There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Equity Report category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Columbia Seligman Communications and Information A (SLMCX Quick QuoteSLMCX - Free Report) . SLMCX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

SLMCX finds itself in the Columbia family, based out of Kansas City, MO. Since Columbia Seligman Communications and Information A made its debut in June of 1983, SLMCX has garnered more than $6.38 billion in assets. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. SLMCX has a 5-year annualized total return of 19.98% and is in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 29.27%, 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. Over the past three years, SLMCX's standard deviation comes in at 22.87%, compared to the category average of 16.25%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 21.91% compared to the category average of 14.64%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.18, so investors should note that it is hypothetically 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 positive alpha of 4.5. This means that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Exploring 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.

This fund is currently holding about 94.94% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $273.27 billion. This fund's turnover is about 32%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than comparable funds.

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, SLMCX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.17% compared to the category average of 1.29%. SLMCX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Columbia Seligman Communications and Information A ( SLMCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on SLMCXin the Mutual Fund Equity Report category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.