The Merger Fund (MERFX)
The investment seeks capital growth by engaging in merger arbitrage. Under normal market conditions, the fund invests at least 80% of its total assets principally in the common stock, preferred stock and, occasionally, warrants of companies which are involved in publicly announced mergers, takeovers, tender offers, leveraged buyouts, spin-offs, liquidations and other corporate reorganizations. Merger arbitrage is a highly specialized investment approach generally designed to profit from the successful completion of such transactions.
Fund Info
| ISIN | US5895091081 |
|---|---|
| CUSIP | 589509108 |
| Issuer | Virtus |
| Inception Date | Jan 30, 1989 |
| Category | Event Driven |
| Min. Investment | $2,500 |
| Asset Class | Alternatives |
Expense Ratio
MERFX has a high expense ratio of 1.50%, indicating higher-than-average management fees.
Share Price Chart
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Performance
Performance Chart
The chart shows the growth of an initial investment of $10,000 in The Merger Fund, comparing it to the performance of the S&P 500 index or another benchmark. All prices have been adjusted for splits and dividends.
Returns By Period
The Merger Fund had a return of -0.12% year-to-date (YTD) and 3.87% in the last 12 months. Over the past 10 years, The Merger Fund had an annualized return of 2.73%, while the S&P 500 had an annualized return of 10.33%, indicating that The Merger Fund did not perform as well as the benchmark.
| Period | Return | Benchmark |
|---|---|---|
| Year-To-Date | -0.12% | 5.21% |
| 1 month | -0.81% | -4.30% |
| 6 months | 1.82% | 18.42% |
| 1 year | 3.87% | 21.82% |
| 5 years (annualized) | 2.56% | 11.27% |
| 10 years (annualized) | 2.73% | 10.33% |
Monthly Returns Heatmap
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | -0.06% | 0.00% | 0.58% | -0.75% | ||||||||
| 2023 | -0.17% | 1.16% | 0.83% |
Risk-Adjusted Performance
Risk-Adjusted Performance Rank
The current rank of MERFX is 69, suggesting that the investment has average results relative to the market in terms of risk-adjusted performance. This ranking is determined by the cumulative values of the indicators listed below.
The Merger Fund(MERFX)
Risk-Adjusted Performance Indicators
The charts below present risk-adjusted performance metrics for The Merger Fund (MERFX) and compare them to a chosen benchmark (^GSPC). These indicators evaluate an investment's returns against its associated risks.
Dividends
Dividend History
The Merger Fund granted a 2.60% dividend yield in the last twelve months. The annual payout for that period amounted to $0.44 per share.
| Period | TTM | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend | $0.44 | $0.44 | $0.59 | $0.05 | $0.58 | $0.23 | $0.74 | $0.09 | $0.05 | $0.19 | $0.61 | $0.39 |
Dividend yield | 2.60% | 2.59% | 3.50% | 0.27% | 3.31% | 1.34% | 4.52% | 0.59% | 0.32% | 1.25% | 3.90% | 2.44% |
Monthly Dividends
The table displays the monthly dividend distributions for The Merger Fund. The dividends shown in the table have been adjusted to account for any splits that may have occurred.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||||||||
| 2023 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.44 |
| 2022 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.59 |
| 2021 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.05 |
| 2020 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.58 |
| 2019 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.23 |
| 2018 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.74 |
| 2017 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.09 |
| 2016 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.05 |
| 2015 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.19 |
| 2014 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.61 |
| 2013 | $0.39 |
Drawdowns
Drawdowns Chart
The Drawdowns chart displays portfolio losses from any high point along the way.
Worst Drawdowns
The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the The Merger Fund. A maximum drawdown is a measure of risk, indicating the largest reduction in portfolio value due to a series of losing trades.
The maximum drawdown for the The Merger Fund was 15.79%, occurring on Oct 8, 1998. Recovery took 108 trading sessions.
The current The Merger Fund drawdown is 0.81%.
Depth | Start | To Bottom | Bottom | To Recover | End | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -15.79% | Dec 31, 1997 | 202 | Oct 8, 1998 | 108 | Mar 9, 1999 | 310 |
| -15.1% | Aug 27, 2001 | 225 | Jul 25, 2002 | 309 | Oct 16, 2003 | 534 |
| -12.18% | Oct 19, 2007 | 246 | Oct 10, 2008 | 249 | Oct 7, 2009 | 495 |
| -9.99% | Dec 12, 2000 | 12 | Dec 28, 2000 | 1 | Dec 29, 2000 | 13 |
| -9.35% | Feb 24, 2020 | 18 | Mar 18, 2020 | 82 | Jul 15, 2020 | 100 |
Volatility
Volatility Chart
The current The Merger Fund volatility is 0.72%, representing the average percentage change in the investments's value, either up or down over the past month. The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.