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 Franklin Corefolio Allocation A (FTCOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
Allocation Balanced fund seekers should consider taking a look at Franklin Corefolio Allocation A (FTCOX - Free Report) . FTCOX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FTCOX is classified in the Allocation Balanced segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Here, investors are able to get a good head start with diversified mutual funds, and play around with core holding options for a portfolio of funds. Allocation Balanced funds look to invest across a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation.
History of Fund/Manager
FTCOX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. Since Franklin Corefolio Allocation A made its debut in August of 2003, FTCOX has garnered more than $674.57 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Thomas A. Nelson, has been in charge of the fund since February of 2019.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 5.96%, 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 9.52%, 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. Over the past three years, FTCOX's standard deviation comes in at 11.76%, compared to the category average of 8.24%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 11.95% compared to the category average of 8.64%. 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. In the most recent bear market, FTCOX lost 51.81% and underperformed its peer group by 15.44%. This means that the fund could possibly be a worse choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.99, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as the market at large. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -3.26. This means that 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, FTCOX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.41% compared to the category average of 0.89%. FTCOX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Franklin Corefolio Allocation A ( FTCOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Don't stop here for your research on Allocation Balanced 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 FTCOX to its peers as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Franklin Corefolio Allocation A (FTCOX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Allocation Balanced fund seekers should consider taking a look at Franklin Corefolio Allocation A (FTCOX - Free Report) . FTCOX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
FTCOX is classified in the Allocation Balanced segment by Zacks, which is an area full of possibilities. Here, investors are able to get a good head start with diversified mutual funds, and play around with core holding options for a portfolio of funds. Allocation Balanced funds look to invest across a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, though including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation.
History of Fund/Manager
FTCOX finds itself in the Franklin Templeton family, based out of San Mateo, CA. Since Franklin Corefolio Allocation A made its debut in August of 2003, FTCOX has garnered more than $674.57 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Thomas A. Nelson, has been in charge of the fund since February of 2019.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 5.96%, 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 9.52%, 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. Over the past three years, FTCOX's standard deviation comes in at 11.76%, compared to the category average of 8.24%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 11.95% compared to the category average of 8.64%. 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. In the most recent bear market, FTCOX lost 51.81% and underperformed its peer group by 15.44%. This means that the fund could possibly be a worse choice than its peers during a down market environment.
Even still, the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.99, so investors should note that it is hypothetically as volatile as the market at large. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -3.26. This means that 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, FTCOX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.41% compared to the category average of 0.89%. FTCOX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Franklin Corefolio Allocation A ( FTCOX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees compared to its peers.
Don't stop here for your research on Allocation Balanced 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 FTCOX to its peers as well for additional information. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.