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.
Is Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio (FGRIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
On the lookout for a Large Cap Blend fund? Starting with Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio (FGRIX - Free Report) is one possibility. FGRIX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FGRIX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FGRIX. Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio made its debut in December of 1985, and since then, FGRIX has accumulated about $5.99 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Matthew W. Fruhan is the fund's current manager and has held that role since February of 2011.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.26%, and it sits in the middle 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 8.45%, 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 9.69%, the standard deviation of FGRIX over the past three years is 11.7%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 11.05% compared to the category average of 9.52%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should always remember the downsides to a potential investment, and this segment carries some risks one should be aware of. FGRIX lost 63.12% in the most recent bear market and underperformed its peer group by 13.4%. This means that the fund could possibly be a worse choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.07, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. FGRIX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -2.57, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Examining 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 97.61% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $178.99 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Finance
Technology
Industrial Cyclical
This fund's turnover is about 37%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, FGRIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 1.00%. FGRIX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FGRIXin the Large Cap Blend 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. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio (FGRIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Large Cap Blend fund? Starting with Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio (FGRIX - Free Report) is one possibility. FGRIX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FGRIX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FGRIX. Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio made its debut in December of 1985, and since then, FGRIX has accumulated about $5.99 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Matthew W. Fruhan is the fund's current manager and has held that role since February of 2011.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.26%, and it sits in the middle 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 8.45%, 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 9.69%, the standard deviation of FGRIX over the past three years is 11.7%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 11.05% compared to the category average of 9.52%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should always remember the downsides to a potential investment, and this segment carries some risks one should be aware of. FGRIX lost 63.12% in the most recent bear market and underperformed its peer group by 13.4%. This means that the fund could possibly be a worse choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.07, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. FGRIX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -2.57, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Examining 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 97.61% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $178.99 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
This fund's turnover is about 37%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, FGRIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 1.00%. FGRIX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Growth & Income Portfolio has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FGRIXin the Large Cap Blend 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. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.