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Is Fidelity Select Health Care Services (FSHCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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On the lookout for a Sector - Health fund? Starting with Fidelity Select Health Care Services (FSHCX - Free Report) is one possibility. FSHCX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

The world of Sector - Health funds is an area filled with options, such as FSHCX. Healthcare is one of the biggest sectors of the American economy, and Sector - Health mutual funds provide a great opportunity to invest in this industry. Here, funds can include everything from for-profit hospitals to pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers.

History of Fund/Manager

FSHCX is a part of the Fidelity family of funds, a company based out of Boston, MA. Fidelity Select Health Care Services debuted in June of 1986. Since then, FSHCX has accumulated assets of about $1.53 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Justin Segalini, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2016.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FSHCX has a 5-year annualized total return of 9.37% 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 6.41%, which places it in the top 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, FSHCX's standard deviation comes in at 17.63%, compared to the category average of 17.21%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 18.44% compared to the category average of 18.18%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 0.63, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. 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. With a positive alpha of 0.43, managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Expenses

Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, FSHCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.73% compared to the category average of 1.12%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FSHCX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $0, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, Fidelity Select Health Care Services ( FSHCX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund 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 Sector - Health, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.


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