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Is MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 (MSGSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Small Cap Growth fund category, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 (MSGSX - Free Report) could be a potential option. MSGSX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Small Cap Growth funds is an area filled with options, such as MSGSX. These funds tend to create their portfolios around stocks that sport large growth opportunities and market capitalization of less than $2 billion. The companies in these portfolios are usually on the smaller side, and are in up-and-coming industries and markets.
History of Fund/Manager
MassMutual is based in Springfield, MA, and is the manager of MSGSX. The MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 made its debut in May of 1999 and MSGSX has managed to accumulate roughly $91.72 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.97%, and is 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 3.13%, 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. Over the past three years, MSGSX's standard deviation comes in at 21.4%, compared to the category average of 15.23%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.29% compared to the category average of 16.63%. 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 1.16, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. MSGSX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -7.06, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Examining 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.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 84.28% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $6.40 billion. Turnover is 54%, 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, MSGSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.95% compared to the category average of 0.98%. From a cost perspective, MSGSX 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, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 ( MSGSX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 ( MSGSX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MSGSXin the Small Cap Growth 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. 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 MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 (MSGSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Small Cap Growth fund category, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 (MSGSX - Free Report) could be a potential option. MSGSX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Small Cap Growth funds is an area filled with options, such as MSGSX. These funds tend to create their portfolios around stocks that sport large growth opportunities and market capitalization of less than $2 billion. The companies in these portfolios are usually on the smaller side, and are in up-and-coming industries and markets.
History of Fund/Manager
MassMutual is based in Springfield, MA, and is the manager of MSGSX. The MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 made its debut in May of 1999 and MSGSX has managed to accumulate roughly $91.72 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.97%, and is 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 3.13%, 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. Over the past three years, MSGSX's standard deviation comes in at 21.4%, compared to the category average of 15.23%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 23.29% compared to the category average of 16.63%. 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 1.16, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. 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. MSGSX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -7.06, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Examining 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.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 84.28% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $6.40 billion. Turnover is 54%, 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, MSGSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.95% compared to the category average of 0.98%. From a cost perspective, MSGSX 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, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 ( MSGSX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, MassMutual Select Small Cap Growth Equity R5 ( MSGSX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on MSGSXin the Small Cap Growth 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. 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.