2001 Press Releases
FOLIOfn Announces FOLIO Wizard Investor Assistance Tool; New Folio Categories Include REITs, Wall Street Analyst Picks, and Bonds
03/06/2001
VIENNA, Virginia – FOLIOfn, the innovative financial services company and originator of FOLIO Investing℠, which allows investors to create and trade personalized portfolios of individual stocks at the click of a mouse, as well as trade commission-free in twice-daily windows, has added a wide range of features, including a tool to help investors select Folios℠—or baskets of stocks—to meet their investing objectives.
The FOLIO Wizard walks investors through questions about their investing goals, risk tolerance, and investing experience to produce an investor profile and selection of Folios meeting that profile. Investors may then choose from the list of Folios generated by the Wizard or any of FOLIOfn’s more than 100 Ready-to-Go Folios. They may also create their own Folios stock-by-stock, using FOLIOfn’s stock selector tools. Whatever their choice, investors can modify Folios, before or after purchase, commission-free.
“Investors want different levels of help and assistance, so FOLIOfn’s services are designed to meet a range of needs,” said FOLIOfn founder and CEO Steven M.H. Wallman. “Investors can assemble their own Folios, stock-by-stock, or purchase Ready-to-Go Folios that are based on investment objectives, preferences, and strategies. Now, investors can also use the easy FOLIO Wizard to get quick and convenient assistance in choosing their Folios. No matter how investors build their Folios, they can customize them whenever and as often as they wish, commission-free.”
More Ready-to-Go Folios: REIT, Wall Street Analyst Folios
Folios comprised of Real Estate Investment Trusts, or REITs, are among the latest additions to FOLIOfn’s roster of more than 100 Ready-to-Go Folios. REIT Folios make it affordable for individual investors to own stock in a mix of real estate investment trusts, publicly traded companies whose principal area of activity is real estate. These companies invest in and operate a broad range of real estate properties, including offices, apartments, and retail space.
“REITs are a wonderful creation because they have made it possible for individuals to invest in large-scale commercial properties,” said Wallman. “Our REIT Folios take that accessibility a step further by making it affordable for individual investors to diversify across the entire REIT sector, rather than trying to pick the one or two REITs they think will perform the best. These Folios are a reflection of FOLIOfn’s ongoing commitment to making investing better and easier.”
The three new REIT Folios are based on specific sectors of the real estate market—Industrial/Office, Retail, and Residential—as classified by the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts. They are: the Industrial/Office REIT Folio, comprised of 19 of the largest industrial, office, and mixed-use REITs; the Retail REIT Folio, comprised of 12 of the largest shopping center, regional mall, and free-standing REITs; and the Residential REIT Folio, comprised of 13 of the largest REITs that primarily invest in residential properties such as apartments and manufactured homes.
Investors also have a new option in Ready-to-Go Folios based on the stock recommendations of Wall Street analysts. FOLIOfn’s three Wall Street Analyst Folios—Analyst Choice, Analyst Growth, and Analyst Upgrades—provide investors an opportunity to invest in stocks of the S&P 500 that Wall Street analysts recommend most highly to their clients, predict will have the highest earnings growth over one year, or whose analyst recommendations improved the most over one quarter, respectively.
Ready-to-Go Bond FOLIOs Increase Investor Diversification Opportunities
FOLIOfn has added a whole new asset class to its Ready-to-Go Folio offerings with the introduction of Bond Folios. These Folios, comprised of a number of closed-end bond funds that can be bought and sold in FOLIOfn’s window trades, provide investors with additional opportunities for diversification.
The five Bond Folios—Corporate, Global, Government, High-yield, and Municipal—carry varying risk levels and meet various investor needs. For example, investors willing to take on greater risk may be interested in the Folio comprised of high-yield bond funds, which may provide higher-than-average interest payments but invest mainly in corporate bonds that are considered speculative investments. More conservative investors, on the other hand, might look to the Municipal Bond Folio—FOLIOfn’s newest Bond Folio—comprised of bond funds that invest mainly in bonds issued by cities, counties, and states where bond rating agencies generally consider the issuers’ ability to meet the bonds’ obligations “adequate” or better. This Folio might also appeal to investors in high tax brackets since a number of municipal bonds offer interest income that may be exempt from federal and state taxes.
About Folio Investing
Folio Investing, a division of FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., is an online brokerage that enables investors to manage stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds as integrated investment portfolios called “Folios” that deliver better control, greater transparency, and lower cost. Investors can create their own Folios, much like creating personalized ETFs or mutual funds, or invest in over 100 Ready-to-Go Folios representing market indices, sectors, geographical regions, target dates, and more. The Folio Unlimited Plan features unlimited commission-free trading in twice-daily windows for only $29 a month or $290 a year. Ready-to-Go Folios can be managed or unmanaged, are not registered investment companies, and are offered by FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., a registered broker-dealer. FOLIOfn Investments, Inc. does not provide investment, tax, or legal advice. FOLIOfn Investments, Inc., is a member of FINRA/SIPC.