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Is Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income A (MLPDX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Equity Report funds, consider Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income A (MLPDX - Free Report) as a possibility. MLPDX has 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

Invesco is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of MLPDX. Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income A made its debut in April of 2010, and since then, MLPDX has accumulated about $1.50 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Stuart Cartner who has been in charge of the fund since April of 2010.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. MLPDX has a 5-year annualized total return of 4.22% and is 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 8.14%, 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. MLPDX's standard deviation over the past three years is 53.25% compared to the category average of 23.32%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 42.73% compared to the category average of 17.93%. 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 1.71, 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -9.06. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, MLPDX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.39% compared to the category average of 1.43%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, MLPDX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.

Bottom Line

Overall, Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income A ( MLPDX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Oppenheimer SteelPath MLP Income A ( MLPDX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.


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