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Is BlackRock Equity Dividend R (MRDVX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Looking for a Large Cap Value fund? You may want to consider BlackRock Equity Dividend R (MRDVX - Free Report) as a possible option. MRDVX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Large Cap Value mutual funds invest in stocks with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more, but whose share prices do not reflect their intrinsic value; this value investing strategy often leads to low P/E ratios and high dividend yields, though growth levels are often curtailed. The high-growth opportunity of these funds are slowed even further, as large-cap securities are generally in stable industries with low to moderate growth prospects. Therefore, Large Cap Value funds are usually more appealing to investors who are interested in a stable income stream.
History of Fund/Manager
MRDVX is a part of the BlackRock family of funds, a company based out of New York, NY. BlackRock Equity Dividend R debuted in January of 2003. Since then, MRDVX has accumulated assets of about $404.58 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Tony DeSpirito who has been in charge of the fund since August of 2014.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. MRDVX has a 5-year annualized total return of 9.54% and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3 -year annualized total return of 8.04%, which places it in the bottom 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 MRDVX over the past three years is 15.68% compared to the category average of 14.64%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 17.76% compared to the category average of 15.83%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.87, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. MRDVX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.93, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, MRDVX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.28% compared to the category average of 0.95%. MRDVX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $100, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, BlackRock Equity Dividend R ( MRDVX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Large Cap Value 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 MRDVX too for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.
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Is BlackRock Equity Dividend R (MRDVX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Looking for a Large Cap Value fund? You may want to consider BlackRock Equity Dividend R (MRDVX - Free Report) as a possible option. MRDVX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Large Cap Value mutual funds invest in stocks with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more, but whose share prices do not reflect their intrinsic value; this value investing strategy often leads to low P/E ratios and high dividend yields, though growth levels are often curtailed. The high-growth opportunity of these funds are slowed even further, as large-cap securities are generally in stable industries with low to moderate growth prospects. Therefore, Large Cap Value funds are usually more appealing to investors who are interested in a stable income stream.
History of Fund/Manager
MRDVX is a part of the BlackRock family of funds, a company based out of New York, NY. BlackRock Equity Dividend R debuted in January of 2003. Since then, MRDVX has accumulated assets of about $404.58 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Tony DeSpirito who has been in charge of the fund since August of 2014.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. MRDVX has a 5-year annualized total return of 9.54% and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3 -year annualized total return of 8.04%, which places it in the bottom 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 MRDVX over the past three years is 15.68% compared to the category average of 14.64%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 17.76% compared to the category average of 15.83%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.87, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. MRDVX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.93, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, MRDVX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.28% compared to the category average of 0.95%. MRDVX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $100, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, BlackRock Equity Dividend R ( MRDVX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Large Cap Value 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 MRDVX too for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.