Current performance may be lower or higher than the quoted past performance, which cannot guarantee future results. Share price, principal value, and return will vary, and you may have a gain or loss when you sell your shares. Performance assumes reinvestment of distributions and does not account for taxes. Returns before sales charge do not reflect the current maximum sales charges as indicated below. Had the sales charge been reflected, returns would be lower. Returns at public offering price (after sales charge) for class A and class M shares reflect the current maximum initial sales charges of 5.75% and 3.50% for equity funds and Putnam Multi-Asset Absolute Return Fund, 4.00% and 3.25% for income funds and 2.25% and 0.75% for Putnam Floating Rate Income Fund, Short-Term Municipal Income, Short Duration Bond Fund, and Fixed Income Absolute Return Fund, respectively. Class B share returns reflect the applicable contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC), which is 5% in the first year, declining to 1% in the sixth year, and is eliminated thereafter (except for Putnam Floating Rate Income Fund, which is 3% in the first year, declining to 1% in the fourth year, and is eliminated thereafter). Class C shares reflect a 1% CDSC the first year that is eliminated thereafter. Performance for class B, C, M, N, R, and Y shares prior to their inception is derived from the historical performance of class A shares, adjusted for the applicable sales charge (or CDSC) and, except for class Y shares, the higher operating expenses for such shares (with the exception of Putnam Tax-Free High Yield Fund and Putnam AMT-Free Municipal Fund, which are based on the historical performance of class B shares). Returns at public offering price (after sales charge) for class N shares reflect the current maximum initial sales charge of 1.50%. Class R5/R6 shares, available to qualified employee-benefit plans only, are sold without an initial sales charge and have no CDSC. Class Y shares are generally only available for corporate and institutional clients and have no initial sales charge. Performance for Class R5/R6 shares before their inception are derived from the historical performance of class Y shares, which have not been adjusted for the lower expenses; had they, returns would have been higher. Class A and M shares of Putnam money market funds have no initial sales charge. For a portion of the periods, some funds had expense limitations or had been sold on a limited basis with limited assets and expenses, without which returns would be lower.
Always Aligned. Always Active.
George Putnam Balanced Fund (Class A) (PGEOX)
A prudent balance of stocks and bonds since 1937
Highlights
Objective
The fund seeks to provide a balanced investment composed of a well-diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds which produce both capital growth and current income.
Strategy and process
- Balanced approach: One of the pioneering mutual funds, it offers a mix of stocks and bonds in a classic balanced portfolio.
- Seeks lower volatility: A focus on high-quality bonds helps manage volatility, while high-conviction stocks can help drive relative returns.
- Disciplined process: Experienced portfolio managers use rigorous fundamental research to find opportunities and manage risk.
Fund price |
Yesterday’s close | 52-week high | 52-week low |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net asset value |
$18.55
0.00% | $0.00 |
$21.02
09/21/18 |
$17.17
12/24/18 |
Fund facts as of 12/31/18
$1,121.18M
179%
Quarterly
530
July
37252M108 / 0002
11/05/37
Asset Allocation
PGEOX
Management team
Literature
Fund documents |
| Prospectuses/SAI |
| Fact Sheet (Y share) (PDF) |
| Annual Fund Report (PDF) |
| Semiannual Fund Report (PDF) |
Headwinds buffet emerging-market debt
Higher interest rates can challenge any fixed-income market, but rate increases in advanced economies can cause particular difficulty for emerging markets.What may unlock consumer spending
While retail sales have been rather weak, key elements of consumer spending on services, including housing, are growing.The outlook for high yield in the oilfield
Fundamental research offers a guide to the risk that low oil prices pose to energy companies with high yield debt.Performance
Consistency of positive performance over five years
Performance shown above does not reflect the effects of any sales charges. Click on the dots to see specific returns in each five-year period as of the date revealed. Note that returns of 0.00% are counted as positive periods. For complete fund performance, please see below.
22.26%
Best 5-year annualized return
(for period ending 06/30/87)
-6.23%
Worst 5-year annualized return
(for period ending 03/31/09)
9.07%
Average 5-year annualized return
Total return (%) as of 12/31/18
Annual performance as of 12/31/18
Annualized Total return (%) as of 12/31/18
| Annualized performance | 1 yr. | 3 yrs. | 5 yrs. | 10 yrs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before sales charge | -3.14% | 6.34% | 5.61% | 9.58% |
| After sales charge | -8.71% | 4.26% | 4.37% | 8.93% |
| S&P 500 Index | -4.38% | 9.26% | 8.49% | 13.12% |
| Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | 0.01% | 2.06% | 2.52% | 3.48% |
Performance snapshot
| Before sales charge | After sales charge | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mt. as of 12/31/18 | -4.60% | -10.08% | |
| YTD as of 01/22/19 | 3.98% | -2.00% | |
Yield
| Distribution rate before sales charge as of 01/22/19 |
1.53% |
|---|---|
| Distribution rate after sales charge as of 01/22/19 |
1.44% |
| 30-day SEC yield as of 12/31/18 (after sales charge) |
1.51% |
Risk-adjusted performance as of 12/31/18
| Alpha (3 yrs.) | 0.29 |
|---|---|
| Sharpe ratio (3 yrs.) | 0.79 |
| Treynor ratio (3 yrs.) | 8.80 |
| Information ratio (3 yrs.) | -0.66 |
Volatility as of 12/31/18
| Standard deviation (3 yrs.) | 6.79% |
|---|---|
| Beta | 0.61 |
| R-squared | 0.95 |
Capture ratio as of 12/31/18
| Up-market (3 yrs.) | 65.99 |
|---|---|
| Down-market (3 yrs.) | 63.72 |
Lipper rankings as of 12/31/18
| Time period | Rank/Funds in category | Percentile ranking |
|---|---|---|
| 1 yr. | 61/584 | 11% |
| 3 yrs. | 43/544 | 8% |
| 5 yrs. | 46/511 | 9% |
| 10 yrs. | 43/431 | 10% |
Morningstar Ratings™ as of 12/31/18
| Time period | Funds in category | Morningstar Rating™ |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 697 | |
| 3 yrs. | 697 | |
| 5 yrs. | 610 | |
| 10 yrs. | 440 |
Distributions
| Record/Ex dividend date | 11/28/18 |
|---|---|
| Payable date | 11/30/18 |
| Income | $0.071 |
| Extra income | -- |
| Short-term cap. gain | $0.314 |
| Long-term cap. gain | $1.044 |
Lipper rankings are based on total return without sales charge relative to all share classes of funds with similar objectives as determined by Lipper. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
The Morningstar RatingTM for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods.
The up-market capture ratio is used to evaluate how well an investment manager performed relative to an index during periods when that index has risen. The ratio is calculated by dividing the manager’s returns by the returns of the index during the up-market, and multiplying that factor by 100. The down-market capture ratio is used to evaluate how well an investment manager performed relative to an index during periods when that index has dropped. The ratio is calculated by dividing the manager’s returns by the returns of the index during the down-market and multiplying that factor by 100.
Holdings
Top 10 holdings as of 12/31/18
| Microsoft | 2.56% |
|---|---|
| Us Treasury N/B 02.2500 02/15/2021 | 2.06% |
| Us Treasury N/B 02.0000 11/30/2020 | 2.04% |
| Alphabet | 1.98% |
| Amazon | 1.88% |
| Us Treasury N/B 01.5000 05/31/2020 | 1.83% |
| Apple | 1.73% |
| Bank of America | 1.40% |
| Coca-Cola | 1.39% |
| Visa | 1.25% |
| Top 10 holdings, percent of portfolio | 18.12% |
Portfolio composition as of 12/31/18
| Common stock | 63.48% |
|---|---|
| Corporate bonds and notes | 15.05% |
| Agency pass-through | 9.96% |
| Treasury | 8.44% |
| Cash and net other assets | 1.46% |
| Commercial MBS | 0.79% |
| Agency | 0.44% |
| Agency CMO | 0.22% |
| Municipal bonds | 0.10% |
| Emerging-market bonds | 0.06% |
Fixed income statistics as of 12/31/18
| Average effective maturity | 8.53 yrs. |
|---|---|
| Average effective duration | 5.60 yrs. |
Maturity detail as of 12/31/18
| 0 - 1 yr. | 2.10% |
|---|---|
| 1 - 5 yrs. | 30.12% |
| 5 - 10 yrs. | 51.33% |
| 10 - 15 yrs. | 3.22% |
| Over 15 yrs. | 13.23% |
Quality rating as of 12/31/18
| AAA | 49.25% |
|---|---|
| AA | 7.80% |
| A | 13.75% |
| BBB | 25.16% |
| BB | 1.88% |
| CCC and Below | 0.04% |
| Not Rated | 2.12% |
Fund characteristics will vary over time.
Due to rounding, percentages may not equal 100%.
Consider these risks before investing: Stock and bond prices may fall or fail to rise over time for several reasons, including general financial market conditions, changing market perceptions (including perceptions, in the case of bonds, about the risk of default and expectations about monetary policy or interest rates), changes in government intervention in the financial markets, and factors related to a specific issuer or industry. These and other factors may also lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Growth stocks may be more susceptible to earnings disappointments, and value stocks may fail to rebound. Bond investments are subject to interest-rate risk (the risk of bond prices falling if interest rates rise) and credit risk (the risk of an issuer defaulting on interest or principal payments). Interest-rate risk is greater for longer-term bonds, and credit risk is greater for below-investment-grade bonds. Risks associated with derivatives include increased investment exposure (which may be considered leverage) and, in the case of over-the-counter instruments, the potential inability to terminate or sell derivatives positions and the potential failure of the other party to the instrument to meet its obligations. You can lose money by investing in the fund.
Top industry sectors as of 12/31/18
| Information technology | 16.82% |
|---|---|
| Health care | 14.51% |
| Financials | 13.28% |
| Communication services | 11.24% |
| Consumer discretionary | 10.94% |
| Industrials | 9.40% |
| Consumer staples | 8.24% |
| Energy | 5.79% |
| Utilities | 4.05% |
| Other | 5.73% |
0
The unclassified sector (where applicable) includes exchange traded funds and other securities not able to be classified by sector.
Sectors will vary over time.
Represents the equity portion of the portfolio.
Expenses
Expense ratio |
Class A | Class B | Class C | Class M | Class R | Class R5 | Class R6 | Class Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total expense ratio | 0.99% | 1.74% | 1.74% | 1.49% | 1.24% | 0.73% | 0.63% | 0.74% |
| What you pay | 0.99% | 1.74% | 1.74% | 1.49% | 1.24% | 0.73% | 0.63% | 0.74% |
Sales charge
| Investment Breakpoint | Class A | Class B | Class C | Class M | Class R | Class R5 | Class R6 | Class Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0-$49,999 | 5.75% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 3.50% | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $50,000-$99,999 | 4.50% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 2.50% | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $100,000-$249,999 | 3.50% | -- | 0.00% | 1.50% | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $250,000-$499,999 | 2.50% | -- | 0.00% | 1.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $500,000-$999,999 | 2.00% | -- | 0.00% | 1.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $1M-$4M | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $4M-$50M | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| $50M+ | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
CDSC
| Class A (sales for $1,000,000+) | Class B | Class C | Class M | Class R | Class R5 | Class R6 | Class Y | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 9 mts. | 1.00% | 5.00% | 1.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 9 to 12 mts. | 1.00% | 5.00% | 1.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2 yrs. | 0.00% | 4.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 3 yrs. | 0.00% | 3.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 4 yrs. | 0.00% | 3.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 5 yrs. | 0.00% | 2.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 6 yrs. | 0.00% | 1.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 7+ yrs. | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
The S&P 500 Index is an unmanaged index of common stock performance. The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is an unmanaged index of U.S. investment-grade fixed income securities. You cannot invest directly in an index.
Consider these risks before investing: Stock and bond prices may fall or fail to rise over time for several reasons, including general financial market conditions, changing market perceptions (including perceptions, in the case of bonds, about the risk of default and expectations about monetary policy or interest rates), changes in government intervention in the financial markets, and factors related to a specific issuer or industry. These and other factors may also lead to increased volatility and reduced liquidity in the fund’s portfolio holdings. Growth stocks may be more susceptible to earnings disappointments, and value stocks may fail to rebound. Bond investments are subject to interest-rate risk (the risk of bond prices falling if interest rates rise) and credit risk (the risk of an issuer defaulting on interest or principal payments). Interest-rate risk is greater for longer-term bonds, and credit risk is greater for below-investment-grade bonds. Risks associated with derivatives include increased investment exposure (which may be considered leverage) and, in the case of over-the-counter instruments, the potential inability to terminate or sell derivatives positions and the potential failure of the other party to the instrument to meet its obligations. You can lose money by investing in the fund.