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Is Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. EKJFX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Allspring is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of EKJFX. The Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 made its debut in December of 2012 and EKJFX has managed to accumulate roughly $856.18 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Thomas Ognar is the fund's current manager and has held that role since December of 2012.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 12.98%, and it sits in the middle 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 8.47%, which places it in the bottom 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, EKJFX's standard deviation comes in at 23.61%, compared to the category average of 16.31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 20.92% compared to the category average of 14.62%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.11, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -0.55. 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.67% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $529.91 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 56.76%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, EKJFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.70% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, EKJFX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 ( EKJFX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.
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Is Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. EKJFX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Allspring is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of EKJFX. The Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 made its debut in December of 2012 and EKJFX has managed to accumulate roughly $856.18 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Thomas Ognar is the fund's current manager and has held that role since December of 2012.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 12.98%, and it sits in the middle 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 8.47%, which places it in the bottom 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, EKJFX's standard deviation comes in at 23.61%, compared to the category average of 16.31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 20.92% compared to the category average of 14.62%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.11, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -0.55. 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.67% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $529.91 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
This fund's turnover is about 56.76%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, EKJFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.70% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, EKJFX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 ( EKJFX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.