Barron's: Strong Flows into MMFs in Q4
Barron's posted a blog piece, "Q4 Was Good For Vanguard, Tough for Pimco: S&P," that says, "The fourth quarter of 2015 saw investors add money to index and money market mutual funds, while pulling money from actively managed and bond funds, writes S&P Capital IQ's Todd Rosenbluth in a recent review of the sector. Vanguard Group was a clear winner, writes Rosenbluth, as the biggest fund provider only increased its lead over rivals, thanks to $54.1 billion in new money in the quarter. It saw $20 billion go into equity funds, $18 million in bond funds and $3 billion in money markets -- a rare trifecta in Q4. The Vanguard 500 Index Fund (VFINX) saw inflows of $1.2 billion and the Vanguard Total International Bond Index (VTIBX) added $3.2 billion." It adds, "Vanguard wasn't the only winner, however, with Goldman Sachs (GS) attracting $25 billion.... Goldman Sachs FS Money Market (FSMXX) had $7.9 billion and was an example of institutional fund with strong interest. However, investors pulled $977 million and $644 million, respectively, out of Goldman's equity and bond funds.... The fourth quarter wasn't so bright for Pimco: With $22 billion in outflows, it lagged the broader industry.... It wasn't all bad for the firm though, as the PIMCO Income Fund (PONAX), "which has a top-quartile multi-sector income bond fund, pulled in $2.5 billion last quarter." Rosenbluth also highlights JPMorgan's (JPM) funds, among others, noting its $1.9 billion in new money to its equity funds and $109 million to bond funds, including the JPMorgan Growth Advantage (VHIAX), although its money market funds saw outflows."
