Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is TPINX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Mutual Fund Bond fund seekers should not consider taking a look at Templeton Global Bond A (TPINX - Free Report) at this time. TPINX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

Franklin Templeton is responsible for TPINX, and the company is based out of San Mateo, CA. Since Templeton Global Bond A made its debut in September of 1986, TPINX has garnered more than $3.69 billion in assets. Michael Hasenstab is the fund's current manager and has held that role since December of 2001.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of -0.38%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of -3.04%, which places it in the bottom 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. The standard deviation of TPINX over the past three years is 5.07% compared to the category average of 13.33%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 5.53% compared to the category average of 11.04%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

TPINX carries a beta of -0.31, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a negative alpha of -0.35, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

Ratings

Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, TPINX has 45.74% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 32.25% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund has an average quality of A, and focuses on high quality securities.

Expenses

Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, TPINX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.97% compared to the category average of 0.92%. TPINX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Templeton Global Bond A ( TPINX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about TPINX? 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Templeton Global Bond A (TPINX) - free report >>

Published in