Tracking mutual fund performance

Objective parameters

The NAV of the scheme will reflect the performance of the scheme. The fund will also give you returns for various periods such as one month, three months, six months, one year, three years, since inception, etc. This will give you an idea about the performance of the fund. Funds also provide comparison with relevant benchmarks. This should tell you whether the fund manager has performed better than the benchmark. However, financial experts believe that these returns do not give the complete picture. They believe that the return should be risk-adjusted. Various publications and Internet sites provide such returns.

Subjective parameters

The performance alone does not make a fund house a winner. Equally important is the service standards and transparency in actions. It is also essential that the fund offer speedy solutions to grievances of investors. The reputation of the fund house among its investors and public at large indicates how well the fund scores on this front.

Information sources

Every financial daily offers daily NAV of all mutual fund schemes. Magazines also come out with annual survey of mutual funds. There are even magazines dedicated entirely towards mutual fund industry. Internet is also a great place for information. There are dedicated sites as well as financial sites, which offer information on mutual funds. Some of the good sites are www.mutualfundsindia.com and www.valueresearchindia.com .

Resolving grievances

Mutual funds are regulated by SEBI. Therefore, an investor always has the recourse to approach the watchdog. Various investor forums also take up the case of individual investors. You can also turn to judiciary as a last resort.