Any investors hoping to find a Non US - Equity fund could think about starting with ProFunds UltraEmerging Markets Investor (UUPIX Quick QuoteUUPIX - Free Report) . UUPIX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

Zacks categorizes UUPIX as Non US - Equity, a segment stacked high with options. Non US - Equity mutual funds like to invest in companies outside of the United States, an important characteristic since global mutual funds are known to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. These kinds of funds can often extend across all cap levels, and will typically allocate their investments between emerging and developed markets.

History of Fund/Manager

UUPIX is a part of the ProFunds family of funds, a company based out of Columbus, OH. The ProFunds UltraEmerging Markets Investor made its debut in April of 2006 and UUPIX has managed to accumulate roughly $13.18 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. Scott Hanson is the fund's current manager and has held that role since August of 2016.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 21.09%, 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 9.84%, 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. UUPIX's standard deviation over the past three years is 44.2% compared to the category average of 26.34%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 38.78% compared to the category average of 22.64%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.78, 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. UUPIX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.34, which means 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, UUPIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.85% compared to the category average of 1.19%. So, UUPIX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $15,000 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Bottom Line

Overall, ProFunds UltraEmerging Markets Investor ( UUPIX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about UUPIX? 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.