Any investors who are searching for Mutual Fund Equity Report funds should take a look at Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Admiral (VDADX Quick QuoteVDADX - 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 VDADX. Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Admiral made its debut in December of 2013, and since then, VDADX has accumulated about $13.30 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Walter Nejman who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2016.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 10.85%, and is in the middle 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 7.94%, which places it in the bottom third during this time-frame.

It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.

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. Over the past three years, VDADX's standard deviation comes in at 15.92%, compared to the category average of 17.84%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 16.85% compared to the category average of 18.87%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 0.85, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. With a negative alpha of -0.13, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Examining 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.

Right now, 77.02% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $316.51 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

• Technology
• Finance
• Non-Durable
• Industrial Cyclical

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, VDADX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.08% compared to the category average of 0.76%. So, VDADX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

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

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer 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.