Top Performing Intermediate Term Bond Mutual Funds March 2013

The top performing intermediate term bond mutual funds march 2013 are Principal Preferred Securities fund, GMO Domestic Bond III, PIMCO Investment Grade Corporate Bond, etc.

Top Performers

Top Performing Intermediate Term Bond Mutual Funds March 2013

Intermediate term bond mutual fund is part of taxable bond mutual fund. It invests mainly in investment grade government or corporate bonds with durations of 3 to 6 years. The average maturity of bonds in its holdings may vary from 4 to 10 years. This bond fund is less sensitive to interest rates than long duration fund. The yield is higher than short duration bond fund.

This top performer bond mutual fund list is sorted based on its 1 year total return performance up to March 9th, 2013. You can find the fund review, expense ratio, yield, ranking, share price, management, top holdings, credit rating, etc.

The top performing intermediate term bond mutual funds march 2013 are:

1. Principal Preferred Securities A (PPSAX)
2. GMO Domestic Bond III (GMDBX)
3. PIMCO Investment Grade Corporate Bond A (PBDAX)
4. Guggenheim Total Return Bond A (GIBAX)
5. TCW Total Return Bond N (TGMNX)
6. Delaware Corporate Bond A (DGCAX)
7. Nuveen Strategic Income A (FCDDX)
8. Leader Total Return Investor (LCTRX)
9. PIMCO Fundamental Advantage Total Return Strategy A (PTFAX)
10. Putnam Income A (PINCX)

10 Great 401k Mutual Funds for 2013 & 2014

The 10 great 401k mutual funds for 2013 & 2014 are PIMCO Total Return Fund, Vanguard 500 Index fund, DoubleLine Total Return Bond fund, Vanguard Wellington, etc.

401k Plan

Finding the right mutual funds for your 401k account is important. Many funds charge high fees, underperform the bond or stock market, no growth, and little yield for appreciation. The mutual funds offered to investors in 401(k) plans or accounts can be worse than regular brokerage account or traditional IRA or Roth IRA.

Best Mutual Funds for 401(k)

Due to its limitation funds offering, 401(k) plans are different from one company to another. Some companies offer flexibility to add additional funds with ease, but some may have limited option to choose from. One of the best choices is to invest the portion of your income that is being match by your company. Some companies may offer 1 to 1 match, and others may offer 2 to 1 match (up to 10% of your income).

Best Mutual Funds

Another best option is choosing a low cost index fund. This fund has low expense fee and there is no sales load. The following are some of the best mutual funds for your 401(k) account. You can find the fund review in details below. I have included the shares price, yield, expense fee, return, top holdings, etc.

Note: There are two type of 401k accounts: Roth 401k and traditional 401k.

The 10 great 401k mutual funds for 2013 & 2014 are:

1. Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTSMX)
2. PIMCO Total Return Fund (PTTAX)
3. Vanguard 500 Index Fund (VFINX)
4. DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund (DLTNX)

Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund (VISGX)

Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund (VISGX) is a passively managed domestic stock mutual fund. This mutual fund focuses its assets in equities of small size companies with high growth potential.

Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund (VISGX)

The Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index Fund objective is to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of small-capitalization growth stocks. The fund employs an indexing investment approach designed to track the performance of the MSCI US Small Cap Growth Index. This index is a broadly diversified index of growth stocks of smaller U.S. companies.

Fund Details

• Fund Inception Date: May 20, 1998
• Ticker Symbol: VISGX
• CUSIP: 922908827
• Beta (3yr): 1.29
• Rank in category (YTD): 22%
• Category: Small Growth
• Distribution: 0.34%
• Capital Gains: 0%
• Expense Ratio: 0.24%
• Net Assets: $ 9.42 billion
• Number of Years Up: 9 years
• Number of Years Down: 4 years
• Annual Turnover Rate: 40%

Updated on 3/11/2013

Best Oppenheimer Mutual Funds for 2013

Best Oppenheimer mutual funds 2013, Top bond and stock fund by OppenheimerFunds. The 20 best mutual funds for 2013 are Oppenheimer Developing Markets, Oppenheimer Limited Term NY Municipal, Oppenheimer Global, Oppenheimer International Bond, etc.

Top Oppenheimer Mutual Funds 2013

OppenheimerFunds Inc is part of MassMutual Financial Group. It manages more than $225 billion in assets, including mutual funds having more than 6 million shareholder accounts. John V. Murphy is the Chairman, President and CEO of this OppenheimerFunds Inc. It offers a wide selection of products and services to individual and institutional investors. Some of the products include mutual funds, managed accounts, investment management for corporations, hedge fund products, and retirement plans.

These best Oppenheimer mutual funds for 2013 are selected based on its performance history and transaction fee. These Oppenheimer funds do have a sales load. The funds are ranked with 3 star rating or higher by Morningstar. You may find the fund review below and other fund information. I also have selected my favorite funds below.

The 20 best Oppenheimer mutual funds for 2013 are:

1. Oppenheimer Developing Markets Fund
2. Oppenheimer Limited Term NY Municipal Fund
3. Oppenheimer Limited Term CA Muni Fund
4. Oppenheimer Global Fund
5. Rochester Municipals Fund
6. Oppenheimer International Bond Fund
7. Oppenheimer Senior Floating Rate Fund
8. Oppenheimer Equity Income Fund
9. Oppenheimer International Growth Fund
10. Oppenheimer International Diversified Fund

PIMCO Emerging Markets Bond Fund (PAEMX)

PIMCO Emerging Markets Bond Fund (PAEMX) is a taxable bond mutual fund. The mutual fund invests in emerging market debts issued by developing countries.

PIMCO Emerging Markets Bond Fund (MUTF:PAEMX)

The PIMCO Emerging Markets Bond Fund objective is to seek maximum total return, consistent with capital preservation and prudent investment management. The fund utilizes its assets to purchase Fixed Income Instruments that are economically tied to emerging market countries. It may use forwards or derivatives such as options, futures contracts or swap agreements to invest. It may invest in both investment-grade securities and junk bonds. The fund is non-diversified.

Fund Details

PIMCO EM Bond Fund

• Fund Inception Date: 07/31/1997
• Ticker Symbol: PAEMX
• CUSIP: 693391575
• Beta (3yr): 0.51
• Rank in category (YTD): 65%
• Category: Emerging Markets Bond
• Distribution: 3.88%
• Capital Gains: 0%
• Expense Ratio: 1.25%
• Net Assets: $ 8.02 billion
• Number of Years Up: 12 years
• Number of Years Down: 2 years
• Average duration: 6.30 years
• Average maturity: 10.82 years
• Annual Turnover Rate: 12%

Updated on 3/5/2013

Top Performing Foreign Large Growth Mutual Funds March 2013

The top performing foreign large growth mutual funds March 2013 are GMO International Growth Equity III, Laudus International MarketMasters, Oppenheimer International Growth, etc.

Top Performing Funds 2013

Best Performing Foreign Large Growth Mutual Funds 2013

Foreign large growth mutual fund is part of international stock fund. Its portfolio focuses on high growth stocks of non U.S. companies. Most of these companies are located in developed countries or markets. The markets include Britain, France, Japan, German, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, etc. Most of the companies are large cap companies. The growth style is considered based on fast growth in term of earnings, sales, book value and cash flow. It also has high valuation like high price ratio and little to no dividend.

This top performer bond mutual fund list is sorted based on its 1 year total return performance up to February 26th. You can find the fund review, expense ratio, yield, ranking, share price, management, top holdings, credit rating, etc.

The top performing foreign large growth mutual funds March 2013 are:

1. GMO International Growth Equity Fund (GMIGX)
2. Laudus International MarketMasters Fund (SWOIX)
3. Oppenheimer International Growth Fund (OIGAX)
4. Fidelity International Capital Appreciation Fund (FIVFX)
5. JHancock3 International Growth Fund (GOIGX)
6. MassMutual Premier International Equity Fund (MMIAX)
7. Virtus Foreign Opportunities Fund (JVIAX)
8. Nuveen Santa Barbara International Grade Fund (NBQAX)

8 Best ETFs for 2013

Best ETFs for 2013; top exchange traded funds: best bond, stock ETF funds. The 8 best ETFs for 2013 are PIMCO Total Return Exchange-Traded Fund, Vanguard MSCI EAFE ETF, Schwab Large-Cap Core, iShares S&P National Municipal Bond Fund, etc.

Top ETFs for 2013

Best Exchange Traded Funds 2013

Exchange traded funds, ETFs, are becoming popular investment vehicle for individual and institutional investors. There are more than 1,000 ETFs in the marketplace. For regular investors, it may be difficult to pick the right one or the best choice for future. ETFs are traded like stock; they provide investors a great opportunity to diversify.

These best ETFs for 2013 are selected based several things such as future performance, low cost, and growth opportunity. The funds are ranked with among the best in its category. You may find the fund review below and other fund information. If you are interested in top mutual funds, you can check my previous article, Best Mutual Funds for 2013.

The followings are my ways to choose good ETFs for investment are:

• Choose the low expense ratio fund for higher long term returns
• Buy exchange traded fund that invests in broad market (i.e. diversified)
• Buy active funds if they are managed by great manager(s)
• Don’t invest in single sectors or single country fund

The 8 best ETFs for 2013 are:

1. PIMCO Total Return Exchange-Traded Fund (BOND)
2. Schwab Large-Cap Core (SCHX)
3. iShares S&P National Municipal Bond Fund (MUB)
4. Vanguard MSCI EAFE ETF (VEA)
5. Market Vectors Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC)