|
WORK & MONEY
EXOTIC
FUND
FLAVORS
Published October 7, 1996
Other Columns by Ken Kurson
Tripod Interview with the author
|
Here's how I know I'm getting old: I worked at Baskin Robbins before they let you wear khakis and a golf shirt. My uniform made that of another Chicagoan, Bozo, look like it came from Brooks Brothers. And as my pink, orange and white stripey shirt came to be covered with ice cream of widely varied hue, I'd often wonder what the point of 31 flavors was, when some 90 percent of sales were accounted for by only six flavors.
Well, blow my skirts up -- it turns out that the other 25 flavors are there to give 'em something to talk about.
Mutual funds, too, come in a dizzying variety of flavors. With some 8,000 to choose from, there are now more mutual funds than there are publicly-traded companies. Not surprisingly, some pretty strange concoctions have cropped up in an effort to stand apart from the crowd.
Like any other fund, specialty funds seek to make money for their shareholders. But they also invest according to values beyond the purely monetary. I caution anyone who's eager to express their personality through their investment decisions not to be easily snowed by a fund whose prospectus aligns with one's self-image. Principles and profit can definitely walk hand-in-hand, but you're not doing anyone any favors if you sacrifice return while your ideological enemies get rich. That said, here's a sampling of boutique funds that'll give you an idea of what's out there.
-
SPORTSFUND is a brand new offering that hopes to tap into America's obsession with scoring and balls. (I'm talking about sports here, Mr. Dirtymind.) It invests in companies such as Nike, Disney (which owns the Anaheim Mighty Ducks hockey team and a piece of baseball's California Angels), and the Boston Celtics (at present, the only publicly traded team in "the big four" sports, though the Florida Panthers and Arizona Diamondbacks may soon share that distinction).
-
DOMINI SOCIAL EQUITY and CITIZENS INDEX PORTFOLIO. Funds that invest only in do-gooder companies: no gambling, smoking, labor-hostile environmental criminals are welcome. Socially conscious funds take a lot of heat in the financial press, and sometimes for good reason. But Domini's fund (rated 4 stars by Morningstar), Citizens Trust (formerly Working Assets) and a company called Calvert (the Calvert Social Investment Fund Managed Growth Portfolio is what's called a balanced fund -- in short, pretty safe but won't dazzle you with high returns) are working to change the perception that good deeds equal bad returns.
-
Stein Roe YOUNG INVESTOR'S FUND. A fund that provides an entry point for kiddie investors, capturing their interest by snaring the stocks of young-skewing companies. Ironically, its investment in politically incorrect eco-bad boys McDonald's and Procter & Gamble pits this kid-friendly fund almost diametrically opposite from the pious pair listed above. Since it's only a year old, there isn't much available data, but so far the fund has spanked the S&P, beating even last year's great record by a couple points and continuing its streak so far this year.
-
WOMEN'S EQUITY FUND. A fund that invests in pro-women companies and companies owned or managed by women. A nice enough idea, but a good example of what could happen if you buy the idea instead of the fund. This fund has a hideous record, returning less than half of the S&P's 37.5 percent last year and continuing its underperformance this year. Makes you wonder if women wouldn't be better off if only men invest in this bear.
-
MEYERS SHEPPARD PRIDE. A fund that seeks companies which have gay-friendly workplaces and employee benefits. It's brand-new, so no performance data are available, but its manager, Shelly Meyers, told me in an interview that "through the quarter ended August 29, we were even with the S&P 500, including our fees. We expect to beat the S&P regularly as soon as our fund grows enough to lower the high fees that a small fund must charge." The fund has no load and features low minimums to start accounts -- $1,000, or $250 for IRAs or those who opt for automatic direct deposit.
-
MORGAN FUNSHARES. Based on the idea that sin is recession-proof, this fund invests in companies tied to liquor, sex, tobacco, cosmetics and gambling. Its 79-year-old founder and manager, Burt Morgan, doesn't smoke or drink. But he does make money, and his holdings of Seagram's, Carter-Wallace (maker of Trojan condoms) and Frederick's of Hollywood, have contributed to an average gain of 12 percent over the last five years, compared to the 8 percent gain of the Standard & Poor's Index.
If any of that floats your boat, you can explore these boutique funds further by calling the numbers listed below. There is no phone number for Morgan Funshares (ticker symbol MFUN) because it's a "closed-end fund," which I explain in this handy addendum.
Calvert Group 800-368-2748
Domini 800-762-6814
Meyers Sheppard Pride 800-410-3337
Sportsfund 888-82-Sport
Women's Equity Fund 415-296-9135
Young Investor's Fund 800-338-2550
Ken Kurson, 27, writes the "Advocate" column for Worth magazine and appears weekly on CNNfn. His money 'zine, "GREEN: PERSONAL FINANCE FOR THE UNASHAMED," is published quarterly and is available for $3 an issue or $10 for a year's subscription. For more information or to subscribe, write GREEN at 245 8th Avenue, Suite 286, New York, NY, 10011.
© 1996 Ken Kurson, All Rights Reserved
|
