5 Strong Buy Large Cap Growth Mutual Funds - Mutual Fund Commentary

When capital appreciation over the long term takes precedence over dividend payouts, growth funds become a natural choice for investors. These funds focus on realizing an appreciable amount of capital growth by investing in stocks of firms whose value is projected to rise over the long term. However, a relatively higher tolerance to risk and the willingness to park funds for the longer term are necessary when investing in these securities. This is because they may experience relatively more fluctuations than other fund classes.

Below we will share with you 5 top rated large cap growth mutual funds. Each has earned a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) as we expect these mutual funds to outperform their peers in the future. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all large cap growth funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

Columbia Large Growth Quantitative A (RDLAX) seeks capital appreciation over the long run. It invests a lion's share of its assets in large cap companies having market capitalizations similar to those included in the Russell 1000 Growth Index. It generally considers those firms whose market capitalizations are higher than $5 billion. The large cap growth mutual fund returned 30.4% in the last one year.

The fund has an expense ratio of 1.22% as compared to category average of 1.20%.

Hennessy Cornerstone Large Growth Investor (HFLGX) invests in large cap companies having impressive growth potential using a quantitative formula, called the Cornerstone Large Growth Formula. The formula does not consider ADRs. The fund invests equal shares of its assets in 50 companies suggested by the formula. The large cap growth mutual fund returned 28.5% in the last one year.

Neil J. Hennessy is the fund manager and has managed this fund since 2009.

Fidelity Large Cap Growth Enhanced Index (FLGEX) seeks long term capital growth. It invests a majority of its assets in large cap companies listed in the Russell 1000 Growth Index throughout the world. It utilizes quantitative analysis of factors such as growth prospect, valuation and profitability to select firms that may provide return, higher than the index. The large cap growth mutual fund returned 27.7% in the last one year.

As of July 2014, this fund held 178 issues with 6.1% of its assets invested in Apple Inc.

Bridgeway Large-Cap Growth (BRLGX) seeks total return with capital growth. It invests a major portion of its assets in large cap companies having strong growth prospects and which are traded in the U.S. Advisors select stocks on the basis of statistical analysis. The large cap growth mutual fund returned 28.4% in the last one year.

The fund has an expense ratio of 0.84% as compared to category average of 1.20%.

Walden Equity (WSEFX) invests largely in equities of U.S. companies. It invests in large cap companies but may also invest, in a lesser extent, in small and mid cap firms. The fund follows the guidelines of environmental, social and governance (ESG) for constructing its portfolio. The large cap growth mutual fund returned 19.2% in the last one year.

William H. Apfel is the fund manager and has managed this fund since 2010.

To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all large cap growth mutual funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

About Zacks Mutual Fund Rank

By applying the Zacks Rank to mutual funds, investors can find funds that not only outpaced the market in the past but are also expected to outperform going forward. Learn more about the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank in our Mutual Fund Center.