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Is SDSYX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

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If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Bond fund category, Western Asset Global Strategy Income I (SDSYX - Free Report) could be a potential option. SDSYX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

SDSYX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. Western Asset Global Strategy Income I debuted in October of 1995. Since then, SDSYX has accumulated assets of about $764.91 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.16%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 1.34%, 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. The standard deviation of SDSYX over the past three years is 9.55% compared to the category average of 13.24%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 7.66% compared to the category average of 11.65%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

With a beta of 0.44, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, SDSYX has a positive alpha of 1.25, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

Ratings

Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, SDSYX 's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 66.52%. This means that the fund has an average quality of BBB, and focuses on medium quality securities.

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, SDSYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 0.77%. From a cost perspective, SDSYX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1 million and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Bottom Line

Overall, Western Asset Global Strategy Income I ( SDSYX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about SDSYX? 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. 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.


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