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Does Your Retirement Portfolio Hold These 3 Mutual Fund Misfires? - October 15, 2019

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If your advisor has you invested in any of these "Mutual Fund Misfires of the Market" with high fees and low returns, you need to rethink your advisor.

High fees plus poor performance: It's a pretty simple formula for a bad mutual fund. Some are worse than others - and some are so bad that they have earned a "Strong Sell" on the Zacks Rank, the lowest ranking of the nearly 19,000 mutual funds we rank daily.

First, let's break down some of the funds currently part of our "Mutual Fund Misfires of the Market." If you happen to have put your money into any of these misfires, we'll help assess some of our best Zacks Ranked mutual funds.

3 Mutual Fund Misfires

Now, let's take a look at three market misfires.

Columbia Disciplined Small Core A : This fund has an expense ratio of 1.36% and a management fee of 0.85%. Without even doing any in-depth analysis, just the fact that you are paying more in fees than you're earning in returns is reason enough not to invest. LSMAX is a Small Cap Value mutual fund option, which typically invest in companies with market caps under $2 billion. The fund has lagged performance-wise, so perhaps a simpler index future investing strategy might be more effective.

Ivy Natural Resources Y (IGNYX - Free Report) : 1.33% expense ratio, 0.85%. IGNYX is classified as a Sector - Energy mutual fund. Throughout the massive global energy sector, these funds hold a wide range of quickly changing and vitally important industries. This fund has yearly returns of -8.33% over the most recent five years. Another fund liable of having investors pay more in charges than what they receive in return.

Hartford International Small Company A : This fund has an expense ratio of 1.49% and management fee of 0.9%. HNSAX is a Non US - Equity option, focusing their investments acoss emerging and developed markets, and can often extend across cap levels too. With an annual average return of 0.09% over the last five years, the only thing absolute about this absolute return fund is that it absolutely deserves to be on our "worst offender" list.

3 Top Ranked Mutual Funds

Since you've seen the most noticeably lowest Zacks Ranked mutual funds, how about we take a look at some of the top ranked mutual funds with the least fees.

Nationwide Growth Fund A (NMFAX - Free Report) is a winner, with an expense ratio of just 0.93% and a five-year annualized return track record of 10.63%.

Principal Capital Appreciation R3 (PCAOX - Free Report) has an expense ratio of 1.06% and management fee of 0.47%. PCAOX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, and these mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a "buy and hold" mindset. With annual returns of 10.55% over the last five years, this is a well-diversified fund with a long track record of success.

Wells Fargo Utility & Telephone Admiral (EVUDX - Free Report) has an expense ratio of 1.11% and management fee of 0.65%. Sector - Utilities funds like EVUDX focus their investments on firms that provide essential daily services to millions of people like electric power, gas distribution, and water supply. With annual returns of 10.84% over the last five years, this fund is a well-diversified fund with a long track record of success.

Bottom Line

So, there you have it - if your advisor has you invested in any of our "Mutual Fund Misfires of the Market," there is a good probability that they are either asleep at the wheel, incompetent, or (most likely) lining their pockets with high fee commissions at your financial expense.

If you have concerns or any doubts about your investment advisor, read our just-released report:

4 Warning Signs That Your Advisor Might be Sabotaging Your Financial Future

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