Researching Funds Through the Internet

Step 1: Where Can I Get Free Fund Data Online?

The Internet was built for speed, whether accessing or updating information. That makes it tailor-made for mutual fund investors.

When comparing mutual funds from different families, a website that storehouses and updates information for all funds makes the comparisons quick and comprehensive. These independent sites also offer many more analysis tools and data than the individual fund sites, which are primarily focused on the information found in the fund prospectus and annual report—and they are all free.

Three broad-based, free online mutual fund analysis sites, along with their Web addresses, are found in the box below.

These sites offer extensive performance statistics, usually at minimum year-to-date, one-year, three-year, and five-year returns. Some quote year-by-year returns in addition and also returns for benchmarks, such as category and index comparisons. Summary return statistics are also readily available from other sources, including the funds themselves.

Table 1 provides data checkpoints that mutual fund investors should examine when evaluating funds. These are checkpoints that are important to your mutual fund selection and the management of your portfolio, and they are not easily found or even available from other sources.

The table does not go into detail concerning return data because of its wide availability and since all these sites provide adequate return information. The table instead focuses on fund analysis beyond return numbers.

Table 1 includes data checkpoints for all funds, plus additional checkpoints for international stock funds and bond funds. The additional data checkpoints for international stocks include country and regional breakdowns, important considerations for international investors. Additional data checkpoints for bond funds include information specific to bond funds, such as average credit rating, average maturity, and average yield.

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