Having trouble finding a Large Cap Growth fund? Well, Berkshire Focus Fund (BFOCX) would not be a good potential starting point right now. BFOCX possesses a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.
We classify BFOCX in the Large Cap Growth category, an area rife with potential choices. Large Cap Growth funds invest in many large U.S. companies that are expected to grow much faster compared to other large-cap stocks. To be considered large-cap, companies must have a market cap over $10 billion.
Berkshire is based in Mikwaukee, WI, and is the manager of BFOCX. The Berkshire Focus Fund made its debut in July of 1997 and BFOCX has managed to accumulate roughly $276.86 million in assets, as of the most recently available information. The fund’s current manager, Malcolm R. Fobes III, has been in charge of the fund since July of 1997.
Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 9.63%, and it sits 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 -5.83%, 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. Over the past three years, BFOCX’s standard deviation comes in at 38.15%, compared to the category average of 25.51%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 35.32% compared to the category average of 25.18%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.
Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 1.4, which means it is hypothetically more volatile than the market at large. Another factor to consider is alpha, as it reflects a portfolio’s performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark-in this case, the S&P 500. The fund has produced a negative alpha over the past 5 years of -4.78, which shows that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.
