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Is Franklin Mutual Shares Z (MUTHX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Franklin Mutual Shares Z (MUTHX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. MUTHX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MUTHX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. The Franklin Mutual Shares Z made its debut in October of 1949 and MUTHX has managed to accumulate roughly $4.69 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.29%, and is in the middle 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 9.11%, which places it in the middle 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, MUTHX's standard deviation comes in at 18.99%, compared to the category average of 14.92%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 16.33% compared to the category average of 13.06%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.94, so investors should note that 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -8.08. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, MUTHX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 1.06%. MUTHX is actually cheaper 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, Franklin Mutual Shares Z ( MUTHX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Franklin Mutual Shares Z ( MUTHX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MUTHXin the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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 Franklin Mutual Shares Z (MUTHX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Franklin Mutual Shares Z (MUTHX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. MUTHX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MUTHX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. The Franklin Mutual Shares Z made its debut in October of 1949 and MUTHX has managed to accumulate roughly $4.69 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.29%, and is in the middle 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 9.11%, which places it in the middle 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, MUTHX's standard deviation comes in at 18.99%, compared to the category average of 14.92%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 16.33% compared to the category average of 13.06%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.94, so investors should note that 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -8.08. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, MUTHX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 1.06%. MUTHX is actually cheaper 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, Franklin Mutual Shares Z ( MUTHX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Franklin Mutual Shares Z ( MUTHX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MUTHXin the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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.