An index mutual fund attempts to replicate the performance of an index. This can be any index, such as the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:S&P 500, the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Nasdaq 100 and so forth. These funds buy the same stocks that are in the index and weight them the same way the index does. 

These types of index funds are very popular because they tend to perform better than 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:actively managed funds. Fund managers simply have a hard time beating the market consistently. A manager's picks may outperform an index one year, then fail to keep up with it the next. In addition, index mutual funds have lower costs because they don't buy and sell securities 𝕴as often as an actively managed fund does.

So how do you find these funds?

Top Places to Search

Two easy-to-use sources for finding 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:index funds are and . The best way to access information on index funds from Fidelity is to go to their website and enter "Index Funds" in the search box. This will take you to a listing of their index funds. By cli🧸cking on a fund name, you will bring up a screen with a list of data links that provide a very comprehensive picture of a fund's ♚investment features.

The same approach is recommended for Vanguard, which is generally considered to be the leading fund company in the index field. On the home page, click on Personal Investors, then Vanguard mutual funds and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and then Index Funds Only to get their complete listing. Like Fidelity,🅠 the information on individual funds is very detailed๊ and informative.

If you have a premium membership with 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Morningstar, you can access its index fund listing and then go straight to a Morningstar fund report to get its complete, objective analy⭕sis of an index fund's investment qualities.

Picking a Winning Index Mutual Fund

Choosing an index fund is easier than choosing an actively managed one. You need to measure how well the fund has performed against its 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:benchmark index. Simply compare a chart of the index to that of the fund. If a fund failed to match the index, cross it off your list. Of the ones remaining, look at expenses. It should not cost much to manage an index fund, because the manager is passive. The manager buys or sells according to how the index gets adjuste⛦d. Such adjustments do not happen frequently. So compare expenses. All other things being equal, the one with the lowest cost is a good choice. Make sure you are comparing funds that track the same index. 

The Bottom Line

Index mutual funds can be a solid, fairly predictable investment. Your fund will drop in value when the underlying index does, but it will recover when the index fund does as well. This is a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:buy and hold investment. There is little point to jumping in and out of꧒ an index fund, because you are very unlikelඣy to beat the index this way.