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Is Fidelity Advisor Technology C (FTHCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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There are plenty of choices in the Sector - Tech category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Fidelity Advisor Technology C (FTHCX - Free Report) . FTHCX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that FTHCX is a Sector - Tech option, and this area is loaded with many options. Found in a wide number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, and networking, tech companies are everywhere. Thus, Sector - Tech mutual funds that invest in technology let investors own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector, but with a much more diversifies approach.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FTHCX. The Fidelity Advisor Technology C made its debut in November of 1997 and FTHCX has managed to accumulate roughly $259.42 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Nidhi Gupta is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 2018.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 17.48%, and is in the top 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 21.12%, 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. FTHCX's standard deviation over the past three years is 17.44% compared to the category average of 11.85%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 16.97% compared to the category average of 11.67%. 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. FTHCX lost 60.18% in the most recent bear market and underperformed its peer group by 6%. This might suggest that the fund is a worse choice than its peers during a bear market.

Nevertheless, investors should also note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.16, which means it is hypothetically more 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 positive alpha of 6.84, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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, FTHCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.78% compared to the category average of 1.38%. From a cost perspective, FTHCX is actually more expensive than its peers.

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

Overall, Fidelity Advisor Technology C ( FTHCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about FTHCX? 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. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.


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