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Doug Kern

Doug Kern, CFA

fixed-income portfolio manager

Douglas Kern has been the portfolio manager of the Short-Term Bond Fund since its inception.


Fund Descriptions
Short-Term Bond Fund

This Fund has a short weighted average maturity (no more than three years), which should reduce the impact of interest rate changes on the Fund’s share price,” portfolio manager Douglas Kern explains.

Mr. Kern ordinarily invests at least 80% of the assets of the Short-Term Bond Fund in bonds that are in the three highest credit categories. The Fund can hold U.S. government securities as well as corporate bonds and other types of debt instruments.

He says this Fund is suitable for those who want an investment that is designed to deliver a higher return than a money market fund, but with fewer ups and downs in share price than a longer-term bond fund.

Performance

The tables below show the Fund’s average annual and year-to-date total returns for various holding periods and the Fund’s current yield. The bar chart shows the Fund's annual return in each of the last 10 years or for each year since the Fund's inception. This indicates how widely performance has varied year-by-year.

Short-term bond Fund
Average Annual Total Returns

as of quarter end 12/31/11 see month end returns 
1
year
3
year
5
year
10
year
Since the
fund opened
Short-Term Bond Fund 1.90% 7.83% 4.82% 3.96% 5.03%
(Nov-91)
BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year Corp./Gov. Index 3.10% 4.05%

4.81%

4.25% 5.50%

short-term bond Fund
Average Annual Total Returns

as of month end 01/31/12 see quarter end returns 
1
year
3
year
5
year
10
year
Since the
fund opened
Short-Term Bond Fund 2.22% 7.55% 4.92% 4.00% 5.05%
(Nov-91)
BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year Corp./Gov. Index TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA

Short-term bond Fund
Year-to-date Total Returns

as of quarter end 12/31/11 see month end returns 
Short-Term Bond Fund  1.90%
BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year Corp./Gov. Index 3.10%

short-term bond Fund
Year-to-date Total Returns

as of month end 01/31/12 see quarter end returns 
Short-Term Bond Fund

 0.82%

BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year Corp./Gov. Index TBA

Annualized 30-day SEC yield on 02/01/12

2.44%

Short-term bond Fund
Historical Annual Total Returns

The total returns shown above represent past performance which does not guarantee future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate. An investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data quoted.


Portfolio Composition

The following two tables show how the Short-Term Bond Fund is diversified and what its top holdings are.

Short-Term Bond Fund
Security Diversification

 

On 12/31/11
Corporate bonds
35.5%
Municipal bonds
16.2%
Asset-backed securities
14.8%
Yankee bonds
12.9%
Mortgage-backed securities
9.2%
U.S. Government obligations
8.6%
Short-term and other assets
2.8%
Total
100%

AVERAGE WEIGHTED MATURITY on 02/01/12

2.68 years

Fund assets on 12/31/11

$374,557,000

Comparison of Growth

This line graph is a comparison of the change in value of a $10,000 investment in the Fund and the BofA Merrill Lynch 1-5 Year Corp./Gov. Index.

Short-Term Bond Fund
Growth of $10,000

The Short-Term Bond Fund’s average annual total returns are net of any fee waivers and reimbursements. Returns do not reflect taxes that the shareholder may pay on fund distributions or the redemption of fund shares.


Distributions

If this Fund has declared income or capital gains distributions in the current year, they will be listed in the table below. See Track Earnings Distributions for the Fund's distribution schedule. Distributions for the prior calendar year are also shown below.

Short-Term Bond Fund
2012 Earnings Distributions

Distribution Type Declaration Date $/Per Share
Ordinary Income 01/31/12 $0.0121

 

Short-Term Bond Fund
2011 Earnings Distributions

 

Distribution Type Declaration Date $/Per Share
Ordinary Income 01/31/11 $0.0161
Ordinary Income 02/28/11 $0.0153
Ordinary Income 03/31/11 $0.0161
Ordinary Income 04/30/11 $0.0147
Ordinary Income 05/31/11 $0.0139
Ordinary Income 06/30/11 $0.0149
Ordinary Income 07/31/11 $0.0130
Ordinary Income 08/31/11 $0.0125
Ordinary Income 09/30/11 $0.0135
Ordinary Income 10/31/11 $0.0123
Ordinary Income 11/30/11 $0.0119
Ordinary Income 12/31/11 $0.0134

 

Share Price History

This table shows how widely the Fund’s share price has fluctuated over time.

Short-Term Bond Fund
Share Price History

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Year
End
$5.26

$5.30

$5.23 $5.17 $5.13 $5.16 $5.17 $4.72  $5.13  $5.19  $5.12
Year
High
$5.31 $5.30 $5.31 $5.26 $5.17 $5.18 $5.19 $5.22  $5.15  $5.23  $5.20
Year
Low
$5.19 $5.22 $5.22 $5.14 $5.12 $5.09 $5.14 $4.67  $4.71  $5.13  $5.12
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Homestead Funds investment adviser, RE Advisers Corporation, and distributor, RE Investment Corporation are indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of NRECA.

Investors are advised to consider fund objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. The prospectus contains this and other information and should be read carefully before you invest. To obtain a prospectus, call 1-800-258-3030 or download a PDF of it now.

© 2012 RE Investment Corporation, Distributor. All rights reserved.


Homestead Funds, Created by NRECA National Rural Electric Cooperative Association