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Is Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund (WAGOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Non US - Equity fund category, Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund (WAGOX - Free Report) could be a potential option. WAGOX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify WAGOX 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
WAGOX is a part of the Wasatch family of funds, a company based out of Salt Lake City, UT. The Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund made its debut in November of 2008 and WAGOX has managed to accumulate roughly $105.72 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. J.B. Taylor is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2011.
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 10.53%, 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 16.92%, 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 12.2%, the standard deviation of WAGOX over the past three years is 14.75%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 14.43% compared to the category average of 13.02%. 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.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.05, 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. With a negative alpha of -1.11, 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, WAGOX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.55% compared to the category average of 1.20%. WAGOX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund ( WAGOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees compared to its peers.
Don't stop here for your research on Non US - Equity funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare WAGOX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund (WAGOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Non US - Equity fund category, Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund (WAGOX - Free Report) could be a potential option. WAGOX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify WAGOX 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
WAGOX is a part of the Wasatch family of funds, a company based out of Salt Lake City, UT. The Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund made its debut in November of 2008 and WAGOX has managed to accumulate roughly $105.72 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. J.B. Taylor is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2011.
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 10.53%, 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 16.92%, 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 12.2%, the standard deviation of WAGOX over the past three years is 14.75%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 14.43% compared to the category average of 13.02%. 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.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.05, 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. With a negative alpha of -1.11, 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, WAGOX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.55% compared to the category average of 1.20%. WAGOX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wasatch Global Opportunities Fund ( WAGOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees compared to its peers.
Don't stop here for your research on Non US - Equity funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare WAGOX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.