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Is Fidelity Balanced Fund K (FBAKX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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There are plenty of choices in the Allocation Balanced category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Fidelity Balanced Fund K (FBAKX - Free Report) . FBAKX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FBAKX is one of many Zacks' Allocation Balanced mutual funds to pick from. Allocation Balanced funds seek to invest in a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation. Investors utilize Allocation Balanced funds as a way to get a good start with diversified mutual funds, as well as for core holdings in a portfolio of funds.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FBAKX. Fidelity Balanced Fund K made its debut in May of 2008, and since then, FBAKX has accumulated about $8.57 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FBAKX has a 5-year annualized total return of 7.62% and is in the top 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 7.91%, 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, FBAKX's standard deviation comes in at 7.18%, compared to the category average of 7.56%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 7.36% compared to the category average of 7.77%. 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.
Nevertheless, investors should also note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.71, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. FBAKX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.43, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, FBAKX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.44% compared to the category average of 0.90%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FBAKX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Balanced Fund K ( FBAKX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Balanced Fund K ( FBAKX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Allocation Balanced, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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 Fidelity Balanced Fund K (FBAKX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Allocation Balanced category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Fidelity Balanced Fund K (FBAKX - Free Report) . FBAKX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FBAKX is one of many Zacks' Allocation Balanced mutual funds to pick from. Allocation Balanced funds seek to invest in a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation. Investors utilize Allocation Balanced funds as a way to get a good start with diversified mutual funds, as well as for core holdings in a portfolio of funds.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FBAKX. Fidelity Balanced Fund K made its debut in May of 2008, and since then, FBAKX has accumulated about $8.57 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FBAKX has a 5-year annualized total return of 7.62% and is in the top 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 7.91%, 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, FBAKX's standard deviation comes in at 7.18%, compared to the category average of 7.56%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 7.36% compared to the category average of 7.77%. 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.
Nevertheless, investors should also note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.71, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. FBAKX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.43, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, FBAKX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.44% compared to the category average of 0.90%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FBAKX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Balanced Fund K ( FBAKX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Balanced Fund K ( FBAKX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Allocation Balanced, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.