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Is Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Growth funds, consider Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX - Free Report) as a possibility. BFOCX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
BFOCX is classified in the Large Cap Growth segment by Zacks, an area full of possibilities. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their stock market valuation is more than $10 billion. Large Cap Growth mutual funds invest in many large U.S. firms that are projected to grow at a faster rate than their large-cap peers.
History of Fund/Manager
Berkshire is based in Mikwaukee, WI, and is the manager of BFOCX. Berkshire Focus Fund debuted in July of 1997. Since then, BFOCX has accumulated assets of about $293.10 million, according to the most recently available information. Malcolm R. Fobes III is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 1997.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 17.59%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 32.39%, 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. BFOCX's standard deviation over the past three years is 20.74% compared to the category average of 13.54%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 19.6% compared to the category average of 13.3%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
It's always important to be aware of the downsides to any future investment, so one should not discount the risks that come with this segment. In BFOCX's case, the fund lost 59.32% in the most recent bear market and underperformed comparable funds by 10%. This might suggest that the fund is a worse choice than its peers 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. BFOCX has a 5-year beta of 1.24, 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. With a positive alpha of 4.94, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, BFOCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.97% compared to the category average of 1.05%. So, BFOCX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $5,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $500.
Bottom Line
Overall, Berkshire Focus Fund ( BFOCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential 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 BFOCX to its peers as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
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Is Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Large Cap Growth funds, consider Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX - Free Report) as a possibility. BFOCX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
BFOCX is classified in the Large Cap Growth segment by Zacks, an area full of possibilities. Companies are usually considered to be large-cap if their stock market valuation is more than $10 billion. Large Cap Growth mutual funds invest in many large U.S. firms that are projected to grow at a faster rate than their large-cap peers.
History of Fund/Manager
Berkshire is based in Mikwaukee, WI, and is the manager of BFOCX. Berkshire Focus Fund debuted in July of 1997. Since then, BFOCX has accumulated assets of about $293.10 million, according to the most recently available information. Malcolm R. Fobes III is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 1997.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 17.59%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 32.39%, 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. BFOCX's standard deviation over the past three years is 20.74% compared to the category average of 13.54%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 19.6% compared to the category average of 13.3%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
It's always important to be aware of the downsides to any future investment, so one should not discount the risks that come with this segment. In BFOCX's case, the fund lost 59.32% in the most recent bear market and underperformed comparable funds by 10%. This might suggest that the fund is a worse choice than its peers 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. BFOCX has a 5-year beta of 1.24, 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. With a positive alpha of 4.94, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, BFOCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.97% compared to the category average of 1.05%. So, BFOCX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $5,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $500.
Bottom Line
Overall, Berkshire Focus Fund ( BFOCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential 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 BFOCX to its peers as well for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.