Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is Deutsche Science and Technology A (KTCAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Any investors hoping to find a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund could think about starting with Deutsche Science and Technology A (KTCAX - Free Report) . KTCAX 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

DWS is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of KTCAX. Deutsche Science and Technology A made its debut in September of 1948, and since then, KTCAX has accumulated about $721.07 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Sebastian Werner who has been in charge of the fund since December of 2017.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 10.24%, 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 7.77%, 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. Compared to the category average of 19.04%, the standard deviation of KTCAX over the past three years is 24.16%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 21.67% compared to the category average of 16.92%. This makes the fund more 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. KTCAX has a 5-year beta of 1.09, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. KTCAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -0.4, demonstrating 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.

The mutual fund currently has 98.03% of its holdings in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $359.75 billion. This fund's turnover is about 18%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than its comparable peers.

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, KTCAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.88% compared to the category average of 1.30%. From a cost perspective, KTCAX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.

Bottom Line

Overall, Deutsche Science and Technology A ( KTCAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Deutsche Science and Technology A ( KTCAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare KTCAX to its peers as well for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


DWS Science and Technology A (KTCAX) - free report >>

Published in