Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is Oppenheimer Developing Markets Y (ODVYX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Non US - Equity fund seekers should consider taking a look at Oppenheimer Developing Markets Y (ODVYX - Free Report) . ODVYX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

Zacks categorizes ODVYX as Non US - Equity, a segment stacked high with options. Non US - Equity mutual funds like to invest in companies outside of the United States, an important characteristic since global mutual funds are known to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. These kinds of funds can often extend across all cap levels, and will typically allocate their investments between emerging and developed markets.

History of Fund/Manager

ODVYX finds itself in the Invesco family, based out of Kansas City, MO. The Oppenheimer Developing Markets Y made its debut in September of 2005 and ODVYX has managed to accumulate roughly $15.21 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Justin Leverenz who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2007.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 1.31%, and is 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 0.92%, 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, ODVYX's standard deviation comes in at 16.64%, compared to the category average of 13.62%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 16.35% compared to the category average of 12.66%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should always remember the downsides to a potential investment, and this segment carries some risks one should be aware of. In ODVYX's case, the fund lost 57.18% in the most recent bear market and outperformed its peer group by 2%. This means that the fund could possibly be a better choice than its peers during a down market environment.

Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. ODVYX has a 5-year beta of 0.95, which means it is likely to be less volatile than the market average. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. ODVYX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -4.43, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, ODVYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.02% compared to the category average of 1.21%. From a cost perspective, ODVYX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $100; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.

Bottom Line

Overall, Oppenheimer Developing Markets Y ( ODVYX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, Oppenheimer Developing Markets Y ( ODVYX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Don't stop here for your research on Non US - Equity 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 ODVYX to its peers as well for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Invesco Developing Markets Y (ODVYX) - free report >>

Published in