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Is Hartford Small Company HLS IA (HIASX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Equity Report funds, consider Hartford Small Company HLS IA (HIASX - Free Report) as a possibility. HIASX 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
Hartford is responsible for HIASX, and the company is based out of Woodbury, MN. Since Hartford Small Company HLS IA made its debut in December of 2001, HIASX has garnered more than $358.05 million in assets. Ranjit Ramachandran is the fund's current manager and has held that role since February of 2020.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.74%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -6.61%, 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. HIASX's standard deviation over the past three years is 21.51% compared to the category average of 18.71%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 24.94% compared to the category average of 19.66%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.15, 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -5.57. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 93.52% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $4.45 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Health
Industrial Cyclical
Non-Durable
With turnover at about 52%, this fund makes more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.
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, HIASX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 1.07%. HIASX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note, that according to our data, the fund does not have any minimum investment requirements.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Small Company HLS IA ( HIASX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about HIASX? 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 are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.
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Is Hartford Small Company HLS IA (HIASX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Equity Report funds, consider Hartford Small Company HLS IA (HIASX - Free Report) as a possibility. HIASX 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
Hartford is responsible for HIASX, and the company is based out of Woodbury, MN. Since Hartford Small Company HLS IA made its debut in December of 2001, HIASX has garnered more than $358.05 million in assets. Ranjit Ramachandran is the fund's current manager and has held that role since February of 2020.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 6.74%, and it sits in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -6.61%, 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. HIASX's standard deviation over the past three years is 21.51% compared to the category average of 18.71%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 24.94% compared to the category average of 19.66%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
With a 5-year beta of 1.15, 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -5.57. This means that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Investigating the equity holdings of a mutual fund is also a valuable exercise. This can show us how the manager is applying their stated methodology, as well as if there are any inherent biases in their approach. For this particular fund, the focus is primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
As of the last filing date, the mutual fund has 93.52% of its assets in stocks, which have an average market capitalization of $4.45 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Health
- Industrial Cyclical
- Non-Durable
With turnover at about 52%, this fund makes more trades in a given year than the average of comparable funds.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, HIASX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 1.07%. HIASX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note, that according to our data, the fund does not have any minimum investment requirements.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, Hartford Small Company HLS IA ( HIASX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about HIASX? 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 are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.