Latest news with #AmericanCenturyInvestments
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Paige Spiranac Got 'Greatest Experience of my Life' with Tiger Woods
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Any golf fan would give almost anything for a lesson from the legendary Tiger Woods. Well, the equally famous Paige Spiranac had that opportunity, and naturally, it was unforgettable. Spiranac recounted the experience during a recent interview on the Vanity Index podcast by Skratch. The former pro player and current influencer also revealed what impressed her most about Woods—and it wasn't precisely his golf skills. "He gave me a chipping lesson once. It was like the greatest experience of my life," Spiranac said. "He smells so good, by the way... like that was the first thing I noticed." "I remember he hugged me, and he smelled so good, and I didn't take my jacket off or wash it for an embarrassingly long time because I was like, 'I feel and smell like a winner,'" she added. Of course, the moment also involved the highest quality of golf. Spiranac described the lesson she received from Tiger Woods just as you would expect from such an opportunity. "We were doing this low little spinny shot and so we opened the club up almost like on your back, open stance, narrow choke down, and you take it out and almost slice across it and it's you hit it with like a 54 [degree wedge] it comes out low and then checks on the second bounce. It's a really cool shot. He did [demonstrate it] and it was perfect." Paige Spiranac is the golf personality with the most followers on social media. She is currently followed by more than one million X users, more than four million on Instagram and more than 1.4 million on TikTok. Her YouTube channel has over 445,000 subscribers. STATELINE, NV - JULY 6: Professional golfer, model and influencer Paige Spiranac before the start of her first practice round at the ACC Golf Championship presented by American Century Investments on July 6, 2022 at... STATELINE, NV - JULY 6: Professional golfer, model and influencer Paige Spiranac before the start of her first practice round at the ACC Golf Championship presented by American Century Investments on July 6, 2022 at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course in Stateline, Nevada. More Photo byfor American Century Investments Spiranac's career as a golf influencer began about 10 years ago when she was still trying to make it as a professional golfer. She played in the Cactus League, a mini tour, where she even won a tournament. She then tried to earn her LPGA Tour card via Q-School, but failed on her first attempt and gave up. Last year, Spiranac revealed that she had given up on a professional golf career because life on the tour was too emotionally demanding for her. More Golf: Ian Poulter's son attempts to do what Tiger Woods' son, Charlie couldn't
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Is American Century U.S. Quality Growth ETF (QGRO) a Strong ETF Right Now?
Launched on 09/10/2018, the American Century U.S. Quality Growth ETF (QGRO) is a smart beta exchange traded fund offering broad exposure to the Style Box - All Cap Growth category of the market. Market cap weighted indexes were created to reflect the market, or a specific segment of the market, and the ETF industry has traditionally been dominated by products based on this strategy. A good option for investors who believe in market efficiency, market cap weighted indexes offer a low-cost, convenient, and transparent way of replicating market returns. However, some investors believe in the possibility of beating the market through exceptional stock selection, and choose a different type of fund that tracks non-cap weighted strategies: smart beta. By attempting to pick stocks that have a better chance of risk-return performance, non-cap weighted indexes are based on certain fundamental characteristics, or a combination of such. The smart beta space gives investors many different choices, from equal-weighting, one of the simplest strategies, to more complicated ones like fundamental and volatility/momentum based weighting. However, not all of these methodologies have been able to deliver remarkable returns. The fund is managed by American Century Investments, and has been able to amass over $1.38 billion, which makes it one of the larger ETFs in the Style Box - All Cap Growth. Before fees and expenses, QGRO seeks to match the performance of the AMERICAN CENTURY U.S. QUALITY GROWTH IND. The American Century U.S. Quality Growth Index seeks to select securities of large and mid-capitalization U.S. companies with attractive growth and quality fundamentals. For ETF investors, expense ratios are an important factor when considering a fund's return; in the long-term, cheaper funds actually have the ability to outperform their more expensive cousins if all other things remain the same. Operating expenses on an annual basis are 0.29% for this ETF, which makes it on par with most peer products in the space. It's 12-month trailing dividend yield comes in at 0.27%. Most ETFs are very transparent products, and disclose their holdings on a daily basis. ETFs also offer diversified exposure, which minimizes single stock risk, though it's still important for investors to research a fund's holdings. For QGRO, it has heaviest allocation in the Information Technology sector --about 34.90% of the portfolio --while Consumer Discretionary and Healthcare round out the top three. Looking at individual holdings, Booking Holdings Inc Common Stock Usd.008 (BKNG) accounts for about 3.56% of total assets, followed by Meta Platforms Inc Class A Common Stock Usd.000006 (META) and Tjx Companies Inc Common Stock Usd1.0 (TJX). The top 10 holdings account for about 29.26% of total assets under management. Year-to-date, the American Century U.S. Quality Growth ETF has added roughly 3.71% so far, and it's up approximately 24.43% over the last 12 months (as of 05/13/2025). QGRO has traded between $80.24 and $109.93 in this past 52-week period. The ETF has a beta of 1.11 and standard deviation of 21.63% for the trailing three-year period. With about 192 holdings, it effectively diversifies company-specific risk. American Century U.S. Quality Growth ETF is a reasonable option for investors seeking to outperform the Style Box - All Cap Growth segment of the market. However, there are other ETFs in the space which investors could consider. Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF (FBCG) tracks ---------------------------------------- and the iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG) tracks S&P 900 Growth Index. Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF has $3.94 billion in assets, iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF has $21.43 billion. FBCG has an expense ratio of 0.59% and IUSG charges 0.04%. Investors looking for cheaper and lower-risk options should consider traditional market cap weighted ETFs that aim to match the returns of the Style Box - All Cap Growth. To learn more about this product and other ETFs, screen for products that match your investment objectives and read articles on latest developments in the ETF investing universe, please visit Zacks ETF Center. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report American Century U.S. Quality Growth ETF (QGRO): ETF Research Reports The TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX) : Free Stock Analysis Report iShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETF (IUSG): ETF Research Reports Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) : Free Stock Analysis Report Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ETF (FBCG): ETF Research Reports Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Kansas investment experts outline strategies for economic downturn, market uncertainty
President Donald Trump is displayed on a television screen as traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on April 7, 2025, in New York City. () TOPEKA — Investors watching the stock market jump up and down more times than a 6-month-old Lab puppy in recent weeks were able to take a breath as markets closed for Good Friday. But one day off doesn't make up for the stress and uncertainty and expectations of more market chaos next week. Investment experts from American Century Investments, which manages the Kansas 529 Plan, offer advice heard during past market downturns — diversify. 'The only or best defense in volatile economic and market environments like this is diversification,' said Rich Weiss, senior vice president and chief investment officer, multi-asset strategies, at American Century Investments. 'You never know where the ball is going to land and which investments get favored or which suffer. You know, the markets hate uncertainty. It's anathema to the market more than anything, and this is toxic uncertainty, which is a term I borrowed from Scott Galloway.' Weiss, who brings a dry wit to talking about investment strategies and what's happening in the volatile stock market, offered his assessment of what the country will see with the impacts of on-again, off-again tariffs. 'Externalities, or these shocks to the market, whether they're acts of God or acts of man — COVID, earthquakes, wars etc. — these things happen on occasion,' he said. 'They're not forecastable, necessarily, although in this particular case a lot of the volatility could properly be ascribed to the new administration. The uncertainty, specifically in this case, is really on essentially the president himself and his close advisors. And it's not necessarily the tariff program, but it's the process by which they're implementing it. I hesitate to call it trade policy, because that word 'policy' lends a degree of credibility or validity to it, which it doesn't seem to have. It seems a little more capricious at times.' Weiss said in his 40 years in the investment world, he's never seen the Federal Reserve Board of Governors use the term 'placeholder' in their minutes. 'The Fed Governors issue forecasts as part of their job for the economy, inflation, etc.,' Weiss said. 'Several of the Fed governors used the word or term — we're going to issue a 'placeholder' for GDP (Gross Domestic Product) growth — because even they have no idea which way this thing is going. So where do we land? We have an 85% probability right now of a slowdown or a recession. We've lumped them all together, so it's not necessarily a recession but clearly an economic slowdown. I think you're seeing that already in the numbers.' It's the uncertainty that makes it hard to forecast. Even United Airlines, Weiss said, came out and said it was issuing two forecasts, something rarely seen. 'Which is a place a lot of us are at because it's so dependent on the magnitude and duration of the tariff program, and whether that indeed pushes us into a full-blown trade war with China or even some of our other allies,' he said. Right now, many forecasters are predicting a recession, a prolonged economic decline. It's difficult to give general advice in the current situation, but there are a couple of good rules to follow, said Weiss and Evan Mayhew, vice president, national accounts. Mayhew manages the Kansas 529 Plan. Understanding your own tolerance for risk is important, and then diversification of stocks, bonds and other assets mean that if the market moves down in one of those areas, other investments can stabilize accounts, both said. Weiss said to consider geographical diversification, as some international markets are stronger than the U.S. market right now. The Kansas 529 Plan, which is an investment tool to save for children's college education, has become more flexible over the years, allowing investors to choose their level of risk, among other things, Mayhew said. 'Originally, they were set up just for college savings,' he said. 'Now there's the option for you to use it on K through 12, also for post secondary. There's a new provision that went into effect last year that allows unused funds to be rolled into a Roth IRA. So really, it's identifying what's the objective of those goals and then investing appropriately.' If 529 participants are looking at using funds to pay for kindergarten through 12th-grade educational costs, they would probably be more conservative, Mayhew said, because of a close timeframe. 'If you've got a longer runway, then look at something potentially more aggressive that you're comfortable with,' he said. 'We have multiple investment options.' During economic downturns in the past, Mayhew said most clients continue their automatic payments to their 529 accounts. They typically see only a slight pull-back that corresponds to market volatility. 'We're looking at reports on a weekly basis of investor behavior and actually over the last week, our purchases and new accounts are actually on par with last year,' he said. Looking back at other economic downturns, such as in 2008, Mayhew said they tend to see more of a slowdown in lump-sum payments, rather than in automatic investments. Weiss said there is a risk of 'abandonment' of accounts when the economy is down, meaning customers take their money out. Sometimes they do it voluntarily, but sometimes job losses and other economic factors contribute to that decision. Whether investing in a 529 Plan, mutual funds or other vehicles, the market right now is impossible to predict, Weiss said. 'It's fraught with peril if you rush to sell or, on the other hand, buy on the dips because you could potentially catch a falling knife, as they say, by doing that,' he said. 'Examine your overall asset allocation, making sure it's still roughly in line with your specific long-term goals and objectives. These are the tried and true principles of investing. We're not knee-jerk reacting to daily movements.' Risk, Weiss said, is not something to consider after the markets are in a fall. 'Risk is not something you react to after the fact,' he said. 'It's something you should address up front before you ever make your first investment to make sure that you can, for example, tolerate a 20, 30, 40% loss in stocks in the short term.'
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
VinFast Auto Ltd. (VFS): Among the Best Low Priced Stocks to Invest In Now
We recently compiled a list of the . In this article, we are going to take a look at where VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS) stands against the other low priced stocks. As per American Century Investments, global small-cap stocks might be well-placed to benefit from changes in the macroeconomic factors in 2025. Inflation, elevated interest rates, and fears of recession impacted smaller companies in recent years, resulting in the significant underperformance of small-caps as compared to the large-caps. This trend was seen in 2024, with large caps dominating through the first half. However, sentiments shifted at mid-year when some momentum was seen in small caps. The small caps picked up an additional tailwind post the US elections, says American Century Investments. The investors expected stocks, mainly small-caps, to benefit from Trump's approach to taxes, tariffs, and regulations. The expectations for continued cuts by the US Fed and several other central banks have resulted in favorable conditions for small-caps. Trump's approach towards tariffs can result in large companies bringing their supply chains closer. The small-caps can benefit from higher capital spending associated with reshoring and nearshoring. The growth of AI is anticipated to continue to increase demand for data centers and energy. Even though the Mag 7 companies have managed to get more attention, American Century Investments believes that this trend can also support small-caps in multiple categories. The beneficiaries might include data center operators and providers of energy-efficient cooling solutions. While M&A and IPO activity witnessed a fall in 2022 and 2023, reduced rates and a favorable US regulatory environment can result in more deals in 2025. The investment firm expects that deregulation might fuel capital markets activity, supporting banks and boutique investment firms. READ ALSO: and . BNP Paribas Asset Management expects that earnings will fuel the next leg higher for small-cap stocks. The analysts are expecting strong earnings growth i.e., by 42% in 2025 and by 36% in 2026 in comparison to just 6% in 2024. This is ahead of the historical earnings growth rate of 15%. For decades after China was admitted to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2001, US companies were focused on outsourcing production to lower-cost nations (like China) to drive profits. The asset management firm now expects this trend to reverse over the coming years. During COVID-19, having supply chains and manufacturing far from home resulted in significant difficulties for US firms. Therefore, they are now looking to 're-shore' production. Also, elevated geopolitical tensions and protectionism remain other catalysts, supported by financial support from the US federal government's CHIPS Act as well as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. To list the 10 Best Low Priced Stocks to Invest in Now, we used a screener and shortlisted the stocks trading at less than $10. Next, we chose the ones that were popular among hedge funds. Finally, the stocks were ranked in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiments, as of Q4 2024. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter's strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 363.5% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 208 percentage points (see more details ). Two brightly colored electric vehicles parked neatly in a row next to a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS) is engaged in designing and manufacturing EVs, e-scooters, and e-buses. The company continues to place itself as a competitive player in the broader EV market, with a strong focus on affordably priced vehicles. VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS)'s vertical integration strategy is expected to act as a significant potential advantage, enabling greater control over the supply chain and potentially resulting in cost efficiencies. This approach can enable the company to reduce costs, improve its quality control, and respond to market demands as compared to competitors with more fragmented supply chains. As VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS) scales production and witnesses economies of scale, the benefits of vertical integration are expected to become more pronounced, resulting in an improvement in profit margins. Notably, increasing scale, production cost optimization, and improvement in operating efficiencies have started to have a positive impact on gross margin and will continue to be critical drivers for VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS)'s path to profitability. Notably, in Q3 2024, its gross margin came in at negative 24.0%, representing a strong improvement as compared to a negative 27.0% margin in the same quarter of the previous year and a negative 62.7% margin in Q2 2024. Overall VFS ranks 10th on our list of the best low priced stocks to invest in now. While we acknowledge the potential of VFS as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued AI stock that is more promising than VFS but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and Complete List of 59 AI Companies Under $2 Billion in Market Cap. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Sign in to access your portfolio
