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 Convertible Securities A (FISCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If investors are looking at the Convertible Bonds fund category, Franklin Convertible Securities A (FISCX - Free Report) could be a potential option. FISCX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Franklin is based in San Mateo, CA, and is the manager of FISCX. Since Franklin Convertible Securities A made its debut in April of 1987, FISCX has garnered more than $926.58 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Alan E. Muschott, has been in charge of the fund since July of 2002.
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 10.16%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.84%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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, FISCX's standard deviation comes in at 11.68%, compared to the category average of 31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 15.34% compared to the category average of -41%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.71, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than 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 -1.39. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, FISCX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.83% compared to the category average of 0%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FISCX is actually more expensive than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Franklin Convertible Securities A ( FISCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FISCXin the Convertible Bonds category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well 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.
In-Depth Zacks Research for the Tickers Above
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
If investors are looking at the Convertible Bonds fund category, Franklin Convertible Securities A (FISCX - Free Report) could be a potential option. FISCX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Franklin is based in San Mateo, CA, and is the manager of FISCX. Since Franklin Convertible Securities A made its debut in April of 1987, FISCX has garnered more than $926.58 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Alan E. Muschott, has been in charge of the fund since July of 2002.
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 10.16%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of -0.84%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.
It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.
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, FISCX's standard deviation comes in at 11.68%, compared to the category average of 31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 15.34% compared to the category average of -41%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.71, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than 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 -1.39. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick 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, FISCX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.83% compared to the category average of 0%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FISCX is actually more expensive than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Franklin Convertible Securities A ( FISCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FISCXin the Convertible Bonds category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank as well 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.