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Is PHYSX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

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High Yield - Bonds fund seekers should consider taking a look at PIA High Yield Institutional (PHYSX - Free Report) . PHYSX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

PHYSX is classified in the High Yield - Bonds segment by Zacks, an area full of investment possibilities. High Yield - Bonds funds come in below investment grade, and are referred to as " junk " bonds for this reason. Compared to their investment grade peers, these funds are at a higher default risk, but typically pay out higher yields while posing similar interest rate risks.

History of Fund/Manager

PHYSX is a part of the Pacific Income family of funds, a company based out of El Segundo, CA. PIA High Yield Institutional made its debut in December of 2010, and since then, PHYSX has accumulated about $61.99 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund is currently managed by Lloyd McAdams who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2013.

Performance

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 5.35%, 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 3.36%, which places it in the top 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. PHYSX's standard deviation over the past three years is 6.93% compared to the category average of 7.42%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 9.57% compared to the category average of 8.91%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

PHYSX carries a beta of 0, meaning that the fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. With this in mind, it has a positive alpha of 5, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

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, PHYSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.86% compared to the category average of 0.90%. From a cost perspective, PHYSX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, 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, PIA High Yield Institutional ( PHYSX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, PIA High Yield Institutional ( PHYSX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the High Yield - Bonds area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into PHYSX too for additional information. For analysis of the rest of your portfolio, make sure to visit Zacks.com for our full suite of tools which will help you investigate all of your stocks and funds in one place.


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