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Is Fidelity Select Utilities (FSUTX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
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If you've been stuck searching for Sector - Utilities funds, consider Fidelity Select Utilities (FSUTX - Free Report) as a possibility. FSUTX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes FSUTX in Sector - Utilities, which is a segment packed with options. Known for its stability, the utility industry is perfect for investors seeking low risk. Sector - Utilities mutual funds focus on companies that provide essential services to millions of people on a daily basis: think electric power, gas distribution, and water supply.
History of Fund/Manager
FSUTX finds itself in the Fidelity family, based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Select Utilities made its debut in December of 1981, FSUTX has garnered more than $1.42 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Douglas Simmons who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.55%, and is 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 11.2%, 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. Compared to the category average of 1%, the standard deviation of FSUTX over the past three years is 18.51%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.12% compared to the category average of 5%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.64, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -0.07, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, FSUTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.73% compared to the category average of 43%. From a cost perspective, FSUTX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that 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, Fidelity Select Utilities ( FSUTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Sector - Utilities 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 FSUTX 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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Is Fidelity Select Utilities (FSUTX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Sector - Utilities funds, consider Fidelity Select Utilities (FSUTX - Free Report) as a possibility. FSUTX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
Zacks categorizes FSUTX in Sector - Utilities, which is a segment packed with options. Known for its stability, the utility industry is perfect for investors seeking low risk. Sector - Utilities mutual funds focus on companies that provide essential services to millions of people on a daily basis: think electric power, gas distribution, and water supply.
History of Fund/Manager
FSUTX finds itself in the Fidelity family, based out of Boston, MA. Since Fidelity Select Utilities made its debut in December of 1981, FSUTX has garnered more than $1.42 billion in assets. The fund is currently managed by Douglas Simmons who has been in charge of the fund since October of 2006.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 9.55%, and is 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 11.2%, 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. Compared to the category average of 1%, the standard deviation of FSUTX over the past three years is 18.51%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 18.12% compared to the category average of 5%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
The fund has a 5-year beta of 0.64, so investors should note that it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. With a negative alpha of -0.07, managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, FSUTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.73% compared to the category average of 43%. From a cost perspective, FSUTX is actually cheaper than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, investors should also note that 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, Fidelity Select Utilities ( FSUTX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Sector - Utilities 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 FSUTX 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.