The Low-Cost Leviathan regained the inflows lead last quarter among large fund firms, according to the latest data from the folks at a publicly traded investment research firm.

Mortimer J. "Tim" Buckley Vanguard Chairman, CEO

This article draws from Morningstar Direct data on March 2024 open-end mutual fund and ETF flows, excluding money-market funds and funds of funds. (Other asset management products, like CITs and SMAs, are also not included.***) More specifically, this article focuses on the 64 firms with between 100 and 999 long-term mutual funds and ETFs each.

Vanguard reclaimed the top spot in the first three months of 2024, thanks to an estimated $70.19 billion in net inflows for the first quarter of the year, up quarter-over-quarter from $14.159 billion in Q4 2023 and up year-over-year from $31.971 billion in Q1 2023. Other big Q1 2024 inflows winners included: Pimco, $8.831 billion (up Q/Q from $660 million, up Y/Y from $714 million); Schwab, $7.614 billion (down Q/Q from $7.836 billion, down Y/Y from $10.527 billion); VanEck, $4.815 billion (up Q/Q from $2.911 billion, up Y/Y from $599 million); and Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA), $3.848 billion (up Q/Q from $583 million, down Y/Y from $4.084 billion).

For a third month in a row, Vanguard led large fund firms in inflows, thanks to an estimated $24.952 billion in March 2024 inflows. Other big inflows winners included: State Street's SSGA, $18.932 billion; and Schwab, $3.11 billion.

On the flip side, Capital Group (home of American Funds), kept the outflows lead last quarter, thanks to an estimated $11.623 billion in net Q1 2024 outflows, down Q/Q from $22.72 billion in Q4 2023 but up Y/Y from $7.312 billion in Q1 2023. Other big Q1 2024 outflows sufferers included: T. Rowe Price, $8.959 billion (down Q/Q from $10.786 billion, down Y/Y fom $14.158 billion); Jackson, $4.796 billion (up Q/Q fom $3.906 billion, up Y/Y from $2.637 billion); TCW (including MetWest), $4.691 billion (down Q/Q from $7.686 billion, up Y/Y from $1.289 billion); and Sun Life's MFS, $4.39 billion (down Q/Q from $6.096 billion, up Y/Y from $1.139 billion).

Cap Group also took the monthly outflows lead in March 2024, thanks to an estimated $3.501 billion in net outflows. Other big outflows sufferers included; T. Rowe Price, $3.089 billion; and SEI, $2.905 billion.

As a group, large fund firms brought in an estimated $40.259 billion in net March 2024 inflows, ending the month with $17.728 trillion across 22,910 funds. That compares with $14.513 billion in net February 2024 outflows and $17.29 trillion in AUM and 22,916 funds on February 29, 2024 and with $16.755 trillion in AUM and 23,401 funds on December 31, 2023.

As of March 31, 2024, large fund firms accounted fo 62.4 percent of industry long-term fund AUM and 53.8 percent of long-term funds, and they bought in 45 percent of March 2024 long-term inflows.

Large firms brought in $49.671 billion in net Q1 2024 inflows. They accounted for 26.3 percent of long-term inflows.

For the trailing twelve months ending March 31, 2024, large firms brought in $1.765 billion in net inflows. They accounted for 0.7 percent of long-term inflows.

Across the whole industry, the 782 firms tracked by the M* team brought in an estimated $89.549 billion in net March 2024 inflows, ending the month with $28.428 trillion in AUM across 42,586 funds. That compares with $63.13 billion in net February 2024 inflows and with $25.527 billion in net March 2023 outflows. (As for industry size, that compares with: 778 firms, $27.618 trillion in AUM, and 42,551 funds on February 29, 2024; 782 firms, $26.572 trillion in AUM, and 42,423 funds on December 31, 2024; and 785 firms, $23.968 trillion in AUM, and 42,221 funds on March 31, 2023.)

In Q1 2024, the industry brought in $189.02 billion in net long-term inflows.

And for the TTM ending March 31, 2024, the industry brought in $249.233 billion in net inflows.

***This caveat is particularly important for large fund firms, many of which are big players in the 401(k) business, where collective investment trusts (CITs) and separately managed accounts (SMAs) are commonly used alternatives to traditional mutual funds. 

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