If you've been stuck searching for Mutual Fund Bond funds, you might want to consider passing on by Ivy High Income A (WHIAX) as a possibility. WHIAX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 5 (Strong Sell), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

History of Fund/Manager

WHIAX finds itself in the Delaware Investments family, based out of Philadelphia, PA. Ivy High Income A made its debut in September of 2003, and since then, WHIAX has accumulated about $1.10 billion in assets, per the most up-to-date date available. The fund's current manager is a team of investment professionals.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund has delivered a 5-year annualized total return of 2.47%, and it sits in the bottom third among its category peers. Investors who prefer analyzing shorter time frames should look at its 3-year annualized total return of 0.65%, 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. The standard deviation of WHIAX over the past three years is 8.9% compared to the category average of 13.38%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 10.8% compared to the category average of 14.2%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

This fund has a beta of -0.11, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, WHIAX has a positive alpha of 1.93, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

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, WHIAX is a load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1% compared to the category average of 0.96%. WHIAX is actually more expensive than its peers when you consider factors like cost.

While the minimum initial investment for the product is $1,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment needs to be at least $100.

Fees charged by investment advisors have not been taken into considiration. Returns would be less if those were included.

Bottom Line

Overall, Ivy High Income A ( WHIAX ) has a low Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and in conjunction with its comparatively weak performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, Ivy High Income A ( WHIAX ) looks like a somewhat weak choice for investors right now.

For additional information on this product, or to compare it to other mutual funds in the Mutual Fund Bond, make sure to go to www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds for additional information. And don't forget, Zacks has all of your needs covered on the equity side too! Make sure to check out Zacks.com for more information on our screening capabilities, Rank, and all our articles as well.

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