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Is Janus Henderson Global Life Science A (JFNAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you've been stuck searching for Sector - Health funds, consider Janus Henderson Global Life Science A (JFNAX - Free Report) as a possibility. JFNAX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that JFNAX is a Sector - Health fund, and this area is also loaded with various options. Sector - Health mutual funds give investors an opportunity to focus on one of the largest sectors of the American economy, healthcare. Funds in this category can include everything from for-profit hospitals to pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers.

History of Fund/Manager

JFNAX finds itself in the Janus Fund family, based out of Boston, MA. The Janus Henderson Global Life Science A made its debut in July of 2009 and JFNAX has managed to accumulate roughly $247.88 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Andy Acker, has been in charge of the fund since July of 2009.

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 6%, 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 5.32%, 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. Compared to the category average of 14.03%, the standard deviation of JFNAX over the past three years is 14.5%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 14.93% compared to the category average of 13.91%. 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 0.66, so it is likely going to be less 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. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -4.61, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, JFNAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.98% compared to the category average of 0.97%. JFNAX 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 strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Janus Henderson Global Life Science A ( JFNAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on JFNAXin the Sector - Health 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. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.


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