USA Mutuals' flagship Vice Fund [see profile] is gaining headlines even as it focuses its strategy away from one of its four targets. The Associated Press' Mark Jewell highlights the recent success of the sin-focused fund, now managed by Jeff Middleswart.

The fund is riding the recent booms in the stocks of cigarette makers, defense contractors and makers of alcoholic beverages, even as it shies a bit away from casino stocks, which are struggling. All told, the fund is up 4.5 percent year-to-date, putting it in the top three percent of large-blend funds (according to Morningstar) and beating out the S&P 500's 1.9 percent decline year-to-date.

Fundsters interested in learning more about the Vice Fund or its Dallas-based manager may want to check out the full article. The New York Times' "DealBook" blog also highlighted the AP article. 

Edited by: Neil Anderson, Managing Editor


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