Using the SECURE Act 2.0’s RMD Rules to Your Advantage
Aaron Levitt
|
One of the biggest and most important positions of the bill deals with...
The information technology sector was this week’s top-performing area again, up 1.39%. The sector is up 17.02% 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 32% and 26%, respectively, on a YTD basis.
Explore our Mutual Fund Education section to learn more about important mutual fund concepts.
International Equities – International equities, like the U.S. equity markets, also showed gains and ended in the positive for the week. The MSCI Developed Index had an increase of 1.86%, while the MSCI Emerging Index had a more modest gain of 0.08% for the week. Japan’s NIKKEI 225 continued its third week of gains, up 1.30% and closing at 19,446.
Commodities – The commodity sector showed big declines this week, with crude oil falling $3.11 per barrel and closing at $46.22 per barrel. The price of gold declined $41 per troy ounce to close at $1,225. Copper was also down $0.08 per pound to close at $2.53.
Be sure to read our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields jumped this week, with the two-year Treasury yield increasing by 5 bps to 1.31%. The 10-year and 30-year bonds saw an increase in yields of 7 bps and 4 bps, respectively.
Municipal Bonds – These remained mostly flat, with 30-year bonds showing a moderate rise in yield of 2 bps. While muni bonds continued on its fourth week of net positive fund flows, credit spread increased. The spread between the 5-year Treasury and AAA-rated muni bonds widened to 44 bps; however, 30-year AAA-rated muni bonds managed to yield 5 bps more than its 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 | Large Cap Growth | 3.20% | Zevenbergen Genea Institutional | ZVGIX | 7.61% | The fund's largest holding is Amazon, Inc. (AMZN), which is up over 26% on a YTD basis. |
International Equity | Europe Equities | 6.36% | Columbia Acorn European Z | CAEZX | 9.47% | The fund invests in European-based companies, like those invested in the Euro STOXX 50 Index that is up over 8% month-to-date. |
Commodities | Broad Basket | -4.34% | Catalyst Hedged Commodity Strategy I | CFHIX | -0.37% | With commodities falling again this week, this fund was protected by being invested in 39% cash and 26% bonds as a hedge. |
Taxable Bonds | Emerging Markets Bonds | 1.19% | Ashmore Emerging Mkts Corp Debt A | ECDAX | 2.66% | WIth bond yields gaining this week, emerging markets bonds did not decline as much as U.S.-based funds. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Municipal Bonds | 0.75% | Oppenheimer Rochester® High Yld Muni B | ORNBX | 1.28% | With yields staying flat this week, high-yield bonds were the best-performing area of the municipal bond sector. |
This fund’s largest holding is in MakeMyTrip Limited (MMYT), which is up more than 66% YTD.
Top 5 Performers
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis, as of May 5, 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 10 Holdings | Net Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | India Equities | 32.00% | 2.00% | 35.00% | $154 | Financial Services |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 24.51% | 0.90% | 54.60% | $4,030 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst International Opp I | MIOIX | Foreign Large Cap Growth Equities | 23.84% | 1.34% | 49.30% | $138 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Growth IS | MGRPX | Large Cap Growth Equities | 22.73% | 0.54% | 56.90% | $3,510 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Global Opp I | MGGIX | Global Equities | 22.54% | 1.07% | 53.50% | $828 | Technology |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
Aaron Levitt
|
One of the biggest and most important positions of the bill deals with...
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Daniel Cross
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Sam Bourgi
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The phrase ‘bear market’ has been thrown around a lot lately, but it...
The information technology sector was this week’s top-performing area again, up 1.39%. The sector is up 17.02% 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 32% and 26%, respectively, on a YTD basis.
Explore our Mutual Fund Education section to learn more about important mutual fund concepts.
International Equities – International equities, like the U.S. equity markets, also showed gains and ended in the positive for the week. The MSCI Developed Index had an increase of 1.86%, while the MSCI Emerging Index had a more modest gain of 0.08% for the week. Japan’s NIKKEI 225 continued its third week of gains, up 1.30% and closing at 19,446.
Commodities – The commodity sector showed big declines this week, with crude oil falling $3.11 per barrel and closing at $46.22 per barrel. The price of gold declined $41 per troy ounce to close at $1,225. Copper was also down $0.08 per pound to close at $2.53.
Be sure to read our important tips on how to invest in the right commodity-based mutual fund.
Taxable Bonds – Treasury yields jumped this week, with the two-year Treasury yield increasing by 5 bps to 1.31%. The 10-year and 30-year bonds saw an increase in yields of 7 bps and 4 bps, respectively.
Municipal Bonds – These remained mostly flat, with 30-year bonds showing a moderate rise in yield of 2 bps. While muni bonds continued on its fourth week of net positive fund flows, credit spread increased. The spread between the 5-year Treasury and AAA-rated muni bonds widened to 44 bps; however, 30-year AAA-rated muni bonds managed to yield 5 bps more than its 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 | Large Cap Growth | 3.20% | Zevenbergen Genea Institutional | ZVGIX | 7.61% | The fund's largest holding is Amazon, Inc. (AMZN), which is up over 26% on a YTD basis. |
International Equity | Europe Equities | 6.36% | Columbia Acorn European Z | CAEZX | 9.47% | The fund invests in European-based companies, like those invested in the Euro STOXX 50 Index that is up over 8% month-to-date. |
Commodities | Broad Basket | -4.34% | Catalyst Hedged Commodity Strategy I | CFHIX | -0.37% | With commodities falling again this week, this fund was protected by being invested in 39% cash and 26% bonds as a hedge. |
Taxable Bonds | Emerging Markets Bonds | 1.19% | Ashmore Emerging Mkts Corp Debt A | ECDAX | 2.66% | WIth bond yields gaining this week, emerging markets bonds did not decline as much as U.S.-based funds. |
Municipal Bonds | High Yield Municipal Bonds | 0.75% | Oppenheimer Rochester® High Yld Muni B | ORNBX | 1.28% | With yields staying flat this week, high-yield bonds were the best-performing area of the municipal bond sector. |
This fund’s largest holding is in MakeMyTrip Limited (MMYT), which is up more than 66% YTD.
Top 5 Performers
The following table provides the top-performing mutual funds on a YTD basis, as of May 5, 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 10 Holdings | Net Assets $ (Millions) | Top Sector Invested |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wasatch Emerging India Institutional | WIINX | India Equities | 32.00% | 2.00% | 35.00% | $154 | Financial Services |
T. Rowe Price Global Technology | PRGTX | Global Equities | 24.51% | 0.90% | 54.60% | $4,030 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst International Opp I | MIOIX | Foreign Large Cap Growth Equities | 23.84% | 1.34% | 49.30% | $138 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Growth IS | MGRPX | Large Cap Growth Equities | 22.73% | 0.54% | 56.90% | $3,510 | Technology |
Morgan Stanley Inst Global Opp I | MGGIX | Global Equities | 22.54% | 1.07% | 53.50% | $828 | Technology |
Receive email updates about best performers, news, CE accredited webcasts and more.
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...
Justin Kuepper
|
We'll look at direct indexing and whether it's actually a better alternative to...
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...