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Is Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor (MAPIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Having trouble finding a Pacific Rim - Equity fund? Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor (MAPIX - Free Report) is a possible starting point. MAPIX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
MAPIX is classified in the Pacific Rim - Equity segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Pacific Rim - Equity mutual funds see big investment opportunities in the dominant export-focused markets of Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Korea. These funds also invest less than 10% of their assets in Japanese firms, as Japan mutual funds are very popular.
History of Fund/Manager
Matthews Asia is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of MAPIX. Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, MAPIX has accumulated about $1.97 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 8.88%, and is in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 5.1%, 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 15.43%, the standard deviation of MAPIX over the past three years is 15.89%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 13.74% compared to the category average of 13.31%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 0.71, the fund is likely to be less 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. MAPIX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.46, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, MAPIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.07% compared to the category average of 1.44%. From a cost perspective, MAPIX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor ( MAPIX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about MAPIX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.
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Is Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor (MAPIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Having trouble finding a Pacific Rim - Equity fund? Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor (MAPIX - Free Report) is a possible starting point. MAPIX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
MAPIX is classified in the Pacific Rim - Equity segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Pacific Rim - Equity mutual funds see big investment opportunities in the dominant export-focused markets of Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and Korea. These funds also invest less than 10% of their assets in Japanese firms, as Japan mutual funds are very popular.
History of Fund/Manager
Matthews Asia is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of MAPIX. Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, MAPIX has accumulated about $1.97 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 8.88%, and is in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 5.1%, 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 15.43%, the standard deviation of MAPIX over the past three years is 15.89%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 13.74% compared to the category average of 13.31%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 0.71, the fund is likely to be less 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. MAPIX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.46, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, MAPIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.07% compared to the category average of 1.44%. From a cost perspective, MAPIX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Investor ( MAPIX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about MAPIX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.