Comments on: how do I start investing in mutual funds? http://www.businessian.com/how-do-i-start-investing-in-mutual-funds-45651.html Business Ian Magazine , Businessmen & Business To Business Guide Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:42:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: lb_centaur http://www.businessian.com/how-do-i-start-investing-in-mutual-funds-45651.html/comment-page-1#comment-73393 lb_centaur Tue, 27 Jul 2010 16:36:26 +0000 http://www.businessian.com/how-do-i-start-investing-in-mutual-funds-45651.html#comment-73393 I invest with Fidelity Investments. Look for mutual funds that have no sales load and minimal expense ratios. Typically 0.2 to 1.2%, depending upon the fund. Also consider Vanguard and TD Waterhouse (or whatever their new name is). The stocks within any fund will vary. This is measured by the turnover ratio. Charles Schwab is also fine, as long as they do not charge you a commission. A good place to start comparing funds is either http://finance.google.com or http://nytimes.com/business/ . Consider funds with Morningstar ratings of 4 or 5 stars. Past performance is not always a good predictor of future performance. That is called chasing yields and is usually a poor investment strategy. Look for funds with consistently higher returns. My favorite fund in Fidelity Contrafund FCNTX. Last year's return was 18.6%. Although it is not the best performer in bull markets, it holds up extremely well in sideways and bear markets. I invest with Fidelity Investments. Look for mutual funds that have no sales load and minimal expense ratios. Typically 0.2 to 1.2%, depending upon the fund.

Also consider Vanguard and TD Waterhouse (or whatever their new name is). The stocks within any fund will vary. This is measured by the turnover ratio. Charles Schwab is also fine, as long as they do not charge you a commission.

A good place to start comparing funds is either http://finance.google.com or http://nytimes.com/business/ .

Consider funds with Morningstar ratings of 4 or 5 stars. Past performance is not always a good predictor of future performance. That is called chasing yields and is usually a poor investment strategy. Look for funds with consistently higher returns.

My favorite fund in Fidelity Contrafund FCNTX. Last year’s return was 18.6%. Although it is not the best performer in bull markets, it holds up extremely well in sideways and bear markets.

]]> By: kevin h http://www.businessian.com/how-do-i-start-investing-in-mutual-funds-45651.html/comment-page-1#comment-73394 kevin h Tue, 27 Jul 2010 16:36:26 +0000 http://www.businessian.com/how-do-i-start-investing-in-mutual-funds-45651.html#comment-73394 Ok, Charles Schwab, Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and there are several others are discount brokerages. They all have advantages and disadvantages, and I urge you to call and talk to all of them and get more info. You can even ask them about some different mutual funds and see what they say. As far as which ones to choose, well, that's like predicting the lottery numbers, however mutual funds for a long term investment usually do pretty well. The stocks that make up a mutual fund do change. The mutual fund manager actually decides which stocks will make up that fund. Some funds are specifically catered to a certain type of stock however, so while a stock may change within the fund, it will still be one of the same type. There is a wealth of information on www.money.com. That is CNN's money website and it is linked to Fortune and Forbes. Lots of good stuff in the investing 101 articles. Something else you might want to find out about is if your company offers a 401k. If they do, you should put some into that as well. If not, you might want to consider an IRA, either Roth or traditional. Good luck! Ok, Charles Schwab, Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, and there are several others are discount brokerages. They all have advantages and disadvantages, and I urge you to call and talk to all of them and get more info. You can even ask them about some different mutual funds and see what they say. As far as which ones to choose, well, that’s like predicting the lottery numbers, however mutual funds for a long term investment usually do pretty well. The stocks that make up a mutual fund do change. The mutual fund manager actually decides which stocks will make up that fund. Some funds are specifically catered to a certain type of stock however, so while a stock may change within the fund, it will still be one of the same type. There is a wealth of information on http://www.money.com. That is CNN’s money website and it is linked to Fortune and Forbes. Lots of good stuff in the investing 101 articles. Something else you might want to find out about is if your company offers a 401k. If they do, you should put some into that as well. If not, you might want to consider an IRA, either Roth or traditional. Good luck!

]]>