Is WHIAX a Strong Bond Fund Right Now?
Mutual Fund Bond fund seekers may want to consider taking a look at Ivy High Income A (WHIAX). WHIAX carries a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
History of Fund/Manager
Delaware Investments is based in Philadelphia, PA, and is the manager of WHIAX. Since Ivy High Income A made its debut in September of 2003, WHIAX has garnered more than $1.43 billion in assets. The fund’s current manager, John P. McCarthy, has been in charge of the fund since November of 2021.
Performance
Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. WHIAX has a 5-year annualized total return of 1.91% and is in the bottom 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 0.92%, which places it in the bottom 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, WHIAX’s standard deviation comes in at 11.16%, compared to the category average of 14.13%. Looking at the past 5 years, the fund’s standard deviation is 9.13% compared to the category average of 12.53%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
With a beta of 0.14, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, WHIAX has a positive alpha of 1.19, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.
Expenses
As competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, WHIAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.94% compared to the category average of 0.99%. WHIAX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.
Investors should also note that the minimum initial investment for the product is $750 and that each subsequent investment has no minimum amount.
Bottom Line
Overall, Ivy High Income A ( WHIAX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.
Want even more information about WHIAX? Then go over to Zacks.com and check out our mutual fund comparison tool, and all of the other great features that we have to help you with your mutual fund analysis 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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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
