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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.
  • Trump Rally Could Mark Biggest Post Election Stock Market Rise Since Hoover
    FYI: If the postelection stock market rally continues at its current pace it could be the largest stretching back to the gains scored in the wake of Herbert Hoover’s 1928 election victory.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-rally-could-mark-biggest-postelection-stock-market-rise-since-hoover-2016-12-12/print
  • IBD's Paul Katzeff: Alternative Assets Can Spike Your Income Flow
    If every investment reporter/writer posted many or all of their own pieces here, as this person is doing, this board would be nothing but a free forum for said writers to promote themselves and the publications they write for. I'm for a ban on such posting.
    If MFO's non-commercial posters see value in this guy's work, they'll post it.
    The Boglehead forum has become one big infomercial for Larry Swedroe pandering his 1001 books.
  • Kimberlite Floating Rate Financial Services Capital Fund to liquidate
    https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1423047/000116204416002687/kimberlite497201612.htm
    497 1 kimberlite497201612.htm
    KIMBERLITE INVESTMENT TRUST
    Supplement to the Prospectus dated December 12, 2016
    Effective as of December 12, 2016, Kimberlite Floating Rate Financial Services Capital Fund (the “Fund”), a series of the Kimberlite Investment Trust (the “Trust”), will end the public offering of its shares. Accordingly, shares of the Fund are no longer available for purchase. The Fund will continue to operate until the soonest practicable date on or after December 16, 2016 (the “Closing Date”), when it will be liquidated.
    The Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board”), in consultation with the Fund’s investment adviser, Kimberlite Asset Management, LLC (the “Adviser”), made the determination to end the Fund’s public offering and to discontinue the Fund by unanimous vote of the Board during the Board Meeting held on December 12, 2016, based on, among other factors, the Board’s determination that the Fund’s current asset size, recent purchase and redemption history and projected expenses and expense structure indicate that it is unlikely that the Fund will grow for the foreseeable future. Through the date of the Fund’s liquidation, currently scheduled to take place on the Closing Date, the Adviser will continue to waive fees and reimburse expenses of the Fund, as necessary, in order to maintain the Fund’s fees and expenses at their current level, as specified in the Prospectus.
    As of December 1, 2016, in response to market conditions, the Fund assumed a temporary defensive position and converted all of the Fund’s portfolio securities to cash. In connection with the liquidation: (i) the Fund will remain in cash until Closing Date; and (ii) all outstanding shareholder accounts on the Closing Date will be closed and the proceeds of each account will be sent to the shareholder’s address of record or to such other address as directed by the shareholder including special instructions that may be needed for Individual Retirement Accounts (“IRAs”) and qualified pension and profit sharing fund accounts. In addition, the Fund’s redemption fee for all shareholder redemptions on or after December 12, 2016 is eliminated. As a result of the Fund’s cash position described above, the Fund’s normal exposure to investments has been eliminated. Accordingly, shareholders should not expect the Fund to achieve its stated investment objective.
    Shareholders may continue to freely redeem their shares on each business day during the Fund’s liquidation process. The distribution of proceeds from the closing of shareholder accounts remaining on the Closing Date will be considered for tax purposes a sale of Fund shares by shareholders, and shareholders should consult with their own tax advisors to ensure its proper treatment on their income tax returns. In addition, shareholders invested through an IRA or other tax-deferred account should consult with their own tax advisors to understand the rules regarding the reinvestment of these assets. In order to avoid a potential tax issue, shareholders may choose to authorize, prior to the Closing Date, a direct transfer of their retirement account assets to another tax-deferred retirement account. In addition, shareholders generally have 60 days from the date of the liquidation to invest the proceeds in another IRA or qualified retirement account; otherwise the liquidation proceeds may be required to be included in the shareholder’s taxable income for the current tax year.
    If you have any questions regarding this Supplement, please call (855)- 318-2804.
    Investors Should Retain this Supplement for Future Reference
  • 2016 Capital Gains Estimates
    @VintageFreak
    I spoke with a CSR of the transfer agent...record date and payable date are 12/16. I would call again to confirm this information is correct.
  • Bond Funds Losing Money In Roughest Stretch Since ‘Taper Tantrum’ Of 2013
    High yield bonds continue to do well. Low-risk OSTIX is up 10.5% YTD. I will take that anytime. Folks taking about buying TIPS, but with those prices already in the stratosphere, it make no sense at this time. PONDX also looking good. Munis did ok last week, but have been slammed over the last 3 months. LASYX is doing what we hoped it would. BSIIX similar. Preferreds like KIFYX are good. LLDYX doing well. And after struggling all year, TGBAX on a tear and up 5.5% YTD. There are some bright stars in the dirty laundry. For us, munis have been hit more than we thought they would. Can't win them all.
  • 2016 Capital Gains Estimates
    Shareholder Services are easy to deal with @VintageFreak
    By Phone or FAX
    For shareholder services, please call 800-872-7823 or by FAX at 877-513-0756
    If you have questions for the fund manager, please call 312-236-9160.
    http://www.thebrucefund.com/contact.aspx
  • Jeffery Gundlach Tue. Dec 13 Webcast "Drain the Swamp"
    imageDoubleLine Total Return Live Webcast titled "Drain the Swamp"
    Hosted by Jeffrey Gundlach
    DoubleLine Total Return Live Webcast titled "Drain the Swamp"
    Tuesday, December 13, 2016 1:15 pm PT / 4:15 pm ET / 3:15 CT
    Mr. Gundlach will be discussing the economy, the markets and his outlook for what he believes may be the best investment strategies and sector allocations for the DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund (DBLTX / DLTNX).
    Please join us for a live webcast titled "Drain The Swamp"
    Register
    https://event.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1085786
  • 2016 Capital Gains Estimates
    According to Morningstar's page on the Bruce Fund, the distribution date last year was the 18th. In previous years it has been as late as December 21. Hope that helps. Dave
    Alrighty then. Maybe just do every month for 10 months beginning at Christmas.
  • 2016 Capital Gains Estimates
    According to Morningstar's page on the Bruce Fund, the distribution date last year was the 18th. In previous years it has been as late as December 21. Hope that helps. Dave
  • Investing is a Mix of Art and Science
    Hi Crash,
    Thank you for your post that reminds us of the Zurich Axioms. Your reference links us to the complete Max Gunther book.
    Some folks might be inspired to read this excellent short book, but others might not want to invest the required time. For those, here is a Link to an excellent summary:
    http://www.financialsense.com/contributors/joseph-dancy/2012/01/26/the-twelve-axioms-of-investing
    Enjoy. Many of us practice at least some portion of this wise investment advice.
    Best Wishes.
  • Investing is a Mix of Art and Science
    Holy INSIGHT, Batman! ...Cripes, I've maintained this very approach ever since I began to learn my very first lesson in investing, going back to the 1990s. I listened and read a lot, and made a habit to watch PBS each week when Lew Ruckeyser offered his corny-jokes and puns in his opening monologue for "Wall Street Week." I paid attention AND "read between the lines" as I heard each panelist's weekly contributions. I realized that the first step was to learn how to translate all of the "money-speak" lingo. It helped me to find and identify their professional thought-matrix, even if I did not give it a name, for my own purposes. (The talking heads and guests on CNBC need to be constantly translated in one's head, as they go along, too.) Being able to just know it when I heard and saw it was (and is) good enough--- at least for starters. THEN, I could learn to MAKE something of it all. Along the way, I learned to hear the double-speak underneath the actual words being expressed. "Tax Reform" = making things better for Capital and screwing Labor, for example. Avoiding any talk about the underlying POLICIES being advocated and instead deciding to speak in terms of mechanics of the Market, is the "common currency." It's more politically correct to go about it THAT way, between Talking Head-host and Prestigious Guest.
    Examining financial statements and doing analyses are Science. How one uses the information is Art. (All things being equal---and they never are--- why invest in A instead of B, when they look the same in terms of fundamentals? Ding!) One's investing elan needs to be tempered with skill, a certain legerdemain. Thus, I assert, the validity and usefulness of the paradoxes to be found in the likes of The Zurich Axioms. Eh???
    Here, you can click on the link that will let you open or download the Axioms via .pdf:
    http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0LEVr1ArE1YBa0ASO0nnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTEyNnJkMjI2BGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjI1ODBfMQRzZWMDc3I-/RV=2/RE=1481514176/RO=10/RU=http://www.forexfactory.com/attachment.php/706430/Zurich_axioms/RK=0/RS=vlCWaQCq0eLSeDxZtls.pv6Awv8-
    ...I hope it works for you all. ...At the same time, I hasten to add that I've never been able to perfectly follow Max Gunther's advice, here. I doubt it can be done, and I doubt it was ever written with that intention. The attempt would be to confuse the Art with the Science of the whole thing. ;)
    Follow-up edit: Crap, that link is dead now. But Yahoo, as a kind afterthought, will allow you to click on THEIR OWN link to the same thing, once you click on my original link. Stupid stuff.
  • Bond Funds Losing Money In Roughest Stretch Since ‘Taper Tantrum’ Of 2013
    hank: Hmm ... If you liked 10 year bonds yielding 1.5% ... you should love them yielding 2.5%. No?
    Reply: For good or ill, that is exactly my thinking. I've upped my FI allocation from the low-teens to ~ 40% in the last couple of weeks. A lot of it in muni-CEFs in my taxable account. In my deferred accounts, added/opened positions in PIMIX, sundry PIMCO taxable CEFs, and in my 401k PTTRX (the only core-bond option I have available there).
    Keeping fingers crossed...
  • A Monopoly Donald Trump Can Pop
    FYI: Among the mysteries about the incoming administration, Donald J. Trump’s approach to antitrust laws stands out for its importance. Mr. Trump gained a lot of voter support because of the stagnation of working-class living standards in the face of record corporate profits.
    Sensing this, he channeled populist anger against elite corporations by, for example, calling the proposed merger between AT&T and Time Warner “too much concentration of power in the hands of too few.”
    But the real challenge to competitive markets today does not come from mergers like this one. The great, but mostly unknown, antitrust story of our time is the astonishing rise of the institutional investor — a large company, like a mutual fund company, insurance company, pension fund or asset management firm, that buys stock in substantial quantities for the benefit of clients and customers — and the challenge that it poses to market competition.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/opinion/a-monopoly-donald-trump-can-pop.html?rref=collection/timestopic/Mutual Funds&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=collection
  • Fund Manager Focus: Timothy Pettee, Co-Manager, SunAmerican Focused Dividenf Strategy Portfolio
    FYI: (Click On Article Title At Top Of Google Search) "A Top Dividend Fund's Newest Favorites"
    This column has warned on several occasions about the perils of chasing yield. The strategy became increasingly popular this year with bond yields so low, their recent uptick notwithstanding.
    In the past decade, however, the SunAmerica Focused Dividend Strategy Portfolio (ticker: FDSAX) has had success investing in undervalued stocks with above-average yields. Its annual return over that stretch, around 10%, bested the Standard & Poor’s 500 index by more than three percentage points, placing the fund at the top of Morningstar’s large-cap value category. The $13.4 billion fund recently reconstituted its holdings, which it does once a year, and the changes offer some ideas for income-seeking investors.
    Regards,
    Ted
    https://www.google.com/#q=a+top+dividend+funds+newest+favorites+barron's
    M* Snapshot FDSAX:
    http://www.morningstar.com/funds/XNAS/FDSAX/quote.html
    Lipper Snapshot FDSAX:
    http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/Fund/FDSAX
    FDSAX Is Ranked 376 In The (LCV) Fund Category By U.S. News & Wprld Report:
    http://money.usnews.com/funds/mutual-funds/large-value/sunamerica-focused-dividend-strategy-por/fdsax
  • Bond Funds Losing Money In Roughest Stretch Since ‘Taper Tantrum’ Of 2013
    Dow gained what? 100 points or so Friday? My holdings were flat. Anything related to bonds fell. My bond funds are pretty tame - things like RPSIX (actually Multi-Sector Income) and DODIX (which Lipper calls Short/Intermediate Corporate). Not discouraged - still best year since '09 by far.
    I have a premonition that the FOMC (Federal Open Mouth Committee) may be getting a bit concerned about the super-hot market. While they're likely to raise rates only a quarter point next week (as most watchers expect), there may be language in their statement about future intentions and their view of the economy that could jar the markets. Additionally, they've been in self-imposed black-out mode for several days now before the meeting. After the meeting the members will again be free to sound-off publicly. Could get interesting.
    Hmm ... If you liked 10 year bonds yielding 1.5% ... you should love them yielding 2.5%. No?
  • 2016 Capital Gains Estimates
    Not that estimates are ever accurate, but inconsistent dates raise additional questions about the JPMorgan Funds.
    The cap gains estimates (posted above by shadow):
    https://am.jpmorgan.com/blob-gim/1383381886694/83456/2016 JPM Funds Capital Gains Estimates - Final Posting.pdf?segment=AMERICAS_US_ADV&locale=en_US
    This page,created Oct 12, shows record dates of Dec 13-15, depending on fund.
    Another page, created November 11, shows record dates (but not estimates) for income and cap gains distributions shows record dates of Dec 19, 27, and 29, depending on the fund.
    https://am.jpmorgan.com/blob-gim/1383373248579/83456/4Q-Dividend-Calendar.pdf?segment=AMERICAS_US_ADV&locale=en_US
    It's possible that for funds distributing both income and cap gains divs, this page is reporting the record date for the income divs (which are typically on the same date as cap gains or later). So that could explain the mismatch.
    Regardless, this mismatch makes me somewhat more suspicious than normal about the estimates.
  • This Fund Makes The Case For Active Management As Stocks Get Pricey: GOODX
    Article title should be: "This Fund Reinforces The Case For Passive Management"
    I really need to add GOODX to my POST on 12/2/2016.
    Please explain why I should even consider the opinions of the managers whose fund has had incredibly poor returns and risk metrics (sharpe ratios, sortino ratios) over the past 3 and 5 year periods ?
    If you are invested in this fund, please sell it immediately. Believe SPIVA, not these managers.
    Kevin
  • Bond Funds Losing Money In Roughest Stretch Since ‘Taper Tantrum’ Of 2013
    "Investors" or TRADERS, eh? I stay away from stuff I can't understand, or have doubts about my ability to make them work--- like puts and calls and shorts, whether boxers or jockeys. My allocation to global bonds pleases me, through thick and thicker. Diversification through ups and downs. Then Market movements don't freak me out. A good fellow I know told me that uncle Donald was costing him money already, and he's not even inaugurated, yet. This fellow put ALL his investments (401k) in "safe" bonds, then pulled it all into a "zero-risk-zero-return" MM fund when the bonds actually went DOWN after the election. Don't be spread too thin, but all eggs in one basket is NOT what to do. And this fine fellow I refer to has a degree in nuclear physics!
    I agree with your sentiments regarding the bond market. Same for stocks. It's been proven that jumping in and out is about the worst thing you can do -- for most of us mortals anyway.
    Haha @ ol' Rodney! King of the one-liners. Look him up on Youtube on Tonight Show appearances. You'll be rolling on the floor.
  • Bond Funds Losing Money In Roughest Stretch Since ‘Taper Tantrum’ Of 2013
    "Investors" or TRADERS, eh? I stay away from stuff I can't understand, or have doubts about my ability to make them work--- like puts and calls and shorts, whether boxers or jockeys. My allocation to global bonds pleases me, through thick and thicker. Diversification through ups and downs. Then Market movements don't freak me out. A good fellow I know told me that uncle Donald was costing him money already, and he's not even inaugurated, yet. This fellow put ALL his investments (401k) in "safe" bonds, then pulled it all into a "zero-risk-zero-return" MM fund when the bonds actually went DOWN after the election. Don't be spread too thin, but all eggs in one basket is NOT what to do. And this fine fellow I refer to has a degree in nuclear physics!