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Investment That Protects You From Yourself: Bonds

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:55:48 -0400

May 20, 2013: New Features: FolioInvesting One-Click, Portfolio Dividend & Static Portfolio Change

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:18:36 -0400

We introduce several new features including email attachment for FolioInvesting portfolio allocations, portfolio dividend data and dynamically changing a static portfolio while maintaining historical performance data.

Tax Rate Reminder

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:47:50 -0400

From Wesley Gray at Turnkey Analyst comes a reminder about tax rates. Tax rates are going up, and how your investment is taxed may be as important as how it performs.

PIMCO’s Big Picture: Dialing Down Risk

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:40:09 -0400

PIMCO’s CEO Mohamed A. El-Erian published an article on Barrons.com that discussed the PIMCO’s global investing outlook. To summarize: Views for the next three-to-five years: • In Europe, with the lack of a comprehensive resolution, the collapse of the single currency will remain conceivable though not a dominant probability. The more immediate threat is a [...]

African Gold Group, Inc. KBRC12-084 Intercepts 69 Meters of 2.37 g/t Au; KBRC12-066 Intercepts 20 Meters of 1.63 g/t Au & 9 Meters of 20.96 g/t Au at Kobada, Mali

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:00:00 -0400

May 13, 2013: Preparing To Take A Loss

Tue, 14 May 2013 09:35:16 -0400

Preparing for a loss in the coming correction: we would rather do it proactively and getting psychologically prepared before it happens.

Issuer Spotlight: iShares

Mon, 13 May 2013 07:00:13 -0400

When State Street introduced its S&P 500 index Fund–the SPDR S&P 500 ETF –back in 1993, a revolution was sparked. Since then, exchange traded funds have become the go-to fund for both retail and institutional investors. Assets in ETFs continue to grow and there are currently more than 1,400 funds available for investors. Leading the way is issuing firm iShares [see also How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time]. An Industry Veteran In response to State Street‘s popular SPY, Morgan Stanley, in cooperation with British investment bank Barclays, launched a series of ETFs called WEBS–standing for World Equity Benchmark Shares–that tracked various MSCI foreign stock market indices. Later in 2000, Barclays underwent a new branding effort designed to grow the ETF market. The bank launched over 40 new funds, with extensive education and marketing behind them, and renamed the original WEBS as iShares. During the financial crisis, as a way [...]

Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com.

Dare to Prick The Bond Bubble? Rates Will Stay Low

Fri, 10 May 2013 13:16:23 -0400

zerohedge reported the CNBC’s interview with DoubleLine’s Jeff Gundlach. It summarized very well why bonds are not at the peak of their bubbles: Adding to Gundlach’s view, we see four potential reasons that investors should not be ‘hoping’ for a bond selloff… 1) rates are low, and will stay low since The Feed needs to hold [...]

Preparing to Retire – Wealth Management Carnival #12

Fri, 10 May 2013 10:12:45 -0400

BY AUSTIN FEY Today’s carnival is all about retirement: saving for it, where to open accounts, how much to withdraw once you do retire, and more. Read on for more details! A Fresh Perspective on Employer Retirement MatchesEmily presents Should You Count Your Employer’s Contribution into Your Retirement Savings Percentage? posted atEvolving Personal Finance.“If you get an employer [...]

Put Armageddon Insurance In Your Portfolio

Wed, 08 May 2013 18:00:14 -0400

Investors, repent. The end is near.

Essential Financial Advice for College Graduates

Wed, 08 May 2013 11:09:01 -0400

BY MEGAN RUSSELL My husband began his last undergraduate exams ever today. He graduates from the University of Virginia in a little over two weeks. As I approach this time with him from the other side of the ceremony, I find myself reflecting about how college graduates face a particular set of financial and life planning [...]

African Gold Group, Inc. Feasibility Study Drilling on 25 Meter Centers Pushes Au Mineralization 1 km South of (2011) 43-101 Resources Estimate-Kobada Remains Open Along Strike, at Depth and West

Wed, 08 May 2013 09:00:00 -0400

How to Find a Financial Advisor, Step by Step (PBS Newshour)

Tue, 07 May 2013 11:30:29 -0400

BY DAVID JOHN MAROTTA There’s a great article by Paul Solman of the PBS Newshour entitled, “How to Find a Financial Advisor, Step by Step” which reads in part: Zvi suggested contacting the NAPFA, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, for someone in your area. He also recommended his own online library of resources for getting started with [...]

May 6, 2013: High Dividend ETF Portfolio Construction

Tue, 07 May 2013 10:01:43 -0400

One can use a tactical strategy to construct a high dividend ETF portfolio by carefully including a well selected candidate ETFs with high yields. A 6% to 7% yield portfolio is possible.

Emerging Market Bonds Back In Favor

Fri, 03 May 2013 09:48:20 -0400

Emerging market bonds had incurred quite some loss since the beginning of the year to the end of March. Since April, however, it has climbed out of hole. In fact, it is now ranked highest among all other fixed income bond segments in our trend score ranking table (see MyPlanIQ 360 Degree Market View for more details): [...]

Spring cleaning for your portfolio

Thu, 02 May 2013 09:53:40 -0400

By John Wasik (Reuters) – Whether you need to invest a tax refund or simply want to see if you’re on track with your investments, spring is a great time to get out the broom. I needed to make a large contribution to my 401(k) to offset some taxes recently, so I took the opportunity [...]

April 29, 2013: Goal Based Financial Planning And Investing

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:30:43 -0400

Goal based financial planning helps you to classify your needs into several categories. You then setup your investment portfolios based on these goals.

Active ETF Investing: 3 Things To Consider

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:00:07 -0400

While the bread-and-butter of the ETF industry has been index-tracking products, active ETFs are quickly growing in popularity as several funds have gained critical mass with investors. There are now more than 55 different active ETFs with a combined $13 billion and counting in total assets under management. More importantly, these funds have allowed retail investors to apply professional management to a variety of asset classes and strategies [see 10 Questions About ETFs You've Been Too Afraid To Ask]. What’s the Appeal? For investors, there’s a lot to like about active ETFs. First, given the markets heavy volatility over the last few years, active ETFs–because they are managed by a professional–have the ability to shift allocations and positions according to the economic environment. Recent studies have shown that managers with high “active shares”–or the percentage of a fund’s weight-adjusted portfolio that differs from its benchmark–can produce extra returns for portfolios. Typically, [...]

Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com.

IRA Cap Gives Rise to New Funding Strategies

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:25:46 -0400

BY DAVID JOHN MAROTTA We wrote about Obama’s fundamentally flawed financial planning model in “Is A $3 Million IRA Sufficient For Retirement?” John Sullivan of AdvisorOne wrote a nice article entitled “IRA Cap Gives Rise to New Funding Strategies” which confirms much of what we advise. It read, “Curbing the growth of retirement plans in a [...]

April 22, 2013: Portfolio Rebalance – Ease of Use

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 09:33:22 -0400

We review portfolio rebalances for both ETF, mutual fund brokerage accounts as well as 401k accounts. We further show FolioFn's one-click basket rebalance feature.

The Problem With Intrinsic Value

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:52:26 -0400

Howard Marks makes a compelling argument for using relative strength (without even referring to relative strength): “If you are a value investor and you invest whenever you find a stock which is selling for one-third less than your estimate of intrinsic value, and you say, I don’t care about the macro, nor what I call [...]

How Manipulations to the CPI Affect Your Retirement Planning

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 09:41:57 -0400

BY MATTHEW ILLIAN Every year it gets harder to live off a Social Security paycheck. Cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) fail to keep up with the true out-of-pocket expenses. Retirees must plan to supplement this slowly dwindling paycheck or risk having to make hard sacrifices during what is supposed to be their golden years.- If there was ever [...]

CNBC’s Model ETF Retirement Portfolio for the 30-Year-Old Investor

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 17:30:39 -0400

In a collaboration with exchange traded fund experts, CNBC has rolled out an all-ETF diversified portfolio for the investor looking to save toward retirement. “We wanted investors to have some exposure to most asset classes, that would be stocks, bonds, cash, commodities and even real estate,...

iShares Core Total U.S. Bond Market Breaks Above 200-Day Moving Average - Bullish for AGG

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:55:04 -0400

In trading on Wednesday, shares of the iShares Core Total US Bond Market ETF (AGG) crossed above their 200 day moving average of $111.39, changing hands as high as $111.44 per share. iShares Core Total US Bond Market shares are currently trading trading flat on the day.

High costs dim appeal of multi-asset funds

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 11:29:59 -0400

By John Wasik (Reuters) – On paper, multi-asset funds look great. These tactical “fund of funds” let an investor cover objectives ranging from inflation protection and income to international growth, while enabling managers to diversify quickly and avoid market sell-offs. On the market for years, multi-asset funds have gained traction since the 2008 financial crisis. They [...]

Quant Approach to TAA Paper Updated

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 16:13:22 -0400

I updated our 2006 paper “A Quantitative Approach to Tactical Asset Allocation”. I am going to send it to The Idea Farm list this Friday so make sure to signup! This 70 page new update includes: 1. Results are extended out-of-sample to include the years 2009-2012. 2. Additional asset classes are included (from 5 Mor...

Three Bond ETFs With Sub-Five Year Durations

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 15:37:33 -0400

As many bond investors already know, duration measures a bond's sensitivity to interest rate changes. The longer a bond's duration, the more sensitive it is to interest rate increases. Conversely, shorter duration bonds are less vulnerable to interest rate changes.

Speculation that U.S. interest rates could rise are part of the

Why being defensive has played well in this rally

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:41:21 -0400

While the defensive sectors underperform the S&P in all historical stock rallies, they are actually outperforming in the current rally, beating the S&P by 2%-5%.

April 15, 2013: What Happened To Gold And Commodities?

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 09:36:13 -0400

Gold and commodities are down. But for a long term investor, this is just a natural part of the whole process. At some point, they will have positive effect on portfolios.

Total Bond Market ETFs Battle For Inflows: AGG vs. BND

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 04:00:50 -0400

Total bond market ETFs have found their way into countless portfolios as they offer unparalleled simplicity and cost-efficiency for investors looking to gain broad, diversified fixed income exposure. Through the purchase of a single ticker, investors can beef up their portfolios’ current return all the while tapping into the major segments of the bond market, including government Treasuries and corporate debt [see 101 High Yielding ETFs For Every Dividend Investor]. While there are over a dozen offerings in the Total Bond Market ETFdb Category, two funds remain safely atop the list: the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF and the iShares Core Total U.S. Bond Market ETF . Meet the Competitors Among the Total Bond Market ETFs currently available on the market, AGG and BND separate themselves by being the biggest funds in the space, boasting over $15 billion and $18 billion in total assets under management, respectively. Although these products are seemingly identical, [...]

Click here to read the original article on ETFdb.com.

Morningstar on Momentum: “A Powerful Way To Enhance Returns”

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:51:22 -0400

Morningstar does a pretty deep dive into momentum in their article Does Momentum Investing Work? I highly recommend reading the whole article as it covers some excellent long-term studies of momentum.

Review of The Affluent Investor by Phil DeMuth

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:17:57 -0400

by Geoff Considine I have known Phil DeMuth for a number of years and I admire his common sense and views on many topics. Phil authored the recently-published book The Affluent Investor that fills a need in the crowded shelves of investment books. As a financial advisor to high-net-worth families, Phil brings valuable perspective to investors who have [...]

Take the lazy portfolio route to big returns

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 10:08:27 -0400

By John Wasik CHICAGO | Mon Apr 8, 2013 5:04pm EDT (Reuters) – I have always found that laziness is a virtue when it comes to managing my own money. The less I trade, the better my performance. Years ago, in an attempt to come up with a hypothetical portfolio that provided low-cost diversification, I created what [...]

April 8, 2013: First Quarter Review: Trends Are In Place But Can They Sustain?

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 09:50:41 -0400

We review our asset allocation strategies for some typical portfolios. Overall, we are pleased with the performance of the three strategies (SAA equal weight, SAA Optimal and TAA). They have done exactly as what they were supposed to do.

Using Long Term Bonds To Improve Returns Of Bridgewater’s All Weather Risk Parity Portfolio

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 07:27:24 -0400

By MyPlanIQ:

In our previous article, we constructed an all weather risk parity portfolio using intermediate term bonds (

Real March Unemployment Rate: 11.6%

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 12:53:57 -0400

Today, we got the laughable news that the unemployment rate declined even as those not in the labor force grew by over 660,000, while the total civilian non-institutional population grew by just 167,000 to 244,995, meaning the actual labor force declined by 496,000.

PIMCO Total Return Bond ETF Still Betters Its Mother Mutual Fund

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 11:35:39 -0400

Bill Gross’ PIMCO Total Return Bond ETF (BOND) is still out performing its mutual fund counterpart (PTTRX), both Year To Date (YTD) and since its inception on 3/2/2012: Portfolio Performance Comparison (as of 4/4/2013) Ticker/Portfolio Name 1 WeekReturn* YTDReturn** 1Yr AR 1Yr Sharpe 3Yr AR 3Yr Sharpe 5Yr AR 5Yr Sharpe 10Yr AR 10Yr Sharpe [...]

Long Term Bonds Surged Amid Stocks Consolidating

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 10:05:07 -0400

The latest trend scores of major asset classes show that long term bonds (IEF, TLT) surged even US stocks and international stocks are hanging tough. In the meantime, US REITs is making new high post the financial crisis. This indicates that high yield stocks are favored. Assets Class Symbols 04/04Trend Score 03/28Trend Score Direction [...]

A Man in the Mirror by Bill Gross of PIMCO

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 17:02:34 -0400

Am I a great investor? No, not yet. To paraphrase Ernest Hemingway’s “Jake” in The Sun Also Rises, “wouldn’t it be pretty to think so?” But the thinking so and the reality are often miles apart. When looking in the mirror, the average human sees a six-plus or a seven reflection on a scale of one to ten. The big nos...

Fixed Income Trend: Bond Weak But Not Down Yet

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 10:17:03 -0400

From the trend score tables on MyPlanIQ 360 Degree Market View, the following shows how bond ETFs have been doing: Assets Class Symbols 03/28Trend Score 03/21Trend Score Direction High Yield JNK 3.79% 3.53% ^ Long Term Credit LQD 1.42% 1.72% v Intermediate Term Credit CIU 1.4% 1.55% v International Inflation Protected WIP 1.38% 0.57% ^ Intermediate [...]

Yes, There Is Still Hope In Bond Investments

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 08:55:03 -0400

By MyPlanIQ:

Current bond yields are at historical low. Even though Federal Reserve's quantitative easing is ongoing and at some point, it is going to tail off. The Fed Chief Ben Bernanke is likely to retire next year. In the meantime, investors are forced to invest in risky assets. The S&...

April 1, 2013: Momentum Over Stocks, Sector And Style Funds

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 09:28:52 -0400

We present performance results on momentum based stock funds, sector rotation and style rotation. We further make observations on the effectiveness of momentum based investing in various categories.

Anemic Inflation: Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Still Weak

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 09:10:36 -0400

Doug Short reported the following two latest inflation updates: From the above, PCE (Personal Consumption Expenditure) is still very weak, indicating continuing anemic inflation rate. This can be interpreted that deflation is still in effect.

Investing Ideas – Wealth Management Carnival #10

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 10:03:03 -0400

BY AUSTIN JOHNSTON This edition of the Wealth Management Carnival we focus on investing. We have some helpful definitions of investment vehicles and instruments, advice on what to go for and what to avoid, and all kinds of opinions on that roller coaster ride: Financial Markets. What Does “Diversification” Really Mean? – It’s SimpleRoger Wohlner presents Investment [...]

Bond Math

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:42:23 -0400

Advisor Perspectives ran a recent research piece from Leuthold Weeden on bond math. Although this stuff is fairly well known within the advisor community—or at least I hope it is—it seems to be almost completely unknown to clients.

Five questions to get to brass tacks with your money manager

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:53:24 -0400

By John Wasik (Reuters) – When interviewing a money manager, most investors want to know investment performance. It is a natural question, but there is much more you need to know beyond absolute returns. In lieu of focusing exclusively on annual performance, it will be more important to know about a money manager’s record on [...]

March 25, 2013: New Feature: Advanced Static Portfolios & Lazy Portfolio Asset Allocations

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 09:20:42 -0400

A new feature allows users to use their allocations to create portfolios for a list of funds (such as a 401k plan or a brokerage recommended funds such as Fidelity Fund Picks or Schwab OneSource Select Funds) and receive monthly or quarterly rebalance emails.

What to Look for in a ‘Core’ ETF Investment Portfolio

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:48:58 -0400

When constructing a well diversified exchange traded fund portfolio, it is important to maintain strong “core” allocations before diverging off the beaten path. “Ideal strategic ‘core’ portfolios give broadly diversified exposure to an entire asset class,”...

Inextricable Link Between the Economy and the Stock Market?

Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:36:41 -0400

Abnormal Returns hits on one of the single most important topics for investors to understand if they want a shot at making money over time. Without understanding the reality that the economy and the stock market are two very different things investors are doomed to a frustrating, [...]

AGG: Large Inflows Detected at ETF

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 11:31:21 -0400

Symbols mentioned in this story: AGG Exchange traded funds (ETFs) trade just like stocks, but instead of ''shares'' investors are actually buying and selling ''units''. These ''units'' can be traded back and forth just like stocks, but can also be created or destroyed to accommodate investor demand.

News About

Investment That Protects You From Yourself: Bonds

May 20, 2013: New Features: FolioInvesting One-Click, Portfolio Dividend & Static Portfolio Change

Tax Rate Reminder

PIMCO’s Big Picture: Dialing Down Risk

African Gold Group, Inc. KBRC12-084 Intercepts 69 Meters of 2.37 g/t Au; KBRC12-066 Intercepts 20 Meters of 1.63 g/t Au & 9 Meters of 20.96 g/t Au at Kobada, Mali

May 13, 2013: Preparing To Take A Loss

Issuer Spotlight: iShares

Related Posts:

Dare to Prick The Bond Bubble? Rates Will Stay Low

Preparing to Retire – Wealth Management Carnival #12

Put Armageddon Insurance In Your Portfolio

Essential Financial Advice for College Graduates

African Gold Group, Inc. Feasibility Study Drilling on 25 Meter Centers Pushes Au Mineralization 1 km South of (2011) 43-101 Resources Estimate-Kobada Remains Open Along Strike, at Depth and West

How to Find a Financial Advisor, Step by Step (PBS Newshour)

May 6, 2013: High Dividend ETF Portfolio Construction

Emerging Market Bonds Back In Favor

Spring cleaning for your portfolio

April 29, 2013: Goal Based Financial Planning And Investing

Active ETF Investing: 3 Things To Consider

Related Posts:

IRA Cap Gives Rise to New Funding Strategies

April 22, 2013: Portfolio Rebalance – Ease of Use

The Problem With Intrinsic Value

How Manipulations to the CPI Affect Your Retirement Planning

CNBC’s Model ETF Retirement Portfolio for the 30-Year-Old Investor

iShares Core Total U.S. Bond Market Breaks Above 200-Day Moving Average - Bullish for AGG

High costs dim appeal of multi-asset funds

Quant Approach to TAA Paper Updated

Three Bond ETFs With Sub-Five Year Durations

Why being defensive has played well in this rally

April 15, 2013: What Happened To Gold And Commodities?

Total Bond Market ETFs Battle For Inflows: AGG vs. BND

Related Posts:

Morningstar on Momentum: “A Powerful Way To Enhance Returns”

Review of The Affluent Investor by Phil DeMuth

Take the lazy portfolio route to big returns

April 8, 2013: First Quarter Review: Trends Are In Place But Can They Sustain?

Using Long Term Bonds To Improve Returns Of Bridgewater’s All Weather Risk Parity Portfolio

Real March Unemployment Rate: 11.6%

PIMCO Total Return Bond ETF Still Betters Its Mother Mutual Fund

Long Term Bonds Surged Amid Stocks Consolidating

A Man in the Mirror by Bill Gross of PIMCO

Fixed Income Trend: Bond Weak But Not Down Yet

Yes, There Is Still Hope In Bond Investments

April 1, 2013: Momentum Over Stocks, Sector And Style Funds

Anemic Inflation: Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Still Weak

Investing Ideas – Wealth Management Carnival #10

Bond Math

Five questions to get to brass tacks with your money manager

March 25, 2013: New Feature: Advanced Static Portfolios & Lazy Portfolio Asset Allocations

What to Look for in a ‘Core’ ETF Investment Portfolio

Inextricable Link Between the Economy and the Stock Market?

AGG: Large Inflows Detected at ETF