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Is American Funds EuroPacific Growth R6 (RERGX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If investors are looking at the Non US - Equity fund category, make sure to pass over American Funds EuroPacific Growth R6 (RERGX - Free Report) . RERGX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We classify RERGX in the Non US - Equity category, which is an area rife with potential choices. Investing in companies outside the United States is how Non US - Equity funds set themselves apart, since global funds tend to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. Many of these funds like to allocate across emerging and developed markets, and will often focus on all cap levels.

History of Fund/Manager

American Funds is responsible for RERGX, and the company is based out of Los Angeles, CA. American Funds EuroPacific Growth R6 debuted in May of 2009. Since then, RERGX has accumulated assets of about $60.92 billion, according to the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.33%, and it sits 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 -2.19%, 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. RERGX's standard deviation over the past three years is 17.77% compared to the category average of 14.57%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 18.93% compared to the category average of 15.42%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 0.94, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. RERGX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -6.12, 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, RERGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 0.96%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, RERGX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $250; each subsequent investment needs to 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 EuroPacific Growth R6 ( RERGX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, American Funds EuroPacific Growth R6 ( RERGX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about RERGX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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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