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Average funds versus average dollars: Implications for mutual fund research

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  • Clifford, Christopher P.
  • Jordan, Bradford D.
  • Riley, Timothy B.

Abstract

The top 5% of actively managed U.S. equity mutual funds in 2012 had greater aggregate TNA than the remaining 95% of funds combined. This skewness in size has implications for mutual fund research: What is true of the average fund is not necessarily true of the average dollar. We explore several key findings in the literature with an eye on this distinction. Our results indicate that if the goal of mutual fund research is to understand the importance of the industry to investors, then researchers should consider the experience of the average dollar, rather than the average fund.

Suggested Citation

  • Clifford, Christopher P. & Jordan, Bradford D. & Riley, Timothy B., 2014. "Average funds versus average dollars: Implications for mutual fund research," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 249-260.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:empfin:v:28:y:2014:i:c:p:249-260
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jempfin.2014.07.005
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Joseph Chen & Harrison Hong & Ming Huang & Jeffrey D. Kubik, 2004. "Does Fund Size Erode Mutual Fund Performance? The Role of Liquidity and Organization," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(5), pages 1276-1302, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jun Kyung Auh & Jennie Bai, 2020. "Cross-Asset Information Synergy in Mutual Fund Families," NBER Working Papers 26626, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Kim, Jae H. & Ji, Philip Inyeob, 2015. "Significance testing in empirical finance: A critical review and assessment," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 1-14.
    3. Fulkerson, Jon A. & Riley, Timothy B., 2019. "Portfolio concentration and mutual fund performance," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1-16.
    4. Alexander Schiller & René-Ojas Woltering & Steffen Sebastian, 2020. "Is the flow-performance relationship really convex? - The impact of data treatment and model specification," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 44(2), pages 300-320, April.
    5. Jiang, George J. & Yuksel, H. Zafer, 2017. "What drives the “Smart-Money” effect? Evidence from investors’ money flow to mutual fund classes," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 39-58.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Mutual funds; Flow convexity; Smart money;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G23 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Non-bank Financial Institutions; Financial Instruments; Institutional Investors

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