Over at Fundalarm.com, mutual fund muckraker Roy Weitz raked some interesting muck recently.
He pointed out that the "Preferred Group of Mutual Funds" has "some affiliation" with Caterpillar
That's problematic, because if the company decides to take its money elsewhere, the remaining, non-company-affiliated shareholders will be left with a severely deflated fund, running on much less money than it used to. And sadly for these folks, that's just what's happening -- Caterpillar is pulling its money out. (A note on the Preferred Group website explains that management will be trying to minimize the hit that remaining shareholders will be taking.)
Is this a unique situation? Not exactly. As Weitz reported, "Last year, when the Boeing
Well said, Mr. Weitz! Regulators and others out there, if you're looking for another way to make the mutual fund world more transparent and fairer to us investors, this is a problem worth addressing. Fool investors -- remember that we, too, can speak up to let our fund families know of our concerns. Perhaps can let our friends at the Securities and Exchange Commission know, too.
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- The Case for Mutual Funds
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- You're Paying How Much?
- Champion Funds Still Beating the Market
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- Is It Time to Sell?
Longtime Fool contributor Selena Maranjian does not own shares of any companies mentioned in this article.