Yahoo Finance Is DBLTX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Bond funds, you might want to consider passing on by DoubleLine Total Return Bond I (DBLTX) as a possibility. DBLTX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
DBLTX is a part of the Double Line family of funds, a company based out of Los Angeles, CA. The DoubleLine Total Return Bond I made its debut in April of 2010 and DBLTX has managed to accumulate roughly $25.02 billion in assets, as of the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. DBLTX has a 5-year annualized total return of -0.88% and is in the bottom 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 -4.96%, 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. Over the past three years, DBLTX's standard deviation comes in at 5.44%, compared to the category average of 11.61%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 5.12% compared to the category average of 12.21%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
This fund has a beta of 0.91, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, DBLTX has a negative alpha of -1.13, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Ratings
Investors should also consider a bond's rating, which is a grade ( 'AAA' to 'D' ) given to a bond that indicates its credit quality. With this letter scale in mind, DBLTX has 68.79% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher. The fund has an average quality of AA, and focuses on high quality securities.
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, DBLTX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.49% compared to the category average of 0.77%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, DBLTX is actually cheaper than its peers.
This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $100,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.
Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.
Bottom Line
Overall, even with its comparatively weak performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, DoubleLine Total Return Bond I ( DBLTX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.
For additional information on the Mutual Fund Bond 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 DBLTX too 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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