[front cover]
AMERICAN CENTURY
Fund Profile
[american century logo(reg. sm)]
American
Century
Utilities Fund
This profile summarizes key information about the fund that is included in the
fund's Prospectus. The fund's Prospectus includes additional information about
the fund, including a more detailed description of the risks associated with
investing in the fund, that you may want to consider before you invest.
[three photos of bubble blowing woman and child,
business men, woman at computer]
APRIL 25, 1999
INVESTOR CLASS
You may obtain the Prospectus and other information about the fund at no cost
by calling us at 1-800-345-2021, accessing our Web site or visiting one of our
Investor Centers. See the back cover for additional telephone numbers and our
address.
UTILITIES FUND
1. WHAT IS THE FUND'S INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE?
Utilities seeks current income and long-term growth of capital and income.
The fund invests primarily in equity securities of companies engaged in the
utilities industry.
2. WHAT IS THE FUND'S INVESTMENT STRATEGY?
Utilities invests primarily in equity securities of companies engaged in the
utilities industry. The fund's investment strategy utilizes quantitative
management techniques in a two-part process that utilizes computer
technology. The first part involves ranking stocks on the basis of their
growth and valuation characteristics. Examples of growth characteristics are
earnings growth rates and changes in analyst earnings estimates. Examples of
valuation characteristics are price-to-earnings and price-to-book ratios.
In the second part of the process, the fund managers use a technique called
portfolio optimization. In portfolio optimization, the fund managers use a
computer model to build a portfolio of stocks that they believe will provide
the optimal balance between risk relative to the fund's benchmark, which is
described below, and expected return of the fund, as measured in the stock
ranking completed in the first step.
Under normal market conditions, Utilities invests at least 75% of its total
assets in stocks of companies engaged in the utilities industry. Of this
75%, the fund managers will not buy shares of a company unless 50% or more
of the company's revenues or net profits come from the ownership or
operation of facilities used to provide electricity, natural gas,
telecommunications services, cable television, water or sanitary services.
Utilities may invest up to 25% of its total assets in fixed-income
securities.
The fund may invest in securities other than stocks, such as convertible
securities, foreign securities, short-term instruments and non-leveraged
stock index futures contracts. "Non-leveraged" means that the fund may not
invest in futures contracts where it would be possible to lose more than the
fund invested.
The fund's benchmark is a market capitalization-weighted index of companies
engaged in the utilities industry as defined above and whose shares are
traded in the United States. It is an internally developed index maintained
by the fund advisor. The index is changed periodically to reflect corporate
actions such as mergers and acquisitions. It also may be changed to reflect
underlying trends in the utilities industry over time. Changes in the index
may induce changes to the fund's holdings. As of the end of December 1998,
the benchmark was comprised of 163 companies with an aggregate market
capitalization of almost $1.02 trillion. The average market capitalization
of the companies in the benchmark was $6.26 billion.
Additional information about Utilities' investments is available in its
annual and semiannual reports. In these reports you will find a discussion
of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly
affected the fund's performance during the most recent fiscal period. You
may get these reports at no cost by calling us.
3. WHAT ARE THE SIGNIFICANT RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND?
* The value of Utilities' shares depends on the value of the stocks and
other securities it owns. The value of the individual securities that the
fund owns will go up and down depending on the performance of the companies
that issued them, general market and economic conditions, and investor
confidence.
* As with all funds, at any given time the value of your shares of Utilities
may be worth more or less than the price you paid. If you sell your shares
when the value is less than the price you paid, you will lose money.
* An investment in the fund is not a bank deposit, and it is not insured or
guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other
government agency.
Utilities American Century Investments
* Because Utilities concentrates its investments in utilities companies, it
may be subject to greater risks and market fluctuations than a portfolio
representing a broader range of industries. As an example of these risks,
companies in the telecommunications and electric utilities industries have
experienced substantial changes in the amount and type of regulation at the
state and federal levels. While creating opportunities for some companies,
it also has increased the uncertainty for others with respect to future
revenues and earnings. This trend may continue for some time and increased
share price volatility may result.
* Although the fund managers invest the fund's assets primarily in U.S.
stocks, Utilities can invest in securities of foreign companies. Foreign
securities can have certain unique risks, including fluctuations in currency
exchange rates, unstable political and economic structures, reduced
availability of public information, and lack of uniform financial reporting
and regulatory practices similar to those that apply to U.S. issuers.
In summary, Utilities is intended for investors who seek current income and
long-term capital growth and income through investments in utilities
companies, and who are willing to accept the risks associated with the
fund's investment strategy.
FUND PERFORMANCE
The following bar chart shows the actual performance of Utilities' Investor
Class shares for each calendar year since the fund's inception on March 1,
1993. The bar chart indicates the volatility of the fund's historical
returns from year to year. The bar chart and the performance information
below are not intended to indicate how the fund will perform in the future.
[bar chart]
Calendar Year-By-Year Returns (1)
1998 27.43%
1997 35.82%
1996 4.82%
1995 35.70%
1994 -10.03%
(1) As of March 31, 1999, the end of the most recent calendar quarter,
Utilities' year-to-date return was -4.70%.
The highest and lowest quarterly returns for the period reflected in the bar
chart are:
Highest Lowest
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Utilities 18.04% (4Q 1997) -8.70% (1Q 1994)
The following table shows the average annual return of the fund's Investor
Class shares for the periods indicated. The S&P 500, an unmanaged index that
reflects no operating costs, is included as a benchmark for performance
comparisons. For current performance information, including yields, please
call us or access our Web site.
1 YEAR 5 YEARS LIFE OF FUND(1)
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AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS (PERIOD ENDED MARCH 31, 1999)
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Utilities 8.44% 18.25% 14.26%
S&P 500 18.42% 26.19% 21.93%
Fund Benchmark(2) 15.05% 20.34% 15.85%
(1) The inception date for Utilities is March 1, 1993.
(2) The Fund Benchmark consists of approximately 163 utility stocks that
meet the fund's investment criteria. The benchmark's composition by
industry group is approximately 50% telephone and communication
services, 35% electric and 15% natural gas companies.
4. WHAT ARE THE FUND'S FEES AND EXPENSES?
There are no sales loads, fees or other charges
* to buy fund shares directly from American Century
* to reinvest dividends in additional shares
* to exchange into the Investor Class shares of other American Century fund
* to redeem your shares
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will pay if you
buy and hold shares of the fund.
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ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(EXPENSES THAT ARE DEDUCTED FROM FUND ASSETS)
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Management Fee 0.69%(1)
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees None
Other Expenses(2) 0.00%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 0.69%
(1) Based on expenses incurred during the fund's most recent fiscal year.
The fund has a stepped fee schedule. As a result, the fund's management
fee rate generally decreases as fund assets increase.
(2) Other expenses which include the fees and expenses of the fund's
independent directors, their legal counsel, interest and extraordinary
expenses, were less than 0.005% for the most recent fiscal year.
Fund Profile Utilities
EXAMPLE
Assuming you . . .
* invest $10,000 in the fund
* redeem all of your shares at the end of the periods shown below
* earn a 5% return each year
* incur the same operating expenses as shown above
. . . your cost of investing in the fund would be:
1 year 3 years 5 years 10 years
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$70 $220 $383 $856
Of course, actual costs may be higher or lower. Use this example to
compare the costs of investing in other funds.
5. WHO ARE THE FUND'S INVESTMENT ADVISOR AND PORTFOLIO MANAGERS?
American Century Investment Management, Inc. provides investment advisory
and management services for the fund. American Century uses teams of
portfolio managers, assistant portfolio managers and analysts working
together to manage its mutual funds. The portfolio managers on the Utilities
team are identified as follows:
JOHN SCHNIEDWIND, Senior Vice President and Group Leader-Quantitative
Equity, joined American Century in 1982, and has been a member of the team
that manages Utilities since its inception in March 1993. He has degrees
from Purdue University and the University of California - Berkeley. He is a
Chartered Financial Analyst.
KURT BORGWARDT, Vice President, Portfolio Manager and Director of
Quantitative Equity Research, joined American Century in 1990 and has served
as the Director of Quantitative Equity Research since then. He joined the
team managing Utilities in May 1997. He has a degree from Stanford
University and an MBA with a specialization in finance from the University
of Chicago. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
JOSEPH B. STERLING, Portfolio Manager, joined the team managing Utilities in
June 1997. He joined American Century in 1989 as an Equity Research Analyst
and held that position until being promoted to Associate Portfolio Manager
in December 1995. He has a bachelor's degree in political economy of
industrial societies from the University of California-Berkeley.
6. HOW DO I BUY FUND SHARES?
* Complete and return the enclosed application
* Call us and exchange shares from another American Century fund
* Call us and send your investment by bank wire transfer
Your initial investment must be at least $2,500 ($1,000 for traditional
IRAs, Roth IRAs and UGMA/UTMA accounts) unless you establish an automatic
investment plan of at least $50 per month. If the value of your account
falls below this account minimum, your shares may be redeemed involuntarily.
7. HOW DO I SELL FUND SHARES?
You may sell all or part of your fund shares on any business day by writing
or calling us. You also may exchange your shares in Utilities for shares in
nearly 70 other mutual funds offered by American Century. Depending on the
options you select when you open your account, some restrictions may apply.
For your protection, some redemption requests require a signature guarantee.
8. HOW ARE FUND DISTRIBUTIONS MADE AND TAXED?
Utilities pays distributions of substantially all of its income quarterly.
Distributions from realized capital gains are paid semiannually, usually in
March and December. Distributions may be taxable as ordinary income, capital
gains or a combination of the two. Capital gains are taxed at different
rates depending on the length of time the fund held the securities that were
sold. Distributions are reinvested automatically in additional shares unless
you choose another option.
Utilities American Century Investments
9. WHAT SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE?
American Century offers several ways to make it easier for you to manage
your account, such as
* telephone transactions
* wire and electronic funds transfers
* 24-hour Automated Information Line transactions
* 24-hour online Internet account access and transactions
You will find more information about these choices in our Investor Services
Guide, which you may request by calling us, accessing our Web site or
visiting one of our Investor Centers.
Information contained in our Investor Services Guide pertains to
shareholders who invest directly with American Century rather than through
an employer-sponsored retirement plan or financial intermediary.
If you own or are considering purchasing fund shares through an
employer-sponsored retirement plan or financial intermediary, your ability
to purchase shares of the fund, exchange them for shares of other American
Century funds, and redeem them will depend on the terms of your plan or
financial intermediary. If you have questions about investing in an
employer-sponsored retirement plan or through a financial intermediary, call
a Service Representative at 1-800-345-3533.
Fund Profile Utilities
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[american century logo(reg. sm)]
American
Century
AMERICAN CENTURY INVESTMENTS
P.O. BOX 419200
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI 64141-6200
INVESTOR RELATIONS
1-800-345-2021 or 816-531-5575
AUTOMATED INFORMATION LINE
1-800-345-8765
FAX
816-340-7962
TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICE FOR THE DEAF
1-800-634-4113 or 816-444-3485
BUSINESS, NOT-FOR-PROFIT AND
EMPLOYER-SPONSORED RETIREMENT PLANS
1-800-345-353
Visit our Web site at WWW.AMERICANCENTURY.COM [link to web site with arrow]
SH-PRF-16139 9904 Funds Distributor, Inc.
