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Is Macquarie Science & Technology Y (WSTYX) 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 Macquarie Science & Technology Y (WSTYX - Free Report) . WSTYX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Sector - Tech funds is an area filled with options, and WSTYX is one of them. Sector - Tech mutual funds allow investors to own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector with a much more diversified approach. Tech companies can be in any number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, networking just to name a few.
History of Fund/Manager
WSTYX finds itself in the Nomura family, based out of New York, NY. Macquarie Science & Technology Y debuted in June of 1998. Since then, WSTYX has accumulated assets of about $345.90 million, according to the most recently available information. Bradley Warden is the fund's current manager and has held that role since October of 2016.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 14.03%, 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 35.2%, 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. WSTYX's standard deviation over the past three years is 19.87% compared to the category average of 12.82%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.28% compared to the category average of 14.36%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.26, so it is likely going to be more 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -2.2. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 81.28% in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $589.41 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Turnover is 45%, which means, on average, the fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, WSTYX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 1.18%.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; 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
With a rank of 'hold' we aren't getting a good signal one way or another on WSTYX. That is why it might be a good idea to consider other items, such as the fund's expense ratio of 1.18%, and how this compares to other potential options being considered for investment. If cheaper, it might make a decent choice, but a more expensive fund might be worth avoiding. Just make sure to pay attention to its rank in case it shifts in the near future.
Want even more information about WSTYX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
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Is Macquarie Science & Technology Y (WSTYX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Sector - Tech fund could think about starting with Macquarie Science & Technology Y (WSTYX - Free Report) . WSTYX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
The world of Sector - Tech funds is an area filled with options, and WSTYX is one of them. Sector - Tech mutual funds allow investors to own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector with a much more diversified approach. Tech companies can be in any number of industries such as semiconductors, software, internet, networking just to name a few.
History of Fund/Manager
WSTYX finds itself in the Nomura family, based out of New York, NY. Macquarie Science & Technology Y debuted in June of 1998. Since then, WSTYX has accumulated assets of about $345.90 million, according to the most recently available information. Bradley Warden is the fund's current manager and has held that role since October of 2016.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 14.03%, 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 35.2%, 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. WSTYX's standard deviation over the past three years is 19.87% compared to the category average of 12.82%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.28% compared to the category average of 14.36%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.26, so it is likely going to be more 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -2.2. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 81.28% in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $589.41 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Turnover is 45%, which means, on average, the fund makes fewer trades than comparable funds.
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, WSTYX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 1.18%.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; 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
With a rank of 'hold' we aren't getting a good signal one way or another on WSTYX. That is why it might be a good idea to consider other items, such as the fund's expense ratio of 1.18%, and how this compares to other potential options being considered for investment. If cheaper, it might make a decent choice, but a more expensive fund might be worth avoiding. Just make sure to pay attention to its rank in case it shifts in the near future.
Want even more information about WSTYX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.