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Is T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Adviser (PABGX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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On the lookout for a Large Cap Growth fund? Starting with T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Adviser (PABGX - Free Report) is one possibility. PABGX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

PABGX 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

PABGX finds itself in the T. Rowe Price family, based out of Baltimore, MD. T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Adviser debuted in June of 1993. Since then, PABGX has accumulated assets of about $1.26 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Paul Greene who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2021.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 14.61%, and is 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 4.77%, 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. Compared to the category average of 15.63%, the standard deviation of PABGX over the past three years is 22.07%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 21.3% compared to the category average of 16.28%. 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 1.08, 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. PABGX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -0.94, which means 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, PABGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.95% compared to the category average of 0.95%. So, PABGX is actually on par with its peers from a cost perspective.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, 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, T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Adviser ( PABGX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and on par fees, T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth Adviser ( PABGX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Large Cap Growth, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.


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