The AmSouth Small Cap Growth Fund, with a 5.5% load and 1.6% expense ratio, has beaten the Target Small Capitalization Growth Fund, which is a no-load and charges 1%.

FORBES: 2004 Mutual Fund Survey

The Schwab no-load has a slightly lower expense ratio (35 basis points) and a higher turnover (27%).

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Given its debt-to-asset ratio, it could load up the company with debt, says Wright.

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The BlackRock fund has an expense ratio of 1% and an upfront load of up to 4%.

FORBES: Magazine Article

The current rulemaking orgy comes as three out of four investors can't define an "expense ratio" and two-thirds think "no-load" funds are free (in truth, they don't charge a fee to start an account, but they do take annual charges for expenses).

FORBES: OutFront

While the Vanguard fund does have a lower expense ratio than the BRIC ETF, investors need to watch out for the sales load if they decide to hold for shorter periods of time.

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