The suitability of a fund, unit investment trust (UIT), or real estate investment trust (REIT) is closely tied to the individual securities held in its portfolio. For example, the suitability of a large-cap stock fund is generally similar to the suitability of a large-cap stock. The main differences between funds/UITs and the individual securities they hold are diversification and fees.
Funds, UITs, and REITs can provide instant diversification. It’s common for a large portfolio (such as a mutual fund) to hold dozens or even hundreds of securities. Rather than researching and selecting individual investments, an investor can buy a fund or UIT and have a professional manage the portfolio on their behalf. This can be especially useful for retail investors who don’t have the time or resources to research and monitor individual securities.
That diversification and professional management come with costs. These products may include an expense ratio, sales charges, 12b-1 fees, management fees, and other expenses. While the benefits often outweigh the fees for many investors, you should still consider the total cost when selecting these investments.
Dollar cost averaging is a common investment strategy used with investment companies, especially mutual funds. It involves investing a fixed dollar amount at regular intervals over time (buying shares or units each time). This approach helps reduce market timing risk, which is the risk of investing a large amount right before a market decline.
For example, if an investor made a $100,000 investment right before the Great Recession of 2008 (such as in the summer of 2007), it would’ve taken over 4 years to recoup losses from the downturn. This illustrates a key point: the larger the one-time investment, the more exposed the investor is to a sharp decline immediately after investing.
Now compare that to investing the same $100,000 as $1,000 per week over 100 weeks (roughly 2 years). If prices fall during that period, each $1,000 purchase buys more shares. That’s the mechanism that helps dollar cost averaging mitigate market timing risk.
In a fluctuating market, the investor’s average cost per share can be lower than the average price per share. Here’s an example using ABC mutual fund during a market decline:
| Date | Purchase amount | Price per share | Shares purchased |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1 | $1,000 | $20 | 50 |
| Feb 1 | $1,000 | $16 | 62.5 |
| Mar 1 | $1,000 | $10 | 100 |
| Apr 1 | $1,000 | $8 | 125 |
Overall, the investor purchased $4,000 of ABC mutual fund over four months and accumulated 337.5 shares. Now compare the average cost per share to the average price per share.
Average cost =
Average cost =
Average cost = $11.85
Now, average price:
Average price =
Average price =
Average price =
Average price = $13.50
The average cost reflects both the prices paid and the number of shares purchased at each price. The average price is just the simple average of the prices at the time of each investment. In a declining or fluctuating market, the average cost is typically lower because the fixed investment amount buys more shares when prices are lower.
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