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Is Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor (VIMSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Are you on the hunt for an Index fund? You should think about starting with Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor (VIMSX - 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 VIMSX. Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor debuted in May of 1998. Since then, VIMSX has accumulated assets of about $819.04 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Donald Butler who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2001.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. VIMSX has a 5-year annualized total return of 14.44% and is in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 14.6%, which places it in the top 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 17.08%, the standard deviation of VIMSX over the past three years is 21.88%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 17.43% compared to the category average of 14.01%. 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 1.1, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. VIMSX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -3.27, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 82.76% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $27.51 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
Industrial Cyclical
This fund's turnover is about 20%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, VIMSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.17% compared to the category average of 0.78%. From a cost perspective, VIMSX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Don't stop here for your research on Index 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 VIMSX to its peers as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.
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Is Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor (VIMSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Are you on the hunt for an Index fund? You should think about starting with Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor (VIMSX - 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 VIMSX. Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Investor debuted in May of 1998. Since then, VIMSX has accumulated assets of about $819.04 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Donald Butler who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2001.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. VIMSX has a 5-year annualized total return of 14.44% and is in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 14.6%, which places it in the top 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 17.08%, the standard deviation of VIMSX over the past three years is 21.88%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 17.43% compared to the category average of 14.01%. 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 1.1, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. VIMSX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -3.27, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 82.76% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $27.51 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Finance
- Industrial Cyclical
This fund's turnover is about 20%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.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, VIMSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.17% compared to the category average of 0.78%. From a cost perspective, VIMSX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Don't stop here for your research on Index 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 VIMSX to its peers as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.