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Is T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I (TBCIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I (TBCIX - Free Report) should not be a possibility at this time. TBCIX has 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

T. Rowe Price is based in Baltimore, MD, and is the manager of TBCIX. Since T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I made its debut in December of 2015, TBCIX has garnered more than $28.58 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Paul Greene who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2021.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.11%, and it sits in the bottom 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 2.71%, 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. TBCIX's standard deviation over the past three years is 23.75% compared to the category average of 18.61%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 21.17% compared to the category average of 16.34%. 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 1.06, which means it is hypothetically more 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. TBCIX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -3.62, which means 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, TBCIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.57% compared to the category average of 0.99%. TBCIX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $500,000, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I ( TBCIX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I ( TBCIX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on TBCIXin the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.


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