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Is Value Line Income & Growth Investor (VALIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you have been looking for Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, a potential starting could be Value Line Income & Growth Investor (VALIX - Free Report) . VALIX possesses 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
Value Line is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of VALIX. Value Line Income & Growth Investor debuted in October of 1952. Since then, VALIX has accumulated assets of about $429.33 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Liane Rosenberg who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2011.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. VALIX has a 5-year annualized total return of 12.66% and it sits 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 11.85%, 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. The standard deviation of VALIX over the past three years is 18.65% compared to the category average of 14.71%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 17.04% compared to the category average of 13%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.97, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. VALIX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.19, which means 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 89.34% of its assets in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $299.34 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Other
Finance
With turnover at about 39%, this fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, VALIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.05% compared to the category average of 0.86%. From a cost perspective, VALIX is actually more expensive than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Value Line Income & Growth Investor ( VALIX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about VALIX? 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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Is Value Line Income & Growth Investor (VALIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you have been looking for Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, a potential starting could be Value Line Income & Growth Investor (VALIX - Free Report) . VALIX possesses 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
Value Line is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of VALIX. Value Line Income & Growth Investor debuted in October of 1952. Since then, VALIX has accumulated assets of about $429.33 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Liane Rosenberg who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2011.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. VALIX has a 5-year annualized total return of 12.66% and it sits 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 11.85%, 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. The standard deviation of VALIX over the past three years is 18.65% compared to the category average of 14.71%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 17.04% compared to the category average of 13%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.97, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. VALIX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.19, which means 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 89.34% of its assets in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $299.34 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Other
- Finance
With turnover at about 39%, this fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.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, VALIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.05% compared to the category average of 0.86%. From a cost perspective, VALIX is actually more expensive than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Value Line Income & Growth Investor ( VALIX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about VALIX? 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.