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.
Hi Kenster,
Thanks for the very interesting link.
I agree that population pyramids favor growth in EM over developed economies going forward, and that investing in companies that serve EM consumers is the best play as EM middle classes ramp up c…
Hi Scott,
PMHIX is on my watch list and nothing more, as I see no reason to be an early buyer of this mutual fund. I prefer for a track record to develop as an OEF before buying, knowing that PIMCO is unlikely to ever close any mutual fund. And I …
Thanks David for a wonderful update !
I agree with Scott that the only attractive L/S funds with decent track records continue to be BPLSX (we own) and MFLDX.
Note that both of these funds are very expensive to own, with real-world expenses pa…
In the moderate allocation space, other funds to consider would be: AFBAX, BUFBX, and ICMBX.
AFBAX would be my preferred fund as it has the lowest standard deviations over the past 1-, 3-, 5-, and 10-year periods, and has the highest sharpe ratio…
Hi tip,
Most of our assets are held at Wellstrade (WT) because of their 100 free trades/year for qualifying accounts. You may link a qualifying retirement account with a non-qualifying taxable account, so that you get 100 free trades for each acco…
Reply to @scott:
Hi Scott,
I agree with GMO that the best way to play EM is through their consumers:
http://spectruminvestors.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/ad_capturingdomesticdemandinem_114.pdf
I continue to be attracted to the Brazil-based ABV,…
In the domestic value space, I am using FNSAX, which is more of a multi-cap value fund. Another young fund in this space to consider would be GOODX.
In the domestic MC space (all styles), funds that look attractive include UMBMX, WPFIX ($2K minim…
Hi Bobpa,
This fund was recently dissected here:
http://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discussions-3/#/discussion/comment/11493
Right now, I would rate this fund as nothing more than a "Watch."
Kevin
Thanks Skeeter for the link. Interesting stuff.
Here are the latest "Stock Market Indicators," courtesy of Yardeni Research (5/20/12):
http://www.yardeni.com/pub/PEACOCKBULLBEAR.pdf
Bullish indicators as I see it: "Correction Camp" indicator at …
Reply to @MikeM:
Glad to help. PGDIX continues to deliver, and I will be increasing my allocation to this fund from 7% up to 10% in the very near future.
Kevin
Thanks Scott for the link. With total bond fund inflows continuing to swamp the total equity outflows, I am actually becoming more bullish on equities. And with the strategists followed by Bloomberg advising a low 52% allocation to equities, I bec…
Among funds that have a decent yield, pay distributions monthly, have attractive Upside/Downside capture ratios, and have performed well over the past 3 years, my favorite continues to be PGDIX.
Kevin
Reply to @David_Snowball:
Hi David,
I just called the fund, and that 2.47% ER is the latest expense figure that investors are charged to own the fund, and the NAV is adjusted for all expenses on a daily basis. Of course the fund management wants…
There are only 2 OEFs in the L/S space with attractive long-term returns: BPLSX and MFLDX. Since historically there has been an extremely high ratio of unattractive/attractive funds in this space, I would be very cautious about making more than a 5…
Hi Skeeter,
I don't place a lot of value in the M* FV chart as even at a 10% discount, the market has moved significantly below this discount in recent times: 91% FV (8/2/11) down to 77% FV (10/3/11); and 90% FV (1/10/08) down to 55% FV (11/20/08) …
Hi David,
First of all, I want to thank you once again for all of your hard work and dedication which has made this a fantastic web site for all investors, both new and seasoned.
After reading your review of AMDWX, I would like to request that you…
Reply to @Kenster1_GlobalValue:
Hi Kenster:
I totally agree that each investor should do their own due diligence prior to purchasing SFGIX. I was merely expressing my opinion that I have yet to be convinced that I should add SFGIX to my portfoli…
Reply to @scott:
Hi Scott,
I had read the linked explanation prior to writing my post. And I honestly cringed when I read this statement, " I have emphasized Asia in the initial portfolio because I know it best." That may be true, but it is no…
This fund is very young (inception: 2/15/2012), and has a whopping 81% exposure to Asia, which is way too high for a diversified EM balanced fund. So far, the larger, more established, and lower cost MACSX has outperformed SFGIX during all periods …
Reply to @Sven:
Here is the complete series of my U/D posts:
http://socialize.morningstar.com/NewSocialize/forums/p/247518/2726535.aspx#2726535
http://socialize.morningstar.com/NewSocialize/ViewPost.aspx?apptype=0&PostID=2929946
http://socia…
Here is the latest LSWWX Fact Sheet:
http://www.loomissayles.com/internet/internetdata.nsf/0/8BE0471F054A78EC852577A70058CC28/$FILE/GlobalMarkets_Y.pdf
Hi bee,
Based on my most recent Upside/Downside Capture Ratio calculations relative to VT (2009-2011), my favorites would be the following global funds in order of lowest downside capture: PAUIX (41/7), JNBSX (75/34), PGDIX (85/36), LSWWX (97/53), …
Hi Kaspa,
Among global funds (WA and WS) with an equity bias and an equal allocation to domestic and foreign equities, my choice would be LSWWX over OAKGX, as LSWWX has: much lower AUM; a lower ER; lower standard deviations and higher sharpe ratios…
"The Ultimate Guide To Natural Gas Investing":
http://commodityhq.com/2011/the-ultimate-guide-to-natural-gas-investing/
"5 ETF Ideas for the Long-Term Investor":
http://seekingalpha.com/article/531781-5-etf-ideas-for-the-long-term-investor
"Why …
Hi ducrow,
Here is a thread which you might find helpful:
http://socialize.morningstar.com/NewSocialize/forums/t/294193.aspx
I continue to like the RP space, and own 4% positions in both AQRIX and ABRIX. MMAFX became a RP fund as of 9/15/2009.
H…
There are a number of more interesting VIX plays as detailed here:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/380301-an-updated-field-guide-to-vix-etps?source=yahoo
Right here, right now, I would only invest in VQT, as I like its rule-based system as describ…
I'm with Ted on this one. If this site is indeed "in the tradition of Fundalarm," we should only post threads that are directly related to mutual fund investing. And by the way, this was a strictly enforced tradition at Fundalarm, so Roy must have …
Reply to @David_Snowball:
Thanks David for the link. GMO used to keep an archive of their past forecasts, but now they don't. I'm not sure why, but I intend to find out.
Kevin
Hi Kenster,
Thanks for the link and for all of your contributions at MFO. You are truly an asset at MFO and M*.
I agree with Jeremy Grantham's advice, but I do not like that GMO has removed the Asset Class Forecasts prior to 4Q 2009 from its libr…
I have not purchased this CEF, but it is on my watch list. Even though JG is all the rage these days, the fund is extremely pricy, with expense ratios of 2.74% (with leverage) and 1.38% (with no leverage) as detailed in the SEC filing:
http://goog…
Reply to @claimui:
A nice review of the JG-managed funds from another site:
http://socialize.morningstar.com/NewSocialize/forums/p/287732/3092742.aspx#3092742
Kevin
Even though investment rock stars like Andrew Lo (ASFYX, 7/30/2010 inception) and Cliff Asness (AQMIX, 1/6/2010 inception) offer managed futures funds, these funds and this alternative investment category have had very disappointing performances to …
If I wanted to own the RiverNorth DoubleLine Strategic Income Fund, I would only purchase RNSIX (net expense ratio 1.20%), which is available below the prospectus minimum ($100K) for $25K in Firstrade retirement and taxable accounts. RNDLX has an e…
I called Seafarer today, and the fund is not currently available at any brokerage, but the company is negotiating with a "number" of brokerages to carry their fund. Of course you can buy the fund directly from Seafarer.
This fund will be on my wat…
Hi Scott,
Honestly, I think that this trend to lower cost ETFs will continue. Costs matter and always will, and high costs definitely serve as a headwind to future performance -- savvy investors know this and common investors are recognizing this …
Hi Mike_E,
I would advise you not to worry about the cash position of ARIVX. Eric Cinnamond managed ICMAX from 10/3/2005 to 9/2/2010, and during this period an initial $10K investment appreciated to $17,613 vs. $10,391 for VBR. Since the inceptio…
PRPFX and PERM have distinctly different holdings:
PRPFX: http://www.permanentportfoliofunds.com/pdfs/perm/PRPFX.pdf
PERM: http://globalxfunds.com/Investment_Case/PERM_Investment_Case.pdf
A lower cost ETF was inevitable, as the management fee fo…
Hi Heathbob,
Instead of a Royce, Grandeur Peak, or Wasatch global SC/MC fund -- all of which are very expensive -- I suggest that you consider combining VSS (0.33% ER) with a domestic SC fund like HSCSX (1.18% ER, AUM $226M). Equal parts of these …
Looks like it went out of business on 12/29/2010 as detailed here:
http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=6178792
Kevin
