Fund Evaluator:
Destinations Core Fixed Income I (DCFFX)
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Best Performing in Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Over the Last Year
| 4.1% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond Y (DHNYX) |
| 3.9% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond I (DHNIX) |
| 3.7% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond Investor (DHNAX) |
| 3.5% | Weitz Core Plus Income Investor (WCPNX) |
| 3.4% | Nuveen Core Plus Bond I (TCBHX) |
Fund Details
Destinations Core Fixed Income I Overview
Destinations Core Fixed Income I (DCFFX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Intermediate Core-Plus Bond fund. Destinations Funds launched the fund in 2017.
The investment seeks maximum current income and total return. The fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) in fixed income instruments. It invests primarily in bonds, debt, and other fixed income instruments issued by governmental or private-sector entities, including mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, investment grade corporate bonds, junk bonds, bank loans, loan participations, assignments, derivatives, credit default swaps, inverse floater securities, interest-only and principal-only securities and money market instruments.
About Destinations Core Fixed Income I (DCFFX)
There are 11 members of the management team with an average tenure of 4.84 years: Andrew Smock (2020), Campe Goodman (2020), Timothy Holland (2022), Jeffrey Sherman (2017), Rob Burn (2020), Brian Storey (2022), Todd Copenhaver (2020), Connor Fitzgerald (2025), Andrew Goins (2023), John Hoffmann (2026), Jeffrey Gundlach (2017). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: ICE BofA US Broad Market TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Destinations Core Fixed Income I has 2002 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 17.7% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Destinations Core Fixed Income I is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Destinations Core Fixed Income I has 5.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 97.5% (92.5% domestic bond, 5.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Destinations Core Fixed Income I has 2.4% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $1 billion in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
DCFFX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Destinations Core Fixed Income I expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category. Destinations Core Fixed Income I has an expense ratio of 0.87%, which is 12% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a D. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Destinations Core Fixed Income I has a portfolio turnover rate of 167%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 181% for the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Destinations Core Fixed Income I returned -1.4%, which earned it a grade of D, as the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category had an average return of -1.3%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Destinations Core Fixed Income I has a trailing yield of 4.02%, which is below the 4.36% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Destinations Core Fixed Income I Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned -0.7%, 0.1 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 2.4% over the past year (grade of D), 3.7% over the past three years (grade of D) and -0.5% per year over the past five years (grade of D).
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DCFFX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| DCFFX Return (NAV) | -1.4% | -0.9% | 2.4% | 3.7% | -0.5% | na |
| DCFFX Grade | D | D | D | D | D | na |
| +/- Category | -0.1% | -0.2% | -0.4% | -0.4% | -0.4% | na |
| Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Avg | -1.3% | -0.7% | 2.7% | 4.2% | -0.2% | 1.8% |
| DCFFX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.6% | 1.5% | 1.5% | na |
DCFFX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DCFFX Return (NAV) | -0.7% | 6.6% | 2.3% | 5.9% | -14.1% | -1.3% | 4.7% | 6.9% | 0.0% | na | na |
| DCFFX Grade | D | F | C | D | D | D | F | F | A | na | na |
| +/- Category | -0.1% | -0.8% | 0.0% | -0.2% | -0.7% | -0.7% | -3.9% | -2.2% | 0.9% | na | na |
| Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Avg | -0.6% | 7.3% | 2.3% | 6.1% | -13.4% | -0.6% | 8.6% | 9.1% | -0.9% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 5.8% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.47 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.04 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | D (66% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.03 |
| R-Squared: | 99% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 4.0% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | |
| Total Assets: | $1535 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $1,392 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 167% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 11 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 9.4 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 4.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Sherman Jeffrey (2017), Gundlach Jeffrey (2017), Burn Rob (2020), Smock Andrew (2020), Goodman Campe (2020), Copenhaver Todd (2020), Storey Brian (2022), Holland Timothy (2022), Goins Andrew (2023), Fitzgerald Connor (2025), Hoffmann John (2026) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 2002 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 17.7% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 5.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 92.5% |
| Foreign Bond: | 5.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 2.4% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Destinations Funds |
| Phone Number: | 877-771-7979 |
| Website: |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | March 20, 2017 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.87% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.78% |
| Share Class: | Destinations Core Fixed Income I |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
