Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

In this Discussion

Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.

    Support MFO

  • Donate through PayPal

DODBX vs RPGAX?

edited April 2021 in Fund Discussions
I own both. Good funds. This is purely hypothetical.

If you were going to sell part or all of one to raise portfolio cash, which is the better one to retain going forward (1-3 years)?

-
In favor of keeping RPGAX: Has 10% in a Blackstone hedge fund that should protect somewhat in a bear market, has solid conservative management at TRP, probably has had a more level performance record since inception (but didn’t exist in 2008).

- In favor of keeping DODBX: Much lower ER (.53% vs .95%), Is more in-tune with the recent shift towards value, bond portion is managed by the same folks that run their excellent DODIX


MaxFunds is of little help. Forecasts a “worst case” (1 year) loss of 60% for RPGAX and a slightly worse 65% loss for DODBX. On the one-year upside potential, they’re rated identically. However, MaxFunds rates RPGAX much more highly overall. This appears largely based on their assessment that DODBX is bloated.


*Note - I don’t think the “global” vs “domestic” issue is worth fretting over here. DODBX typically holds some foreign stocks - more than one might think.

Comments

  • I recently added to RPGAX and don’t own or contemplate buying DODBX, so I am not a neutral observer. I agree with @hank that the “global” label does not make an allocation fund much different from a “domestic” one, although another allocation fund I own, JBALX, owns no international stocks. Not sure about it’s 555 bonds, however.
  • Based on MFO Premium analysis:

    1. RPGAX rated higher than DODBX on lower risk over 1, 3, and 5 years period.
    2. RPGAX has lower maximum drawdown in March 2020, -15.7% versus -21.0%, than that of DODBX. The recovery period is 7 months versus 11 months in favor of RPGAX.
    3. The ulcer index and Martin ratio are higher in RPGAX than those of DODBX.

    If you already own a growth-oriented allocation fund such as PRWCX, pairing it with the DODBX would allow you to capture the recent shift to value stocks.

    Even DODBX's $15B asset is not small, the firm should able to manage it well. BTW, D&C only managed 6 funds.

    If I don't have any balance fund, RPGAX would be a solid choice.
  • edited April 2021
    Thanks @Sven and @BenWP. Very helpful. For now ... I’m staying put. Rearranging the deck chairs wouldn’t accomplish much.:)

  • RPGAX would be my choice. D&C still seems to be slow-moving and late to adapt to changing situations/trends (as they were horribly during the GFC) ..... TRP is more agile, global-oriented, and in my view are the more proactive firm. If I had to buy or keep one, I'd be RPGAX.
  • DODBX can be streaky, partly due to contrarian streak. I think as an all-arounder I'd go with RPGAX. RPGAX, like DODBX, can hold options (D&C seems to have used this to good effect 1Q2021); RPGAX can also hold off-shore funds which helps to de-correlate. RPGAX tracks it's benchmark pretty closely; DODBX seems to outperform but (as noted above), is streaky.

    Disclosure: I hold RPGAX in taxable; DODBX in Roth.
  • edited April 2021
    Sold a bit of DODBX. Added a bit to PRWCX. No change for RPGAX.

    Lots of good discussion in this thread. It’s hard to take risk off the table in today’s environment.
  • @hank : Were you fortunate to get the recent low price ?
  • edited April 2021
    Derf said:

    @Were you fortunate to get the recent low price ?

    @Derf - No. Both trades will process at end of day. Shifted funds around at both houses where I have separate accounts. Did require adding some to DODIX and moving out of a shorter duration bond fund at TRP.

    Accustomed to this “slicing and dicing.” No big deal.:)
  • For all the reasons mentioned above, I'd choose RPGAX, too. I do not own it, or DODBX. But I'm babysitting someone's else's money, and they've been in DODBX since 2010. Because I selected it. Can't complain, I suppose, eh?
  • i own dodbx for my large value space. for my global fund i own vgwlx.
  • beebee
    edited April 2021
    @ hank,

    I came across this review tool and I selected RPGAX to review. Finny is a subscription service but I have been able to review individual funds for free once a day. See if it opens for you.

    https://askfinny.com/posts/mutf-rpgax-stock-review
  • edited April 2021
    @bee - Thanks. Your link worked fine. Impressive stats and layout. In a sense, Information overload.

    - Their “60” score is interesting. MaxFunds says “91”. Finny finds a low AUM a detractor (If I read it right) while MaxFunds would find that a positive.

    - Appears they’ve tempered back the initial 10% in the Blackstone fund. Finny puts it at just 7.5%.

    - Finny is harsh on fees. I am too. RPGAX is to a degree a defensive fund (boutique?) and those types of approaches tend to generate higher fees.

    - Glad my question generated some discussion. Folks are right that DODBX exhibits more erratic performance than RPGAX. Still, IMHO, over very long time frames it’s hard to beat the advantage of a substantially lower ER.
  • Thank you @bee. As you noted, entering another ticker will not provide data without having a subscription.
  • catch22 said:

    Thank you @bee. As you noted, entering another ticker will not provide data without having a subscription.

    I replaced 'rpgax' with 'prilx' in bee's URL and was able to view data for PRILX.
  • Hi @Observant1
    Thank you for the info. I run VPN on the laptop. This does cause problems with some sites. When I place FBALX into the search, the return info is for FPURX; and then stated that if I want a full data report, that I must subscribe.
  • Thanks, @bee, for that link to Finny, a site I did not know. One quirk I found re: RPGAX is that the fund’s holdings are characterized as 959 stocks and 0 bonds, whereas 6 of the top 10 holdings are clearly identified as bond funds. Apparently Finny can’t see a fund-of-funds for what it is. I’m so demoralized by M*’s computer-generated analyses that I’m willing to wander off the beaten path in search of substantive MF research. Nonetheless, Finny does not seem to be a competitor quite yet. I would not hold a fairly low asset base against a fund, either; in fact I seek out newbies or small funds, to wit: TMSRX, RPGAX, and DSTL. I have a hard time understanding M*’s new “Crowd Sense” metric. If the madding crowd is running towards a fund (i.e., ARKK), it may behoove me to run the other way.
  • edited May 2021
    Was anyone aware at the time that DODBX has been shorting the S&P 500? Just uncovered that tidbit last evening in reading their December 31, 2020 report. Helps explain why the fund’s been stomping a lot of otherwise fine competitors this year.

    “Given our analysis, we initiated a short S&P 500 futures position in the first half of 2020 which had a notional value of approximately -6.6% of the Fund’s total net assets by year end. We are excited about the prospects for the Fund’s equity portfolio, but less excited about the overall equity market (e.g., the S&P 500). In shorting equity index futures, we are able to manage the overall equity exposure of the Fund while still maintaining idiosyncratic exposure to the companies we favor.”

    https://www.dodgeandcox.com/pdf/shareholder_reports/dc_balanced_annual_report.pdf

    - Excuse D&C’s self-promotion here. Hard to edit it out without distorting the underlying meaning.

  • I’ve added some more to RPGAX and lightened up on TMSRX. My 30 YO daughter was also a bit overcommitted to TMSRX, which I had recommended as an alternative to a MMF, so I advised her to start a position in RPSIX. I’ve done the same in my account. Reducing PTIAX also. Seems to me that the only way to maintain the purchasing power of our money is to take on a little more market risk.
  • edited May 2021
    @BenWP - You can’t go wrong with RPGAX, IMHO. I expect it to lag a while until the dollar eventually weakens. Then the international exposure will begin to help. That said, the fees are high on it. FWIW - My equity exposure isn’t high and is primarily divided among RPGAX, DODBX and PRWCX.

    Re TMSRX ... It isn’t intended to be a stand-alone investment. Those who put a lot of faith in their self-designed allocation models can benefit by using it as an offset / hedge against other risk assets they hold - or possibly as a diversifier. I believe all the fund houses, including TRP, tell you their funds aren’t intended to be stand-alone investment# - but in the case of TMSRX it’s really true.

    And just noticed M* gives TMSRX a 4-star rating. LOL - that’s nuts (and I own it). IMHO it hasn’t been around long enough to rate. And trying even to rate a fund like this would seem tantamount to telling the wind to stop. Give it 5 years minimum and see what kind of personality it develops in many different market environments.
Sign In or Register to comment.