Is PRSNX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
If investors are looking at the Diversified Bonds fund category, T. Rowe Price Global Multi-Sector Bond Investor (PRSNX) could be a potential option. PRSNX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
Objective
PRSNX is one of many Diversified Bonds funds to choose from. Diversified Bonds funds give investors exposure to a variety of fixed income types that span across different issuers, maturities, and credit levels. Usually, these funds will have a good amount of exposure to government debt, in addition to modest holdings in the corporate bond market.
History of Fund/Manager
PRSNX is a part of the T. Rowe Price family of funds, a company based out of Baltimore, MD. Since T. Rowe Price Global Multi-Sector Bond Investor made its debut in December of 2008, PRSNX has garnered more than $837.55 million in assets. The fund's current manager, Kenneth Orchard, has been in charge of the fund since January of 2018.
Performance
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 2.93%, 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 3.05%, 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.
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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 11.15%, the standard deviation of PRSNX over the past three years is 6.36%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 5.87% compared to the category average of 10.72%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
This fund has a beta of 0.56, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, PRSNX has a positive alpha of 2.94, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
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, PRSNX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.63% compared to the category average of 0.82%. So, PRSNX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.