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.
I had experience with OppenheimerFunds in 2008. It was IL 529 manager at that time. It stuffed lot of HY in the core bonds and allocation/balanced funds. This was stupidity if not fraud. That all turned ugly during the financial crisis. There was ev…
M* has 4* that is backward-looking based on past performance only.
M* Forward-looking Analyst Rating is Neutral.
Moreover, M* has had many negative comments & pieces on ARK.
Hard to blame M* on this.
I checked SPD prospectus, fact sheet, etc. They only mention put options overlay with some graphics but don't define downside protection parameters. So, it looks like buying pig in a poke.
@stayCalm, by name, JHEQX /JHQAX sounded like long-short fund but when I checked its portfolio at M*, it showed only longs, no shorts; M* classifies it under Options-Trading. Then, I dug deeper and found that it has 5-20 put options-overlay strategy…
JHEQX /JHQAX uses options spreads - it quarterly buys 5% OTM SP500 puts, sells 20% OTM SP500 puts, so the protection kicks in when SP500 is down between 5-20%. There is no protection for the first 5% down, or for more than 20% down. It is an options…
Mutual fund NTF platform restrictions are simply by days and the penalty is just the commissions. Brokers also keep track of shares free from restrictions and shares still under restrictions.
But frequent-trading restrictions are more nuanced and a…
The US Government bought $1.3 billion worth of Covid home test kits for free distribution from the Chinese iHealth Labs/Andon Health. A new chapter in US-China relations?
It is now 2-day settlement for stocks, ETFs, CEFs and only 1-day settlement for mutual funds. It is the same for taxable and tax-deferred/free (IRAs, 401k/403b) accounts. Days are business days.
New online brokers' rankings should be coming out in a few weeks. Here are those from last year, LINK.
There are also other rankings from Kiplinger, etc. LINK2
I think that OP @larryB is now more puzzled about TIPS.
BTW, the Fincash site you quote shows wrong denominator for Macaulay Duration - it should the the sum of the cash flows (not the bond price), so the weighting is indeed by the present values o…
Duration is present-value-weighted timing of bond cash flows. So, as off-the-run (existing) TIPS accumulate inflation-adjustments to be paid only at maturity, their durations are higher vs nominal treasuries that don't change their cash flow pattern…
European 5G frequencies 3.4-3.8 GHz
US 5G C-band frequencies (T, VZ) 3.70-3.98 GHz
T-Mobile 5G frequency (band 41) 2.5 GHz
Other frequencies are in use too, but the above are relevant for airplane instrumentations that have used 4+ GHz for decade…
I tried to look through website and prospectus but the strategy was unclear - some combo of long Treasuries with options overlay.
Looking at its chart, it does have positive correlation with 10-yr Treasury yields, but looking at some hi-lo values,…
See a response (4th reply) on the 5G C-band by "Bentley", a retired pilot, in a M* thread (unfortunately, his post alone cannot be cited).
https://community.morningstar.com/s/question/0D53o00005sqKJLCA2/aaii-sentiment-survey-11922
TIPS have higher durations than Treasuries of comparable maturities, so they are hit worse from rising rates. Almost 25% of TIPS are held by the Fed, a price-insensitive buyer. And TIPS funds behave quite differently from individually held TIPS to m…
Mark Twain, "If you don't like the weather in New England, wait just a few minutes."
But it applies to Chicago as well where we got up this morning with 7 degF.
Iceland? Nah! 45 degF today.
Yep. No one knew about 5G then. Actually, it is a relatively recent knowledge that mid-band offers the best compromise for 5G speed and range. And other parts of the mid-band are being used by other things. So, that leaves only the US C-band for T &…
@MikeM, a big issue with 401k/403b loans is that they become immediately due if you leave the job for any reason.
Other things are plan dependent, e.g. the plan may not allow contributions while a loan is outstanding, and in that case, employer mat…
FCC sold those C-band frequencies/spectrum (3.70-3.98 GHz) for $80+ billion. So, the FCC, and the companies who bought that spectrum (mostly T, VZ), want to push ahead; T-Mobile uses a different part of mid-band for its 5G. They are throwing stuff l…
Many airlines are canceling flights due to an unexpected 5G issue (not Omicron, not weather) - the US C-band (3.70-3.98 GHz; part of the mid-band) that just turned on can cause interference with plane instrumentations (nearby 4+ GHz used) & some…
This is an issues for Russell 2000 as well as the completion/extended-market indexes. Almost 35-40% companies in these indexes are unprofitable (no earning or no revenues). Refining these indexes into growth & value doesn't solve this basic issu…
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/politics/senior-citizens-medicare-free-covid-tests-retailers/index.html
".....As part of its effort to contend with Covid-19, the Biden administration is requiring health insurers to cover the cost of home tests for m…
I think that there is a government order/guideline for all health insurers to cover up tp 8 home tests for free after January 15. Insurers are rolling out implementations - whether by reimbursements or through regular plan coverage. All receipts sho…
2022 YTD Damage
With the selloff today, 1/18/22, Nasdaq Comp closed below 200-dMA. SP500, DJIA, DJ Transports are below 50-dMA. R2000 has been mostly below 200-dMA in 2022. Only DJ Utilities are barely holding above 50-dMA. These are seen in indivi…
There is quite a range YTD among the moderate-allocation funds (50-70% equity) with DODBX at the top, JABAX at the bottom, multi-asset FMSDX in the middle.
https://stockcharts.com/h-perf/ui?s=DODBX&compare=BALFX,FBALX,JABAX,FMSDX&id=p7643465…
I have checked the data from several sources and DODBX seems to have some good luck positioning YTD. See chart, https://stockcharts.com/h-perf/ui?s=DODBX&compare=BALFX,VBINX&id=p52082935307
MPT stats r and beta are tied to some benchmark, while ancient SD is not. There is a relation among them,
SD/SD_benchmark = beta/r,
or,
SD = (beta/r) x SD_benchmark.
All 3 terms on the right-hand side are tied to a benchmark, but when they are …
Spread in spread-products can absorb minor rate fluctuations just as your car's shock absorbers. But hit a big enough pot hole, and the shock absorber cannot handle that. See chart - USHY is the main chart, PFF (no PEF) and 10-yr $TNX are in the bot…
There are several classes of CPREX. In Barron's/Lipper database, interval-funds are shown under CEFs as "Continuously Offered" but info is very limited, mostly N/A. The Franklin Templeton site link is https://www.franklintempleton.com/investments/op…
Direct real estate fund CPREX is an interval-fund, a special type of unlisted fund that can be bought from brokers any time, but redemptions are limited. For CPREX, that redemption is up to 5% per quarter at NAV (so, may take 20 quarters (5 years) t…
TIPS are controversial. They have higher durations than Treasuries of comparable maturities, so they are hit worse from rising rates. Almost 25% of TIPS are held by the Fed, a price-insensitive buyer. And TIPS funds behave quite differently from ind…
I think that the regulators are worried about the health of the COMMERCIAL PAPER market that companies rely on heavily. Dependence on commercial paper to fund operations is not a good thing but it is what it is. This market has lost a huge buyer as …
Discussion boards develop personalities that are reflections of their site administrator(s) and/or active posters. So, MFO, Armchairinvesting, Big Bang, M* all feel different. All of these are "open" sites, so nonmembers can read discussions and ope…
That RMD table is OLD. Use NEW RMD tables from 1/1/22.
https://www.kitces.com/current-vs-new-uniform-lifetime-table-rmd-as-a-percentage-of-account-balance/
