Investment management fees are typically charged as a percentage of the total account value and can range from 1% to 2%. What many investors fail to realize is that embedded fees can drive the true cost of money management upwards of 3%. These embedded fees are typically associated with investment products such as mutual funds […]
Netflix stock has been on a remarkable run, gaining more than 150% over the past year and outpacing the rest of the so-called FAANG stocks. Though I’ve never invested in the company, I’m fascinated by its growth trajectory and wonder, like many others, if it’s overvalued and if it still has room to run. First […]
For the three months ending March 31, 2018, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -0.69%, net of management fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned -1.22%. The single largest contributor to performance during the first quarter was Energizer Holding, Inc. (NYSE:ENR), which returned 23.10%. Energizer, the well-known battery maker, saw significant share […]
The bull market hit a new level of volatility in February, prompting investors to scramble for cover. The question now is which does a better job of providing cover and shielding investors from risk, a passive or actively managed portfolio? Financial experts say investors should really be asking whether the securities they choose – no […]
Recent stock market gyrations are sure to leave investors wringing their hands. If only one could make money either way – when stocks are down as well as up. The pros do this, using short sales, options and futures contracts that rise in value when stock fall. But it’s complicated, can be expensive, and requires […]
For the three months ending December 31, 2017, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 3.41%, net of management fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 6.12%. For the full year, the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 7.63%, while the S&P 500 returned 19.42%. The single largest contributor to performance during the fourth […]
Despite the doom-and-gloom predictions about the future of big-box retail that are dominating headlines lately, some analysts are bullish about select real estate opportunities and those brick-and-mortar retailers with high customer-satisfaction and engagement ratings in the coming year. “The death of retail has been exaggerated,” said Jay Rollins, managing principal of JCR Capital, which invests […]
For the three months ending September 30, 2017, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -4.05%, net of management fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 3.96%. Year-to-date, the VL Capital Systematic Value Strategy has returned 4.07%, while the S&P 500 has returned 12.53%. The overall underperformance by the VL Capital Systematic U.S. […]
While the principles of investing are actually not that complicated, few individual investors have a solid understanding of them. This is largely because investing is not taught as a basic academic subject, which is unfortunate because it leads to poor financial decisions by a large number of people. In this brief overview we will cover […]
For the three months ending June 30, 2017, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 4.86%, net of management fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 2.57%. Year-to-date, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 8.46%, while the S&P 500 has returned 8.24%. The single largest contributor to performance during the […]
Stocks have hit a string of new highs this year, producing gains many investors had not expected given the age of the bull market and uncertainty surrounding changes in Washington. Mid-year is a good time to see if your portfolio is doing what you want. And, as hard as it seems, standard practice calls for […]
Savvy investors who’ve done well with mutual and index funds may be tempted to try to buy stocks, but most financial experts agree that beginners should invest their money with care. “Success investing in individual stocks demands patience and discipline,” says Robert R. Johnson, president and CEO of The American College of Financial Services in […]
For the three months ending March 31, 2017, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 3.44%, net of fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 5.53%. Since inception, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 117.00%, net of fees, while the S&P 500 has returned 54.91%. The single largest contributor to […]
Stocks are near their all-time highs, and despite gains since the election it’s only natural to wonder if uncertainty in Washington or some overseas event could hammer the markets. “It would certainly be difficult to argue that the current equity markets are undervalued,” says Robert R. Johnson, president of the American College of Financial Services […]
Smart beta exchange-traded funds are becoming something of a rage, these days, as proponents say they represent an alternative to traditional indexes that can trigger a welcoming “two-for” that benefit investors – the potential to outperform an industry benchmark and the ability to reduce risk. “The combination of underperforming active mutual funds, the secular trend […]
Daniel Lugasi of VL Capital Management says he’s looking out for the next recession but it won’t happen just this year. SOURCE: CNBC
A new study shows 52 percent of U.S. investors plowed cash into ETFs last year – mostly due to lower fees and more user-friendly investment structures. Is that a problem for financial advisors, who lose some form of control, stewardship-wise, with ETFs? According to BlackRock’s first-ever ETF Pulse Survey, 94 percent of U.S. money managers […]
Companies that invest in the debt of online lenders are suffering lackluster performance as this debt experiences rising default rates, according to The Wall Street Journal. LC Advisors, a subsidiary of LendingClub Corp. (LC), and Colchis Capital Management, two of the largest investors in this particular space, recently reported the lowest returns in their main […]
Narrow window for Jose Cuervo IPO: Pro Daniel Lugasi of VL Capital Management says the Jose Cuervo IPO is coming at a time of greater uncertainty. SOURCE: CNBC
Index investing by way of exchange traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds has grown from a $500 million industry in the 1980s to a $4 trillion industry today. As of late, there has been a significant amount of conjecture about what this means for the future of investing and as a result we would like […]
For the three months ending December 31, 2016, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 11.72%, net of fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 3.25%. For the full year, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 17.16%, while the S&P 500 Index returned 9.54%. The single largest contributor to performance during […]
For the three months ending September 30, 2016, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 7.0%, gross of fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 3.3%. Year-to-date, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 5.6%, while the S&P 500 Index returned 6.1%. The single largest contributor to performance during the third quarter […]
For the three months ending June 30, 2016, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -5.4%, gross of fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 1.9%. Year-to-date, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -1.3%, while the S&P 500 Index returned 2.7%. Stock market volatility during the second quarter was rather subdued, […]
Sure, your better tequila-infused memories probably involve a dimly-lit tequila library or carefully savoring a glass from a handsome bottle of Casa Dragones. But chances are, you probably also have a fond memory (or eight) of a night spent with Jose Cuervo. Now, the industry-leading spirit maker is reportedly seeking to raise about $750 million […]
During the first quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 4.1%, net of fees, while the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 0.8%. Equity markets remained volatile during the quarter, with the S&P 500 reaching a bottom on February 11th and rallying over 11% through the end of March. As we stated last quarter, […]
During the fourth quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 2.6%, net of fees, whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 6.5%. For the full year of 2015, the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 7.5%, net of fees, while the S&P 500 Index returned -0.7% . Taking a closer look at our performance […]
During the third quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -9.1%, gross of fees, whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned -6.9%. Year-to-date, the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 7.0%, while the S&P 500 Index has returned -6.8%. While the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy did decline during the third quarter, the year-to-date […]
During the second quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 6.9%, gross of fees, whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned -0.2%. Year-to-date, the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 17.5%, while the S&P 500 Index has returned 0.2%. The outperformance of the Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy relative to the S&P 500 clearly […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 9.88% gross of fees whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 0.44%. The Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy outperformed the S&P 500 Index over the last three months as winners outpaced losers in the portfolio. As a result, we would like to provide a closer […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 3.5% gross of fees whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 4.4%. For the full year, VL Capital’s Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 11.9% while the S&P 500 Index returned 11.4%. This year has been in line with expectations in terms of performance […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -1.5% gross of fees whereas the benchmark S&P 500 Index returned 0.6%. Year-to-date, VL Capital’s Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 8.0% while the S&P 500 Index returned 6.7%. For this past quarter we wanted to take a closer look at the 20 companies […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned -1.3% gross of fees whereas the S&P 500 Index returned 4.7%. Since inception, VL Capital’s Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 61.1% while the S&P 500 Index returned 25.7%. While performance did lag the benchmark for the quarter, we tend to have a long-term […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 11.1% whereas the S&P 500 Index returned 1.3%. Since inception, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy has returned 69.3% while the S&P 500 Index returned 22.8%. In an attempt to examine the portfolio’s performance this quarter, we wanted to provide an analysis of […]
During the quarter, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 10.2% whereas the S&P 500 Index returned 9.9%. For the year, the VL Capital Systematic U.S. Equity Strategy returned 52.3% while the S&P 500 Index returned 21.2%. The proprietary stock-selection algorithm we use functions by combining several tested stock evaluation methods derived from both […]