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Is Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral (VSGAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors who are searching for Small Cap Blend funds should take a look at Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral (VSGAX - Free Report) . VSGAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
Objective
Zacks categorizes VSGAX as Small Cap Blend, which is an area packed with options. Usually targeting stocks with market caps of less than $2 billion, a Small Cap Blend mutual fund lets investors diversify their funds among other kinds of small-cap equities. This can help reduce risk found in companies that have a lower stock market valuation.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VSGAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral made its debut in September of 2011, and since then, VSGAX has accumulated about $14.45 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VSGAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 2.56%, 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 12.43%, which places it in the top 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. The standard deviation of VSGAX over the past three years is 18.57% compared to the category average of 13.18%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 20.03% compared to the category average of 14.99%. 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 1.16, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -9.16. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 80.31% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $13.31 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Industrial Cyclical
Turnover is 24%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.
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, VSGAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.07% compared to the category average of 1.01%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VSGAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $3,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VSGAX? 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. 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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Is Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral (VSGAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors who are searching for Small Cap Blend funds should take a look at Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral (VSGAX - Free Report) . VSGAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
Objective
Zacks categorizes VSGAX as Small Cap Blend, which is an area packed with options. Usually targeting stocks with market caps of less than $2 billion, a Small Cap Blend mutual fund lets investors diversify their funds among other kinds of small-cap equities. This can help reduce risk found in companies that have a lower stock market valuation.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VSGAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Admiral made its debut in September of 2011, and since then, VSGAX has accumulated about $14.45 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VSGAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 2.56%, 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 12.43%, which places it in the top 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. The standard deviation of VSGAX over the past three years is 18.57% compared to the category average of 13.18%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 20.03% compared to the category average of 14.99%. 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 1.16, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -9.16. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 80.31% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $13.31 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Turnover is 24%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.
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, VSGAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.07% compared to the category average of 1.01%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VSGAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $3,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Want even more information about VSGAX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.