Fund performance

Large-cap funds are generally defined as those that invest in companies with over $10 billion in market capitalization and are often considered safer than small-cap funds.

Funds devoted to modern technology, especially semiconductors, yielded by far the highest returns from fall 2013 to fall 2023.

Researchers found that relatively older mutual fund managers obtained half a percentage point higher annual returns than their relatively young counterparts.

A brutal 2022 for fixed income, the worst year in many decades, took some shine off the decade-long track record of these exchange-traded bond funds.

Not only do the 20 funds in this ranking outperform broader markets, it may be "where investors will excel going forward," according to one expert.

Outsized returns over the long- and- short-term planning horizons come with some caveats.

Deep value managers appear poised to outperform as the country sheds challenges posed by the pandemic, writes Spencer Logan.

"The successful long-term players have the long-term tech driven trends right, and COVID just accelerated and magnified the trends," an expert says.

The long-term leaders carry fees more than twice the broader industry.

Despite long-term outperformance, many of the leading 20 have suffered short-term losses.

“Some assets are cheap for a reason,” an expert says.

Home to more than $3 trillion, outperformance among the leaders comes with some caveats.

Aside from their rock-bottom fees, those with the largest gains have at least one commonality: asset allocation.

The lineup of exclusively short-duration fixed-income products, taxable and municipal, still managed an overall gain.

Investors betting on a post-pandemic world are sending cash to riskier companies acutely sensitive to the economic cycle.

The top 20 performers nearly doubled the gains of their peers over the period.

Investors are pouring money into U.S. listed products as stocks continue to reach all-time highs and the economic recovery heats up.

The 20 mutual funds in this ranking outpaced broader markets over the past year with an average gain of more than 68%.

Everything from corporate earnings and inflation expectations to valuation gaps suggest the market rotation has only just begun.

The 20 funds in this ranking shed more than $793 billion over the period.