Stocks this week whipsawed as technology stocks posted their worst day since 2022.

Earnings have been mixed so far this season with plenty of profit warnings and poor guidance. This included poor reports by Google, Visa and Tesla on the week, The Crowdstrike outage continues to have a ripple effect on market and business as well. Adding to the pressures was election news as President Biden formally withdrew from the race. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve’s favorite measure of inflation, the Core PCE Index, clocked in slightly higher than expected. While the central bank is still predicted to cut rates in September, it was a reminder that we weren’t out of the woods just yet. A bullish and strong GDP report also helped trim gains heading into the weekend.

Next week, all eyes will be on the Federal Reserve. The central bank will make its formal interest rate decision. The bank is expected to keep rates at 5.5%, with FedWatch tools showing the central bank will choose to cut at its September meeting. However, anything is possible and if it does cut, it could be off to the races for the broader market. The JOLTS report is expected to remain strong, with the number of available jobs still over 8 million. Consumer confidence figures are expected to slip a tab, but represent a bullish consumer picture. Investors will also tune into the rest of earnings season for guidance and clues. So far, results have been mixed, with many firms starting to report less-than-expected figures as well as disappointing outlooks. Next week, earnings reports from McDonald’s, Microsoft, and Starbucks are on the docket.

Given this economic backdrop, let us see how this impacts the performance of various investment strategies.

Overall, for the rolling month markets were down, especially the technology sector.

Real estate, regional banking and small cap strategies outperformed others over the rolling month. Meanwhile, growth focussed strategies, especially technology, continued to be in the red.

U.S Equity Strategies

Among U.S. equities, several small cap strategies posted solid performances for the rolling month, while large cap strategies struggled.

Winning

• iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC), up 14.2%
• Bridgeway Omni Small-Cap Value Fund (BOSVX), up 13.34%
• Goldman Sachs Small Cap Value Insights Fund (GSATX), up 12.83%
• iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN), up 12.31%

Losing

• iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG), down -4.05%
• Invesco Dynamic Large Cap Growth ETF (PWB), down -4.44%
• BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Growth Fund (BMCKX), down -11.26%
• Allspring Omega Growth Fund (EKOCX), down -33.18%

Dividend Strategies

Several dividend growth and sector-specific strategies continued to rally over the rolling month.

Winning

• ProShares Russell 2000 Dividend Growers ETF (SMDV), up 14.77%
• WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Dividend Fund (DES), up 11.99%
• Principal Small-MidCap Dividend Income Fund (PMDIX), up 5.83%
• Federated Hermes Strategic Value Dividend Fund (SVAIX), up 5.72%

Losing

• O’Shares U.S. Quality Dividend ETF (OUSA), down -0.2%
• WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Fund (DGRW), down -0.33%
• Fidelity Advisor® Dividend Growth Fund (FDGTX), down -2.85%
• Fidelity® Dividend Growth Fund (FDGFX), down -2.9%

U.S. Fixed Income Strategies

In US fixed income, convertible and high income strategies performed better than others.

Winning

• Franklin High Income Fund (FHAIX), up 1.74%
• iShares Convertible Bond ETF (ICVT), up 1.38%
• Principal High Income Fund (PYHIX), up 1.34%
• ProShares Short 20+ Year Treasury (TBF), up 1.24%

Losing

• PIMCO 15+ Year U.S. TIPS Index Exchange-Traded Fund (LTPZ), down -2%
• iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT), down -2.36%
• PIMCO Extended Duration Fund (PEDPX), down -3.78%
• Vanguard Extended Duration Treasury Index Fund (VEDIX), down -4.69%

Foreign Equity Strategies

Among foreign equities, small cap equity strategies rallied, while Chinese equity strategies continued to struggle.

Winning

• Virtus KAR International Small-Cap Fund (VCISX), up 3.23%
• Fidelity® International Small Cap Opportunities Fund (FIQJX), up 2.8%
• iShares MSCI Saudi Arabia ETF (KSA), up 2.71%
• iShares MSCI Canada ETF (EWC), up 2.65%

Losing

• SPDR® S&P China ETF (GXC), down -4.42%
• iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI), down -4.68%
• PGIM Jennison International Opportunities Fund (PWJQX), down -5.77%
• Artisan Developing World Fund (APHYX), down -7.14%

Foreign Fixed Income Strategies

Majority of the foreign market debt strategies were slightly up over the rolling month.

Winning

• Ashmore Emerging Markets Total Return Fund (EMKIX), up 1.87%
• iShares International Treasury Bond ETF (IGOV), up 1.72%
• T. Rowe Price International Bond Fund (PAIBX), up 1.47%
• SPDR® Bloomberg Barclays International Treasury Bond ETF (BWX), up 1.25%
• VanEck Emerging Markets High Yield Bond ETF (HYEM), up 0.21%
• Payden Emerging Markets Bond Fund (PYEIX), up 0.1%
• Vanguard Emerging Markets Bond Fund (VEMBX), flat 0%

Losing

• iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF (EMB), down -0.17%

Alternatives

Among alternatives, low volatility and gold strategies remained the top performers over the rolling month, while managed futures strategies struggled.

Winning

• Invesco S&P SmallCap Low Volatility ETF (XSLV), up 10.26%
• Fidelity® Select Gold Portfolio (FSAGX), up 7.85%
• Invesco S&P MidCap Low Volatility ETF (XMLV), up 4.94%
• PIMCO RAE Worldwide Long/Short PLUS Fund (PWLBX), up 3.47%

Losing

• First Trust Global Tactical Commodity Strategy Fund (FTGC), down -4.03%
• iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Eurozone ETF (HEZU), down -4.17%
• Credit Suisse Commodity Return Strategy Fund (CRSAX), down -4.98%
• AQR Managed Futures Strategy Fund (AQMIX), down -7.51%

Sectors

Among the sectors and industries, real estate and regional banking strategies were the top performers, while semiconductor strategies struggled.

Winning

• iShares Mortgage Real Estate Capped ETF (REM), up 50%
• SPDR® S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE), up 24.06%
• John Hancock Regional Bank Fund (FRBAX), up 23.51%
• Eventide Healthcare & Life Sciences Fund (ETAHX), up 10.46%

Losing

• VanEck Vectors Semiconductor ETF (SMH), down -9.63%
• Invesco Dynamic Semiconductors ETF (PSI), down -9.87%
• Fidelity® Select Semiconductors Portfolio (FSELX), down -10.06%
• Fidelity Advisor® Semiconductors Fund (FIKGX), down -10.3%

Every week, MutualFunds.com provides a snapshot of the performance of some key mutual funds and ETFs to highlight the trending investment strategies across different sectors, geographic regions, asset classes and themes. MutualFunds.com uses a proprietary system to scan through thousands of relevant mutual funds and ETFs. Fund performance data is calculated for the trailing one month, based on the change in NAV.


Here is a summary of the different strategies covered in this article:

• U.S. equity strategies typically cover different equity investing styles (growth/value/blend) and market capitalizations (small/mid/large).
• Dividend strategies focus on generating income via different equity routes (high yield/dividend growth/foreign dividend/quality dividend)
• U.S. fixed income strategies focus on debt securities issued by U.S. entities and can cover different types of debt (corporate/municipal/high-yield/investment-grade/government/asset-backed) and maturity profiles (short/medium/long).
• Foreign equity strategies cover equity strategies applied to non-U.S. markets based on the level of economic growth (emerging/developed), regions (Asia/Europe/Africa), and market capitalizations (small/mid/large).
• Foreign fixed-income strategies focus on debt securities issued outside the U.S. markets and can cover different regions (Asia/Europe/Africa) and regions based on the level of economic development (emerging/developed).
• Alternative strategies cover non-traditional investments (currencies, hedge funds strategies, derivatives, volatility-based), real estate, and commodities.
• Sector strategies cover dedicated exposure to various sectors of the U.S. economy including technology, healthcare, financial, and industrial among others.