Investors cash out $21.9 billion from funds

Investors pulled $21.9 billion out of stock and bond mutual funds in September, according to estimates from the Financial Research Corp. of Boston. The largest fund groups saw a decline in assets, with Malvern, Pa.-based The Vanguard Group’s assets dropping 7.74%, to $956.9 billion, in September, followed by American Funds Investment Co. of Los Angeles with a decline of 9.94%, to $931.4 billion, and Fidelity Investments of Boston, which saw a 11.8% drop in assets, to $716.9 billion. Domestic stock funds took in $12.8 billion for the month, while international and global stock funds had net outflows of $27.6 billion. Boston-based State Street Global Advisors’ SPDR S&P 500 ETF led the month as the top seller, taking in $20.2 billion in net flows for September. The iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund ranked second, attracting $6.3 billion in net inflows. The data do not include money market funds, FRC noted.