Investing in mutual funds for retirement is never too late. And the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank can be an excellent tool for investors looking to invest in the best funds.

The easiest way to judge a mutual fund's quality over time is by analyzing its performance, diversification, and fees. Using the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of over 19,000 mutual funds, we've identified three outstanding mutual funds that are ideally suited to help long-term investors pursue and achieve their retirement investing goals.

Here are the funds that have achieved the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and have low fees.

Fidelity Advisor Balanced Fund Z

(FZAAX): 0.44% expense ratio and 0.38% management fee. FZAAX is an Allocation Balanced mutual fund. Allocation Balanced funds look to invest across asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, and including precious metals or commodities is not unusual; these funds are mostly categorized by their respective asset allocation. With annual returns of 12.33% over the last five years, this fund is a winner.

Janus Henderson Contrarian T

(JSVAX): 0.74% expense ratio and 0.6% management fee. JSVAX is a Large Cap Value fund. These funds invest in stocks with a market cap of $10 billion of more, but whose share prices do not reflect their intrinsic value. With yearly returns of 13.97% over the last five years, JSVAX is an effectively diversified fund with a long reputation of solidly positive performance.

JPMorgan Mid Cap Growth Fund A

(OSGIX): 1.14% expense ratio and 0.65% management fee. OSGIX is a Mid Cap Growth mutual fund. 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. The fund is mainly invested in equities, has a long reputation of salutary performance, and has yearly returns of 11.83% over the last five years.

There you have it. If your financial advisor had you put your money into any of our top-ranked funds, then they've got you covered. If not, you may need to talk.

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