There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Equity Report category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Fidelity Growth Strategies Fund (FDEGX Quick QuoteFDEGX - Free Report) . FDEGX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

FDEGX is a part of the Fidelity family of funds, a company based out of Boston, MA. Fidelity Growth Strategies Fund debuted in December of 1990. Since then, FDEGX has accumulated assets of about $2.84 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Jean Park, has been in charge of the fund since August of 2013.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FDEGX has a 5-year annualized total return of 13.66% 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 16.47%, 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. FDEGX's standard deviation over the past three years is 19.96% compared to the category average of 18.39%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 17.54% compared to the category average of 16.35%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.01, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as the market at large. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -1.19, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, FDEGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 0.99%. So, FDEGX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Growth Strategies Fund ( FDEGX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Growth Strategies Fund ( FDEGX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.