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Is LDLAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

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Any investors hoping to find a Government Bond - Short fund could think about starting with Lord Abbett Short Duration Income C (LDLAX - Free Report) . LDLAX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that LDLAX is a Government Bond - Short option, an area packed with various choices. Have securities issued by the United States' federal government in their portfolios. Generally, these are seen as extremely low risk from a default perspective and often regarded as risk-free. Government Bond - Short funds focus on the short end of the curve, which results in lower yields, but less sensitivity to interest rate fluctuations.

History of Fund/Manager

Lord Abbett is based in Jersey City, NJ, and is the manager of LDLAX. Lord Abbett Short Duration Income C debuted in July of 1996. Since then, LDLAX has accumulated assets of about $1.22 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 2.02%, and it sits 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 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. Compared to the category average of 12.66%, the standard deviation of LDLAX over the past three years is 2.35%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 2.21% compared to the category average of 12.37%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Bond Duration

Modified duration is a measure of a given bond's interest rate sensitivity, and is a metric that's a good way to judge how fixed income securities will respond in a shifting rate environment.

For those that believe interest rates will rise, this is an important factor to consider. LDLAX has a modified duration of 1.97, which suggests that the fund will decline 1.97% for every hundred-basis-point increase in interest rates.

This fund has a beta of 0.25, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, LDLAX has a positive alpha of 0.3, 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, LDLAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.19% compared to the category average of 0.91%. So, LDLAX 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 $1,500; 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, Lord Abbett Short Duration Income C ( LDLAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, better downside risk, and higher fees, Lord Abbett Short Duration Income C ( LDLAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Government Bond - Short, 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.


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