fund performance

After the worst calendar year loss in history, hedge funds came back strongly in 2009, as three separate indexes that track industry performance recorded gains of 18% or more. That didn't stop hedge funds from losing $131 billion through redemptions, but the money that remained was put to good use.

You would think that an S&P 500 Index fund would be one of the easiest investments to own. But it turns out that choosing from among the many mutual funds that track the performance of stocks in the broader market is fraught with risks. In theory, of course, picking an index fund should be...