If you're looking for a Mid Cap Value fund category, then a potential option is Fidelity Low-Priced Stock (FLPSX Quick QuoteFLPSX - Free Report) . FLPSX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

The world of Mid Cap Value funds is an area filled with options, like FLPSX. Targeting medium-sized companies with a market cap between $2 billion and $10 billion, Mid Cap Value mutual funds more often than not choose stocks that hold solid value and income investment opportunities.

History of Fund/Manager

FLPSX finds itself in the Fidelity family, based out of Boston, MA. The Fidelity Low-Priced Stock made its debut in December of 1989 and FLPSX has managed to accumulate roughly $23.76 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 10.99%, 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 9.38%, 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, FLPSX's standard deviation comes in at 16.09%, compared to the category average of 16.73%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.69% compared to the category average of 18.88%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.92, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. 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. With a negative alpha of -1.81, 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, FLPSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.92% compared to the category average of 0.98%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, FLPSX is actually cheaper than its peers.

Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $0; 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, Fidelity Low-Priced Stock ( FLPSX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Mid Cap Value segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer 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.