Dreyfus International Stock Fund (DISAX)

Dreyfus International Stock A (DISAX) fund is part of international stock mutual fund. This foreign large growth fund focuses its assets in non-U.S. companies in developed markets.

Dreyfus International Stock Fund

The Dreyfus International Stock fund objective is to seek long-term total return. This equity fund invests majority of net assets (>80%) in stocks of foreign companies located in the developed markets. It usually invests in >3 countries around the world.

Fund Details

• Fund Inception Date: December 26, 2006
• Ticker Symbol: DISAX
• CUSIP: 86271F-78-4
• Beta (3yr): 0.78
• Rank in category (YTD): 69%
• Category: Foreign Large Growth
• Distribution: 0.85%
• Capital Gains: 0%
• Expense Ratio: 1.27%
• Net Assets: $ 1.61 billion
• Number of Years Up: 3 years
• Number of Years Down: 2 years
• Annual Turnover Rate: 5.07%

Updated on 8/17/2012

This foreign large growth fund has annual expense ratio of 1.27%. The average expense ratio in this category is 1.45%. It has total net assets of $1.61 billion. As of April 18, 2012, the annual portfolio turnover is 5.07%. The fund managers are Jane Henderson, Roy Leckie, Charlie Macquaker, Rodger Nisbet, and Ian Clark. Its dividend yield is 0.85%. There is no management fee for investing in this fund, but there is a maximum sales charge of 5.75%.

Morningstar ranks this international stock fund with 4-stars rating. Its YTD return is 12.30%. The fund has 3 years of positive return and 2 years of negative return. The best 1-year total return was recorded in 2009 with 34.27%. Based on the load adjusted returns, it has returned 14.99% over the past 3-year and 1.49% over the past 5-year. The yearly performance of this international stock fund is as below:

• Year 2007: 8.13%
• Year 2008: -31.88
• Year 2009: 34.27%
• Year 2010: 13.66%

This investment fund can be purchased from 66 brokerages with minimum initial purchase of $1,000 for brokerage account. The brokerages that offered it are Edward Jones, JP Morgan, Schwab Institutional, Morgan Stanley Advisors, Fidelity Retail Funds Network, Raymond James, etc. The other classes of this fund are Class C (DISCX) and Class I (DISRX).

more: Best International Large Cap Stock Mutual Funds 2012

The top 10 holdings as of March 2012 are Novo Nordisk (2.27%), Komatsu Ltd (2.25%), Honda Motor (2.20%), Centrica (2.15%), Burberry (2.13%), China Mobile Ltd (2.11%), Tesco plc (2.11%), Danone (2.10%), SAP (2.10%) and Canon (2.07%). The top sectors are Consumer Staples (18.44%), Consumer Discretionary (13.97%), Energy (13.70%), Health Care (12.80%) and Financial (11.16%).

According to the fund website, the investment risks are foreign investment risk, foreign currency risk, stock investing risk, small and midsize company risk, growth stock risk, liquidity risk, etc.

Pros:

• Low holdings turnover rate

Cons:

• New management team
• Class A has 5.75% sales load (Class I doesn’t have a sales load)

Disclosure: No Position

Other stock fund:

• Thornburg International Growth (TIGAX)