What are the best balanced funds?
Well, the answer depends on your criteria for "best". Is it the one-year return? Five-year return? Volatility? Fees? Management Quality? How much it beat a specific index?
There are dozens of ways to rank top performing balanced funds. In addition, you can break balanced funds into categories like best balanced bond funds, best
balanced stock funds, best balanced real estate funds, or best balanced index funds.
So we've chosen here to simply list the top rated balanced funds by return over five years and regardless of what the balanced mutual fund invests in. Then, we've included links to several great search tools that will allow you to answer this question yourself, no matter how you choose to rank greatness.
Best 5 Year Returns - Top 10 Balanced Stock Mutual Funds
Over five years, these are the best balanced fund returns as ranked by Morningstar on May 31, 2010:
1. Waddell & Reed Asset Strategy A (UNASX) 12.90%
2. Ivy Asset Strategy C (WASCX) 11.24%
3. Permanent Portfolio (PRPFX) 9.20%
4. Hussman Strategic Total Return (HSTRX) 8.12%
5. GMO Benchmark-Free Allocation III (GBMFX) 7.97%
6. First Eagle Global A (SGENX) 7.64%
6. JHancock Balanced A (SVBAX) 7.62%
7. Berwyn Income (BERIX) 7.52%
8. Intrepid Capital (ICMBX) 7.28%
10.Vanguard Convertible Securities (VCVSX) 7.08%