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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.
  • ARGH !!! I want more tech, but dang, looking at 2023 returns. I track this one...and other tech
    SMH etf, VanEck, Semi Conductors, 26 holdings as of today, Jan. 8.
    --- +73.4% in 2023 and it was down -5 last week, but strong again today at +3.5%, with other tech. advancing, too (Jan. 8)
    I/we prefer 10% of the portfolio for a holding to be meaningful for either the positive or negative affect. Perhaps some dollar cost averaging, in 2% chunks. Magic 8 Ball is awaiting parts. But I can make hand drawn dart board.
    So many have to have the chips and their related vendors, eh?
    Gonna watch a football game first with a game snack of Michigan 'Jiffy Mix' corn bread. :)
    Ticker	Holding Name	% of Net Assets	 
    NVDA US Nvidia Corp 20.35
    TSM US Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co 9.12
    AVGO US Broadcom Inc 6.02
    AMD US Advanced Micro Devices Inc 5.59
    INTC US Intel Corp 5.36
    ASML US Asml Holding Nv 4.79
    TXN US Texas Instruments Inc 4.49
    LRCX US Lam Research Corp 4.47
    QCOM US Qualcomm Inc 4.46
    ADI US Analog Devices Inc 4.38
    AMAT US Applied Materials Inc 4.37
    MU US Micron Technology Inc 4.02
    SNPS US Synopsys Inc 3.62
    KLAC US Kla Corp 3.55
    CDNS US Cadence Design Systems Inc 3.21
    NXPI US Nxp Semiconductors Nv 2.23
    MCHP US Microchip Technology Inc 2.10
    MRVL US Marvell Technology Inc 1.91
    STM US Stmicroelectronics Nv 1.38
    ON US On Semiconductor Corp 1.26
    MPWR US Monolithic Power Systems Inc 1.08
    SWKS US Skyworks Solutions Inc 0.77
    TER US Teradyne Inc 0.62
    QRVO US Qorvo Inc 0.46
    OLED US Universal Display Corp 0.38
    USD CASH- -0.01 -
    Other/Cash 0.04 --
  • ⇒ All Things Boeing ... NASA may send Starliner home without its crew
    Here is the latest report on the ongoing Boeing situation:
    5/14/24: Justice Department: Boeing Violated Settlement Over 737 Max Problems
    Following are short excerpts from a current New York Times Report:
    The Department of Justice said on Tuesday that Boeing was in violation of a 2021 settlement related to problems with the company’s 737 Max model that led to two deadly plane crashes in 2018 and 2019.
    In a letter to a federal judge, the department said that Boeing had failed to “design, implement and enforce” an ethics program to prevent and detect violations of U.S. fraud laws in the company’s operations. Creating that program was a condition of Boeing’s settlement, which also carried a $2.5 billion penalty.
    The determination by the Justice Department opens the door to a potential prosecution of a 2021 criminal charge accusing Boeing of conspiracy to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration, though Boeing can contest Tuesday’s decision.
    In a statement, Boeing said that the company believed that it had honored the terms of the settlement, adding that it was looking forward to the opportunity to respond.
    To recap, in the OT section the articles on the Boeing situation are as follows
    • 4/6/24: Boeing workers falsified 787 inspection records- FAA will investigate
    • 3/25/24: Shakeup: Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun to step down
    • 3/12/24: Boeing quality whistleblower John Barnett is found shot dead
    • 3/9/24: Boeing Subject of Criminal Inquiry by DOJ
    • 3/6/24: Boeing stonewalling National Transportation Safety Board, says top US safety official
    • 2/28/24: FAA gives Boeing 90 days to fix quality control issues
    • 2/26/24: Boeing Efforts to Improve Safety Fall Short, FAA Panel Says
    • 2/21/24: Head of Boeing’s 737 program will leave the company
    • 1/25/24: Airlines Hoping for More Boeing Jets Could Be Waiting Awhile
    • 1/25/24: Alaska holds Boeing accountable, wants to be made whole for $150M in losses
    • 1/24/24: Boeing's quality control: "A rambling, shambling, disaster waiting to happen"
    • 1/23/24: United Airlines re Boeing: "The Straw That Broke the Camel's Back"
    • 1/22/24: FAA: Airlines should check the door plugs on another model of Boeing plane
    • 1/12/24: FAA to increase oversight of Boeing citing ‘other manufacturing problems'
    • 1/11/24: F.A.A. Investigating Whether Boeing 737 Max 9 Conformed to Approved Design
    • 1/10/24: Boeing 737 Max 9: A closer look at the much-discussed "missing bolts" -
    • 1/9/24: FAA says safety ‘not speed’ will decide how long Boeing jets are grounded
    • 1/8/24: United finds loose bolts on Boeing jets grounded after blowout incident
    • 1/7/24: Yet More Trouble on the Boeing 737... so it's asking for an exemption to safety rules
  • The Week in Charts | Charlie Bilello
    The Year in Charts (01/07/24)
    These were the charts and themes that told the story of 2023...
    00:00 Intro
    00:15 The Wall of Worry
    02:55 The Pain Trade
    04:35 A Run on the Bank
    09:36 A Different Kind of Fed
    14:06 AI Exuberance
    18:03 The Magnificent Seven
    20:19 The Sky's the Limit
    23:38 The Recession that Never Came
    26:38 The Earnings Comeback
    28:18 A Frozen Housing Market
    32:20 Back on the Path to Prosperity
    36:32 A Rally for the Ages
    42:18 The Polar Opposite of 2022
    45:06 Triumph of the Optimists
    49:41 What Comes Next?
    Video
    Blog
  • ISHARES IBONDS TERM TREASURY ETF
    Not all investors will hold to maturity; not all notes and bonds mature at the same time within that year; and then there are the potential defaults (corporates of course). The portfolio would need to continue buying additional corporate notes/bonds, perhaps at lower rates.
    Consider just two investors and a single CUSIP. Investor 1 buys in now, investor 2 in a year.
    We'll start off as simple as possible. Let's say the current market rate on a 3 year Treasury is 4%, and the underlying Treasury bonds, maturing in 3 years have 4% coupons. So they trade at par. Let's also say that the ETF shares are $100/share.
    Investor 1 comes in an invests $10,000. That's 100 shares, buying 10 bonds at par in the underlying portfolio.
    A year goes by. We'll assume that the yield at that moment on 2 year treasuries is 3.5%. Shorter term bonds typically have lower yields, or perhaps all rates dropped over that year. The reason doesn't really matter.
    A two year bond with a 4% coupon and a YTM of 3.5% is priced at 100.9577. You can find that with a calculator, e.g. Fidelity's, and you can verify it with EXCEL:
    EXCEL function: YIELD(DATE(2024,1,1), DATE(2026,1,1), 4%, 100.9577, 100, 2)
    Because the underlying bonds have appreciated from 100 to 100.9577, the share price has likewise appreciated from $100 to $100.9577.
    Investor 2 comes in and buys 100 shares for $10,095.77. Keep in mind that the YTM at the time is 3.5%. Now each investor owns 100 shares.
    At maturity, Investor 1 has received three years worth of coupons at a rate of 4% and gets back the original $10,000 investment when the bonds mature and the fund is liquidated. That's your basic 4% yield. The fact that Investor 2 bought additional shares at a higher price (lower yield) had no effect.
    At maturity, Investor 2 has received two years worth of coupons at a rate of 4%, but gets back $95.77 less than the original investment. That's because the investor bought the bonds at a premium.
    The YTM that Investor 2 received was 3.5% - just what the market rate on two year bonds was when the investment was made. See the EXCEL expression above. In short, having to buy or sell bonds shouldn't affect the fund's behavior. That's unlike "normal" Treasury bond funds where trading can alter the portfolio's average maturity. (In corporate bond funds, trading can also affect credit quality and risk.)
    The fact that the bonds mature over a period of a year can somewhat reduce yield. In that last year, as bonds mature their proceeds are held as cash (think 3 mo Treasuries) which should yield somewhat less than 12 mo Treasuries. Or as the prospectus puts it:
    Declining Yield Risk. During the six months prior to the Fund’s planned termination date, the Fund’s yield will generally tend to move toward prevailing money market rates and may be lower than the yields of the bonds previously held by the Fund and lower than prevailing yields for bonds in the market.
  • ISHARES IBONDS TERM TREASURY ETF
    @Level5- Thanks much- I will definitely check that out.
  • ISHARES IBONDS TERM TREASURY ETF
    @Old_Joe - Here’s a related post from the bogleheads…
    https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=374405
    There had been a good deal of discussion there regarding defined maturity bond etfs.
  • ISHARES IBONDS TERM TREASURY ETF
    Thanks, @Level5- every little bit of info helps on this.
  • Mutual Funds With Largest Inflows/Outflows
    Actively managed funds with the largest inflows/outflows through November 2023 are listed below.
    Data from Morningstar Fund Investor (Jan. 2024).
    Largest Inflows
    JPMorgan Large Cap Growth (OLGAX) $20.0B
    Pimco Income (PONAX) $14.0B
    JPMorgan Core Bond (PGBOX) $8.2B
    Dodge & Cox Income (DODIX) $7.3B
    Baird Aggregate Bond (BAGIX) $5.7B
    American Funds Bond Fund of America (BFAFX) $5.7B
    T. Rowe Price U.S. Large-Cap Core (TRULX) $4.9B
    Goldman Sachs GQG Partners International Opportunities (GSIHX) $4.6B
    MFS International Equity (MIEJX) $4.5B
    Largest Outflows
    T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth (TRBCX) $16.3B
    American Funds Growth Fund of America (AGTHX) $15.0B
    T. Rowe Price Growth Stock (PRGFX) $10.7B
    American Funds EuroPacific Growth (AEPGX) $9.5B
    Metropolitan West Total Return Bond (MWTRX) $9.3B
    Fidelity Contrafund (FCNTX) $8.3B
    Vanguard Wellington (VWENX) $7.4B
    Lord Abbett Short Duration Income (LALDX) $7.2B
    Vanguard Short-Term Investment-Grade (VFSUX) $6.9B
    Strategic Advisers Large Cap(FALCX) $6.8B
  • January MFO Ratings Posted
    Just posted all ratings to MFO Premium site through December using Refinitiv's data drop dated 5 January. Month to date numbers mixed. Tech off 4.3%, heathy up 2, SPY off 1.6. A bit of a letdown after the strong year-end numbers. Core bonds off 1.1.
  • Manager change at RLSFX ?
    The tax deferral of T-bills depends not only on the fact that interest isn't paid until maturity but also that they mature in not more than 12 months.
    People are generally aware that if they buy zero coupon bonds, interest is imputed and taxes owed yearly. The exception is for any debt instrument (not just bonds) with a maturity date not more than one year from date of issue. That's practically the definition of a T-bill. Likewise, interest is not imputed on CDs that mature in 12 months or less.
    https://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/the-smarter-mutual-fund-investor/articles/2017-03-03/4-tax-considerations-for-cd-investors
    I believe the part of the tax code that exempts short-term maturities from imputed interest is 26 USC §1272(a)(2)(C). In essence, as yogi described, the debt instruments (including CDs) are viewed as being sold at a discount. From a tax perspective, it's not that you buy a $1000 CD and get $1050 in a year, but rather that you are buying a $1050 CD at a discount price of $1000.
    Sort of like buying gasoline with a cash discount.
  • Asset Allocation & Withdrawal Strategies in Retirement – Bolin
    Asset Allocation & Withdrawal Strategies in Retirement – Bolin
    There is an interesting article by Charles Lynn Bolin ( @lynnbolin2021 ) on withdrawals in the January 2024 MFO issue. In the SUPPLEMENTARY information presented here, portfolio # won’t be used as they can cause confusion.
    In Bolin’s Table #1 with 4 portfolios tested with 6% withdrawal rates, be aware that those are 6% withdrawals from the YEAREND balances every year. So, the amounts withdrawn will fluctuate widely with the market. The residual balances are shown in Figure #1 to indicate whether those kept up with inflation.
    Interestingly, PV has a parameter PWR (under the Metrics tab) that provides max % withdrawals from YEAREND balances that will also leave inflation-adjusted residual at the end.
    A reference is made to “the time-tested 4%”, but that so-called Bengen’s Rule has a different withdrawal regime – 4% of the INITIAL lump-sum that is subsequently adjusted annually for inflation; the PV run settings also allow for this and the related PV metric SWR is the max % withdrawal in this scenario (that will EXHAUST the portfolio).
    One can also deduce from the PV run data the max % of the INITIAL lump-sum that is subsequently adjusted annually for inflation AND leaves inflation-adjusted initial lump-sum at the end, and that % is SWRM.
    The table below shows PWRs, SWRs, SWRMs.
    Portfolio; PWR; SWR; SWRM
    50%VFINX + 50%VTRIX; 5.59%; 7.71%; 6.79%
    70%VFINX + 25%VBMFX; 5.92%; 7.77%; 6.96%
    50%VFINX + 25%VTRIX + 25%VBMFX; 5.40%; 7.46%; 6.50%
    VFINX; 7.06%; 8.77%; 8.19%
    Bolin’s conclusions about inflation adjusted residual balances are consistent with whether the PWR is less than, or greater than, 6% in the table above. It is also interesting that all could support Bengen-style 4% (w/COLA) and even higher (note SWRs). In fact, all would leave more than inflation-adjusted initial lump-sum even with 6% w/COLA (note SWRMs).
    Of course, all the data and conclusions are for the period 01/1987-12/2023.
    https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/2024/01/asset-allocation-and-withdrawal-strategies-in-retirement/
  • Manager change at RLSFX ?
    Msf,
    If one had millions in T-bills, couldn’t they be subject to fee if they didn’t withhold 90% of taxes due? If so, the taxes due are not in April 2025, rather quarterly estimated payments?
  • The week that was, global etf's, various categories + heat map. Week ending May 17, 2024.
    Hi @WABAC The short trade week seemed to start with money moving to some of the laggards from 2023; but I don't find much to have held. One week into this new year after 2023's large run in growth and tech. can't be used to measure right now, IMHO. A lot of the growth/tech. etf's ranged from -3 to -5% to start the year. Although our house remains a tech. holdings bias. The only positive we have this past week is FHLC, Fido healthcare etf at +1.5%.
    Our senior citizen(s) portfolio is at:
    --- 43%, MMKT***
    --- 38%, Equity; growth/tech./health related
    --- 19%, IG bond fund
    *** Core Fido MMKT's = 5.01% average; one mmkt that must be purchased is FZDXX, that has a yield of 5.21%. We've thought about chasing MINT, etf, Pimco enhanced ultra short duration that returned +6.25% in 2023. The etf is on that performance path at this time, for 2024; starting the year at +.12% for the week. Too much going on right now, so we'll remain with holdings for a bit.
    Regards,
    Catch
  • M* basic fund screener discontinued
    Thanks Charles. I'd be glad to chat with you about some thoughts, though I just got down this rabbit hole responding to a comment that using raw data might not be circumventing a screener. Your post now addresses that in crystal clear terms:
    We also have a link to an excel file with performance summary of all funds, oldest share class only ... about 15,000 funds. I know some subscribers just prefer that link! Spreadsheet style
    No muss, no fuss, just circumventing all tools.
    If I were still really deep into data analysis, I'd likely import that spreadsheet into a DBMS. These days I've got better things to do with my time: going on a river cruise out to the Black Sea, researching a trans-Canada railway trip, fighting with my insurance company on the network status of my healthcare providers (the insurer has processed over half of them incorrectly).
  • The week that was, global etf's, various categories + heat map. Week ending May 17, 2024.
    The graphic is set for the 5 days ending January 5, Friday; for the best to worst % returns in select etf categories. One may then also select the one month column to align the one month return best to worst; or for the other listed time frame columns.
    ADD an etf performance of your choosing, if you desire.
    *** Requested ADD: For the week and YTD
    --- EWW = -1.43% / -1.43% (I Shares, Mexico)
    NOTE: 4 day market week, due to New Year holiday.
    Remain curious,
    Catch
  • Barron’s Funds Quarterly (2023/Q4–January 8, 2024)
    Barron’s Funds Quarterly (2023/Q4–January 8, 2024)
    https://www.barrons.com/topics/mutual-funds-quarterly
    (Performance data quoted in this Supplement are for 2023/Q4 and YTD to 12/31/23)
    Pg L2 With higher bond yields, allocation/balanced funds have comeback from dead yet again. But not all allocation/balanced funds are the same. Some have growth or value tilt in their equity portion. Multi-asset funds mix stocks, bonds, and alternatives (HY, FR/BL, convertibles, REITs, option-writing, EMs). M* studies have shown that “boring” allocation funds have the lowest investor-return-gap (= fund TR – asset-weighted fund TR) and one explanation is that their holders tend to stick through good and bad times. There are several types of allocation/balanced funds that follow. (By @LewisBraham at MFO)
    CA, 15-30% Equity*: BLADX, USCCX
    MCA, 30-50% Equity*: FMSDX, VWINX
    MA, 50-70% Equity*: ABALX, AOR, CGBL, FPURX, VBIAX, VWELX; includes classic Allocation 60-40.
    MAA, 70-85% Equity*: FPACX
    Tactical Allocation: CTFAX, LCORX, SFHYX
    Global Allocation: EDIAX, LGMAX, RPGAX, SGENX, VGWLX
    Target-Date Funds (TDFs) have glide-path allocations. These are often found in 401k/403b plans but are also available to retail investors. Mentioned are those from AF, BlackRock, DFA, Fidelity, Price, TIAA, Vanguard.
    *Nominal-Equity. Effective-equity is typically higher.
    Pg L6: JAPANESE market (fwd P/E 14.6) awakened in 2023 from a long slumber. There is finally inflation and corporate governance has improved (one can even look for dividends in Japan). The BOJ has widened the trading band for weak yen. But high government debt and BOJ monetary easing remain issues. Mentioned are BBJP, DXJ (hedged), EWJ, FJPNX, FJSCX, FLJP, FSJPX, HEWJ (hedged), HJPIX, MDLOX, MJFOX, PRJPX; diversified international VEA has decent exposure to Japan.
    Pg L29: In 2023/Q4 (SP500 +11.55%): Among general equity funds, the best were LC-growth +14.19%, multi-growth +13.90%, SC-value +13.45%, & the worst were equity-income +9.69%, multi-value +9.73%, LC-value +9.83; ALL general equity categories were POSITIVE. Among other equity funds, the best were sc & tech +17.76%, financials +17.49%, and the worst were natural resources -4.68%, China -3.38%%. Among fixed-income funds, domestic long-term FI +5.43%, world income +7.91%; ALL FI & hybrid categories were POSITIVE (FI isn’t very refined in Lipper mutual fund categories listed in Barron’s).
    MORE Fund Stories
    Pg 20, Q&A. Michael LIPPERT, BIOPX / BIOIX, BTEEX / BTECX. He looks for secular growth opportunities with big themes – AI, cloud computing, digitalization, genomics, SaaS, cybersecurity, autonomous driving. He likes companies with multiple lines of business and strong management; he holds up to 50 stocks. He no longer owns AAPL, NFLX, etc.
    LINK
  • M* basic fund screener discontinued
    Any search in our tools, and all the attendant data, can be downloaded. But currently we limit the size to 1000 funds, which seemed practical to me. We also have a link to an excel file with performance summary of all funds, oldest share class only ... about 15,000 funds. I know some subscribers just prefer that link! Spreadsheet style. I suppose we could generate a downloadable file of all the static data (no performance) for all funds in database. But then you still need performance data, which has infinite possibilities. I think we could come up with a customized screener or database based on subscriber request, but that is really a different product. Happy to chat more. c