Tag Archives: etf.com

Chasing Yield Chapter 3: High-Yld Corporate Bond ETFs v. Bank Loan ETFs

July 17, 2014 MarketsMuse Staff Reporter Leave a comment

Below extract courtesy of ETF.com and reporter Cinthia Murphy

When it comes to capturing yield in the corporate debt space, ETF investors are showing a preference this year for senior bank loans over high-yield corporate bonds. That preference, some argue, is largely due to what looks like an overvalued junk corporate bond segment, but it is a choice that has its trade-offs.

In a recent webcast discussing his views on the market, DoubleLine’s Jeff Gundlach pointed out that in 2014, he has opted for bank loans over high-yield corporates for that very reason: overvaluation in the high-yield segment. But as one advisor recently asked, “Is there any asset today that isn’t overvalued?”

The S&P 500 is up 200 percent from its March 2009 lows without serious signs of economic expansion; long-dated Treasurys are at multi-month highs, rallying in tandem with the stock market this year; and riskier fare such as emerging markets are in back in vogue. “Overvalued” could be a relative term these days.

Consider two ETFs as proxy for these separate segments: Continue reading →

ETF News

Market Structure: The Great “Flash Boys” Debate and Putting the Genie Back in The Bottle

April 25, 2014 MarketsMuse Staff Reporter Leave a comment

MarketsMuse Editor Note: Though we typically focus on using a high-touch approach to aggregating the more topical and poignant ETF, Options and Macro-Strategy news items, the nearly never-ceasing diatribes re market structure and the impact of “high-frequency trading” which has either been incited or simply elevated by Michael Lewis’s book “Flash Boys” inspires us to distill the multitude of most recent opinion articles and punditry promoted by the ever-increasing universe of “content experts.”

In that spirit, we point our readers to 2 different pieces worth picking over:

1. For the ETF-focused audience, this week’s published comments from ETF.com’s Dave Nadig, “Great Flash Boys Idea IEX Doesn’t Matter” is a solid read for RIAs and the universe of investment managers who use exchange-traded funds. As always, Dave frames his observations and insight in a thoughtful, non-conflicted and erudite manner. Here’s the link to the ETF.com posting.

2. For institutional equity fund managers, institutional equity brokers and whomever else might be intrigued by the latest “survey of capital market professionals” conducted by ConvergEX, one of the major institutional order execution platforms. Their study finds that 70% of those canvassed believe the market structure is “unfair” to them. The study was published this week and since re-published by an assortment of industry media websites, including TABB Forums, and starts with the following: Continue reading →

ETF News, People Profiles

Best ETF Market-Making Award Goes To..

April 15, 2014 MarketsMuse Staff Reporter Leave a comment

In co etfcomlogo nnection with the 1st Annual ETF Awards hosted by ETF.com, the world’s leading authority on exchange-traded funds, agency execution firm WallachBeth Capital was selected “ETF Market- Maker of the Year” by a panel of judges representing prominent firms from across the ETF industry. The announcement was made during a gala dinner held on March 20th at New York’s Chelsea Piers and attended by more than 300 industry members.

According to ETF.com Founder and CEO Jim Wiandt, “The award to WallachBeth for market maker of the year recognizes the firm that has done the most to improve investor outcomes throughout education, support, services, innovation and outreach.” Runners-up for the category included Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Jane Street Capital and KCG. A total of 23 categories were voted upon by the ETF.com judge’s panel.

In making the award, the ETF.com judges noted, “While many firms share credit for helping ETF investors understand ETF liquidity, few have been more dedicated to the task of educating clients and improving outcomes than WallachBeth. The prototypical agency broker, it uses strong Street connections to source liquidity for clients, allowing the world’s best market makers to compete for each order. The agency approach—where WallachBeth is always on the side of the client—resonates with advisors, who often need hand-holding when they enter the fast-moving world of ETF trading.”