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Is Hartford Balanced Income C (HBLCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Hartford Balanced Income C (HBLCX - Free Report) . HBLCX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Hartford is based in Woodbury, MN, and is the manager of HBLCX. Since Hartford Balanced Income C made its debut in July of 2006, HBLCX has garnered more than $1.96 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 3.63%, 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 2.71%, which places it in the top 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. HBLCX's standard deviation over the past three years is 12.52% compared to the category average of 16.69%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 10.56% compared to the category average of 14.47%. 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 0.53, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. HBLCX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.34, 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, HBLCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.62% compared to the category average of 0.86%. So, HBLCX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Balanced Income C ( HBLCX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Hartford Balanced Income C ( HBLCX ) looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, 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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Is Hartford Balanced Income C (HBLCX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Hartford Balanced Income C (HBLCX - Free Report) . HBLCX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Hartford is based in Woodbury, MN, and is the manager of HBLCX. Since Hartford Balanced Income C made its debut in July of 2006, HBLCX has garnered more than $1.96 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 3.63%, 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 2.71%, which places it in the top 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. HBLCX's standard deviation over the past three years is 12.52% compared to the category average of 16.69%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 10.56% compared to the category average of 14.47%. 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 0.53, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. HBLCX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.34, 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, HBLCX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.62% compared to the category average of 0.86%. So, HBLCX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Balanced Income C ( HBLCX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Hartford Balanced Income C ( HBLCX ) looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Equity Report, 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.