Investment-grade corporate bonds remain attractive given their lower risk and relatively high yields. Long-term investors who can handle volatility might consider high-yield bonds and preferred securities, but we wouldn't suggest large positions in either.
Market indexes can be a useful barometer of long-term performance. But the investment opportunity set need not start and end there. Fundamental Equities investor Alister Hibbert uses an unconstrained approach in seeking to identify those rare companies that stand out from the pack.
Municipal bonds deviated from U.S. fixed income assets and posted negative performance in May.
The utilities sector has outperformed most of the other sectors in 2024, and there are some very specific reasons why.
The derivative income space has grown tremendously over the last five years. Since the end of 2019 there has been a ten-fold increase in assets invested in derivative income ETFs and mutual funds, from $7bn to $73bn.
The Federal Reserve’s balance sheet is one of the world’s most important security portfolios. Yet, its ongoing importance for markets and financial conditions is often underappreciated.
Alliance Bernstein converted two short duration mutual funds, worth almost $800 million in assets under management, into ETFs on Monday.
Defending my love of dividends consumes a lot of my time. Sometimes I’ll pull out my track record. Other times I explain how owning boring and stable dividend stocks means I spend less time watching and worrying about them.
In this article, Russ Koesterich discusses the YTD strength of energy stocks and why it could continue.
After a weak April, markets bounced back in May, with the S&P 500 staging a breathtaking rally in the final few hours of trading on Friday, May 31.
You’ve probably heard the term “direct indexing.” It seems like everyone is talking about it. You’ve probably also read that sales of direct indexing products are booming. But what exactly is direct indexing?
Fidelity Investments is flexing its muscles in efforts to extract payments from ETF firms in exchange for listing and maintaining their products on its massive platform, stoking industry ire.
As the political machinery of an election year roars to life, inundating every media platform with its cacophony, it becomes increasingly challenging to block out the pervasive noise. However, amid this clamor, there are compelling reasons why maintaining focus on your investment strategy is imperative.
Market inefficiencies create opportunities for active managers. We believe there are more mispriced companies in small cap growth than in other equity markets, and we have developed an approach that allows us to capitalize consistently when we find them.
VettaFi discusses changes in the MLP/midstream investment product landscape.
During ripping bull markets, investors often start benchmarking. That is comparing their portfolio’s performance against a major index—most often, the S&P 500 index. While that activity is heavily encouraged by Wall Street and the media, funded by Wall Street, is benchmarking the right for you?
I’m fresh off the plane from Las Vegas—and no, I wasn’t hitting the slots, though the city’s Harry Reid International Airport sure hit the jackpot with a record-breaking 57.6 million passengers last year.
Rather than dive into a vast pool individual bond options, these three ETFs can provide a low-cost and convenient option.
Interest in active fixed income products has swelled in 2024, as credit spreads narrow and the Federal Reserve holds fast to a “will they, won’t they” game.
In this article, Russ Koesterich discusses why stocks are proving to be resilient in the face of higher rates and muted expectations for monetary easing.
ETF industry veteran Dave Nadig covers a range of topics including crypto ETFs, the multi share class fund structure, Fidelity’s “pay-to-play” scheme, Vanguard’s new CEO, meme stock ETFs, and the biggest threat facing American capitalism. VettaFi’s Kirsten Chang also offers perspective on Vanguard’s new CEO and dives into international equity ETF flows.
Shadow banking is back. A constellation of less-regulated intermediaries — from insurers to private investment funds — is increasingly taking on the traditional business of banks, making trillions of dollars in risky loans and occupying a central role in the economy.
Active exchange-traded funds have seen record inflows in recent years, taking assets under management to $630 billion.
An elevated or rising rate environment creates pockets of opportunity within asset classes such as closed-end funds.
When it comes to the financial markets, investors have a litany of investment vehicles to choose from. The choices are nearly unlimited, from brokered certificates of deposit to complex derivative instruments.
On this week’s episode of ETF Prime, host Nate Geraci is joined by VettaFi Head of Research Todd Rosenbluth to discuss hedge funds embracing ETFs, spot ether ETFs, and a potential shortage of ETF tickers, among other topics. Afterward, Bancreek CEO and CIO Andrew Skatoff spoke with Geraci about his investment philosophy.
Active ETFs seem to be everywhere right now following a big boom over the last few years. While active ETF strategies have been available for many years, the so-called ETF rule in 2019 kickstarted ETF development.
VettaFi’s Head of Research Todd Rosenbluth discussed the ALPS/SMITH Core Plus Bond ETF (SMTH) on this week’s “ETF of the Week” podcast with Chuck Jaffe of “Money Life.”
Premiums and discounts are a popular metric to gauge the trading health of an exchange-traded fund (ETF). David Mann, our Head of Global ETFs Product and Capital Markets, updates his views on this metric with football (aka soccer) analogies from across the pond.
As long as ETFs stay true to their original mindset of solving investor problems, growth is the only path forward. Current product development suggests that’s the most likely case.
Guessing the direction of interest rates is no easier than any other tactical or market timing decision. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note is just under 3.9%. That is about 100 basis points less than it was a few months ago. Fed policy is uncertain, inflation has not been fully controlled, and fiscal deficits loom as a long-term risk for yields to go higher.
The TCW Group announced that two of its mutual funds have been converted into ETFs, offering focuses on growth and artificial intelligence.
VanEck’s Matthew Sigel discusses the upcoming SEC decision on their spot ether ETF filing, the debut of VanEck’s Bitcoin Trust (HODL), and the investment case for ether and bitcoin. K&L Gates’ Rich Kerr provides a unique legal perspective on the recent multi-share class structure filings, spot ether ETFs, and the UK government potentially granting equivalence to US-domiciled ETFs. VettaFi’s Todd Rosenbluth offers new polling data around the ongoing fixed income conundrum.
As of last week, the total return of the S&P 500 was even with 3-month Treasury bill returns since the valuation peak of January 2022, more than two years ago. In our view, investors continue to “grasp at the suds of yesterday’s bubble,” ignoring extreme valuations, lopsided bullish sentiment, emerging pressure on profit margins, economic conditions at the border of recession...
Over the last two weeks, the bullish sentiment index has reversed from extreme greed to fear. The composite net bullish sentiment index, comprised of professional and retail investors, fell from 38.15 to 9.9 in two weeks.
Bonds investors now balance the potential risks and rewards of taking on longer duration exposures in the current environment.
If you’re not sure what direct indexing means, you’re not alone. Even after the recent growth, direct indexing remains relatively unknown. As our compliance team never fails to remind us, you can’t invest directly in an index. So what exactly is direct indexing?
How momentum and election cycles may shift the impact and timing of seasonal trends.
I had the opportunity this week to speak at the London AIM Summit, where presenters and attendees were cautiously optimistic about the economy.
With yields at current levels, bond funds can lock in longer term yields, offer price appreciation potential and overall serve as a hedge against a possible hard landing. Though elevated cash balances worked during the Fed’s hiking cycle, we believe now is an opportunity for clients to consider adding duration given the potential for a Fed pause.
Our top five picks for events that have the potential to be market moving.
The most interesting thing about 1968-1969 was the agreement about the stock market future between the greatest growth investor at that time, T. Rowe Price, and the greatest value investor of all time, Warren Buffett.
Is this just a correction after a strong bullish advance from November, or is the bull market ending?
We believe high-yield munis carry additional risks, but are worth consideration by investors in higher tax brackets who are comfortable taking added risks.
Interpreting flows into ETFs and mutual funds sometimes feels an awful lot like reading tea leaves, but I love it.
Timing has never been a crucial undertaking for fixed income allocations dedicated to asset preservation largely because this is a long-term endeavor dedicated to keeping an investor’s wealth intact.
With the right tech in place, advisors can access reliable, high-quality models that can be used repeatedly across their book of business.
Today, we look at the world of “alternative investing.” I put it in quotes because this was originally a somewhat pejorative term. Back in the 1960s (and maybe before?), brokers sold you stocks and bonds, saying that was how smart people invested
Just as a GPS navigator analyzes real-time data to recalibrate routes efficiently, active management interprets market conditions to steer portfolios towards investment goals.
Japan has had two big moments in the last month, with the Nikkei 225 equity index breaking above the highs set in 1989, and the Bank of Japan (BoJ) raising interest rates for the first time in 17 years.
