A record flood of cash has poured into opposite ends of the US Treasury yield curve this year, seeking either to seize on the highest short-term interest payments in over two decades or profit from a long-bond rally once rates finally peaked.

At a recent educational event organized by Franklin Templeton, Franklin Templeton Institute’s Senior Alternative Investment Strategist Tony Davidow hosted a day of panels that focused on alternative investments.

The Federal Reserve (Fed) elected to not raise the federal funds rate at the October/November 2023 Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting.

Amid soaring interest rates in the U.S., third-quarter issuance of ESG, sustainability, and related debt declined. But annual issuance of such debt is poised to be elevated — a theme that could carry over into 2024.

Financial markets have changed dramatically since balanced portfolios were introduced to investors decades ago. As markets evolve and grow more complex, active management plays a greater role in the success of these strategies, which offer a mix of 60% equities and 40% fixed income.

VettaFi’s vice chairman Tom Lydon discussed the BondBloxx USD High Yield Bond Sector Rotation ETF (HYSA) on this week’s “ETF of the Week” podcast with Chuck Jaffe of “Money Life.”

The so-called dividend aristocrats have an impressive track record. But much of that outperformance can be attributed to its exposure to certain factors.

Many commentators are struck by the disconnect between the US economy’s impressive performance of late and the dismal popular view of the very same economy.

What’s the most important price in the global economy? The price of oil? The price of semiconductors? The price of a Big Mac? More important than any of these is the price of money. For more than three decades it was falling.

While often difficult, investing rules can help us maintain our focus and investment discipline in volatile or uncertain markets.

A prospect that might have seemed unthinkable just a couple short weeks ago is coming into view for bond traders: The potential for US Treasuries to post an annual gain for the first time since 2020.

Advisors face a number of challenges in current markets, given risks and stock and bond correlations. They must grapple with how to invest smartly as well as keeping their clients invested in the traditional 60/40 portfolio.

While 3Q23 growth showed the economy expanded at a 4.9% annualized rate, it is important to remember that the GDP report is backward-looking.

Tesla’s stock has fallen 20% the past month as bears continue to apply pressure following the electric automaker’s Q3 earnings report. A Tesla turnaround or more selling will provide enough volatility for traders unsure of which side to take, which is where leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can help.

While bond prices are generally down, the income they provide is up, providing potential opportunities for fixed income investors.

More investors are turning to active management for their fixed income exposure. In a poll conducted by VettaFi, a third of respondents have more than half of their fixed income exposure tied to active management.

Higher macro and market volatility, along with greater dispersion, creates a favorable environment for active trading, according to K2 Advisors. Get the team’s latest hedge-fund strategy outlook.

Identifying problems is great. Identifying solutions is even better, especially when the politicians who are supposed to be solving our big problems don’t even try.

A transition away from fossil fuels is likely required to avert a significant warming of the planet. Rising temperatures could lead to crop failures, storm intensification, ocean acidification and deoxygenation, and infrastructure damage, among several other risks.

Capital Group is seeing an opportunity for investors to load up on global equities after the Federal Reserve held rates on Wednesday, signaling an end to its aggressive tightening cycle.

Recent economic data, we believe, suggests sticky inflation with positive GDP growth is more likely in 2024 than a soft landing. We expect that interest rates will stay higher for longer on the back of increased Treasury supply and hawkish Federal Reserve rhetoric.

Ultimately, October was a positive month in several different areas for the precious metal. It saw an increase in not only its price but also investor engagement on VettaFi digital properties. On top of that, a pair of gold miner ETFs saw a bump in their performance.

Jon Fee and Jane Edmondson dive into HIPSTR, an income generated index that utilizes closed end funds in MLPs, BDCs and REITs.

I remember the exact moment in 2007 when I knew the financial industry was headed for a reckoning. There was no data point that tipped me off, no great insight about the housing market.

The selloff in US debt appears close to being over as the Federal Reserve nears winding up its most aggressive rate hikes in a generation.

Investment taxes can have a real impact on a portfolio. Investors should be aware of four key tax realities they currently face. Without a plan to manage these taxes, investors may find their ability to retire comfortably could be compromised.

It all starts with the firm’s flagship ETF, the KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB). The fund is designed to capture the growth opportunity in China. The concentrated thematic China ETF has a 10-year track record — and it’s volatile.

With unanimity, the Fed opted to keep the fed funds rate unchanged but remains attentive to the idea that inflation risk should still be paid attention to.

I have always had an affinity for short-term interest rates, and it is from my days as an index arbitrageur.

The US economy just enjoyed its strongest quarterly growth outside of the pandemic era since 2014, expanding at a 4.9% annualized rate in the three months ended Sept. 30.

A recent survey asking economists about the probability of recession next quarter shows a retreat in expectations from a high of 47 percent at the end of 2022 to just 34 percent, according to the Philadelphia Federal Reserve.

In this video, Chuck Carnevale, Co-Founder of FAST Graphs, a.k.a. Mr. Valuation will discuss the current investment opportunity in Realty Income (O), a popular real estate investment trust (REIT).

Private real estate fundraising plunged in the third quarter as higher interest rates cooled investor appetites for risk.

It’s been a great year for alternative income strategies as inflation, interest rate, and recession risk fears dominated markets. Garrett Paolella of NEOS and Christian Magoon of Amplify ETFs joined VettaFi’s Tom Lydon to discuss alternative income opportunities at the Income Strategy Symposium hosted by VettaFi on October 27.

Less than a third of Gen Z feels financially secure while just more than half feels “very or extremely worried about not having enough money,” according to a recent study by consulting firm EY. “Welcome, the water’s warm!” says every American millennial.

Washington seems determined to ignore the country’s rapidly worsening fiscal picture, but sooner or later policymakers will be forced to pay attention. When they do, they’ll find that changes to Social Security are unavoidable.

Advisors plan to allocate more to fixed income ETFs as 2024 approaches. In a poll conducted by VettaFi, attendees were asked what bond changes they were considering heading into year-end. And 60% of respondents said they plan to add to fixed income ETF exposure using proceeds from cash and/or equities.

Contrary to many analysts’ expectations, emerging markets have not spiraled into a debt crisis. This can be partly attributed to central banks’ decision to reject populist policy proposals in favor of a modern iteration of macroeconomic orthodoxy.

Inflation has been coming down since its peak in the summer of 2022. Because the U.S. has so far avoided a recession, soft-landing hopes have risen along with the decline in inflation.

Franklin Equity Group portfolio managers Daniel Scher and Blair Schmicker make the case that REITs are more than just a “collection of assets,” as they were once viewed, and instead offer exposure to quality business models and professional management teams with long track records of value creation.

The typical American is a lot richer now than they were just before the pandemic — and this improvement is at least partially due to government support for families and businesses in 2020 and 2021.

Yields are at some of their highest levels in over a decade. This means that if you own fixed income in your portfolio, there is a good chance that you are seeing unrealized losses on your monthly statements (fixed income math = yields higher, prices lower).

The significant outperformance of US stocks over the last decade is unlikely to repeat over the coming 10 years, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s chief global equity strategist.

Earnings results thus far underscore the strong bifurcation within the market, which is confirmed by the continued deterioration in breadth throughout the current correction.

The renewed opportunity set in fixed income is enabling investors to achieve attractive returns while taking on less risk.

Households are better off today than before the pandemic.

Harness the power of neuroscience and psychology to help your clients reach their long-term planning goals.

To have a shot at taming inflation, the Federal Reserve is intent on tightening financial conditions across the economy. But they haven’t made much of a dent in corporate America yet.

Direct Indexing empowers RIAs to transform tax losses into valuable assets, helping clients offset capital gains on federal tax returns and minimize annual income tax liabilities.

In this article, Portfolio Managers Jonathan Curtis and Ryan Biggs share their insights on where they see opportunities in digital transformation and how they are thinking about the relative attractiveness of public and private company investment opportunities.