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Is Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral (VTSAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you've been stuck searching for Index funds, consider Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral (VTSAX - Free Report) as a possibility. 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
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VTSAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Since Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral made its debut in November of 2000, VTSAX has garnered more than $206.11 billion in assets. The fund's current manager, Gerard C. O'Reilly, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2000.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 12.79%, and is 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 12.19%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, VTSAX's standard deviation comes in at 10.37%, compared to the category average of 8.79%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 9.8% compared to the category average of 8.68%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. VTSAX lost 50.84% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 4.29%. This makes the fund a possibly better choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 1, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as the market at large. 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. VTSAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -0.29, demonstrating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 92.19% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $160.05 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
Industrial Cyclical
Turnover is about 3%, so those in charge of the fund make fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, VTSAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.04% compared to the category average of 0.85%. VTSAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $10,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Don't stop here for your research on Index 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 VTSAX to its peers as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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Is Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral (VTSAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Index funds, consider Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral (VTSAX - Free Report) as a possibility. 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
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is responsible for VTSAX, and the company is based out of Malvern, PA. Since Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Admiral made its debut in November of 2000, VTSAX has garnered more than $206.11 billion in assets. The fund's current manager, Gerard C. O'Reilly, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2000.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 12.79%, and is 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 12.19%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, VTSAX's standard deviation comes in at 10.37%, compared to the category average of 8.79%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 9.8% compared to the category average of 8.68%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. VTSAX lost 50.84% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 4.29%. This makes the fund a possibly better choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 1, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as the market at large. 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. VTSAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -0.29, demonstrating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 92.19% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $160.05 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Turnover is about 3%, so those in charge of the fund make fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, VTSAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.04% compared to the category average of 0.85%. VTSAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $10,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.
Bottom Line
Don't stop here for your research on Index 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 VTSAX to its peers as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.