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Posted by on Dec 16, 2014 in AdvisorShares, Impact

If Corporate America Is Investing in Sustainability, Then Why Aren’t You?

If Corporate America Is Investing in Sustainability, Then Why Aren’t You?

By: Michael Marinus Young, AdvisorShares Institutional Consultant   “Thanks, but I don’t believe in that stuff…” While traveling the country this fall, that was the response we received from some financial advisors after the introduction of an investment that focuses on sustainability. When pressed to explain, the common refrain was “ESG or SRI investments underperform, and I want my clients invested in the best companies.” Unfortunately, thirty seconds in an elevator or hallway is not enough time to build the case for sustainability. But here on AlphaBaskets, we’re afforded the space and time to better explain why Sustainability should matter to them, and you. And rather than start from scratch, let us lead you to a recent piece from Fast Company: http://www.fastcoexist.com/3036010/why-is-goldman-sachs-advocating-for-sustainability. If “Accenture, Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, Harvard Business School, McKinsey & Company, and PricewaterhouseCoopers have released data-driven case studies, global surveys, and exhaustive reports offering compelling proof that using business as a force for good is also good for business,” then how could a financial professional ignore the...

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Posted by on Dec 16, 2014 in Active ETF Reports, AdvisorShares, ETF Strategist

AdvisorShares Active ETF Market Share Update – Week Ending 12/12/2014

AdvisorShares Active ETF Market Share Update – Week Ending 12/12/2014

Assets in actively managed ETFs fell $666 million or 3.6% which was right in line with declines in the broad domestic equity indexes. As of the close on December 12, AUM stood at $17.459 billion. Earlier in the fall we made several mentions of the large asset flows going into First Trust but of late those inflows reversed and this continued last week with an additional $533 million flowing out. In the last month its market share has fallen from over 18% to its current 14%. AdvisorShares was the only other notable name on the outflow list with $94 million. Inflows were modest across the board with PIMCO bringing $18 million and PowerShares adding $13 million. There was one new fund issued last week and with it one new fund provider; Validea Funds which launched the Validea Market Legends ETF, a Global Equity ETF that tracks the picks of well-known and well regarded investors. To subscribe to our full monthly report, please register at www.advisorshares.com (note the full report...

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Posted by on Dec 15, 2014 in AdvisorShares, ETF Strategist, Market Insight

AdvisorShares Weekly Market Review – Week Ending 12/12/2014

AdvisorShares Weekly Market Review – Week Ending 12/12/2014

Highlights of the Prior Week Macro Equity markets got pummeled last week with large declines despite the positive perception afforded to falling energy prices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 3.70%, the S&P 500 gave up 3.46%, the NASDAQ fared better with a 2.66% drop and the Russell 2000 weighed in with a decline of 2.49%. If you think that was bad, our friends at The Big Picture Blog pointed out that the Athens Index Composite fell 20% on the week due to political instability that sent sovereign bonds yields over 9% (more on global yields below). West Texas Intermediate Crude fell 4% on Friday alone and over 11% for the week making this the second week in the last three that this market has crashed. Crude has fallen almost 50% since June. Gold, hated metal that it is, is down roughly 35% in three and half years. While no one knows where the bottom in oil is, this drop does meet any reasonable definition of a fast decline....

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Posted by on Dec 12, 2014 in AdvisorShares, ETF Strategist

Grandma Got Run Over By A Dividend Portfolio

Grandma Got Run Over By A Dividend Portfolio

By: Roger Nusbaum AdvisorShares ETF Strategist   Forbes had a very short article titled High Yield Grandma which offers a brief profile of a woman who has overcome a few setbacks and has a very substantial investment portfolio worth $3 million. As the clever title implies she focuses on dividend stocks. Based on the above paragraph there is nothing too unusual about her strategy. Dividend stocks exclusively might be a little limiting in certain environments but blue chip dividend stocks diversified across many sectors is not sheer insanity. A little further in to the article it mentions that 1/3 of her portfolio is in the “dividend-friendly stocks of companies controlled by Norwegian shipping billionaire John Fredriksen.” Fredriksen is a billionaire several times over and his companies tend to focus on energy, the transportation of energy and he also has an interest in the fishing industry. The chart from Google Finance shows the year to date results of the companies he controls (excluding one that does not yet pay a...

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Posted by on Dec 9, 2014 in Active ETF Reports, AdvisorShares

AdvisorShares Active ETF Market Share Update – Week Ending 12/5/2014

AdvisorShares Active ETF Market Share Update – Week Ending 12/5/2014

Assets in active ETFs had a net decline last week of $265 million or 1.44% to $18.125 billion in a period that saw no new actively managed funds hitting the market. At the provider level First Trust again saw the largest outflows at $322 million, most of which came from its short term bond fund. Other notable provider flows included $58 million of outflows from AdvisorShares and $24 million from WisdomTree. Gainers included $77 million to iShares and $67 million into PIMCO reversing several weeks of outflows from that provider. As noted Short Term Bond had the largest net outflows at the category level with $137 million followed by $55 million from High Yield and $42 Global Bond. To subscribe to our full monthly report, please register at www.advisorshares.com (note the full report is only available to financial professionals). Number of Active ETFs by Sponsor Number of Active ETFs by Strategy There are risks involved with investing in ETFs including possible loss of money. Shares are actively managed and...

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Posted by on Dec 8, 2014 in AdvisorShares, Market Insight

AdvisorShares Weekly Market Review – Week Ending 12/5/2014

AdvisorShares Weekly Market Review – Week Ending 12/5/2014

Highlights of the Prior Week Macro The monthly non farms jobs report hit on Friday and was a monster. The report  showed 321,000 new jobs with the headline (U3) unemployment rate holding steady at 5.8% while the broader U6 moved down one tick to 11.4%. Oddly the labor force participation rate remained at a 36 year low of 62.8%. The blowout jobs number was not enough to move the needle for domestic equities which were generally up a little. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.73% for the week, the S&P 500 up 0.38% and the Russell 2000 added 0.78% with only the NASDAQ finishing in the red, down 0.23%. Running down the foreign markets, the seven equity markets we regularly follow were all higher led by Shanghai’s shocking 9.51% rally, most of which occurred on Thursday. The Hang Seng added just 20 basis points while Japan was better by 2.64% and Australia rose by 1.1%. In Europe the Dax was up by 1.06%, the CAC 40 went...

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