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Is American Funds Balanced R3 (RLBCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with American Funds Balanced R3 (RLBCX - Free Report) is one possibility. RLBCX carries 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
American Funds is based in Los Angeles, CA, and is the manager of RLBCX. Since American Funds Balanced R3 made its debut in July of 1975, RLBCX has garnered more than $2.44 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 5.98%, 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 5.43%, 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, RLBCX's standard deviation comes in at 13.2%, compared to the category average of 16.86%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 11.42% compared to the category average of 14.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.6, so it is likely going to be less 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 -1.32, 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, RLBCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.91% compared to the category average of 0.86%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, RLBCX is actually more expensive than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $250 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Funds Balanced R3 ( RLBCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare RLBCX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is American Funds Balanced R3 (RLBCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with American Funds Balanced R3 (RLBCX - Free Report) is one possibility. RLBCX carries 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
American Funds is based in Los Angeles, CA, and is the manager of RLBCX. Since American Funds Balanced R3 made its debut in July of 1975, RLBCX has garnered more than $2.44 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 5.98%, 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 5.43%, 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, RLBCX's standard deviation comes in at 13.2%, compared to the category average of 16.86%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 11.42% compared to the category average of 14.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.6, so it is likely going to be less 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 -1.32, 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, RLBCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.91% compared to the category average of 0.86%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, RLBCX is actually more expensive than its peers.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $250 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Funds Balanced R3 ( RLBCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare RLBCX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.