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Is T. Rowe Price All-Cap Opportunities Fund (PRWAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Large Cap Growth fund seekers should consider taking a look at T. Rowe Price All-Cap Opportunities Fund (PRWAX - Free Report) . PRWAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We classify PRWAX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.

History of Fund/Manager

T. Rowe Price is responsible for PRWAX, and the company is based out of Baltimore, MD. The T. Rowe Price All-Cap Opportunities Fund made its debut in September of 1985 and PRWAX has managed to accumulate roughly $8.65 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Justin White, has been in charge of the fund since April of 2016.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. PRWAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 15.41%, 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 25.93%, 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 15.88%, the standard deviation of PRWAX over the past three years is 13.38%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 15.95% compared to the category average of 15.63%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 0.98, the fund is likely to be as volatile as the market average. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -0.54, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Exploring 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 principally on equities that are traded in the United States.

The mutual fund currently has 86.04% of its holdings in stocks, and these companies have an average market capitalization of $599.09 billion.

With turnover at about 111%, this fund makes more traders than comparable funds in a given year.

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, PRWAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.94%. From a cost perspective, PRWAX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500, and each subsequent investment should be at least $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 All-Cap Opportunities Fund ( PRWAX ) 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.

Don't stop here for your research on Large Cap Growth funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare PRWAX to its peers as well 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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