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Is T. Rowe Price US Equity Research (PRCOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Large Cap Blend fund seekers should consider taking a look at T. Rowe Price US Equity Research (PRCOX - Free Report) . PRCOX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PRCOX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
T. Rowe Price is based in Baltimore, MD, and is the manager of PRCOX. Since T. Rowe Price US Equity Research made its debut in November of 1994, PRCOX has garnered more than $5.79 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRCOX has a 5-year annualized total return of 15.97% and is in the top 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 12.96%, 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. The standard deviation of PRCOX over the past three years is 16.98% compared to the category average of 14.66%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 18.41% compared to the category average of 15.93%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. PRCOX has a 5-year beta of 1.01, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. The fund has produced a positive alpha over the past 5 years of 0.65, which shows that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 78.39% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $481.57 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
Turnover is 36.4%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, PRCOX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.45% compared to the category average of 0.91%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, PRCOX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,500; 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 US Equity Research ( PRCOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about PRCOX? 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. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is T. Rowe Price US Equity Research (PRCOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Large Cap Blend fund seekers should consider taking a look at T. Rowe Price US Equity Research (PRCOX - Free Report) . PRCOX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PRCOX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, an area that boasts an array of many possible options. Large Cap Blend mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Blended funds mix large, established companies into their holdings, which gives investors exposure to both value and growth at the same time.
History of Fund/Manager
T. Rowe Price is based in Baltimore, MD, and is the manager of PRCOX. Since T. Rowe Price US Equity Research made its debut in November of 1994, PRCOX has garnered more than $5.79 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRCOX has a 5-year annualized total return of 15.97% and is in the top 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 12.96%, 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. The standard deviation of PRCOX over the past three years is 16.98% compared to the category average of 14.66%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 18.41% compared to the category average of 15.93%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. PRCOX has a 5-year beta of 1.01, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. The fund has produced a positive alpha over the past 5 years of 0.65, which shows that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is largely on equities that are traded in the United States.
Right now, 78.39% of this mutual fund's holdings are stocks, with an average market capitalization of $481.57 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Finance
Turnover is 36.4%, which means this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.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, PRCOX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.45% compared to the category average of 0.91%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, PRCOX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,500; 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 US Equity Research ( PRCOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about PRCOX? 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. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.