About the Editor
Ben Johnson, CFA, is director of global ETF research for Morningstar. Before assuming his current role in 2012, he was director of ETF research for Europe and Asia. He also previously served as a senior equity analyst, covering the agriculture and chemicals industries. Before joining Morningstar in 2006, he worked as a financial advisor for Morgan Stanley.

Johnson holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Wisconsin. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. In 2015, Fund Directions and Fund Action named Johnson among the 2015 Rising Stars of Mutual Funds.


Investment Strategy
Morningstar ETFInvestor scans the globe for value and improving fundamentals across virtually all asset classes. Editor Ben Johnson draws upon academic and practitioner research — including Morningstar's sizeable bench of stock, bond and fund analysts — to find reliable drivers of outperformance.

Morningstar ETFInvestor features five model portfolios.

The Basic Portfolio harnesses the market's collective wisdom with ultra-low-cost funds and is the baseline portfolio against which the three other portfolios will be compared.

The Defensive Portfolio aims to provide lower volatility, better downside protection, and better risk-adjusted performance than the basic portfolio over the long-term.

The Factor Portfolio is designed to earn higher returns than the basic portfolio over the long-term.

The Income Portfolio attempts to earn a higher distribution yield than the basic portfolio, without taking a lot more risk.

The ESG Portfolio targets firms with strong corporate governance and sustainable environmental and social practices, while offering competitive returns and similar risk to the basic portfolio.

 
 
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Bryan Armour, CFA
Director, Passive Strategies, North America and Editor
Bryan Armour is director of passive strategies research for North America at Morningstar Research Services LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc. Before joining Morningstar in 2021, Armour spent seven years working for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, conducting regulatory trade surveillance and investigations, specializing in exchange-traded funds.
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Featured Posts
New Issue: Making the Most of a Bear Market

The PDF version of the September issue of ETFInvestor is now available for download. 

If the link above doesn’t work, you can download this month’s issue by copying this address into your browser: https://etf.morningstar.com/Newsletter.aspx?download=currentIssue

The latest market turmoil serves as a reminder that bear markets will continue to occur, and each will have different implications for investors than its fore­bearer (pun intended). There’s no time like the present for replacing junk from the last bull market with sturdy long-term investments that can handle whatever future bear markets throw at them. In this issue, I’ll explore how different asset classes and sector performed during recent bear markets, discuss the characteristics of an effective diversifier, and test some diversification theories.

Here's a rundown of what else you’ll find in this month’s issue:

  • Zachary Evens adds an extra layer of protection to the basic portfolio to examine the long-term implications on performance.
  • We spotlight a pair of diversified funds that can help investors stay the course when the market dives: Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF VTI and Invesco S&P 500® Quality ETF SPHQ.
  • Ryan Jackson tests the theory that flexibility is a virtue in down markets.
  • Lan Anh Tran takes a deep dive into the relationship between stocks and bonds.

Bryan

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New Issue: Tactical Investing
New Issue: Where to be Active
So Long
New Issue: 5 Things About ESG Investing We Can All Agree On
New Issue: Thematic Funds
New Issue: The Pros and Cons of Market Cap Weighting
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Morningstar ETFInvestor Subscriber's Handbook
Introduction to ETFInvestor Model Portfolios
Morningstar.com ETF Forum
ETF Investment Strategy
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3 Excellent Dividend-Stock ETFs
3 of the Best Value-Stock ETFs
3 Exceptional Core ETFs
3 Highly Rated ETFs on Sale
How to Invest Your Funny Money
2 Bond ETFs for a Rising Interest-Rate Environment
How Have Low-Volatility Funds Performed in 2022?
3 ETFs for an IRA
Bonus Reports Free Reports Image Morningstar ETFInvestor Subscriber's Handbook
Introduction to ETFInvestor Model Portfolios
Morningstar's Guide to Closed-End Funds

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Product Support

Inquiries regarding your subscription such as address changes, missing/damaged issues, etc.
Phone: 1-800-957-6021 | Mon-Fri 8:30AM-5:00PM

Inquiries regarding technical issues such as logging in or downloading
Phone: 1-312-424-4288 | Mon-Fri 8AM-6PM
Email: newslettersupport@morningstar.com

 

Product Sales

Inquiries regarding your subscription renewal, billing or to learn about other Morningstar investment publications and resources
Phone: 1-866-608-9570 | Mon-Tue 8AM-5PM CST
Email: newslettersupport@morningstar.com

 

Contact Your Editor

Email: bryan.armour@morningstar.com

About the Editor


Bryan Armour is director of passive strategies research for North America at Morningstar Research Services LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc.

Before joining Morningstar in 2021, Armour spent seven years working for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, conducting regulatory trade surveillance and investigations, specializing in exchange-traded funds. Prior to Finra, he worked for a proprietary trading firm as an options trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Armour holds a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.

Investment Strategy


Morningstar ETFInvestor scans the globe for value and improving fundamentals across virtually all asset classes. Editor Bryan Armour draws upon academic and practitioner research — including Morningstar's sizeable bench of stock, bond and fund analysts — to find reliable drivers of outperformance.

Morningstar ETFInvestor features five model portfolios.

The Basic Portfolio harnesses the market's collective wisdom with ultra-low-cost funds and is the baseline portfolio against which the three other portfolios will be compared.

The Defensive Portfolio aims to provide lower volatility, better downside protection, and better risk-adjusted performance than the basic portfolio over the long-term.

The Factor Portfolio is designed to earn higher returns than the basic portfolio over the long-term.

The Income Portfolio attempts to earn a higher distribution yield than the basic portfolio, without taking a lot more risk.

The ESG Portfolio targets firms with strong corporate governance and sustainable environmental and social practices, while offering competitive returns and similar risk to the basic portfolio.