How to read a fact sheet starts with the fund name and objective
In my example I show you Franklin Income Fund, a multi class mutual fund.
the objective of that fund is:
The fund seeks to maximize income, while maintaining
prospects for capital appreciation, by investing in a
diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds.
The next things to look at is the funds assets and dividend frequency
after that you must look at the different classes of shares they offer,
Franklin Income fund offers A, C, R, & R6 shares.
once you decide what kind of class you want to buy into, you then have to look at the historical performance of that particular class.
Some real important things to look at on the fact sheet is who the managers are, how long they have been in the industry, as well as all the fees associated with investing in this Mutual Fund.
If the experience is good enough and the fees are cheap enough you then want to see what it is the mutual fund or ETF is actually investing in, for that you go to the asset allocation and holdings portion of the fact sheet.
Assuming all these things look good to you, you also want to check the Beta as well as the standard deviation, both of these measure the funds volatility so you know exactly what kind of rollercoaster you will be getting on, in the event that you decide to invest with the fund.
Once you understand how to read all these metrics and figures, then you are ready to decide if you're interested, but ALWAYS remember to review the prospectus of a fund prior to investing