Is GAMDX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If you have been looking for Mutual Fund Bond funds, it would not be wise to start your search with Goldman Sachs Local Emerging Markets Debt A (GAMDX). GAMDX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Goldman Sachs is based in New York, NY, and is the manager of GAMDX. The Goldman Sachs Local Emerging Markets Debt A made its debut in February of 2008 and GAMDX has managed to accumulate roughly $2.79 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Kay Haigh, has been in charge of the fund since July of 2020.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 0.29%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of -3.54%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of GAMDX over the past three years is 10.55% compared to the category average of 13.86%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 12.55% compared to the category average of 14.62%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.39, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, GAMDX has a positive alpha of 0.22, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, GAMDX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.22% compared to the category average of 0.98%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, GAMDX is actually more expensive than its peers.
Investors need to be aware that with this product, the minimum initial investment is $1,000; each subsequent investment needs to 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, Goldman Sachs Local Emerging Markets Debt A ( GAMDX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar 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 GAMDXin the Mutual Fund Bond 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. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.
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