If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, State Farm Growth Fund (STFGX Quick QuoteSTFGX - Free Report) could be a potential option. STFGX 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

State Farm is based in Bloomington, IL, and is the manager of STFGX. State Farm Growth Fund made its debut in March of 1975, and since then, STFGX has accumulated about $6.99 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 12.01%, 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 16.24%, 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. Compared to the category average of 18.92%, the standard deviation of STFGX over the past three years is 16.58%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 14.82% compared to the category average of 16.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. STFGX has a 5-year beta of 0.88, which means it is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. STFGX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.15, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Examining 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.

This fund is currently holding about 77.35% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $362.22 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

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

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, STFGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.12% compared to the category average of 0.92%. So, STFGX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $250 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50.

Bottom Line

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

This could just be the start of your research on STFGXin 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. 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.