Implications of "Best Interest" Rule for Annuities
Aaron Levitt
|
With broker-dealers and agents now acting in favor of clients, investors may be...
Welcome to MutualFunds.com
Please help us personalize your experience and select the one that best describes you.
Your personalized experience is almost ready.
Thank you!
Check your email and confirm your subscription to complete your personalized experience.
Thank you for your submission
We hope you enjoy your experience
The consumer staples sector was the week’s best performer, up 2.05% for the week and up 1.62% for the year. As investors worry about the economy’s future, consumer staples are considered one of the more defensive sectors in the market.
International Equity – International markets were also sluggish for the week, with the MSCI Developed Index decreasing 0.47% for the week and the MSCI Emerging Index down 0.30%. Japan’s NIKKEI showed little gain, up only 0.02% for the week.
Commodities – The commodity sector was mixed, with oil declining $0.59 per barrel, or -1.11%, and closing at $52.42 per barrel. The price of gold continued its positive trend for the fourth week in a row and was up $5 per troy ounce. Copper, on the other hand, declined $0.05 per pound, or -1.88%.
Be sure to check our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Long-term Treasury bond yields increased for the week, while the 2-year Treasury remained flat. Both the 10-year and 30-year Treasuries increased 7 bps and 6 bps, respectively. Now that the Fed has finally raised interest rates, it’s a good time to become familiar with how to rebalance your portfolio based on interest rate hikes.
Municipal Bonds – Short-term AAA-rated 2-year municipal yields dropped 1 bps to 1.12%. The 10-year and 30-year AAA-rated municipals both increased their yields by 12 bps from the week prior. Municipal fund flows showed second consecutive week of inflows, with a $546 million increase of assets.
Category | Top Subcategory | MTD Subcategory Return (%) | Top Subcategory Performer | MTD Fund Return (%) | Performance Rationale |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Equity Fund | Large Growth | 1.38% | AMREX | 10.21% | Fund has large exposure to health care, which is one of the best performing sectors this year. |
International Equity | Latin American Stock | 12.18% | SLARX | 13.11% | The Latin American sector is the best performing international sector and this fund specializes in this area |
Commodities | Broad Basket | 2.67% | QRCRX | 7.36% | Fund has high exposure to gold, which had big gains for the week. |
Taxable Bonds | Long Government | 2.01% | PEDIX | 2.91% | Fund invests in government bonds of longer maturity whose price rose this week. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Munis | 1.17% | DYBIX | 1.95% | High-yield is the best forming municipal sector, with investors looking to maximize yield |
This fund is heavily invested in gold mining companies, with the top holding Torex Gold Resources Inc (TXG) which is up over 32% year-to-date.
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis, as of January 20, 2017. Only those funds that are rated 5 stars by Morningstar and that generated YTD return greater than that achieved by the S&P 500 are included.
Top-Performing Fund | Ticker | Category | YTD Return (%) | Net Expense Ratio (%) | % of Assets in Top 5 Holdings | Net Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Invesco Gold & Precious Metals Investor | FGLDX | Precious Metals | 12.56% | 1.54% | 23.62% | $289 | Basic Materials |
U.S. Global Investors Gld & Prec Mtls | USERX | Precious Metals | 12.07% | 2.13% | 37.71% | $91 | Basic Materials |
First Eagle Gold | FEGOX | Precious Metals | 8.39% | 2.14% | 40.79% | $1,100 | Basic Materials |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 7.87% | 0.91% | 31.67% | $3,250 | Technology |
BlackRock Latin America Instl | MALTX | Latin America Equities | 7.66% | 1.33% | 33.68% | $162 | Financial Services |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
Aaron Levitt
|
With broker-dealers and agents now acting in favor of clients, investors may be...
Justin Kuepper
|
Let’s take a look at what sets China apart from other emerging markets,...
News
Iuri Struta
|
Check out the latest edition of mutual fund scorecard.
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Download our free report
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Download our free report
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Mutual Fund Education
Justin Kuepper
|
Let's take a closer look at how ESG investments have outperformed during the...
Mutual Fund Education
Daniel Cross
|
While CITs and mutual funds share many similarities, there are some key differences...
Mutual Fund Education
Sam Bourgi
|
The phrase ‘bear market’ has been thrown around a lot lately, but it...
The consumer staples sector was the week’s best performer, up 2.05% for the week and up 1.62% for the year. As investors worry about the economy’s future, consumer staples are considered one of the more defensive sectors in the market.
International Equity – International markets were also sluggish for the week, with the MSCI Developed Index decreasing 0.47% for the week and the MSCI Emerging Index down 0.30%. Japan’s NIKKEI showed little gain, up only 0.02% for the week.
Commodities – The commodity sector was mixed, with oil declining $0.59 per barrel, or -1.11%, and closing at $52.42 per barrel. The price of gold continued its positive trend for the fourth week in a row and was up $5 per troy ounce. Copper, on the other hand, declined $0.05 per pound, or -1.88%.
Be sure to check our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Long-term Treasury bond yields increased for the week, while the 2-year Treasury remained flat. Both the 10-year and 30-year Treasuries increased 7 bps and 6 bps, respectively. Now that the Fed has finally raised interest rates, it’s a good time to become familiar with how to rebalance your portfolio based on interest rate hikes.
Municipal Bonds – Short-term AAA-rated 2-year municipal yields dropped 1 bps to 1.12%. The 10-year and 30-year AAA-rated municipals both increased their yields by 12 bps from the week prior. Municipal fund flows showed second consecutive week of inflows, with a $546 million increase of assets.
Category | Top Subcategory | MTD Subcategory Return (%) | Top Subcategory Performer | MTD Fund Return (%) | Performance Rationale |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Equity Fund | Large Growth | 1.38% | AMREX | 10.21% | Fund has large exposure to health care, which is one of the best performing sectors this year. |
International Equity | Latin American Stock | 12.18% | SLARX | 13.11% | The Latin American sector is the best performing international sector and this fund specializes in this area |
Commodities | Broad Basket | 2.67% | QRCRX | 7.36% | Fund has high exposure to gold, which had big gains for the week. |
Taxable Bonds | Long Government | 2.01% | PEDIX | 2.91% | Fund invests in government bonds of longer maturity whose price rose this week. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Munis | 1.17% | DYBIX | 1.95% | High-yield is the best forming municipal sector, with investors looking to maximize yield |
This fund is heavily invested in gold mining companies, with the top holding Torex Gold Resources Inc (TXG) which is up over 32% year-to-date.
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis, as of January 20, 2017. Only those funds that are rated 5 stars by Morningstar and that generated YTD return greater than that achieved by the S&P 500 are included.
Top-Performing Fund | Ticker | Category | YTD Return (%) | Net Expense Ratio (%) | % of Assets in Top 5 Holdings | Net Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Invesco Gold & Precious Metals Investor | FGLDX | Precious Metals | 12.56% | 1.54% | 23.62% | $289 | Basic Materials |
U.S. Global Investors Gld & Prec Mtls | USERX | Precious Metals | 12.07% | 2.13% | 37.71% | $91 | Basic Materials |
First Eagle Gold | FEGOX | Precious Metals | 8.39% | 2.14% | 40.79% | $1,100 | Basic Materials |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 7.87% | 0.91% | 31.67% | $3,250 | Technology |
BlackRock Latin America Instl | MALTX | Latin America Equities | 7.66% | 1.33% | 33.68% | $162 | Financial Services |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
Aaron Levitt
|
With broker-dealers and agents now acting in favor of clients, investors may be...
Justin Kuepper
|
Let’s take a look at what sets China apart from other emerging markets,...
News
Iuri Struta
|
Check out the latest edition of mutual fund scorecard.
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Download our free report
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Download our free report
Find out why $30 trillon is invested in mutual funds.
Mutual Fund Education
Justin Kuepper
|
Let's take a closer look at how ESG investments have outperformed during the...
Mutual Fund Education
Daniel Cross
|
While CITs and mutual funds share many similarities, there are some key differences...
Mutual Fund Education
Sam Bourgi
|
The phrase ‘bear market’ has been thrown around a lot lately, but it...