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Is Fidelity Select Medical Equipment & Systems (FSMEX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you have been looking for Sector - Health funds, a place to start could be Fidelity Select Medical Equipment & Systems (FSMEX - Free Report) . FSMEX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that FSMEX is a Sector - Health fund, and this area is also loaded with various options. Sector - Health mutual funds give investors an opportunity to focus on one of the largest sectors of the American economy, healthcare. Funds in this category can include everything from for-profit hospitals to pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FSMEX. Fidelity Select Medical Equipment & Systems made its debut in April of 1998, and since then, FSMEX has accumulated about $6.15 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Edward L. Yoon, has been in charge of the fund since May of 2007.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 19.25%, and it sits 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 20.82%, 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. Compared to the category average of 16.86%, the standard deviation of FSMEX over the past three years is 15.21%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 14.38% compared to the category average of 16.78%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

It's always important to be aware of the downsides to any future investment, so one should not discount the risks that come with this segment. FSMEX lost 27.95% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 5.29%. This might suggest that the fund is a better choice than its peers during a bear market.

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.93, so it is likely going to be 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 positive alpha of 8.75, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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, FSMEX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.72% compared to the category average of 1.32%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FSMEX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Select Medical Equipment & Systems ( FSMEX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Select Medical Equipment & Systems ( FSMEX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on FSMEXin the Sector - Health 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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