BOSTON (Reuters) – Inflation-wary investors worried about low returns in basic U.S. fixed-income and equity funds are flocking to some of the newest highly specialized exchange traded funds focused on exotic locations and products.

Investors are piling into new ETFs focused on precious metals, Indonesian stocks and global companies active in lithium mining, according to data compiled by Lipper, a unit of Thomson Reuters. Yield-hungry investors also favor new ETFs focused on master limited partnerships, emerging market debt and closed-end funds.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Inflation-wary investors worried about low returns in basic U.S. fixed-income and equity funds are flocking to some of the newest highly specialized exchange traded funds focused on exotic locations and products.

Investors are piling into new ETFs focused on precious metals, Indonesian stocks and global companies active in lithium mining, according to data compiled by Lipper, a unit of Thomson Reuters. Yield-hungry investors also favor new ETFs focused on master limited partnerships, emerging market debt and closed-end funds.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Robert Auer, manager of the Auer Growth Fund, scours the market for overlooked and unheralded companies that are reporting rapidly rising sales and profits.

He will not buy a company unless it has reported earnings growth of at least 25 percent and revenue growth of 20 percent in the most recent quarter. And he will not buy any company with a price-to-earnings ratio above 12, though he is willing to consider 12-month forward P/E ratios.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Money manager Invesco Ltd (IVZ.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said its acquisition of Morgan Stanley’s retail fund business bolstered third-quarter sales and aided a 47 percent jump in profit.

Marking Invesco’s first full quarter since the acquisition closed in June, Chief Executive Martin Flanagan said integration of the unit with $115 billion under management was nearly complete. The only significant task remaining is closing and merging some redundant funds in coming months, he said.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Quant money manager AQR Capital Management, the $29 billion firm best known for its algorithm-based investing strategies, is jumping into the highly competitive personal retirement savings arena.

Mutual fund companies’ popular target date funds, which typically offer a simple mix of assets for retirement savings, performed poorly in the 2008 financial crisis, opening the door for more sophisticated approaches.

BOSTON, Oct 6 (Reuters) – Quant money manager AQR Capital
Management, the $29 billion firm best known for its
computer-driven trading strategies, is jumping into the highly
competitive personal retirement savings arena.

Mutual fund companies’ popular target date funds, which
typically offer a simple mix of assets for retirement savings,
performed poorly in the 2008 financial crisis, opening the door
for more sophisticated approaches.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Money manager Bruce Berkowitz may be preparing to deepen his involvement in American International Group Inc as the insurer plans a capital restructuring to pay back taxpayers and restore its financial stability.

Largely unnoticed Thursday as AIG (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research) unveiled its plan to accelerate the payback of U.S. government bailout money, Berkowitz disclosed that he had signed a confidentiality and standstill agreement with the insurer.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Money manager Bruce Berkowitz may be preparing to deepen his involvement in American International Group Inc (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) as the insurer plans a capital restructuring to pay back taxpayers and restore its financial stability.

Largely unnoticed Thursday as AIG unveiled its plan to accelerate the payback of U.S. government bailout money, Berkowitz disclosed that he had signed a confidentiality and standstill agreement with the insurer.

BOSTON (Reuters) – Managers have pulled the plug on 14 small exchange-traded funds over the past month, but the $800 billion U.S. market is still on track to post another year of net expansion.

The latest wave of closings is part of the typical “trial and error” process the ETF market relies on to uncover new hits, according to Roger Nusbaum, chief investment officer at Your Source Financial in Phoenix, Arizona.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Morningstar (MORN.O: Quote, Profile, Research) is likely to remove leveraged and inverse exchange-traded funds from its influential star-rating system and track them separately from its standard fund categories, an executive with the fund research firm said in an interview.

Scott Burns, director of ETFs at Morningstar, said the products are intended for traders while his firm is oriented more toward long-term investing.