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.
FYI, here are some optimistic market observations from an article in yesterday's WSJ. Here are some excerpts:
"Shares of small companies and sectors of the market like financials and energy notched strong gains, while the broader stock market's mov…
Here is what David Giroux, the wunderkind manager of one of the best asset allocation funds, PRWCX, said in a recent M* interview about rising interest rates and duration:
"So, now, everybody's convinced the yields are going to go up 1% to 2%, but …
I have been looking at Highland Capital Management with respect to their NexPoint Merger Arbitrage fund (HMEZX). In the process, I came across an article in the Wall Street Journal from October 16, 2019 that indicated that the firm filed for bankrup…
little5bee said: "I wonder if the outperformance is from buying distressed funds..."
I don't have a clue what the manager's secret sauce is, but SVARX's "outperformance" since its inception in 2013 seems to indicate that he knows what he is doing.…
BT2020 said: "But go ahead and keep pushing highly leveraged and/or non-liquid funds...
So what's next?
Are you going to start pushing 2x and 3x leveraged funds like Profunds & Direxion too?"
Please, let's keep this thread on topic and let's n…
Sven said: "Overall the 60/40 allocation provides the best balance on return versus risk. However this is my personal opinion but every investors need to evaluate their own risk tolerance with respect to the return."
Thanks for your analysis, Sven…
No Mark. You are correct. I don't own but I believe it was available recently. It no longer is. So I guess I missed it. Too bad because it looks like a great fund.
No, Jon, unless you got PRWCX mixed up with another fund, it has been closed to new …
@fred495. JHQAX is very interesting. Will review the risk profile on MFO Premium and report back.
Thanks, Sven. Look forward to your assessment of JHQAX.
A quick look at its profile indicates that in its category the fund has a MFO Risk=2 ("C…
Thanks, JD, for sharing.
Never considered using options-based funds. But, after a quick review, both SWAN & DRSK look quite promising. Need to do more DD, of course.
Thanks, again.
Fred
After doing some research, I came across JHQAX, a fu…
Sorry, Crash, but I actually never pay much attention to "r-squared". I usually focus on a fund's std. deviation, Sharpe and Sortino values.
I put PTIAX on my watchlist because I was comfortable with its risk/reward profile. Also, M*'s 3-Yr Risk …
Thank you, MrRuffles, that's great news.
I was always wondering what happened to former Berwyn Income Fund managers Cipollini and Saylor after they resigned in 2019. Looks like they finally found a new home at Penn Mutual. I will be following the …
sma3 said:
"There is no magic cure in this low interest rate environment. With a duration of 8 years, VWINX may really hit the wall if rates go up."
I quite agree with your opinion on VWINX and, as I said previously, another Vanguard fund, VSCGX, …
If you're interested in multisector bond funds, you may want to consider RCTIX.
Fact Sheet
Thanks for the suggestion, Observant.
RCTIX is already on my watch list and I am currently monitoring its risk/reward performance. So far, so good.
Than…
Thanks for sharing, Rick.
Currently, ARBIX, TMSRX, PIMIX and TSIIX make up 65% of my portfolio that I feel fairly comfortable with going into 2021. It's the other 35% that I am struggling with. With high equity valuations I might hide out in funds …
Thanks, Crash and Starchild, for your suggestions.
PTIAX, another multisector bond fund, looks good and I'll add it to my watchlist to monitor its risk/reward performance. Certainly seems to belong in the company of PIMIX and TSIIX.
I also took a …
SWAN & DRSK are also on the menu. They seem to go well together.
Thanks, JD, for sharing.
Never considered using options-based funds. But, after a quick review, both SWAN & DRSK look quite promising. Need to do more DD, of course.
Than…
https://institutional.fidelity.com/app/proxy/content?literatureURL=/9898959.PDF
Using the above link, on pages 17 and 18 Fidelity explains the investment process and the portfolio construction parameters of their Disruptive Funds.
Apparently, the…
Thanks for your suggestion, msf, ANFFX looks very promising. I will put it on my watch list and monitor its risk/reward performance along with FGDFX. I am not in any hurry to make a new investment at this time with valuations so rich, and large sect…
Anyway, back to FGDFX. As I have said, I have this new fund on my watch list, but I am holding back in making a buy decision at this time because I am not comfortable with its "team managed" structure. But, I have been impressed by its excellent ris…
Consider Vanguard's Wellesley fund, VWIAX.
Thanks, but Vanguard Wellesley is part of my portfolio listing and shown as VWINX. Just a different share class. Since I am not with Vanguard, I can't access VWIAX.
Fred
I still have FGDFX on my watch list and continue to be quite impressed by its excellent risk/reward profile since its inception in May. Its total return since then is 41%, and over the past one and three months, it gained 5% and 15.4%, respectively,…
"Now we are in a period of high debts and deficits, high valuations, aging workforce (deflationary), falling dollar (inflationary), and COVID. I choose to be more conservative now."
Well said, Lynn.
Here is what another poster on the M* discussion…
As of 11/30/2020, my "Retirement Portfolio" has total value of $1,113,533, and a YTD total return of 11.35%:
ARBIX----- $215,747----- 19.4%
FGDFX------ 122,431----- 11.0
PIMIX------- 217,673----- 19.5
TSIIX------- 222,628----- 20.0
VLAIX------ 335,…
Take a look at MATFX. Its focus is on Asian companies who are all disruptors in their fields. If you check it on MFO PREMIUM you'll see strong consistent outperformance. The other benefit is it provides diversification through international expos…
I'd at least hold off awhile with this new fund. It's not clear how it is managed [...]
Fidelity's prospectuses are typically vague, but this one more than usual. This is a fund of funds, but the prospectus doesn't make clear who is responsible …
I'd stick with ARKW and ARKG.
Sorry, wxman, but as a retired and somewhat conservative investor, ARKW's standard deviation of 29 and ARKG's of 36 are not exactly in my comfort zone. But, thanks anyway.
Good luck,
Fred
FD said: "In the last 3 months...PRWCX 8%...VLAIX-VLAAX only 4.6-7%..."
That's all well and good, FD, but why do you keep bringing up PRWCX when it is closed to new investors and, therefore, not an option for those members who prefer to invest in …
FD said: "With that in mind:
1) Core: I would use SPY/VTI for most of my stocks. BIV as my generic bond fund.
Explore: PRWCX, VWIAX, PIMIX."
Since PRWCX in your above "Explore" category is closed to new investors, and has been for many years, shou…
A fund like VLAAX spreads its bond exposure over many sectors (Corp, Muni, Gov, Secur). It's 56% equities / 35% Bonds / 9 % cash right now.
Good choice, bee. An even better choice is VLAIX, the institutional shares. Requires, however, an initial…
Exclusive: Europe to pay less than U.S. for Pfizer's German BioNTech vaccine under initial deal
By Francesco Guarascio, Reuters - 9:56 AM ET 11/11/2020
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union has struck a deal to initially pay less for Pfizer's C…
"BioNTech, the small biotechnology company that is the originator of the vaccine, was founded by two married German scientists, Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci, both born to Turkish immigrant parents, and the Austrian oncologist Christopher Huber."
Tha…
Even though I may have agreed with some of T's policies on illegal migration and confronting China on its unfair trade practices, for example, but, on the whole, I found the man to be a total egomaniac, a poor negotiator who ran a disorganized admin…
wxman123 says: "I respectfully suggest GIBLX for what you're looking for. One of my favorites, perhaps my ultimate favorite at the moment."
GIBLX used to be one of my favorites, but with rates seemingly going up, I currently prefer funds with short…
Just a suggestion, Basball_Fan, but perhaps you may also want to consider joining the existing "2020 Challenge-Participants", it's a new thread on MFO moderated by benchrest, aka Rich?
It's an annual event where the participants post their monthl…
As of 10/31/2020, my Challenge "Retirement Portfolio" has total value of $1,073,493, for a YTD total return of 7.35%:
PIMIX----- $212,055-----19.7%
TMSRX-----212,985-----19.8
TSIIX-----218,534-----20.4
VLAIX-----429,919-----40.1
Total----- $1,073,…
