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If you have been looking for International Bond - Developed funds, a place to start could be Invesco International Bond A (OIBAX - Free Report) . OIBAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes OIBAX as International Bond - Developed, a segment that is packed with options. Focusing on fixed income securities outside from developed nations besides the U.S.,International Bond - Developed funds invest in assets from countries like Japan, Germany, the UK, France, and Australia. These holdings dominate the top holdings, and funds in this category offer geographic diversification; however, they can also introduce currency risk.
History of Fund/Manager
OIBAX finds itself in the Invesco family, based out of Kansas City, MO. The Invesco International Bond A made its debut in June of 1995 and OIBAX has managed to accumulate roughly $388.29 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 0.14%, 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 8.83%, 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. The standard deviation of OIBAX over the past three years is 7.96% compared to the category average of 10.39%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 9.66% compared to the category average of 11.7%. 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. OIBAX has a modified duration of 4.8, which suggests that the fund will decline 4.8% for every hundred-basis-point increase in interest rates.
Income
It is important to consider the fund's average coupon because income is often a big reason for purchasing a fixed income security. This metric calculates the fund's average payout in a given year. For example, this fund's average coupon of 5.84% means that a $10,000 investment should result in a yearly payout of $584.
A higher coupon is good for those seeking a strong level of current income, but it could also pose a reinvestment risk if rates are lower in the future when compared to the initial purchase date of the bond. Investors also need to consider risk relative to broad benchmarks, as income is only one part of the bond picture.
With a beta of 0.43, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, OIBAX has a positive alpha of 1.09 , 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, OIBAX has 36.3 in high quality bonds rated at least "AA" or higher, while 21.73% are of medium quality, with ratings of "A" to "BBB". The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated "BB" or below-is at 32.24%, giving OIBAX an average quality of A. This means that it 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, OIBAX is a load fund and it has an expense ratio of 1.04%.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
This puts this fund from Invesco in the top 40% of all mutual funds we have a rank on right now. As a result, this is likely an excellent choice for investors seeking an option in the International Bond - Developed category.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the International Bond - Developed, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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 OIBAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If you have been looking for International Bond - Developed funds, a place to start could be Invesco International Bond A (OIBAX - Free Report) . OIBAX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes OIBAX as International Bond - Developed, a segment that is packed with options. Focusing on fixed income securities outside from developed nations besides the U.S.,International Bond - Developed funds invest in assets from countries like Japan, Germany, the UK, France, and Australia. These holdings dominate the top holdings, and funds in this category offer geographic diversification; however, they can also introduce currency risk.
History of Fund/Manager
OIBAX finds itself in the Invesco family, based out of Kansas City, MO. The Invesco International Bond A made its debut in June of 1995 and OIBAX has managed to accumulate roughly $388.29 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 0.14%, 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 8.83%, 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. The standard deviation of OIBAX over the past three years is 7.96% compared to the category average of 10.39%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 9.66% compared to the category average of 11.7%. 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. OIBAX has a modified duration of 4.8, which suggests that the fund will decline 4.8% for every hundred-basis-point increase in interest rates.
Income
It is important to consider the fund's average coupon because income is often a big reason for purchasing a fixed income security. This metric calculates the fund's average payout in a given year. For example, this fund's average coupon of 5.84% means that a $10,000 investment should result in a yearly payout of $584.
A higher coupon is good for those seeking a strong level of current income, but it could also pose a reinvestment risk if rates are lower in the future when compared to the initial purchase date of the bond. Investors also need to consider risk relative to broad benchmarks, as income is only one part of the bond picture.
With a beta of 0.43, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, OIBAX has a positive alpha of 1.09 , 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, OIBAX has 36.3 in high quality bonds rated at least "AA" or higher, while 21.73% are of medium quality, with ratings of "A" to "BBB". The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated "BB" or below-is at 32.24%, giving OIBAX an average quality of A. This means that it 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, OIBAX is a load fund and it has an expense ratio of 1.04%.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
This puts this fund from Invesco in the top 40% of all mutual funds we have a rank on right now. As a result, this is likely an excellent choice for investors seeking an option in the International Bond - Developed category.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the International Bond - Developed, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.