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Is USAA Small Cap Stock Fund (USCAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Blend fund could think about starting with USAA Small Cap Stock Fund (USCAX - Free Report) . USCAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes USCAX as Small Cap Blend, which is an area packed with options. Usually targeting stocks with market caps of less than $2 billion, a Small Cap Blend mutual fund lets investors diversify their funds among other kinds of small-cap equities. This can help reduce risk found in companies that have a lower stock market valuation.
History of Fund/Manager
Victory is based in Columbus, OH, and is the manager of USCAX. The USAA Small Cap Stock Fund made its debut in August of 1999 and USCAX has managed to accumulate roughly $597.05 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. USCAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 11.84% and it sits in the top 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 3.51%, 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. Over the past three years, USCAX's standard deviation comes in at 21.33%, compared to the category average of 17.42%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 24.52% compared to the category average of 19.57%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.17, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -4.5, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.58% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $3.85 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Industrial Cyclical
Finance
With turnover at about 55%, this fund is making more traders than comparable funds in a given year.
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, USCAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.06% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, USCAX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
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 strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, USAA Small Cap Stock Fund ( USCAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about USCAX? 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 USAA Small Cap Stock Fund (USCAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Blend fund could think about starting with USAA Small Cap Stock Fund (USCAX - Free Report) . USCAX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes USCAX as Small Cap Blend, which is an area packed with options. Usually targeting stocks with market caps of less than $2 billion, a Small Cap Blend mutual fund lets investors diversify their funds among other kinds of small-cap equities. This can help reduce risk found in companies that have a lower stock market valuation.
History of Fund/Manager
Victory is based in Columbus, OH, and is the manager of USCAX. The USAA Small Cap Stock Fund made its debut in August of 1999 and USCAX has managed to accumulate roughly $597.05 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. USCAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 11.84% and it sits in the top 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 3.51%, 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. Over the past three years, USCAX's standard deviation comes in at 21.33%, compared to the category average of 17.42%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 24.52% compared to the category average of 19.57%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.17, so it is likely going to be more volatile than the market at large. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -4.5, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Holdings
Exploring 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 mostly on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 98.58% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $3.85 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Industrial Cyclical
- Finance
With turnover at about 55%, this fund is making more traders than comparable funds in a given year.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, USCAX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.06% compared to the category average of 0.99%. From a cost perspective, USCAX is actually more expensive than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $3,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $50.
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 strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, USAA Small Cap Stock Fund ( USCAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about USCAX? 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.