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Is Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income C (MLPRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Energy fund could think about starting with Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income C (MLPRX - Free Report) . MLPRX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

MLPRX is one of many Sector - Energy funds to choose from. Sector - Energy mutual funds are comprised of various changing and hugely important industries throughout the massive global energy sector. Even though clean energy is beginning to pick up steam, oil and gas companies have the highest exposure, but carbon-based fuels will be the biggest group of assets in these funds.

History of Fund/Manager

Invesco is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of MLPRX. Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income C made its debut in May of 2011, and since then, MLPRX has accumulated about $897.54 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Stuart Cartner, has been in charge of the fund since May of 2011.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. MLPRX has a 5-year annualized total return of -5.08% and is in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.66%, 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. MLPRX's standard deviation over the past three years is 15.47% compared to the category average of 11.84%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 19.78% compared to the category average of 12.58%. This makes the fund more 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, with a 5-year beta of 1, the fund is likely to be as volatile as 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 -13.35, 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, MLPRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 2.14% compared to the category average of 1.48%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, MLPRX is actually more expensive than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income C ( MLPRX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income C ( MLPRX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Sector - Energy segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.


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