Products January 13, 2009

Putnam Releases Absolute Return Suite

January 12, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Putnam Investments has launched a suite of target absolute return mutual funds designed to seek annualized total returns of 1%, 3%, 5%, or 7% above those of Treasury bills over three years or more.
Reported by

A Putnam news release said the new offerings include four funds with specific targets, each geared to meet different investor needs and each investing in a different mix of assets. They include:

  • Putnam Absolute Return 100 Fund – seeks to outperform inflation by 1% as measured by T-bills
  • Putnam Absolute Return 300 Fund – seeks to outperform inflation by 3% as measured by T-bills
  • Putnam Absolute Return 500 Fund – seeks to outperform inflation by 5% as measured by T-bills
  • Putnam Absolute Return 700 Fund – seeks to outperform inflation by 7% as measured by T-bills

According to the company, the lead manager of Putnam Absolute Return 500 Fund and Putnam Absolute Return 700 Fund is Jeffrey L. Knight, Deputy Head of Investments and Chief Investment Officer, Global Asset Allocation. The lead manager of Putnam Absolute Return 100 Fund and Putnam Absolute Return 300 Fund is Rob A. Bloemker, Deputy Head of Investments and Chief Investment Officer, Fixed Income.

The funds offer advisers the tools to more precisely customize portfolios and help manage volatility because the funds are designed to provide positive returns over time, with less volatility than more traditional offerings.

“Investors and financial advisers are hungry for solutions that target positive returns in good markets or bad and offer a way to venture back into investing,” said Putnam Investments President and Chief Executive Officer Robert L. Reynolds, in the announcement. “Diversification and commitment to absolute return strategies can be crucial to long-term investment success, and we believe investors will welcome the opportunity to invest in these funds.”

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