One of the most important questions for investors and advisors is identifying a set of asset classes that will be considered for inclusion in a portfolio. Some people will decide that all they need or want is one broad stock market index fund and one bond fund. Others will choose to include Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and commodities. There are well-thought-out arguments that inflation-protected government bonds (TIPS) are a major core asset class. It is also quite common for investors or advisors to break stocks out into value vs. growth and small cap vs. large cap. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘Utility stocks’
What Are the Core Asset Classes for Total Return Portfolios?
Posted in Asset Allocation, Bonds, Commodities, Diversification, ETFs, Inflation, Investors, Risk, Stock Investing, tagged Corporate Bonds, emerging market stocks, Emerging Markets, equity energy, fixed income, gold, government bonds, investing strategy, Municipal Bonds, real estate investment trusts, REITs, stock market index, TIPS, Utility stocks on November 28, 2012 | 1 Comment »
Managing Your Portfolio’s Exposure to Interest Rates
Posted in 401(k), Asset Allocation, Bonds, Diversification, financial planning, Investors, Long-term investing, Market Outlook, Retirement, retirement planning, Risk, tagged 10 year treasury bonds, Beta, bond yields, interest rates, QE, Quantitative Easing, REITs, Treasury bond yield, Treasury bonds, u s treasury bonds, Utility stocks on October 24, 2012 | 3 Comments »
Today, the yields on ten-year Treasury bonds are at a fifty-year low, and no period prior to the last few years reflects yields that even come close. From 1962 to 2005, the lowest the 10-year Treasury bond yield ever got to was just below 4%, more than twice the current yield.
The chart below shows how unusual our current environment is. The vertical axis is the yield from 10-year Treasury Bonds and the horizontal axis is time and we are looking at a period from 1962 to present. From 1980 to today, we have seen the yield of 10-year Treasury bonds go from about 12% per year to below 2%. The 10-year Treasury yield is considered a benchmark measure of bond yield and interest rates. The Fed funds rate and the 10-year bond yield are very closely tied to one another. For another illustration of how interest rates, the Fed funds rate and 10-year bond yield are related, see here. (more…)
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