Oakmark is the mutual fund family launched in 1991 by Harris Associates, the Chicago deep-value firm founded in 1976 (about $105bn AUM). Bill Nygren runs the flagship Oakmark Fund and David Herro the Oakmark International Fund, buying businesses at large discounts to intrinsic value and holding them like owners — publishing quarterly fund commentaries, market commentaries and insight articles.
This report shows how Oakmark Fund has performed since 1991, averaging 12.52% annual returns. Recent 5- and 10-year returns were modest (4.26% and 5.14%), but the fund bounced back with 10.81% over the past year and 14.44% in the last three months. For regular investors, the key takeaway is to ignore short-term ups and downs and stick with a long-term value strategy. Also watch the expense ratio (the fee the fund charges), which is 1.04%—it slowly eats into your gains. Worth a read because it proves patience beats frequent trading.
The Oakmark Fund (Investor Class) report as of March 31, 2012 shows that since its inception on August 5, 1991, the average annual total return is 12.52%, with returns of 5.14%, 4.26%, 10.81%, and 14.44% over the past 10 years, 5 years, 1 year, and 3 months, respectively. The core argument of the re
This section presents the long-term and short-term performance of the Oakmark Fund (Investor Class) as of March 31, 2012, and discloses the expense ratio. The report aims to validate the effectiveness of its value investing strategy through historical return data, reminding investors to focus on long-term compounding growth rather than short-term fluctuations.
The author's core investment argument is that since its inception in 1991, the Oakmark Fund has achieved significant excess returns through a long-term value investing strategy, with an average annual total return of 12.52%. The counterintuitive judgment is that despite relatively modest returns over the past 5 years (4.26%) and 10 years (5.14%), the strong rebound over the past 1 year (10.81%) and past 3 months (14.44%) indicates that short-term market volatility does not undermine the effectiveness of the long-term strategy.
The report supports its thesis with return data across multiple time horizons, emphasizing the importance of long-term compounding growth. Specific data are as follows:
| Time Horizon | Return (%) |
|---|---|
| Since Inception (August 5, 1991) | 12.52 |
| Past 10 Years | 5.14 |
| Past 5 Years | 4.26 |
| Past 1 Year | 10.81 |
| Past 3 Months | 14.44 |
Additionally, the expense ratio (gross expense ratio of 1.04%) is mentioned, implying that the erosion of long-term returns by costs requires ongoing monitoring.
Investors should adhere to a long-term value investing strategy and avoid frequent trading due to short-term market fluctuations (e.g., the low 4.26% return over the past 5 years). At the same time, attention should be paid to the erosion of compounding returns by the expense ratio (1.04%), favoring low-cost or high-return fund products. The current rebound of 14.44% over the past 3 months may offer a short-term entry opportunity, but the core strategy should be based on a long-term perspective.