Funds - Useful Advice

debbie42 · 2 November 2007 at 9:33AM

I know this is recommended elsewhere, but I've just started reading the Morning Star Fund ABCs, and it's pitched at just about the right level for me.

I've also learned that an OEIC is pronounced "oyk". I'll never be able to read that on here again without smiling.

wombat42_2 · 2 November 2007 at 9:46AM

Hey did you know that 42 is the best number of them all :beer:
42 42 42 42 42 42 42

debbie42 · 2 November 2007 at 9:57AM

wombat42 wrote: »

Hey did you know that 42 is the best number of them all :beer:

Of course, that's why I use it :cool:

munk · 3 November 2007 at 12:45AM

lol

There's another really good investment learning site here if you haven't come across it yet:

http://www.incademy.com/pages/home.htm

Also the trustnet help pages are excellent - along the same lines as the morningstar ABC guide you posted but they have loads of examples as well for stuff like explaining ratios. Found it really easy to follow:

http://www.trustnet.com/help/ratios/

caliston · 3 November 2007 at 12:12PM

Thanks, that Trustnet guide is really useful. Is there a research site that tables funds by ratio, a little like that in their sample tables? Trustnet and Morningstar give them on the fund pages, but it'd be useful to compare funds within a sector without having to build your own table.

munk · 3 November 2007 at 7:22PM

You can do it on trustnet...

Example:
1. Goto http://www.trustnet.com/ut/funds/perf.asp?booIMA=1&ima=UKOTHBND (UK Other Bonds funds)
2. Click 'Customize table' button.
3. Check the 'RiskGrade' checkbox. Click 'Go' button.
4. A 'RiskGrade' column should be added to the table now. Click on the 'RiskGrade' column header to sort the table by RiskGrade.

Theres info somewhere about what RiskGrade is, I forget now exactly but I think the average RiskGrade is around 100. It should be in their help pages about it somewhere. Basically it's a measure of volatility.

Most other sites allow you to do that kind of thing (sorting by volatility etc), just a matter of working out how. For example on morningstar - browse to the table for the sector you want, click 'Performance', then click on the '3Yr Std Dev' column header to sort by SD. Same for sorting by other columns.