Celebrating five years since its inception, Vanguard U.S. Opportunities Fund continues to provide European investors with a distinctive, long-term approach to investment.

Over the past five years, a variety of institutional investors, including financial, pension and retirement institutions, have recognised the value of the U.S. Opportunities Fund in an overall investment program: The fund remains fully invested at all times and does not set limits on tracking error. This design allows it to generate excess returns in a way that makes it an interesting satellite component of a U.S. equity portfolio using a core/satellite approach.

Vanguard U.S. Opportunities Fund seeks to provide long-term capital growth by investing in medium and small cap U.S. stocks with above-average earnings potential that is not reflected in current market prices. The fund is managed by PRIMECAP Management Company, a specialist firm known for its long-term approach to GARP (growth at a reasonable price) equity investing.

Within this framework, PRIMECAP’s portfolio managers and analysts conduct in-depth fundamental research to uncover companies with convincing growth stories—strong industry position, increasing sales, improving profitability, good long-term prospects for above-average growth in earnings and strong management teams—that are overlooked by the market and trading at attractive valuation levels. Unlike other managers who veer toward a momentum strategy, PRIMECAP managers usually measure holding periods in years, not months.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Pasadena, California, PRIMECAP advises on several U.S.-domiciled Vanguard funds, a relationship that began in 1984. PRIMECAP has acted as advisor for the U.S. Opportunities fund since its inception. The company's five principal portfolio managers have an average of 30 years of investment management experience.

Aiming to remain focused and efficient in its investment activities, PRIMECAP manages equity portfolios for only a select group of clients, including Vanguard. Our Portfolio Review Department independently monitors and reviews the transactions and performance results of external advisors, including PRIMECAP, which provides an additional layer of risk control and ensures compliance with investment objectives and constraints. Vanguard has over two decades of experience in selecting and monitoring external managers.

Vanguard U.S. Opportunities Fund is part of our UCITS III compliant Irish-domiciled Vanguard Investment Series plc offer, and has both investor and institutional share classes.

View the U.S. Opportunities Fund factsheet.

* Performance data as at 28 February 2007. Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
** 8 April 2002
Vanguard U.S. Opportunities Fund is available for sale in: Austria, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Singapore, UK, Sweden, and Switzerland.