May 14, 2013

Franklin Adjustable US Government Securities Fund (FISAX)

Franklin Adjustable US Government Securities Fund (FISAX) is a taxable bond fund. It focuses mainly in short duration government bonds or treasuries. It provides yield for investors.

Franklin Adjustable US Government Securities Fund (FISAX)


The investment aim of Franklin Adjustable US Government Securities Fund is to provide a high current income level, while providing lower volatility of principal. The fund utilizes its assets to purchase a portfolio of adjustable-rate U.S. government mortgage securities. This Adjustable-rate U.S. government mortgage securities include adjustable-rate mortgage securities (ARMS) and other mortgage-backed securities with interest rates that adjust periodically to reflect prevailing market interest rates.

Fund Details
Franklin Adjustable US Government Securities Fund
Franklin Templeton fund
  • Fund Inception Date: October 19, 1987
  • Ticker Symbol: FISAX
  • CUSIP: 353 612 302
  • Beta (3yr): 0.04
  • Rank in category (YTD): 13%
  • Category: Short Government
  • Yield: 1.54%
  • Capital Gains: 0%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.87%
  • Net Assets: $ 2.4 billion
  • Number of Years Up: 24 years
  • Number of Years Down: 1 year
  • Average Duration: 0.7 year
  • Annual Turnover Rate: 9.89%
Updated on March 17, 2013

May 12, 2013

Best Performing Retirement Income Mutual Funds May 2013

Best performing retirement income mutual funds May 2013 are Vanguard Managed Payout Growth Focus fund, Fidelity Income Replacement 2042, etc. Find best mutual funds for retirement account (Roth IRA or Traditional IRA) or 401k.

Retirement Income

Retirement income mutual funds are part of balanced fund. It uses its assets to purchase a portfolio of stocks, bonds, and cash. Depending on its objective, the mutual fund will adjust its assets to align with investors’ retirement goal. Some retirement income funds are more conservative than the others. The fund’s objective is to provide steady income throughout retirement.

From this best performing funds list, you may find each individual fund review. You can find the fund performance, expense ratio, and yield or dividend from the table below. The list is sorted based on 1 year total return up to May 1st, 2013.

Best Performing Mutual Funds

Best Performing Retirement Income Mutual Funds 2013
Top funds
Best performing retirement income mutual funds May 2013 are:
  1. Vanguard Managed Payout Growth Focus fund (VPGFX)
  2. Fidelity Income Replacement 2042 fund (FIXRX)
  3. Fidelity Income Replacement 2040 fund (FIRWX)
  4. Fidelity Income Replacement 2036 fund (FIRUX)
  5. Fidelity Income Replacement 2034 fund (FIRSX)
  6. Fidelity Income Replacement 2032 fund (FIRRX)
  7. Vanguard Managed Payout Growth & Distribution fund (VPGDX)
  8. Fidelity Income Replacement 2030 fund (FIRQX)
  9. Fidelity Income Replacement 2028 fund (FIRPX)
  10. ING Global Target Payment fund (IGPAX)
  11. Fidelity Income Replacement 2026 fund (FIROX)
  12. Legg Mason Target Retirement fund (LMPAX)

May 10, 2013

Fidelity Pacific Basin Fund (FPBFX)

Fidelity Pacific Basin Fund (FPBFX) is an international stock mutual fund. It focuses its investment in equities of companies located in Pacific Basin such as Japan, Korea, or Singapore.

Fidelity Pacific Basin Fund (FPBFX)

The investment seeks growth of capital over the long term. The mutual fund uses its assets to purchase securities of Pacific Basin issuers and other investments that are tied economically to the Pacific Basin. It invests mostly in common stocks. The fund allocates investments across different Pacific Basin countries. The fund management will uses fundamental analysis of factors such as financial condition and industry position, as well as market and economic conditions, to select investments.

Fund Details
Fidelity Pacific Basin Fund
FPBFX fund
  • Fund Inception Date: September 30, 1986
  • Ticker Symbol: FPBFX
  • CUSIP: 316343201
  • Beta (3yr): 0.86
  • Rank in category (YTD): 1%
  • Category: Diversified Pacific/ Asia
  • Yield: 1.08%
  • Capital Gains: 0%
  • Expense Ratio: 1.26%
  • Net Assets: $ 647.8 million
  • Number of Years Up: 15 years
  • Number of Years Down: 11 years
  • Annual Turnover Rate: 26%
Updated on 5/10/2013

May 8, 2013

Top 23 Lord Abbett Mutual Funds 2013

Top 23 Lord Abbett mutual funds 2013; best stock, bond, balanced mutual funds by Lord Abbett. The top 23 Lord Abbett mutual funds 2013 are Lord Abbett Short Duration Income fund, Lord Abbett Intermediate Tax Free, Lord Abbett Total Return, etc. These funds provide high yield for income.
Top 23 Lord Abbett Mutual Funds 2013
Best Funds

Best Lord Abbett Mutual Funds

Lord Abbett is a private money management company. It is popular among investors who want to invest in taxable bond fund. It provides investment advices to individual investors, financial advisors, and institutional investors. For individual investors, it offers various financial services such as mutual funds, retirement planning, and education & insights.

Lord Abbett fund family has more than 40 different mutual funds. There are 5 main categories such as tax-free income fund, domestic equity fund, international fund, asset allocation fund, and taxable fixed income fund. The 3 most popular funds are: Lord Abbett Short Duration Income fund, Lord Abbett Affiliated, and Lord Abbett Bond-Debenture fund.

These best Lord Abbett mutual funds for 2013 are selected based on its performance history. Most of these investment funds do have a sales load hence they are class A fund. The funds are ranked with 3 star rating or higher by Morningstar. You may find the fund review below and other fund information. I also have selected my favorite funds below.

The top 23 Lord Abbett mutual funds 2013 are:
  1. Lord Abbett Short Duration Income fund (LALDX)
  2. Lord Abbett Income fund (LAGVX)
  3. Lord Abbett Intermediate Tax Free fund (LISAX)
  4. Lord Abbett National Tax-Free Income fund (LANSX)
  5. Lord Abbett Total Return fund (LTRAX)
  6. Lord Abbett Developing Growth fund (LAGWX)
  7. Lord Abbett Calibrated Dividend Growth fund (LAMAX)
  8. Lord Abbett High Yield fund (LHYAX)
  9. Lord Abbett Dividend Income Strategy fund (ISFAX)
  10. Lord Abbett Bond-Debenture fund (LBNDX)

May 6, 2013

Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund (VBLTX)

Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund (VBLTX) is a taxable bond mutual fund. It invests mainly in long dated bonds with high yield. You can find the fund review from this post below.

Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund (MUTF: VBLTX)

The Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund objective is to track the performance of a market-weighted bond index with a long-term dollar-weighted average maturity. The mutual fund employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the Barclays Capital U.S. Long Government/Credit Float Adjusted Index. It invests >80% of assets in bonds held in the index. The fund maintains a dollar-weighted average maturity ranges between 15 and 30 years.

Fund Details
Vanguard Long-Term Bond Index Fund
Vanguard fund details
  • Fund Inception Date: February 28, 1994
  • Ticker Symbol: VBLTX
  • CUSIP: 921937405
  • Beta (3yr): 3.12
  • Rank in category (YTD): 95%
  • Category: Long-Term Bond
  • Distribution: 4.03%
  • Capital Gains: 0%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.22%
  • Net Assets: $ 778.9 million
  • Number of Years Up: 16 years
  • Number of Years Down: 2 years
  • Average Duration: 24.1 years
  • Average Maturity: 14.8 years
  • Annual Turnover Rate: 45.00%
updated on 5/5/2013

May 4, 2013

Best High Yield Closed End Funds for 2013 and 2014

Best high yield closed end funds for 2013 and 2014 are John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income fund, Neuberger Berman Real Estate Securities Income, etc.

Best High Yield Closed End Funds for 2013 and 2014 logo
Best High Yield CEFs
Closed end funds or CEFs is traded like stocks or ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds). They are publicly traded investment companies which invest in stocks, bonds, preferred, and money market fund. They raise their capital through an IPO (initial public offering). They are traded in national exchange such as NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, etc.

These investment funds are managed actively by the fund manager(s). The fund’s market price may trade at a discount or premium to its NAV (Net Asset Value). These CEFs are categorized into several classes such as stock CEF, bond CEF, and balanced CEF.

Top High Yield CEFs

These top high yield CEFs provide better value and yield for investors. Some of these CEFs in the list are traded at discount to their NAV. They also provide high dividend yield for income. From this list, you may find wide selection of funds.

The top high yield CEFs include: value fund, real estate fund, mortgage bond, emerging markets, high yield bond, corporate bond, etc. You can find the fund performance, expense ratio, and yield or dividend from the table.

Best high yield closed end funds for 2013 and 2014 are:
  1. John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income fund (HTD)
  2. Neuberger Berman Real Estate Securities Income fund (NRO)
  3. Nuveen Dividend Advantage fund (NAD)
  4. Nuveen Quality Preferred Income fund 2 (JPS)
  5. BlackRock Credit Allocation Income fund (BTZ)
  6. Managed High Yield Plus fund (HYF)
  7. DWS Global High Income fund (LBF)
  8. Lazard Global Total Return & Income fund (LGI)
Updated on 5/2/2013

May 2, 2013

Fidelity Conservative Income Bond Fund (FCONX)

Fidelity Conservative Income Bond Fund (FCONX) is an ultrashort bond mutual fund. It invests mainly in money market and high quality bonds.

Fidelity Conservative Income Bond Fund (FCONX)


The Fidelity Conservative Income Bond Fund objective is to obtain a high current income level, consistent with capital preservation. The mutual fund utilizes its assets to purchase a portfolio of U.S. dollar-denominated money market and high quality investment-grade debt securities of all types, and repurchase agreements for those securities. It invests >25% of total assets in the financial services industries. The fund normally retains a dollar-weighted average maturity of 0.75 years or less. It invests in fixed rate securities with a maximum maturity of two years or less and floating rate securities with a maximum maturity of three years or less.

Fund Profile
Fidelity Conservative Income Bond Fund
FCONX fund
  • Fund Inception Date: March 2, 2011
  • Ticker Symbol: FCONX
  • CUSIP: 316146539
  • Beta (3yr): N/A
  • Rank in category (YTD): 35%
  • Category: Ultrashort Bond
  • Yield: 0.70%
  • Capital Gains: 0%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.40%
  • Net Assets: $ 2.4 billion
  • Number of Years Up: 1 year
  • Number of Years Down: 0 years
  • Average Duration: 0.3 years
  • Average Maturity: 0.7 years
  • Annual Turnover Rate: 31% 
Updated on as of March 31, 2013

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