What is Standard Deviation in Mutual Funds: Meaning, Calculation Formula and Importance
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While standard deviation is a powerful tool for risk assessment, it has its limitations. It assumes that returns are normally distributed, which might not always be the case. Furthermore, it doesn’t account for the direction of the volatility, meaning it treats both upward and downward deviations equally. By applying the standard deviation formula, we find that the standard deviation of the fund’s annual returns is approximately 2.87%. It only reflects past volatility, which helps in estimating potential future fluctuations, not exact outcomes.
Types of Investment
A single mutual fund may give investors a choice of different combinations of front-end loads, back-end loads and distribution and services fee, by offering several different types of shares, known as share classes. All of them invest in the same portfolio of securities, but each has different expenses and, therefore, different net asset values and different performance results. Some of these share classes may be available only to certain types of investors. Mutual funds have advantages and disadvantages compared to direct investing in individual securities.
Index funds are a type of mutual fund which tracks a particular index like the S&P 500 index. Index funds often charge lower expense ratios and are useful for passive, diversified portfolio construction. Yes, you can lose money in a mutual fund as the net asset value (NAV) of these funds can rise and fall depending on the market. Even a bond mutual fund can lose value if interest rates rise, causing a fall in bond prices and the corresponding NAV of the fund. Interest rate risk is most acutely felt with fixed-income funds when interest rates rise causing fixed payouts from the fixed-income fund to not be a worthwhile investment causing a sell-off. This risk can be mitigated by investing in a mix of bond or fixed-income funds by time horizon so you can ride out dips from interest rate increases.
How to Calculate Standard Deviation of Mutual Funds?
The recipient should note and understand that the information provided above may not contain all the material aspects relevant for making an investment decision. Investors are advised to consult their own investment advisor before making any investment decision in light of their risk appetite, investment goals and horizon. Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully. This document should not be treated as endorsement of the views/opinions or as investment advice. Standard deviation is important because it helps assess the volatility of investments, enabling better risk evaluation.
While it is a useful tool for assessing risk and comparing funds, it is essential to consider its limitations and use it with other measures for a comprehensive investment strategy. For investors, knowing how to measure and control risk is the key to attaining financial objectives. One tool investors can use is the standard deviation, showing how far apart mutual fund returns are from their average. Investors evaluating mutual funds often look at performance metrics, but understanding risk is just as important. Standard deviation measures how much a fund’s returns fluctuate over time, helping investors assess volatility.
Step 2: Choose An Account
This information, along with similar computations on other data points, feeds into a model that generates a credit score. A fund with a high standard deviation portrays a higher degree of variation from the mean. It is common practice to use the trailing monthly returns of 3, 5, and 10 years to determine the standard deviation. In addition, the monthly standard deviation values are converted to an annual basis and expressed as a percentage. The standard deviation of 9.40 indicates that the fund’s returns would go up or down by this value from its mean. This formula captures how much the returns deviate from the average, providing insight into the investment’s volatility.
How does standard deviation differ from other measures of risk in mutual funds?
In other words, investors of a scheme with a high standard deviation is likely to face higher fluctuations in its returns. The meaning of standard deviation helps you measure the volatility factor of a fund. Thus, if a fund has a standard deviation of 7% and an average return of 15%, it will be expected to give average returns in the range of 8-22%, deviating by 7%.
In other words, volatility (standard deviation) of a portfolio is a function of how each fund in the portfolio moves in relation to each other fund in the portfolio. By selecting funds with varying levels of Standard Deviation, you can create a diversified portfolio that balances risk and return. This approach ensures that your investments are spread across different risk categories, potentially levelling out the overall volatility of your portfolio. This means Fund B’s returns are less predictable and more volatile, while Fund A is relatively stable. Most financial websites and mutual fund platforms display the standard deviation of a fund over various periods (e.g., 1 year, 5 years). When considering standard deviation, several key points are essential to understand its significance and application.
- The Planner provides an indicative view about the generic investment opportunities available in the manner indicated by you.
- Investors can delve deeper into specific sectors or sub-categories of funds in these categories, choose passive or active funds, and shop for ideal fee structures.
- One of the main goals of diversification is to reduce the overall risk of your investment portfolio.
- By systematically analyzing past performance, investors can gauge how consistently a fund has performed relative to its average return.
- Using the variance of 0.0289, the square root yields approximately 5.38%, indicating the typical amount by which the fund’s returns deviate from the mean.
- Analyzing past performance helps investors understand a fund’s risk profile and consistency.
Formula of Standard Deviation
- Sumit Narula is a financial writer with 10+ years of experience in writing about investment products.
- Standard deviation is a useful tool for mutual fund investors because it shows how much a fund’s returns can go up or down.
- Along with returns a fair assessment of risk can help you in making a prudent choice.
- Choosing the right account to invest in your mutual fund will be tied to your investment goals.
- A higher standard deviation means that there is a higher degree of variation from the average returns.
This helps investors choose funds that match their comfort with risk and long-term goals. However, it’s important to remember to make smart investment decisions, standard deviation should be used along with other tools and measures. Understanding the standard deviation helps investors make better, more rational choices as it ensures their portfolios are in sync with the risks for their investment plans.
Should You Use Standard Deviation When Analyzing Mutual Funds?
The formula for calculating the standard deviation depends on whether you have data for an entire population or a sample. Kindly, read the Advisory Guidelines for investors as prescribed by the exchange with reference to their circular dated 27th August, 2021 regarding investor awareness and safeguarding client’s assets. Sannihitha Ponaka is an MBA graduate from Symbiosis and has more than 5 years of experience in the financial sector.
When a mutual fund exhibits a high standard deviation, it indicates that its returns have historically fluctuated significantly from the average returns. This means that while there is potential for higher returns, there is also a higher risk of losses. Conversely, a low standard deviation signifies less fluctuation, making such funds potentially less risky but also possibly offering lower returns. Therefore, understanding standard deviation enables investors to align their investment choices with their risk tolerance. Standard deviation is a useful tool for mutual fund investors because it shows how much a fund’s returns can go up or down. A high standard deviation means that the fund’s returns can vary a lot, what is standard deviation in mutual fund whereas a low one means they are more steady.
Many brokerage accounts will offer a Dividend Reinvestment Program (DRIP) which is an often free program where dividends are reinvested without fees, and fractionally if the dividend isn’t enough for a full share. Target date funds are a useful mutual fund type for investors who wish to invest in a single fund for life which shifts from more growth and equity heavy to more conservative and fixed-income heavy as the investor inches to retirement age. These funds are commonly used by investors who don’t wish to manage their own portfolio diversification, particularly in a 401(k) account. Money market funds aim to deliver some yield for investors while maintaining a NAV of $1 by investing in Treasury bills or other short-term investments like high-grade commercial paper. These funds are often used in brokerage accounts as a short-term holding place which earns interest before investors invest in other assets.
This is done by summing all individual returns and dividing by the number of observations. While there is no such thing as a good or bad standard deviation, funds with a low standard deviation in the range of 1- 10, may be considered less prone to volatility. This can be mapped to your own risk appetite in order to decide if a fund works for you or not. In other words, this means that 68% of the time Fund C’s future returns may range between 7% and 13% (10% average plus or minus its standard deviation of 3). Similarly 95% of the time the future returns are likely to fall between 4% and 16% (10% average plus or minus twice the standard deviation i.e. 6). Finally, monitor the performance of your mutual fund by reviewing how it performs quarterly, gauging how it performs against the benchmark, and tracking if there’s been any drastic changes in fees.
It is vital to bear in mind that despite all the advantages of standard deviation using it alone as a risk assessment tool can have its limitations. There may be a fund with a low standard deviation that may lose money due to poor portfolio composition although such cases are rare. If you choose to invest in an actively-managed fund, know that your fund can outperform a benchmark but it can also underperform due to manager risk. Whether the fund manager loses key personnel or makes a mistake, this can affect the return of your fund. Valuing the securities held in a fund’s portfolio is often the most difficult part of calculating net asset value.