How to Read a Prospectus

Whenever you purchase shares of a mutual fund - whether through your company-sponsored retirement plan or on your own - the law requires that the fund company provide you with a prospectus. But why wait until after you have bought shares of a mutual fund? Investment professionals maintain that the best time to read the prospectus is before you invest a single dollar.

Information	Where to find it	What it tells you
Date of Issue	Date of Issue front cover	whether you have the very latest information on the fund's objectives, fees and expenses and performance history fund companies must update their prospectuses at least once a year, so always check to make sure you're looking at the most recent version.
Investment Objectives and Goals	near the front	goals of the fund - growth, value, blend, other? where the money is invested - asset classes (e.g., stocks, bonds, cash, real estate, etc.) and styles (e.g., short term, long term, domestic, international, capitalization, etc.).
Risk/Return Bar Chart and Table	near the front	the fund's annual total returns for each of the last 10 years (or for the life of the fund if it's less than 10) a table that shows both pretax and after-tax returns for the past one-, five- and 10-year periods and returns for an appropriate benchmark index for comparison purposes keep in mind: For funds with multiple share classes, this information is usually shown for just one share class.
Fees and Expenses	following the Risk/Return Bar Chart and Table	how much you're paying to invest in the fund - from your initial investment to any transaction expenses and operating fees an example that will help you compare costs among different funds by showing you the costs associated with investing a hypothetical $10,000 over a one-, three-, five- and 10-year period.
Financial Highlights	toward the back	audited data on the fund's performance over the last five years net asset values for both the beginning and end of each period total returns various ratios, including: expenses to average net assets; net income to average net assets; portfolio turnover rate.

The prospectus is the fund's primary selling document. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires funds to include certain categories of information and present key data in a standard format so investors can more easily compare different investment options. This format can look intimidating, but knowing the basics beneath all that fine print makes reading it a little easier.

For complete information about any of the mutual funds available within your retirement plan, please call 1-800-345-2345. Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the fund. Please read the prospectus that contains this and other important information before you invest or send money.

Recordkeeping and administrative services for the plan are provided by J.P. Morgan Retirement Plan Services.

This material is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, lending, ERISA, legal or investment advice. A professional should be sought for all such matters. Nothing in the Education Section of the web site should be construed as a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell any security. While sources of information are believed to be reliable, JPMorgan Retirement Plan Services does not warrant or guarantee the information. Where assumptions have been made, they are hypothetical in nature and not representative any particular security. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results and investing in securities involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

Did you know?

In 1927, Charles Lindbergh fascinated the world with his history-making flight. Taking off from New York in the Spirit of St. Louis on May 20, 1927, Lindbergh became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean when he landed in Paris less than 34 hours later. The cost of the flight was underwritten by the partners of JPMorgan & Co.