There are plenty of choices in the Large Cap Blend category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor . VMRGX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VMRGX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
VMRGX is a part of the Vanguard Group family of funds, a company based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor debuted in December of 1968. Since then, VMRGX has accumulated assets of about $4.09 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.85%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 15.75%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of VMRGX over the past three years is 13.02% compared to the category average of 11.06%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 12.91% compared to the category average of 10.83%. 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. VMRGX lost 50.32% in the most recent bear market and underperformed comparable funds by 1.48%. This could mean that the fund is a worse choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.09, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more 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. VMRGX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.14, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.79% stock in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $257.99 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 47%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.
Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, VMRGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.37% compared to the category average of 1.05%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VMRGX is actually cheaper than its peers.
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.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor ( VMRGX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Your research on the Large Cap Blend 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. 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.
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Is Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor (VMRGX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Large Cap Blend category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor . VMRGX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VMRGX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
VMRGX is a part of the Vanguard Group family of funds, a company based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor debuted in December of 1968. Since then, VMRGX has accumulated assets of about $4.09 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.85%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 15.75%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of VMRGX over the past three years is 13.02% compared to the category average of 11.06%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 12.91% compared to the category average of 10.83%. 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. VMRGX lost 50.32% in the most recent bear market and underperformed comparable funds by 1.48%. This could mean that the fund is a worse choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.09, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more 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. VMRGX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.14, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.79% stock in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $257.99 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 47%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, VMRGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.37% compared to the category average of 1.05%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VMRGX is actually cheaper than its peers.
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.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Morgan Growth Investor ( VMRGX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Your research on the Large Cap Blend 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. 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.