Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should consider taking a look at American Funds Balanced A (ABALX Quick QuoteABALX - Free Report) . ABALX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

ABALX finds itself in the American Funds family, based out of Los Angeles, CA. American Funds Balanced A debuted in September of 1932. Since then, ABALX has accumulated assets of about $94.92 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 6.19%, 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 4.94%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.

It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.

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 ABALX over the past three years is 11.73% compared to the category average of 14.24%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 11.7% compared to the category average of 15.15%. This makes the fund less 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. ABALX has a 5-year beta of 0.61, which means it is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. ABALX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.42, which means 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, ABALX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.57% compared to the category average of 0.85%. So, ABALX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $250, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, American Funds Balanced A ( ABALX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, American Funds Balanced A ( ABALX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

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