolling them over could still simplify administration. OTOH, Mrs. Ruffles may have investment options in the 403(b)s that are unique to them (e.g. stable value or TREA, or R6 share class of funds, or ...).

msf September 2020 in Fund Discussions
Michael E. Stack, portfolio manager of Vanguard Wellesley® Income Fund, to retire
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/105544/000168386320013672/f6983d1.htm
He also manages some other funds:
Vanguard Global Wellesley® Income Fund
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/52848/000168386320013668/f6978d1.htm
Vanguard Global Wellington™ Fund
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/52848/000168386320013671/f6979d1.htm
Hartford Multi-Asset Income and Growth Fund
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006415/000110465920110195/tm2031034-17_497.htm
Hartford Balanced HLS Fund
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/790558/000110465920110196/tm2031034-15_497.htm

TheShadow September 2020 in Fund Discussions
What's going on at the Matthews funds?
Not trying to pile on Matthews, because I don't currently own any of their funds, but another PM recently departed after co-managing the Pacific Tiger fund for several years. He was replaced by two people, one of whom had earlier been at Matthews but then spent a short while at Seafarer (leaving there under what looked like less than the best of circumstances). Matthews appears to be a fund company in flux right now.
You're right SFnative. Just googled and found the article below from April 2020. Two PMs actually not mentioned in the recent articles also left earlier in the year: Lydia So who was lead pm on the Asia Small Fund and had been with the firm for 15 years based on her linkedin, and Rahul Gupta who was co manager of Pacific Tiger fund (this is the one you referenced) both left the firm in April 2020. Tiffany Hsiao actually took over Asia Small when Lydia departed before leaving herself a few months later.
So that's 5 very senior PMs departing in the span of 6 months, plus the President/Global CIO, COO and CHRO. I see smoke!
https://citywireusa.com/professional-buyer/news/fund-files-matthews-managers-depart-invesco-fund-under-review-after-index-error/a1354995
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lydia-so-cfa-b9b0171b3/

ProtonAnalyst33 September 2020 in Fund Discussions
One Fund for A Small IRA
If I were making such an investment today I would choose MSFBX.
Too rich for Mrs. Ruffles’s blood - suffered a 40% drawdown in 2008-09

If she inherited multiple IRAs from the same person, she could combine them into a larger inherited IRA. That wouldn't solve the problem of having to take RMDs, but it could simplify and/or give her more flexibility.
I neglected to mention that this is a Roth IRA, while her other inherited accounts are Trad IRAs and 403(b)s. Converting the Roth IRA to a Trad IRA would have its own unwanted tax consequences.

MrRuffles September 2020 in Fund Discussions