RALEIGH, N.C., Aug. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- More than five years after its inception on June 30, 2004, the BB&T Equity Income Fund has racked up a return of 5.39 percent. During that same time period, the S&P 500's total return was -2.24 percent.
The fund ranks in the top 1 percent of its large-cap value peer group for three-year and five-year periods based on total return, according to Morningstar. The Equity Income Fund returned -20.56 percent for the one-year period and -1.84 percent for the three-year period.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. The performance data above represents past performance and current returns may be lower or higher. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than the original cost. For the most recent month's performance, please visit www.bbtfunds.com.
The gross expense ratio for Class A shares is 1.50 percent. The Fund's adviser has agreed to limit the management fees paid by the Fund for the period from Feb. 1, 2009 through Jan. 31, 2010. Had this waiver not been in effect and if the maximum sales load of 5.75 percent had been deducted, the performance would have been lower. The net expense ratio for Class A is 1.24 percent.
The BB&T Equity Income Fund is part of the BB&T Fund family and is sub-advised by the CHOICE Asset Management group within Scott & Stringfellow under the leadership of Chief Investment Officer George Shipp, CFA. Shipp is based in Scott & Stringfellow's Virginia Beach office.
"Five years ago, we could tell our prospective shareholders that we would attempt to generate above-average returns, which was a goal. The great thing about an anniversary is now we can point to historical performance to reflect how we've performed in the past. Our objective remains to seek capital growth and current income for our shareholders."
The BB&T Equity Income Fund also has earned Morningstar's highest five-star rating based on risk-adjusted return.* The rating reflects Morningstar's assessment of the fund's performance - both return and risk - relative to peer funds, measured on a scale from one to five stars. In its 20-quarter history, the fund has produced positive returns in 14 of those quarters, reflecting the stock-picking discipline of Shipp and his team.
"We begin by limiting inclusion in the BB&T Equity Income Fund portfolio to companies with a dividend yield that exceeds the S&P 500's and has grown consistently over time," Shipp said.
