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Is MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A (MMAAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A (MMAAX - Free Report) . MMAAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MassMutual is based in Springfield, MA, and is the manager of MMAAX. Since MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A made its debut in October of 2000, MMAAX has garnered more than $14.82 million in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. MMAAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 4.78% and it sits in the bottom 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 0.18%, 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. Over the past three years, MMAAX's standard deviation comes in at 26.21%, compared to the category average of 17.59%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 22.99% compared to the category average of 15.46%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.1, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. 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. With a negative alpha of -5.24, 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
The mutual fund currently has 94.94% of its holdings in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $232.93 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Health
Retail Trade
With turnover at about 32%, this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, MMAAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.30% compared to the category average of 0.99%. So, MMAAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
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, MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A ( MMAAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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Is MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A (MMAAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A (MMAAX - Free Report) . MMAAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MassMutual is based in Springfield, MA, and is the manager of MMAAX. Since MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A made its debut in October of 2000, MMAAX has garnered more than $14.82 million in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. MMAAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 4.78% and it sits in the bottom 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 0.18%, 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. Over the past three years, MMAAX's standard deviation comes in at 26.21%, compared to the category average of 17.59%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 22.99% compared to the category average of 15.46%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.1, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. 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. With a negative alpha of -5.24, 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.
The mutual fund currently has 94.94% of its holdings in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $232.93 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Health
- Retail Trade
With turnover at about 32%, this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.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, MMAAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.30% compared to the category average of 0.99%. So, MMAAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
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, MassMutual Select Growth Opportunity A ( MMAAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.