497K 1 d149775d497k.htm WESTERN ASSET INFLATION INDEXED PLUS BOND FUND Western Asset Inflation Indexed Plus Bond Fund

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Summary Prospectus   May 1, 2016

Share class (Symbol): A (WAFAX), C (WAFCX), C1 (LWICX), FI (WATPX), R (WAFRX), I (WAIIX), IS (WAFSX)

 

 

WESTERN ASSET

INFLATION INDEXED PLUS BOND FUND

 

 

Before you invest, you may want to review the fund’s Prospectus, which contains more information about the fund and its risks. You can find the fund’s Prospectus and other information about the fund, including the fund’s statement of additional information and shareholder reports, online at http://www.leggmason.com/individualinvestors/prospectuses (click on the name of the fund). You can also get this information at no cost by calling the fund at 1-877-721-1926 or by sending an e-mail request to prospectus@leggmason.com, or from your financial intermediary. The fund’s Prospectus, dated May 1, 2016, as may be amended or supplemented, the fund’s statement of additional information, dated May 1, 2016, as may be amended or supplemented, and the independent registered public accounting firm’s report and consolidated financial statements in the fund’s annual report to shareholders, dated December 31, 2015, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.

 

 

Investment objective

Maximize total return, consistent with preservation of capital.

Fees and expenses of the fund

The accompanying table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund.

You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $100,000 in funds sold by Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC (“LMIS”), the fund’s distributor. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary, in the fund’s Prospectus on page 27 under the heading “Sales charges” and in the fund’s statement of additional information (“SAI”) on page 75 under the heading “Sales Charge Waivers and Reductions.”

 

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INVESTMENT PRODUCTS: NOT FDIC INSURED • NO BANK GUARANTEE • MAY LOSE VALUE


Shareholder fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
     Class A   Class C   Class C1   Class FI   Class R   Class I   Class IS
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a % of offering price)   4.251   None   None   None   None   None   None
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) (as a % of the lower of net asset value at purchase or redemption)2   None3   1.00   None   None   None   None   None
Small account fee4   $15   $15   $15   None   None   None   None
             
Annual fund operating expenses (%)
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
     Class A   Class C   Class C1   Class FI   Class R   Class I   Class IS
Management fees   0.20   0.20   0.20   0.20   0.20   0.20   0.20
Distribution and/or service (12b-1) fees   0.25   1.00   0.75   0.25   0.50   None   None
Other expenses   0.20   0.10   0.15   0.19   0.29   0.18   0.05
Total annual fund operating expenses   0.65   1.30   1.10   0.64   0.99   0.38   0.25

 

1  The sales charge is waived for shareholders purchasing Class A shares through accounts where Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC is the broker-dealer of record (“LMIS Accounts”).
2  Maximum deferred sales charge (load) may be reduced over time.
3  You may buy Class A shares in amounts of $1,000,000 or more at net asset value (without an initial sales charge), but if you redeem those shares within 18 months of their purchase, you will pay a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00%.
4  If your shares are held in a direct account and the value of your account is below $1,000 ($250 for retirement plans that are not employer-sponsored), the fund may charge you a fee of $3.75 per account that is determined and assessed quarterly (with an annual maximum of $15.00 per account). Direct accounts generally include accounts held in the name of the individual investor on the fund’s books and records.

Example

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes:

 

  You invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated
  Your investment has a 5% return each year and the fund’s operating expenses remain the same
  You reinvest all distributions and dividends without a sales charge

Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

 

Number of years you own your shares ($)
    1 year   3 years   5 years   10 years
Class A (with or without redemption at end of period)   489   624   771   1,200
Class C (with redemption at end of period)   232   411   712   1,568
Class C (without redemption at end of period)   132   411   712   1,568
Class C1 (with or without redemption at end of period)   112   350   607   1,341
Class FI (with or without redemption at end of period)   65   204   356   797
Class R (with or without redemption at end of period)   101   315   547   1,213
Class I (with or without redemption at end of period)   39   123   215   482
Class IS (with or without redemption at end of period)   26   81   141   318

 

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Portfolio turnover. The fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 69% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal investment strategies

Under normal market conditions, the fund invests at least 80% of its net assets in inflation-indexed fixed income securities and at least 70% of its net assets in U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities.

The subadvisers use fundamental investment techniques to select issues. Although the fund may invest in securities of any maturity, the fund will normally maintain a dollar-weighted average effective duration, as estimated by the fund’s subadvisers, within 3 years of that of its benchmark, the Barclays Capital U.S. TIPS Index. Therefore, the range within which the dollar-weighted average effective duration of the fund is expected to fluctuate is 6-12 years, although this may vary. Effective duration seeks to measure the expected sensitivity of market price to changes in interest rates, taking into account the anticipated effects of structural complexities (for example, some bonds can be prepaid by the issuer).

The fund intends to sell protection in connection with credit default swaps relating to corporate debt securities. It is currently expected that the notional amount of the credit default swaps will not exceed 40% of the fund’s net assets, although such exposure may exceed 40% from time to time.

The fund is expected to maintain a dollar-weighted average credit quality of at least A/A.

In addition, under normal market conditions, at the time of purchase:

 

  no more than 20% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in non-U.S. dollar denominated inflation-indexed securities

 

  no more than 10% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in un-hedged non-U.S. dollar denominated securities

 

  no more than 20% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in a combination of securities rated below investment grade, emerging market securities and loan participations and assignments

 

  no more than 10% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in securities rated below investment grade

 

  no more than 10% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in emerging market securities

 

  no more than 10% of the fund’s net assets may be invested in loan participations and assignments

The fund considers a security to be rated below investment grade if it is not rated in the Baa/BBB categories or above by at least one Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (“NRSRO”) or is unrated and of comparable quality as determined by the subadvisers. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly known as “junk bonds” or “high yield securities.”

The fund may also enter into various exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivative transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes, including for purposes of enhancing

 

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returns. These derivative transactions include, but are not limited to, futures, options, swaps, foreign currency futures and forwards.

In particular, the fund may use interest rate swaps, credit default swaps (including buying and selling credit default swaps on individual securities and/or baskets of securities), options (including options on credit default swaps) and futures contracts to a significant extent, although the amounts invested in these instruments may change from time to time. Other instruments may also be used to a significant extent from time to time.

Principal risks

Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly. You may lose part or all of your investment in the fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The following is a summary description of certain risks of investing in the fund.

Market and interest rate risk. The market prices of the fund’s securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic or political conditions, inflation, changes in interest rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment. When market prices fall, the value of your investment will go down. The value of your investment will generally go down when interest rates rise. A rise in rates tends to have a greater impact on the prices of longer term or duration securities. Interest rates have been historically low, so the fund faces a heightened risk that interest rates may rise. A general rise in interest rates may cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which could adversely affect the price and liquidity of fixed income securities and could also result in increased redemptions from the fund.

Credit risk. If an issuer or guarantor of a security held by the fund or a counterparty to a financial contract with the fund defaults or is downgraded, or is perceived to be less creditworthy, or if the value of the assets underlying a security declines, the value of your investment will typically decline. Subordinated securities are more likely to suffer a credit loss than non-subordinated securities of the same issuer and will be disproportionately affected by a default, downgrade or perceived decline in creditworthiness.

High yield (“junk”) bonds risk. High yield bonds are generally subject to greater credit risks than higher-grade bonds. High yield bonds are considered speculative, tend to be less liquid and are more difficult to value than higher grade securities. High yield bonds tend to be volatile and more susceptible to adverse events and negative sentiments and may be difficult to sell at a desired price, or at all, during periods of uncertainty or market turmoil.

Derivatives risk. Using derivatives can increase fund losses and reduce opportunities for gains when market prices, interest rates, currencies, or the derivatives themselves, behave in a way not anticipated by the fund. Using derivatives also can have a leveraging effect and increase fund volatility. Certain derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Derivatives may be difficult to sell, unwind or value, and the counterparty may default on its obligations to the fund. Use of derivatives may have different tax consequences for the fund than an investment in the underlying security, and those differences may affect the amount, timing and character of income distributed to shareholders. The U.S. government and foreign governments are in the process of adopting and implementing regulations governing

 

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derivatives markets, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin and reporting requirements. The ultimate impact of the regulations remains unclear. Additional regulation of derivatives may make derivatives more costly, limit their availability or utility, otherwise adversely affect their performance or disrupt markets. In addition, the SEC has proposed a new rule that would change the regulation of the use of derivatives by registered investment companies, such as the fund. If the proposed rule takes effect, it could limit the ability of the fund to invest in derivatives.

Credit default swap contracts involve heightened risks and may result in losses to the fund. Credit default swaps may be illiquid and difficult to value, and they increase credit risk since the fund has exposure to both the issuer whose credit is the subject of the swap and the counterparty to the swap.

Leveraging risk. The value of your investment may be more volatile if the fund borrows or uses derivatives or other investments that have a leveraging effect on the fund’s portfolio. Other risks also will be compounded. This is because leverage generally magnifies the effect of a change in the value of an asset and creates a risk of loss of value on a larger pool of assets than the fund would otherwise have had. The fund may also have to sell assets at inopportune times to satisfy its obligations. The use of leverage is considered to be a speculative investment practice and may result in the loss of a substantial amount, and possibly all, of the fund’s assets.

Liquidity risk. Some assets held by the fund may be impossible or difficult to sell, particularly during times of market turmoil. These illiquid assets may also be difficult to value. If the fund is forced to sell an illiquid asset to meet redemption requests or other cash needs, the fund may be forced to sell at a loss. The fund may not receive its proceeds from the sale of certain securities for an extended period (for example, several weeks or even longer).

Foreign investments and emerging markets risk. The fund’s investments in securities of foreign issuers or issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets involve additional risk. Foreign countries in which the fund may invest may have markets that are less liquid, less regulated and more volatile than U.S. markets. The value of the fund’s investments may decline because of factors affecting the particular issuer as well as foreign markets and issuers generally, such as unfavorable or unsuccessful government actions, reduction of government or central bank support and political or financial instability. Lack of information may also affect the value of these securities.

The risks of foreign investments are heightened when investing in issuers in emerging market countries. Emerging market countries tend to have economic, political and legal systems that are less fully developed and are less stable than those of more developed countries. They are often particularly sensitive to market movements because their market prices tend to reflect speculative expectations. Low trading volumes may result in a lack of liquidity and in extreme price volatility.

Currency risk. The value of investments in securities denominated in foreign currencies increases or decreases as the rates of exchange between those currencies and the U.S. dollar change. Currency conversion costs and currency fluctuations could erase investment gains or add to investment losses. Currency exchange rates can be volatile, and are affected by factors such as general economic conditions, the actions of the U.S. and foreign governments or central banks, the imposition of currency controls and speculation.

 

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Sovereign debt risk. Sovereign government and supranational debt involve many of the risks of foreign and emerging markets investments as well as the risk of debt moratorium, repudiation or renegotiation and the fund may be unable to enforce its rights against the issuers.

Prepayment or call risk. Many issuers have a right to prepay their securities. If interest rates fall, an issuer may exercise this right. If this happens, the fund will not benefit from the rise in market price that normally accompanies a decline in interest rates, and will be forced to reinvest prepayment proceeds at a time when yields on securities available in the market are lower than the yield on the prepaid security. The fund may also lose any premium it paid on the security.

Extension risk. When interest rates rise, repayments of fixed income securities, particularly asset- and mortgage-backed securities, may occur more slowly than anticipated, extending the effective duration of these fixed income securities at below market interest rates and causing their market prices to decline more than they would have declined due to the rise in interest rates alone. This may cause the fund’s share price to be more volatile.

Risk of investing in fewer issuers. To the extent the fund invests its assets in a small number of issuers, the fund will be more susceptible to negative events affecting those issuers.

Valuation risk. The sales price the fund could receive for any particular portfolio investment may differ from the fund’s valuation of the investment, particularly for securities that trade in thin or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. Investors who purchase or redeem fund shares on days when the fund is holding fair-valued securities may receive fewer or more shares or lower or higher redemption proceeds than they would have received if the fund had not fair-valued the security or had used a different valuation methodology. The fund’s ability to value its investments may be impacted by technological issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third party service providers.

Market events risk. In the past several years financial markets, such as those in the United States, Europe, Asia and elsewhere, have experienced increased volatility, depressed valuations, decreased liquidity and heightened uncertainty. Governmental and non-governmental issuers have defaulted on, or been forced to restructure, their debts. These conditions may continue, recur, worsen or spread.

The U.S. government and the Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have taken steps to support financial markets, including by keeping interest rates at historically low levels. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. The Federal Reserve recently has reduced its market support activities. Further reduction or withdrawal of Federal Reserve or other U.S. or non-U.S. governmental or central bank support, including interest rate increases, could negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the fund invests.

Policy and legislative changes in the United States and in other countries are affecting many aspects of financial regulation, and may in some instances contribute to decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the financial markets. The impact of these changes on the markets, and the practical implications for market participants, may not be fully known for some time.

Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected. As a result, whether or not the fund invests in securities of issuers located in or with significant

 

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exposure to countries experiencing economic and financial difficulties, the value and liquidity of the fund’s investments may be negatively affected.

Hedging risk. There can be no assurance that the fund will engage in hedging transactions at any given time, even under volatile market conditions, or that any hedging transactions the fund engages in will be successful. Hedging transactions involve costs and may reduce gains or result in losses.

Risks relating to inflation-indexed securities. The value of inflation-indexed fixed income securities generally fluctuates in response to changes in real interest rates, which are in turn tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. If nominal interest rates increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-indexed securities. The fund may also experience a loss on an inflation-indexed security if there is deflation. If inflation is lower than expected during the period the fund holds an inflation-indexed security, the fund may earn less on the security than on a conventional bond.

Cash management and defensive investing risk. Money market instruments or short-term debt securities held by the fund for cash management or defensive investing purposes can fluctuate in value. Like other fixed income securities, they are subject to risk, including market, interest rate and credit risk. If the fund holds cash uninvested it will be subject to the credit risk of the depository institution holding the cash. In that case the fund would not earn income on the cash and the fund’s yield would go down. If a significant amount of the fund’s assets are used for cash management or defensive investing purposes, it will be more difficult for the fund to achieve its objective.

Portfolio management risk. The value of your investment may decrease if the subadvisers’ judgment about the quality, relative yield, value or market trends affecting a particular security, industry, sector or region, or about interest rates is incorrect, or if there are imperfections, errors or limitations in the tools and data used by the subadvisers. In addition, the fund’s investment strategies or policies may change from time to time. Those changes may not lead to the results intended by the subadvisers and could have an adverse effect on the value or performance of the fund.

Redemption risk. The fund may experience heavy redemptions that could cause the fund to liquidate its assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value, which could cause the value of your investment to decline.

Cybersecurity risk. Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to fund assets, customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or cause the fund, the manager, any subadvisers and/or its service providers (including, but not limited to, fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality.

These and other risks are discussed in more detail in the fund’s Prospectus or in the SAI.

Performance

The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the fund. The bar chart shows changes in the fund’s performance from year to year for Class I shares. The table shows the average annual total returns of each class of the fund that has been in

 

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operation for at least one full calendar year and also compares the fund’s performance with the average annual total returns of an index or other benchmark. Performance for classes other than those shown may vary from the performance shown to the extent the expenses for those classes differ. The fund makes updated performance information, including its current net asset value, available at the fund’s website, http://www.leggmason.com/individualinvestors/prospectuses (click on the name of the fund), or by calling the fund at 1-877-721-1926.

The fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the fund will perform in the future.

Sales charges are not reflected in the accompanying bar chart, and if those charges were included, returns would be less than those shown.

 

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Best Quarter (09/30/2011): 4.79    Worst Quarter (06/30/2013): (7.03)

 

Average annual total returns (%)
(for periods ended December 31, 2015)                    
Class I   1 year   5 years   10 years   Since inception   Inception date
Return before taxes   (2.50)   2.08   3.58        
Return after taxes on distributions   (2.58)   1.35   2.49        
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares   (1.41)   1.37   2.40        
Other Classes (Return before taxes only)                    
Class A   (6.88)   N/A   N/A   (2.69)   04/30/2012
Class C   (4.33)   N/A   N/A   (2.31)   04/30/2012
Class C1   (3.14)   N/A   N/A   (3.22)   10/05/2012
Class FI   (2.74)   1.66   N/A   3.54   06/28/2007
Class R   (3.03)   N/A   N/A   (1.91)   04/30/2012
Class IS   (2.30)   2.17   N/A   3.98   12/18/2008
Barclays U.S. TIPS Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)1   (1.44)   2.55   3.93        

 

1  For Class A, Class C, Class C1, Class FI, Class R and Class IS shares, each for the period from the class’ inception date to December 31, 2015, the average annual total return of the Barclays U.S. TIPS Index was (0.81)%, (0.81)%, (2.08)%, 4.44%, (0.81)% and 3.87%, respectively.

 

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The after-tax returns are shown only for Class I shares, are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns for classes other than Class I will vary from returns shown for Class I. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares are higher than returns before taxes for certain periods shown because they reflect the tax benefit of capital losses realized on the redemption of fund shares.

Management

Investment manager: Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC

Subadvisers: Western Asset Management Company (“Western Asset”), Western Asset Management Company Limited in London (“Western Asset London”), Western Asset Management Company Pte Ltd in Singapore (“Western Asset Singapore”) and Western Asset Management Company Ltd. in Japan (“Western Asset Japan”). References to “the subadviser” include each applicable subadviser.

Investment professionals: S. Kenneth Leech (Chief Investment Officer), Dennis J. McNamara (Portfolio Manager) and Paul E. Wynn (Portfolio Manager). Mr. Leech has been part of the portfolio management team for the fund since 2014. Mr. Wynn has been part of the portfolio management team for the fund since 2009. Mr. McNamara has been part of the portfolio management team for the fund since 2012. These investment professionals, all of whom are employed by Western Asset, work together with a broader investment management team.

Purchase and sale of fund shares

You may purchase, redeem or exchange shares of the fund each day the New York Stock Exchange is open, at the fund’s net asset value determined after receipt of your request in good order, subject to any applicable sales charge.

Class C1 shares are not available for purchase by new or existing investors (except for certain retirement plans authorized by LMIS prior to August 1, 2012). Class C1 shares are available for dividend reinvestment and incoming exchanges.

 

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The fund’s initial and subsequent investment minimums generally are set forth in the accompanying table:

 

Investment minimum initial/additional investment ($)
      Class A    Class C1    Class C12   Class FI    Class R    Class I    Class IS
General    1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
Uniform Gifts or Transfers to Minor Accounts    1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
IRAs    250/
50
   250/
50
   250/
50
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
SIMPLE IRAs    None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
Systematic Investment Plans    50/
50
   50/
50
   50/
50
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
Eligible Investment Programs    None/
None
   N/A    N/A   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries    None/
None
   N/A    N/A   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund and certain rollover IRAs    None/
None
   None/
None
   N/A1   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
   None/
None
Other Retirement Plans    None/
None
   None/
None
   N/A   N/A    N/A    1 million/
None*
   N/A
Institutional Investors    1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
   1,000/
50
  N/A    N/A    1 million/
None
   1 million/
None

 

1  Initial investments in Class C shares may be combined with existing investment amounts in Class C1 shares for the purposes of satisfying the initial investment minimums of Class C shares. Class C shares are not available for purchase through LMIS Accounts.
2  Class C1 shares are not available for purchase by new or existing investors (except for certain retirement plan programs authorized by LMIS prior to August 1, 2012). Class C1 shares are available for dividend reinvestment and incoming exchanges.
* Available to investors investing directly with the fund.

Your financial intermediary may impose different investment minimums.

For more information about how to purchase, redeem or exchange shares, and to learn which classes of shares are available to you, you should contact your financial intermediary, or, if you hold your shares or plan to purchase shares through the fund, you should contact the fund by phone at 1-877-721-1926, by regular mail at Legg Mason Funds, P.O. Box 9699, Providence, RI 02940-9699 or by express, certified or registered mail at Legg Mason Funds, 4400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA 01581.

Tax information

The fund’s distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income or capital gain.

 

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Payments to broker/dealers and other financial intermediaries

The fund’s related companies may pay broker/dealers or other financial intermediaries (such as a bank or an insurance company) for the sale of fund shares, shareholder services and other purposes. These payments create a conflict of interest by influencing your broker/dealer or other intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend the fund over another investment. Ask your financial adviser or salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s or salesperson’s website for more information.

 

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