Fund Evaluator:
Touchstone Flexible Income C (FRACX)
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Best Performing in Multisector Bond Over the Last Year
| 7.1% | Morningstar Multisector Bond (MSTMX) |
| 6.0% | Fidelity Advisor Strategic Income Z (FIWDX) |
| 5.4% | Russell Inv Opportunistic Credit Y (RGCYX) |
| 5.4% | Russell Inv Opportunistic Credit M (RGOTX) |
| 5.2% | Payden Managed Income SI (PKBIX) |
Fund Details
Touchstone Flexible Income C Overview
Touchstone Flexible Income C (FRACX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Multisector Bond fund. Touchstone launched the fund in 2001.
The investment seeks total return through a combination of income and capital appreciation. Under normal circumstances, the fund invests at least 80% of its assets in income-producing securities such as investment grade corporate bonds, high yield bonds (i.e., junk bonds), preferred stocks, municipal bonds, and U.S. Treasuries. It may also invest in fixed income closed-end funds, dividend-paying equities and other debt securities including but not limited to U.S. government securities, variable- and floating-rate instruments, and mortgage- and asset-backed securities.
About Touchstone Flexible Income C (FRACX)
There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 5.80 years: Arif Joshi (2026), Art DeGaetano (2018), Derek Pines (2018), Paul Van Lingen (2018). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Touchstone Flexible Income C has 385 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 28.3% 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.
Touchstone Flexible Income C is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Touchstone Flexible Income C has 8.6% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is -4.7%. There is -0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 6.4% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 92.8% (84.2% domestic bond, 8.6% foreign bond and 0.3% convertible bond). Touchstone Flexible Income C has 5.0% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $26 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Multisector 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.
FRACX 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 Touchstone Flexible Income C expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Multisector Bond category. Touchstone Flexible Income C has an expense ratio of 1.84%, which is 96% higher than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a F. 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. Touchstone Flexible Income C has a portfolio turnover rate of 64%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 162% for the Multisector Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Touchstone Flexible Income C returned -1.7%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Multisector Bond category had an average return of -0.7%. 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.
Touchstone Flexible Income C has a trailing yield of 4.62%, which is below the 5.31% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
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.
Touchstone Flexible Income C Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned -0.7%, 1.5 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 1.8% over the past year (grade of F), 4.1% over the past three years (grade of F) and 1.0% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 2.2% per year over the past 10 years (grade of F).
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FRACX 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 |
|
| FRACX Return (NAV) | -1.7% | -1.1% | 1.8% | 4.1% | 1.0% | 2.2% |
| FRACX Grade | F | F | F | F | F | F |
| +/- Category | -1.0% | -1.1% | -2.5% | -2.2% | -1.4% | -1.3% |
| Multisector Bond Avg | -0.7% | 0.0% | 4.3% | 6.3% | 2.4% | 3.5% |
| FRACX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 1.8% | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.3% |
FRACX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| FRACX Return (NAV) | -0.7% | 5.4% | 3.7% | 7.0% | -9.0% | 2.1% | 7.1% | 7.6% | -2.5% | 5.7% | 2.8% |
| FRACX Grade | F | F | F | D | B | C | C | F | C | D | F |
| +/- Category | -1.5% | -2.7% | -2.0% | -1.5% | 1.1% | -0.1% | 0.8% | -2.7% | -0.6% | -0.9% | -4.6% |
| Multisector Bond Avg | 0.9% | 8.1% | 5.7% | 8.4% | -10.1% | 2.2% | 6.3% | 10.3% | -1.9% | 6.6% | 7.5% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 3.9% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.32 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.87 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | B (22% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.63 |
| R-Squared: | 85% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Small-Cap Value |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 4.6% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $1595 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 27 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | C |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 64% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 4 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 7.7 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 5.8 years | |||
| Managers (Year): DeGaetano Art (2018), Pines Derek (2018), Van Lingen Paul (2018), Joshi Arif (2026) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 385 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 28.3% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 8.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | -4.7% |
| Foreign Stock: | -0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 6.4% |
| Domestic Bond: | 84.2% |
| Foreign Bond: | 8.6% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.3% |
| Other: | 0.3% |
| Cash: | 5.0% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Touchstone |
| Phone Number: | 800-543-0407 |
| Website: | www.touchstoneInvestments.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | October 29, 2001 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $2,500 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $1,000 |
| True No-Load: | No |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 1.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 1.00% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 1.84% ( Rating : High ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.94% |
| Share Class: | Touchstone Flexible Income Y |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 50 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 50 |
