Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Having a hard time deciding which of these to commit to. Would be interested to hear from MFO what you all think. I have a position in VLAAX but am wondering which one to sign on for. New to MFO but I have really appreciated reading everyones comments about various mutual funds.
I think that VLAAX is the closest to PRWCX on a performance basis with FPURX trailing. Use the 'compare' tool on Fidelity's mutual fund page to evaluate other metrics. I don't think that you can go wrong with any of these 3.
No Mark. You are correct. I don't own but I believe it was available recently. It no longer is. So I guess I missed it. Too bad because it looks like a great fund.
VLAAX has been proposed as a viable alternate to PRWCX. The asset base was quite large by the time it close. Another active managed growth-oriented balanced fund with small asset may have a better chance to do equally if not better.
VLAAX, yes. But if you go after that fund, do it through your brokerage. Dealing with them directly is like chasing your own tail. Huge lag-time. We were going to put my wife's old 403b money into VLAAX. They made us wait way too long for the proper forms and stuff. Then we decided to put the money elsewhere. (BRUFX.) But they had her name in their system, so we're STILL getting prospectuses and semi-annual reports from them. And they are holding precisely ZERO of our dollars. Pretty nuts.
No Mark. You are correct. I don't own but I believe it was available recently. It no longer is. So I guess I missed it. Too bad because it looks like a great fund.
No, Jon, unless you got PRWCX mixed up with another fund, it has been closed to new investors for over six years.
But, I agree that VLAAX/VLAIX or JABAX/JBALX would be good alternatives. The reason I mention JBALX is that the fund, unlike VLAIX*, has a separate manager dedicated to the bond portion of the portfolio. I think that may be a not unimportant consideration in the current, seemingly rising interest rate environment.
Good luck,
Fred
*Added by edit: As msf has pointed out below, VLAIX also has separate bond managers. My mistake.
VLAIX has two bond managers and one equity manager as contrasted with two and two for JBALX. Otherwise there doesn't seem to be much difference in responsibilities.
Stephen E. Grant has primary responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Value Line Asset Allocation Fund’s equity portfolio and its asset allocation. Jeffrey Geffen and Liane Rosenberg have primary responsibility for the day-to-day management of the fixed income portion of the Fund’s portfolio.
I would add VGSTX to the above list. Very diversified and had a stellar 2020. It is a fund of funds that I have had for 25 years and has never disappointed.
I would add VGSTX to the above list. Very diversified and had a stellar 2020. It is a fund of funds that I have had for 25 years and has never disappointed.
Agreed, VGSTX is an excellent 50%-70% AA fund that is the rough, TR equivalent of VBIAX. It being my "short list" though I decided to only include VBIAX, but VGSTX could easily replace VBIAX or be added.
Also just missing my "short list" threshold is NAINX, another AA OEF worthy of consideration in the 50%-70% cat given its Current-5yr performance.
FPURX is NOT on my "short list" as FBALX is IMO the choice between these two.
John, an argument can be made for either and it would be a very close debate (as your linked article shows), ultimately decided by simple personal preference.
I prefer the L/M/S and G/B/V splatters and the slight/marginal 1-3-5-10-yr consistent outperformance of FBALX over FPURX.
That said, either one of these two is a great LT holding, AA choice, and coupled with others on my "short list," make for great core holdings in a balanced portfolio. If in doubt about FBALX vs FPURX, simply buy both at 50/50 weightings.
EDIT: BTW, I own all of the AA funds on my short list except JABAX. I have previously owned JABAX and VGSTX. I never owned FPURX. I reduced my AA holdings at EOY 2020 to just PRWCX, VLAAX, FBALX, VBIAX, FMSDX and VWIAX, all with just about the same allocations. Also, I've spent YEARS crunching AA fund options and the result of all of that time/research is these selected AA funds.
It is interesting to observe balanced funds during this phase in the business cycle. Within the M* 50-70% equity category the risk level an investor assumes can vary widely. It tips the hand of the fund's perception of risk vs reward. M* produces data showing 2016-2020 Historical Equity trends. Some Balanced funds have assumed more equity exposure at stock market highs after a decade + long bull market. These funds sit at 66% up to 70%+ equities. Others funds have reduced equities from 2016-2020 protecting investors from a possible downturn (less than 60% equity). Totally opposite viewpoints of the same market. Extreme examples of two within 50-70 are BRUFX and BALFX. This wide descrepancy is obviously going to produce much different CAGR, SD and MDraw going forward. To each his own.
Yes. For the recent short term, in order to see who crashed most / least, who recovered and how quickly + much, and who compares with (and how, and who adds value over) AOR and AOM, go to
and from 2/20/20 to date, take a look at those three plus FPURX, VLAAX, VALIX and the long-closed PRWCX. I myself think Fido looks good here, shallower dip and higher recovery. As might AOM.
Stillers, have you had occasion to look at the variants of AIGPX (available at Wells with low minimum)?
Yes, used to own it and it sits just below VWIAX and FMSDX on my 30%-50% list. Its 2020 blowout year jumped it to the top TR performer of the three. It is however largely a LC/MC Growth fund on the stock side. I prefer to get that exposure through the higher stock allocation AA funds and dedicated Growth funds. That said, if I added another 30%-50% AA fund, this would likely be it.
Note that in private discussion with another poster who inquired about PLBBX I stated that it is on my 50%-70% alternate list. Mighty fine fund over both the ST and LT that just never made its way to an actual holding of mine.
Comments
No, Jon, unless you got PRWCX mixed up with another fund, it has been closed to new investors for over six years.
But, I agree that VLAAX/VLAIX or JABAX/JBALX would be good alternatives. The reason I mention JBALX is that the fund, unlike VLAIX*, has a separate manager dedicated to the bond portion of the portfolio. I think that may be a not unimportant consideration in the current, seemingly rising interest rate environment.
Good luck,
Fred
*Added by edit: As msf has pointed out below, VLAIX also has separate bond managers. My mistake.
JBALX Prospectus
VLAIX Prospectus
That important piece of information certainly increases my confidence in VLAIX.
Much appreciated.
Fred
Also just missing my "short list" threshold is NAINX, another AA OEF worthy of consideration in the 50%-70% cat given its Current-5yr performance.
FPURX is NOT on my "short list" as FBALX is IMO the choice between these two.
I prefer the L/M/S and G/B/V splatters and the slight/marginal 1-3-5-10-yr consistent outperformance of FBALX over FPURX.
That said, either one of these two is a great LT holding, AA choice, and coupled with others on my "short list," make for great core holdings in a balanced portfolio. If in doubt about FBALX vs FPURX, simply buy both at 50/50 weightings.
EDIT: BTW, I own all of the AA funds on my short list except JABAX. I have previously owned JABAX and VGSTX. I never owned FPURX. I reduced my AA holdings at EOY 2020 to just PRWCX, VLAAX, FBALX, VBIAX, FMSDX and VWIAX, all with just about the same allocations. Also, I've spent YEARS crunching AA fund options and the result of all of that time/research is these selected AA funds.
For the recent short term, in order to see who crashed most / least, who recovered and how quickly + much, and who compares with (and how, and who adds value over) AOR and AOM, go to
http://quotes.morningstar.com/chart/fund/chart.action?t=jabax
and from 2/20/20 to date, take a look at those three plus FPURX, VLAAX, VALIX and the long-closed PRWCX. I myself think Fido looks good here, shallower dip and higher recovery. As might AOM.