Symbol is KHYAX, not ..K I believe. Thi s one has a substantial front end load of 4.5% nd .96% expense ratio, and is a pretty average return, average risk bond fund. A good-performing play on high-yield bonds. Its positions in equites, preferred stocks, and emerging-markets debt are minimal. Long-term results are good, but Credit risk is higher. This fund was dinged by two defaults in 1999, which hurt its performance. The fund isn't likely to blow its peers away, as it doesn't have outsized stakes in equities like some of its peers, such as Legg Mason High-Yield LMHYX.
The Fund managers keep this offering almost entirely focused on domestic high-yield bonds. That stands in contrast to many of the top-performing high-yield funds, which expanded their universe to include options such as preferred stocks and emerging-markets debt, the best-performing fixed-income sector in 1999.
If you need to stay with Kemper, and want more exposure to equities and preferreds you may want to consider Kemper High Yield Opportunities KYOAX. My preference is to just buy straight Treasury bonds instead of bond funds, as instead of paying the 5% or so loads, you just pay the transaction fee. So on a $100k purchase instead of taking a $4500 hit with the bond fund, you would ind up paying about $60 instead. That more than makes up the performance difference. I wrote a couple columns about that. links below:
stockcharts.com
stockcharts.com
scott |
