Any investors hoping to find a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund could think about starting with AllianzGI Global Water A (AWTAX Quick QuoteAWTAX - Free Report) . AWTAX 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

Virtus Funds is based in Hartford, CT, and is the manager of AWTAX. AllianzGI Global Water A made its debut in April of 2008, and since then, AWTAX has accumulated about $316.55 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Andreas Fruschki who has been in charge of the fund since April of 2008.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. AWTAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 15.77% 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 24.78%, 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. Compared to the category average of 18.07%, the standard deviation of AWTAX over the past three years is 15.47%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 14.08% compared to the category average of 15.17%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.8, so it is likely going to be 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. AWTAX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.9, 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, AWTAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.22% compared to the category average of 1.23%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, AWTAX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.

Bottom Line

Overall, AllianzGI Global Water A ( AWTAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, AllianzGI Global Water A ( AWTAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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 AWTAX too for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.