 |
Vanguard ETF: |  |
7.4%* |
|
Diversified Core: | |
8.1%* |
|
Six Core Asset ETFs: | |
7.3%* |
Articles on GCMAX
- 401K Investments: Moody's Profit Participantion Plan Offers Good Diversification and Quality Funds
09/14/2011
Moody's is well known for its debt rating service. Through its subsidiaries, it provides credit ratings; credit and economic related research, data, and analytical tools; risk management software; and quantitative credit risk measures, credit portfolio management solutions, training, and financial credentialing and certification services worldwide. Famed investor Warren Buffett is a major shareholder of Moody's common stocks.
As one would expect, Moody's own credit and risk rating expertise should help to design and offer a good retirement investment plan to its employees. In this report, we review Profit Participation Plan of Moody’s Corporation plan and its asset allocation portfolio building capability.
The plan consists of 25 funds. These funds enable participants to gain exposure to 5 major assets: US Equity, Foreign Equity, REITs, Emerging Market Equity, Fixed Income.
Asset Class Ticker Name Conservative Allocation FIRJX Fidelity Income Replacement 2016 LARGE BLEND FUSEX Fidelity Spartan U.S. Equity Index Inv Intermediate-Term Bond FBIDX Fidelity U.S. Bond Index DIVERSIFIED EMERGING MKTS LZEMX Lazard Emerging Markets Equity Instl LARGE GROWTH MLAIX MainStay Large Cap Growth I REAL ESTATE RRRRX DWS RREEF Real Estate Securities Inst MID-CAP VALUE GCMAX Goldman Sachs Mid Cap Value A Retirement Income FFFAX Fidelity Freedom Income Target Date 2000-2010 FFFVX Fidelity Freedom 2005 Target Date 2000-2010 FFFCX Fidelity Freedom 2010 Target Date 2016-2020 FFFDX Fidelity Freedom 2020 Target Date 2026-2030 FFFEX Fidelity Freedom 2030 Target Date 2036-2040 FFFFX Fidelity Freedom 2040 Target Date 2011-2015 FFVFX Fidelity Freedom 2015 Target Date 2021-2025 FFTWX Fidelity Freedom 2025 Target Date 2031-2035 FFTHX Fidelity Freedom 2035 Target Date 2041-2045 FFFGX Fidelity Freedom 2045 Target Date 2050+ FFFHX Fidelity Freedom 2050 MID-CAP BLEND FLPSX Fidelity Low-Priced Stock Mid-Cap Growth FMCSX Fidelity Mid-Cap Stock Foreign Large Growth FDIVX Fidelity Diversified International MID-CAP BLEND FSEMX Fidelity Spartan Extended Mkt Index Inv Foreign Large Blend FSIIX Fidelity Spartan International Index Inv LARGE VALUE EILVX Eaton Vance Large-Cap Value I Intermediate-Term Bond PTTRX PIMCO Total Return Instl As of Sep 13, 2011, this plan investment choice is rated as above average based on MyPlanIQ Plan Rating methodology that measures the effectiveness of a plan's available investment funds. It has the following detailed ratings:
Diversification -- Rated as above average (68%)
Fund Quality -- Rated as average (65%)
Portfolio Building -- Rated as above average (69%)
Overall Rating: above average (67%)The chart and table below show the historical performance of moderate model portfolios employing strategic and tactical asset allocation strategies. For comparison purpose, we also include the moderate model portfolios of a typical 5 asset SIB (Simpler Is Better) plan . This SIB plan has the following candidate index funds and their ETFs equivalent:
US Equity: SPY or VTI
Foreign Equity: EFA or VEU
REITs: IYR or VNQ or ICF
Emerging Market Equity: EEM or VWO
Fixed Income: AGG or BND
Performance chart (as of Sep 13, 2011)Performance table (as of Sep 13, 2011)
Portfolio Name 1Yr AR 1Yr Sharpe 3Yr AR 3Yr Sharpe 5Yr AR 5Yr Sharpe Profit Participation Plan of Moody’s Corporation Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate -0% 14% 11% 90% 10% 84% Profit Participation Plan of Moody’s Corporation Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 2% 27% 4% 20% 4% 19% Five Core Asset ETF Benchmark Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate 6% 61% 10% 76% 9% 64% Five Core Asset ETF Benchmark Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 2% 27% 5% 22% 4% 15% Currently Commodities, International Bonds and Fixed Income are doing well. Only Fixed Income is available to Profit Participation Plan of Moody’s Corporation participants.
Diversification and proper risk management are the two major key factors in 401k investing. Moody's plan provides a reasonable diversified asset classes for its participants. Participantscan achieve reasonable investment returns by adopting asset allocation strategies that are tailored to their risk profiles.
Symbols: MCO, VTI, VEU, VWO, VNQ, BND, FIRJX, FUSEX, FBIDX, LZEMX, MLAIX, RRRRX, GCMAX, FFFAX, FFFVX, FFFCX, FFFDX, FFFEX, FFFFX, FFVFX, FFTWX, FFTHX, FFFGX, FFFHX, FLPSX, FMCSX, FDIVX, FSEMX, FSIIX, EILVX, PTTR, 401K Investments, Retirement Investing, Portfolio Management, Asset Allocation, Risk Management
- Goldman Sachs Brings Asset Allocation Savvy to Its 401K Plan
06/03/2011
Retirement investing is a long term process. This report reviews The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan . We will discuss the investment choices and present the plan rating by MyPlanIQ. Current economic and market conditions are discussed in the context of the investment portfolios in the plan. We will then show how investors in The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan can achieve reasonable investment results using asset allocation strategies.
Plan Review and Rating
As one of the largest investment banks in the world, Goldman Sachs (GS) does give its employees ample diversification opportunities. The plan consists of 36 funds. These funds enable participants to gain exposure to 6 major assets: US Equity, Foreign Equity, Commodity, Emerging Market Equity, REITs, Fixed Income.
As of Jun 2, 2011, this plan investment choice is rated as average based on MyPlanIQ Plan Rating methodology that measures the effectiveness of a plan's available investment funds. It has the following detailed ratings:
Diversification -- Rated as great (100%)
Fund Quality -- Rated as below average (14%)
Portfolio Building -- Rated as average (52%)
Overall Rating: average (55%)It is a bit surprising that the plan's fund quality is rated below average. In the plan, other than the low cost index funds, it provides many Goldman Sachs funds such as Goldman Sachs Asset Management L.P./Structured US Equity Fund (GSELX). This could possibly help your own fund business with the expense of lower qualities. We don't know what cost the plan is charged for these funds.
Current Economic and Market Conditions
As we are clearly entering a seasonally weak period for risk assets, global economies have clearly slowed down. Recently released Case-Shiller housing index showed that the U.S. is now in a double dip state for housing prices. Unemployment rate has been stuck at 9% level. Additional indicators such as conference board consumer confidence index and Chicago ISM index are all pointing to a slow down in the summer season.
Amid a string of bad economic news, risk assets have come down a bit, though they are still ranked high at the moment. Long term treasury bonds, however, have shot up in the anticipation of weakened economy. The following table shows the major asset class ranking in terms of their momentum.
Assets Class Symbols 05/27
Trend
Score05/20
Trend
ScoreDirection International REITs RWX 11.77% 10.82% ^ Commodities DBC 10.84% 10.32% ^ US Equity REITs VNQ 10.77% 10.41% ^ Gold GLD 9.42% 10.06% v Emerging Market Stks VWO 8.56% 6.72% ^ US Stocks VTI 8.29% 8.23% ^ International Developed Stks EFA 6.77% 5.23% ^ US High Yield Bonds JNK 6.37% 6.37% v International Treasury Bonds BWX 5.96% 4.66% ^ Frontier Market Stks FRN 4.05% 4.27% v Emerging Mkt Bonds PCY 3.57% 4.27% v Intermediate Treasuries IEF 2.71% 2.39% ^ US Credit Bonds CFT 2.5% 2.81% v Municipal Bonds MUB 2.13% 2.0% ^ Total US Bonds BND 1.99% 1.92% ^ Mortgage Back Bonds MBB 1.75% 1.8% v Treasury Bills SHV 0.07% 0.02% ^ Portfolio Discussions
The chart and table below show the historical performance of moderate model portfolios employing strategic and tactical asset allocation strategies. For comparison purpose, we also include the moderate model portfolios of a typical 6 asset SIB (Simpler Is Better) plan . This SIB plan has the following candidate index funds and their ETFs equivalent:
US Equity: SPY or VTI
Foreign Equity: EFA or VEU
Commodity: DBC
Emerging Market Equity: EEM or VWO
REITs: IYR or VNQ or ICF
Fixed Income: AGG or BND
Performance chart (as of Jun 2, 2011)Performance table (as of Jun 2, 2011)
Portfolio Name 1Yr AR 1Yr Sharpe 3Yr AR 3Yr Sharpe 5Yr AR 5Yr Sharpe The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate 12% 113% 9% 70% 13% 98% The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 17% 214% 1% 5% 5% 30% Six Core Asset ETF Benchmark Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate 14% 141% 8% 64% 13% 92% Six Core Asset ETF Benchmark Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 20% 188% 3% 16% 7% 36% From the above table, one can see that the plan is comparable with six core asset benchmark.
To summarize, participants in The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan can achieve very reasonable investment returns by adopting asset allocation strategies that are tailored to their risk profiles. This plan provides adquate diversification but can be improved by working on fund qualities.
Symbols: GS, ^RUT, MLM, VTI, VEU, VWO, VNQ, DBC, BND, STLEX, SVSPX, VUSTX, VIGIX, VIVIX, VIMSX, SSEMX, VIPSX, STLAX, STLBX, WFBIX, STLCX, STLDX, STLFX, GMCFX, GSTGX, WACPX, GSELX, GCMAX, GSHTX, GSCGX, GSLAX, GSFIX, GGOIX, GREIX, QRAAX, PIGLX, SVRIX Exchange Tickers: (GS), (^RUT), (CASH), (MLM), (VTI), (VEU), (VWO), (VNQ), (DBC), (BND), (STLEX), (SVSPX), (VUSTX), (VIGIX), (VIVIX), (VIMSX), (SSEMX), (VIPSX), (STLAX), (STLBX), (WFBIX), (STLCX), (STLDX), (STLFX), (GMCFX), (GSTGX), (WACPX), (GSELX), (GCMAX), (GSHTX), (GSCGX), (GSLAX), (GSFIX), (GGOIX), (GREIX), (QRAAX), (PIGLX), (SVRIX)
- The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan Report On 06/03/2011
06/03/2011
Retirement investing is a long term process. This report reviews The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan . We will discuss the investment choices and present the plan rating by MyPlanIQ. Current economic and market conditions are discussed in the context of the investment portfolios in the plan. We will then show how investors in The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan can achieve reasonable investment results using asset allocation strategies.
Plan Review and Rating
As one of the largest investment banks in the world, Goldman Sachs (GS) does give its employees ample diversification opportunities. The plan consists of 36 funds. These funds enable participants to gain exposure to 6 major assets: US Equity, Foreign Equity, Commodity, Emerging Market Equity, REITs, Fixed Income.
As of Jun 2, 2011, this plan investment choice is rated as average based on MyPlanIQ Plan Rating methodology that measures the effectiveness of a plan's available investment funds. It has the following detailed ratings:
Diversification -- Rated as great (100%)
Fund Quality -- Rated as below average (14%)
Portfolio Building -- Rated as average (52%)
Overall Rating: average (55%)It is a bit surprising that the plan's fund quality is rated below average. In the plan, other than the low cost index funds, it provides many Goldman Sachs funds such as Goldman Sachs Asset Management L.P./Structured US Equity Fund (GSELX). This could possibly help your own fund business with the expense of lower qualities. We don't know what cost the plan is charged for these funds.
Current Economic and Market Conditions
As we are clearly entering a seasonally weak period for risk assets, global economies have clearly slowed down. Recently released Case-Shiller housing index showed that the U.S. is now in a double dip state for housing prices. Unemployment rate has been stuck at 9% level. Additional indicators such as conference board consumer confidence index and Chicago ISM index are all pointing to a slow down in the summer season.
Amid a string of bad economic news, risk assets have come down a bit, though they are still ranked high at the moment. Long term treasury bonds, however, have shot up in the anticipation of weakened economy. The following table shows the major asset class ranking in terms of their momentum.
Assets Class Symbols 05/27
Trend
Score05/20
Trend
ScoreDirection International REITs RWX 11.77% 10.82% ^ Commodities DBC 10.84% 10.32% ^ US Equity REITs VNQ 10.77% 10.41% ^ Gold GLD 9.42% 10.06% v Emerging Market Stks VWO 8.56% 6.72% ^ US Stocks VTI 8.29% 8.23% ^ International Developed Stks EFA 6.77% 5.23% ^ US High Yield Bonds JNK 6.37% 6.37% v International Treasury Bonds BWX 5.96% 4.66% ^ Frontier Market Stks FRN 4.05% 4.27% v Emerging Mkt Bonds PCY 3.57% 4.27% v Intermediate Treasuries IEF 2.71% 2.39% ^ US Credit Bonds CFT 2.5% 2.81% v Municipal Bonds MUB 2.13% 2.0% ^ Total US Bonds BND 1.99% 1.92% ^ Mortgage Back Bonds MBB 1.75% 1.8% v Treasury Bills SHV 0.07% 0.02% ^ Portfolio Discussions
The chart and table below show the historical performance of moderate model portfolios employing strategic and tactical asset allocation strategies. For comparison purpose, we also include the moderate model portfolios of a typical 6 asset SIB (Simpler Is Better) plan . This SIB plan has the following candidate index funds and their ETFs equivalent:
US Equity: SPY or VTI
Foreign Equity: EFA or VEU
Commodity: DBC
Emerging Market Equity: EEM or VWO
REITs: IYR or VNQ or ICF
Fixed Income: AGG or BND
Performance chart (as of Jun 2, 2011)Performance table (as of Jun 2, 2011)
Portfolio Name 1Yr AR 1Yr Sharpe 3Yr AR 3Yr Sharpe 5Yr AR 5Yr Sharpe The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate 12% 113% 9% 70% 13% 98% The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 17% 214% 1% 5% 5% 30% Six Core Asset ETF Benchmark Tactical Asset Allocation Moderate 14% 141% 8% 64% 13% 92% Six Core Asset ETF Benchmark Strategic Asset Allocation Moderate 20% 188% 3% 16% 7% 36% From the above table, one can see that the plan is comparable with six core asset benchmark.
To summarize, participants in The Goldman Sachs 401(k) Plan can achieve very reasonable investment returns by adopting asset allocation strategies that are tailored to their risk profiles. This plan provides adquate diversification but can be improved by working on fund qualities.
Symbols:GS, ^RUT, MLM, VTI, VEU, VWO, VNQ, DBC, BND, STLEX, SVSPX, VUSTX, VIGIX, VIVIX, VIMSX, SSEMX, VIPSX, STLAX, STLBX, WFBIX, STLCX, STLDX, STLFX, GMCFX, GSTGX, WACPX, GSELX, GCMAX, GSHTX, GSCGX, GSLAX, GSFIX, GGOIX, GREIX, QRAAX, PIGLX, SVRIX
Exchange Tickers: (GS), (^RUT), (CASH), (MLM), (VTI), (VEU), (VWO), (VNQ), (DBC), (BND), (STLEX), (SVSPX), (VUSTX), (VIGIX), (VIVIX), (VIMSX), (SSEMX), (VIPSX), (STLAX), (STLBX), (WFBIX), (STLCX), (STLDX), (STLFX), (GMCFX), (GSTGX), (WACPX), (GSELX), (GCMAX), (GSHTX), (GSCGX), (GSLAX), (GSFIX), (GGOIX), (GREIX), (QRAAX), (PIGLX), (SVRIX)