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Is DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N (DSENX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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There are plenty of choices in the Large Cap Blend category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that may not be worth investigating is DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N (DSENX - Free Report) . DSENX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that DSENX is a Large Cap Blend option, an area loaded with different options. More often than not, Large Cap Blend mutual funds invest in companies with a market cap of over $10 billion. Buying stakes in bigger companies offer these funds more stability, and are well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Additionally, blended funds mix large, more established firms into their portfolios, giving investors exposure to value and growth opportunities.

History of Fund/Manager

Double Line is based in Los Angeles, CA, and is the manager of DSENX. The DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N made its debut in October of 2013 and DSENX has managed to accumulate roughly $252.43 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Jeffrey Sherman who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2013.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 11.12%, 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 5.07%, 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. DSENX's standard deviation over the past three years is 20.1% compared to the category average of 15.26%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.84% compared to the category average of 16.13%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.16, which means it is hypothetically more 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. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -5.59, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, DSENX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.79% compared to the category average of 0.89%. So, DSENX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N ( DSENX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N ( DSENX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Large Cap Blend 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 DSENX too for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.


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