Growth of $10,000

A chart showing the growth of a $10,000 investment in terms of both NAVs and market prices. The orange line represents the growth of a $10,000 investment based on NAV performance and the red line represents the growth of the same investment based on market-price performance. The green line represents the fund’s Morningstar Category (see definition on Snapshot page). The starting date for each line is set to the earliest month from which Morningstar has continuous monthly return data, or to the leftmost point on the chart.

All three lines are plotted on a logarithmic scale, so that identical percentage changes in the value of an investment have the same vertical distance on the graph. For example, the vertical distance between $10,000 and $20,000 is the same as the distance between $100,000 and $200,000 because both represent a 100% increase in investment value. This provides a more accurate representation of a fund’s performance than would a simple arithmetic graph. All the graphs are scaled so that the full length of vertical axis represents a tenfold increase in investment value. For funds whose returns have exhibited greater than a tenfold increase over the period shown in the graph, the vertical axis has been compressed accordingly.

 

Monthly Premium/Discount

This graph charts the historical monthly premiums or discounts of the fund. A premium or discount is the amount by which a fund’s market price is greater or less than the NAV, expressed as a percentage of the NAV. A negative number indicates that the fund’s shares sold at a discount to NAV, and a positive number indicates that shares sold at a premium. For example, if the number shown is -10.0, the shares sold at a 10% discount to NAV.

Below the graph, are the average, high, and low premium or discount for each calendar year.

 

Calendar-Year Total Returns

All references to total return represent a fund’s gains over a specified period of time. In this case, the time periods are the current year-to-date (updated monthly) and the seven most recent calendar years. Total return includes both income (in the form of dividends or interest payments) and capital gains or losses (the increase or decrease in the value of a security). The total returns account for management, administrative, and other costs automatically deducted from fund assets. Morningstar’s return figures may differ from those published by other rating firms or fund groups. This may be a result of time-period discrepancies, or because different firms employ different methods for calculating total return. For example, some services reinvest all dividends at month-end prices. Morningstar, however, uses the actual reinvestment price that a shareholder would have to pay.

Market Return

Morningstar calculates the market-price return by taking the change in the fund’s market price, reinvesting all income and capital-gains distributions during the period, and dividing by the starting market price.

NAV Return

Morningstar calculates NAV total return by taking the change in a fund’s NAV, assuming the reinvestment of all income and capital gains distributions (on the actual reinvestment date used by the fund) during the period, and then dividing by the initial NAV.

+/- S&P 500 or +/- Barclays Aggregate

A benchmark index gives the investor a point of reference for evaluating a fund’s performance. In all cases where such comparisons are made, Morningstar uses the S&P 500 as the primary benchmark for stock-oriented funds, and the Barclays Aggregate Bond Index (an overall bond benchmark) as the benchmark index for bond funds. The +/- (Calendar Year) figure indicates the amount by which a fund over- or under-performed its primary index during a given calendar year.

+/- Category

In addition to comparing the fund to a primary index, we also provide a comparison with the Morningstar Category (see definition on Snapshot page). The +/- (Calendar Year) figure indicates the amount by which a fund over-or under-performed its Morningstar Category during a given calendar year.

% Rank in Category

This is the fund’s total-return percentile rank for the specified calendar year relative to all funds that have the same Morningstar Category. The highest (or most favorable) percentile rank is 1 and the lowest (or least favorable) percentile rank is 100. The top-performing fund in a category will always receive a rank of 1. Percentile ranks within Categories are most useful in those categories that have a large number of funds.

 

Trailing Total Returns

All references to trailing total returns represent a fund’s gains over a specified period of time. The year-to-date, 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year periods are updated monthly. Total return includes both income (in the form of dividends or interest payments) and capital gains or losses (the increase or decrease in the value of a security). The total returns account for management, administrative, and other costs automatically deducted from fund assets. Morningstar’s return figures may differ from those published by other rating firms or fund groups. This may be a result of time-period discrepancies, or because different firms employ different methods for calculating total return. For example, some services reinvest all dividends at month-end prices. Morningstar, however, uses the actual reinvestment price that a shareholder would have to pay.

 

Weekly Premium/Discount

This graph charts the historical weekly premiums or discounts of the fund. A premium or discount is the amount by which a fund’s market price is greater or less than the NAV, expressed as a percentage of the NAV. A negative number indicates that the fund’s shares sold at a discount to NAV, and a positive number indicates that shares sold at a premium. For example, if the number shown is -10.0, the shares sold at a 10% discount to NAV.

 

Historical Quarterly NAV Returns

Quarterly returns break out a fund’s performance over successive quarters of the calendar year. This can be useful in examining how volatile a fund has been over fairly short time periods. Note: Adding up a fund’s quarterly returns over the course of a year will not necessarily give you a number that equates with the fund’s calendar-year return for that year. This is because of the effects of compounding returns over the course of a year. Historical quarterly returns for closed-end funds are calculated using NAV total returns and not market total returns.

 

Tax Analysis

The tax analysis data is calculated for 3-, 5-, and 10-year average total returns, and updated monthly.

Pretax NAV Return

The pretax NAV return percentage shows a fund’s annualized pre-tax total return for the three-,five-, and 10-year periods.

Tax-Adjusted NAV Return

Tax-adjusted return percentage shows a fund’s annualized after-tax total return for the three-,five-, and 10-year periods, excluding any capital-gains effects which would result from selling the fund at the end of the period. To determine this figure, all income and short-term (less than one-year) capital gains distributions are taxed at the maximum federal rate at the time of distribution. Mid-term (12 to 18 months) capital gains are taxed at a 28% rate. Long-term (more than 18 months) capital gains are taxed at a 20% rate. The after-tax portion is then reinvested in the fund. State and local taxes are ignored, and only the capital gains are adjusted for tax-exempt funds, as the income from these funds is nontaxable.

Tax Cost Ratio

This represents the percentage-point reduction in an annualized return that results from income taxes. The calculation assumes investors pay the maximum federal rate on capital gains and ordinary income. For example, if a fund made short-term capital-gains and income distributions that averaged 10% of its NAV over the past three years, an investor in the 35% tax bracket would have a tax cost ratio of 3.5 percentage points. (The 35% tax rate was used for illustrative purposes because, according to current tax law, the maximum income-tax rate will fall to that level. However, our tax-cost calculation uses the maximum income-tax rate that applied during the year in which the distribution was made.)

 

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