Pieter Stalenhoef Breaks Down Morningstar’s Mutual Fund Rating System

Morningstar stands as one of the world’s most trusted and widely used investment research platforms. Known for its straightforward and effective mutual fund rating system, Morningstar helps investors evaluate funds at a glance by assigning star ratings on a scale from 1 to 5—based on risk-adjusted returns relative to peer funds within the same category.



In an expert breakdown of this process, Pieter Stalenhoef, a seasoned financial analyst and planner, shares his insights into how these ratings are calculated:

  • The top 10% of funds receive a five-star rating

  • The next 22.5% receive four stars

  • The middle 35% are assigned three stars

  • The next 22.5% get two stars

  • And the bottom 10% receive a one-star rating

These ratings are updated monthly and reflect past performance, adjusted for both risk and fees, giving investors a reliable metric for comparing similar funds.

Pieter Stalenhoef brings deep industry experience to the conversation. As a former equity analyst at Wells Capital Management in Boston, he specialized in analyzing global small- and mid-cap stocks in the consumer, media, and healthcare sectors for the Wells Fargo Global Opportunities Fund—a consistently top-ranked fund with a four-star Morningstar rating during his tenure.

He also led investment decisions for the Luxury Goods Fund, where he managed all trades and monthly reporting. During its 18-month run through July 2012, the fund delivered a remarkable 40% return, outperforming its benchmark by 15 percentage points (benchmark return: 25%).

In addition to portfolio management, Pieter built financial models focused on earnings and cash flow and collaborated closely with international teams to identify new stock opportunities.

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