If you've been stuck searching for High Yield - Bonds funds, consider Lord Abbett Bond Debenture A (LBNDX Quick QuoteLBNDX - Free Report) as a possibility. LBNDX holds a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

LBNDX 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

LBNDX is a part of the Lord Abbett family of funds, a company based out of Jersey City, NJ. Lord Abbett Bond Debenture A debuted in April of 1971. Since then, LBNDX has accumulated assets of about $6.36 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. LBNDX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.87% 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 6.4%, which places it in the top 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. Over the past three years, LBNDX's standard deviation comes in at 9.42%, compared to the category average of 14.31%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 7.49% compared to the category average of 11.85%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

With a beta of 0.78, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, LBNDX has a positive alpha of 4.51, 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, LBNDX has 42.97% in medium quality bonds, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund's junk bond component-bonds rated 'BB' or below-is at 42.85%, giving LBNDX an average quality of BBB. This means that it focuses on medium quality securities.

Expenses

For investors, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is key, since costs are increasingly important for mutual fund investing. Competition is heating up in this space, and a lower cost product will likely outperform its otherwise identical counterpart, all things being equal. In terms of fees, LBNDX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.78% compared to the category average of 1%. From a cost perspective, LBNDX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $1,000, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.

Bottom Line

Overall, Lord Abbett Bond Debenture A ( LBNDX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.

Don't stop here for your research on High Yield - Bonds funds. We also have plenty more on our site in order to help you find the best possible fund for your portfolio. Make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for more information about the world of funds, and feel free to compare LBNDX to its peers 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.