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Is T. Rowe Price Small Cap Value Fund (PRSVX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Value fund could think about starting with T. Rowe Price Small Cap Value Fund (PRSVX - Free Report) . PRSVX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

PRSVX is one of many Small Cap Value funds to choose from. Small Cap Value mutual funds typically invest in companies with market caps under $2 billion. These funds represent value because they offer more bang for an owner's buck, often demonstrated by lower P/E Ratios, high dividend yields, and better-than-average price-to-sales ratios.

History of Fund/Manager

T. Rowe Price is responsible for PRSVX, and the company is based out of Baltimore, MD. The T. Rowe Price Small Cap Value Fund made its debut in June of 1988 and PRSVX has managed to accumulate roughly $3.76 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by J. Wagner who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2014.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRSVX has a 5-year annualized total return of 10.63%, 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 7.45%, 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. Compared to the category average of 15.83%, the standard deviation of PRSVX over the past three years is 20.08%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 19.49% compared to the category average of 15.17%. 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 0.98, which means it is hypothetically as volatile as 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. PRSVX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.81, 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.

The mutual fund currently has 82.22% of its holdings in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $5.76 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  • Finance
  • Other
  • Industrial Cyclical

Turnover is about 35.4%, so those in charge of the fund make fewer trades than the average comparable fund.

Expenses

For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, PRSVX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.79% compared to the category average of 0.96%. From a cost perspective, PRSVX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $100.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, T. Rowe Price Small Cap Value Fund ( PRSVX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.

Want even more information about PRSVX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.


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