There are plenty of choices in the Index category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that you should consider investigating is Hennessy Gas Utility Investor (GASFX Quick QuoteGASFX - Free Report) . GASFX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

Hennessy is based in Novato, CA, and is the manager of GASFX. Hennessy Gas Utility Investor debuted in May of 1989. Since then, GASFX has accumulated assets of about $426.76 million, according to the most recently available information. Ryan C. Kelley is the fund's current manager and has held that role since March of 2013.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.59%, and it sits in the middle 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 9.98%, which places it in the top 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, GASFX's standard deviation comes in at 16.58%, compared to the category average of 15.74%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 17.1% compared to the category average of 16.26%. 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 0.7, which means it is hypothetically less 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -2.6. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, GASFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.95%. GASFX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

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 similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Hennessy Gas Utility Investor ( GASFX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Index, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.