Is Fidelity Good For Retirement

Where Fidelity Stands Out

Fidelity stands out for its wide range of product offerings and low fees. Its quite easy to build a diversified, low-cost portfolio at Fidelity. Here is what you can expect.

Zero-Fee Mutual Funds: Fidelitys proprietary mutual funds are among the most affordable in the industry, and many are even competitive with Vanguard, which is known for low-fee funds. The Fidelity Zero mutual funds charge no expense ratio. This is an annual management fee charged by fund companies. High expense ratios can seriously eat into your returns. But at Fidelity, you can find four index funds with 0% expense ratios. These funds invest in U.S. stocks as well as international companies.

No minimum investment mutual funds: Throughout the securities universe, you may find mutual funds requiring minimum investments as high as $5,000. But Fidelity has a selection of funds that require no minimum investment. Fidelity also offers a range of no-transaction-fee funds. This means you wont owe fees for buying shares of these funds.

Robo-advisor: Fidelity GO is the brokerages robo-advisor offering. Heres how it works: You answer a brief questionnaire and a computer algorithm uses your answers to build a diversified portfolio using zero-fee mutual funds. The robo-advisor automatically manages and rebalances your portfolio when deemed necessary. Fidelity GOs annual management fee is competitive, ranging from $0 to 0.35%, depending on your balance.

What Are Different Types Of Retirement Plans

There are a number of different retirement plan options to choose from. While Traditional and Roth IRAs are among the most popular, there are other accounts more suitable for self-employed individuals such as a or solo 401. Each retirement plan comes with unique tax benefits so you can choose an account that best matches your situation to set you up for future retirement success.

Who Should Choose Fidelity

Fidelity is a great choice for beginner investors who are just getting started to sophisticated day traders. Fundamental and technical traders who need comprehensive research capabilities for stocks, exchange-traded funds and fixed income will find everything they need on this platform.

Unique features place Fidelity Investments in the company of the very best online brokers. Fidelityâs screeners, third-party research resources and portfolio analysis tools are deep while the downloadable Active Trader Pro has the tools stock and options traders need. The quantifiable price savings on order execution make Fidelity a great choice for frequent traders.

An expansive array of managed portfolios, with accompanying coaching and financial advisor guidance, is ideal for investors seeking both do-it-yourself tools and advisor-led guidance.

The few strikes against Fidelity include a portfolio analysis feature that misses the in-depth view needed for a truly accurate analysis. For instance, a sample portfolio, heavily weighted toward international stock funds and real estate, was deemed a diversified portfolio, despite the lack of diversified U.S. equity exposure. Additionally, the platform is due for an aesthetic update as it appears a bit dated.

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Who Is Fidelity International

Fidelity Investments was founded in 1946 and in 1969 it launched an international arm, now known as Fidelity International. Fidelity International has over 2.85 million clients globally and is responsible for around £546 bn of client assets. To give this some context Hargreaves Lansdown, which has the largest share of the UK consumer platform market, has 1.7 million clients and is responsible for around £132 bn of assets. Comparing Fidelity vs Hargreaves Lansdown there are some notable differences between these two platforms. For example, Fidelity International advises on and administers employer pension schemes. Fidelity also has an investment platform, called the Fidelity Fundsnetwork, through which UK financial advisers can invest and manage their clients’ money whereas Hargreaves Lansdown does not offer such services, given that it is, in fact, a financial advisory firm in its own right. While Hargreaves Lansdown does manage a few of its own funds, its internal fund range is much smaller in size compared to Fidelity’s in-house fund range.

Trading Restrictions On Some Securities

Surprisingly, for such an investor-friendly broker, Fidelity has trading restrictions on some of the more esoteric corners of the stock market, including certain types of preferred stocks. You wont be able to buy these securities, but you wont be forced to sell if youve transferred them in, per Fidelitys policy. Now, this policy is unlikely to affect most clients theyll probably never run up against it but more advanced investors may encounter it from time to time.

While youre not likely to be touched by it, Fidelity nevertheless rightly deserves to be dinged for this paternalistic policy one that doesnt exist at key rival Charles Schwab, to our knowledge.

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Is Fidelity Any Good

It has a silver ribbon in our investment platform customer experience ratings. And its junior SIPP, SIPP, fund and share account and income drawdown pension receive five-star ratings. Fidelity’s stocks and shares ISA, junior ISA and fund and share account are awarded four stars. So overall, the company offers good value.

Fidelitys platform has a relatively straightforward charging structure, with a main annual fee of 0.35%, reducing to 0.2% for those with more than £1m held with the firm.

If you want to trade stocks and shares, the cost is £10 a trade online and £30 over the phone.

Unlike many other providers, it does not charge you any exit penalties to switch and does not charge extra if you use income drawdown services in retirement.

It gives you access to a wide range of funds through the platform, including its own range of Fidelity investment funds.

Fidelity also offers a platform for financial advisers, where both advisers and clients can see and interact with their investment portfolios.

Other Fidelity Details You Should Know

Fidelity Youth Account: In 2021, Fidelity launched the Fidelity Youth Account, an investment account designed for teenagers **. The account, which allows a parent or guardian to monitor the teenager’s activity, offers access to stocks and ETFs, including fractional shares. Teenage account holders can also invest in select Fidelity mutual funds . Importantly, the account also puts some risky investments and investment strategies off limits, including options and margin trading.

Alongside the Fidelity Youth Account, Fidelity offers a customized mobile app experience, with in-app educational resources, articles on investing and online research tools. Once the account holder reaches 18, the account will be a standard brokerage account.

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When You Plan To Retire

The age you plan to retire can have a big impact on the amount you need to save, and your milestones along the way. The longer you can postpone retirement, the lower your savings factor can be. That’s because delaying gives your savings a longer time to grow, you’ll have fewer years in retirement, and your Social Security benefit will be higher.

Consider some hypothetical examples . Max plans to delay retirement until age 70, so he will need to have saved 8x his final income to sustain his preretirement lifestyle. Amy wants to retire at age 67, so she will need to have saved 10x her preretirement income. John plans to retire at age 65, so he would need to have saved at least 12x his preretirement income.

Of course, you can’t always choose when you retirehealth and job availability may be out of your control. But one thing is clear: Working longer will make it easier to reach your savings goals.

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Account And Research Amenities

Fidelity offers many high-quality amenities or accounts, which you would expect to see from a large broker. The breadth and quality of these features help separate Fidelity from some of its competitors. These amenities include flexible screeners, trade idea generators, charting, access to research and fundamental data, and more.

What Can You Invest In Using Fidelity

Fidelity offers investment in funds from more than 100 of the leading UK fund managers as well as a range of ETFs and Investment trusts. Fidelity now allows you to invest in shares, something you have been unable to do in the past.

Investment choices can be made in the following ways. I explain how each works in more detail in the next section titled How does the Fidelity platform work’.

Fidelity Navigator

Fidelity’s Navigator tool allows clients to choose a ready-made portfolio in line with their risk profile and whether they are investing for growth or income.

Fidelity Select 50

Fidelity Select 50 is a choice of 50 funds made by Fidelity experts updated twice a year in January and July. The Fidelity Select 50 funds can be sorted by a range of options according to investment preferences. Fidelity have also launched The Select 50 Balanced Fund where a balanced portfolio has been created using a selection from the Fidelity Select 50 funds.

Fidelity Investment Finder

If a client wants to make their own investment choices then the Fidelity Investment Finder allows them to sort, filter and compare funds, ETFs, Investment Trusts and even Shares to create their own personalised portfolio.

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Which Of These Brokers Is The Best

Although Fidelity was our pick for best overall, our criteria is purposely general and may not match up with your personal needs. Ultimately who you are as an investor and where you are in your financial journey will play a bigger role in selection than any general criteria.

If you are looking to actively manage a portfolio, for example, only two of the brokerages we coveredFidelity and Schwabwill be a fit. For passive investors, all four have solutions, with Schwab, Fidelity, and Vanguard offering both self-directed and robo-advisor run retirement plans, while Betterment is a robo-advisor that will also offer you a human financial advisor. Moreover, if you dont have $1,000 or more to invest, then Betterment is the only option for an automated portfolio, although the other three do offer the education and the tools you need to set up a retirement portfolio yourself. Once you have a clear idea of what you want, you can expand your search in that specific space. While these are the best in their specific category, they are not the only ones that will match your particular retirement plan criteria.

Fidelity Research And Education

The research offerings at Fidelity outshine those at the majority of online brokerage platforms. Whatâs more, the research vertical has been recently updated to improve upon its already-stellar experience.

Research is categorized according to asset class with a wealth of tools, screeners, lists and reports for stock, ETF, options, IPO and fixed income investors. Investors will appreciate the quality third-party research reports and scorecards from major financial firms like Compustat, Zacks, Argus and Reuters.

Each asset class gets unique screeners and lists to help you choose the best financial assets for your portfolio. For example, ETF investors will find screening by fund family, performance, volume and comparisons. Options investors, meanwhile, can quickly access statistics, IV index, quotes and charts, probability calculator, and profit and loss calculator.

Stock investors have innumerable tools for fundamental and technical research. The lists include sector, market cap, dividend yield, market movers and more. Investors can view premade screens or create their own based on 140 criteria. Summary cards highlight top information. Economic, social and governance scores along with intra-day social sentiment scores are available.

With Fidelityâs wide variety of online articles, courses, podcasts, videos, coaching and webinars , investors of all levels will find educational resources to match their skill and interest levels.

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Tips For Finding A Financial Advisor

• Finding the right financial advisor that fits your needs doesnt have to be hard. SmartAssets free tool matches you with financial advisors who serves your area in five minutes. If youre ready to be matched with local advisors that will help you achieve your financial goals, get started here.
• In order to find a financial advisor who’s right for you, you’ll want to think carefully about your needs and long-term goals before starting the search process. Advisors often specialize in serving certain types of clients and in providing particular services. For instance, if you want a comprehensive financial plan, you might want to work with a certified financial planner. If it’s tax planning help you’re after, a certified public accountant might be a good fit.

Annuities Provide Growth Potential And Flexibility

American Fidelity offers a variety of annuities that can be used as investments within a 403, 457, IRA or Roth IRA plan to help individuals plan for retirement. American Fidelity also offers annuities as non-qualified, after-tax annuities for personal retirement savings. Annuities provide a valuable savings vehicle with growth potential and flexibility. A key advantage that annuities offer over typical methods of saving is the opportunity for guaranteed lifetime income. Annuities can provide benefits and features that may be beneficial to a diversified portfolio and can be a valuable retirement planning tool.

• Fixed Annuity: An insurance contract that allows the owner to accumulate interest with minimal risk. American Fidelity guarantees both the principal and interest on our fixed contracts and there is a guaranteed minimum rate of interest which the contract will never pay less than, as long as the contract is in force.
• Variable Annuity*: This contract allows the potential for greater returns on investments over the long term by allowing the owner the ability to invest in various market-based portfolios. In a variable contract, principal, interest, and market gains are not guaranteed and are therefore not suitable for everyone.

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How We Ranked Fees

We ranked Fidelity’s fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

First, let’s go over some basic terms related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Fidelity for each asset class. For example, in the case of stock investing the most important fees are commissions.

We also compared Fidelity’s fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, Merrill Edge and Ally Invest. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Fidelity alternatives.

To have a clear overview of Fidelity, let’s start with the trading fees.

Portfolio And Fee Reports

Fidelity has clear portfolio and fee reports. These can be found in the ‘Accounts & Trade’ section, under ‘Account Positions’.

You can download the reports, but only in CSV format.

Fidelity’s mobile trading platform is available both for iOS and Android. In this review, we tested on iOS version. The platform is available in English.

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Why Invest In Fidelity Index Funds

Fidelity index funds feature comparatively low costs well suited to buy-and-hold investors. Fidelity equity funds combine low expenses and good growth potential with index funds heavily tilted toward technology and consumer discretionary stocks. Bond funds provide a lower-risk option.

Investors looking for index funds that follow U.S. bond indexes and stock indexes of all sizes, international equity markets, emerging markets and even bonds should consider Fidelity. You get a wide range of choices including sustainable index stock and bond funds allowing you to construct an asset-allocated portfolio just right for your needs and investment timeline. Some Fidelity index funds even pay dividends.

Daria Uhlig contributed to the reporting for this article.

Data is accurate as of Oct. 13, 2022, and is subject to change.

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by any entity covered in this article. Any opinions, analyses, reviews, ratings or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author alone and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any entity named in this article.

Fidelity Frequently Asked Questions

Fidelity offers several investment products and resources that make it a good option for newer investors. If you’re just starting out but don’t want to make trading decisions on your own through self-directed accounts, Fidelity’s robo-advisors Fidelity Go and Fidelity Personalized Planning & Advice will build and manage your investment portfolio for you.

Fidelity also offers human advisor guidance. You can access one-on-one advice with Fidelity Personalized Planning & Advice, Fidelity Wealth Management, and Fidelity Private Wealth Management, but these options will cost you more. However, Fidelity also offers free, one-on-one reviews of all of your investment accounts, so beginners can also utilize this service.

Finally, Fidelity Viewpoints offers a library of market analysis and educational investment guides. This could be another great resource for individuals looking to build confidence with investing.

Yes. You can lose money with any investment platform since market volatility affects all investments. You can also make money with Fidelity, but it’s not uncommon for share prices to regularly fluctuate.

Yes. Fidelity is a Boston-based company, but it also has international offices in multiple other countries spanning across North America, Asia, Europe, and Australia.

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