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If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Bond fund category, make sure to pass over Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor (VWESX - Free Report) . VWESX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
VWESX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor made its debut in July of 1973, and since then, VWESX has accumulated about $3.83 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.54%, and it sits in the middle 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 -4.83%, 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. Over the past three years, VWESX's standard deviation comes in at 12.21%, compared to the category average of 13.8%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 10.87% compared to the category average of 11.96%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
VWESX carries a beta of 2.09, meaning that the fund is more volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 1.18, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, VWESX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.22% compared to the category average of 0.87%. From a cost perspective, VWESX 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.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor ( VWESX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor ( VWESX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Mutual Fund Bond 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 VWESX too 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 VWESX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Bond fund category, make sure to pass over Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor (VWESX - Free Report) . VWESX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
VWESX finds itself in the Vanguard Group family, based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor made its debut in July of 1973, and since then, VWESX has accumulated about $3.83 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.54%, and it sits in the middle 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 -4.83%, 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. Over the past three years, VWESX's standard deviation comes in at 12.21%, compared to the category average of 13.8%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 10.87% compared to the category average of 11.96%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
VWESX carries a beta of 2.09, meaning that the fund is more volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 1.18, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, VWESX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.22% compared to the category average of 0.87%. From a cost perspective, VWESX 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.
Bottom Line
Overall, Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor ( VWESX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard Long-Term Investment-Grade Income Investor ( VWESX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Mutual Fund Bond 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 VWESX too 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.