We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Bond funds, consider American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor (BCHYX - Free Report) as a possibility. BCHYX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
American Century is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of BCHYX. The American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor made its debut in December of 1986 and BCHYX has managed to accumulate roughly $695.10 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Joseph Gotteli is the fund's current manager and has held that role since January of 2012.
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 0.96%, and is 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 -1.65%, 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. The standard deviation of BCHYX over the past three years is 8.72% compared to the category average of 15.23%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 7% compared to the category average of 13.19%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.88, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, BCHYX has a negative alpha of -0.21, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
However, it is worth noting that 48 % of the bonds in this fund are not ranked, so take the average quality level with a bit of caution.
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, BCHYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.49% compared to the category average of 0.79%. BCHYX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor ( BCHYX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Mutual Fund Bond 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 BCHYX too 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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is BCHYX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Bond funds, consider American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor (BCHYX - Free Report) as a possibility. BCHYX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
American Century is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of BCHYX. The American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor made its debut in December of 1986 and BCHYX has managed to accumulate roughly $695.10 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Joseph Gotteli is the fund's current manager and has held that role since January of 2012.
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 0.96%, and is 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 -1.65%, 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. The standard deviation of BCHYX over the past three years is 8.72% compared to the category average of 15.23%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 7% compared to the category average of 13.19%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.88, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, BCHYX has a negative alpha of -0.21, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
However, it is worth noting that 48 % of the bonds in this fund are not ranked, so take the average quality level with a bit of caution.
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, BCHYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.49% compared to the category average of 0.79%. BCHYX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Century CA High Yield Municipal Investor ( BCHYX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Mutual Fund Bond 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 BCHYX too 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.