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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.
  • American Beacon Fund liquidations and reopening of a fund to new investors
    The fund that is reopening is the American Beacon Stephens Small Cap Growth Fund, which was closed to new investors, subject to certain exceptions on September 16, 2013 and February 14, 2014. Effective September 22, 2015, the Fund will resume offering shares to new investors in accordance with the "Fund Summary-Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares" on page 16 and "Purchase and Redemption of Shares-Eligibility" on page 33.
  • Biotech Chart
    @PopTart @scott Hillary shmillary. She's just using drug prices as a populist tool to help her poll numbers.
    AND to deflect attention from her own issues...private server, Clinton Foundation taking $$ from foreign governments, missing emails, Huma overcharging the govt, Benghazi...the list goes on.
    I'm sure this (http://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-recovered-clintons-deleted-emails-2015-9) will be interesting but have little hope that anything will come of it as it is clear that rules don't apply to people like Hillary.
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    ICYMI: The annual CSR for the funds is dated 8/27/15 as of June 30. Note the total returns for the funds compared to their benchmarks.
    http://quote.morningstar.com/fund-filing/Annual-Report/2015/6/30/t.aspx?t=GLDSX&ft=N-CSR&d=41bc71aeca8efe88b11e56b326db7c68
  • Biotech Chart
    If you think healthcare pricing will be a bigger issue, I'd buy CVS or ESRX.
    I like Walgreens (although they do not have a PBM like CVS does)partly because of their association with Theranos (http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/18/walgreens-blood-tests/), but CVS has a lot going for it as well and I've considered going back into that especially if it heads into the low 90's. Walgreens also has a stake in Amerisource Bergen (ABC). There's been occasional discussion that Walgreens should/will buy ESRX but I can't really see that happening.
    "Hillary shmillary. She's just using drug prices as a populist tool to help her poll numbers."
    Yep.
  • Biotech Chart
    I too would love to skewer the CEO of Turing...
    Hillary's a politician who needed an excuse to change the media conversation about her away from her emails to another topic to improve her ratings. So she chose a sure-fire populist theme: healthcare pricing, and biotech pricing in particular. As the biotech chart suggests, Hillary's populist attempt to improve her standing with the average person has had a short term effect on the biotech sector. But I think that because healthcare in general and biotech prices in particular are such an easy target for a politician to attack in order to deflect criticism and increase their poll numbers, the issue of drug pricing will become much more talked about a year from now.
    Therefore these threats will become more numerous from both sides of the aisle the closer we get to Nov. 2016. Even if the next President does nothing about drug pricing after the election, the threat of doing so before the election will linger over pharma/biotech and negatively affect share prices the closer we get to the election.
    Hillary shmillary. She's just using drug prices as a populist tool to help her poll numbers.
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    Hi, guys.
    Finally had time to take a breath (yesterday was really full) and check. msf is quite right: two funds, one large cap (GLDLX) and one small cap. Large Cap Core is steadier with regard to relative performance. Both are ten year old, five star, $100 million funds with $2500 minimums. Small Cap Core is a Great Owl fund and it's on our Honor Roll. Large Cap Core has "better numbers" (lower standard deviation, smaller max drawdown, higher Sharpe ratio and so on) but that might just reflect the adventures in small cap land.
    Haven't heard back yet from the advisor.
    David
  • SEC Wants To Stem Liquidity Risk Of Open-End Funds, ETFs
    FYI: The Securities and Exchange Commission issued for public comment Tuesday a new rule requiring open-end investment companies, including mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, to establish a liquidity risk management program tailored to their specific portfolio and risks.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://www.thinkadvisor.com/2015/09/22/sec-wants-to-stem-liquidity-risk-of-open-end-funds?t=mutual-funds&page_all=1
    Investment News.Com Slant:
    http://www.investmentnews.com/article/20150922/FREE/150929972?template=printart
  • American Beacon Fund liquidations and reopening of a fund to new investors
    September 11, 2015. The retirement savings plans are in flux at American Airlines
    Fallout from American/USAir merger?
    See links/below.
    LINK: http://www.advisorllp.com/company-benefits/american-airlines/
    In the coming weeks, according to American Airlines, the current American Airlines $uper $aver 401(k) Plan will be renamed the American Airlines, Inc. 401(k) Plan. Employee accounts from the US Airways Employee Savings Plan will also begin merging into the new Plan. This includes legacy US Airways flight attendant and non-contract employee accounts. Accounts for the legacy US Airways groups that have not reached joint ratified contracts will, for now, remain in the Employee Savings Plan.
    Pilot accounts in the legacy American $uper $aver, and the legacy US Airways 401(k) Plan for Pilots and Future Care plans will move to a new American Airlines, Inc. 401(k) Plan for Pilots. The legacy Retirement Savings Plan for Pilots of US Airways, Inc. will remain separate at this time, however, upon the effective date of the new Pilot 401(k) Plan, the company contribution for these pilots will be made to the new Pilot 401(k) Plan.
    The new Plan accounts are composed of a core account and an optional BrokerageLink® account.
    AFS manages our clients’ 401(k) accounts using the BrokerageLink® option. As an institutional level adviser, we have access to more funds and ETFs (about 20,000) as well as more cost efficient share classes than normal retail BrokerageLink® accounts. We have also negotiated with Fidelity, the plan custodian, and have been able to reduce transaction fees by 67% (as compared to retail accounts) for mutual funds that charge them.
    http://www.pionline.com/article/20141027/ONLINE/141029880/american-airlines-picks-fidelity-as-sole-provider-for-401k-plans
    American Airlines Inc., Fort Worth, Texas, hired Fidelity Investments as sole provider for its 401(k) plans, starting in mid-2015, said Elise R. Eberwein, executive vice president, people and communications, for American Airlines, in an e-mail...[more]
    http://www.benefitspro.com/2014/10/28/fidelity-wins-americans-401k-plan
    Fidelity Investments will assume the responsibility for American Airlines’ 401(k) participants beginning in the middle of 2015.
    The new relationship comes on the heels of the American and US Airways merger, announced in December of 2013. Fidelity has provided retirement services to US Airways since 1993.... [more]
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    GLDSX has all of the trappings of a friends and family fund. Golden Asset Management runs 10 strategies, including this one, through separately managed accounts. They've got about $6.5 billion in AUM. This appears to be the only one also available as a '40 Act fund.
    ...
    David
    Are you sure about that last part?
    I recently ran a screen for large cap blend funds that beat the S&P 500 over the past 3,5, and 10 years (don't ask why). One of the dozen or so funds that popped out was GLDLX. I remember it because I'd never heard of Golden either.
    Anyway, according to the SAI, each of these two funds "is a separate series of the Trust. The Trust is an open-end investment management company organized under Delaware law as a statutory trust on August 29, 1995." I don't see anything in the SAI that differentiates the legal status of one series (fund) from the other. They both (or neither) seem to be '40 Act funds.
  • American Beacon Fund liquidations and reopening of a fund to new investors
    I notice that American Beacon Advisors (the management company) was acquired by Astro AB on April 30th. (Technically, American Beacon's grandparent company was acquired by Astro AB's two parent companies.)
    I wonder if that could have precipitated AMR's leaving American Beacon.
    Here's a thread from last month about American Beacon fund closings (not just AMR share class, but entire funds), also after April 30th:
    http://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/23172/american-beacon-funds-to-liquidate-several-funds
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    Yep. The past five years have certainly been ... uhhh, golden for them. Here's their 10-year record versus their peer group:
    2006: (4.2) - that is, they trailed the pack by 4.2% that year
    2007: (2.1)
    2008: 0.1 - that is, 0.1% better than their peers
    2009: (17.7)
    2010: (2.9)
    2011: 5.4
    2012: (1.0)
    2013: (2.2)
    2014: 8.5
    2015: 6.4
    So, they've trailed in six of the past 10 years by 1.0 - 17.7%. They've led in four years, including 2015 YTD, by 0.1 - 8.5%. Happily for them, most of the good years are appearing in the 1, 3, and 5 year windows.
    David
    One thing I did notice is that this fund is very tax efficient for a small cap fund. The tax cost ratio for the fund over the 1, 3 and 5 year periods is 0.06, 0.22 and 0.13, respectively. That's very low.
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    Hi, willmatt!
    And "nuts." I wrote a response a couple hours ago, hit "post" and ran off to a meeting. Upon return, I discovered no-post. Nuts.
    GLDSX has all of the trappings of a friends and family fund. Golden Asset Management runs 10 strategies, including this one, through separately managed accounts. They've got about $6.5 billion in AUM. This appears to be the only one also available as a '40 Act fund.
    The small core strategy launched in 2002 and claim they're managing about $300 million in the strategy. Why "claim"? Because the performance composite for the strategy lists a composite value of $87 million. Even if you count the fund's $98 million separately, you're still under $200 million.
    In any case, it's a focused, even-weight, sector-neutral portfolio. 60 stocks with a 1.67% target weighting. Over the past three and five years, it's beaten the Russell 2000 by 250-300 bps/year. That said, returns tend to be lumpy and performance strikes me as unpredictable. That's not automatically bad but since I don't know why they do what they do, it's hard to know what to make of them.
    I did write Golden today and I'll happily share whatever I hear back.
    As ever,
    David
    Hi David !
    Thanks for the information ! I visited their website and found it to be lacking in some information. I could not find the Top 10 holdings, among other things. I look forward to reading any additional information they have to share !
    Regards,
    Will
  • Biotech Chart
    Linked below are more current comments from Secretary Clinton. I'm thinking the baby is getting tossed out with the bathwater here....I would like to see the CEO of Turing get skewered, but *DEVELOPERS* of orphan compounds absolutely can't survive on a $250 monthly cap.
    Once the dust settles, this may be a nice entry point. Pharma has too much sway ( i.e. money) with Congress to have these items put into practice.
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/22/us-usa-election-clinton-idUSKCN0RM08D20150922
    Turing will be lowering the price (to what I don't know) because of public outrage (just went across on CNBC.)
    The $250 monthly cap will be what people pay, it will not be what companies are selling the drugs for.
  • Biotech Chart
    Linked below are more current comments from Secretary Clinton. I'm thinking the baby is getting tossed out with the bathwater here....I would like to see the CEO of Turing get skewered, but *DEVELOPERS* of orphan compounds absolutely can't survive on a $250 monthly cap.
    Once the dust settles, this may be a nice entry point. Pharma has too much sway ( i.e. money) with Congress to have these items put into practice.
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/22/us-usa-election-clinton-idUSKCN0RM08D20150922
  • Biotech Chart
    With respect to GILD specifically, wouldn't say "excessive speculation", but sure as hell would say excessive automated trading. You can't tell me that these ridiculous swings every day are due to anything but automated trades taking advantage of, and probably causing, the volatility. Look at today for example. A 2% disparity (GILD up .7%) with the health index (down 1.3%). Interesting to watch, if nothing else.
    Valeant (which I do think could be a focus of upset) went from $245 to $221 yesterday before stopping at $229. Closed at $215 today. This is a $75B company. I do think "platform companies like Valeant and Endo may be in trouble if upset over healthcare continue - companies that are primarily continually buying companies/drugs.
    Biotechs are really something that you have to have some degree of belief in from the standpoint of the volatility - even for the large companies - is ridiculous. I thought Gilead (GILD) would calm down a little after starting a dividend but that certainly didn't happen. Still, with the dividend reinvesting and the valuation - not to mention the recent bond issuance and rumors surrounding Gilead - I just don't even think about that. HQL and THQ providing significant distributions, I'm fine simply reinvesting.
    May go back into CVS if it gets to the low 90's. May add to Thermo Fisher (TMO).
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    Yep. The past five years have certainly been ... uhhh, golden for them. Here's their 10-year record versus their peer group:
    2006: (4.2) - that is, they trailed the pack by 4.2% that year
    2007: (2.1)
    2008: 0.1 - that is, 0.1% better than their peers
    2009: (17.7)
    2010: (2.9)
    2011: 5.4
    2012: (1.0)
    2013: (2.2)
    2014: 8.5
    2015: 6.4
    So, they've trailed in six of the past 10 years by 1.0 - 17.7%. They've led in four years, including 2015 YTD, by 0.1 - 8.5%. Happily for them, most of the good years are appearing in the 1, 3, and 5 year windows.
    David
  • Biotech Chart
    With respect to GILD specifically, wouldn't say "excessive speculation", but sure as hell would say excessive automated trading. You can't tell me that these ridiculous swings every day are due to anything but automated trades taking advantage of, and probably causing, the volatility. Look at today for example. A 2% disparity (GILD up .7%) with the health index (down 1.3%). Interesting to watch, if nothing else.
  • GLDSX - Golden Small Cap Core
    @MFO Members: GLDSX has and outstanding 5 year performance history, 1Mo, 3M0, YTD, 1, 3, 5 year in the 1st percentile.
    Regards,
    Ted
    http://performance.morningstar.com/fund/performance-return.action?t=GLDSX&region=usa&culture=en_US