Mutual funds
As a popular investment option, you have probably already heard plenty about mutual funds. [1]
Mutual funds are not taxed on their income as long as they comply with certain requirements established in the Internal Revenue Code. [2]
Mutual Funds are professionally managed investments offering diversification and liquidity. [3]
Mutual funds are operated by money managers, who invest the fund’s capital and attempt to produce capital gains and income for the fund’s investors. [4]
Funds that are managed by the same fund manager and that have the same brand name are known as a “fund family” or “fund complex”. [2]
Chances are you own mutual funds in your retirement plan or brokerage account. [1]
Evaluate your goals and choose the investment strategy that’s right for you. [3]
In fact, according to the Investment Company Institute, more than 92 million individuals in the U.S. (about 45% of U.S. households) owned mutual funds in 2008. [1]
Mutual funds are popular because they offer a simple way to diversify an investment portfolio while letting a professional manager worry about buying and selling individual stocks. [5]
In the United States, a mutual fund is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and is overseen by a board of directors (if organized as a corporation) or board of trustees (if organized as a trust). [...] A mutual fund is a professionally managed type of collective investment scheme that pools money from many investors to buy stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, and/or other securities. [2]
Growth-income funds, for example, tend to invest in Blue Chip companies that pay steady dividends but may also provide capital gains through share price appreciation. [5]
More than 50 funds—including equity, fixed income, international and sector funds—managed by 12 independent investment management leaders. [3]
Mutual fund ownership among households also increases as household income increases. [5]
The prospectus contains this and other important information about the fund. [3]
Sources:
[1] Mutual Funds - What Are Mutual Funds?
[2] Mutual fund - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
[3] Mutual Fund Information - John Hancock
[4] Mutual Fund Definition
[5] Mutual Funds