Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should not consider taking a look at T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I (TBCIX Quick QuoteTBCIX - Free Report) at this time. TBCIX possesses 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

TBCIX is a part of the T. Rowe Price family of funds, a company based out of Baltimore, MD. T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I debuted in December of 2015. Since then, TBCIX has accumulated assets of about $23.37 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Paul Greene who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2021.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 8.22%, and it sits 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 5.21%, which places it in the bottom third during this time-frame.

It is important to note that the product's returns may not reflect all its expenses. Any fees not reflected would lower the returns. Total returns do not reflect the fund's [%] sale charge. If sales charges were included, total returns would have been lower.

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. TBCIX's standard deviation over the past three years is 22.59% compared to the category average of 16.19%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 21.72% compared to the category average of 16.7%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

With a 5-year beta of 1.07, the fund is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -2.64, 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, TBCIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.57% compared to the category average of 0.99%. TBCIX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $500,000 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, T. Rowe Price Blue Chip Growth I ( TBCIX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on TBCIXin 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.