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Is Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Large Cap Growth fund? Starting with Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX - Free Report) is one possibility. VWUAX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VWUAX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VWUAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Since Vanguard US Growth Admiral made its debut in August of 2001, VWUAX has garnered more than $33.77 billion in assets. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 15.1%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 3.93%, which places it in the bottom third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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. Compared to the category average of 17.72%, the standard deviation of VWUAX over the past three years is 24.31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 23.94% compared to the category average of 18.1%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.18, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. VWUAX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.18, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.35% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $526.38 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 37%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than its comparable peers.
Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, VWUAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.20% compared to the category average of 0.94%. VWUAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $50,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on VWUAXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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Is Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Large Cap Growth fund? Starting with Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX - Free Report) is one possibility. VWUAX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VWUAX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VWUAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Since Vanguard US Growth Admiral made its debut in August of 2001, VWUAX has garnered more than $33.77 billion in assets. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 15.1%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 3.93%, which places it in the bottom third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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. Compared to the category average of 17.72%, the standard deviation of VWUAX over the past three years is 24.31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 23.94% compared to the category average of 18.1%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.18, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. VWUAX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.18, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.35% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $526.38 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 37%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than its comparable peers.Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, VWUAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.20% compared to the category average of 0.94%. VWUAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $50,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on VWUAXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.