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Is Harbor Capital Appreciation Retirement (HNACX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you're looking for a Large Cap Growth fund category, then a potential option is Harbor Capital Appreciation Retirement (HNACX - Free Report) . HNACX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

HNACX is part of the Large Cap Growth section, and this segment boasts an array of other possible options. Large Cap Growth mutual funds purchase stakes in numerous large U.S. companies that are expected to develop and grow at a faster rate than other large-cap stocks. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their market capitalization is over $10 billion.

History of Fund/Manager

Harbor Funds is based in Chicago, IL, and is the manager of HNACX. Harbor Capital Appreciation Retirement debuted in March of 2016. Since then, HNACX has accumulated assets of about $10.77 billion, according to the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.98%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 24.67%, 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. Compared to the category average of 12.15%, the standard deviation of HNACX over the past three years is 17.38%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 21.21% compared to the category average of 14.37%. 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 1.24, so it is likely going to be more 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. With a negative alpha of -3.98, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, HNACX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.59% compared to the category average of 0.93%. From a cost perspective, HNACX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1.00 million 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, Harbor Capital Appreciation Retirement ( HNACX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

Don't stop here for your research on Large Cap Growth funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare HNACX to its peers as well for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.

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