Reading the Newspaper Listings

Although they may look pretty cryptic, fund listings are very easy to read and can tell you a great deal about the fund in a small amount of space.

You can determine the value of your portfolio by multiplying the number of shares you own by the "NAV." Multiplying the number of shares you own by the Offer Price tells you how much you would pay to buy those same shares.

1. Funds are listed alphabetically by fund company with specific funds listed under each company.
2. "NAV" means "Net Asset Value" and is the value of stocks being held in the portfolio divided by the number of the shares in the fund being held by the shareholders. "NAV" shows how much each share in the fund is worth.
3. "Offer Price" is the amount you would pay if you wanted to buy the shares and is the same as the "NAV," plus any sales charges. "NL" means it is a no-load fund and you would pay the same price per share to buy it as you would receive if you were to sell it.
4. This tells how much the net asset value of the fund has changed since the previous trading day. A plus (+) value means your shares have increased in value since the close of the last trading day by the amount indicated, and a minus (-) value means each of your shares has fallen by that amount.
5. Change shows the amount by which the net asset value of one share of the fund increased or decreased the day before.

Symbols after the fund names provide you with important information about the fund and the charges associated with it:

• Funds designated with an "r" charge a fee when you redeem (sell) your shares.
• "p" means a fund has a 12b-1 fee.
• "t" means a fund has both a 12b-1 fee and a deferred sales charge or redemption fee.
• If the most recent day's numbers are not available for a fund, the previous day's prices will be listed and an "f" entered after the fund name. An "e" signifies prices are quoted after capital gains distributions are deducted, and "x" means quotes are based on ex-dividend values.

Mutual fund newspaper listings are most useful for keeping track of what is happening to the funds you own. Some newspapers provide more detail than others and include investment objectives and total return data. If you are trying to make a decision about buying a fund, newspaper listings can give you some idea about fund families and provide some indication about fees and expenses. But they don't provide all of the information you need, so don't reject funds for consideration based only on these tables.

As a long-term investor, you will probably not find it necessary to check on the daily value of your fund shares. However, whenever you want to check the progress of your fund, you can obtain performance data and daily share prices directly from the fund company by calling their toll-free number, referring to current prices of mutual funds listed daily in most newspapers, or visit their website.

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