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Is Carillon Scout Mid Cap I (UMBMX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you're looking for a Mid Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Carillon Scout Mid Cap I (UMBMX - Free Report) . UMBMX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that UMBMX is a Mid Cap Growth fund, and this area is also loaded with many different options. Companies are usually considered growth stocks when they consistently report notable sales and/or earnings growth. Thus, Mid Cap Growth funds pick stocks--usually companies with a market cap between $2 billion and $10 billion--that demonstrate extensive growth opportunities for investors compared to their peers.
History of Fund/Manager
UMBMX is a part of the Carillon family of funds, a company based out of St. Petersburg, FL. Since Carillon Scout Mid Cap I made its debut in November of 2006, UMBMX has garnered more than $3.01 billion in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 10.4%, and is in the bottom 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 4.09%, which places it in the bottom 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. UMBMX's standard deviation over the past three years is 18.11% compared to the category average of 15.47%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 20.36% compared to the category average of 16.76%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.03, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. UMBMX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.07, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.76% of its assets in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $22.27 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Industrial Cyclical
Technology
Finance
Other
With turnover at about 112%, this fund makes more traders than comparable funds in a given year.
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, UMBMX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.98% compared to the category average of 0.95%. From a cost perspective, UMBMX is actually more expensive than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
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, average downside risk, and higher fees, Carillon Scout Mid Cap I ( UMBMX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about UMBMX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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 Carillon Scout Mid Cap I (UMBMX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you're looking for a Mid Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Carillon Scout Mid Cap I (UMBMX - Free Report) . UMBMX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that UMBMX is a Mid Cap Growth fund, and this area is also loaded with many different options. Companies are usually considered growth stocks when they consistently report notable sales and/or earnings growth. Thus, Mid Cap Growth funds pick stocks--usually companies with a market cap between $2 billion and $10 billion--that demonstrate extensive growth opportunities for investors compared to their peers.
History of Fund/Manager
UMBMX is a part of the Carillon family of funds, a company based out of St. Petersburg, FL. Since Carillon Scout Mid Cap I made its debut in November of 2006, UMBMX has garnered more than $3.01 billion in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 10.4%, and is in the bottom 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 4.09%, which places it in the bottom 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. UMBMX's standard deviation over the past three years is 18.11% compared to the category average of 15.47%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 20.36% compared to the category average of 16.76%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.03, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. UMBMX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.07, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.76% of its assets in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $22.27 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Industrial Cyclical
- Technology
- Finance
- Other
With turnover at about 112%, this fund makes more traders than comparable funds in a given year.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, UMBMX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.98% compared to the category average of 0.95%. From a cost perspective, UMBMX is actually more expensive than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
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, average downside risk, and higher fees, Carillon Scout Mid Cap I ( UMBMX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about UMBMX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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.