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Any investors hoping to find a Mutual Fund Bond fund could think about starting with Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser (FEMDX - Free Report) . FEMDX holds 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
Franklin is based in San Mateo, CA, and is the manager of FEMDX. Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, FEMDX has accumulated about $45.34 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Nicholas Hardingham is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2014.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.54%, and is 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 2.65%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, FEMDX's standard deviation comes in at 10.3%, compared to the category average of 9.89%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 11.46% compared to the category average of 11.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.18, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, FEMDX has a positive alpha of 2.64, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, FEMDX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.88%. So, FEMDX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1 million, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser ( FEMDX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FEMDXin 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 FEMDX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Mutual Fund Bond fund could think about starting with Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser (FEMDX - Free Report) . FEMDX holds 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
Franklin is based in San Mateo, CA, and is the manager of FEMDX. Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, FEMDX has accumulated about $45.34 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Nicholas Hardingham is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2014.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.54%, and is 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 2.65%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, FEMDX's standard deviation comes in at 10.3%, compared to the category average of 9.89%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 11.46% compared to the category average of 11.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.18, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, FEMDX has a positive alpha of 2.64, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, FEMDX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.88%. So, FEMDX is actually more expensive than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1 million, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser ( FEMDX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on FEMDXin 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.