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Is Wasatch Micro Cap Fund (WMICX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Having trouble finding a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Well, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund (WMICX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. WMICX bears 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
WMICX finds itself in the Wasatch family, based out of Salt Lake City, UT. Wasatch Micro Cap Fund debuted in June of 1995. Since then, WMICX has accumulated assets of about $455.03 million, according to the most recently available information. Kenneth Korngiebel is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 2017.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. WMICX has a 5-year annualized total return of 5.4% and it sits in the middle 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 -6.99%, 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. WMICX's standard deviation over the past three years is 25.18% compared to the category average of 18.71%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 26.91% compared to the category average of 19.66%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.2, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. 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. WMICX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -5.27, demonstrating 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, WMICX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.70% compared to the category average of 1.07%. WMICX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund ( WMICX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund ( WMICX ) looks like a poor potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about WMICX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.
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Is Wasatch Micro Cap Fund (WMICX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Having trouble finding a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Well, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund (WMICX - Free Report) would not be a good potential starting point right now. WMICX bears 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
WMICX finds itself in the Wasatch family, based out of Salt Lake City, UT. Wasatch Micro Cap Fund debuted in June of 1995. Since then, WMICX has accumulated assets of about $455.03 million, according to the most recently available information. Kenneth Korngiebel is the fund's current manager and has held that role since July of 2017.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. WMICX has a 5-year annualized total return of 5.4% and it sits in the middle 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 -6.99%, 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. WMICX's standard deviation over the past three years is 25.18% compared to the category average of 18.71%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 26.91% compared to the category average of 19.66%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 1.2, so investors should note that it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. 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. WMICX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -5.27, demonstrating 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, WMICX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.70% compared to the category average of 1.07%. WMICX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $2,000; each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund ( WMICX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and higher fees, Wasatch Micro Cap Fund ( WMICX ) looks like a poor potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about WMICX? 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. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.