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.
Investors who held fast to their muni bond funds have done just fine. Whitney's comments, which of course the media mostly took as gospel, have proven to be way wrong (no surprise there). While there will always be some defaults, it would appear t…
FWIW, remember that once you give your money to the insurance company, it is gone for what ever period of time the surrender period lasts. Usually fixed annuities have a much shorter surrender period than variable annuities. And also remember that…
CNNfn used the words plummet and plunge numerous times last week. 1%-2% does not mean plummet or plunge to me, so it's rather obvious the words were chosen exactly to scare. The quality of financial journalism is really pretty poor right now, with…
We sold our positions in UMBIX quite some time ago, and have never looked back. The initial swap was to FVALX, because we wanted to have a very low-risk holding in our client domestic stock positions. We have not been disappointed. The last month…
Folks have named a number of credible sites for gleaning information. To be honest, I get a lot of quality information from mutual fund web sites, especially things like market commentaries, economic outlooks, sector strategies and expectations. A…
I would never say that Price Funds is not a top-notch group. They may indeed have great experience in local currency trading. This fund, however, is pretty new. Low expenses and cautious management will be a plus. If you believe that local curre…
I agree. Technology as a sector is definitely NOT at a bubble. But some of the feeding frenzy IPO action is nuts. Some of these stocks will do ok, while others will fizzle out. It's always been that way and probably always will. We are using PR…
In terms of global themes, we do not see much change. Infrastructure, commodities (especially agriculture and energy), and technology. We like domestic companies with a lot of EM exposure. We like places like Canada, Brazil, Australia, Indonesia,…
Brazil is THE economic engine of Latin America. Its oil reserves and natural resources will help sustain a huge long-term economic growth cycle. Will there be pullbacks from time to time? Of course. Will there be inflation in this kind of growth…
It never ceases to amaze me what awful investment options are included in most 401k plans. I mean, where do the trustees/investment committees come up with such truly bizarre lists? I understand when a plan is sponsored by an insurance company, an…
If you can access Templeton Global Bond Fund in a non-commission format, that would be worth a look for sure. Manager Michael Hasenstab has been a genius at handling foreign currencies. The fund is essentially all foreign government bonds. Anothe…
We do not use FMI Large Cap. It is certainly an ok option, and the concentrated portfolio is a plus. You might consider using a fund with smaller asset size. That would give the managers much more flexibility in the short term, until the fund gai…
Sine your two funds are large cap value (I like Oakmark, but am not a fan of D&C), I would suggest something that owns smaller companies and also something that is more growth oriented. To this end, you might consider Ivy International Core Equ…
And for the most part he has been spot on. He does a very good job of outlining the seasonality of gold and oil prices, so I do think that, with current high prices for both of these, new investors should dollar cost average and not dump a lot of c…
Hi Cathy
There should be absolute no tax issue with the transfer, assuming all assets can be transferred "in kind". You will be doing a trustee-to-trustee transfer. If there are any proprietary UBS holdings, it is likely they will have to be liqu…
We would dollar cost average into CEF, but with caution. We agree with some smart folks who believe gold has a long ways to go, over the next few years. Obviously there will be some pullbacks along the way.
I agree with rono in terms of the seasonality part. Gold is often lower during the late spring and summer months, since most of the world "gift-giving" holidays are over. Now might be a time to consider some dollar cost buying to begin accumulatin…
Shostakovich, maybe MikeM's suggestion of Permanent Portfolio PRPFX is something to consider. If your spouse is as risk averse as you hint, PRPFX could fit the bill nicely. After all, it owns Treasuries, Swiss francs, gold, silver, and a mix of en…
If you have not already considered Ivy Asset Strategy, I would suggest that you do. It has a very long history, has had the same lead manager forever, and has been one of the few REAL global allocation funds (go anywhere and hedge risk) to have a r…
Hi Investor. I really do not much care what M* does with their sector and class decisions. We find that, especially with classes, M* looks at some funds very differently than we do. Not that there is any one right way to analyze these things, but…
We continue to own it as a core holding in most client accounts. As rono says, this is a buy-at-anytime fund. As close to a buy-and-hold as any fund I can think of. Best.
As we often do, Rono and I agree on a number of options here. We use U.S. Global World Precious MInerals (UNWPX - we use UNWIX) and a smattering of First Eagle Gold (SGGDX) for mining stock exposure as well as some bullion. For gold and silver bul…
There are a number of reasons we would sell a fund. The top reason is if we are unable to talk to the manager or a member of the team. Since we spend a lot of time on the front end of the decision of hiring a manager, not being able to talk to the…
Count me as a vote in favor of the new look. I may be in the minority, but I like the uncluttered look. Yeah, it may add a few seconds to look at a specific discussion, but I know it will help me when I am looking at 3-4 days of discussions, after …
Scott, your comments are well taken. The managed futures investments do indeed do well when there is a consistent direction in the futures marekts. As you pointed out, 2009 was all over the place, and the first 6 months of 2010 even more so. Then…
I would just suggest that you consider another option, that being managed futures, and not just long-only commodities. When commodities tanked in 2008, long funds really took it on the chin, while managed futures funds ended the year with gains. I…
There are several very good options. Loomis Sayles Bond (LSBDX, LSBRX) is probably the grandaddy of them, and has two of the best managers in Fuss and Gaffney. It is a core hold in many client accounts. We also like BlackRock Strategic Income (BS…
