Introduction:

BlackRock and T. Rowe Price are two prominent asset managers that offer both active funds and ETFs. When deciding whether to invest in these companies' stocks, their active funds or their ETFs, it is important to understand the differences and characteristics of these investment vehicles.

Shares of asset managers:

• BlackRock ( $BLK
  ): Current share price: USD 973.92. BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager with $11.6 trillion in assets under management as of the fourth quarter of 2024. The company offers a wide range of investment products, including ETFs and active funds.
• T. Rowe Price ( $TROW (+0,24%)
  ): Current share price: USD 107.17. T. Rowe Price had USD 1.61 trillion in assets under management as of December 2024 and is known for its active investment strategies. Unlike BlackRock, T. Rowe Price does not currently offer any crypto-related products.

Active funds vs. ETFs:

• Active funds: These are actively managed by fund managers who try to outperform the market by making targeted investment decisions. Active funds usually have higher fees due to the intensive management. T. Rowe Price is known for its active funds and has recently begun to transition some of these strategies into active ETFs. Example $TTEQ
• 
  ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds): ETFs are mutual funds that trade on exchanges and typically track an index. They offer diversification and often have lower fees. BlackRock is a leading provider of ETFs, including active ETFs that have the potential to outperform the market. Example $IVV (+0,16%) or the crypto ETFs $IBIT

Cost comparison:

• Passive ETFs: Typically below 0.20% total expense ratio (TER) for standard products.
• Active ETFs: Between 0.20% and 0.85% TER for equity ETFs.
• Active funds: Well above 1% ongoing charges.

Performance comparison:

Some studies show that actively managed funds can outperform passive ETFs in certain market phases. For example, actively managed growth funds from T. Rowe Price and Fidelity outperformed the Vanguard Growth ETF over a short period.

Bottom line:

Choosing to invest directly in BlackRock or T. Rowe Price stocks offers the benefit of participating in the success of these asset managers, including their exposure to the crypto space, particularly BlackRock. However, this comes with specific business risks. Buying ETFs from these providers allows for broader diversification but reduces direct exposure to cryptocurrencies. The choice should be made based on the investment period and risk appetite.

I would be interested to know how you see this and why you chose the exact asset you have in your portfolio?

Ps: If there are any spelling mistakes or anything else, please let me know. Should be an attempt to have a discussion at a higher level.

I used the "dip", if you want to call it that, to increase my position in $TROW (+0,24%) to top up my position. At € 94, I didn't get the lowest price, but I still feel comfortable with the purchase.

Any opinions?

Hello everyone,

I would also like to introduce myself and my portfolio briefly and concisely.

I've been a silent reader for a few months now. Now it's time to reveal a bit about myself.

About me:

My name is Sebastian, I'm 30 years old and I live in Bavaria. I live with my girlfriend in a house I inherited from my parents. I work in the business world as a mechanical engineer.

I can't say exactly when I started investing. I probably started about 4-5 years ago by participating in share bonus programs through my work. Otherwise, my investments have been steadily increasing since the coronavirus era. I was mainly triggered by Finfluencer. There are good and bad things about that. Good: I started investing. Bad: I bought a lot of things stupidly/blindly. I'm now trying to straighten that out and no longer follow such people.

Monthly savings rate approx. 2.5 to 3.0 k€.

I am not fully invested. I have and will continue to have a good cash position.

About the portfolio:

The aim is to create a healthy mix of growth, dividends (growth) and a stable, healthy basis. The dividends also serve somewhat as a "bonus".

As mentioned above, I have (or had) some stocks in my portfolio that I was/am not satisfied with and which I have therefore recently cleaned out and reallocated the freed-up capital. The reorganization process is still ongoing. Roughly speaking, I would generally like to have fewer individual stocks in my portfolio and will shift the weighting to ETFs.

About the individual stocks in the portfolio:

• $IUIT (+0,06%) This is a pillar of my portfolio. It runs with a monthly savings plan for €1000. The idea behind it is an ETF that gives me a good return and ideally outperforms "world ETFs". Sure, it's an ETF from one sector, but I think that's fine. The savings plan will continue to run.
• $HMWO (+0,23%) Also a pillar of my portfolio. Runs with a monthly savings plan for €1000. My selected "World ETF". Savings plan will continue to run.
• $XAIX (+0,27%) I am unsure about this. Also a sector ETF. Runs with a savings plan of €250 per month. Also technology-heavy. I'm thinking about cashing it out to compensate for the losses and to take profits from the current tech hype.
• $SHL (-0,18%) Largest single share position. Created through the share program mentioned above. 250€ monthly savings installment. The shares are sold selectively as soon as all the conditions of the program have been met and I have received maximum bonuses. I then switch directly to other stocks so that the SHL position does not become too large.
• $KO (-0,23%) It has recently become a pillar of my portfolio. Dividend growth, acceptable share price growth, few fluctuations. I like it. Will not be expanded for the time being.
• $MCD (+0,78%) See CoCa Cola. Has recently become a pillar of my portfolio. Dividend growth, acceptable share price growth, few fluctuations. I like it. I also see the share as strong in the real estate sector. Falling interest rates could trigger another good move here. Will not be expanded for the time being.
• $GOOGL (+0,17%) difficult. It has performed well, but is now considering realizing profits. Through my ETFs. I already have this stock indirectly in my portfolio. However, I have deliberately increased the weighting of this individual stock in my portfolio. Rather than buying more, I would rather take profits. However, I would add to it again after a correction.
• $MC (+0,31%) To be further expanded. Target 10k in the portfolio. I used the last small price slide as an additional purchase. Long-term investment. Will be bought at the next opportunity.
• $AMZN (+0,17%) See Google. I already have this stock indirectly in my portfolio. However, I have deliberately increased the weighting of this individual stock in my portfolio. Rather than buying more, more profit-taking. However, I would add to it again after a correction.
• $JNJ (-0,22%) To be further expanded. Target 10k in the portfolio. Dividend growth, acceptable share price growth, few fluctuations. I like it.
• $PG (-0,33%) Recently added to the portfolio. This stock should give the portfolio further stability. Target of €10k in the portfolio.
• $V (+0,24%) Recently added to the portfolio. This value should give the portfolio further stability. Target of €10k in the portfolio.
• $NKE (+2,01%) Difficult position. The recent dip was hard. Outlook also not good, if not bad. As things stand, I would like to sell this share. But I am reluctant to sell with a loss of just under € 1k. I will probably hold on for a while and then decide objectively. I had invested a little here after the dip in order to take advantage of a potential countermovement. I could have saved myself the trouble...
• $BLK and $TROW (+0,24%) same segment. I would like to decide on a share here and then expand it into a pillar of my portfolio. But which of the two...?
• $SBUX (-0,45%) Doesn't really fit into the portfolio anymore. The outlook isn't great either. I will probably sell it at +-0€ and shift the capital into a position to be expanded.
• $MPW (+0,25%) Legacy and memorial! Will continue untouched for now.

Of course, there have also been some failures so far, some of which have depressed performance considerably.

Any examples?

$YSN (+1,96%) : -36,80%

$PLUG (+0,94%) : -61,58%

$PYPL (+0,16%) : -14.68% (good luck for bad luck...)

$NKE (+2,01%) and $MPW (+0,25%) can probably be counted as well.

That's it. It has become a smaller wall of text. Sorry for that.

Feel free to give me feedback on my thoughts and the portfolio.

Have a nice weekend everyone!

I thought long and hard about taking this month off and waiting for better opportunities.

Now I've decided on two investments after all.

On the shortlist were:

t row price $TROW (+0,24%)

Ing $ING (+0,92%)

Mutares $MUX (+1,5%)

delivery hero $DHER (+6,4%)

Shell $SHEL (+0,03%)

Decision:

ING 1200€ (will be further expanded)

delivery hero 1900€ (short-term investment)

I would like to hear from you. Which share would you have bought now?

Daring to get started

Subsequent purchase made

$VLA (+5%) out, $TROW (+0,24%) in