Final answer:
The statement about mutual funds' number of companies is false; mutual funds can have broad or specific investment strategies, including index funds that own shares in a large segment of the market. A significant portion of U.S. households invests in mutual funds, often for retirement savings.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that an average mutual fund includes 92-200 companies is false. Mutual funds can invest in various sectors and can have a wide-ranging portfolio. Some mutual funds may choose to concentrate on specific areas, such as investing solely in stocks of companies based in a certain country, in bonds from large manufacturing firms, or in stocks related to the biotechnology sector. Other mutual funds may be much broader in scope, even owning a tiny share of every firm in the stock market, which typically is the strategy of an index fund that mimics the market’s overall performance.
Mutual funds have become a common investment vehicle for many households. As reported by the Investment Company Factbook, just over 47% of U.S. households had investments in mutual funds in 2021, with many using these funds for retirement or pension savings.