In the vast investment market of more than 9,000 mutual funds, how do you find top performers to add to your portfolio or Individual Retirement Account? A top performing mutual fund is an asset that maintains performance growth that exceeds the fund category averages and gives investors large dividends (income/capital gains).
Last year's stock market indexes were volatile and full of uncertainties for the average investor, like myself. Information (facts) is key in searching for good investments. It is imperative to make investment decisions based on a proven long-term positive performance record (number of years of gains vs, number of years of losses), This goal should be the core of your retirement investment. Of course, there are many other factors that come into play before making an investment; such as fees, minimum purchase, etc.
Tools of the trade enable individuals in a profession to excel in pursuit of their endeavor. One of the best tools to use in the financial field is knowing a mutual fund's ticker symbol and putting it to good use. The ticker symbol is your key to a wealth of investment facts. A ticker symbol (unique 5 alpha digits ending with "X"} always follows the name of a mutual fund. For example the ticker symbol for the James Balanced Golden Rainbow fund is GLRBX.
Most search engine finance pages provide limitless data on investments whether it is stocks, stock mutual funds, or bond funds. When you enter the ticker symbol in the "quotes" search box any question you may have about the mutual fund is immediately displayed. Here is some of the information provided:
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Profile: Includes pertinent data such as the mutual fund family, address, phone number, fund category, date of inception, net assets value, fund manager, etc.
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Purchase & Expense: The purchase information would include the net asset value of the fund, minimum investment, minimum IRA purchase, etc. The expense data provides the maximum sales load, 12b1 fee, management fee, etc.
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Performance: The performance of mutual funds is based on the net asset value that change daily. When the change is more or less than the value of the nav, the percent of performance is either a gain or loss. The share price does not change until after the close of the market. The performance can be short-term two years or less and long-term 3 years or more.
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Total Return: The return of a mutual fund includes the dividend distribution of income and/or capital gains and the performance. The dividends and interest earned by a mutual fund on its investment is the income. The income distribution is quarterly. The capital gains can be either a gain or loss. December is the month when most mutual funds declare distribution of income and/or capital gains. On the trade date, the share price (nav)is decreased by the same amount as the distribution. If, for example, a 10% distribution was given shareholders; the net asset value of the mutual fund would be reduced 10%.
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Fund Holdings: This section includes the asset allocation (portfolio percentage of stocks, cash, bonds), the top 10 holdings (name of investment and percent of fund assets), sector allocation (example. technology, financial services, healthcare, etc.)
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Graphic Charts: An excellent tool to use is this Value of a $10,000 Investment graphic chart. The chart shows what the current value of the $10,000 purchase would be for a year, 3 years, 5 years or 10 years. In addition to this factual data, it also shows the ups and downs in value during the time period selected.
This is just a thumb nail sketch of the vast amount of information unlocked with the key of a mutual fund ticker symbol, Isn't this the kind of vital information you're looking for to make a smart investment in your retirement portfolio?
Stay focused and do not be misled by figures. Some successful funds are temporarily lagging, however; the rankings and performance will continue to be ups and downs. The final facts that matter are the year-end results! There is an opportunity to purchase mutual funds at a lower valued share prices; if you have confidence that the performance and rank will greatly improve by year's end based on previous facts.
There are many other important factors to consider when making an investment -- such as fees,risk, fund categories, whether the fund is open to investors, how to contact the fund, what is the minimum purchase, etc. As a benchmark comparison, the current best interest rate for a one year CD is 1.08% on the national level. Good luck on your financial investment decisions. If you find this website to be pacted with good information, tell family and friends. Thank you.
