A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling provides much needed guidance on the issue of whether bankruptcy protection is afforded to inherited IRAs. While the bankruptcy protection afforded to ERISA qualified plans (as well as contributory and rollover IRAs) is clear the protection given to inherited IRAs hadn't been as well-defined. In Clark, et ux v. Rameker the U.S. Supreme Court [...]
Years ago the folks at Morningstar (the giant investment complex best known for their mutual fund research) began popularizing the investor gap - the difference between time-weighted returns (the returns of an investment) and dollar-weighted returns (the returns of an investor owning the investment). MorningstarAdvisor (a robust offering tailored to professional advisors) recently updated the research by noting some interesting [...]
We've all heard the adage "it's a marathon - not a sprint." Sadly in our instant gratification society too many of us miss the importance of the sentiment. Investors often fall victim to impatience - usually through fear of missing out or falling behind. Emotional barriers to smart behavior are real and shouldn't be minimized [...]
Looking for a plain language explanation of the benefits/importance of diversification? Try this on for size.
According to this recent report from Citi investors during the week of Feb 5th pulled record amounts of cash ($24 billion) from U.S. stock funds while putting almost $15 billion into bond funds. The S&P 500 returned 125% from its low in Mar 2009. Most investors sat on the sidelines seeing their shadows and predicting 6 more years [...]
When we do income tax planning for our clients one of the most frustrating aspects is YE mutual fund distributions. Each year mutual funds distribute to shareholders a pro rata portion of net realized gains and interest/dividends. Early each year the best we can provide our clients with is a guesstimate based upon a fund's [...]
The financial services industry product-pushers are at it again. Always be wary when "advice" is coming from someone who has a vested interest in you purchasing something.
The mutual fund industry can go to great lengths to protect itself. Rarely has there been a group that circles the wagons any better. A favorite tactic is merging a poor performing fund into an existing fund. This time around the bodies will be buried simply by the passage of time. Read what happens and see the change [...]
Somewhere Elaine Garzarelli is nodding her head. The woman who as a stock analyst at Shearson Lehman famously "predicted" the Black Monday market crash of 1987 is thinking, "Finally I'm not alone." Meredith Whitney's Garzarelli-esque moment was in 2007 when she famously "predicted" the troubles at Citi. Since then she's gone on to be horribly, [...]
Years ago I overheard a co-worker on the telephone ordering tickets for an event. The box office clerk included a $3/ticket "convenience fee" when summarizing the transaction causing my co-worker to ask, "For whose convenience?" When the mutual fund industry rolls out a new product it makes one wonder whether it's necessary and useful or [...]