ETFs vs Mutual Funds -- What's the Difference?
The better choice might be different for each investor. There is no clear-cut answer to this question, since it will depend on an investor’s unique situation and what’s being offered. If you intend to trade actively, ETFs might be a better choice since they have prices that update minute-to-minute during the day and their trades settle more quickly. If you are just buying and holding an index (see ‘index investing’), an ETF will give you the cost effective means for doing so. You may be able to buy into an ETF with lower initial requirements than a mutual fund, since you can buy one share instead of possibly having to meet a $1,000 minimum initial investment requirement for a mutual fund. Continue reading...
What is the “Life Only” Option on Annuities?
Choosing the “Life Only” option will turn your annuity balance into income that will be paid only to you, and will last only as long as you live. Annuities can be turned into income streams that are guaranteed to either remain the same or to increase based on an inflation-adjustment rider. The payout rate will be determined based on the length of the annuitant’s life expectancy, the amount being converted to income, whether annual increases are part of the contract, and what provisions are made for beneficiaries or joint annuitants. Continue reading...
How can I invest in hedge funds?
Fund managers are allowed to accept up to 35 non-accredited investors, but for the most part you will either need to satisfy the “accredited investor” requirement of the SEC to invest directly in a hedge fund. Otherwise, there are now hedge fund indexes and ETFs that track and mimic hedge fund strategies that are accessible to everyone. You should know now that the minimum initial investment requirement to participate in a hedge fund can be quite large, such as upwards of $1 million. Continue reading...
What is the Three Falling Peaks (Bearish) Pattern?
The Three Falling Peaks pattern forms when three minor Highs (1, 3, 5) arrange along a downward-sloping trend line. This pattern often emerges at the end of a rising trend, when a security slowly rolls over. It potentially indicates sellers moving in to replace buyers, which pushes the price lower. If the price breaks out from the bottom pattern boundary, day traders and swing traders should trade with the DOWN trend. Consider selling the security short or buying a put option at the downward breakout price level. To identify an exit, compute the target price by subtracting the pattern’s height (maximum price minus minimum price within the pattern) from the breakout level the lowest low. When trading, wait for the confirmation move, which is when the price moves below the breakout level. Continue reading...
What is the Rising Wedge (Bullish) Pattern?
The Rising Wedge pattern forms when prices seem to be spiraling upward, and two upward sloping trend lines are created with the price hitting higher highs (1, 3, 5) and higher lows (2,4). The two pattern lines intersect to form an upward sloping triangle. Unlike Ascending Triangle patterns, however, both lines need to have a distinct upward slope, with the bottom line having a steeper slope. This pattern is commonly associated with directionless markets, since the contraction (narrowing) of the market range signals that neither bulls nor bears are in control. However, there is a distinct possibility that market participants will either pour in or sell out, and the price can move up or down with big volumes (leading up to the breakout). Continue reading...
What are foreign currency effects?
Companies with significant operations or sales abroad will be affected by changes in foreign currency exchange rates. If the dollar strengthens relative to a foreign currency, the price paid for the goods in the country will not be worth as much domestically when the company converts their profits back to dollars. Some foreign currencies fluctuate much more than the US dollar does, but even the dollar can behave unpredictably. This can have a tremendous effect on the bottom line of companies engaged in significant amounts of business abroad. Continue reading...
What is FINRA?
FINRA stands for Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and they regulate securities firms in the United States. FINRA has no political affiliation and is charged with governing all business dealings conducted between dealers, brokers and all public investors. In other words, the rules that dictate how your financial advisor interacts with you are set forth by FINRA. In all, FINRA oversees more than 4,500 brokerage firms, approximately 160,000 branch offices and more than half a million registered securities representatives, as of 2016. Continue reading...
What are Consumer Staples Stocks?
Consumer Staples are generally defined as companies that sell goods with inelastic demand, meaning that economic conditions generally don’t impact a consumer’s need for the product. They are also referred to as ‘non-cyclical,’ meaning that demand should not significantly waver even if the economy enters a recession. Because the earnings of consumer staples stocks is generally less volatile, they have historically outperformed other stocks during prolonged market downturns. Continue reading...
What does delta mean?
Delta is a ratio which measures the degree of correlation between changes in price for the underlying security and changes in the price of the option. Put another way, Delta indicates the amount of price change in a derivative by comparing changes between asset and derivative prices. Delta is a multiple that applies to options positions; it, along with Gamma, Theta, and Vega, helps options investors calculate risk and potential return for an investment. Delta can quickly tell an options investor how much the price of their option will change per share relative to the price change in the underlying security. Delta is represented by a number between 1 and -1, with a negative Delta value sometimes written in accounting notation, like: (1). Continue reading...
Day trading with RSI
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is a momentum oscillator developed by Welles Wilder. In the RSI, the average gains and average losses over a specific time period (such as 14 days) are divided to calculate the Relative Strength, then normalized into the Relative Strength Index (RSI), which is range bound between 0 and 100. The RSI typically fluctuates between values of 70 and 30, with higher numbers indicating more momentum. According to this indicator, a security with an RSI over 70 (out of 100) can be considered overbought, while a security with an RSI under 30 (out of 100) can be considered oversold. Continue reading...