Is Janus Henderson Enterprise Institutional (JAAGX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

On the lookout for a Mid Cap Growth fund? Starting with Janus Henderson Enterprise Institutional (JAAGX) is one possibility. JAAGX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.ObjectiveWe note that JAAGX is a Mid Cap Growth fund, and this area is also loaded with many different options. Companies are usually considered growth stocks when they consistently report notable sales and/or earnings growth. Thus, Mid Cap Growth funds pick stocks--usually companies with a market cap between $2 billion and $10 billion--that demonstrate extensive growth opportunities for investors compared to their peers.History of Fund/ManagerJAAGX finds itself in the Janus Fund family, based out of Boston, MA. The Janus Henderson Enterprise Institutional made its debut in September of 1993 and JAAGX has managed to accumulate roughly $679.05 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund is currently managed by Brian Demain who has been in charge of the fund since November of 2007.PerformanceOf course, investors look for strong performance in funds. JAAGX has a 5-year annualized total return of 6.07%, and it sits 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 11.98%, which places it in the middle 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. Over the past three years, JAAGX's standard deviation comes in at 14.63%, compared to the category average of 18.16%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 15.93% compared to the category average of 20.01%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.Risk FactorsInvestors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.95, which means it is hypothetically less volatile than the market at large. 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. JAAGX's 5-year performance has produced a negative alpha of -5.77, which means 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, JAAGX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.72% compared to the category average of 1.05%. JAAGX is actually cheaper than its peers when you consider factors like cost.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 consideration. Returns would be less if those were included.Bottom LineOverall, Janus Henderson Enterprise Institutional ( JAAGX ) has a high Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and lower fees, this fund looks like a good potential choice for investors right now.For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mid Cap Growth, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. If you want to check out our stock reports as well, make sure to go to Zacks.com to see all of the great tools we have to offer, including our time-tested Zacks Rank.7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 DaysJust released: Experts distill 7 elite stocks from the current list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys. They deem these tickers "Most Likely for Early Price Pops."Since 1988, the full list has beaten the market more than 2X over with an average gain of +23.9% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. See them now >>This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks