Please stay tuned for important disclosure information at the conclusion of this episode.

Welcome to Investing Insights. I'm your host, Ivana Hampton. Too many funds and stocks in a portfolio can create clutter and make rebalancing time-consuming. Allocation funds, such as

balanced funds, can make it easier to stay diversified and invested during market volatility.

That's because these funds automatically rebalance, moderating big gains and losses,

and the funds can provide exposure to more than one security type and market.

Russ Kennell is a senior principal of ratings for Morningstar.

The editor of Morningstar Fund Investor Newsletter is here with his list of the best balance and allocation funds.

It's good to see you, Russ.

Good to be here.

Awesome. So the markets are experiencing volatility

with the war in Iran. Can you describe how balanced funds decrease a portfolio's risk and let's

timestamp this conversation. We're recording on Tuesday, March 31st. Yeah. So balanced funds are

welcome investment in these kind of volatile markets because

you have a mix of stocks and bonds, and generally that means less volatility, lower losses.

It makes a little easier to write out difficult stretches like the one we're in right now.

And what type of investors are these funds suited for?

I think ones who want to simplify things.

It's not someone who wants to really control everything and precisely choose their exact allocation to stocks and bonds, et cetera.

It's more like someone who wants something that covers a lot of ground for them, makes it simpler.

Those are the sort of investors that kind of want the ones who

want lower risk, sleep at night kind of funds. These really work for them.

Since allocation funds appeal to income investors, is that why they steer clear growth strategies?

...