8.3 in Mid-Cap Value
U.S. News evaluated 120 Mid-Cap Value Funds. Our list highlights the top-rated funds for long-term investors based on the ratings of leading fund industry researchers.
| Scorecard | |
|---|---|
| Morningstar | 5 / 5 Stars |
| Lipper | 5 5 5 3 1 |
| Zacks Investment Research | 3 (Hold) |
| Standard & Poor's | 4 / 5 Stars |
| TheStreet.com | A+ (Buy) |
Fund Overview
Artisan Mid Cap Value is looking to rebound following a middling year.
As of April 04, 2012, the fund has assets totaling almost $7.96 billion invested in 58 different holdings. Its portfolio consists primarily of shares of midsized companies.
For this fund, 2010 was a slow year. Its 14 percent return was solid on an absolute basis, but on a relative basis, it landed the fund 7 percentage points behind the average for Morningstar's mid-cap value category. That was only the second time since the fund's launch that it underperformed its peer group average. Management attributes its lackluster 2010 to some mediocre performance from its industrials and consumer discretionary holdings, including Cintas Corporation and H&R Block. While management doesn't do a ton of trading, the fund shuffled its portfolio a bit between the last quarter of 2009 and the end of 2010. One new name is Applied Materials, which has had a stellar start to 2011. Towers Watson & Co., another newcomer to the portfolio, also opened 2011 on an encouraging note. The fund has returned 5.59 percent over the past year and 26.22 percent over the past three years.
Over time, this fund's focus on value has served it well. Notably, management's strategy of picking companies that have solid business models and are trading at a discount has handsomely rewarded investors. Says Morningstar: "Management targets out-of-favor areas, and the fund may experience periods of discomfort before its ideas pan out." More often than not, though, they've panned out, and that is reflected in the fund's longer-term numbers. The fund has returned 5.42 percent over the past five years.
| Trailing Returns | Updated 03.31.2012 |
|---|---|
| Year to date | 9.4% |
| 1 Year | 5.6% |
| 3 Years (Annualized) | 26.2% |
| 5 Years (Annualized) | 5.4% |
| 10 Years (Annualized) | 10.9% |
Investment Strategy
According to the fund's prospectus: "Artisan employs a bottom-up investment process to construct a diversified portfolio of stocks of medium-sized U.S. companies that Artisan believes are undervalued, in solid financial condition and have attractive business economics. Artisan believes companies with these characteristics are less likely to experience eroding values over the long term."
Role in Portfolio
Morningstar calls the fund a "supporting player."
Fund Opinion
There is a lot to like about this fund. [Fund Managers] Satterwhite, Kieffer, and Sertl are completely focused on their discipline, have put up very good numbers, are shareholder-oriented, and appear to genuinely enjoy their work. ... We believe they will continue to beat the benchmark and think their edge is based on the combination of the team's long-term orientation, their focus on risk and conservatism, strict adherence to their investment discipline, and virtually no non-investment distractions.
Litman Gregory 2010-06-30
The fund's Value Line Overall Rank, a measure of risk-adjusted performance and relative growth in fund returns, is 1 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the best and 5 the worst.
Value Line 2012-03-09
Management
A team of three managers runs the fund.
Performance
The fund has returned 5.59 percent over the past year, 26.22 percent over the past three years, and 5.42 percent over the past five years.
Hypothetical Growth of $10,000
Updated 03.31.2012
The fund's Value Line Growth Persistence rank, which awards funds that consistently outperform their broad universes, is 2 for one year, 1 for five years, and 1 for 10 years. Scores are on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being the best and 5 the worst.
Value Line 2012-03-09
Holdings
The fund provides fairly diversified exposure to mid-sized companies.
Asset Allocation
| % Long | % Net | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash | 5.53 | 5.53 |
| Stocks | 90.77 | 90.77 |
| Bonds | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Other | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Foreign Bonds | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Foreign Stocks | 3.7 | 3.7 |
| Convertible | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Preferred | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Updated 12.31.2011
Top Holdings
Performance as of 03.31.2012
Portfolio as of 12.31.2011
| Ticker | YTD Return % | % Net Assets | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avnet Inc | AVT | 16.79 | 2.8 |
| Arrow Electronics Inc | ARW | 12.38 | 2.64 |
| Progressive Corporation | PGR | 21.51 | 2.54 |
| Cimarex Energy Company | XEC | 22.62 | 2.53 |
| Ingram Micro, Inc. | IM | 2.36 | 2.51 |
Fees
Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund has an expense ratio of 1.20 percent.
Risk
Like all stock funds, this one comes with some risks.
The fund's Value Line Risk Rank, a measure of volatility, is 3 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the least volatile and 5 the most.
Value Line 2012-03-09
