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Is Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index Investor (VMVIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Investors in search of a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund might want to consider looking at Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index Investor (VMVIX - Free Report) . VMVIX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.

History of Fund/Manager

Vanguard Group is responsible for VMVIX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index Investor made its debut in August of 2006, and since then, VMVIX has accumulated about $46.66 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Donald Butler, has been in charge of the fund since September of 2011.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. VMVIX has a 5-year annualized total return of 7.63% and is in the middle third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 9.24%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.

When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. The standard deviation of VMVIX over the past three years is 23.84% compared to the category average of 20.67%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 20.94% compared to the category average of 18.18%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.05, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -3.05, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, VMVIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.19% compared to the category average of 1.09%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VMVIX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $0, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare VMVIX to its peers as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.


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