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Is Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor (VEXPX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Growth fund could think about starting with Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor (VEXPX - Free Report) . VEXPX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VEXPX is part of the Small Cap Growth category, and this segment boasts an array of many other possible options. Small Cap Growth mutual funds usually focus their portfolios on stocks with large growth opportunities and a market cap of under $2 billion. These portfolios tend to feature small companies in up-and-coming industries and markets.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VEXPX. The Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor made its debut in December of 1967 and VEXPX has managed to accumulate roughly $4.42 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. 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 19.78%, 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 18.88%, 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. Compared to the category average of 20.35%, the standard deviation of VEXPX over the past three years is 24.92%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 19.9% compared to the category average of 16.66%. 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 1.21, 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. VEXPX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.47, 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.54% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $10.51 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Health
Retail Trade
Industrial Cyclical
Finance
Turnover is 44%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, VEXPX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.40% compared to the category average of 1.21%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VEXPX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor ( VEXPX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Small Cap Growth 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 VEXPX to its peers 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 Explorer Fund Investor (VEXPX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Growth fund could think about starting with Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor (VEXPX - Free Report) . VEXPX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VEXPX is part of the Small Cap Growth category, and this segment boasts an array of many other possible options. Small Cap Growth mutual funds usually focus their portfolios on stocks with large growth opportunities and a market cap of under $2 billion. These portfolios tend to feature small companies in up-and-coming industries and markets.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VEXPX. The Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor made its debut in December of 1967 and VEXPX has managed to accumulate roughly $4.42 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. 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 19.78%, 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 18.88%, 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. Compared to the category average of 20.35%, the standard deviation of VEXPX over the past three years is 24.92%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 19.9% compared to the category average of 16.66%. 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 1.21, 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. VEXPX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.47, 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.54% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $10.51 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Health
- Retail Trade
- Industrial Cyclical
- Finance
Turnover is 44%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, VEXPX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.40% compared to the category average of 1.21%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VEXPX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Explorer Fund Investor ( VEXPX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Small Cap Growth 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 VEXPX to its peers 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.