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Is Fidelity Small Cap Discovery Fund (FSCRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should consider taking a look at Fidelity Small Cap Discovery Fund (FSCRX - Free Report) . FSCRX has 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

Fidelity is responsible for FSCRX, and the company is based out of Boston, MA. Fidelity Small Cap Discovery Fund made its debut in January of 2001, and since then, FSCRX has accumulated about $2.98 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Derek Janssen who has been in charge of the fund since March of 2016.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.63%, 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 10.35%, 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 FSCRX over the past three years is 26.47% compared to the category average of 24.72%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 22.9% compared to the category average of 22.25%. 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. FSCRX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.66, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Investigating 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.

The mutual fund currently has 78.55% of its holdings in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $4.82 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  1. Services
  2. Finance
  3. Retail Trade
  4. Industrial Cyclical
This fund's turnover is about 26%, so the fund managers are making 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, FSCRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.97% compared to the category average of 1.09%. FSCRX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Small Cap Discovery Fund ( FSCRX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Small Cap Discovery Fund ( FSCRX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about FSCRX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.


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