For investors looking for capital growth rather than regular current income through dividend pay outs, growth funds would be a good choice. These funds reinvest their return and focus on long term capital appreciation. Investors need to have higher tolerance to risk as their capital remains unavailable to them for a longer period of time. These funds mainly select those securities for investment that have higher growth potential and whose values are estimated to rise over the long term.

Below we will share with you the 5 best performing growth mutual funds year to date. To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all growth funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

The growth mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $2,500 and an expense ratio of 1.06% compared to a category average of 1.36%.

Hartford Midcap A (HFMCX) invests in common stocks of mid cap companies that have growth potential. These companies are similar to those that fall within the collective range of the Russell Midcap and S&P MidCap 400 Indices. A maximum of 20% of its assets may be invested in foreign securities and non-dollar instruments. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 11.76%.

Mark A. Whitaker is the fund manager and he has managed this growth mutual fund since 2010.

Touchstone Mid Cap Growth A (TEGAX) seeks growth as its primary goal and income as its secondary objective . The fund invests heavily in common stocks of domestic medium-sized companies. The market capitalizations of these companies are similar to those included in the Russell Midcap Index. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 12.89%.

The growth mutual fund has a minimum initial investment of $2,500 and an expense ratio of 1.40% compared to a category average of 1.36%.

Vanguard Capital Opportunity Investor (VHCOX) invests predominantly in domestic securities with substantial earnings growth potential. It invests in securities of companies regardless of their size. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 9.03%.

As of December 2012, this growth mutual fund held 125 issues, with 5.95% of its total assets invested in Biogen Idec Inc.

Champlain Mid Cap Advisor (CIPMX) seeks capital growth. The fund utilizes the majority of its assets to purchase securities issued by mid-cap companies. It primarily focuses on common stocks of mid-cap companies with substantial growth potential. The growth mutual fund has a three year annualized return of 14.86%.

Scott Brayman is the fund manager and he has managed this growth mutual fund since 2008.

To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all growth mutual funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.

About Zacks Mutual Fund Rank

By applying the Zacks Rank to mutual funds, investors can find funds that not only outpaced the market in the past but are also expected to outperform going forward. Learn more about the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank.