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Is Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral (VCSAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you're looking for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, then a possible option is Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral (VCSAX - Free Report) . VCSAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
History of Fund/Manager
VCSAX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral debuted in January of 2004. Since then, VCSAX has accumulated assets of about $1.23 billion, according to the most recently available information. Awais Khan is the fund's current manager and has held that role since November of 2017.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.82%, 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 13.13%, 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 15.27%, the standard deviation of VCSAX over the past three years is 13.91%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 13.22% compared to the category average of 14.18%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 0.61, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. VCSAX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 1.25, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, VCSAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.10% compared to the category average of 0.92%. VCSAX 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 $100,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VCSAX? 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.
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Is Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral (VCSAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you're looking for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, then a possible option is Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral (VCSAX - Free Report) . VCSAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
History of Fund/Manager
VCSAX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Admiral debuted in January of 2004. Since then, VCSAX has accumulated assets of about $1.23 billion, according to the most recently available information. Awais Khan is the fund's current manager and has held that role since November of 2017.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.82%, 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 13.13%, 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 15.27%, the standard deviation of VCSAX over the past three years is 13.91%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 13.22% compared to the category average of 14.18%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 0.61, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. VCSAX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 1.25, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, VCSAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.10% compared to the category average of 0.92%. VCSAX 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 $100,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VCSAX? 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.