When the S&P hits the skids, the last person you want managing your money is some newly-minted MBA. So make sure you own funds led by managers who have not only delivered solid long-term returns but also lost less than most of their peers during down cycles.
Richard Aster, Meridian Growth (
MERDX)
Start date: 1984
Focus: Midcap stocks
10-year return: 9.2%
Top 5% of category
Expense ratio: 0.81%
2008 loss: -30.4%; top 2% of peers
Charles Royce, Royce Pennsylvania Mutual (
PENNX)
Start date: 1972
Focus: Small-cap stocks
10-year return: 9.02%
Top 14% of category
Expense ratio: 0.9%
2008 loss: -34.87%; top 41% of peers
Brian Rogers, T. Rowe Price Equity Income (
PRFDX)
Start date: 1985
Focus: Large value stocks
10-year return: 4.4%
Top 28% of category
Expense ratio: 0.68%
2008 loss: -35.8%; top 39% of peers
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By Carolyn Bigda, Beth Braverman, Veronica Crews, Ismat Sarah Mangla, Peter Valdes-Dapena and Penelope Wang - Last updated October 18 2011: 5:42 PM ET
