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USAA Investments Launches Four New Funds

Ian McDonald

USAA Investments shuttered its (USAUX Quote)Aggressive Growth fund Friday, but launched a new fund with the same managers on Monday, as well as three stock index funds.

The $2.2 billion mid-cap growth fund shut its doors to new investors at the close of business last Friday, according to a Monday company announcement. The firm also trumpeted the roll out of the no-load USAA Capital Growth fund, which has Aggressive Growth fund managers John Cabell and Eric Efron at the helm and three no-load index funds that will track the Wilshire 4500, Nasdaq 100, and the Dow Jones Global Titans indices.

The Capital Growth fund can invest in companies of any size, but will probably lean toward small- and mid-cap fare. In choosing stocks for the portfolio Cabell and Efron will be looking for high earnings growth. The fund's 1.39% annual expense ratio is lower than the average mid-cap growth fund's 1.56%, according to Morningstar.

The pair's record on the Aggressive Growth fund has sagged a bit recently. Over the last five years -- they took the reins in 1995 -- the fund's 23.7% annualized return beats 65% of their mid-cap growth peers. But over the last year the fund, which had nearly half its assets in tech stocks on Sept. 30, is up 29%, which trails its average competitor.

And since Jan. 1 the fund is down 9.2%, trailing some 80% of its peers.

The Extended Market Index fund, which tracks the Wilshire 4500, will be run by Merrill Lynch Quantitative Advisers. The Wilshire 4500 essentially tracks the performance of every U.S.-listed stock, excluding those in the S&P 500. The fund's 0.5% expense ratio is double that of the (VEXMX Quote)Vanguard Extended Market Index fund, which also tracks the Wilshire 4500.

The Nasdaq-100 Index fund and the Global Titans Index fund will be subadvised by index-fund titan Barclays Global Fund Advisors. The Nasdaq 100 Index tracks the nonfinancial stocks traded on the Nasdaq. Essentially it's a tech fund with more than three-quarters of its assets in tech stocks. Its 0.85% expense ratio is half that of the average tech fund.

The Global Titans Index is comprised of the 50 largest multinational companies in the world. The fund's 0.85% expense is higher than the fledgling (ETGTX Quote)E*Trade Global Titans Index fund's 0.6% expenses.