Is FEMDX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

If you've been stuck searching for International Bond - Emerging funds, consider Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser (FEMDX) as a possibility. FEMDX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

FEMDX is part of the International Bond - Emerging section, a segment that boasts an impressive array of other possible selections. International Bond - Emerging funds offer a unique type of geographic diversification by focusing on fixed income securities from emerging nations around the globe. With these funds, investors can expect exposure to economies such as China, Brazil, India, South Africa, and Indonesia, just to name a few. While this can be appealing, these funds can also introduce currency risk.

History of Fund/Manager

Franklin is responsible for FEMDX, and the company is based out of San Mateo, CA. Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser made its debut in October of 2006, and since then, FEMDX has accumulated about $94.04 million in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager, Nicholas Hardingham, has been in charge of the fund since June of 2014.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. FEMDX has a 5-year annualized total return of 8.62% 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 11.28%, 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. The standard deviation of FEMDX over the past three years is 8.54% compared to the category average of 9.35%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund's standard deviation is 9.23% compared to the category average of 9.53%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

This fund has a beta of 0.05, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, FEMDX has a positive alpha of 9.08, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

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, FEMDX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.93%. From a cost perspective, FEMDX is actually more expensive than its peers.

Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $1 million and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser ( FEMDX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Franklin Emerging Market Debt Opportunity Adviser ( FEMDX ) looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the International Bond - Emerging, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. Zacks provides a full suite of tools to help you analyze your portfolio - both funds and stocks - in the most efficient way possible.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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