cổ phiếu được coi là gây khó chịu bởi vì, trong khi rủi ro, họ có thể cung cấp ngược không giới hạn. Trái phiếu được coi là phòng thủ bởi vì họ là một đầu tư có thu nhập cố định với một công ty bảo lãnh của chính phủ và kỳ hạn có thời hạn. Trong khi giá trị thị trường của họ có thể biến động trong thời gian nắm giữ, | 142 Step 6 Pick the Players for comparison purposes is that of the Vanguard 500 Index Fund because the fund reflects the broader market. For the trailing three years through June 2002 the fund had a standard deviation of . By comparison the number-one fund for 25 years FPA Capital has a standard deviation of for the same three years. But as with all the criteria that you can use to pick a fund risk needs to be weighed against outcome. In the short run FPA may be more volatile than some funds but it s been a consistent performer. Once you figure out where a fund fits on the risk spectrum you and or your advisor need to decide whether it will help you meet your financial goals. For example if you re using the aggressive portfolio model discussed in Chapter 5 a high-risk growth fund might be a solid component of the percent growth allocation. But it would not belong in the conservative portfolio model which has no place for high-risk funds. In the end you ve got to consider the inherent risks of a given fund. But most importantly you ve also got to be true to your portfolio allocation and your goals. What Are the Fees While you pay more visible transaction fees for buying and selling stocks the cost of owning a mutual fund is also real. Cost is always an important factor to consider but it s especially so in difficult economic times when you don t have the padding of 10 or even 5 percent returns to cover your expenses. When returns are low or negative expenses actually come out of the principal in your portfolio or funds. There are two main cost-related issues you need to reckon with the expense ratio and the load. For data go to the fund s Morningstar Quicktake Report and click on the Fees and Expenses toolbar. Expense Ratio The key element to measuring cost with any fund is its expense ratio. This number is a comparison of the expenses charged to a fund s assets. The base expense number in this equation includes everything from What ll It Cost You .
