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Is Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y (CSGYX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Growth fund might consider looking past Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y (CSGYX - Free Report) . CSGYX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
CSGYX is one of many different Small Cap Growth funds to choose from. Small Cap Growth mutual funds build portfolios around stocks with markets caps under $2 billion and large growth opportunities. Additionally, these portfolios typically highlight smaller companies in promising markets and industries.
History of Fund/Manager
CSGYX is a part of the Columbia family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. Since Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y made its debut in July of 2009, CSGYX has garnered more than $401.44 million in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. CSGYX has a 5-year annualized total return of 11.41% and is in the top 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 -5.27%, 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, CSGYX's standard deviation comes in at 24.83%, compared to the category average of 15.32%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 26.48% compared to the category average of 16.44%. 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 1.21, which means it is hypothetically 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -4.9. This means that 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 86.76% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $7.12 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
Technology
Industrial Cyclical
Services
Non-Durable
Health
With turnover at about 140%, 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, CSGYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.85% compared to the category average of 0.99%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, CSGYX is actually cheaper 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 strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y ( CSGYX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Your research on the Small Cap Growth 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. 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 Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y (CSGYX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
Any investors hoping to find a Small Cap Growth fund might consider looking past Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y (CSGYX - Free Report) . CSGYX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
CSGYX is one of many different Small Cap Growth funds to choose from. Small Cap Growth mutual funds build portfolios around stocks with markets caps under $2 billion and large growth opportunities. Additionally, these portfolios typically highlight smaller companies in promising markets and industries.
History of Fund/Manager
CSGYX is a part of the Columbia family of funds, a company based out of Kansas City, MO. Since Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y made its debut in July of 2009, CSGYX has garnered more than $401.44 million in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. CSGYX has a 5-year annualized total return of 11.41% and is in the top 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 -5.27%, 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, CSGYX's standard deviation comes in at 24.83%, compared to the category average of 15.32%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 26.48% compared to the category average of 16.44%. 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 1.21, which means it is hypothetically 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. Over the past 5 years, the fund has a negative alpha of -4.9. This means that 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 primarily on equities that are traded in the United States.
This fund is currently holding about 86.76% in stocks, with an average market capitalization of $7.12 billion. The fund has the heaviest exposure to the following market sectors:
- Technology
- Industrial Cyclical
- Services
- Non-Durable
- Health
With turnover at about 140%, 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, CSGYX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.85% compared to the category average of 0.99%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, CSGYX is actually cheaper 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 strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, Columbia Small Cap Growth Fund I Class Y ( CSGYX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
Your research on the Small Cap Growth 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. 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.