FYI: Let’s rewind the tape back to early 2018, when fund managers were betting on a rare moment: The world’s major economies were all expanding together. That, coupled with signs of strength across a range of asset classes, created what some described as the best investing environment of their entire careers.
Until September, that is, when the new highs quickly fell, and 2018 ended as the worst year for stocks in a decade—and active managers found their skills tested, not in making the most for clients, but in losing the least.
Minimizing losses was no small accomplishment: In a year when the S&P 500 index finished down 4.4% and the MSCI World index dropped 8.7%, low-single-digit declines were something to celebrate. Of the 3,794 actively managed mutual funds tallied for this ranking, most—3,128—lost money. Of the 666 funds that managed positive returns last year, just seven posted double-digit returns.
The top firms in this year’s Barron’s annual Best Fund Families rankings did what they were supposed to do—beat their benchmarks and outperform.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.barrons.com/articles/best-mutual-fund-families-in-2018-as-ranked-by-barrons-51552079249?mod=hp_DAY_1
