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Is Fidelity Growth Company (FDGRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you're looking for a Large Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Fidelity Growth Company (FDGRX - Free Report) . FDGRX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

FDGRX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FDGRX. The Fidelity Growth Company made its debut in January of 1983 and FDGRX has managed to accumulate roughly $46.84 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Steven S. Wymer who has been in charge of the fund since January of 1997.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 20.9%, and it sits 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 6.71%, 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. Over the past three years, FDGRX's standard deviation comes in at 22.93%, compared to the category average of 17.6%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.4% compared to the category average of 18.27%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 1.16, the fund is likely to be more volatile than 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. With a positive alpha of 4.72, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Exploring the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.

Right now, 91.86% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $533 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  • Technology
  • Retail Trade
With turnover at about 12%, this fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.

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, FDGRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.71% compared to the category average of 0.95%. FDGRX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors should also note, that according to our data, the fund does not have any minimum investment requirements.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Growth Company ( FDGRX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Large Cap Growth area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into FDGRX too 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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