Is VAIPX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Government - Bonds: Misc category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that may not be worth investigating is Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securites Admiral (VAIPX). VAIPX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
VAIPX is one of many Government - Bonds: Misc funds to choose from. In their portfolios, Government - Bonds: Misc funds hold securities issued by the United States' federal government, which are often seen as risk-free assets and described as extremely low-risk from a default perspective. While a mixed approach usually results in a medium yield and risk profile, this fund category focuses across the curve, meaning the yields and interest rate sensitivity will vary.
History of Fund/Manager
Vanguard Group is based in Malvern, PA, and is the manager of VAIPX. Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securites Admiral made its debut in June of 2005, and since then, VAIPX has accumulated about $13.61 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, John Madziyire, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2021.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. VAIPX has a 5-year annualized total return of 1.78% and is in the bottom third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3 -year annualized total return of 0.71%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.
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It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. VAIPX's standard deviation over the past three years is 7.03% compared to the category average of 11.46%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 6.14% compared to the category average of 11.16%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
VAIPX carries a beta of 0.6, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 1.94, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.