If you're looking for an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate fund category, then a potential option is PIMCO Total Return Institutional (PTTRX). PTTRX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on nine forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

Objective

We note that PTTRX is an Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate option, which is a segment loaded with many different investment options. By targeting bonds that mature in more than three years but less than 15 years, Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate funds are a middle of the curve option. Fixed income instruments at this maturity level usually have medium duration risk, but their yields are respectable, especially in comparison to their short-maturity counterparts. Additionally, a focus on investment grade makes these funds safer, but yields tend to be lower than in the junk bond category.

History of Fund/Manager

PIMCO Funds is responsible for PTTRX, and the company is based out of Newport Beach, CA. PIMCO Total Return Institutional debuted in May of 1987. Since then, PTTRX has accumulated assets of about $51.93 billion, according to the most recently available information. A team of investment professionals is the fund's current manager.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 3.8%, and is in the middle third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 4.82%, which places it in the middle 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. The standard deviation of PTTRX over the past three years is 3.57% compared to the category average of 13.21%. The fund's standard deviation over the past 5 years is 3.32% compared to the category average of 11.01%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

With a beta of 0.97, this fund is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, PTTRX has a positive alpha of 0.75, 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, PTTRX has 52.76% in high quality bonds rated at least 'AA' or higher, while 35.8% are of medium quality, with ratings of 'A' to 'BBB'. The fund has an average quality of AA, and focuses on high quality securities.

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, PTTRX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.46% compared to the category average of 0.79%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, PTTRX is actually cheaper than its peers.

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

Bottom Line

Overall, PIMCO Total Return Institutional ( PTTRX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, better downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.

Your research on the Investment Grade Bond - Intermediate segment doesn't have to stop here. You can check out all the great mutual fund tools we have to offer by going to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds to see the additional features we offer as well 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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