Glossary· Returns
What is Rolling returns?
The same holding period measured from every possible start date, not just today's.
A 3Y rolling series answers "what did a three-year holding usually earn?" instead of "what did the one three-year window ending today earn?". The average, best, worst and share of positive periods are the useful part: a fund whose worst 5Y window is still positive behaved very differently from one whose worst was −20%.
For the formula and the constants behind this figure, see Methodology.
Guides that use Rolling returns
The guide that puts this term to work.
More on returns
What the fund made, and over what stretch of time.
- NAV
- The per-unit price of the fund, published once each business day.
- Absolute return
- Plain point-to-point growth over a period under a year, not annualized.
- CAGR
- The steady yearly rate that would have taken the start NAV to the end NAV.
- YTD
- Return from 1 January of the current calendar year to the latest NAV.
- Since inception
- Annualized return over the fund's whole available NAV history.
- XIRR
- The annualized return of a series of cash flows on different dates.
- Benchmark
- The market index a fund's mandate says it is trying to beat.