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Is Vanguard Energy Investor (VGENX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Sector - Energy fund category, Vanguard Energy Investor (VGENX - Free Report) could be a potential option. VGENX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VGENX is one of many Sector - Energy funds to choose from. Sector - Energy mutual funds are comprised of various changing and hugely important industries throughout the massive global energy sector. Even though clean energy is beginning to pick up steam, oil and gas companies have the highest exposure, but carbon-based fuels will be the biggest group of assets in these funds.
History of Fund/Manager
VGENX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Energy Investor debuted in May of 1984. Since then, VGENX has accumulated assets of about $1.89 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, G. Thomas Levering, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2020.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.63%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 19.13%, 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, VGENX's standard deviation comes in at 18.33%, compared to the category average of 22.05%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 23.45% compared to the category average of 26.9%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.9, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. VGENX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.89, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, VGENX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.44% compared to the category average of 1.11%. VGENX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Energy Investor ( VGENX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard Energy Investor ( VGENX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Sector - Energy 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 VGENX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is Vanguard Energy Investor (VGENX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Sector - Energy fund category, Vanguard Energy Investor (VGENX - Free Report) could be a potential option. VGENX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VGENX is one of many Sector - Energy funds to choose from. Sector - Energy mutual funds are comprised of various changing and hugely important industries throughout the massive global energy sector. Even though clean energy is beginning to pick up steam, oil and gas companies have the highest exposure, but carbon-based fuels will be the biggest group of assets in these funds.
History of Fund/Manager
VGENX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Energy Investor debuted in May of 1984. Since then, VGENX has accumulated assets of about $1.89 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, G. Thomas Levering, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2020.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.63%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 19.13%, 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, VGENX's standard deviation comes in at 18.33%, compared to the category average of 22.05%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 23.45% compared to the category average of 26.9%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.9, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. VGENX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.89, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, VGENX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.44% compared to the category average of 1.11%. VGENX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Energy Investor ( VGENX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard Energy Investor ( VGENX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Sector - Energy 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 VGENX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.