the fund has Phillip Morris
Just to be clear, FBBAX owns Philip Morris International (PM). That was spun off in 2008 from MO (formerly Philip Morris, rebranded as Altria in 2003). MO retained its Philip Morris USA subsidiary.
Rebranding 2003
Spin-off 2008
Also, Morningstar/Sustainalytics rates PM just as high (or as low) as Tesla on its ESG risk assessment scale. Not that Tesla is all that great, scoring poorly in some ESG areas like labor management and governance (according to both M* and MSCI). While tobacco companies (such as PM and MO) are generally eschewed by funds marketed as ESG, other companies like Tesla are owned in significant quantities by many ESG funds.
https://www.investmentnews.com/esg/news/is-tobacco-esg-friendlier-than-tesla-funds-investors-dont-think-so-239436
MSCI ESG ratings tool - enter TSLA, click on 3rd question (how well is it managing ESG)

@hank, @catch22 and other MI residents might be amused to know that FBBAX has approximately 1% of its AUM in KEWL, the Keewenau Land Association. This former forestry products company has considerable subsurface mineral rights. The Upper Peninsula of MI is the ultimate fly-over region (speaking from the point of view of a non-native), but one could imagine a revival if profitable mining returned to the UP. To complement that unusual holding, the fund has Phillip Morris. Go-anywhere does not appear to imply ESG.

I used to tour the UP by road several times a summer. Some beautiful locals on the big water. Other than quick one-day trips to the island for bicycling, I haven’t been back in several years, Given my “druthers” I’d drive 4-5 hours east from the Sault into Canada. But I digress. Yes - the UP once boasted a thriving mining industry.
To FBBAX - ISTM Phillip Morris is a favorite of funds that emphasize a stable income stream and / or low volatility. Hasn’t been a bad hold in recent years. (I get the ESG point. Nice job connecting the dots Ben.) Whenever possible, I like to “hold to the fire” any fund I look at by checking how it performed in 2008 - the worst year for equities in my lifetime. FBBAX lost 30.66% in 2008 (according to Yahoo) which was actually a bit better than its category (and probably better than the S&P). This knowedge, however, does not compel me to want to send $$.

@hank, @catch22 and other MI residents might be amused to know that FBBAX has approximately 1% of its AUM in KEWL, the Keewenau Land Association. This former forestry products company has considerable subsurface mineral rights. The Upper Peninsula of MI is the ultimate fly-over region (speaking from the point of view of a non-native), but one could imagine a revival if profitable mining returned to the UP. To complement that unusual holding, the fund has Phillip Morris. Go-anywhere does not appear to imply ESG.

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update:
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1924868/000199937124009713/clia_497-080724.htm
97 1 clia_497-080724.htm SUPPLEMENT
Filed pursuant to Rule 497(e)
Registration Nos. 333-264478; 811-23793
Veridien Climate Action ETF (CLIA)
(the “Fund”)
Supplement dated August 7, 2024
to the Summary Prospectus dated November 27, 2023, and to each of the Prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) dated April 21, 2023
This Supplement replaces and restates the supplement that was filed on August 5, 2024.
Tidal Investments LLC (“Tidal”), the Fund’s investment adviser, informed the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of Tidal Trust II of its view that the Fund could not conduct its business and operations in an economically efficient manner over the long term due to the Fund’s inability to attract sufficient investment assets to maintain a competitive operating structure, and recommended the Fund’s closure and liquidation to the Board. The Board determined, after considering Tidal’s recommendation, that it is in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders to liquidate and terminate the Fund as described below.
In addition, the Chief Investment Officer of the Fund’s sub-adviser, Veridien Global Investors LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”), who was also one of the Fund’s portfolio managers, recently resigned from employment with the Sub-Adviser. In light of her resignation, the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser have determined that the Fund’s portfolio could not be effectively managed in accordance with the Fund’s registration statement and, therefore, the Fund’s investment portfolio has been liquidated and transitioned to cash. As a result of these circumstances the Adviser and Sub-Adviser have determined that the liquidation of the Fund is advisable and in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders.
Resignation of Portfolio Manager
Effective August 2, 2024, Ariane Mahler has resigned from her position as Chief Investment Officer of the Sub-Adviser. Ms. Mahler was also a portfolio manager to the Fund. As such, all references to Ms. Mahler are removed throughout the Summary Prospectus, Prospectus, and SAI.
Liquidation
In preparation for the liquidation, shares of the Fund will cease trading on the NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE”) and will be closed to purchase by investors as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE on August 16, 2024 (the “Closing Date”). The Fund will not accept purchase orders after the Closing Date.
Shareholders may sell their holdings in the Fund prior to the Closing Date and customary brokerage charges may apply to these transactions. However, from August 16, 2024 through August 20, 2024 (the “Liquidation Date”), shareholders may be able to sell their shares only to certain broker-dealers and there is no assurance that there will be a market for the Fund’s shares during this time period. Between the Closing Date and the Liquidation Date, the Fund will be in the process of closing down and liquidating the Fund’s portfolio. This process will result in the Fund increasing its cash holdings and, as a consequence, not tracking its underlying index, which is inconsistent with the Fund’s investment objective and strategy.
Filed pursuant to Rule 497(e)
Registration Nos. 333-264478; 811-23793
On or about the Liquidation Date, the Fund will liquidate its assets and distribute cash pro rata to all shareholders of record who have not previously redeemed or sold their shares, subject to any required withholding. Liquidation proceeds paid to shareholders generally should be treated as received in exchange for shares and will therefore be treated as a taxable event giving rise to a capital gain or loss depending on a shareholder’s tax basis. Shareholders should contact their tax adviser to discuss the income tax consequences of the liquidation. In addition, these payments to shareholders may include distributions of accrued capital gains and dividends. As calculated on the Liquidation Date, the Fund’s net asset value will reflect the costs of closing the Fund. Once the distributions are complete, the Fund will terminate.
* * * * *
For more information, please contact the Fund at (888) 318-0133.
Please retain this Supplement with your Summary Prospectus, Prospectus, and SAI.

Yesterday I put on a 5-strike combo spread on ALT expiring in Jan 26 as a totally speculatitive play for potential gains should their GLP-1 competitor keep showing good promise and/or if a big pharma player decides to take them out. Downside risk $5000, unlimited upside if it happens, so it's a viable risk/reward for this kind of trade. (for speculative trades, I hope for the best, but would be happy with getting out at 'breakeven' if necessary.)

FWIW, I picked up a 20 year corporate bond from Deutsch Bank at 6%. It won't be called for at least 2 years (aug. '26), so I'll take the higher return with the expectation it will inevitably be called in 2026.
Deutsche Bank Aktien 6% 08/16/2044 Callable
CUSIP: 25161FXT0

Thanks @BenWP
I wonder how the anverage retail investor today would react if his “go-anywhere” fund lost 15% in a year when the Dow, NASDAQ and S&P all gained? Obviously the manager had decided to go somewhere non-mainstream. May have been wrong. May have been a year or two early. Might have built a large position in something while price was depressed.
Real hedge funds operate a lot differently than retail funds. They attract wealthy clients who can ride out multi-year losses. They impose limits on how much, if any, they can withdraw for the first several years. And often the operator receives a predetermined % of the gains - adding incentives to take risk. SEC restrictions may be lesser or non-existent. More risk taking. Much different animal.

https://www.ft.com/content/2d2ce18b-f842-4912-babf-f4b8c1190c0d
“
But when markets move quickly, the relatively small income generated by selling options is not enough to offset the decline in the underlying shares. Many funds have been simultaneously underperforming and suffering sharp swings.”

AAII Sentiment Survey, 8/7/24
BULLISH remained the top sentiment (40.5%, above average) & neutral became the bottom sentiment (22.0%, low); bearish became the middle sentiment (37.5%, above average); Bull-Bear Spread was +3.0% (below average). Investor concerns: Elections, budget, inflation, economy, the Fed, dollar, Russia-Ukraine (128+ weeks), Israel-Hamas (43+ weeks), geopolitical. For the Survey week (Th-Wed), stocks down, bonds up, oil down, gold down, dollar down. NYSE %Above 50-dMA 46.72% (negative). Fear gauge VIX range this week 15.95 - 65.73; Japan even more volatile. #AAII #Sentiment #Markets
https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/post/1597/thread

The First Foundation Total Return fund (FBBAX) does fit the moniker of a go-anywhere fund. It invests in an eclectic mix of international equities (49%), domestic equities (26%) and fixed income (13%). Cash is currently around 10%. The equities represent the full range of market caps and styles. The fund has had some top quintile years and some bottom ones as well. My personal take is that “go-anywhere” sounds sexy, but it does not translate into an investment strategy that one would recommend to a good friend or a family member. I don’t mind trying out a niche fund for a while with money I don’t need for something important, which is what I did with FBBAX.

Let's just hope that they don't keep fal'n...

FALN was flat on the day.
My other two junk funds were up a touch. Everything else was down--- except TS Tenaris--- which bucked its own trend. Still down -13% with that bugger.

“NASA may send Starliner home without its crew — leaving astronauts stuck in space until 2025.”
The Story

Assume we were to get a recession bottom. What is your preferred closed end bond fund?

The question seems unclear. Bonds (very high quality) are great to own at the beginning of a recession. At the bottom of a recession you’d probably want to move everything into junk bonds which would benefit from the recovery. Perhaps even better, move into equities.
I have one bond CEF - WEA. This one favors BBB corporates. That’s 1 bump above junk bond status. In a recession some of those would very likely be downgraded to junk.
-
One more bond CEF (I know nothing about) is BKT from Blackrock. Came across it weeks ago in some reading. M* is missing data on duration. I believe it hues to the shorter end of the curve. 29% levered. Mostly higher quality bonds. Probably some government paper. Do your own research.

Is Dell going to lay off 10,000? Draw your own opinion.
Dell proposed layoffs (allegedly)

Somebody should start a new thread!
”Is Mr. Market Happy or Upset today?”
It might run ad-infinitum the way @Crash’s “Buy / Sell” thread does.
:)
An excellent discussion from the members. But the whole idea suggests how short term focused we have become, The crash of ‘07 - ‘09 was short by historical standards, Somewhere in the 15-16 month area. Yet every single month the markets ground lower felt like an eternity, There is a natural human tendency to assume that the present (whatever it is) will continue.

Adding to @msf’s above …
I tossed out little known GAA as worth a look. Not a recommendation. Cambrea has some whacky funds (TOKE). You could have lost your shirt in more than one. Small shop. Largely run by podcast celebrity Meb Faber. Those are meant as disclaimers!
M* rates GAA neutral and faults the management team as too thin / too concentrated in one hand, The 53.7 Ml asset base is another issue, though there is no sign it will close. The .40% ER covers the costs incurred from the mostly actively managed funds it invests in (several in-shop / a few from outside).
Personally, I wanted something in a conservative balanced fund (about 40% fixed income) that goes “off the track” and invests where many others do not. The fund is overweight commodities relative to peers. A bit over half the equity position is non-U.S. It acts as if there’s some precious metals in there. Includes some EM. Quite a bit in Asia. Also in Europe. There are some short positions. One of the funds it invests in employs a momentum strategy.
The 5 year record is modest. This one won’t make you rich. Designed for conservative investors, Should outperform cash longer term. I’m comfortable throwing an equal portfolio weight (10%) into it and letting it ride. (I’ve also enjoyed listening for hours to more than a dozen of Faber’s radio podcast interviews with many different investment professionals.)
This is not a recommendation.

and also GAA.
Oddly enough, this came up in some searching I was doing in the past couple of days to help someone find a temporary alternative to VSMGX (hard to get w/o fees outside of Vanguard). I wound up suggesting GAL rather than GAA.
You might take a look at VSMGX as well, though this fund is, as @hank so nicely put it, a "go nowhere" fund.
One can also emulate VSMGX using Vanguard ETFs of the same (or equivalent) funds, with Fidelity's basket portfolio service. One click rebalancing for those who don't want to have any involvement with their investments. (Not for me, for a friend :-)).
This service costs $60/year (or you can rebalance on your own). Using the cheaper ETFs rather than the funds in VSMGX, this comes out cheaper than VSMGX for balances above $70K. And it has the benefit that if you need money at a time that the stock market is down, you can tap the bond funds separately. You can't do that with an allocation fund.
Portfolio Visualizer comparison: ETF basket, GAL, and GAA, benchmarked against VSMGX.

The truth, however, is that we don’t know why stocks fell. ... it probably doesn’t matter much

Fire ten shots into the air from different positions in a semicircle surrounding a herd of cattle and you'll get a stampede. But you won't know which direction to expect nor which shot or shots set the cattle a-runnin'.

Furthermore, if fears of a U.S. recession drove this stock slump, why did Japanese stocks fall so much more than stocks here?

Effective rhetoric, but possible explanations do exist. In the news section of the NYTimes we find one possible explanation that the news editors felt worth mentioning.

When the Bank of Japan raised interest rates last week ... the decision coincided with forecasts [due to fear of a U.S. recession?] that the Fed was preparing to cut rates soon. This narrowed the gap between market rates in Japan and the United States, and the yen spiked.
The suddenly stronger yen also threatened to become a drag on corporate profits for Japanese firms, especially the big companies that rely on exports. That spooked investors in Japan’s stock market, stoking fears that a stronger yen would spell the end of a more-than-yearlong rally.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/07/business/stock-market-drama-explained.html
The U.S. recession fear was actually a double whammy on the large Japanese companies: (1) the sudden increase in price of exports (due to spike in Yen), and (2) the expected decline in demand for Japanese exports (independent of exchange rates) due to a feared U.S. recession. The U.S. is Japan's biggest export market (2023).
Do we know that these factors related to the fear of a U.S. recession caused Japan's market to tumble? No. Is it a possible explanation for the sharper, faster drop in the Nikkei 225 than in the S&P 500? Yes.

Hope this is accessible (doubt it)
https://messaging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/dynamic/render?campaign_id=116&emc=edit_pk_20240806&instance_id=130920&isViewInBrowser=true&nl=paul-krugman&paid_regi=1&productCode=PK&regi_id=22268089&segment_id=174340&te=1&uri=nyt://newsletter/ed712733-6278-5409-b774-fc90061110fa&user_id=83d45440ead1d14c2a89a1e7221337d1