Having trouble finding a China - Equity fund? Fidelity China Region Fund (FHKCX Quick QuoteFHKCX - Free Report) is a potential starting point. FHKCX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that FHKCX is a China - Equity option, an area loaded with different options. China - Equity mutual funds and their investments revolve around stocks in China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. China's middle class is booming, and its economy reflects this demographic's rise more than the vast export-focused manufacturing one we typically associate with the country. Even if this strategy sounds enticing, you may want to look past FHKCX.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FHKCX. The Fidelity China Region Fund made its debut in November of 1995 and FHKCX has managed to accumulate roughly $1.57 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Ivan Xie, has been in charge of the fund since April of 2018.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 3.67%, and is in the top 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 19.54%, 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 FHKCX over the past three years is 18.39% compared to the category average of 22.79%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 24.18% compared to the category average of 25.43%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.53, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -3.19, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, FHKCX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 0.91%.

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

This puts this fund from Fidelity in the top 20% 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 China - Equity category.

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