Categories: U.S. Investing

Gross’s Mistake on Fed Taper Ripples Across Pimco Funds

DonkeyHotey

Gross’s Mistake on Fed Taper Ripples Across Pimco Funds (Bloomberg)

Money manager Bill Gross, also known as “The Bond King,” misjudged the timing and impact of the Federal Reserve’s plan to scale back its asset purchases in 2013, spurring the Pimco Total Return Fund’s (PTTRX) biggest decline in almost two decades. The billionaire’s mistake was echoed by the largest funds at Pacific Investment Management Co., including non-traditional bond offerings designed to shield investors from interest-rate moves. Pimco mutual funds that average more than $10 billion in assets trailed about two-thirds of peers in 2013, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Only two of the 11 largest funds from the firm beat more than half of their rivals last year. Ouch!

Paul Dykewicz

Paul Dykewicz is the editor of StockInvestor.com and the editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C. He writes and edits for the website, as well as edits investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts and other reports published by Eagle. He also is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, USA Today and other publications, as well as served as business editor of a daily newspaper in Baltimore. In addition, Paul is the author of the inspirational book, "Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame's Championship Chaplain." He received his MBA in finance from Johns Hopkins University, where he was a two-time president of the school's Finance Club. In addition, Paul has a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and a master's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. Outside of work, Paul volunteers with a faith-based organization to assist the poor in Southeast Washington, D.C., to learn personal finance skills to lift themselves out of debt.