Is Natixis Loomis Sayles Global Equity & Income A (LGMAX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?
On the lookout for a Mutual Fund Equity Report fund? Starting with Natixis Loomis Sayles Global Equity & Income A (LGMAX) should not be a possibility at this time. LGMAX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Natixis Funds is based in Kansas City, MO, and is the manager of LGMAX. Since Natixis Loomis Sayles Global Equity & Income A made its debut in February of 2006, LGMAX has garnered more than $598.89 million in assets. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. LGMAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 7.62% and is in the middle 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 5.51%, which places it in the middle third during this time-frame.
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. LGMAX's standard deviation over the past three years is 14.62% compared to the category average of 15.27%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 12.81% compared to the category average of 13.37%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Risk Factors
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.75, which means 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. LGMAX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -2.65, demonstrating that 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, LGMAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.13% compared to the category average of 0.86%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, LGMAX is actually more expensive than its peers.
While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $50.
Bottom Line
Overall, Natixis Loomis Sayles Global Equity & Income A ( LGMAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Natixis Loomis Sayles Global Equity & Income A ( LGMAX ) looks like a poor potential choice for investors right now.
This could just be the start of your research on LGMAXin the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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. Want to learn even more? We have a full suite of tools on stocks that you can use to find the best choices for your portfolio too, no matter what kind of investor you are.
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