Let's go into the details of why non-indexed mutual funds are such a bad deal. When Arthur Levitt became the head of the Security Exchange Commission in 1993 he had to sell off all of his individual stocks so that people would not claim that he was doing any dirty inside dealing. He decided to put the cash from selling off his stock portfolio into mutual funds.
Mr. Levitt grew very angry when he tried to decipher how particular mutual funds divvied up their cash into specific stocks. He couldn't make heads or tells from the fancy brochures of the mutual funds called prospectuses. He had been a major player in the stock brokerages for over 25 years at that point and knew that if he couldn't understand the mutual fund's prospectus then he knew public investors couldn't either; it had to be a big scam to suck money out of the public.
In 1980 the US public invested $100 billion into the 500 mutual funds that existed at that time. By 1993 the public put $1.6 trillion into the more than 3,800 mutual funds that existed in that year; talk about growth! By the end of February 2003, at the bottom of the bear market there were 8,200 mutual funds and the public had pumped in $6.3 trillion dollars. Wow! That is a lot of money. What is important to note is that at least 40% of mutual fund money comes in from 401(k) retirement accounts. Today these mutual funds own about 20% of all publicly traded shares of stock. Mutual funds act like a herd of cows buying and selling the same stocks at the same time. This increases the wild price volatility swings in the stock market.
These funds are also sold and managed on pure hype, short term trading, and with key information withheld from the public. All of these factors I teach finance students and investors to avoid! The industry confuses investors by focusing on past performance, which should not be a factor to consider. Many mutual funds are able to cheat the public with excessive fees because investors don't understand how these big costs destroy their profit. Mutual funds have no interest in educating investors because it is easier to hoodwink the ignorant!
Don't put your trust in mutual funds unless they are fully indexed. Indexing means that the mutual fund simply uses a computer to buy and sell stocks in the mutual fund portfolio so as to mimic the composition of a major stock market index like the S&P 500. This means that there is no fund manager sucking out needless fees. A good example is the first fully indexed mutual fund called the Vanguard 500 (VFINX) which is also now the largest of its kind.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Scott Brown, Ph.D., a.k.a. "The Wallet Doctor", is a successful futures trader, real estate investor, and stock investor. Dr. Brown holds a Ph.D. in finance from the University of South Carolina. His 1998 articles in Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities were prophetic in predicting an impending stock market crash. He has helped many people become profitable investors by teaching them to look out over many years to spot stocks that are low and primed for rise in the new bull market. His second article met with approval by Dr. Bob Shiller of Yale University. Dr. Shiller is the economist that Alan Greenspan most highly regards who coined the term "Irrational Exuberance." In 1998 he shouted to the world to "get out" of the stock market but now he is shouting to everyone that it is time to "get in!" The Wallet Doctor is not only sought after for investment advice and coaching in stock investing but also in futures trading and real estate investing.
Visit Dr. Brown's site at http://www.bonanzabase.com or sign up for his investment tips at http://www.bonanzabase.com
one time home cleaning Highland Park ..Every day on CNBC-TV they show a 200-day moving average... Read More
There is a famous cliff on the ocean in Acapulco... Read More
Today's society gives special recognition to alcoholics, sexaholics, binge-aholics, shopaholics,... Read More
For some "long term" would mean holding a stock position... Read More
Let's hope you did not have any of the Enron... Read More
One of the things people are always asking me is... Read More
Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are growing. Investors are choosing low... Read More
Inverted interest rates? What's that? Who cares? Even if you... Read More
Mutual funds were created with the idea that one person... Read More
This is an extract of an article which was first... Read More
We've all heard of the stock market and probably have... Read More
There has been great condemnation recently because China has been... Read More
Every publicly traded company is required by the SEC(Securities and... Read More
Do you have a financial planner? Does one of your... Read More
Intervention. Now don't let that big word scare you. The... Read More
During the month of January the Dow Jones Industrial Average,... Read More
The Shadow knows. Remember him? It seems a shadow has... Read More
The stock market is very unstable at this time going... Read More
If you have not back tested your trading system, you... Read More
Three little pigs went to the market to stock up... Read More
Stocks breakout from properly formed bases everyday but many investors... Read More
I use the P/E ratio as a secondary indicator for... Read More
With over 6,000 mutual funds available, it may be tempting... Read More
When is a dividend not a dividend?The latest thing "conservative"... Read More
The thinking process of the brain relating to the... Read More
licensed cleaning services Park Ridge ..When an individual investor wants to roll up his sleeves... Read More
Did you know you can make money (and a lot... Read More
One of the basic laws of physics is that a... Read More
One of the things people are always asking me is... Read More
You may have wondered why your mutual funds have been... Read More
Wouldn't it be nice if you were only in the... Read More
Robert Rodriguez likes to buy stocks at their lows. When... Read More
In November of 2000 when the NASDAQ was trading at... Read More
THERE'S SOMETHING TO BE SAID FOR standing firm in the... Read More
It seems that every day I turn on the TV... Read More
This is a rather simple strategy with which I am... Read More
Most advisors will tell you they can beat the market.... Read More
It depends on your level of understanding of the market... Read More
Sidney felt sick as she looked at her latest OptionsXpress... Read More
You remember the story about the frog that was put... Read More
On Friday or Saturday evening my wife gets a movie... Read More
Much like the middle child, mid-cap stocks have long struggled... Read More
Recently I was invited to appear on a live CNNfn... Read More
We have two candidates for president that have really different... Read More
Day trading is all about making buy and sell decisions.... Read More
You should ignore analysts on TV, the radio, the newspaper... Read More
You probably know the story of Sherlock Holmes and the... Read More
Sometime around 1980, can't remember exactly, there was a flight... Read More
When most analysts, financial planners, fund specialists and investors try... Read More
The date October 13, 2000 will forever be embedded in... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |