Sector Fund Update: Tech still leaving ’em in the dust

Gold & Precious Metals

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Vanguard Gold & Precious Metals 12.03 -12.75 40.34 0.77 401.7

Fidelity Select: Gold 11.98 -16.98 49.19 1.54 257.5

Fidelity Select Precious Metals & Minerals 11.09 -17.90 48.33 1.74 193.5

Franklin Gold A 10.57 -11.29 38.73 1.19 253.4

Oppenheimer Gold & Special Minerals A 9.60 -9.07 41.52 1.62 90.9

USAA Gold 7.23 -12.61 46.42 1.52 102.8

Scudder Gold 5.65 -19.27 37.18 2.13 116.6

Evergreen Precious Metals Holdings A 2.06 N/A 51.38 2.01 69.4

Lexington Goldfund 0.00 -17.64 38.50 1.74 82.8

AXP Precious Metals A -1.76 -24.28 42.50 1.66 55.9

BOTTOM 5

Midas -15.34 -36.61 42.68 2.33 88.7

Rydex Precious Metals -13.61 -18.70 48.92 1.36 54.5

Van Eck International Investors Gold A -11.99 -21.58 37.53 1.76 178.1

US Global Investors World Gold -11.25 -24.14 41.03 1.74 99.3

Van Eck Gold Resources A -9.66 -20.58 42.46 2.21 51.2

Sector average -0.89 -19.8 44.14 1.98 70.0

S&P Gold, Precious Metals & Mining -17.72 N/A 50.68

Sometimes, breaking even looks pretty good. Lexington Goldfund went nowhere the last year, but then just eight funds in this sector and five real estate entries were in the black.

Utilities & Infrastructure

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Fidelity Advisor Utilities Growth T 52.55 33.59 18.55 1.55 63.2

Eaton Vance Utilities A 45.74 22.93 14.16 1.27 433.0

Fidelity Select Utilities Growth 39.23 33.64 15.10 1.16 579.2

Franklin Global Utilities A 34.16 20.40 16.60 1.05 198.9

Fidelity Utilities 33.96 28.28 14.95 0.85 2,488.6

Federated World Utility A 28.41 22.94 12.54 1.52 55.6

Evergreen Utility A 27.15 21.10 13.21 1.03 106.1

Aim Global Utilities A 24.38 19.77 12.24 1.06 193.7

Invesco Utilities 23.22 20.32 13.70 1.29 223.6

MFS Utilities B 22.09 23.69 12.78 1.80 634.3

BOTTOM 5

Franklin Utilities Series A -5.17 7.66 12.07 0.76 1,597.6

Merrill Lynch Utility Income B -2.42 9.37 10.94 1.37 42.0

Galaxy Utility Index 1.72 14.71 13.66 0.40 55.2

Merrill Lynch Global Utility B 6.17 16.59 12.92 1.59 295.1

Evergreen Americas Utility 6.81 14.38 11.83 1.21 158.6

Sector average 17.05 19.07 12.91 1.30 476.1

S&P Utilities 2.07 12.45 13.93

In the cheapest and least risky sector on the page, Fidelity put three funds in the top 10, Merrill two in the bottom 5, and Evergreen and Franklin had one offering on each list.

Technology & Communications

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Amerindo Technology D 270.24 48.52 52.17 2.25 239.1

Internet 253.86 86.13 59.24 3.08 579.1

Van Wagoner Technology 223.95 N/A N/A 1.95 122.1

Firsthand Technology Innovators 214.17 N/A N/A 1.95 209.9

WWW Internet 190.54 48.47 42.08 2.5 36.4

Firsthand Funds Technology Value 162.41 43.75 36.63 1.95 624.1

First American Investment Technology Y 155.16 40.86 34.47 0.90 214.6

Dreyfus Premier Technology Growth A 154.08 N/A N/A 1.12 499.0

Munder NetNet B 152.84 N/A N/A 2.29 1,415.9

PBHG Technology & Communications 151.87 39.54 34.20 1.34 731.6

BOTTOM 5

Franklin Dynatech Series A 39.40 25.34 16.24 1.02 499.3

Fidelity Select Multimedia 50.69 30.08 18.86 1.33 198.8

USAA Science & Technology 52.79 N/A N/A 1.33 279.8

Rydex Telecommunications Adv 53.99 N/A N/A 2.34 52.9

Fidelity Select Telecommunications 65.08 35.66 25.13 1.25 1,010.9

Sector average 105.95 39.49 36.45 1.71 557.3

S&P Technology 66.48 47.85 30.76

Fidelity, uncharacteristically, had two bottom 5 funds — but each returned better than 50% in a sector where the average was 38 points higher than any fund elsewhere on the page.

Real Estate

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Cohen & Steers Special Equity 4.43 N/A N/A 1.28 35.8

Security Capital US Real Estate Inst 2.09 N/A N/A 1.00 49.9

Fremont Real Estate 1.74 N/A N/A 1.09 32.9

CGM Realty 1.52 5.17 17.30 1.04 386.2

UAM Heitman Real Estate Inst 0.13 5.15 14.39 1.22 83.2

Morgan Stanley Dean Witter US Real Estate A -0.33 7.69 14.60 1.00 294.6

American Century Real Estate Inv -2.10 4.88 16.25 1.20 107.5

Van Kampen Real Estate Securities B -2.57 4.95 14.70 2.53 62.2

Columbia Real Estate Equity -3.26 6.53 14.14 1.01 219.9

Advisors Inner Circle CRA Realty Shares Inst -3.70 N/A N/A 1.00 58.0

BOTTOM 5

Alliance Real Estate Investment B -8.50 1.05 17.05 2.26 153.9

Munder Real Estate Equity Investment Y -7.76 2.72 15.77 1.03 58.5

Davis Real Estate A -7.25 3.80 15.42 1.21 162.7

Excelsior Real Estate Fund -6.80 N/A N/A 1.20 35.9

Franklin Real Estate Securities A -6.75 1.92 14.41 0.96 311.9

Sector average -4.19 3.42 N/A 1.34 194.2

NAREIT All -8.41 0.96 15.69

There’s little positive to say about a sector that’s in the red over one year and barely above water over three, but it did beat its benchmark and average the second-lowest expenses.

Health Care & Biotechnology

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Rydex Biotechnology Adv 67.26 N/A N/A 2.16 74.4

Fidelity Select Biotechnology 56.84 28.28 24.15 1.30 1,074.9

Franklin Biotechnology Discovery A 40.28 N/A N/A 1.52 96.4

Vanguard Health Care 14.34 26.23 14.58 0.36 9,929.6

T. Rowe Price Health Sciences 13.24 15.60 18.07 1.16 281.1

Fidelity Advisor Healthcare T 12.88 24.63 17.03 1.43 231.6

Fidelity Select Medical Systems & Equipment 12.62 N/A N/A 2.38 35.7

Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Health Sciences B 12.06 8.65 24.58 2.26 277.9

Scudder Health Care 11.35 N/A N/A 1.75 46.1

Merrill Lynch Healthcare B 10.70 18.46 17.27 2.35 233.9

BOTTOM 5

Fidelity Select Medical Delivery -32.15 -8.27 23.79 1.37 47.9

Putnam Health Sciences Trust A 0.41 16.80 17.71 1.00 2,706.7

Warburg Pincus Health Science Cm 3.54 N/A N/A 1.59 46.7

Fidelity Select Health Care Portfolio 5.93 23.59 17.04 1.05 2,536.3

Invesco Health Science 8.44 19.74 17.03 1.12 1,574.9

Sector average 15.76 18.46 20.13 1.54 907.6

S&P Health Care 11.22 29.36 22.17

Fidelity Select funds went in opposite directions here, with Biotechnology outpacing Medical Delivery — worst performer on the page — by more than 88 percentage points.

Financial Services

3-year Expense Assets

TOP 10 1-year 3-year Std dev Ratio ($m)

Fidelity Select Brokerage & Investment 34.86 32.36 30.04 1.24 375.0

Mutual Financial Services A 20.18 N/A N/A 1.35 115.5

Fidelity Select Financial Services 19.47 23.25 23.37 1.18 438.5

Fidelity Advisor Financial Services T 18.95 21.31 22.55 1.46 110.5

T. Rowe Price Financial Services 16.83 21.74 21.69 1.19 154.2

Davis Financial A 14.79 23.73 20.12 1.07 410.1

Sife Trust A-I 14.14 18.53 21.77 1.25 931.8

Invesco Financial Services 13.52 21.11 22.74 1.05 1,252.6

Fidelity Select Banking 10.34 20.42 24.15 1.16 605.1

Fidelity Select Insurance 10.32 21.22 20.69 1.31 48.6

BOTTOM 5

Century Shares Trust -2.35 16.48 20.80 0.78 306.0

Pilgrim America Bank and Thrift Fund A -1.42 11.88 21.70 1.39 312.1

PaineWebber Financial Services Growth A 2.87 14.63 19.79 1.17 145.9

FBR Small Cap Financial A 4.08 N/A N/A 1.63 32.9

J Hancock Regional Bank B 5.55 17.24 20.83 1.92 3,341.9

Sector average 11.24 18.77 22.83 1.50 485.4

S&P Financial 21.42 24.82 26.15

This is the only sector that failed to beat its benchmark. Indeed, only Select Brokerage and Investment — one of Fidelity’s five top 10 entries — bested the S&P Financial index.