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Is Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor (VPCCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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There are plenty of choices in the Large Cap Growth category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor (VPCCX - Free Report) . VPCCX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VPCCX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VPCCX. The Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor made its debut in December of 2004 and VPCCX has managed to accumulate roughly $8.52 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 5.6%, and is in the bottom 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 3.16%, which places it in the bottom 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. Compared to the category average of 14.45%, the standard deviation of VPCCX over the past three years is 17.18%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 15.43% compared to the category average of 13.77%. 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. VPCCX lost 43.02% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 6%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. VPCCX has a 5-year beta of 1.1, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. VPCCX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.4, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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.
Right now, 81.01% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $168.71 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Industrial Cyclical
Health
Finance
With turnover at about 7%, this fund makes 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, VPCCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 1.06%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VPCCX 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 PRIMECAP Core Investor ( VPCCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor ( VPCCX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on VPCCXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
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Is Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor (VPCCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Large Cap Growth category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor (VPCCX - Free Report) . VPCCX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VPCCX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VPCCX. The Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor made its debut in December of 2004 and VPCCX has managed to accumulate roughly $8.52 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 5.6%, and is in the bottom 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 3.16%, which places it in the bottom 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. Compared to the category average of 14.45%, the standard deviation of VPCCX over the past three years is 17.18%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 15.43% compared to the category average of 13.77%. 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. VPCCX lost 43.02% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 6%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. VPCCX has a 5-year beta of 1.1, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. VPCCX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.4, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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.
Right now, 81.01% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $168.71 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Industrial Cyclical
- Health
- Finance
With turnover at about 7%, this fund makes 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, VPCCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 1.06%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, VPCCX 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 PRIMECAP Core Investor ( VPCCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Investor ( VPCCX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on VPCCXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.