Zacks Lifecycle Indexes

Zacks is a company. They manage, slice, dice, and fry...funds. Mutual and index, mostly.

The Lifecycle marketing term is genius. It tries to match the level of risk in a given fund with the n+1th years from now that an investor will need the money, a.k.a. retire.

So...if you're 30 and in good health, you'll have almost no cash, bonds, or really much of anything else other than small growth stock baskets. You can afford the risk of a big crash, stay long the market, and keep compounding away.

If you're 83 and...cough a lot...then you can't. Maybe at that point you're something like 80% bonds and cash, and the rest in dividend-bearing stocks.

Anyway, the Zacks Lifecycle suite of financial products try to match your when-I-need-the-cash needs with your geezerliness. Smart concept. Started in 2008...rough era. We'll have to see if this match really lights a fire in the next few decades.

Find other enlightening terms in Shmoop Finance Genius Bar(f)