We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Is Hartford Growth Opportunities A (HGOAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Read MoreHide Full Article
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over Hartford Growth Opportunities A (HGOAX - Free Report) . HGOAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
HGOAX is a part of the Hartford family of funds, a company based out of Woodbury, MN. Hartford Growth Opportunities A debuted in March of 1963. Since then, HGOAX has accumulated assets of about $2.09 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Mario Abularach, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.25%, 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 7.18%, 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. Compared to the category average of 16.15%, the standard deviation of HGOAX over the past three years is 24.25%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 24.08% compared to the category average of 15.82%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.16, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -2.54. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 92.38% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $193.68 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Retail Trade
With turnover at about 95%, this fund is making more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.
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, HGOAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.08% compared to the category average of 1.15%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, HGOAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Growth Opportunities A ( HGOAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Hartford Growth Opportunities A ( HGOAX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about HGOAX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
Is Hartford Growth Opportunities A (HGOAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Mutual Fund Equity Report fund category, make sure to pass over Hartford Growth Opportunities A (HGOAX - Free Report) . HGOAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
HGOAX is a part of the Hartford family of funds, a company based out of Woodbury, MN. Hartford Growth Opportunities A debuted in March of 1963. Since then, HGOAX has accumulated assets of about $2.09 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Mario Abularach, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.25%, 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 7.18%, 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. Compared to the category average of 16.15%, the standard deviation of HGOAX over the past three years is 24.25%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 24.08% compared to the category average of 15.82%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.16, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -2.54. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 92.38% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $193.68 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Retail Trade
With turnover at about 95%, this fund is making more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.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, HGOAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.08% compared to the category average of 1.15%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, HGOAX is actually cheaper than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Growth Opportunities A ( HGOAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Hartford Growth Opportunities A ( HGOAX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about HGOAX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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.