Is FIHBX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?

If investors are looking at the High Yield - Bonds fund category, make sure to pass over Federated Institutional High Yield Bond (FIHBX). FIHBX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 4 (Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

FIHBX is part of the High Yield - Bonds section, which is a segment that boasts many possible options. Often referred to as "junk" bonds,High Yield - Bonds funds sit below investment grade, meaning they are at a high default risk compared to their investment grade peers. However, one advantage to junk bonds is that they generally pay out higher yields while posing similar interest rate risks to their investment grade counterparts.

History of Fund/Manager

Federated is based in Pittsburgh, PA, and is the manager of FIHBX. Since Federated Institutional High Yield Bond made its debut in November of 2002, FIHBX has garnered more than $3.83 billion in assets. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 3.79%, 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 9.06%, 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. FIHBX's standard deviation over the past three years is 4.84% compared to the category average of 8.91%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 6.66% compared to the category average of 10.42%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Bond Duration

Modified duration is a measure of a given bond's interest rate sensitivity, so when judging how fixed income securities will respond in a shifting rate environment, it is an excellent figure to look at.

If you believe interest rates will rise, this is an important factor to look at. FIHBX has a modified duration of 3.1, which suggests that the fund will decline 3.1% for every hundred-basis-point increase in interest rates.

Income

Since income is, of course, a big reason for purchasing a fixed income security, it is always important to consider the fund's average coupon. This metric calculates the fund's average payout in a given year. For example, this fund's average coupon of 6.09% means that a $10,000 investment should result in a yearly payout of $609.

A higher coupon is good for those seeking a strong level of current income, but it could also pose a reinvestment risk if rates are lower in the future when compared to the initial purchase date of the bond. Investors also need to consider risk relative to broad benchmarks, as income is only one part of the bond picture.

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, FIHBX is a no load fund and it has an expense ratio of 0.49%.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1.00 million, investors should also note that there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

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

Bottom Line

As a mutual fund with a 'sell' rank, FIHBX is in the bottom 40% of all funds we cover and it may be one to avoid putting on your short list of possible picks in High Yield - Bonds. This fund from Federated needs to turn around some of its key fundamental metrics such as the Zacks Ranks of its holdings, alpha, and performance in order for investors to consider Federated Institutional High Yield Bond in the future.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the High Yield - Bonds, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.

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