Putnam
New Century
Growth
Fund*
SEMIANNUAL REPORT ON PERFORMANCE AND OUTLOOK
12-31-99
*Formerly Putnam Investment Fund 98
[LOGO: BOSTON * LONDON * TOKYO]
From the Chairman
[GRAPHIC OMITTED: PHOTO OF GEORGE PUTNAM]
[copyright] Karsh, Ottawa
Dear Shareholder:
I am pleased to bring you this first report of Putnam New Century Growth
Fund, whose shares have recently become available to the public. As you
can see, the fund provided extraordinary returns during the semiannual
period just ended. While we are pleased with the results, we must caution
that returns of this magnitude should not become a regular expectation.
Even so, we remain confident that you will find the fund's long-term
prospects quite satisfying.
This will also be the only letter to you and the other shareholders of
Putnam New Century Growth Fund that I will be signing. After more than 30
years as Chairman of the Trustees and President of the Putnam Funds, the
time has come for me to step aside. In June, John Hill will become
Chairman. John is currently an independent Trustee and has served on the
board for the past 14 years. In addition, my son, George Putnam, III, will
take on the role of President. I am confident that the leadership of the
funds will be in exceptionally strong hands.
I will become Chairman Emeritus, remain a Putnam shareholder, and stay in
close touch with the funds. It has been my privilege to serve you.
Respectfully yours,
/S/GEORGE PUTNAM
George Putnam
Chairman of the Trustees
February 16, 2000
Report from the Fund Managers
Roland W. Gillis
Charles H. Swanberg
Shortly after the close of the semiannual period, as the year 2000 got
underway, Putnam New Century Growth Fund made its public debut. The fund,
which became available to all investors on January 21, 2000, began
operations in February 1998 as a fund available to employees of Putnam
Investments. Since its inception, the fund has delivered strong returns
thanks to strategic stock selection and an extremely favorable environment
for the types of companies on which it has focused.
The fund's name reflects its strategy -- the new century offers remarkable
growth potential and an astonishing array of companies are poised to
capitalize on the newest growth trends. The fund is designed to sort
through this maze of investment choices and target the strongest, most
promising, rapidly growing companies. It invests in sectors ranging from
the newest Internet, software, and telecommunications companies to more
traditional businesses such as broadcasting, retail, finance, and
electronics. The fund's portfolio may contain varying amounts of small-,
midsize-, or large-company stocks. This flex-cap style allows us to adjust
the portfolio for changing market conditions.
During the six months ended December 31, 1999, Putnam New Century Growth
Fund capitalized on a robust environment for growth stocks. Technology,
one of the strongest performing sectors of the U.S. equity market,
represented a significant portion of the fund's net assets at the close of
the period. Strong stock selection within this sector as well as in
consumer and communications services contributed to strong returns.
Total return for 6 months ended 12/31/99
Class A Class B Class C Class M
NAV POP NAV CDSC NAV CDSC NAV POP
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
98.73% 87.25% -- -- -- -- -- --
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------
Past performance is no indication of future results. Performance
information for longer periods and explanation of performance calculation
methods begin on page 5. The inception date for class B, class M, and
class C shares is 1/21/00. Performance for these share classes will be
included in the fund's annual report for the 12 months ended 6/30/00.
[GRAPHIC OMITTED: horizontal bar chart TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS]
TOP INDUSTRY SECTORS*
Software 22.7%
Electronics 13.1%
Technology
services 12.8%
Computers 8.8%
Communications
equipment 6.9%
Footnote reads:
*Based on net assets as of 12/31/99. Holdings will vary over time.
* TECHNOLOGY IS DOMINANT GROWTH FORCE
At the close of the fiscal period, the U.S. equity market was basking in
the glow of record-breaking 1999 performance from many major indexes. The
Nasdaq Composite Index -- a common measure of technology stocks -- rose
85.6% in the 1999 calendar year, the biggest annual gain for a major
market index in U.S. history. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained
25.2% in 1999, a record fifth year in a row that the blue-chip index
posted a double-digit percentage gain. And the S&P 500 Index rose 19.5%,
also a record fifth straight year of double-digit gains.
The frenzy surrounding the Internet -- and investors' love affair with
"dot-com" stocks -- continued to be a major theme for the U.S. equity
market. When selecting Internet stocks for your fund's portfolio, as with
any other holdings, we are careful to seek leaders with healthy business
models, strong management teams, and solid footholds in profitable
markets. One stellar example from the fund's portfolio is Lycos, Inc., the
fourth-largest Internet portal. The Lycos Network is a family of Web sites
that is visited by more than 30 million people each month and offers
features such as Web searching, chat rooms, e-mail, news, auctions, and
home pages. In addition to the growth potential resulting from consumer
Internet demand, we're optimistic about the company's proposed spinoff of
its international Web portal.
Also capitalizing on Internet growth are fiber-optic companies such as
fund holding Metromedia Fiber Network. Fiber optics allows for high-speed
transmission of data, video, Internet, and multimedia applications.
Metromedia has built a fiber optic communications network in North America
and plans to build networks in 16 cities throughout Europe. In addition,
the company has a strong, experienced management team. While these
holdings and others discussed in this report were viewed favorably at the
end of the fiscal period, all are subject to review and adjustment in
accordance with the fund's investment strategy and may well vary in the
future.
* BROADCASTING AND RETAIL SECTORS ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO RETURNS
In the broadcasting sector of the fund's portfolio, the stock of Citadel
Communications was an outstanding performer. Citadel, a radio broadcaster
that owns and operates commercial stations in midsize U.S. markets, has
capitalized on radio deregulation, which allows for ownership of multiple
stations. Citadel has made several recent acquisitions, vastly expanding
its presence in the northeastern United States. Citadel has also benefited
from an overall growth in advertising spending due in large part to the
strong economy and the growth of Internet marketing campaigns.
[GRAPHIC OMITTED: TOP 10 HOLDINGS]
TOP 10 HOLDINGS
VeriSign, Inc.
Computers
CMG Information Services, Inc.
Technology services
Vignette Corp.
Software
E-Tek Dynamics, Inc.
Electronics
Silknet Software, Inc.
Software
Ariba, Inc.
Computers
BroadVision, Inc.
Software
VERITAS Software Corp.
Software
QLogic Corp.
Electronics
Proxim, Inc.
Communications equipment
Footnote reads:
These holdings represent 19.3% of the fund's net assets as of 12/31/99.
Portfolio holdings will vary over time.
Among the fund's retail holdings, Gucci Group provided stellar returns. A
designer and distributor of high-end luxury accessories, Gucci operates
150 stores worldwide. The company has benefited from the strong economy as
well as its dominant brand name and global franchise.
* GROWTH DYNAMICS REMAIN EXCITING BUT VOLATILITY LIKELY
The semiannual period has provided one of the most exciting environments
in recent years for aggressive growth funds. Solid corporate earnings and
continued demand for new technology should continue to drive the major
U.S. stock indexes in the months ahead. Recovering overseas economies and
continued economic strength in the U.S. also contribute to a generally
optimistic outlook. It is important to note, however, that exceptional
periods of growth -- such as that we've experienced in the first half of
the fiscal year -- are often followed by periods of volatility. In
addition, a much-anticipated series of Federal Reserve Board interest-rate
increases could temper stock gains. With these factors in mind, we enter
the second half of fiscal 2000 with a strategic eye on market conditions
and will take advantage of the fund's flex-cap strategy to adjust the
portfolio accordingly.
The views expressed here are exclusively those of Putnam Management. They
are not meant as investment advice. Although the described holdings were
viewed favorably as of 12/31/99, there is no guarantee the fund will
continue to hold these securities in the future. The fund invests all or a
portion of its assets in small and midsize companies. Such investments
increase the risk of greater price fluctuations.
Performance summary
This section provides information about your fund's performance, which should
always be considered in light of its investment strategy. Putnam New Century
Growth Fund is designed for investors seeking capital appreciation by investing
primarily in the equity securities of companies of all sizes.
TOTAL RETURNS FOR PERIODS ENDED 12/31/99
Fund's class A shares
(inception: 2/17/98) Russell Midcap Consumer
NAV POP Growth Index price index
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
6 months 98.73% 87.25% 32.49% 1.56%
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 year 166.17 150.78 51.29 2.80
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Life of fund 246.95 226.95 81.59 4.46
Annual average 94.50 88.42 36.58 2.30
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Past performance is no assurance of future results. More recent returns
may be more or less than those shown. Returns for class A shares reflect
the current maximum initial sales charge of 5.75%. The inception date for
class B, class M, and class C shares is 1/21/00. Performance for these
share classes will be included in the fund's annual report for the 12
months ended 6/30/00. All returns assume reinvestment of distributions at
NAV. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an
investor's shares when redeemed may be worth more or less than their
original cost. For a portion of this period, the fund was offered on a
limited basis and had limited assets. The short-term results of a
relatively new fund are not necessarily indicative of its long-term
performance.
PRICE AND DISTRIBUTION INFORMATION 6 MONTHS ENDED 12/31/99
Class A
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Distributions (number) 1
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Income --
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Capital gains
Long term $0.619
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Short term 2.212
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Total $2.831
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Share value: NAV POP
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
6/30/99 $14.84 $15.75
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
12/31/99 26.29 27.89
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
The inception date for class B, class M, and class C shares is 1/21/00.
Price and distribution information for these share classes will be
included in the fund's annual report for the 12 months ended 6/30/00.
Terms and definitions
Total return shows how the value of the fund's shares changed over time,
assuming you held the shares through the entire period and reinvested all
distributions in the fund.
Class A shares are generally subject to an initial sales charge.
Class B shares may be subject to a sales charge upon redemption.
Class C shares are not subject to an initial sales charge and are subject
to a contingent deferred sales charge only if the shares are redeemed
during the first year.
Class M shares have a lower initial sales charge and a higher 12b-1 fee
than class A shares and no sales charge on redemption.
Net asset value (NAV) is the value of all your fund's assets, minus any
liabilities, divided by the number of outstanding shares, not including
any initial or contingent deferred sales charge.
Public offering price (POP) is the price of a mutual fund share plus the
maximum sales charge levied at the time of purchase. POP performance
figures shown here assume the 5.75% maximum sales charge for class A
shares and 3.50% for class M shares.
Contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) is a charge applied at the time of
the redemption of class B or C shares and assumes redemption at the end of
the period. Your fund's class B CDSC declines from a 5% maximum during the
first year to 1% during the sixth year. After the sixth year, the CDSC no
longer applies. The CDSC for class C shares is 1% for one year after
purchase.
Comparative benchmarks
Consumer price index (CPI) is a commonly used measure of inflation; it
does not represent an investment return.
Russell Midcap Growth Index measures the performance of Russell Midcap
Index companies with higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted
growth values. The index assumes reinvestment of all distributions and
interest payments and does not take in account brokerage fees or taxes.
Securities in the fund do not match those in the index and performance of
the fund will differ. It is not possible to invest directly in an index.
Welcome to www.putnaminv.com
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VISIT PUTNAM'S SITE ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB FOR:
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New features will be added to the site regularly. So be sure to bookmark us at
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A guide to the financial statements
These sections of the report constitute the fund's financial
statements.
The fund's portfolio lists all the fund's investments and their values as
of the last day of the reporting period. Holdings are organized by asset
type and industry sector, country, or state to show areas of concentration
and diversification.
Statement of assets and liabilities shows how the fund's net assets and
share price are determined. All investment and noninvestment assets are
added together. Any unpaid expenses and other liabilities are subtracted
from this total. The result is divided by the number of shares to
determine the net asset value per share, which is calculated separately
for each class of shares. (For funds with preferred shares, the amount
subtracted from total assets includes the net assets allocated to
remarketed preferred shares.)
Statement of operations shows the fund's net investment gain or loss for
the reporting period. This is determined by adding up all the fund's
earnings -- from dividends and interest income -- and subtracting its
operating expenses. This statement also lists any net gain or loss the
fund realized on the sales of its holdings and -- for holdings that remain
in the portfolio -- any change in unrealized gains or losses over the
period.
Statement of changes in net assets shows how the fund's net assets were
affected by distributions to shareholders and by changes in the number of
the fund's shares. It lists distributions and their sources (net
investment income or realized capital gains) over the current reporting
period and the most recent fiscal year-end. The distributions listed here
may not match the sources listed in the Statement of operations because
the distributions are determined on a tax basis and may be paid in a
different period from the one in which they were earned.
Financial highlights provide an overview of the fund's investment results,
per-share distributions, expense ratios, net investment income ratios and
portfolio turnover in one summary table, reflecting the five most recent
reporting periods. In a semiannual report, the highlight table also
includes the current reporting period. For open-end funds, a separate
table is provided for each share class.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
The fund's portfolio
December 31, 1999 (Unaudited)
COMMON STOCKS (99.4%) (a)
NUMBER OF SHARES VALUE
<S> <C> <C>
Advertising and Marketing Services (2.1%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
453 DoubleClick, Inc.(NON) $ 114,637
1,600 Engage Technologies, Inc. (NON) 96,000
800 Interep National Radio Sales, Inc. (NON) 10,700
909 Lamar Advertising Co. (NON) 55,051
-------------
276,388
Airlines (0.5%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,150 Ryanair Holdings, PLC ADR (Ireland) 63,394
Banking (0.4%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
830 Fifth Third Bancorp 60,901
Beverages (0.7%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
700 Itoen, Ltd. (Japan) 97,896
Biotechnology (0.3%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
360 Sepracor, Inc. (NON) 35,708
Broadcasting (5.5%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2,400 Acme Communications, Inc. (NON) 79,800
850 Citadel Communications Corp. (NON) 55,144
1,680 Cumulus Media, Inc. Class A (NON) 85,260
270 Echostar Communications Corp. Class A (NON) 26,325
1,735 Entercom Communications Corp. (NON) 114,510
500 Infinity Broadcasting Corp. Class A (NON) 18,094
1,400 Pegasus Communications Corp. (NON) 136,850
1,590 Radio One, Inc. (NON) 146,280
1,270 Salem Communications Corp. Class A (NON) 28,734
700 WestWood One, Inc. (NON) 53,200
-------------
744,197
Cable Television (1.0%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
400 AT&T Corp. -- Liberty Media Group (NON) 22,700
100 Insight Communications Company, Inc. (NON) 2,963
950 ValueVision International, Inc. (NON) 54,447
1,050 Worldgate Communications, Inc. (NON) 49,941
-------------
130,051
Commercial and Consumer Services (2.1%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
860 Cintas Corp. 45,688
1,250 Convergys Corp. (NON) 38,438
200 eBenX, Inc. (NON) 9,050
1,300 Harris Interactive, Inc. (NON) 16,981
1,000 InterVU, Inc. (NON) 105,000
100 Management Neetwork Group, Inc. (The) (NON) 3,263
1,020 NCO Group, Inc. 30,728
750 Sykes Enterprises, Inc. (NON) 32,906
-------------
282,054
Communications Equipment (6.9%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,100 Brocade Communications Systems (NON) 194,700
825 Comverse Technology, Inc. (NON) 119,419
1,300 Extreme Networks, Inc. (NON) 108,550
451 Juniper Networks, Inc. (NON) 153,340
400 Oy Nokia AB Class A (Finland) 72,432
1,800 Proxim, Inc. (NON) 198,000
450 Reback Networks Inc. (NON) 79,875
-------------
926,316
Computers (8.8%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,300 Ariba, Inc. (NON) 230,588
900 Dell Computer Corp. (NON) 45,900
1,000 Gateway, Inc. (NON) 72,063
100 Intertrust Technologies Corp. (NON) 11,763
2,600 McAfee.com Corp. (NON) 117,000
1,750 Parametric Technology Corp. (NON) 47,359
910 RealNetworks, Inc. (NON) 109,484
1,900 Symantec Corp. (NON) 111,388
2,280 VeriSign, Inc. (NON) 435,338
-------------
1,180,883
Consumer Services (3.3%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
800 Be Free, Inc. (NON) 57,500
200 Freemarkets, Inc. (NON) 68,263
100 Mediaplex, Inc. (NON) 6,275
1,500 Multex.com, Inc. (NON) 56,438
740 Omnicom Group, Inc. 74,000
350 Stamps.com, Inc. (NON) 14,569
750 VerticalNet, Inc. (NON) 123,000
650 Young & Rubicam, Inc. 45,988
-------------
446,033
Cosmetics (0.2%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
100 Fancl Corp. (Japan) 26,815
Distribution (0.4%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
15,000 Hanover Direct, Inc. (NON) 54,375
Electronics (13.1%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2,800 Act Manufacturing, Inc. (NON) 105,000
860 Altera Corp. (NON) 42,624
620 Applied Micro Circuits Corp. (NON) 78,895
1,080 Celestica, Inc. (Canada) 59,940
1,850 E-Tek Dynamics, Inc. (NON) 249,056
1,000 Emulex Corp. (NON) 112,500
1,120 Flextronics International, Ltd. (NON) 51,520
1,405 Jabil Circuit, Inc. (NON) 102,565
100 Keyence Corp (Japan) 40,615
810 Linear Technology Corp. 57,966
1,560 Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. (NON) 73,613
4,400 Nanometrics, Inc. (NON) 88,550
655 Optical Coating Laboratory, Inc. 193,880
1,270 QLogic Corp. (NON) 203,041
100 Sanmina Corp. (NON) 9,988
1,600 Silicon Image, Inc. (NON) 112,100
320 Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. (NON) 16,780
3,000 Zoran Corp. (NON) 167,250
-------------
1,765,883
Entertainment (0.2%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
910 SFX Entertainment, Inc. Class A (NON) 32,931
Financial (2.1%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
150 Aiful Corp. (Japan) (NON) 18,350
2,297 Intuit, Inc. (NON) 137,676
459 Marschollek, Lautenschlaeger und Partner AG (Germany) 120,518
-------------
276,544
Health Care Services (0.8%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7,500 Health Management Assoc., Inc. (NON) 100,313
400 SonoSite, Inc. (NON) 12,650
-------------
112,963
Investment Banking/Brokerage (1.3%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,600 Knight/Trimark Group, Inc. (NON) 73,600
2,700 Schwab (Charles) Corp. 103,613
-------------
177,213
Media (0.1%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
200 OpenTV Corp. (NON) 16,050
Medical Supplies and Devices (0.5%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
870 Medtronic, Inc. 31,701
1,200 Mentor Corp. 30,975
-------------
62,676
Medical Technology (0.5%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
530 Minimed, Inc. (NON) 38,823
390 Stryker Corp. 27,154
-------------
65,977
Publishing (0.2%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
100 Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co., Ltd. (Japan) 33,666
Restaurants (0.9%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,695 PizzaExpress PLC (United Kingdom) 20,057
4,350 Starbucks Corp. (NON) 105,488
-------------
125,545
Retail (4.2%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
350 American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NON) 15,750
1,600 Ames Department Stores, Inc. (NON) 46,100
300 Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. (NON) 10,425
800 CDW Computer Centers, Inc. (NON) 62,900
1,540 Dollar Tree Stores, Inc. (NON) 74,594
2,650 Factory 2-U Stores, Inc. (NON) 75,194
360 Fastenal Co. 16,178
450 Gucci Group N.V. (Netherlands) 51,525
397 Kohls Corp. (NON) 28,658
850 Linens 'N Things, Inc. (NON) 25,181
4,900 Office Depot, Inc. (NON) 53,594
200 Shimamura Co., Ltd. (Japan) 31,709
500 Tiffany & Co. 44,625
1,363 Tuesday Morning Corp. (NON) 25,130
-------------
561,563
Schools (0.2%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,300 Apollo Group, Inc. Class A (NON) 26,081
Semiconductor (1.8%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
170 Applied Materials, Inc. (NON) 21,537
300 ASM Lithography Holding N.V. (Netherlands) 34,125
250 KLA Tencor Corp. (NON) 27,844
4,200 LTX Corp. (NON) 93,975
3,300 Zygo Corp. (NON) 66,413
-------------
243,894
Software (22.7%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
860 Agile Software Corp. (NON) 186,822
1,265 BroadVision, Inc. (NON) 215,129
100 Digimarc Corp. (NON) 5,000
690 E.piphany, Inc. (NON) 153,956
1,020 Exchange Applications, Inc. (NON) 56,993
600 I2 Technologies, Inc. (NON) 117,000
1,060 Informatica Corp. (NON) 112,758
100 Interwoven, Inc. (NON) 12,163
1,800 Macromedia, Inc. (NON) 131,625
100 Metasolv Software, Inc. (NON) 8,175
2,950 Misys PLC (United Kingdom) 45,986
2,990 Netegrity, Inc. (NON) 170,243
900 Oracle Corp. (NON) 100,856
1,350 Phone.com, Inc. (NON) 156,516
1,000 Portal Software, Inc. (NON) 102,875
1,160 Quest Software, Inc. (NON) 118,320
1,650 Rational Software Corp. (NON) 81,056
1,500 Silknet Software, Inc. (NON) 248,625
90 SilverStream Software, Inc. (NON) 10,710
200 Softbank Corp. (Japan) 191,427
1,800 Software.com, Inc. (NON) 172,800
100 VA Linux Systems, Inc. (NON) 20,663
1,500 VERITAS Software Corp. (NON) 214,688
1,550 Vignette Corp. (NON) 252,650
400 Vitria Technology, Inc. (NON) 93,600
950 WebTrends Corp. (NON) 76,950
-------------
3,057,586
Technology Services (12.8%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
400 About.com, Inc. (NON) 35,900
650 Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. Class A (NON) 29,900
700 America Online, Inc. (NON) 52,806
3,280 Capita Group PLC (United Kingdom) 59,608
100 C-Bridge Internet Solutions, Inc. (NON) 4,863
1,250 CMG Information Services, Inc. (NON) 346,094
1,850 CNET, Inc. (NON) 104,988
800 InfoSpace.com, Inc. (NON) 171,200
2,425 Lycos, Inc. (NON) 192,939
350 MarketWatch.com, Inc. (NON) 12,775
2,400 Network Event Theater, Inc. (NON) 71,400
804 Proxicom, Inc. (NON) 99,947
900 Sapient Corp. (NON) 126,844
950 SportsLine USA, Inc. (NON) 47,619
1,121 Usinternetworking, Inc. (NON) 78,330
1,500 Viant Corp. (NON0 148,500
195 Yahoo!, Inc. (NON) 84,374
3,100 Zamba Corp. (NON) 53,863
350 Ziff-Davis, Inc. (NON) 7,350
-------------
1,729,300
Telecommunications (4.8%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
200 Allegiance Telecom, Inc. (NON) 18,450
1,715 Covad Communications Group 144A (NON) 95,933
2,000 Global Crossing, Ltd. (NON) 100,000
1,640 Metromedia Fiber Network, Inc. Class A (NON) 78,618
1,850 NEXTLINK Communications, Inc. Class A (NON) 153,650
737 NTL, Inc. (NON) 91,941
2,400 Pinnacle Holdings, Inc. (NON) 101,700
-------------
640,292
Textiles (0.4%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,100 Nike, Inc. 54,519
Transaction Processing (0.6%)
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
400 CheckFree Holdings Corp. (NON) 41,800
1,480 Concord EFS, Inc. (NON) 38,110
-------------
79,910
-------------
Total Common Stocks (cost $7,114,244) $ 13,387,604
SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS (0.7%) (a) (cost $94,000)
PRINCIPAL AMOUNT VALUE
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
$94,000 Interest in $624,736,000 joint repurchase agreement dated
December 31, 1999 with Warburg Securities due
January 3, 2000 with respect to various U.S. Treasury
obligations -- maturity value of $94,022 for an effective
yield of 2.75% $ 94,000
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Investments (cost $7,208,244) (b) $ 13,481,604
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(a) Percentages indicated are based on net assets of $13,468,126.
(b) The aggregate identified cost on a tax basis is $7,229,477, resulting in gross unrealized appreciation and
depreciation of $6,401,888 and $149,761, respectively, or net unrealized appreciation of $6,252,127.
(NON) Non-income-producing security.
144A after the name of a security represents those exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act
of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified
institutional buyers.
ADR after the name of a foreign holding stands for American Depositary Receipts, representing ownership of foreign
securities on deposit with a domestic custodian bank.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Statement of assets and liabilities
December 31, 1999 (Unaudited)
<S> <C>
Assets
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Investments in securities, at value
(identified cost $7,208,244) (Note 1) $13,481,604
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cash 4,271
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dividends, interest and other receivables 577
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Receivable for securities sold 84,829
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Receivable for shares of the fund sold 50,937
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total assets 13,622,218
Liabilities
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for securities purchased 71,568
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for shares of the fund repurchased 54,834
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for compensation of Manager (Note 2) 2,162
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for investor servicing and custodian fees (Note 2) 5,722
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for compensation of Trustees (Note 2) 605
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Payable for administrative services (Note 2) 10
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other accrued expenses 19,191
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total liabilities 154,092
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net assets $13,468,126
Represented by
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paid-in capital (Notes 1 and 4) $6,673,777
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Accumulated net investment loss (Note 1) (27,686)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Accumulated net realized gain on investments (Note 1) 548,675
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net unrealized appreciation of investments 6,273,360
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total -- Representing net assets applicable to
capital shares outstanding $13,468,126
Computation of net asset value and offering price
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net asset value and redemption price per share
($13,468,126 divided by 512,326 shares) $26.29
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Offering price per share (100/94.25 of $26.29)* $27.89
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* On single retail sales of less than $50,000. On sales of $50,000 or more and on group
sales, the offering price is reduced.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Statement of operations
Six months ended December 31, 1999 (Unaudited)
<S> <C>
Investment income:
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interest (net of foreign tax of $26) $ 5,368
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dividends 2,147
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total investment income 7,515
Expenses:
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Compensation of Manager (Note 2) 26,353
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Investor servicing and custodian fees (Note 2) 9,503
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Compensation of Trustees (Note 2) 1,146
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Administrative services (Note 2) 20
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reports to shareholders 2,479
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Registration fees 836
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Auditing 18,106
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Legal 2,083
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Postage 82
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other 68
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fees waived and reimbursed by Manager (Note 2) (23,030)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total expenses 37,646
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Expense reduction (Note 2) (2,445)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net expenses 35,201
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net investment loss (27,686)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net realized gain on investments (Notes 1 and 3) 1,213,414
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net unrealized appreciation of investments during the period 4,958,968
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net gain on investments 6,172,382
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net increase in net assets resulting from operations $6,144,696
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Statement of changes in net assets
Six months ended Year ended
December 31 June 30
1999* 1999
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C>
Increase in net assets
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operations:
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net investment loss $ (27,686) $ (26,584)
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net realized gain on investments 1,213,414 697,252
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net unrealized appreciation of investments 4,958,968 909,486
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net increase in net assets resulting from operations 6,144,696 1,580,154
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Distributions to shareholders:
From net realized gain on investments (1,328,175) --
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Increase from capital share transactions (Note 4) 3,222,576 893,580
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total increase in net assets 8,039,097 2,473,734
Net assets
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beginning of period 5,429,029 2,955,295
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End of period (including accumulated
net investment loss of $27,686, and $--, respectively) $13,468,126 $5,429,029
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Unaudited
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Financial highlights
(For a share outstanding throughout the period)
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Six months
ended For the period
Per-share December 31 Year ended Feb. 17, 1998+
operating performance (Unaudited) June 30 to June 30
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1999 1999 1998
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C>
Net asset value,
beginning of period $14.84 $9.87 $8.50
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Investment operations
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net investment loss (a)(b) (.07) (.08) (.02)
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net realized and unrealized
gain on investments 14.35 5.05 1.39
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total from
investment operations 14.28 4.97 1.37
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Less distributions:
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From net realized gain
on investments (2.83) -- --
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total distributions (2.83) -- --
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net asset value,
end of period $26.29 $14.84 $9.87
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ratios and supplemental data
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total return at
net asset value (%)(c) 98.73* 50.35 16.12*
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net assets, end of period
(in thousands) $13,468 $5,429 $2,955
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ratio of expenses to
average net assets (%) (a)(d) .50* 1.00 .37*
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ratio of net investment loss
to average net assets (%) (a) (.37)* (.76) (.25)*
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Portfolio turnover (%) 72.26* 207.77 72.22*
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
+ Commencement of operations.
* Not annualized.
(a) Reflects an expense limitation in effect during the period. As a result of such limitation, expenses for the fund reflect
a reduction of $0.06, $0.08 and $0.06 per share, for the periods ended December 31, 1999, June 30, 1999 and June 30, 1998,
respectively. (see Note 2)
(b) Per share net investment loss has been determined on the basis of the weighted average number of shares during the period.
(c) Total return assumes dividend reinvestment and does not reflect the effect of sales charges.
(d) Includes amounts paid through expense offset arrangements. (Note 2)
</TABLE>
Notes to financial statements
December 31, 1999 (Unaudited)
Note 1
Significant accounting policies
Putnam New Century Growth Fund (formerly Putnam Investment Fund 98) (the
"fund") is a series of Putnam Funds Trust (the "Trust") which is
registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, as a
diversified, open-end management investment company. The objective of the
fund is to seek long-term growth of capital by investing primarily in
equity securities of companies that Putnam Investment Management, Inc.
("Putnam Management"), the fund's manager, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Putnam Investments, Inc., believes have potential for capital appreciation
which is significantly greater than that of the market averages.
Effective January 21, 2000, Putnam Investment Fund 98 has changed its name
to Putnam New Century Growth Fund and began offering class B, class C, and
class M shares.
The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently
followed by the fund in the preparation of its financial statements. The
preparation of financial statements is in conformity with generally
accepted accounting principles and requires management to make estimates
and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and
liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
A) Security valuation Investments for which market quotations are readily
available are stated at market value, which is determined using the last
reported sales price on its principal exchange, or if no sales are
reported -- as in the case of some securities traded over-the-counter --
the last reported bid price. Securities quoted in foreign currencies are
translated into U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate. Short-term
investments having remaining maturities of 60 days or less are stated at
amortized cost, which approximates market value. Other investments,
including restricted securities, are stated at fair value following
procedures approved by the Trustees.
B) Joint trading account Pursuant to an exemptive order issued by the
Securities and Exchange Commission, the fund may transfer uninvested cash
balances into a joint trading account along with the cash of other
registered investment companies and certain other accounts managed by
Putnam Management. These balances may be invested in one or more
repurchase agreements and/or short-term money market instruments.
C) Repurchase agreements The fund, or any joint trading account, through
its custodian, receives delivery of the underlying securities, the market
value of which at the time of purchase is required to be in an amount at
least equal to the resale price, including accrued interest. Collateral
for certain tri-party repurchase agreements is held at the counterparty's
custodian in a segregated account for the benefit of the fund and the
counterparty. Putnam Management is responsible for determining that the
value of these underlying securities is at all times at least equal to the
resale price, including accrued interest.
D) Security transactions and related investment income Security
transactions are accounted for on the trade date (date the order to buy or
sell is executed). Gains or losses on securities sold are determined on
the identified cost basis. Interest income is recorded on the accrual
basis. Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date except that
certain dividends from foreign securities are recorded as soon as the fund
is informed of the ex-dividend date.
E) Line of credit The fund has entered into a committed line of credit
with certain banks. This line of credit agreement includes restrictions
that the fund maintain an asset coverage ratio of at least 300% and
borrowings must not exceed prospectus limitations. For the six months
ended December 31, 1999, the fund had no borrowings against the line of
credit.
F) Federal taxes It is the policy of the fund to distribute all of its
taxable income within the prescribed time and otherwise comply with the
provisions of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to regulated investment
companies. It is also the intention of the fund to distribute an amount
sufficient to avoid imposition of any excise tax under Section 4982 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Therefore, no provision has
been made for federal taxes on income, capital gains or unrealized
appreciation on securities held nor for excise tax on income and capital
gains.
G) Distributions to shareholders Distributions to shareholders from net
investment income are recorded by the fund on the ex-dividend date.
Capital gain distributions, if any, are recorded on the ex-dividend date
and paid at least annually. The amount and character of income and gains
to be distributed are determined in accordance with income tax regulations
which may differ from generally accepted accounting principles.
Reclassifications are made to the fund's capital accounts to reflect
income and gains available for distribution (or available capital loss
carryovers) under income tax regulations.
H) Expenses of the trust Expenses directly charged or attributable to any
fund will be paid from the assets of that fund. Generally, expenses of the
trust will be allocated among and charged to the assets of each fund on a
basis that the Trustees deem fair and equitable, which may be based on the
relative assets of each fund or the nature of the services performed and
relative applicability to each fund.
Note 2
Management fee, administrative
services and other transactions
Compensation of Putnam Management, for management and investment advisory
services is paid quarterly based on the average net assets of the fund.
Such fee is based on the following annual rates: 0.70% of the first $500
million of average net assets, 0.60% of the next $500 million, 0.55% of
the next $500 million, 0.50% of the next $5 billion, 0.475% of the next $5
billion, 0.455% of the next $5 billion, 0.44% of the next $5 billion, and
0.43% thereafter.
Putnam Management has agreed to limit its compensation (and, to the extent
necessary, bear other expenses) through June 30, 2000, to the extent that
expenses of the fund (exclusive of brokerage commissions, interest, taxes,
deferred organizational and extraordinary expense, credits from Putnam
Fiduciary Trust Company (PFTC), a subsidiary of Putnam Investments, Inc.
and payments under the Trust's distribution plan) would exceed an annual
rate of 1.00% of the fund's average net assets.
The fund reimburses Putnam Management an allocated amount for the
compensation and related expenses of certain officers of the fund and
their staff who provide administrative services to the fund. The aggregate
amount of all such reimbursements is determined annually by the Trustees.
Custodial functions for the fund's assets are provided by Putnam Fiduciary
Trust Company (PFTC). Investor servicing agent functions are provided by
Putnam Investor Services, a division of PFTC.
For the six months ended December 31, 1999, fund expenses were reduced by
$2,445 under expense offset arrangements with PFTC and brokerage service
arrangements. Investor servicing and custodian fees reported in the
Statement of operations exclude these credits. The fund could have
invested a portion of the assets utilized in connection with the expense
offset arrangements in an income producing asset if it had not entered
into such arrangements.
Each Trustee of the fund receives an annual Trustee fee, of which $100 has
been allocated to the fund, and an additional fee for each Trustee's
meeting attended. Trustees receive additional fees for attendance at
certain committee meetings.
The fund has adopted a Trustee Fee Deferral Plan (the "Deferral Plan")
which allows the Trustees to defer the receipt of all or a portion of
Trustees Fee payable on or after July 1, 1995. The deferred fees remain
invested in certain Putnam funds until distribution in accordance with the
Deferral Plan.
The fund has adopted an unfunded noncontributory defined benefit pension
plan (the "Pension Plan") covering all Trustees of the fund who have
served as a Trustee for at least five years. Benefits under the Pension
Plan are equal to 50% of the Trustee's average total retainer and meeting
fees for the three years preceding retirement. Pension expense for the
fund is included in Compensation of Trustees in the Statement of
operations. Accrued pension liability is included in Payable for
compensation of Trustees in the Statement of assets and liabilities.
The fund has adopted a distribution plan (the "Plan") pursuant to Rule
12b-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The purpose of the Plan is
to compensate Putnam Mutual Funds Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Putnam Investments, Inc., for services provided and expenses incurred by
it in distributing shares of the fund. The Plan provides for payment by
the fund to Putnam Mutual Funds Corp. at an annual rate of up to 0.35% of
the fund's average net assets. The fund is not currently making any
payments pursuant to the plan.
For the six months ended December 31, 1999, Putnam Mutual Funds Corp.,
acting as underwriter received no monies from the sale of shares of the
fund.
Note 3
Purchases and sales of securities
During the six months ended December 31, 1999, cost of purchases and
proceeds from sales of investment securities other than short-term
investments aggregated $7,375,736 and $5,371,498, respectively. There were
no purchases and sales of U.S. government obligations.
Note 4
Capital shares
At December 31, 1999, there was an unlimited number of shares of
beneficial interest authorized. Transactions in capital shares were as
follows:
Six months ended December 31, 1999
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares Amount
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares sold 137,701 $2,961,177
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares issued in
connection with
reinvestment of
distributions 57,126 1,328,175
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
194,827 4,289,352
Shares
repurchased (48,265) (1,066,776)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net increase 146,562 $3,222,576
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year ended June 30, 1999
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares Amount
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares sold 102,912 $1,249,914
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shares issued in
connection with
reinvestment of
distributions -- --
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
102,912 1,249,914
Shares
repurchased (36,675) (356,334)
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Net increase 66,237 $ 893,580
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Putnam family of funds
The following is a complete list of Putnam's open-end mutual funds. Please
call your financial advisor or Putnam at 1-800-225-1581 to obtain a prospectus
for any Putnam fund. It contains more complete information, including charges
and expenses. Please read it carefully before you invest or send money.
GROWTH FUNDS
Asia Pacific Growth Fund
Capital Appreciation Fund [DBL. DAGGER]
Capital Opportunities Fund
Europe Growth Fund
Global Equity Fund
Global Growth Fund
Global Natural Resources Fund
Growth Opportunities Fund
Health Sciences Trust
International Growth Fund
International New Opportunities Fund
Investors Fund
New Century Growth Fund
New Opportunities Fund [DBL. DAGGER]
OTC & Emerging Growth Fund
Research Fund
Tax Smart Equity Fund
Vista Fund
Voyager Fund
Voyager Fund II
GROWTH AND INCOME FUNDS
Balanced Retirement Fund
Convertible Income-Growth Trust
Equity Income Fund
The George Putnam Fund of Boston
Global Growth and Income Fund
The Putnam Fund for Growth and Income
Growth and Income Fund II
International Growth and Income Fund
New Value Fund
Small Cap Value Fund
Utilities Growth and Income Fund
INCOME FUNDS
American Government Income Fund
Diversified Income Trust
Global Governmental Income Trust
High Yield Advantage Fund [DBL. DAGGER]
High Yield Trust [DBL. DAGGER]
High Yield Trust II
Income Fund
Intermediate U.S. Government
Income Fund
Money Market Fund **
Preferred Income Fund
Strategic Income Fund *
U.S. Government Income Trust
TAX-FREE INCOME FUNDS
Municipal Income Fund
Tax Exempt Income Fund
Tax Exempt Money Market Fund**
Tax-Free High Yield Fund
Tax-Free Insured Fund
State tax-free income funds [SECTION MARK]
Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey,
New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania
State tax-free money market funds [SECTION MARK] **
California, New York
ASSET ALLOCATION FUNDS
Putnam Asset Allocation Funds--three investment portfolios that spread your
money across a variety of stocks, bonds, and money market investments.
The three portfolios:
Asset Allocation: Balanced Portfolio
Asset Allocation: Conservative Portfolio
Asset Allocation: Growth Portfolio
* Formerly Putnam Diversified Income Trust II
[DBL. DAGGER] Closed to new investors. Some exceptions may apply. Contact
Putnam for details.
[SECTION MARK] Not available in all states.
** An investment in a money market fund is not insured or guaranteed by the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.
Although the funds seek to preserve your investment at $1.00 per share, it
is possible to lose money by investing in the fund.
Check your account balances and current performance at www.putnaminv.com.
Fund information
WEB SITE
www.putnaminv.com
INVESTMENT MANAGER
Putnam Investment Management, Inc.
One Post Office Square
Boston, MA 02109
MARKETING SERVICES
Putnam Mutual Funds Corp.
One Post Office Square
Boston, MA 02109
CUSTODIAN
Putnam Fiduciary Trust Company
LEGAL COUNSEL
Ropes & Gray
TRUSTEES
George Putnam, Chairman
William F. Pounds, Vice Chairman
John A. Hill, Vice Chairman
Jameson Adkins Baxter
Hans H. Estin
Ronald J. Jackson
Paul L. Joskow
Elizabeth T. Kennan
Lawrence J. Lasser
John H. Mullin III
Robert E. Patterson
George Putnam, III
A.J.C. Smith
W. Thomas Stephens
W. Nicholas Thorndike
OFFICERS
George Putnam
President
Charles E. Porter
Executive Vice President
Patricia C. Flaherty
Senior Vice President
John D. Hughes
Senior Vice President and Treasurer
Lawrence J. Lasser
Vice President
Gordon H. Silver
Vice President
Ian C. Ferguson
Vice President
Brett C. Browchuk
Vice President
John J. Morgan, Jr.
Vice President
Daniel L. Miller
Vice President
Roland W. Gillis
Vice President and Fund Manager
Charles H. Swanberg
Vice President and Fund Manager
Richard A. Monaghan
Vice President
John R. Verani
Vice President
This report is for the information of shareholders of Putnam New Century
Growth Fund. It may also be used as sales literature when preceded or
accompanied by the current prospectus, which gives details of sales
charges, investment objectives, and operating policies of the fund, and
the most recent copy of Putnam's Quarterly Performance Summary. For more
information or to request a prospectus, call toll free: 1-800-225-1581.
You can also learn more at Putnam Investments' Web site: www.putnaminv.com.
Shares of mutual funds are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed
or endorsed by, any financial institution; are not insured by the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Federal Reserve Board, or any
other agency; and involve risk, including the possible loss of the
principal amount invested.
[LOGO OMITTED]
PUTNAM INVESTMENTS
The Putnam Funds
One Post Office Square
Boston, Massachusetts 02109
- ---------------------
BULK RATE
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PUTNAM
INVESTMENTS
- ---------------------
For account balances, economic forecasts, and the latest on Putnam funds, visit
www.putnaminv.com
SA071-58386 2HW 2/00
