Index fundamentalism revisited

Is there any justification for investing in managed mutual funds, or are they only for chumps, as indexing advocates argue? The authors answer the question by looking at 27 years of real fund returns for Vanguard, a company notable for its low fees on managed funds. Analysis of synthetic portfolios based on the assets of Vanguard's mutual funds indicates that whether index funds or managed funds are the superior buy depends on the time span in question, but managed funds almost always have a lower standard deviation of return than index funds.

Duke Scholars

Author Edward Tower Economics