Investment Strategies
Get the latest market outlook, as well as news and analysis on mutual funds, ETFs and alternative investments, all designed to help you construct a well-balanced portfolio for your clients
When You Wish Upon a Star
By Robert HuebscherFew accolades matter as much to a mutual fund as Morningstar's five-star designation. But, whether an investor can expect higher returns from higher rated funds is an important question.
January 04, 2010
Exotic ETFs Come with Peculiar Tax ConsequencesHoldings of more exotic ETFs--those that own precious metals, commodity or currency futures, or other types of derivatives--are treated differently for tax purposes from the stocks and bonds owned by plain vanilla ETFs.
January 01, 2010
Asset AllocationBehind the Numbers, with Mark Balasa For Mark Balasa and his colleagues in The Alpha Group the new year rolls in with a combination of positives...
January 01, 2010
The ETF Advisor: China ETFsIt's rare that a consensus forms across a wide cross-section of investors. One market view, however, seems indisputable for bulls and bears alike: China will...
January 01, 2010
Delivering DiversificationDespite the widespread acceptance of diversification as an investment benefit, the fact remains that there's never existed a genuine way to actually quantify either its...
December 28, 2009
Forecast for Municipal DebtWhile tax-free municipal debt issuance won't match 2008 levels, it will be higher, and taxable muni issuance will sharply rise in 2010, according to a forecast from The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA).
December 23, 2009
ETFs Move Out on the Yield CurveBlackRock's iShares has launched two new fixed-income ETFs that will provide a way to allocate portfolio assets to a broad index of longer corporate, U.S. and international bonds.