Open Exam Prep

Open Exam Prep

By Ran Chen, EA, CFP®EducationCourses
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Open Exam Prep episodes

  • [Series 65] 28, Mutual Fund Costs 12b-1 Fees and Expenses
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - The key components of a mutual fund's expense ratio, including management fees.
    - The purpose of 12b-1 fees and the specific rules that dictate whether a fund can be marketed as "no-load".
    - The differences between load funds (Class A, B, C shares) and no-load funds.
    - How to analyze the long-term impact of fees on an investor's total return, a critical concept for suitability questions.
    - A mnemonic to remember the primary ongoing costs associated with mutual funds.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 27, Mutual Fund Structure and and Share Classes
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - How to calculate a mutual fund's Net Asset Value (NAV) per share.
    - The characteristics of Class A shares, including front-end loads and breakpoint discounts.
    - The features of Class B shares, such as Contingent Deferred Sales Charges (CDSCs).
    - The structure of Class C shares with their level-load 12b-1 fees.
    - How to determine the suitability of each share class for different investor profiles and time horizons.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 26, ADRs REITs and Other Equity Securities
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) trade in U.S. dollars but expose investors to significant currency risk.
    - Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) must distribute at least 90% of their net investment income to shareholders to avoid corporate-level taxation.
    - Rights are short-term instruments issued to existing shareholders to let them maintain their proportionate ownership during new share offerings.
    - Warrants are long-term instruments, often used as sweeteners, with an exercise price set above the market price at issuance.
    - The Series 65 exam frequently tests the distinctions between rights and warrants, particularly their timeframes and initial exercise prices.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 25, Equity Valuation Methods
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - The core distinction between fundamental analysis (evaluating a business's intrinsic health) and technical analysis (evaluating market trends and price charts) for the Series 65 exam.
    - How the P/E ratio is used to assess if a stock is overvalued or undervalued, and its typical association with growth and value companies.
    - Why the PEG ratio provides a more complete picture than the P/E ratio by incorporating the company's earnings growth rate.
    - The conceptual basis of the dividend discount model, which values a stock based on the present value of its future dividend payments.
    - The meaning of book value and how the price-to-book ratio can be used to identify potentially undervalued securities.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 24, Preferred Stock Types and Features
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - That cumulative preferred stock requires issuers to pay all missed dividends (arrears) before paying common stockholders.
    - How convertible preferred stock offers the potential for capital appreciation by allowing conversion into common stock, usually for a lower dividend.
    - Why callable preferred stock benefits the issuer, who can redeem shares when interest rates fall, creating reinvestment risk for the investor.
    - That participating preferred stock allows holders to receive extra dividends beyond the stated rate during highly profitable years.
    - How preferred stock prices are sensitive to interest rates, moving inversely to rate changes, similar to bonds.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    5 min
  • [Series 65] 23, Common Stock Fundamentals
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - The difference between statutory and cumulative voting rights and how they are tested.
    - How preemptive rights protect shareholders from dilution during new share issuance.
    - The mechanics of forward and reverse stock splits and their impact on an investor's total position value.
    - The standard market capitalization classifications (large-cap, mid-cap, small-cap) and their associated risk profiles.
    - The key characteristics that distinguish growth stocks (high P/E, no dividends) from value stocks (low P/E, dividends).
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    5 min
  • [Series 65] 22, Bond Pricing Yields and Duration
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - The fundamental inverse relationship between bond prices and interest rates.
    - How to identify the correct order of yields (Nominal, Current, YTM, YTC) for both premium and discount bonds.
    - That duration, not maturity, is the key measure of a bond's price sensitivity to interest rate changes.
    - How to spot the most volatile bond by looking for the longest maturity and lowest coupon.
    - The common exam trap of identifying the 'yield to worst' for callable bonds trading at a premium (YTC) or discount (YTM).
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 21, Municipal Bonds GO vs Revenue
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - General Obligation (GO) bonds are backed by the issuer's full faith, credit, and taxing power, and require voter approval.
    - Revenue bonds are financed by the income from a specific project, like a toll road or airport, and their creditworthiness depends on a feasibility study.
    - Municipal bond interest is exempt from federal income tax and is usually state tax-exempt for residents of the issuing state.
    - A critical exam trap is that interest from private activity bonds, a type of revenue bond, can be a preference item subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).
    - A simple mnemonic: GO bonds require the government to "GO" to the voters for permission.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 20, Corporate Bonds Types and Features
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - Secured bonds are backed by specific assets (collateral), while unsecured bonds, known as debentures, are backed only by the issuer's creditworthiness.
    - The trust indenture is the formal legal agreement between the bond issuer and the trustee that details all terms, features, and covenants of the bond.
    - Callable bonds benefit the issuer by allowing them to redeem bonds early, which creates reinvestment risk for the investor; therefore, they offer higher coupon rates as compensation.
    - Convertible bonds benefit the investor by allowing them to convert the bond into common stock, a valuable feature that results in the bond carrying a lower coupon rate.
    - Corporate bond credit ratings directly impact their yield; higher-rated, safer bonds have lower yields, while lower-rated (junk) bonds have higher yields to compensate for greater default risk.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    4 min
  • [Series 65] 19, Government Agency Securities
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.
    In this episode you will learn:
    - The key difference in government backing between GNMA (full faith and credit) and FNMA/FHLMC (implicit guarantee).
    - How mortgage-backed securities and pass-through certificates are structured to provide monthly income to investors.
    - The direct relationship between falling interest rates and increased prepayment risk for holders of mortgage-backed securities.
    - Common exam questions and trick wording related to government agency securities and prepayment risk on the Series 65 exam.
    - A mnemonic to help you remember the level of government backing for each of the three main housing agencies.
    For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
    2 min

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