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Is T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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There are plenty of choices in the Sector - Energy category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX - Free Report) . PRNEX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PRNEX is one of many Sector - Energy funds to choose from. Sector - Energy mutual funds are comprised of various changing and hugely important industries throughout the massive global energy sector. Even though clean energy is beginning to pick up steam, oil and gas companies have the highest exposure, but carbon-based fuels will be the biggest group of assets in these funds.
History of Fund/Manager
PRNEX finds itself in the T. Rowe Price family, based out of Baltimore, MD. T. Rowe Price New Era debuted in January of 1969. Since then, PRNEX has accumulated assets of about $1.04 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Shinwoo Kim who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2021.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRNEX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.76% and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 8.42%, 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. Over the past three years, PRNEX's standard deviation comes in at 18.9%, compared to the category average of 18.28%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 22.93% compared to the category average of 20.76%. 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 1.05, 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. PRNEX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -6.7, which means 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, PRNEX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.75% compared to the category average of 1.03%. So, PRNEX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, T. Rowe Price New Era ( PRNEX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a great potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Sector - Energy, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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 T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
There are plenty of choices in the Sector - Energy category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that might be worth investigating is T. Rowe Price New Era (PRNEX - Free Report) . PRNEX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PRNEX is one of many Sector - Energy funds to choose from. Sector - Energy mutual funds are comprised of various changing and hugely important industries throughout the massive global energy sector. Even though clean energy is beginning to pick up steam, oil and gas companies have the highest exposure, but carbon-based fuels will be the biggest group of assets in these funds.
History of Fund/Manager
PRNEX finds itself in the T. Rowe Price family, based out of Baltimore, MD. T. Rowe Price New Era debuted in January of 1969. Since then, PRNEX has accumulated assets of about $1.04 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Shinwoo Kim who has been in charge of the fund since June of 2021.
Performance
Obviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRNEX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.76% and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. But if you are looking for a shorter time frame, it is also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 8.42%, 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. Over the past three years, PRNEX's standard deviation comes in at 18.9%, compared to the category average of 18.28%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 22.93% compared to the category average of 20.76%. 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 1.05, 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. PRNEX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -6.7, which means 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, PRNEX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.75% compared to the category average of 1.03%. So, PRNEX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that 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, even with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, T. Rowe Price New Era ( PRNEX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a great potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Sector - Energy, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.