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Is Parnassus Investor (PARNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Having trouble finding a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Parnassus Investor (PARNX - Free Report) is a potential starting point. PARNX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Parnassus is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of PARNX. Since Parnassus Investor made its debut in May of 1985, PARNX has garnered more than $548.38 million in assets. The fund is currently managed by Ian Sexsmith who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2013.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 4.84%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 2.11%, 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 PARNX over the past three years is 21.85% compared to the category average of 21.41%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.35% compared to the category average of 18.92%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. PARNX has a 5-year beta of 1.04, which means it 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 -5.47. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, PARNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, PARNX 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, Parnassus Investor ( PARNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on PARNXin 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. 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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Is Parnassus Investor (PARNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Having trouble finding a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Parnassus Investor (PARNX - Free Report) is a potential starting point. PARNX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 2 (Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Parnassus is based in San Francisco, CA, and is the manager of PARNX. Since Parnassus Investor made its debut in May of 1985, PARNX has garnered more than $548.38 million in assets. The fund is currently managed by Ian Sexsmith who has been in charge of the fund since May of 2013.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 4.84%, and is in the bottom third among its category peers. If you're interested in shorter time frames, do not dismiss looking at the fund's 3-year annualized total return of 2.11%, 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 PARNX over the past three years is 21.85% compared to the category average of 21.41%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.35% compared to the category average of 18.92%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. PARNX has a 5-year beta of 1.04, which means it 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 -5.47. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
Costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing, and particularly as competition heats up in this market. And all things being equal, a lower cost product will outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, so taking a closer look at these metrics is key for investors. In terms of fees, PARNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, PARNX 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, Parnassus Investor ( PARNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a great potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on PARNXin 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. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.