Have you been searching for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? You might want to begin with Vanguard Growth Index Admiral (VIGAX Quick QuoteVIGAX - 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 VIGAX. Vanguard Growth Index Admiral debuted in November of 2000. Since then, VIGAX has accumulated assets of about $68.37 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Gerard O'Reilly, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2000.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VIGAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 24.77% and is in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 34.78%, 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. VIGAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 18.54% compared to the category average of 15.78%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 16.68% compared to the category average of 14%. 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 1.03, which means it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. The fund has produced a positive alpha over the past 5 years of 4.99, which shows that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.

As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 93.34% of its assets in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $552.57 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

1. Technology
2. Retail Trade

Turnover is 12%, which means, on average, the fund makes 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, VIGAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.05% compared to the category average of 0.99%. VIGAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $3,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.

Bottom Line

Want even more information about VIGAX? 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. 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.