AthenaInvest - Active Equity Insight

Athena Perspectives – May 2012

Andrew — Tue, 15 May 2012 05:38:30 +0000

The Market Barometer remains normal. The S&P 500 decreased by -0.6% in April, ending a three month positive streak. The international MSCI EAFE Index also moved lower with a -2.0% decrease for the month. During April, the average US active equity fund posted a -0.9% loss while International active equity funds posted a -1.1% loss. Future Growth is the top Year to Date Strategy in both US and International Markets, with 14.1% for the US and 12.9% Internationally.

US Active managers have underperformed by -5.9% over the last year while International Active managers have outperformed by 2.6% over the same period. Quantitative was the best US one year Strategy at 1.3%. Profitability was the best one year International strategy with a -4.4% loss. Also of note was the significant spread of 9.7% between the best and worst performing International strategies over the last year.

Download the full report: Athena Perspectives – May 2012

Athena Perspectives – April 2012

Andrew — Wed, 02 May 2012 15:57:07 +0000

The Market Barometer remains normal. The S&P 500 increased for the third consecutive month, rising another 3.3% during March. The international MSCI EAFE Index moved slightly lower with a -0.5% decrease for the month. In March, the average US active equity fund posted a 2.3% gain while international active equity funds slightly outperformed the index and posted a -0.1% decrease. US Active managers have underperformed by -5.8% and international active managers underperformed by -0.8% during over the past year.

Future Growth remains the top performing one month US strategy, while Quantitative was the best performing one year strategy. On the international side, Profitability posted a 0.8% gain while Future Growth is the best performing strategy at 13.8% for the first quarter of 2012.

Download the full report: Athena Perspectives – April 2012

Athena Perspectives – March 2012

Andrew — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 04:28:29 +0000

The Market Barometer remains normal. The S&P 500 extended its January gains in February, rising another 4.3% during the month. The international MSCI EAFE Index moved higher with a 5.7% increase for the month. In February, the average US active equity fund posted a 4.2% gain while international active equity funds slightly underperformed the index and posted a 5.2% return. US Active managers have underperformed by -3.6% while international active managers outperformed by 2.6% during over the past year.

Future Growth remains the top performing one month US strategy, while Quantitative was the best performing one year strategy. On the international side, Future Growth posted a 5.6% gain and is the best performing strategy at 13.2% for the first two months of 2012.

Download the full report: Athena Perspectives – March 2012

Concentrated Equity Triple Play

Andrew — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 04:23:31 +0000

Concentrating a portfolio on a few choice assets dramatically increases an investor’s chance of superior performance. Nonetheless, most advisors and investors shun portfolio concentration as unacceptably risky. To a great extent, this is driven by the myth that adequate diversification is impossible unless one holds many stocks – a myth I will debunk.

> Read the full article in Advisor Perspectives

Athena Perspectives – February 2012

Andrew — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:41:25 +0000

The Market Barometer remains normal. The S&P 500 rose 4.5% in January while the international MSCI EAFE Index moved higher with a 5.3% increase for the month. Average US active equity fund returns posted a 5.7% gain while international active equity funds outperformed the index and posted an impressive 6.9% return during the first month of the year. US Active managers have underperformed by -3.2% while international active managers outperformed by 2.2% during over the past year.

Future Growth became the top performing one month US strategy, while Quantitative was the best performing one year strategy. On the international side, Economic Conditions emerged as the best performing one month strategy at 7.4%, while Risk was the best performing one year strategy at a loss of -2.5%.

Download the full report: Athena Perspectives – February 2012