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Is Fidelity Select Brokerage and Investment Management (FSLBX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

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Sector - Finance fund seekers should consider taking a look at Fidelity Select Brokerage and Investment Management (FSLBX - Free Report) . FSLBX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

FSLBX is classified in the Sector - Finance segment by Zacks, and this area is full of possibilities. The financial space is notoriously large, complex, and heavily-regulated, and Sector - Finance mutual funds give investors a stable, diversified approach to investing in this industry. These funds can include everything from banks and investment giants to exchanges and insurance companies, though investors should note that interest rates could have a big impact.

History of Fund/Manager

Fidelity is based in Boston, MA, and is the manager of FSLBX. Fidelity Select Brokerage and Investment Management made its debut in July of 1985, and since then, FSLBX has accumulated about $1.47 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. Nadim Rabaia is the fund's current manager and has held that role since June of 2023.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 22.31%, and it sits in the top third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 24.66%, 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. Compared to the category average of 23.48%, the standard deviation of FSLBX over the past three years is 22.48%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.81% compared to the category average of 22.64%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

Risk Factors

Investors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. FSLBX has a 5-year beta of 1.25, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. FSLBX has generated a positive alpha over the past five years of 3.45, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio are skilled in picking securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, FSLBX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.68% compared to the category average of 1.27%. From a cost perspective, FSLBX is actually cheaper than its peers.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $0, 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

Overall, Fidelity Select Brokerage and Investment Management ( FSLBX ) 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.

For additional information on the Sector - Finance 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 FSLBX too 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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