Some large funds make progress making up for losses

— -- If you've been saving in your corporate 401(k) plan, you probably have the feeling that your golden years would be more interesting if you invested in the lottery and whiskey.

But some large funds — the type most likely to be in a 401(k) — are making some progress in making up their bear market losses. For nearly all of them, it's going to be a long haul. But if the stock market continues to rise, they could be a good bet.

These U.S. stock funds all have $10 billion or more in assets and have led the pack since the stock market bottomed on March 9.

Managers Clyde McGregor and Edward Studzinski lost less than most funds during the bear market, making it easier for Oakmark Equity & Income to climb.

The fund does keep about 40% of its portfolio in bonds, which cushions losses in a down market. Its largest holdings are U.S. Treasury notes. Nevertheless, the fund has fared far better than most balanced funds and has a pleasantly low 0.81% expense ratio.

This big, $12.7 billion fund has been bad for a long time. Morningstar, the Chicago investment trackers, says the fund has lagged behind 62% of its peers the past decade. And its loss in the bear market is staggering for equity income funds, the milquetoasts of the stock-fund world.

Longtime manager Stephen Peterson, however, seems to be on a roll, making big bets on financial services companies such as JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo. The fund still has hard work in front of it, however: To make up for a 44.1% loss, the fund will have to gain 79% more.

Dodge and Cox's strict, value-conscious style served shareholders well during the 2000-02 bear market. The fund fell 10.5% in 2002 vs. a 22.1% loss for the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index.