Poll: Invest in index funds?

[freebird5825]

3/4 indexed funds
1/4 a potpourri of managed funds and individual stocks

 

[marko]

I just jumped on the S&P Index Fund wagon yesterday with a 2.5% holding. My plan is to slowly add to that during dips.

 

[bingybear]

really a vague poll. would you call a 2x or 3x bull or bear S&P ETF an index fund? How about just straight S&P indexes... but how are they weighted? Capitalization, equal, fundamental?
How about value index like PWV, set to track "Dynamic Large Cap Value IntellidexSM Index (Index)"
How about sector or industry ETFs? Commodity index GSCI in small % is suppose to be a good diversifier (Roger Gibson -- Asset Allocation-- and others).
So, having an "index fund" is really a pretty wide net. While some people would look only at TSM or S&P funds and assume one make up of these indexes.... likely by capitalization I would guess, there are many ways to index.

 

[REWahoo]

So...95% of those responding use index funds, but there is a wide variance as to "how much of an indexer" individual investors are: Early Retirement & Financial Independence Community - View Poll Results

 

[Eagle43]

Yes, a little less than 40% in Index funds. Then there's Wellesley, CDs, cash, u.s. bonds and a couple of managed funds.


Sent from my AT100 using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[Koolau]

We are about half and half indexed/active.

 

[Rothman]

About 70% index, 30% active managed, but my active managed are more sector plays so .4-.75% fee, my index VTI, BND .05-.07%

 

[mickeyd]

I am shocked that the favorable vote in the survey is less than 95% at this time.

I'm all in at close to 100%.

 

[mathjak107]

it has been a stock pickers market . my managed funds have been doing better than my index funds the last few years . last year was the only exception when nothing but the s&p 500 was doing well .

 

[Senator]

last year was the only exception when nothing but the s&p 500 was doing well.

Doesn't that imply a stock picker could have picked the best stocks of the S&P 500 and beat the S&P?...

I am almost 100% index funds, and my rentals. I have 100 shares of GLD and 100 shares of PFG. Otherwise, it's IVV, IVW, DVY, QQQ, IWM, and FHLC.

I would like to think my investment performance has been better than most, but Fidelity says I have only averaged a 5.42% return since 2003, while the S&P (or even blended return) has done better.

I had a large cash position which hurt, and it does not count my 401K which has consistently beat the S&P (because I do not monkey with it). It also does not count my rental real estate portfolio, which has smoked the market.

The Fidelity returns are a sobering fact that I cannot change. Since I went to mostly indexes, I have beat the S&P, mostly due to timing luck.

Here is a study that is interesting.

In fact, a recent study by Richard Bernstein showed that the average investor generated a measly 2.1% return over the period from 1993-2013:

Beat the Average Investor by not Trying to “Beat the Market” | Pragmatic Capitalism

It means that even if you had left your money invested with a high fee asset manager over this period you very likely beat the returns generated by most of your peers even though most high fee asset managers fail to beat “the market” or index funds.

 

[mathjak107]

most funds are more diversified than just large caps so they will typically be more spread out . unless it is only a large cap fund by design . last year was a weird year and every time the s&p 500 has been the only game in town it has lagged the next 5 years as it unwinds from that .

looking at returns on my fidelity blue chip growth and contra they are still positive for the ytd . the s&p 500 is not .

reuters had an interesting article


http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/28/funds-fidelity-investing-idUSL5N0L23P520140128

 

[tuckeverlasting]

3 of my 4 funds are indexed.

 

[Onward]

100% index, unless asset class had no index funds when I purchased it.

 

[mickeyd]

It means that even if you had left your money invested with a high fee asset
manager over this period you very likely beat the returns generated by most of
your peers even though most high fee asset managers fail to beat “the market” or
index funds.

Didn't notice that the bar graph had a section labeled "E-R investor" but if it did it would probably be on the far left of the field.

 

[kcowan]

We have index funds in our portfolio. We also have actively managed investments.

+1
Our index funds cover sectors in which we are too lazy to make stock selections.

 

[youbet]

There are so many indexes (with multiple funds from various providers tracking each) these days you can simultaneously be a wheeler-dealer trader and indexer at the same time.