The Vice Fund, previously known as Vitium Fund, is a mutual fund operated by USA Mutuals that zeroes in on vice industries usually perceived as socially irresponsible or ‘sin stocks’.
Before its establishment, ‘vice fund’ was merely a colloquial term for any fund with a strong focus on various sin stocks.
The fund underwent a name change to Vitium Global Fund on May 23, 2019, and later, on August 4, 2021, was rebranded to its original moniker, the Vice Fund.
Key Takeaways
- The Vice Fund, earlier named the Vitium Fund, is spearheaded by USA Mutuals. It places its bets on vice industries—sectors often viewed as socially irresponsible investments or ‘sin stocks’.
- The fund majorly invests in stocks deriving most of their revenue from sectors like alcohol, tobacco, gaming, and defense industries.
- The Vice Fund was rebranded as the Vitium Global Fund on October 1, 2019, and reverted to its first name on August 4, 2021.
Understanding the Vice Fund
The Vice Fund focuses its capital on stocks that earn a majority of their revenue from industries celebrating vice such as alcohol, tobacco, gaming, and defense. This collection includes casino operators, gaming equipment manufacturers, defense contractors, alcohol producers, and tobacco companies.
Investing in both U.S.-based and international equities, the fund’s portfolio varies from small-cap to giant-cap companies. First launched in 2002, the fund has undergone periods of rebranding, once known as The Barrier Fund from May 2014 to October 2016.
The primary bet of the fund is on high-caliber, dividend-yielding stocks in vice sectors, asserting that substantial barriers to entry bolster the prospects of enduring stock returns for inveterate companies.
Moreover, the fund purports a market-neutral stance, conjecturing that vice-driven goods consistently find demand regardless of market flux. Widely diversified on a global scale, it endeavors to curtail sweeping market volatility. An emphasis on dividend-rich companies with commendable cash flow provides regular payouts to investors.
Venturing into the Vice Fund
Structured as an open-end mutual fund, the Vice Fund offers four share classes: A, C, investor shares, and institutional shares. Bearing a management fee of 0.95%, its annual operating expenses fall between 1.24% and 2.24% (net expense ratio).
It avails via both full-service and discount brokerages. Institutional and investor share classes levy no sales loads. Front-end A-Shares touch a load of 5.75% and back-end C-Shares lean towards a deferred 1% load within the initial 12 months.
Notably, the fund boasts stable annual total returns, with dividends significantly boosting the fund’s overall performance. By June 30, 2022, the Investor Class has accrued a five-year averaged return of 0.74% and compounded ten-year return of 6.79%.
Up until June 30, 2022, the fund logged an inception-to-date annualized return of 7.82%, shadowing the benchmark MSCI All Country World Index’s 8.32%. On September 9, 2022, it marked a div yield of 0%.
As of September 9, 2022, the Vice Fund handled total assets under management worth $79.2 million. By June 30, 2022, marquee investments included Galaxy Entertainment, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon Technologies, and Philip Morris International.
Related Terms: Sin Stocks, Mutual Funds, Investing, USA Mutuals, Dividend Stocks.
References
- U.S. Securities Exchange Commission. “Form N-CSRS: USA Mutuals Fund Semiannual Report 9-30-19”.
- USA Mutuals. “The Vice Fund (Symbol: VICEX) Goes Back to Its Roots”.
- USA Mutuals. “Vice Fund (Symbol: VICEX)”.
- U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. “Certified Shareholder Report USA Mutuals: N-CSR-Certified Shareholder Report: USA Mutuals Funds Annual Report 3-31-14”.
- U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. [“Form 485BPOS USA Mutuals-485BPOS[“Cover"]-Post-Effective Amendment [“Rule 485(b)"]”](https://sec.report/Document/0000894189-16-013677/).
- MutualFunds.com. “USA Mutuals Vice Investor”.
