How the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard Understates the Performance of Actively Managed Mutual Funds - What Directors Should Know

A new academic study argues that the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard “consistently and substantially” understates the performance of actively managed funds due to certain “empirical choices” in its methodology. The study, titled “How the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard Understates the Performance of Actively Managed Mutual Funds,” was conducted by professors K. J. Martijn Cremers, University of Notre Dame; Jon Fulkerson, University of Dayton, and Timothy B. Riley (corresponding author), University of Arkansas and supported by the Investment Adviser Association’s Active Managers Council. 

They conclude that, broadly speaking, the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard is too negative on the value of active management and that active managers performed much better than SPIVA reported. For example, by the authors’ calculations, active fixed income managers tend to outperform over both short and long horizons, reversing the SPIVA conclusions. 

In this webinar, moderated by IAA President & CEO Karen Barr, authors Fulkerson and Riley will discuss the study’s methodology and review its findings. 

This webinar will broadcast live at 2 pm (ET) on September 17, 2026.