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 turned 82 in February but for some time I have been saying that no one my age should be running for president. Hate to say it, but somebody needs to have « the talk » with the DemocratIC candidate. Last night’s debate debacle embarrassed me and ma…
@mcmarasco: I have never owned American funds, but I like their ETFs for the seasoned teams managing them, the independence of team members (according to M*), the fact they are big enough to trade easily, and performance so far. I still own a few OE…
I have some 8% international in the actively managed portfolio. CGXU and OSEA for international LC, CGGO and GQPRX for global and BISAX for international SC.
I switched to BISAX after HIISX disappointed me in the last two years. Both of those funds…
NPR reported yesterday that Boeing received 7 plane orders in the past month but that 33 previous orders were canceled. That’s nearly 5 steps back for every one forward.
@Junkster: in my experience, Schwab will automatically debit the cash balance in our joint brokerage account to cover an Investor Checking account shortfall. It just happened recently when I had to pay taxes and estimated taxes. It’s not necessary t…
If I had turned down all but 4-5% of the most attractive investments (or dates) in my lifetime I would have no nest egg today and I’d still be trolling dating sites instead of being married for 58 years. Sometimes it pays to accept some risk and the…
I can access M* Premium thru local library. I think one cannot set up a watch list or a portfolio in the public version. Most everything else looks comparable to subscribers' version.
@MikeM: from what I can see, CGBL is about 30% FI, with another Capital Group ETF, CGCP as the only holding in that asset class. The rest of the fund appears to be all individual stocks. CGCP is labeled a core plus income fund. I don't know how RLGB…
@hank: it is a long article. Lots of acronyms and techy stuff. It may be that the New Yorker failed to bring Part II out of mothballs. I'll keep an eye out for a version in a decent format.
For some reason, the New Yorker published this week an article from 1972 about the Apollo 13 mission that nearly went really bad. I have linked Part I of the text by Henry S. F. Cooper, Jr., a writer I had not known. Surprisingly, Part II is not mad…
Thanks, @Mark. According to the article it would be illegal to offer a parasol to protect from the sun. Where do the drafters of these laws come from? Law grads who failed the bar exam or the competition to get a clerkship?
@Mark: I watched both women's games and was happy with the outcomes. UConn men and women seem to be able to score rapid bunches of points such that I lose track of the score and how well they are doing.
I appreciate you drawing my attention to recent performance of MOAT. In fact, over the past nine months it is lagging two other ETFs I like, TCAF and DSTL. The new fund from Capital Group, CGDV, has done better than all three, to my surprise. Maybe …
@BaluBalu: did you notice the apparent contradiction between the above description of the fund and the holdings as found in M*? OMFL holds almost no LC stocks, but is a MC/SC offering with an average market cap of $10B. Since midcaps constitute some…
You make very good points, @Devo. Several of your arguments could serve to buttress the choice of the "go-anywhere" style of portfolio management. I could be persuaded that an amateur investor ought not choose funds or securities on the basis of ass…
Today's Times reports that all members of the ship's crew are still on board and working full time to maintain the vessel where it sits. Seems odd to me, but they certainly have enough fuel and provisions to do so.
My Huskies are ready for Alabama. They could have beaten Illinois by 40, but let up a bit in the second half. Hard to beat a team that has a 30-0 run. We could see a fascinating battle of the big men (7'2" Clignan vs. 7'4" Edey) should those two tea…
I’m satisfied with MOAT, but I think Van Eck is guilty of ETF proliferation. Already they sponsor moat funds for international, ESG, global, and SMID, none of which derivative ETFs have done particularly well. Growth and value moat flavors don’t tem…
I looked at four GQG funds and they all have high turnover ratios, although not as high as 200%. Jain seems to be able to make active management work, whereas others cannot. In global growth a few years ago, Kristian Heugh could do no wrong; unfortu…
The creation of the Covid vaccine was surely a high point for our medical prowess; unfortunately, the anti-science crazies soon divided the country by promoting conspiracy theories. Thanks for the reminder, @catch22. Hard to believe four years have …
@sma3: I take an occasional winger on a M* undervalued stock, but the proof of the methodology is MOAT, my largest single equity holding. I note the space devoted to the index/fund in the linked M* article. Other flavors of ETF equity LCB funds have…
I depend on lip reading and am reminded of this when watching CBS, all of whose programs’ images (I.e., the speakers’ lips) are out of synch with the dialogue. My wife is a fan of Colbert, so I sit through about four shows a week understanding the l…
@BaluBalu: I agree that wry humor or irony are almost impossible to convey on a discussion board. As I disdain emojis, I really don’t know how to write with a roll of the eyes or a knowing wink. GP has twisted its underwear in efforts to rewrite his…
That's true, @BaluBalu, but then you'd be paying Grandeur Peak whose overall record leaves a lot to be desired. Since owning Needham I've never received a shareholder letter requesting forgiveness or forbearance for weak performance.
Hearing loss, which afflicts many of the seniors on this board merely because they are seniors, makes a raft of situations difficult. Hearing aids help, but nothing I know of can counteract background noise (whether a crowd or a rowdy table in a res…
Not exactly flying under the radar, because fund is well known to MFO members, but it may be useful to know that NEAIX/NEAGX currently holds 43% in microcaps. The fund’s moniker « aggressive growth » might lead some to think it’s yet another LCG fea…
@WABAC: we both hold XMHQ. I was surprised to find SMCI as its top holding. Surprised because the same stock is the top holding of two of my go-go growth funds. Haircuts ensued last Friday.
Turns out just about every one of my LC funds holds some Mag 7, even CGDV. My biggest single-fund holding, MOAT, has managed to stay ahead of its bogey without loading up on the usual suspects, although it does have just less than 9% allocated to th…
@Mark: you are right. Even so-called value dividend funds have some of the Mag 7 in the top 10 holdings. Unless you own SC and/or international, you have big tech.
GQRPX, Rajiv Jain’s global growth fund, which holds many of the usual suspects in its top ten, still lost only 3.79% in 2022. Funds in the same category dropped an average of 27% that year. Strikes me as an example of active management working excep…
As long ago as 2021, J. Rekenthaler of M* wrote:
"Ten years ago, many pundits foresaw a rebound in emerging-markets stocks, on the theory that they were worthy investments that had temporarily lost popularity. This "fashion argument" has failed the…
@Derf: I meant a couple of puncture flats have been the only times our Hondas ever went out of commission. I changed the tires myself, even though my back protested. Tire wear has been great. Right now, with a steep driveway and MI weather, I have f…
