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 Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If you're looking for a Large Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX - Free Report) . EKJFX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify EKJFX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Wells Fargo is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of EKJFX. Since Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 made its debut in December of 2012, EKJFX has garnered more than $829.60 million in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 10.8%, 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 21.22%, 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. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 14.4% compared to the category average of 1.08%. 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.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.08, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. EKJFX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.64, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 85.31% of its assets in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $211.97 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Retail Trade
Turnover is 57.83%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, EKJFX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 0.72%.
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
With a rank of 'hold' we aren't getting a good signal one way or another on EKJFX. That is why it might be a good idea to consider other items, such as the fund's expense ratio of 0.72%, and how this compares to other potential options being considered for investment. If cheaper, it might make a decent choice, but a more expensive fund might be worth avoiding. Just make sure to pay attention to its rank in case it shifts in the near future.
This could just be the start of your research on EKJFXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank 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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you're looking for a Large Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 (EKJFX - Free Report) . EKJFX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify EKJFX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
Wells Fargo is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of EKJFX. Since Wells Fargo Premier Large Company Growth R6 made its debut in December of 2012, EKJFX has garnered more than $829.60 million in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 10.8%, 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 21.22%, 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. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 14.4% compared to the category average of 1.08%. 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.
Nevertheless, with a 5-year beta of 1.08, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. EKJFX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.64, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 85.31% of its assets in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $211.97 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
Turnover is 57.83%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.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, EKJFX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 0.72%.
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
With a rank of 'hold' we aren't getting a good signal one way or another on EKJFX. That is why it might be a good idea to consider other items, such as the fund's expense ratio of 0.72%, and how this compares to other potential options being considered for investment. If cheaper, it might make a decent choice, but a more expensive fund might be worth avoiding. Just make sure to pay attention to its rank in case it shifts in the near future.
This could just be the start of your research on EKJFXin the Large Cap Growth category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank 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.