We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Is TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail (TICRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Blend funds, consider TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail (TICRX - Free Report) as a possibility. TICRX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
TICRX is classified in the Large Cap Blend segment by Zacks, which is an area full of potential. Targeting companies with market caps of more than $10 billion, Large Cap Blend mutual funds offer a stable investment choice; these funds are perfect for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Since blended funds mix large, more established firms into their portfolios, investors are exposed to both value and growth opportunities.
History of Fund/Manager
TICRX is a part of the TIAA-CREF family of funds, a company based out of Boston, MA. TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail debuted in March of 2006. Since then, TICRX has accumulated assets of about $464.73 million, according to the most recently available information. Philip James Campagna is the fund's current manager and has held that role since March of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 11.42%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 10%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
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 TICRX over the past three years is 10.42% compared to the category average of 9.24%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 10.04% compared to the category average of 9.04%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
One cannot ignore the volatility of this segment, however, as it is always important for investors to remember the downside to any potential investment. TICRX lost 50.29% in the most recent bear market and underperformed its peer group by 0.58%. These results could imply that the fund is a worse choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. TICRX has a 5-year beta of 1, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. TICRX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.41, which means 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.52% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $118.69 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Finance
Industrial Cyclical
Non-Durable
This fund's turnover is about 14%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, TICRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 1.00%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, TICRX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about TICRX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail (TICRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Blend funds, consider TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail (TICRX - Free Report) as a possibility. TICRX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
TICRX is classified in the Large Cap Blend segment by Zacks, which is an area full of potential. Targeting companies with market caps of more than $10 billion, Large Cap Blend mutual funds offer a stable investment choice; these funds are perfect for investors with a " buy and hold " mindset. Since blended funds mix large, more established firms into their portfolios, investors are exposed to both value and growth opportunities.
History of Fund/Manager
TICRX is a part of the TIAA-CREF family of funds, a company based out of Boston, MA. TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail debuted in March of 2006. Since then, TICRX has accumulated assets of about $464.73 million, according to the most recently available information. Philip James Campagna is the fund's current manager and has held that role since March of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 11.42%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 10%, which places it in the top third during this time-frame.
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 TICRX over the past three years is 10.42% compared to the category average of 9.24%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 10.04% compared to the category average of 9.04%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
One cannot ignore the volatility of this segment, however, as it is always important for investors to remember the downside to any potential investment. TICRX lost 50.29% in the most recent bear market and underperformed its peer group by 0.58%. These results could imply that the fund is a worse choice than its peers during a sliding market environment.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. TICRX has a 5-year beta of 1, which means it is likely to be as volatile as the market average. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. TICRX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -1.41, which means 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.52% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $118.69 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
This fund's turnover is about 14%, so the fund managers are making fewer trades than the average comparable fund.
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, TICRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 1.00%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, TICRX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, TIAA-CREF Socl Choice Equity Retail looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about TICRX? 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.