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There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Bond category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is American Century CA High Yield Municipals A (CAYAX - Free Report) . CAYAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
CAYAX finds itself in the American Century family, based out of Kansas City, MO. American Century CA High Yield Municipals A debuted in January of 2003. Since then, CAYAX has accumulated assets of about $52.83 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Joseph Gotelli, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2012.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 1.45%, and is 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 1.24%, 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. The standard deviation of CAYAX over the past three years is 7.72% compared to the category average of 13.79%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 7.26% compared to the category average of 13.48%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 1.04, this fund is more volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, CAYAX has a negative alpha of -0.67, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
However, it is worth noting that 48 % of the bonds in this fund are not ranked, so take the average quality level with a bit of caution.
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, CAYAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.75% compared to the category average of 0.78%. So, CAYAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Century CA High Yield Municipals A ( CAYAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, American Century CA High Yield Municipals A ( CAYAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on CAYAXin the Mutual Fund Bond 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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Is CAYAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Bond category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is American Century CA High Yield Municipals A (CAYAX - Free Report) . CAYAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
CAYAX finds itself in the American Century family, based out of Kansas City, MO. American Century CA High Yield Municipals A debuted in January of 2003. Since then, CAYAX has accumulated assets of about $52.83 million, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Joseph Gotelli, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2012.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 1.45%, and is 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 1.24%, 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. The standard deviation of CAYAX over the past three years is 7.72% compared to the category average of 13.79%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 7.26% compared to the category average of 13.48%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 1.04, this fund is more volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, CAYAX has a negative alpha of -0.67, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
However, it is worth noting that 48 % of the bonds in this fund are not ranked, so take the average quality level with a bit of caution.
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, CAYAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.75% compared to the category average of 0.78%. So, CAYAX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, American Century CA High Yield Municipals A ( CAYAX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, American Century CA High Yield Municipals A ( CAYAX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on CAYAXin the Mutual Fund Bond 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.