Fund Selection

This course provides students with insights into different fund structures and tools to determine fund value-added performance. Students will learn to identify how fund ''dress'' up performance and fee structures work.

05-Jun-2008 -- 06-Jun-2008New YorkUSD$2375
NY Institute of Finance - Midtown9:00am - 4:30pm Instructional Method:
Group-Live
Instructor(s): [ John Palicka; ] Thu Fri Level: Basic
CPE Credits: 14.0

13-Aug-2008 -- 14-Aug-2008StamfordUSD$2375
NY Institute of Finance - Stamford, CT9:00am - 4:30pm Instructional Method:
Group-Live
Instructor(s): [ John Palicka; ] Wed Thu Level: Basic
CPE Credits: 14.0

24-Nov-2008 -- 25-Nov-2008New YorkUSD$2375
NY Institute of Finance - Midtown9:00am - 4:30pm Instructional Method:
Group-Live
Instructor(s): [ John Palicka; ] Mon Tue Level: Basic
CPE Credits: 14.0

04-Dec-2008 -- 05-Dec-2008ChicagoUSD$2375
NY Institute of Finance - Chicago9:00am - 4:30pm Instructional Method:
Group-Live
Instructor(s): [ John Palicka; ] Thu Fri Level: Basic
CPE Credits: 14.0

Investors interested in selecting and evaluating funds, including specialists in portfolio management, marketing, regulatory, auditing, plan sponsor, and fund of funds.
No advance preparation required.
Students will be able to:
  • Understand the history, market and players in the mutual fund industry and other asset management structures
  • Be familiar with some key regulations and governance of mutual funds
  • Employ key concepts and analytical elements to risk/return requirements
  • Apply standard risk measurement tools to portfolio performance
  • Differentiate between various investment styles, risk thresholds and objectives
  • Identify and define various expenses, pricing levels and fees
  • Define areas of controversy which are on the radar for mutual funds
  • Use actual cases to evaluate performance and catch some misleading marketing and performance tricks
  • Provide better information for the audit process
  • Be better prepared and able to select appropriate funds for client needs
Financial calculator required. Texas Instruments BA II Plus recommended.
  • Portfolio Management Suite
  • Wealth Management Program
    • DAY ONE

    History, Objectives and Key Concepts of Mutual Funds

    • An Overview of the Capital Markets
    • Developing an Investment Strategy
    • Importance of Equities
    • Bonds: Ballast for the Portfolio
    • Significance of Asset Allocation
    • Ibbotson Sinquefield Paradigm
    • Some Ethical and Legal Considerations: Sarbanes Oxley Act, SEC Considerations, CFA Institute guidelines

    Key Concepts

    • Risk and Return
    • Diversification
    • Modern Portfolio Theory
    • Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM)
    • Investor Utility Curves
    • Customer Suitability Topics
    • Case Simulation

    Why Mutual Funds

    • History and Diversity
    • Size and Development of the Market
    • Fund Families
    • Other Major Fund Structures: Hedge Funds, Private Equity, SMAs
    • Benefits and Pitfalls
    • Structure and Regulation: Governance

    Assembling a Mutual Fund Portfolio

    • Stocks and Bonds Together
    • Performance Measurement
    • Selecting the Appropriate Benchmarks
    • Risk Adjusted Performance
    • Risk Measurement (most commonly used definitions): Standard Deviation; Beta; Duration
    • VARS, Event, and other

    Investment Choices

    • Setting Objectives
    • Defining Time Horizons
    • Establishing Risk Tolerances
    • Style Survey: Growth; Value; Balanced; Indexed

    The Funds Themselves

    • Fund Composition & Organization
    • Management & Board Reporting
    • Expense Ratios & Pricing
    • Size
    • Tax Considerations
    • A/B/C shares
    • Transactions
    • NAV and Fair Value Pricing
    • Special Structures: Hedge Funds; Private Equity; Annuities
    • Controversial areas: Proxy Voting; Mutual Fund; Consultant

    DAY TWO

    Review of Overnight Case Study

      A Closer Look at Indexing

      • Reversion to the Mean
      • Beating the Street
      • Tilting
      • Nominal and Real Diversification
      • Exchange Traded Funds
      • WEBs

      Statistical Concepts

      • Probability Distribution: Mean, Variance, Standard Deviation; Skewness, Kurtosis
      • Correlation Structure of Security Returns
      • Correlation Coefficient
      • R-Squared, VARS
      • Brief look at more current state-of-the-art tools
      • Case

      Performance Measurement

      • Benchmarks
      • Risk-adjusted Returns
      • Sharpe Ratio, Jensen, Treynor, M 2
      • Sharpe Selection (Information Ratio)
      • Sortino, Calmar
      • Attribution Analysis
      • Tricks To Dress Up Performance
      • Checklist of Red Flags

      Asset Allocation

      • Mean Variance Optimization
      • Inputs to the M-V Optimization model
      • From Diversification to Feasible and Efficient Frontiers
      • Rebalancing Efficient Portfolios

      Concluding Remarks

    Clients who register for this course will receive a complimentary 6 month subscription to the Financial Times and FT.com. The Financial Times is the world's most respected financial newspaper, providing a broad assessment on finance, business and the industrial sector. Subscriptions will start within 6-8 weeks of the application process and are limited to one per client. For questions about your subscriptions call 800-628-8088 or email uscirculation@ft.com. US and Canada enrollees only.

    Lunch included for all students taking day classes.