Staying the Course: The Impact of Investment Style Consistency On Mutual Fund Performance

Abstract:     
While a mutual fund's investment style influences the returns it generates, little is known about how a manager's execution of the style decision might affect performance. Using multivariate techniques for measuring the consistency of a portfolio's investment mandate, we demonstrate that more style-consistent funds tend to produce higher total and relative returns than less consistent funds, after controlling for past performance and portfolio turnover. These findings are robust across fund investment style classifications, the return measurement period, and the model used to calculate expected returns. We document a positive relationship between measures of fund style consistency and the persistence of its future performance, net of momentum and past performance effects. We conclude that the decision to maintain a consistent investment style is an important aspect of the portfolio management process.

Keywords: mutual funds, investment style, performance measurement, performance persistence

JEL Classifications: G11, G23

Working Paper Series