Fund Evaluator:
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A (MGDAX)
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Best Performing in Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation Over the Last Year
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Fund Details
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A Overview
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A (MGDAX) is an actively managed Allocation Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation fund. New York Life Investment Management LLC launched the fund in 2005.
The investment seeks long-term growth of capital and, secondarily, current income. The fund is a "fund of funds" that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in mutual funds and ETFs managed by New York Life Investments or its affiliates. It seeks to achieve its investment objective by normally investing approximately 80% (within a range of 70% to 90%) of its assets in underlying equity funds, and approximately 20% (within a range of 10% to 30%) of its assets in underlying fixed-income funds.
About NYLI Growth Allocation Class A (MGDAX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 11.02 years: Migene Kim (2025), Amit Soni (2016), Jonathan Swaney (2005). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 100%. NYLI Growth Allocation Class A has 40 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 62.9% 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.
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. NYLI Growth Allocation Class A has 22.3% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 55.2%. There is 20.9% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.2% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 12.9% (11.4% domestic bond, 1.4% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). NYLI Growth Allocation Class A has 10.9% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $788 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Global Moderately Aggressive 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.
MGDAX 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 NYLI Growth Allocation Class A expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation category. NYLI Growth Allocation Class A has an expense ratio of 0.93%, which is 7% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. 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. NYLI Growth Allocation Class A 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 32% for the Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, NYLI Growth Allocation Class A returned -1.1%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation category had an average return of 0.2%. 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.
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A has a trailing yield of 1.05%, which is below the 1.98% 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.
NYLI Growth Allocation Class A Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 9.6%, 0.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 17.2% over the past year (grade of D), 12.0% over the past three years (grade of F) and 6.7% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 8.6% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
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MGDAX 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 |
|
| MGDAX Return (NAV) | -1.1% | 3.5% | 17.2% | 12.0% | 6.7% | 8.6% |
| MGDAX Grade | D | B | D | F | D | C |
| +/- Category | -1.2% | 0.6% | -1.2% | -2.0% | -1.0% | -0.3% |
| Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation Avg | 0.2% | 2.9% | 18.4% | 14.0% | 7.8% | 8.9% |
| MGDAX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.8% | 1.7% |
MGDAX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| MGDAX Return (NAV) | 9.6% | 12.4% | 10.1% | 15.0% | -14.6% | 16.4% | 13.5% | 21.1% | -11.7% | 17.7% | 7.4% |
| MGDAX Grade | C | F | D | C | B | B | B | C | F | C | C |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | -5.5% | -1.2% | 0.8% | -0.3% | 1.0% | 2.7% | 0.2% | -3.8% | 1.0% | -0.3% |
| Global Moderately Aggressive Allocation Avg | 9.8% | 17.8% | 11.2% | 14.2% | -14.3% | 15.4% | 10.8% | 20.9% | -7.9% | 16.7% | 7.6% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 11.0% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.90 - Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.04 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | F (88% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.12 |
| R-Squared: | 92% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Large-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 1.1% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $893 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 789 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | A |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 17% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 21.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 11.0 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Swaney Jonathan (2005), Soni Amit (2016), Kim Migene (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 40 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 62.9% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 22.3% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 55.2% |
| Foreign Stock: | 20.9% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.2% |
| Domestic Bond: | 11.4% |
| Foreign Bond: | 1.4% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | -0.1% |
| Cash: | 10.9% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | New York Life Investment Management LLC |
| Phone Number: | 800-624-6782 |
| Website: | www.mainstayinvestments.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | April 4, 2005 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $15,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | No |
| Front Load Maximum: | 3.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.25% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.93% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 1.00% |
| Share Class: | NYLI Growth Allocation Class I |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
