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Is Schwab International Core Equity (SICNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should consider taking a look at Schwab International Core Equity (SICNX - Free Report) . SICNX holds 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
SICNX is a part of the Schwab Funds family of funds, a company based out of San Francisco, CA. The Schwab International Core Equity made its debut in May of 2008 and SICNX has managed to accumulate roughly $546.67 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Wei Li who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2013.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.05%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 4.09%, which places it in the middle 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. SICNX's standard deviation over the past three years is 16.61% compared to the category average of 18.59%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 17.88% compared to the category average of 18.35%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.87, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. 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 -5.86. 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, SICNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.86% compared to the category average of 0.83%. From a cost perspective, SICNX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $0, while 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Schwab International Core Equity ( SICNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.
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Is Schwab International Core Equity (SICNX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Mutual Fund Equity Report fund seekers should consider taking a look at Schwab International Core Equity (SICNX - Free Report) . SICNX holds 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
SICNX is a part of the Schwab Funds family of funds, a company based out of San Francisco, CA. The Schwab International Core Equity made its debut in May of 2008 and SICNX has managed to accumulate roughly $546.67 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Wei Li who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2013.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 7.05%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 4.09%, which places it in the middle 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. SICNX's standard deviation over the past three years is 16.61% compared to the category average of 18.59%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 17.88% compared to the category average of 18.35%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.87, so it is likely going to be less volatile than the market at large. 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 -5.86. 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, SICNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.86% compared to the category average of 0.83%. From a cost perspective, SICNX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $0, while 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Schwab International Core Equity ( SICNX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a good potential choice for investors right now.
Your research on the Mutual Fund Equity Report segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.