Non US - Equity fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Nuveen International Growth A . NBQAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify NBQAX in the Non US - Equity category, which is an area rife with potential choices. Investing in companies outside the United States is how Non US - Equity funds set themselves apart, since global funds tend to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. Many of these funds like to allocate across emerging and developed markets, and will often focus on all cap levels.
History of Fund/Manager
Nuveen is based in Chicago, IL, and is the manager of NBQAX. The Nuveen International Growth A made its debut in June of 2010 and NBQAX has managed to accumulate roughly $55.48 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Reed Walters who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2017.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of -1.19%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.3%, which places it in the bottom 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. NBQAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 14.47% compared to the category average of 9.53%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 13.11% compared to the category average of 9.65%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.94, so investors should note that 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -8.26. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, NBQAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.13% compared to the category average of 1.25%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, NBQAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Nuveen International Growth A ( NBQAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Non US - Equity area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into NBQAX too for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
Image: Bigstock
Is Nuveen International Growth A (NBQAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Non US - Equity fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Nuveen International Growth A . NBQAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify NBQAX in the Non US - Equity category, which is an area rife with potential choices. Investing in companies outside the United States is how Non US - Equity funds set themselves apart, since global funds tend to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. Many of these funds like to allocate across emerging and developed markets, and will often focus on all cap levels.
History of Fund/Manager
Nuveen is based in Chicago, IL, and is the manager of NBQAX. The Nuveen International Growth A made its debut in June of 2010 and NBQAX has managed to accumulate roughly $55.48 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Reed Walters who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2017.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of -1.19%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.3%, which places it in the bottom 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. NBQAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 14.47% compared to the category average of 9.53%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 13.11% compared to the category average of 9.65%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.94, so investors should note that 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -8.26. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, NBQAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.13% compared to the category average of 1.25%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, NBQAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Nuveen International Growth A ( NBQAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Non US - Equity area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into NBQAX too for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.