We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Is Columbia Disciplined Core A (AQEAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If you have been looking for Large Cap Blend fund category, a potential starting could be Columbia Disciplined Core A (AQEAX - Free Report) . AQEAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
AQEAX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
Columbia is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of AQEAX. Since Columbia Disciplined Core A made its debut in December of 2004, AQEAX has garnered more than $4.06 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Raghavendran Sivaraman who has been in charge of the fund since December of 2019.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. AQEAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 12.64% and it sits in the bottom 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 11.48%, 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. Compared to the category average of 14.7%, the standard deviation of AQEAX over the past three years is 17.6%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.54% compared to the category average of 15.67%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1, the fund is likely to be as volatile as 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. AQEAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -1.79, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.88% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $339.01 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
This fund's turnover is about 50%, so the fund managers are making more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.
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, AQEAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.97% compared to the category average of 0.93%. So, AQEAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Columbia Disciplined Core A ( AQEAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about AQEAX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Columbia Disciplined Core A (AQEAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you have been looking for Large Cap Blend fund category, a potential starting could be Columbia Disciplined Core A (AQEAX - Free Report) . AQEAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
AQEAX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
Columbia is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of AQEAX. Since Columbia Disciplined Core A made its debut in December of 2004, AQEAX has garnered more than $4.06 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Raghavendran Sivaraman who has been in charge of the fund since December of 2019.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. AQEAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 12.64% and it sits in the bottom 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 11.48%, 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. Compared to the category average of 14.7%, the standard deviation of AQEAX over the past three years is 17.6%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.54% compared to the category average of 15.67%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1, the fund is likely to be as volatile as 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. AQEAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -1.79, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 83.88% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $339.01 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Finance
This fund's turnover is about 50%, so the fund managers are making more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.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, AQEAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.97% compared to the category average of 0.93%. So, AQEAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Columbia Disciplined Core A ( AQEAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about AQEAX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.