Timothy Middleton at Moneycentral on the seven best fund managers of 2005. The list is interesting in that it is not simply a recitation of the funds with the highest returns. Middleton selects an eclectic cross-section of funds and examines the source of their strong returns.

High performing mutual funds are apt to declare capital gain distributions this time of year. Chet Currier at Bloomberg.com on the difficulty investors face when trying to avoid “buying a distributionâ€? come year-end. Although not mentioned this highlights another reason to look into exchange traded funds.

Although it would not in theory be particularly tax-efficient, IndexUniverse.com reports that PowerShares Capital Management is planning a new ETF based on Value Line’s Timeliness factor. It remains to be seen whether this product will generate the returns shown in prior studies of the Value Line system.

Gregg Greenberg at TheStreet.com compares the merits of three ETFs that seemingly cover the retail industry. Investors should note that all like-named funds are not necessarily alike.