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.
There is significant uncertainty surrounding Level 3¹ valuations
which rely on management's internal models and assumptions.
The CCLFX Annual Report dated March 31, 2025² indicates
that 64.67% of the fund's investments³ were classified as Level 3 as…
Excerpts from Heather Cox Richardson's Letters from an American.
Bolded text added for emphasis.
"Enrollment starts November 1, putting pressure on Congress to provide a fix before then.
In a partisan twist, more than three in four people enrolled …
From Markets A.M. newsletter by Jonathan Weil.
On this day in 1979, Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker made his first major announcement:
The Fed raised rates a full percentage point, to 12%, and said it would take tough measures
to control the …
The Embarrassing Pete Hegseth
The Pentagon needs sober, judicious leadership, not a drama queen who makes things jarring and fevered.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-embarrassing-pete-hegseth-e8e1e910?st=3jqZDV&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalin…
The Embarrassing Pete Hegseth
The Pentagon needs sober, judicious leadership, not a drama queen who makes things jarring and fevered.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/the-embarrassing-pete-hegseth-e8e1e910?st=3jqZDV&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
For many years I've used (and abused) a paper shredder¹ to destroy sensitive documents.
I would select a cross-cut shredder rated for Security Level P-4 or P-5² to use at home.
The Aurora AU1210MA Paper Shredder received high ratings on Consumer Rep…
@NumbersGal,
Building a ladder of individual TIPS held to maturity is a good suggestion.
I'm considering incorporating a TIPS ladder within my overall fixed income holdings in the future.
I’m really happy with my new forum — there are more active posters,
a lot more about investments, and far less political noise.
I’m mainly here because every now and then, I come across something genuinely helpful.
There is really only one poster I …
"a couple riding in the back of a limo talking about stocks is interrupted by the limo driver -
who turns out also to be an avid trader."
Well, to the best of my knowledge, at least shoeshine boys everywhere aren't giving stock tips! ;-)
Monthly data is utilized for Portfolio Visualizer analyses
while daily data is incorporated in Portfolio Backtester analyses.
Consequently, results will vary.
Portfolio Visualizer generated the following results for QDSIX, QLEIX, and QMNIX respecti…
Devesh Shah's conversation with Michael Cirami made me aware
of the Artisan Global Unconstrained Fund (APHPX)¹.
This fund's investment universe is incredibly broad.
APHPX has credit exposure to Benin, Argentina, and Iraq
while there is currency expo…
The Week in Charts (10/03/25)
The most important charts and themes in markets and investing...
00:00 Intro
00:21 Topics
01:21 Markets Are Partying Like It's 1999
08:48 Government Shutdown Won't Stop Spending Spree
16:41 Tesla's Turnaround
18:34 Coo…
From Markets A.M. newsletter by Telis Demos.
On this day in 1913, President Woodrow Wilson enshrined into law a federal income tax,
less than 20 years after it was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
He signed the act after 9 p.m. …
From Markets A.M. newsletter by David Wainer.
On this day in 1990, the Japanese stock market had what was then its best day on record:
The Nikkei 225 index skyrocketed 13.2%.
Investors were euphoric over rumors the Japanese government would interve…
I wouldn't rely primarily on current AI technology to pick stocks or funds.
I was playing around with Perplexity the other day to assess some mutual funds.
My queries were detailed and specific but Perplexity returned results outside of the paramete…
From Markets A.M. newsletter by Aaron Back.
On this day in 1958, American Express introduced its charge card, which was made of paper printed
with purple ink to match the color of Amex’s travelers’ checks. (Plastic came along in 1959.)
The $6 annu…
Excerpts from Heather Cox Richardson's Letters from an American
regarding Trump's Quantico speech to top military leaders:
For the next 70 minutes, he spoke slowly, slurring words, delivering to the hundreds of professionals who had rushed from ar…
From The Independent Vanguard Adviser newsletter:
"The U.S. government has shut down 20 times since the mid-1970s, according to data from the
House of Representatives. The S&P 500 averaged a microscopic 0.04% gain during those closures.
However…
Do as we like or get the hell out!
Since Mr. Hegseth is unqualified and incompetent, this is very concerning.
But it's just one more example of the Trump regime's ill-conceived actions which are detrimental
to our military, foreign relationships, ec…
From Markets A.M. newsletter by Jinjoo Lee.
On this day in 1981, Uncle Sam issued new 20-year Treasury bonds at a 15.78% yield,
an all-time high rate for any U.S. government issue.
Analysts expected that yields would have to go higher “to attract s…
When I mention "core bond fund", I am referring to the largest bond fund position in my portfolio.
My search domain includes the following M* bond categories:
interm. core-plus, global bond, corporate bond, short-term bond, nontraditional bond, and …
@msf,
I didn't realize Vanguard's patent also applied to actively managed funds.
I recall previously reading that it only applied to index funds.
Thanks for the correction!
The Week in Charts (09/27/25)
The most important charts and themes in markets and investing...
00:00 Intro
00:19 Topics
01:09 The Fed Has an Inflation Problem
06:38 A Stronger US Consumer Lifting GDP
12:42 Powell on Stock Prices: "Fairly Highly Val…
"In reality, most everything that they can get from your car, they already could get from your phone.
Location, acceleration, deceleration, cornering forces.
They can even tell if you were distracted from phone usage history."
@DrVenture,
Mobile …
My current, somewhat older vehicle (2011 model year) doesn't have an infotainment system
or electronic roadside assistance so it should not be susceptible to automakers' data collection.
It really irritates me when companies harvest our private data…
One reason bond prices are increasing is that many investors expect further Fed rate cuts.
What would transpire if inflation became worrisome and the Fed hiked rates in the months ahead?
It appears that certain bonds are "priced for perfection."
The…
From Markets A.M. newsletter by Telis Demos.
On this day in 1987, Charles Schwab launched its IPO, selling 8 million shares
of stock to the public at an original price of $16.50 apiece.
Just 20 days later, the crash of 1987 hit.
The stock market pl…
new slogan :
Vanguard proudly offers Agency cost at the lowest cost!
IVA 2025 review of ~50 managers :
22 : (more than half): $0 invested in their own funds.
7 : $1m invested in one of their funds.
[check out that last high conviction allocation…
