Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

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.
  • Russell 2500 Construction
    The rough market cap of the holdings in VSCIX is about $3.6 trillion while VIMAX is about 3.9, so a 50/50 split would be pretty close to market weighing the holdings across the two funds.
  • Interesting movement on ACDJX.
    >>>Personally, I share a lot of what I do on this board and when I do, I give reasoning. I do own GILD and other healthcare stocks and a few differerent funds. As for GILD in particular, you have a company that had $24.9B in revenue in 2014, a 127% increase over 2013. Starts a dividend soon, $15B buyback, has a significant pipeline and yet, is trading at a 13 p/e. I think the current valuation is cheap and discounts a lot of the pipeline. It is likely in part to the idea of competition and pricing for their HEP-C treatments coming down, but Abbvie's competing Viekira Pak has been disappointing in terms of numbers and in terms of pricing coming down (also partly due to controversy over prices, although the question becomes how much would a liver transplant be), I think that's largely been discounted already. <<<<
    Well, I don't see it but then large cap stocks aren't my thing. I see analysts predicting revenues slowing to 13.10% in 2015 and then 3.80% in 2016. Hopefully my hesitation will act as contrary indicator and propel GILD out of its funk since last summer.
    Edit: I assume these large cap biotechs with projected slowdowns in their revenue growth can make strategic acquisitions to remedy that?
  • Commodity Funds Continue To Struggle
    @Ted, You missed my tongue in cheek comment.
    He wants to renegotiate the lease terms ,Ted !!
    More Ag/Farm
    Jf Drought worsens in West..farmers may face restrictions
    California governor orders mandatory water restrictions
    BY FENIT NIRAPPIL ASSOCIATED PRESS
    04/01/2015 5:32 PM 04/01/2015 5:32 PM
    Wednesday's order has fewer provisions addressing the state's biggest user of water: agriculture.
    There is no water reduction target for farmers, who have let thousands of acres go fallow as the state and federal government slashed water deliveries from reservoirs. Instead, the order requires many agricultural water suppliers to submit detailed drought management plans that include how much water they have and what they're doing to scale back.
    After the previous drought, state officials acknowledge that some suppliers did not submit similar required plans in 2009. Mark Cowin, director of the Department of Water Resources, said the state will provide money to make sure the plans are written and may penalize those who do not comply.
    The state is not aiming to go after water-guzzling crops such as almonds and rice the same way Brown has condemned lawns.
    "We're not at the point yet where we are going to declare the irrigation of any particular crop 'waste and unreasonable use,'" Cowin said.
    Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article17079074.html#storylink=cpy
    Warning: This is a Seeking Alpha Article
    Don't Waste Water, But Rather Invest In It
    by David Krejca, AlphaReturns.IO Mar. 30, 2015
    "On the occasion of the World Water Day, the United Nations released its annual World Water Development Report. This year titled "Water for a Sustainable World," the report suggests that the world water supply will fall short by at least 40 percent within the next 15 years if world leaders do not rethink their water policies..Unlike oil, natural gas, or any other commodity, investors can't use futures contracts to directly bet on water prices. However, there are two alternatives for how to capitalize on the increasing scarcity of fresh and potable water. The first is to invest in utilities or companies that desalinate, recycle, conserve, purify and distribute clean water, as well as those that make equipment and deliver new technologies to the water industry. The second is to purchase securities of some mutual fund or one of the four water E T Fs
    All the E T Fs are closely correlated to each other and are slightly behind the S&P 500 index. Nevertheless, several differences can be found. The Guggenheim S&P Global Water Index E T F (CGW) and the PowerShares Global Water Portfolio E T F (PIO) are internationally diversified, while the First Trust ISE Water Index E T F (FIW) and the PowerShares Water Resources Portfolio E T F (PHO) are solely focused on the U.S. market. The following table provides a good summary of the essential differences among them..
    http://seekingalpha.com/article/3038716-dont-waste-water-but-rather-invest-in-it
    Or AWTAX
    CFWAX
  • Did your funds which pay quarterly disappoint? Offer your report-card grade here.
    Satisfied with DLENX (monthly) Asset manager:
    Luz Padilla (Started: Apr 6, 2010) Dollar denominated decisions by Ms Padilla continue to pay-off.
    http://www.doublelinefunds.com/pdf/3-31-15_Div_Payment_Schedule.pdf
    Not so much.
    MAINX Div Total **
    03/19/2015 10.34 0.0000 0.0009 0.0009
    **However, primarily because of tax rules related to currency losses from sales of the
    Fund’s foreign bond holdings, the amount of the Fund’s income distribution for
    Q115 was impacted http://us.matthewsasia.com/resources/docs/pdf/literature/Strategic-Income-Fund-Distribution-QA-1Q2015.pdf
    First I owned.Bought for good preservation record.DHGAX
    (From Dreyfus) :Ranked #1 by U.S. News & World Report
    The fund was ranked as the top fund in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Funds” list among all funds within the World Bond category, which contains funds that invest 40% or more of their assets in foreign bonds, including developed and emerging markets. U.S. News & World Report’s categorization was based on Morningstar’s World Bond description.
    Rankings as of March 4, 2015. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
    https://public.dreyfus.com/
    Dreyfus/Standish Global Fixed Income Fund - Class A1
    DHGAX Div 0.0830
    S T Gain 0.0308
    L T Gain 0.0900
    Total 0.2038 03/30/15 Price 22.05 Quarterly
  • Russell 2500 Construction
    The user and all related content has been deleted.
  • Commodity Funds Continue To Struggle
    FYI: The price of a bushel of corn for May delivery tumbled during the last day of the quarter by almost 5 percent to $3.756. The move was caused by the corn supply in the Unites States coming in much higher than expected, even after the government pegged its inventory in June at its highest level in 28 years.
    The 7.75 billion bushels' stockpile, as of March 1, is 11 percent higher than a year ago, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The reading outpaced economists' estimates of an 8.6 percent increase and is the highest on record at this date since 1987.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.marketwatch.com/story/commodity-funds-continue-to-struggle-2015-04-01-12463348/print
  • conference call highlights + mp3: RiverPark Focused Value
    Glad I read this synopsis... I think I'll be taking advantage of the Institutional Shares - No Minimum Investment being offered to direct RiverPark investors. It seems opportune to put a small deposit in just to have the I shares. And I emphasis 'small'. I'd like to see current holdings and a little history to see if it matches my temperament before venturing further.
    @Derf: Yes, the NAV on RPHYX/RPHIX and RSIVX/RSIIX have dropped, but if HY is yielding 3% and SI is doing 5-7%, I feel I can take a hit on the asset value and offset it with the interest yield while I keep my fingers crossed. My 'Total Return' is still positive and it's better than Money Market or banks.
  • Time to Bail out of Perkins Midcap Value (JMCVX)
    Mulder,
    Since you are considering VASVX, you might want to look into VMVAX for the following reasons.
    1. VMVAX is more of pure mid cap value fund. 36% of VASVX is large cap.
    2. VIMAX has superior 1 and 3 year returns and while Admiral shares have not not been in existence for 5 years, VMVIX has better 5 year returns.
    3. VMVAX has an expense ratio of 0.09%. VASVX has an expense ratio of 0.41%.
    While I think VASVX is a fine actively managed fund, I believe that is primarily attributable to Jim Barrow, its lead manager and secondarily, Mark Giambrone, both of Barrow, Hanley, Mewhinney & Strauss. Jim will be 75 in the next few months and in preparation of his eventual retirement, Vanguard has has added two fund advisers (Donald Smith & Co and Pzena Investment Management), which I feel dilutes the good ideas from Barrow and Giambrone.
    Mona
  • Time to Bail out of Perkins Midcap Value (JMCVX)
    I hold Perkins MidCap Value Fund (JMCVX) in my IRA at Fidelity. I have been with this fund for almost a decade. I have seen the good side and now seeing the bad side.
    I have finally decided to bail out of this MidCap Value fund (only time will tell if my timing is bad :) and narrowed by choices to one of
    following:
    - Harbor MidCap Value NTF at Fidelity (HIMVX)
    - Fidelity MidCap Value (FSMVX)
    - Vanguard Selected Value (VASVX, not a NTF at Fidelity)
    Since, I hold a large amount of this fund in Rollover IRA, I will be planning to liquidate this fund 5% at a time, so that I can then divert
    the proceeds to one of the above fund monthly. I do not want to liquidate all at once and be in cash and I do not want to put a big lumpsump into
    one of the above funds in one transaction.
    If you were in my shoes, what would be your choice from above? Also, any other Midcap value funds to consider.
    Thanks
    Mulder
  • Bespoke’s ETF Matrix Of Q1 Asset Class Performance
    FYI: Below is a look at the performance of various asset classes in Q1 2015 using key ETFs traded on US exchanges. For the quarter, the S&P 500 SPY ETF gained 0.43%, marking its 9th consecutive quarter of gains. While the S&P 500 gained, the Dow 30 (DIA) fell 0.17%.
    Outside of the large cap SPY and DIA, other equity indices did much better. The Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) gained 2.28%, while the Mid Cap 400 (IJH) rose 4.96% and the Small Cap 600 (IJR) gained 3.48%. Mid Cap and Small Cap growth
    Regards,
    Ted
    https://www.bespokepremium.com/think-big-blog/bespokes-etf-matrix-of-q1-asset-class-performance/
  • Interesting movement on ACDJX.

    As for the E.R. of this fund, given the shorting and leverage, coming from another company this kind of fund could easily have an E.R closer to 1.75-2.
    According to the latest prospectus, ACDJX has an actual, what-the-investor-actually- pays ER of 1.81%.
    Kevin
    Well, there ya go lol. Thanks to kevin for the research.
  • All Hail Jeffrey Gundlach, The New Bond King
    FYI: Gundlach’s main mutual fund, the $45.6 billion DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund, is at the top of its class as it marks its fifth anniversary on April 6. It’s bested all 235 competitors in the U.S. intermediate bond fund category since inception, according to Morningstar Inc. In the previous five years, the TCW Total Return Bond Fund then-managed by Gundlach ranked second
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-01/gundlach-tops-peers-at-five-years-as-caution-belies-image
  • Interesting movement on ACDJX.
    @scott oh, stop with the maybe-baby "forward p/e" crap. You know it is predictive of nothing; you're just pumpin' your book, aren't you? :)
    Personally, I share a lot of what I do on this board and when I do, I give reasoning. I do own GILD and other healthcare stocks and a few differerent funds. As for GILD in particular, you have a company that had $24.9B in revenue in 2014, a 127% increase over 2013. Starts a dividend soon, $15B buyback, has a significant pipeline and yet, is trading at a 13 p/e. I think the current valuation is cheap and discounts a lot of the pipeline. It is likely in part to the idea of competition and pricing for their HEP-C treatments coming down, but Abbvie's competing Viekira Pak has been disappointing in terms of numbers and in terms of pricing coming down (also partly due to controversy over prices, although the question becomes how much would a liver transplant be), I think that's largely been discounted already.
    I don't think there is that much genuine value in the market, but that's an example of something that I personally see as a pretty terrific value. Plus, the CEO won M*'s CEO of the year last year, although I'm still not sure whether or not to see that as a good or bad thing. I was impressed with how Gilead handled the Express Scripts move to the cheaper Abbvie product, and added on that downturn and have continued to add.
    I actually think the large cap biotechs are still a good choice for those who can tolerate day-to-day volatility. They held up nicely in 2008, as well. As I've said, I do think a lot of the smaller biotechs have rallied on the promise of their pipeline and that's why when dealing with this sector, I'd rather either pick specific stocks or have actively managed funds or both instead of an index.
    Lastly, I continue to like health care from the standpoint of I tend to focus investments on needs instead of wants. I sleep better at night with investments that at least heavily lean towards things people need versus things where I have to worry about what may be "the next big thing".
    As for the E.R. of this fund, given the shorting and leverage, coming from another company this kind of fund could easily have an E.R closer to 1.75-2. I'm not saying that it's not inexpensive in a general sense, I'm saying that it could easily be more expensive, given what it is.
  • EEM: Should You Consider Emerging Markets?
    FYI: They’re cheap, most investors are scared to death of them, and yet they have been slowly grinding higher throughout 2015. Are emerging markets — and the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:EEM) — worth owning as we jump into the second quarter?
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://investorplace.com/2015/03/eem-etf-consider-emerging-markets/print
    M* Snapshot Of EEM: http://www.morningstar.com/etfs/ARCX/EEM/quote.html
    EEM Is Ranked #21 In The (EM) ETF Fund Category By U.S. News & World Report:
    http://money.usnews.com/funds/etfs/emerging-markets-funds/ishares-msci-emerging-markets-etf/eem
  • Elizabeth Bramwell, Ex-Gabelli Growth Fund Manager, Dies At 74
    RIP:
    Elizabeth Bramwell, the founding manager of Gabelli & Co.’s growth mutual fund who quit to form her own asset-management firm and became a beacon for women in the field, has died. She was 74.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-09/elizabeth-bramwell-ex-gabelli-growth-fund-manager-dies-at-74
  • Interesting movement on ACDJX.
    As of the 2014 close, M* shows this fund as top-heavy in LCG, yet it has 15% in microcap as well. It was circa 30% short, and (leveraged) 125% long, with a very high e.r.=1.48%. And this is one of your "core holdings"? Is that what you meant to say?
  • Mark Hulbert: For Stocks, The Best Time To Sell And Go Away Starts Tomorrow
    I recently sold my spiff (special investment position) off that I opened in October of 2014 with about an 8.3% gain plus dividends. Had I sold a few days earlier I'd have had a gain of about 10.4%. I chose to exit with respectable gains rather than to wait and watch them evaporate as we approach and enter 1Q2015 earnings reporting season as I believe earnings are going to disappoint.