For investors looking to park their money in the real-estate sector, mutual funds are the cheapest and most-convenient options. This category of funds also offers solid protection against inflation.
The real-estate sector recently saw tough times but the presence of this investment vehicle generally adds stability to a portfolio. This is because volatility in property prices is far less compared to the extent experienced by stocks. Adding such funds to a widely diversified portfolio would increase returns while significantly reducing the associated risk.
Below we share with you three top-ranked real estate mutual funds. Each has earned a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and is expected to outperform its peers in the future. Investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.
Cohen & Steers Real Estate Securities ACSEIX fund invests the majority of its assets in common stocks and other equity securities issued by real estate companies. The non-diversified fund aims for total return. CSEIX has three-year annualized returns of 7%.
As of the end of December 2019, CSEIX held 52 issues, with 8.64% of its assets invested in American Tower Corp (NYSE:AMT).
TIAA-CREF Real Estate Securities Fund Retirement Class TRRSX seeks maximum total returns over the long run through growth of capital and current income. TRRSX invests a large chunk of its assets in companies primarily involved in operations related to the real estate domain. The fund may invest a maximum of 15% of its assets in securities issued by foreign entities. TRRSX has three-year annualized returns of 8.8%.
David Copp is one of the fund managers of TRRSX since 2005.
Fidelity Real Estate Investment Portfolio FRESX aims for better-than-average income and long-term capital appreciation. The fund invests the majority of its assets in companies primarily engaged in the real-estate industry and other real-estate-related investments. It mostly invests in common stocks. FRESX has returned 4.8% over the past three years.
FRESX carries an expense ratio of 0.74% compared with the category average of 1.22%.
To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all real estate funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.
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Zacks Investment Research