Over $250 Billion in Bonds Are at Risk
Aaron Levitt
|
For investors, the wipe-out of CoCo bonds brings forth a variety of questions...
The information technology sector was this week’s top-performing area with a 2.63% return. The sector is up 15.41% on a year-to-date basis and is the best-performing sector. This is led by companies like Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOG), which are both up over 26% and 17%, respectively, on a YTD basis.
Explore our Mutual Fund Education section to learn more about important mutual fund concepts.
International Equities – International equities followed suit to the U.S. equity markets and ended in the positive for the week. The MSCI Developed Index had an increase of 3.12%, while the MSCI Emerging Index gained 1.74% for the week. Japan’s NIKKEI 225 continued its second week of gains, up 3.09% and closing at 19,197.
Commodities – The commodity sector showed declines for the most part, with crude oil falling $0.29 per barrel and closing at $49.33 per barrel. The price of gold also declined $21 per troy ounce to close at $1,266. Copper had the only increase, up $0.07 per pound to close at $2.61.
Be sure to read our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields showed little movement, with the two-year Treasury yield increased by 1 bps to 1.26%. The 10-year Treasury saw a decrease of 3 bps to 2.28%, while the 30-year Treasury remained flat at 2.95%.
Municipal Bonds – Municipal yields gained across the board for all maturities. The two-year AAA-rated bonds increased 3 bps to 1.01%. The 10-year AAA-rated municipal increased by 10 bps, while the 30-year increased by 12 bps. For the third week in a row, muni bond funds showed an inflow, registering $217 million last week.
Credit spreads decreased this week, with the largest spread between the five-year Treasury and the AAA-rated municipal decreasing 7 bps to 36 bps. The trend for longer-term bonds reversed this week, with the 30-year AAA-rated municipal bonds now yielding 7 bps more compared to its 30-year Treasury counterpart.
You can also read about essential tax tips for mutual funds so you are aware of key strategies to limit your tax burden.
Category | Top Subcategory | 1-Month Subcategory Return (%) | Top Subcategory Performer | Ticker | MTD Fund Return (%) | Performance Rationale |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Equity Fund | Small Cap Growth | 2.89% | Jacob Micro Cap Growth Investor | JMCGX | 7.35% | The fund's largest holding is USA Technologies, Inc (USAT), which is up over 15% on a YTD basis. |
International Equity | India Equities | 5.27% | Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | 8.49% | The fund invests in India-based companies. The BSE SENSEX Index is up over 12% YTD. |
Commodities | Broad Basket | -1.10% | TCW Enhanced Commodity Strategy I | TGGWX | -0.06% | With commodities falling this week, this fund was protected by being invested in 49% cash and the rest in bonds as a hedge. |
Taxable Bonds | Government Bonds | 1.67% | DoubleLine Long Duration Total Ret Bd I | DBLDX | 2.23% | WIth bond yields falling, the value of this bond fund increased in value. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Municipal Bonds | 0.81% | PIMCO High Yield Municipal Bond I | PHMIX | 1.65% | With yields dropping this week, high-yield bonds were the best-performing segment within the broad municipal bond sector. |
This fund’s largest holding is in MakeMyTrip Limited (MMYT), which is up more than 81% YTD.
Top Five Performers
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis as of April 28, 2017. Only those funds that are rated five stars by Morningstar and that generated YTD returns greater than equal to that achieved by the S&P 500 are included.
Top-Performing Fund | Ticker | Category | YTD Return (%) | Net Expense Ratio (%) | % of Assets in Top 10 Holdings | Total Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | India Equities | 31.56% | 2.00% | 32.9% | $ 123 | Financial Services |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 22.77% | 0.90% | 61.2% | $ 3,800 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst International Opp I | MIOIX | Foreign Large Cap Growth Equities | 21.97% | 1.34% | 49.3% | $ 101 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Global Opp I | MGGIX | Global Equities | 20.79% | 1.07% | 53.5% | $ 828 | Technology |
Oppenheimer Global Opportunities I | OGIIX | Global Equities | 20.45% | 0.75% | 32.8% | $ 4,500 | Technology |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
Aaron Levitt
|
For investors, the wipe-out of CoCo bonds brings forth a variety of questions...
Aaron Levitt
|
One of the biggest and most important positions of the bill deals with...
News
Markets have continued to rally these past two weeks, after the Federal Reserve...
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 information technology sector was this week’s top-performing area with a 2.63% return. The sector is up 15.41% on a year-to-date basis and is the best-performing sector. This is led by companies like Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOG), which are both up over 26% and 17%, respectively, on a YTD basis.
Explore our Mutual Fund Education section to learn more about important mutual fund concepts.
International Equities – International equities followed suit to the U.S. equity markets and ended in the positive for the week. The MSCI Developed Index had an increase of 3.12%, while the MSCI Emerging Index gained 1.74% for the week. Japan’s NIKKEI 225 continued its second week of gains, up 3.09% and closing at 19,197.
Commodities – The commodity sector showed declines for the most part, with crude oil falling $0.29 per barrel and closing at $49.33 per barrel. The price of gold also declined $21 per troy ounce to close at $1,266. Copper had the only increase, up $0.07 per pound to close at $2.61.
Be sure to read our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields showed little movement, with the two-year Treasury yield increased by 1 bps to 1.26%. The 10-year Treasury saw a decrease of 3 bps to 2.28%, while the 30-year Treasury remained flat at 2.95%.
Municipal Bonds – Municipal yields gained across the board for all maturities. The two-year AAA-rated bonds increased 3 bps to 1.01%. The 10-year AAA-rated municipal increased by 10 bps, while the 30-year increased by 12 bps. For the third week in a row, muni bond funds showed an inflow, registering $217 million last week.
Credit spreads decreased this week, with the largest spread between the five-year Treasury and the AAA-rated municipal decreasing 7 bps to 36 bps. The trend for longer-term bonds reversed this week, with the 30-year AAA-rated municipal bonds now yielding 7 bps more compared to its 30-year Treasury counterpart.
You can also read about essential tax tips for mutual funds so you are aware of key strategies to limit your tax burden.
Category | Top Subcategory | 1-Month Subcategory Return (%) | Top Subcategory Performer | Ticker | MTD Fund Return (%) | Performance Rationale |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Equity Fund | Small Cap Growth | 2.89% | Jacob Micro Cap Growth Investor | JMCGX | 7.35% | The fund's largest holding is USA Technologies, Inc (USAT), which is up over 15% on a YTD basis. |
International Equity | India Equities | 5.27% | Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | 8.49% | The fund invests in India-based companies. The BSE SENSEX Index is up over 12% YTD. |
Commodities | Broad Basket | -1.10% | TCW Enhanced Commodity Strategy I | TGGWX | -0.06% | With commodities falling this week, this fund was protected by being invested in 49% cash and the rest in bonds as a hedge. |
Taxable Bonds | Government Bonds | 1.67% | DoubleLine Long Duration Total Ret Bd I | DBLDX | 2.23% | WIth bond yields falling, the value of this bond fund increased in value. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Municipal Bonds | 0.81% | PIMCO High Yield Municipal Bond I | PHMIX | 1.65% | With yields dropping this week, high-yield bonds were the best-performing segment within the broad municipal bond sector. |
This fund’s largest holding is in MakeMyTrip Limited (MMYT), which is up more than 81% YTD.
Top Five Performers
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis as of April 28, 2017. Only those funds that are rated five stars by Morningstar and that generated YTD returns greater than equal to that achieved by the S&P 500 are included.
Top-Performing Fund | Ticker | Category | YTD Return (%) | Net Expense Ratio (%) | % of Assets in Top 10 Holdings | Total Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | India Equities | 31.56% | 2.00% | 32.9% | $ 123 | Financial Services |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 22.77% | 0.90% | 61.2% | $ 3,800 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst International Opp I | MIOIX | Foreign Large Cap Growth Equities | 21.97% | 1.34% | 49.3% | $ 101 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Global Opp I | MGGIX | Global Equities | 20.79% | 1.07% | 53.5% | $ 828 | Technology |
Oppenheimer Global Opportunities I | OGIIX | Global Equities | 20.45% | 0.75% | 32.8% | $ 4,500 | Technology |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
Aaron Levitt
|
For investors, the wipe-out of CoCo bonds brings forth a variety of questions...
Aaron Levitt
|
One of the biggest and most important positions of the bill deals with...
News
Markets have continued to rally these past two weeks, after the Federal Reserve...
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...