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Is LAGVX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Bond fund? Starting with Lord Abbett Income Fund A (LAGVX - Free Report) is one possibility. LAGVX possesses 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

LAGVX is a part of the Lord Abbett family of funds, a company based out of Jersey City, NJ. Since Lord Abbett Income Fund A made its debut in January of 1982, LAGVX has garnered more than $937.53 million in assets. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.66%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -4.01%, which places it in the top 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. LAGVX's standard deviation over the past three years is 7.65% compared to the category average of 13.69%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 8.88% compared to the category average of 14.62%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

This fund has a beta of 0.92, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, LAGVX has a positive alpha of 1.29, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

Ratings

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, LAGVX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.74% compared to the category average of 0.92%. LAGVX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,500 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, Lord Abbett Income Fund A ( LAGVX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, Lord Abbett Income Fund A ( LAGVX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Bond, 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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