LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
Carsons,
This is exactly what the BulletShares were designed for. You can buy a basket of corporate (either invest. grade or high yield) issues that all mature in a single calendar year, and hold it till maturity, collecting the net worth as if you held all the individual parts to maturity. This offers both diversification (the funds hold between 30 and 60 issues) and protection from interest rate risk. So while I agree with you in terms of funds like LQD that have to keep their average duration, forcing them to routinely sell off shorter durations and replace them with longer ones, series of funds like BulletShares and the iShares annual AMT Free Muni ETFs get around this problem very nicely while offering the sort of diversification you can't get in a bond ladder constructed of individual issues.
Levered Municipal Closed End Funds: A Cautionary Tale [View article]
What are your thoughts on NVN? My parents, who are NYC residents, own it in a non-tax deferred account as it provides triple tax sheltered income. Too risky anyway?
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
Also, for our users' convenience, we include links to all issuer fund pages directly from our ETF ticker pages. The link is on the right hand side directly under the fund description - "See more details on sponsor's website"
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
That certainly makes sense. Thanks again - I like the idea of monthly funding with one of the two funds depending on the previous month's momentum. That keeps you fully invested in both stocks and bonds and also avoids taxable events, as you mention, even in non-tax deferred accounts while hopefully improving returns.
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
RLJ,
All the info you need is available directly from Guggenheim (as is the case with all ETFs and ETNs). It is updated daily, following the market close. Here's the data on BSCH for example: http://bit.ly/wfLit3
In terms of Munis, iShares has an AMT-Free series that currently runs through 2017 - http://bit.ly/wsViOX
The iShares single year Muni funds work similar to the BulletShares, transitioning to cash/cash equivalents during the maturity year as holdings reach their end dates within that year and paying out a lump sum upon the fund's termination, in addition to regular distributions all along. One difference to keep in mind is these funds expire on 8/31 of the listed year as opposed to the BulletShares which expire on 12/31 of the year in question.
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
I should add that in a tax-deferred account, this would seem to be a very beneficial strategy. 1% a year in added gains is nothing to scoff at and really adds up over time.
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
Very interesting piece - thanks for sharing! I'm curious how much you imagine trading costs would affect this strategy. But beyond things like bid-ask spreads (which should be minimal for funds the size of SPY and AGG), I especially imagine that in a non-tax deferred account, there would be many years the short-term gains you're sure to register with this sort of strategy would wreak havoc on your post-tax returns. Is there any way you could recalculate with post-tax-returns in mind? Otherwise, this is a nice exercise in theoretics with little real world application as I see it.
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
Agree on the bid/asks though that has been improving. But as my plan was to hold them to maturity anyway, I used limit orders and didn't mind waiting until I got my order filled at a price I liked. And FYI, I'm only 31 - they're actually for my parents' non-tax deferred merrill edge account and have proven a godsend as I would have had to construct a way less diversified bond ladder for them otherwise as they are within 7-8 years of retirement. For my own account, I hold just BND and TIP in terms of fixed income as I'm nowhere near retirement and they make up only about 20% of my total portfolio.
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
I do own some LQD but it was significantly more before the Guggenheim's corporate BulletShares began trading. What those funds allow you to do is build a diversified bond ladder with full control over duration risk and even hold to maturity like with single bond issues. I'm thinking of pulling even more out of LQD and feeding it into BulletShares. Disclosure: Long LQD, BSCH and BSJE
Financial Times Says ETFs Are Reaching A Saturation Point [View article]
Great piece Lawrence! A couple of points: My impression from speaking with people in the ETF industry is that $30M is not enough for most funds to actually be considered profitable. The more accurate number depending on variables like expense ratio and overhead is between $50M and $100M. Also, your point on first mover has become less true with Vanguard's entry into the space. They have now overtaken two major iShares funds: Emerging Markets - VWO vs. EEM and Agg. U.S. Bond - BND vs. AGG.
'Buy High Sell Higher' - A Review Of Joe Terranova's Cutting-Edge New Book And His 2012 Outlook [View article]
I have no problem with a ratings-driven model or staying very up to the minute in CNBC's presentation. But let's not pretend like it's a good source of investing advice. The best advice for the vast majority of investors without the time or inclination to do the research necessary to have a fighting chance of beating the market after fees is to remain invested in passive cheap index vehicles, allocate to non-correlated asset classes, rebalance at set intervals w/out emotion, and tax manage. CNBC encourages investors to become traders on a daily basis. Is it entertaining? Hell's yeah! Do I watch it? Absolutely. Do I ever go near my portfolio after watching it? God forbid!
Casey Smith Positions For 2012: A Comprehensive ETF-Based Portfolio Strategy For The Next Year [View article]
Casey, I assume you're referring to PSP - PowerShares Listed Private Equity Portfolio ETF in your last comment. Care to elaborate on why this fund has performed so poorly both over the last year and since inception (assuming you have a strong sense of this). Also, considering its performance, it seems to have a fairly large asset base (roughly $350M AUM). In your opinion, is that simply b/c of the ease of access it provides?
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
This is exactly what the BulletShares were designed for. You can buy a basket of corporate (either invest. grade or high yield) issues that all mature in a single calendar year, and hold it till maturity, collecting the net worth as if you held all the individual parts to maturity. This offers both diversification (the funds hold between 30 and 60 issues) and protection from interest rate risk. So while I agree with you in terms of funds like LQD that have to keep their average duration, forcing them to routinely sell off shorter durations and replace them with longer ones, series of funds like BulletShares and the iShares annual AMT Free Muni ETFs get around this problem very nicely while offering the sort of diversification you can't get in a bond ladder constructed of individual issues.
Levered Municipal Closed End Funds: A Cautionary Tale [View article]
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
All the info you need is available directly from Guggenheim (as is the case with all ETFs and ETNs). It is updated daily, following the market close. Here's the data on BSCH for example: http://bit.ly/wfLit3
In terms of Munis, iShares has an AMT-Free series that currently runs through 2017 - http://bit.ly/wsViOX
The iShares single year Muni funds work similar to the BulletShares, transitioning to cash/cash equivalents during the maturity year as holdings reach their end dates within that year and paying out a lump sum upon the fund's termination, in addition to regular distributions all along. One difference to keep in mind is these funds expire on 8/31 of the listed year as opposed to the BulletShares which expire on 12/31 of the year in question.
Hope that helps.
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
Improving Your Return Profile With A Simple Momentum Strategy [View article]
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
LQD: Do You Know What's In Your Bond ETF? [View article]
Financial Times Says ETFs Are Reaching A Saturation Point [View article]
Jeff Miller Positions For 2012: Biggest Mistake Investors Can Make Right Now Is Underweighting Stocks [View article]
'Buy High Sell Higher' - A Review Of Joe Terranova's Cutting-Edge New Book And His 2012 Outlook [View article]
'Buy High Sell Higher' - A Review Of Joe Terranova's Cutting-Edge New Book And His 2012 Outlook [View article]
Casey Smith Positions For 2012: A Comprehensive ETF-Based Portfolio Strategy For The Next Year [View article]
Positioning For 2012: Guide To The Series [View article]