For the most part, ETFs are pretty similar regardless of which issuer is behind the fund. But as many investors know, there’s one notable exception to this rule. The HOLDRS products from Merrill Lynch are similar to traditional ETFs in many ways, but also feature some nuances that make them very different in others. HOLDRS stands for Holding Company Depository Receipts, and are securities that represent an investor’s ownership in the common stock or ADRs of specified companies in a particular industry. HOLDRS are designed to offer investors a way to achieve exposure to a basket of stocks in a cost-efficient manner while preserving ownership benefits related to the underlying stocks.
Below, we profile five facts about HOLDRS every investor should know before making an investment (fore more ETF tips and education, sign up for our free ETF newsletter): [click to continue…]
Despite strong performances from U.S. equity markets in 2009, many businesses are yet to see a noticeable uptick in activity, as consumers have been slow to loosen the pursestrings and begin spending again. With unemployment rates above 10% and rising (regardless of what the “official” numbers indicate), many retailers have struggled, and many had been hoping for a surge in sales during the holiday season to salvage an otherwise forgettable year. [click to continue…]
Initial sales reports from Black Friday gave little hope for a blockbuster holiday season for retailers: although more people visited retail stores over the holiday weekend, almost 2 out of every 3 Americans, they spent almost 8% less on average. This led to sales that were basically flat from last year, widely proclaimed to be [...]
Microsoft reported solid earnings earlier today, sending shares more than 7% higher in early trading. Although sales were down more than 14% compared to last year and net profits fell more than 18%, investors were encouraged by strong early results for Windows 7 (which created $1.5 billion in deferred revenue from customers who bought a [...]
The sale of Skype that was rumored last week appears to be close to reality, as San Jose-based company eBay is poised to sell the company to a group of investors headed by private equity firm Silver Lake Partners. Under the terms of the deal, eBay will receive about $1.9 billion in cash and a [...]
News broke earlier today that Microsoft and Yahoo! have reached a major search engine deal that will allow Microsoft to become the search engine behind Yahoo!, which will become the worldwide exclusive relationship sales force for both companies’ premium search advertiser. The deal is obviously a blockbuster, one that both companies believe will change the [...]
