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Jan. 9, 2009

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Why there's hope amidst the destruction

Martin Peretz: At War, Not at War

Charles Krauthammer: Will Olmert screw it up yet again?

Jan. 8, 2009

Stratfor Geopolitical Intelligence Report: Arab regimes secretly rooting for Israel?

Larry Elder: Israelis and Palestinians: Who's David, Who's Goliath?

Jeff Jacoby: Yes, it's anti-Semitism

Jan. 7, 2009

Jonah Goldberg: Who are the real Nazis?

Anne Applebaum: Pointless Peace Proposals

Jan. 6, 2009

Caroline B. Glick: Iran's Gazan diversion?

Dennis Prager: Dissecting Dershowitz

Jan. 5, 2009

Mark Steyn: Gaza has its version of rocket scientists

Mona Charen: The So-called International Community

Jan. 2, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Having a holy tongue

Caroline B. Glick : Hamas' march to victory

Dec. 31, 2008

Dore Gold: Is Israel Using 'Disproportionate Force'?

Renee Enna:: Succulent 'stewp' is quick, easy fix

Dec. 30, 2008

Jonathan Mark: Israel's Response Is Disproportionate

Wesley Pruden: It's time once more to blame the Jews

Dec. 29, 2008

Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Chanukah: 'Give me Judaism or give me death'

Michael B. Oren: A crisis and an opportunity

Dec. 26, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: When the past meets the future

Caroline B. Glick: Iran and Hamas do Christmas

Dec. 24, 2008

Rabbi Dovid Zauderer: Judaism's Santa problem

The Kosher Gourmet by Ethel G. Hofman CHANUKAH FORK-FINGER FOOD FEAST

Dec. 23, 2008

Caroline B. Glick: Repeating failure in Gaza

Dec. 22, 2008

Rabbi Boruch Leff: Too many Jews today are missing the intended purpose of one of Judaism's most beloved holidays

Barry Rubin: Liar, liar, pants on cease-fire

Dec. 19, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Final Battlefield

Caroline B. Glick: Betting on a dead horse

Dec. 18, 2008

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky: Juicy Chef's hella top, hella bottom, hallelujah in the middle

Craig Crossman : More gifts for geeks --- and those who love them

Dec. 17, 2008

Dion Nissenbaum: Israel kicks out outrageously biased UN official

Craig Crossman : Gifts for geeks --- and those who love them

Dec. 16, 2008

Jonathan Rosenblum: The Gift of Joy

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Uncle Shariah

Dec. 15, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Expert witnesses who put themselves first

Barry Rubin: What they say isn't what you hear

Dec. 12, 2008

Rabbi Hillel Goldberg: Can the Bible be a secular language?

Caroline B. Glick: What a PM Netanyahu faces from Washington

Dec. 11, 2008

Rabbi Leiby Burnham: Our role in the Divine's global corporation, World Inc.

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky: A retro-tasting pareve pot pie made with a light hand

Dec. 10, 2008

Rabbi Paysach J. Krohn: Groom admits he was caught "red handed"

Kara McGuire: No money for gifts? No problem

Dec. 9, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : Can I make my boss treat me fairly?

Stratfor Geopolitical Intelligence Report: Next Steps in the Indo-Pakistani Crisis

Dec. 8, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: 'Chanukah Bush' flap and graciousness

Mark Steyn: Jews get killed, but Muslims feel vulnerable

Dec. 5, 2008

Rabbi A. Henach Leibowitz: Truth --- The Key to Gratitude

Jeff Jacoby: UN's obsession is grotesque and Orwellian

Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review

Six intriguing funds Morningstar.com is covering now

By Russel Kinnel


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | (KRT) At Morningstar, we cover 2,000 mutual funds with Fund Analyst Reports, and we're always looking for interesting offerings to add to coverage. Some of the recent additions to our coverage list are fairly new funds, while others have been around for a while but have done something lately to catch our attention.

Here's a sampling of the most interesting funds that we've placed under analyst coverage recently.

  • TrendStar Small Cap (TRESX):

    Despite the "me-too" sounding name, this fund has a fair amount going for it. It's run by Tom Laming and James McBride, who had a rather ugly divorce from Kornitzer Capital two years ago. Kornitzer runs the successful Buffalo Small Cap (BUFSX), and Laming and McBride are running this fund in a similar fashion. They combine a top-down approach with a bottom-up, growth-at-a-reasonable-price strategy. So far the fund has outperformed its category by a nice margin. Morningstar analyst Gareth Lyons notes that he's also encouraged that this fund plans to close to new investors at the small size of just $400 million. The fund has $189 million in assets at the moment.

  • Schneider Value (SCMLX):

    As analyst Karen Papalois notes, this fund is a real hidden gem. It has pretty much everything you want in a mutual fund. A good, experienced manager, a small asset base and reasonable expenses. Manager Arnie Schneider III left Wellington about 10 years ago to set up his own firm. Using a deep-value strategy he has put up strong results in separate accounts, and he's done the same in the two years and 11 months that this fund has been open for business. With an expense ratio of just 0.85 percent, this is the bargain of the six new additions to our coverage list, though you need $20,000 to get into this club.

  • Royce Value (RYVFX):

    Yes, it's yet another variation on Royce's small-value strategy.

    Royce reminds me of the way in which Taco Bell is always coming up with a new name for the same combination of beef, salsa and cheese in a tortilla. So, let's call this Royce's gordita. It distinguishes itself by having a slightly higher upper band of market caps. It goes after stocks between $600 million and $5 billion.

    However, so far the fund has had most of its assets in small caps, just like 15 other Royce funds. But it could go into mid-caps at any moment! Also, this fund tends to hold about 60 stocks, making it more concentrated than a gaggle of Royce funds. Analyst Todd Trubey writes that managers Whitney George and Jay Kaplan hew to the typical Royce strategy of "finding firms that have strong balance sheets, solid growth prospects, and good valuations."

    What stands out here is performance. The fund's concentration of holdings and small asset base has supercharged returns in both directions. The fund got clocked in 2002 but rebounded to produce stellar returns since. It's not uncommon for the smaller funds in the Royce stable to enjoy strong returns, but the downside is those returns usually mean a fund won't stay small for long.

  • Schwab YieldPlus (SWYPX):

    Low money market yields have sent investors searching for bond funds that can stand in for money markets, and many have alighted upon this fund. With a duration of just under half a year, this fund is only taking on a touch of interest-rate risk in exchange for higher yields than you'd see in a Treasury bill. Although that sounds mundane, the fund's assets have soared to about $6 billion.

    Unfortunately, that hasn't led to a lower expense ratio, as the fund still charges a pricey 0.60 percent. You can find cheaper ultrashort-term bond funds out there.

  • Nuveen NWQ International Value (NAIGX):

    With a name like that, it's got to be good. Hiding behind that bland moniker and equally pedestrian long-term performance record is an intriguing fund. Nuveen changed horses in October 2002 when it switched the fund over to NWQ Investment Management. Lead manager Paul Hechmer has installed a bold value strategy, and early results have been encouraging.

    Senior analyst Bill Rocco writes that "Hechmer and his team look for companies that are undervalued on a variety of metrics, enjoy strong franchises, and have catalysts for improvement such as new management or restructuring plans." NWQ runs a focused portfolio of just 40 stocks. The fund's three-year returns rank in its category's top 10 percent, though it's still pretty early. Now the bad news:

    The fund charges a steep 1.75 percent. I'd wait until that came down before buying.

  • Constellation Sands Capital Select Growth (PTSGX):

    This fund is exactly what the world of growth investing needs: a concentrated, low-turnover strategy run by an experienced hand. Fast-trading momentum funds led a lot of investors to their doom in the bear market, so it's nice to see a fund that stays focused on fundamentals. I like the fact that managers Frank Sands Sr., Frank Sands Jr. and David Levanson invest with conviction, as evidenced by the fact that they have more than 8 percent in top holding Genentech (DNA). Although very few individual investors have discovered this fund, institutional investors have more than $12 billion with Sands Capital.



Russel Kinnel does not own shares in any of the securities mentioned above. He is a writer for Morningstar.com

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

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