5 Best Performing Growth Mutual Funds Year to Date

For investors looking for capital growth rather than regular current income through dividend pay outs, growth funds would be a good choice. These funds reinvest their return and focus on long term capital appreciation. Investors need to have higher tolerance to risk as their capital remains unavailable to them for a longer period of time. These funds mainly select those securities for investment that have higher growth potential and whose values are estimated to rise over the long term.

Below we will share with you the 5 best performing growth mutual funds year to date. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all growth funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

Mutual Fund

Zacks Rank

Total Return YTD

Hodges

#3 Hold

28.08%

Vanguard Capital Opportunity

#2 Buy

23.11%

Biondo Focus Investor

#3 Hold

22.02%

PRIMECAP Odyssey Growth

#1 Strong Buy

21.08%

Vanguard PRIMECAP

#1 Strong Buy

19.61%

Hodges (HDPMX) invests in companies without regard to their market capitalization. A maximum of 25% of assets may be utlised in short-sale transactions. A portion of the fund is also invested in money market instruments. Call and put options of domestic trading companies can also be bought. Companies witnessing mediocre growth but offering high dividend yield also attract investment up to 25% of assets. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 14.43%.

The growth mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $250 and an expense ratio of 1.43 to a category average of 1.26%.

Vanguard Capital Opportunity Investor (VHCOX) seeks capital growth on a long-term basis. The fund invests predominantly in domestic securities with substantial earnings growth potential. It invests in securities of companies regardless of their size. The stocks selected are expected to provide returns greater than the overall market over a three to five year period. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 13.46%.

Theo A. Kolokotrones is the fund manager and he has managed this growth mutual fund since 1998.

Biondo Focus Investor (BFONX) invests in a combination of common stock of domestic companies, American Depository Receipts (ADRs) and investment grade fixed income securities. The fund may also invest in exchange-traded Funds (ETFs) and options on common stock. The fund holds long and short positions in these and other types of securities. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 6.27%.

The growth mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $1,000 and an expense ratio of 2.55% compared to a category average of 1.24%.

PRIMECAP Odyssey Growth (POGRX) seeks capital growth on a long-term basis. It invests in common stocks of domestic companies, especially those with the ability to return above average growth. It focusses on investing in large and mid-cap companies. The fund also invests substantially in stocks issued by large cap firms. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 17.06%.

As of March 2013, this growth mutual fund held 116 issues, with 6.09% of its total assets invested in Seattle Genetics Inc.

Vanguard PRIMECAP (VPMCX) seeks capital growth over the long term. The fund invests in stocks with substantial growth potential. It focuses on acquiring large and mid-cap stocks. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 15.42%.

Howard B. Schow is the fund manager and he has managed this growth mutual fund since 1984.

To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all growth mutual funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

About Zacks Mutual Fund Rank

By applying the Zacks Rank to mutual funds, investors can find funds that not only outpaced the market in the past but are also expected to outperform going forward. Learn more about the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank at http://www.zacks.com/funds.

Read the analyst report on HDPMX

Read the analyst report on VHCOX

Read the analyst report on BFONX

Read the analyst report on POGRX

Read the analyst report on VPMCX

Zacks Investment Research



More From Zacks.com

Advertisement