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Is MSIF International Opportunities A (MIOPX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with MSIF International Opportunities A (MIOPX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. MIOPX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MorgStanley is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of MIOPX. MSIF International Opportunities A debuted in March of 2010. Since then, MIOPX has accumulated assets of about $268.93 million, according to the most recently available information. Kristian Heugh is the fund's current manager and has held that role since May of 2010.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.36%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -1.49%, 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. Compared to the category average of 17.99%, the standard deviation of MIOPX over the past three years is 27.99%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.86% compared to the category average of 15.78%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. MIOPX has a 5-year beta of 1.01, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. 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. MIOPX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -7.75, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, MIOPX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.35% compared to the category average of 1.11%. From a cost perspective, MIOPX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, MSIF International Opportunities A ( MIOPX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, MSIF International Opportunities A ( MIOPX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MIOPXin 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. 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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Is MSIF International Opportunities A (MIOPX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with MSIF International Opportunities A (MIOPX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. MIOPX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
MorgStanley is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of MIOPX. MSIF International Opportunities A debuted in March of 2010. Since then, MIOPX has accumulated assets of about $268.93 million, according to the most recently available information. Kristian Heugh is the fund's current manager and has held that role since May of 2010.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.36%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -1.49%, 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. Compared to the category average of 17.99%, the standard deviation of MIOPX over the past three years is 27.99%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.86% compared to the category average of 15.78%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. MIOPX has a 5-year beta of 1.01, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. 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. MIOPX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -7.75, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, MIOPX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.35% compared to the category average of 1.11%. From a cost perspective, MIOPX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, MSIF International Opportunities A ( MIOPX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, MSIF International Opportunities A ( MIOPX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MIOPXin 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. 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.