Is DFA Continental Small Company I (DFCSX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

Have you been searching for a Europe - Equity fund? You might want to begin with DFA Continental Small Company I (DFCSX). DFCSX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.ObjectiveDFCSX is part of the Europe - Equity section, a segment that boasts an array of many different selections. Europe - Equity mutual funds are known for investing their assets in stocks based in countries like Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain; these funds provide slow growth that can offer great levels of stability.History of Fund/ManagerDFCSX is a part of the Dimensional family of funds, a company based out of Austin, TX. The DFA Continental Small Company I made its debut in April of 1988 and DFCSX has managed to accumulate roughly $657.02 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.PerformanceObviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 7.13%, and is in the middle 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 -0.28%, which places it in the bottom 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 20.32%, the standard deviation of DFCSX over the past three years is 20.62%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 23.09% compared to the category average of 21.16%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.Risk FactorsInvestors should not forget about beta, an important way to measure a mutual fund's risk compared to the market as a whole. DFCSX has a 5-year beta of 1.11, 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. DFCSX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -7.33, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.ExpensesAs 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, DFCSX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.39% compared to the category average of 0.99%. So, DFCSX is actually cheaper than its peers from a cost perspective.This fund requires a minimum initial investment of $0, while there is no minimum for each subsequent investment.Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.Bottom LineOverall, DFA Continental Small Company I ( DFCSX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively similar performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, DFA Continental Small Company I ( DFCSX ) looks like a somewhat average choice for investors right now.For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Europe - Equity, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds 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.Zacks' Top 3 Hydrogen StocksDemand for clean hydrogen energy is projected to reach $500 billion by 2030 and grow 5-FOLD by 2050. Want in? Zacks has targeted 3 diversified titans that could lead the way to becoming hydrogen powerhouses.One has crushed the market over the past 25 years – up +2,400% to +380%.Another already has capital commitments of $15 billion for low carbon hydrogen products through 2027 alone.Our third pick soared to 52-week highs in Q4 2023 and has raised its dividend every year for over a decade.See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Get Your Free (DFCSX): Fund Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks