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International Bond - Developed fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Oppenheimer International Bond A (OIBAX - Free Report) . OIBAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of International Bond - Developed funds is an area filled with different choices, like OIBAX. International Bond - Developed funds focus on fixed income securities from developed nations besides the United States. This usually results in countries like Japan, Germany, the UK, France, and Australia dominating the list of top holdings. Funds here offer geographic diversification, but they can also introduce currency risk into the picture as well.
History of Fund/Manager
OIBAX is a part of the Invesco family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. Oppenheimer International Bond A made its debut in June of 1995, and since then, OIBAX has accumulated about $377.40 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of -0.82%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.54%, 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. OIBAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 11.19% compared to the category average of 13.33%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 12.52% compared to the category average of 14.08%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
OIBAX carries a beta of 0.32, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 0.17, 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, OIBAX has 42.5% in medium quality bonds, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 35.3%, giving OIBAX an average quality of BBB. This means that it focuses on medium quality securities.
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, OIBAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.04% compared to the category average of 0.93%. So, OIBAX 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 $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, Oppenheimer International Bond A ( OIBAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on OIBAXin the International Bond - Developed category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well 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 OIBAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
International Bond - Developed fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Oppenheimer International Bond A (OIBAX - Free Report) . OIBAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of International Bond - Developed funds is an area filled with different choices, like OIBAX. International Bond - Developed funds focus on fixed income securities from developed nations besides the United States. This usually results in countries like Japan, Germany, the UK, France, and Australia dominating the list of top holdings. Funds here offer geographic diversification, but they can also introduce currency risk into the picture as well.
History of Fund/Manager
OIBAX is a part of the Invesco family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. Oppenheimer International Bond A made its debut in June of 1995, and since then, OIBAX has accumulated about $377.40 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of -0.82%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.54%, 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. OIBAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 11.19% compared to the category average of 13.33%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 12.52% compared to the category average of 14.08%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
OIBAX carries a beta of 0.32, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 0.17, 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, OIBAX has 42.5% in medium quality bonds, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 35.3%, giving OIBAX an average quality of BBB. This means that it focuses on medium quality securities.
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, OIBAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.04% compared to the category average of 0.93%. So, OIBAX 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 $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, Oppenheimer International Bond A ( OIBAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on OIBAXin the International Bond - Developed category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well 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.