fund
returns, enabling you to better understand where your money is and
what you can do with it.
Top ten Mutual funds always have their returns posted in a standard
way. These returns are displayed in five distinct categories: a
year to date, one-year return, three-year return, five-year return,
ten-year return. When top
ten mutual funds are less than three years old, they sometimes
have a three-year return posted, but this is the exception rather
than the rule. The reason that returns are posted in this fashion
is due to the inherent volatility of top ten mutual funds: if top
ten mutual funds and their reporting agencies posted returns ranging
from one through to ten years, it would give an inaccurate picture
of the fund. In addition, a static return of each year's performance
is nowhere near as informative as a compound rate of return.
Let's take a look at each of the aforementioned categories so that
the next time you look at your returns, you know what you're looking
at.
- Year to date: The year to date tells you how the top ten mutual funds have done over the present calendar year. As offshore funds are domiciled all over the world, they tend to have many differing dates to mark the ends and beginnings of their financial years. Without the use of a year to date, a fund in January with a financial year beginning in October would have a distinct advantage over a fund with a financial year beginning in January and visa versa. So in the interest of fairness, the year to date is employed.
- One-year return: This is the percentage value return that an investor would receive had he or she been invested for the full year. This year is generally calculated by the financial year of the fund's jurisdiction.
A word of caution: the one-year return rate can be tricky. If you ever read a book on investing that shows the one-year performance, make sure you know when that return was recorded, as some authors have been known to present investments under their most favorable conditions for the sake of book sales.
- Three-year return: In the past, the three-year return has caused the new investor some confusion, mainly due to the fact that a three-year return on a good quality top ten mutual fund is so much higher than the one-year return. This discrepancy causes some investors to believe that they've missed the top ten mutual fund's best years. The three-year return is actually the compounded rate of return an investor would have received had he or she invested in the fund over that three-year period - not the return of the fund from three years ago.
- Five-year return: This is similar to the three-year return, except that it gives the compound rate of return over the past five years. This is the percentage return on the investment had the investment been held over the last five years. In some cases, a return since inception is made. For top ten mutual funds that are under five years of age, a five-year return is clearly impossible. For this reason, a total return calculated from the start of the fund to the current date is given. Once a fund reaches the five-year mark, the return since inception is discarded for the five-year return.
- Ten-year return: The ten-year return is similar to that of the five-year return except that it gives the compound rate of return over the past ten years. This is the percentage return on the investment had the investment been held over the past ten years.
This information should help you better grasp how your top ten mutual funds are performing, which is essential if you want to make the best decisions for you and your money.
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