Vanguard is adding another active quantitative offering to its lineup. The Valley Forge, Pennsylvania-based firm will roll out the Vanguard Strategic Small-Cap Equity Fund, the second actively managed stock fund entirely advised by its quantitative equity group, in the next few weeks.

The subscription period for the fund kicks off on April 20 and will end on or before May 5, at which time the fund will be launched.

Vanguard's quantitative equity group, which currently oversees close to $400 billion in index fund assets and $20 billion in active quantitative equity fund assets, will make use of computer-driven models to pick stocks in the Morgan Stanley Capital International U.S. Small-Cap Index. The group has served as the sole advisor to the Vanguard Strategic Equity Fund since its launch in 1995 and manages portions of other active Vanguard equity funds, including the Windsor II Fund, the Morgan Growth Fund and the Explorer.

The estimated expense ratio for the Strategic Small-Cap Equity Fund is 0.40 percent. The fund, which will be managed by James Stetler, will require a minimum initial investment of $3,000 for regular and IRA accounts.

"The new Strategic Small-Cap Fund reflects our growing focus on active quantitative equity management strategies," said Gus Sauter, chief investment officer at Vanguard, in a statement.  

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