While the S&P 500 posted a nice 15% return last year, it still paled in comparison to other markets.  The Philippines market was up a sizzling 58%, with Thailand spiking 55% and Peru up 54%.  In light of these returns, U.S. mutual fund and 401k investors have been pouring money into global stocks and funds.

But these offerings can be somewhat misleading.  It’s not uncommon for a “global” fund to be chock full of American based companies, like GE (NYSE: GE), Ford (NYSE: F) and Walmart (NYSE: WMT).  With such companies in a portfolio, are investors really getting true exposure to foreign markets?  Probably not.

Let’s take a look at five global funds that aren’t so global:

Hartford Global Growth

When looking through world stock funds, there is one stock that is a favorite:  Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL).  Then again, maybe the reason is that the company appears to be on the verge of world domination?  Every year, the company trounces expectations and produces substantial returns.

Take a look at Hartford Global Growth HLS IB (MUTF: HBGLX), which is a big Apple fan.  It’s the #1 holding, representing 3.38% of the total portfolio.

According to the fund’s prospectus, it claims that the goal is to invest “primarily in equity securities of companies in a broad range of countries, industries and market capitalizations worldwide.”  Perhaps they can get a little more creative than focusing on Apple?

Fidelity Worldwide

When Warren Buffett shelled out $44 billion for Burlington Northern a year ago, he called it an “all-in wager on the economic future of the United States.”  He liked the idea that railroads cannot be outsourced to lower-wage countries like China.

Yet if you look at the top holding for the Fidelity Worldwide Fund (MUTF: FWWFX), it is Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP).  Keep in mind that the company’s motto is “Building America” and that is operates railroads in 23 states.

Or look at another top holding, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG).  The company certainly has revenue sources from around the globe.  But then again, it is banned from doing business in China because of its content policies.

Templeton World

John Templeton was a pioneer of global investing.  In the mid 1950s, he created the Templeton Growth fund and made a fortune by investing in Japan.  He eventually became a billionaire and renounced his US citizenship to avoid paying taxes.

So with the Templeton name on a fund, it must be a sure-fire way to benefit from global markets?  Maybe not.  Consider the Templeton World A (MUTF: TEMWX) fund.  Of its top five holdings, three are Accenture (NYSE: ACN), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL).  If anything, this looks like a U.S. tech fund.

Putnam Global Equity

Putnam Global Equity A (NASDAQ: PEQUX), which manages $880 million in assets, has been around since the mid 1990s.  So is the fund scouting-out across the globe to find great investment opportunities?  If you take a look at the top holdings, they include Chevron (NYSE: CVX), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and Phillip Morris (NYSE: PM).

True, multinationals derive substantial amounts of revenues from many countries.  But the fact is that they are also key parts of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.  In other words, the movement in the Putnam Global Equity fund is likely to mirror the performance of the U.S. market.  This defeats one of the principles of investing in other countries – that is, “uncorrelation.”  This means that markets will often perform independent of each other, since each country has its own economic cycle and growth industries.  By investing in uncorrelated assets, you should be able to increase diversification and lower risk.

American Century Global Growth

Yes, American Century Global Growth (MUTF: AGGRX) has Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) as its top holding.  Of its five largest holdings, four are based in the U.S., such as EMC (NYSE: EMC), Danaher (NYSE: DHR) and American Express (NYSE: AXP).

But let’s look beyond the top holdings.  What about the positions of the whole fund?  In the case of American Century Global Growth, about 47% of its assets are in US companies.  Doesn’t really sound “global”?

So where else is the fund putting its money?  The second biggest concentration is in the UK, with 13%.  This is followed by a 7.9% position in Switzerland. The rest is in Asia, with only 4.4% in Chinese stocks.