If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, JPMorgan Large Cap Value Fund A (OLVAX Quick QuoteOLVAX - Free Report) could be a potential option. OLVAX has 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

J.P. Morgan is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of OLVAX. Since JPMorgan Large Cap Value Fund A made its debut in February of 1992, OLVAX has garnered more than $245.11 million in assets. Scott Blasdell is the fund's current manager and has held that role since April of 2013.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. OLVAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 11.96% 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 18%, 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, OLVAX's standard deviation comes in at 24.47%, compared to the category average of 15.29%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 21.29% compared to the category average of 13.52%. 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 1.17, which means it is hypothetically 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -4.94. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is largely on equities that are traded in the United States.

This fund is currently holding about 85.12% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $89.35 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

1. Finance
2. Industrial Cyclical
3. Health
4. Non-Durable

This fund's turnover is about 93%, so the fund managers are making more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.

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, OLVAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.93% compared to the category average of 0.99%. So, OLVAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.

Bottom Line

Overall, JPMorgan Large Cap Value Fund A ( OLVAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

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