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Is American Century Emerging Market Investor (TWMIX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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If you've been stuck searching for Non US - Equity funds, you might want to consider passing on by American Century Emerging Market Investor (TWMIX - Free Report) as a possibility. TWMIX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We classify TWMIX in the Non US - Equity category, which is an area rife with potential choices. Investing in companies outside the United States is how Non US - Equity funds set themselves apart, since global funds tend to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. Many of these funds like to allocate across emerging and developed markets, and will often focus on all cap levels.

History of Fund/Manager

American Century is responsible for TWMIX, and the company is based out of Kansas City, MO. American Century Emerging Market Investor made its debut in September of 1997, and since then, TWMIX has accumulated about $315.10 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Patricia Ribeiro is the fund's current manager and has held that role since May of 2006.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. TWMIX has a 5-year annualized total return of 2.23% and is 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 -9.75%, 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. Compared to the category average of 14.63%, the standard deviation of TWMIX over the past three years is 18.68%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 19.59% compared to the category average of 15.72%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.77, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. TWMIX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -8.63, 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, TWMIX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.27% compared to the category average of 0.97%. From a cost perspective, TWMIX is actually more expensive than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500 and that each subsequent investment needs to be at $50

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, American Century Emerging Market Investor ( TWMIX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, this fund looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

This could just be the start of your research on TWMIXin the Non US - Equity category. Consider going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information about this fund, and all the others that we rank 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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