Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is T. Rowe Price Global Technology (PRGTX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Equity Report funds, you might want to consider passing on by T. Rowe Price Global Technology (PRGTX - Free Report) as a possibility. PRGTX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

T. Rowe Price is responsible for PRGTX, and the company is based out of Baltimore, MD. T. Rowe Price Global Technology made its debut in September of 2000, and since then, PRGTX has accumulated about $7.46 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Alan Tu who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2019.

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 7.12%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 5.98%, which places it in the bottom 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 20.01%, the standard deviation of PRGTX over the past three years is 28.12%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 25.57% compared to the category average of 17.86%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 1.21, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. PRGTX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -6.29, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, PRGTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.86% compared to the category average of 1.29%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, PRGTX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $100.

Bottom Line

Overall, T. Rowe Price Global Technology ( PRGTX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, T. Rowe Price Global Technology ( PRGTX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about PRGTX? 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 want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


T. Rowe Price Global Technology (PRGTX) - free report >>

Published in