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101 ETF Lessons Every Financial Advisor Should Learn

Michael Johnston — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:00:06 +0000

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have burst on to the scene in the last few years, raking in hundreds of billions of dollars in assets and prompting a major shift towards indexing strategies in the process. ETFs have empowered financial advisors (FAs), registered investment advisors (RIAs), Chief Financial Officers (CFOs), money managers, and retail investors to take greater control over their portfolios, pushing down fees and maxing out tax efficiency in the process. While ETFs appear quite simple on the surface, these securities can be quite complex. In order to get the most out of ETFs, there’s a lot that investors need to know about the structure, opportunities, and limitations of these securities. Below we outline just about everything you need to know about ETFs, from the basics to the more sophisticated aspects of these products. 1. ETFs Are Tax Efficient One of the biggest advantages of ETFs is their tax-efficient structure; [...]

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ETF Technical Trading FAQ

Stoyan Bojinov — Mon, 21 May 2012 13:00:33 +0000

The growth of the ETF industry has spawned numerous tools that bring forth previously difficult-to-reach corners of the market at the fingertips of mainstream investors. The evolution of the exchange-traded product structure has not only become the preferred vehicle for investors looking to achieve cost-efficient diversification, this instrument has also struck a chord with active traders. ETFs are useful as building blocks in long-term portfolios, however they can also serve as incredibly powerful tactical tools for those looking to implement shorter-term trading strategies. The trading community has embraced ETFs given their unparalleled transparency, cost-efficiency, ease-of-use, and intraday liquidity. Likewise, technical analysis studies used in the equity market have also carried over to ETFs; traders and investors alike can serve to benefit from using technical analysis in their ETF investment experience [see also Free Report: How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time]. The guide below offers an insightful and educational look at the concepts [...]

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Daily ETF Roundup: GDX Soars On Gold’s Glitter, SPY Drags On Weak Markets

Jared Cummans — Thu, 17 May 2012 22:00:23 +0000

Today was another dismal trading day with markets selling off viciously as the session came to a close. The Dow lobbed off 156 points and the S&P 500 sank by about 1.5%. That marks 11 losing days out of the last 12 for the Dow. Benchmarks were extremely skittish today as it seems more and more likely that Greece will be exiting the euro zone, spooking many that a full-fledged global crisis is just around the corner. Tech investors were also notified that tomorrow’s Facebook IPO (FB) will be priced at $38 per share, as many debate over whether or not they will be buying in or shying away [see also Which ETFs Will Own Facebook (And When)]. On the commodity side of the equation, gold finally saw an up day, as its price finally broke out of its rut. Crude oil, on the other hand, remains in the doldrums [...]

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Hitchhiker’s Guide To The ETF Galaxy

Michael Johnston — Mon, 14 May 2012 13:00:23 +0000

At times, it seems as if the number of ETFs available to U.S. investors will soon exceed the number of stars in the sky. That might be overstating things a bit, but the pace of expansion in the ETF industry has truly been impressive over the last several years. With multiple products seemingly debuting every week and very few shutting down (despite countless predictions to the contrary), the size of the ETF lineup has effectively doubled in a relatively short period of time. And there’s no indication that the product development front is going to be slowing down any time soon; issuers continue to file for both innovative and duplicative products, producing a pipeline full of hundreds of funds that could debut at some point in the next several months [see also 3 ETFs For A Euro Zone Double-Dip]. The proliferation of ETFs, ETNs, and other exchange-traded cousins of these [...]

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Have Gold ETFs Lost Their Luster?

Jared Cummans — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:00:57 +0000

In recent years, gold has become arguably the most popular commodity from an investing perspective, and with good reason. Gold and the funds that track it have provided some massive returns for traders and investors all around the globe. But that popularity got especially heated in 2010 and the first half of 2011, as gold featured a meteoric rise to eclipse the $1,900 /oz. level with the financial world buzzing about what appeared to be the best investment at the time [see also Three Reasons Why Gold Is Overvalued]. It was because of this rise that gold became something of a speculative tool for traders, as they used it to hedge against equity losses. And for 2011, it worked quite well. Last year, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) featured a correlation of -0.64 to the S&P 500 partly due to the number of investors using it as a trading instrument. [...]

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Saving For College, ETF Style: An ETF-Friendly 529 Plan

Michael Johnston — Mon, 07 May 2012 13:00:43 +0000

The ETF industry has been routinely praised for its innovation over the last several years, which is no doubt a contributing factor to the surge in interest and assets. Generally, reference to such innovation relates to the growth in the product lineup, as issuers of all sizes have launched a number of creative, first-to-market products over the past few years that have dramatically opened up the asset classes and investment strategies available through the exchange-traded structures [see also Free Report: How To Pick The Right ETF Every Time]. But there are other aspects of the industry that deserve credit for exciting new developments as well. While ETFs are still hard to find in most 401(k) account and other retirement plans, they are now readily accessible in a popular college savings account; a program from State Street allows new parents to use ETFs in a college savings plan for children, through an [...]

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When An ETF Distribution Isn’t A Dividend: Explaining Capital Gains

Jared Cummans — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:00:33 +0000

Income investing has become particularly popular in recent years, as near-zero interest rates have left many starved for attractive yields. As such, many investors turned to equity ETFs paying out high dividends to find a stable source of income. But looking through past distributions and current yield metrics is not always the most accurate method for evaluating an ETF’s yield, as there are several nuances to these products that need to be taken into account, including capital gains [see also 12 High-Yielding Commodities For 2012]. Capital Gains Though the exchange-traded structure helps these products to avoid incur capital gains far less frequently than mutual funds, a number of ETFs incur capital gains through out the year, which will ultimately lead to high distributions to investors. The shareholders of the ETF, like you, will be responsible for paying the taxes on these capital gains, the same as you would if you had sold [...]

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This Week In ETFs: April 29th Edition

Daniela Pylypczak — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 11:00:42 +0000

Another week in the books, and more uncertainty over the future of stocks. Investors were relieved to finally see some strong trading sessions midway through the five day stretch, but most are still cautious of the future. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke made no indication of a third round of quantitative easing this week, though his statement seemed to hint a cautious optimism and that if things did head south in a hurry, the Fed would ride to the rescue. Despite a miss in Friday’s GDP report stocks maintained their momentum to end week on a relatively positive note [see also 5 ETF Experts You Need To Follow On Twitter]. The ETF industry picked up the pace this week, introducing 9 new exchange-traded products to the market. Guggenheim expanded their BulletShares family with three new high yield ETFs, while Van Eck debuted its new and intriguing Wide Mote Research ETF (MOAT). Additionally, iShares launched [...]

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Friday’s ETF Chart To Watch: SPDR S&P 500 (SPY)

Stoyan Bojinov — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 08:00:54 +0000

Equity markets turned higher on Thursday as an upbeat housing report helped to restore investors’ confidence and continue the bull-run from earlier in the week. Major equity indexes finished in green territory, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average leading the way, as investors digested better-than-expected pending home sales data; the figure came in at 4.1% versus the previous reading of 0.4%. Amidst the optimism, gold climbed higher as well and futures prices for the precious yellow metal settled around $1,660 an ounce as the trading session drew to a close [see also 5 ETF Experts You Need To Follow On Twitter]. Earnings season will take a backseat in the headlines tomorrow as investors react to the latest U.S. GDP data. As such, our ETF to watch for the day is the ultra-popular State Street SPDR S&P 500 (SPY), which may see an increase in trading volumes depending on which way the numbers sway [...]

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Defensive Equity ETFs For Earnings Season

Stoyan Bojinov — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 17:00:35 +0000

Corporate earnings season is upon us once again and many investors are likely looking for ways to favorably position themselves in anticipation of volatility. With major equity indexes sitting on hefty gains since the October 4th, 2011 lows, some are getting worried that any disappointment arising from corporate performance results could make way for profit taking pressures on Wall Street [see also Time To Buy VIX ETNs?]. Thanks to the ongoing evolution of the ETF industry, investors have several compelling products available at their fingertips which could offer a creative, and potentially “safer” way to play corporate earnings season. Investors who wish to establish a long position in equities, but are wary of a potential spike in volatility throughout earnings season, may wish to take a closer look at defensive-style ETFs [see our Low Volatility ETFdb Portfolio]. The equity ETFs profiled below are unique because they allow for investors to access one-of-a-kind [...]

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ETF Database » SPY

101 ETF Lessons Every Financial Advisor Should Learn

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ETF Technical Trading FAQ

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Daily ETF Roundup: GDX Soars On Gold’s Glitter, SPY Drags On Weak Markets

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Hitchhiker’s Guide To The ETF Galaxy

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Have Gold ETFs Lost Their Luster?

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Saving For College, ETF Style: An ETF-Friendly 529 Plan

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When An ETF Distribution Isn’t A Dividend: Explaining Capital Gains

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This Week In ETFs: April 29th Edition

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Friday’s ETF Chart To Watch: SPDR S&P 500 (SPY)

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Defensive Equity ETFs For Earnings Season

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