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Is Fidelity Japan Fund (FJPNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Japan - Equity fund category, Fidelity Japan Fund (FJPNX - Free Report) could be a potential option. FJPNX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that FJPNX is a Japan - Equity option, an area loaded with different choices. Primarily invest in companies in one of the world's richest and most diversified economies, Japan. While the country remains partially exposed to global economic trends due to its export focus, its lack of natural resources can also impact the nation.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FJPNX. Since Fidelity Japan Fund made its debut in September of 1992, FJPNX has garnered more than $317.71 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Kirk Neureiter, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2014.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 12.41%, 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 10.35%, 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. Over the past three years, FJPNX's standard deviation comes in at 16.57%, compared to the category average of 15.26%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 14.18% compared to the category average of 13.03%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.78, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. With a positive alpha of 0.48, 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, FJPNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.06% compared to the category average of 1.46%. From a cost perspective, FJPNX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Japan Fund ( FJPNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Japan - Equity area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into FJPNX too 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 Fidelity Japan Fund (FJPNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Japan - Equity fund category, Fidelity Japan Fund (FJPNX - Free Report) could be a potential option. FJPNX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that FJPNX is a Japan - Equity option, an area loaded with different choices. Primarily invest in companies in one of the world's richest and most diversified economies, Japan. While the country remains partially exposed to global economic trends due to its export focus, its lack of natural resources can also impact the nation.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FJPNX. Since Fidelity Japan Fund made its debut in September of 1992, FJPNX has garnered more than $317.71 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Kirk Neureiter, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2014.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 12.41%, 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 10.35%, 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. Over the past three years, FJPNX's standard deviation comes in at 16.57%, compared to the category average of 15.26%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 14.18% compared to the category average of 13.03%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.78, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. With a positive alpha of 0.48, 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, FJPNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.06% compared to the category average of 1.46%. From a cost perspective, FJPNX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Japan Fund ( FJPNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Japan - Equity area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into FJPNX too 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.