Stocks started last week off on a cautious note.

A combination of geopolitical events and news from the Federal Reserve weighed on gains, creating a choppy market. Tensions in the Middle East continued to escalate, pushing oil prices up and stocks lower. Investors were also worried about key port strikes, which threatened to disrupt supply chains. A speech from the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell cast some doubt on the central bank’s policy path, with Powell saying the bank will need to digest data before committing to more large rate cuts. Jobs data also painted a good picture of the economy, with the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) beating estimates and moving above 8 million after several weeks below. Additionally, non-farm payrolls surged, nearly doubling estimates. Investors seemed pleased sending stocks higher at the end of the week. The resolution of the port strike was the icing on the cake.

Next week investors will once again get a window into the thinking of the Federal Reserve with the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes. After the Federal Reserve’s larger-than-expected first rate cut, investors will be interested in seeing what the central bank is planning. Several governors dissented during the meeting, with the minutes expected to reveal the reasons behind their thinking. As always, investors will be looking for clues for the central bank’s next moves. Following the FOMC minutes, inflation data will be released, which may impact Federal Reserve policy. The CPI slowed for a fifth consecutive month to 2.5% in August 2024. This could give the Federal Reserve more firepower to cut rates once again. By the end of the week, investors will get key consumer data via the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment report, which is expected to rise slightly to 70.4.

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

Overall, for the rolling month, the broader markets were up.

Chinese equity and gold strategies posted some of the best performances over the rolling month.

U.S Equity Strategies

Among U.S. equities, several growth strategies posted solid gains for the rolling month, while value strategies struggled.

Winning

• The Hartford Growth Opportunities Fund (HGOCX), up 321.4%
• First Trust US Equity Opportunities ETF (FPX), up 9.04%
• Alger Focus Equity Fund (ALZFX), up 8.38%
• iShares Russell Mid-Cap Growth ETF (IWP), up 5.52%
• Dimensional U.S. Targeted Value ETF (DFAT), up 0.52%
• iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN), up 0.42%

Losing

• Fidelity® Series Small Cap Opportunities Fund (FSOPX), down -4.4%
• Fidelity ® Small Cap Value Fund (FCVCX), down -4.82%

Dividend Strategies

Asian dividend strategies continued to stay ahead of other dividend strategies for the rolling month.

Winning

• Matthews Asia Dividend Fund (MIPIX), up 8.77%
• Fidelity Advisor® Dividend Growth Fund (FDGTX), up 4.96%
• Invesco BuyBack Achievers ETF (PKW), up 2.91%
• WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Fund (DON), up 2.82%

Losing

• DWS CROCI Equity Dividend Fd (KDHSX), down -0.61%
• ProShares Russell 2000 Dividend Growers ETF (SMDV), down -1.34%
• Invesco S&P Ultra Dividend Revenue ETF (RDIV), down -1.46%
• Fidelity® Dividend Growth Fund (FDGFX), down -1.56%

U.S. Fixed Income Strategies

In US fixed income, convertible and high-yield bond plays posted modest gains.

Winning

• iShares Convertible Bond ETF (ICVT), up 3.98%
• Ivy High Income Fund (WHIAX), up 2.47%
• Delaware Ivy High Income Fund (IVHIX), up 2.47%
• Invesco CEF Income Composite ETF (PCEF), up 2.19%

Losing

• iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT), down -0.09%
• ProShares Short 20+ Year Treasury (TBF), down -0.72%
• DFA Two Year Global Fixed Income Portfolio (DFGFX), down -1.8%
• Nuveen Short Duration High Yield Municipal Bond Fund (NVHAX), down -2.11%

Foreign Equity Strategies

Among foreign equities, Chinese equity strategies rebounded and posted solid gains, while European strategies struggled.

Winning

• WisdomTree China ex-State-Owned Enterprises Fund (CXSE), up 42.63%
• iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI), up 36.66%
• Fidelity® China Region Fund (FHKCX), up 21.87%
• Fidelity® Emerging Asia Fund (FSEAX), up 20.15%

Losing

• iShares MSCI Saudi Arabia ETF (KSA), down -0.57%
• Pear Tree Polaris Foreign Value Small Cap Fund (QUSIX), down -0.6%
• iShares MSCI Switzerland ETF (EWL), down -0.98%
• Fidelity® Europe Fund (FHJUX), down -1.06%

Foreign Fixed Income Strategies

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

Winning

• Ashmore Emerging Markets Total Return Fund (EMKIX), up 2.8%
• PIMCO Emerging Markets Local Currency and Bond Fund (PELPX), up 2.73%
• SPDR® Bloomberg Barclays Emerging Markets Local Bond ETF (EBND), up 2.58%
• VanEck J.P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF (EMLC), up 2.4%
• iShares International Treasury Bond ETF (IGOV), up 1.12%
• SPDR® Bloomberg Barclays International Treasury Bond ETF (BWX), up 1.05%
• Eaton Vance Emerging Markets Debt Opportunities Fund (EIDOX), up 0.77%

Losing

• DFA World ex U.S. Government Fixed Income Portfolio (DWFIX), down -0.58%

Alternatives

Among alternatives, several commodities posted gains over the rolling month.

Winning

• Aberdeen Standard Bloomberg All Commodity Strategy K-1 Free ETF (BCI), up 7.49%
• Vanguard Commodity Strategy Fund (VCMDX), up 7.17%
• Credit Suisse Commodity Return Strategy Fund (CRSAX), up 7.02%
• SPDR® S&P Global Natural Resources ETF (GNR), up 6.22%
• Invesco S&P SmallCap Low Volatility ETF (XSLV), up 0.04%
• ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF (MJ), flat 0%

Losing

• PIMCO RAE Worldwide Long/Short PLUS Fund (PWLBX), down -2.4%
• Fidelity® Series Commodity Strategy Fund (FCSSX), down -2.8%

Sectors

Among the sectors and industries, Chinese equity strategies were the top performers while some blue chip and healthcare stocks struggled.

Winning

• KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB), up 50.69%
• Invesco China Technology ETF (CQQQ), up 47.62%
• Invesco Gold & Special Minerals Fund (OPGSX), up 12.29%
• Franklin Gold and Precious Metals Fund (FGPMX), up 9.92%

Losing

• ProShares Short QQQ (PSQ), down -5.44%
• ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (ARKG), down -5.68%
• MassMutual Blue Chip Growth Fund (MBCZX), down -6.46%
• MassMutual Select Blue Chip Growth Fund (MBGFX), down -8.68%

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.