Harbor International Fund (HIINX)

Investing internationally is very popular nowadays. International stock funds usually investing in foreign companies outside the US. These companies may be located around the world like Europe (UK, France, Germany, Italy, etc), Japan, Australia, Emerging Markets (Brazil, China, Russia, India, Indonesia, etc), Korea, Singapore, and so forth. The world economy itself is around 45% US and 55% non US.

This international equity funds can be part of any investor’s portfolio either for long term or short term. The following article will discuss about one of the top international stock funds in Kiplinger 25 Best Mutual fund, Harbor International Investor Fund. As one of the best fund, this fund is also highly rated by Morningstar. This fund has provided a consistent above average performance for its investor. Details can be found below. If you are interested in other best mutual funds, please check my main page for details.

Harbor International Investor Fund (Ticker: HIINX)

The investment in Harbor International Fund is seeking for total return in long term period of time from the capital growth. The primary net assets investment of this fund is in common and preferred stocks of foreign companies. With the total of minimum 65% of the net assets, the investment focuses in foreign companies with market capitalization above $1 billion.

This fund invests in at least 10 countries throughout the world, including emerging market countries. The main consideration of countries selection is the stability in economics and political regimes.

HIINX Fund Facts

• Fund Inception Date: November 2002
• Ticker Symbol: HIINX (Investor Class)
• CUSIP: 411511645
• Beta (3yr): 1.09
• Rank in Category: 5 (ytd)
• Category: Foreign Large Blend
• Type: Stock fund
• Numbers of Years Up: 7
• Numbers of Years Down: 1

As updated on 4/30/2011
This HIINX fund has returned 15.39% over the past one year and 10.31% over the past decade. The 5-year average return is around 5.34%. The best 1-year return was in December 2003 (40.34%) and the worst experience was in 2008 (-42.86%). This fund has 4-star rating from morning star and has an average of 4.00% of year-to-date return. The average annual total returns since inception is 14.06%. The return on equity rate is 12.28%, a bit higher compared to the MSCI EAFE (ND) Index (11.06%).

Edward E. Wendell, Jr, Norther Cross llc advisor, is the lead manager for this Harbor International Fund. The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $2,500 for brokerage account and $1,000 for IRA account. There is no minimum subsequent investment needed. The annual expense ratio of this fund is 1.16%. Should you interest in investing in this fund, please keep in mind that there is a 0.25% of 12b1 fee, but there is no sales load. The other class tickers of this fund are HAINX (Institutional Class) and HRINX (Admin Class).

You can purchase HIINX from 100 brokerages including Schwab Institutional, Td Ameritrade, T. Rowe Price, Merrill Lynch, etc.

As of March 31, 2011, this HIINX fund has 71 holdings. The top 10 holdings are Atlas Copco, Novo Nordisc AS, Linde AG, British American Tobacco, Compagnie Financiere Richemont, Petroleo Brasileiro, Xstrata, Banco Bradesco, Schneider Electric and Fanuc Corporation. The annual holdings turnover as of Oct 2010 is 14.00% with the average in the category of 69.26%. The top 3 economic sectors for this fund are Financials (24.5%), Industrials (15.2%) and Consumer Staples (14.3%). The top 5 country allocations for this fund are France, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Sweden, and Brazil.

Investing Risk

Investing in this fund involves investment risks such as:

• Market risk: Depending upon the overall stock market, the company stocks may decline in value due to unfavorable earning report and other adverse event
• Value style risk: Value oriented investing style may underperform other equity funds
• Selection risk: Advisor and subadvisor’s judgment could be incorrect about value and potential growth of specific stocks
• Foreign securities risk: Political, economy, foreign government can influence the market direction
• Emerging market risk: more volatile from other stocks. High risk may translate into high reward

Central Fund of Canada (CEF)

Investing in commodities stock can be very volatile. The other alternative is investing in closed end fund or exchange traded fund or mutual fund. This article will focus on top performer gold closed end fund, Central Fund of Canada fund (Ticker: CEF).

Central Fund of Canada fund objective is to provide in alternative investment vehicle to investors interested in exposure to commodities through holding in gold bullion and silver bullion. The fund investment policy required the fund to maintain a minimum of 90% of its net assets in gold and silver bullion of which at least 85% must be in physical form.

Central Fund of Canada Fund Fact

• Category: US Equity-Commodities
• Fund Sponsor: Central Group Alberta Ltd

• Portfolio Managers: J C Stefan Spicer (14 Sep 1983)
• Ticker: CEF 
• NAV Ticker: XXCEFXX 
• Average Daily Volume (shares): 1,323,000 
• Average Daily Volume (USD): $24.449M
• Inception Date: 9/14/1983
• Inception Share Price: $10.55
• Inception NAV: $9.98
• Fiscal Year End: October 31

This fund has one of the largest total net assets with $5.7billion as April 27th 2011. It only charges a small annual expense ratio of 0.34%. There is no interest expense in the net expense ratio. The fund sponsor is Central Group Alberta Ltd. The fund manager is J C Stefan Spicer since 1983. The fund paid an annual distribution of 0.04%. The latest distribution is paid on November 12, 2010 in the amount of $0.0085 per share.

As April 26th 2011, the Top 4 sectors are Gold Bullion (51.85%), Silver Bullion (46.12%), Net current Asset (2%), and short term debt (0.01%). As April 26th 2011, the fund market price ($23.77) is currently traded at 1.12% discounts from the fund’s Net Asset Value (NAV: $24.04).

Several advantages in investing in this fund:

• It is easy. Hence this CEF is traded like stock on the open market, anyone can trade this closed end fund (CEF)
• No bullion contract, logistic, storage fee, insurance for share owners
• No fee to trade this CEF except your brokerage fee
• All the gold and silver bullion is stored in treasury vaults at Canadian chartered bank
• It is available to anyone in North America

Investing in this fund may involve some risks such as

• Investment and market risk
• Credit risk
• Non diversification risk
• Commodities price risk

Disclosure: No Position

FPA Crescent Fund (FPACX)

Find FPA Crescent Fund (FPACX) review. This mutual fund is one of the best moderate allocation balanced mutual funds.

If you want to have a set and forget it fund, you should select a balanced fund. Balanced funds, also known as diversified funds, are very popular among long- and short-term investors. These funds are also known as hybrid funds and are useful for asset diversification.  The fund can invest in any assets such as fixed income or bonds and stocks or equities. The next fund will be a 5 stars fund by First Pacific Advisors, FPA Crescent. The asset allocation can differ from one fund to the other funds.

FPA Crescent (FPACX)

FPA Crescent investment is seeking to provide a total return by combining income and capital appreciation with reasonable investment risk. The major investment is in equity, debt securities as well as cash and cash equivalents. Half of the net assets are invested in foreign securities, and the other half in debt securities. This fund may invest in debt securities issued by corporations and the US government as well as its agencies, mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, municipal notes and bonds, commercial paper and certificates of deposit.

FPACX Profile

• Fund Inception Date: June 1993
• Ticker Symbol: FPACX
• CUSIP: 30254T759
• Beta (3yr):  0.89
• Rank in Category: 18 (ytd)
• Category: Moderate Allocation
• Type: Balanced Fund
• Distribution / Yield: 0.82%
• Capital Gains: N/A
• Numbers of Years Up: 15

T. Rowe Price Emerging Markets Stock Fund (PRMSX)

T. Rowe Price Emerging Markets Stock Fund (PRMSX) is a top equity mutual fund. This investment fund invests in emerging markets.

Investing in emerging markets equity funds has become more popular nowadays. The performance of this asset class has been astounding. For the past decade, this emerging market has been the leader 6 out of 10 times in term of performance return. More details about this performance can be found in the latest Callan Periodic Table of Investment Returns of 2010. The largest investment return occurred in 2009 for 79.02%.

The following article will provide one of the most consistent emerging market stock funds, T Rowe Price Emerging Markets Stock fund.

T. Rowe Price Emerging Markets Stock (PRMSX)

Investment in T. Rowe Price Emerging Stock fund is looking for capital growth in long-term period. The majority of the net assets (at least 80%) are invested in emerging markets in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. This fund mainly invests in common stocks. It may as well purchase the stocks of companies in any size. The assets allocation as per December 31, 2010 is 94.4% in foreign stocks, 4.2% in preferred stocks and 1.4% in cash.

PRMSX Fund Details

• Fund Inception Date: March 1995
• Ticker Symbol: PRMSX
• CUSIP: 77956H864
• Beta: 1.12
• Rank in Category: 31 (ytd)
• Category: Diversified Emerging Markets
• Distribution / Yield: 0.43%

Top 10 Best International Bond Mutual Funds Part 2

This is my second article about the 10 best international bond funds. If you miss part 1 article, please check here, Top 10 Best International Bond Funds: Part 1. As discussed before, International bond can provide portfolio diversification for long term investor. It also can provide another tool to hedge slow US domestic growth. Also these international bond funds or fixed income funds do provide income in term of regular distribution such as monthly or quarterly.
This article will provide the next 5 best international bond funds. These world bond funds can invest in many different countries such as developed countries and developing countries as well as emerging markets. The funds include PIMCO fund, Loomis Sayles fund, and more. The fund can provide additional tools to invest in 2011.
The Top 10 Best International Bond Funds are:

Intro

1. Templeton Global Bond A
2. Oppenheimer International Bond A
3. American Funds Capital World Bond A
4. PIMCO Foreign Bond (USD-Hedged) A
5. AllianceBern Global Bond A
6. PIMCO Foreign Bond (Unhedged) A (PFUAX)
7. Loomis Sayles Global Bond Retail (LSGLX)
8. Wells Fargo Advantage Intl Bond A (ESIYX)
9. PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) D (PGBDX)
10. Waddell & Reed Global Bond A (UNHHX)

PIMCO Foreign Bond (Unhedged) A (PFUAX)

As well as seeking for a maximum total return, the investment in PIMCO Foreign Bond (Unhedged) considers the consistency with capital preservation and prudent investment management. This non-diversified fund has the major net assets investment in Fixed-Income Instruments that are tied economically to foreign countries, with a minimum of three foreign countries those can be exemplified by forwards or derivatives such as options, future contracts or swap agreements.

Best World Bond Mutual Funds 2012

Scott A. Mather has managed this fund since Feb 2008. The distribution rate of this fund is 6.06% with the last dividend as of Feb 2011 is 0.02%. This fund has 0.95% expense ratio per year. Should you are interested in this fund, please note that there is a 0.25% 12b1 fee applied and 3.75% of front-end sales charge fee.

The performance of this world bond mutual fund is 6.95% over the past one year and 7.84% over the past five years. The 5-year average return is 8.67%. The minimum initial investment is $1,000 for brokerage account (applies for PFRCX and PFRCX). No IRA account available. The other class tickers of this fund are PFUUX, PFRCX, PFBDX, PFUIX and PFUPX. Some asset classes of fund have lower expense ratio fee, and no front end sales charge fee.

The top countries as per the percentage of net assets invested are Japan (41.30%), Europe (34.50%), United Kingdom (12.80%), France (6.80%), Netherlands (4.80%), Germany (4.80%), China (1.00%) and Brazil (1.00%). The data is per Feb 28, 2011.

Loomis Sayles Global Bond Retail (LSGLX)

The investment in Loomis Sayles Global Bond seeks for high total investment return by combining high current income and capital appreciation. The major investment (at least 80%) is in fixed-income securities, with the larger portion for investment-grade fixed-income securities worldwide, and a smaller portion (up to 20%) in below investment-grade fixed-income securities. There is no maturity limitation for the fixed-income securities. This LSGLX fund may also invest in foreign currencies and there is an engaging possibility in other foreign currency transactions for investment or hedging purposes.

David W. Rolley has been the lead manager of this fund for 10 years. The distribution rate is 3.41%. This LSGLX has a low annual holdings turnover rate (100%) of the average of 127.8%. the expense ratio of this fund is 1.0%. A $2,500 is required for the initial investment in brokerage account of this fund. Currently no IRA account available. The 12b1 fee is 0.25. This is a no-sales load fund.

This world bond mutual fund has returned 8.65% over the past one year and 6.95% over the past five years. This fund can be purchased from 96 brokerages such as Morgan Stanley Advisors, Schwab Institutional, Td Ameritrade, Inc., T. Rowe Price, Fidelity Retail FundsNetwork. There is only one other class in this fund which is Loomis Sayles Global Bond Institutional (LSGBX) with the minimum investment of $100.000 and 3.69% of yield.

The top ten holdings of LSGLX as of Feb 28, 2011 are Japan-299 (4.4%), Japan-84 (3.9%), Canadian Government (2.8%), Offset-Us Long Bond (2.4%), Buoni Poliennali Del Tes (2.0%), Norwegian Government (1.9%), Bundesrepub. Deutschland (1.9%), Sweden Government (1.9%), Kingdom of Denmark (1.9%) and Finnish Government (1.6%). These top ten holdings make up to 24.7% of the total portfolio. The country distribution data is United States (26.53%), Japan (11.64%), Canada (8.36%), Germany (6.31%), United Kingdom (6.29%), Mexico (3.57%), Norway (3.39%), Cayman Islands (2.46%), Italy (2.39%) and Other (29.07%).

Wells Fargo Advantage International Bond A (ESIYX)

Wells Fargo Advantage International Bond investment is looking for total return including the income and capital appreciation. The major net assets investment of this fund is in foreign debt securities (35% in below-investment grade debt securities and up to 5% in debt securities denominated in developing countries’ currencies). The debt securities may include government obligations, corporate entities or supranational agencies, in various currencies domination.

This taxable bond fund is managed by Tony Norris since 1993. This fund has a 4.30% distribution rate, with a 1.08% of annual expense ratio. This fund has a comparison of 6:1 of up versus down performance in years. It has returned a 1.74% over the past one year and 4.72% over the past three years. There is no 12b1 fee applies for this fund. But there is a 4.50% of front-end sales charge fee. If you want to invest in this fund, you need to provide $1,000 for the minimum initial investment in brokerage account and $250 for IRA account.

The other class tickers of this best international bond fund are ESIUX, ESIVX, ESIDX and ESICX. With the same minimum investment, ESIUX has 3.45% of yield and ESIVX has 3.43%.

The top ten holdings for Wells Fargo Advantage International Bond Fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Kingdom of Sweden 4.50% (1.83%), Bonos Y Oblig Del Estado 5.50% (1.42%), Canada Hsg Tr No 1 CDA Mtg Bd Ser 23, 4.10% (1.36%), Canada Government Deb, 3.75% (1.27%), Canadian Government Fixed, 2.50% (1.14%), Australian Index Linked Fixed, 3.11% (1.08%), Czech Republic Fixed 5, 5.00% (1.07%), Mexican Bonos Desarr Fix Rt 11/38 Fixed, 8.50% (1.04%), Malaysian Government Fixed, 3.83% (1.04%) and Poland Government Bond Fixed, 5.50% (0.99%).

PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) D (PGBDX)

The investment in PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) is looking for maximum total return. This PGBDX fund normally invests at least 80% of assets in fixed-income securities with at least three different countries as the issuer. It may invest all assets in derivative instruments, such as options, futures contracts or swap agreements, or in mortgage- or asset-backed securities. But it normally invests at least 25% in instruments that are tied economically to foreign (non-U.S.) countries and up to 10% in preferred stocks.

Scott A. Mather has been the lead manager since 2008. This bond mutual fund has the highest yield of all the funds mentioned in this article (6.95%). This fund has a 0.95% of annual expense ratio. Although this is a no-sales load fund, but there is still a 0.25% of 12b fee. more: Top 10 Government Bond Mutual Funds 2012 The performance of this fund is 7.93% over the past ten years. The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $1,000. There is no IRA account available.

The purchase of this fund is limited to 30 brokerages such as Schwab Institutional, JPMorgan, Fidelity Retail FundsNetwork-NTF, Vanguard NTF, Raymond James and TD Ameritrade Retail. The other class tickers of this fund are PADMX for Admin Class, PIGLX for the Institutional Class and PGOPX for Class P. Some asset classes of fund have lower expense ratio fee, and no front end sales charge fee.

The top countries of this PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) as of Feb 28, 2011 are Europe (34.60%), United States (27.50%), Japan (21.80%), United Kingdom (9.00%), France (1.70%), Brazil (1.40%) and Italy (1.20%).

Waddell & Reed Global Bond A (UNHHX)

Waddell & Reed Global Bond investment is prioritizing a high level of current income. Capital growth has become the secondary consideration. The main investment of the net assets (at least 80%) is in bonds. The priority is for the Organisation of Economic Co-Operation and Development countries member. Although there is a possibility of investing in emerging market countries. There is no maturity limitation for the bonds. It may invest up to 100% of total assets in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.

The Senior VP of W&R Investment Management Co, Daniel J. Vrabac has been the lead manager of this fund since 2008. This fund has a 3.33% distribution rate. This fund has the highest expense ratio compared to the other funds mentioned here (1.19%). There is a 0.25% 12b1 fee and 5.75% of front-end sales load. This best international bond mutual fund has returned 5.0% over the past five years. While other funds normally requested for a minimum of $1,000, this UNHHX fund requested for only $500 for the minimum initial investment in brokerage account. No IRA account is available currently.

This fund can be purchased from only 16 selected brokerages, which are Schwab Institutional, Scottrade Load, JPMorgan, Schwab Retail, DATALynx, DATALynx NTF, Schwab Institutional Load Waived, Federated TrustConnect, SunGard Transaction Network, Robert W. Baird & Co., TRUSTlynx, Morgan Stanley - Ntwk/Rdm Only-Brokerage, ING Financial Advisers - SAS Funds, JP MORGAN LOAD, DailyAccess Corporation Mid-Atlantic and Waddell & Reed Choice MAP Flex. The other class tickers of this fund are WGBBX, WGBCX and WGBYX.

The largest ten holdings of this best mutual fund based on percentage of net assets as of Dec 31, 2010 are United States Treasury Notes, 1.1% (8.1%), United States Treasury Notes, 1.4% (2.5%), United States Treasury Notes, 2.6% (2.0%), Petroleum Geo-Services ASA, Convertible, 2.7% (1.3%), Norway Government Bonds, 6.0% (1.2%), Olam International Limited, 7.5% (1.1%), BFF International Limited, 7.3% (1.0%), Rio Tinto Finance (USA) Limited, 9.0% (1.0%), United States Treasury Notes, 3.5% (1.0%) and United States Treasury Notes, 0.6% (1.0%).

For the fund performance, please check my first article.

No	Mutual Fund Description	Rank	Ticker	Morningstar Rating	Net Assets (Bil)	Yield	Expense Ratio	Min To Invest
6	PIMCO Foreign Bond (Unhedged) A	19	PFUAX	5	$3.05	6.06%	0.95%	$1,000
7	Loomis Sayles Global Bond Retail	35	LSGLX	4	$2.25	3.41%	1.00%	$2,500
8	Wells Fargo Advantage Intl Bond A	44	ESIYX	3	$1.65	4.30%	1.08%	$1,000
9	PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) D	24	PGBDX	4	$0.95	6.95%	0.95%	$1,000
10	Waddell & Reed Global Bond A	40	UNHHX	2	$0.85	3.33%	1.19%	$500

Disclosure: No Position.

10 Best International Bond Mutual Funds

Owning a bond can be done rather easily nowadays. You can either select individual bonds or investing in mutual fund, exchange traded fund (ETF), and closed-end fund (CEF).

Intro

If you are not diverse in selecting individual bond, you still have the option to invest in bond. Investing in bond fund or fixed income fund is one of these options. Bond fund can be divided into 2 main groups like taxable bond fund and non taxable bond fund (Muni bond fund). This taxable bond fund can be divided into many different categories and one of these is international bond fund.

Investing in international bond fund can provide additional diversification to your investment portfolio. International bond fund may invest its fund assets in variety of countries like developed countries (Europe, Japan, Australia, Canada, Singapore, etc), and developing countries including emerging markets (Brazil, Russia, China, India, etc). Investing in these international bond funds involves investment risk including currency fluctuations, political risk, economic instability, credit risk, high yielding risk, liquifity risk, and more.

The following 10 best international bond fund can be your first choice in investing international bond or world bond for 2011. Most of these funds have huge assets, 2 or more stars rating from Morningstar, and well known managers. As any bond fund, these funds also have yield or distribution. Note: Please check for load or fees for details below.

The Top 10 Best International Bond Funds are:

1. Templeton Global Bond A (TPINX)
2. Oppenheimer International Bond A (OIBAX)
3. American Funds Capital World Bond A (CWBFX)
4. PIMCO Foreign Bond (USD-Hedged) A (PFOAX)
5. AllianceBernstein Global Bond A (ANAGX)
6. PIMCO Foreign Bond (Unhedged) A
7. Loomis Sayles Global Bond Retail
8. Wells Fargo Advantage Intl Bond A
9. PIMCO Global Bond (Unhedged) D
10. Waddell & Reed Global Bond A

Templeton Global Bond A (TPINX)

 The investment in Templeton Global Bond fund is seeking current income, income growth and capital appreciation. The majority net assets investment of this fund is in bonds including any maturity debt securities (notes, debentures, bonds and bills). The investment in bonds takes the largest part (at least 80%), while the remaining percentage is invested in bonds with top-four rating issuers. The benchmark used is independent rating agencies, such as S&P or Moody Investors Service. The non rated bonds will be considered and rated by the fund lead manager.

Michael Hasenstab has been the lead manager since Jan, 2001 even though he has joined this company since 1995. This TPINX fund has 5.31% of distribution rate and 0.91% expense ratio. The 12b1 fee of this fund is 0.25%, with 4.25% front end sales charge fee. If you are interested to invest in this fund, the minimum initial investment is $1,000 for brokerage account or $250 for IRA account. No minimum subsequent investment required.

This fund has returned 6.19% over the past one year and 11.29% over the past ten years. This fund has experienced a total of 21 years of up-going performance and 3 years in down performance. The best one year total return is 21.29% (in 2003). The other class tickers of this fund are TGBAX, TEGBX and FGBRX. Among all, TGBAX has the highest yield in the class (5.58%) with 0.66% expense ratio and no fee.

The top ten holdings of this TPINX fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Korea Treasury Bond-senior bond-4.00% (4.40%), Korea Treasury Bond-4.75% (3.20%), Korea Treasury Bond-4.25% (2.90%), Government of Poland (2.50%), Korea Treasury Bond-senior bond-3.75% (2.50%), Government of Australia (2.50%), Kommuninvest I Sverige (2.20%), New South Wales Treasury Corp (2.20%), Government of Norway (2.10%) and Queensland Treasury Corp. (2.10%). These ten holdings make up to 26.60% of the total 198 holdings.

Oppenheimer International Bond A (OIBAX)

Oppenheimer International Bond investment main objective is to provide total return. It also has the secondary objective which is to provide consistent income. The net assets investment strategy is investing at least 80% in bonds, and selecting at least three countries outside U.S. This OIBAX primary investment is in debt securities of foreign government and corporate issuers. This non-diversified fund has neither market capitalization nor maturity range limitation.

The fund manager of this fund is Arthur P. Steinmetz, he also serves as the senior VP of Oppenheimer Funds. This fund is incepted since June 1995 and they have a total of 13 years up performance and 2 years of down performance. The performance of this Oppenheimer Fund is 2.76% over the past three years. With the total net assets of 12.98 billion, this fund distributed 4.12% yield. The expense ratio of this fund is 0.98% annually, quite low compared to the average of 1.14%.

The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $1,000 for brokerage account and $500 for IRA account. The brokerage account required a minimum of $50 for the subsequent investment. The other class tickers of this fund are OIBBX, OIBCX, OIBNX and OIBYX. Except for OIBYX, the minimum investment for the other class is the same ($1,000).

new: Top 8 World Bond Mutual Funds 2012

The top issuers for this fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Government of Japan (22.4%), Federal Republic of Brazil (5.2%), Republic of Turkey (4.5%), Republic of Germany (4.5%), Republic of Italyy (3.9%), Institutional Money Market Fund (3.7%), United Mexican States/ Mexico (3.7%), Republic of Poland (3.1%), United Kingdom Treasury (3.0%) and Republic of South Africa (3.0%). And the top regions as per the investor assets percentage are Japan (22.4%), Latin America (19.9%), Europe (18.9%), Emerging Europe (13.9%), Asia, ex-Japan (11.9%), United States/Canada (8.5%) and Middle East/Africa (4.4%).

American Funds Capital World Bond A (CWBFX)

Providing a high level of total return is the main objective of American Funds Capital World Bond investment. With the majority net assets investment in bonds, this fund may also invests in outside U.S issued securities. The main investment is in debt securities of governmental, supranational and corporate issuers denominated in various currencies, including U.S. dollars. Although this fund preferred to invest in investment-grade bonds but it may also invest up to 25% of assets in lower quality debts.

This world bond mutual fund is managed by James R. Mulally since Aug 1987. The yield of this fund is 3.96% per year. The last dividend distributed in March 22, 2011 is 0.18%. This CWBFX fund has the lowest expense ratio of all the funds in this list (0.88%). There is a 0.24% 12b1 fee and a 3.75% of front-end sales load. The adjusted return of this fund over the past three years is 3.03% and 5.45% over the past five years.

The minimum to invest in this fund for either brokerage or IRA account is $250. This fund can be purchased from 71 brokerages include TD Ameritrade Institutional Services, Scottrade Load, JPMorgan, Merrill Lynch, Vanguard, Edward Jones and Schwab Retail. The other class tickers of this fund are CCWFX, CWBCX, WBFFX, BFWFX, RCWEX, RCWFX and RCWGX. Some asset classes of fund have lower expense ratio fee, and no front end sales charge fee.

The portfolio percentage of the assets investment as of December 31, 2010 is Agency Notes & Bonds (0.3%), Cash & Equivalents (5.5%), Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities (9.5%), Municipal Securities (0.4%), Non-U.S. Corporate Bonds (13.5%), Non-U.S. Governments/Agencies (50.7%), Other (0.3%), U.S. Corporate Bonds (10.7%) and U.S. Treasury Securities (9.1%). And as of Feb 28, 2011, the largest investment of this fund is in Non-U.S. Bonds (68.8%) and U.S. Bonds (27.3%). The geographic breakdown as of December 31, 2010 is United States (27.1%), Europe (39.7%), Asia & Pacific Basin (17.2%), Other (Including Canada & Latin America) (10.5%) and Cash & Equivalents (5.5%).

PIMCO Foreign Bond (USD-Hedged) A (PFOAX)

This PIMCO Foreign Fund (USD-Hedged) is looking for maximum real return. The major net assets investment of this fund is in Fixed-Income Instruments that are connected economically to foreign countries, with a minimum of three foreign countries and limit to 20% of the total assets. This PFOAX fund may also invest in derivative instruments, such as futures contracts or swap agreements, options or in mortgage- or asset-backed securities.

This world bond mutual fund is managed by Scott A. Mather since 2008. It has a distribution rate of 2.09% with a 0.17% year-to-date return. The annual holdings turnover of this fund is quite high (411.00%) compared to the average of 127.8%. If you are interested to invest in this fund, the only option available is brokerage account with the minimum balance of $1,000. The annual expense ratio of this fund is 0.95%. This fund has 0.25% 12b1 fee and 3.75% of front-end sales charge fee.

The best 1 year total return was in 2009 (18.48%). This fund has returned 1.75% over the past one year and 5.33% over the past ten years. The other class tickers of this fund are PFRAX, PFOBX, PFOCX, PFODX, PFORX, PFBPX and PFRRX. Among all, PFORX has the highest yield (2.54%) and the lowest expense ratio (0.50%).

The top countries for the net assets investment of this taxable bond fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Japan (41.60%), Europe (31.00%), United Kingdom (12.80%), Germany (12.50%), France (7.10%), Netherlands (1.60%) and Brazil (1.20%).

AllianceBernstein Global Bond A (ANAGX)

AllianceBernstein Global Bond investment seeks to produce current income consistent with capital preservation. The main investment of net assets of this fund is in fixed-income securities, with the 75% of total amount in investment grade rated and 25% in below investment grade. This ANAGX fund may also invest in a broad range of fixed-income securities with short- to long-term maturity denominated in local currency or U.S. Dollar.

This international bond mutual fund is managed by Paul DeNoon since 2002, known as Mr. Peebles. He is as well the CIO of AllianceBernstein Fixed Income. This fund belongs to the family of AllianceBernstein. With the total net assets of 2.91 billion, this fund has the 3.67% yield. The yearly expense ratio of this fund is 0.90%.

Top Performer World Bond Funds June 2011

The year-to-date return is 0.27% (Feb 28, 2011). The performance of this fund is 4.76% over the past three years. Between the 18-years operating, the best 1-year total return is 24.20% in 1996. The minimum balance to invest in this fund either in brokerage or IRA account is $2,500 (same for ANABX and ANACX). There is a 0.30% 12b1 fee applied and 4.25% front-end sales charge fee.

The other class tickers of this fund are ANAYX, ANABX, ANACX, ANAIX, ANAKX and ANARX. Among all, ANAIX has the highest distribution rate of 4.01%. ANABX and ANACX have higher 12b1 fee (1.0%).

The top ten holdings of this AllianceBern Global Bond Fund are Netherlands Government Bond 4.00% (4.60%), Bundesrepublik Deutschland Series 05 3.50% (4.34%), Canada Housing Trust No 1 3.15% (3.29%), Canadian Government Bond 2.00% (3.18%), United Kingdom Gilt 4.00% (2.82%), Australia Government Bond Series 118 6.50% (2.63%), U.S. Treasury Notes 2.625% (2.51%), Canada Housing Trust No 1 2.95% (2.43%), United Kingdom Gilt 5.00% (2.09%) and U.S. Treasury Notes 1.00% (1.84%). The total country breakdown data is United States (41.40%), United Kingdom (11.63%), Canada (9.60%), Germany (7.66%), Netherlands (6.75%), France (3.39%), Australia (3.29%), Russia (2.60%), South Africa (1.93%) and Brazil (1.59%).

No	Mutual Fund Description	Rank	Ticker	Morningstar Rating	Net Assets (Bil)	Yield	Expense Ratio	Min To Invest
1	Templeton Global Bond A	7	TPINX	5	$49.62	5.31%	0.91%	$1,000
2	Oppenheimer International Bond A	36	OIBAX	4	$12.98	4.12%	0.98%	$1,000
3	American Funds Capital World Bond A	50	CWBFX	3	$11.65	3.96%	0.88%	$250
4	PIMCO Foreign Bond (USD-Hedged) A	17	PFOAX	3	$3.18	2.09%	0.95%	$1,000
5	AllianceBern Global Bond A	20	ANAGX	4	$2.91	3.67%	0.90%	$2,500

updated on 4/1/2011

Disclosure: No Position

For the next 5 funds in this list, please check Top 10 Best International Bond Funds (Part 2).

Loomis Sayles Bond Fund (LSBRX)

Find Loomis Sayles Bond Fund (LSBRX) review. This best mutual fund provides yield for income.

Bond funds or fixed income funds are typically less volatile than stock funds or equity funds. Bond funds also pay good yield or dividend regularly. This Loomis Sayles Bond Fund also has a monthly distribution. More details about this 4 stars rated fund by Morningstar can be found below.

Loomis Sayles Bond Fund (Ticker: LSBRX)

As the multisector bond fund, the Loomis Sayles Bond Fund seeks to achieve high total investment return through a combination of current income and capital appreciation using long-term and risk-adjusted investment strategy to beat its bond index, Barclays Capital US Government/Credit Bond Index. The Loomis Sayles fund invests majority of its asset in investment-grade fixed-income securities. It may also invest some of its assets in lower rated fixed income securities or junk bonds (<35%), preferred stocks (<20%), foreign debts including emerging markets (<20%), and Canadian issuers’ securities.

With its total net asset of $20 billion, this fund is managed by lead manager, Daniel J. Fuss, since 1989. Dan Fuss has managed this fund since its inception. He joined Loomis Sayles in 1976. As described above, this fund distributes a yield of 5.41% per year. This fund distribution is done monthly. The fund annual expense is 0.93%. This fund is part of no load mutual fund, this means there is no front end sales load and no deferred sales load.

If you have a brokerage account, you can start investing in this fund with $2,500 initial investment. For IRA account, please check with your account administrator or IRA brokerage provider for details. This Loomis Sayles Bond can be bought from 102 brokerages across the country like T. Rowe Price, Fidelity Retail FundsNetwork NTF, Dreyfus NTF, Ameriprise SPS Advantage, TIAA-CREF Brokerage Services, etc.

LSBRX Fact Details

• Fund Inception Date: May 1991
• Ticker Symbol: LSBRX (Retail Class or R-Class)
• CUSIP: 543495832
• Beta (3yr): 1.94
• Rank in category: 13 (ytd)
• Category: Intermediate term bond
• Distribution: Monthly
• Yield: 2.21%
• Expense Fee: 0.91%
• Capital Gains: If necessary, there will be capital gains on December and March
• Number of Years Up: 13 years
• Number of Years Down: 1 year

For the fund performance, this Bond fund has returned 11.66% over the past year and 7.91% over the past five years. The fund has its best return in 2009 with 36.83% return and the worst return in 2008 with -22.12% return. This LSBRX fund has 4 stars rating from Morningstar. The fund annual turnover rate is 27% which is low compare to its category (133.83%).

• Year 2017: 3.88% (YTD)
• Year 2016: 8.40%
• Year 2015: -7.06%
• Year 2014: 4.49%
• Year 2013: 5.52%

As of April 2011, this intermediate term bond fund consists of 643 bonds. The average maturity is 10.18 years and the weighted average duration is 6.08 years. The top 10 sectors distribution include high yield credit (23.15%), investment grade credit (22.73%), non-US dollar excluding CAD (20.79%), convertibles (10.66%), Canadian dollar (9.09%), preferred / equity (3.56%), US treasury (2.39%), MUNI (1.03%), bank loans (0.31%), and MBS (0.19%).Top 5 currency distributions are US dollar (70%), Canadian dollar (9%), New Zealand dollar, Norwegian Krone, and Euro. Top 5 holdings include Canadian government CAD, US Treasury bond, Norwegian government, Intel Corp CVT, and Ford Motor Co CVT.

new: Top Performer Diversified Bond Mutual Funds 2012

Investing in mutual fund involves variety of investment risks such as:

• Interest rate risk – interest rate rise and bond prices fall, investor may lose principal
• Credit risk – high yield bond price is more volatile due to market and credit risk
• Economic risk – foreign investment has greater risk due to global, political and currency risks

This fund is also available in many other classes such as institutional class (LSBDX), and admin class (LBFAX). These classes may provide lower expense fees.

Detail about the fund information and fund performance can be check on my Kip 25 best fund page.

Morningstar analysts has ranked this bond mutual fund with gold rating. For year 2011, this fund has an annualized return of 3.48%. As of April 2012, the top 4 sectors in its assets are corporate bond (51.88%), convertible (16.58%), non-U.S. government (9.92%), and preferred (3.09%). The average effective duration is 5.54 years and the average effective maturity is 10.09 years. The average credit quality is BB.

Loomis Sayles Bond Fund (LSBRX) was part of Kiplinger's best mutual fund before.

Harbor Bond Fund (HABDX)

Continuing with the Kiplinger 25 Best Fund of 2011 theme, the following is the next bond mutual fund for investor to invest in long term portfolio. Depending on your conform level, you can adjust the asset / portfolio level accordingly. This next fund is all about Harbor Bond Fund (Ticker: HABDX). Kiplinger typically updated its best fund list every year. This Harbor fund is also listed in the previous Kip 25 list. Harbor Bond fund is classified as intermediate term bond fund.

Harbor Bond Fund (Ticker: HABDX)

The Harbor Bond Fund is advised by Pacific Investment Management Company LLC (PIMCO). PIMCO is known as the largest bond fund operator in US and world with its PIMCO Total Return Bond fund. The Harbor Bond fund invests primarily in corporate and government-issued fixed income securities or debts. These debts can be located in the U.S. and foreign countries (up to 30%), including emerging markets or developing countries (up to 15%).

Intermediate Term Bond Fund

This Harbor Bond fund may invest >15% of total assets in below investment-grade (junk rated) domestic and foreign securities. The fund invests in intermediate term bonds with an overall portfolio rated high quality investment grade bonds.

This Harbor Bond fund is essentially very similar to PIMCO Total Return Bond fund, the world's biggest mutual fund. Both funds were run by Bill Gross since 1987. Bill Gross has been known as the bond guru for awhile and has shown an uncanny ability to consistently beat his benchmark. Harbor fund has sub-advised this fund for PIMCO to manage. The total net asset is $7.24 billion. The fund also has a yield of 3.05% per year. The annual expense ratio of this fund (0.55%) is lower than the average (0.94%).

HABDX fund details

• Fund Inception Date: December 1987
• Ticker Symbol: HABDX
• CUSIP: 411511108
• Beta (3yr): 0.91
• Rank in category (YTD): 49
• Category: Intermediate-Term Bond
• Yield: 2.55%
• Net Assets: $2.3 billion
• Expense Ratio: 0.51%
• Sales Load: 0% 
• Capital Gains: N/A
• Number of Years Up: 21 years 
• Number of Years Down: 2 years
• Average Duration: 3.55 years
• Average Maturity: 4.15 years
• Average Market Coupon: 3.06%
• Fund Manager: Mark R. Kiesel, Scott A. Mather, and Mihir P. Worah

updated on May 2017

For brokerage account and IRA account, investor will need $1,000 initial investment fund to start investing in this fund. This HABDX fund can be purchased from 78 brokerages like E*TRADE Financial, Pershing FundCenter, TD Ameritrade Institutional, Firstrade, etc. If you have a retirement account (401k or IRA), please check with your account administrator for details. The other class of this fund is Administrative Class (Ticker: HRBDX).

For the fund performance, this intermediate term bond mutual fund has returned 6.66% over the past year and 7.35% over the past 3 years. For long term performance, the fund has returned 7.50% over the past 5 years and 6.89% over the past decade. The fund has its best return in 2009 with 13.84% return and the worst return in 1999 with -0.32% return. This best rated bond fund has the highest Morningstar rating with 5 stars. The fund annual turnover rate is 675% which is considered high.

The performance of this fund is as below:

• Year 2017: 2.33% (YTD)
• Year 2016: 3.24%
• Year 2015: 0.23%
• Year 2014: 4.78%
• Year 2013: 1.46%

As of January 2011, this Harbor Bond fund has 1083 number of bonds. The yield to maturity is 4.46% and the average coupon is 3.3%. The weighted average maturity is 7.17 years and the weighted average duration is 5.38 years. Some of the top 10 fund issuers are Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp (FHLM), Wells Fargo & Co, Arkle Master Issuer plc, Citigroup Capital, and ING Bank NV MTN. This top 10 represent 23.4% of total holdings.

This fund’s top 10 sectors allocation as of March 2011 are 32.2% in Mortgage Pass-Through, 30% in Corporate Bonds and Notes, 5.0% in Foreign Government Obligations, 4.6% in Collateralized Mortgage Obligations, 3.3% in Municipal Bonds, 1.8% in U.S. Government Agencies, 1.4% in U.S. Government Obligations, 1.4% in Asset-Backed Securities, 0.5% in Convertible Bonds, 0.3% in Bank Loan Obligations and 0.2% in Preferred Stocks.

Investment risk

Investing in this fund involve risk such as interest rate risk, credit risk, prepayment risk, selection risk, derivative risk, foreign securities risk, short sales risk, mortgage risk, and high yield risk. Please check the fund prospectus for details about the investment risk. You can also invest in its administrative class with HRBDX fund ticker. This fund may need higher initial investment of $50,000. The fund also only charges a very low expense ratio of 0.80% per year.

Disclosure: No Position Other Bond Funds article:

• Loomis Sayles Bond Fund LSBRX
• Vanguard Short-Term Investment Grade VFSTX
• PIMCO Investment Grade Corporate Bond A PBDAX

Morningstar analysts has ranked this Harbor Bond fund with gold rating. It also has a yield of 2.15%. The total net assets are $7.5 billion. Its effective duration is 6.63 years. The top 3 sectors are agency MBS pass-through (14.3%), corporate bond (13.82%), and agency MBS CMO (12.4%).

Harbor Bond Fund (HABDX) was part of Kiplinger's Best Mutual Funds, KIP 25 before.

This fund is managed by Mark R. Kiesel, Scott A. Mather, and Mihir P. Worah since 2014.

Vanguard Short-Term Investment Grade Fund (VFSTX)

Vanguard Short-Term Investment Grade fund (VFSTX) is a popular bond mutual fund. This investment fund provide ample of yield.

This type of fund is useful in interest rate hikes situation. When the federal interest rate is increasing, you will need to have a short duration bond to protect your fund value. Since it is short term bond fund, the yield is smaller than other intermediate term or long term bond fund.

The funds in Kiplinger 25 best fund list are updated regularly. This Vanguard Short-Term Investment Grade is also part of 2010 fund list. As any Vanguard fund, it has low expense ratio and is part of no load mutual fund.

Vanguard Short Term Investment Grade (Ticker: VFSTX)

The Vanguard Short-Term Investment Grade fund investment objective is to provide current income to its investor while maintaining limited price volatility. This Vanguard fund will invest its assets in high and medium quality investment grade bonds with short term maturities (>80% of assets). It usually keeps an average weighted maturity of between 1 and 4 years. The fund may invest in U.S. government bonds, corporate bond or commercial paper, pooled consumer loans or bank obligations, and dollar-denominated foreign securities.

VFSTX Fund Facts

• Fund Inception Date: October 1982
• Ticker Symbol: VFSTX (Investor Shares)
• CUSIP: 922031406
• Beta (3yr): 0.53
• Rank in category: 43
• Category: Short Term bond
• Yield: 1.94%
• Distribution: Monthly
• Capital Gains: If necessary, there will be capital gains on December and March
• Fiscal Year End: January
• Number of Years Up: 26 years

DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund (DLTNX)

DoubleLine Total Return Bond Fund (DLTNX) is one of the best mutual fund for financial investing. It provides yield for income.

Intermediate Term Bond

As part of DoubleLine Capital LP fund, the DoubleLine Total Return Bond fund investment objective is seeking to maximize total return. DoubleLine Capital LP was founded in 2009. This DoubleLine fund is distributed through Quasar Distributors, LLC. The fund invests most of its net assets (>80%) in debt securities / obligations.

It intends to invest more than half of net assets in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) of any maturity or type guaranteed by, or secured by collateral that is guaranteed by, the United States government and agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations, or in privately issued mortgage backed securities. These bonds should be rated with Aa3/AA- or higher by nationally recognized rating agencies like Moody's and S&P.

DLTNX fund fact:

• Fund Inception Date: April 2010
• Ticker Symbol: DLTNX (N Shares)
• CUSIP: 258620202
• Distribution Rate / Yield: 3.46%
• Total Assets: $53.5 Billion
• Category: Intermediate Term Bond
• Capital gains: N/A
• Turnover Rate: 17%
• Minimum investment: $2,000

Top 10 Convertible Bond Mutual Funds of 2011 Part 2

As discusses in my previous part 1 article, convertible bonds can provide additional asset diversification for long term investor and income seeker trader. There are many benefits to invest in this asset class. The rule of thumb is having 2-5% of portfolio asset in this class.

Best Convertible Bond Mutual Funds

The following is part 2 of this article, this article will list the next 5 of 10 Best convertible bonds fund of 2011. The 10 Best convertible bond funds of 2011 (Part 2):

1. Calamos Convertible A
2. Fidelity Convertible Securities
3. Vanguard Convertible Securities Inv
4. Franklin Convertible Securities A
5. MainStay Convertible B
6. Putnam Convertible Income-Growth A
7. Allianz AGIC Convertible A
8. Columbia Convertible Securities A
9. Invesco Van Kampen Harbor A
10. Lord Abbett Convertible A

Putnam Convertible Income-Growth A (PCONX)

Putnam Convertible Income-Growth investment is seeking for both current income and capital appreciation. It as well aims for conservation of capital. The major net assets investment is in convertible securities with below investment-grade rating and investment-grade rating. The maturity level of these securities is three years or longer (intermediate- to long-term stated maturities).

Robert L. Salvin has managed this convertible bond fund since Dec 30, 2005. This fund has the 1.18% of annual expense ratio.The 12b1 fee is 0.25% and its front-end sales load is 5.75%. The minimum balance to invest in brokerage account of this fund is $500 (same applies for PCNBX, PRCCX and PCNMX), there is no IRA account available. The other class tickers of this fund are PCNBX, PRCCX, PCNMX, PCVRX and PCGYX. The PCGYX fund has the lowest expense ratio in this fund (0.93%).

The top ten holdings as of February 28, 2011 are Emc Corp/Massachusetts, Safeguard Scientifics, Wells Fargo, Chesapeake Energy Corp, Citigroup, El Paso Corp, Hertz Global Holdings, Sandisk Corp, Medtronic and The Interpublic Group of Cos. The top industry sectors as of February 28, 2011 are Technology (19.00%), Financials (16.51%), Consumer Cyclicals (13.85%), Health Care (11.19%), Miscellaneous (10.45%), Communication Services (9.96%), Energy (6.79%), Capital Goods (5.36%), Basic Materials (4.97%) and Cash & Net Other Assets (1.92%).

Allianz AGIC Convertible A (ANZAX)

The investment in Allianz AGIC Convertible Fund seeks for maximum total return. It means that it is aiming for both capital appreciation and current income. The net assets investment of this fund is 80% in convertible securities of any size market capitalization and 20% in nonconvertible debt securities. The convertible securities may include debentures, corporate bonds, notes or preferred stocks and their hybrids.

Douglas G. Forsyth has managed this fund since Dec 31, 1993. This fund has no yield distributed. The expense ratio of this fund is 0.96% per year. The 12b1 fee of this fund is 0.25% with 5.50% front-end sales load. This fund has returned 7.62% over the past three years and 6.22% over the past ten years. The minimum balance to invest in this best mutual fund is $1,000. No IRA account is available.

The purchase of this fund is limited to 19 brokerages such as Scottrade Load, JPMorgan, Fidelity Retail FundsNetwork, Ameriprise Brokerage, CommonWealth Core, Raymond James, CommonWealth Universe, RBC Wealth Management-Network Eligible, TD Ameritrade Retail and DailyAccess Corporation Mid-Atlantic. The other class tickers of this fund are ANNAX, ANZCX, ANZDX, ANNPX, ANCMX and ANZRX. Some asset classes of fund have lower expense ratio fee, and no front end sales charge fee.

The top sectors of this fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Technology (19.93%), Healthcare (14.30%), Consumer Discretionary (13.82%), Industrials (10.55%) and Financials (10.24%). The top 10 holdings of this fund are EMC Corp (1.40%), Symantec Corp (1.40%), General Motors Co (1.37%), Liberty Media (1.36%), Fifth Third Bancorp (1.31%), Archer Daniels (1.30%), Stanley Black + Decker I (1.30%), Developers Divers R (1.30%), Enersys (1.28%) and Wesco International (1.28%).

Columbia Convertible Securities A (PACIX)

Columbia Convertible Securities investment seeks for total return consistent with capital appreciation and current income. The composition of the net assets investment of this fund is (up to) 80% in below investment-grade convertible securities, (up to) 15% in Eurodollar convertible securities and (up to) 20% in foreign securities.

David L. King has managed this fund since Apr 6, 2010. This fund has 3.14% yield. The expense ratio of this fund is 1.20% per year. There is a 0.25% 12b1 fee and 5.75% front-end sales charge fee. This fund has returned 17.55% over the past one year and 3.45% over the past five years. The minimum balance to invest in the brokerage account of this fund is $2,500 (applies for other class) and $1,000 for IRA account. The other class tickers of this fund are NCVBX, PHIKX and NCIAX. Among all classes, only NCIAX doesn’t apply the 12b1 fee.

Best Convertible Securities Mutual Funds of 2012

The top holdings of this fund as of Dec 31, 2010 are Citigroup (2.8%), Invitrogen (2.5%), Gilead Sciences (2.4%), General Motors Co (2.1%), Ford Motor Company (1.9%), EMC CORP (1.7%), Micron Technology (1.5%), MGM Mirage (1.5%), Alexandria Real Estate (1.5%) and Dollar Financial Corporation (1.5%). The assets allocation of this fund is as below convertible bonds (73.3%), preferred stock (22.0%), common stock (1.0%), corporate bonds (0.5%) and cash & equivalents (3.3%).

Invesco Van Kampen Harbor A (ACHBX)

The investment in Invesco Van Kampen Harbor seeks for both current income and capital appreciation, consistent with capital preservation. This ACHBX fund invests at least 50% in convertible debt securities, up to 45% in common stocks and up to 25% in foreign securities. For the investment reason, this fund may buy and then sell certain derivative instruments (options, futures contracts and options on futures contracts).

This convertibles fund is managed by Ellen Gold since Aug 23, 2001. The yield for this fund is 3.27%. The expense ratio is 1.04% annually. The 12b1 fee is 0.25% with 5.50% front-end sales charge fee. This fund has returned 6.78% over the past three years and 4.45% over the past ten years. The minimum balance to invest in either brokerage or IRA account of this fund is $1,000. The other class tickers of this fund are ACHAX, ACHCX, ACHJX and ACHIX . The ACHIX has the highest yield among all (3.48%) with no 12b1 fee and no sales load.

The top 10 holdings of this fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Nielsen Holdings NV, EMC Corp, SBA Communication Corp., Virgin Media Inc., Micron Technology Inc., Chesepeake Energy Corp., Endo Pharmaceut Holdings In, Ciena Corp., Symantec Corp and Alliance Data Sys Corp. The top industrial sectors are Semiconductors (5.52%), Biotechnology (4.90%), Health Care Equipment (3.96%), Pharmaceuticals (3.79%), Internet Software & Services (3.55%), Wireless Telecommunication Services (3.12%), Computer Storage and Peripherals (3.09%), System Software (2.68%), Communication Equipments (2.45%) and Health Care Services (2.32%).

Lord Abbett Convertible A (LACFX)

Lord Abbett Convertible investment seeks for both current income and capital appreciation to result in a high total return. The net assets investment composition of this fund is at least 80% of net assets in convertible securities, up to 25% in investment grade convertible securities, up to 20% in non-convertible debt or equity securities and max of 20% in foreign securities and lower-rated convertible securities.

This balanced fund has been managed by Christopher J. Towle since Jun 30, 2003. This fund has the highest yield among the other mentioned in this list (3.79%). The expense ratio of this fund is the same as the average in the category (1.41%). There is a 0.20% 12b1 fee and 2.25% front-end sales charge fee.

This convertible bond fund has returned 4.33% over the past three years and 4.32% over the past five years. The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $1,000 for brokerage account and $250 for IRA account. This fund can be purchased from 92 brokerages such as Morgan Stanley Advisors, Pershing FundCenter, Schwab Institutional, Td Ameritrade, Inc., Scottrade Load, Merrill Lynch and Edward Jones. The other class tickers of this fund are LBCFX, LACCX, LBFFX, LCFYX, LCFPX, LBCQX and LCFRX. With the minimum investment of $1,000,000, LCFYX has the highest yield in the class (4.09%).

The ten largest holdings as of Feb 28, 2011 are Affiliated Manager Group, Inc. (2.1%), Informatica Corp. (2.0%), Ford Motor Co. (1.7%), Citigroup, Inc. (1.7%), Central Euro Distribution Co. (1.7%), General Motors Co. (1.6%), Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (1.6%), Intel Corp. (1.5%), Apache Corp. (1.5%) and Bank of America Corp. (1.4%).

Disclosure: No Position

Fund Information

No	Mutual Funds Description	Ticker	Yield	Morningstar Rating	Net Assets (Mil)	Expense Ratio	Min to Invest
6	Putnam Convertible Income-Growth A	PCONX	2.68%	3	$718	1.18%	$500
7	Allianz AGIC Convertible A	ANZAX	N/A	4	$641	0.96%	$1,000
8	Columbia Convertible Securities A	PACIX	3.14%	3	$510	1.20%	$2,500
9	Invesco Van Kampen Harbor A	ACHBX	3.27%	4	$359	1.04%	$1,000
10	Lord Abbett Convertible A	LACFX	3.79%	3	$352	1.41%	$1,000

Note: If you need to check the fund performance, please check my first article.

Best Convertible Bond Mutual Funds of 2011

There are several advantages for investors to invest in convertible securities mutual funds. One of them are getting a regular income. These posts will look into the best convertible mutual funds of 2011 including: Calamos Convertible A, Fidelity Convertible Securities, Vanguard Convertible Securities Inv, etc.

Convertibles Mutual Funds

With interest rate hikes are looming, investing in convertible bonds can be attractive to investors and/or traders. Convertible bonds can provide additional investment portfolio diversification. There are several ways to invest in convertible bonds. Investors can invest in individual convertible bonds, mutual fund, closed end fund (CEF), and exchange traded fund (ETF).

Convertible bond buyers or investors usually invest in these asset classes in the hope of obtaining one or more of the following benefits:

• Investor can participate in upside movement should the stock price increase
• Investor can limit his/ her loss should the stock price decrease
• Convertible bonds provide higher yield than regular dividend from company's common stock
• The price movement of the bond is less volatile than common stock. Convertible bonds traditionally have had a low correlation with fixed income obligations and high, but imperfect, correlation with equities / stocks
• If the company files for bankruptcy, investor can claim on the issuer's assets senior first to that of the holders of the common stock

How are the funds selected?

These funds are rated based on their asset, Morningstar rating, and expense ratio. These funds have big assets. Big asset means the fund has attracted variety of retail investor and institutional investor to invest in these funds. Most of these funds also have a respectable Morningstar rating of 3 or more stars. With 3 or more star rating, this means the fund has consistently performed under any market condition (bear or bull market) and should perform better than many of its index benchmark. These funds also paid dividend either monthly or quarterly.

The 10 Best Convertible Bonds Mutual Fund of 2011 (Part 1):

1. Calamos Convertible A
2. Fidelity Convertible Securities
3. Vanguard Convertible Securities Inv
4. Franklin Convertible Securities A
5. MainStay Convertible B
6. Putnam Convertible Income-Growth A
7. Allianz AGIC Convertible A
8. Columbia Convertible Securities A
9. Invesco Van Kampen Harbor A
10. Lord Abbett Convertible A

Calamos Convertible A (CCVIX)

The investment in Calamos Convertible fund primarily is seeking for current income while the capital growth is the secondary purpose. This fund invests the majority (around 80%) of its net assets in convertible securities issued by U.S. and foreign companies. There is no limitation of the market capitalization. The remaining assets might be invested in foreign securities. This fund will be closed to all purchases of shares and exchanges, with limited exceptions, as of January 28, 2011.

John Calamos the founder of Calamos Assets Management has managed this fund since 1985. The company is the 16th largest money manager in Chicagoland. This fund has 1.08% expense ratio per year.

The yield of this fund is 2.73%. There is 0.25% 12b1 fee and 4.75% of front-end sales load. This convertibles fund has returned 11.74% over the past one year and 5.16% over the past five years.

The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $2,500 for brokerage account (same applies for CALBX and CCVCX) and $500 for IRA account. This fund can be purchased from 89 brokerages include Schwab Institutional, TD Ameritrade, Inc., Scottrade Load, JPMorgan, Vanguard and Schwab Retail. The other class tickers of this fund are CALBX, CCVCX, CICVX and CCVRX. Eventhough CALBX and CCVCX have the same minimum initial investment, but they have higher expense ratio (1.82%) compared to CCVIX.

The top 10 holdings of this fund are EMC Corp (4.6%), SanDisk Corp (3.4%), Intel Corp (2.6%), Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (2.6%), NetApp, Inc (2.4%), Apache Corp (2.2%), Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (1.9%), Gilead Sciences Inc (1.8%), Symantec Corp (1.6%), and Navistar International Corp (1.5%). These top 10 companies make up to 24.6% of its total assets. The top sectors of this fund are Information Technology (33.8%), Health Care (15.3%), Energy (10.3%), Industrials (8.4%), Materials (7.6%), Consumer Discretionary (6.6%), Consumer Staples (5.2%) and Financials (4.3%).

Fidelity Convertible Securities (FCVSX)

Fidelity Convertible Securities investment seeks for both current income and capital appreciation. The major net assets investment of this fund is in convertible securities with below investment-grade rating or unrated securities. This best fund may also invest in corporate or U.S. government debt securities, preferred stocks, money-market instruments, and common stocks.

Thomas T. Soviero has been the lead manager since June 21, 2005. This fund has quite low annual expense ratio (0.59%) compared to the average in 1.41%. This fund has a total of $2.72 billion net assets. It doesn’t have any 12b1 fee and front-end sales load. This fund has returned 7.10% over the past five years and 6.80% over the past decade. The minimum balance to invest in this fund and the other class is $2,500 for brokerage account. You can also purchase this fund through Fidelity Advisors fund. The other class tickers of this fund are FCAVX, FCBVX, FCCVX, FICVX and FTCVX. Only FICVX doesn’t have any 12b1 fee and front-end sales load.

The top ten industry sectors of this fund as of Jan 31, 2011 are Energy (23.02%), Information Technology (17.74%), Consumer Discretionary (12.97%), Industrials (12.92%), Financials (12.89%), Health Care (6.99%), Consumer Staples (3.77%), Materials (3.45%) and Telecommunication Services (2.28%). The top ten company holdings are Peabody Energy Cv (4.75%), El Paso Corp (4.99%), Wells Fargo (7.5%), General Motors (4.75%), Ford Motor Conv (4.25%), Intel Conv (3.25%), Celanese Corp Ser A, Chesapeake Enrg Cv (2.5%), Hertz Global Conv (5.25%) and Alpha Nat Res Conv (2.375%). These top 10 holdings make up to 35.62% of the total net assets out of 132 total holdings.

Vanguard Convertible Securities Inv (VCVSX)

Vanguard Convertible Securities Investor investment is looking for both current income and long-term capital appreciation. The primary net assets investment is in convertible securities. These convertible securities have the below investment-grade rating and combine the investment characteristics of bonds and common stocks. They consist of corporate bonds and preferred stocks that are convertible into common stock.

This fund is managed by Larry Keele since Nov 1, 1996. This fund has 3.64% yield and 0.68% annual expense ratio (the lowest among all mentioned in this list). The minimum balance to invest in this fund is $10,000 for brokerage account and IRA account. This fund applies no 12b1 fee and no sales load. This fund has returned 23.85% over the past one year and 7.82% over the past ten years.

The top 10 holdings of this fund as of Feb 28, 2011 are Micron Technology Inc Cvt, SBA Communications Corp Cvt, General Motors Co Pfd, Interpublic Group of Cos Inc Cvt, Gilead Sciences Inc Cvt, MGM Resorts International Cvt, Equinix Inc Cvt, ArvinMeritor Inc Cvt, Lennar Corp Cvt and Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc Cvt. These ten largest holdings make up to 22.5% of total net assets and 22.8% of equities.

Franklin Convertible Securities A (FISCX)

Franklin Convertible Securities investment pursues for maximizing the total investment return with considering the consistent reasonable risk. The major net assets investment is in convertible securities including the common stocks received upon conversion of convertible securities. This fund may also invest in other securities, such as common or preferred stocks and non-convertible debt securities. As of Jan 31, 2011 the composition of its net assets investment is 65.00% in convertible bonds, 29.00% in convertible preferred and 6% in cash.

Alan Muschott has managed this fund since Jul 1, 2002. He is as well the vice president of the Franklin Advisers, Inc. This fund has 1.22 billion net assets. The yield for this fund is 3.23%. This fund has 0.90% annual expense ratio which is quite low compared to the average in 1.41%. The 12b1 fee is 0.25%. This fund has returned 5.67% over the past three year, with 5.64% of 5-year average return. Minimum balance to invest in brokerage account of this fund is $1,000 and $250 for IRA account.

This fund can be purchased from 60 brokerages such as Morgan Stanley Advisors, Pershing FundCenter, Schwab Institutional, Td Ameritrade, Inc., JPMorgan and Merrill Lynch. The other class tickers of this fund are FCSZX and FROTX. The expense ratio for FCSZX is 0.65% and 1.65% for FROTX.

Best Convertible Securities Mutual Funds of 2012

Top 10 holdings of this fund as of Jan 31, 2011 are WESCO International Inc (2.90%), Microchip Technology Inc (2.30%), NetApp Inc (2.30%), Dendreon Corp (2.20%), SandRidge Energy Inc (2.10%), Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (2.10%), Alliance Data Systems Corp (2.10%), Apache Corp (2.00%), Micron Technology Inc (2.00%), and Citigroup Inc (2.00%). These top 10 holdings make up to 22.00% of the total portfolio. The top sectors breakdown are Information Technology (22.20%), Health Care (21.30%), Consumer Discretionary (13.60%), Industrials (9.90%), Energy (8.40%), Financials (6.40%), Materials (5.90%), Utilities (4.60%) and Consumer Staples (1.40%).

MainStay Convertible B (MCSVX)

The investment in MainStay Convertible is looking for both current income and capital appreciation. The primary net assets investment (at least 80% of total) is in investment-grade convertible securities. The other investment options include equity securities, nonconvertible corporate debt, cash or cash equivalents and U.S. government securities. This fund has a total of 1.04 billion net assets.

Edward Silverstein has been the fund manager since May 1, 2001. This fund has 1.18% yield. The expense ratio of this fund is 2.03% per year. This fund has 1.00% of 12b1 fee but no sales load. The minimum balance to invest in either brokerage or IRA account of this fund is $1,000. The other class tickers of this fund are MCOAX, MCCVX, MCNVX and MCINX. Some other class has lower expense ratio.

Top ten holdings of this fund are JPMorgan Chase & Co (3.5%), Core Laboratories LP (2.7%), Cameron International Corp (2.6%), Teva Pharmaceutical Finance Co BV (2.5%), Citigroup Inc (2.2%), Fisher Scientific International Inc (2.1%), Incyte Corp Ltd (2.0%), BioMarin Pharmaceuticals Inc (2.0%), Peabody Energy Corp (2.0%), and Allegheny Technologies Inc (1.9%). The top sectors of this fund are Consumer Non-Cyclical (24.8%), Energy (21.1%), Communications (11.0%), Technology (9.7%), Consumer Cyclical (9.7%), Industrials (6.5%), Financials (6.2%), Asset-Backed Securities (1.9%), Basic Materials (1.7%) and Utilities (0.6%).

Disclosure: No Position.

Fund Info

No	Mutual Funds Description	Ticker	Yield	Morningstar Rating	Net Assets (Mil)	Expense Ratio	Min to Invest
1	Calamos Convertible A	CCVIX	2.73%	4	$3,660	1.08%	$2,500
2	Fidelity Convertible Secs	FCVSX	2.81%	2	$2,720	0.59%	$2,500
3	Vanguard Convertible Securities Inv	VCVSX	3.64%	5	$2,130	0.68%	$10,000
4	Franklin Convertible Securities A	FISCX	3.23%	3	$1,220	0.90%	$1,000
5	MainStay Convertible B	MCSVX	1.18%	3	$1,040	2.03%	$1,000

Details on next 5 funds can be found on Top Convertible Bond Mutual Funds pt 2. The following table show the fund performance for 1 year, 3 year, 5 year, and 10 years. Please check my part 2 for the next 5 of these convertible bond funds.

updated on 4/28/2012

Dodge & Cox Income Fund (DODIX)

Kiplinger is a well known financial magazine. Any long term investor will know this magazine in a heart beat. Every year, the magazine provides a list of top 25 mutual funds which is known as Kiplinger 25 (in short Kip 25) around spring time. I’ll provide one of this best fund every couple days, I'll review the funds in details. The following article will look into the first fund, Dodge & Cox Income.

I’ll proceed from bond fund and then move to stock funds, international funds, etc. All of these funds are no load funds. This means the funds don’t charge any sales fee such as front end sales load fee or deferred sales load fee.

Dodge & Cox Income Fund (DODIX)

This Dodge & Cox Income fund (Ticker: DODIX) investment objective is to seek a high & stable rate of current income with consistent long term capital preservation. It also will try to take advantage of opportunities to realize capital appreciation. The fund invest majority of its assets in a high quality bond (i.e. investment grade bond) and other fixed income debts diversified portfolio.

These fixed income securities include U.S. Government bonds, mortgage and asset backed securities, corporate bond, collateralized mortgage bonds and other rated A or better bonds rated by credit rating agencies (Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, Fitch, etc). This Dodge & Cox fund may invest small part of its assets (<20%) in non investment grade fixed income securities. These below investment grade bonds are known as high yield bonds or junk bonds.

DODIX Fund Facts

• Fund Inception Date: January 1989
• Ticker Symbol: DODIX
• CUSIP: 256210105
• Distribution: Dividend are paid every quarters in March, June, September, & December
• Capital gains: If any, they will be distributed in December and March
• Net Assets: $ 48.9 Billion
• Fund Manager: Dodge & Cox Management
• Beta (3yr): 0.94
• Category: Intermediate-Term Bond
• Yield: 1.28%
• Expense Fee: 0.43%
• Min to Invest: $2,500
• Capital Gains: N/A
• Turnover rate: 25%

The fund lead manager is Peter C. Lambert since 1989. The fund is also managed by variety of managers. To invest in this fund, you will need to open an account either with your brokerage or IRA account (Roth IRA, traditional IRA, and 401k).

Nuveen Quality Preferred Stock Fund (JTP)

Investing in preferred stocks can be done several different ways like individual preferred stocks, mutual funds, exchange traded funds, and closed end funds (CEFs). Investing in closed end fund (CEF) is not as popular as investing in exchange traded fund (ETF).

There are pros and cons. I may discuss in my future article. In this article, I’ll focus in investing in preferred stock CEF. One of this CEF is Nuveen Quality Preferred Income Fund (Ticker: JTP).

Nuveen Quality Preferred Income (JTP)

This Nuveen Quality Preferred Income fund objective is to provide consistent high current income and preservation of capital. It also tries to enhance portfolio value. The fund will invest majority of its assets, more than 80%, in preferred securities and <20% of its assets in debt obligations like convertible debt and convertible preferred securities. The investment assets in these securities are investment grade quality (BBB/Baa or better). This fund may use leverage to increase its income.

Since 2002, L. Phillip Jacoby and Mark A Lieb have been the lead manager of this Nuveen fund. This best preferred stock CEF has a yield of 7.82%. It consists of $537 million total common assets. The fund annual expense is 1.60% (include 1.10% management fees, 0.09% other expenses, and 0.40% interest expense). This fund has an effective leverage of 22.36% as of March 2011. The inception share price is $15.00 and the inception NAV is $14.33. The fund has paid a total of $8.52 dividend for the past 9 years.

As of February 2011, the fund consists of 170 holdings. It also has 30.9% foreign holdings. The fund top 10 holdings are Fisrtar Realty llc debt, AXA SA debt, Viacom Inc debt, Wells Fargo and Co debt, Capital One Financial debt, Kimco Realty pfd, Aegon NV preferred, Vodafone Group debt, HSBC holdings debt, and Banco Santander SA debt. The top 5 industries include insurance (31.7%), commercial banks (26.1%), real estate investment trust REIT (11.5%), media (5.7%), and capital markets (5.1%).

Why interesting?

Reasons I like this Nuveen fund are:

• This preferred stock fund has a high yield of 7.82% per year. None of this yield is part of return of capital.
• It has positive average UNII of $0.1415 per share (As of February 2011)
• The fund market price is traded below its NAV
• Reasonable expense ratio

You may also interested in these Nuveen funds

• Nuveen Quality Preferred Income Fund 2 (Ticker: JPS)
• Nuveen Quality Preferred Income Fund 3 (Ticker: JHP)

Any investments involve risk, investing in this fund may have risks such as:

• Investment and market risk
• Interest rate risk
• Call risk or prepayment risk
• Reinvestment risk
• Credit risk
• Preferred stock risk
• Leverage risk

Disclosure: No Position

Since CEFs are traded like stocks, you can buy and sell these CEFs using online stock brokerage. For cheap and great brokerages, please check my best brokerages page. update on 5/20/2012 As of May 2012, the distribution rate is 7.61% per year. This closed end fund is rated with 2 stars and neutral rating by Morningstar.