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Is Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail (BFTHX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail (BFTHX - Free Report) . BFTHX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Baron is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of BFTHX. Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail made its debut in May of 2004, and since then, BFTHX has accumulated about $187.80 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Alex Umansky who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2011.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. BFTHX has a 5-year annualized total return of 8.77% and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 3.97%, which places it in the bottom 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 17.16%, the standard deviation of BFTHX over the past three years is 25.46%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.23% compared to the category average of 15.12%. 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 1.11, which means it is hypothetically more 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 -4.38. 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, BFTHX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.99%. BFTHX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail ( BFTHX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail ( BFTHX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report 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 BFTHX to its peers as well for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
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Is Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail (BFTHX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail (BFTHX - Free Report) . BFTHX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Baron is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of BFTHX. Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail made its debut in May of 2004, and since then, BFTHX has accumulated about $187.80 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Alex Umansky who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2011.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. BFTHX has a 5-year annualized total return of 8.77% and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 3.97%, which places it in the bottom 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 17.16%, the standard deviation of BFTHX over the past three years is 25.46%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.23% compared to the category average of 15.12%. 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 1.11, which means it is hypothetically more 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 -4.38. 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, BFTHX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.99%. BFTHX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Bottom Line
Overall, Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail ( BFTHX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Baron Fifth Avenue Growth Retail ( BFTHX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Don't stop here for your research on Mutual Fund Equity Report 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 BFTHX to its peers as well for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.