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Is Fidelity Select Consumer Staples (FDFAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Other fund could think about starting with Fidelity Select Consumer Staples (FDFAX - Free Report) . FDFAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FDFAX. Fidelity Select Consumer Staples made its debut in July of 1985, and since then, FDFAX has accumulated about $776.70 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Nicola Stafford, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2019.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.65%, and is 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 1.62%, 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. Over the past three years, FDFAX's standard deviation comes in at 12.87%, compared to the category average of 11.01%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 12.11% compared to the category average of 10.92%. 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. In FDFAX's case, the fund lost 32.46% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 18%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Nevertheless, investors should also note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.73, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. With a negative alpha of -3.88, 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, FDFAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.76% compared to the category average of 1.30%. So, FDFAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Select Consumer Staples ( FDFAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Select Consumer Staples ( FDFAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about FDFAX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
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Is Fidelity Select Consumer Staples (FDFAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Other fund could think about starting with Fidelity Select Consumer Staples (FDFAX - Free Report) . FDFAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FDFAX. Fidelity Select Consumer Staples made its debut in July of 1985, and since then, FDFAX has accumulated about $776.70 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Nicola Stafford, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2019.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.65%, and is 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 1.62%, 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. Over the past three years, FDFAX's standard deviation comes in at 12.87%, compared to the category average of 11.01%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 12.11% compared to the category average of 10.92%. 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. In FDFAX's case, the fund lost 32.46% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 18%. This could mean that the fund is a better choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Nevertheless, investors should also note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.73, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. With a negative alpha of -3.88, 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, FDFAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.76% compared to the category average of 1.30%. So, FDFAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Fidelity Select Consumer Staples ( FDFAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Select Consumer Staples ( FDFAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about FDFAX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.