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 covers the Oakmark International Fund's performance in the third quarter of 2015. While it lost 13% in the last 3 months and 9% in the last year, it has averaged a 9.6% annual return since 1992. For regular investors, this means short-term losses aren't a reason to panic—sticking with a value investing strategy (buying undervalued companies) can pay off over time. The expense ratio (annual fee) is 0.95%, which is reasonable. Worth a read to avoid overreacting to market dips.
The Oakmark International Fund (Investor Class) report as of September 30, 2015, shows that since its inception in September 1992, the fund has achieved an average annual total return of 9.61%, with a 10-year return of 5.89%, a 5-year return of 5.98%, but a 1-year return of -8.98% and a 3-month retu
This section presents the short-term and long-term performance of the Oakmark International Fund (Investor Class) as of September 30, 2015. The market environment experienced significant declines over the past three months and one year, but the fund's long-term returns since its inception in 1992 have remained positive.
The report's core investment argument is that despite short-term market volatility causing substantial net asset value drawdowns (one-year return of -8.98%, three-month return of -13.18%), the long-term performance (annualized 9.61% since inception) remains competitive. The author implicitly suggests that investors should not dismiss the effectiveness of long-term value strategies due to short-term pullbacks.
| Time Period | Average Annualized Total Return |
|---|---|
| Since Inception (September 1992) | 9.61% |
| 10-Year | 5.89% |
| 5-Year | 5.98% |
| 1-Year | -8.98% |
| 3-Month | -13.18% |
This section does not mention specific companies or assets, focusing solely on the fund's performance.
For investors, short-term drawdowns (three-month return of -13.18%) should not be a reason for panic redemptions. The fund's long-term annualized return of 9.61% indicates that adhering to a value investment strategy and tolerating short-term volatility is key to achieving long-term gains. Investors should be mindful of the expense ratio (0.95%) eroding compounding, but the current level remains acceptable.