If you invested $1K at beginning of 2022 & lost 67% & then your investment gain 73.7% the next year, you're still trying to dig yourself out of a hole !! $1k investment is worth $573.21

@Derf. That 3% cut off makes sense unless MM and on line savings are paying .15% and the equity allocation is maxed. Remember not long ago the likely suspects included preferred etf’s,,,, bank loan etf’s and junk,,,, I mean high yield. At some point risk becomes just too risky. And then 3% seems not so bad.

Not a math wizard , so if you invested $1K at beginning of 2022 & lost 67% & then your investment gain 73.7% the next year, you're still trying to dig yourself out of a hole !!
$1k investment is worth$573.21
Timing is everything, Derf

I have found attractive rates at my favorite on line banks but sometime soon that will be over too. My CD addiction delayed me from age related simplification of our assets but one fund solutions are looking more attractive as falling rates will be positive for bond heavy allocation funds.

larryB, I agree that I can find many bank/credit union CDs, that are well above 5%. I consider many of them "promotional" to get me to put money into them, but may have to consider liquidating some of them when the CD matures, and then move them somewhere else. I am now focused on my personal bank, getting up to the FDIC max, but may consider putting a chunk of money in other local banks/credit unions as well. I am willing to do that with my taxable money, but do not want to that with IRA assets.

Yes and no. I bought some US Treasuries this week that are maturing in 3-6 months with yields about 5.3%. I consider them comparable to CDs with certain advantages. My CD ladders will have issues maturing every 6 months or so over the next 5 years. I’ll decide where to reinvest as they mature. If CD yields stay above 4%, I’ll probably continue to buy them, but might put some of the money in bond funds. If Treasury yields are comparable to CDs, I’ll probably keep buying them too. Their liquidity and tax advantages are pluses.

Tarwheel, you bring up a very relevant consideration--how low must CD rates fall, before they will no longer be considered for your portfolio. You have chosen 4%, and I am wondering what others have set as their "floor" before you start moving money to a different kind of asset. I thought 4% as the floor as well, especially since longer term brokerage CDs are already dipping below 4%, although that could be just a year end dip.

Old M* Premium Screener was gone in 05/2023. So, it was a matter of time that old M* Basic Screener would also be gone.
New M* Investor Screener is BAD. Its like old Basic+, but has all classes of funds that cannot be suppressed (M* Premium Screener allowed "Distinct Classes"); there is no simple no-load option.
I have asked M* to provide some update on old M* Portfolio availability in 2024 - it's working for now.

From what I’ve read, it’s running neck and neck with a Fidelity Blue Chip ETF for top honors this year. (ARK lost 67% in 2022.)
ARKK (73.69% YTD through Dec 27, per M*) is behind its OEF clone, ADNYX (available w/$2.5K min @ Schwab) (73.80% YTD), let alone its siblings ARKF (98.60%) and ARKW (103.09%).
If top honors are restricted to "broad based" funds (ARKK is classified MCG by M*), there's MSJAX, a global small/midcap fund, up 74.23% YTD.
If top honors are restricted to ETFs, but open to all types of funds, look into digital assets ETFs. GSOL makes ARKK look like still waters. GSOL was down 94% in 2022; it is up 988.89% YTD.
Over its lifetime, ARKK is just slightly behind FCNTX: 194% vs. 211% cumulative return. It's not a ride I would want to take, but in the long run it could get you to the same place. Though I doubt most people invest in this as a buy-and-hold security. Which was your point.

Fund Allocations (Cumulative), 11/30/23
There were noticeable shifts into stocks. The changes for OEFs + ETFs were based on a total AUM of about $30.23 trillion in the previous month, so +/- 1% change was about +/- $302.3 billion. Also note that these changes were from both fund inflows/outflows & price changes. #Funds #OEFs #ETFs #ICI
OEFs & ETFs: Stocks 58.34%, Hybrids 4.74%, Bonds 18.73%, M-Mkt 18.19%
https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/post/1297/thread

5.3% CDs STILL available at Navy Fed (with restriction on amount) and Northeast Bank ($5k minimum.). There are surely others.
YES, they look attractive. But no, I have not taken a bite. That might be the last base I try to cover, in constructing the portfolio to be the way I want it.

@crash and @hank, thanks for the clarification. Tactical moves does require larger % to make meaningful impact on the overall portfolio. Large move for us was to exit (most) bonds in late 2021. 50/10/40 stock/bond/cash work out okay.we will maintain a healthy % in stocks ( to combat inflation) but wait for “fat pitches” as stocks are not cheap.

Truth. But for single-stocks, I never bother with the well-known, high-flying names which get all the publicity. I call them a "pre-crowded trade." Low P/E is vital for me. I look at Analyst ratings, Technical Strength (14 days.) And I avoid equities with too many "Shorts" attached. I see the SP500 is meeting resistance today, trying to break through the all-time high closing. (Still before 10:00 a.m. here. Markets close at 11:00.)

I'll take the added risk and add that $ into bond funds and into balanced funds - both of which I've been buying for the past few months. I'm not opposed to keeping money in the Schwab MM at 5.27% either. MMs seem to be holding up better than short term CDs and Ts. MMs will inevitably drop too, but nice return and flexibility for now.
I have had a couple gov. agency bonds get called recently. At 6%+, I new they weren't going to last long, but it was nice while it lasted.

Yes and no. I bought some US Treasuries this week that are maturing in 3-6 months with yields about 5.3%. I consider them comparable to CDs with certain advantages. My CD ladders will have issues maturing every 6 months or so over the next 5 years. I’ll decide where to reinvest as they mature. If CD yields stay above 4%, I’ll probably continue to buy them, but might put some of the money in bond funds. If Treasury yields are comparable to CDs, I’ll probably keep buying them too. Their liquidity and tax advantages are pluses.

@crash and @hank, thanks for the clarification. Tactical moves does require larger % to make meaningful impact on the overall portfolio. Large move for us was to exit (most) bonds in late 2021 to cash equivalent as inflation became evident. 50/10/40 stock/bond/cash work out okay.
Since The summer we moved the opposite direction and stopped buying CDs and T bills. Think the sweet spot are those in intermediate term range, 5-7 years. Small bet on long bonds net over 10% as 10 treasury yield dropped to below10%. Other high yield bonds are doing very well, many have netted double digit total returns. Going forward there are more opportunities in bonds as the FED apparently had reached the pivot point. When and if the rate cut comes, bonds will do well in 2024.
In the meantime we will maintain a healthy % in stocks ( to combat inflation) but wait for “fat pitches” as stocks are not cheap.

@Crash said, I'm already at 61 stocks, 33 bonds.

Stock funds, right? How do you manage them? I am trying to considerate to less than 20 stock and bond funds/ETFs.

Just today, I rearranged the deck chairs, pulling about $7,500 from PRNEX and adding that much to TUHYX. (junk.)
14% of the portfolio is in

single stocks. That's in taxable.
56.03% is in stock funds.
26.4% in bond funds.
PRWCX holds some bonds; it's a "balanced" fund.
3.57% in "cash" and "other."
So, then: 70.03% in stocks, both singles and funds.
How do I manage them?
Giggle. Badly. I always take a slice out of the IRA in January; I try to figure out how to do that with the least amount of harm. I don't want to cut myself off at the knees in terms of future growth.

I think he thought you meant you have 61 stocks/stock funds, and 33 bonds/bond funds….didn't look at it as a percentage

I just put the $ from credit union CDs that matured in November and December into 12 month CDs at 5.25%. The CD returns will balance any possible losses in the bond and stock markets.

This thread is directed toward those who currently own CDs. I have used CDs extensively for almost 2 years now, watched CD rates go over 5%, but now CD rates are dropping. As my my CDs mature, I am hearing a lot of chatter about why it is not a good idea, to continue investing in CDs, because stocks and bond options are pretty much guaranteed to make more than CDs. In the last several weeks, I have chosen to buy some bank CDs at my personal bank for 5.25%, but my brokerage CDs are selling in the 4% ranges now, because the FEDs projected rate cuts.
Are any "current" CD owners still buying CDs, with cash that becomes available to you, from maturing CDs or other cash sources?

AAII Sentiment Survey, 12/27/23
BULLISH remained the top sentiment (46.3%; above average) & bearish remained the bottom sentiment (25.1%, below average); neutral remained the middle sentiment (28.6%, below average); Bull-Bear Spread was +21.2% (above average). Investor concerns: Budget; inflation; economy; the Fed; dollar; crypto regulations; market volatility (VIX, VXN, MOVE); Russia-Ukraine (96+ weeks); Israel-Hamas (11+ weeks); geopolitical. For the Survey week (Th-Wed), stocks were up, bonds up, oil flat, gold up, dollar down. SP500 near new highs. The dollar is headed below 100 & that will benefit commodities, EMs, foreign funds. #AAII #Sentiment #Markets
https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/post/1296/thread

@Crash said, I'm already at 61 stocks, 33 bonds.

Stock funds, right? How do you manage them? I am trying to considerate to less than 20 stock and bond funds/ETFs.

Just today, I rearranged the deck chairs, pulling about $7,500 from PRNEX and adding that much to TUHYX. (junk.)
14% of the portfolio is in single stocks. That's in taxable.
56.03% is in stock funds.
26.4% in bond funds.
PRWCX holds some bonds; it's a "balanced" fund.
3.57% in "cash" and "other."
So, then: 70.03% in stocks, both singles and funds.
How do I manage them?
Giggle. Badly. I always take a slice out of the IRA in January; I try to figure out how to do that with the least amount of harm. I don't want to cut myself off at the knees in terms of future growth.
I am drawn to the Zurich Axioms. Others here don't like them and find them to be internally self-contradictory. But I think the Axioms make sense. Not all of them apply equally, and I dare say are not INTENDED to fit every situation. The Axioms strike me as a bunch of tools to be employed intuitively, if you know what I mean. It's not charts and statistics--- a.k.a. sadistics. A listing of them all is somewhere in the archives here at MFO.
https://harriman.house/books/the-zurich-axioms-harriman-classics/

Speaking for myself, it's just the way I was raised. Along the way it just became part of my curiosity toolkit to compare and contrast funds and their holdings, as well as what they are charging for doing business with them.
One example I can think of involves green energy funds. I steered clear of the ones that featured a lot of consumer durables in the nature of electric vehicles. That's more of a sector orientation though. And I can't say that it has done me much good so far.
Another example would be cogitating on the performance difference between FBALX and PRWCX.

Same. To wit: I remember when Berkwitz's Fairholme Fund was all the rage; I looked and its' top holding was like 40% of the fund, so I thought that was a little much (it was either Sears or St Joe, I forget). I just like to know what it holds & how it's allocated/investing before I jump onboard!
Same when PRGTX was the 'hot' fund a few years ago - its #1 holding was like 10-15% in TSLA. which was an immediate turn-off for me.

Where at Schwab can you find the summary report? I just looked for PVCMX and cannot find any analysis
Not that it is worth anything . ChatGPT pans PVCMS saying they have a "unseasoned portfolio mangers" ( Really!!! If you know how you can dig around and find they have been managing money since 1993) and unreasonable fees ( ER total - 1.15%)

I go to the Research > Stock tab, put in a symbol, and on the right-hand column there's all the research Schwab has on the symbol, including, if available. its M* report. Not sure if they're available for funds, but they are for individual stocks they cover.