Morningstar Advisor - Summer 2007 - (Page 5)

Letter from the Publisher A Fresh Look at Investments Welcome to the second issue of Morningstar Advisor, Morningstar’s first magazine for financial advisors. I couldn’t be more excited about the feedback we received on our premier issue. Launching a new magazine takes an enormous effort, and I would like to thank readers who have e-mailed in their comments and support; it makes our hard work truly rewarding. There are many ways we have tried to walk to a different beat in publishing Morningstar Advisor magazine. I believe that differentiation is the key to filling untapped needs of our readers and providing a fresh look on investing. While the bold illustrations, clean layout, and use of premium paper can all be seen and felt, it isn’t until you start reading the editorial that you come to appreciate the richness and value of this new magazine. Our executive editor, Jerry Kerns, did a fantastic job tapping into resources across the company, including product experts, researchers, and many of Morningstar’s more than 150 fund and stock analysts. In our first issue, we covered a wide range of investment topics, from human capital and investor returns to hedge funds. In this issue, we shine a spotlight on the topic of suitability. With the regulatory agencies cracking down on annuity and mutual fund sales practices, many advisors have been left scrambling for compliance guidelines. Our feature section on suitability will tell you what you need to know about variable annuity issues, including new NASD guidelines, in addition to coverage of mutual fund share class suitability and a discussion of best practices for advisors. I am happy to introduce two new sections in this issue. In Morningstar Conversation, we ask two great investors to sit down for an unmoderated discussion about their paths to becoming successful investors. Our first conversation is between John Rogers of Ariel and Wally Weitz of the Weitz Funds (page 37). Both are great value investors who founded their own fund shops. They discuss the conviction it takes to be a contrarian when it seems everyone else is against them. Our new Advisor Profile section highlights an advisor who is taking a unique approach to investing. In this issue, we take you into the Nashville office of Craig Reed (page 18), who despite his firm’s size takes an institutional approach to investment research. In every issue of Morningstar Advisor, we feature the analysis and insight you need to find new investment ideas, including profiles of undiscovered mutual fund managers, discussions of stock sectors, more than a dozen analyst picks in our Investments a la Carte section, and data tables on stocks, funds, and VAs. Our Gray Matters section brings you the latest from our research teams. I hope you enjoy reading this issue of Morningstar Advisor. I invite you to send your comments and suggestions about our new sections, and the magazine in general, to magazine_editor@morningstar.com. We might even feature you in an upcoming issue! MorningstarAdvisor.com 5 http://www.morningstaradvisor.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Morningstar Advisor - Summer 2007

Morningstar Advisor - Summer 2007 Contents Letter from the Publisher Get to Know the Bond “All-Stars” Research Briefs Our Stewardship Test Gets Tougher Save It for Later Too Many Oranges Best of Both Worlds No Two Clients Are Alike When It Comes to VAs, It’s Seller Beware Hands On: Finding the Suitable Fund Share Class for Your Client Fund Style Can Drift Off Course Sticking to Their Style, Through Thick and Thin Marathon Man Growth, With a Chaser A Menu of Ideas to Fill Five Market Baskets Funds: Finding Funds with Conviction Stocks: So You Say You Want Income? All Eyes on China Mutual Fund Analyst Picks Undervalued Stocks Most Popular Variable Annuities What’s New at Morningstar and on the Web The Advisor’s Economic Moat

Morningstar Advisor - Summer 2007

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