Q–I own shares of the Fidelity Asset Manager fund and have concerns. I know long-time manager Robert Beckwitt was shifted elsewhere last spring in the big Fidelity Investments realignment because the fund wasn’t doing well. What does the future hold?
A–Keep those shares. This fund strayed from its original concept of asset management that featured a conservative mix of stocks, bonds and cash, but it’s back on track.
The $10 billion Fidelity Asset Manager gained 14 percent over the past 12 months and its three-year annualized return was 9 percent. Both ranked in the lower half of multi-asset global funds.
To erase the memory of disappointing 1994 and ’95 returns tied to inopportune bets on Latin America and other overseas markets, Beckwitt was transferred to a behind-the-scenes assignment. Now Dick Habermann handles asset allocation, Michael Gray manages bonds, and George Vanderheiden directs stock investment.
“While Beckwitt did well for shareholders over a number of years, he was running Asset Manager like a global hedge fund and shareholders weren’t fully aware of what it was investing in,” observed Eric Kobren, editor of the Fidelity Insight investment letter. “It is likely to be more predictable now, with no macroeconomic bets on currency valuations.”
The fund is now 55 percent invested in stocks, 32 percent bonds and 13 percent cash. Foreign stocks make up only about 14 percent of its stock holdings. The largest holdings include U.S. Treasury bonds and notes, Fannie Mae, Philip Morris, General Motors, Royal Dutch Petroleum and Columbia/HCA Healthcare. This “no-load” (no initial sales charge) fund requires a $2,500 minimum initial investment.
Q–I’ve been told real estate mutual funds are a good place to invest. Could you tell me which have performed best?
A–Real estate mutual funds, up an average of 5 percent in total return this year, are designed mostly for investors who seek a hedge against inflation. Considered an alternative to bonds, their returns generally have little correlation to the overall stock market.
“Most of these funds invest in REITs (real estate investment trusts) and investors probably shouldn’t allocate more than 10 percent of their total fund portfolio to them,” advised Janet Yuen, analyst with Lipper Analytical Services.
REITs pay dividends from rents on their properties, so when the economy gets stronger, rents and payouts go up.
Among the top-performing real estate funds this year, according to Lipper, have been: Longleaf Partners Realty Fund, Memphis, $28 million in assets, no-load, $10,000 minimum initial investment, up 14 percent; Grandview Realty Growth Fund, Rocky Mount, N.C., $200,000, 4.5 percent load, $1,000 minimum, up 14 percent; and Crabbe Huson Real Estate Investors, Portland, Ore., $13 million, no-load, $13.4 million, up 7 percent.
Q–What’s been happening with the comic book market? How are values holding and what are prospects?
A–Rare vintage comic books in mint condition featuring the likes of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman still command anywhere from hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars.
Yet this cyclical market has been volatile for a couple of years, according to Robert Overstreet, publisher of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide ($17 from Gemstone Publishing) in Timonium, Md.
Older examples from the so-called “Golden Age” of comics, especially the 1930s and ’40s, doubled and tripled in value last year. Supplies are short and demand high, yet prices aren’t rising at that pace this year. Meanwhile, comics from the “Silver Age” (mid-1950s through 1960s), which moved up quickly in price three years ago, are at a price plateau.
The future value of new comics being produced is questionable because large publication runs mean they’ll never be as scarce as older comics. In addition, too many collectors are saving high-grade examples.
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Andrew Leckey, who co-anchors the two-hour “Today’s Business” program each weekday morning on the CNBC cable television network, answers questions only through the column. Address inquiries to Andrew Leckey, “Successful Investing,” Suite 367, 76 N. Maple Ave., Ridgewood, N.J. 07450.
