CEF/ETF income and arbitrage strategies, 8%+ portfolio yields
Get 40% OFF ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS for the Income Lab!
You can now join our exclusive community of income investors for what amounts to less than $1 per day for the first year of your subscription.
Whether you're a novice or experienced closed-end fund (CEF) and exchange-traded fund (ETF) investor, you've come to the right place. Our goal is to help you benefit from income and arbitrage strategies in CEFs and ETFs, all without having to be an expert, because we will do the heavy lifting for you. If that sounds interesting to you, you can give us a try with our two-week free trial.
After the trial, you will understand why our members love our service. We can help you:
Join us now and start generating safe and reliable 8% yields from our portfolios today!
Best Present Ever!
Best of the Best
A must have
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1) Stanford Chemist: I am a scientific researcher by training (PhD in Chemistry) who has taken up a passionate interest in CEF and ETF investing. I provide fresh, agenda-free insight and analysis that you won't find on Wall Street! I apply the same rigor to my investment research as I do in the lab. But I'm not just some mad scientist cooking up random investing experiments. My subscribers benefit from my careful, methodical analysis and due diligence. I've thoroughly researched each of the strategies I recommend in CEF/ETF Income Laboratory, so the legwork of finding actionable, relevant investment ideas is all done for you. My ultimate goal is to provide analysis, research and evidence-based ways of generating profitable investing outcomes with CEFs and ETFs. My guiding philosophy is to help teach members not "what to think", but "how to think". I am also currently ranked #1 on Seeking Alpha's leaderboard for CEF analysis.
2) Nick Ackerman: Nick is a former Financial Advisor and has previously qualified for holding Series 7 and Series 66 licenses. These licenses also specifically qualified him for the role of Registered Investment Adviser (RIA), i.e., he was registered as a fiduciary and could manage assets for a fee and give advice. Since then he has continued with his passion for investing through writing for Seeking Alpha, providing his knowledge, opinions, and insights of the investing world. His specific focus is on closed-end funds as an attractive way to achieve income as well as general financial planning strategies towards achieving one’s long term financial goals.
3) Juan de la Hoz: Juan has previously worked as a fixed income trader, financial analyst, operations analyst, and economics professor in Canada and Colombia. He has hands-on experience analyzing, trading, and negotiating fixed-income securities, including bonds, money markets, and interbank trade financing, across markets and currencies. He focuses on dividend, bond, and income funds, with a strong focus on ETFs, and enjoys researching strategies for income investors to increase their returns while lowering risk. He is the "ETF Expert" of the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory.
4) Dividend Seeker: Dividend Seeker began investing, as well as his career in Financial Services, in 2008, at the height of the market crash. This experience gave him a lot of perspective in a short period of time, and has helped shape his investment strategy today. He follows the markets passionately, investing mostly in sector ETFs, fixed-income CEFs, gold, and municipal bonds. He has worked in the Insurance industry in Funds Management, helping to direct conservative investments for claims reserves. After a few years, he moved in to the Banking industry, where he worked as a junior equity and currency analyst. Most recently, he took on an Audit role, supervising BSA/AML Compliance teams for one of the largest banks in the world. He has both a Bachelors and MBA in Finance. He is the "Macro Expert" of the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory.
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Our service includes (among many other features) managed income portfolios (targeting safe and reliable ~8% yields) making use of high-yield opportunities in the CEF and ETF fund space. These are geared towards both active and passive investors. The vast majority of our holdings are also monthly-payers, which is great for faster compounding as well as smoothing income streams!
And that's not all. When you subscribe to CEF/ETF Income Laboratory, you'll also get:
You'll find none better than CEF/ETF Income Laboratory!
One of unique strategies that we have developed at the Income Lab is something that I've termed the "compounding income on steroids" methodology. With this CEF rotation approach, we can harvest significant capital appreciation from an income portfolio. In effect, we can get a "double compounding" from the reinvestment of distributions and the share count growth obtained through the rotation strategy. Our members have a step-by-step guide on how to obtain "free shares" using the strategy here.
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This table shows some of the important differences between the premium site and our free articles.
Feature | Free | Premium |
Chat board | No access to chat board. | 24-hour access to chat board with Stanford Chemist and over 500 other serious like-minded CEF/ETF income investors, some with decades of trading or professional experience. |
Articles | Certain articles generally released after 2 to 4 weeks of delay. | Immediate access to all articles. This can be significant for short/medium-term trading ideas (e.g. CEF arbitrage), corporate actions (such as rights offers or tender offers) where immediate action is required, or for acting on timely buy and sell alerts for undervalued or overvalued funds. |
Portfolios and Trade Alerts | None. | A Tactical Income-100 portfolio to exploit mean reversion, special situations and deep value opportunities, an Income Generator portfolio for steady income, and a Taxable Income portfolio for maximizing after-tax returns. A momentum model using ETFs. |
Commentary and Analysis | A "just the numbers" presentation on the quantitative aspects of the fund or market, no specific recommendations. | Additional actionable insight and commentary is provided. For example, in the CEF Weekly Roundup we provide actionable recommendations on relevant fund news and events. In the monthly CEF reports, we may make a recommendation as to whether a certain top-ranked fund may belong in your portfolio or not. |
This Venn diagram neatly summarizes the difference in the type and timing of content between our premium site and the public site. Note that a number of our most popular features, including our market-beating portfolios, timely trade alerts, corporate action news and recommendations, and PIMCO Tear Sheet are NEVER released to the public, not even after a delay.
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On the fence about joining CEF/ETF Income Laboratory? Don't be! Look at what our members have rated our services, with over 150 of our reviews being rated 5-stars. Numbers don't lie!
Even esteemed Seeking Alpha contributor Steven Bavaria calls our Income Lab the "Intel Inside" his Income Factory.
I really appreciate the various model portfolios and the analytics and insight that support them. I regard myself as primarily a portfolio manager and strategist, and rely heavily on Stanford Chemist and his CEF/ETF Income Laboratory to be a key part of the analytical "Intel Inside" that I use to help make the investment decisions that support my "Income Factory."
- Steven Bavaria (Jan. 21, 2019)
"Best CEF service" ... "His knowledge, charts, data, and portfolios on CEFs are brilliant.".... "CEF investors rejoice!" ... "SC and the chatroom help me to embrace the volatility and they also provide the encouragement to act with reason when all seems to be chaotic" ... "There is no "pie in the sky- we can make you a millionaire" nonsense on this site. Just good common sense investment information." ... "the best part is the education you receive for a very low cost".
Take a look at our 5-star reviews written by satisfied members:
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The CEF/ETF Income Laboratory membership costs $588 per year on a monthly plan ($439/year on an annual plan). That gets you thousands of research hours conducted on your behalf each year by our team of experts. We are the most-affordable service out of the top 10 newsletters on the Seeking Alpha Marketplace.
Because we initially wanted to make our research ideas available to as wide of a community as possible, we have deliberately kept our membership rate low despite the immense value that members are receiving from our service. However, as our community grows larger (over 1000 members), we need to avoid the service becoming too popular in order to preserve value to existing members and avoid moving the market too much with our trade recommendations.
All members are grandfathered for life at the membership rate that they signed up at (excludes first year introductory discount). Our founding members are still paying the founding membership rate of $26/month from 3 years ago! So I highly suggest that you lock in the current rate while you still can.
Remember, "time = money", so being able to save hundreds of hours of CEF and ETF research each month with what amounts to the price of a cup of coffee every few days is truly an incredible bargain. And our members agree!
"I don't have the time do all the research needed. Definitely worth the subscription price."
"CEF Research Time is Money!"
"Saved me a ton of research hours each week. Hands-down worth every penny of the monthly fee."
"Well worth the cost"
"More than worth the price."
A membership to the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory community gets you more than an investing hypothesis. You get access to proven income and arbitrage strategies designed to help you generate real income from CEFs and ETFs. Subscribe and you'll soon see why one subscriber calls us a "one-stop shop for CEF research".
We would love for you to join us. We are sure that you will enjoy our service and benefit from what we have to offer!
Sincerely,
What's most impressive is the willingness of the community members to help each other in a fast, helpful and respectful manner! The subscription easily pays for itself.
Just renewed my annual subscription for the sixth time because this service provides the absolute best service available to understand and invest in the CEF market. The service has allowed me to establish a consistent monthly income stream so I can sleep well at night being a new retiree. When I started, it was just Stanford Chemist running the service and I don't know how he did it in those early days, but he was always responsive to questions and supportive of the members. He listened to the members and added or modified articles and tools that provided value to everyone. Since then additional excellent authors and contributors have been added each bringing a unique set of expertise. The service is top notch for anyone wanting to learn about CEFs or increasing their knowledge. The authors, contributors, and members themselves provides a constructive ecosystem focused on helping members and responding to a multitude of questions in a highly constructive manner. The service has allowed me to pick quality CEFs during pre-retirement, set up that consistent monthly income stream, get use to the natural ups and downs of any market as well as unique volatility of CEFs, and then jump into retirement with a level of confidence that was stress free. Highly recommend this service!
This service provides me timely, clear actionable advice on investment options of interest to me.I love the CEF Rotation method for growing value over time and I use the service to identify trade opportunities for rotation. I also use the service to identify quality buy and hold assets for income.
After I retired, I knew my Investing goals, tools, methods, and process were going to need to change. I wanted to rotate out of Equities, Options, ETF's and markets into a much more orderly, safer, and less volatile environment.
Nick Ackerman and his Teams here at CEF/ETF Income Laboratory have made that job much, much easier and a lot less stressful than I was expecting.
Following his guidelines and model portfolios, I have already made enough to pay the subscription fee many times over, and will continue on as a Subscriber frm now on.
Thanks, Nick and Team. You make it easy, enjoyable, prepare well, and do so much of the legwork, detective work, and analysis chores for us! Your recommendations and guidance are much appreciated.
Over the years I have tried several services on SA but the one I find the best is CEF/ETF Income Lab. Their research is well thought out, clear and informative. I cannot do without it. The true test for me is that I have made money using their service. I highly recommend them.
Great analysis with very useful information presented at frequent intervals. Definitely recommend to others interested in income investing.
I love the insights and the responsiveness of the authors of this service. The explanations for why or why not they recommend a CEF is detailed and easy to understand. Will definitely be a continuing subscriber.
Update: The more I use this service, the better I like it. No question a "stupid" question and the insights are very educational.
I'm coming up on my one year anniversary with the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory. I find the articles, charts and the weekly reviews to be invaluable tools for an income investor like myself. I told myself I wouldn't resubscribe if the service didn't pay for itself and it has. I can't recommend it enough.
I can't recommend the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory enough. The analysis of funds is detailed, presented well and easy to understand. They issue weekly and monthly reports on the CEF space with great information. There's also CEF & ETF model portfolios, a watchlist, a chat room and a library (I learned a lot in the library). Well worth the subscription price.
This service provides access to data that is virtually impossible to access elsewhere. I find it indespencible.
I have used Income Lab for over a year now and it is without a doubt the BEST of the BEST on Seeking Alpha
I have been a member for just a couple of months after leaving another service. I have found cef/etf lab to be a far better service than the previous one. Information is well researched and timely and well worth the cost of subscription.
I have been a member of the Lab for a couple of years and following SC longer than that. The Lab is the best of the best on SA. Best explanations, best guidance, best ideas, best content. They are really that good.
At the time I hesitated to write my first ever review, I was looking at a very long list of people who appreciate this service. I really agree with them. I really needed to find some assets that would give me a stream of monthly payments. I followed the advice to create a CEF portfolio. I honestly use all three portfolios. Even though the market situation is not very good and most CEFs have fallen, I continue to make quite a decent income, so I can wait a bit for the market to change. Not to mention the regular articles that I read despite my poor English level. Perfect results, because the team is cool.
Long term CEF investor here. CEF/ETF Income Lab summary. Concise: Articles are frequent, brief, similarly organized, quick reads with needed data and some conclusions. Trade ideas are presented: Clear reasoning, motivation for swap or buy or sell is clear, boundaries/ratios are provided in case of large movement. Chat room: Intelligent, focused, high quality interactions and high level of author interaction and quality, no BS, just CEF/ETF/market discussions. Due diligence data is presented: The articles and recommendations are timely enough to be actionable but you have the data presented within the article to compare quickly as you do your DD and trade now. Buy/Sell/Hold opinions are mathematical, not emotional. Many data, market, sponsor based active spreadsheets are available. The authors are very active and present articles and opinions on both sides...good and bad. Efficiency, clarity, objectivity with a nice mix of opportunities and continued knowledge growth. Do as you wish but my subscription will continue.
During weeks when the stock market tickers are a sea of Red, it is a reliable comfort to be a subscriber to the Stanford Chemist's CEF/ETF Income Laboratory. SC, Nick Ackerman, Juan de la Hoz and the others deliver 3 crucial "Values Added", Information, Integrity and Individualized Service. To elaborate, data is not information, all authors at the CIL do research in depth which is embedded into a coherent conceptual framework which informs the reader. Integrity is abundant in the transparency of the daily operations and the willingness to check back on successful hypotheses as well as tests which didn't support the thesis. As SC notes to us all he "Eats His Own Cooking". Individualized service at the Income Laboratory is the "Stand Out" value added. The authors respond quickly and directly to the questions of subscribers, frequently bringing pointers to additional analytical resources. This responsiveness is critical for individuals thinking through the issues of self-directed investment decision making. As a subscriber since 2019, moving from working life to retirement, as someone who has used so called "Wealth Managers", I say you can hardly do better than the CEF/ETC Income Laboratory.
I follow the income generator and tactical income portfolios using the exact percentages they have in each fund and have had great results in both income and growth. Love the rotation trades!
I can give the highest rating possible to the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory for several reasons.
1) I very much like the detail the Income Lab adds to its various Stock and Fund Portfolios.
2) I like the fact you have several quite well qualified staff to unlock for members the wonderful world of CEF's, ETF's and ETN's.
3) Combined with the excellent Seeking Alpha Premium program, I plan to remain a member well into the future.
Thank you for your valuable and useful work!
Barry M. Faulkner
Excellent investment information and advice on generating income. I especially appreciate all the information on Closed End Funds. The research is a great help in picking an investment path that works for you. Highly recommend this service.
Excellent analysis on CEFs. No one is better.
This is by far the best service out there! Several articles a week and multiple model portfolios one can use as an example or follow outright. The amount of research alone that this team provides is worth it and saves you tons of time. They also are pretty unbiased in my opinion, as they not only research good funds to look into but also funds to avoid. Overall, I am greatly satisfied with the service and customer support. 100% recommend!
After using CEF/ETF Income Laboratory for a few months, I have been very happy with the service. The articles are very informative regarding both CEFs and ETFs. I have attempted investing in CEFs in the past, on my own, with some varied success, using free websites and public CEF tips. However the expert level portfolios and trade alerts recommended by this service, did all the hard work for me. CEF investing requires much more skill, than plain vanilla index fund buy & hold strategies. My results with the services were successful overall, given the challenging market conditions of late. Also the ETF articles are very helpful for ETF investing in general, not just dividend paying funds. I highly recommend the service to anyone interested in CEF & ETF investing.
I have found the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory to provide a consistently useful and valuable service, which is why I was happy to recently renew my subscription.
The Income Laboratory offers excellent support for people who want to invest in CEFs for income. There are model portfolios, frequent analysis of the market and particular funds, trade alerts for opportunities, etc. There is also an active and friendly community with great engagement from Stanford Chemist & co. as well as members.
I do not have the time to constantly monitor the CEF space for opportunities, so I find it very valuable that the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory brings these opportunities to my attention and provides analysis that helps me decide what to do. This way, the service has paid for itself many times over. My main regret is that I did not subscribe sooner. I believe it would have helped me to avoid some costly beginner's mistakes since CEFs can be somewhat unusual investment vehicles. Value is not just the profits you make but also the losses you avoid.
If the service's focus on income and CEFs fits your investment needs, I heartily recommend you try it out.
I would recommend this service all day if someone wants to remain disciplined with building a stable portfolio of income producing funds. The contributors are highly competent, knowledgeable, and provide great analysis into the best CEFs to consider investing into, and also which to avoid for various reasons.
An important niche market that I and many other investors need guidance. CEF/ETF Income Lab eats and breathes this stuff so I don't have to.
I have subscribed to a number of Seeking Alpha services over the years and the Income Lab stands above them all.
Courteous and responsive to any questions that I might have and they put out more articles than I can read. High quality problem.
Stanford Chemist, Nick and Juan put a lot of effort into their articles and the information is easily digested.
It's critical, with all of the data flow in the market, to be able to find information that is reasonable and actionable.
The other bonus is the author's are all nice people who care about my experience. Makes a difference.
The chat is very informative without the usual cast of narcissist personalities who create nothing but distractions.
All in all a great environment to invest in with a very nice group of people.
Thank you SC and crew - appreciate your service and professionalism.
I am an early retiree whose CEF investment yield provides the majority of my monthly income. Whilst I enjoy managing my portfolio, I have limited time and knowledge to do it well. Having followed the CEF/EFT Income Lab for some time, I subscribed to their paid service after taking some losses in the March 2020 "Covid crash". I was looking for guidance to improve my portfolio and have reached out to Nick and SC on several occasions with specific questions. Their prompt and reasoned response has led to changes and I am more comfortable with both the risks i'm taking and the pricing/timing of my trades. I'm confident that i have the right partners to help me going forward and justifying the Income Lab subscription is "no brainer". Furthermore, I have just subscribed to the Cash Builder Service to trade options.
As an investor, I'm always looking for outstanding value. There is no doubt in my mind that this service provides premium value and more than pays for itself many times over. Things I like about this service:
1. Top notch analysis. These folks really know their stuff.
2. Model portfolios give recommendations that feel like it's from a trusted advisor.
3. Community. Great engagement that not only can I learn from SC's team, but also from (many) others who are part of this community. SC has set the stage for a safe atmosphere for friendly and engaging ideas and knowledge sharing
4. Outstanding engagement from SC's team. Starting from a warm welcome when i joined, to thoughtful replies in direct messages to SC and his team, to engagement of questions in the chat room, this is first class team.
Outstanding value. Keep up the good work SC and team.
I was looking for income and a way to grow my portfolio and am so glad I found the CEF Income Laboratory. The education on closed end funds coupled with actual tailored portfolios and trading alerts saved me an immeasurable amount of time and made me a much more comfortable investor. They regularly provide excellent in-depth analytical articles on both individual CEFs and the CEF ecosystem. For individual questions their chat community is responsive and welcoming with a plethora of good advice and suggestions. This service is absolutely worth it!
There is consistency, insight, and depth of analysis that sets this service apart from others. I particularly like the Chat comments and outreach by the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory team.
I highly recommend this service to anyone considering signing up for it. They constantly write articles related to the funds that they cover and funds that they do not cover. They even research member request and discuss them in length. It is a great value for the money and I have benefitted from their knowledge on CEFs and ETFs.
I have been with the Lab for 3 years now. SC provides a objective, consistent way to rank the CEFs. This suits lot of working professionals as we do not have time to find a "big" score. SC has continued to add more services that really learn about this investment space. I ditto others about the wealth of expertise.
Excellent analysis across CEFs and ETFs with great explanations of various rights offerings that affect these investments. As a professional investor I find this an indispensable asset.
The CEF/ETF Income Lab crew are top notch with their analysis of the CEF/ETF market space. Their supporting advice, quick responses to questions asked, and supporting tools are all worth the yearly subscription fee. I highly recommend this service to anyone…
There are so many hidden gotcha's in this space that it's really hard to go it alone. These folks will absolutely help steer you in the right direction, whether you want to follow their well-build and easy to follow portfolios, or pick and choose your own funds. The chat room is excellent and the team is very responsive. There's just so much value for your money here I can't recommend it highly enough.
My name is Robert Riehl. This is not a review as I am unable to access your messages. I don't think it is your fault, but rather Google's. I have tried and tried, and google tells me it is unable to recognize your website. So I am taking this opportunity to request that you do not automatically renew my membership for the coming year. I am sorry to have to do this, I have enjoyed my subscription until recently, but there seems to be no way for me to access your messages. I will continue to follow you on Seeking Alpha, as you are one of my key four writers there. Thank you. Robert Riehl P S Would you reply to this at my regular email address : riehlestat390@gmail.com
CEF choosing involves a lot of moving parts: discount, yield, sponsor, focus, components, etc. This group will only get better and more useful to its members as it's history extends. Updates occur frequently and there seems no agenda except investing success.
if your searching for sites to join this one has a tremendous amount of ideas and very experienced authors across the board , I have made a tremendous amount of money using this service , the portfolios are live and the alerts and articles are timely , if your confused on which one to join think no further , you will make money and be very happy with this service it is worth its weight in gold , I suggest to get the live updates and not wait for the free or premium one , sign up for trial or go right for the paid one as everyday counts with timely great information on a one to 10 this is a 10 plus
I love the great education on ETFs. Who knew there are so many nuances. The quality of the recommendations is impressive, too.
What a great service. The research and analysis I receive is amazing, accurate, and timely. I look forward to the message that something new/trade is happening. By far the best service I have been involved in. I can’t help but be optimistic for 2020. I really appreciate the messages telling me we have a Trade Alert. I wish I could get one every Day.
I highly recomend this service for anyone interested in solid returns that CEMF can bring, especially near or in retirement. I like the indepth research and real-time analysis the team offers because I don't have the time to do it myself. The team literally puts their own money where their mouth is and explains what their trades are and why. In this time of low to negative interest rates CEMF add a decent rate of return to any portfolio. This with the routine trades to capitalize on the artbritage of NAV versus market value increase your rate of return.
Also, the team is very approachable and responsive if you have any specific investment questions, or issues using the site or Seeking Alpha in general.They are all straight shooters; quality investment guidance without the hype.
I've been investing in CEFs for more than a decade and this service provides supporting advice with an analytical approach of when to buy, hold and sell. They provide it without the "sell job" other services tend to do on the Seeking Alpha platform. I have technical background and they take the same approach. They have real portfolios and you can track their performance. Please don't change. Thank you.
I have held CEFs for many years. Prior to retirement, I used dividend reinvestment to grow the shares in my IRA. Even with ups and downs in the market, most of the funds held their own. At 72-1/2, I began taking dividends for income and sometimes reinvesting when able.
Over the years, I had occasion to read some of Stanford Chemist’s reviews on CEFs and whenever I took his advice and researched his comments, I found them to make perfect sense.
As a long term CEF investor, I was never sure HOW LONG to hold a fund and if there was a better fund to move into. I didn’t understand the significance of Tender Offers and whether or not to participate in them.
So, earlier this year, when I found that I could join the Income Lab for a 14 day trial, I figured what do I have to lose? So I gave it a try. After 2 weeks, I realized that this was an invaluable tool, joined and never looked back.
I have found making this investment into Income Lab was the very best investment of all.
Not only can you participate in a group with similar questions and comments, but if you prefer, you can reach out to Stanford and his team for individualized help should you need it. I usually do…LOL!
I can’t even begin to tell you how impressed and happy I am with the results I have achieved.
I have moved into new funds that I would never have found without this help. Made money on tendering shares and feel confident on the advice I receive whenever I requested it.
Anyone who is interested in CEFs should make this leap. Best present you can give yourself or your loved ones.
If you want to live off of dividend income, or learn about CEFs, you NEED to be here. I'm 38, and not interested in living off of dividends in the near term, but I work in an industry that I love that will unfortunately replace me with software before I retire. I'm guessing I have maybe 15 years left. Even being a growth investor for the time being, the guys have helped me out immensely. I'd highly recommend this group to anyone interested in income investing.
I've been a member of CEF/ETF Income Lab for over a year now. I look forward to every new recommendation that comes out. I used to invest in CEF's on my own but it was just too time consuming to properly research everything and I never felt confidant enough to trust I was doing it correctly. I am very happy with my decision to subscribe to this service.
I have been using the "Lab" for one year now. Excellent results from the team at CEF/ETF Income Lab. They answer questions promptly and give easy to follow advise in the CEF/ETF World. Previously, I was trying to just generate interest in a Taxable account on monthly bank interest. In one short year, I went from small change to an Income stream that my family can live off of in a retirement on the short horizon (couple of months). I intend to renew my subscription next week and recommend to others to use the "Lab" and all it's features. Thanks to the CEF/ETF Income Lab Team and look forward to another interesting Year ahead !.
Just finished reading ALL of the reviews - was looking for a single solid negative but couldn't find any! I've been on for 6 months and it has added to both my knowledge & my monthly income. As one reviewer said - the CHAT ROOM alone is worth $39/mo. Thank you, Nick & Juan.
This my first year using this service and I can truly say it has helped my investments. Even with the Covid virus my investments have grown. Give them a try, I think you will be richer for it.
I highly recommend these gentlemen to any investor who seeks to buy at a reasonable valuation and not just buy for FOMO or chasing yield. I'm completely satisfied and their advice is valuable. As an immigrant from a third world country I had fear of investing for Income and I was chasing yield thinking it is the safest measure. Stanford Chemist and Nick Ackerman showed me how to evaluate each ETF and CEF and the pros and cons to every fund's structure.I learned a lot just by reading the analysis which is deep and informative. internal chat is open 24/7 and they are generous with their advice and time. 10/10, I highly recommend them to any income investor. I can safely say that I have gotten wiser and my portfolio is getting greener. Still a long way for me to go , however, it's a marathon not a sprint.
Stepping out of my two-week trial. I have voraciously read as many of the articles as I had time for. I have deep-dived the Lab portfolios through other sources. I have cruised the chat discussions. I have even asked Nick Ackerman and Stanford Chemist a question or two with amazingly fast responses.
After all of this, I took the plunge and modified our portfolio to include the Income Generator and the Tactical Income. I also took a Muni account I had for emergency retirement funds and adapted the Taxable Income portfolio.
Bottom line: using just 5% of our money (yes, just dipping a toe into the CEF waters) we make 11% of our portfolio income at a lower beta. Granted CEFs can have their own risk factors but again, the Lab clearly spells these out. All in all, this is taking a great deal of pressure off as I head into retirement next April. I’m already making plans on adjusting to a 10% portfolio value.
So, to summarize: You get early access to Income Lab inciteful reports. You get access to five portfolios and the thought process and analysis behind them. You get access to a chat area to discuss your ideas and learn from others. But the clincher for me was the quick and non-judgmental response to my own questions by Stanford Chemist and Nick Ackerman. Their answers were sincere, down to earth, and easy to process.
Income Laboratory deserves 10 stars out of 5!
Closed-end funds are an investment that I wanted to understand. I uncovered limited options. I'm too new to the Income Laboratory to comment yet on personal results. What I can tell you is that I have found the Stanford Chemist, Nick, Juan and the others to be very knowledgeable, insightful, and willing and able to patiently and graciously communicate what they know. They have taught this investing novice so much. This was exactly what I was hoping for.
Informed and informative analysis of investing for income without any hype. The team at CEF/ETF Income Laboratory provides timely and in-depth information on CEFs (and now ETFs) that allows for making informed decisions on investments. I've been a member for almost a year and have learned a lot and made better investments as a result.
I am a retired investor living off the dividends/distributions of my portfolio. 30% of my income is derived from my current holdings of 22 CEF's.
I have been a member of CEF/ETF Income Laboratory for almost 2 years. I cannot emphasize strongly enough the level of comfort being a member gives me as it relates to my CEF holdings.
The frequent special in depth articles, The detailed Weekly Closed-End Fund Roundup, the Trade Alerts and the Model Portfolios provide an abundance of actionable information to help make the "right" investing decisions. The Chat Room is very active and also a source for questions and other helpful information.
All in all, a no-brainer to have a membership which easily pays for itself.
A few years ago I figured out that CEF's can be rewarding AND annoying. I have since found the Stanford chemist team to be an excellent resource! Well worth the subscription. Thanks guys!
The Income Lab is a fantastic service with a very knowledgeable team and great community. I very much appreciate the responsiveness and insight provided on the different complexities of the topics.
I would very much recommend this service to anyone interested in Income Investing.
I have been a member for over two years. If you are an Income investor, this is the place to be. Because of this pandemic my portfolio has gone down, but my monthly income has stayed relatively the same. The quality of information is invaluable. Another thing is that they are NOT chasing yields that blow up down the road like a couple other services. Highly recommend.
Ever since I retired three years ago, this premium service has become my go-to source for valuable CEF/ETF education, research, actionable advice, and information sharing. Keep up the good work, Stanford Chemist, Nick Ackerman, et al.
The information and analysis provided by the articles has been invaluable to me as a new investor. Seeing the Compounding Strategy play out in real time really solidified the value of this service.
Since there are almost no books on closed end funds, I was looking for a service that would give me basic knowledge and up-to-date information. I now get both from Stanford Chemist and his team at a high level. In addition, the experts are available almost around the clock for questions via chat, which is very helpful for short-term trading. In summary, I am very satisfied and would recommend this service to any investor who is seriously investing in closed end funds
riedelriedel@t-online.de.
First trade I made I sold ETV and bought EXG with the proceeds.
That increases my dividend by $36 a month. My yearly subscription
is paid for! I tried 3 other services offered on Seeking Alpha and opted out before my 2 week trial period. This one I paid for.
I am impressed so far
If an investor is interested in CEF's for a portion of their portfolio, the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory is the place to be. Excellent help with choosing the strongest CEF's, knowing when to buy, knowing when to sell or rotate to a comparable fund are all very well done. Great updates on CEF news, analytics, and strategies. Since CEF's are not hugely plentiful and sometimes thinly traded, having experts on your side is a key. CEF's offer the following profit opportunities:
1. Capital Appreciation - movement of the CEF stock price
2. Dividend Income (Yield) - both income distributions and capital gains distributions
3. Rotation Among Fund Pairs - overvalued to undervalued based on %NAV vs. Average %NAV
4. Diversification within Fund
5. Diversification within my Portfolio
6. Buy and Sell at any time during the trading day - but always use limit orders because CEF's are less liquid and sometime have higher buy-ask spreads
7. Actively managed with fund manager having few encumbrances for holding cash for redemption
There are many opportunities to profit with CEF's at less volatility but even the best of us needs some insight and help. The CEF/ETF Income Laboratory is the best help that I have found and I am very pleased with the service. Historically much of the focus has been on CEF's, but they promised more and more discussion of ETF's as well.
Excellent trading advice and buy and hold recommendations for CEF's including a CLO funds expert. Very responsive to questions on the chat forum. SC makes a sincere effort to address the concerns of it's individual investor members.
I'm new to trading and this is a fantastic, lucrative way to get my feet wet. If I find something unfamiliar, there are resources to help me understand, keep learning and making money. Now I don't have to rely on some slick dude in an expensive suit telling me 'relax, it's a waiting game', while my money slips away and his fees increase. Oh yeah. I highly recommend Seeking Alpha!
Eaton Vance article was excellent and made sense to me. I'm not an accountant so the explanations of the different funds was very enlightening.
Thanks SC for your truly GREAT service. This review today on SPE, is a good example of how you provide in depth info on a fund, that the average investor (like myself) is unlikely to be able to find on his own. Thanks!
Excellent service. Keeping income investors grounded during this market volatility.
I have been slowly learning about CEF's but in the mean time my portfolio has grown and if I could move it to a Roth IRA, the wife and I could harvest over 1k per month off most of the dividends. I'll be retiring in 12 working days and the Income Lab has set me up for a great beginning for retirement. I went from Blue Chip dividend investing that averaged 4-5% maybe and wanted more. The service that SC offer's is awesome and worth more than what he charges, (I hope he doesn't see this :) I gave him a try and his service worked for me, I'm sure if you give him a try you won't be disappointed.
I have been a DIY investor for 20 years and have subscribed to several services looking for a good fit. With retirement just around the corner, I have been trying to find a place where I can earn some greater than average income along with some capital appreciation. I don’t want to be inundated with
analysis that I can’t understand and too many options that paralyze me into second guessing my every move.
Stanford Chemist (along with Nick Ackerman & Alpha Male) present their CEF information in such a way that even I can understand it. Couple that with only a handful of strategies/portfolios to follow along with immediate responses to questions and SC has checked all the boxes. I look forward to a long and prosperous relationship here in the “Lab”...
Someone once said "The fastest way to get to where you're going is slowly". That bit of advice is exemplified by the methods employed by folks at the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory.
Unlike other services that pitch fast, in-and-out trades, the Lab guys know that patience is often what separates the winners from the losers.
If you're looking for CEF strategies that are well-researched (saving you a ton of time) and well-planned, this is the service you've been looking for.
Keep in mind, you won't be making a trade every day, every week and sometimes, not even every month. But remember: The fastest way to get to where you're going is slowly
Its going to be a year since I started this service . Thank you Stanford Chemist for this reasonably priced excellent service on CEF investments . Your research and articles are top class and the trade recommendations are well researched and presented . The chat feature is very useful since you get to hear different views and read the discussions .
The model portfolios are of great value to a beginner in CEF investments and I found it extremely useful . Highly recommend this service to anyone who wants to start investing in CEF's.
There are quite a few online resources for investors that promise helpful service but fail to deliver. I have been pleased with the CEF/ETF income laboratory, not only because they provide well research articles on potential buy candidates, but just as importantly, they provide very helpful information to help investors avoid investing in a CEF with a tempting high yield but is likely to underperform or whose price is likely to revert to the mean premium/discount.
When I joined the site 6 months ago, I was new to CEF world and did not really understand them. This website and Stanford Chemist, together with folks like Nick Ackerman and Alpha Male also available for Q&A and individual feedback, has provided me all the support and information I need to delve into CEFs fully. It has taken time, and the other thing I have come to appreciate is the amazing knowledge of other board members. If I am considering a CEF, I can privately ask each of them for their thoughts, which is really what I need with so many investment choices out there. This is the best financial move I have ever made.
I subscribed to the CEF Income Lab about one year ago. I had a modest understanding of CEFs at that time. Through this service I have been able to significantly deepen my understanding of CEFs, gain insights from several excellent portfolio models, and most importantly discern excellent investment insights from many CEF experts who represent various classes of CEF investments. The service has a very active chat room where many ideas are shared and from which I was able to greatly profit in 2019. Specifically, I thank Nick A. for championing UTF (wow!), Triple F Fred for recommending NVG (a great 2019 muni) , Acamus for timely insights that got me out of NHF, and SC's monthly insights on PIMCO CEFs which has kept me in PCI and out of the 'cutters'. Combining these wonderful ideas with my own due diligence and insights about the economic cycle (h/t EPB) helped me have a fantastic 2019. THANK YOU SC and all of your excellent contributors as well!
edward2nd - I highly recommend Stanford Chemist's CEF/ETF Income Laboratory Service. I started following it on Seeking Alpha in 2018, subscribed in 2019 and am impressed with the quality of the service at a very affordable price.
My recommendation is based on my 50 years experience investing in a variety of assets (mutual funds, stocks, bonds, real estate, limited partnerships and more recently CEFs and ETFs). Initially, I relied on recommendations from stock brokers but over the years I took a more active role in managing my investments using Investment Newsletters and Trading Platforms such as MetaStock, TC2000 and others.
Now that my wife and I are retired, my objective is to generate income to support our comfortable life style while preserving capital for our heirs to inherit. I am focusing on CEFs and ETFs and have found Stanford Chemist's CEF/ETF Income Laboratory Service to be invaluable in helping me achieve my objective in an efficient and effective manner.
The breath and depth of the information provided by Stanford Chemist and associates is outstanding as is the timely information available via live chat. I log onto the service almost every day to read posted articles and monitor the live chat. I then review and “digest” the information there in relation to my current holding and buy candidates before taking any action. I find that this has prevented me from making investment decisions without doing sufficient “homework” to support the decision. As others have said, the chat room and the ability to chat in real time with the author, his staff and the other investors with the same interest is a great feature of the service.
The guidance I have received from Stanford Chemist's CEF/ETF Income Laboratory Service has already provided a good return on the subscription cost. I look forward to many more years of subscribing to the service, reviewing the articles posed, and following my favorite contributors to the chat room.
Best wishes for 2020!!!
The service is attractive mainly because it offers actionable ideas/trades, that investors can take advantage of in real-time. SC's use of guest contributors also brings various perspectives to the service.
I've been on the service about a month. I've invested in CEFs about 18 months so they are fairly new to my experience and that's why I decided to trial the CEF Income Laboratory. I am transitioning over from a total growth portfolio to growth and income as retirement nears. I like the idea of CEFs for income and some growth. I like the diversity of the CEFs offered in the multiple portfolios as well as the recommendations and/or write-ups of the general CEF vehicles that are done weekly and monthly. There are other excellent articles that crop up at times, as the CEF market dictates, where the main author and/or staff discuss possible buy/sell options. The trading in/out of the CEFs to capture increased alpha as well as improve the bottom line for more income is interesting although I am more of a buy and hold type investor and thus analyze the advice and discussions from that angle. As others have said, the CHAT room and the ability to CHAT with the author, his staff (Big Kudos to Nick Ackerman!!) and the other investors with the same interest is great. You have access to these experts at any time about any question, which is very unique in my opinion. I also like the fact that the CEF Income Laboratory does not give you "screaming" buys but rather has the simple Buy Under % and other metrics and then let's you make the final decision via your own DD and ultimate decision.
As I became familiar with Seeking Alpha, I gravitated toward closed end funds as I was interested in building an income stream for later years in retirement. Like many readers, I found the comment stream as informative as the article, and began to discover who the knowledgeable commenters were. When I decided I needed more info that I could possibly get by myself, I turned to the option of subscription services. I based my decision on who I had talked to in those comment streams, and I chose the Lab.
Now that I have been here for a few months, I can say I'm happy with my decision to subscribe. I figured out a long time ago that I could learn a lot more if I kept my eyes and ears open and my mouth shut, and I have found the community to be very forthcoming with angles and perspectives I would have missed. I also appreciate the corporate actions as they come up, especially the tender offers. I'm not sure if there is a site that has all those.
Above all, I like the professional manner in which the chat section is run. Differences of opinion are welcomed and treated respectfully. I think we all know some posters on Seeking Alpha are unable to act professionally, getting to the point where I stop tracking comments because they cease to become useful. A "dunsel" for you Trekkies.
I made a good decision to sign up with the Lab, and I would recommend anybody seeking a good forum for sharing ideas and info give membership in the Lab serious consideration.
I really appreciate the supportive and helpful community and the responsiveness of the leaders, especially SC. While the analyses are detailed and well-researched and clearly take a lot of time to produce, he’s readily available to respond to simple questions as well as more complex ones. Shout out to Nick Ackerman, too, for his valuable contributions. I’m learning a lot, and slowly applying the lessons to my modest portfolio. Highly recommend!
Once I committed to Steve Bavaria " income factory" I wanted to get all the advice I could. I tried Income Lab. for 2 months and when Nick Ackerman came to the site, I was in. There is a lot of useful info from SC as well as the guest posts and comments. If you're new to CEFs
I think this well worth the money.
Excellent, detailed analysis. Also you seem to get back to people that ask question, which is important
Great service! In my opinion the main value of this group is the education you will get on how to value a CEF. You will learn to identify each style of CEF fund, then how to determine if the fund is performing well then what might be a good price point for you to buy. The chat forum is active, informative, helpful and friendly. Access to the portfolios is a plus. Again, it is the education you will receive from the insightful and straightforward articles and the helpful chat that allows you to become far more comfortable investing in CEFs on your own vs relying on a portfolio of investment vehicles that you remain unfamiliar with. Definitely recommend this group!
I've been working on moving my taxable portfolio into more muni CEFs and ETFs. Finding good funds that are not on shaky ground is a difficult process for individuals. The CEF/ETF Income Lab provides me with actionable data that I've used to transition my portfolio. Additionally, the the Live Chat venue allows me to pose questions to the authors as well as other members. This too has given me much to work with and more confidence in my transactions.
After having joined SC’s CEF/ETF Income Lab for the last couple of months, I have found their investment principles to be sound. I am more of a conservative investor and pleasantly surprised that there was none of the marketing hype that I found present in other popular subscription services. SC tells it like it is and talks not only about the rewards but also the risks involved in his recommendations. Fortunately this fits my personality and investment style. I also like that all his suggestions are soundly backed by research, raw data and implemented in real world portfolios which have a track record that can be easily validated. I had already done some research in CEF funds and knew a little bit about how they worked. Joining SC however takes it up a whole new level and helped me be a lot more comfortable by providing the reasoning behind investing in the recommended funds. A plus is the interactivity in the chat forum where expert members like Nick Ackerman and Alpha Male provide answers and in depth analysis as to the why and how of investments like CLO’s which are not commonly understood. In short, I highly recommend SC!
I an evaluating this service and so far have been very impressed with the content and the professionalism of the host. I have already acted on several suggestions. I have evaluated several subscriptions that focus on CEFs and believe this will be the one that I will continue to use.
Extremely helpful info overall. Chat feature is great. Stanford Chemist is quickly responsive and very knowledgeable.
Very insightful information, they really dig deep into these funds and give pointed studied analysis. Great chat room, excellent exchange of ideas and concepts. I like the portfolios presented.
The SC research, explanation of data, and model portfolios are literally worth their weight in gold. As an additional bonus the information gained from the other experts that contribute articles is in itself worth the price of subscription. One year ago, I was completely ignorant of the benefits of investing in CEF / ETF's. I am still a newbie but am learning quickly AND loving the increase in my portfolio. Undoubtedly worth the invested dollar!
Articles by Stanford Chemist and crew are thoroughly researched. Also the methodology and analysis are impressive. If you are interested in CEF/income investing this is a worthwhile and beneficial service.
Have been a subscriber to Seeking Alpha (SA) & CEF/ETF Income Lab for almost one year. I was not new to investing, but was new to CEFs when I arrived and have learned a lot about CEFs and income investing since I joined. Have found Stanford Chemist (SC) to be extremely thorough, consistent and accurate in all that he publishes (articles & spreadsheets). If a mistake is made in any forum (articles, spreadsheets, chats) which is extremely rare, it is immediately corrected. I am impressed with SC’s patience in addressing the simplest and most inane questions from newbies like myself to very complex questions. Although I do not participate in the chat daily, I notice that there are usually several subject matter experts who have very in depth knowledge/experience in various arcane areas of the market that are available to provide detailed explanations on complex questions. I appreciate that he simultaneously supports passive investors as well as more active traders that want to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities in activist plays and CEF discount swings. His risk ratings on each item allowed me to dip my tow into the water with less risky offerings and then buy more risky offerings as my understanding and comfort level increased. Over the last year, he has added additional authors and guest posters that have added value to my subscription. I plan to renew for another year as there is very good value for the money! The only nit I have to pick is the chat service provided by SA is hard to follow and needs an upgrade. But, that has nothing to do with CEF/ETF Income Lab. It is an SA platform issue that needs to be fixed.
CEF's are a major portion of my retirement financial plan. Further, I have included a fairly large number of different CEF's in the portfolio on the premise that diversity helps reduce risk. I find CEF/ETF Income Laboratory an essential support service to monitor all of these positions, avoid bad situations and capitalize on opportunities. And a key part of the service is the sharp-eyed community of fellow CEF investors. This brings in a wealth of ideas and ensures that the whole space is well covered. Thanks SC! And thanks to the SC community!
Stanford chemist gives real, actionable advice. Very easy to understand. If you can make one or two trades a month you can capture extra income in closed end fund trading. Right now with the market going up it is easy, but his methods should work even better when the market is going down.
I have been a member for several months and now have the perspective to write a review. The service has only gotten better as more experts have joined and the chat has been more instructive. I find CEFs as a great way to avoid picking individual stocks and to diversify my portfolio. The advice here has been well worth the price of admission.
Joining CEF/ETF Income Lab. is truly one of the best decision I have made recently. The quality and depth of the analysis and due deligence of the CEF/ETF recommendation are right on! I found plenty of actionable, relevant investment ideas to act on, and significantly restructured my portfolio to meet my income goals. The Chat is also a big plus. I appreciate SC and other analysts thoughtful reponses to my questions, as well as other community members' sharing of their experiences. It is very reassuring and made me feel comfortable to act on new investment ideas without hesitation.
For example they made me feel comfortable with my large PIMCO and Nuveen fix income CEF holdings. And introduced me to several new CEFs ideas... I "swaped" my healthcare ETFs to HQH,THQ,THW, REITS ETF's to RQI, RNP and NRO. Added CLO CEFs OXLC, ECC, and Eaton Vance tax-managed buy write CEFs EXD, ETW and ETY etc. to my portfolio. I am now generating a lot more income from my assets because of CEF/ETF Income Lab. and the Chat community.
I highly recommend this subscription, you will not be disappointed!! I LOVE IT!!!
The experts do the responding themselves, often in personal, and always understandable conversations relating to my sometimes inane questions. They encourage input and have never been anything but totally supportive. They are always willing to help you to further your understanding of the very difficult field of CEFs to improve your investing success.
I've been a self-directed investor since 1979, and I am greatly impressed by the quality found here. Stanford Chemist and his growing staff of co-workers have created a carefully curated CEF /ETF service.
I initially selected CEF/ETF Income Lab for the high yields and capital gain opportunities, but I am equally pleased with the arbitrage/swap trades. These trades have paid the annual cost of membership several times over in the past ten months. This is a valuable service run by dedicated personnel. It is well worth your consideration!
Great service -- been a member for about half a year and it's only getting better. Many constructive ideas from SC as well as a number of other savvy contributors.
There are very few resources that discuss CEF's. Stanford Chemist gives a lot of very useful information and the tools to help you understand. He gives recommendations for buys and sells. There are model portfolios for both long term and short term traders. And in addition to all above, if you have any questions, SC will answer them promptly.
I am very pleased with the CEF/ETF Income Lab service. It has enabled me to focus on the most appropriate CEFs and diversify my investments. Because of the in-depth analyses, I feel I have the information and perspective to make informed decisions, which I couldn't possibly do on my own. I appreciate knowing the details of recommendations to buy or sell or hold. Thank you, SC.
Ted
FIVE STARS. Can I give it six stars?? Love it, love it, love it. Not just blowing smoke here...I'm the BIGGEST SKEPTIC in the world. I'm retired and manage our family's investments, and we survive 100% on our investment income, so we don't take any investment advice lightly! This is real world stuff - if we don't make money on our investments, we starve. We're not old enough to draw SSI or other benefits, so this is it. For many months, I trolled Stanford Chemist before deciding to take the plunge. And I'm so very happy I did. He's down to earth and no-nonsense, and he's not forcing anyone to sign up. There's no sales rah rah here. And when I have had questions, he's been there to answer them same day. The "Live Chat" feature alone is worth the price of admission. This has been a truly educational (and profitable) move for me. I appreciate having access to timely and relevant facts without all the hooplah. The first trade recommendation alone is worth the price of the service.
I passionately follow the best dividend investing ideas, and you'll find none better then CEF/ETF Income Laboratory. I've already received tacit advise on selling and acquiring profitable positions with excellent timing.
Stanford Chemist’s CEF/ETF Income Laboratory Service is very useful for different types of investors – active vs. passive and/or novice vs. experienced. There are two portfolios for the different needs of members… the Income Generator Portfolio – income generating/”passive” investing -or- the Tactical Income Portfolio which opportunistically rotates between buying undervalued CEFs and selling them for capital gains.
The Stanford Chemist posts almost every day and sometimes several times per day. The Stanford Chemist provides well researched, thought out, very well written, easy to understand… opportunistic, actionable advice and information in a timely fashion. He provides a quick response to questions asked.
Another great asset of this site is the community of members in the Live Chat(room) - ranging from highly knowledgeable, professional, down to the newbie just starting to learn. There is a wealth of informed, actionable information here, as well. What’s most impressive is the willingness of the community members to help each other in a fast, helpful, and respectful manner!
The site is very helpful, useful, interesting, and easy to use! A very good value and learning experience! The subscription easily pays for itself.
CEF/ETF income laboratory is a helpful community of individuals that are passionate about CEF investing. There is much QA between members and always fast and helpful. Stanford Chemist's CEF analysis reports are always in depth and current with what is going on in the market.
When it comes to CEFs and ETFs, Stanford Chemist clearly knows his subjects and stays on top of them. He offers clear analysis and suggestions. Along the way he teaches the subjects to those, such as me, who are not at his level of knowledge.
In addition, the Chemist's service at SA attracts like-minded investors who know this area of investing and share their knowledge. It was a pleasant bonus to see posts from a number of individuals who offer valuable nuggets of wisdom.
Also worth a mention is that this service already has paid for itself many times over. It was purely coincidental that I arrived here around the time the CEF market was melting down in late December 2018 -- that was a rare and amazing opportunity. But the trick in such a situation is to take advantage of it. I already had decided that the U.S. market situation in general was too good to pass up, but really didn't know enough about CEFs to exploit the especially acute opportunities in that area. However, the Chemist drew my attention to some horribly beaten-down CEFs, and my own research bore out his thoughts. Maybe the best investing moves I ever have made.
I know full well that markets can go the wrong way, and that even well-chosen risks can blow up in one's face. The trick is to go in with eyes open and a strategy to limit risk. In that regard, the Chemist's service is a core part of my approach to CEFs. He digs and digs, allowing readers such as me to help gauge possible risks and rewards. Very useful service IMO.
I highly recommend CEF/ETF Income Laboratory by Stanford Chemist for active, passive, novice or experienced investors who are interested in obtaining advice, recommendations and portfolios based on comprehensive practical data presented in prose, graphs and tables, accompanied by an active on-line chat room frequented by amicable, knowledgable subscribers and guest experts including a personally accessible erudite author and advisor.
yes this service is very helpful in information right in
your finger tips. One place for everything and you don't
have to wander all over for information because its here on SA with CEF/ETF INCOME LABORATORY
Excellent simple figure of merit calculation, please add additional ranking of % of 52 week high
“SC supports his recommendations with extensive analysis, presented in an easily comprehensible way." And he listens to, and incorporates, subscribers suggestions
The CEF/ETF Income Laboratory is a superb service for dividend investors, especially CEF investors. The articles are outstanding and often include guest posts by leading authorities. The income producing portfolios are very useful and the Live Chat is always filled with like-minded investors expressing timely commentary. This subscription is well worth the money. I highly recommend it.
5 stars for the information but you need to check everything out for yourself. A lot of knee jerk reactions and lack of insight for the long term. A complete failure for differentiations between income and capital appreciation investing. I think the best way to explain how easily one can be mislead and confused is this comment from Steven Bavaria “I sold my Aberdeen Income Credit Strategies Fund (ACP) after reading a very thoughtful article about it by Stanford Chemist. I thought I could get an equivalent yield but with a better credit profile by buying Invesco Senior Income Trust (VVR). Was my face red when I realized a few hours later (thanks to an astute comment from @adam22164) that CEFConnect had misreported the distribution yield on VVR as twice what it actually was, so my "trade" of one high yielder for another wasn't quite what I expected it to be. I plan to unwind it and trade the VVR for something more appropriate this week, perhaps old favorite Calamos Global Dynamic Income Fund (CHW), which I've been buying again lately as its price has come down and yield risen in recent months. Although bought by mistake, VVR has treated me well, gaining about 3% in price in the three days I have owned it.”
For CEF investors I highly recommend this service. It greatly improved my knowledge of premium/discount analysis of CEFs. I like best the weekly CEF report providing the current analysis of this sector.
I like the recommendations of the service and the ongoing discussions which are proving to be profitable. The personalized responses to comments and questions are also much appreciated.
I have been a member here for almost a year and find the service very useful. I am an older retired person that is now focused on a portfolio of income producing assets. Forget the growth stocks I just need to keep cash coming in to reinvest and use when I need it. I find the information here a great help when making decisions about the different CEF's, as I don't have time to do all the research needed. Definitely worth the subscription price.
The articles and suggestions are fantastic, but the best part is the education you receive for a very low cost. Great community of smart investors
Fantastic service with an excellent chat room as well. Stanford Chemist is extremely knowledgeable and has built a community of like-minded income investors that provide a unique and deep knowledge of a complicated asset class. Everyday there is something new to learn, and actionable trading ideas pop up all of the time. Highly recommend!
Absolutely fantastic service for serious CEF/ETF investors. Stanford Chemist is very knowledgeable about his space and providing a lot of value to all his members. For someone like me who is not a specialist in this space, it is worth every penny!
This is a very useful, interesting and easy to use site. Lots of information available in one place and quick response to questions asked. Thumbs up for me.
SC is gathering some great people into the chatroom with a wealth of knowledge in the different areas of the CEF space.
Besides the chatroom, SC has an active portfolio, a more "income"based portfolio and an ETF rotation porfolio so there is something for everyone.
The chat is functional and does not contain of a lot of blah-blah
that I've seen in other chatrooms, everyone is nice and newbies are treated with the same respect as the "old hands" .
Even though the costs take a big chunk out my yearly dividends (small portfolio still) I'm confident that SC and his team can teach me enough so that one day I might do my own "fishing".
It's a very useful service to navigate the jungle and the dangers of CEFs, the place where retirement funds can easily go to die. SC has a method, watches the universe constantly and acts upon his conclusions. I think it's the best we can get and should help avoid catastrophe.
Investing can feel "lonely" at times - especially when the market is not "behaving" the way we would like it to, which of course is a given! :o)
SC provided voice of reason and clear cut action plan to take advantage of this recent market volatility. The chat room was also great as they provided sense of camaraderie among us the CEF investors.
I am newbie as far as investing CEF goes, but must say that even just by quietly observing, I have learned quite a bit from both SC and the more knowledgeable people in the chatroom. SC and the chatroom help me to embrace the volatility and they also provide the encouragement to act with reason when all seems to be chaotic.
I like specific CEF recommendations. I would recommend it to someone else.
I really appreciate the various model portfolios and the analytics and insight that support them. I regard myself as primarily a portfolio manager and strategist, and rely heavily on Stanford Chemist and his CEF/ETF Income Laboratory to be a key part of the analytical "Intel Inside" that I use to help make the investment decisions that support my "Income Factory."
Steve Bavaria
Ah, the Chemist. His knowledge, charts, data, and portfolios on CEFs are brilliant. He has excellent common sense and understands his members problems with CEFs. His pals, who are members, Acamus, Triple F Fred, and Steve Bavaria, along with some very accomplished Chemist members aid all in the Chat. High yield is risky business. The Chemists' advice provides members real time, timely, information on CEFs for growth and income. I recommend his program to all interested in buying low and selling higher as well as making some high yield distributions. Jack C
As I approach retirement in December 2019, I knew I needed to bone up on income investing. Decades ago, my finance professor was an evangelist for CEF's. After a good deal of research, I found my way to the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory. The recommendations are timely and well-reasoned. The comments sections provides further education from the insights of other investors. The recent advice to pare back on ECC saved me enough to cover the next few years of subscription costs. It was an unexpected and gratifying experience. I am pleased to recommend this website to investors like me who are looking for a well-considered template to generate income for their retirement years.
This service is one of only a handful of paid investment services that I subscribe to. After having a few months to digest the massive amount of material on the website, I am quite pleased. I have learned a ton about CEF's through this site. The information is accurate and actionable. There is no "pie in the sky- we can make you a millionaire" nonsense on this site. Just good common sense investment information. CEF's are a wonderful way to generate retirement income, but they must be respected for what they are. What they are is complex investment vehicles. The Chemist helps me to make sense of these beasts and to keep my hard earned dollars as safe as possible in a totally unpredictable market. I highly recommend this forum.
As a long term CEF investor/trader, I was reluctant to join any CEF focused service. My mistake to have not joined earlier as I have found insightful and actionable information coming from SC and several other chat participants.
If you are a CEF focused investor, I would highly recommend the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory as an excellent source of up to date and well reasoned information from SC and members of the service!
Well Done!
FFF Fred
Excellent Service. There are very few resources that discuss CEF's. Stanford Chemist gives a lot of very useful information, There is data on yields, discounts, z-scores, etc. He gives recommendations for buys and sells. There are portfolios for both long term and trading. The group discussions are a real bonus. And in addition, if you have any questions, SC answers them promptly.
I like that there are two distinct approaches to the portfolio management to chose from. Tactical Income is geared towards your adventurous side, and the turnaround is higher. Income Generator is more like retirement income source, set it and go away. I use both, and despite some heavy paper losses, I'm happy with dividend stream.
The research is solid, your decisions are yours.
Your service is wonderful. Love the fact that you post info almost every day and sometimes several times per day.
Ive been a paid subscriber for a month and learned much about CEFs. There is much to digest, perhaps too much. But SCs two portfolios are a good place to begin investing and I now own BCV, VTA, and DSU and have limit orders on several other SC suggestions (UTG, FFC), waiting for a decent price discount. As a recent retiree, I am looking for income with modest risk and believe SC delivers that quite well. He seems thorough, knowledgeable, has ample investing ideas, and is responsive to members.
i started with the monthly fee as i have been on another service that after 3 months i did not like. so far i like how the chemist make his picks and after another month or 2 will probably go annual, as i like cef's for monthly income
I enjoyed the PIMCO Funds financial review and look forward to monthly updates. I have been investing for 40 years and the analysis carried out on these funds saves me a lot of effort and is worth the price of the subscription.
If you're looking for in-depth research on the CEF space, this is the service you need! Stanford Chemist combines a deep knowledge of CEFs with a presentation style that makes it easy for investors of all sophistication levels to understand. The chat board is always active and SC is quick to respond to all subscriber questions. Highly recommend to all!
The information and level of detail is unmatched. I have had other subscription services, but they left me disappointed. Income Laboratory is worth every dime. You won’t be disappointed.
Great service with timely info and a great message board for ideas and like minded investors. Subscription easily pays for itself
The best part of the Lab is the recommendations for the two income generating portfolios. You receive timely buy/sell alerts as well as relevant data-driven articles. The chat room provides feedback from not only the Chemist but other seasoned investors. For a diversified approach to generating income, I highly recommend the Income Laboratory.
Educational -> taught me enough that I can now find and evaluate additional CEFs on my own, but still keeps me as a subscriber by
offering insights as tradable sectors rotate and change over time.
I have been a subscriber to CEF/ETF Laboratory for a few months but have followed Stanford Chemist for a few years and have been a CEF investor for over 12 years. I am not naive enough to say I know my way around the block but have learned a lot over the years. The CEF/ETF Lab service is a great enhancement to my efforts. SC compiles - on amazingly frequent basis - vital information, stats, portfolios, recommendations and other data that would be difficult to regularly do oneself. At the same time, there is much 'subjective' information that comes across to readers as well. I have several times been triggered to look at other angles of an investment, look at the 'bigger picture' and double think my ideas and potential actions. The service has also recently associated with, informally, some other SA authors and it will be interesting to see how input from those such as Steven Bavaria is further incorporated into the service.
It is also very useful to get this information, much of it immediately useable, on a priority basis through the subscription. I have never before used a subscription either through SA or anywhere else, believing there is so much information readily available on the net - and there is. But this service definitely adds value, focus, provides actionable information and two-way exchange of ideas, and a growing forum of other like minded investors. Only downside that comes to mind is that it is a one-person sourced service - Stanford Chemist. Should anything cause him to be absent or otherwise unable to provide his services, the subscription loses its value...but I also think this would apply to a large majority of SA subscription services. So far, highly recommended and confidence building as well, in these current turbulent market conditions.
Suggest other like-minded investors at least give it a try.
I have been following Stanford Chemist for 2 years, he gets it. The site has undergone significant revamping this year and is very straight forward, easy to follow. His concentration on CEF's is particularly helpful to me. His guidance on rights offerings is insightful and always backed by numbers as are his rotation recommendations. He provides weekly updates covering the CEF front with news not easily found elsewhere - this is a weekly must read for me. He presents guest writers who provide additional expertise and the chat board is interactive, educational and frequented by other SA contributors. To top this review off, Stanford Chemist is consistently available for personal communication. This has been greatly helpful to me with focused questions regarding my portfolio, strategies and individual funds. If you are in retirement, nearing it or just getting started, this service has you well covered. Do it, no regrets!!
The information is outstanding for this 78 year old investor.
Cash to finance travel, medical needs and extra free cash flow
to cover RMD and grow IRA's
Stanford Chemist provides an excellent service with very timely information. In-depth analysis of many CEFs and ETFs for any investor that is serious about investing. SC is a very active member in the chat as well, providing an all-around invaluable service to everyone that signs up!
CEF/ETF Income Laboratory is clear and comprehensive. Most of all, the information provided is immediately actionable. Keep it coming!
CEF/ETF income laboratory is by far the best premium site on seeking alpha. Closed end funds offer a unique way to capture value as discounts and premiums often skew for no apparent reason other than limited supply and demand. CEF/ETF uses a deep statistical approach to highlight such cases.
Excellent in-depth analysis. Provides portfolio recommendations and tracking. Well worth the cost. Highly recommended.
CEF/ETF Income Lab is an invaluable resource. I began consulting it on Seeking Alpha, which was helpful, but decided that getting the most up-to-date reports, available only to subscribers, was indispensable. Now, when I see the same reports I get published with a month delay, I am very grateful to have received the information a month earlier. It is packed with essential data organized into selective, comparative formats, allowing for clear and concise comparisons. More than worth the price.
I was looking for a profitable opportunity which fits our needs as we travel extensively and needed to change to an investment scenario and knowledge base I could use which is understandable, accurate and actionable. After noticing the cef/etf income lab I was intrigued and watched Stanford Chemist for months after which tried the 2 week offer and liked what I was reading. This service is good fit for my situation and the results have been profitable. Well done SC
If you are looking to supplement your retirement income using dividends then check out CEF/EFT Income Laboratory. Investing in CEF's can be a disaster for the unintiated. There is a mountain of information to decipher and this service helps do it all. It breaks down fund metrics into easy to understand charts that help when making buying and selling decisions. You get email updates on CEF funds that are bargain buys. Hard to understand fund annoucements are broken down into clear actions for shareholders. This service is a must for CEF investors.
Timely information at a reasonable cost. Great place to start for the do-it-yourself investor.
I've been an investor/trader for some 25 plus years. Next year I will be retiring after 33-years as a teacher. On my summer breaks over the years, I packed in as much day trading, swing trading and buying up CEFs at a discount for some sweet monthly income. If not for my investment trading income over the years, I would not be in as good position for the future as I am now.
I'm a darn good technical chart reader. With all that said, the Stanford Chemist has impressed me by the quality of the writing, bullseye details and rational about which CEF to consider, and bottom line results PROFIT income. Hands-down worth every penny of the monthly fee. The CEF/ETF Income Laboratory has saved me a ton of research hours each week. Upgrading to the annual fee is even more of a value. A win/win for both!
You rock! Keep it $ coming!
Herm.
The Chemist does outstanding research and presents it in a way that's simple and straightforward in order for me to best decide a course of action. He also reviewed my holdings and made helpful observations as part of his service. I am fully invested in CEF's with a complete emphasis on dividends as a semi-retiree.
I'm a retiree who is a full-throttle income-seeker. This service will help you avoid the many potholes in that income-seekers world.
Comprehensive CEF/ETF information, and a highly responsive Author! It doesn't get much better than that.
I spent quite time to find a good information source for high income generation. I joined Stanford Chemist (SC)'s CEF/ETF Income Laboratory (formerly Cambridge Income Laboratory) several months ago. The information here is high quality, no fluke. There are also some experienced investors/traders in the chat room. Members can raise questions in the chat room. SC is very responsive and he continues to expand his research/coverage. Overall I'm satisfied with the service. I'm a believer that a combination of fundamental and technical analysis is the best approach to markets. One thing I'd like to recommend to SC is that it will be better if there is more in-depth coverage on the underlined fundamentals besides statistical analysis which is his best strength.
This is a great service and the Stamford Chemist is always on the chat board answering questions. I have learned a lot since I have joined and enjoy conversing with the other members.
Moving from DGI to CEF investing has seemed like entering a foreign land. As a guide, Stanford Chemist (SC) has been an excellent choice. His articles, as well as updating portfolio status, are designed to illustrate important principles of CEF investing. Via chat, he has been readily available for questions and feedback on ideas.
With the help of SC, I am becoming more comfortable in this foreign land, and have changed from monthly to the annual subscription. Recommended without hesitation.
I have found this service to be extremely helpful. The information is very well researched, and importantly very well written and easy to comprehend. I have learned a lot since subscribing. I feel more confident as an investor because I receive good information in timely fashion.
I have always been curious about the leveraged 2X ETN and other high yield CEF's but have been scared off by all the warnings. Your service is the only one i have found that covers them in depth. I have learned so much from you that i am much more comfortable investing in them
I don't know how you find the time to do all the research but i,m glad you do. I also appreciate your skill as an economist . i get a history lesson with each posting. You have learned that the mistakes made long ago are being repeated today. Perhaps you should give a complimentary subscription to the Federal Reserve chairmen.
Very detailed and at the same time plain spoken analysis. Makes very cogent and logical recomendations that are easy to understand. Looking forward to many months of successful trades.
I have really enjoyed this service. I eagerly read each article for new investment ideas. I use the Rotation Portfolio and trade CEFs based on what I read in the CIL.
Im retired and live off my investments. I dont look to beat the SnP 500 or any other index. My investment goal is to achieve an 8 percnt real return including dividends while talking the least risky path to achieve this.. SC and are on the same wave length for the most part and Im pleased with where Im at Im a long time bond investor and some years ago switched to Closed End Funds, which fits perfectly with SC
SC gives a deep dive into the CEFs he follows. Timely advice, not after the fact, and he puts his money where his mouth is. Highly recommended for anyone starting out in CEFs of for a sophisticated CEF investor looking to check his own judgment. A happy subscriber
Best of class. Understands risk/reward and stays away from high dividend opportunity yield traps. Extremely knowledgeable and professional with no marketing hype that overstates true performance to lure new subscribers. Highly recommended without reservation.
Great Value Service View from a neophyte CEF investor - I started Stanford Chemist’s service, the Cambridge Income Laboratory, in Jan 2017 and regret not doing so earlier. I had been dallying with CEFs for a while before I decided that I really needed to understand these products better if I was going to make them part of my retirement income portfolio. I had enjoyed and learned a lot from Stanford Chemist’s free articles in the past, but had balked at paying for a service…which was a mistake! The main focus of the service deals with CEFs, but he also invests in some ETFs, which complement the CEF sector.
My concern about the kind of return I’d get from the service was answered in the first quarter, when I bought a recommended CEF that later had a tender offer, which more than paid for the yearly service! More important for me, service is a terrific way to learn about how to understand and trade these products, not just a way to get buy or sell notices. In addition to weekly updates and articles, there are also quarterly buy and sell recommendations (along with time sensitive info on buy/sell opportunities). I really like the way the articles are laid out, as they have very informative graphs and charts that take you through the analysis; exactly the type of information to help me feel more comfortable with CEFs. The only thing that I was hoping to learn about, that didn’t arise, was how to better play volatility. Unfortunately, this year has not provided many opportunities in this area, but when they arose, SC was quick to take advantage and I am looking forward to a more volatile market in 2018.
Stanford Chemist is very helpful. About half-way through the year I was trying to make sense of how CEF Connect organized its information. He used my query as a weekly article that provided a helpful organization of CEF Connect’s constituents, which was a huge benefit to me, as I now have a well-organized CEF plan to use in the coming years. Since I’m retired, I’m really happy that SC is younger than me, because this service is a keeper, there is no way I could come close to replicate the benefits I get from the service on my own, I hope to use it for many years to come. Chris
There is a plethora of information available to investors. Often times it is much more than can be reasonably taken in and abosbed, in many times causing paralysis by too much analysis. Stanford Chemist and the Cambridge Income Laboratory is the answer.
Stanford Chemist applies his skills to filter out the mundane and give subscribers easy to digest information with actionable ideas for ETFs and CEFs. Any ETF/CEF investor should take a look at what CIL can do for you.
my wife and I are recent retirees and were looking to increase our income without having to sell any of our stock positions. We started learning about CEF's about a year or so ago and were seeking some subscriptions to some of the "better" authors here on SA. We did subscribe to a few and Stanford Chemist is one of them and certainly one of the better ones. We are not much into trading at this stage so buy and hold ( & monitor) ideas are what we primarily look for. The Chemist fills this part very well.We learned to stay away from those authors who have inflated egos and who tout their hugh successes. Been a subscriber since earlier this year and will def continue with this service.
I have been a subscriber for a little less than a year. I will definitely renew. I was already a CEF investor. However, I was going blind. I have learned so much on what to look for. I have become a better CEF investor as a result. I appreciate the well thought out buy and sell recommendations.
Stanford Chemist is also very responsive to direct messages as well as to questions on the special Chat Room for the service. Stanford Chemist's primer has suggested great improvements to segmentation of classes or types of CEFs. Subscription cost is very reasonable relative to the value received.
What to write? What to write? Wait, I'll just tell a little story...
I'd been looking at the CEF ZF, based on one of Stanford Chemist's public articles and some comments there. They'd just merged in a fund (DCA) and information on the combined fund was sketchy (still is, to be honest). I decided to take advantage of CIL's two week trial period to see if he had any more info behind the scenes. I posted some questions and concerns. Not only did SC reply quickly with some of his own observations, but he also bought the fund in one of his portfolios.
That tipped the scales for me. I normally would have bought a token 200-300 shares to get a feel for the fund. Instead I bought a full position of 1000 shares. And the best news? The first distribution more than paid for the annual subscription.
SC is a one stop shop for CEF research. The research is detailed and provides many tradable ideas. SC is fast on respoinding to members' questions and encourages disucssion through chat board.
Straight forward, no BS, solid insight -- what more could you ask for. Most importantly, not one of authors that hedges every article so they are right no matter what. CIL is well thought out, good actionable ideas and the author is available for discussion. I'm a happy subscriber.
I really appreciate this service provided by Chemist. He's (not really sure about your gender) very patient in explaining the rationales for new comers like me. I'm still at the entry level in CEF world, but gained a lot of knowledge reading Chemist's analysis. And of course, I did make some money following the arbitrage trades in the service. I can tell that Chemist is trying to satisfy each and every type of readers, from those who love tradings to those who like to buy and hold. There are different strategies one can choose from according to one's interest. Really thoughtful. P.S. I'm amazed at the excel of portfolio you've prepared, it's more than professional. Admires. Thanks a lot.
-Freedomist
I am relatively new to CEFs. The analysis is most detailed and educational. Are the clear recommendations with rationale. Leonard Theriault
I appreciate the analysis of different classes of CEF's and ETF's to complement my equity holdings
Pretty much the best subscription service for retired/income investors who don't want to spend hours a day researching CEF's, both what to buy and in particular, what to sell. You also get the benefit of forum member ideas in real time. The price is very reasonable for what you get, especially compared to some other subscriptions with questionable information.
New to the service is the only reason did not give five stars.
That said I am very impressed by the PIMCO data sheets, have overweight positions with the manager and it is quite helpful to see what's going with the CEF's on a single page.
Going back and forth at cefconnect.com to analyze my holdings with PIMCO gets me dizzy after a short time and it's easy to confuse the tickers. The sheet cuts through the clutter making decisions with much more confidence.
Second to that, the CHAT room is a high value content addition to the tools CIL offers, and is well worth a good part of the subscription price right there.
I do not regret signing up to CIL.
As a new member, I am still reading some of your new articles. Would you be launching a "CEF 2020 Outlook" later sometime before end of this year? Also, what are your Top 3 CEF Asset Classes for 2020 and will you be able to provide some rational behind your choice?
Thanks and I look forward to your response.
Very informative. I make some of my investment decisions based on the analysis and rankings of the CEF/ETF Income Laboratory. My only beef with the service is it's reliance on Cefconnect.com. Cefconnect is notoriously inaccurate and out of date. I do not consider it to be a reliable source. I wish SC relied more on the direct financial reports issued by the CEF companies themselves rather than Cefconnect. That would be truly be much more useful.
CEF/ETF Income Lab has an interesting approach to finding the undervalued CEF's - it saves me a lot of time in not having to scout for the largest discounts and yields in the sectors which are of interest.
For me personally, the community provided by CEF/ETF Income Laboratory is the one thing that will keep my subscription. I know that i can write a question about any CEF related and an answer will be received at some point. SC is really polite in his answers and is trying his uttermost to really give a constructive respons. Also other people provides a lot of good information.
SC provides a wealth of data and insight to make informed decisions on CEFs and ETFs. I also like the timely news about individual funds (distrib cuts etc) which can really lead to some unique buy opptys if there is an overeaction. SC is also very responsive and very active in the real time chat room as well as looking into suggestged names from his subscribers.
Strong and professional input and guidance from Stanford Chemist. Additionally, the Chat Group contributes broad based perspective to round out the experience. You won't go wrong here - definitely worth the price of admission.
Good background and help to assist in my reviews and evaluations. Just getting started and find the articles and model portfolios to be an excellent investment tool with CEF and ETF's. Hope this is only getting better.
This has been a difficult service for me as I have not experienced the performance that they say I should be. They have been very responsive to my concerns though and I plan on sticking with the service for a while.
It is disappointing to see Blackrock investments recommended. Larry Fink and his investing in China
When I receive an email notification that there is a new article by Stanford Chemist, I click on it and the link takes me to a The Seeking Alpha Marketplace. This marketplace only shows other contributors to which a reader could subscribe. I does show that I have subscribed to Stanford Chemist but it is not easy to get to the new posting from there. Why does the link not take me straight to his posting? I find this so annoying.