Is Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

If investors are looking at the Large Cap Growth fund category, Vanguard US Growth Admiral (VWUAX) could be a potential option. VWUAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.ObjectiveWe classify VWUAX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.History of Fund/ManagerVWUAX is a part of the Vanguard Group family of funds, a company based out of Malvern, PA. Vanguard US Growth Admiral debuted in August of 2001. Since then, VWUAX has accumulated assets of about $39.55 billion, according to the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.PerformanceInvestors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.68%, 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 30.3%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, VWUAX's standard deviation comes in at 18.24%, compared to the category average of 12.93%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 21.89% compared to the category average of 13.37%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.Risk FactorsInvestors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. VWUAX has a 5-year beta of 1.24, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -6.14. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.HoldingsExploring 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.Right now, 81.87% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $671.05 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:TechnologyRetail TradeFinanceTurnover is about 30%, so those in charge of the fund make fewer trades than comparable funds.ExpensesAs 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, VWUAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.23% compared to the category average of 0.91%. From a cost perspective, VWUAX is actually cheaper than its peers.Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $50,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $1.Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.Bottom LineOverall, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Vanguard US Growth Admiral ( VWUAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.This could just be the start of your research on VWUAX in 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. 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Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Get Your Free (VWUAX): Fund Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks