Any investors who are searching for Mid Cap Blend funds should take a look at Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Admiral (VIMAX Quick QuoteVIMAX - Free Report) . The fund does not have a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, though we have been able to explore other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.

Objective

VIMAX is one of many funds to choose from. Because Mid Cap Blend mutual funds typically feature a portfolio filled with stocks of various sizes and styles, it allows for a diversification strategy focusing on companies with market caps between $2 billion and $10 billion. Mid-cap blends, while offering exciting growth potential, income opportunities, and value picks, offer some stability as well.

History of Fund/Manager

Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VIMAX. Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Admiral made its debut in November of 2001, and since then, VIMAX has accumulated about $72.55 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Aaron Choi, has been in charge of the fund since August of 2023.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VIMAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 7.41%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 16.09%, which places it in the middle 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. Compared to the category average of 12.23%, the standard deviation of VIMAX over the past three years is 13.6%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 16.71% compared to the category average of 14.05%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. With a negative alpha of -4.64, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, VIMAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.05% compared to the category average of 0.93%. So, VIMAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

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 consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

For additional information on the Mid Cap Blend area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into VIMAX too 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.