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Is Vanguard Small-Cap Value Index Admiral (VSIAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Looking for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? You may want to consider Vanguard Small-Cap Value Index Admiral (VSIAX - Free Report) as a possible option. VSIAX 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

Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VSIAX. Vanguard Small-Cap Value Index Admiral made its debut in September of 2011, and since then, VSIAX has accumulated about $18.69 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Gerard O'Reilly who has been in charge of the fund since April of 2016.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.76%, and it sits in the top 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 14.73%, 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 VSIAX over the past three years is 26.37% compared to the category average of 20.96%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.72% compared to the category average of 18.44%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 1.15, the fund is likely to be more 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. With a negative alpha of -2.21, 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.

This fund is currently holding about 93.35% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $5.70 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  • Finance
  • Industrial Cyclical
With turnover at about 13%, this fund is making fewer trades than comparable funds.

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, VSIAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.07% compared to the category average of 1.21%. VSIAX 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

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.


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