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Is MFS Technology Fund A (MTCAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Tech fund could think about starting with MFS Technology Fund A (MTCAX - Free Report) . MTCAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that MTCAX is a Sector - Tech option, and this area is loaded with many options. Found in a wide number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, and networking, tech companies are everywhere. Thus, Sector - Tech mutual funds that invest in technology let investors own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector, but with a much more diversified approach.
History of Fund/Manager
MFS is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of MTCAX. Since MFS Technology Fund A made its debut in January of 1997, MTCAX has garnered more than $1.12 billion in assets. The fund's current manager, Reinier Dobbelmann, has been in charge of the fund since May of 2022.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 13.18%, and it sits 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 31.91%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of MTCAX over the past three years is 19.02% compared to the category average of 12.68%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 20.46% compared to the category average of 14.41%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.2, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than 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. MTCAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -3.19, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 79.79% of its holdings in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $802.48 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
With turnover at about 50%, this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, MTCAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.11% compared to the category average of 0.98%. So, MTCAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
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 similar performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, MFS Technology Fund A ( MTCAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about MTCAX? 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. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.
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Is MFS Technology Fund A (MTCAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Tech fund could think about starting with MFS Technology Fund A (MTCAX - Free Report) . MTCAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We note that MTCAX is a Sector - Tech option, and this area is loaded with many options. Found in a wide number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, and networking, tech companies are everywhere. Thus, Sector - Tech mutual funds that invest in technology let investors own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector, but with a much more diversified approach.
History of Fund/Manager
MFS is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of MTCAX. Since MFS Technology Fund A made its debut in January of 1997, MTCAX has garnered more than $1.12 billion in assets. The fund's current manager, Reinier Dobbelmann, has been in charge of the fund since May of 2022.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 13.18%, and it sits 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 31.91%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of MTCAX over the past three years is 19.02% compared to the category average of 12.68%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 20.46% compared to the category average of 14.41%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.2, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than 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. MTCAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -3.19, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 79.79% of its holdings in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $802.48 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
With turnover at about 50%, this fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, MTCAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.11% compared to the category average of 0.98%. So, MTCAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
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 similar performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, MFS Technology Fund A ( MTCAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about MTCAX? 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. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.