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Stocks vs Income CEFs Since 2008?

#1
On various investment sites, I've noticed a number of folks casually remarking that you'd have been a dope to own income CEFs since 2008 and miss the great equity rally.  Just my opinion, but sometimes it pays to actually look and see ;0).  Hopefully, this look-see might convince others that some actively managed multi-asset fixed income CEFs are at least worth consideration.  The numbers were picked off Fido "performance and risk" tabs.
 
Asset     10yrTR      SD       Sharpe
SPY         10 .7       20.0         0.52
PTY         17.4        18.1         0.95
PKO         15.4        11.0        1.20
PCM        14.9        13.8        1.00
PFL          11.4       18.5         0.58
RCS         12.0        8.20        1.36
PCN         15.1       18.0         0.87
 
ONLY POINT:  Every single one of these FI CEFs had a higher 10yr total return, a lower standard deviation, and a higher Sharpe ratio than the popular SPY S&P 500 Index ETF.  (Please check my numbers because I could easily have picked an incorrect number by accident.)
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#2
Looks about right.  See: https://stockcharts.com/freecharts/perf....5&O=011000

Leveraged funds have done well over this period.
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#3
Hi...FYI the link sent us to a 1yr chart...don't know if that's what you intended....D
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#4
(11-21-2018, 02:22 PM)Kitsune Wrote: Hi...FYI the link sent us to a 1yr chart...don't know if that's what you intended....D

One year was not my intent (and probably has to do with the nature of the link), but it is easy to extend the graph to any period for which there is data.
 
If you right click on the days, you can select ALL, for example. Or, if you double left-click on the days, you can enter the number of (trading)  days in which you are interested (e.g., 2519 = ~10 years).
 
Or, you can left-click and hold in order to drag the slider.
 
Or, you can right click on any of the graph lines and choose "animate", and it will move forward in time (e.g., a one year roll).
 
Or, you can left click on any on the ticker names at the top and set that one as the base.
 
etc.
 
I would have inserted the specific graph into my response, but apparently that is a potential copyright violation.  Fidelity would likely ask me to remove it (if they caught me as they have in the past).
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#5
I have heard folks saying it was unwise to stay out of market after the 2008 crisis because one missed the bull. I have also heard (a much smaller number of folks) that CEFs are under-explored investment vehicles and there are several well-managed, hidden-gem CEFs across different asset classes. I think there are plenty of evidences available to ratify both the statements. I haven't specifically heard anyone saying that owning income CEFs was a bad decision because it missed the post-2008 rally - but that could be because I normally pay attention to a limited number of channels and hence missed such suggestions. Your point (that actively managed go-anywhere/multi-asset CEFs are worthwhile consideration) is definitely valid.
 
I personally think of CEFs as investment vehicles of a specific asset class, as opposed to an asset-class by itself. So the direct performance comparison between a passive stock market fund (asset-class = US large-cap equity; primary objective = capital growth vehicle = passive unleveraged fund) and a multi-asset CEF like those cited above (asset-class = debt of different types and investment-grade; primary objective = generate regular income stream; vehicle = active leveraged closed fund) does not really tell me much. I see these 2 as complementing each other, rather than choosing one over the other.
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#6
Don't say CEF, just say ETF. Nobody wants to have to google to know what you meant. It's silly.
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