Is DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N (DSENX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

There are plenty of choices in the Mutual Fund Equity Report category, but where should you start your research? Well, one fund that you should consider investigating is DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N (DSENX). DSENX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

Double Line is based in Los Angeles, CA, and is the manager of DSENX. Since DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N made its debut in October of 2013, DSENX has garnered more than $311.85 million in assets. The fund’s current manager, Jeffrey Sherman, has been in charge of the fund since October of 2013.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund in particular has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 8.91%, 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 18.28%, 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. Compared to the category average of 16.56%, the standard deviation of DSENX over the past three years is 22.39%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 22.3% compared to the category average of 16.37%. 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. DSENX has a 5-year beta of 1.15, which means it is likely to be more volatile than the market average. Alpha is an additional metric to take into consideration, since it represents a portfolio’s performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which in this case, is the S&P 500. DSENX’s 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -2.86, which means managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.

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, DSENX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.80% compared to the category average of 0.91%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, DSENX is actually cheaper than its peers.

This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $2,000, and each subsequent investment should be at least $100.

Bottom Line

Overall, DoubleLine Shiller Enhanced CAPE N ( DSENX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, worse downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

For additional information on the Mutual Fund Equity Report 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 DSENX 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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