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Is ClearBridge Select Fund A (LCLAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Blend funds, consider ClearBridge Select Fund A (LCLAX - Free Report) as a possibility. LCLAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
Objective
LCLAX is classified in the Large Cap Blend segment by Zacks, which is an area full of potential. Targeting companies with market caps of more than $10 billion, Large Cap Blend mutual funds offer a stable investment choice; these funds are perfect for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Since blended funds mix large, more established firms into their portfolios, investors are exposed to both value and growth opportunities.
History of Fund/Manager
LCLAX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. The ClearBridge Select Fund A made its debut in September of 2013 and LCLAX has managed to accumulate roughly $165.59 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Aram Green, has been in charge of the fund since September of 2013.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. LCLAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 23.24% and it sits in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 27.7%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. Compared to the category average of 15.51%, the standard deviation of LCLAX over the past three years is 22.83%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 19.98% compared to the category average of 13.4%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. LCLAX has a 5-year beta of 1.18, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a positive alpha of 9.25. This means that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, LCLAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.41% compared to the category average of 0.97%. LCLAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
This could just be the start of your research on LCLAXin the Large Cap Blend category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
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Is ClearBridge Select Fund A (LCLAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Blend funds, consider ClearBridge Select Fund A (LCLAX - Free Report) as a possibility. LCLAX has no Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, but we have been able to look into other metrics like performance, volatility, and cost.
Objective
LCLAX is classified in the Large Cap Blend segment by Zacks, which is an area full of potential. Targeting companies with market caps of more than $10 billion, Large Cap Blend mutual funds offer a stable investment choice; these funds are perfect for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Since blended funds mix large, more established firms into their portfolios, investors are exposed to both value and growth opportunities.
History of Fund/Manager
LCLAX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. The ClearBridge Select Fund A made its debut in September of 2013 and LCLAX has managed to accumulate roughly $165.59 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Aram Green, has been in charge of the fund since September of 2013.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. LCLAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 23.24% and it sits in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 27.7%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
When looking at a fund's performance, it is also important to note the standard deviation of the returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. Compared to the category average of 15.51%, the standard deviation of LCLAX over the past three years is 22.83%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 19.98% compared to the category average of 13.4%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. LCLAX has a 5-year beta of 1.18, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a positive alpha of 9.25. This means that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, LCLAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.41% compared to the category average of 0.97%. LCLAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
This could just be the start of your research on LCLAXin the Large Cap Blend category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.