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Is Fidelity Select Technology (FSPTX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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There are plenty of choices in the Sector - Tech category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Fidelity Select Technology (FSPTX - Free Report) . FSPTX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

FSPTX is part of the Sector - Tech category, which boasts an array of different possible selections. With a much more diversified approach, Sector - Tech mutual funds give investors a way to own a stake in a notoriously risky sector. Tech companies are in various industries like semiconductors, software, internet, and networking, among others.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is responsible for FSPTX, and the company is based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Select Technology made its debut in July of 1981, FSPTX has garnered more than $26.38 billion in assets. The fund's current manager, Adam Benjamin, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2022.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. FSPTX has a 5-year annualized total return of 20.76%, and is in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 35.89%, 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 FSPTX over the past three years is 22.84% compared to the category average of 15.47%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 25.05% compared to the category average of 17.87%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.41, so investors should note that it is hypothetically 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. The fund has produced a positive alpha over the past 5 years of 4.37, which shows that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking 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, FSPTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.60% compared to the category average of 1.05%. FSPTX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

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

Overall, Fidelity Select Technology ( FSPTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Fidelity Select Technology ( FSPTX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Sector - Tech segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.

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