Fund Evaluator:
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst (BAFFX)Best Performing in Large Blend Over the Last Year
| 49.8% | PRIMECAP Odyssey Growth (POGRX) |
| 48.6% | Vanguard PRIMECAP Core Inv (VPCCX) |
| 45.8% | Vanguard PRIMECAP Adm (VPMAX) |
| 45.7% | Vanguard PRIMECAP Inv (VPMCX) |
| 42.3% | Midas Special Opportunities (MISEX) |
Fund Details
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst Overview
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst (BAFFX) is an actively managed U.S. Equity Large Blend fund. Brown Advisory Funds launched the fund in 2012.
The investment seeks to achieve long-term growth of capital. Under normal conditions, Brown Advisory LLC (the “Adviser”) seeks to achieve the fund’s investment objective by investing at least 80% of the value of its net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities. The fund invests primarily in a portfolio of equity securities issued by large, middle and small capitalization companies that the adviser believes have strong, or improving, long-term business characteristics and share prices that do not reflect certain favorable fundamental attributes.
About Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst (BAFFX)
There are 1 members of the management team with an average tenure of 8.75 years: Maneesh Bajaj (2017). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100%. Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has 46 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 44.7% 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.
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst is part of the Equity global asset class and is within the U.S. Equity fund group. Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has 13.6% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 84.7%. There is 13.6% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 0.0% (0.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has 1.6% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $426 million in total assets, which is below the $6 billion average for the Large Blend 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.
BAFFX 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 Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Large Blend category. Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has an expense ratio of 0.52%, which is 36% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. 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. Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has a portfolio turnover rate of 17%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 48% for the Large Blend category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst returned 1.3%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Large Blend category had an average return of 0.4%. 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.
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst has a trailing yield of 0.22%, which is below the 0.56% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually 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.
Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 8.1%, 1.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 12.0% over the past year (grade of F), 16.7% over the past three years (grade of D) and 10.3% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 15.0% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).
For more mutual fund grades, analysis and screening tools to help your investment discovery, join AAII for a $2, full-access trial. Learn more here: https://invest.aaii.com/membership.
Otherwise, for more information about Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inst, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
BAFFX 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 |
|
| BAFFX Return (NAV) | 1.3% | 4.4% | 12.0% | 16.7% | 10.3% | 15.0% |
| BAFFX Grade | B | B | F | D | D | A |
| +/- Category | 0.9% | 0.3% | -5.4% | -0.6% | -0.8% | 1.3% |
| Large Blend Avg | 0.4% | 4.1% | 17.5% | 17.3% | 11.1% | 13.7% |
| BAFFX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.5% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 0.9% |
BAFFX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| BAFFX Return (NAV) | 8.1% | 9.9% | 23.9% | 34.7% | -21.0% | 25.1% | 20.1% | 36.5% | -3.9% | 24.3% | 9.5% |
| BAFFX Grade | D | F | C | A | F | D | B | A | A | A | D |
| +/- Category | -1.2% | -5.9% | 1.9% | 11.0% | -3.7% | -1.4% | 2.5% | 6.7% | 2.0% | 3.0% | -0.7% |
| Large Blend Avg | 9.3% | 15.8% | 22.1% | 23.7% | -17.3% | 26.5% | 17.5% | 29.8% | -5.9% | 21.3% | 10.2% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 14.0% |
| Total Risk Index: | 1.14 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.05 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | F (82% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.99 |
| R-Squared: | 87% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Large-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 0.2% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $997 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 427 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 17% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 1 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 8.8 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 8.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Bajaj Maneesh (2017) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 46 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 44.7% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 13.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 84.7% |
| Foreign Stock: | 13.6% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 1.6% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Brown Advisory Funds |
| Phone Number: | 800-540-6807 |
| Website: | www.brownadvisoryfunds.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | October 19, 2012 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $1,000,000 |
| 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 (%): | 0.52% ( Rating : Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.81% |
| Share Class: | Brown Advisory Flexible Equity Inv |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 100 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |