If you have been looking for Small Cap Value funds, a place to start could be Boston Partners Small Cap Value II Institutional (BPSIX Quick QuoteBPSIX - Free Report) . BPSIX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

The world of Small Cap Value mutual funds is an area filled with options, such as BPSIX. Small Cap Value funds invest in small companies with stock market valuation less than $2 billion. These funds offer more bang for an owner's buck, providing low P/E ratios, high dividend yields, and better-than-average P/S ratios.

History of Fund/Manager

BostonPartners is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of BPSIX. Since Boston Partners Small Cap Value II Institutional made its debut in July of 1998, BPSIX has garnered more than $614.13 million in assets. The fund is currently managed by George Gumpert who has been in charge of the fund since December of 2005.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 15.8%, and is in the middle 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 16.28%, 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. BPSIX's standard deviation over the past three years is 19.17% compared to the category average of 16.13%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 20.15% compared to the category average of 17.16%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. BPSIX has a 5-year beta of 1.01, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. 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. BPSIX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 0.01, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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.

This fund is currently holding about 84.1% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $3.44 billion.

Turnover is 64%, which means, on average, the fund makes fewer trades than its comparable peers.

Expenses

As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, BPSIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.99% compared to the category average of 1.05%. From a cost perspective, BPSIX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $100,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $5,000.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, Boston Partners Small Cap Value II Institutional ( BPSIX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Boston Partners Small Cap Value II Institutional ( BPSIX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Small Cap Value area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into BPSIX too 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.