Results for "earnings"
Displaying 515 results
Volatility seen as best way to hedge against political risk
October 26, 2016
Let's say that you were worried about political risk because the elections scare you more than going down to the basement to investigate a screaming furnace. What would be the best way to hedge against it? Forget gold and bonds. Volatility is...
Investor exodus forcing hedge fund managers to take big pay cuts
October 21, 2016
The hits just keep on coming to the hedge fund space as managers are now expecting a 34% pay cut. Squeaking by on just $300,000. Yikes. Hints of new European monetary stimulus has pushed the greenback to a seven-month high. Leaving un ultra-loose...
Commodities funds may offer inflation hedge, but many overweight energy
October 19, 2016
If you look in the average investor's closet of anxieties, inflation is probably the biggest, scariest monster of them all. And increasingly, investors have been looking at commodities funds as a way to offset the effects of inflation and diversify...
Morgan Stanley may not follow Merrill Lynch's lead to ban IRA commissions
October 19, 2016
Morgan Stanley may not be following Bank of America Merrill Lynch's lead in discontinuing commission-based IRAs. In a conference call Wednesday on its third-quarter earnings CEO James Gorman said Morgan Stanley would announce its plans concerning...
Bank of America CFO says decision to stop paying IRA commissions won't incite Merrill Lynch brokers to quit
October 17, 2016
Bank of America Corp.'s chief financial officer Paul Donofrio on Monday dismissed the notion brokers working for its Merrill Lynch brokerage unit will defect en masse because of the firm's decision to stop paying commissions on individual retirement...
Stock market falls into earnings season
October 12, 2016
Earnings season kicks off with a little stock market selloff. Just enough of a dip to keep us on our toes, but not enough to keep us up at night. “You are coming up against very low expectations.” The price of gold is signaling an increased...
Downtrodden international funds looking for a break
October 11, 2016
For international funds to race ahead of domestic funds, you typically need a falling dollar and rising foreign markets. This year, most international funds are misfiring on at least one cylinder. The average large-company foreign blend fund...
Small-cap stocks have more room to run
October 10, 2016
Despite the run-up by small-cap stocks this year, the longer-term view still favors smaller company stocks over larger companies, according to some market watchers. Small-cap growth funds tracked by Morningstar gained an average of 6.6% since...
What to do when smart beta looks like dumb beta
October 6, 2016
Let's say a financial adviser — not you, of course — recommends a few smart beta ETFs for his client's portfolio. And unfortunately, those smart beta ETFs promptly head south. What should that financial adviser — not you — do? If you...
Deutsche Bank turmoil exposes ETN counter-party risk
October 4, 2016
Nearly two dozen exchange-traded notes have come into Deutsche Bank's troubled shadow. Counterparty risk assessments. Projecting the next move for stocks. Going down to go up. Dissecting the dividend-payer buzz. Is dividend payment mandatory?...
Don't discount public company disclosures in fiduciary process
September 30, 2016
While individual investors rarely read disclosures or give them much thought, advisers should not discount their importance to the fiduciary process. Investment fiduciaries are inherently both producers and consumers of disclosure data. The...
Why you should still be worried about big-bank failures
September 16, 2016
The risks of big banks failing might be greater now than it was leading into the financial crisis. That should get Elizabeth Warren's attention. A “nontrivial probability.” To all the index junkies out there, here are some arguments in support...
Investors pile in as REITs move closer to S&P 500 sector status
September 15, 2016
The establishment of real estate as an eleventh sector of the S&P 500 Index is morphing into a near-term investment strategy, according to some market watchers. The real estate play, ahead of REITs' elevation to sector status on Friday, is seen...
Donald Trump tries to shame the Fed into raising rates
September 13, 2016
In his campaign to become the next president of the United States, Donald Trump is pushing the envelope in his attempted influence over monetary policy. Trying to shame Fed Chair Janet Yellen. Too much Fed speak is now rattling the bond market....
Financial-advice firms see record 2015 earnings yet slowest growth since crisis, study shows
September 13, 2016
Independent financial-advice firms produced record earnings last year, but their growth rate dropped off the most since the financial crisis, according to an annual benchmarking study by InvestmentNews research. Revenue rose to a record $3.89...
Wave of new strategic beta ETFs make passive investing more complicated
September 13, 2016
No one likes more rules — unless they're rolling out a new exchange-traded fund. At the Morningstar ETF conference last week, strategic beta was one of the biggest topics of conversation. The question now is whether they can stand up to their...
Adviser pricing for ultrawealthy clients is under pressure
September 12, 2016
Advisers who specialize in helping ultra-high-net-worth families with all aspects of their money management are finding the market is softer today than it was a few years ago. Family offices that handle clients with wealth of $20 million or...
Time to start navigating that minefield of mutual fund capital gains
September 9, 2016
Heading into capital gains distribution season for mutual funds, there are some potential pitfalls worth noting for financial advisers. Don't assume a fund will always be tax friendly. The muni-bond lovefest continues. Investors are pouring...
Fed finds more reasons to keep sitting on its hands
September 8, 2016
The Fed's latest reason for not raising interest rates is that only highly-skilled workers are getting raises. Also, U.S. job openings surged to a record high in July. There might be times when you want to curse during communications with clients,...
Schwab's Liz Ann Sonders: Old bull market doesn't mean dead bull market
September 8, 2016
The time to worry about the stock market is when investors are giddy with euphoria — and that's just not happening yet, says Liz Ann Sonders, Schwab's chief investment strategist. Despite the looming presidential election and the prospect...
