N-Q 1 gfa_nq.htm N-Q Unassociated Document
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549



FORM N-Q
Quarterly Schedule of Portfolio Holdings of
Registered Management Investment Company

Investment Company Act File Number: 811-00862



The Growth Fund of America, Inc.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

P.O. Box 7650, One Market, Steuart Tower,
San Francisco, California 94120
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)




Registrant's telephone number, including area code:  (415) 421-9360

Date of fiscal year end: August 31

Date of reporting period: November 30, 2008





Patrick F. Quan
Capital Research and Management Company
P.O. Box 7650, One Market, Steuart Tower
San Francisco, California 94120
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)


Copies to:
Michael Glazer
Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP
515 South Flower Street, 25th Floor
Los Angeles, California 90071
(Counsel for the Registrant)

 
 
 

ITEM 1 – Schedule of Investments
 
[logo – American Funds®]
 

The Growth Fund of America®
Investment portfolio

November 30, 2008
 
unaudited


Common stocks — 84.80%
  
Shares
    
Value
(000)
  
             
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY — 24.27%
            
Google Inc., Class A1
    11,727,300     $ 3,435,630  
Oracle Corp.1
     186,412,600       2,999,379  
Cisco Systems, Inc.1
    170,725,000       2,823,791  
Microsoft Corp.
     120,460,100       2,435,703  
Apple Inc.1
    17,915,000       1,660,183  
Nokia Corp.2
    45,628,000       645,029  
Nokia Corp. (ADR)
     40,197,174       569,594  
EMC Corp.1,3
    107,814,600       1,139,600  
SAP AG2
    22,384,600       768,614  
SAP AG (ADR)
     10,140,000       346,180  
Yahoo! Inc.1,3
     90,076,100       1,036,776  
International Business Machines Corp.
     8,410,000       686,256  
Corning Inc.
     70,853,000       638,386  
Paychex, Inc.3
     19,316,400       545,881  
Applied Materials, Inc.
     55,312,792       529,897  
Automatic Data Processing, Inc.
     12,060,000       495,184  
Texas Instruments Inc.
     31,699,000       493,553  
Intel Corp.
     35,270,000       486,726  
MasterCard Inc., Class A
     3,250,000       472,225  
Hewlett-Packard Co.
     13,000,000       458,640  
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd.2
    255,656,257       315,573  
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (ADR)
     12,833,514       91,760  
Linear Technology Corp.3
    19,850,000       396,007  
Intuit Inc.1,3
    16,825,000       372,842  
Symantec Corp.1
    25,800,000       310,374  
Xilinx, Inc.3
     17,400,000       284,664  
Accenture Ltd, Class A
     8,525,000       264,105  
Visa Inc., Class A
     4,657,800       244,814  
KLA-Tencor Corp.3
    12,940,000       243,401  
QUALCOMM Inc.
     6,650,194       223,247  
Kyocera Corp.2
    3,500,000       218,812  
Autodesk, Inc.1,3
     13,007,300       215,791  
Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.3
     17,025,000       210,599  
Dell Inc.1
     18,850,000       210,555  
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.2
    578,000       191,313  
ASML Holding NV (New York registered)
     9,555,555       146,487  
ASML Holding NV2
     2,440,000       37,193  
Juniper Networks, Inc.1
     10,000,000       173,800  
MEMC Electronic Materials, Inc.1
    9,342,502       140,324  
Agilent Technologies, Inc.1
    6,749,400       127,091  
Trimble Navigation Ltd.1,3
     6,047,200       123,121  
HTC Corp.2
     12,200,000       121,521  
Canon, Inc.2
     3,930,000       116,889  
Tyco Electronics Ltd.
     6,363,000       104,862  
Hirose Electric Co., Ltd.2
     1,040,000       94,354  
Analog Devices, Inc.
     5,000,000       85,500  
Microchip Technology Inc.
     4,573,500       84,610  
Flextronics International Ltd.1
    35,205,464       82,381  
Lam Research Corp.1
    3,000,000       60,600  
Sun Microsystems, Inc.1
    17,981,675       57,002  
Rohm Co., Ltd.2
     1,082,000       51,593  
Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., Class A1
     1,004,162       40,618  
Quanta Computer Inc.2
     36,000,256       39,190  
Comverse Technology, Inc.1
    6,000,000       37,200  
Metavante Technologies, Inc.1
    1,466,666       25,329  
Motorola, Inc.
     5,725,000       24,675  
Micron Technology, Inc.1
     8,600,000       23,564  
Western Union Co.
     890,000       11,810  
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.1
    3,800,000       8,968  
Teradyne, Inc.1
     900,000       3,411  
ProAct Holdings, LLC1,2,4
    6,500,000       —  
              28,283,177  
                 
HEALTH CARE — 10.87%
                
Roche Holding AG2
    13,330,000       1,875,601  
Gilead Sciences, Inc.1
    20,920,000       937,007  
Medtronic, Inc.
     29,424,000       898,020  
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (ADR)
     18,534,307       799,755  
Eli Lilly and Co.
     21,220,000       724,663  
Genentech, Inc.1
    8,021,900       614,478  
Celgene Corp.1
    10,800,000       562,680  
Amgen Inc.1
     9,441,400       524,375  
Merck & Co., Inc.
     19,500,000       521,040  
Stryker Corp.
     11,734,000       456,687  
Abbott Laboratories
     7,250,000       379,828  
Schering-Plough Corp.
     20,987,500       352,800  
C. R. Bard, Inc.
     4,249,500       348,586  
Novo Nordisk A/S, Class B2
    6,527,400       333,471  
Boston Scientific Corp.1
    47,092,131       290,558  
Aetna Inc.
     12,620,000       275,368  
McKesson Corp.
     6,700,000       234,098  
Hospira, Inc.1
     7,750,000       232,733  
UnitedHealth Group Inc.
     9,506,000       199,721  
Intuitive Surgical, Inc.1
     1,500,000       198,795  
Cardinal Health, Inc.
     6,000,000       195,120  
Johnson & Johnson
     3,050,000       178,669  
AstraZeneca PLC (Sweden)2
    4,778,000       178,046  
St. Jude Medical, Inc.1
    5,100,000       142,953  
Zimmer Holdings, Inc.1
    3,600,000       134,352  
Allergan, Inc.
     3,380,000       127,358  
Biogen Idec Inc.1
    3,000,000       126,930  
Covance Inc.1
     3,150,000       123,102  
Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc.1
     5,300,000       116,547  
Wyeth
     3,000,000       108,030  
Cephalon, Inc.1
    1,400,000       102,872  
ResMed Inc1
    2,640,500       95,956  
Pharmaceutical Product Development, Inc.
     2,705,000       71,250  
Covidien Ltd.
     1,565,475       57,688  
Inverness Medical Innovations, Inc.1
     2,712,961       47,667  
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.1
     1,500,000       34,200  
Abraxis BioScience, Inc.1
     550,000       32,071  
Varian Medical Systems, Inc.1
     599,997       24,216  
Affymetrix, Inc.1
    2,000,000       5,480  
              12,662,771  
                 
ENERGY — 10.22%
                
Schlumberger Ltd.
     31,264,440       1,586,358  
Suncor Energy Inc.3
    54,590,406       1,262,155  
Devon Energy Corp.
     12,254,600       886,498  
EOG Resources, Inc.
     8,719,922       741,368  
Transocean Inc.1
     10,568,031       706,790  
Occidental Petroleum Corp.
     11,330,000       613,406  
Baker Hughes Inc.
     13,116,178       456,836  
Chevron Corp.
     5,350,000       422,704  
Smith International, Inc.3
    12,937,098       378,281  
Petróleo Brasileiro SA – Petrobras, ordinary nominative (ADR)
     17,163,048       359,394  
Noble Energy, Inc.
     6,859,000       358,589  
Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc.
     4,800,000       354,240  
Petro-Canada
     12,257,900       334,243  
Canadian Natural Resources, Ltd.
     7,535,000       316,750  
CONSOL Energy Inc.3,4
     7,400,000       214,378  
CONSOL Energy Inc.3
    3,456,400       100,132  
Halliburton Co.
     12,995,000       228,712  
BG Group PLC2
     15,900,000       227,630  
Chesapeake Energy Corp.
     13,000,000       223,340  
Nexen Inc.
     10,069,766       207,582  
Imperial Oil Ltd.
     5,522,754       197,560  
OAO LUKOIL (ADR)2
    6,000,000       195,627  
Murphy Oil Corp.
     4,318,000       190,208  
BJ Services Co.3
     14,705,000       176,313  
Exxon Mobil Corp.
     1,900,000       152,285  
Apache Corp.
     1,860,000       143,778  
Cameco Corp.
     7,616,800       136,388  
Tenaris SA (ADR)
     6,270,000       131,858  
OAO Gazprom (ADR)2
    5,736,200       100,723  
Pioneer Natural Resources Co.
     3,805,000       76,404  
Arch Coal, Inc.
     4,800,000       73,824  
Peabody Energy Corp.
     2,830,000       66,307  
Newfield Exploration Co.1
    2,590,000       58,482  
Hess Corp.
     1,080,000       58,363  
ConocoPhillips
     1,082,100       56,832  
Saipem SpA, Class S2
    3,200,000       49,842  
Rowan Companies, Inc.
     2,200,000       38,170  
Patriot Coal Corp.1
     3,316,000       28,087  
              11,910,437  
                 
CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY — 8.72%
                
Lowe’s Companies, Inc.3
    77,275,300       1,596,508  
Target Corp.
     35,526,002       1,199,358  
Time Warner Inc.
     115,540,200       1,045,639  
McDonald’s Corp.
     16,088,000       945,170  
Comcast Corp., Class A
     30,881,900       535,492  
Comcast Corp., Class A, special nonvoting stock
     6,000,000       100,620  
News Corp., Class A
     65,839,800       520,134  
Carnival Corp., units
     23,748,880       498,726  
Johnson Controls, Inc.
     28,025,400       494,929  
Time Warner Cable Inc., Class A1
     21,910,766       444,788  
Best Buy Co., Inc.
     15,556,875       322,183  
YUM! Brands, Inc.
     11,806,000       318,054  
NIKE, Inc., Class B
     5,700,000       303,525  
Shaw Communications Inc., Class B, nonvoting
     12,000,000       205,080  
MGM Mirage, Inc.1
    11,907,988       142,658  
Kohl’s Corp.1
    4,250,000       138,805  
Starbucks Corp.1
     14,000,000       125,020  
Li & Fung Ltd.2
     65,492,000       119,223  
Las Vegas Sands Corp.1
    22,000,000       113,740  
Magna International Inc., Class A
     3,607,400       101,404  
International Game Technology
     9,207,000       98,607  
CarMax, Inc.1,3
    11,338,500       86,286  
Toyota Motor Corp.2
     2,730,000       85,880  
Garmin Ltd.
     4,933,739       84,268  
Nikon Corp.2
     6,856,000       77,670  
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc., Class A1
    3,200,000       73,920  
TJX Companies, Inc.
     3,000,000       68,460  
Harman International Industries, Inc.3
     4,078,900       61,387  
Liberty Media Corp., Liberty Interactive, Series A1
     20,962,500       55,131  
SEGA SAMMY HOLDINGS INC.2
     4,700,000       45,366  
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., Class B1
     553,000       25,488  
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., Class A1
     351,500       17,427  
Harley-Davidson, Inc.
     2,109,500       35,883  
Gentex Corp.
     3,200,000       28,064  
D.R. Horton, Inc.
     3,580,000       24,595  
Brinker International, Inc.
     3,000,000       19,920  
              10,159,408  
                 
INDUSTRIALS — 8.61%
                
General Electric Co.
     88,236,080       1,515,013  
United Parcel Service, Inc., Class B
     19,983,500       1,151,050  
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp.
     10,398,700       796,644  
FedEx Corp.
     9,730,000       687,425  
General Dynamics Corp.
     12,591,400       650,598  
Caterpillar Inc.
     13,666,000       560,169  
Boeing Co.
     12,400,000       528,612  
Union Pacific Corp.
     8,833,500       442,028  
Precision Castparts Corp.
     6,457,000       404,854  
Lockheed Martin Corp.
     5,130,000       395,574  
United Technologies Corp.
     5,840,000       283,415  
Southwest Airlines Co.
     31,389,000       271,515  
Norfolk Southern Corp.
     5,166,300       255,577  
Raytheon Co.
     4,700,000       229,360  
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.2
     55,491,400       225,273  
Iron Mountain Inc.1
    10,040,000       218,169  
Fluor Corp.
     4,500,000       204,930  
Deutsche Post AG2
     12,460,000       179,487  
Allied Waste Industries, Inc.1
     15,000,000       161,100  
Flowserve Corp.3
     2,850,000       143,441  
Roper Industries, Inc.
     3,000,000       137,310  
Tyco International Ltd.
     6,363,000       132,987  
Northrop Grumman Corp.
     3,182,000       130,303  
KBR, Inc.
     6,575,289       90,542  
Joy Global Inc.
     3,000,000       69,870  
Continental Airlines, Inc., Class B1
     3,400,000       49,912  
Avery Dennison Corp.
     1,598,000       49,698  
Robert Half International Inc.
     1,610,000       33,633  
Mitsubishi Corp.2
     1,900,000       23,622  
Monster Worldwide, Inc.1
     1,114,500       12,783  
              10,034,894  
                 
FINANCIALS — 6.32%
                
Berkshire Hathaway Inc., Class A1
     14,200       1,476,800  
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
     24,515,000       776,145  
Bank of New York Mellon Corp.
     19,036,400       575,090  
Citigroup Inc.
     68,130,000       564,798  
Bank of America Corp.
     28,000,000       455,000  
PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.
     7,784,000       410,762  
Banco Bradesco SA, preferred nominative (ADR)
     34,767,792       369,929  
State Street Corp.
     7,470,000       314,562  
Wells Fargo & Co.
     10,184,200       294,221  
Wachovia Corp.
     50,000,000       281,000  
Sberbank (Savings Bank of the Russian Federation) (GDR)2
     1,300,000       221,596  
Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.
     8,500,000       216,750  
AFLAC Inc.
     3,849,674       178,240  
Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd.2
     9,700,000       145,062  
T. Rowe Price Group, Inc.
     4,000,000       136,840  
National City Corp.4
     39,375,000       79,144  
National City Corp.
     24,722,000       49,691  
Marshall & Ilsley Corp.
     7,399,998       114,330  
American Express Co.
     4,900,000       114,219  
Banco Santander, SA2
     10,140,000       83,327  
Capital One Financial Corp.
     2,200,000       75,702  
Onex Corp.
     5,200,000       74,826  
AMP Ltd.2
    21,000,000       74,305  
American International Group, Inc.
     30,000,000       60,300  
AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd.
     2,000,000       50,620  
Zions Bancorporation
     1,579,600       50,373  
Willis Group Holdings Ltd.
     1,210,000       27,915  
XL Capital Ltd., Class A
     4,973,000       25,014  
SLM Corp.1
     2,406,000       22,159  
Umpqua Holdings Corp.
     1,305,065       17,279  
Protective Life Corp.
     1,500,000       13,980  
Discover Financial Services
     910,000       9,309  
Fannie Mae
     5,876,350       6,817  
Washington Mutual, Inc.4
     1,714,286       84  
Washington Mutual, Inc.2,4
    22,857,142       —  
              7,366,189  
                 
CONSUMER STAPLES — 4.88%
                
Philip Morris International Inc.
     36,786,700       1,550,927  
Coca-Cola Co.
     17,330,000       812,257  
PepsiCo, Inc.
     11,807,881       669,507  
Avon Products, Inc.
     20,492,615       432,394  
Groupe Danone SA2
     6,335,000       364,877  
Altria Group, Inc.
     22,357,500       359,509  
Archer Daniels Midland Co.
     11,298,951       309,365  
Walgreen Co.
     7,890,000       195,199  
Kerry Group PLC, Class A2,3
     8,965,824       186,690  
Bunge Ltd.
     4,000,000       169,840  
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
     2,550,000       142,494  
L’Oréal SA2
    1,300,000       104,972  
SYSCO Corp.
     4,450,000       104,352  
Diageo PLC2
     7,000,000       98,054  
General Mills, Inc.
     1,235,000       78,015  
Shoppers Drug Mart Corp.
     2,035,000       73,109  
Whole Foods Market, Inc.
     2,399,600       25,388  
C&C Group PLC2
    6,000,000       8,907  
              5,685,856  
                 
MATERIALS — 4.74%
                
Barrick Gold Corp.
     35,000,000       1,031,100  
Syngenta AG2,3
    5,200,000       925,622  
Newmont Mining Corp.
     16,898,000       568,618  
Monsanto Co.
     6,905,900       546,947  
CRH PLC2
     20,659,566       446,603  
BHP Billiton PLC2
    17,686,093       321,637  
BHP Billiton PLC (ADR)
     1,460,608       53,312  
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.
     15,533,000       372,637  
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc.
     5,023,100       309,624  
Sigma-Aldrich Corp.
     5,455,000       235,165  
BHP Billiton Ltd.2
     10,215,000       205,163  
Rio Tinto PLC2
    6,172,960       153,777  
United States Steel Corp.
     3,503,200       106,497  
Vulcan Materials Co.
     1,250,000       74,975  
ArcelorMittal2
     2,045,085       49,395  
Teck Cominco Ltd., Class B
     9,260,000       44,915  
Sealed Air Corp.
     1,750,000       27,702  
Mosaic Co.
     856,100       25,983  
Kuraray Co., Ltd.2
     2,290,000       18,588  
              5,518,260  
                 
TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES — 0.73%
                
Qwest Communications International Inc.3
     121,418,000       388,538  
Sprint Nextel Corp., Series 1
     137,810,350       384,491  
Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., Special Common Shares
     2,303,100       69,669  
Embarq Corp.
     85,000       2,774  
Broadview Networks Holdings, Inc., Class A1,2,4
     31,812       —  
              845,472  
                 
UTILITIES — 0.54%
                
NRG Energy, Inc.1
    8,500,000       201,365  
Questar Corp.
     3,450,000       111,056  
Mirant Corp.1
     5,954,209       102,531  
Reliant Energy, Inc.1
    17,302,000       99,313  
Veolia Environnement2
    2,650,000       66,062  
Dynegy Inc., Class A1
     19,920,000       44,422  
              624,749  
                 
MISCELLANEOUS — 4.90%
                
Other common stocks in initial period of acquisition
             5,714,600  
                 
                 
Total common stocks (cost: $128,098,611,000)
             98,805,813  
                 
                 
                 
           
Value
  
Preferred stocks — 0.00%
  
Shares
       (000 )
                 
TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES — 0.00%
                
Broadview Networks Holdings, Inc., Series B1,2,4
    1,272     $ 598  
                 
                 
Total preferred stocks (cost: $21,000,000)
             598  
                 
                 
                 
Warrants — 0.00%
                
                 
FINANCIALS — 0.00%
                
Washington Mutual, Inc., warrants, expire 20131,2,4
    2,857,142       —  
                 
                 
Total warrants (cost: $10,949,000)
             —  
                 
                 
                 
                 
Convertible securities — 0.23%
                
                 
FINANCIALS — 0.20%
                
Citigroup Inc., Series J, 7.00% noncumulative convertible preferred depositary shares2,4
     5,140,000       138,703  
Citigroup Inc., Series D, 7.00% noncumulative convertible preferred2,4
     3,750,000       101,194  
              239,897  
                 
MISCELLANEOUS — 0.03%
                
Other convertible securities in initial period of acquisition
             30,250  
                 
                 
Total convertible securities (cost: $494,500,000)
             270,147  
                 
                 
                 
   
Principal amount
          
Bonds & notes — 0.04%
     (000 )        
                 
CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY — 0.03%
                
Harrah’s Operating Co., Inc. 10.75% 20165
   $ 75,000       17,062  
Wynn Las Vegas, LLC and Wynn Las Vegas Capital Corp. 6.625% 2014
     20,700       14,749  
Delphi Corp. 6.50% 20136
    53,500       1,605  
Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. 6.55% 20066
     58,190       1,455  
Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. 6.50% 20096
     20,000       500  
Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. 7.125% 20296
     22,000       550  
MGM MIRAGE 13.00% 20135
    475       399  
              36,320  
                 
CONSUMER STAPLES — 0.01%
                
H.J. Heinz Co. 6.428% 20115,7
     5,900       6,502  
                 
                 
TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES — 0.00%
                
Level 3 Financing, Inc. 12.25% 2013
     4,150       2,407  
                 
                 
                 
Total bonds & notes (cost: $223,064,000)
             45,229  
                 
                 
   
Principal amount
    
Value
  
Short-term securities — 14.52%
     (000 )     (000 )
                 
U.S. Treasury Bills 0.75%–1.945% due 12/4/2008–8/27/2009
   $ 5,947,850     $ 5,945,668  
Federal Home Loan Bank 0.58%–3.15% due 12/10/2008–5/26/2009
     2,449,855       2,444,150  
Freddie Mac 0.75%–2.70% due 12/3/2008–4/7/2009
     2,055,675       2,052,955  
Fannie Mae 0.84%–2.90% due 12/5/2008–5/20/2009
     1,785,550       1,781,853  
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development 1.00%–2.39% due 1/13–2/18/2009
     859,050       858,034  
Procter & Gamble International Funding S.C.A. 1.65%–2.20% due 12/2/2008–1/5/20095
     264,800       264,631  
Procter & Gamble Co. 1.90% due 1/9–1/12/20095
     100,000       99,844  
Hewlett-Packard Co. 2.10%–2.55% due 12/16/2008–2/10/20095
     334,000       333,215  
Pfizer Inc 1.30%–2.17% due 12/8/2008–3/13/20095
     297,700       297,123  
Eli Lilly and Co. 1.40% due 2/25–3/10/20095
     242,100       241,329  
Enterprise Funding Co. LLC 1.45%–2.25% due 1/7–2/6/20095
    118,500       118,063  
Bank of America Corp. 2.70%–3.75% due 12/2/2008–3/9/2009
     99,400       99,058  
Coca-Cola Co. 1.65%–1.95% due 12/16/2008–1/29/20095
    214,000       213,754  
United Parcel Service Inc. 1.05%–2.20% due 12/5/2008–1/30/20095
     182,100       181,842  
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. 1.70%–2.20% due 12/8–12/16/20085
    179,025       178,916  
John Deere Capital Corp. 2.30%–2.50% due 12/5/2008–1/23/20095
    164,850       164,548  
AT&T Inc. 1.25%–2.17% due 12/2/2008–2/6/20095
    158,900       158,752  
Merck & Co. Inc. 1.80%–2.15% due 12/2–12/12/2008
     157,000       156,917  
Private Export Funding Corp. 1.35%–2.20% due 1/26–2/13/20095
    149,000       148,519  
Ciesco LLC 2.50% due 1/5/20095
     67,500       67,291  
CAFCO, LLC 3.55% due 1/9/20095
     50,000       49,833  
Citigroup Funding Inc. 2.30% due 1/26/2009
     19,125       19,057  
Chevron Funding Corp. 0.65%–0.95% due 12/19/2008–1/9/2009
     135,000       134,913  
JPMorgan Chase & Co. 2.61% due 12/1/2008
     55,000       54,994  
Park Avenue Receivables Co., LLC 2.70% due 12/5/20085
    50,000       49,969  
Jupiter Securitization Co., LLC 1.40% due 1/28/20095
    29,600       29,485  
Federal Farm Credit Banks 2.10%–2.35% due 2/13–3/17/2009
     110,000       109,827  
Johnson & Johnson 2.05% due 12/17/20085
    96,000       95,909  
Medtronic Inc. 2.10% due 12/8–12/11/20085
     81,550       81,458  
Caterpillar Financial Services Corp. 1.30% due 1/14/2009
     74,000       73,861  
General Dynamics Corp. 1.80%–2.30% due 12/3/2008–1/16/20095
     50,000       49,926  
IBM Corp. 3.05% due 1/5/20095
     50,000       49,915  
Walt Disney Co. 1.10% due 2/25/2009
     50,000       49,815  
Lowe’s Cos. Inc. 1.15% due 2/24/20093
     44,800       44,674  
Emerson Electric Co. 1.10% due 2/24/20095
     35,687       35,578  
Illinois Tool Works Inc. 1.80% due 1/16/2009
     34,900       34,847  
Honeywell International Inc. 1.20%–2.12% due 1/15–2/19/20095
    30,800       30,704  
General Electric Capital Corp. 0.50% due 12/1/2008
     25,000       24,999  
Target Corp. 2.10% due 12/1/2008
     25,000       24,999  
Eaton Corp. 2.15% due 1/14/20095
     25,000       24,933  
USAA Capital Corp. 1.25% due 1/21/2009
     25,000       24,915  
Estée Lauder Companies Inc. 2.20% due 12/12/20085
     15,000       14,989  
                 
Total short-term securities (cost: $16,879,242,000)
             16,916,062  
                 
                 
Total investment securities (cost: $145,727,366,000)
             116,037,849  
Other assets less liabilities
             480,966  
                 
Net assets
           $ 116,518,815  

“Miscellaneous” securities include holdings in their initial period of acquisition that have not previously been publicly disclosed.

1Security did not produce income during the last 12 months.
2Valued under fair value procedures adopted by authority of the board of directors. The total value of all such securities, including those in “Miscellaneous," was $10,768,073,000, which represented 9.24% of the net assets of the fund.
3The fund owns 5% or more of the outstanding voting shares of this company. See the table on the next page for additional information.
4Purchased in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933. May be subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale.    
 Further details on these holdings appear below.

 
Acquisition
date(s)
  
Cost
(000)
    
Value
(000)
    
Percent of
net assets
  
                     
Citigroup Inc., Series J, 7.00%, noncumulative
                    
convertible preferred depositary shares
1/15/2008
   $ 257,000     $ 138,703       .12 %
Citigroup Inc., Series D, 7.00%, noncumulative
                          
convertible preferred
1/15/2008
     187,500       101,194       .09  
CONSOL Energy Inc.
10/2/2003
     67,784       214,378       .18  
National City Corp.
4/21/2008
     196,875       79,144       .07  
Broadview Networks Holdings, Inc., Series B
7/7/2000–3/6/2002
     21,000       598       —  
Broadview Networks Holdings, Inc., Class A
7/7/2000–3/6/2002
     —       —       —  
Washington Mutual, Inc.
4/8/2008
     15,000       84       —  
Washington Mutual, Inc.
4/8/2008
     189,051       —       —  
Washington Mutual, Inc., warrants, expire 2013
4/8/2008
     10,949       —       —  
ProAct Holdings, LLC
1/4/2005
     162       —       —  
                           
Total restricted securities
     $ 945,321     $ 534,101       .46 %

5Purchased in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933. May be resold in the U.S. in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. The total value of all such securities was $3,004,489,000, which represented 2.58% of the net assets of the fund.
6Scheduled interest and/or principal payment was not received.
7Coupon rate may change periodically.


Key to abbreviations 

ADR = American Depositary Receipts
GDR = Global Depositary Receipts




Investments in affiliates

A company is considered to be an affiliate of the fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940 if the fund’s holdings in that company represent 5% or more of the outstanding voting shares of that company. Further details on these holdings and related transactions during the three months ended November 30, 2008, appear below.
 

   
Beginning shares or
principal amount
    
Additions
    
Reductions
    
Ending shares or
principal amount
    
Dividend
or interest
income (000)
    
Value of
affiliates at
11/30/08 (000)
  
   
 
                                
Lowe’s Companies, Inc.
     95,114,400       —       17,839,100       77,275,300     $ 7,070     $ 1,596,508  
Lowe’s Companies, Inc.,
                                                
short-term securities
   $ —     $ 44,800,000     $ —     $ 44,800,000       —       44,674  
Suncor Energy Inc.
     51,404,720       3,185,686       —       54,590,406       2,046       1,262,155  
EMC Corp.
     79,315,200       28,499,400       —       107,814,600       —       1,139,600  
Yahoo! Inc.
     76,694,100       13,382,000       —       90,076,100       —       1,036,776  
Syngenta AG
     5,200,000       —       —       5,200,000       —       925,622  
Paychex, Inc.
     14,991,700       4,324,700       —       19,316,400       5,347       545,881  
Linear Technology Corp.
     19,850,000       —       —       19,850,000       4,169       396,007  
Qwest Communications International Inc.
     121,418,000       —       —       121,418,000       4,857       388,538  
Smith International, Inc.
     12,937,098       —       —       12,937,098       1,552       378,281  
Intuit Inc.
     16,825,000       —       —       16,825,000       —       372,842  
CONSOL Energy Inc.
     7,400,000       —       —       7,400,000       740       214,378  
CONSOL Energy Inc.
     3,456,400       —       —       3,456,400       346       100,132  
Xilinx, Inc.
     17,400,000       —       —       17,400,000       2,436       284,664  
KLA-Tencor Corp.
     12,940,000       —       —       12,940,000       1,941       243,401  
Autodesk, Inc.
     10,950,000       3,020,000       962,700       13,007,300       —       215,791  
Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.
     17,025,000       —       —       17,025,000       3,405       210,599  
Kerry Group PLC, Class A
     8,965,824       —       —       8,965,824       846       186,690  
BJ Services Co.
     —       14,705,000       —       14,705,000       —       176,313  
Flowserve Corp.
     —       2,850,000       —       2,850,000       163       143,441  
Trimble Navigation Ltd.
     6,047,200       —       —       6,047,200       —       123,121  
CarMax, Inc.
     11,286,717       51,783       —       11,338,500       —       86,286  
Harman International Industries, Inc.
     4,078,900       —       —       4,078,900       51       61,387  
Baker Hughes Inc.*
     17,707,200       850,000       5,441,022       13,116,178       2,106       —  
Best Buy Co., Inc.*
     21,163,400       —       5,606,525       15,556,875       2,963       —  
Garmin Ltd.*
     10,810,000       —       5,876,261       4,933,739       3,826       —  
International Game Technology*
     15,207,000       —       6,000,000       9,207,000       1,756       —  
Liberty Media Corp., Liberty Interactive,
                                                
Series A*
     30,367,500       —       9,405,000       20,962,500       —       —  
Mirant Corp.*
     9,750,000       —       3,795,791       5,954,209       —       —  
Sovereign Bancorp, Inc.*
     36,725,000       1,000,000       37,725,000       —       —       —  
Target Corp.*
     40,346,502       —       4,820,500       35,526,002       5,684       —  
Target Corp., short-term securities*
   $ —     $ 25,000,000     $ —     $ 25,000,000       87       —  
United States Steel Corp.*
     7,656,935       —       4,153,735       3,503,200       1,051       —  
                                    $ 52,442     $ 10,133,087  
*Unaffiliated issuer at 11/30/2008.
                                                



Disclosure of fair value measurements

The fund adopted the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157 (“FAS 157”), Fair Value Measurements, on September 1, 2008. FAS 157 requires the fund to classify its assets and liabilities based on valuation method using three levels. Level 1 values are based on quoted prices in active markets for identical securities. Level 2 values are based on significant observable market inputs, such as quoted prices for similar securities and quoted prices in inactive markets. Level 3 values are based on significant unobservable inputs that reflect the fund’s determination of assumptions that market participants might reasonably use in valuing the securities. The valuation levels are not necessarily an indication of the risk or liquidity associated with the underlying investment. For example, U.S. government securities are generally high quality and liquid; however, they are reflected as Level 2 because the inputs used to determine fair value may not always be quoted prices in an active market. The following table presents the fund’s valuation levels as of November 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):

   
Investment
securities
  
       
Level 1 — Quoted prices
   $ 88,308,486  
Level 2 — Other significant observable inputs
     27,728,765 *
Level 3 — Significant unobservable inputs
     598  
Total
   $ 116,037,849  


The following table reconciles the valuation of the fund’s Level 3 investment securities and related transactions during the three months ended
November 30, 2008 (dollars in thousands):
 
Beginning value at 9/1/2008
   $ 79,752  
Net unrealized depreciation
     (79,154 )
Ending value at 11/30/2008
   $ 598  
         
Net unrealized depreciation during the period on Level 3 investment securities held at 11/30/2008
   $ (79,154 )

*Includes certain securities trading primarily outside the U.S. whose values were adjusted as a result of significant market movements following the close of local trading; therefore, $10,527,578,000 of investment securities were classified as Level 2 instead of Level 1.


Federal income tax information
  
(dollars in thousands)
  
       
Gross unrealized appreciation on investment securities
   $ 7,579,574  
Gross unrealized depreciation on investment securities
     (37,617,660 )
Net unrealized depreciation on investment securities
     (30,038,086 )
Cost of investment securities for federal income tax purposes
     146,075,935  

 

Investments are not FDIC-insured, nor are they deposits of or guaranteed by a bank or any other entity, so you may lose money.

Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the American Funds. This and other important information is contained in each fund’s prospectus, which can be obtained from your financial professional and should be read carefully before investing.
 
 
 
 
 
MFGEFP-905-0109O-S15851
 
 
ITEM 2 – Controls and Procedures

The Registrant’s Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer have concluded, based on their evaluation of the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 30a-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940), that such controls and procedures are adequate and reasonably designed to achieve the purposes described in paragraph (c) of such rule.

There were no changes in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) that occurred during the Registrant’s last fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.


ITEM 3 – Exhibits

The certifications required by Rule 30a-2 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 and Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached as exhibits hereto.


 
 
 

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 
THE GROWTH FUND OF AMERICA, INC.
   
 
By /s/ Paul G. Haaga, Jr.
 
Paul G. Haaga, Jr., Executive Vice President and
Principal Executive Officer
 
   
 
Date: January 28, 2009



Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.


By /s/ Paul G. Haaga, Jr.
Paul G. Haaga, Jr., Executive Vice President and
Principal Executive Officer
 
Date: January 28, 2009



By /s/ Jeffrey P. Regal
Jeffrey P. Regal, Treasurer and
Principal Financial Officer
 
Date: January 28, 2009