Fund Evaluator:

Hartford Checks and Balances C Overview

Hartford Checks and Balances C (HCKCX) is an actively managed Allocation Moderate Allocation fund. Hartford Mutual Funds launched the fund in 2007.

The investment seeks long-term capital appreciation and income. The fund invests in a combination of Hartford Funds ("underlying funds"): the Hartford Capital Appreciation Fund, which normally invests at least 65% of its net assets in common stocks; the Hartford Dividend and Growth Fund, which invests primarily in a portfolio of equity securities that typically have above average dividend yields; and the Hartford Total Return Bond ETF, which under normal circumstances invests at least 80% of its net assets in bonds.

About Hartford Checks and Balances C (HCKCX)

There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 11.42 years: Vernon Meyer (2007), Allison Mortensen (2015), James Glendon (2022). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.

The fund has 4 primary benchmarks: Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 100%, Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 33%, Russell 3000 TR USD index with a weighting of 33% and S&P 500 (TR) (1970) index with a weighting of 33%. Hartford Checks and Balances C has 4 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 99.9% 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.

Hartford Checks and Balances C is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. Hartford Checks and Balances C has 5.1% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 61.4%. There is 4.6% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 32.2% (31.6% domestic bond, 0.5% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Hartford Checks and Balances C has 1.8% of the portfolio in cash.

Assets Under Management

The fund has $33 million in total assets, which is below the $2 billion average for the Moderate Allocation 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.

HCKCX 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 Hartford Checks and Balances C expense ratio is high compared to funds in the Moderate Allocation category. Hartford Checks and Balances C has an expense ratio of 1.71%, which is 72% 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. Hartford Checks and Balances C has a portfolio turnover rate of 7%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 52% for the Moderate Allocation category.

Recently, in the month of July 2026, Hartford Checks and Balances C returned 0.4%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Moderate Allocation category had an average return of -0.3%. 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.

Hartford Checks and Balances C has a trailing yield of 1.10%, which is below the 1.97% category average. The fund normally distributes its income quarterly 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.

Hartford Checks and Balances C Grades

Year to date, the fund has returned 5.8%, 0.7 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 13.2% over the past year (grade of C), 10.2% over the past three years (grade of F) and 5.2% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 7.9% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).

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