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If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Bond fund category, make sure to pass over PIMCO Total Return A (PTTAX - Free Report) . PTTAX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
PIMCO Funds is based in Newport Beach, CA, and is the manager of PTTAX. PIMCO Total Return A debuted in May of 1987. Since then, PTTAX has accumulated assets of about $5.20 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 0.81%, and is in the middle 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 -3%, 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. PTTAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 6.32% compared to the category average of 14.06%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 5.52% compared to the category average of 13.83%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
This fund has a beta of 0.99, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, PTTAX has a negative alpha of -0.36, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, PTTAX has 69.8% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher. The fund has an average quality of AA, and focuses on high quality securities.
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, PTTAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.75%. PTTAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, PIMCO Total Return A ( PTTAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on PTTAXin the Mutual Fund Bond 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 are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
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Is PTTAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Bond fund category, make sure to pass over PIMCO Total Return A (PTTAX - Free Report) . PTTAX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
PIMCO Funds is based in Newport Beach, CA, and is the manager of PTTAX. PIMCO Total Return A debuted in May of 1987. Since then, PTTAX has accumulated assets of about $5.20 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 0.81%, and is in the middle 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 -3%, 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. PTTAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 6.32% compared to the category average of 14.06%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 5.52% compared to the category average of 13.83%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
This fund has a beta of 0.99, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, PTTAX has a negative alpha of -0.36, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, PTTAX has 69.8% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher. The fund has an average quality of AA, and focuses on high quality securities.
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, PTTAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.75%. PTTAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, PIMCO Total Return A ( PTTAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on PTTAXin the Mutual Fund Bond 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 are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.