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Having trouble finding an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate fund? Well, Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A (BMSAX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. BMSAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that BMSAX is an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate option, which is a segment loaded with many different investment options. By targeting bonds that mature in more than three years but less than 15 years, Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate funds are a middle of the curve option. Fixed income instruments at this maturity level usually have medium duration risk, but their yields are respectable, especially in comparison to their short-maturity counterparts. Additionally, a focus on investment grade makes these funds safer, but yields tend to be lower than in the junk bond category.
History of Fund/Manager
BlackRock is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of BMSAX. Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A debuted in March of 2010. Since then, BMSAX has accumulated assets of about $173.25 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.04%, and it sits in the bottom 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 1.11%, 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. Over the past three years, BMSAX's standard deviation comes in at 5.92%, compared to the category average of 12.23%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 7.5% compared to the category average of 13.28%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.38, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, BMSAX has a positive alpha of 1.73, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, BMSAX has 41.77% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 34.71% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 21.7%, giving BMSAX an average quality of A. This means that it focuses on high quality securities.
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, BMSAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.88% compared to the category average of 0.94%. From a cost perspective, BMSAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A ( BMSAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about BMSAX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
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Is BMSAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
Having trouble finding an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate fund? Well, Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A (BMSAX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. BMSAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that BMSAX is an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate option, which is a segment loaded with many different investment options. By targeting bonds that mature in more than three years but less than 15 years, Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate funds are a middle of the curve option. Fixed income instruments at this maturity level usually have medium duration risk, but their yields are respectable, especially in comparison to their short-maturity counterparts. Additionally, a focus on investment grade makes these funds safer, but yields tend to be lower than in the junk bond category.
History of Fund/Manager
BlackRock is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of BMSAX. Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A debuted in March of 2010. Since then, BMSAX has accumulated assets of about $173.25 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.04%, and it sits in the bottom 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 1.11%, 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. Over the past three years, BMSAX's standard deviation comes in at 5.92%, compared to the category average of 12.23%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 7.5% compared to the category average of 13.28%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.38, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, BMSAX has a positive alpha of 1.73, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, BMSAX has 41.77% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 34.71% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 21.7%, giving BMSAX an average quality of A. This means that it focuses on high quality securities.
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, BMSAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.88% compared to the category average of 0.94%. From a cost perspective, BMSAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, Blackrock Credit Strategies Income A ( BMSAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about BMSAX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.