Any investors hoping to find a Large Cap Growth fund could think about starting with Fidelity Blue Chip Growth (FBGRX Quick QuoteFBGRX - Free Report) . FBGRX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We classify FBGRX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.

History of Fund/Manager

FBGRX is a part of the Fidelity family of funds, a company based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Blue Chip Growth made its debut in December of 1987, FBGRX has garnered more than $40.48 billion in assets. Sonu Kalra is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 2009.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 24.77%, and it sits 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 29.82%, 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. FBGRX's standard deviation over the past three years is 22.78% compared to the category average of 17.53%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.99% compared to the category average of 14.77%. 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 1.14, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. With a positive alpha of 6.87, 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, FBGRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.78% compared to the category average of 1.04%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FBGRX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ( FBGRX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Blue Chip Growth ( FBGRX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on FBGRXin the Large Cap Growth 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.