Bronze-rated Fidelity Asset Manager 20% is anchored in the company's reliable fixed-income capabilities and should appeal to investors with a more conservative outlook.
Jeff Holt: This week's medalist is Bronze-rated Fidelity Asset Manager 20% (FASIX). It is the most conservative of Fidelity's seven Asset Manager funds. The 20% in the fund's name indicates its neutral weight in stocks, which consists of both U.S. and international equity. The rest of the portfolio is invested in bonds and cash, and includes niche areas like high-yield bonds and TIPS.
Portfolio manager Geoff Stein uses the 20% as a guidepost for the fund's stock exposure, but he can take that exposure as high as 30% or as a low 10% based on his outlook. In the second half of 2015, Stein reined in the fund's modest overweight position in stocks due to concerns with the potential global ramifications of a slowdown in China.
Stein relies on different teams within Fidelity to manage sleeves in their respective areas, and the fund does a good job of leveraging Fidelity's strong fixed-income capabilities. Fidelity veteran Jeff Moore, who runs Silver-rated Fidelity Investment Grade Bond (FBNDX), manages a sleeve in the same fashion here. That sleeve plays a large role in Asset Manager 20%, boosting confidence in the fund's prospects.
Investors looking for a conservative balanced fund build on a solid fixed-income foundation may want to check out Fidelity Asset Manager 20%.
