Is T. Rowe Price International Discovery (PRIDX) a Strong Mutual Fund Pick Right Now?

Have you been searching for a Non US - Equity fund? You might want to begin with T. Rowe Price International Discovery (PRIDX). PRIDX has a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank of 3 (Hold), which is based on various forecasting factors like size, cost, and past performance.ObjectiveZacks categorizes PRIDX as Non US - Equity, a segment stacked high with options. Non US - Equity mutual funds like to invest in companies outside of the United States, an important characteristic since global mutual funds are known to keep a good portion of their portfolio stateside. These kinds of funds can often extend across all cap levels, and will typically allocate their investments between emerging and developed markets.History of Fund/ManagerT. Rowe Price is based in Baltimore, MD, and is the manager of PRIDX. T. Rowe Price International Discovery debuted in December of 1988. Since then, PRIDX has accumulated assets of about $2.17 billion, according to the most recently available information. The fund's current manager, Ben Griffiths, has been in charge of the fund since March of 2020.PerformanceObviously, what investors are looking for in these funds is strong performance relative to their peers. PRIDX has a 5-year annualized total return of 4.92% 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 -2.26%, 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.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. Over the past three years, PRIDX's standard deviation comes in at 18.28%, compared to the category average of 16.46%. Over the past 5 years, the standard deviation of the fund is 20.49% compared to the category average of 17.44%. This makes the fund more volatile than its peers over the past half-decade.Risk FactorsWith a 5-year beta of 0.96, the fund is likely to be less volatile than the market average. Because alpha represents a portfolio's performance on a risk-adjusted basis relative to a benchmark, which is the S&P 500 in this case, one should pay attention to this metric as well. PRIDX has generated a negative alpha over the past five years of -8.08, demonstrating that managers in this portfolio find it difficult to pick securities that generate better-than-benchmark returns.ExpensesAs competition heats up in the mutual fund market, costs become increasingly important. Compared to its otherwise identical counterpart, a low-cost product will be an outperformer, all other things being equal. Thus, taking a closer look at cost-related metrics is vital for investors. In terms of fees, PRIDX is a no load fund. It has an expense ratio of 1.25% compared to the category average of 1.05%. From a cost perspective, PRIDX is actually more expensive than its peers.While the minimum initial investment for the product is $2,500, 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 LineOverall, even with its comparatively strong performance, average downside risk, and higher fees, T. Rowe Price International Discovery ( PRIDX ) has a neutral Zacks Mutual Fund rank, and therefore looks a somewhat average choice for investors right now.For additional information on the Non US - Equity area of the mutual fund world, make sure to check out www.zacks.com/funds/mutual-funds. There, you can see more about the ranking process, and dive even deeper into PRIDX too for additional information. If you are more of a stock investor, make sure to also check out our Zacks Rank, and our full suite of tools we have available for novice and professional investors alike.Just Released: Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2025Hurry – you can still get in early on our 10 top tickers for 2025. Handpicked by Zacks Director of Research Sheraz Mian, this portfolio has been stunningly and consistently successful. From inception in 2012 through November, 2024, the Zacks Top 10 Stocks gained +2,112.6%, more than QUADRUPLING the S&P 500’s +475.6%. 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