Mutual Fund Trading Rules (2024)

Investing in mutual funds isn't difficult, but it isn't quite the same as investing in exchange traded funds (ETFs) or stocks. Because of their unique structure, there are certain aspects of trading mutual funds that may not be intuitive for the first-time investor. Notably, many mutual funds impose limits or fines on certain types of trading activity, due to past abuses.

Key Takeaways

  • Mutual funds can be bought and sold directly from the company that manages them, from an online discount broker, or from a full-service broker.
  • Information you need to choose a fund is online at the financial company websites, online broker sites, and financial news websites.
  • Pay particular attention to the fees and expenses charged, which can drain your earnings.

A basic understanding of the ins and outs of mutual fund trading can help you navigate the process smoothly and get the most out of your investment in mutual funds.

How to Buy Mutual Fund Shares

Mutual funds are not traded freely on the open market as stocks and ETFs are. Nevertheless, they are easy to purchase directly from the financial company that manages the fund. They also can be purchased through any online discount brokerage or a full-service broker.

Many funds require a minimum contribution, often between $1,000 and $10,000. Some are higher, and not all funds set any minimum.

You also may notice that some mutual funds are closed to new investors. The more popular funds attract so much investor money that they get unwieldy, and the company that manages them makes the decision to stop enrolling new investors.

Doing Your Research

Before you make a decision, you'll want to do your research to find the fund or funds that you want to invest in. There are thousands of them, so there's plenty of choice out there.

These have a wide range to appeal to the many types of investors, from "conservative" funds that invest only in blue-chip stocks to "aggressive" and even speculative funds that take big risks in hopes of big gains. There are funds that specialize in particular industries and in certain regions of the world.

There also are many choices beyond stocks. Don't forget bond funds, which promise steady payments of interest and low risk.

Keep in mind that most funds don't put all their eggs in one basket. A percentage of the fund may be reserved for investments that balance the portfolio.

Read about Investopedia's 10 Rules of Investing by picking up a copy of our special issue print edition.

Best Sources of Information

Your first stop should be the website of the company that manages the fund. Companies like Vanguard and Fidelity provide a wealth of information on every fund they manage, including a description of the fund's goals and strategy, a chart showing its quarterly returns to date, a list of its top stock holdings, and a pie chart of its overall composition. All expenses and fees also will be listed.

A further search of financial news websites can get you insight into the fund and its competitors from analysts and commentators. If you use an online broker, you'll find additional information on its site, including risk ratings and analyst recommendations.

If it is an indexed fund, check its historical tracking error. That is, how often does it beat, match, or miss the benchmark that it aims to outperform?

As with any investment, you need to know what you're getting into.

When to Buy and Sell

You can only purchase mutual fund shares at the end of the trading day.

Unlike exchange-traded securities, mutual fund share prices do not fluctuate throughout the day. Instead, the fund calculates the total assets in its portfolio, called the net asset value (NAV), after the market closes at 4 p.m. Eastern Time each business day. Mutual funds typically post their latest NAVs by 6 p.m.

If you want to buy shares, your order will be fulfilled after the day's NAV has been calculated. If you want to invest $1,000, for example, you can place your order any time after the previous day's close, but you won't know how much you'll pay per share until the day's NAV is posted. If the day's NAV is $50, then your $1,000 investment will buy 20 shares.

Mutual funds typically allow investors to purchase fractional shares. If the NAV in the above example is $51, your $1,000 will buy 19.6 shares.

About Fees

Mutual funds carry annual expense ratios equal to a percentage of your investment, and a number of other fees may be charged.

Some mutual funds charge load fees, which are essentially commission charges. These fees do not go to the fund; they compensate brokers who sell shares in the fund to investors.

Mutual funds are a long-term investment. Selling early or trading frequently triggers fees and penalties.

Not all mutual funds carry upfront load fees, however. Instead of a traditional load fee, some funds charge back-end load fees if you redeem your shares before a certain number of years have elapsed. This is sometimes called a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC).

Mutual funds may also charge purchase fees (at the time of investment) or redemption fees (when you sell shares back to the fund), which go to defray costs incurred by the fund.

Most funds also charge 12b-1 fees, which go towards marketing and advertising the fund. Many funds offer different classes of shares, called A, B or C shares, which differ in their fee and expense structures.

Trade and Settlement Dates

The date when you place your order to purchase or sell shares is called the trade date. However, the transaction is not finalized, or settled, until a couple of days have elapsed.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires mutual fund transactions to settle within two business days of the trade date. If you place an order to buy shares on a Friday, for example, the fund is required to settle your order by Tuesday, since trades cannot be settled over the weekend.

Ex-Dividend and Report Dates

If you are investing in a mutual fund that pays dividends but you want to limit your tax liability, find out when shareholders are eligible for dividend payments. Any dividend distributions you receive increase your taxable income for the year, so if generating dividend income is not your primary goal, don't buy shares in a fund that is about to issue a dividend distribution.

The ex-dividend date is the last date when new shareholders can be eligible for an upcoming dividend. Because of the settlement period, the ex-dividend date is typically three days prior to the report date, which is the day that the fund reviews its list of shareholders who will receive the distribution.

If you want to receive an upcoming dividend payment, purchase shares prior to the ex-dividend date to ensure your name is listed as a shareholder on the date of record.

On the other hand, if you want to avoid the tax impact of dividend distribution, delay your purchase until after the date of record.

Selling Mutual Fund Shares

Just like your original purchase, you sell mutual fund shares directly through the fund company or through an authorized broker.

The amount that you receive will be equal to the number of shares redeemed multiplied by the current NAV, minus any fees or charges due.

Depending on how long you have held your investment, you may be subject to a CDSC sales charge. If you want to sell your shares very soon after purchasing them, you may get slapped with additional fees for early redemption.

Early Redemption Rules

Stocks and ETFs can be short-term investments, but mutual funds are designed to be long-term investments.

Constant trading of mutual fund shares would have serious implications for the fund's remaining shareholders. When you redeem your mutual fund shares, the fund often has to liquidate assets to cover the redemption, since mutual funds don't keep much cash on hand.

Any time a fund sells an asset at a profit, it triggers a capital gains distribution to all shareholders. That increases their taxable incomes for the year and reduces the value of the fund's portfolio.

This kind of frequent trading activity also causes a fund's administrative and operational costs to rise, increasing its expense ratio.

Not surprisingly, fund companies discourage frequent trading.

To discourage excessive trading and protect the interests of long-term investors, mutual funds keep a close eye on shareholders who sell shares within 30 days of purchase – called round-trip trading – or try to time the market to profit from short-term changes in a fund's NAV.

Mutual funds may charge early redemption fees, or they may bar shareholders who employ this tactic frequently from making trades for a certain number of days.

Mutual Fund Trading Rules (2024)

FAQs

What is the 75 10 5 rule? ›

Diversified management investment companies have assets that fall within the 75-5-10 rule. A 75-5-10 diversified management investment company will have 75% of its assets in other issuers and cash, no more than 5% of assets in any one company, and no more than 10% ownership of any company's outstanding voting stock.

What is the 3 5 7 rule in trading? ›

What is the 3 5 7 rule in trading? A risk management principle known as the “3-5-7” rule in trading advises diversifying one's financial holdings to reduce risk. The 3% rule states that you should never risk more than 3% of your whole trading capital on a single deal.

What are the rules for mutual funds? ›

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires mutual fund transactions to settle within two business days of the trade date. 5 If you place an order to buy shares on a Friday, for example, the fund is required to settle your order by Tuesday, since trades cannot be settled over the weekend.

What is the 3 5 10 rule for mutual funds? ›

Specifically, a fund is prohibited from: acquiring more than 3% of a registered investment company's shares (the “3% Limit”); investing more than 5% of its assets in a single registered investment company (the “5% Limit”); or. investing more than 10% of its assets in registered investment companies (the “10% Limit”).

What is the 5/25 rule for mutual funds? ›

Let's start with the 25:1 and 50:5 rule, a sort of “bright line test” with two simple guidelines: One issuer cannot contribute more than 25% of the portfolio's fair market value. Five or fewer issuers cannot contribute more than 50% of its fair market value.

What is the 25% diversification rule for mutual funds? ›

The 20/25 rule for mutual funds is a simple and effective way to diversify your portfolio and reduce your risk. It states that you should invest in no more than 20 mutual funds and no more than 25% of your portfolio in any one fund.

What is the 80% rule in trading? ›

The Rule. If, after trading outside the Value Area, we then trade back into the Value Area (VA) and the market closes inside the VA in one of the 30 minute brackets then there is an 80% chance that the market will trade back to the other side of the VA.

What is 90% rule in trading? ›

The 90 rule in Forex is a commonly cited statistic that states that 90% of Forex traders lose 90% of their money in the first 90 days. This is a sobering statistic, but it is important to understand why it is true and how to avoid falling into the same trap.

What is No 1 rule of trading? ›

Rule 1: Always Use a Trading Plan

You need a trading plan because it can assist you with making coherent trading decisions and define the boundaries of your optimal trade. A decent trading plan will assist you with avoiding making passionate decisions without giving it much thought.

What is the 80 20 rule in mutual funds? ›

In investing, the 80-20 rule generally holds that 20% of the holdings in a portfolio are responsible for 80% of the portfolio's growth. On the flip side, 20% of a portfolio's holdings could be responsible for 80% of its losses.

What is the 80% rule for mutual funds? ›

Under the final amendments, when a fund employs a derivatives strategy, the fund will generally be required to use the notional value to determine if 80% of its funds are invested in accordance with the focus its name suggests.

What is the rule of 70 in mutual funds? ›

The rule of 70 is used to determine the number of years it takes for a variable to double by dividing the number 70 by the variable's growth rate. The rule of 70 is generally used to determine how long it would take for an investment to double given the annual rate of return.

What is 15 15 30 rule in mutual funds? ›

15 X 15 X 30 rule of mutual funds

If u do a 15,000 Rs. SIP per month for 30 years (instead of 15 years as earlier), at a 15% compounded annual return, You will be able to accumulate 10 CRORE against 1 crore if u invest for 15 years), said Balwant Jain.

What if I invest $1,000 a month in mutual funds for 20 years? ›

If you invest Rs 1000 for 20 years , if we assume 12 % return , you would get Approx Rs 9.2 lakhs. Invested amount Rs 2.4 Lakh.

What if I invest $10,000 every month in mutual funds? ›

How much Return Rs.10000 would create in 30 Years. If you invest Rs.10000 per month through SIP for 30 years at a annual expected rate of return of 11%, then you will receive Rs.2,83,02,278 at maturity.

How is the 80 10 10 rule divided? ›

When following the 10-10-80 rule, you take your income and divide it into three parts: 10% goes into your savings, and the other 10% is given away, either as charitable donations or to help others. The remaining 80% is yours to live on, and you can spend it on bills, groceries, Netflix subscriptions, etc.

What is the 75 15 10 rule money? ›

In his free webinar last week, Market Briefs CEO Jaspreet Singh alerted me to a variation: the popular 75-15-10 rule. Singh called it leading your money. This iteration calls for you to put 75% of after-tax income to daily expenses, 15% to investing and 10% to savings.

What is Rule of 72 10%? ›

For example, the Rule of 72 states that $1 invested at an annual fixed interest rate of 10% would take 7.2 years ((72 ÷ 10) = 7.2) to grow to $2. In reality, a 10% investment will take 7.3 years to double (1.107.3 = 2). The Rule of 72 is reasonably accurate for low rates of return.

What is the 90 10 rule for spending? ›

The 90/10 strategy calls for allocating 90% of your investment capital to low-cost S&P 500 index funds and the remaining 10% to short-term government bonds. Warren Buffett described the strategy in a 2013 letter to his company's shareholders.

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