Q. Recently, you gave 15 year averages for five fund objectives. However, since the market has been mostly up for the last 15 years, I would like to have 30 to 50 year averages which will include the weak market 60's and 70's. If mutual fund data does not go back that far I could probably use stock objectives and deduct 1.5 percent for operating expenses. I have bought Morningstar Onfloppy and it is great for selecting funds after you know what objective you want, but data only goes back 15 years and is not summed by fund objectives.

I called Lipper and they said that they had fund data to 1959 but that I could not even buy it because I am an individual and not an institution. I would appreciate long term data for all the objectives including high and low risk.

---G.P., Dallas, TX

  

A. I wouldn't get all worked up about only have 15 years of data. Many of the categories of funds discussed so glibbly today didn't even EXIST 15 years ago. In 1980 there were just over 400 funds of all kinds and only about 100 of them were fixed income funds. The government guaranteed mortgage market was in its infancy and there were less than a handful of funds in the area. Ditto single state municipal bond funds.

Similarly, don't feel deprived because Lipper won't talk to a mere person. While the Lipper indices for balanced, growth, and growth and income funds begin in 1965, their equity income fund index doesn't begin until 1979, and their gold, international, and science and technology indices don't begin until 1985. In the mutual fund business, ten years has been a VERY long time.

Here are some steps for your examination:

* First, in Onfloppy you can get an average for ANY group of funds for the usual 1,3,5,10, and 15 year periods. Go to "Fund Universe Avg." under "Options" at the top of your display.

* Second, call Chase Global Data and Research in Concord, Massachusetts and order a copy of the Chase Investment Performance Digest. This $22.95 book covers a multitude of investment indices from 1960 to the present. Indices really didn't start to proliferate until the 70's when Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers, Salomon Brothers, and Merrill Lynch created new benchmarks for an increasingly sophisticated market.

Chase also provides software for financial planners that allows you to see hypothetical results of investment plans for mutual funds and indices from the origins of the fund or index. You can get this for $225 a quarter. Call 508-371-9100 to get their catalog.

* Finally, the only really long term measures are limited to the Ibbotson Associates histories of "Stocks, Bonds, and Bills" from 1926 to the present. The book tracks annual figures for the following: large company stocks; small company stocks; long term corporate bonds; long term government bonds; intermediate term government bonds; U.S. Treasury bills; and the rate of inflation. The yearbook costs $90 plus taxes and shipping. You can order by calling 800-758-3557.

  

Q. In May you advised B.P. of Bloomington, MN that her selection of Fidelity Puritan was a good selection for an investment for her grandchildren. I wonder if you would help me by giving me the number for Fidelity Puritan? Would a minimum of $1,000 or $2,000 be acceptable? I would like to do something for my fine grandchildren. Also, how about Vanguard Index 500? Can you tell me what their minimum is?

---S.P., Grand Prairie, TX

  

A. Puritan fund, with nearly $15 billion in assets, is a choice in many of the 401k plans offered by employers. The minimum investment is $2,500 ( $500 for an IRA account) and the phone number is 800-544-8888. The fund has produced exceptional long term results and has been in the top 5, 4, 7, and 3 percent of all balanced ( stock and bond) funds in the preceding 3,5,10, and 15 year periods, respectively. Indeed, over the last 15 years, the fund has provided an annualized return of 15.4 percent. That's BETTER than the 14.5 percent of the Vanguard 500 Index fund which, in turn, beat 74 percent of ALL U.S. equity funds.

And Puritan did that with about a third less risk.

That's the good news. The last year has not been so kind. At the end of October, Puritan ranked in the 95th percentile of all balanced funds--- meaning that 95 percent of all balanced funds had better results. In the last 20 years this fund has been in the bottom 50 percent only 3 times.

One possible reason? According to Morningstars' database, about 25 percent of Puritans stock holdings are international... and international stocks have lagged the gonzo U.S. market this year. One year mis-step notwithstanding, the long term record of this fund is terrific.

The Vanguard Index 500 fund requires a minimum investment of $3,000 ( $500 for IRA accounts) and can be reached at 800-662-7447. Having outperformed 75 percent of its actively managed peers in most time periods, this fund is gritty proof that active management doesn't earn its keep in most funds.