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Is Federated Kaufmann Small Cap C (FKCSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Equity Report category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that may not be worth investigating is Federated Kaufmann Small Cap C (FKCSX - Free Report) . FKCSX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

FKCSX is a part of the Federated family of funds, a company based out of Pittsburgh, PA. Federated Kaufmann Small Cap C made its debut in December of 2002, and since then, FKCSX has accumulated about $210.52 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 7.37%, and it sits in the middle 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 1.81%, 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. The standard deviation of FKCSX over the past three years is 26.48% compared to the category average of 18.68%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 23.44% compared to the category average of 16.45%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.05, so investors should note that 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 -1.46. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

Holdings

Examining the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is largely on equities that are traded in the United States.

Currently, this mutual fund is holding 87.37% stock in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $7.38 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:

  • Health
  • Finance
  • Technology
Turnover is 19%, which means, on average, the fund makes fewer trades than the average comparable fund.

Expenses

As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, FKCSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.98% compared to the category average of 1.20%. From a cost perspective, FKCSX is actually more expensive than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.

Bottom Line

Overall, Federated Kaufmann Small Cap C ( FKCSX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Federated Kaufmann Small Cap C ( FKCSX ) looks like a poor potential choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.


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