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Is Bruce Fund (BRUFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Allocation Balanced fund category, Bruce Fund (BRUFX - Free Report) could be a potential option. BRUFX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
BRUFX is classified in the Allocation Balanced segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Here, investors are able to get a good head start with diversified mutual funds, and play around with core holding options for a portfolio of funds. Allocation Balanced funds look to invest across a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation.
History of Fund/Manager
Bruce is responsible for BRUFX, and the company is based out of Chicago, IL. Bruce Fund debuted in October of 1983. Since then, BRUFX has accumulated assets of about $356.22 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, R. Jeffrey Bruce, has been in charge of the fund since December of 1983.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. BRUFX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.11%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 6%, 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. BRUFX's standard deviation over the past three years is 8.65% compared to the category average of 11.19%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 9.85% compared to the category average of 13.09%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.47, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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 -2.38, 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, BRUFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.61% compared to the category average of 0.86%. So, BRUFX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $500.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Bruce Fund ( BRUFX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Bruce Fund ( BRUFX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on BRUFX in the Allocation Balanced 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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Is Bruce Fund (BRUFX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Allocation Balanced fund category, Bruce Fund (BRUFX - Free Report) could be a potential option. BRUFX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
BRUFX is classified in the Allocation Balanced segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Here, investors are able to get a good head start with diversified mutual funds, and play around with core holding options for a portfolio of funds. Allocation Balanced funds look to invest across a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation.
History of Fund/Manager
Bruce is responsible for BRUFX, and the company is based out of Chicago, IL. Bruce Fund debuted in October of 1983. Since then, BRUFX has accumulated assets of about $356.22 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, R. Jeffrey Bruce, has been in charge of the fund since December of 1983.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. BRUFX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.11%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 6%, 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. BRUFX's standard deviation over the past three years is 8.65% compared to the category average of 11.19%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 9.85% compared to the category average of 13.09%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.47, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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 -2.38, 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, BRUFX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.61% compared to the category average of 0.86%. So, BRUFX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $500.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Bruce Fund ( BRUFX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Bruce Fund ( BRUFX ) looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on BRUFX in the Allocation Balanced 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.