If investors are looking for the Non-US Equity fund category, Driehaus International Small Cap Growth (DRIOX) could be a potential option. DRIOX has a Zacks mutual fund ranking of 1 (strong buy), which is based on nine forecasting factors such as size, cost, and past performance.

Goal

We classify DRIOX in the Non-US Equity category, which is an area of ​​great potential for choice. Investing in companies outside of the United States is how non-US equity funds stand out, as global funds tend to keep a good portion of their portfolio in the United States. Many of these funds like to split between emerging and developed markets and will often focus on all levels of capitalization.

Fund / manager history

Driehaus is based in Chicago, IL, and is the director of DRIOX. Driehaus International Small Cap Growth debuted in September 2007 and DRIOX has managed to accumulate approximately $ 318.57 million in assets, according to the latest information available. A team of investment professionals is the current manager of the fund.

Performance

Of course, investors look for strong performance in funds. This fund generated a total annualized return over 5 years of 16.41% and is in the top third of its peers in the category. But if you’re looking for a shorter timeframe, it’s also worth looking at its 3-year annualized total return of 14.71%, which puts it in the top third over that timeframe.

When looking at the performance of a fund, it is also important to note the standard deviation of returns. The lower the standard deviation, the less volatility the fund experiences. The standard deviation of DRIOX over the past three years is 20.48% compared to the category average of 20.81%. The fund’s standard deviation over the past 5 years is 17.12% compared to the category average of 17.33%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half decade.

Risk factors

Investors should note that the fund has a 5-year beta of 0.97, which means it is hypothetically as volatile as the market as a whole. Alpha is an additional metric to consider, as it represents the performance of a portfolio on a risk-adjusted basis against a benchmark, which in this case is the S&P 500. The fund has produced an alpha. positive over the past 5 years of 0.01, which shows that the managers of this portfolio are adept at selecting stocks that generate higher returns than the benchmark.

The story continues

Expenses

As competition intensifies in the mutual fund market, the costs become more and more important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low cost product will outperform, all other things being equal. Thus, it is vital for investors to take a closer look at cost metrics. In terms of fees, DRIOX is a no-fee fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.23% compared to the category average of 1.18%. Looking at the fund from a cost perspective, DRIOX is actually more expensive than its peers.

Although the minimum initial investment for the product is $ 10,000, investors should also note that each subsequent investment must be at least $ 2,000.

Final result

Overall, Driehaus International Small Cap Growth (DRIOX) ranks high for the Zacks mutual fund, and in conjunction with its comparatively strong performance, medium downside risk, and higher fees, this fund appears to be a good potential choice for investors at the moment.

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