Special Program Root Tag

Man Group’s assets as of the end of the third quarter stood at $67.6 billion a 9% decline since the end of March. Its pretax profit declined 24% to $622 million, as a result of lower fees.

The London interbank offer rates for three-month dollar funds reached a five month low of 2.70625% on Tuesday, but banks still failed to loan money and commercial paper issuance also lags.

The price-to-earnings of stocks and other fundamentals have “improved radically,” John Bogle, founder of Vanguard, told Reuters. “It seems to me that people have lost sight of the fact that the fundamentals have improved radically.”

With the volatility of the stock market seemingly ever on the rise, perhaps now is a perfect time for the launch of 300% leveraged exchange-traded funds from Direxion, both on the long and the short side.

Seeking safety, investors have flocked to Treasury bonds, but now investors are beginning to develop renewed respect for municipal bonds, which are not only tax-free but delivering higher yields, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The Investment Company Institute announced Tuesday that it is forming a money market mutual fund working group, to be chaired by Vanguard Chairman John Brennan.

Encouraged by new lows in the Nikkei Stock Average, as well as other major indices, Japanese investors are buying up stocks, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reports.

Due to what it calls deteriorating weighted average credit quality, along with a volatile and falling net asset value, Moody’s has downgraded its rating for the Lehman Brothers Enhanced Libor Fund from Aaa/MR3 to A/MR5. Moody’s said the rating would remain on review for further downgrade, due to its holdings in securities backed by residential mortgages and credit card payments.

Unlike most other markets around the world where hedge funds are allowed to take almost any risks they deem fit, including leveraging their holdings to place outsized bets, Brazil’s hedge fund managers must comply with strict parameters, Dow Jones reports. That means they cannot take margin or collateral calls.

The $3.2 billion Vanguard Insured Long-Term Tax-Exempt Fund is being liquidated and folded into the $2.8 billion Vanguard Long-Term Tax-Exempt Fund.

After a $200 billion run on money market funds in September, the operations of, and flows to, money market funds are beginning to return to normal, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

In response to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s charges that it spent more than $600,000 on improper gifts and entertainment for Fidelity Investments traders, Lazard Capital Markets is paying $2.8 million to settle the charges.

Bear market fund investors have struck it rich, with the best-performing such fund, the Rydex Inverse Nasdaq 100 Fund, up 107% over the past 12 months, businessworld.com reports. Year-to-date, the fund is up 88.7%, and in the past month alone, 16.6%.

While asset flows have continued at a steady clip for exchange-traded funds—the funds have taken in $100 billion so far this year—widespread declines in the values of all asset classes have siphoned about 30% of ETF assets, leaving a net of $440 billion in 716 ETFs, Dow Jones reports.

“We have plenty of cash and investments on our balance sheet. I think we are in a good position to make acquisitions.” That was a recent remark by Morningstar CEO Joe Mansueto to Reuters. Morningstar has $309.6 million in cash and investments on its balance sheet.

Vanguard has reopened the $1.5 billion Vanguard International Explorer Fund, which closed in 2004, and the $3 billion Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining Fund, which closed in 2004. The minimum required initial investment in the international fund is $25,000, and the minimum initial investment in the metals fund is $10,000.

Adviser confidence in the economy and stock market sank this month for the second consecutive month, according to Rydex AdvisorBenchmarking, a division of Rydex Investments.

Prudential Arm Hires Structured Exec Bonesteel

NEW YORK - The fragmented, free-for-all liquidity in the marketplace is aggravating the extreme volatility in the stock market, and experts say a more organized, specialized system is needed.

With the stock market down 40% in the past year, many investors are reassessing their investments. Many, in fact, are bailing out of equity mutual funds, vowing never to return.