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Prospectus
February 1, 1996
Dean Witter Capital Growth Securities (the "Fund") is an open-end
diversified management investment company whose investment objective is
long-term capital growth. The Fund invests primarily in common stocks.
Shares of the Fund are continuously offered at net asset value.
However,
redemptions and/or repurchases are subject in most cases to a contingent
deferred sales charge, scaled down from 5% to 1% of the amount redeemed, if made
within six years of purchase, which charge will be paid to the Fund's
Distributor, Dean Witter Distributors Inc. (See "Redemptions and
Repurchases--Contingent Deferred Sales Charge.") In addition, the Fund pays the
Distributor a distribution fee pursuant to a Plan of Distribution at the annual
rate of 1% of the lesser of the (i) average daily aggregate net sales or (ii)
average daily net assets of the Fund. (See "Purchase of Fund Shares--Plan of
Distribution.")
This Prospectus sets forth concisely the information you should
know before investing in the Fund. It should be read and retained for future
reference. Additional information about the Fund is contained in the Statement
of Additional Information, dated February 1, 1996, which has been filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, and which is available at no charge upon
request of the Fund at the address or telephone numbers listed on this page. The
Statement of Additional Information is incorporated herein by reference.
Dean Witter
Capital Growth Securities
Two World Trade Center
New York, New York 10048
(212) 392-2550 or
(800) 869-NEWS
Table of Contents
Prospectus Summary /2
Summary of Fund Expenses /3
Financial Highlights /4
The Fund and its Management /5
Investment Objective and Policies /5
Risk Considerations and Investment Practices /6
Investment Restrictions /10
Purchase of Fund Shares /10
Shareholder Services /12
Redemptions and Repurchases /15
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes /17
Performance Information /18
Additional Information /18
SHARES OF THE FUND ARE NOT DEPOSITS OR OBLIGATIONS OF, OR GUARANTEED OR ENDORSED
BY, ANY BANK, AND THE SHARES ARE NOT FEDERALLY INSURED BY THE FEDERAL DEPOSIT
INSURANCE CORPORATION, THE FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, OR ANY OTHER AGENCY.
THESE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED BY THE SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION NOR HAS THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OR ANY STATE SECURITIES COMMISSION PASSED UPON THE
ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS PROSPECTUS. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A
CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
Dean Witter Distributors Inc.
Distributor
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PROSPECTUS SUMMARY
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<TABLE>
<S> <C>
The The Fund is organized as a Trust, commonly known as a Massachusetts business trust, and is an open-
Fund end, diversified management investment company. The Fund invests principally in common stocks.
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Shares Offered Shares of beneficial interest with $.01 par value (see page 18).
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Offering At net asset value without sales charge. Shares redeemed within six years of purchase are subject
Price to a contingent deferred sales charge under most circumstances (see page 10).
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Minimum The minimum initial investment is $1,000 ($100 if the account is opened through EasyInvest-SM-);
Purchase minimum subsequent investment is $100 (see page 10).
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Investment The investment objective of the Fund is to achieve long-term capital growth.
Objectives
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Investment Dean Witter InterCapital Inc. ("InterCapital"), the Investment Manager of the Fund, and its
Manager wholly-owned subsidiary, Dean Witter Services Company Inc., serve in various investment management,
advisory, management and administrative capacities to ninety-five investment companies and other
portfolios with assets of approximately $79.5 billion at December 31, 1995.
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Management The Investment Manager receives a monthly fee at the annual rate of 0.65% of daily net assets,
Fee scaled down on assets over $500 million (see page 5).
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Dividends and Dividends from net investment income and distributions from net capital gains are paid at least
Distributions once each year. Dividends and capital gains distributions are automatically reinvested in
additional shares at net asset value unless the shareholder elects to receive cash (see page 17).
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Distributor Dean Witter Distributors Inc. (the "Distributor"). The Distributor receives from the Fund a
distribution fee, accrued daily and payable monthly, at the rate of 1% per annum of the lesser of
(i) the Fund's average daily aggregate net sales or (ii) the Fund's average daily net assets. This
fee compensates the Distributor for the services provided in distributing shares of the Fund and
for sales related expenses. The Distributor also receives the proceeds of any contigent deferred
sales charges (see page 10).
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Redemption-- Shares are redeemable by the shareholder at net asset value. An account may be involuntarily
Contingent redeemed if the total value of the account is less than $100 or, if the account was opened through
Deferred EasyInvest-SM-, if after twelve months the shareholder has invested less than $1,000 in the
Sales account. Although no commission or sales load is imposed upon the purchase of shares, a contingent
Charge deferred sales charge (scaled down from 5% to 1%) is imposed on any redemption of shares if after
such redemption the aggregate current value of an account with the Fund falls below the aggregate
amount of the investor's purchase payments made during the six years preceding the redemption.
However, there is no charge imposed on redemption of shares purchased through reinvestment of
dividends or distributions (see page 15).
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Special The net asset value of the Fund's shares will fluctuate with changes in the market value of its
Risk portfolio securities. The Fund may purchase foreign securities, which involve certain special
Considera- risks. The Fund may also invest in futures and options which may be considered speculative in
tions nature and may involve greater risks than those customarily assumed by certain other investment
companies which do not invest in such instruments (see page 6).
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</TABLE>
THE ABOVE IS QUALIFIED IN ITS ENTIRETY BY THE DETAILED INFORMATION APPEARING
ELSEWHERE IN THIS PROSPECTUS AND IN THE STATEMENT OF
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
2
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SUMMARY OF FUND EXPENSES
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The following table illustrates all expenses and fees that a shareholder of
the Fund will incur. The expenses and fees set forth in the table are for the
fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, except as otherwise noted.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
SHAREHOLDER TRANSACTION EXPENSES
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<S> <C>
Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases............................ None
Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested Dividends................. None
Deferred Sales Charge
(as a percentage of the lesser of original purchase price or
redemption proceeds)................................................ 5.0%
A contingent deferred sales charge is imposed at the following
declining rates:
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
YEAR SINCE PURCHASE PAYMENT MADE PERCENTAGE
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<S> <C>
First........................................................... 5.0 %
Second.......................................................... 4.0 %
Third........................................................... 3.0 %
Fourth.......................................................... 2.0 %
Fifth........................................................... 2.0 %
Sixth........................................................... 1.0 %
Seventh and thereafter.......................................... None
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<S> <C>
Redemption Fees...................................................... None
Exchange Fee......................................................... None
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (AS A PERCENTAGE OF AVERAGE NET ASSETS)
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<S> <C>
Management Fees...................................................... 0.65 %
12b-1 Fees*.......................................................... 1.00 %
Other Expenses....................................................... 0.24 %
Total Fund Operating Expenses........................................ 1.89 %
<FN>
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* A PORTION OF THE 12B-1 FEE EQUAL TO 0.25% OF THE FUND'S AVERAGE DAILY NET
ASSETS IS CHARACTERIZED AS A SERVICE FEE WITHIN THE MEANING OF NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION OF SECURITIES DEALERS, INC. ("NASD") GUIDELINES (SEE "PURCHASE OF
FUND SHARES").
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
EXAMPLE 1 YEAR 3 YEARS 5 YEARS 10 YEARS
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<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
You would pay the following expenses on a $1,000
investment, assuming (1) 5% annual return and (2)
redemption at the end of each time period......... $ 69 $ 89 $ 122 $ 221
You would pay the following expenses on the same
investment, assuming no redemption................ $ 19 $ 59 $ 102 $ 221
</TABLE>
THE ABOVE EXAMPLE SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED A REPRESENTATION OF PAST OR
FUTURE EXPENSES OR PERFORMANCE. ACTUAL EXPENSES OF THE FUND MAY BE GREATER OR
LESS THAN THOSE SHOWN.
The purpose of this table is to assist the investor in understanding the
various costs and expenses that an investor in the Fund will bear directly or
indirectly. For a more complete description of these costs and expenses, see
"The Fund and Its Management," "Plan of Distribution" and "Redemptions and
Repurchases."
Long-term shareholders of the Fund may pay more in sales charges and
distribution fees than the economic equivalent of the maximum front-end sales
charges permitted by the NASD.
3
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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
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The following ratios and per share data for a share of beneficial interest
outstanding throughout each period have been audited by Price Waterhouse LLP,
independent accountants. The financial highlights should be read in conjunction
with the financial statements, notes thereto, and the unqualified report of the
independent accountants which are contained in the Statement of Additional
Information. Further information about the performance of the Fund is contained
in the Fund's Annual Report to Shareholders, which may be obtained without
charge upon request to the Fund.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FOR THE
PERIOD
APRIL 2,
1990*
FOR THE YEAR ENDED OCTOBER 31 THROUGH
----------------------------------------------------- OCTOBER
1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 31, 1990
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
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PER SHARE OPERATING PERFORMANCE:
Net asset value, beginning of
period............................ $11.86 $13.35 $14.09 $13.58 $ 9.19 $10.00
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net investment income (loss)..... (0.06) (0.07) (0.08) (0.03) (0.01) 0.01
Net realized and unrealized gain
(loss).......................... 2.60 -- (0.50) 0.58 4.42 (0.82)
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Total from investment
operations...................... 2.54 (0.07) (0.58) 0.55 4.41 (0.81)
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Less dividends and distributions
from:
Net investment income.......... -- -- -- -- (0.02) --
Net realized gain.............. -- (1.42) (0.16) (0.04) -- --
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Total dividends and
distributions................... -- (1.42) (0.16) (0.04) (0.02) --
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net asset value, end of period... $ 14.40 $ 11.86 $ 13.35 $ 14.09 $ 13.58 $ 9.19
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
TOTAL INVESTMENT RETURN+........... 21.42% (0.79)% (4.25)% 4.06% 48.07% (8.10)%(1)
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS:
Expenses......................... 1.89% 1.87% 1.81% 1.74% 1.83% 1.97%(2)
Net investment income (loss)..... (0.43)% (0.15)% (0.38)% (0.32)% (0.17)% 0.25%(2)
SUPPLEMENTAL DATA:
Net assets, end of period, in
thousands....................... $ 483,870 $ 456,977 $ 683,165 $ 973,110 $ 600,027 $206,588
Portfolio turnover rate.......... 33% 13% 25% 29% 40% 10%(1)
</TABLE>
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* COMMENCEMENT OF OPERATIONS.
+ DOES NOT REFLECT THE DEDUCTION OF SALES CHARGE.
(1) NOT ANNUALIZED.
(2) ANNUALIZED.
4
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THE FUND AND ITS MANAGEMENT
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Dean Witter Capital Growth Securities (the "Fund") is an open-end,
diversified management investment company. The Fund is a trust of the type
commonly known as a "Massachusetts business trust" and was organized under the
laws of Massachusetts on December 8, 1989.
Dean Witter InterCapital Inc. ("InterCapital" or the "Investment Manager"),
whose address is Two World Trade Center, New York, New York 10048, is the Fund's
Investment Manager. The Investment Manager, which was incorporated in July,
1992, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dean Witter, Discover & Co. ("DWDC"), a
balanced financial services organization providing a broad range of nationally
marketed credit and investment products.
InterCapital and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Dean Witter Services Company
Inc., serve in various investment management, advisory, management and
administrative capacities to ninety-four investment companies, thirty of which
are listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with combined assets of approximately
$76.9 billion as of December 31, 1995. The Investment Manager also manages and
advises portfolios of pension plans, other institutions and individuals which
aggregated approximately $2.6 billion at such date.
The Fund has retained the Investment Manager to provide administrative
services, manage its business affairs and manage the investment of the Fund's
assets, including the placing of orders for the purchase and sale of portfolio
securities. InterCapital has retained Dean Witter Services Company Inc. to
perform the aforementioned administrative services for the Fund. The Fund's
Trustees review the various services provided by or under the direction of the
Investment Manager to ensure that the Fund's general investment policies and
programs are being properly carried out and that administrative services are
being provided to the Fund in a satisfactory manner.
As full compensation for the services and facilities furnished to the Fund
and for expenses of the Fund assumed by the Investment Manager, the Fund pays
the Investment Manager monthly compensation calculated daily by applying the
annual rate of 0.65% to the Fund's net assets not exceeding $500 million, scaled
down at various asset levels to 0.475% on the portion of daily net assets
exceeding $1.5 billion. For the fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund
accrued total compensation to the Investment Manager amounting to 0.65% of the
Fund's average daily net assets and the Fund's total expenses amounted to 1.89%
of the Fund's average daily net assets.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE AND POLICIES
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The investment objective of the Fund is long-term capital growth. There is
no assurance that the objective will be achieved. This objective is fundamental
and may not be changed without shareholder approval. The following policies may
be changed by the Board of Trustees without shareholder approval.
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under
normal circumstances, at least 65% of its total assets in common stocks. As part
of its management of the Fund, the Investment Manager utilizes a two-stage
computerized screening process. The first stage of the process involves the
screening of a database of approximately 3,000 companies for those companies
demonstrating a history of consistent growth in earnings and revenues for the
past several years. If further refinement of the list of companies obtained from
the first screen is required, those companies are then applied against two
additional screens designed to measure current earnings momentum and current
price valuations, respectively, in order to further refine the list of companies
for potential investment by the Fund, which investment may be on an
equally-weighted basis. (Current earnings momentum refers to the rate of change
in earnings growth over the prior four quarters and current price valuations
refers to the current price of a company's stock in relation to a theoretical
value based upon current dividends, projected growth rates and the rate of
inflation.) Subject to the Fund's investment
5
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objective, the Investment Manager, without notice, may modify the foregoing
screening process and/or may utilize additional or different screening processes
in connection with the investment of the Fund's assets. Dividend income will not
be a consideration in the selection of stocks for purchase.
Although the Fund invests primarily in common stocks, the Fund may invest up
to 35% of its total assets (taken at current value and subject to any
restrictions appearing elsewhere in this Prospectus), in any combination of the
following: (a) U.S. Government securities (securities issued or guaranteed as to
principal and interest by the U.S. Government or its agencies or
instrumentalities) and investment grade fixed-income securities; (b) convertible
securities; (c) money market instruments; (d) options on equity and debt
securities; and (e) futures contracts and related options thereon, as described
below. The Fund may also purchase unit offerings (where corporate debt
securities are offered as a unit with convertible securities, preferred or
common stocks, warrants, or any combination thereof). U.S. Government securities
in which the Fund may invest include zero coupon securities. Convertible
securities in which the Fund may invest include bonds, debentures, corporate
notes, preferred stock and other securities. The Fund may also purchase
securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis, may purchase or sell
securities on a forward commitment basis, and may purchase securities on a
"when, as and if issued" basis.
There may be periods during which, in the opinion of the Investment Manager,
market conditions warrant reduction of some or all of the Fund's securities
holdings. During such periods, the Fund may adopt a temporary "defensive"
posture in which greater than 35% of its total assets are invested in cash or
money market instruments. Money market instruments in which the Fund may invest
are securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government (Treasury bills,
notes and bonds, including zero coupon securities); bank obligations; Eurodollar
certificates of deposit; obligations of savings institutions; fully insured
certificates of deposit; and commercial paper rated within the two highest
grades by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's") or Standard & Poor's
Corporation ("S&P") or, if not rated, are issued by a company having an
outstanding debt issue rated at least AA by S&P or Aa by Moody's.
FOREIGN SECURITIES. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign companies.
However, the Fund will not invest more than 25% of the value of its total
assets, at the time of purchase, in foreign securities (other than securities of
Canadian issuers registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or
American Depository Receipts, on which there is no such limit). The Fund's
investments in unlisted foreign securities are subject to the overall
restrictions applicable to investments in illiquid securities (see "Investment
Restrictions"). For a discussion of the risks of investing in foreign
securities, see "Risk Considerations and Investment Practices" below.
RISK CONSIDERATIONS AND INVESTMENT PRACTICES
The net asset value of the Fund's shares will fluctuate with changes in the
market value of the Fund's portfolio securities. The market value of the Fund's
portfolio securities will increase or decrease due to a variety of economic,
market or political factors which cannot be predicted.
FOREIGN SECURITIES. Foreign securities investments may be affected by
changes in currency rates or exchange control regulations, changes in
governmental administration or economic or monetary policy (in the United States
and abroad) or changed circumstances in dealings between nations. Fluctuations
in the relative rates of exchange between the currencies of different nations
will affect the value of the Fund's investments denominated in foreign currency.
Changes in foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar will
affect the U.S. dollar value of the Fund's assets denominated in that currency
and thereby impact upon the Fund's total return on such assets. Costs may be
incurred in connection with conversions between various currencies held by the
Fund.
Investments in foreign securities will also occasion risks relating to
political and economic developments abroad, including the possibility of
expropriations or confiscatory taxation, limitations on the use or transfer of
Fund assets and any effects of foreign social, economic or political
instability. Foreign companies are not subject to the regulatory requirements of
U.S. companies and, as such, there may be less
6
<PAGE>
publicly available information about such companies. Moreover, foreign companies
are not subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting
standards and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies.
Securities of foreign issuers may be less liquid than comparable securities
of U.S. issuers and, as such, their price changes may be more volatile.
Furthermore, foreign exchanges and broker-dealers are generally subject to less
government and exchange scrutiny and regulation than their American
counterparts. Brokerage commissions, dealer concessions and other transaction
costs may be higher on foreign markets than in the U.S. In addition, differences
in clearance and settlement procedures on foreign markets may occasion delays in
settlements of the Fund's trades effected in such markets. As such, the
inability to dispose of portfolio securities due to settlement delays could
result in losses to the Fund due to subsequent declines in the value of such
securities and the inability of the Fund to make intended security purchases due
to settlement problems could result in a failure of the Fund to make potentially
advantageous investments. To the extent the Fund purchases Eurodollar
certificates of deposit issued by foreign branches of domestic United States
banks, consideration will be given to their domestic marketability, the lower
reserve requirements normally mandated for overseas banking operations, the
possible impact of interruptions in the flow of international currency
transactions and future international political and economic developments which
might adversely affect the payment of principal or interest.
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS. The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements, which
may be viewed as a type of secured lending by the Fund, and which typically
involve the acquisition by the Fund of debt securities from a selling financial
institution such as a bank, savings and loan association or broker-dealer. The
agreement provides that the Fund will sell back to the institution, and that the
institution will repurchase, the underlying security at a specified price and at
a fixed time in the future, usually not more than seven days from the date of
purchase. While repurchase agreements involve certain risks not associated with
direct investments in debt securities, including the risks of default or
bankruptcy of the selling financial institution, the Fund follows procedures
designed to minimize such risks. These procedures include effecting repurchase
transactions only with large, well-capitalized and well-established financial
institutions and maintaining adequate collateralization.
INVESTMENT IN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS. The Fund may invest in real
estate investment trusts, which pool investors' funds for investments primarily
in commercial real estate properties. Investment in real estate investment
trusts may be the most practical available means for the Fund to invest in the
real estate industry (the Fund is prohibited from investing in real estate
directly). As a shareholder in a real estate investment trust, the Fund would
bear its ratable share of the real estate investment trust's expenses, including
its advisory and administration fees. At the same time the Fund would continue
to pay its own investment management fees and other expenses, as a result of
which the Fund and its shareholders in effect will be absorbing duplicate levels
of fees with respect to investments in real estate investment trusts.
ZERO COUPON SECURITIES. A portion of the fixed-income securities purchased
by the Fund may be zero coupon securities. Such securities are purchased at a
discount from their face amount, giving the purchaser the right to receive their
full value at maturity. The interest earned on such securities is, implicitly,
automatically compounded and paid out at maturity. While such compounding at a
constant rate eliminates the risk of receiving lower yields upon reinvestment of
interest if prevailing interest rates decline, the owner of a zero coupon
security will be unable to participate in higher yields upon reinvestment of
interest received on interest-paying securities if prevailing interest rates
rise.
A zero coupon security pays no interest to its holder during its life.
Therefore, to the extent the Fund invests in zero coupon securities, it will not
receive current cash available for distribution to shareholders. In addition,
zero coupon securities are subject to substantially greater price fluctuations
during periods of
7
<PAGE>
changing prevailing interest rates than are comparable securities which pay
interest on a current basis. Current federal tax law requires that a holder
(such as the Fund) of a zero coupon security accrue a portion of the discount at
which the security was purchased as income each year even though the Fund
receives no interest payments in cash on the security during the year.
PRIVATE PLACEMENTS. The Fund may invest up to 5% of its total assets in
securities which are subject to restrictions on resale because they have not
been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities
Act"), or which are otherwise not readily marketable. (Securities eligible for
resale pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act, and determined to be
liquid pursuant to the procedures discussed in the following paragraph, are not
subject to the foregoing restriction.) These securities are generally referred
to as private placements or restricted securities. Limitations on the resale of
such securities may have an adverse effect on their marketability, and may
prevent the Fund from disposing of them promptly at reasonable prices. The Fund
may have to bear the expense of registering such securities for resale and the
risk of substantial delays in effecting such registration.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has adopted Rule 144A under the
Securities Act, which permits the Fund to sell restricted securities to
qualified institutional buyers without limitation. The Investment Manager,
pursuant to procedures adopted by the Trustees of the Fund, will make a
determination as to the liquidity of each restricted security purchased by the
Fund. If a restricted security is determined to be "liquid," such security will
not be included within the category "illiquid securities," which is limited by
the Fund's investment restrictions to 10% of the Fund's total assets.
OPTIONS AND FUTURES TRANSACTIONS
The Fund may purchase and sell (write) call and put options on debt and
equity securities. Listed options, which are currently listed on several
different Exchanges, are issued by the Options Clearing Corporation. The Fund is
permitted to write covered call options on portfolio securities, without limit,
in order to aid it in achieving its investment objective. The Fund may write
covered put options, provided that the aggregate value of the obligations
underlying the puts determined as of the date the options are sold may not
exceed 50% of the Fund's net assets.
The Fund may purchase listed call and put options in amounts equalling up to
5% of its total assets. The Fund may purchase put options on securities which it
holds (or has the right to acquire) in its portfolio only to protect itself
against a decline in the value of the security. The Fund may also purchase put
options to close out written put positions. There are no other limits on the
Fund's ability to purchase call and put options. The Fund also may purchase and
write options on stock indexes. See "Risks of Options on Indexes" in the
Statement of Additional Information.
The Fund may also purchase and sell interest rate and stock index futures
contracts ("futures contracts") that are traded on U.S. commodity exchanges on
such underlying securities as U.S. Treasury bonds, notes, and bills and GNMA
Certificates ("interest rate" futures) and such indexes as the S&P 500 Index and
the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index ("stock index" futures) and the
Moody's Investment-Grade Corporate Bond Index ("bond index" futures). The Fund
will purchase or sell interest rate futures contracts and bond index futures
contracts for the purpose of hedging its fixed-income portfolio (or anticipated
portfolio) securities against changes in prevailing interest rates. The Fund
will purchase or sell stock index futures contracts for the purpose of hedging
its equity portfolio (or anticipated portfolio) securities against changes in
their prices.
The Fund also may purchase and write call and put options on futures
contracts which are traded on an Exchange and enter into closing transactions
with respect to such options to terminate an existing position.
New futures contracts, options and other financial products and various
combinations thereof continue to be developed. The Fund may invest in any such
futures, options or products as may be
devel-
8
<PAGE>
oped, to the extent consistent with its investment objective and applicable
regulatory requirements.
RISKS OF OPTIONS AND FUTURES TRANSACTIONS. The Fund may close out its
position as writer of an option, or as a buyer or seller of a futures contract
only if a liquid secondary market exists for options or futures contracts of
that series. There is no assurance that such a market will exist. Also,
exchanges may limit the amount by which the price of many futures contracts may
move on any day. If the price moves equal the daily limit on successive days,
then it may prove impossible to liquidate a futures position until the daily
limit moves have ceased.
While the futures contracts and options transactions to be engaged in by the
Fund for the purpose of hedging the Fund's portfolio securities are not
speculative in nature, there are risks inherent in the use of such instruments.
One such risk is that the Investment Manager could be incorrect in its
expectations as to the direction or extent of various interest rate or price
movements or the time span within which the movements take place. For example,
if the Fund sold futures contracts for the sale of securities in anticipation of
an increase in interest rates, and then interest rates went down instead,
causing bond prices to rise, the Fund would lose money on the sale. Another risk
which may arise in employing futures contracts to protect against the price
volatility of portfolio securities is that the prices of securities and indexes
subject to futures contracts (and thereby the futures contract prices) may
correlate imperfectly with the behavior of the cash prices of the Fund's
portfolio securities. See the Statement of Additional Information for a further
discussion of risks.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
The Fund's portfolio is actively managed by its Investment Manager with a
view to achieving the Fund's investment objective. In determining which
securities to purchase for the Fund or hold in the Fund's portfolio, the
Investment Manager will rely on information from various sources, including
research, analysis and appraisals of brokers and dealers, including Dean Witter
Reynolds Inc. ("DWR"), a broker-dealer affiliate of InterCapital, the views of
Trustees of the Fund and others regarding economic developments and interest
rate trends, and the Investment Manager's own analysis of factors it deems
relevant. The Fund's portfolio is managed within InterCapital's Growth & Income
Group, which manages 27 equity funds and fund portfolios with approximately $8.4
billion in assets as of October 31, 1995. Paul D. Vance, Senior Vice President
of InterCapital and Chairman of InterCapital's Growth & Income Group, and Mr.
Kenton J. Hinchliffe, Senior Vice President of InterCapital, have been the
primary portfolio managers of the Fund since its inception and have been
portfolio managers at InterCapital for over five years.
The Investment Manager has substantial experience in the use of the
investment techniques described above under the heading "Options and Futures
Transactions," which techniques require skills different from those needed to
select the portfolio securities underlying various options and futures
contracts.
Orders for transactions in portfolio securities and commodities are placed
for the Fund with a number of brokers and dealers, including DWR. Pursuant to an
order of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Fund may effect principal
transactions in certain money market instruments with DWR. In addition, the Fund
may incur brokerage commissions on transactions conducted through DWR. It is not
anticipated that the portfolio trading will result in the Fund's portfolio
turnover rate exceeding 200% in any one year. The Fund will incur brokerage
costs commensurate with its portfolio turnover rate, and thus a higher level
(over 100%) of portfolio transactions will increase the Fund's overall brokerage
expenses. Short term gains and losses may result from such portfolio
transactions. See "Dividends, Distributions and Taxes" for a discussion of the
tax implications of the Fund's trading policy. A more extensive discussion of
the Fund's portfolio brokerage policies is set forth in the Statement of
Additional Information.
Except as specifically noted, all investment objectives, policies and
practices discussed above are not fundamental policies of the Fund and, as such,
may be changed without shareholder approval.
9
<PAGE>
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The investment restrictions listed below are among the restrictions which
have been adopted by the Fund as fundamental policies. Under the Investment
Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Act"), a fundamental policy may not be
changed without the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of
the Fund, as defined in the Act. For purposes of the following limitations: (i)
all percentage limitations apply immediately after a purchase or initial
investment, and (ii) any subsequent change in any applicable percentage
resulting from market fluctuations or other changes in total or net assets does
not require elimination of any security from the portfolio.
The Fund may not:
1. As to 75% of its total assets, invest more than 5% of the value of
its total assets in the securities of any one issuer (other than obligations
issued or guaranteed by the United States Government, its agencies or
instrumentalities).
2. Invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in securities of
issuers in any one industry. This restriction does not apply to obligations
issued or guaranteed by the United States Government or its agencies or
instrumentalities.
3. Invest more than 5% of the value of its total assets in securities
of issuers having a record, together with predecessors, of less than three
years of continuous operation. This restriction shall not apply to any
obligation issued or guaranteed by the United States Government, its
agencies or instrumentalities.
4. As to 75% of its total assets, purchase more than 10% of the voting
securities, or more than 10% of any class of securities, of any issuer.
5. Purchase or sell commodities or commodities contracts except that
the Fund may purchase or write interest rate and stock and bond index
futures contracts and related options thereon.
6. Invest more than 10% of its total assets in "illiquid securities"
(securities for which market quotations are not readily available) and
repurchase agreements which have a maturity of longer than seven days.
PURCHASE OF FUND SHARES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund offers its shares for sale to the public on a continuous basis.
Pursuant to a Distribution Agreement between the Fund and Dean Witter
Distributors Inc. (the "Distributor"), an affiliate of the Investment Manager,
shares of the Fund are distributed by the Distributor and offered by DWR and
other dealers who have entered into selected dealer agreements with the
Distributor ("Selected Broker-Dealers"). The principal executive office of the
Distributor is located at Two World Trade Center, New York, New York 10048.
The minimum initial purchase is $1,000 and subsequent purchases of $100 or
more may be made by sending a check, payable to Dean Witter Capital Growth
Securities, directly to Dean Witter Trust Company (the "Transfer Agent") at P.O.
Box 1040, Jersey City, NJ 07303 or by contacting a DWR or other Selected
Broker-Dealer account executive. The minimum initial purchase in the case of
investments through EasyInvest-SM-, an automatic purchase plan (see "Shareholder
Services"), is $100, provided that the schedule of automatic investments will
result in investments totalling at least $1,000 within the first twelve months.
In the case of investments pursuant to Systematic Payroll Deduction Plans
(including Individual Retirement Plans), the Fund, in its discretion, may accept
investments without regard to any minimum amounts which would otherwise be
required, if the Fund has reason to believe that additional investments will
increase the investment in all accounts under such Plans to at least $1,000. In
addition, the Fund will waive the minimum purchase requirement for investments
in connection with certain Unit Investment Trusts.
Certifi-
10
<PAGE>
cates for shares purchased will not be issued unless a request is made by the
shareholder in writing to the Transfer Agent.
Shares of the Fund are sold through the Distributor on a normal three
business day settlement basis; that is, payment is due on the third business day
(settlement date) after the order is placed with the Distributor. Since DWR and
other Selected Broker-Dealers forward investors' funds on settlement date, they
will benefit from the temporary use of the funds if payment is made prior
thereto. As noted above, orders placed directly with the Transfer Agent must be
accompanied by payment. Investors will be entitled to receive income dividends
and capital gains distributions if their order is received by the close of
business on the day prior to the record date for such dividends and
distributions. The offering price will be the net asset value per share next
determined following receipt of an order (see "Determination of Net Asset
Value"). While no sales charge is imposed at the time shares are purchased, a
contingent deferred sales charge may be imposed at the time of redemption (see
"Redemptions and Repurchases"). Sales personnel are compensated for selling
shares of the Fund at the time of their sale by the Distributor and/or Selected
Broker-Dealer. In addition, some sales personnel of the Selected Broker-Dealer
will receive various types of non-cash compensation as special sales incentives,
including trips, educational and/or business seminars and merchandise. The Fund
and the Distributor reserve the right to reject any purchase orders.
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
The Fund has adopted a Plan of Distribution pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the
Act (the "Plan"), under which the Fund pays the Distributor a fee, which is
accrued daily and payable monthly, at an annual rate of 1% of the lesser of: (a)
the average daily aggregate gross sales of the Fund's shares since the inception
of the Fund (not including reinvestments of dividends or capital gains
distributions), less the average daily aggregate net asset value of the Fund's
shares redeemed since the Fund's inception upon which a contingent deferred
sales charge has been imposed or waived; or (b) the Fund's average daily net
assets. This fee is treated by the Fund as an expense in the year it is accrued.
Amounts paid under the Plan are paid to the Distributor to compensate it for the
services provided and expenses borne by the Distributor and others in the
distribution of the Fund's shares, including the payment of commissions for
sales of the Fund's shares and incentive compensation to and expenses of DWR
account executives and others who engage in or support distribution of shares or
who service shareholder accounts, including overhead and telephone expenses;
printing and distribution of prospectuses and reports used in connection with
the offering of the Fund's shares to other than current shareholders; and
preparation, printing and distribution of sales literature and advertising
materials. In addition, the Distributor may utilize fees paid pursuant to the
Plan to compensate DWR and other Selected Broker-Dealers for their opportunity
costs in advancing such amounts, which compensation would be in the form of a
carrying charge on any unreimbursed expenses incurred.
For the fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund accrued payments under
the Plan amounting to $4,693,006, which amount is equal to 1.00% of the Fund's
average daily net assets for the fiscal year. The payments accrued under the
Plan were calculated pursuant to clause (b) of the compensation formula under
the Plan. Of the amount accrued under the Plan, 0.25% of the Fund's average
daily net assets is characterized as a service fee within the meaning of NASD
guidelines. The service fee is a payment made for personal service and/or the
maintenance of shareholder accounts.
At any given time, the expenses of distributing shares of the Fund may be in
excess of the total of (i) the payments made by the Fund pursuant to the Plan,
and (ii) the proceeds of contingent deferred sales charges paid by investors
upon the redemption of shares (see "Redemptions and Repurchases-- Contingent
Deferred Sales Charge"). For example, if $1 million in expenses in distributing
shares of the Fund had been incurred and $750,000 had been received in (i) and
(ii) above, the excess expense
11
<PAGE>
would amount to $250,000. The Distributor has advised the Fund that the excess
distribution expenses (including the carrying charge described above) totalled
$25,537,222 at October 31, 1995, which was equal to 5.28% of the Fund's net
assets on such date. Because there is no requirement under the Plan that the
Distributor be reimbursed for all expenses or any requirement that the Plan be
continued from year to year, such excess amount, if any, does not constitute a
liability of the Fund. Although there is no legal obligation for the Fund to pay
expenses incurred in excess of payments made to the Distributor under the Plan
and the proceeds of contingent deferred sales charges paid by investors upon
redemption of shares, if for any reason the Plan is terminated, the Trustees
will consider at that time the manner in which to treat such expenses. Any
cumulative expenses incurred, but not yet recovered through distribution fees or
contingent deferred sales charges, may or may not be recovered through future
distribution fees or contingent deferred sales charges.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
The net asset value per share of the Fund is determined once daily at 4:00
p.m., New York time, on each day that the New York Stock Exchange is open (or,
on days when the New York Stock Exchange closes prior to 4:00 p.m., at such
earlier time), by taking the value of all assets of the Fund, subtracting all
its liabilities, dividing by the number of shares outstanding and adjusting to
the nearest cent. The net asset value per share will not be determined on Good
Friday and on such other federal and non-federal holidays as are observed by the
New York Stock Exchange.
In the calculation of the Fund's net asset value: (1) an equity portfolio
security listed or traded on the New York or American Stock Exchange or other
domestic or foreign stock exchange or quoted by NASDAQ is valued at its latest
sale price on that exchange or quotation service prior to the time when assets
are valued; if there were no sales that day, the security is valued at the
latest bid price (in cases where a security is traded on more than one exchange,
the security is valued on the exchange designated as the primary market pursuant
to procedures adopted by the Trustees), and (2) all other portfolio securities
for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available are valued at
the latest bid price prior to the time of valuation. When market quotations are
not readily available, including circumstances under which it is determined by
the Investment Manager that sale or bid prices are not reflective of a
security's market value, portfolio securities are valued at their fair value as
determined in good faith under procedures established by and under the general
supervision of the Board of Trustees.
Short-term debt securities with remaining maturities of sixty days or less
at the time of purchase are valued at amortized cost, unless the Trustees
determine such does not reflect the securities' market value, in which case
these securities will be valued at their fair value as determined by the
Trustees.
Certain securities in the Fund's portfolio may be valued by an outside
pricing service approved by the Fund's Trustees. The pricing service utilizes a
matrix system incorporating security quality, maturity and coupon as the
evaluation model parameters, and/or research evaluations by its staff, including
review of broker-dealer market price quotations, in determining what it believes
is the fair valuation of the portfolio securities valued by such pricing
service.
SHAREHOLDER SERVICES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AUTOMATIC INVESTMENT OF DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS. All income dividends
and capital gains distributions are automatically paid in full and fractional
shares of the Fund (or, if specified by the shareholder, any other open-end
investment company for which InterCapital serves as investment manager
(collectively, with the Fund, the "Dean Witter Funds")), unless the shareholder
requests that they be paid in
12
<PAGE>
cash. Shares so acquired are not subject to the imposition of a contingent
deferred sales charge upon their redemption (see "Redemptions and Repurchases").
EASYINVEST. Shareholders may subscribe to EasyInvest, an automatic purchase
plan which provides for any amount from $100 to $5,000 to be transferred
automatically from a checking or savings account, on a semi-monthly, monthly or
quarterly basis, to the Transfer Agent for investment in shares of the Fund (see
"Purchase of Fund Shares" and "Redemptions and Repurchases -- Involuntary
Redemption").
INVESTMENT OF DIVIDENDS OR DISTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED IN CASH. Any shareholder
who receives a cash payment representing a dividend or capital gains
distribution may invest such dividend or distribution at the net asset value per
share next determined after receipt by the Transfer Agent, by returning the
check or the proceeds to the Transfer Agent within thirty days after the payment
date. Shares so acquired are not subject to the imposition of a contingent
deferred sales charge upon their redemption (see "Redemptions and Repurchases").
SYSTEMATIC WITHDRAWAL PLAN. A systematic withdrawal plan (the "Withdrawal
Plan") is available for shareholders who own or purchase shares of the Fund
having a minimum value of $10,000 based upon the then current net asset value.
The Withdrawal Plan provides for monthly or quarterly (March, June, September
and December) checks in any dollar amount, not less than $25, or in any whole
percentage of the account balance, on an annualized basis. Any applicable
contingent deferred sales charge will be imposed on shares redeemed under the
Withdrawal Plan (See "Redemptions and Repurchases--Contingent Deferred Sales
Charge"). Therefore, any shareholder participating in the Withdrawal Plan will
have sufficient shares redeemed from his or her account so that the proceeds
(net of any applicable contingent deferred sales charge) to the shareholder will
be the designated monthly or quarterly amount.
Shareholders should contact their DWR or other Selected Broker-Dealer
account executive or the Transfer Agent for further information about any of the
above services.
TAX SHELTERED RETIREMENT PLANS. Retirement plans are available for use by
corporations, the self-employed, Individual Retirement Accounts and Custodial
Accounts under Section 403(b)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code. Adoption of such
plans should be on advice of legal counsel or tax adviser.
For further information regarding plan administration, custodial fees and
other details, investors should contact their DWR or other Selected
Broker-Dealer account executive or the Transfer Agent.
EXCHANGE PRIVILEGE
The Fund makes available to its shareholders an "Exchange Privilege"
allowing the exchange of shares of the Fund for shares of other Dean Witter
Funds sold with a contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC funds"), and for
shares of Dean Witter Short-Term U.S. Treasury Trust, Dean Witter Limited Term
Municipal Trust, Dean Witter Short-Term Bond Fund, Dean Witter Balanced Growth
Fund, Dean Witter Balanced Income Fund, Dean Witter Intermediate Term U.S.
Treasury Trust and five Dean Witter Funds which are money market funds (the
foregoing eleven non-CDSC funds are hereinafter referred to as the "Exchange
Funds"). Exchanges may be made after the shares of the Fund acquired by purchase
(not by exchange or dividend reinvestment) have been held for thirty days. There
is no waiting period for exchanges of shares acquired by exchange or dividend
reinvestment.
An exchange to another CDSC fund or any Exchange Fund that is not a money
market fund is on the basis of the next calculated net asset value per share of
each fund after the exchange order is received. When exchanging into a money
market fund from the Fund, shares of the Fund are redeemed out of the Fund at
their next calculated net asset value and the proceeds of the redemption are
used to purchase shares of the money market fund at their net asset value
determined the following day. Subsequent exchanges between any of the money
market funds and any of the CDSC funds can be effected on the same basis. No
contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC") is imposed at the time of any
exchange, although any applicable CDSC will be imposed upon
13
<PAGE>
ultimate redemption. Shares of the Fund acquired in exchange for shares of
another CDSC Fund having a different CDSC schedule than that of this Fund will
be subject to the CDSC schedule of this Fund, even if such shares are
subsequently re-exchanged for shares of the CDSC fund originally purchased.
During the period of time the shareholder remains in the Exchange Fund
(calculated from the last day of the month in which the Exchange Fund shares
were acquired), the holding period (for the purpose of determining the rate of
the CDSC) is frozen. If those shares are subsequently reexchanged for shares of
a CDSC fund, the holding period previously frozen when the first exchange was
made resumes on the last day of the month in which shares of a CDSC fund are
reacquired. Thus, the CDSC is based upon the time (calculated as described
above) the shareholder was invested in a CDSC fund (see "Redemptions and
Repurchases--Contingent Deferred Sales Charge"). However, in the case of shares
of the Fund exchanged into an Exchange Fund, upon a redemption of shares which
results in a CDSC being imposed, a credit (not to exceed the amount of the CDSC)
will be given in an amount equal to the Exchange Fund 12b-1 distribution fees,
if any, incurred on or after that date which are attributable to those shares.
(Exchange Fund 12b-1 distribution fees are described in the prospectuses for
those funds.)
In addition, shares of the Fund may be acquired in exchange for shares of
Dean Witter Funds sold with a front-end sales charge ("front-end sales charge
funds"), but shares of the Fund, however acquired, may not be exchanged for
shares of front-end sales charge funds. Shares of a CDSC fund acquired in
exchange for shares of a front-end sales charge fund (or in exchange for shares
of other Dean Witter Funds for which shares of a front-end sales charge fund
have been exchanged) are not subject to any CDSC upon their redemption.
Purchases and exchanges should be made for investment purposes only. A
pattern of frequent exchanges may be deemed by the Investment Manager to be
abusive and contrary to the best interests of the Fund's other shareholders and,
at the Investment Manager's discretion, may be limited by the Fund's refusal to
accept additional purchases and/or exchanges from the investor. Although the
Fund does not have any specific definition of what constitutes a pattern of
frequent exchanges, and will consider all relevant factors in determining
whether a particular situation is abusive and contrary to the best interests of
the Fund and its other shareholders, investors should be aware that the Fund and
each of the other Dean Witter Funds may in their discretion limit or otherwise
restrict the number of times this Exchange Privilege may be exercised by any
investor. Any such restriction will be made by the Fund on a prospective basis
only, upon notice to the shareholder not later than ten days following such
shareholder's most recent exchange. Also, the Exchange Privilege may be
terminated or revised at any time by the Fund and/or any of such Dean Witter
Funds for which shares of the Fund have been exchanged, upon such notice as may
be required by applicable regulatory agencies. Shareholders maintaining margin
accounts with DWR or another Selected Broker-Dealer are referred to their
account executive regarding restrictions on exchange of shares of the Fund
pledged in the margin account.
The current prospectus for each fund describes its investment objective(s)
and policies, and shareholders should obtain a copy and examine it carefully
before investing. Exchanges are subject to the minimum investment requirement
and any other conditions imposed by each fund. An exchange will be treated for
federal income tax purposes the same as a repurchase or redemption of shares, on
which the shareholder may realize a capital gain or loss. However, the ability
to deduct capital losses on an exchange may be limited in situations where there
is an exchange of shares within ninety days after the shares are purchased. The
Exchange Privilege is only available in states where an exchange may legally be
made.
If DWR or another Selected Broker-Dealer is the current dealer of record and
its account numbers are part of the account information, shareholders may
initiate an exchange of shares of the Fund for shares of any of the Dean Witter
Funds (for which the Exchange Privilege is available) pursuant to this Exchange
Privi-
14
<PAGE>
lege by contacting their DWR or other Selected Broker-Dealer account executive
(no Exchange Privilege Authorization Form is required). Other shareholders (and
those shareholders who are clients of DWR or another Selected Broker-Dealer but
who wish to make exchanges directly by writing or telephoning the Transfer
Agent) must complete and forward to the Transfer Agent an Exchange Privilege
Authorization Form, copies of which may be obtained from the Transfer Agent, to
initiate an exchange. If the Authorization Form is used, exchanges may be made
in writing or by contacting the Transfer Agent at (800) 869-NEWS (toll-free).
The Fund will employ reasonable procedures to confirm that exchange instructions
communicated over the telephone are genuine. Such procedures may include
requiring various forms of personal identification such as name, mailing
address, social security or other tax identification number and DWR or other
Selected Broker-Dealer account number (if any). Telephone instructions may also
be recorded. If such procedures are not employed, the Fund may be liable for any
losses due to unauthorized or fraudulent instructions.
Telephone exchange instructions will be accepted if received by the Transfer
Agent between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., New York time, on any day the New York
Stock Exchange is open. Any shareholder wishing to make an exchange who has
previously filed an Exchange Privilege Authorization Form and who is unable to
reach the Fund by telephone should contact his or her DWR or other Selected
Broker-Dealer account executive, if appropriate, or make a written exchange
request. Shareholders are advised that during periods of drastic economic or
market changes, it is possible that the telephone exchange procedures may be
difficult to implement, although this has not been the case with the Dean Witter
Funds in the past.
Shareholders should contact their DWR or other Selected Broker-Dealer
account executive or the Transfer Agent for further information about the
Exchange Privilege.
REDEMPTIONS AND REPURCHASES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REDEMPTION. Shares of the Fund can be redeemed for cash at any time at the
net asset value per share next determined; however, such redemption proceeds may
be reduced by the amount of any applicable contingent deferred sales charges
(see below). If shares are held in a shareholder's account without a share
certificate, a written request for redemption to the Fund's Transfer Agent at
P.O. Box 983, Jersey City, NJ 07303 is required. If certificates are held by the
shareholder(s), the shares may be redeemed by surrendering the certificates with
a written request for redemption, along with any additional documentation
required by the Transfer Agent.
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE. Shares of the Fund which are held for six
years or more after purchase (calculated from the last day of the month in which
the shares were purchased) will not be subject to any charge upon redemption.
Shares redeemed sooner than six years after purchase may, however, be subject to
a charge upon redemption. This charge is called a "contingent deferred sales
charge" ("CDSC"), and it will be a percentage of the dollar amount of shares
redeemed and will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of the current
market value or the cost of the shares being redeemed. The size of this
percentage will depend upon how long the shares have been held, as set forth in
the table below:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
CONTINGENT DEFERRED
YEAR SINCE SALES CHARGE
PURCHASE AS A PERCENTAGE OF
PAYMENT MADE AMOUNT REDEEMED
- -------------------------------------------- -------------------
<S> <C>
First....................................... 5.0%
Second...................................... 4.0%
Third....................................... 3.0%
Fourth...................................... 2.0%
Fifth....................................... 2.0%
Sixth....................................... 1.0%
Seventh and thereafter...................... None
</TABLE>
A CDSC will not be imposed on: (i) any amount which represents an increase
in value of shares purchased within the six years preceding the redemption; (ii)
the current net asset value of shares purchased more than six years prior to the
redemption; and (iii) the
15
<PAGE>
current net asset value of shares purchased through reinvestment of dividends or
distributions and/or shares acquired in exchange for shares of Dean Witter Funds
sold with a front-end sales charge or of other Dean Witter Funds acquired in
exchange for such shares. Moreover, in determining whether a CDSC is applicable
it will be assumed that amounts described in (i), (ii) and (iii) above (in that
order) are redeemed first. In addition, no CDSC will be imposed on redemptions
of shares which were purchased by the employee benefit plans established by DWR
and SPS Transaction Services, Inc. (an affiliate of DWR) for their employees as
qualified under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code.
In addition, the CDSC, if otherwise applicable, will be waived in the case
of:
(1) redemptions of shares held at the time a shareholder dies or becomes
disabled, only if the shares are: (A) registered either in the name of an
individual shareholder (not a trust), or in the names of such shareholder and
his or her spouse as joint tenants with right of survivorship; or (B) held in
a qualified corporate or self-employed retirement plan, Individual Retirement
Account ("IRA") or Custodial Account under Section 403(b)(7) of the Internal
Revenue Code ("403(b) Custodial Account"), provided in either case that the
redemption is requested within one year of the death or initial determination of
disability;
(2) redemptions in connection with the following retirement plan
distributions: (A) lump-sum or other distributions from a qualified corporate
or self-employed retirement plan following retirement (or, in the case of a "key
employee" of a "top heavy" plan, following attainment of age
59 1/2); (B) distributions from an IRA or 403(b) Custodial Account following
attainment of age 59 1/2; or (C) a tax-free return of an excess contribution
to an IRA; and
(3) all redemptions of shares held for the benefit of a participant in a
corporate or self-employed retirement plan qualified under Section 401(k) of the
Internal Revenue Code which offers investment companies managed by the
Investment Manager or its subsidiary, Dean Witter Services Company Inc., as
self-directed investment alternatives and for which Dean Witter Trust Company,
an affiliate of the Investment Manager, serves as recordkeeper or Trustee
("Eligible 401(k) Plan"), provided that either: (A) the plan continues to be an
Eligible 401(k) Plan after the redemption; or (B) the redemption is in
connection with the complete termination of the plan involving the distribution
of all plan assets to participants.
With reference to (1) above, for the purpose of determining disability, the
Distributor utilizes the definition of disability contained in Section 72(m)(7)
of the Internal Revenue Code, which relates to the inability to engage in
gainful employment. With reference to (2) above, the term "distribution" does
not encompass a direct transfer of IRA, 403(b) Custodial Account or retirement
plan assets to a successor custodian or trustee. All waivers will be granted
only following receipt by the Distributor of confirmation of the shareholder's
entitlement.
REPURCHASE. DWR and other Selected Broker-Dealers are authorized to
repurchase shares represented by a share certificate which is delivered to any
of their offices. Shares held in a shareholder's account without a share
certificate may also be repurchased by DWR and other Selected Broker-Dealers
upon the telephonic or telegraphic request of the shareholder. The repurchase
price is the net asset value next computed (see "Purchase of Fund Shares") after
such repurchase order is received by DWR or other Selected Broker-Dealer,
reduced by any applicable CDSC.
The CDSC, if any, will be the only fee imposed by either the Fund, the
Distributor, DWR or other Selected Broker-Dealers. The offer by DWR and other
Selected Broker-Dealers to repurchase shares may be suspended without notice by
them at any time. In that event, shareholders may redeem their shares through
the Fund's Transfer Agent as set forth above under "Redemption."
PAYMENT FOR SHARES REDEEMED OR REPURCHASED. Payment for shares presented for
repurchase or redemption will be made by check within seven days after receipt
by the Transfer Agent of the certificate and/ or written request in good order.
Such payment may be postponed or the right of redemption suspended under unusual
circumstances, e.g., when normal
trad-
16
<PAGE>
ing is not taking place on the New York Stock Exchange. If the shares to be
redeemed have recently been purchased by check, payment of the redemption
proceeds may be delayed for the minimum time needed to verify that the check
used for investment has been honored (not more than fifteen days from the time
of receipt of the check by the Transfer Agent). Shareholders maintaining margin
accounts with DWR or another Selected Broker-Dealer are referred to their
account executive regarding restrictions on redemption of shares of the Fund
pledged in the margin account.
REINSTATEMENT PRIVILEGE. A shareholder who has had his or her shares
redeemed or repurchased and has not previously exercised this reinstatement
privilege may, within thirty days after the date of the redemption or
repurchase, reinstate any portion or all of the proceeds of such redemption or
repurchase in shares of the Fund at net asset value next determined after a
reinstatement request, together with the proceeds, is received by the Transfer
Agent and receive a pro-rata credit for any CDSC paid in connection with such
redemption or repurchase.
INVOLUNTARY REDEMPTION. The Fund reserves the right to redeem, on sixty
days' notice and at net asset value, the shares of any shareholder (other than
shares held in an Individual Retirement Account or Custodial Account under
Section 403(b)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code) whose shares due to redemptions
by the shareholder have a value of less than $100 or such lesser amount as may
be fixed by the Fund's Trustees or, in the case of an account opened through
EasyInvest, if after twelve months the shareholder has invested less than $1,000
in the account. However, before the Fund redeems such shares and sends the
proceeds to the shareholder, it will notify the shareholder that the value of
the shares is less than the applicable amount and allow him or her sixty days to
make an additional investment in an amount which will increase the value of his
or her account to at least the applicable amount before the redemption is
processed. No CDSC will be imposed on any involuntary redemption.
DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS. The Fund intends to pay dividends and to
distribute substantially all of the Fund's net investment income and net
realized short-term and long-term capital gains, if any, at least once each
year. The Fund may, however, determine either to distribute or to retain all or
part of any long-term capital gains in any year for reinvestment.
All dividends and any capital gains distributions will be paid in additional
Fund shares and automatically credited to the shareholder's account without
issuance of a share certificate unless the shareholder requests in writing that
all dividends and/or distributions be paid in cash. (See "Shareholder Services--
Automatic Investment of Dividends and Distributions".)
TAXES. Because the Fund intends to distribute all of its net investment
income and net capital gains to shareholders and otherwise remain qualified as a
regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code, it
is not expected that the Fund will be required to pay any federal income tax.
Shareholders who are required to pay taxes on their income will normally have to
pay federal income taxes, and any state income taxes, on the dividends and
distributions they receive from the Fund. Such dividends and distributions, to
the extent that they are derived from net investment income or net short-term
capital gains, are taxable to the shareholder as ordinary income regardless of
whether the shareholder receives such payments in additional shares or in cash.
After the end of the calendar year, shareholders will be sent full
information on their dividends and capital gains distributions for tax purposes,
including information as to the portion characterized as ordinary income, the
portion taxable as long-term capital
17
<PAGE>
gains and the amount of dividends eligible for the Federal dividends received
deduction available to corporations. To avoid being subject to a 31% federal
backup withholding tax on taxable dividends, capital gains distributions and the
proceeds of redemptions and repurchases, shareholders' taxpayer identification
numbers must be furnished and certified as to their accuracy.
Long-term and short-term capital gains may be generated by the sale of
portfolio securities by the Fund. Distributions of net long-term capital gains,
if any, are taxable to shareholders as long-term capital gains regardless of how
long a shareholder has held the Fund's shares and regardless of whether the
distribution is received in additional shares or in cash. Capital gains
distributions are not eligible for the corporate dividends received deduction.
Shareholders should consult their tax advisers as to the applicability of
the foregoing to their current situation.
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From time to time the Fund may quote its "total return" in advertisements
and sales literature. The total return of the Fund is based on historical
earnings and is not intended to indicate future performance. The "average annual
total return" of the Fund refers to a figure reflecting the average annualized
percentage increase (or decrease) in the value of an initial investment in the
Fund of $1,000 over periods of one and five years, as well as over the life of
the Fund. Average annual total return reflects all income earned by the Fund,
any appreciation or depreciation of the Fund's assets, all expenses incurred by
the Fund and all sales charges which would be incurred by redeeming
shareholders, for the stated periods. It also assumes reinvestment of all
dividends and distributions paid by the Fund.
In addition to the foregoing, the Fund may advertise its total return over
different periods of time by means of aggregate, average, and year-by-year or
other types of total return figures. Such calculations may or may not reflect
the deduction of the contingent deferred sales charge which, if reflected, would
reduce the performance quoted. The Fund may also advertise the growth of
hypothetical investments of $10,000, $50,000 and $100,000 in shares of the Fund.
The Fund from time to time may also advertise its performance relative to
certain performance rankings and indexes compiled by independent organizations
(such as mutual fund performance rankings of Lipper Analytical Services, Inc.,
the S&P 500 Stock Index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average).
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VOTING RIGHTS. All shares of beneficial interest of the Fund are of $0.01
par value and are equal as to earnings, assets and voting privileges.
The Fund is not required to hold Annual Meetings of Shareholders and, in
ordinary circumstances, the Fund does not intend to hold such meetings. The
Trustees may call Special Meetings of Shareholders for action by shareholder
vote as may be required by the Act or the Declaration of Trust. Under certain
circumstances, the Trustees may be removed by action of the Trustees or by the
shareholders.
Under Massachusetts law, shareholders of a business trust may, under certain
limited circumstances, be held personally liable as partners for obligations of
the Fund. However, the Declaration of Trust contains an express disclaimer of
shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the Fund, requires that notice
of such Fund obligations include such disclaimer, and provides for
indemnification and reimbursement of expenses out of the Fund's property for any
shareholder held personally liable for the obligations of the Fund. Thus, the
risk of a shareholder incurring financial loss on account of shareholder
liability is limited to circumstances in which the Fund itself would be
una-
18
<PAGE>
ble to meet its obligations. Given the above limitations on shareholder personal
liability, and the nature of the Fund's assets and operations, in the opinion of
Massachusetts counsel to the Fund, the risk to Fund shareholders of personal
liability is remote.
CODE OF ETHICS. Directors, officers and employees of InterCapital, Dean
Witter Services Company Inc. and the Distributor are subject to a strict Code of
Ethics adopted by those companies. The Code of Ethics is intended to ensure that
the interests of shareholders and other clients are placed ahead of any personal
interest, that no undue personal benefit is obtained from a person's employment
activities and that actual and potential conflicts of interest are avoided. To
achieve these goals and comply with regulatory requirements, the Code of Ethics
requires, among other things, that personal securities transactions by employees
of the companies be subject to an advance clearance process to monitor that no
Dean Witter Fund is engaged at the same time in a purchase or sale of the same
security. The Code of Ethics bans the purchase of securities in an initial
public offering, and also prohibits engaging in futures and options transactions
and profiting on short-term trading (that is, a purchase within sixty days of a
sale or a sale within sixty days of a purchase) of a security. In addition,
investment personnel may not purchase or sell a security for their personal
account within thirty days before or after any transaction in any Dean Witter
Fund managed by them. Any violations of the Code of Ethics are subject to
sanctions, including reprimand, demotion or suspension or termination of
employment. The Code of Ethics comports with regulatory requirements and the
recommendations in the recent report by the Investment Company Institute
Advisory Group on Personal Investing.
SHAREHOLDER INQUIRIES. All inquiries regarding the Fund should be directed
to the Fund at the telephone numbers or address set forth on the front cover of
this Prospectus.
19
<PAGE>
Dean Witter
Capital Growth Securities
Two World Trade Center
New York, New York 10048
TRUSTEES
Michael Bozic
Charles A. Fiumefreddo
Edwin J. Garn
John R. Haire
Dr. Manuel H. Johnson
Paul Kolton
Michael E. Nugent
Philip J. Purcell
John L. Schroeder
OFFICERS
Charles A. Fiumefreddo
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Sheldon Curtis
Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel
Paul D. Vance
Vice President
Kenton J. Hinchliffe
Vice President
Thomas F. Caloia
Treasurer
CUSTODIAN
The Bank of New York
90 Washington Street
New York, New York 10286
TRANSFER AGENT AND DIVIDEND DISBURSING AGENT
Dean Witter Trust Company
Harborside Financial Center
Plaza Two
Jersey City, New Jersey 07311
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS
Price Waterhouse LLP
1177 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10036
INVESTMENT MANAGER
Dean Witter InterCapital Inc.
DEAN WITTER
CAPITAL
GROWTH
SECURITIES
<TABLE>
<S> <C> <C>
PROSPECTUS -- FEBRUARY 1, 1996
</TABLE>
<PAGE>
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FEBRUARY 1, 1996
DEAN WITTER
CAPITAL GROWTH
SECURITIES
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Witter Capital Growth Securities (the "Fund") is an open-end,
diversified management investment company, whose investment objective is
long-term capital growth. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by
investing principally in common stocks. See "Investment Practices and Policies."
A Prospectus for the Fund dated February 1, 1996, which provides the basic
information you should know before investing in the Fund, may be obtained
without charge from the Fund at the address or telephone numbers listed below or
from the Fund's Distributor, Dean Witter Distributors Inc., or from Dean Witter
Reynolds Inc. at any of its branch offices. This Statement of Additional
Information is not a Prospectus. It contains information in addition to and more
detailed than that set forth in the Prospectus. It is intended to provide
additional information regarding the activities and operations of the Fund, and
should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus.
Dean Witter
Capital Growth Securities
Two World Trade Center
New York, New York 10048
(212) 392-2550 or
(800) 869-NEWS (toll-free)
<PAGE>
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<TABLE>
<S> <C>
The Fund and its Management............................................................ 3
Trustees and Officers.................................................................. 6
Investment Practices and Policies...................................................... 12
Investment Restrictions................................................................ 24
Portfolio Transactions and Brokerage................................................... 26
The Distributor........................................................................ 27
Determination of Net Asset Value....................................................... 30
Shareholder Services................................................................... 31
Redemptions and Repurchases............................................................ 35
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes..................................................... 38
Performance Information................................................................ 39
Description of Shares.................................................................. 40
Custodian and Transfer Agent........................................................... 41
Independent Accountants................................................................ 41
Reports to Shareholders................................................................ 41
Legal Counsel.......................................................................... 41
Experts................................................................................ 41
Registration Statement................................................................. 41
Financial Statements -- October 31, 1995............................................... 42
Notes to Financial Statements.......................................................... 47
Report of Independent Accountants...................................................... 52
</TABLE>
2
<PAGE>
THE FUND AND ITS MANAGEMENT
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE FUND
The Fund is a Trust of the type commonly known as a "Massachusetts business
trust" and was organized under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts on
December 8, 1989.
THE INVESTMENT MANAGER
Dean Witter InterCapital Inc. (the "Investment Manager" or "InterCapital"),
a Delaware corporation, whose address is Two World Trade Center, New York, New
York 10048, is the Fund's Investment Manager. InterCapital is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Dean Witter, Discover & Co. ("DWDC"), a Delaware corporation. In
an internal reorganization which took place in January, 1993, InterCapital
assumed the investment advisory, administrative and management activities
previously performed by the InterCapital Division of Dean Witter Reynolds Inc.
("DWR"), a broker-dealer affiliate of InterCapital. (As hereinafter used in this
Statement of Additional Information, the terms "InterCapital" and "Investment
Manager" refer to DWR's InterCapital Division prior to the internal
reorganization and to Dean Witter InterCapital Inc. thereafter.) The daily
management of the Fund is conducted by or under the direction of officers of the
Fund and of the Investment Manager, subject to review of investments by the
Fund's Board of Trustees. In addition, Trustees of the Fund provide guidance on
economic factors and interest rate trends. Information as to these Trustees and
officers is contained under the caption "Trustees and Officers".
InterCapital is the investment manager or investment adviser of the
following management investment companies: Active Assets Money Trust, Active
Assets Tax-Free Trust, Active Assets California Tax-Free Trust, Active Assets
Government Securities Trust, InterCapital Income Securities Inc., InterCapital
Insured Municipal Bond Trust, InterCapital Insured Municipal Trust, InterCapital
Insured Municipal Income Trust, InterCapital Insured Municipal Securities,
InterCapital California Insured Municipal Income Trust, InterCapital Insured
California Municipal Securities, InterCapital Quality Municipal Investment
Trust, InterCapital Quality Municipal Income Trust, InterCapital Quality
Municipal Securities, InterCapital California Quality Municipal Securities,
InterCapital New York Quality Municipal Securities, High Income Advantage Trust,
High Income Advantage Trust II, High Income Advantage Trust III, Dean Witter
Government Income Trust, Dean Witter High Yield Securities Inc., Dean Witter
Tax-Free Daily Income Trust, Dean Witter Tax-Exempt Securities Trust, Dean
Witter Dividend Growth Securities Inc., Dean Witter Natural Resource Development
Securities Inc., Dean Witter American Value Fund, Dean Witter Developing Growth
Securities Trust, Dean Witter U.S. Government Money Market Trust, Dean Witter
Variable Investment Series, Dean Witter World Wide Investment Trust, Dean Witter
Select Municipal Reinvestment Fund, Dean Witter U.S. Government Securities
Trust, Dean Witter World Wide Income Trust, Dean Witter California Tax-Free
Income Fund, Dean Witter New York Tax-Free Income Fund, Dean Witter Convertible
Securities Trust, Dean Witter Federal Securities Trust, Dean Witter Value-Added
Market Series, Dean Witter Utilities Fund, Dean Witter California Tax-Free Daily
Income Trust, Dean Witter Strategist Fund, Dean Witter Intermediate Income
Securites, Dean Witter Capital Growth Securities, Dean Witter Precious Metals
and Minerals Trust, Dean Witter New York Municipal Money Market Trust, Dean
Witter European Growth Fund Inc., Dean Witter Global Short-Term Income Fund
Inc., Dean Witter Pacific Growth Fund Inc., Dean Witter Multi-State Municipal
Series Trust, Dean Witter Short-Term U.S. Treasury Trust, Dean Witter Premier
Income Trust, Dean Witter Diversified Income Trust, Dean Witter Health Sciences
Trust, Dean Witter Retirement Series, Dean Witter Global Dividend Growth
Securities, Dean Witter Limited Term Municipal Trust, Dean Witter Short-Term
Bond Fund, Dean Witter Global Utilities Fund, Dean Witter High Income
Securities, Dean Witter National Municipal Trust, Dean Witter International
SmallCap Fund, Dean Witter Mid-Cap Growth Fund, Dean Witter Select Dimensions
Investment Series, Dean Witter Global Asset Allocation Fund, Dean Witter
Balanced Growth Fund, Dean Witter Balanced Income Fund, Dean Witter Hawaii
Municipal Trust, Dean Witter Capital Appreciation Fund, Dean Witter Information
Fund, Dean Witter Intermediate Term U.S. Treasury Trust, Municipal Income Trust,
Municipal Income Trust II, Municipal Income Trust III, Municipal Income
Opportunities Trust,
3
<PAGE>
Municipal Income Opportunities Trust II, Municipal Income Opportunities Trust
III, Municipal Premium Income Trust and Prime Income Trust. The foregoing
investment companies, together with the Fund, are collectively referred to as
the Dean Witter Funds.
In addition, Dean Witter Services Company Inc. ("DWSC"), a wholly-owned
subsidiary of InterCapital, serves as manager for the following investment
companies for which TCW Funds Management, Inc. is the investment adviser: TCW/DW
Core Equity Trust, TCW/DW Mid-Cap Equity Trust, TCW/DW Latin American Growth
Fund, TCW/DW Income and Growth Fund, TCW/DW Small Cap Growth Fund, TCW/DW
Balanced Fund, TCW/DW North American Government Income Trust, TCW/DW Total
Return Trust, TCW/DW Emerging Markets Opportunities Trust, TCW/DW Term Trust
2000, TCW/DW Term Trust 2002 and TCW/DW Term Trust 2003 (the "TCW/DW Funds").
InterCapital also serves as: (i) sub-adviser to Templeton Global Opportunities
Trust, an open-end investment company; (ii) administrator of The BlackRock
Strategic Term Trust Inc., a closed-end investment company; and (iii)
sub-administrator of MassMutual Participation Investors and Templeton Global
Governments Income Trust, closed-end investment companies.
Pursuant to an Investment Management Agreement (the "Agreement") with the
Investment Manager, the Fund has retained the Investment Manager to manage the
Investment of the Fund's assets, including the placing of orders for the
purchase and sale of portfolio securities. The Investment Manager obtains and
evaluates such information and advice relating to the economy, securities
markets, and specific securities as it considers necessary or useful to
continuously manage the assets of the Fund in a manner consistent with its
investment objective.
Under the terms of the Agreement, in addition to managing the Fund's
investments, the Investment Manager maintains certain of the Fund's books and
records and furnishes, at its own expense, such office space, facilities,
equipment, clerical help and bookkeeping and legal services as the Fund may
reasonably require in the conduct of its business, including the preparation of
prospectuses, statements of additional information, proxy statements and reports
required to be filed with federal and state securities commissions (except
insofar as the participation or assistance of independent accountants and
attorneys is, in the opinion of the Investment Manager, necessary or desirable).
In addition, the Investment Manager pays the salaries of all personnel,
including officers of the Fund, who are employees of the Investment Manager. The
Investment Manager also bears the cost of telephone service, heat, light, power
and other utilities provided to the Fund.
Effective December 31, 1993, pursuant to a Services Agreement between
InterCapital and DWSC, DWSC began to provide the administrative services to the
Fund which were previously performed directly by InterCapital. On April 17,
1995, DWSC was reorganized in the State of Delaware, necessitating the entry
into a new Services Agreement by InterCapital and DWSC on that date. The
foregoing internal reorganizations did not result in any change in the nature or
scope of the administrative services being provided to the Fund or any of the
fees being paid by the Fund for the overall services being performed under the
terms of the existing Agreement.
Expenses not expressly assumed by the Investment Manager under the Agreement
or by Dean Witter Distributors Inc., the Distributor of the Fund's shares
("Distributors" or the "Distributor") (see "The Distributor"), will be paid by
the Fund. The expenses borne by the Fund include, but are not limited to:
expenses of the Plan of Distribution pursuant to Rule 12b-1 (see "The
Distributor"), charges and expenses of any registrar, custodian, stock transfer
and dividend disbursing agent; brokerage commissions; taxes; engraving and
printing of share certificates; registration costs of the Fund and its shares
under federal and state securities laws; the cost and expense of printing,
including typesetting, and distributing Prospectuses and Statements of
Additional Information of the Fund and supplements thereto to the Fund's
shareholders; all expenses of shareholders' and Trustees' meetings and of
preparing, printing and mailing of proxy statements and reports to shareholders;
fees and travel expenses of Trustees or members of any advisory board or
committee who are not employees of the Investment Manager or any corporate
affiliate of the Investment Manager; all expenses incident to any dividend,
withdrawal or redemption options; charges and expenses of any outside service
used for
4
<PAGE>
pricing of the Fund's shares; fees and expenses of legal counsel, including
counsel to the Trustees who are not interested persons of the Fund or of the
Investment Manager (not including compensation or expenses of attorneys who are
employees of the Investment Manager) and independent accountants; membership
dues of industry associations; interest on Fund borrowings; postage; insurance
premiums on property or personnel (including officers and Trustees) of the Fund
which inure to its benefit; extraordinary expenses (including, but not limited
to, legal claims and liabilities and litigation costs and any indemnification
relating thereto); and all other costs of the Fund's operation.
As full compensation for the services and facilities furnished to the Fund
and expenses of the Fund assumed by the Investment Manager, the Fund pays the
Investment Manager monthly compensation calculated daily by applying the
following annual rates to the net assets of the Fund determined as of the close
of each business day: 0.65% of the portion of the daily net assets not exceeding
$500 million; 0.55% of the portion of the daily net assets exceeding $500
million but not exceeding $1 billion; and 0.50% of the portion of daily net
assets exceeding $1 billion but not exceeding $1.5 billion; and 0.475% of the
portion of daily net assets exceeding $1.5 billion.
Pursuant to the Agreement, total operating expenses of the Fund are subject
to applicable limitations under rules and regulations of states where the Fund
is authorized to sell its shares. Therefore, operating expenses are effectively
subject to the most restrictive of such limitations as the same may be amended
from time to time. Presently, the most restrictive limitation is as follows. If,
in any fiscal year, the Fund's total operating expenses, exclusive of taxes,
interest, brokerage fees, distribution fees and extraordinary expenses (to the
extent permitted by applicable state securities laws and regulations), exceed
2 1/2% of the first $30,000,000 of average daily net assets, 2% of the next
$70,000,000 and 1 1/2% of any excess over $100,000,000, the Investment Manager
will reimburse the Fund for the amount of such excess. Such amount, if any, will
be calculated daily and credited on a monthly basis.
For the fiscal years ended October 31, 1993, 1994 and 1995, the Fund accrued
to the Investment Manager total compensation under the Agreement in the amounts
of $5,456,546, $3,515,322 and $3,050,454, respectively. During those periods,
the Fund did not exceed the expense limitation.
The Agreement provides that in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad
faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations thereunder, the
Investment Manager is not liable to the Fund or any of its investors for any act
or omission by the Investment Manager or for any losses sustained by the Fund or
its investors. The Agreement in no way restricts the Investment Manager from
acting as investment manager or adviser to others.
The Investment Manager paid the organizational expenses of the Fund, in the
amount of $127,100, incurred prior to the offering of the Fund's shares. The
Fund has reimbursed the Investment Manager for such expenses, in accordance with
the terms of the Underwriting Agreement between the Fund and DWR. These expenses
have been deferred and are being amortized by the Fund on the straight line
method over a period not to exceed five years from the date of commencement of
the Fund's operations.
The Agreement was initially approved by the Trustees on October 30, 1992,
and by the shareholders at a Special Meeting of Shareholders on January 12,
1993. The Agreement is substantially identical to a prior investment management
agreement, as amended, which was initially approved by the Trustees on January
12, 1990, and by DWR as the then sole shareholder on February 1, 1990. At their
meeting held on April 28, 1993, the Trustees of the Fund, including all the
Trustees of the Fund who are not parties to the Agreement or "interested
persons" (as defined in the Act) of any such party (the "Independent Trustees"),
approved an amendment to the Agreement to lower the management fees charged on
the Fund's net assets in excess of $1.5 billion. The Agreement took effect on
June 30, 1993 upon the spin-off by Sears, Roebuck and Co. of its remaining
shares of DWDC. The Agreement may be terminated at any time, without penalty, on
thirty days notice by the Trustees of the Fund, by the holders of a majority as
defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Act"), of the
outstanding shares of the Fund, or by the Investment Manager. The Agreement will
automatically terminate in the event of its assignment (as defined in the Act).
5
<PAGE>
Under its terms, the Agreement had an initial term ending April 30, 1994,
and provides that it will continue from year to year thereafter, provided
continuance of the Agreement is approved at least annually by the vote of the
holders of a majority, as defined in the Act, of the outstanding shares of the
Fund, or by the Trustees of the Fund; provided that in either event such
continuance is approved annually by the vote of a majority of the Independent
Trustees, which vote must be cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose
of voting on such approval. At their meeting held on April 20, 1995, the Fund's
Board of Trustees, including all of the Independent Trustees, approved
continuation of the Agreement until April 30, 1996.
The Fund has acknowledged that the name "Dean Witter" is a property right of
DWR. The Fund has agreed that DWR or its parent company may use, or at any time
permit others to use, the name "Dean Witter". The Fund has also agreed that in
the event the Agreement is terminated, or if the affiliation between
InterCapital and its parent company is terminated, the Fund will eliminate the
name "Dean Witter" from its name if DWR or its parent company shall so request.
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Trustees and Executive Officers of the Fund, their principal business
occupations during the last five years and their affiliations, if any, with
InterCapital and with the 79 Dean Witter Funds and the 12 TCW/DW Funds are shown
below.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
NAME, AGE, POSITION WITH FUND AND ADDRESS PRINCIPAL OCCUPATION DURING LAST FIVE YEARS
- ------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C>
Michael Bozic (54) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Levitz Furniture
Trustee Corporation (since November, 1995); Director or Trustee of
c/o Levitz Furniture Corporation the Dean Witter Funds; formerly President and Chief
6111 Broken Sound Parkway, N.W. Executive Officer of Hills Department Stores (May,
Boca Raton, Florida 1991-July, 1995); formerly Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer (January, 1987-August, 1990) and President and
Chief Operating Officer (August, 1990-February, 1991) of
the Sears Merchandise Group of Sears, Roebuck and Co.;
Director of Eaglemark Financial Services, Inc.; the United
Negro College Fund, Weirton Steel Corporation and Domain
Inc. (home decor retailer).
Charles A. Fiumefreddo* (62) Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Director of
Chairman of the Board, President, InterCapital, Distributors and DWSC; Executive Vice
Chief Executive Officer and Trustee President and Director of DWR; Chairman, Director or
Two World Trade Center Trustee, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dean
New York, New York Witter Funds; Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and
Trustee of the TCW/DW Funds; Chairman and Director of Dean
Witter Trust Company ("DWTC"); Director and/or officer of
various DWDC subsidiaries; formerly Executive Vice
President and Director of DWDC (until February, 1993).
</TABLE>
6
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
NAME, AGE, POSITION WITH FUND AND ADDRESS PRINCIPAL OCCUPATION DURING LAST FIVE YEARS
- ------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C>
Edwin J. Garn (63) Director or Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds; formerly
Trustee United States Senator (R-Utah) (1974-1992) and Chairman,
c/o Huntsman Chemical Corporation Senate Banking Committee (1980-1986); formerly Mayor of
500 Huntsman Way Salt Lake City, Utah (1972-1974); formerly Astronaut,
Salt Lake City, Utah Space Shuttle Discovery (April 12-19, 1985); Vice
Chairman, Huntsman Chemical Corporation (since January,
1993); Director of Franklin Quest (time management
systems) and John Alden Financial Corp.; Member of the
board of various civic and charitable organizations.
John R. Haire (70) Chairman of the Audit Committee and Chairman of the
Trustee Committee of the Independent Directors or Trustees and
Two World Trade Center Director or Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds; Trustee of
New York, New York the TCW/DW Funds; formerly President, Council for Aid to
Education (1978-1989) and Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer of Anchor Corporation, an Investment Adviser
(1964-1978); Director of Washington National Corporation
(insurance).
Dr. Manuel H. Johnson (46) Senior Partner, Johnson Smick International, Inc., a
Trustee consulting firm; Koch Professor of International Eco-
c/o Johnson Smick International, Inc. nomics and Director of the Center for Global Market
1133 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Studies at George Mason University (since September,
Washington, DC 1990); Co-Chairman and a founder of the Group of Seven
Council (G7C), an international economic commission (since
September, 1990); Director or Trustee of the Dean Witter
Funds; Trustee of the TCW/DW Funds; Director of NASDAQ
(since June, 1995); Director of Greenwich Capital Markets
Inc. (broker-dealer); formerly Vice Chairman of the Board
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (February,
1986-August, 1990) and Assistant Secretary of the U.S.
Treasury (1982-1986).
Paul Kolton (72) Director or Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds; Chairman of
Trustee the Audit Committee and Chairman of the Committee of the
c/o Gordon Altman Butowsky Independent Trustees and Trustee of the TCW/DW Funds;
Weitzen Shalov & Wein formerly Chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards
Counsel to the Independent Trustees Advisory Council and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
114 West 47th Street of the American Stock Exchange; Director of UCC Investors
New York, New York Holding Inc. (Uniroyal Chemical Company, Inc.); director
or trustee of various not-for-profit organizations.
Michael E. Nugent (59) General Partner, Triumph Capital, L.P., a private in-
Trustee vestment partnership (since April, 1988); Director or
c/o Triumph Capital, L.P. Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds; Trustee of the TCW/DW
237 Park Avenue Funds; formerly Vice President, Bankers Trust Company and
New York, New York BT Capital Corporation (1984-1988); Director of various
business organizations.
</TABLE>
7
<PAGE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
NAME, AGE, POSITION WITH FUND AND ADDRESS PRINCIPAL OCCUPATION DURING LAST FIVE YEARS
- ------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C>
Philip J. Purcell* (52) Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive
Trustee Officer of DWDC, DWR and Novus Credit Services Inc.;
Two World Trade Center Director of InterCapital, DWSC and Distributors; Director
New York, New York or Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds; Director and/or
officer of various DWDC subsidiaries.
John L. Schroeder (65) Retired; Director or Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds;
Trustee Trustee of the TCW/DW Funds; Director of Citizens
c/o Gordon Altman Butowsky Utilities Company; formerly Executive Vice President and
Weitzen Shalov & Wein Chief Investment Officer of the Home Insurance Company
Counsel to the Independent Trustees (August, 1991-September, 1995); formerly Chairman and
114 W. 47th Street Chief Investment Officer of Axe-Houghton Management and
New York, NY the Axe-Houghton Funds (April, 1983-June, 1991) and Presi-
dent of USF&G Financial Services, Inc. (June, 1990-June,
1991).
Sheldon Curtis (64) Senior Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel of
Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel InterCapital and DWSC; Senior Vice President, Assistant
Two World Trade Center Secretary and Assistant General Counsel of Distributors;
New York, New York Senior Vice President and Secretary of DWTC; Assistant
Secretary of DWR and Vice President, Secretary and General
Counsel of the Dean Witter Funds and the TCW/DW Funds.
Paul D. Vance (60) Senior Vice President of InterCapital; Vice President of
Vice President various Dean Witter Funds.
Two World Trade Center
New York, New York
Kenton J. Hinchliffe (51) Senior Vice President of InterCapital; Vice President of
Vice President various Dean Witter Funds.
Two World Trade Center
New York, New York
Thomas F. Caloia (49) First Vice President (since May, 1991) and Assistant
Treasurer Treasurer (since January, 1993) of InterCapital; First
Two World Trade Center Vice President and Assistant Treasurer of DWSC; Treasurer
New York, New York of the Dean Witter Funds and the TCW/DW Funds; previously
Vice President of InterCapital.
</TABLE>
- ---------
*Denotes Trustees who are "interested persons" of the Fund, as defined in the
Act.
In addition, Robert M. Scanlan, President and Chief Operating Officer of
InterCapital and DWSC, Executive Vice President of Distributors and DWTC and
Director of DWTC, David A. Hughey, Executive Vice President and Chief
Administrative Officer of InterCapital, DWSC, Distributors and DWTC and Director
of DWTC, Edmund C. Puckhaber, Executive Vice President of InterCapital and
Director of DWTC, Robert S. Giambrone, Senior Vice President of InterCapital,
DWSC, Distributors and DWTC, and Joseph J. McAlinden and Ira Ross, Senior Vice
Presidents of InterCapital, are Vice Presidents of the Fund, and Barry Fink and
Marilyn K. Cranney, First Vice Presidents and Assistant General Counsels of
InterCapital and DWSC, and Lou Anne D. McInnis, Ruth Rossi, Vice Presidents and
Assistant General Counsels of InterCapital and DWSC, and Carsten Otto, a Staff
Attorney with InterCapital, are Assistant Secretaries of the Fund.
8
<PAGE>
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES, THE INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES, AND THE COMMITTEES
The Board of Trustees consists of nine (9) trustees. These same individuals
also serve as directors or trustees for all of the Dean Witter Funds, and are
referred to in this section as Trustees. As of the date of this Statement of
Additional Information, there are a total of 79 Dean Witter Funds, comprised of
119 portfolios. As of December 31, 1995, the Dean Witter Funds had total net
assets of approximately $71.5 billion and more than five million shareholders.
Seven Trustees (77% of the total number) have no affiliation or business
connection with InterCapital or any of its affiliated persons and do not own any
stock or other securities issued by InterCapital's parent company, DWDC. These
are the "disinterested" or "independent" Trustees. The other two Trustees (the
"management Trustees") are affiliated with InterCapital. Five of the seven
independent Trustees are also Independent Trustees of the TCW/DW Funds.
Law and regulation establish both general guidelines and specific duties for
the Independent Trustees. The Dean Witter Funds seek as Independent Trustees
individuals of distinction and experience in business and finance, government
service or academia; these are people whose advice and counsel are in demand by
others and for whom there is often competition. To accept a position on the
Funds' Boards, such individuals may reject other attractive assignments because
the Funds make substantial demands on their time. Indeed, by serving on the
Funds' Boards, certain Trustees who would otherwise be qualified and in demand
to serve on bank boards would be prohibited by law from doing so.
All of the Independent Trustees serve as members of the Audit Committee and
the Committee of the Independent Trustees. Three of them also serve as members
of the Derivatives Committee. During the calendar year ended December 31, 1995,
the three Committees held a combined total of fifteen meetings. The Committees
hold some meetings at InterCapital's offices and some outside InterCapital.
Management Trustees or officers do not attend these meetings unless they are
invited for purposes of furnishing information or making a report.
The Committee of the Independent Trustees is charged with recommending to
the full Board approval of management, advisory and administration contracts,
Rule 12b-1 plans and distribution and underwriting agreements; continually
reviewing Fund performance; checking on the pricing of portfolio securities,
brokerage commissions, transfer agent costs and performance, and trading among
Funds in the same complex; and approving fidelity bond and related insurance
coverage and allocations, as well as other matters that arise from time to time.
The Independent Trustees are required to select and nominate individuals to fill
any Independent Trustee vacancy on the Board of any Fund that has a Rule 12b-1
plan of distribution. Most of the Dean Witter Funds have such a plan.
The Audit Committee is charged with recommending to the full Board the
engagement or discharge of the Fund's independent accountants; directing
investigations into matters within the scope of the independent accountants'
duties, including the power to retain outside specialists; reviewing with the
independent accountants the audit plan and results of the auditing engagement;
approving professional services provided by the independent accountants and
other accounting firms prior to the performance of such services; reviewing the
independence of the independent accountants; considering the range of audit and
non-audit fees; reviewing the adequacy of the Fund's system of internal
controls; and preparing and submitting Committee meeting minutes to the full
Board.
Finally, the Board of each Fund has formed a Derivatives Committee to
establish parameters for and oversee the activities of the Fund with respect to
derivative investments, if any, made by the Fund.
DUTIES OF CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES
The Chairman of the Committees maintains an office at the Funds'
headquarters in New York. He is responsible for keeping abreast of regulatory
and industry developments and the Funds' operations and management. He screens
and/or prepares written materials and identifies critical issues for the
Independent Trustees to consider, develops agendas for Committee meetings,
determines the type and amount
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<PAGE>
of information that the Committees will need to form a judgment on various
issues, and arranges to have that information furnished to Committee members. He
also arranges for the services of independent experts and consults with them in
advance of meetings to help refine reports and to focus on critical issues.
Members of the Committees believe that the person who serves as Chairman of all
three Committees and guides their efforts is pivotal to the effective
functioning of the Committees.
The Chairman of the Committees also maintains continuous contact with the
Funds' management, with independent counsel to the Independent Trustees and with
the Funds' independent auditors. He arranges for a series of special meetings
involving the annual review of investment advisory, management and other
operating contracts of the Funds and, on behalf of the Committees, conducts
negotiations with the Investment Manager and other service providers. In effect,
the Chairman of the Committees serves as a combination of chief executive and
support staff of the Independent Trustees.
The Chairman of the Committees is not employed by any other organization and
devotes his time primarily to the services he performs as Committee Chairman and
Independent Trustee of the Dean Witter Funds and as an Independent Trustee of
the TCW/DW Funds. The current Committee Chairman has had more than 35 years
experience as a senior executive in the investment company industry.
ADVANTAGES OF HAVING SAME INDIVIDUALS AS INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES FOR ALL DEAN
WITTER FUNDS
The Independent Trustees and the Funds' management believe that having the
same Independent Trustees for each of the Dean Witter Funds avoids the
duplication of effort that would arise from having different groups of
individuals serving as Independent Trustees for each of the Funds or even of
sub-groups of Funds. They believe that having the same individuals serve as
Independent Trustees of all the Funds tends to increase their knowledge and
expertise regarding matters which affect the Fund complex generally and enhances
their ability to negotiate on behalf of each Fund with the Fund's service
providers. This arrangement also precludes the possibility of separate groups of
Independent Trustees arriving at conflicting decisions regarding operations and
management of the Funds and avoids the cost and confusion that would likely
ensue. Finally, having the same Independent Trustees serve on all Fund Boards
enhances the ability of each Fund to obtain, at modest cost to each separate
Fund, the services of Independent Trustees, and a Chairman of their Committees,
of the caliber, experience and business acumen of the individuals who serve as
Independent Trustees of the Dean Witter Funds.
COMPENSATION OF INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
The Fund pays each Independent Trustee an annual fee of $1,000 ($1,200 prior
to September 30, 1995) plus a per meeting fee of $50 for meetings of the Board
of Trustees or committees of the Board of Trustees attended by the Trustee (the
Fund pays the Chairman of the Audit Committee an annual fee of $750 ($1,000
prior to January 1, 1995) and pays the Chairman of the Committee of the
Independent Trustees an additional annual fee of $2,400, in each case inclusive
of the Committee meeting fees). The Fund also reimburses such Trustees for
travel and other out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them in connection with
attending such meetings. Trustees and officers of the Fund who are or have been
employed by the Investment Manager or an affiliated company receive no
compensation or expense reimbursement from the Fund.
The Fund has adopted a retirement program under which an Independent Trustee
who retires after serving for at least five years (or such lesser period as may
be determined by the Board) as an Independent Director or Trustee of any Dean
Witter Fund that has adopted the retirement program (each such Fund referred to
as an "Adopting Fund" and each such Trustee referred to as an "Eligible
Trustee") is entitled to retirement payments upon reaching the eligible
retirement age (normally, after attaining age 72). Annual payments are based
upon length of service. Currently, upon retirement, each Eligible Trustee is
entitled to receive from the Fund, commencing as of his or her retirement date
and continuing for the remainder of his or her life, an annual retirement
benefit (the "Regular Benefit") equal to 25.0% of his or her Eligible
Compensation plus 0.4166666% of such Eligible Compensation for each full month
of service as an Independent Director or Trustee of any Adopting Fund in excess
of five years up to a maximum of 50.0% after ten years of service. The foregoing
percentages may be changed by the
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<PAGE>
Board.(1) "Eligible Compensation" is one-fifth of the total compensation earned
by such Eligible Trustee for service to the Fund in the five year period prior
to the date of the Eligible Trustee's retirement. Benefits under the retirement
program are not secured or funded by the Fund. As of the date of this Statement
of Additional Information, 57 Dean Witter Funds have adopted the retirement
program.
The following table illustrates the compensation paid and the retirement
benefits accrued to the Fund's Independent Trustees by the Fund for the fiscal
year ended October 31, 1995 and the estimated retirement benefits for the Fund's
Independent Trustees as of October 31, 1995.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FUND COMPENSATION ESTIMATED RETIREMENT BENEFITS
------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------
ESTIMATED ESTIMATED
RETIREMENT CREDIT YEARS ESTIMATED ANNUAL
AGGREGATE BENEFITS OF SERVICE AT PERCENTAGE OF ESTIMATED BENEFITS
NAME OF INDEPENDENT COMPENSATION ACCRUED AS RETIREMENT ELIGIBLE ELIGIBLE UPON
TRUSTEE FROM THE FUND FUND EXPENSES (MAXIMUM 10) COMPENSATION COMPENSATION(2) RETIREMENT(3)
- -------------------- -------------- -------------- ---------------- -------------- --------------- --------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Michael Bozic....... 1,900 379 10 57.5% 1,950 1,121
Edwin J. Garn....... 2,000 655 10 57.5% 1,950 1,121
John R. Haire....... 4,600(4) 3,299 10 57.5% 5,162 2,968
Dr. Manuel H.
Johnson............ 2,000 266 10 57.5% 1,950 1,121
Paul Kolton......... 2,000 1,607 10 57.0% 2,445 1,394
Michael E. Nugent... 1,850 468 10 57.5% 1,950 1,121
John L. Schroeder... 2,000 744 8 47.9% 1,950 934
</TABLE>
- ------------------------
(1) An Eligible Trustee may elect alternate payments of his or her retirement
benefits based upon the combined life expectancy of such Eligible Trustee
and his or her spouse on the date of such Eligible Trustee's retirement. The
amount estimated to be payable under this method, through the remainder of
the later of the lives of such Eligible Trustee and spouse, will be the
actuarial equivalent of the Regular Benefit. In addition, the Eligible
Trustee may elect that the surviving spouse's periodic payment of benefits
will be equal to either 50% or 100% of the previous periodic amount, an
election that, respectively, increases or decreases the previous periodic
amount so that the resulting payments will be the actuarial equivalent of
the Regular Benefit.
(2) Based on current levels of compensation.
(3) Based on current levels of compensation. Amount of annual benefits also
varies depending on the Trustee's elections described in Footnote (1) above.
(4) Of Mr. Haire's compensation from the Fund, $3,400 was paid to him as
Chairman of the Committee of the Independent Trustees ($2,400) and as
Chairman of the Audit Committee ($1,000).
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<PAGE>
The following table illustrates the compensation paid to the Fund's
Independent Trustees for the calendar year ended December 31, 1995 for services
to the 79 Dean Witter Funds and, in the case of Messrs. Haire, Johnson, Kolton
and Nugent, the 11 TCW/DW Funds that were in operation at December 31, 1995.
With respect to Messrs. Haire, Johnson, Kolton and Nugent, the TCW/DW Funds are
included solely because of a limited exchange privilege between those Funds and
five Dean Witter Money Market Funds. Mr. Schroeder was elected as a Trustee of
the TCW/DW Funds on April 20, 1995.
CASH COMPENSATION FROM DEAN WITTER FUNDS AND TCW/DW FUNDS
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FOR SERVICE AS TOTAL CASH
FOR SERVICE CHAIRMAN OF COMPENSATION
AS DIRECTOR OR COMMITTEES OF FOR SERVICES
TRUSTEE AND FOR SERVICE AS INDEPENDENT TO
COMMITTEE MEMBER TRUSTEE AND DIRECTORS/ 79 DEAN
OF 79 DEAN COMMITTEE MEMBER TRUSTEES AND WITTER
WITTER OF 11 TCW/DW AUDIT FUNDS AND 11
NAME OF INDEPENDENT TRUSTEE FUNDS FUNDS COMMITTEES TCW/DW FUNDS
- --------------------------- ---------------- ---------------- -------------- -------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Michael Bozic.............. $126,050 -- -- $126,050
Edwin J. Garn.............. 136,450 -- -- 136,450
John R. Haire.............. 98,450 $82,038 $217,350(5) 397,838
Dr. Manuel H. Johnson...... 136,450 82,038 -- 218,488
Paul Kolton................ 136,450 54,788 36,900(6) 228,138
Michael E. Nugent.......... 124,200 75,038 -- 199,238
John L. Schroeder.......... 136,450 46,964 -- 183,414
</TABLE>
- ------------------------
(5) For the 79 Dean Witter Funds in operation at December 31, 1995.
(6) For the 11 TCW/DW Funds in operation at December 31, 1995.
As of the date of this Statement of Additional Information, the aggregate
number of shares of beneficial interest of the Fund owned by the Fund's officers
and Trustees as a group was less than 1 percent of the Fund's shares of
beneficial interest outstanding.
INVESTMENT PRACTICES AND POLICIES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As stated in the Prospectus, the Fund may invest up to 35% of its total
assets in, among other securities, investment-grade fixed-income securities,
including securities which are issued or guaranteed, as to principal and
interest, by the United States or its agencies and instrumentalities.
U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES
Securities issued by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities
in which the Fund may invest include:
(1) U.S. Treasury bills (maturities of one year or less), U.S. Treasury
notes (maturities of one to ten years) and U.S. Treasury bonds (generally
maturities of greater than ten years), all of which are direct obligations
of the U.S. Government and, as such, are backed by the "full faith and
credit" of the United States.
(2) Securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S.
Government which are backed by the full faith and credit of the United
States. Among the agencies and instrumentalities issuing such obligations
are the Federal Housing Administration, the Government National Mortgage
Association ("GNMA"), the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the
Export-Import Bank, the Farmers Home Administration, the General Services
Administration, the Maritime Administration and the Small Business
Administration. The maturities of such obligations range from three months
to thirty years.
(3) Securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities which are not
backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, but whose issuing
agency or instrumentality has the right to borrow, to meet its obligations,
from an existing line of credit with the U.S. Treasury. Among the agencies
12
<PAGE>
and instrumentalities issuing such obligations are the Tennessee Valley
Authority, the Federal National Mortgage Association ("FNMA"), the Federal
Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("FHLMC") and the U.S. Postal Service.
(4) Securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities which are not
backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, but which are
backed by the credit of the issuing agency or instrumentality. Among the
agencies and instrumentalities issuing such obligations are the Federal Farm
Credit System and the Federal Home Loan Banks.
ZERO COUPON TREASURY SECURITIES
A portion of the U.S. Government securities purchased by the Fund may be
"zero coupon" Treasury securities. These are U.S. Treasury bills, notes and
bonds which have been stripped of their unmatured interest coupons and receipts
or which are certificates representing interests in such stripped debt
obligations and coupons. Such securities are purchased at a discount from their
face amount, giving the purchaser the right to receive their full value at
maturity. A zero coupon security pays no interest to its holder during its life.
Its value to an investor consists of the difference between its face value at
the time of maturity and the price for which it was acquired, which is generally
an amount significantly less than its face value (sometimes referred to as a
"deep discount" price).
The interest earned on such securities is, implicitly, automatically
compounded and paid out at maturity. While such compounding at a constant rate
eliminates the risk of receiving lower yields upon reinvestment of interest if
prevailing interest rates decline, the owner of a zero coupon security will be
unable to participate in higher yields upon reinvestment of interest received if
prevailing interest rates rise. For this reason, zero coupon securities are
subject to substantially greater market price fluctuations during periods of
changing prevailing interest rates than are comparable debt securities which
make current distributions of interest. Current federal tax law requires that a
holder (such as the Fund) of a zero coupon security accrue a portion of the
discount at which the security was purchased as income each year even though the
Fund receives no interest payments in cash on the security during the year. See
"Dividends, Distributions and Taxes" for a discussion of the tax treatment of
zero coupon Treasury securities.
MONEY MARKET SECURITIES
As stated in the Prospectus, the money market instruments which the Fund may
purchase include U.S. Government securities, bank obligations, Eurodollar
certificates of deposit, obligations of savings institutions, fully insured
certificates of deposit and commercial paper. Such securities are limited to:
U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITIES. Obligations issued or guaranteed as to
principal and interest by the United States or its agencies (such as the
Export-Import Bank of the United States, Federal Housing Administration and
Government National Mortgage Association) or its instrumentalities (such as the
Federal Home Loan Bank), including Treasury bills, notes and bonds;
BANK OBLIGATIONS. Obligations (including certificates of deposit and
bankers' acceptances) of banks subject to regulation by the U.S. Government and
having total assets of $1,000,000,000 or more, and instruments secured by such
obligations, not including obligations of foreign branches of domestic banks
except to the extent below;
EURODOLLAR CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT. Eurodollar certificates of deposit
issued by foreign branches of domestic banks having total assets of $1 billion
or more;
OBLIGATIONS OF SAVINGS INSTITUTIONS. Certificates of deposit of savings
banks and savings and loan associations, having total assets of $1 billion or
more;
13
<PAGE>
FULLY INSURED CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT. Certificates of deposit of banks and
savings institutions, having total assets of less than $1 billion, if the
principal amount of the obligation is federally insured by the Bank Insurance
Fund or the Savings Association Insurance Fund (each of which is administered by
the FDIC), limited to $100,000 principal amount per certificate and to 10% or
less of the Fund's total assets in all such obligations and in all illiquid
assets, in the aggregate;
COMMERCIAL PAPER. Commercial paper rated within the two highest grades by
Standard & Poor's Corporation ("S&P") or the highest grade by Moody's Investors
Service, Inc. ("Moody's") or, if not rated, issued by a company having an
outstanding debt issue rated at least AA by S&P or Aa by Moody's.
LENDING OF PORTFOLIO SECURITIES
Consistent with applicable regulatory requirements, the Fund may lend its
portfolio securities to brokers, dealers and other financial institutions,
provided that such loans are callable at any time by the Fund (subject to notice
provisions described below), and are at all times secured by cash or cash
equivalents, which are maintained in a segregated account pursuant to applicable
regulations and that are equal to at least the market value, determined daily,
of the loaned securities. The advantage of such loans is that the Fund continues
to receive the income on the loaned securities while at the same time earning
interest on the cash amounts deposited as collateral, which will be invested in
short-term obligations. The Fund will not lend its portfolio securities if such
loans are not permitted by the laws or regulations of any state in which its
shares are qualified for sale and will not lend more than 25% of the value of
its total assets. A loan may be terminated by the borrower on one business days'
notice, or by the Fund on two business days' notice. If the borrower fails to
deliver the loaned securities within two days after receipt of notice, the Fund
could use the collateral to replace the securities while holding the borrower
liable for any excess of replacement cost over collateral. As with any
extensions of credit, there are risks of delay in recovery and in some cases
even loss of rights in the collateral should the borrower of the securities fail
financially. However, these loans of portfolio securities will only be made to
firms deemed by the Fund's management to be creditworthy and when the income
which can be earned from such loans justifies the attendant risks. Upon
termination of the loan, the borrower is required to return the securities to
the Fund. Any gain or loss in the market price during the loan period would
inure to the Fund. The creditworthiness of firms to which the Fund lends its
portfolio securities will be monitored on an ongoing basis by the Investment
Manager pursuant to procedures adopted and reviewed, on an ongoing basis, by the
Board of Trustees of the Fund.
When voting or consent rights which accompany loaned securities pass to the
borrower, the Fund will follow the policy of calling the loaned securities, to
be delivered within one day after notice, to permit the exercise of such rights
if the matters involved would have a material effect on the Fund's investment in
such loaned securities. The Fund will pay reasonable finder's, administrative
and custodial fees in connection with a loan of its securities. During the
fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund did not loan any of its portfolio
securities.
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS
As discussed in the Prospectus, when cash may be available for only a few
days, it may be invested by the Fund in repurchase agreements until such time as
it may otherwise be invested or used for payments of obligations of the Fund.
These agreements, which may be viewed as a type of secured lending by the Fund,
typically involve the acquisition by the Fund of debt securities from a selling
financial institution such as a bank, savings and loan association or
broker-dealer. The agreement provides that the Fund will sell back to the
institution, and that the institution will repurchase, the underlying security
("collateral") at a specified price and at a fixed time in the future, usually
not more than seven days from the date of purchase. The collateral will be
maintained in a segregated account and will be marked to market daily to
determine that the value of the collateral, as specified in the agreement, does
not decrease below the purchase price plus accrued interest. If such decrease
occurs,
14
<PAGE>
additional collateral will be requested and, when received, added to the account
to maintain full collateralization. The Fund will accrue interest from the
institution until the time when the repurchase is to occur. Although such date
is deemed by the Fund to be the maturity date of a repurchase agreement, the
maturities of securities subject to repurchase agreements are not subject to any
limits.
While repurchase agreements involve certain risks not associated with direct
investments in debt securities, the Fund follows procedures designed to minimize
such risks. These procedures include effecting repurchase transactions only with
large, well-capitalized and well-established financial institutions whose
financial condition will be continually monitored by the Investment Manager
subject to procedures established by the Board of Trustees of the Fund. In
addition, as described above, the value of the collateral underlying the
repurchase agreement will be at least equal to the repurchase price, including
any accrued interest earned on the repurchase agreement. In the event of a
default or bankruptcy by a selling financial institution, the Fund will seek to
liquidate such collateral. However, the exercising of the Fund's right to
liquidate such collateral could involve certain costs or delays and, to the
extent that proceeds from any sale upon a default of the obligation to
repurchase were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss. It
is the current policy of the Fund not to invest in repurchase agreements that do
not mature within seven days if any such investment, together with any other
illiquid assets held by the Fund, amounts to more than 10% of its total assets.
The Fund's investments in repurchase agreements may at times be substantial
when, in the view of the Investment Manager, liquidity, tax or other
considerations warrant.
WARRANTS
The Fund may acquire warrants attached to other securities. Warrants are, in
effect, an option to purchase equity securities at a specific price, generally
valid for a specific period of time, and have no voting rights, pay no dividends
and have no rights with respect to the corporations issuing them.
WHEN-ISSUED AND DELAYED DELIVERY SECURITIES AND FORWARD COMMITMENTS
From time to time, in the ordinary course of business, the Fund may purchase
securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis and may purchase or sell
securities on a forward commitment basis. When such transactions are negotiated,
the price is fixed at the time of the commitment, but delivery and payment can
take place a month or more after the date of the commitment. The securities so
purchased or sold are subject to market fluctuation and no interest or dividends
accrue to the purchaser prior to the settlement date. While the Fund will only
purchase securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment
basis with the intention of acquiring the securities, the Fund may sell the
securities before the settlement date, if it is deemed advisable. At the time
the Fund makes the commitment to purchase or sell securities on a when-issued,
delayed delivery or forward commitment basis, the Fund will record the
transaction and thereafter reflect the value, each day, of such security
purchased or, if a sale, the proceeds to be received, in determining its net
asset value. At the time of delivery of the securities, the value may be more or
less than the purchase or sale price. The Fund will also establish a segregated
account with the Fund's custodian bank in which it will continuously maintain
cash or U.S. Government Securities or other high grade liquid debt portfolio
securities equal in value to commitments to purchase securities on a
when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment; subject to this
requirement, the Fund may purchase securities on such basis without limit. An
increase in the percentage of the Fund's assets committed to the purchase of
securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis may increase the
volatility of the Fund's net asset value. The Investment Manager and the Board
of Trustees do not believe that the Fund's net asset value or income will be
adversely affected by its purchase of securities on such basis.
WHEN, AS AND IF ISSUED SECURITIES
The Fund may purchase securities on a "when, as and if issued" basis under
which the issuance of the security depends upon the occurrence of a subsequent
event, such as approval of a merger, corporate reorganization, leveraged buyout
or debt restructuring. The commitment for the purchase of any such security will
not be recognized in the portfolio of the Fund until the Investment Manager
determines that issuance of the security is probable. At such time, the Fund
will record the transaction
15
<PAGE>
and, in determining its net asset value, will reflect the value of the security
daily. At such time, the Fund will also establish a segregated account with its
custodian bank in which it will continuously maintain cash or U.S. Government
securities or other high grade liquid debt portfolio securities equal in value
to recognized commitments for such securities. Settlement of the trade will
occur within five business days of the occurrence of the subsequent event. Once
a segregated account has been established, if the anticipated event does not
occur and the securities are not issued the Fund will have lost an investment
opportunity. The value of the Fund's commitments to purchase the securities of
any one issuer, together with the value of all securities of such issuer owned
by the Fund, may not exceed 5% of the value of the Fund's total assets at the
time the initial commitment to purchase such securities is made (see "Investment
Restrictions"). Subject to the foregoing restrictions, the Fund may purchase
securities on such basis without limit. An increase in the percentage of the
Fund's assets committed to the purchase of securities on a "when, as and if
issued" basis may increase the volatility of its net asset value. The Investment
Manager and the Trustees do not believe that the net asset value of the Fund
will be adversely affected by its purchase of securities on such basis. The Fund
may also sell securities on a "when, as and if issued" basis provided that the
issuance of the security will result automatically from the exchange or
conversion of a security owned by the Fund at the time of the sale.
OPTIONS AND FUTURES TRANSACTIONS
The Fund may write exchange-listed covered call options against securities
held in its portfolio and covered put options on eligible portfolio securities
and stock indexes and purchase options of the same series to effect closing
transactions, and may hedge against potential changes in the market value of
investments (or anticipated investments) by purchasing exchanged-listed put and
call options on portfolio (or eligible portfolio) securities and engaging in
transactions involving futures contracts and options on such contracts. Listed
options are issued by the Options Clearing Corporation ("OCC"). Ownership of a
listed call option gives the Fund the right to buy from the OCC the underlying
security covered by the option at the stated exercise price (the price per unit
of the underlying security) by filing an exercise notice prior to the expiration
date of the option. The writer (seller) of the option would then have the
obligation to sell to the OCC the underlying security at that exercise price
prior to the expiration date of the option, regardless of its then current
market price. Ownership of a listed put option would give the Fund the right to
sell the underlying security to the OCC at the stated exercise price. Upon
notice of exercise of the put option, the writer of the put would have the
obligation to purchase the underlying security from the OCC at the exercise
price.
OPTIONS ON TREASURY BONDS AND NOTES. Because trading interest in options
written on Treasury bonds and notes tends to center on the most recently
auctioned issues, the exchanges on which such securities trade will not continue
indefinitely to introduce options with new expirations to replace expiring
options on particular issues. Instead, the expirations introduced at the
commencement of options trading on a particular issue will be allowed to run
their course, with the possible addition of a limited number of new expirations
as the original ones expire. Options trading on each issue of bonds or notes
will thus be phased out as new options are listed on more recent issues, and
options representing a full range of expirations will not ordinarily be
available for every issue on which options are traded.
OPTIONS ON TREASURY BILLS. Because a deliverable Treasury bill changes from
week to week, writers of Treasury bill calls cannot provide in advance for their
potential exercise settlement obligations by acquiring and holding the
underlying security. However, if the Fund holds a long position in Treasury
bills with a principal amount of the securities deliverable upon exercise of the
option, the position may be hedged from a risk standpoint by the writing of a
call option. For so long as the call option is outstanding, the Fund will hold
the Treasury bills in a segregated account with its Custodian, so that they will
be treated as being covered.
COVERED CALL WRITING. The Fund is permitted to write exchange-listed
covered call options on portfolio securities, without limit, in order to aid in
achieving its investment objectives. Generally, a call option is "covered" if
the Fund owns, or has the right to acquire, without additional cash
consideration (or for additional cash consideration held for the Fund by its
Custodian in a segregated account) the
16
<PAGE>
underlying security subject to the option except that in the case of call
options on U.S. Treasury Bills, the Fund might own U.S. Treasury Bills of a
different series from those underlying the call option, but with a principal
amount and value corresponding to the exercise price and a maturity date no
later than that of the securities deliverable under the call option. A call
option is also covered if the Fund holds a call on the same security as the
underlying security of the written option, where the exercise price of the call
used for coverage is equal to or less than the exercise price of the call
written or greater than the exercise price of the call written if the mark to
market difference is maintained by the Fund in cash, U.S. Government securities
or other high grade liquid debt obligations which the Fund holds in a segregated
account maintained with its Custodian.
The Fund will receive from the purchaser, in return for a call it has
written, a "premium"; i.e., the price of the option. Receipt of these premiums
may better enable the Fund to achieve a greater total return than would be
realized from holding the underlying securities alone. Moreover, the premium
received will offset a portion of the potential loss incurred by the Fund if the
securities underlying the option are ultimately sold by the Fund at a loss. The
premium received will fluctuate with varying economic market conditions. If the
market value of the portfolio securities upon which call options have been
written increases, the Fund may receive less total return from the portion of
its portfolio upon which calls have been written than it would have had such
calls not been written.
During the option period, the Fund may be required, at any time, to deliver
the underlying security against payment of the exercise price on any calls it
has written (exercise of certain listed options may be limited to specific
expiration dates). This obligation is terminated upon the expiration of the
option period or at such earlier time when the writer effects a closing purchase
transaction. A closing purchase transaction is accomplished by purchasing an
option of the same series as the option previously written. However, once the
Fund has been assigned an exercise notice, the Fund will be unable to effect a
closing purchase transaction.
Closing purchase transactions are ordinarily effected to realize a profit on
an outstanding call option to prevent an underlying security from being called,
to permit the sale of an underlying security or to enable the Fund to write
another call option on the underlying security with either a different exercise
price or expiration date or both. Also, effecting a closing purchase transaction
will permit the cash or proceeds from the concurrent sale of any securities
subject to the option to be used for other investments by the Fund. The Fund may
realize a net gain or loss from a closing purchase transaction depending upon
whether the amount of the premium received on the call option is more or less
than the cost of effecting the closing purchase transaction. Any loss incurred
in a closing purchase transaction may be wholly or partially offset by
unrealized appreciation in the market value of the underlying security.
Conversely, a gain resulting from a closing purchase transaction could be offset
in whole or in part or exceeded by a decline in the market value of the
underlying security.
If a call option expires unexercised, the Fund realizes a gain in the amount
of the premium on the option less the commission paid. Such a gain, however, may
be offset by depreciation in the market value of the underlying security during
the option period. If a call option is exercised, the Fund realizes a gain or
loss from the sale of the underlying security equal to the difference between
the purchase price of the underlying security and the proceeds of the sale of
the security plus the premium received for on the option less the commission
paid.
Options written by a Fund normally have expiration dates of from up to nine
months (equity securities) to eighteen months (fixed-income securities) from the
date written. The exercise price of a call option may be below, equal to or
above the current market value of the underlying security at the time the option
is written. See "Risks of Options and Futures Transactions" below.
COVERED PUT WRITING. As a writer of a covered put option, the Fund incurs
an obligation to buy the security underlying the option from the purchaser of
the put, at the option's exercise price at any time during the option period, at
the purchaser's election (certain listed put options written by the Fund will be
exercisable by the purchaser only on a specific date). A put is "covered" if, at
all times, the Fund maintains, in a segregated account maintained on its behalf
at the Fund's Custodian, cash, U.S. Government securities or other high grade
liquid debt obligations in an amount equal to at least the
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exercise price of the option, at all times during the option period. Similarly,
a short put position could be covered by the Fund by its purchase of a put
option on the same security as the underlying security of the written option,
where the exercise price of the purchased option is equal to or more than the
exercise price of the put written or less than the exercise price of the put
written if the mark to market difference is maintained by the Fund in cash, U.S.
Government securities or other high grade liquid debt obligations which the Fund
holds in a segregated account maintained at its Custodian. In writing puts, the
Fund assumes the risk of loss should the market value of the underlying security
decline below the exercise price of the option (any loss being decreased by the
receipt of the premium on the option written). During the option period, the
Fund may be required, at any time, to make payment of the exercise price against
delivery of the underlying security. The operation of and limitations on covered
put options in other respects are substantially identical to those of call
options.
The Fund will write put options for two purposes: (1) to receive the income
derived from the premiums paid by purchasers; and (2) when the Investment
Manager wishes to purchase the security underlying the option at a price lower
than its current market price, in which case it will write the covered put at an
exercise price reflecting the lower purchase price sought. The potential gain on
a covered put option is limited to the premium received on the option (less the
commissions paid on the transaction) while the potential loss equals the
differences between the exercise price of the option and the current market
price of the underlying securities when the put is exercised, offset by the
premium received (less the commissions paid on the transaction).
PURCHASING CALL AND PUT OPTIONS. As stated in the Prospectus, the Fund may
purchase listed call and put options in amounts equalling up to 5% of its total
assets. The Fund may purchase call options only in order to close out a covered
call position (see "Covered Call Writing" above). The call purchased is likely
to be on the same securities and have the same terms as the written option.
The Fund may purchase put options on securities which it holds (or has the
right to acquire) in its portfolio only to protect itself against a decline in
the value of the security. If the value of the underlying security were to fall
below the exercise price of the put purchased in an amount greater than the
premium paid for the option, the Fund would incur no additional loss. The Fund
may also purchase put options to close out written put positions in a manner
similar to call options closing purchase transactions. In addition, the Fund may
sell a put option which it has previously purchased prior to the sale of the
securities underlying such option. Such a sale would result in a net gain or
loss depending on whether the amount received on the sale is more or less than
the premium and other transaction costs paid on the put option which is sold.
And such gain or loss could be offset in whole or in part by a change in the
market value of the underlying security. If a put option purchased by the Fund
expired without being sold or exercised, the premium would be lost.
RISKS OF OPTIONS TRANSACTIONS. During the option period, the covered call
writer has, in return for the premium on the option, given up the opportunity
for capital appreciation above the exercise price should the market price of the
underlying security increase, but has retained the risk of loss should the price
of the underlying security decline. The secured put writer also retains the risk
of loss should the market value of the underlying security decline below the
exercise price of the option less the premium received on the sale of the
option. In both cases, the writer has no control over the time when it may be
required to fulfill its obligation as a writer of the option. Once an option
writer has received an exercise notice, it cannot effect a closing purchase
transaction in order to terminate its obligation under the option and must
deliver or receive the underlying securities at the exercise price.
Prior to exercise or expiration, an option position can only be terminated
by entering into a closing purchase or sale transaction. If a covered call
option writer is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction, it cannot sell
the underlying security until the option expires or the option is exercised.
Accordingly, a covered call option writer may not be able to sell an underlying
security at a time when it might otherwise be advantageous to do so. A secured
put option writer who is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction would
continue to bear the risk of decline in the market price of the underlying
security until the option expires or is exercised. In addition, a secured put
writer would be unable to utilize the amount held in cash or U.S. Government or
other high grade debt obligations as security for the put option for other
investment purposes until the exercise or expiration of the option.
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The Fund's ability to close out its position as a writer of an option is
dependent upon the existence of a liquid secondary market on Option Exchanges.
There is no assurance that such a market will exist. However, the Fund may be
able to purchase an offsetting option which does not close out its position as a
writer but constitutes an asset of equal value to the obligation under the
option written. If the Fund is not able to either enter into a closing purchase
transaction or purchase an offsetting position, it will be required to maintain
the securities subject to the call, or the collateral underlying the put, even
though it might not be advantageous to do so, until a closing transaction can be
entered into (or the option is exercised or expires).
Among the possible reasons for the absence of a liquid secondary market on
an Exchange are: (i) insufficient trading interest in certain options; (ii)
restrictions on transactions imposed by an Exchange; (iii) trading halts,
suspensions or other restrictions imposed with respect to particular classes or
series of options or underlying securities; (iv) interruption of the normal
operations on an Exchange; (v) inadequacy of the facilities of an Exchange or
the OCC to handle current trading volume; or (vi) a decision by one or more
Exchanges to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series
of options), in which event the secondary market on that Exchange (or in that
class or series of options) would cease to exist, although outstanding options
on that Exchange that had been issued by the OCC as a result of trades on that
Exchange would generally continue to be excercisable in accordance with their
terms.
In the event of the bankruptcy of a broker through which the Fund engages in
transactions in options, the Fund could experience delays and/or losses in
liquidating open positions purchased or sold through the broker and/or incur a
loss of all or part of its margin deposits with the broker. Transactions are
entered into by the Fund only with brokers or financial institutions deemed
creditworthy by the Investment Manager.
Each of the Exchanges has established limitations governing the maximum
number of call or put options on the same underlying security or futures
contract (whether or not covered) which may be written by a single investor,
whether acting alone or in concert with others (regardless of whether such
options are written on the same or different Exchanges or are held or written on
one or more accounts or through one or more brokers). An Exchange may order the
liquidation of positions found to be in violation of these limits and it may
impose other sanctions or restrictions. These position limits may restrict the
number of listed options which the Fund may write.
The hours of trading for options may not conform to the hours during which
the underlying securities are traded. To the extent that the option markets
close before the markets for the underlying securities, significant price and
rate movements can take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected
in the option markets.
STOCK INDEX OPTIONS. Options on stock indexes are similar to options on
stock except that, rather than the right to take or make delivery of stock at a
specified price, an option on a stock index gives the holder the right to
receive, upon exercise of the option, an amount of cash if the closing level of
the stock index upon which the option is based is greater than, in the case of a
call, or less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price of the option. This
amount of cash is equal to such difference between the closing price of the
index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a
specified multiple (the "multiplier"). The multiplier for an index option
performs a function similar to the unit of trading for a stock option. It
determines the total dollar value per contract of each point in the difference
between the exercise price of an option and the current level of the underlying
index. A multiplier of 100 means that a one-point difference will yield $100.
Options on different indexes may have different multipliers. The writer of the
option is obligated, in return for the premium received, to make delivery of
this amount. Unlike stock options, all settlements are in cash and a gain or
loss depends on price movements in the stock market generally (or in a
particular segment of the market) rather than the price movements in individual
stocks. The Fund will invest only in broadly based indexes. Options on
broad-based stock indexes provide the Fund with a means of protecting the Fund
against the risk of market wide price movements. If the Investment Manager
anticipates a market decline, the Fund could purchase a stock index put option.
If the expected market decline materialized, the resulting decrease in the value
of the Fund's portfolio would be offset to the extent of the increase in the
value of the put option. If the
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Investment Manager anticipates a market rise, the Fund may purchase a stock
index call option to enable the Fund to participate in such rise until
completion of anticipated common stock purchases by the Fund. Purchases and
sales of stock index options also enable the Investment Manager to more speedily
achieve changes in the Fund's equity positions.
The Fund will write put options on stock indexes only if such positions are
covered by cash, U.S. Government securities or other high grade liquid debt
obligations equal to the aggregate exercise price of the puts, or by a put
option on the same stock index with a strike price no lower than the strike
price of the put option sold by the Fund, which cover is held for the Fund in a
segregated account maintained for it by the Fund's Custodian. All call options
on stock indexes written by the Fund will be covered either by a portfolio of
stocks substantially replicating the movement of the index underlying the call
option or by holding a separate call option on the same stock index with a
strike price no higher than the strike price of the call option sold by the
Fund.
RISKS OF OPTIONS ON INDEXES. Because exercises of stock index options are
settled in cash, call writers such as the Fund cannot provide in advance for
their potential settlement obligations by acquiring and holding the underlying
securities. A call writer can offset some of the risk of its writing position by
holding a diversified portfolio of stocks similar to those on which the
underlying index is based. However, most investors cannot, as a practical
matter, acquire and hold a portfolio containing exactly the same stocks as the
underlying index, and, as a result, bear a risk that the value of the securities
held will vary from the value of the index. Even if an index call writer could
assemble a stock portfolio that exactly reproduced the composition of the
underlying index, the writer still would not be fully covered from a risk
standpoint because of the "timing risk" inherent in writing index options. When
an index option is exercised, the amount of cash that the holder is entitled to
receive is determined by the difference between the exercise price and the
closing index level on the date when the option is exercised. As with other
kinds of options, the writer will not learn that it has been assigned until the
next business day, at the earliest. The time lag between exercise and notice of
assignment poses no risk for the writer of a covered call on a specific
underlying security, such as a common stock, because there the writer's
obligation is to deliver the underlying security, not to pay its value as of a
fixed time in the past. So long as the writer already owns the underlying
security, it can satisfy its settlement obligations by simply delivering it, and
the risk that its value may have declined since the exercise date is borne by
the exercising holder. In contrast, even if the writer of an index call holds
stocks that exactly match the composition of the underlying index, it will not
be able to satisfy its assignment obligations by delivering those stocks against
payment of the exercise price. Instead, it will be required to pay cash in an
amount based on the closing index value on the exercise date; and by the time it
learns that it has been assigned, the index may have declined, with a
corresponding decrease in the value of its stock portfolio. This "timing risk"
is an inherent limitation on the ability of index call writers to cover their
risk exposure by holding stock positions.
A holder of an index option who exercises it before the closing index value
for that day is available runs the risk that the level of the underlying index
may subsequently change. If such a change causes the exercised option to fall
out-of-the-money, the exercising holder will be required to pay the difference
between the closing index value and the exercise price of the option (times the
applicable multiplier) to the assigned writer.
If dissemination of the current level of an underlying index is interrupted,
or if trading is interrupted in stocks accounting for a substantial portion of
the value of an index, the trading of options on that index will ordinarily be
halted. If the trading of options on an underlying index is halted, an exchange
may impose restrictions prohibiting the exercise of such options.
FUTURES CONTRACTS. As stated in the Prospectus, the Fund may purchase and
sell interest rate and stock index futures contracts ("futures contracts") that
are traded on U.S. commodity exchanges on such underlying securities as U.S.
Treasury bonds, notes, bills and GNMA Certificates ("interest rate" futures) and
such indexes as the S&P 500 Index, the Moody's Investment-Grade Corporate Bond
Index and the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index ("index" futures).
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As a futures contract purchaser, the Fund incurs an obligation to take
delivery of a specified amount of the obligation underlying the contract at a
specified time in the future for a specified price. As a seller of a futures
contract, the Fund incurs an obligation to deliver the specified amount of the
underlying obligation at a specified time in return for an agreed upon price.
The Fund will purchase or sell interest rate futures contracts and bond
index futures contracts for the purpose of hedging its fixed-income portfolio
(or anticipated portfolio) securities against changes in prevailing interest
rates. If the Investment Manager anticipates that interest rates may rise and,
concomitantly, the price of fixed-income securities fall, the Fund may sell an
interest rate futures contract or a bond index futures contract. If declining
interest rates are anticipated, the Fund may purchase an interest rate futures
contract to protect against a potential increase in the price of U.S. Government
securities the Fund intends to purchase. Subsequently, appropriate fixed-income
securities may be purchased by the Fund in an orderly fashion; as securities are
purchased, corresponding futures positions would be terminated by offsetting
sales of contracts.
The Fund will purchase or sell stock index futures contracts for the purpose
of hedging its equity portfolio (or anticipated portfolio) securities against
changes in their prices. If the Investment Manager anticipates that the prices
of stock held by the Fund may fall, the Fund may sell a stock index futures
contract. Conversely, if the Investment Manager wishes to hedge against
anticipated price rises in those stocks which the Fund intends to purchase, the
Fund may purchase stock index futures contracts. In addition, interest rate and
stock index futures contracts will be bought or sold in order to close out a
short or long position in a corresponding futures contract.
Although most interest rate futures contracts call for actual delivery or
acceptance of securities, the contracts usually are closed out before the
settlement date without the making or taking of delivery. Stock index futures
contracts provide for the delivery of an amount of cash equal to a specified
dollar amount times the difference between the stock index value at the open or
close of the last trading day of the contract and the futures contract price. A
futures contract sale is closed out by effecting a futures contract purchase for
the same aggregate amount of the specific type of equity security and the same
delivery date. If the sale price exceeds the offsetting purchase price, the
seller would be paid the difference and would realize a gain. If the offsetting
purchase price exceeds the sale price, the seller would pay the difference and
would realize a loss. Similarly, a futures contract purchase is closed out by
effecting a futures contract sale for the same aggregate amount of the specific
type of security and the same delivery date. If the offsetting sale price
exceeds the purchase price, the purchaser would realize a gain, whereas if the
purchase price exceeds the offsetting sale price, the purchaser would realize a
loss. There is no assurance that the Fund will be able to enter into a closing
transaction.
INTEREST RATE FUTURES CONTRACTS. When the Fund enters into an interest rate
futures contract, it is initially required to deposit with the Fund's Custodian,
in a segregated account in the name of the broker performing the transaction, an
"initial margin" of cash or U.S. Government securities or other high grade
liquid debt obligations equal to approximately 2% of the contract amount.
Initial margin requirements are established by the Exchanges on which futures
contracts trade and may, from time to time, change. In addition, brokers may
establish margin deposit requirements in excess of those required by the
Exchanges.
Initial margin in futures transactions is different from margin in
securities transactions in that initial margin does not involve the borrowing of
funds by a brokers' client but is, rather, a good faith deposit on the futures
contract which will be returned to the Fund upon the proper termination of the
futures contract. The margin deposits made are marked to market daily and the
Fund may be required to make subsequent deposits of cash or U.S. Government
securities called "variation margin," with the Fund's futures contract clearing
broker, which are reflective of price fluctuations in the futures contract.
Currently, interest rate futures contracts can be purchased on debt securities
such as U.S. Treasury Bills and Bonds, U.S. Treasury Notes with maturities
between 6 1/2 and 10 years, GNMA Certificates and Bank Certificates of Deposit.
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INDEX FUTURES CONTRACTS. As stated in the Prospectus, the Fund may invest
in index futures contracts. An index futures contract sale creates an obligation
by the Fund, as seller, to deliver cash at a specified future time. An index
futures contract purchase would create an obligation by the Fund, as purchaser,
to take delivery of cash at a specified future time. Futures contracts on
indexes do not require the physical delivery of securities, but provide for a
final cash settlement on the expiration date which reflects accumulated profits
and losses credited or debited to each party's account.
The Fund is required to maintain margin deposits with brokerage firms
through which it effects index futures contracts in a manner similar to that
described above for interest rate futures contracts. In addition, due to current
industry practice, daily variations in gains and losses on open contracts are
required to be reflected in cash in the form of variation margin payments. The
Fund may be required to make additional margin payments during the term of the
contract.
At any time prior to expiration of the futures contract, the Fund may elect
to close the position by taking an opposite position which will operate to
terminate the Fund's position in the futures contract. A final determination of
variation margin is then made, additional cash is required to be paid by or
released to the Fund and the Fund realizes a loss or a gain.
Currently, index futures contracts can be purchased or sold with respect to,
among others, the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Price Index and the Standard &
Poor's 100 Stock Price Index on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the New York
Stock Exchange Composite Index on the New York Futures Exchange, the Major
Market Index on the American Stock Exchange, the Value Line Stock Index on the
Kansas City Board of Trade and the Moody's Investment-Grade Corporate Bond Index
on the Chicago Board of Trade.
OPTIONS ON FUTURES CONTRACTS. The Fund may purchase and write call and put
options on futures contracts which are traded on an Exchange and enter into
closing transactions with respect to such options to terminate an existing
position. An option on a futures contract gives the purchaser the right (in
return for the premium paid), and the writer the obligation, to assume a
position in a futures contract (a long position if the option is a call and a
short position if the option is a put) at a specified exercise price at any time
during the term of the option. Upon exercise of the option, the delivery of the
futures position by the writer of the option to the holder of the option is
accompanied by delivery of the accumulated balance in the writer's futures
margin account, which represents the amount by which the market price of the
futures contract at the time of exercise exceeds, in the case of a call, or is
less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price of the option on the futures
contract.
The Fund will purchase and write options on futures contracts for identical
purposes to those set forth above for the purchase of a futures contract
(purchase of a call option or sale of a put option) and the sale of a futures
contract (purchase of a put option or sale of a call option), or to close out a
long or short position in futures contracts. If, for example, the Investment
Manager wished to protect against an increase in interest rates and the
resulting negative impact on the value of a portion of its fixed-income
portfolio, it might write a call option on an interest rate futures contract,
the underlying security of which correlates with the portion of the portfolio
the Investment Manager seeks to hedge. Any premiums received in the writing of
options on futures contracts may, of course, augment the total return of the
Fund and thereby provide a further hedge against losses resulting from price
declines in portions of the Fund's portfolio.
The writer of an option on a futures contract is required to deposit initial
and variation margin pursuant to requirements similar to those applicable to
futures contracts. Premiums received from the writing of an option on a futures
contract are included in initial margin deposits.
LIMITATIONS ON FUTURES CONTRACTS AND OPTIONS ON FUTURES. The Fund may not
enter into futures contracts or purchase related options thereon if, immediately
thereafter, the amount committed to margin plus the amount paid for premiums for
unexpired options on futures contracts exceeds 5% of the value of the Fund's
total assets, after taking into account unrealized gains and unrealized losses
on such contracts it has entered into, provided, however, that in the case of an
option that is in-the-money (the exercise price of the call (put) option is less
(more) than the market price of the underlying security) at the
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time of purchase, the in-the-money amount may be excluded in calculating the 5%.
However, there is no overall limitation on the percentage of the Fund's assets
which may be subject to a hedge position. In addition, in accordance with the
regulations of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") under which the
Fund is exempted from registration as a commodity pool operator, the Fund may
only enter into futures contracts and options on futures contracts transactions
for purposes of hedging a part or all of its portfolio. If the CFTC changes its
regulations so that the Fund would be permitted to write options on futures
contracts for purposes other than hedging the Fund's investments without CFTC
registration, the Fund may engage in such transactions for those purposes.
Except as described above, there are no other limitations on the use of futures
and options thereon by the Fund.
RISKS OF TRANSACTIONS IN FUTURES CONTRACTS AND RELATED OPTIONS. The Fund
may sell a futures contract to protect against the decline in the value of
securities held by the Fund. However, it is possible that the futures market may
advance and the value of securities held in the portfolio of the Fund may
decline. If this occurred, the Fund would lose money on the futures contract and
also experience a decline in value of its portfolio securities. However, while
this could occur for a very brief period or to a very small degree, over time
the value of a diversified portfolio will tend to move in the same direction as
the futures contracts.
If the Fund purchases a futures contract to hedge against the increase in
value of securities it intends to buy, and the value of such securities
decreases, then the Investment Manager may determine not to invest in the
securities as planned and will realize a loss on the futures contract that is
not offset by a reduction in the price of the securities.
In order to assure that the Fund is entering into transactions in futures
contracts for hedging purposes as such is defined by the CFTC either: 1) a
substantial majority (i.e., approximately 75%) of all anticipatory hedge
transactions (transactions in which the Fund does not own at the time of the
transaction, but expects to acquire, the securities underlying the relevant
futures contract) involving the purchase of futures contracts will be completed
by the purchase of securities which are the subject of the hedge or 2) the
underlying value of all long positions in futures contracts will not exceed the
total value of a) all short-term debt obligations held by the Fund; b) cash held
by the Fund; c) cash proceeds due to the Fund on investments within thirty days;
d) the margin deposited on the contracts; and e) any unrealized appreciation in
the value of the contracts.
If the Fund maintains a short position in a futures contract or has sold a
call option in a futures contract, it will cover this position by holding, in a
segregated account maintained at its Custodian, cash, U.S. Government securities
or other high grade liquid debt obligations equal in value (when added
to any initial or variation margin on deposit) to the market value of the
securities underlying the futures contract or the exercise price of the option.
Such a position may also be covered by owning the securities underlying the
futures contract (in the case of a stock index futures contract a portfolio of
securities substantially replicating the relevant index), or by holding a call
option permitting the Fund to purchase the same contract at a price no higher
than the price at which the short position was established.
In addition, if the Fund holds a long position in a futures contract or has
sold a put option on a futures contract, it will hold cash, U.S. Government
securities or other high grade liquid debt obligations equal to the purchase
price of the contract or the exercise price of the put option (less the amount
of initial or variation margin on deposit) in a segregated account maintained
for the Fund by its Custodian. Alternatively, the Fund could cover its long
position by purchasing a put option on the same futures contract with an
exercise price as high or higher than the price of the contract held by the
Fund.
Exchanges limit the amount by which the price of a futures contract may move
on any day. If the price moves equal the daily limit on successive days, then it
may prove impossible to liquidate a futures position until the daily limit moves
have ceased. In the event of adverse price movements, the Fund would continue to
be required to make daily cash payments of variation margin on open futures
positions. In such situations, if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to
sell portfolio securities to meet daily variation margin requirements at a time
when it may be disadvantageous to do so. In addition, the Fund may be required
to take or make delivery of the instruments underlying interest rate futures
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contracts it holds at a time when it is disadvantageous to do so. The inability
to close out options and futures positions could also have an adverse impact on
the Fund's ability to effectively hedge its portfolio.
In the event of the bankruptcy of a broker through which the Fund engages in
transactions in futures or options thereon, the Fund could experience delays
and/or losses in liquidating open positions purchased or sold through the broker
and/or incur a loss of all or part of its margin deposits with the broker.
Transactions are entered into by the Fund only with brokers or financial
institutions deemed creditworthy by the Investment Manager.
While the futures contracts and options transactions to be engaged in by the
Fund for the purpose of hedging the Fund's portfolio securities are not
speculative in nature, there are risks inherent in the use of such instruments.
One such risk which may arise in employing futures contracts to protect against
the price volatility of portfolio securities is that the prices of securities
and indexes subject to futures contracts (and thereby the futures contract
prices) may correlate imperfectly with the behavior of the cash prices of the
Fund's portfolio securities. Another such risk is that prices of interest rate
futures contracts may not move in tandem with the changes in prevailing interest
rates against which the Fund seeks a hedge. A correlation may also be distorted
by the fact that the futures market is dominated by short-term traders seeking
to profit from the difference between a contract or security price objective and
their cost of borrowed funds. Such distortions are generally minor and would
diminish as the contract approached maturity.
There may exist an imperfect correlation between the price movements of
futures contracts purchased by the Fund and the movements in the prices of the
securities which are the subject of the hedge. If participants in the futures
market elect to close out their contracts through offsetting transactions rather
than meet margin deposit requirements, distortions in the normal relationship
between the debt securities and futures markets could result. Price distortions
could also result if investors in futures contracts opt to make or take delivery
of underlying securities rather than engage in closing transactions due to the
resultant reduction in the liquidity of the futures market. In addition, due to
the fact that, from the point of view of speculators, the deposit requirements
in the futures markets are less onerous than margin requirements in the cash
market, increased participation by speculators in the futures market could cause
temporary price distortions. Due to the possibility of price distortions in the
futures market and because of the imperfect correlation between movements in the
prices of securities and movements in the prices of futures contracts, a correct
forecast of interest rate trends by the Investment Manager may still not result
in a successful hedging transaction.
There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for futures
contracts and related options in which the Fund may invest. In the event a
liquid market does not exist, it may not be possible to close out a futures
position and, in the event of adverse price movements, the Fund would continue
to be required to make daily cash payments of variation margin. In addition,
limitations imposed by an exchange or board of trade on which futures contracts
are traded may compel or prevent the Fund from closing out a contract which may
result in reduced gain or increased loss to the Fund. The absence of a liquid
market in futures contracts might cause the Fund to make or take delivery of the
underlying securities at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
Compared to the purchase or sale of futures contracts, the purchase of call
or put options on futures contracts involves less potential risk to the Fund
because the maximum amount at risk is the premium paid for the options (plus
transaction costs). However, there may be circumstances when the purchase of a
call or put option on a futures contract would result in a loss to the Fund
notwithstanding that the purchase or sale of a futures contract would not result
in a loss, as in the instance where there is no movement in the prices of the
futures contract or underlying securities.
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition to the investment restrictions enumerated in the Prospectus, the
investment restrictions listed below have been adopted by the Fund as
fundamental policies, except as otherwise indicated.
24
<PAGE>
Under the Act, a fundamental policy may not be changed without the vote of a
majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, as defined in the
Act. Such a majority is defined as the lesser of (a) 67% or more of the shares
present at a meeting of shareholders, if the holders of 50% of the outstanding
shares of the Fund are present or represented by proxy or (b) more than 50% of
the outstanding shares of the Fund.
The Fund may not:
1. Invest in securities of any issuer if, to the knowledge of the Fund,
any officer or trustee of the Fund or any officer or director of the
Investment Manager owns more than 1/2 of 1% of the outstanding securities of
such issuer, and such officers, trustees and directors who own more than 1/2
of 1% own in the aggregate more than 5% of the outstanding securities of
such issuers.
2. Purchase or sell real estate or interests therein, although the Fund
may purchase securities of issuers which engage in real estate operations
and securities secured by real estate or interests therein.
3. Purchase oil, gas or other mineral leases, rights or royalty
contracts or exploration or development programs, except that the Fund may
invest in the securities of companies which operate, invest in, or sponsor
such programs.
4. Purchase securities of other investment companies, except in
connection with a merger, consolidation, reorganization or acquisition of
assets.
5. Borrow money, except that the Fund may borrow from a bank for
temporary or emergency purposes in amounts not exceeding 5% (taken at the
lower of cost or current value) of its total assets (not including the
amount borrowed).
6. Pledge its assets or assign or otherwise encumber them except to
secure borrowings effected within the limitations set forth in restriction
(5). For the purpose of this restriction, collateral arrangements with
respect to the writing of options and collateral arrangements with respect
to initial or variation margin for futures are not deemed to be pledges of
assets.
7. Issue senior securities as defined in the Act except insofar as the
Fund may be deemed to have issued a senior security by reason of (a)
entering into any repurchase agreement; (b) purchasing any securities on a
when-issued or delayed delivery basis; (c) purchasing or selling any
financial futures contracts; (d) borrowing money in accordance with
restrictions described above; or (e) lending portfolio securities.
8. Make loans of money or securities, except: (a) by the purchase of
publicly distributed debt obligations in which the Fund may invest
consistent with its investment objectives and policies; (b) by investment in
repurchase agreements; or (c) by lending its portfolio securities.
9. Make short sales of securities.
10. Purchase securities on margin, except for such short-term loans as
are necessary for the clearance of portfolio securities. The deposit or
payment by the Fund of initial or variation margin in connection with
futures contracts or related options thereon is not considered the purchase
of a security on margin.
11. Engage in the underwriting of securities, except insofar as the Fund
may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933 in disposing
of a portfolio security.
12. Invest for the purpose of exercising control or management of any
other issuer.
If a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of investment, a later
increase or decrease in percentage resulting from a change in values of
portfolio securities or amount of total or net assets will not be considered a
violation of any of the foregoing restrictions.
25
<PAGE>
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject to the general supervision of the Trustees, the Investment Manager
is responsible for decisions to buy and sell securities for the Fund, the
selection of brokers and dealers to effect the transactions, and the negotiation
of brokerage commissions, if any. Purchases and sales of securities on a stock
exchange are effected through brokers who charge a commission for their
services. In the over-the-counter market, securities are generally traded on a
"net" basis with dealers acting as principal for their own accounts without a
stated commission, although the price of the security usually includes a profit
to the dealer. The Fund expects that securities will be purchased at times in
underwritten offerings where the price includes a fixed amount of compensation,
generally referred to as the underwriter's concession or discount. Options and
futures transactions will usually be effected through a broker and a commission
will be charged. On occasion, the Fund may also purchase certain money market
instruments directly from an issuer, in which case no commissions or discounts
are paid. During the fiscal years ended October 31, 1993, 1994 and 1995, the
Fund paid totals of $1,029,148, $497,041 and $473,421, respectively, in
brokerage commissions.
The Investment Manager currently serves as investment manager to a number of
clients, including other investment companies, and may in the future act as
investment manager or adviser to others. It is the practice of the Investment
Manager to cause purchase and sale transactions to be allocated among the Fund
and others whose assets it manages in such manner as it deems equitable. In
making such allocations among the Fund and other client accounts, the main
factors considered are the respective investment objectives, the relative size
of portfolio holdings of the same or comparable securities, the availability of
cash for investment, the size of investment commitments generally held and the
opinions of the persons responsible for managing the portfolios of the Fund and
other client accounts.
The policy of the Fund regarding purchases and sales of securities for its
portfolio is that primary consideration will be given to obtaining the most
favorable prices and efficient executions of transactions. Consistent with this
policy, when securities transactions are effected on a stock exchange, the
Fund's policy is to pay commissions which are considered fair and reasonable
without necessarily determining that the lowest possible commissions are paid in
all circumstances. The Fund believes that a requirement always to seek the
lowest possible commission cost could impede effective portfolio management and
preclude the Fund and the Investment Manager from obtaining a high quality of
brokerage and research services. In seeking to determine the reasonableness of
brokerage commissions paid in any transaction, the Investment Manager relies
upon its experience and knowledge regarding commissions generally charged by
various brokers and on its judgment in evaluating the brokerage and research
services received from the broker effecting the transaction. Such determinations
are necessarily subjective and imprecise, as in most cases an exact dollar value
for those services is not ascertainable.
In seeking to implement the Fund's policies, the Investment Manager effects
transactions with those brokers and dealers who the Investment Manager believes
provide the most favorable prices and are capable of providing efficient
executions. If the Investment Manager believes such prices and executions are
obtainable from more than one broker or dealer, it may give consideration to
placing portfolio transactions with those brokers and dealers who also furnish
research and other services to the Fund or the Investment Manager. Such services
may include, but are not limited to, any one or more of the following:
information as to the availability of securities for purchase or sale;
statistical or factual information or opinions pertaining to investment; wire
services; and appraisals or evaluations of portfolio securities. During the
fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund directed the payment of $280,566 in
brokerage commissions in connection with transactions in the aggregate amount of
$159,574,552 to brokers because of research services provided.
The information and services received by the Investment Manager from brokers
and dealers may be of benefit to the Investment Manager in the management of
accounts of some of its other clients and may not in all cases benefit the Fund
directly. While the receipt of such information and services is useful in
varying degrees and would generally reduce the amount of research or services
otherwise performed by
26
<PAGE>
the Investment Manager and thereby reduce its expenses, it is of indeterminable
value and the management fee paid to the Investment Manager is not reduced by
any amount that may be attributable to the value of such services.
Pursuant to an order of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Fund may
effect principal transactions in certain money market instruments with DWR. The
Fund will limit its transactions with DWR to U.S. Government and Government
Agency Securities, Bank Money Instruments (i.e., Certificates of Deposit and
Bankers' Acceptances) and Commercial Paper. Such transactions will be effected
with DWR only when the price available from DWR is better than that available
from other dealers.
Consistent with the policy described above, brokerage transactions in
securities listed on exchanges or admitted to unlisted trading privileges may be
effected through DWR. In order for DWR to effect any portfolio transactions for
the Fund, the commissions, fees or other remuneration received by DWR must be
reasonable and fair compared to the commissions, fees or other remuneration paid
to other brokers in connection with comparable transactions involving similar
securities being purchased or sold on an exchange during a comparable period of
time. This standard would allow DWR to receive no more than the remuneration
which would be expected to be received by an unaffiliated broker in a
commensurate arm's-length transaction. Furthermore, the Board of Trustees of the
Fund, including a majority of the Trustees who are not "interested" persons of
the Fund, as defined in the Act, have adopted procedures which are reasonably
designed to provide that any commissions, fees or other remuneration paid to DWR
are consistent with the foregoing standard. During the fiscal years ended
October 31, 1993, 1994 and 1995, the Fund paid totals of $190,987, $242,720 and
$157,910, respectively, in brokerage commissions to DWR. The Fund does not
reduce the management fee it pays to the Investment Manager by any amount of the
brokerage commissions it may pay to DWR. During the fiscal year ended October
31, 1995, the brokerage commissions paid to DWR represented approximately 33% of
the total brokerage commissions paid by the Fund during the year and were paid
on account of transactions having an aggregate dollar value equal to
approximately 37% of the aggregate dollar value of all portfolio transactions of
the Fund during the year for which commissions were paid.
During the fiscal year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund did not acquire any
securities of the ten brokers or the ten dealers who executed the largest dollar
amounts of principal transactions with the Fund during the period, or securities
of the parents of those broker-dealers.
THE DISTRIBUTOR
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed in the Prospectus, shares of the Fund are distributed by Dean
Witter Distributors Inc. (the "Distributor"). The Distributor has entered into a
selected dealer agreement with DWR, which through its own sales organization
sells shares of the Fund. In addition, the Distributor may enter into selected
dealer agreements with other selected broker-dealers. The Distributor, a
Delaware corporation, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DWDC. The Trustees of the
Fund, including a majority of the Trustees who are not, and were not at the time
they voted, interested persons of the Fund, as defined in the Act (the
"Independent Trustees"), approved, at their meeting held on October 30, 1992, a
Distribution Agreement appointing the Distributor exclusive distributor of the
Fund's shares and providing for the Distributor to bear distribution expenses
not borne by the Fund. The present Distribution Agreement is substantively
identical to the Fund's previous distribution agreements. The Distribution
Agreement took effect on June 30, 1993 upon the spin-off by Sears, Roebuck and
Co. of its remaining shares of DWDC. By its terms, the Distribution Agreement
had an initial term ending April 30, 1994, and provides that it will remain in
effect from year to year thereafter if approved by the Board. At their meeting
held on April 20, 1995, the Trustees, including all of the Independent Trustees,
approved the continuation of the Distribution Agreement until April 30, 1996.
The Distributor bears all expenses it may incur in providing services under
the Distribution Agreement. Such expenses include the payment of commissions for
sales of the Fund's shares and incentive compensation to account executives. The
Distributor also pays certain expenses in connection with the
27
<PAGE>
distribution of the Fund's shares, including the costs of preparing, printing
and distributing advertising or promotional materials, and the costs of printing
and distributing prospectuses and supplements thereto used in connection with
the offering and sale of the Fund's shares. The Fund bears the costs of initial
typesetting, printing and distribution of prospectuses and supplements thereto
to shareholders. The Fund also bears the costs of registering the Fund and its
shares under federal and state securities laws. The Fund and the Distributor
have agreed to indemnify each other against certain liabilities, including
liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Under the Distribution
Agreement, the Distributor uses its best efforts in rendering services to the
Fund, but in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of its obligations, the Distributor is not liable to the Fund
or any of its shareholders for any error of judgment or mistake of law or for
any act or omission or for any losses sustained by the Fund or its shareholders.
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
The Fund has adopted a Plan of Distribution pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the
Act (the "Plan") pursuant to which the Fund pays the Distributor compensation
accrued daily and payable monthly at the annual rate of 1% of the lesser of: (a)
the average daily aggregate gross sales of the Fund's shares since the inception
of the Fund (not including reinvestments of dividends or capital gains
distributions), less the average daily aggregate net asset value of the Fund's
shares redeemed since the Fund's inception upon which a contingent deferred
sales charge has been imposed or upon which such charge has been waived; or (b)
the Fund's average daily net assets. The Distributor also receives the proceeds
of contingent deferred sales charges imposed on certain redemptions of shares,
which are separate and apart from payments made pursuant to the Plan. The
Distributor has informed the Fund that it and/or DWR received approximately
$2,381,000, $1,599,000 and $1,018,000 in contingent deferred sales charges for
the fiscal years ended October 31, 1993, 1994 and 1995, respectively, none of
which was retained by the Distributor.
The Distributor has informed the Fund that a portion of the fees payable by
the Fund each year pursuant to the Plan equal to 0.25% of the Fund's average
daily net assets is characterized as a "service fee" under the Rules of Fair
Practice of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (of which the
Distributor is a member). Such portion of the fee is a payment made for personal
service and/or the maintenance of shareholder accounts. The remaining portion of
the Plan fees payable by the Fund is characterized as an "asset-based sales
charge" as defined in the aforementioned Rules of Fair Practice.
The Plan was adopted by a vote of the Trustees of the Fund on January 12,
1990, at a Meeting of the Trustees called for the purpose of voting on such
Plan. The vote included the vote of a majority of the Trustees of the Fund who
are not "interested persons" of the Fund (as defined in the Act) and who have no
direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Plan (the
"Independent 12b-1 Trustees"). In making their decision to adopt the Plan, the
Trustees requested from DWR and received such information as they deemed
necessary to make an informed determination as to whether or not adoption of the
Plan was in the best interests of the shareholders of the Fund. After due
consideration of the information received, the Trustees, including the
Independent 12b-1 Trustees, determined that adoption of the Plan would benefit
the shareholders of the Fund. DWR, as the then sole shareholder of the Fund,
approved the Plan on February 1, 1990, whereupon the Plan went into effect. The
Plan was approved by shareholders of the Fund at a Meeting of Shareholders on
June 20, 1991.
At their meeting held on October 30, 1992, the Trustees of the Fund,
including all of the Independent 12b-1 Trustees, approved certain amendments to
the Plan which took effect in January, 1993 and were designed to reflect the
fact that upon the reorganization described above the share distribution
activities theretofore performed for the Fund by DWR were assumed by the
Distributor and DWR's sales activities are now being performed pursuant to the
terms of a selected dealer agreement between the Distributor and DWR. The
amendments provide that payments under the Plan will be made to the Distributor
rather than to DWR as before the amendment, and that the Distributor in turn is
authorized to make payments to DWR, its affiliates or other selected
broker-dealers (or direct that the Fund pay such entities directly). The
Distributor is also authorized to retain part of such fee as compensation for
its own distribution-
28
<PAGE>
related expenses. At their meeting held on April 28, 1993, the Trustees,
including a majority of the Independent Trustees, approved certain technical
amendments to the Plan in connection with amendments adopted by the National
Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. to its Rules of Fair Practice. At their
meeting held on October 26, 1995, the Trustees of the Fund, including all of the
Independent 12b-1 Trustees, approved an amendment to the Plan to permit payments
to be made under the Plan with respect to certain distribution expenses incurred
in connection with the distribution of shares, including personal services to
shareholders with respect to holding of such shares, of an investment company
whose assets are acquired by the Fund in a tax-free reorganization.
Under the Plan and as required by Rule 12b-1, the Trustees receive and
review promptly after the end of each fiscal quarter a written report provided
by the Distributor of the amounts expended under the Plan and the purpose for
which such expenditures were made. The Fund accrued amounts payable to the
Distributor under the Plan, during the fiscal year ended October 31, 1995 of
$4,693,006. This amount is equal to payments required to be paid monthly by the
Fund which were computed at the annual rate of 1.0% of the Fund's average daily
net assets. This amount is treated by the Fund as an expense in the year it is
accrued.
The Plan was adopted in order to permit the implementation of the Fund's
method of distribution. Under this distribution method shares of the Fund are
sold without a sales load being deducted at the time of purchase, so that the
full amount of an investor's purchase payment will be invested in shares without
any deduction for sales charges. Shares of the Fund may be subject to a
contingent deferred sales charge, payable to the Distributor, if redeemed during
the six years after their purchase. DWR compensates its account executives by
paying them, from its own funds, commissions for the sale of the Fund's shares,
currently a gross sales credit of up to 5% of the amount sold and an annual
residual commission of up to 0.25 of 1% of the current value (not including
reinvested dividends or distributions) of the amount sold. The gross sales
credit is a charge which reflects commissions paid by DWR to its account
executives and DWR's Fund associated distribution-related expenses, including
sales compensation, and overhead and other branch office distribution-related
expenses including: (a) the expenses of operating DWR's branch offices in
connection with the sale of Fund shares, including lease costs, the salaries and
employee benefits of operations and sales support personnel, utility costs,
communications costs and the costs of stationery and supplies; (b) the costs of
client sales seminars; (c) travel expenses of mutual fund sales coordinators to
promote the sale of Fund shares; and (d) other expenses relating to branch
promotion of Fund share sales. The distribution fee that the Distributor
receives from the Fund under the Plan, in effect, offsets distribution expenses
incurred on behalf of the Fund and opportunity costs, such as the gross sales
credit and an assumed interest charge thereon ("carrying charge"). In the
Distributor's reporting of the distribution expenses to the Fund, such assumed
interest (computed at the "broker's call rate") has been calculated on the gross
sales credit as it is reduced by amounts received by the Distributor under the
Plan and any contingent deferred sales charges received by the Distributor upon
redemption of shares of the Fund. No other interest charge is included as a
distribution expense in the Distributor's calculation of distribution costs for
this purpose. The broker's call rate is the interest rate charged to securities
brokers on loans secured by exchange-listed securities.
The Fund paid 100% of the $4,693,006 accrued under the Plan for the fiscal
year ended October 31, 1995, to the Distributor. The Distributor and DWR
estimate that they have spent, pursuant to the Plan, $64,498,830 on behalf of
the Fund since the inception of the Plan. It is estimated that this amount was
spent in approximately the following ways: (i) 2.93% ($1,887,788) -- advertising
and promotional expenses; (ii) 0.48% ($308,678) -- printing of prospectuses for
distribution to other than current shareholders; and (iii) 96.59% ($62,302,364)
- -- other expenses, including the gross sales credit and the carrying charge, of
which 9.09% ($5,663,144) represents carrying charges, 35.65% ($22,213,902)
represents commission credits to DWR branch offices for payments of commissions
to account executives and 55.26% ($34,425,318) represents overhead and other
branch office distribution-related expenses. The term "overhead and other branch
office distribution-related expenses" represents (a) the expenses of operating
DWR's branch offices in connection with the sale of Fund shares, including lease
costs, the salaries and employee benefits of operations and sales support
personnel, utility costs, communications
29
<PAGE>
costs and the costs of stationery and supplies; (b) the costs of client sales
seminars; (c) travel expenses of mutual fund sales coordinators to promote the
sale of Fund shares; and (d) other expenses relating to branch promotion of Fund
share sales.
At any given time, the expenses in distributing shares of the Fund may be
more or less than the total of (i) the payments made by the Fund pursuant to the
Plan and (ii) the proceeds of contingent deferred sales charges paid by
investors upon redemption of shares. The Distributor has advised the Fund that
such excess amount, including the carrying charge designed to approximate the
opportunity costs incurred by DWR which arise from it having advanced monies
without having received the amount of any sales charges imposed at the time of
sale of the Fund's shares, totalled $25,537,222 at October 31, 1995. Because
there is no requirement under the Plan that the Distributor be reimbursed for
all expenses or any requirement that the Plan be continued from year to year,
this excess amount does not constitute a liability of the Fund. Although there
is no legal obligation for the Fund to pay distribution expenses in excess of
payments made to the Distributor under the Plan and the proceeds of contingent
deferred sales charges paid by investors upon redemption of shares, if for any
reason the Plan is terminated, the Trustees will consider at that time the
manner in which to treat such expenses. Any cumulative expenses incurred, but
not yet recovered through distribution fees or contingent deferred sales
charges, may or may not be recovered through future distribution fees or
contingent deferred sales charges.
No interested person of the Fund, nor any Trustee of the Fund who is not an
interested person of the Fund, as defined in the Act, has any direct or indirect
financial interest in the operation of the Plan except to the extent that the
Distributor, InterCapital, DWSC and DWR or certain of their employees may be
deemed to have such an interest as a result of benefits derived from the
successful operation of the Plan or as a result of receiving a portion of the
amounts expended thereunder by the Fund.
Under its terms, the Plan had an initial term ending April 30, 1990 and will
remain in effect from year to year thereafter, provided such continuance is
approved annually by a vote of the Trustees in the manner described above. Most
recent continuance of the Plan for one year, until April 30, 1996, was approved
by the Trustees of the Fund, including a majority of the Independent 12b-1
Trustees, at a meeting held on April 20, 1995. Prior to approving the
continuation of the Plan, the Trustees requested and received from the
Distributor and reviewed all the information which they deemed necessary to
arrive at an informed determination. In making their determination to continue
the Plan, the Trustees considered: (1) the Fund's experience under the Plan and
whether such experience indicates that the Plan is operating as anticipated; (2)
the benefits the Fund had obtained, was obtaining and would be likely to obtain
under the Plan; and (3) what services had been provided and were continuing to
be provided under the Plan to the Fund and its shareholders. Based upon their
review, the Trustees of the Fund, including each of the Independent 12b-1
Trustees, determined that continuation of the Plan would be in the best interest
of the Fund and would have a reasonable likelihood of continuing to benefit the
Fund and its shareholders. In the Trustees' quarterly review of the Plan, they
will consider its continued appropriateness and the level of compensation
provided therein.
The Plan may not be amended to increase materially the amount to be spent
for the services described therein without approval of the shareholders of the
Fund, and all material amendments of the Plan must also be approved by the
Trustees in the manner described above. The Plan may be terminated at any time,
without payment of any penalty, by vote of a majority of the Independent 12b-1
Trustees or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the
Fund (as defined in the Act) on not more than thirty days' written notice to any
other party to the Plan. So long as the Plan is in effect, the election and
nomination of Independent Trustees shall be committed to the discretion of the
Independent Trustees.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As stated in the Prospectus, short-term securities with remaining maturities
of sixty days or less at the time of purchase are valued at amortized cost,
unless the Trustees determine such does not reflect the securities' market
value, in which case these securities will be valued at their fair value as
determined
30
<PAGE>
by the Trustees. Other short-term debt securities will be valued on a
mark-to-market basis until such time as they reach a remaining maturity of sixty
days, whereupon they will be valued at amortized cost using their value on the
61st day unless the Trustees determine such does not reflect the securities'
market value, in which case these securities will be valued at their fair value
as determined by the Trustees. Listed options on debt securities are valued at
the latest sale price on the exchange on which they are listed unless no sales
of such options have taken place that day, in which case they will be valued at
the mean between their latest bid and asked prices. Unlisted options on debt
securities and all options on equity securities are valued at the mean between
their latest bid and asked prices. Futures are valued at the latest sale price
on the commodities exchange on which they trade unless the Trustees determine
such price does not reflect their market value, in which case they will be
valued at their fair value as determined by the Trustees. All other securities
and other assets are valued at their fair value as determined in good faith
under procedures established by and under the supervision of the Trustees.
The net asset value per share of the Fund is determined once daily at 4:00
p.m., New York time (or, on days when the New York Stock Exchange closes prior
to 4 p.m., at such earlier time), on each day that the New York Stock Exchange
is open by taking the value of all assets of the Fund, subtracting its
liabilities, dividing by the number of shares outstanding and adjusting to the
nearest cent. The New York Stock Exchange currently observes the following
holidays: New Year's Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day,
Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
SHAREHOLDER SERVICES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Upon the purchase of shares of the Fund, a Shareholder Investment Account is
opened for the investor on the books of the Fund and maintained by Dean Witter
Trust Company (the "Transfer Agent"). This is an open account in which shares
owned by the investor are credited by the Transfer Agent in lieu of issuance of
a share certificate. If a share certificate is desired, it must be requested in
writing for each transaction. Certificates are issued only for full shares and
may be redeposited in the account at any time. There is no charge to the
investor for issuance of a certificate. Whenever a shareholder instituted
transaction takes place in the Shareholder Investment Account, the shareholder
will be mailed a confirmation of the transaction from the Fund or from DWR or
other selected broker-dealer.
AUTOMATIC INVESTMENT OF DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS. As stated in the
Prospectus, all income dividends and capital gains distributions are
automatically paid in full and fractional shares of the Fund, unless the
shareholder requests that they be paid in cash. Each purchase of shares of the
Fund is made upon the condition that the Transfer Agent is thereby automatically
appointed as agent of the investor to receive all dividends and capital gains
distributions on shares owned by the investor. Such dividends and distributions
will be paid, at the net asset value per share, in shares of the Fund (or in
cash if the shareholder so requests) as of the close of business on the record
date. At any time an investor may request the Transfer Agent, in writing, to
have subsequent dividends and/or capital gains distributions paid to him or her
in cash rather than shares. To assure sufficient time to process the change,
such request should be received by the Transfer Agent at least five business
days prior to the record date of the dividend or distribution. In the case of
recently purchased shares for which registration instructions have not been
received on the record date, cash payments will be made to DWR or other selected
broker-dealer, and will be forwarded to the shareholder, upon the receipt of
proper instructions.
TARGETED DIVIDENDS.-SM- In states where it is legally permissible,
shareholders may also have all income dividends and capital gains distributions
automatically invested in shares of an open-end Dean Witter Fund other than Dean
Witter Capital Growth Securities. Such investment will be made as described
above for automatic investment in shares of the Fund, at the net asset value per
share of the selected Dean Witter Fund as of the close of business on the
payment date of the dividend or distribution and will begin to earn dividends,
if any, in the selected Dean Witter Fund the next business day. To participate
in the Targeted Dividends program, shareholders should contact their DWR or
other selected broker-dealer account executive or the Transfer Agent.
Shareholders of the Fund must be shareholders
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<PAGE>
of the Dean Witter Fund targeted to receive investments from dividends at the
time they enter the Targeted Dividends program. Investors should review the
prospectus of the targeted Dean Witter Fund before entering the program.
EASYINVEST.-SM- Shareholders may subscribe to EasyInvest, an automatic
purchase plan which provides for any amount from $100 to $5,000 to be
transferred automatically from a checking or savings account, on a semi-monthly,
monthly or quarterly basis, to the Transfer Agent for investment in shares of
the Fund. Shares purchased through EasyInvest will be added to the shareholder's
existing account at the net asset value calculated the same business day the
transfer of funds is effected. For further information or to subscribe to
EasyInvest, shareholders should contact their DWR or other selected
broker-dealer account executive or the Transfer Agent.
INVESTMENT OF DIVIDENDS OR DISTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED IN CASH. As discussed in
the Prospectus, any shareholder who receives a cash payment representing a
dividend or capital gains distribution may invest such dividend or distribution
at net asset value, without the imposition of a contingent deferred sales charge
upon redemption, by returning the check or the proceeds to the Transfer Agent
within thirty days after the payment date. If the shareholder returns the
proceeds of a dividend or distribution, such funds must be accompanied by a
signed statement indicating that the proceeds constitute a dividend or
distribution to be invested. Such investment will be made at the net asset value
per share next determined after receipt of the check or the proceeds by the
Transfer Agent.
SYSTEMATIC WITHDRAWAL PLAN. As discussed in the Prospectus, a systematic
withdrawal plan (the "Withdrawal Plan") is available for shareholders who own or
purchase shares of the Fund having a minimum value of $10,000 based upon the
then current net asset value. The Withdrawal Plan provides for monthly or
quarterly (March, June, September and December) checks in any dollar amount, not
less then $25, or in any whole percentage of the account balance, on an
annualized basis. Any applicable contingent deferred sales charge will be
imposed on shares redeemed under the Withdrawal Plan (see "Redemptions and
Repurchases--Contingent Deferred Sales Charge"). Therefore, any shareholder
participating in the Withdrawal Plan will have sufficient shares redeemed from
his or her account so that the proceeds (net of any applicable contingent
deferred sales charge) to the shareholder will be the designated monthly or
quarterly amount.
The Transfer Agent acts as agent for the shareholder in tendering to the
Fund for redemption sufficient full and fractional shares to provide the amount
of the periodic withdrawal payment designated in the application. The shares
will be redeemed at their net asset value determined, at the shareholder's
option, on the tenth or twenty-fifth day (or next following business day) of the
relevant month or quarter and normally a check for the proceeds will be mailed
by the Transfer Agent within five business days after the date of redemption.
The Withdrawal Plan may be terminated at any time by the Fund.
Withdrawal Plan payments should not be considered as dividends, yields or
income. If periodic withdrawal plan payments continuously exceed net investment
income and net capital gains, the shareholder's original investment will be
correspondingly reduced and ultimately exhausted.
Each withdrawal constitutes a redemption of shares and any gain or loss
realized must be recognized for federal income tax purposes. Although the
shareholder may make additional investments of $2,500 or more under the
Withdrawal Plan, withdrawals made concurrently with purchases of additional
shares may be inadvisable because of the contingent deferred sales charge
applicable to the redemption of shares purchased during the preceding six years
(see "Redemptions and Repurchases-- Contingent Deferred Sales Charge").
Any shareholder who wishes to have payments under the Withdrawal Plan made
to a third party or sent to an address other than the one listed on the account
must send complete written instructions to the Transfer Agent to enroll in the
Withdrawal Plan. The shareholder's signature on such instructions must be
guaranteed by an eligible guarantor acceptable to the Transfer Agent
(shareholders should contact the Transfer Agent for a determination as to
whether a particular institution is such an eligible guarantor). A shareholder
may, at any time, change the amount and interval of withdrawal payments
32
<PAGE>
through his or her DWR or other selected broker-dealer account executive or by
written notification to the Transfer Agent. In addition, the party and/or the
address to which checks are mailed may be changed by written notification to the
Transfer Agent, with signature guarantees required in the manner described
above. The shareholder may also terminate the Withdrawal Plan at any time by
written notice to the Transfer Agent. In the event of such termination, the
account will be continued as a regular shareholder investment account. The
shareholder may also redeem all or part of the shares held in the Withdrawal
Plan account (see "Redemptions and Repurchases" in the Prospectus) at any time.
Shareholders wishing to enroll in the Withdrawal Plan should contact their
account executive or the Transfer Agent.
DIRECT INVESTMENTS THROUGH TRANSFER AGENT. As discussed in the Prospectus,
a shareholder may make additional investments in Fund shares at any time by
sending a check in any amount, not less than $100, payable to Dean Witter
Capital Growth Securities, directly to the Fund's Transfer Agent. Such amounts
will be applied to the purchase of Fund shares at the net asset value per share
next computed after receipt of the check or purchase payment by the Transfer
Agent. The shares so purchased will be credited to the investor's account.
EXCHANGE PRIVILEGE
As discussed in the Prospectus, the Fund makes available to its shareholders
an Exchange Privilege whereby shareholders of the Fund may exchange their shares
for shares of other Dean Witter Funds sold with a contingent deferred sales
charge ("CDSC funds"), and for shares of Dean Witter Short-Term U.S. Treasury
Trust, Dean Witter Limited Term Municipal Trust, Dean Witter Short-Term Bond
Fund, Dean Witter Balanced Growth Fund, Dean Witter Balanced Income Fund, Dean
Witter Intermediate Term U.S. Treasury Trust and five Dean Witter Funds which
are money market funds (the foregoing eleven non-CDSC funds are hereinafter
referred to as "Exchange Funds"). Exchanges may be made after the shares of the
Fund acquired by purchase (not by exchange or dividend reinvestment) have been
held for thirty days. There is no waiting period for exchanges of shares
acquired by exchange or dividend reinvestment. An exchange will be treated for
federal income tax purposes the same as a repurchase or redemption of shares, on
which the shareholder may realize a capital gain or loss.
Any new account established through the Exchange Privilege will have the
same registration and cash dividend or dividend reinvestment plan as the present
account, unless the Transfer Agent receives written notification to the
contrary. For telephone exchanges, the exact registration of the existing
account and the account number must be provided.
Any shares held in certificate form cannot be exchanged but must be
forwarded to the Transfer Agent and deposited into the shareholder's account
before being eligible for exchange. (Certificates mailed in for deposit should
not be endorsed.)
As described below and in the Prospectus under the captions "Exchange
Privilege" and "Contingent Deferred Sales Charge," a contingent deferred sales
charge ("CDSC") may be imposed upon a redemption, depending on a number of
factors, including the number of years from the time of purchase until the time
of redemption or exchange ("holding period"). When shares of the Fund or any
other CDSC fund are exchanged for shares of an Exchange Fund, the exchange is
executed at no charge to the shareholder, without the imposition of the CDSC at
the time of the exchange. During the period of time the shareholder remains in
the Exchange Fund (calculated from the last day of the month in which the
Exchange Fund shares were acquired), the investment period or "year since
purchase payment made" is frozen. When shares are redeemed out of the Exchange
Fund, they will be subject to a CDSC which would be based upon the period of
time the shareholder held shares in a CDSC fund. However, in the case of shares
of the Fund exchanged into an Exchange Fund, upon a redemption of shares which
results in a CDSC being imposed, a credit (not to exceed the amount of the CDSC)
will be given in an amount equal to the the Exchange Fund 12b-1 distribution
fees, if any, incurred on or after that date which are attributable to those
shares. Shareholders acquiring shares of an Exchange Fund pursuant to this
exchange privilege may exchange those shares back into a CDSC fund from the
Exchange Fund, with no CDSC being imposed on such exchange. The holding period
previously frozen when shares
33
<PAGE>
were first exchanged for shares of the Exchange Fund resumes on the last day of
the month in which shares of a CDSC fund are reacquired. A CDSC is imposed only
upon an ultimate redemption, based upon the time (calculated as described above)
the shareholder was invested in a CDSC fund.
In addition, shares of the Fund may be acquired in exchange for shares of
Dean Witter Funds sold with a front-end sales charge ("front-end sales charge
funds"), but shares of the Fund, however acquired, may not be exchanged for
shares of front-end sales charge funds. Shares of a CDSC fund acquired in
exchange for shares of a front-end sales charge fund (or in exchange for shares
of other Dean Witter Funds for which shares of a front-end sales charge fund
have been exchanged) are not subject to any CDSC upon their redemption.
When shares initially purchased in a CDSC fund are exchanged for shares of
another CDSC fund, or for shares of an Exchange Fund, the date of purchase of
the shares of the fund exchanged into, for purposes of the CDSC upon redemption,
will be the last day of the month in which the shares being exchanged were
originally purchased. In allocating the purchase payments between funds for
purposes of the CDSC, the amount which represents the current net asset value of
shares at the time of the exchange which were (i) purchased more than three or
six years (depending on the CDSC schedule applicable to the shares) prior to the
exchange, (ii) originally acquired through reinvestment of dividends or
distributions and (iii) acquired in exchange for shares of front-end sales
charge funds, or for shares of other Dean Witter Funds for which shares of
front-end sales charge funds have been exchanged (all such shares called "Free
Shares"), will be exchanged first. Shares of Dean Witter Strategist Fund
acquired prior to November 8, 1989, shares of Dean Witter American Value Fund
acquired prior to April 30, 1984, and shares of Dean Witter Dividend Growth
Securities Inc. and Dean Witter Natural Resource Development Securities Inc.
acquired prior to July 2, 1984, are also considered Free Shares and will be the
first Free Shares to be exchanged. After an exchange, all dividends earned on
shares in an Exchange Fund will be considered Free Shares. If the exchanged
amount exceeds the value of such Free Shares, an exchange is made, on a
block-by-block basis, of non-Free Shares held for the longest period of time
(except that if shares held for identical periods of time but subject to
different CDSC schedules are held in the same Exchange Privilege account, the
shares of that block that are subject to a lower CDSC rate will be exchanged
prior to the shares of that block that are subject to a higher CDSC rate).
Shares equal to any appreciation in the value of non-Free Shares exchanged will
be treated as Free Shares, and the amount of the purchase payments for the
non-Free Shares of the fund exchanged into will be equal to the lesser of (a)
the purchase payments for, or (b) the current net asset value of, the exchanged
non-Free Shares. If an exchange between funds would result in exchange of only
part of a particular block of non-Free Shares, then shares equal to any
appreciation in the value of the block (up to the amount of the exchange) will
be treated as Free Shares and exchanged first, and the purchase payment for that
block will be allocated on a pro rata basis between the non-Free Shares of that
block to be retained and the non-Free Shares to be exchanged. The prorated
amount of such purchase payment attributable to the retained non-Free Shares
will remain as the purchase payment for such shares, and the amount of purchase
payment for the exchanged non-Free Shares will be equal to the lesser of (a) the
prorated amount of the purchase payment for, or (b) the current net asset value
of, those exchanged non-Free Shares. Based upon the procedures described in the
Prospectus under the caption "Contingent Deferred Sales Charge," any applicable
CDSC will be imposed upon the ultimate redemption of shares of any fund,
regardless of the number of exchanges since those shares were originally
purchased.
With respect to the redemption or repurchase of shares of the Fund, the
application of proceeds to
the purchase of new shares in the Fund or any other of the funds and the general
administration of the Exchange Privilege, the Transfer Agent acts as agent for
the Distributor and for the shareholder's selected broker-dealer, if any, in the
performance of such functions. With respect to exchanges, redemptions or
repurchases, the Transfer Agent shall be liable for its own negligence and not
for the default or negligence of its correspondents or for losses in transit.
The Fund shall not be liable for any default or negligence of the Transfer
Agent, the Distributor or any selected broker-dealer.
34
<PAGE>
The Distributor and any selected broker-dealer have authorized and appointed
the Transfer Agent to act as their agent in connection with the application of
proceeds of any redemption of Fund shares to the purchase of shares of any other
fund and the general administration of the Exchange Privilege. No commission or
discounts will be paid to the Distributor or any selected broker-dealer for any
transactions pursuant to this Exchange Privilege.
Exchanges are subject to the minimum investment requirement and any other
conditions imposed by each fund. (The minimum initial investment is $5,000 for
Dean Witter Liquid Asset Fund Inc., Dean Witter Tax-Free Daily Income Trust,
Dean Witter California Tax-Free Daily Income Trust and Dean Witter New York
Municipal Money Market Trust, although those funds may, at their discretion,
accept initial investments of as low as $1,000. The minimum initial investment
is $10,000 for Dean Witter Short-Term U.S. Treasury Trust, although that fund,
in its discretion, may accept initial purchases as low as $5,000. The minimum
initial investment for all other Dean Witter Funds for which the Exchange
Privilege is available is $1,000.) Upon exchange into an Exchange Fund, the
shares of that fund will be held in a special Exchange Privilege Account
separately from accounts of those shareholders who have acquired their shares
directly from that fund. As a result, certain services normally available to
shareholders of those funds, including the check writing feature, will not be
available for funds held in that account.
The Fund and each of the other Dean Witter Funds may limit the number of
times this Exchange Privilege may be exercised by any investor within a
specified period of time. Also, the Exchange Privilege may be terminated or
revised at any time by the Fund and/or any of the Dean Witter Funds for which
shares of the Fund have been exchanged, upon such notice as may be required by
applicable regulatory agencies (presently sixty days prior written notice for
termination or material revision), provided that six months prior written notice
of termination will be given to the shareholders who hold shares of Exchange
Funds pursuant to the Exchange Privilege, and provided further that the Exchange
Privilege may be terminated or materially revised without notice at times (a)
when the New York Stock Exchange is closed for other than customary weekends and
holidays, (b) when trading on that Exchange is restricted, (c) when an emergency
exists as a result of which disposal by the Fund of securities owned by it is
not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund to
fairly determine the value of its net assets, (d) during any other period when
the Securities and Exchange Commission by order so permits (provided that
applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission shall
govern as to whether the conditions prescribed in (b) or (c) exist) or (e) if
the Fund would be unable to invest amounts effectively in accordance with its
investment objective(s), policies and restrictions.
The current prospectus for each fund describes its investment objective(s)
and policies, and shareholders should obtain a copy and examine it carefully
before investing. An exchange will be treated for federal income tax purposes
the same as a repurchase or redemption of shares, on which the shareholder may
realize a capital gain or loss. However, the ability to deduct capital losses on
an exchange may be limited in situations where there is an exchange of shares
within ninety days after the shares are purchased. The Exchange Privilege is
only available in states where an exchange may legally be made.
For further information regarding the Exchange Privilege, shareholders
should contact their DWR or other selected broker-dealer account executive or
the Transfer Agent.
REDEMPTIONS AND REPURCHASES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REDEMPTION. As stated in the Prospectus, shares of the Fund can be redeemed
for cash at any time at the net asset value per share next determined; however,
such redemption proceeds may be reduced by the amount of any applicable
contingent deferred sales charges (see below). If shares are held in a
shareholder's account without a share certificate, a written request for
redemption to the Fund's Transfer Agent at P.O. Box 983, Jersey City, NJ 07303
is required. If certificates are held by the shareholder, the shares may be
redeemed by surrendering the certificates with a written request for redemption.
The share certificate, or an accompanying stock power, and the request for
redemption, must be
35
<PAGE>
signed by the shareholder or shareholders exactly as the shares are registered.
Each request for redemption, whether or not accompanied by a share certificate,
must be sent to the Fund's Transfer Agent, which will redeem the shares at their
net asset value next computed (see "Purchase of Fund Shares" in the Prospectus)
after it receives the request, and certificate, if any, in good order. Any
redemption request received after such computation will be redeemed at the next
determined net asset value. The term "good order" means that the share
certificate, if any, and request for redemption are properly signed, accompanied
by any documentation required by the Transfer Agent, and bear signature
guarantees when required by the Fund or the Transfer Agent. If redemption is
requested by a corporation, partnership, trust or fiduciary, the Transfer Agent
may require that written evidence of authority acceptable to the Transfer Agent
be submitted before such request is accepted.
Whether certificates are held by the shareholder or shares are held in a
shareholder's account, if the proceeds are to be paid to any person other than
the record owner, or if the proceeds are to be paid to a corporation (other than
the Distributor or a selected broker-dealer for the account of the shareholder),
partnership, trust or fiduciary, or sent to the shareholder at an address other
than the registered address, signatures must be guaranteed by an eligible
guarantor acceptable to the Transfer Agent (shareholders should contact the
Transfer Agent for a determination as to whether a particular institution is
such an eligible guarantor). A stock power may be obtained from any dealer or
commercial bank. The Fund may change the signature guarantee requirements from
time to time upon notice to shareholders, which may be by means of a new
prospectus.
CONTINGENT DEFERRED SALES CHARGE. As stated in the Prospectus, a contingent
deferred sales charge ("CDSC") will be imposed on any redemption by an investor
if after such redemption the current value of the investor's shares of the Fund
is less than the dollar amount of all payments by the shareholder for the
purchase of Fund shares during the preceding six years. However, no CDSC will be
imposed to the extent that the net asset value of the shares redeemed does not
exceed: (a) the current net asset value of shares purchased more than six years
prior to the redemption, plus (b) the current net asset value of shares
purchased through reinvestment of dividends or distributions of the Fund or
another Dean Witter Fund (see "Shareholder Services--Targeted Dividends"), plus
(c) the current net asset value of shares acquired in exchange for (i) shares of
Dean Witter front-end sales charge funds, or (ii) shares of other Dean Witter
Funds for which shares of front-end sales charge funds have been exchanged (see
"Shareholder Services--Exchange Privilege"), plus (d) increases in the net asset
value of the investor's shares above the total amount of payments for the
purchase of Fund shares made during the preceding six years. The CDSC will be
paid to the Distributor. In addition, no CDSC will be imposed on redemptions of
shares which were purchased by the employee benefit plans established by DWR and
SPS Transaction Services, Inc. (an affiliate of DWR) for their employees as
qualified under Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code.
In determining the applicability of a CDSC to each redemption, the amount
which represents an increase in the net asset value of the investor's shares
above the amount of the total payments for the purchase of shares within the
last six years will be redeemed first. In the event the redemption amount
exceeds such increase in value, the next portion of the amount redeemed will be
the amount which represents the net asset value of the Investor's shares
purchased more than six years prior to the redemption and/or shares purchased
through reinvestment of dividends or distributions and/or shares acquired in
exchange for shares of Dean Witter front-end sales charge funds, or for shares
of other Dean Witter funds for which shares of front-end sales charge funds have
been exchanged. A portion of the amount redeemed which exceeds an amount which
represents both such increase in value and the value of shares purchased more
than six years prior to the redemption and/or shares purchased through
reinvestment of dividends or distributions and/or shares acquired in the
above-described exchanges will be subject to a CDSC.
The amount of the CDSC, if any, will vary depending on the number of years
from the time of payment for the purchase of Fund shares until the time of
redemption of such shares. For purposes of
36
<PAGE>
determining the number of years from the time of any payments for the purchase
of shares, all payments made during a month will be aggregated and deemed to
have been made on the last day of the month. The following table sets forth the
rates of the CDSC:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
CONTINGENT DEFERRED
YEAR SINCE SALES CHARGE
PURCHASE AS A PERCENTAGE OF
PAYMENT MADE AMOUNT REDEEMED
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------
<S> <C>
First............................................................................. 5.0%
Second............................................................................ 4.0%
Third............................................................................. 3.0%
Fourth............................................................................ 2.0%
Fifth............................................................................. 2.0%
Sixth............................................................................. 1.0%
Seventh and thereafter............................................................ None
</TABLE>
In determining the rate of the CDSC, it will be assumed that a redemption is
made of shares held by the investor for the longest period of time within the
applicable six-year period. This will result in any such CDSC being imposed at
the lowest possible rate. Accordingly, shareholders may redeem, without
incurring any CDSC, amounts equal to any net increase in the value of their
shares above the amount of their purchase payments made within the past six
years and amounts equal to the current value of shares purchased more than six
years prior to the redemption and shares purchased through reinvestment of
dividends or distributions or acquired in exchange for shares of Dean Witter
front-end sales charge funds, or for shares of other Dean Witter Funds for which
shares of front-end sales charge funds have been exchanged. The CDSC will be
imposed, in accordance with the table shown above, on any redemptions within six
years of purchase which are in excess of these amounts and which redemptions are
not (a) requested within one year of death or initial determination of
disability of a shareholder, or (b) made pursuant to certain taxable
distributions from retirement plans or retirement accounts, as described in the
Prospectus.
PAYMENT FOR SHARES REDEEMED OR REPURCHASED. As discussed in the Prospectus,
payment for shares presented for repurchase or redemption will be made by check
within seven days after receipt by the Transfer Agent of the certificate and/or
written request in good order. The term good order means that the share
certificate, if any, and request for redemption are properly signed, accompanied
by any documentation required by the Transfer Agent, and bear signature
guarantees when required by the Fund or the Transfer Agent. Such payment may be
postponed or the right of redemption suspended at times (a) when the New York
Stock Exchange is closed for other than customary weekends and holidays, (b)
when trading on that Exchange is restricted, (c) when an emergency exists as a
result of which disposal by the Fund of securities owned by it is not reasonably
practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund to fairly determine
the value of its net assets, or (d) during any other period when the Securities
and Exchange Commission by order so permits; provided that applicable rules and
regulations of the Securities and Exchanges Commission shall govern as to
whether the conditions prescribed in (b) or (c) exist. If the shares to be
redeemed have recently been purchased by check, payment of the redemption
proceeds may be delayed for the minimum time needed to verify that the check
used for investment has been honored (not more than fifteen days from the time
of receipt of the check by the Transfer Agent). Shareholders maintaining margin
accounts with DWR or another selected broker-dealer are referred to their
account executive regarding restrictions on redemption of shares of the Fund
pledged in the margin account.
TRANSFERS OF SHARES. In the event a shareholder requests a transfer of any
shares to a new registration, such shares will be transferred without sales
charge at the time of transfer. With regard to the status of shares which are
either subject to the contingent deferred sales charge or free of such charge
(and with regard to the length of time shares subject to the charge have been
held), any transfer involving less than all of the shares in an account will be
made on a pro-rata basis (that is, by transferring
37
<PAGE>
shares in the same proportion that the transferred shares bear to the total
shares in the account immediately prior to the transfer). The transferred shares
will continue to be subject to any applicable contingent deferred sales charge
as if they had not been so transferred.
REINSTATEMENT PRIVILEGE. As discussed in the Prospectus, a shareholder who
has had his or her shares redeemed or repurchased and has not previously
exercised this reinstatement privilege may within thirty days after the date of
redemption or repurchase reinstate any portion of all of the proceeds of such
redemption or repurchase in shares of the Fund at the net asset value next
determined after a reinstatement request, together with such proceeds, is
received by the Transfer Agent.
Exercise of the reinstatement privilege will not affect the federal income
tax treatment of any gain or loss realized upon the redemption or repurchase,
except that if the redemption or repurchase resulted in a loss and reinstatement
is made in shares of the Fund, some or all of the loss, depending on the amount
reinstated, will not be allowed as a deduction for federal income tax purposes,
but will be applied to adjust the cost basis of the shares acquired upon
reinstatement.
DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed in the Prospectus, the Fund will determine either to distribute
or to retain all or part of any net long-term capital gains in any year for
reinvestment. If any such gains are retained, the Fund will pay federal income
tax thereon, and will notify shareholders that, following an election by the
Fund, the shareholders will be required to include such undistributed gains in
determining their taxable income and may claim their share of the tax paid by
the Fund as a credit against their individual federal income tax.
Because the Fund intends to distribute all of its net investment income and
capital gains to shareholders and otherwise continue to qualify as a regulated
investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code, it is not
expected that the Fund will be required to pay any federal income tax.
Shareholders will normally have to pay federal income taxes, and any state
income taxes, on the dividends and distributions they receive from the Fund.
Such dividends and distributions, to the extent that they are derived from net
investment income or short-term capital gains, are taxable to the shareholder as
ordinary income regardless of whether the shareholder receives such payments in
additional shares or in cash. Any dividends declared in the last quarter of any
calendar year which are paid in the following calendar year prior to February 1
will be deemed received by the shareholder in the prior year.
Gains or losses on sales of securities by the Fund will be long-term capital
gains or losses if the securities have been held by the Fund for more than
twelve months. Gains or losses on the sale of securities held for twelve months
or less will be short-term gains or losses.
Gains or losses on the Fund's transactions in listed non-equity options,
futures and options on futures generally are treated as 60% long-term and 40%
short-term. When the Fund engages in options and futures transactions, various
tax regulations applicable to the Fund may have the effect of causing the Fund
to recognize a gain or loss for tax purposes before than gain or loss is
realized, or to defer recognition of a realized loss for tax purposes.
Recognition, for tax purposes, of an unrealized loss may result in a lesser
amount of the Fund's realized gains being available for annual distribution.
One of the requirements for the Fund to remain qualified as a regulated
investment company is that less than 30% of its gross income be derived from
gains from the sale or other disposition of securities held for less than three
months. Accordingly, the Fund may be restricted in the writing of options on
securities held for less than three months, in the writing of options which
expire in less than three months, and in effecting closing transactions with
respect to call or put options which have been written or purchased less than
three months prior to such transactions. The Fund may also be restricted in its
ability to engage in transcations involving futures contracts.
As stated under "Investment Practices and Policies," the Fund may invest up
to 35% of its portfolio in securities other than common stocks, including U.S.
Government securities. Under current federal tax
38
<PAGE>
law, the Fund will receive net investment income in the form of interest by
virtue of holding Treasury bills, notes and bonds, and will recognize income
attributable to it from holding zero coupon Treasury securities. Current federal
tax law requires that a holder (such as the Fund) of a zero coupon security
accrue a portion of the discount at which the security was purchased as income
each year even though the Fund receives no interest payment in cash on the
security during the year. As an investment company, the Fund must pay out
substantially all of its net investment income each year. Accordingly, the Fund,
to the extent it invests in zero coupon Treasury securities, may be required to
pay out as an income distribution each year an amount which is greater than the
total amount of cash receipts of interest the Fund actually received. Such
distributions will be made from the available cash of the Fund or by liquidation
of portfolio securities if necessary. If a distribution of cash necessitates the
liquidation of portfolio securities, the Investment Manager will select which
securities to sell. The Fund may realize a gain or loss from such sales. In the
event the Fund realizes net capital gains from such transactions, its
shareholders may receive a larger capital gain distribution, if any, than they
would in the absence of such transactions.
Any dividend or capital gains distribution received by a shareholder from
any investment company will have the effect of reducing the net asset value of
the shareholder's stock in that company by the exact amount of the dividend or
capital gains distribution. Furthermore, capital gains distributions and
dividends are subject to federal income taxes. If the net asset value of the
shares should be reduced below a shareholder's cost as a result of the payment
of dividends or the distribution of realized net long-term capital gains, such
payment or distribution would be in part a return of the shareholder's
investment to the extent of such reduction below the shareholder's cost, but
nonetheless would be fully taxable. Therefore, an investor should consider the
tax implications of purchasing Fund shares immediately prior to a distribution
record date.
Shareholders are urged to consult their attorneys or tax advisers regarding
specific questions as to federal, state or local taxes.
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed in the Prospectus, from time to time the Fund may quote its
"total return" in advertisements and sales literature. The Fund's "average
annual total return" represents an annualization of the Fund's total return over
a particular period and is computed by finding the annual percentage rate which
will result in the ending redeemable value of a hypothetical $1,000 investment
made at the beginning of a one, five or ten year period, or for the period from
the date of commencement of the Fund's operations, if shorter than any of the
foregoing. The ending redeemable value is reduced by any contingent deferred
sales charge at the end of the one, five or ten year or other period. For the
purpose of this calculation, it is assumed that all dividends and distributions
are reinvested. The formula for computing the average annual total return
involves a percentage obtained by dividing the ending redeemable value by the
amount of the initial investment, taking a root of the quotient (where the root
is equivalent to the number of years in the period) and subtracting 1 from the
result.
The average annual total return of the Fund for the one year and five year
period ended October 31, 1995 and for the period from April 2, 1990
(commencement of operations) through October 31, 1995 were 16.42%, 11.93% and
9.07%, respectively.
In addition to the foregoing, the Fund may advertise its total return over
different periods of time by means of aggregate, average, year-by-year or other
types of total return figures. Such calculations may or may not reflect the
deduction of the contingent deferred sales charge which, if reflected, would
reduce the performance quoted. For example, the average annual total return of
the Fund may be calculated in the manner described above, but without deduction
for any applicable contingent deferred sales charge. Based on this calculation,
the average annual total return of the Fund for the one year and five year
period ended October 31, 1995 and for the period from April 2, 1990 through
October 31, 1995 were 21.42%, 12.18% and 9.19%, respectively.
39
<PAGE>
In addition, the Fund may compute its aggregate total return for specified
periods by determining the aggregate percentage rate which will result in the
ending value of a hypothetical $1,000 investment made at the beginning of the
period. For the purpose of this calculation, it is assumed that all dividends
and distributions are reinvested. The formula for computing aggregate total
return involves a percentage obtained by dividing the ending value (without the
reduction for any contingent deferred sales charge) by the initial $1,000
investment and subtracting 1 from the result. Based on the foregoing
calculation, the Fund's total return for the one and five year period ended
October 31, 1995 was 21.42%, 77.69% and the total return for the period from
April 2, 1990 through October 31, 1995 was 63.30%.
The Fund may also advertise the growth of hypothetical investments of
$10,000, $50,000 and $100,000 in shares of the Fund by adding 1 to the Fund's
aggregate total return to date (expressed as a decimal and without taking into
account the effect of any applicable CDSC) and multiplying by $10,000, $50,000
or $100,000, as the case may be. Investments of $10,000, $50,000 and $100,000 in
the Fund at inception would have grown to $16,330, $81,650 and $163,300,
respectively, at October 31, 1995.
The Fund from time to time may also advertise its performance relative to
certain performance rankings and indexes compiled by independent organizations.
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed in the Prospectus, the shareholders of the Fund are entitled to
a full vote for each full share held. The Trustees, except for Messrs. Bozic,
Purcell and Schroeder, have been elected by the shareholders of the Fund at
Special Meetings of Shareholders held on June 21, 1991 and January 12, 1993.
Messrs. Bozic, Purcell and Schroeder were elected by the other Trustees of the
Fund on April 8, 1994. The Trustees themselves have the power to alter the
number and the terms of office of the Trustees, and they may at any time
lengthen their own terms or make their terms of unlimited duration and appoint
their own successors, provided that always at least a majority of the Trustees
has been elected by the shareholders of the Fund. Under certain circumstances,
the Trustees may be removed by action of the Trustees. The shareholders also
have the right, under certain circumstances, to remove the Trustees. The voting
rights of shareholders are not cumulative, so that holders of more than 50
percent of the shares voting can, if they choose, elect all Trustees being
selected, while the holders of the remaining shares would be unable to elect any
Trustees.
The Declaration of Trust permits the Trustees to authorize the creation of
additional series of shares (the proceeds of which would be invested in
separate, independently managed portfolios) and additional classes of shares
within any series (which would be used to distinguish among the rights of
different categories of shareholders, as might be required by future regulations
or other unforeseen circumstances). However, the Trustees have not authorized
any such additional series or classes of shares.
The Declaration of Trust further provides that no Trustee, officer, employee
or agent of the Fund is liable to the Fund or to a shareholder, nor is any
Trustee, officer, employee or agent liable to any third persons in connection
with the affairs of the Fund, except as such liability may arise from his/her or
its own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence, or reckless disregard
of his/her or its duties. It also provides that all third persons shall look
solely to the Fund's property for satisfaction of claims arising in connection
with the affairs of the Fund. With the exceptions stated, the Declaration of
Trust provides that a Trustee, officer, employee or agent is entitled to be
indemnified against all liability in connection with the affairs of the Fund.
The Fund is authorized to issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial
interest. The Fund shall be of unlimited duration subject to the provisions in
the Declaration of Trust concerning termination by action of the shareholders.
40
<PAGE>
CUSTODIAN AND TRANSFER AGENT
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bank of New York, 90 Washington Street, New York, New York 10286 is the
Custodian of the Fund's assets. Any of the Fund's cash balances with the
Custodian in excess of $100,000 are unprotected by federal deposit insurance.
Such balances may, at times, be substantial.
Dean Witter Trust Company, Harborside Financial Center, Plaza Two, Jersey
City, New Jersey 07311 is the Transfer Agent of the Fund's shares and Dividend
Disbursing Agent for payment of dividends and distributions on Fund shares and
Agent for shareholders under various investment plans described herein. Dean
Witter Trust Company is an affiliate of Dean Witter InterCapital Inc., the
Fund's Investment Manager and Dean Witter Distributors Inc., the Fund's
Distributor. As Transfer Agent and Dividend Disbursing Agent, Dean Witter Trust
Company's responsibilities include maintaining shareholder accounts, including
providing subaccounting and recordkeeping services for certain retirement
accounts; disbursing cash dividends and reinvesting dividends; processing
account registration changes; handling purchase and redemption transactions;
mailing prospectuses and reports; mailing and tabulating proxies; processing
share certificate transactions; and maintaining shareholder records and lists.
For these services Dean Witter Trust Company receives a per shareholder account
fee.
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Price Waterhouse LLP serves as the independent accountants of the Fund. The
independent accountants are responsible for auditing the annual financial
statements of the Fund.
REPORTS TO SHAREHOLDERS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Fund will send to shareholders, at least semi-annually, reports showing
the Fund's portfolio and other information. An annual report, containing
financial statements audited by independent accountants, will be sent to
shareholders each year.
The Fund's fiscal year ends on October 31. The financial statements of the
Fund must be audited at least once a year by independent accountants whose
selection is made annually by the Fund's Board of Trustees.
LEGAL COUNSEL
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sheldon Curtis, Esq., who is an officer and the General Counsel of the
Investment Manager, is an officer and the General Counsel of the Fund.
EXPERTS
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The financial statements of the Fund included in this Statement of
Additional Information and incorporated by reference in the Prospectus have been
so included and incorporated in reliance on the report of Price Waterhouse LLP,
independent accountants, given on the authority of said firm as experts in
auditing and accounting.
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This Statement of Additional Information and the Prospectus do not contain
all of the information set forth in the Registration Statement the Fund has
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The complete Registration
Statement may be obtained from the Securities and Exchange Commission upon
payment of the fee prescribed by the rules and regulations of the Commission.
41
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
NUMBER OF
SHARES VALUE
- ------------------------------------------------------------------
<C> <S> <C>
COMMON STOCKS (97.4%)
ADVERTISING (2.3%)
284,200 Interpublic Group of Companies,
Inc................................. $ 11,012,750
---------------
APPAREL (2.2%)
255,000 Cintas Corp......................... 10,710,000
---------------
AUTOMOTIVE - REPLACEMENT PARTS (2.3%)
283,200 Genuine Parts Co.................... 11,221,800
---------------
BANKING (2.2%)
160,600 Fifth Third Bancorp................. 10,760,200
---------------
BEVERAGES - ALCOHOLIC (2.2%)
159,800 Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc....... 10,546,800
---------------
BEVERAGES - SOFT DRINKS (2.2%)
151,000 Coca Cola Co........................ 10,853,125
---------------
BIOTECHNOLOGY (0.3%)
25,000 Medtronic Inc....................... 1,443,750
---------------
BUSINESS SYSTEMS (2.4%)
242,600 General Motors Corp. (Class E)...... 11,432,525
---------------
CHEMICALS - SPECIALTY (2.2%)
226,200 Sigma-Aldrich Corp.................. 10,744,500
---------------
COMPUTER SERVICES (2.3%)
155,800 Automatic Data Processing, Inc...... 11,139,700
---------------
COMPUTER SOFTWARE (4.5%)
204,550 Computer Associates International,
Inc................................. 11,250,250
107,000 Microsoft Corp.*.................... 10,700,000
---------------
21,950,250
---------------
CONSUMER SERVICES (2.2%)
252,800 Block (H.&R.), Inc.................. 10,428,000
---------------
COSMETICS (2.3%)
225,200 International Flavors & Fragrances
Inc................................. 10,865,900
---------------
DRUGS (4.4%)
252,500 Forest Laboratories, Inc.*.......... 10,447,187
203,000 Schering-Plough Corp................ 10,885,875
---------------
21,333,062
---------------
DRUGS & HEALTHCARE (2.2%)
269,500 Abbott Laboratories................. 10,712,625
---------------
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT (2.3%)
175,400 Grainger (W.W.), Inc................ 10,962,500
---------------
<CAPTION>
NUMBER OF
SHARES VALUE
- ------------------------------------------------------------------
<C> <S> <C>
ELECTRONICS (2.3%)
209,600 Dionex Corp.*....................... $ 11,161,200
---------------
ENTERTAINMENT (2.2%)
405,500 Circus Circus Enterprises, Inc.*.... 10,796,438
---------------
FINANCIAL - MISCELLANEOUS (2.3%)
104,000 Federal National Mortgage
Association......................... 10,907,000
---------------
FOOD WHOLESALERS (2.3%)
364,200 Sysco Corp.......................... 11,062,575
---------------
FOODS (6.4%)
276,700 ConAgra, Inc........................ 10,687,537
274,084 Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc........ 9,901,285
222,800 Wrigley (Wm.) Jr. Co. (Class A)..... 10,360,200
---------------
30,949,022
---------------
GOLD MINING (2.1%)
438,000 Barrick Gold Corp. (Canada)......... 10,128,750
---------------
HEALTH CARE - MISCELLANEOUS (2.2%)
275,500 U.S. HealthCare, Inc................ 10,606,750
---------------
HOUSEWARES (0.8%)
142,400 Rubbermaid, Inc..................... 3,720,200
---------------
INSURANCE (2.3%)
131,100 American International Group,
Inc................................. 11,061,562
---------------
MACHINERY - DIVERSIFIED (2.3%)
245,500 Thermo Electron Corp.*.............. 11,293,000
---------------
MANUFACTURED HOUSING (2.3%)
419,000 Clayton Homes, Inc.................. 10,998,750
---------------
MANUFACTURING (4.5%)
497,700 Federal Signal Corp................. 11,136,038
366,000 Loral Corp.......................... 10,842,750
---------------
21,978,788
---------------
MANUFACTURING - DIVERSIFIED (2.3%)
299,000 Sherwin-Williams Co................. 11,249,875
---------------
MEDICAL EQUIPMENT (4.4%)
635,100 Biomet, Inc.*....................... 10,558,538
234,000 Stryker Corp........................ 10,559,250
---------------
21,117,788
---------------
PHARMACEUTICALS (0.3%)
18,000 Johnson & Johnson................... 1,467,000
---------------
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
42
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995, CONTINUED
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
NUMBER OF
SHARES VALUE
- ------------------------------------------------------------------
<C> <S> <C>
RESTAURANTS (6.6%)
855,000 Brinker International, Inc.*........ $ 10,366,875
517,200 International Dairy Queen, Inc.
(Class A)*.......................... 10,990,500
260,000 McDonald's Corp..................... 10,660,000
---------------
32,017,375
---------------
RETAIL - DEPARTMENT STORES (2.1%)
469,800 Wal-Mart Stores, Inc................ 10,159,425
---------------
RETAIL - DRUG STORES (2.3%)
395,800 Walgreen Co......................... 11,280,300
---------------
RETAIL - FOOD CHAINS (2.3%)
330,300 Albertson's Inc..................... 10,982,475
---------------
RETAIL - SPECIALTY (2.2%)
283,000 Home Depot, Inc..................... 10,541,750
---------------
TOBACCO (2.2%)
359,100 UST, Inc............................ 10,773,000
---------------
UTILITIES (2.2%)
488,943 Citizens Utilities Co. (Series
A)*................................. 5,378,373
494,995 Citizens Utilities Co. (Series
B)*................................. 5,506,819
---------------
10,885,192
---------------
TOTAL COMMON STOCKS
(IDENTIFIED COST $387,271,209)...... 471,255,702
---------------
</TABLE>
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
PRINCIPAL
AMOUNT IN
THOUSANDS VALUE
- ------------------------------------------------------------------
<C> <S> <C>
SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS (0.6%)
U.S. GOVERNMENT AGENCY (a) (0.5%)
$ 2,400 Student Loan Marketing Association
5.82% due 11/01/95 (Amortized Cost
$2,400,000)......................... 2,400,000
---------------
<CAPTION>
PRINCIPAL
AMOUNT IN
THOUSANDS VALUE
- ------------------------------------------------------------------
<C> <S> <C>
REPURCHASE AGREEMENT (0.1%)
$ 498 The Bank of New York 5.8125% due
11/01/95 (dated 10/31/95; proceeds
$497,905; collaterized by $520,916
Federal National Mortgage
Association 7.50% due 10/25/19
valued at $531,976) (Identified Cost
$497,825)........................... $ 497,825
---------------
TOTAL SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS
(IDENTIFIED COST $2,897,825)........ 2,897,825
---------------
TOTAL INVESTMENTS
(IDENTIFIED COST
$390,169,034) (B)........... 98.0% 474,153,527
OTHER ASSETS IN EXCESS OF
LIABILITIES................. 2.0 9,716,176
----- ------------
NET ASSETS.................. 100.0% $483,869,703
----- ------------
----- ------------
<FN>
- ---------------------
* Non-income producing security.
(a) Security was purchased on a discount basis. The interest rate shown
reflects a money market equivalent yield.
(b) The aggregate cost for federal income tax purposes is $391,394,213; the
aggregate gross unrealized appreciation is $93,227,282 and the aggregate
gross unrealized depreciation is $10,467,968, resulting in net unrealized
appreciation of $82,759,314.
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
43
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
OCTOBER 31, 1995
<TABLE>
<S> <C>
ASSETS:
Investments in securities, at value
(identified cost $390,169,034)............................ $474,153,527
Receivable for:
Investments sold........................................ 13,338,071
Shares of beneficial interest sold...................... 417,110
Dividends............................................... 210,053
Prepaid expenses and other assets........................... 18,569
------------
TOTAL ASSETS........................................... 488,137,330
------------
LIABILITIES:
Payable for:
Investments purchased................................... 2,925,527
Plan of distribution fee................................ 425,045
Shares of beneficial interest repurchased............... 402,469
Investment management fee............................... 276,279
Accrued expenses............................................ 238,307
------------
TOTAL LIABILITIES...................................... 4,267,627
------------
NET ASSETS:
Paid-in-capital............................................. 404,283,595
Net unrealized appreciation................................. 83,984,493
Accumulated net investment loss............................. (51,171)
Accumulated net realized loss............................... (4,347,214)
------------
NET ASSETS............................................. $483,869,703
------------
------------
NET ASSET VALUE PER SHARE,
33,600,803 SHARES OUTSTANDING (UNLIMITED SHARES AUTHORIZED
OF $.01 PAR VALUE)........................................
$14.40
------------
------------
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
44
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, CONTINUED
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED OCTOBER 31, 1995
<TABLE>
<S> <C>
NET INVESTMENT INCOME:
INCOME
Dividends (net of $6,687 foreign withholding tax)........... $ 6,583,412
Interest.................................................... 270,753
-----------
TOTAL INCOME........................................... 6,854,165
-----------
EXPENSES
Plan of distribution fee.................................... 4,693,006
Investment management fee................................... 3,050,454
Transfer agent fees and expenses............................ 822,888
Shareholder reports and notices............................. 88,485
Custodian fees.............................................. 71,789
Professional fees........................................... 51,773
Registration fees........................................... 45,096
Trustees' fees and expenses................................. 29,406
Organizational expenses..................................... 10,460
Other....................................................... 18,406
-----------
TOTAL EXPENSES......................................... 8,881,763
-----------
NET INVESTMENT LOSS.................................... (2,027,598)
-----------
NET REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN:
Net realized gain........................................... 18,302,740
Net change in unrealized appreciation....................... 74,477,893
-----------
NET GAIN............................................... 92,780,633
-----------
NET INCREASE................................................ $90,753,035
-----------
-----------
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
45
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, CONTINUED
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FOR THE YEAR FOR THE YEAR
ENDED ENDED
OCTOBER 31, 1995 OCTOBER 31, 1994
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C>
INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS:
OPERATIONS:
Net investment loss......................................... $ (2,027,598) $ (831,354)
Net realized gain (loss).................................... 18,302,740 (22,635,036)
Net change in unrealized appreciation....................... 74,477,893 21,479,587
---------------- ----------------
NET INCREASE (DECREASE)................................ 90,753,035 (1,986,803)
Distributions from net realized gain........................ -- (68,486,686)
Net decrease from transactions in shares of beneficial
interest.................................................. (63,860,121) (155,714,841)
---------------- ----------------
TOTAL INCREASE (DECREASE).............................. 26,892,914 (226,188,330)
NET ASSETS:
Beginning of period......................................... 456,976,789 683,165,119
---------------- ----------------
END OF PERIOD
(INCLUDING NET INVESTMENT LOSS OF $51,171 AND $46,185,
RESPECTIVELY)........................................... $483,869,703 $ 456,976,789
---------------- ----------------
---------------- ----------------
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
46
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995
1. ORGANIZATION AND ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Dean Witter Capital Growth Securities (the "Fund") is registered under the
Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Act"), as a diversified,
open-end management investment company. The Fund was organized as a
Massachusetts business trust on December 8, 1989 and commenced operations on
April 2, 1990.
The following is a summary of significant accounting policies:
A. VALUATION OF INVESTMENTS -- (1) an equity security listed or traded on the
New York or American Stock Exchange is valued at its latest sale price on that
exchange prior to the time when assets are valued; if there were no sales that
day, the security is valued at the latest bid price; (2) all other portfolio
securities for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available
are valued at the latest available bid price prior to the time of valuation; (3)
when market quotations are not readily available, portfolio securities are
valued at their fair value as determined in good faith under procedures
established by and under the general supervision of the Trustees; and (4)
short-term debt securities having a maturity date of more than sixty days at
time of purchase are valued on a mark-to-market basis until sixty days prior to
maturity and thereafter at amortized cost based on their value on the 61st day.
Short-term debt securities having a maturity date of sixty days or less at the
time of purchase are valued at amortized cost.
B. ACCOUNTING FOR INVESTMENTS -- Security transactions are accounted for on the
trade date (date the order to buy or sell is executed). Realized gains and
losses on security transactions are determined by the identified cost method.
Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date. Interest income is accrued
daily and includes accretion of discounts on certain short-term securities.
C. FEDERAL INCOME TAX STATUS -- It is the Fund's policy to comply with the
requirements of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to regulated investment
companies and to distribute all of its taxable income to its shareholders.
Accordingly, no federal income tax provision is required.
D. DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS -- The Fund records dividends and
distributions to its shareholders on the record date. The amount of dividends
and distributions from net investment income and net realized capital gains are
determined in accordance with federal income tax regulations which may differ
from generally accepted accounting principles. These "book/tax" differences are
either considered temporary or permanent in nature. To the extent these
differences are permanent in nature, such amounts are reclassified within the
capital accounts based on their federal tax-basis treatment; temporary
differences do not require reclassification. Dividends and
47
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995, CONTINUED
distributions which exceed net investment income and net realized capital gains
for financial reporting purposes but not for tax purposes are reported as
dividends in excess of net investment income or distributions in excess of net
realized capital gains. To the extent they exceed net investment income and net
realized capital gains for tax purposes, they are reported as distributions of
paid-in-capital.
E. ORGANIZATIONAL EXPENSES -- Dean Witter InterCapital Inc. (the "Investment
Manager") paid the organizational expenses of the Fund in the amount of
approximately $127,100 which were reimbursed for the full amount thereof. Such
expenses were fully amortized as of April 1, 1995.
2. INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT
Pursuant to an Investment Management Agreement, the Fund pays a management fee,
accrued daily and payable monthly, by applying the following annual rates to the
net assets of the Fund determined at the close of each business day: 0.65% to
the portion of daily net assets not exceeding $500 million; 0.55% to the portion
of daily net assets exceeding $500 million but not exceeding $1 billion; 0.50%
to the portion of daily net assets exceeding $1 billion but not exceeding $1.5
billion; and 0.475% to the portion of daily net assets exceeding $1.5 billion.
Under the terms of the Agreement, in addition to managing the Fund's
investments, the Investment Manager maintains certain of the Fund's books and
records and furnishes, at its own expense, office space, facilities, equipment,
clerical, bookkeeping and certain legal services and pays the salaries of all
personnel, including officers of the Fund who are employees of the Investment
Manager. The Investment Manager also bears the cost of telephone services, heat,
light, power and other utilities provided to the Fund.
3. PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
Shares of the Fund are distributed by Dean Witter Distributors Inc. (the
"Distributor"), an affiliate of the Investment Manager. The Fund has adopted a
Plan of Distribution (the "Plan") pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Act pursuant
to which the Fund pays the Distributor compensation, accrued daily and payable
monthly, at an annual rate of 1.0% of the lesser of: (a) the average daily
aggregate gross sales of the Fund's shares since the Fund's inception (not
including reinvestment of dividend or capital gain distributions) less the
average daily aggregate net asset value of the Fund's shares redeemed since the
Fund's inception upon which a contingent deferred sales charge has been imposed
or upon which such charge has been waived; or (b) the Fund's average daily net
assets. Amounts paid under the Plan are paid to the Distributor to compensate it
for the services provided
48
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995, CONTINUED
and the expenses borne by it and others in the distribution of the Fund's
shares, including the payment of commissions for sales of the Fund's shares and
incentive compensation to, and expenses of, the account executives of Dean
Witter Reynolds Inc. ("DWR"), an affiliate of the Investment Manager and
Distributor, and other employees or selected dealers who engage in or support
distribution of the Fund's shares or who service shareholder accounts, including
overhead and telephone expenses, printing and distribution of prospectuses and
reports used in connection with the offering of the Fund's shares to other than
current shareholders and preparation, printing and distribution of sales
literature and advertising materials. In addition, the Distributor may be
compensated under the Plan for its opportunity costs in advancing such amounts,
which compensation would be in the form of a carrying charge on any unreimbursed
expenses incurred by the Distributor.
Provided that the Plan continues in effect, any cumulative expenses incurred but
not yet recovered may be recovered through future distribution fees from the
Fund and contingent deferred sales charges from the Fund's shareholders.
The Distributor has informed the Fund that for the year ended October 31, 1995,
it received approximately $1,018,000 in contingent deferred sales charges from
certain redemptions of the Fund's shares. The Fund's shareholders pay such
charges which are not an expense of the Fund.
4. SECURITY TRANSACTIONS AND TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES
The cost of purchases and proceeds from sales of portfolio securities, excluding
short-term investments, for the year ended October 31, 1995 aggregated
$152,749,118 and $219,779,658, respectively.
For the year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund incurred brokerage commissions of
$157,910 with DWR for portfolio transactions executed on behalf of the Fund. At
October 31, 1995, the Fund's receivable for investments sold and payable for
investments purchased included unsettled trades with DWR of $5,577,689 and
$963,950, respectively.
Dean Witter Trust Company, an affiliate of the Investment Manager and
Distributor, is the Fund's transfer agent. At October 31, 1995, the Fund had
transfer agent fees and expenses payable of approximately $96,000.
The Fund has an unfunded noncontributory defined benefit pension plan covering
all independent Trustees of the Fund who will have served as independent
Trustees for at least five years at the time of retirement. Benefits under this
plan are based on years of service and compensation during
49
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OCTOBER 31, 1995, CONTINUED
the last five years of service. Aggregate pension costs for the year ended
October 31, 1995 included in Trustees' fees and expenses in the Statement of
Operations amounted to $7,008. At October 31, 1995, the Fund had an accrued
pension liability of $51,757 which is included in accrued expenses in the
Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
5. SHARES OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST
Transactions in shares of beneficial interest were as follows:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FOR THE YEAR ENDED FOR THE YEAR ENDED
OCTOBER 31, 1995 OCTOBER 31, 1994
---------------------------- --------------------------
SHARES AMOUNT SHARES AMOUNT
----------- -------------- ----------- ------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Sold............................................................. 9,967,719 $ 129,676,850 4,146,525 $ 51,264,523
Reinvestment of distributions.................................... -- -- 5,417,749 65,717,298
----------- -------------- ----------- ------------
9,967,719 129,676,850 9,564,274 116,981,821
Repurchased...................................................... (14,892,453) (193,536,971) (22,223,330) (272,696,662)
----------- -------------- ----------- ------------
Net decrease..................................................... (4,924,734) $ (63,860,121) (12,659,056) $(155,714,841)
----------- -------------- ----------- ------------
----------- -------------- ----------- ------------
</TABLE>
6. FEDERAL INCOME TAX STATUS
During the year ended October 31, 1995, the Fund utilized approximately
$19,249,000 of its net capital loss carryover. At October 31, 1995, the Fund had
a net capital loss carryover of approximately $3,122,000 which will be available
through October 31, 2002 to offset future capital gains to the extent provided
by regulations.
As of October 31, 1995, the Fund had temporary book/tax differences primarily
attributable to capital loss deferrals on wash sales and permanent book/tax
differences primarily attributable to a net operating loss. To reflect
reclassifications arising from permanent book/tax differences for the year ended
October 31, 1995, paid-in-capital was charged and accumulated net investment
loss was credited $2,022,612.
50
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Selected ratios and per share data for a share of beneficial interest
outstanding throughout each period:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
FOR THE
PERIOD
APRIL 2,
1990*
FOR THE YEAR ENDED OCTOBER 31 THROUGH
----------------------------------------------------- OCTOBER
1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 31, 1990
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
PER SHARE OPERATING PERFORMANCE:
Net asset value,
beginning of period............... $ 11.86 $ 13.35 $ 14.09 $ 13.58 $ 9.19 $ 10.00
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net investment income (loss)....... (0.06) (0.07) (0.08) (0.03) (0.01) 0.01
Net realized and unrealized gain
(loss)............................ 2.60 -- (0.50) 0.58 4.42 (0.82)
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Total from investment operations... 2.54 (0.07) (0.58) 0.55 4.41 (0.81)
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Less dividends and distributions
from:
Net investment income........... -- -- -- -- (0.02) --
Net realized gain............... -- (1.42) (0.16) (0.04) -- --
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Total dividends and
distributions..................... -- (1.42) (0.16) (0.04) (0.02) --
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
Net asset value, end of period..... $ 14.40 $ 11.86 $ 13.35 $ 14.09 $ 13.58 $ 9.19
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
--------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---------
TOTAL INVESTMENT RETURN+........... 21.42% (0.79)% (4.25)% 4.06% 48.07% (8.10)%(1)
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS:
Expenses........................... 1.89% 1.87% 1.81% 1.74% 1.83% 1.97%(2)
Net investment income (loss)....... (0.43)% (0.15)% (0.38)% (0.32)% (0.17)% 0.25%(2)
SUPPLEMENTAL DATA:
Net assets, end of period, in
thousands......................... $483,870 $456,977 $683,165 $973,110 $600,027 $206,588
Portfolio turnover rate............ 33% 13% 25% 29% 40% 10%(1)
<FN>
- ---------------------
* Commencement of operations.
+ Does not reflect the deduction of sales charge.
(1) Not annualized.
(2) Annualized.
</TABLE>
SEE NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
51
<PAGE>
DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT ACCOUNTANTS
TO THE SHAREHOLDERS AND TRUSTEES
OF DEAN WITTER CAPITAL GROWTH SECURITIES
In our opinion, the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities, including
the portfolio of investments, and the related statements of operations and of
changes in net assets and the financial highlights present fairly, in all
material respects, the financial position of Dean Witter Capital Growth
Securities (the "Fund") at October 31, 1995, the results of its operations for
the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the two years in
the period then ended and the financial highlights for each of the five years in
the period then ended and for the period April 2, 1990 (commencement of
operations) through October 31, 1990, in conformity with generally accepted
accounting principles. These financial statements and financial highlights
(hereafter referred to as "financial statements") are the responsibility of the
Fund's management; our responsibility is to express an opinion on these
financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these
financial statements in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards
which require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance
about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An
audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and
disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles
used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall
financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits, which included
confirmation of securities at October 31, 1995 by correspondence with the
custodian and brokers, provide a reasonable basis for the opinion expressed
above.
PRICE WATERHOUSE LLP
1177 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10036
DECEMBER 4, 1995
52
