Question of the Week

Bobby opened an account with the PDG mutual fund in October, with an initial deposit of $10,000.  In December, he receives a capital gains distribution from the fund. How will this distribution be taxed?

A) At the long-term gains rate.
B) There will be no taxes due to the investor since he is reinvesting.
C) As ordinary income, since he has not owned shares of the fund for the required holding period
D) As a short-term gain, since he has held the shares for less than 6 months

Answer:

The correct answer is a)

The mutual fund is passing through part of a gain that it earned by holding securities for the required year-and-a-day or more. Regardless of the individual’s period of holding the mutual fund’s shares, these distributions are taxed at the long-term rate.


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Professionals FAQs
  1. Where can I look for a financial planner?

    References from trusted friends or family members can help you find a financial planner; however, keep in mind that your friends' financial situations and goals may differ from yours and, therefore, their planners won't necessarily be the best fit for you.The Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Board of Standards certifies financial planners and maintains an online list of certified financial planners on its CFP Board of Standards website.
  2. If I am looking to get an Investment Banking job. What education do employers prefer? MBA or CFA?

    If you are looking specifically for an investment banking position, an MBA may be marginally preferable over the CFA. The caveat here is that the MBA would most probably need to be from a Top-20 B-School.The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) is well worth considering if you (a) are aiming for an entry-level position in investment banking, and/or (b) cannot afford to shell out six figures for an MBA or have to settle for a lesser-known B-school.That's because in the investment banking field, most entry-level positions are at the analyst level.
  3. Can I still pass the CFA Level I if I do poorly in the ethics section?

    You may still pass the Chartered Financial Analysis (CFA) Level I even if you fare poorly in the ethics section, but don't count on it. The CFA Institute has long emphasized that ethics is a particular area of focus for it. The seriousness with which the CFA Institute views ethics is evident from the fact that for exam candidates with borderline total scores, performance on the ethics section can mean the difference between passing and failing the exam.
  4. Where do most fund managers get their market information?

    Many fund managers, whether they manage a mutual fund, trust fund, pension or hedge fund, have access to resources that the "average Joe" investor does not, but the type and quality of information generally remains the same for all investors. The information that managers use comes from publicly available information in the form of news releases, annual reports and filings with pertinent exchanges.