If you're looking for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, then a potential option is BlackRock Equity Dividend A (MDDVX Quick QuoteMDDVX - Free Report) . MDDVX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

BlackRock is responsible for MDDVX, and the company is based out of New York, NY. BlackRock Equity Dividend A made its debut in October of 1994, and since then, MDDVX has accumulated about $4.91 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Tony DeSpirito, has been in charge of the fund since August of 2014.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 7.97%, and it sits 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 7.84%, 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. MDDVX's standard deviation over the past three years is 18.7% compared to the category average of 15.63%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 16.65% compared to the category average of 13.97%. 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 0.89, which means it is hypothetically less 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. With a negative alpha of -1.81, 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.

Currently, this mutual fund is holding 80.52% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $133.99 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

1. Finance
2. Technology
3. Non-Durable

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

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.

Bottom Line

Overall, BlackRock Equity Dividend A ( MDDVX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Mutual Fund Equity Report area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into MDDVX too 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.