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Previous: NUVEEN TAX EXEMPT UNIT TRUST STATE SERIES 139, 24F-2NT, 2000-11-28 |
Next: KELLEY OIL CORP, SC TO-T, 2000-11-28 |
Federated Investors
World-Class Investment Manager
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A Portfolio of Federated Equity Funds
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November 30, 2000
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A mutual fund seeking moderate capital appreciation and high current income by investing in equity securities that are undervalued or out of favor, or securities that appear to have defensive characteristics (i.e., securities that appear to have low volatility in share price relative to the overall equity market during periods of market turbulence).
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As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
NOT FDIC INSURED * MAY LOSE VALUE * NO BANK GUARANTEE
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Risk/Return Summary 1
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What are the Fund's Fees and Expenses? 2
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What are the Fund's Investment Strategies? 3
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What are the Principal Securities in Which the Fund Invests? 5
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What are the Specific Risks of Investing in the Fund? 7
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What Do Shares Cost? 8
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How is the Fund Sold? 11
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How to Purchase Shares 12
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How to Redeem and Exchange Shares 15
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Account and Share Information 18
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Who Manages the Fund? 19
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Financial Information 19
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The Fund's investment objective is to achieve moderate capital appreciation and high current income.
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The Fund pursues its investment objective by investing, under normal market conditions, its assets in equity securities (including convertible securities) of companies that, in the Adviser's opinion, are undervalued or out of favor, or securities that appear to display defensive characteristics (i.e. securities that appear to have low volatility in share price relative to the overall equity market during periods of market turbulence). A description of the various types of securities in which the Fund invests, and their risks, immediately follows the strategy discussion.
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All mutual funds take investment risks. Therefore, it is possible to lose money by investing in the Fund. The primary factors that may reduce the Fund's returns include:
The Shares offered by this prospectus are not deposits or obligations of any bank, are not endorsed or guaranteed by any bank and are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. government, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other government agency.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold Shares of the Federated Market Opportunity Fund's Class A Shares, Class B Shares and Class C Shares.
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Shareholder Fees |
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Class A |
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Class B |
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Class C |
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Fees Paid Directly From Your Investment |
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Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price) |
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5.50% |
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None |
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None |
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Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of original purchase price or redemption proceeds, as applicable) |
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0.00% |
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5.50% |
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1.00% |
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Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends (and other Distributions) (as a percentage of offering price) |
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None |
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None |
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None |
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Redemption Fee (as a percentage of amount redeemed, if applicable) |
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None |
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None |
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None |
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Exchange Fee |
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None |
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None |
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None |
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (Before Waivers)1 |
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|
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Expenses That are Deducted From Fund Assets (as percentage of average net assets) |
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|
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|
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Management Fee2 |
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0.75% |
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0.75% |
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0.75% |
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Distribution (12b-1) Fee3 |
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0.25% |
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0.75% |
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0.75% |
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Shareholder Services Fee |
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0.25% |
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0.25% |
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0.25% |
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Other Expenses |
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0.80% |
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0.80% |
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0.80% |
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Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
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2.05% |
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2.55%4 |
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2.55% |
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1 Although not contractually obligated to do so, the adviser will waive certain amounts. These are shown below along with the net expenses the Fund expects to pay for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2001. |
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Total Waivers of Fund Expenses |
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0.85% |
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0.60% |
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0.60% |
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Total Actual Annual Fund Operating Expenses (after waivers) |
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1.20% |
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1.95% |
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1.95% |
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2 The adviser will voluntarily waive a portion of its management fees. The adviser can terminate this voluntary waiver at any time. The management fee to be paid by the Fund (after the voluntary waiver) will be 0.15% for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2001. |
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3 Class A Shares has no present intention of paying or accruing the distribution (12b-1) fee during the fiscal year ending October 31, 2001. |
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4 Class B Shares convert to Class A Shares (which pay lower ongoing expenses) approximately eight years after purchase. |
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This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund's Class A, Class B and Class C Shares with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund's Class A, Class B and Class C Shares for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. Expenses assuming no redemption are also shown. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's Class A, Class B and Class C Shares operating expenses are before waivers as shown in the table and remain the same. Although your actual costs and returns may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
|
Shares Class |
|
1 Year |
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3 Years |
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Class A: |
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|
|
|
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Expenses assuming redemption |
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$747 |
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$1,157 |
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Expenses assuming no redemption |
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$747 |
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$1,157 |
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Class B: |
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Expenses assuming redemption |
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$808 |
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$1,194 |
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Expenses assuming no redemption |
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$258 |
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$ 794 |
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Class C: |
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Expenses assuming redemption |
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$358 |
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$ 794 |
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Expenses assuming no redemption |
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$258 |
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$ 794 |
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|
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The Fund pursues its investment objective by investing, under normal market conditions, its assets in equity securities (including convertible securities) of companies that, in the Adviser's opinion, are undervalued or out of favor, or securities that appear to display defensive characteristics (i.e. securities that appear to have low volatility in share price relative to the overall equity market during periods of market turbulence). A description of the various types of securities in which the Fund invests, and their risks, immediately follows the strategy discussion.
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The Adviser has devised a proprietary model for assistance in identifying equity securities that have a superior risk/return tradeoff when compared to other equity securities. In selecting securities for the Fund's portfolio, the Adviser emphasizes the following: undervalued and overlooked companies that have the potential for positive changes; companies' financial strength, particularly the generation of "free" cash flow that exceeds capital spending and dividend requirements; companies' management skill and shareholder orientation; improving earnings; and equity securities of companies that demonstrate an ability to maintain their value when the broad equity market is weak.
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Companies with similar characteristics may be grouped together in broad categories called sectors. The Adviser may select securities of issuers in any sector and having any market capitalization range (i.e. number of shares multiplied by the share price). The Adviser allocates the Fund's assets among the various economic sectors based on Standard & Poor's classifications. The Adviser's allocations are based on a combination of bottom-up security selection and top-down sector emphasis. Primarily using the bottom-up approach, the Adviser searches for outstanding performance of individual stocks. The Adviser identifies such companies from research reports, stock screens or personal knowledge of the products and services. As a secondary matter, using top-down analysis, the Adviser considers current economic, financial market, and industry factors and societal trends that may affect the issuing company, in order to assist in determining sector allocations for the Fund.
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In addition, sector allocations are based on the Adviser's opinion as to which sectors are, as a whole, priced at a low market valuation ("undervalued") when compared with the other sectors. The Adviser also considers such factors as the dividend-paying potential and earnings growth potential of the companies in each sector. In order to diversify the Fund, as a general matter, the Adviser attempts to limit the Fund's exposure to each sector reflected by the Russell Mid-Cap Value Index from 0% to 300% of the Index's allocation to that sector.
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The Adviser uses the "value" style of investing, selecting securities of companies that, in the Adviser's opinion, are trading at a lower valuation in relation to their historic and current market prices, to industry peers, and to their expected future price based on projected earnings, and that therefore offer the potential for capital appreciation. Because the Adviser uses a "value" style of investing, the securities held by the Fund may not, under certain market conditions, increase as rapidly in price as stocks selected primarily for their growth attributes. However, such securities generally have lower share price volatility, and a higher yield, when compared with other equity securities.
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To determine the timing of purchases of portfolio securities, the Adviser compares the current stock price of an issuer with the Adviser's judgment as to that stock's current and expected value based on projected future earnings. The Adviser prefers to purchase a stock when it is relatively depressed, rather than after a substantial rise in price. The Adviser uses technical analysis as an aid in timing purchases and sales. The Adviser sells a portfolio security if it determines that the issuer's prospects have deteriorated, or if it finds an attractive security which the Adviser deems has superior risk and return characteristics to a security held by the Fund.
The Adviser generally purchases convertible securities and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) to provide total return and/or to enhance the Fund's income. In addition, the Adviser may invest a portion of the Fund's assets in securities of companies based outside the United States, to diversify the Fund's holdings and to gain exposure to the foreign market. Foreign holdings primarily take the form of American Depositary Receipts, which represent interests in underlying securities issued by a foreign company, but which are traded in the United States.
The Fund actively trades its portfolio securities in an attempt to achieve its investment objective. Active trading will cause the Fund to have an increased portfolio turnover rate, which is likely to generate shorter-term gains (losses) for its shareholders, which are taxed at a higher rate than longer-term gains (losses). Actively trading portfolio securities increases the Fund's trading costs and may have an adverse impact on the Fund's performance.
The Fund may temporarily depart from its principal investment strategies by investing its assets in cash and shorter-term debt securities and similar obligations. It may do this to minimize potential losses and maintain liquidity to meet shareholder redemptions during adverse market conditions. This may cause the Fund to give up greater investment returns to maintain the safety of principal, that is, the original amount invested by shareholders.
Equity securities represent a share of an issuer's earnings and assets, after the issuer pays its liabilities. The Fund cannot predict the income it will receive from equity securities because issuers generally have discretion as to the payment of any dividends or distributions. However, equity securities offer greater potential for appreciation than many other types of securities, because their value increases directly with the value of the issuer's business. The following describes the types of equity securities in which the Fund invests.
Common stocks are the most prevalent type of equity security. Common stocks receive the issuer's earnings after the issuer pays its creditors and any preferred stockholders. As a result, changes in an issuer's earnings directly influence the value of its common stock.
REITs are real estate investment trusts that lease, operate and finance commercial real estate. REITs are exempt from federal corporate income tax if they limit their operations and distribute most of their income. Such tax requirements limit a REIT's ability to respond to changes in the commercial real estate.
American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) represent interests in underlying securities issued by a foreign company. Depositary receipts are not traded in the same market as the underlying security. ADRs provide a way to buy shares of foreign-based companies in the U.S. rather than in overseas markets. ADRs are also traded in U.S. dollars, eliminating the need for foreign exchange transactions.
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Convertible securities are fixed income securities that the Fund has the option to exchange for equity securities at a specified conversion price, or which are automatically exchanged for equity securities after a specified conversion period. The option allows the Fund to realize additional returns if the market price of the equity securities exceeds the conversion price. For example, the Fund may hold fixed income securities that are convertible into shares of common stock at a conversion price of $10 per share. If the market value of the shares of common stock reached $12, the Fund could realize an additional $2 per share by converting its fixed income securities.
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Convertible securities have lower yields than comparable fixed income securities. In addition, at the time a convertible security is issued the conversion price exceeds the market value of the underlying equity securities. Thus, convertible securities may provide lower returns than non-convertible fixed income securities or equity securities depending upon changes in the price of the underlying equity securities. However, convertible securities permit the Fund to realize some of the potential appreciation of the underlying equity securities with less risk of losing its initial investment.
The Fund treats convertible securities as both fixed income and equity securities for purposes of its investment policies and limitations, because of their unique characteristics.
The Adviser will determine whether a security is investment grade based upon the credit ratings given by one or more nationally recognized rating services. For example, Standard and Poor's, a rating service, assigns ratings to investment grade securities (AAA, AA, A, and BBB) based on their assessment of the likelihood of the issuer's inability to pay interest or principal (default) when due on each security. Lower credit ratings correspond to higher credit risk. If a security has not received a rating, the Fund must rely entirely upon the Adviser's credit assessment that the security is comparable to investment grade. If a security is downgraded below the minimum quality grade discussed above, the Adviser will reevaluate the security, but will not be required to sell it.
The value of equity securities in the Fund's portfolio will rise and fall. These fluctuations could be a sustained trend or a drastic movement. The Fund's portfolio will reflect changes in prices of individual portfolio stocks or general changes in stock valuations. Consequently, the Fund's share price may decline.
The Adviser attempts to manage market risk by limiting the amount the Fund invests in each company's equity securities. However, diversification will not protect the Fund against widespread or prolonged declines in the stock market.
Due to their relatively low valuations, value stocks are typically less volatile than growth stocks. For instance, the price of a value stock may experience a smaller increase on a forecast of higher earnings, a positive fundamental development, or positive market development. Further, value stocks tend to have higher dividends than growth stocks. This means they depend less on price changes for returns and may lag behind growth stocks in an up market.
Because the Fund may invest in ADRs issued by foreign companies, the Fund's share price may be more affected by foreign economic and political conditions, taxation policies, and accounting and auditing standards, than would otherwise be the case. Foreign companies may not provide information as frequently or to as great an extent as companies in the United States. Foreign companies may also receive less coverage than United States companies by market analysts and the financial press. In addition, foreign countries may lack uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards or regulatory requirements comparable to those applicable to United States companies. These factors may prevent the Fund and its Adviser from obtaining information concerning foreign companies that is as frequent, extensive and reliable as the information available concerning companies in the United States.
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You can purchase, redeem or exchange Shares any day the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is open. When the Fund receives your transaction request in proper form (as described in the prospectus) it is processed at the next calculated net asset value (NAV) plus any applicable front-end sales charge (public offering price.) NAV is determined at the end of regular trading (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) each day the NYSE is open. The Fund generally values equity securities according to the last sale price in the market in which they are primarily traded (either a national securities exchange or the over-the-counter market). The Fund's current NAV and public offering price may be found in the mutual funds section of certain local newspapers under "Federated" and the appropriate class designation listing.
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The following table summarizes the minimum required investment amount and the maximum sales charge, if any, that you will pay on an investment in the Fund. Keep in mind that investment professionals may charge you fees for their services in connection with your Share transactions.
|
|
|
Minimum |
|
Maximum Sales Charge |
||
|
Shares Offered |
|
|
Front-End |
|
Contingent |
|
|
Class A |
|
$1,500/$100 |
|
5.50% |
|
0.00% |
|
Class B |
|
$1,500/$100 |
|
None |
|
5.50% |
|
Class C |
|
$1,500/$100 |
|
None |
|
1.00% |
1 The minimum initial and subsequent investment amounts for retirement plans are $250 and $100, respectively. The minimum subsequent investment amounts for Systematic Investment Programs is $100. Investment professionals may impose higher or lower minimum investment requirements on their customers than those imposed by the Fund. Orders for $250.000 or more will be invested in Class A Shares instead of Class B Shares to maximize your return and minimize the sales charges and marketing fees. Accounts held in the name of an investment professional may be treated differently. Class B Shares will automatically convert to Class A Shares on or around the fifteenth of the month eight full years after the purchase date. This conversion is a nontaxable event.
2 Front-End Sales Charge is expressed as a percentage of public offering price. See "Sales Charge When You Purchase."
3 See "Sales Charge When You Redeem."
|
Class A Shares |
|
|
|
|
|
Purchase Amount |
|
Sales Charge |
|
Sales Charge |
|
Less than $50,000 |
|
5.50% |
|
5.82% |
|
$50,000 but less than $100,000 |
|
4.50% |
|
4.71% |
|
$100,000 but less than $250,000 |
|
3.75% |
|
3.90% |
|
$250,000 but less than $500,000 |
|
2.50% |
|
2.56% |
|
$500,000 but less than $1 million |
|
2.00% |
|
2.04% |
|
$1 million or greater1 |
|
0.00% |
|
0.00% |
1 A contingent deferred sales charge of 0.75% of the redemption amount applies to Class A Shares redeemed up to 24 months after purchase under certain investment programs where an investment professional received an advance payment on the transaction.
If your investment qualifies for a reduction or elimination of the sales charge as described below, you or your investment professional should notify the Fund's Distributor at the time of purchase. If the Distributor is not notified, you will receive the reduced sales charge only on additional purchases, and not retroactively on previous purchases.
The sales charge at purchase may be reduced or eliminated by:
The sales charge will be eliminated when you purchase Shares:
Your redemption proceeds may be reduced by a sales charge, commonly referred to as a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC).
|
Class A Shares: |
|
|
|
A CDSC of 0.75% of the redemption amount applies to Class A Shares redeemed up to 24 months after purchase under certain investment programs where an investment professional received an advance payment on the transaction. |
||
|
Class B Shares: |
|
|
|
Shares Held Up To: |
|
CDSC |
|
1 Year |
|
5.50% |
|
2 Years |
|
4.75% |
|
3 Years |
|
4.00% |
|
4 Years |
|
3.00% |
|
5 Years |
|
2.00% |
|
6 Years |
|
1.00% |
|
7 Years or More |
|
0.00% |
|
Class C Shares: |
|
|
|
You will pay a 1% CDSC if you redeem Shares within one year of the purchase date. |
|
|
If your investment qualifies for a reduction or elimination of the CDSC as described below, you or your investment professional should notify the Distributor at the time of redemption. If the Distributor is not notified, the CDSC will apply.
You will not be charged a CDSC when redeeming Shares:
To keep the sales charge as low as possible, the Fund redeems your Shares in this order:
The CDSC is then calculated using the share price at the time of purchase or redemption, whichever is lower.
The Fund offers three share classes: Class A Shares, Class B, Shares and Class C Shares, each representing interests in a single portfolio of securities.
The Fund's Distributor, Federated Securities Corp., markets the Shares described in this prospectus to institutions or to individuals, directly or through investment professionals.
The Fund has adopted a Rule 12b-1 Plan, which allows it to pay marketing fees to the Distributor and investment professionals for the sale, distribution and customer servicing of the Fund's Shares. Because these Shares pay marketing fees on an ongoing basis, your investment cost may be higher over time than other shares with different sales charges and marketing fees.
You may purchase Shares through an investment professional, directly from the Fund, or through an exchange from another Federated Fund. The Fund reserves the right to reject any request to purchase or exchange Shares.
Where the Fund offers more than one share class and you do not specify the class choice on your New Account Form or form of payment (e.g., Federal Reserve wire or check) you automatically will receive Class A Shares.
Investment professionals should send payments according to the instructions in the sections "By Wire" or "By Check."
You will become the owner of Shares and your Shares will be priced at the next calculated NAV after the Fund receives your wire or your check. If your check does not clear, your purchase will be canceled and you could be liable for any losses or fees incurred by the Fund or Federated Shareholder Services Company, the Fund's transfer agent.
An institution may establish an account and place an order by calling the Fund and the Shares will be priced at the next calculated NAV after the Fund receives the order.
Send your wire to:
State Street Bank and Trust Company
Boston, MA
Dollar Amount of Wire
ABA Number 011000028
Attention: EDGEWIRE
Wire Order Number, Dealer Number or Group Number
Nominee/Institution Name
Fund Name and Number and Account Number
You cannot purchase Shares by wire on holidays when wire transfers are restricted.
Make your check payable to The Federated Funds, note your account number on the check, and mail it to:
Federated Shareholder Services Company
P.O. Box 8600
Boston, MA 02266-8600
If you send your check by a private courier or overnight delivery service that requires a street address, mail it to:
Federated Shareholder Services Company
1099 Hingham Street
Rockland, MA 02370-3317
Payment should be made in U.S. dollars and drawn on a U.S. bank. The Fund will not accept third-party checks (checks originally payable to someone other than you or The Federated Funds).
You may establish an account with your financial institution to automatically purchase Shares on pre-determined dates or when your bank account reaches a certain level. Under this program, participating financial institutions are responsible for prompt transmission of orders and may charge you for this service. You should read this prospectus along with your financial institution's agreement or materials describing this service.
Once you establish an account, you may use the Fund's Invest-By-Phone privilege for future Share purchases if you have an account with a bank that is an Automated Clearinghouse member. To apply, call the Fund for an authorization form. You may use Invest-By-Phone to purchase Shares approximately two weeks from the date you file the form with Federated Shareholder Services Company.
You may complete an application with Federated Shareholder Services Company to have your Social Security, Railroad Retirement, VA Compensation or Pension, Civil Service Retirement and certain other retirement payments invested directly into the Fund. The application must be filed with Federated Shareholder Services Company before direct deposit may begin. Allow 60 to 90 days for the application to be processed.
You may purchase Shares through an exchange from the same Share class of another Federated Fund. You must meet the minimum initial investment requirement for purchasing Shares and both accounts must have identical registrations.
Once you have opened an account, you may automatically purchase additional Shares on a regular basis by completing the Systematic Investment Program section of the New Account Form or by contacting the Fund or your investment professional.
Once you have opened an account, you may purchase additional Shares through a depository institution that is an ACH member. This purchase option can be established by completing the appropriate sections of the New Account Form.
You may purchase Shares as retirement investments (such as qualified plans and IRAs or transfer or rollover of assets). Call your investment professional or the Fund for information on retirement investments. We suggest that you discuss retirement investments with your tax adviser. You may be subject to an annual IRA account fee.
You should redeem or exchange Shares:
Submit your redemption or exchange request to your investment professional by the end of regular trading on the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time). The redemption amount you will receive is based upon the next calculated NAV after the Fund receives the order from your investment professional.
You may redeem or exchange Shares by calling the Fund at 1-800-341-7400 once you have completed the appropriate authorization form for telephone transactions.
If you call before the end of regular trading on the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) you will receive a redemption amount based on that day's NAV.
You may redeem or exchange Shares by mailing a written request to the Fund.
You will receive a redemption amount based on the next calculated NAV after the Fund receives your written request in proper form.
Send requests by mail to:
Federated Shareholder Services Company
P.O. Box 8600
Boston, MA 02266-8600
Send requests by private courier or overnight delivery service to:
Federated Shareholder Services Company
1099 Hingham Street
Rockland, MA 02370-3317
All requests must include:
Call your investment professional or the Fund if you need special instructions.
Signatures must be guaranteed if:
A signature guarantee is designed to protect your account from fraud. Obtain a signature guarantee from a bank or trust company, savings association, credit union or broker, dealer, or securities exchange member. A notary public cannot provide a signature guarantee.
Your redemption proceeds will be mailed by check to your address of record. The following payment options are available if you complete the appropriate section of the New Account Form or an Account Service Options Form. These payment options require a signature guarantee if they were not established when the account was opened:
Although the Fund intends to pay Share redemptions in cash, it reserves the right to pay the redemption price in whole or in part by a distribution of the Fund's portfolio securities.
Redemption proceeds normally are wired or mailed within one business day after receiving a request in proper form. Payment may be delayed up to seven days:
You will not accrue interest or dividends on uncashed checks from the Fund if those checks are undeliverable and returned to the Fund.
In the absence of your specific instructions, 10% of the value of your redemption from a retirement account in the Fund may be withheld for taxes. This withholding only applies to certain types of retirement accounts.
You may exchange Shares of the Fund into Shares of the same class of another Federated Fund. To do this, you must:
An exchange is treated as a redemption and a subsequent purchase, and is a taxable transaction.
The Fund may modify or terminate the exchange privilege at any time. The Fund's management or investment adviser may determine from the amount, frequency and pattern of exchanges that a shareholder is engaged in excessive trading that is detrimental to the Fund and other shareholders. If this occurs, the Fund may terminate the availability of exchanges to that shareholder and may bar that shareholder from purchasing other Federated Funds.
You may automatically redeem or exchange Shares in a minimum amount of $100 on a regular basis. Complete the appropriate section of the New Account Form or an Account Service Options Form or contact your investment professional or the Fund. Your account value must meet the minimum initial investment amount at the time the program is established. This program may reduce, and eventually deplete, your account. Payments should not be considered yield or income.
Generally, it is not advisable to continue to purchase Class A Shares subject to a sales charge while redeeming Shares using this program.
You will not be charged a CDSC on SWP redemptions if:
You will be subject to a CDSC on redemption amounts that exceed the 12% annual limit. In measuring the redemption percentage, your account is valued when you establish the SWP and then annually at calendar year-end. You can redeem monthly, quarterly, or semi-annually.
The Fund will record your telephone instructions. If the Fund does not follow reasonable procedures, it may be liable for losses due to unauthorized or fraudulent telephone instructions.
The Fund does not issue share certificates.
You will receive confirmation of purchases, redemptions and exchanges (except for systematic transactions). In addition, you will receive periodic statements reporting all account activity, including systematic transactions, dividends and capital gains paid.
The Fund declares and pays any dividends quarterly to shareholders. Dividends are paid to all shareholders invested in the Fund on the record date. The record date is the date on which a shareholder must officially own Shares in order to earn a dividend. In addition, the Fund pays any capital gains at least annually. Your dividends and capital gains distributions will be automatically reinvested in additional Shares without a sales charge, unless you elect cash payments.
If you purchase Shares just before a Fund declares a dividend or capital gain distribution, you will pay the full price for the Shares and then receive a portion of the price back in the form of a taxable distribution, whether or not you reinvest the distribution in Shares. Therefore, you should consider the tax implications of purchasing Shares shortly before the Fund declares a dividend or capital gain. Contact your investment professional or the Fund for information concerning when dividends and capital gains will be paid.
Due to the high cost of maintaining accounts with low balances, non-retirement accounts may be closed if redemptions or exchanges cause the account balance to fall below the minimum initial investment amount. Before an account is closed, you will be notified and allowed 30 days to purchase additional Shares to meet the minimum.
The Fund sends an annual statement of your account activity to assist you in completing your federal, state and local tax returns. Fund distributions of dividends and capital gains are taxable to you whether paid in cash or reinvested in the Fund. Dividends are taxable as ordinary income; capital gains are taxable at different rates depending upon the length of time the Fund holds its assets.
Fund distributions are expected to be both dividends and capital gains. Redemptions and exchanges are taxable sales. Please consult your tax adviser regarding your federal, state and local tax liability.
The Board of Trustees governs the Fund. The Board selects and oversees the Adviser, Federated Investment Management Company. The Adviser manages the Fund's assets, including buying and selling portfolio securities. The Adviser's address is Federated Investors Tower, 1001 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222-3779.
The Adviser and other subsidiaries of Federated advise approximately 176 mutual funds and separate accounts, which totaled approximately $125 billion in assets as of December 31, 1999. Federated was established in 1955 and is one of the largest mutual fund investment managers in the United States with approximately 1,900 employees. More than 4,000 investment professionals make Federated Funds available to their customers.
Steven J. Lehman has been the Fund's Portfolio Manager since inception. He is Vice President of the Trust. Mr. Lehman joined the Fund's Adviser in May 1997 as a Portfolio Manager and Vice President. He has been a Senior Portfolio Manager since 1998. From 1986 to May 1997, Mr. Lehman served as a Portfolio Manager, then Vice President/Senior Portfolio Manager, at First Chicago NBD. Mr. Lehman is a Chartered Financial Analyst; he received his M.A. from the University of Chicago.
J. Thomas Madden has been the Fund's Portfolio Manager since inception. Mr. Madden joined Federated as a Senior Portfolio Manager in 1977 and has been an Executive Vice President of the Fund's Adviser since 1994. In 1999, Mr. Madden became a Director of the Fund's Adviser. Mr. Madden served as a Senior Vice President of the Fund's Adviser from 1989 through 1993. Mr. Madden is a Chartered Financial Analyst and received his M.B.A. with a concentration in finance from the University of Virginia.
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The Fund's fiscal year end is October 31, 2001. As this is the Fund's first fiscal year, financial information is not yet available.
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A Statement of Additional Information (SAI) dated November 30, 2000, is incorporated by reference into this prospectus. To obtain the SAI and other information without charge, and make inquiries, call your investment professional or the Fund at 1-800-341-7400.
You can obtain information about the Fund (including the SAI) by writing to or visiting the Public Reference Room in Washington, DC. You may also access fund information from the EDGAR Database on the SEC's Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. You can purchase copies of this information by contacting the SEC by email at publicinfo@sec.gov or by writing to the SEC's Public Reference Section, Washington, DC 20549-0102. Call 1-202-942-8090 for information on the Public Reference Room's operations and copying fees.
Federated
World-Class Investment Manager
Federated Market
Opportunity Fund
Federated Investors Funds
5800 Corporate
Drive
Pittsburgh, PA
15237-7000
1-800-341-7400
www.federatedinvestors.com
Federated
Securities Corp., Distributor
Investment Company Act File No. 811-4017
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Cusip 314172743
Cusip 314172735
Cusip 314172727
</R>
<R>
25839 (11/00)
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Federated is a registered mark of Federated Investors, Inc. 2000 ©Federated Investors, Inc.
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A Portfolio of Federated Equity Funds
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November 30, 2000
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This Statement of Additional Information (SAI) is not a prospectus. Read this SAI in conjunction with the prospectus for the Federated Market Opportunity Fund, dated November 30, 2000. Obtain the prospectus without charge by calling 1-800-341-7400.
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Federated
World-Class Investment Manager
Federated Market
Opportunity Fund
Federated Investors Funds
5800 Corporate
Drive
Pittsburgh, PA
15237-7000
1-800-341-7400
www.federatedinvestors.com
Federated
Securities Corp., Distributor
25840 (11/00)
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How is the Fund Organized? 1
Securities in Which the Fund Invests 1
What Do Shares Cost? 8
How is the Fund Sold? 9
Exchanging Securities for Shares 9
Subaccounting Services 10
Redemption in Kind 10
Massachusetts Partnership Law 10
Account and Share Information 10
Tax Information 10
Who Manages and Provides Services to the Fund? 11
How Does the Fund Measure Performance? 14
Who is Federated Investors, Inc.? 15
Investment Ratings 16
Addresses 18
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The Fund is a diversified portfolio of Federated Equity Funds (Trust). The Trust is an open-ended, management investment company that was established under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts on April 17, 1984. The Fund's investment adviser is Federated Investment Management Company (Adviser). The Board of Trustees (the Board) has established three classes of shares of the Fund, known as Class A Shares, Class B Shares and Class C Shares. This SAI relates to all classes of Shares.
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In pursuing its investment strategy, the Fund may invest in the following securities for any purpose that is consistent with its investment objective.
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Equity securities represent a share of an issuer's earnings and assets, after the issuer pays its liabilities. The Fund cannot predict the income it will receive from equity securities because issuers generally have discretion as to the payment of any dividends or distributions. However, equity securities offer greater potential for appreciation than many other types of securities, because their value increases directly with the value of the issuer's business. The following describes the types of equity securities in which the Fund invests:
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Common stocks are the most prevalent type of equity security. Common stocks receive the issuer's earnings after the issuer pays its creditors and any preferred stockholders. As a result, changes in an issuer's earnings directly influence the value of its common stock.
Preferred stocks have the right to receive specified dividends or distributions before the issuer makes payments on its common stock. Some preferred stocks also participate in dividends and distributions paid on common stock. Preferred stocks may also permit the issuer to redeem the stock. The Fund may also treat such redeemable preferred stock as a fixed income security.
Warrants give the Fund the option to buy the issuer's equity securities at a specified price (the exercise price) at a specified future date (the expiration date). The Fund may buy the designated securities by paying the exercise price before the expiration date. Warrants may become worthless if the price of the stock does not rise above the exercise price by the expiration date. This increases the market risks of warrants as compared to the underlying security. Rights are the same as warrants, except companies typically issue rights to existing stockholders.
REITs are real estate investment trusts that lease, operate and finance commercial real estate. REITs are exempt from federal corporate income tax if they limit their operations and distribute most of their income. Such tax requirements limit a REIT's ability to respond to changes in the commercial real estate.
Fixed income securities pay interest, dividends or distributions at a specified rate. The rate may be a fixed percentage of the principal or adjusted periodically. In addition, the issuer of a fixed income security must repay the principal amount of the security, normally within a specified time. Fixed income securities provide more regular income than equity securities. However, the returns on fixed income securities are limited and normally do not increase with the issuer's earnings. This limits the potential appreciation of fixed income securities as compared to equity securities.
A security's yield measures the annual income earned on a security as a percentage of its price. A security's yield will increase or decrease depending upon whether it costs less (a discount) or more (a premium) than the principal amount. If the issuer may redeem the security before its scheduled maturity, the price and yield on a discount or premium security may change based upon the probability of an early redemption. Securities with higher risks generally have higher yields.
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The following describes the types of fixed income securities in which the Fund invests:
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Treasury securities are direct obligations of the federal government of the United States. Treasury securities are generally regarded as having the lowest credit risks.
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Agency securities are issued or guaranteed by a federal agency or other government sponsored entity acting under federal authority (a "GSE"). The United States supports some GSEs with its full faith and credit. Other GSEs receive support through federal subsidies, loans or other benefits. A few GSEs have no explicit financial support, but are regarded as having implied support because the federal government sponsors their activities. Agency securities are generally regarded as having low credit risks, but not as low as treasury securities.
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The Fund treats mortgage backed securities guaranteed by GSEs as agency securities. Although a GSE guarantee protects against credit risks, it does not reduce the market and prepayment risks of these mortgage backed securities.
Corporate debt securities are fixed income securities issued by businesses. Notes, bonds, debentures and commercial paper are the most prevalent types of corporate debt securities. The Fund may also purchase interests in bank loans to companies. The credit risks of corporate debt securities vary widely among issuers.
In addition, the credit risk of an issuer's debt security may vary based on its priority for repayment. For example, higher ranking (senior) debt securities have a higher priority than lower ranking (subordinated) securities. This means that the issuer might not make payments on subordinated securities while continuing to make payments on senior securities. In addition, in the event of bankruptcy, holders of senior securities may receive amounts otherwise payable to the holders of subordinated securities. Some subordinated securities, such as trust preferred and capital securities notes, also permit the issuer to defer payments under certain circumstances. For example, insurance companies issue securities known as surplus notes that permit the insurance company to defer any payment that would reduce its capital below regulatory requirements.
Commercial paper is an issuer's obligation with a maturity of less than nine months. Companies typically issue commercial paper to pay for current expenditures. Most issuers constantly reissue their commercial paper and use the proceeds (or bank loans) to repay maturing paper. If the issuer cannot continue to obtain liquidity in this fashion, its commercial paper may default. The short maturity of commercial paper reduces both the market and credit risks as compared to other debt securities of the same issuer.
Demand instruments are corporate debt securities that the issuer must repay upon demand. Other demand instruments require a third party, such as a dealer or bank, to repurchase the security for its face value upon demand. The Fund treats demand instruments as short-term securities, even though their stated maturity may extend beyond one year.
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Convertible securities are fixed income securities that the Fund has the option to exchange for equity securities at a specified conversion price, or which are automatically exchanged for equity securities after a specified conversion period. The option allows the Fund to realize additional returns if the market price of the equity securities exceeds the conversion price. For example, the Fund may hold fixed income securities that are convertible into shares of common stock at a conversion price of $10 per share. If the market value of the shares of common stock reached $12, the Fund could realize an additional $2 per share by converting its fixed income securities.
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Convertible securities have lower yields than comparable fixed income securities. In addition, at the time a convertible security is issued the conversion price exceeds the market value of the underlying equity securities. Thus, convertible securities may provide lower returns than non-convertible fixed income securities or equity securities depending upon changes in the price of the underlying equity securities. However, convertible securities permit the Fund to realize some of the potential appreciation of the underlying equity securities with less risk of losing its initial investment.
The Fund treats convertible securities as equity securities for purposes of its investment policies and limitations, because of their unique characteristics.
Foreign securities are securities of issuers based outside the United States. The Fund considers an issuer to be based outside the United States if:
Foreign securities are primarily denominated in foreign currencies. Along with the risks normally associated with domestic securities of the same type, foreign securities are subject to currency risks and risks of foreign investing. Trading in certain foreign markets is also subject to liquidity risks.
Depositary receipts represent interests in underlying securities issued by a foreign company. Depositary receipts are not traded in the same market as the underlying security. The foreign securities underlying American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are traded in the United States. ADRs provide a way to buy shares of foreign-based companies in the United States rather than in overseas markets. ADRs are also traded in U.S. dollars, eliminating the need for foreign exchange transactions. The foreign securities underlying European Depositary Receipts (EDRs), Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs), and International Depositary Receipts (IDRs), are traded globally or outside the United States. Depositary receipts involve many of the same risks of investing directly in foreign securities, including currency risks and risks of foreign investing.
Derivative contracts are financial instruments that require payments based upon changes in the values of designated (or underlying) securities, currencies, commodities, financial indices or other assets. Some derivative contracts (such as futures, forwards and options) require payments relating to a future trade involving the underlying asset. Other derivative contracts (such as swaps) require payments relating to the income or returns from the underlying asset. The other party to a derivative contract is referred to as a counterparty.
Many derivative contracts are traded on securities or commodities exchanges. In this case, the exchange sets all the terms of the contract except for the price. Investors make payments due under their contracts through the exchange. Most exchanges require investors to maintain margin accounts through their brokers to cover their potential obligations to the exchange. Parties to the contract make (or collect) daily payments to the margin accounts to reflect losses (or gains) in the value of their contracts. This protects investors against potential defaults by the counterparty. Trading contracts on an exchange also allows investors to close out their contracts by entering into offsetting contracts.
For example, the Fund could close out an open contract to buy an asset at a future date by entering into an offsetting contract to sell the same asset on the same date. If the offsetting sale price is more than the original purchase price, the Fund realizes a gain; if it is less, the Fund realizes a loss. Exchanges may limit the amount of open contracts permitted at any one time. Such limits may prevent the Fund from closing out a position. If this happens, the Fund will be required to keep the contract open (even if it is losing money on the contract), and to make any payments required under the contract (even if it has to sell portfolio securities at unfavorable prices to do so). Inability to close out a contract could also harm the Fund by preventing it from disposing of or trading any assets it has been using to secure its obligations under the contract.
The Fund may also trade derivative contracts over-the-counter (OTC) in transactions negotiated directly between the Fund and the counterparty. OTC contracts do not necessarily have standard terms, so they cannot be directly offset with other OTC contracts. In addition, OTC contracts with more specialized terms may be more difficult to price than exchange traded contracts.
Depending upon how the Fund uses derivative contracts and the relationships between the market value of a derivative contract and the underlying asset, derivative contracts may increase or decrease the Fund's exposure to market and currency risks, and may also expose the Fund to liquidity and leverage risks. OTC contracts also expose the Fund to credit risks in the event that a counterparty defaults on the contract.
The Fund may trade in the following types of derivative contracts.
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Futures contracts provide for the future sale by one party and purchase by another party of a specified amount of an underlying asset at a specified price, date and time. Entering into a contract to buy an underlying asset is commonly referred to as buying a contract or holding a long position in the asset. Entering into a contract to sell an underlying asset is commonly referred to as selling a contract or holding a short position in the asset. Futures contracts are considered to be commodity contracts. Futures contracts traded OTC are frequently referred to as forward contracts.
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The Fund may buy or sell financial futures contracts.
Options are rights to buy or sell an underlying asset for a specified price (the exercise price) during, or at the end of, a specified period. A call option gives the holder (buyer) the right to buy the underlying asset from the seller (writer) of the option. A put option gives the holder the right to sell the underlying asset to the writer of the option. The writer of the option receives a payment, or premium, from the buyer, which the writer keeps regardless of whether the buyer uses (or exercises) the option.
The Fund may:
The Fund may also write call options on portfolio securities, futures, futures on indices and financial futures contracts to generate income from premiums, and in anticipation of a decrease or only limited increase in the value of the underlying asset. If a call written by the Fund is exercised, the Fund foregoes any possible profit from an increase in the market price of the underlying asset over the exercise price plus the premium received.
The Fund may also write put options on portfolio securities, futures, futures on indices and financial futures contracts to generate income from premiums, and in anticipation of an increase or only limited decrease in the value of the underlying asset. In writing puts, there is a risk that the Fund may be required to take delivery of the underlying asset when its current market price is lower than the exercise price.
When the Fund writes options on futures contracts, it will be subject to margin requirements similar to those applied to futures contracts.
Repurchase agreements are transactions in which the Fund buys a security from a dealer or bank and agrees to sell the security back at a mutually agreed upon time and price. The repurchase price exceeds the sale price, reflecting the Fund's return on the transaction. This return is unrelated to the interest rate on the underlying security. The Fund will enter into repurchase agreements only with banks and other recognized financial institutions, such as securities dealers, deemed creditworthy by the Adviser.
The Fund's custodian or subcustodian will take possession of the securities subject to repurchase agreements. The Adviser or subcustodian will monitor the value of the underlying security each day to ensure that the value of the security always equals or exceeds the repurchase price.
Repurchase agreements are subject to credit risks.
Reverse repurchase agreements are repurchase agreements in which the Fund is the seller (rather than the buyer) of the securities, and agrees to repurchase them at an agreed upon time and price. A reverse repurchase agreement may be viewed as a type of borrowing by the Fund. Reverse repurchase agreements are subject to credit risks. In addition, reverse repurchase agreements create leverage risks because the Fund must repurchase the underlying security at a higher price, regardless of the market value of the security at the time of repurchase.
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Delayed delivery transactions, including when-issued transactions, are arrangements in which the Fund buys securities for a set price, with payment and delivery of the securities scheduled for a future time. During the period between purchase and settlement, no payment is made by the Fund to the issuer and no interest accrues to the Fund. The Fund records the transaction when it agrees to buy the securities and reflects their value in determining the price of its shares. Settlement dates may be a month or more after entering into these transactions so that the market values of the securities bought may vary from the purchase prices. Therefore, delayed delivery transactions create interest rate risks for the Fund. Delayed delivery transactions also involve credit risks in the event of a counterparty default.
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The Fund may lend portfolio securities to borrowers that the Adviser deems creditworthy. In return, the Fund receives cash or liquid securities from the borrower as collateral. The borrower must furnish additional collateral if the market value of the loaned securities increases. Also, the borrower must pay the Fund the equivalent of any dividends or interest received on the loaned securities.
The Fund will reinvest cash collateral in securities that qualify as an acceptable investment for the Fund. However, the Fund must pay interest to the borrower for the use of cash collateral.
Loans are subject to termination at the option of the Fund or the borrower. The Fund will not have the right to vote on securities while they are on loan, but it will terminate a loan in anticipation of any important vote. The Fund may pay administrative and custodial fees in connection with a loan and may pay a negotiated portion of the interest earned on the cash collateral to a securities lending agent or broker.
Securities lending activities are subject to interest rate risks and credit risks.
The SEC has granted an exemption that permits the Fund and all other funds advised by subsidiaries of Federated Investors, Inc. ("Federated funds") to lend and borrow money for certain temporary purposes directly to and from other Federated funds. Participation in this inter-fund lending program is voluntary for both borrowing and lending funds, and an inter-fund loan is only made if it benefits each participating fund. Federated administers the program according to procedures approved by the Fund's Board, and the Board monitors the operation of the program. Any inter-fund loan must comply with certain conditions set out in the exemption, which are designed to assure fairness and protect all participating funds.
For example, inter-fund lending is permitted only (a) to meet shareholder redemption requests, and (b) to meet commitments arising from "failed" trades. All inter-fund loans must be repaid in seven days or less. The Fund's participation in this program must be consistent with its investment policies and limitations, and must meet certain percentage tests. Inter-fund loans may be made only when the rate of interest to be charged is more attractive to the lending fund than market-competitive rates on overnight repurchase agreements (the "Repo Rate") and more attractive to the borrowing fund than the rate of interest that would be charged by an unaffiliated bank for short-term borrowings (the "Bank Loan Rate"), as determined by the Board. The interest rate imposed on inter-fund loans is the average of the Repo Rate and the Bank Loan Rate.
In order to secure its obligations in connection with derivatives contracts or special transactions, the Fund will either own the underlying assets, enter into an offsetting transaction or set aside readily marketable securities with a value that equals or exceeds the Fund's obligations. Unless the Fund has other readily marketable assets to set aside, it cannot trade assets used to secure such obligations without entering into an offsetting derivative contract or terminating a special transaction. This may cause the Fund to miss favorable trading opportunities or to realize losses on derivative contracts or special transactions.
The Fund may invest its assets in securities of other investment companies, including the securities of affiliated money market funds, as an efficient means of carrying out its investment policies and managing its uninvested cash.
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The Adviser will determine whether a security is investment grade based upon the credit ratings given by one or more nationally recognized rating services. For example, Standard and Poor's, a rating service, assigns ratings to investment grade securities (AAA, AA, A and BBB) based on their assessment of the likelihood of the issuer's inability to pay interest or principal (default) when due on each security. Lower credit ratings correspond to higher credit risk. If a security has not received a rating, the Fund must rely entirely upon the Adviser's credit assessment that the security is comparable to investment grade.
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If a security is downgraded below the minimum quality grade discussed above, the Adviser will reevaluate the security, but will not be required to sell it.
There are many factors which may affect an investment in the Fund. The Fund's principal risks are described in its prospectus. Additional risk factors are outlined below.
The Fund's investment objective is to provide moderate capital appreciation and high income. The investment objective may not be changed by the Fund's Trustee without shareholder approval.
With respect to securities comprising 75% of the value of its total assets, the Fund will not purchase securities of any one issuer (other than cash; cash items; securities issued or guaranteed by the government of the United States or its agencies or instrumentalities and repurchase agreements collateralized by such U.S. government securities; and securities of other investment companies) if, as a result, more than 5% of the value of its total assets would be invested in the securities of that issuer, or the Fund would own more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of that issuer.
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The Fund may not underwrite the securities of other issuers, except that the Fund may engage in transactions involving the acquisition, disposition or resale of its portfolio securities, under circumstances where it may be considered to be an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933.
The Fund may not purchase or sell physical commodities, provided that the Fund may purchase securities of companies that deal in commodities. For purposes of this restriction, investments in transactions involving futures contracts and options, forward currency contracts, swap transactions and other financial contracts that settle by payment of cash are not deemed to be investments in commodities.
The Fund may not purchase or sell real estate, provided that this restriction does not prevent the Fund from investing in issuers which invest, deal, or otherwise engage in transactions in real estate or interests therein, or investing in securities that are secured by real estate or interests therein. The Fund may exercise its rights under agreements relating to such securities, including the right to enforce security interests and to hold real estate acquired by reason of such enforcement until that real estate can be liquidated in an orderly manner.
The Fund may borrow money, directly or indirectly, and issue senior securities to the maximum extent permitted under the 1940 Act, any rule or order thereunder, or any SEC staff interpretation thereof.
The Fund may not make loans, provided that this restriction does not prevent the Fund from purchasing debt obligations, entering into repurchase agreements, lending its assets to broker/dealers or institutional investors and investing in loans, including assignments and participation interests.
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The Fund will not make investments that will result in the concentration of its investments in the securities of issuers primarily engaged in the same industry. For purposes of this restriction, the term concentration has the meaning set forth in the Investment Company Act of 1940 Act (1940 Act), any rule or order thereunder, or any SEC staff interpretation thereof. Government securities and municipal securities will not be deemed to constitute an industry.
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The above limitations cannot be changed unless authorized by the Board and by the "vote of a majority of its outstanding voting securities," as defined by the 1940 Act. The following limitations, however, may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval. Shareholders will be notified before any material change in these limitations becomes effective.
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In applying the concentration restriction, investments in certain industrial development bonds funded by activities in a single industry will be deemed to constitute investment in an industry. In addition, (a) utility companies will be divided according to their services, for example, gas, gas transmission, electric and telephone will each be considered a separate industry; (b) financial service companies will be classified according to the end users of their services, for example, automobile finance, bank finance and diversified finance will each be considered a separate industry; and (c) asset-backed securities will be classified according to the underlying assets securing such securities.
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The Fund will not purchase securities for which there is no readily available market, or enter into repurchase agreements or purchase time deposits maturing in more than seven days, if immediately after and as a result, the value of such securities would exceed, in the aggregate, 15% of the Fund's net assets.
The Fund may invest its assets in securities of other investment companies as an efficient means of carrying out its investment policies. It should be noted that investment companies incur certain expenses, such as management fees, and, therefore, any investment by the Fund in shares of other investment companies may be subject to such duplicate expenses. At the present time, the Fund expects that its investments in other investment companies may include shares of money market funds, including funds affiliated with the Fund's investment adviser.
The Fund may invest in the securities of affiliated money market funds as an efficient means of managing the Fund's uninvested cash.
The Fund will not purchase securities on margin, provided that the Fund may obtain short-term credits necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of securities, and further provided that the Fund may make margin deposits in connection with its use of financial options and futures, forward and spot currency contracts, swap transactions and other financial contracts or derivative instruments.
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The Fund will not mortgage, pledge or hypothecate any of its assets, provided that this shall not apply to the transfer of securities in connection with any permissible borrowing or to collateral arrangements in connection with permissible activities.
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For purposes of the above limitations, the Fund considers certificates of deposit and demand and time deposits issued by a U.S. branch of a domestic bank or savings association having capital, surplus and undivided profits in excess of $100,000,000 at the time of investment to be "cash items." Except with respect to borrowing money, if a percentage limitation is adhered to at the time of investment, a later increase or decrease in percentage resulting from any change in value or net assets will not result in a violation of such limitation.
Market values of the Fund's portfolio securities are determined as follows:
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Prices provided by independent pricing services may be determined without relying exclusively on quoted prices and may consider institutional trading in similar groups of securities, yield, quality, stability, risk, coupon rate, maturity, type of issue, trading characteristics and other market data or factors. From time to time, when prices cannot be obtained from an independent pricing service, securities may be valued based on quotes from broker/dealers or other financial institutions that trade the securities.
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The Fund's net asset value (NAV) per Share fluctuates and is based on the market value of all securities and other assets of the Fund.
The NAV for each class of Shares may differ due to the variance in daily net income realized by each class. Such variance will reflect only accrued net income to which the shareholders of a particular class are entitled.
You can reduce or eliminate the applicable front-end sales charge, as follows:
Larger purchases of the same Share class reduce or eliminate the sales charge you pay. You can combine purchases of Shares made on the same day by you, your spouse and your children under age 21. In addition, purchases made at one time by a trustee or fiduciary for a single trust estate or a single fiduciary account can be combined.
If you make an additional purchase of Shares, you can count previous Share purchases still invested in the Fund in calculating the applicable sales charge on the additional purchase.
You can combine concurrent purchases of the same share class of two or more Federated Funds in calculating the applicable sales charge.
You can sign a Letter of Intent committing to purchase a certain amount of the same class of Shares within a 13-month period to combine such purchases in calculating the sales charge. The Fund's custodian will hold Shares in escrow equal to the maximum applicable sales charge. If you complete the Letter of Intent, the Custodian will release the Shares in escrow to your account. If you do not fulfill the Letter of Intent, the Custodian will redeem the appropriate amount from the Shares held in escrow to pay the sales charges that were not applied to your purchases.
You may reinvest, within 120 days, your Share redemption proceeds at the next determined NAV without any sales charge.
The following individuals and their immediate family members may buy Shares at NAV without any sales charge because there are nominal sales efforts associated with their purchases:
Shareholders of the Fund known as "Federated Life Members" are exempt from paying any front-end sales charge. These shareholders joined the Fund originally:
These reductions or eliminations are offered because: no sales commissions have been advanced to the investment professional selling Shares; the shareholder has already paid a Contingent Deferred Sales Charge (CDSC); or nominal sales efforts are associated with the original purchase of Shares. Upon notification to the Distributor or the Fund's transfer agent, no CDSC will be imposed on redemptions:
To keep the sales charge as low as possible, the Fund redeems your Shares in this order:
The CDSC is then calculated using the share price at the time of purchase or redemption, whichever is lower.
Under the Distributor's Contract with the Fund, the Distributor (Federated Securities Corp.) offers Shares on a continuous, best-efforts basis.
The Distributor receives a front-end sales charge on certain Share sales. The Distributor generally pays up to 90% (and as much as 100%) of this charge to investment professionals for sales and/or administrative services. Any payments to investment professionals in excess of 90% of the front-end sales charge are considered supplemental payments. The Distributor retains any portion not paid to an investment professional.
As a compensation/reimbursement-type plan, the Rule 12b-1 Plan is designed to pay the Distributor (who may then pay investment professionals such as banks, broker/dealers, trust departments of banks, and registered investment advisers) for marketing activities (such as advertising, printing and distributing prospectuses, and providing incentives to investment professionals) to promote sales of Shares so that overall Fund assets are maintained or increased. This helps the Fund achieve economies of scale, reduce per share expenses, and provide cash for orderly portfolio management and Share redemptions. In addition, the Fund's service providers that receive asset-based fees also benefit from stable or increasing Fund assets.
The Fund may compensate the Distributor more or less than its actual marketing expenses. In no event will the Fund pay for any expenses of the Distributor that exceed the maximum Rule 12b-1 Plan fee.
For some classes of Shares, the maximum Rule 12b-1 Plan fee that can be paid in any one year may not be sufficient to cover the marketing-related expenses the Distributor has incurred. Therefore, it may take the Distributor a number of years to recoup these expenses.
Federated and its subsidiaries may benefit from arrangements where the Rule 12b-1 Plan fees related to Class B Shares may be paid to third parties who have advanced commissions to investment professionals.
The Fund may pay Federated Shareholder Services Company, a subsidiary of Federated, for providing shareholder services and maintaining shareholder accounts. Federated Shareholder Services Company may select others to perform these services for their customers and may pay them fees.
When an investment professional's customer purchases shares, the investment professional may receive:
In addition, the Distributor may pay investment professionals 0.25% of the purchase price of $1 million or more of Class A Shares that its customer has not redeemed over the first year.
Investment professionals purchasing Class A Shares for their customers are eligible to receive an advance payment from the Distributor based on the following breakpoints:
|
Amount |
|
Advance Payments as a Percentage |
|
First $1 - $5 million |
|
0.75% |
|
Next $5 - $20 million |
|
0.50% |
|
Over $20 million |
|
0.25% |
For accounts with assets over $1 million, the dealer advance payments reset annually to the first breakpoint on the anniversary of the first purchase.
Class A Share purchases under this program may be made by Letter of Intent or by combining concurrent purchases. The above advance payments will be paid only on those purchases that were not previously subject to a front-end sales charge and dealer advance payments. Certain retirement accounts may not be eligible for this program.
A contingent deferred sales charge of 0.75% of the redemption amount applies to Class A Shares redeemed up to 24 months after purchase. The CDSC does not apply under certain investment programs where the investment professional does not receive an advance payment on the transaction including, but not limited to, trust accounts and wrap programs where the investor pays an account level fee for investment management.
You may contact the Distributor to request a purchase of Shares in exchange for securities you own. The Fund reserves the right to determine whether to accept your securities and the minimum market value to accept. The Fund will value your securities in the same manner as it values its assets. This exchange is treated as a sale of your securities for federal tax purposes.
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Certain investment professionals may wish to use the transfer agent's subaccounting system to minimize their internal recordkeeping requirements. The transfer agent may charge a fee based on the level of subaccounting services rendered. Investment professionals holding Shares in a fiduciary, agency, custodial or similar capacity may charge or pass-through subaccounting fees as part of or in addition to normal trust or agency account fees. They may also charge fees for other services that may be related to the ownership of Shares. This information should, therefore, be read together with any agreement between the customer and the investment professional about the services provided, the fees charged for those services, and any restrictions and limitations imposed.
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Although the Fund intends to pay Share redemptions in cash, it reserves the right, as described below, to pay the redemption price in whole or in part by a distribution of the Fund's portfolio securities.
Because the Fund has elected to be governed by Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act, the Fund is obligated to pay Share redemptions to any one shareholder in cash only up to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the net assets represented by such Share class during any 90-day period.
Any Share redemption payment greater than this amount will also be in cash unless the Fund's Board determines that payment should be in kind. In such a case, the Fund will pay all or a portion of the remainder of the redemption in portfolio securities, valued in the same way as the Fund determines its NAV. The portfolio securities will be selected in a manner that the Fund's Board deems fair and equitable and, to the extent available, such securities will be readily marketable.
Redemption in kind is not as liquid as a cash redemption. If redemption is made in kind, shareholders receiving the portfolio securities and selling them before their maturity could receive less than the redemption value of the securities and could incur certain transaction costs.
Under certain circumstances, shareholders may be held personally liable as partners under Massachusetts law for obligations of the Fund. To protect its shareholders, the Fund has filed legal documents with Massachusetts that expressly disclaim the liability of its shareholders for acts or obligations of the Fund.
In the unlikely event a shareholder is held personally liable for the Fund's obligations, the Fund is required by the Declaration of Trust to use its property to protect or compensate the shareholder. On request, the Fund will defend any claim made and pay any judgment against a shareholder for any act or obligation of the Fund. Therefore, financial loss resulting from liability as a shareholder will occur only if the Fund itself cannot meet its obligations to indemnify shareholders and pay judgments against them.
Each share of the Fund gives the shareholder one vote in Trustees elections and other matters submitted to shareholders for vote.
All Shares of the Fund have equal voting rights, except that in matters affecting only a particular class, only Shares of that class are entitled to vote.
Trustees may be removed by the Board or by shareholders at a special meeting. A special meeting of shareholders will be called by the Board upon the written request of shareholders who own at least 10% of the Fund's outstanding shares of all series entitled to vote.
The Fund intends to meet requirements of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to regulated investment companies. If these requirements are not met, it will not receive special tax treatment and will pay federal income tax. The Fund will be treated as a single, separate entity for federal income tax purposes so that income earned and capital gains and losses realized by the Trust's other portfolios will be separate from those realized by the Fund.
If the Fund purchases foreign securities, their investment income may be subject to foreign withholding or other taxes that could reduce the return on these securities. Tax treaties between the United States and foreign countries, however, may reduce or eliminate the amount of foreign taxes to which the Fund would be subject. The effective rate of foreign tax cannot be predicted since the amount of Fund assets to be invested within various countries is uncertain. However, the Fund intends to operate so as to qualify for treaty-reduced tax rates when applicable.
Distributions from a Fund may be based on estimates of book income for the year. Book income generally consists solely of the coupon income generated by the portfolio, whereas tax-basis income includes gains or losses attributable to currency fluctuation. Due to differences in the book and tax treatment of fixed-income securities denominated in foreign currencies, it is difficult to project currency effects on an interim basis. Therefore, to the extent that currency fluctuations cannot be anticipated, a portion of distributions to shareholders could later be designated as a return of capital, rather than income, for income tax purposes, which may be of particular concern to simple trusts.
If the Fund invests in the stock of certain foreign corporations, they may constitute Passive Foreign Investment Companies (PFIC), and the Fund may be subject to Federal income taxes upon disposition of PFIC investments.
If more than 50% of the value of the Fund's assets at the end of the tax year is represented by stock or securities of foreign corporations, the Fund intends to qualify for certain Code stipulations that would allow shareholders to claim a foreign tax credit or deduction on their U.S. income tax returns. The Code may limit a shareholder's ability to claim a foreign tax credit. Shareholders who elect to deduct their portion of the Fund's foreign taxes rather than take the foreign tax credit must itemize deductions on their income tax returns.
The Board is responsible for managing the Fund's business affairs and for exercising all the Fund's powers except those reserved for the shareholders. Information about each Board member is provided below and includes each person's: name, address, birth date, present position(s) held with the Fund, principal occupations for the past five years and positions held prior to the past five years, total compensation received as a Trustee from the Fund for its most recent fiscal year, and the total compensation received from the Federated Fund Complex for the most recent calendar year. The Trust is comprised of seven funds and the Federated Fund Complex is comprised of 43 investment companies, whose investment advisers are affiliated with the Fund's Adviser.
|
Name |
|
Principal Occupations for Past Five Years |
|
Aggregate |
|
Total |
|
John F. Donahue*†# |
|
Chief Executive Officer and Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; Chairman and Director, Federated Investors, Inc.; Chairman, Federated Investment Management Company, Federated Global Investment Management Corp. and Passport Research, Ltd.; formerly: Trustee, Federated Investment Management Company and Chairman and Director, Federated Investment Counseling. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Trust and |
|
J. Christopher Donahue†* |
|
President or Executive Vice President of the Federated Fund Complex; Director or Trustee of some of the Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Federated Investors, Inc.; President, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee, Federated Investment Management Company; Trustee, Federated Investment Counseling; President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Federated Global Investment Management Corp.; President and Chief Executive Officer, Passport Research, Ltd.; Trustee, Federated Shareholder Services Company; Director, Federated Services Company; formerly: President, Federated Investment Counseling. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Trust |
|
Thomas G. Bigley |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; Director, Member of Executive Committee, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh; Director, Robroy Industries, Inc. (coated steel conduits/computer storage equipment); formerly: Senior Partner, Ernst & Young LLP; Director, MED 3000 Group, Inc. (physician practice management); Director, Member of Executive Committee, University of Pittsburgh. |
|
$0 |
|
$116,760.63 for the Trust |
|
John T. Conroy, Jr. |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; President, Investment Properties Corporation; Senior Vice President, John R. Wood and Associates, Inc., Realtors; Partner or Trustee in private real estate ventures in Southwest Florida; formerly: President, Naples Property Management, Inc. and Northgate Village Development Corporation. |
|
$0 |
|
$128,455.37 for the Fund |
|
Nicholas P. Constantakis |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; Director, Michael Baker Corporation (engineering, construction, operations and technical services); formerly: Partner, Andersen Worldwide SC. |
|
$0 |
|
$73,191.21 for the Trust |
|
John F. Cunningham |
|
Director or Trustee of some of the Federated Fund Complex; Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer, Cunningham & Co., Inc.
(strategic business consulting); Trustee Associate, Boston College;
Director, Iperia Corp. (communications/software); formerly: Director,
Redgate Communications and EMC Corporation (computer storage systems). |
|
$0 |
|
$93,190.48 for the Trust |
|
Lawrence D. Ellis, M.D.* |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; Professor of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh; Medical Director, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center -- Downtown; Hematologist, Oncologist and Internist, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center; Member, National Board of Trustees, Leukemia Society of America. |
|
$0 |
|
$116,760.63 for the Trust |
|
Peter E. Madden |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; formerly:
Representative, Commonwealth of Massachusetts General Court; President,
State Street Bank and Trust Company and State Street Corporation. |
|
$0 |
|
$109,153.60 for the Fund |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name |
|
Principal Occupations for Past Five Years |
|
Aggregate |
|
Total |
|
Charles F. Mansfield, Jr. |
|
Director or Trustee of some of the Federated Fund Complex; Executive Vice
President, Legal and External Affairs, Dugan Valva Contess, Inc.
(marketing, communications, technology and consulting); formerly:
Management Consultant. |
|
$0 |
|
$102,573.91 for the Trust |
|
John E. Murray, Jr., J.D., S.J.D. |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; President, Law
Professor, Duquesne University; Consulting Partner, Mollica & Murray;
Director, Michael Baker Corp. (engineering, construction, operations and
technical services). |
|
$0 |
|
$128,455.37 for the Trust |
|
Marjorie P. Smuts |
|
Director or Trustee of the Federated Fund Complex; Public
Relations/Marketing/Conference Planning. |
|
$0 |
|
$116,760.63 for the Trust |
|
John S. Walsh |
|
Director or Trustee of some of the Federated Fund Complex; President and Director, Heat Wagon, Inc. (manufacturer of construction temporary heaters); President and Director, Manufacturers Products, Inc. (distributor of portable construction heaters); President, Portable Heater Parts, a division of Manufacturers Products, Inc.; Director, Walsh & Kelly, Inc. (heavy highway contractor); formerly: Vice President, Walsh & Kelly, Inc. |
|
$0 |
|
$94,536.85 for the Trust |
|
Edward C. Gonzales |
|
President, Executive Vice President and Treasurer of some of the Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; Vice Chairman, Federated Investors, Inc.; Trustee, Federated Administrative Services; formerly: Trustee or Director of some of the Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; CEO and Chairman, Federated Administrative Services; Vice President, Federated Investment Management Company, Federated Investment Counseling, Federated Global Investment Management Corp. and Passport Research, Ltd.; Director and Executive Vice President, Federated Securities Corp.; Director, Federated Services Company; Trustee, Federated Shareholder Services Company. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Trust |
|
John W. McGonigle |
|
Executive Vice President and Secretary of the Federated Fund Complex; Executive Vice President, Secretary and Director, Federated Investors, Inc.; formerly: Trustee, Federated Investment Management Company and Federated Investment Counseling; Director, Federated Global Investment Management Corp., Federated Services Company and Federated Securities Corp. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Fund |
|
Richard J. Thomas |
|
Treasurer of the Federated Fund Complex; Senior Vice President, Federated Administrative Services; formerly: Vice President, Federated Administrative Services; held various management positions within Funds Financial Services Division of Federated Investors, Inc. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Fund |
|
Richard B. Fisher |
|
President or Vice President of some of the Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; Vice Chairman, Federated Investors, Inc.; Chairman, Federated Securities Corp.; formerly: Director or Trustee of some of the Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; Executive Vice President, Federated Investors, Inc. and Director and Chief Executive Officer, Federated Securities Corp. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Fund |
|
J. Thomas Madden |
|
Chief Investment Officer of this Fund and various other Funds in the Federated Fund Complex; Executive Vice President, Federated Investment Counseling, Federated Global Investment Management Corp., Federated Investment Management Company and Passport Research, Ltd.; Director, Federated Global Investment Management Corp. and Federated Investment Management Company; Vice President, Federated Investors, Inc.; formerly: Executive Vice President and Senior Vice President, Federated Investment Counseling Institutional Portfolio Management Services Division; Senior Vice President, Federated Investment Management Company and Passport Research, Ltd. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Fund |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Name |
|
Principal Occupations for Past Five Years |
|
Aggregate |
|
Total |
|
James E. Grefenstette |
|
James E. Grefenstette is Vice President of the Trust. Mr. Grefenstette joined Federated in 1992 and has been a Portfolio Manager since 1994. Mr. Grefenstette became a Senior Vice President of the Fund's Adviser in January 2000. He served as a Vice President of the Fund's Adviser from 1996 through 1999 and was an Assistant Vice President of the Fund's Adviser from 1994 until 1996. Mr. Grefenstette is a Chartered Financial Analyst; he received his M.S. in Industrial Administration from Carnegie Mellon University. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Trust |
|
Aash M. Shah |
|
Aash M. Shah is Vice President of the Trust. Mr. Shah joined Federated in 1993 and has been a Portfolio Manager and a Vice President of the Fund's Adviser since January 1997. Mr. Shah was a Portfolio Manager and served as an Assistant Vice President of the Adviser from 1995 through 1996, and as an Investment Analyst from 1993 to 1995. Mr. Shah received his Masters in Industrial Administration from Carnegie Mellon University with a concentration in finance and accounting. Mr. Shah is a Chartered Financial Analyst. |
|
$0 |
|
$0 for the Trust |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
* An asterisk denotes a Trustee who is deemed to be an interested person as defined in the1940 Act.
# A pound sign denotes a Member of the Board's Executive Committee, which handles the Board's responsibilities between its meetings.
† Mr. Donahue is the father of J. Christopher Donahue, President and Trustee of the Trust.
The Adviser conducts investment research and makes investment decisions for the Fund. The Adviser is a wholly owned subsidiary of Federated. The Adviser shall not be liable to the Fund or any Fund shareholder for any losses that may be sustained in the purchase, holding, or sale of any security or for anything done or omitted by it, except acts or omissions involving willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties imposed upon it by its contract with the Trust.
Affiliates of the Adviser may, from time to time, provide certain electronic equipment and software to institutional customers in order to facilitate the purchase of Fund Shares offered by the Distributor.
As required by SEC rules, the Fund, its Adviser, and its Distributor have adopted codes of ethics. These codes govern securities trading activities of investment personnel, Fund Trustees and certain other employees. Although they do permit these people to trade in securities, including those that the Fund could buy, they also contain significant safeguards designed to protect the Fund and its shareholders from abuses in this area, such as requirements to obtain prior approval for, and to report, particular transactions.
When selecting brokers and dealers to handle the purchase and sale of portfolio instruments, the Adviser looks for prompt execution of the order at a favorable price. The Adviser will generally use those who are recognized dealers in specific portfolio instruments, except when a better price and execution of the order can be obtained elsewhere. The Adviser may select brokers and dealers based on whether they also offer research services (as described below). In selecting among firms believed to meet these criteria, the Adviser may give consideration to those firms which have sold or are selling Shares of the Fund and other funds distributed by the Distributor and its affiliates. The Adviser makes decisions on portfolio transactions and selects brokers and dealers subject to review by the Fund's Board.
Research services may include advice as to the advisability of investing in securities; security analysis and reports; economic studies; industry studies; receipt of quotations for portfolio evaluations; and similar services. Research services may be used by the Adviser or by affiliates of Federated in advising other accounts. To the extent that receipt of these services may replace services for which the Adviser or its affiliates might otherwise have paid, it would tend to reduce their expenses. The Adviser and its affiliates exercise reasonable business judgment in selecting those brokers who offer brokerage and research services to execute securities transactions. They determine in good faith that commissions charged by such persons are reasonable in relationship to the value of the brokerage and research services provided.
Investment decisions for the Fund are made independently from those of other accounts managed by the Adviser. When the Fund and one or more of those accounts invests in, or disposes of, the same security, available investments or opportunities for sales will be allocated among the Fund and the account(s) in a manner believed by the Adviser to be equitable. While the coordination and ability to participate in volume transactions may benefit the Fund, it is possible that this procedure could adversely impact the price paid or received and/or the position obtained or disposed of by the Fund.
Federated Services Company, a subsidiary of Federated, provides administrative personnel and services (including certain legal and financial reporting services) necessary to operate the Fund. Federated Services Company provides these at the following annual rate of the average aggregate daily net assets of all Federated Funds as specified below:
|
Maximum Administrative Fee |
|
Average Aggregate Daily |
|
0.150 of 1% |
|
on the first $250 million |
|
0.125 of 1% |
|
on the next $250 million |
|
0.100 of 1% |
|
on the next $250 million |
|
0.075 of 1% |
|
on assets in excess of $750 million |
The administrative fee received during any fiscal year shall be at least $125,000 per portfolio and $30,000 per each additional class of Shares. Federated Services Company may voluntarily waive a portion of its fee and may reimburse the Fund for expenses.
Federated Services Company also provides certain accounting and recordkeeping services with respect to the Fund's portfolio investments for a fee based on Fund assets plus out-of-pocket expenses.
State Street Bank and Trust Company, Boston, Massachusetts, is custodian for the securities and cash of the Fund. Foreign instruments purchased by the Fund are held by foreign banks participating in a network coordinated by State Street Bank.
Federated Services Company, through its registered transfer agent subsidiary, Federated Shareholder Services Company, maintains all necessary shareholder records. The Fund pays the transfer agent a fee based on the size, type and number of accounts and transactions made by shareholders.
The independent auditor for the Fund, Deloitte & Touche LLP, plans and performs its audit so that it may provide an opinion as to whether the Fund's financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement.
The Fund may advertise Share performance by using the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) standard method for calculating performance applicable to all mutual funds. The SEC also permits this standard performance information to be accompanied by non-standard performance information.
Share performance reflects the effect of non-recurring charges, such as maximum sales charges, which, if excluded, would increase the total return and yield. The performance of Shares depends upon such variables as: portfolio quality; average portfolio maturity; type and value of portfolio securities; changes in interest rates; changes or differences in the Fund's or any class of Shares' expenses; and various other factors.
Share performance fluctuates on a daily basis largely because net earnings fluctuate daily. Both net earnings and offering price per Share are factors in the computation of yield and total return.
Total return represents the change (expressed as a percentage) in the value of Shares over a specific period of time, and includes the investment of income and capital gains distributions.
The average annual total return for Shares is the average compounded rate of return for a given period that would equate a $1,000 initial investment to the ending redeemable value of that investment. The ending redeemable value is computed by multiplying the number of Shares owned at the end of the period by the NAV per Share at the end of the period. The number of Shares owned at the end of the period is based on the number of Shares purchased at the beginning of the period with $1,000, less any applicable sales charge, adjusted over the period by any additional Shares, assuming the annual reinvestment of all dividends and distributions.
The yield of Shares is calculated by dividing: (i) the net investment income per Share earned by the Shares over a 30-day period; by (ii) the maximum offering price per Share on the last day of the period. This number is then annualized using semi-annual compounding. This means that the amount of income generated during the 30-day period is assumed to be generated each month over a 12-month period and is reinvested every six months. The yield does not necessarily reflect income actually earned by Shares because of certain adjustments required by the SEC and, therefore, may not correlate to the dividends or other distributions paid to shareholders.
To the extent investment professionals and broker/dealers charge fees in connection with services provided in conjunction with an investment in Shares, the Share performance is lower for shareholders paying those fees.
Advertising and sales literature may include:
The Fund may compare its performance, or performance for the types of securities in which it invests, to a variety of other investments, including federally insured bank products such as bank savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and Treasury bills.
The Fund may quote information from reliable sources regarding individual countries and regions, world stock exchanges, and economic and demographic statistics.
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You may use financial publications and/or indices to obtain a more complete view of Share performance. When comparing performance, you should consider all relevant factors such as the composition of the index used, prevailing market conditions, portfolio compositions of other funds, and methods used to value portfolio securities and compute offering price. The financial publications and/or indices which the Fund uses in advertising may include: The Russell Midcap Value Index.
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Measures the performance of those Russell Midcap companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values. The stocks are also members of the Russell 1000 Value Index.
Federated is dedicated to meeting investor needs by making structured, straightforward and consistent investment decisions. Federated investment products have a history of competitive performance and have gained the confidence of thousands of financial institutions and individual investors.
Federated's disciplined investment selection process is rooted in sound methodologies backed by fundamental and technical research. At Federated, success in investment management does not depend solely on the skill of a single portfolio manager. It is a fusion of individual talents and state-of-the-art industry tools and resources. Federated's investment process involves teams of portfolio managers and analysts, and investment decisions are executed by traders who are dedicated to specific market sectors and who handle trillions of dollars in annual trading volume.
In the municipal sector, as of December 31, 1999, Federated managed 12 bond funds with approximately $2.0 billion in assets and 24 money market funds with approximately $13.1 billion in total assets. In 1976, Federated introduced one of the first municipal bond mutual funds in the industry and is now one of the largest institutional buyers of municipal securities. The Funds may quote statistics from organizations including The Tax Foundation and the National Taxpayers Union regarding the tax obligations of Americans.
In the equity sector, Federated has more than 29 years' experience. As of December 31, 1999, Federated managed 53 equity funds totaling approximately $18.3 billion in assets across growth, value, equity income, international, index and sector (i.e. utility) styles. Federated's value-oriented management style combines quantitative and qualitative analysis and features a structured, computer-assisted composite modeling system that was developed in the 1970s.
In the corporate bond sector, as of December 31, 1999, Federated managed 13 money market funds and 29 bond funds with assets approximating $35.7 billion and $7.7 billion, respectively. Federated's corporate bond decision making--based on intensive, diligent credit analysis--is backed by over 27 years of experience in the corporate bond sector. In 1972, Federated introduced one of the first high-yield bond funds in the industry. In 1983, Federated was one of the first fund managers to participate in the asset backed securities market, a market totaling more than $209 billion.
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In the government sector, as of December 31, 1999, Federated managed 9 mortgage backed, 11 government/agency and 16 government money market mutual funds, with assets approximating $4.7 billion, $1.6 billion and $34.1 billion, respectively. Federated trades approximately $450 million in U.S. government and mortgage-backed securities daily and places approximately $25 billion in repurchase agreements each day. Federated introduced the first U.S. government fund to invest in U.S. government bond securities in 1969. Federated has been a major force in the short- and intermediate-term government markets since 1982 and currently manages approximately $43.8 billion in government funds within these maturity ranges.
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In the money market sector, Federated gained prominence in the mutual fund industry in 1974 with the creation of the first institutional money market fund. Simultaneously, the company pioneered the use of the amortized cost method of accounting for valuing shares of money market funds, a principal means used by money managers today to value money market fund shares. Other innovations include the first institutional tax-free money market fund. As of December 31, 1999, Federated managed more than $83.0 billion in assets across 54 money market funds, including 16 government, 13 prime, 24 municipal and 1 euro-denominated with assets approximating $34.1 billion, $35.7 billion, $13.1 billion and $115 million, respectively.
The Chief Investment Officers responsible for oversight of the various investment sectors within Federated are: U.S. equity and high yield--J. Thomas Madden; U.S. fixed income--William D. Dawson III; and global equities and fixed income--Henry A. Frantzen. The Chief Investment Officers are Executive Vice Presidents of the Federated advisory companies.
Thirty-seven percent of American households are pursuing their financial goals through mutual funds. These investors, as well as businesses and institutions, have entrusted over $5 trillion to the more than 7,300 funds available, according to the Investment Company Institute.
Federated distributes mutual funds through its subsidiaries for a variety of investment purposes. Specific markets include:
Federated meets the needs of approximately 1,160 institutional clients nationwide by managing and servicing separate accounts and mutual funds for a variety of purposes, including defined benefit and defined contribution programs, cash management, and asset/liability management. Institutional clients include corporations, pension funds, tax exempt entities, foundations/endowments, insurance companies, and investment and financial advisers. The marketing effort to these institutional clients is headed by John B. Fisher, President, Institutional Sales Division, Federated Securities Corp.
Other institutional clients include more than 1,600 banks and trust organizations. Virtually all of the trust divisions of the top 100 bank holding companies use Federated Funds in their clients' portfolios. The marketing effort to trust clients is headed by Timothy C. Pillion, Senior Vice President, Bank Marketing & Sales.
Federated Funds are available to consumers through major brokerage firms nationwide--we have over 2,200 broker/dealer and bank broker/dealer relationships across the country--supported by more wholesalers than any other mutual fund distributor. Federated's service to financial professionals and institutions has earned it high ratings in several surveys performed by DALBAR, Inc. DALBAR is recognized as the industry benchmark for service quality measurement. The marketing effort to these firms is headed by James F. Getz, President, Broker/Dealer Sales Division, Federated Securities Corp.
AAA--Debt rated AAA has the highest rating assigned by Standard & Poor's. Capacity to pay interest and repay principal is extremely strong.
AA--Debt rated AA has a very strong capacity to pay interest and repay principal and differs from the higher-rated issues only in small degree.
A--Debt rated A has a strong capacity to pay interest and repay principal although it is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than debt in higher-rated categories.
BBB--Debt rated BBB is regarded as having an adequate capacity to pay interest and repay principal. Whereas it normally exhibits adequate protection parameters, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to pay interest and repay principal for debt in this category than in higher-rated categories.
BB--Debt rated BB has less near-term vulnerability to default than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions which could lead to inadequate capacity to meet timely interest and principal payments. The BB rating category is also used for debt subordinated to senior debt that is assigned an actual or implied BBB rating.
B--Debt rated B has a greater vulnerability to default but currently has the capacity to meet interest payments and principal repayments. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair capacity or willingness to pay interest and repay principal. The B rating category is also used for debt subordinated to senior debt that is assigned an actual or implied BB or BB- rating.
CCC--Debt rated CCC has a currently identifiable vulnerability to default, and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions to meet timely payment of interest and repayment of principal. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, it is not likely to have the capacity to pay interest and repay principal. The CCC rating category is also used for debt subordinated to senior debt that is assigned an actual or implied B or B- rating.
CC--The rating CC typically is applied to debt subordinated to senior debt that is assigned an actual or implied CCC debt rating.
C--The rating C typically is applied to debt subordinated to senior debt which is assigned an actual or implied CCC debt rating. The C rating may be used to cover a situation where a bankruptcy petition has been filed, but debt service payments are continued.
AAA--Bonds which are rated AAA are judged to be of the best quality. They carry the smallest degree of investment risk and are generally referred to as gilt edged. Interest payments are protected by a large or by an exceptionally stable margin and principal is secure. While the various protective elements are likely to change, such changes as can be visualized are most unlikely to impair the fundamentally strong position of such issues.
AA--Bonds which are rated AA are judged to be of high quality by all standards. Together with the AAA group, they comprise what are generally known as high-grade bonds. They are rated lower than the best bonds because margins of protection may not be as large as in AAA securities or fluctuation of protective elements may be of greater amplitude or there may be other elements present which make the long-term risks appear somewhat larger than in AAA securities.
A--Bonds which are rated A possess many favorable investment attributes and are to be considered as upper-medium-grade obligations. Factors giving security to principal and interest are considered adequate but elements may be present which suggest a susceptibility to impairment sometime in the future.
BAA--Bonds which are rated BAA are considered as medium-grade obligations, (i.e., they are neither highly protected nor poorly secured). Interest payments and principal security appear adequate for the present but certain protective elements may be lacking or may be characteristically unreliable over any great length of time. Such bonds lack outstanding investment characteristics and in fact have speculative characteristics as well.
BA--Bonds which are BA are judged to have speculative elements; their future cannot be considered as well assured. Often the protection of interest and principal payments may be very moderate and thereby not well safeguarded during both good and bad times over the future. Uncertainty of position characterizes bonds in this class.
B--Bonds which are rated B generally lack characteristics of the desirable investment. Assurance of interest and principal payments or of maintenance of other terms of the contract over any long period of time may be small.
CAA--Bonds which are rated CAA are of poor standing. Such issues may be in default or there may be present elements of danger with respect to principal or interest.
CA--Bonds which are rated CA represent obligations which are speculative in a high degree. Such issues are often in default or have other marked shortcomings.
C--Bonds which are rated C are the lowest-rated class of bonds, and issues so rated can be regarded as having extremely poor prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing.
AAA--Bonds considered to be investment grade and of the highest credit quality. The obligor has an exceptionally strong ability to pay interest and repay principal, which is unlikely to be affected by reasonably foreseeable events.
AA--Bonds considered to be investment grade and of very high credit quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal is very strong, although not quite as strong as bonds rated AAA. Because bonds rated in the AAA and AA categories are not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable future developments, short-term debt of these issuers is generally rated F-1+.
A--Bonds considered to be investment grade and of high credit quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal is considered to be strong, but may be more vulnerable to adverse changes in economic conditions and circumstances than bonds with higher ratings.
BBB--Bonds considered to be investment grade and of satisfactory credit quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal is considered to be adequate. Adverse changes in economic conditions and circumstances, however, are more likely to have adverse impact on these bonds, and therefore impair timely payment. The likelihood that the ratings of these bonds will fall below investment grade is higher than for bonds with higher ratings.
BB--Bonds are considered speculative. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal may be affected over time by adverse economic changes. However, business and financial alternatives can be identified which could assist the obligor in satisfying its debt service requirements.
B--Bonds are considered highly speculative. While bonds in this class are currently meeting debt service requirements, the probability of continued timely payment of principal and interest reflects the obligor's limited margin of safety and the need for reasonable business and economic activity throughout the life of the issue.
CCC--Bonds have certain identifiable characteristics which, if not remedied, may lead to default. The ability to meet obligations requires an advantageous business and economic environment.
CC--Bonds are minimally protected. Default in payment of interest and/or principal seems probable over time.
C--Bonds are imminent default in payment of interest or principal.
Prime-1--Issuers rated Prime-1 (or related supporting institutions) have a superior capacity for repayment of short-term promissory obligations. Prime-1 repayment capacity will normally be evidenced by the following characteristics:
Prime-2--Issuers rated Prime-2 (or related supporting institutions) have a strong capacity for repayment of short-term promissory obligations. This will normally be evidenced by many of the characteristics cited above but to a lesser degree. Earnings trends and coverage ratios, while sound, will be more subject to variation. Capitalization characteristics, while still appropriate, may be more affected by external conditions. Ample alternate liquidity is maintained.
A-1--This designation indicates that the degree of safety regarding timely payment is strong. Those issues determined to possess extremely strong safety characteristics are denoted with a plus sign (+) designation.
A-2--Capacity for timely payment on issues with this designation is satisfactory. However, the relative degree of safety is not as high as for issues designated A-1.
FITCH-1--(Highest Grade) Commercial paper assigned this rating is regarded as having the strongest degree of assurance for timely payment.
FITCH-2--(Very Good Grade) Issues assigned this rating reflect an assurance of timely payment only slightly less in degree than the strongest issues.
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Class A Shares
Class B Shares
Class C Shares
Federated Investors Funds
5800 Corporate Drive
Pittsburgh, PA 15237-7000
Federated Securities Corp.
Federated Investors Tower
1001 Liberty Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15222-3779
Federated Investment Management Company
Federated Investors Tower
1001 Liberty Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15222-3779
State Street Bank and Trust Company
P.O. Box 8600
Boston, MA 02266-8600
Federated Shareholder Services Company
P.O. Box 8600
Boston, MA 02266-8600
Deloitte & Touche LLP
200 Berkeley Street
Boston, MA 02116
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