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Despite Increased Awareness, Financial Advisors Lack Confidence Implementing Strategic Beta in Portfolios
May 9, 2019--Most financial advisors are familiar with strategic beta, but their confidence in implementing it is limited.
Financial advisors' awareness of strategic beta investing is widespread, but their confidence in implementing it is limited, according to a recent survey by Columbia Threadneedle Investments.
view moreview the Columbia Threadneedle Investments Strategic Beta Sentiment Survey
An online survey of 299 advisors conducted in April 2019 found that nearly all advisors (98 percent) have some level of familiarity with strategic beta investing, but just one-third (36 percent) feel confident implementing it in client portfolios.
"Practical advisor education remains essential", said Marc Zeitoun, Head of Strategic Beta at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. "The best investment solutions won't help anyone achieve financial success if they aren't implemented effectively."
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Source: Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC
SoFi Releases SoFi Gig Economy ETF (GIGE) and SoFi 50 ETF (SFYF)
May 8, 2019--Actively-Managed GIGE Offers Exposure to the Fast-Growing 'Gig Economy'; SFYF Provides Targeted Exposure to 50 Growing U.S. Large-Cap Companies
SoFi announced today the availability of its two newest exchange-traded funds (ETFs): the SoFi Gig Economy ETF (NASDAQ: GIGE) and the SoFi 50 ETF (NYSE: SFYF), further extending the company's approach of providing members access to unique investing opportunities.
The SoFi Gig Economy ETF (GIGE) is an actively managed fund, advised by Toroso Investments, that is designed to seek long term capital appreciation by capturing exposure to the economic shift toward gig-oriented companies. The "gig economy" refers to a group of companies that embrace and support the workforce in which employment is based around short-term engagements that allow for flexibility and personal freedom and temporary contracts. The fund is structured so that most companies that IPO can be included in the portfolio within 31 days of their IPO, as opposed to traditional passive funds that must likely wait 60 to 90 days to include a new IPO.
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Source: SoFi
Solactive releases new Index including the top growing 50 US companies for SoFi ETF
May 8, 2019--Solactive is pleased to announce the release of the Solactive SoFi US 50 Growth Index that is utilized as the underlying of the SoFi 50 ETF.
Following the launch of two groundbreaking ETFs with a radical zero-fee1 waiver approach, SoFi again appointed Solactive as its Index provider of choice for the release of the new SoFi 50 ETF. The underlying index, the Solactive SoFi US 50 Growth Index, selects the top 50 equities out of a 1.000 stock universe according to a proprietary Growth Score. The ETF allows investors to specifically invest in players that bear a sturdy growth trajectory, and that are expected to keep this pace.
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Source: Solactive AG
CFTC.gov Swaps Report Update
May 8, 2019--CFTC's Weekly Swaps Report has been updated, and is now available.
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Source: SEC.gov
Quarterly Highlights-EDHEC-Princeton Retirement Goal-Based Investing Index Series
May 8, 2019--April 2019 Highlights
After a decrease during the last quarter of 2018, US long-term rates were roughly stable in January and February 2019, and they started to decrease again in March. The 10-year Treasury rate, which reached a peak above 3.2% in October 2018, fell down to 2.5% at the beginning of April 2019.
A rise in interest rates is, in principle, good news for investors who are preparing for retirement because it implies that, for a given time to retirement, it costs less to acquire $1 of replacement income. But reasoning with a fixed retirement date in mind, the shortening of the horizon can absorb the effects of higher interest rates. Indeed, the price of $1 of replacement income-in other words, the Goal Price Index- increases when the horizon shortens, other things being equal. All in all, the Goal Price Indices were almost at the same levels at the beginning of April 2019 as at their inception date, in January 2018;
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Source: EDHEC-Risk Institute
Stock buybacks ramp up while investors turn to ETFs-BofA
May 7, 2019--Investors banked profits and adopted a more passive approach after stocks returned to record territory, but US corporations continue to buy back shares at a brisk pace, according to BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research.
Analysts at BofA said clients were net sellers of single stocks for a second consecutive week as hedge funds and institutional and private clients sold the highs.
Source: FT.com
CBO-Monthly Budget Review for April 2019
May 7, 2019--The federal budget deficit was $531 billion for the first seven months of fiscal year 2019, CBO estimates, $145 billion more than the deficit recorded during the same period last year.
The federal budget deficit was $531 billion for the first seven months of fiscal year 2019, the Congressional Budget Office estimates, $145 billion more than the deficit recorded during the same period last year. Revenues were $33 billion (or 2 percent) higher and outlays were $178 billion (or 7 percent) higher than during first seven months of 2018
However, outlays in the first seven months of last year were reduced by shifts in the timing of certain payments. If not for those shifts, the deficit for the first seven months of the past fiscal year would have been $44 billion greater, and the increase in the deficit so far for fiscal year 2019 would have been $101 billion rather than $145 billion.
Source: Congressional Budget Office
Federal Reserve Financial Stability Report-May 2019
May 6, 2019-Overview
Investor appetite for risk appears elevated by several measures, and the debt loads of businesses are historically high. However, the financial sector appears resilient, with low leverage and limited funding risk.
Despite volatility in financial markets late last year, our assessment of each of the four vulnerability categories is little changed since the November 2018 FSR .4
Our view on the current level of vulnerabilities is as follows:
1.Asset valuations.
Valuation pressures remain elevated in a number of markets, with inves-tors continuing to exhibit high appetite for risk, although some pressures have eased a bit since the November 2018 FSR.
2. Borrowing by businesses and households. Borrowing by businesses is historically high relative to gross domestic product (GDP), with the most rapid increases in debt concentrated among the riskiest firms amid signs of deteriorating credit standards. In contrast, household borrowing remains at a modest level relative to incomes, and the debt owed by borrowers with credit scores below prime has remained flat
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Source: federalreserve.gov
TD Ameritrade expands lineup of commission-free ETFs
May 6, 2019--In the latest example of how fee compression is rippling through the financial industry, TD Ameritrade is offering free trades on more index funds. The brokerage's newly expanded line of commission-free ETFs illustrates how quickly firms are competing to offer investment products at the lowest possible price.
The firm has boosted its commission-free ETF offerings to 569 funds spanning approximately 90 Morningstar fund categories. The brokerage is one of the industry's top providers of passive funds with more than $380 billion in ETF assets under administration.
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Source: financial-planning.com
Pacer ETFs Expands Choices Across Its Popular Offerings
May 6, 2019--Strategy-driven provider adds five new funds in an expansion of Trendpilot and Cash Cows lines to meet the needs of investors in turbulent markets
The past few months have seen dramatic price swings and volatility throughout global stock markets. As a result, many investors are seeking ways to preserve capital and develop diversified portfolios containing well-run companies with successful track records. Pacer ETFs has responded to this demand by launching five new ETFs across its Pacer Trendpilot(R) ETF Series and Pacer Cash Cows Index(R)ETF Series.
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Source: Pacer ETFs