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Is Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A (LGRRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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On the lookout for a Large Cap Growth fund? Starting with Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A (LGRRX - Free Report) is one possibility. LGRRX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify LGRRX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
LGRRX is a part of the Natixis Funds family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. The Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A made its debut in May of 1991 and LGRRX has managed to accumulate roughly $1.03 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Aziz V. Hamzaogullari who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2010.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 13.02%, and it sits 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 18.02%, 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 LGRRX over the past three years is 12.91% compared to the category average of 10.08%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 12.97% compared to the category average of 9.93%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. In the most recent bear market, LGRRX lost 54.96% and underperformed comparable funds by 6.12%. This could mean that the fund is a worse choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. LGRRX has a 5-year beta of 1.08, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. LGRRX's 5-year performance has produced a positive alpha of 1.59, which means managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 98.12% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $237.30 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Retail Trade
Non-Durable
Industrial Cyclical
With turnover at about 11%, this fund is making fewer trades than comparable funds.
Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, LGRRX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.90% compared to the category average of 1.05%. From a cost perspective, LGRRX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,500; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A ( LGRRX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Want even more information about LGRRX? 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.
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Is Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A (LGRRX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Large Cap Growth fund? Starting with Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A (LGRRX - Free Report) is one possibility. LGRRX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
We classify LGRRX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.
History of Fund/Manager
LGRRX is a part of the Natixis Funds family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. The Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A made its debut in May of 1991 and LGRRX has managed to accumulate roughly $1.03 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Aziz V. Hamzaogullari who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2010.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 13.02%, and it sits 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 18.02%, 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 LGRRX over the past three years is 12.91% compared to the category average of 10.08%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 12.97% compared to the category average of 9.93%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors cannot discount the risks to this segment though, as it is always important to remember the downside for any potential investment. In the most recent bear market, LGRRX lost 54.96% and underperformed comparable funds by 6.12%. This could mean that the fund is a worse choice than comparable funds during a bear market.
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. LGRRX has a 5-year beta of 1.08, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. LGRRX's 5-year performance has produced a positive alpha of 1.59, which means managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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.
Currently, this mutual fund is holding 98.12% stock in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $237.30 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
- Non-Durable
- Industrial Cyclical
With turnover at about 11%, this fund is making fewer trades than comparable funds.Expenses
For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, LGRRX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.90% compared to the category average of 1.05%. From a cost perspective, LGRRX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,500; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Loomis Sayles Growth Fund A ( LGRRX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Want even more information about LGRRX? 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.