Data Analysis of a Mutual Fund

The aim of this paper is to analyze the performance of a mutual fund by applying statistical tools and secondary research on the previous ten years’ annual returns of the fund and coming up with a conclusion based on the results of the findings. Analysis of the previous ten years’ annual returns will be used to analyze the risk and return of the mutual fund and propose suitable conclusions pertaining to future investments in the mutual funds.

The mutual fund under consideration has not displayed a consistent upward or downward trend. It seems that market forces and the external environment have played a great role in influencing the returns of the mutual fund. The annual returns of the mutual fund for the past ten years are as follows:

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

19.99% 26.68% 16.72% 24.58% 4.27% -9.55% -17.34% 31.96% 13.91% 11.68%

The above graph displays the general trend for the annual returns of the mutual fund for the ten years starting 1996. There was a general positive return except for the years 2001 and 2002. The negative return in these two years can be attributed