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Is Columbia Large Cap Enhanced Core A (NMIAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should consider taking a look at Columbia Large Cap Enhanced Core A (NMIAX - Free Report) . NMIAX holds 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

Columbia is responsible for NMIAX, and the company is based out of Kansas City, MO. Columbia Large Cap Enhanced Core A debuted in July of 1996. Since then, NMIAX has accumulated assets of about $57.40 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Raghavendran Sivaraman, has been in charge of the fund since December of 2019.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 13.24%, 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 13.29%, 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, NMIAX's standard deviation comes in at 18.85%, compared to the category average of 15.78%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 16.56% compared to the category average of 13.87%. 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, so it is likely going to be as volatile as 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. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -0.3, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.

The mutual fund currently has 98.21% of its holdings in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $477.43 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  1. Technology
  2. Finance
  3. Retail Trade
Turnover is about 81%, so those in charge of the fund make 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, NMIAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.84% compared to the category average of 0.92%. From a cost perspective, NMIAX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Columbia Large Cap Enhanced Core A ( NMIAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Columbia Large Cap Enhanced Core A ( NMIAX ) looks like a good 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. 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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