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 International Discovery (FIGRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Having trouble finding a Non US - Equity fund? Well, Fidelity International Discovery (FIGRX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. FIGRX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FIGRX is classified in the Non US - Equity area by Zacks, and this segment is full of potential. Non US - Equity funds focus their investments on companies outside of the United States, which is an important distinction since global mutual funds tend to keep a sizable portion of their portfolio based in the United States. Most of these funds will allocate across emerging and developed markets, and can often extend across cap levels too.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FIGRX. Fidelity International Discovery debuted in December of 1986. Since then, FIGRX has accumulated assets of about $7.14 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, William Kennedy, has been in charge of the fund since October of 2004.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.57%, 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 11.64%, 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. FIGRX's standard deviation over the past three years is 11.66% compared to the category average of 9.86%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 11.96% compared to the category average of 10.22%. 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. In FIGRX's case, the fund lost 57.01% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 2%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.81, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. 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 -2.65, 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, FIGRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.67% compared to the category average of 1.23%. From a cost perspective, FIGRX 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 International Discovery ( FIGRX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FIGRXin the Non US - Equity 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. 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 International Discovery (FIGRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Having trouble finding a Non US - Equity fund? Well, Fidelity International Discovery (FIGRX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. FIGRX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FIGRX is classified in the Non US - Equity area by Zacks, and this segment is full of potential. Non US - Equity funds focus their investments on companies outside of the United States, which is an important distinction since global mutual funds tend to keep a sizable portion of their portfolio based in the United States. Most of these funds will allocate across emerging and developed markets, and can often extend across cap levels too.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FIGRX. Fidelity International Discovery debuted in December of 1986. Since then, FIGRX has accumulated assets of about $7.14 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, William Kennedy, has been in charge of the fund since October of 2004.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.57%, 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 11.64%, 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. FIGRX's standard deviation over the past three years is 11.66% compared to the category average of 9.86%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 11.96% compared to the category average of 10.22%. 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. In FIGRX's case, the fund lost 57.01% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 2%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.81, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. 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 -2.65, 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, FIGRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.67% compared to the category average of 1.23%. From a cost perspective, FIGRX 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 International Discovery ( FIGRX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FIGRXin the Non US - Equity 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. 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.