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Is Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral (VBTLX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you're looking for an Index fund category, then a possible option is Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral (VBTLX - Free Report) . While this fund is not tracked by the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, we were able to examine other factors like performance, volatility, and cost.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VBTLX. Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral debuted in November of 2001. Since then, VBTLX has accumulated assets of about $113.65 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Joshua C. Barrickman, has been in charge of the fund since February of 2013.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 3.53%, and is 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 5.01%, 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 VBTLX over the past three years is 3.18% compared to the category average of 9.43%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 3.14% compared to the category average of 9.53%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. In the most recent bear market, VBTLX gained 6.21% and outperformed its peer group by 49%. This means that the fund could possibly be a better choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.03, so it is likely going to be as volatile as 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. VBTLX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.13, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, VBTLX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.05% compared to the category average of 0.84%. VBTLX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $3,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $1.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VBTLX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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 Total Bond Market Index Admiral (VBTLX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you're looking for an Index fund category, then a possible option is Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral (VBTLX - Free Report) . While this fund is not tracked by the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, we were able to examine other factors like performance, volatility, and cost.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VBTLX. Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral debuted in November of 2001. Since then, VBTLX has accumulated assets of about $113.65 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Joshua C. Barrickman, has been in charge of the fund since February of 2013.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 3.53%, and is 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 5.01%, 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 VBTLX over the past three years is 3.18% compared to the category average of 9.43%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 3.14% compared to the category average of 9.53%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. In the most recent bear market, VBTLX gained 6.21% and outperformed its peer group by 49%. This means that the fund could possibly be a better choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.03, so it is likely going to be as volatile as 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. VBTLX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.13, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, VBTLX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.05% compared to the category average of 0.84%. VBTLX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $3,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $1.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VBTLX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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.