Hedge Funds
You read and hear a lot about hedge funds. Unfortunately, most of what you hear is negative because it comes from the major media that has an interest in reporting negatives about them because the major media is supported by so-called standard mutual funds and brokerage companies that spend big bucks for advertising. Hedge funds are NOT allowed to advertise.
First of all a hedge fund is almost identical to a mutual fund. There have actually been fewer fraud complaints about hedge funds than about mutual funds. That doesn't mean they don't lose money just as regular mutual funds do.
The underperformance of mutual funds is not highlighted in the press; you don't bite the hand that feeds you. I'm talking about advertising revenues. Would Janus, Invesco, Vanguard or any big fund family continue to place advertising dollars with someone who told stories about their losing funds or recommended that investors sell them to find a better performer? Hardly.
Mutual funds use customers' money to buy stock and bonds. Hedge funds are not limited to what they can buy. The can buy or short sell derivatives, commodities, options, oil and gas leases, freight rates and even take an investor's money to the race track (although I doubt if they would). The managers of these funds are specialists in their field of knowledge and many do extremely well. Just because they are different doesn't make them bad. Like all investments you must know where your money is going and how it is going to be invested.
The one major difference is how the fund manager is paid. Regular mutual fund managers are paid on how much money they manage and NOT on performance. Hedge fund managers usually receive 1% of the fund assets that goes for expenses and 20% of the profits they make for their investors. In other words if they don't make a profit for you they don't get paid. I sure would like to see them do that in regular mutual funds, but the Securities and Exchange Commission is the captive of the mutual fund industry so don't hold your breath. The true ability of fund managers would be exposed and many funds would disappear as the smart investors would be transferring their money to fund managers who have winning records every year. Yes, every year. No more of the nonsense of how they beat the S&P500 by 5% yet lost your money.
So many of the hedge fund articles say the investors are being hood winked into putting money into these funds. I don't think so. Almost every big state and corporate pension plan, university endowment, charitable trust and other large financial plans have money in hedge funds. Like any cautious investor they did their due diligence to find out the track record and management capabilities of the hedge fund.
You have to be rich to put money into a hedge fund. They require an income of $200,000 per year and assets of one million or more. Many require large initial investments.
If you qualify they are definitely a better place than a regular mutual fund, but you must do your due diligence.
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
More Resources
Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exitingMore Stocks & Mutual Funds Information:
Related Articles
Successful Trading - Establish Your Risk Level
Before you embark upon a journey of trading stocks or futures, and before you make any trades, you MUST determine and establish your risk level. Traders that fail to do this are usually doomed from the start.
Using Sector Funds to Construct Diversified Mutual Fund Portfolios
'Sector funds are too risky.' 'I doubled my money with Fidelity Select Technology in 12 months!' 'Avoid sector funds.
Parachute Investing
Ever jumped out of an airplane? It's OK if you have on a parachute. Pretty dumb if you don't.
Market Timing
Every broker and financial planner will tell you that you cannot time the stock market. I saw John Bogle, the great seer of Vanguard, on CNBC saying it can't be done.
Learn to Calculate a Stock's Pivot Point
Stocks breakout from properly formed bases everyday but many investors don't understand how to locate a pivot point or what patterns to study that may contain this very important buy signal. A pivot point can be described as the optimal buy point or the area at the end of a familiar base pattern where the stock breaks out into new high territory.
A Stock Market Investment Plan that Never Lets You Down
The bulls and bears of the stock market are both tempting and scary to the investors. Speculators are enchanted by the stock market's potential to help them in making quick money with a big M.
Will the Stock Market be Lower in October?
The stock market often closes a week in the middle of a "perceived primary-trend range." SPX closed at about 1,234 Fri, which is between a multi-year Fibonacci level at 1,253 (i.
Rebalance And Diversify
The stock market has not been very kind to your investments lately. Your broker knows this so you may have received a call from him suggesting it is time to 'rebalance and diversify' your portfolio.
Roller Coaster
I love roller coasters. The steeper the better.
What Does it Take to be a Stock Trader?
It takes a total mental commitment to the task. It becomes a complete way of life.
It Cant Be Done
Wouldn't it be nice if you were only in the stock market when it was going up and have everything transferred to cash while it is going down? It is called 'market timing' and your broker or financial planner will tell you "it can't be done". What that person just told you is he doesn't know how to do it.
Race Horses and Mutual Funds
For years investors have been taught to look into the composition of a mutual funds. In other words the "experts" want you to take the time to analyze the stocks within the mutual fund portfolio, categorize them by industry group and try to understand the objective of the fund manager.
Discover the Biggest Trading & Investing Online Mistake
Any online investor / trader seeks an excellent off or online future trading career opportunity. Despite this goal, did you know 95 percent of all traders go broke within the first two months? Why do investors lose vast amounts of wealth in one or more of the following markets - option trading, forex trading or currency trading, stock trading, future or commodity trading etc? in such a short amount of time?Most online investors / traders interact in devastating forms of thinking, which convinces the mind to the point where the trader believes that an educational enhancement ability that develops superb market research skills is not important.
Hedge Fund Advertising
Have you seen all those big full page ads for hedge funds in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, Investors Business Daily? You haven't. Maybe they are being drowned out by the regular mutual funds who continually tell you how great they are.
Complacency Indicator
If you haven't heard of the technical indicator with the stock market symbol VIX it is now time to pay some attention to it. When the number is running low, as it is now, around 15 to 18 it means everyone is happy and thinks the stock market is going to continue up or at least continue on its current path and there is no need to sell anything.
The 10 Commandments
Wall Street has been preaching for years and years to investors how and where to put their money. The "experts" have put forth these ideas for so long that they seem to be carved in stone just like Moses did with God's 10 Commandments.
China Syndrome
There has been great condemnation recently because China has been selling its goods on the world market at prices below what other countries, especially the U.S.
Dispelling Illusions of the Stock Market
How can you dispel an illusion unless you look directly at it? The magician distracts the eye with one hand while he does his manipulation with the other. You are looking in the wrong place and not seeing what is actually happening.
Direction
It is difficult to make money in a bull market, but what do you do when you are in a bear market? In what direction should you go not only to make money but to protect what you have from loss?Almost immediately investors think what should I buy that will help me reach my financial goals? This answer may not be the one you will like. It is really not important what you buy as long as you know the rules of the game - the stock market game.
Enron Cure
Let's hope you did not have any of the Enron stock. Maybe you know someone who did and lost everything, but you certainly might know several people who owned stock that lost almost everything.