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Is NMTRX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

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Muni - Bonds fund seekers should not consider taking a look at Nuveen Municipals Total Return Managed Accounts Portfolio (NMTRX - Free Report) at this time. NMTRX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

NMTRX is one of many Muni - Bonds funds to choose from. Muni - Bonds funds invest in debt securities issued by states and local municipalities, which are typically used to pay for infrastructure construction, schools, and other government functions. These securities can be backed by taxes (revenue bonds), but others are known as "general obligation" and are not necessarily backed by a defined source. These bonds are especially attractive because of their inherent tax benefits.

History of Fund/Manager

NMTRX finds itself in the Nuveen family, based out of Chicago, IL. Nuveen Municipals Total Return Managed Accounts Portfolio debuted in January of 2008. Since then, NMTRX has accumulated assets of about $1.53 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Martin J. Doyle, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2008.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.57%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 4.29%, 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. NMTRX's standard deviation over the past three years is 5.25% compared to the category average of 6.4%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 6.14% compared to the category average of 7.09%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Bond Duration

Modified duration is a measure of a specific bond's interest rate sensitivity, and is an excellent way to judge how fixed income securities will respond to a shifting rate environment.

For those that believe interest rates will rise, this is an important factor to consider. NMTRX has a modified duration of 9.69, which suggests that the fund will decline 9.69% for every hundred-basis-point increase in interest rates.

With a beta of 0.6, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, NMTRX has a negative alpha of -0.35 , which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

Ratings

Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade "AAA" to "D" given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, NMTRX has 47.3% in high quality bonds rated at least "AA" or higher, while 35.8% are of medium quality, with ratings of "A" to "BBB". The fund has an average quality of A, and focuses on high quality securities.

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, NMTRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.01% compared to the category average of 0.42%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, NMTRX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $0 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Nuveen Municipals Total Return Managed Accounts Portfolio ( NMTRX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on NMTRX in the Muni - Bonds 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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