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.
Reply to @andrei: Hi, andrei. Andrew and I sort of continued the conversation after the call was over. Here's what I think I heard:
1. e.m. valuations are not as attractive as they were back in May -- share prices are up 30%, economic fundamental…
Reply to @teapot: Sure, I'll be happy to do so. Remember, though, that the call - and the chance to chat with Andrew - is open to you, too.
Take care!
David
Reply to @andrei: They were actually the original inspiration for the article. The key is that they won't have a track record by March 1, so I was poking about.
Thanks for the catch, though. David
Reply to @MaxBialystock: Hi, Max. Yep, we're working on "comprehensive pages" for every fund where we do a call: mp3 of the call, mp3 of the profile, updated profile, link to the latest factsheet and to the Navigator. Haven't seen a lot of use of…
For what interest it holds, here are the smaller caps that we've profiled:
Aegis Value (AVALX) - microcap value, absolutely cratered in the meltdown, blew the roof off since
Artisan Small Cap (ARTSX) - under management by the Mid-cap team. GARP-y…
Reply to @prinx: Howdy!
I work with Scottrade, I don't really trade much and I add new funds rarely. Over the long term, that means one fund swap a year or so (selling Artisan Small Cap to buy Artisan Small Cap Value, for instance). That's how No…
I checked the 25 largest funds launched since 12/30/2011. Here's the profile:
Load-bearing: 18 "A" or "529-A"
Institutional: 6
Retail, no-load: 1
The latter is BNY Corporate Bond, Investor Shares (BYMIX).
In an "only Morningstar" quirk, many of …
Reply to @prinx: I eat the taxes. I don't have either a savings account (other than a holding tank for my property tax) or a money market. RPSIX and RPHYX serve in their stead. While both have downside (heck, money markets are buying record amoun…
Reply to @lrwilliams: I agree.
I had a nice talk today with Ed Studzinski, who used to co-manage Oakmark Equity & Income (OAKBX). He argues that closed-end funds such as First Trust/Aberdeen Emerging Opportunities offer a lot more return than …
Reply to @bee: I tend toward skepticism of total bond funds, for the reason Teresa Kong shared - they are weighted based on how much debt you've already issued rather than on how creditworthy you are. That said, there are two funds that implement a…
Reply to @mrc70: Had I mentioned that it's been an incredibly long day?
FPA Crescent and T. Rowe Price Spectrum Income are both correct. I managed the symbols (I think "I wonder how RPSIX did?") but botched the names.
Thanks for the catch. Back …
It's been vexing me for a long while now, which is why I haven't said much.
In general, I think a long-term holding needs to minimize manager risk and to accord a fair degree of flexibility to the manager. That is, I'd be reluctant to box someone …
I'll mention the query to chip. She and I have both had intermittent problems in accessing the site over the past several days. She believes it's a problem at our host's end but hasn't yet figuring out what, exactly.
More soon,
Snowball
Reply to @Shostakovich: I'll share your kind words. Emma will be thrilled. Leeds is in Yorkshire, which has a reasonably distinct and pleasing dialect. By happenstance, that's also the birthplace of "Snowball." The first recorded use of the name…
Reply to @Shostakovich: Howdy! Emma Presley, a British friend of chip's and mine, does all of the audio profiles. Each profile is a 1000 word rewrite of the print profile, so they should run 8-10 minutes. I'm in the process of shipping Matthews A…
Here's their answer. At base, they have nowhere to invest the money they've already received and so don't want to dilute performance any further by sitting on a huge cash pile. This text is from a note to their shareholders.
David
We are tempor…
Reply to @andrei: Barry was an international manager. Mike Roos at Artisan argues that in a global market, all managers have a global competence. The "international" manager can't say whether Fiat is a "buy" without knowing if Ford is a better buy…
Reply to @mnzdedwards: I'll try to give Ryan Leggio a call next week and ask. On the road for a few days,visiting NYC for the fun of it.
Certainly other funds have found the arrival, and departure, of large accounts a mixed blessing.
More soon, D…
My best sense is that Erik left for personal reasons, entirely unrelated to the fund or the fund company. It's clear that FPA would gladly welcome him back.
My best sense is that Barry and Artisan came to a rather more strained parting. I don't …
Reply to @Charles: I suspect you're right - that the folks unwind a bit more with us than they might otherwise. Part of that is that fact that the conversation you hear on the call is generally my third or fourth interaction with the manager. That…
I wonder what "mark" they're missing?
The article focuses on 2015 Date funds. It makes one interesting observation: since 2009, their target asset-allocation has decreased from 49% to 40%. As market-timing generally goes, that was a poorly timed …
Reply to @MourningStars: I've been playing phone tag with my contacts at Artisan. It looks like we'll be able to connect late Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday. I'll post a quick update here as soon as I know something.
Take care,
David
Reply to @Investor: Hey, pal.
It varies. Depending on the number of folks in attendance and whether we run over our one-hour limit, a call costs something in the $400-600 range. In general I pursue a cost-sharing arrangement with the funds. Some…
Reply to @Maurice: Hi, big guy!
As AndyJ and chip note, it's just a phone call. Click the link, enter your email, and you'll get an 800 number and a PIN (no, not share of an India ETF). Dial in just before 7 Eastern. You'll be on hold until the …
Reply to @Hiyield007: How odd. The Morningstar "country breakdown" is 82.77% US but the analyst does note that they hold "non-U.S. developed-markets (19% of assets) and emerging-markets debt (21%)." Presumably holdings like "Irs Brl Zcs R 8.44/cdi…
Reply to @andrei: But PIMCO Income (PIMIX) is a domestic bond fund - 83% US and maybe 3% emerging markets - so it's not terribly surprising that it would have a different profile, especially in the short term.
Talked with Andrew. He's pretty fired up about the February conference call.
With regards to the expense reduction, he notes that they have a contractual expense reduction in place. This is a voluntary reduction on top of that. The contractua…
Reply to @BenWP: Excellent! I knew there was another and couldn't find it this morning when I was composing.
Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income Common (FAX) is a Gold-rated CEF. $2 billion in AUM. Expenses and returns close to MAINX. Two clear distin…
Reply to @Charles: For what interest it holds, Andrew also celebrate the first anniversary of Seafarer's launch (2/15/12) by having a conference call with us, Tuesday, February 19th at 7 Eastern. Planning that call is the main subject of today's c…
