American Funds

American Funds
Private
Industry Financial services
Founded 1931
Founder Jonathan Bell Lovelace
Headquarters Los Angeles, California, United States
Products Mutual fund, target date retirement funds, 529 college savings funds
AUM US$ $1.3 trillion
(December 31, 2015)
Parent Capital Group Companies
Website americanfunds.com

American Funds is a family of mutual funds from Capital Group that are sold primarily through financial advisors and intermediaries. It is the third largest mutual fund family, with more than US $1.3 trillion in assets under management. American Funds manages more than 54 million investor accounts, including more than 26 million IRAs, more than 2 million 401(k)s and nearly 6 million CollegeAmerica 529 accounts. CollegeAmerica is currently the largest 529 savings plan in the U.S. (as of 2015).[1]

American Funds holds an “A” rating for overall stewardship from Morningstar, with “A” ratings for fees, corporate culture and fund manager incentives.[2] Portfolio managers have on average 27 years of investment experience, including 22 years at the company (as of December 31, 2014).

Investment Philosophy

Since 1931, when American Funds was founded, the firm’s investment philosophy has been based on bottom-up portfolio management and rigorous research to drive long-term investment results. (See Capital Group Companies for more history.) American Funds equity funds have beaten their Lipper peer indexes in 91% of 10-year periods and 96% of 20-year periods. Their fixed-income funds have beaten their Lipper indexes in 57% of 10-year periods and 54% of 20-year periods (as of December 31, 2014).[3]

American Funds has been recognized for its high rate of manager ownership, meaning many of the funds’ managers invest their own money in the funds they manage.[4] The firm also uses a multiple-manager approach instead of relying on a single fund manager for almost all its offerings. Each portfolio manager, plus the pool of research analysts who contribute to the fund, is assigned a portion of the overall assets within a fund to manage independently. Portfolio managers use their experience and knowledge to focus on their highest conviction ideas for the fund. This investment process allows for a diverse group to bring together complementary investment approaches.

Recognition and Awards

The firm was awarded multiple Lipper Awards in 2015, including Best Mixed-Asset Funds, with nine target date retirement funds, two growth funds and one growth-and-income fund recognized.[5]

· 10 American Funds appeared on Morningstar’s “Fantastic 48” list in 2014.[6]

· 11 funds were included in Morningstar’s “Fantastic 50” list in 2015.[7]

· In Cogent Reports' 2015 Advisor Brandscape report, American Funds was identified as a top mutual fund brand for advisor trust.[8]

Funds

American Funds is known in the mutual fund industry for its lower-than-average fees. On average, its management fees were in the lowest quintile 70% of the time, based on the 20-year period ending December 31, 2014, versus comparable Lipper categories. According to Morningstar, the American Funds family’s fees, on average, are in the cheapest quintile relative to other families.[9]

Products include more than 40 American Funds, the American Funds Target Date Retirement Series,® CollegeAmerica, a 529 college savings plans sponsored by Virginia529,℠ Coverdell Education Savings Accounts, the American Funds Insurance Series® variable annuity funds, and other retirement plan solutions.

References

  1. ↑ Skinner, Liz (September 6, 2015). The latest 529 college savings plan data. Investment News
  2. ↑ Yang, Janet (October 1, 2015). Capital Group Stays at the Top Through Hard Work. Morningstar.com
  3. ↑ Based on Class A share results for rolling periods through December 31, 2014. Periods covered are the shorter of the fund’s lifetime or since the comparable Lipper index inception date (except SMALLCAP World Fund, for which the Lipper average was used).
  4. ↑ Quinlan, Casey (November 8, 2013). Should Managers Invest in Their Own Mutual Funds? U.S. News & World Report
  5. ↑ (March 31, 2015). 2015 Lipper Awards For Excellence. Thomson Reuters
  6. ↑ Kinnel, Russel (May 2014). Fantastic 48. Morningstar FundInvestor
  7. ↑ Kinnel, Russel (June 2015). Fantastic 50. Morningstar FundInvestor
  8. ↑ (July 20, 2015). 2015 Advisor Brandscape Report. Cogent Reports
  9. ↑ (June 26, 2015). 2015 Morningstar U.S. Mutual Fund Industry Stewardship Survey. Morningstar (page 20)
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