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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Bond fund? Starting with BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A (MEMTX - Free Report) is one possibility. MEMTX carries 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
BlackRock is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of MEMTX. BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, MEMTX has accumulated about $808.70 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. MEMTX has a 5-year annualized total return of -0.75% and it sits in the bottom 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 -2.38%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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, MEMTX's standard deviation comes in at 6.88%, compared to the category average of 12.53%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 7.3% compared to the category average of 13.28%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
MEMTX carries a beta of 0.81, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a negative alpha of -1.57, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, MEMTX has 57.48% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 22.42% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund has an average quality of A, and focuses on high quality securities.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, MEMTX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.78%. So, MEMTX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A ( MEMTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MEMTXin the Mutual Fund Bond category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank 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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Is MEMTX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Bond fund? Starting with BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A (MEMTX - Free Report) is one possibility. MEMTX carries 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
BlackRock is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of MEMTX. BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, MEMTX has accumulated about $808.70 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. MEMTX has a 5-year annualized total return of -0.75% and it sits in the bottom 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 -2.38%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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, MEMTX's standard deviation comes in at 6.88%, compared to the category average of 12.53%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 7.3% compared to the category average of 13.28%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
MEMTX carries a beta of 0.81, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a negative alpha of -1.57, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, MEMTX has 57.48% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 22.42% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund has an average quality of A, and focuses on high quality securities.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, MEMTX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.78%. So, MEMTX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, BlackRock Strategic Municipals Opportunities A ( MEMTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MEMTXin the Mutual Fund Bond category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank 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.