High Yield - Bonds fund seekers should not consider taking a look at Ivy High Income N (IHIFX Quick QuoteIHIFX - Free Report) at this time. IHIFX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

IHIFX is classified in the High Yield - Bonds segment by Zacks, an area full of investment possibilities. High Yield - Bonds funds come in below investment grade, and are referred to as " junk " bonds for this reason. Compared to their investment grade peers, these funds are at a higher default risk, but typically pay out higher yields while posing similar interest rate risks.

History of Fund/Manager

IHIFX is a part of the Masquarie family of funds, a company based out of Philadelphia, PA. Since Ivy High Income N made its debut in July of 2014, IHIFX has garnered more than $100.52 million in assets. The fund's current manager, John McCarthy, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2021.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 3.09%, and is 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 1.91%, 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, IHIFX's standard deviation comes in at 8.99%, compared to the category average of 13.2%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 10.72% compared to the category average of 14.27%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

With a beta of 0.01, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, IHIFX has a positive alpha of 3.32, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

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, IHIFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.55% compared to the category average of 0.94%. From a cost perspective, IHIFX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

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, average downside risk, and lower fees, Ivy High Income N ( IHIFX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

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