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Is Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A (PSGAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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There are plenty of choices in the Small Cap Growth category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A (PSGAX - Free Report) . PSGAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PSGAX is one of many different Small Cap Growth funds to choose from. Small Cap Growth mutual funds build portfolios around stocks with markets caps under $2 billion and large growth opportunities. Additionally, these portfolios typically highlight smaller companies in promising markets and industries.
History of Fund/Manager
Virtus Funds is based in Hartford, CT, and is the manager of PSGAX. Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A made its debut in June of 2006, and since then, PSGAX has accumulated about $772.82 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Todd Beiley is the fund's current manager and has held that role since April of 2008.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 22.66%, 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 29.57%, 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. Compared to the category average of 11.73%, the standard deviation of PSGAX over the past three years is 13.84%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 14.75% compared to the category average of 11.86%. 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 PSGAX's case, the fund lost 49.54% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 4%. This could mean that the fund is a better 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. PSGAX has a 5-year beta of 0.94, which means it is likely to be less 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 11.34, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, PSGAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.36% compared to the category average of 1.22%. So, PSGAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A ( PSGAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A ( PSGAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Small Cap Growth, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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 Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A (PSGAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Small Cap Growth category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A (PSGAX - Free Report) . PSGAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PSGAX is one of many different Small Cap Growth funds to choose from. Small Cap Growth mutual funds build portfolios around stocks with markets caps under $2 billion and large growth opportunities. Additionally, these portfolios typically highlight smaller companies in promising markets and industries.
History of Fund/Manager
Virtus Funds is based in Hartford, CT, and is the manager of PSGAX. Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A made its debut in June of 2006, and since then, PSGAX has accumulated about $772.82 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Todd Beiley is the fund's current manager and has held that role since April of 2008.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 22.66%, 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 29.57%, 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. Compared to the category average of 11.73%, the standard deviation of PSGAX over the past three years is 13.84%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 14.75% compared to the category average of 11.86%. 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 PSGAX's case, the fund lost 49.54% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 4%. This could mean that the fund is a better 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. PSGAX has a 5-year beta of 0.94, which means it is likely to be less 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 11.34, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
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, PSGAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.36% compared to the category average of 1.22%. So, PSGAX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $100.
Bottom Line
Overall, Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A ( PSGAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Virtus KAR Small Cap Sustain Growth A ( PSGAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Small Cap Growth, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.