On the lookout for an Investment Grade Bond – Short fund? Starting with T. Rowe Price Ultra Short-Term Bond (TRBUX) is one possibility. TRBUX bears a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 1 (Strong Buy), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.

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TRBUX is part of the Investment Grade Bond – Short category, a segment that boasts an array of other possible selections. Investment Grade Bond – Short funds target the short end of the curve by focusing on bonds that mature in less than two years. Fixed income instruments with this maturity level typically have low duration risk and pay out small yields, at least in comparison to their longer-dated peers. Also, these funds tend to be safer because of their focus on investment grade, but yields will be lower than could be found in the junk bond category.

T. Rowe Price is based in Baltimore, MD, and is the manager of TRBUX. Since T. Rowe Price Ultra Short-Term Bond made its debut in December of 2012, TRBUX has garnered more than $1.34 million in assets. The fund’s current manager, Alexander Obaza, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2020.

Investors naturally seek funds with strong performance. This fund carries a 5-year annualized total return of 2.97%, 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 3.82%, 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.

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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. TRBUX’s standard deviation over the past three years is 0.98% compared to the category average of 7.57%. The standard deviation of the fund over the past 5 years is 1.61% compared to the category average of 8.36%. This makes the fund less volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.

This fund has a beta of 0.06, meaning that it is less volatile than a broad market index of fixed income securities. Taking this into account, TRBUX has a positive alpha of 0.78, which measures performance on a risk-adjusted basis.

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, TRBUX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 0.31% compared to the category average of 0.67%. From a cost perspective, TRBUX is actually cheaper than its peers.

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