Business News

Steve Jobs and the Apple Story

On Aug. 2, 2018, Apple (AAPL) made history by becoming the world’s first publicly traded company to achieve a market capitalization of $1 trillion. On April 30, 2019, Microsoft (MSFT) joined Apple’s exclusive club, also catapulting past the $1 trillion mark. On Jan. 16, 2020, Alphabet (GOOGL) became a $1 trillion company, followed by Amazon (AMZN) on Feb. 4. Key Takeaways …

Read More »

Total Bond Fund Definition

What Is a Total Bond Fund? A total bond fund is a mutual fund or exchange-traded fund that seeks to replicate a broad bond index. A total bond fund owns many securities across a range of maturitiesfrom both public and private sectors. The most common index used as a benchmark is the Barclays Aggregate Bond Index, which captures Treasury bonds, …

Read More »

Sovereign Wealth Funds: An Introduction

Sovereign wealth funds have attracted significant attention as more countries open funds and invest in big-name companies and assets—some more transparently than others. This has given way to widespread concern over the influence these funds have on the global economy. As such, it is important to understand exactly what sovereign wealth funds are and how they first came about. Key …

Read More »

What Constitutes a “High Fee” for a Mutual Fund?

While they are commonly referred to as fees, mutual funds charge investors what is called an “expense ratio” as payment for managing the fund. However, understanding mutual fund expense ratios can be confusing. There are a variety of factors that contribute to a fund’s total expense ratio. It seems as though non-investment factors, such as a fund’s 12b-1 fee (also …

Read More »

What Is Disclosure? How It Works and Laws on Transparency

What Is Disclosure? In the financial world, disclosure refers to the timely release of all information about a company that may influence an investor’s decision. It reveals both positive and negative news, data, and operational details that impact its business. Similar to disclosure in the law, the concept is that all parties should have equal access to the same set of …

Read More »

Special Insurance for Designer Clothes

Dolce and Gabbana. Oscar de la Renta. Hermès. Marc Jacobs. Chanel. If this kind of lavish designer clothing graces your walk-in closet, you’re probably a serious fashionista—and you also need to call your insurance agent, stat. Why? Because if your house burns to the ground, gets swept away by a flood, or is raided by fashion-obsessed robbers, simple homeowners insurance …

Read More »

Silver ETF Definition

What Is a Silver ETF? A silver exchange-traded fund (ETF) invests primarily in hard silver assets, which are held in trust by the fund manager or custodian. Established typically as grantor trusts, silver ETFs allow each share represented by the ETF the specific right to a particular quantity of silver, measured in ounces.​​​ Key Takeaways A silver exchange-traded fund (ETF) invests …

Read More »

10 Investigative Questions to Ask a Home Seller

A home is typically the largest single investment you’ll ever make, and you’ll likely spend a lot of time and energy searching for the perfect place. By the time you’re ready to buyyou’ll already know a lot about the house. However, it’s a good idea to do a little more detective work and get answers to a few investigative questions. …

Read More »

The Blackstone Group Could Profit From the Pandemic

The Blackstone Group Inc. (BX) is likely to profit from the coronavirus pandemic in coming years, reopening the 2009 and 2010 playbook when the company stepped in and bought thousands of foreclosed properties. Although it’s still too early to take exposure, the stock is now approaching deep support levels after a 38% one-month decline into this week’s nine-month low, potentially …

Read More »