The fees and expenses built into Pennsylvania’s [529] plan are higher than some other states,” says Christopher M. Jones, “who likes low-expense index funds that aim to mimic popular stock indexes, such as the S&P 500.” Read the Full Article
Through the late 1990s American investors liked to stick close to home. They were well rewarded for doing so—the Standard & Poor’s 500 index returned 16.8% on average yearly, while the Morgan Stanley EAFE Index, a gauge of large foreign stocks, had an average annual return of just 8.8% per year. But that is history. It is time for rational […]
The recent financial news would have you believe that the world financial markets are falling apart, and that the current bear market will probably be around for a while. In fact, the last two years have been a very dark time for U.S. large stocks. For example, the S&P 500 stock index—which is composed of U.S. large stocks—is down about […]
Twenty-five years ago the concept of indexed investing was derided by professional investors as a path to mediocre investment returns. Why buy the market when you can beat the market? That was their argument. But one of the pioneers of retail mutual fund indexing, former Vanguard Group Chairman John C. Bogle, has had the last laugh. Index funds he launched […]
It all seems so easy: smart investment managers rise to the top. All an investor has to do is identify one of the geniuses who runs a portfolio that has been successful for a long period of time. By hitching his fortunes to that of the star investment manager, the investor will have a better chance of beating the stock […]
“No matter how enthusiastic you are about the long-term prospects of Lucent or Agere, the most important rule for any investor is to be diversified,” says Christopher M. Jones. Read the Full Article
Did you lose money in stocks over the last 28 months? Don’t just fret over what’s happened; instead, learn some valuable lessons that will improve your future investment experience and returns. Bear markets like the one we’ve experienced are great teachers of basic investment lessons. Among them are: Diversification works. Investments return to the mean. You cannot outsmart the market. Safety in […]
The two-year bear market has made a lot of investors wary of risk. Investors who thought nothing of buying the stock of a fledgling Internet company with no profits back in early 2000 are now slapping their money into bond mutual funds, certificates of deposit, and money market mutual funds. Despite low interest rates, money poured into bond mutual funds […]
Many American investors by now are familiar with retail mutual funds. Popular names like Janus, Fidelity, and Vanguard are advertised widely and fill the portfolios of many investors. What many don’t know are their more refined cousins – institutional mutual funds. Where a retail mutual fund will take any investor who knocks on the door, an institutional fund accepts only […]
Mutual funds are one of the most important innovations of all time for individual investors, allowing them to obtain wide diversification and professional investment management at reasonable cost. That makes it the more shameful that large portions of the mutual fund industry continue to exploit shareholders with excessive costs, while delivering below-average returns. Some fund companies offer very inexpensive products. […]
