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 Asset Manager 40% (FFANX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If investors are looking at the Allocation Balanced fund category, make sure to pass over Fidelity Asset Manager 40% (FFANX - Free Report) . FFANX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Zacks' Allocation Balanced funds is an area filled with options, such as FFANX. These funds like to invest in a variety of asset types, finding a balance between stocks, bonds, cash, and sometimes even precious metals and commodities; they are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation. For investors, Allocation Balanced funds can provide an entry point into diversified mutual funds, and present core holding options for a portfolio of funds.
History of Fund/Manager
FFANX finds itself in the Fidelity family, based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Asset Manager 40% made its debut in October of 2007, FFANX has garnered more than $1.62 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Geoffrey D. Stein who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2009.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 4.08%, 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 5.51%, 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. Over the past three years, FFANX's standard deviation comes in at 5.17%, compared to the category average of 8.49%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 5.36% compared to the category average of 8.87%. This makes the fund less 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. FFANX lost 29.2% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 7.17%. These results could imply that the fund is a better choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 0.42, the fund is likely to be less 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -0.52. This means that 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, FFANX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.53% compared to the category average of 0.89%. From a cost perspective, FFANX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Asset Manager 40% ( FFANX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
For additional information on the Allocation Balanced 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 FFANX 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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Fidelity Asset Manager 40% (FFANX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Allocation Balanced fund category, make sure to pass over Fidelity Asset Manager 40% (FFANX - Free Report) . FFANX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Zacks' Allocation Balanced funds is an area filled with options, such as FFANX. These funds like to invest in a variety of asset types, finding a balance between stocks, bonds, cash, and sometimes even precious metals and commodities; they are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation. For investors, Allocation Balanced funds can provide an entry point into diversified mutual funds, and present core holding options for a portfolio of funds.
History of Fund/Manager
FFANX finds itself in the Fidelity family, based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Asset Manager 40% made its debut in October of 2007, FFANX has garnered more than $1.62 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Geoffrey D. Stein who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2009.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 4.08%, 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 5.51%, 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. Over the past three years, FFANX's standard deviation comes in at 5.17%, compared to the category average of 8.49%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 5.36% compared to the category average of 8.87%. This makes the fund less 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. FFANX lost 29.2% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 7.17%. These results could imply that the fund is a better choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 0.42, the fund is likely to be less 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -0.52. This means that 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, FFANX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.53% compared to the category average of 0.89%. From a cost perspective, FFANX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Asset Manager 40% ( FFANX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
For additional information on the Allocation Balanced 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 FFANX 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.