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.
Support MFO
Donate through PayPal
PRESSmUP
The last week has been good preparation for playoff pressures....nicely done Tito.
I'm currently at 70% equities, 20@ cash, and 10% bonds. Early in the week I added to GSIHX to increase foreign exposure. Later in the week I added to an allocation fund EVT, as a dividend play. While the market averages are up, the breadth is weak, …
So here's something completely different...President Eisenhower and Walter Cronkite on the 20th Anniversary of D-Day on June 6, 1964. It seemed appropriate to include this in the thread.
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/eisenhower-recalls-sacrifices-…
In an odd coincidence, the Trump administration will be shutting down the US military newsletter Stars and Stripes effective the end of this month.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/sep/04/pentagon-stars-and-stripes-newspaper-trump
Ben...how do you think our vets will react when they hear their CIC say when reviewing a burial at Arlington... "I don’t get it. What was in it for them?"
A survey conducted by Military Times indicates that Trump's approval rating within US militar…
How inaction on the virus will be a plus for Trump by election day is an odd opinion. We'll most likely be at 250,000 dead by that point. Trump has done NOTHING to implement a nationwide approach to dealing with this virus. and has done NOTHING to l…
IN 2009, an analyst at the DHS warned of a surge in activity by right-wing groups, including militias, white supremacists, anti-government activists and others motivated by racial grievances toward the nation’s first black president and the conseque…
Macallan 12 was always my go-to as well. My trip to great Britain and Ireland made me more open to Irish whiskeys and American bourbons also. Good Irish whiskey is available for a good price...Yellow or Green Spot, Red Breast, and one my local Irish…
I've got to think that this will be the time for Matthews' experience to come forward. I sold out of all of Matthews holdings several years ago, but now may be worth a look. Or, add to one of the Rajiv Jain funds.
And, it's spiking once again particularly in those states that opened up while the number of positive tests for the virus was still on the upswing. Oddly, we don't seem to care anymore. We apparently are good-to-go regardless of public health.
Esquire writer Charles Pierce notes that since 9-11, the federal government has equipped local police with $4.3 billion in military gear and prepared them for an all-out war on terrorists. In 2014, President Barack Obama tried to stop the transfer…
I enjoy Cramer, purely for entertainment value...and sometime get a gem or two during the process. As for CNBC, I like tuning into the Noon-1:00 banter, since that appears to be more timely information.
Perhaps it's the nature of my individual stock holdings, but they all went up significantly (except for BMY), but the volume was only about 75% of their 3 month average. A lack of conviction?
Aside from the mortality statistics, the insidious nature of this virus is the resulting long-lasting damage it does to internal organs, even if you survive. I don't think enough has been published on this.
The issue isn't that they're trying to take healthcare from current workers (though some representatives would see that as a perverse side-benefit), they are trying to cripple the USPS by forcing a budgeting mandate which no other organization in th…
Perhaps if the USPS weren't forced to pre-fund 75 years of retiree health benefits their financial outlook would improve. Republicans have been wanting to privatize the function done by the USPS for about 15 years, and have found a benefactor in Tru…
In this environment, carefully choosing individual holdings is tempting. I added to WPC on Friday, thinking that some of the higher quality REITs present a good value for their income. I will be looking at select financials...BAC, USB, and maybe eve…
This should concern just about everyone. The DOJ has no need to circumvent Constitutional guidelines, and Barr should be tossed if he even suggests it.
It seems gloomy yes, but don’t discount the psychological impact of a vaccine. People love their football stadiums, racetracks, casinos, trips abroad....etc.
It will take some time, but the effects will dim. I had to cancel an April trip to Italy,…
FWIW...I spoke with my guy at Schwab during the carnage today, talking about how even bonds were leaking significantly. He suggested that in this environment, cash is good, recommending SWVXX, paying a bit more than 1%.
That's now my largest holdi…
We did add more vanguard prime cap core vppcx today...wont look at returns until 12-24 months later I have several Primecap funds. They always seems to have a few holdings that are absolute stinkers, so it will be interesting to see what they say in…
Today...this afternoon...Trump declared that the corona virus is “something that we have total control over.”
We have a serious leadership problem in this country. If Trump can't get his shit together, he needs to step aside.
FYI...the Governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, just ordered all bars/restaurants in Ohio to be closed at 9:00 PM this evening. I must say, DeWine isn't waiting for federal guidance in the moves the state has been making. The financial impact though, is se…
Like many, I've always maintained a list of things to buy when all hell breaks loose. I really think the baby is being tossed out with the bathwater. Tech, utilities are being punished without a noteworthy notice of earnings reductions, at least to…
I've been with Schwab for about 15 years now, and am pleased with fund selection, interaction with the local team and overall research available on the website. It might boil down to what you're looking for. Do you want to make your own decisions? A…
Upon hearing of Warren's withdrawal, a rather well known Democratic pundit predicted that the first female President would be a Republican. I agree with that, since Democrats can't seem to pull the trigger on certain items outside of their comfort z…
So here's my question...what does a corona virus have to do with REITs and utilities, which have gotten crushed along with everything else? I'm beginning to question whether the boom of ETFs may have caused this babies/bathwater punishment of the in…
Prob 20k-50sk die in NAmericar < much less than flu incidents > by late spring
As the current mortality statistic of this virus is 20X that of the routine flu, your numbers purely depend on the numbers of those infected. I'm not sure how the A…
REITs, utilities and other dividend focused US equities held up fairly well early on, but it looks like indiscriminate selling is leaking into those categories as well. Panic selling may be close at hand.
I have a one year CD maturing tomorrow...that 2.65% yield was pretty sweet/fortunate for bucket 1 money. Based on recent comments and research, that will be split between IOFAX and SEMPX. These securitized offerings should hold up well if rates rem…
Thanks, @stillers! (As in, @PittsburghStillers?) I updated the list following your suggestion.
Thanks for the updates.
To your question...borrowing a phrase, if I may, from Lambert's HOF induction speech...
"You damned well better believe (it)!…
J P Morgan says now is the time to add risk back into your portfolio and buy stocks. You can read more about this in the below linked article.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-09-02/jpmorgan-says-it-s-finally-time-to-buy-stocks-despite…
I have a few CEFs focused on this area... JPS, PFF, and RNP. The last, a Cohen and Steers offering combines REITs and preferreds. My current plan is to ride these for a bit and most likely jettison them when higher rates are in the mix.
