Fund Evaluator:
Kensington Defender Inst (DFNDX)
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Best Performing in Global Moderately Conservative Allocation Over the Last Year
| 13.5% | Victory Cornerstone Moderately Cnsrv (UCMCX) |
| 12.6% | Fidelity Advisor Asset Manager 40% Z (FIKYX) |
| 12.5% | Fidelity Asset Manager 40% (FFANX) |
| 11.5% | Invesco Select Risk: Mod Cnsv Inv Y (CAAYX) |
| 11.4% | TOPS® Managed Risk Balanced ETF 2 () |
Fund Details
Kensington Defender Inst Overview
Kensington Defender Inst (DFNDX) is an actively managed Allocation Global Moderately Conservative Allocation fund. Kensington Asset Management LLC launched the fund in 2023.
The investment seeks capital preservation and total return. The fund is designed to provide the potential to participate in rising markets, but with a reduced risk of drawdown in declining markets, through a portfolio that has exposure to different strategies, asset classes and individual investments. The advisor will seek to utilize varying investment strategies, including (i) Liquid Strategies, LLC’s Defender Model, (ii) an options overlay strategy to generate income, and (iii) a managed futures strategy or diversified opportunities intended to provide exposures with reduced correlation to the other strategies. The fund is non-diversified.
About Kensington Defender Inst (DFNDX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 3.25 years: C. Shawn Gibson (2023), Adam Stewart (2023), Elio Chiarelli (2023). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Morningstar Global 40/60 NR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Kensington Defender Inst has 24 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 55.0% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Kensington Defender Inst is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. Kensington Defender Inst has 12.5% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 27.7%. There is 12.5% 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). Kensington Defender Inst has 51.4% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $93 million in total assets, which is below the $305 million average for the Global Moderately 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.
DFNDX 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 Kensington Defender Inst expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Global Moderately Conservative Allocation category. Kensington Defender Inst has an expense ratio of 1.80%, which is 84% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. 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. Kensington Defender Inst has a portfolio turnover rate of 260%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 51% for the Global Moderately Conservative Allocation category.
Recently, in the month of August 2026, Kensington Defender Inst returned 1.7%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Global Moderately Conservative Allocation category had an average return of 1.1%. 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.
Kensington Defender Inst has a trailing yield of 3.85%, which is above the 3.06% 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.
Kensington Defender Inst Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 11.2%, 4.9 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 17.6% over the past year (grade of A) and 10.7% over the past three years (grade of A).
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DFNDX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 8/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| DFNDX Return (NAV) | 1.7% | -0.6% | 17.6% | 10.7% | na | na |
| DFNDX Grade | A | F | A | A | na | na |
| +/- Category | 0.6% | -1.5% | 7.6% | 0.6% | na | na |
| Global Moderately Conservative Allocation Avg | 1.1% | 0.8% | 10.0% | 10.1% | 3.9% | 5.5% |
| DFNDX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.9% | 1.9% | na | na |
DFNDX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 8/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DFNDX Return (NAV) | 11.2% | 13.3% | 5.9% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| DFNDX Grade | A | A | F | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| +/- Category | 4.9% | 1.7% | -1.4% | na | na | na | na | na | na | na | na |
| Global Moderately Conservative Allocation Avg | 6.3% | 11.6% | 7.3% | 10.4% | -13.5% | 7.5% | 8.9% | 15.0% | -4.8% | 10.7% | 6.1% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 8.5% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.70 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.17 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | F (102% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.80 |
| R-Squared: | 74% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Large-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 3.9% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $114 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 94 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 260% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 3.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 3.3 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Gibson C. Shawn (2023), Stewart Adam (2023), Chiarelli Elio (2023) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 24 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 55.0% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 12.5% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 27.7% |
| Foreign Stock: | 12.5% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 8.4% |
| Cash: | 51.4% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Kensington Asset Management LLC |
| Phone Number: | 866-303-8623 |
| Website: |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | May 31, 2023 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $25,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $25,000 |
| 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 (%): | 1.80% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.98% |
| Share Class: | Kensington Defender Inst |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 250 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 100 |
