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Is Fidelity Pacific Basin (FPBFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Fidelity Pacific Basin (FPBFX - Free Report) is one possibility. FPBFX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is responsible for FPBFX, and the company is based out of Boston, MA. The Fidelity Pacific Basin made its debut in October of 1986 and FPBFX has managed to accumulate roughly $783.70 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Kirk Neureiter who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2019.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FPBFX has a 5-year annualized total return of 4.41% and is in the top 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 11.14%, 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. Over the past three years, FPBFX's standard deviation comes in at 20.44%, compared to the category average of 20.15%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 19.07% compared to the category average of 18.82%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.78, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -3.77, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, FPBFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.12% compared to the category average of 1.27%. FPBFX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Pacific Basin ( FPBFX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Pacific Basin ( FPBFX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.


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