Sector - Tech fund seekers should not consider taking a look at Dreyfus Technology Growth A (DTGRX Quick QuoteDTGRX - Free Report) at this time. DTGRX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

The world of Sector - Tech funds is an area filled with options, and DTGRX is one of them. Sector - Tech mutual funds allow investors to own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector with a much more diversified approach. Tech companies can be in any number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, networking just to name a few.

History of Fund/Manager

BNY Mellon is responsible for DTGRX, and the company is based out of New York, NY. Dreyfus Technology Growth A debuted in October of 1997. Since then, DTGRX has accumulated assets of about $412.38 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Erik A. Swords, has been in charge of the fund since December of 2008.

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 25.92%, and it sits 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 25.52%, 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, DTGRX's standard deviation comes in at 23.73%, compared to the category average of 17.8%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 20.04% compared to the category average of 14.88%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.12, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. DTGRX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 7.37, demonstrating that 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, DTGRX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.20% compared to the category average of 1.36%. From a cost perspective, DTGRX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.

Bottom Line

Overall, Dreyfus Technology Growth A ( DTGRX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Dreyfus Technology Growth A ( DTGRX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Sector - Tech area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into DTGRX too 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.