Fund Evaluator:
Ave Maria Bond (AVEFX)
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Best Performing in Conservative Allocation Over the Last Year
| 11.9% | Hussman Strategic Total Return (HSTRX) |
| 10.4% | Franklin Multi-Asset Income Y (PMIYX) |
| 10.1% | Columbia Income Builder Inst (CBUZX) |
| 8.2% | Thrivent Conservative Allocation S (THYFX) |
| 8.0% | Columbia Capital Allocation Cnsrv Inst (CBVZX) |
Fund Details
Ave Maria Bond Overview
Ave Maria Bond (AVEFX) is an actively managed Allocation Conservative Allocation fund. Ave Maria Mutual Funds launched the fund in 2003.
The investment seeks preservation of principal with a reasonable level of current income. The fund invests primarily (80% or more of its net assets, including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in investment-grade debt securities of domestic issuers, including the U.S. government and its agencies and instrumentalities, corporations and municipalities and money market instruments. It may invest up to 20% of its net assets in equity securities (which includes preferred stocks, common stocks paying dividends and securities convertible into common stock) of domestic or foreign issuers of any market capitalization.
About Ave Maria Bond (AVEFX)
There are 2 members of the management team with an average tenure of 7.21 years: Brandon Scheitler (2013), James Peregoy (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Bloomberg US Govt/Credit Interm TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Ave Maria Bond has 178 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 15.9% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Ave Maria Bond is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. Ave Maria Bond has 1.7% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 16.1%. There is 1.7% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 79.5% (79.5% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Ave Maria Bond has 2.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $800 million in total assets, which is above the $107 million average for the Conservative Allocation category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
AVEFX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Ave Maria Bond expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Conservative Allocation category. Ave Maria Bond has an expense ratio of 0.40%, which is 66% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Ave Maria Bond has a portfolio turnover rate of 13%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 100% for the Conservative Allocation category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Ave Maria Bond returned 0.6%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Conservative Allocation category had an average return of -0.8%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Ave Maria Bond has a trailing yield of 3.69%, which is above the 3.43% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Ave Maria Bond Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 2.0%, 0.8 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 4.1% over the past year (grade of F), 5.6% over the past three years (grade of F) and 3.0% per year over the past five years (grade of C) and 3.8% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).
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AVEFX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| AVEFX Return (NAV) | 0.6% | -0.2% | 4.1% | 5.6% | 3.0% | 3.8% |
| AVEFX Grade | A | F | F | F | C | D |
| +/- Category | 1.4% | -0.8% | -3.2% | -1.6% | 0.2% | -0.1% |
| Conservative Allocation Avg | -0.8% | 0.6% | 7.2% | 7.2% | 2.7% | 3.9% |
| AVEFX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.5% | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.1% |
AVEFX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| AVEFX Return (NAV) | 2.0% | 5.6% | 5.7% | 5.2% | -2.8% | 4.4% | 5.6% | 8.3% | 0.4% | 4.2% | 4.5% |
| AVEFX Grade | D | F | C | F | A | D | F | F | A | F | D |
| +/- Category | -0.8% | -3.7% | -0.2% | -3.5% | 9.1% | -0.1% | -2.4% | -3.2% | 3.7% | -2.9% | -1.3% |
| Conservative Allocation Avg | 2.8% | 9.2% | 5.9% | 8.7% | -11.9% | 4.5% | 8.0% | 11.5% | -3.3% | 7.1% | 5.9% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 4.3% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.35 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.66 - Low |
| Category Risk Grade: | A (1% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.35 |
| R-Squared: | 60% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Mid-Cap Value |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 3.7% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $800 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 801 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | S |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 13% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 2 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 12.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 7.2 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Scheitler Brandon (2013), Peregoy James (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 178 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 15.9% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 1.7% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 16.1% |
| Foreign Stock: | 1.7% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 79.5% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 2.7% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Ave Maria Mutual Funds |
| Phone Number: | 888-726-9331 |
| Website: | www.schwartzvaluefund.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | May 1, 2003 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $2,500 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.40% ( Rating : Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.19% |
| Share Class: | Ave Maria Bond |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
