Any investors hoping to find a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund could think about starting with Eagle Mid Cap Growth R6 (HRAUX Quick QuoteHRAUX - Free Report) . HRAUX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

HRAUX is a part of the Eagle Funds family of funds, a company based out of St. Petersburg, FL. Eagle Mid Cap Growth R6 made its debut in August of 2011, and since then, HRAUX has accumulated about $3.74 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

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 16.43%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 17.34%, which places it in the middle 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 15.63%, the standard deviation of HRAUX over the past three years is 22.04%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 20.12% compared to the category average of 13.86%. 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 1.15, so it is likely going to be 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. HRAUX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -1.09, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Examining the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is largely on equities that are traded in the United States.

The mutual fund currently has 93.84% of its holdings in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $30.78 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

1. Technology
2. Retail Trade
3. Industrial Cyclical
4. Services

This fund's turnover is about 23%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than its comparable peers.

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, HRAUX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 1.15%. HRAUX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

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, Eagle Mid Cap Growth R6 ( HRAUX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Eagle Mid Cap Growth R6 ( HRAUX ) looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

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