Every Wall Street analyst, financial planner and broker will tell you that the right way to pick a mutual fund is find a good money manager of a fund that has a long time record.
Yes, I believe that too, but it is amazing that when you go back in time to see what this genius did with the mutual fund, you will find years he has had some terrible losses. Would you want to own that fund then? In the year 2000 about 60% of all mutual funds declined. Many had losses of 30%, 40% and many over 50%. That is when they tell you things like: "you have to be in for the long haul", "this is only a market correction" and "the market always comes back". Among others.
One of the best-known mutual funds, Fidelity Magellan, dropped from a high last year of 146 to 100. That is a 32% loss. Yet this fund manager received a salary of over a million dollars. Did you know the average fund manager made $290,000 last year? How can that kind of money be paid to a person who loses your hard-earned cash? The great majority of fund managers today have not experienced a long-term bear market. They are too young. A few of them did go through the 1987 crunch in which the bottom was reached in 3 weeks. They did not have a chance to sell off their weakest stocks. Of course, they had plenty of time before that fateful 508-point one-day loss to unload some of their dogs. Unfortunately, fund managers are not taught to sell and they definitely do not understand that sometimes cash is the best position.
A major fallacy of mutual fund charters is that they must always be fully invested. There are many funds that have specialties such a Pacific Rim, Russia, real estate, indexes of various kinds, socially responsible, big cap, small cap and on and on. There are times when almost everything in that sector is going down and there is nothing to buy, but the fund charter maintains they must be fully invested. In defense of the fund manager he must buy even if it is garbage. He is not allowed to preserve the investors capital by staying in treasury bills.
If you think a fund manager who loses 30%, 40% or more of your money at any time is a good fund manager then you have been snookered by Wall Street. There is only one way to protect yourself from that type of money mismanagement and it is very simple. If the fund you own drops more than 15% from its highest price any time after you own it then you must sell it immediately even if there is a sales charge or redemption fee. The first rule of investing is "protect your capital". You even have to protect yourself from "a good fund manager".
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
express cleaning service Arlington Heights ..Time to look back2004 is over, now we are in... Read More
According to Investopedia Inc. the penny stock market has seen... Read More
The Surgeon General of the United States says that smoking... Read More
In today's volatile and confusing stock markets everyone is searching... Read More
If you're like many investors who squander those small dividend... Read More
You'd have had to be living on a desert island... Read More
I was recently interviewed for a press release through a... Read More
When you stand on the ocean shore and watch the... Read More
Mutual funds and brokers are always preaching not to buy... Read More
Checked your 401K lately? Going back to about a year... Read More
How do you invest? What do you really pay? At... Read More
Hedge current portfolio positions and gain access to capital resources... Read More
Wall Street's watchword has always been diversification, but what does... Read More
As I have said many times before in this column... Read More
Investors who exclusively use broadly diversified, no load mutual funds... Read More
Did you run out to buy that duct tape yet?... Read More
When it comes to buying a stock or mutual fund... Read More
The single most expensive stock market trades are those made... Read More
We've all heard of the stock market and probably have... Read More
In a previously written article, we expanded the use of... Read More
Let's assume that you want to make some serious money... Read More
The higher the market goes the more confusing are the... Read More
It is commonly reported that the stock market averages about... Read More
Before you embark upon a journey of trading stocks or... Read More
Every Wall Street analyst, financial planner and broker will tell... Read More
tidy up service Arlington Heights ..What! Me worry?Many of you remember the cover of MAD... Read More
Let's assume that you want to make some serious money... Read More
Now that you have some money burning a hole in... Read More
Picture one of those clubs where only the real heavyweights... Read More
A PEG ratio cannot be used alone but is a... Read More
The Surgeon General of the United States says that smoking... Read More
One of the most believed bits of conventional wisdom from... Read More
(1) Stock Market is Tough Place to Make Any Money... Read More
The bear market that showed up at the end of... Read More
What a great statement!I just heard someone use it in... Read More
If you've ever flipped on the television to CNN Financial... Read More
Everybody is riding the Wall Street Roller coaster. Even if... Read More
It is finally catching up with them. The brokerage companies... Read More
Ever turn down a street, get half way and suddenly... Read More
For years I have been saying you must have a... Read More
This article describes the model of a natural relationship between... Read More
What can I expect to make my first year of... Read More
Every day I see in the financial section of newspapers... Read More
Because there are so many stocks that are NOT paying... Read More
Disclaimer: Please note that I do not necessarily purchase, own,... Read More
Money: the most charged word in the planet. It means... Read More
When is a dividend not a dividend?The latest thing "conservative"... Read More
AS BUILDERS BEGIN WORK ON THE FREEDOM TOWER in New... Read More
We learnt the following the hard way! If any of... Read More
Ever have one of those sample boxes of candy? Each... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |