Calvert Posts Strong Taxable Fixed Income Performance, Outperforming Benchmarks and Peer Groups.BETHESDA, Md. -- Calvert announced that its stable of taxable fixed income mutual funds outperformed their respective Lipper peer groups in all cases and their benchmarks in most all cases, for the year-to-date Year-to-date (YTD) The period beginning at the start of the calendar year up to the current date. , 1-, 5-,10-year and since- inception time periods ending September 30, 2005 (see performance tables below). Calvert's taxable fixed income funds are managed by a team led by Senior Vice President and head of Calvert's taxable bond Taxable Bond A debt security whose return to the investor is subject to taxes at the local, state or federal level, or some combination thereof. Notes: The majority of bonds issued are taxable bonds. division, Gregory Habeeb. Calvert attributes the strong performance to Mr. Habeeb's active investment process that focuses on relative value. Responsible for more than $4.6 billion in taxable fixed income portfolios, he and his team employ a four-tiered management approach that emphasizes duration management, yield curve positioning, sector allocation Sector allocation Investment of certain proportions of a portfolio in certain sectors. See: Industry allocation. and credit research to select bonds for each of the funds. Specifically the Funds they oversee include the Calvert Income, Short Duration Income, Long-Term Long-term Three or more years. In the context of accounting, more than 1 year. long-term 1. Of or relating to a gain or loss in the value of a security that has been held over a specific length of time. Compare short-term. Income, Social Bond, and CVS (1) (Concurrent Versions System) A version control system for Unix that was initially developed as a series of shell scripts in the mid-1980s. CVS maintains the changes between one source code version and another and stores all the changes in one file. Income Funds; and the fixed income portions of the Social Balanced and CVS Balanced Fund Balanced Fund A mutual fund that invests its assets into the money market, bonds, preferred stock, and common stock with the intention to provide both growth and income. Also known as an asset allocation fund. . For the one year period ended December 31, 2004, Barron's ranked the performance of Calvert's taxable bond portfolios #1 among seventy-three fund families.* In a recent conference call with financial professionals, Mr. Habeeb said that an early bet on automobile industry automobile industry, the business of producing and selling self-powered vehicles, including passenger cars, trucks, farm equipment, and other commercial vehicles. bonds detracted from performance as the market reacted to a spate of downgrades and market watch listing at mid-year. However this was offset by very strong credit positioning, which kept the Funds in high quality issues at a time when credit spreads reached historically low levels but then started to widen wid·en tr. & intr.v. wid·ened, wid·en·ing, wid·ens To make or become wide or wider. wid  en·er n. . The fixed income team's excellent research
capabilities also helped the Funds avoid most of the high profile credit
blow-ups this year. Yield curve positioning also added to performance,
as the Funds had a bet on curve flattening
The flattening, ellipticity, or oblateness of an oblate spheroid is the "squashing" of the spheroid's pole, down towards its equator. during the first quarter. This worked well as Fed rate hikes pushed short rates up and strong demand pushed long-term rates down. The strategy was neutralized neu·tral·ize tr.v. neu·tral·ized, neu·tral·iz·ing, neu·tral·iz·es 1. To make neutral. 2. To counterbalance or counteract the effect of; render ineffective. 3. as rates reached equilibrium equilibrium, state of balance. When a body or a system is in equilibrium, there is no net tendency to change. In mechanics, equilibrium has to do with the forces acting on a body. , then shifted mid-summer to take advantage of curve steepening. All these tactical shifts added to portfolio performance. Mr. Habeeb adds that, going forward, the Funds have their highest average credit ratings ever having exited all auto positions, terming them "too risky" and are short of benchmark durations to minimize interest rate risk. "We have taken a less risky stance on interest rates and credit quality to reduce risk in our shareholders' portfolios," he explained. "We may give up a little in a market where rates are moving down quickly in exchange for being defensive towards dropping bond prices, but that's always been our philosophy. Rather than taking big bets on interest rate movements or credit quality, we've historically been able to earn incremental Additional or increased growth, bulk, quantity, number, or value; enlarged. Incremental cost is additional or increased cost of an item or service apart from its actual cost. income with relative value positioning." The Calvert Income Fund Class A Shares returned 2.71% year-to-date as of 9/30/2005, ranked 14th of 156 funds in its Lipper BBB-rated corporate debt fund category and outperformed the Lehman US Credit Index by 125 basis points. Over the ten-year period ending September 30, the fund ranked 4th of 41 funds in its category and outperformed the Lehman US Credit Index by 127 basis points with a return of 8.19%. The Calvert Social Investment Fund Bond Portfolio Class A shares returned 3.77% year-to-date as of 9/30/2005, versus 1.46% for the Lehman US Credit Index, ranking 5th of 188 funds in its Lipper A-rated corporate debt funds category. The fund has ranked in the top ten of its peer group for year-to-date, 1-, 5-,10-year, and since-inception and has outperformed the Lipper A-Rated Corp Debt Funds Average for year-to-date, 1-, 5-, and 10-year periods. The Calvert Short Duration Income Fund Class A shares excelled in its category, ranking 5th among 224 short investment grade debt funds tracked by Lipper, year-to-date as of 9/30/2005 with a return of 2.35% versus 0.87% for the Lehman 1-5 Year Credit Bond Index. It ranks 15th of 218 funds for the trailing one-year period. The Calvert Long-Term Income Fund, which was launched on December 31, 2004, returned 5.29% for Class A shares year-to-date as of 9/30/2005, versus 2.90% for the Lehman Long U.S. Credit Index and 1.45% for the Lipper BBB-Rated Corp Debt Funds Average. Performance data does not reflect the deduction deduction, in logic, form of inference such that the conclusion must be true if the premises are true. For example, if we know that all men have two legs and that John is a man, it is then logical to deduce that John has two legs. of the maximum sales load Sales load See: Sales charge sales load See load. . If reflected, the load would reduce the performance quoted. About Calvert Calvert is one of the largest mutual fund complexes in the Washington D.C. area, with approximately $11 billion in assets under management Assets Under Management (AUM) is a term used by financial services companies in the mutual fund and money management or investment management business to gauge how much money they are managing. . Best known for its family of socially responsible mutual funds, Calvert offers thirty-two portfolios that allow individual and institutional investors Institutional Investor A non-bank person or organization that trades securities in large enough share quantities or dollar amounts that they qualify for preferential treatment and lower commissions. to pursue a broad range of investment objectives within a single fund family. Calvert launched the Calvert Social Index The Calvert Social Index is a stock market index created by the Calvert Group as a benchmark of large companies that are considered socially responsible or ethical. It currently consists of 468 companies, weighted by market capitalization, selected from approximately 1,000 of the (TM), a benchmark for measuring the performance of large, U.S.-based socially responsible companies.
Total Return Figures for Calvert's Taxable Fixed Income Funds for the
periods ending September 30, 2005.
Since
Year To 1 5 10 Inception
CALVERT INCOME FUND Date Year Year Year 10/12/1982
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Class A Shares (NAV) 2.71 3.89 8.03 8.19 9.43
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Class A Shares (Max Load of
3.75%) -1.12 -0.02 7.21 7.77 9.25
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Lipper BBB-Rated Corp Debt Fund
Average 1.45 3.19 6.93 6.39 8.94*
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Lehman US Credit Index 1.46 2.74 7.72 6.92 9.91
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Lipper Ranking 14/156 32/155 18/93 4/41 3/8
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Since
CALVERT SOCIAL INVESTMENT FUND Year To 1 5 10 Inception
BOND Date Year Year Year 8/24/1987
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Class A Shares (NAV) 3.77 5.05 7.54 6.66 7.77
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Class A Shares (Max Load of
3.75%) -0.11 1.09 6.72 6.25 7.54
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lipper A-Rated Corp Debt Funds
Average 1.45 2.60 6.14 5.92 7.73*
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Lehman US Credit Index 1.46 2.74 7.72 6.92 8.43
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Lipper Ranking 5/188 5/187 8/112 6/69 9/19
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* For Comparison purposes, "Inception" performance begins on the last
day of the month the fund was incepted.
Year Since
To 1 Inception
CALVERT SHORT DURATION INCOME FUND Date Year 1/31/2002
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Class A Shares (NAV) 2.35 3.18 6.99
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Class A Shares (Max Load of 2.75%) -0.44 0.36 6.19
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Lipper Short Term Investment Grade Funds
Average 1.07 1.46 2.63
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Lehman 1-5 Yr Credit Index 0.87 1.19 4.63
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lipper Ranking 5/224 15/218 1/143
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Year Since
To Inception
CALVERT LONG-TERM INCOME FUND Date 12/31/2004
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Class A Shares (NAV) 5.29 5.29
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Class A Shares (Max Load of 3.75%) 1.37 1.37
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Lipper BBB Rated Corp Debt Funds Average 1.45 1.45
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lehman Long U.S. Credit Index 2.90 2.90
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Lipper Ranking 1/156 1/156
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The performance data quoted represents past performance, which does not guarantee future results. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed re·deem tr.v. re·deemed, re·deem·ing, re·deems 1. To recover ownership of by paying a specified sum. 2. To pay off (a promissory note, for example). 3. , may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data quoted. Visit www.calvert.com to obtain performance data current to the most recent month-end. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Lipper rankings are based on total returns. The returns assume reinvestment Reinvestment Using dividends, interest and capital gains earned in an investment or mutual fund to purchase additional shares or units, rather than receiving the distributions in cash. 1. In terms of stocks, it is the reinvestment of dividends to purchase additional shares. of dividends and capital gains but exclude the effects of any applicable sales loads. Source: Lipper, Inc. The Lehman U.S. Credit Index is a subindex Subindex A group of securities that is part of an index but is also tracked separately as a smaller, separate index. Notes: A software index, for example, would be a sub-index of a computer index. of the Lehman US Government/Credit Index. The index includes both corporate and non-corporate sectors. The corporate sectors are Industrial, Utility, and Finance, which include both US and non-US corporations. The non-corporate sectors are Sovereign, Supranational Supranational An international organization, or union, whereby member states transcend national boundaries or interests to share in the decision-making and vote on issues pertaining to the wider grouping. , Foreign Agency, and Foreign Local Government. The index is calculated monthly on the price-only and total-return basis. All returns are market value-weighted inclusive of inclusive of prep. Taking into consideration or account; including. accrued interest Accrued Interest The interest that has accumulated on a bond since the last interest payment up to but not including the settlement date. There are two methods for calculating accrued interest: 1) 360-day year method, used for corporate and municipal bonds. . Lehman 1-5 Yr US Credit Index: consists of publicly issued US corporate and specified foreign debentures and secured notes that meet the specified maturity, liquidity, and quality requirements. To qualify, bonds must be SEC-registered. Lipper Corporate Debt Funds A Rated Average: consists of funds that invest at least 65% of assets in corporate debt issues rated "A" or better or government issues. Lipper Short Investment Grade Debt Funds Average: consists of funds that invest at least 65% of assets in investment grade debt issues (rated in top four grades) with dollar-weighted average maturities of less than three years. Lipper BBB BBB A medium grade assigned to a debt obligation by a rating agency to indicate an adequate ability to pay interest and repay principal. However, adverse developments are more likely to impair this ability than would be the case for bonds rated A and above. Rated Corporate Debts Funds Average: comprised of funds that invest at least 65% of fund assets Fund assets The total value of a portfolio's securities, cash, and other holdings, minus any outstanding debts. in corporate and government debt issues rated in the top four grades. * Barron's, February 7, 2005 issue. The ranking used a weighted average ranking system to assess asset-weighted performance, net of 12b-1 fees. Each fund was measured and ranked with its peers in the taxable bond fund category as tracked by Lipper for a one-year period ending 12/31/04. The asset size of each fund in the taxable bond fund category accounted proportionately pro·por·tion·ate adj. Being in due proportion; proportional. tr.v. pro·por·tion·at·ed, pro·por·tion·at·ing, pro·por·tion·ates To make proportionate. for the fund family's ranking in that category. Results from 73 fund complexes were compiled by Lipper for the tenth annual Fund Families Survey by Barron's. For more information on any Calvert fund, please contact your financial advisor or call Calvert at 800.368.2748 for a free prospectus. An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of an investment carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other information. Read it carefully before you invest or send money. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data quoted. Visit www.calvert.com to obtain performance data current to the most recent month-end. May lose value. Not FDIC FDIC See: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation FDIC See Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Insured. No Bank Guarantee. Not NCUA/NCUSIF Insured. No Credit Union Guarantee Calvert mutual funds are underwritten and distributed by Calvert Distributors, Inc., member NASD NASD See: National Association of Securities Dealers NASD See National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD). , a subsidiary of Calvert Group, Ltd. (10/05, 5756) |
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