ETFs

In a world of new asset classes, automation and sustainable earnings, there’s no better way to diversify than through exchange traded funds. ETFs come in different shapes and sizes including, shares or bonds, domestic or international, small cap or large cap, hedged or unhedged. ETFs are growing in popularity. According to BetaShares, the ETF market…

The ETF world has multiplied well beyond expectations. Index-linked ETFs are now a standard-bearer for investment portfolios driven by sticky active fund fees and variable performance. Yet their use versus desired outcome point to ease in choice, rather than a more considered approach. Additionally, advisers are often taking a stab at a regional index to compensate…

Technology has been the best performing sector for 10 years. And it has outperformed for the correct reason: it makes more money. The past decade, the tech sector saw its profits – as measured by earnings per share (EPS) – swell more than any other sector. Making matters better for tech, the rate of profit…

The first quarter of 2021 saw renewed confidence in global equity markets supported by positive developments in the fight against coronavirus together with better-than-expected economic data. Fiscal stimulus and vaccine rollout have far exceeded expectations causing equity markets to overcome bouts of volatility. The Dow Jones and S&P 500 indices hit new all-time highs. The…

The shift towards non-aligned platform advice forced structural change within wealth management in a way never seen before. Findings from the Banking Royal Commission helped drive the push towards independent platforms and product providers with a renewed client focus. New technology-based platforms have given financial advisers the ability to hold, transact and administer on a much…

ASX powers ahead, lower bond yields, records broken at Premier (ASX:PMV)  The ASX200 (ASX:XJO) delivered once again, pushing higher with falling bond yields and a finally weakening currency, which is now under 76 US cents. The much-anticipated release of the economic Purchasing Manager Index or PMI results, which offer an indicator of spending and investment intentions, hit…

Often used to describe a particular type of investment style – for example, the High Conviction Equities Fund – “conviction” is all the rage in equity markets today. This type of strategy usually holds between 20-30 stocks (or any other asset, for that matter) which are considered high-quality blue-chip investments that have a strong competitive position and high market…

Managed funds research and ratings start-up Foresight Analytics is expanding further in the ultra-competitive retail and advised investment sector through the acquisition of the analytics business of Australia Ratings Group. This follows a tie-up announced earlier this month with Style Analytics Group, a factor analysis firm with offices in Boston and London, which provides research…

News broke this week that one of Vanguard’s popular ESG or Environment, Social and Governance-focused strategies may not have been as true to label as one would expect. According to reports and the group’s website, the benchmark index tracked by the fund did not measure up to the name. Holding 4,500 individual fixed income securities,…

BetaShares has taken on a new cornerstone investor, TA Associates, as it enters its second decade in business, with founding partner Mirae Asset Management cashing in its chips. TA is arguably the largest growth-orientated global private equity firm with a specialty in financial services. TA, which has backed managers such as PIMCO and Invesco early…