Why Mutual Funds?

During the past 20 years, mutual funds have dramatically changed the face of investing by making financial markets accessible to everyone. Millions of people have found that mutual funds are an ideal way to invest because they offer instant diversification and professional investment management, among other things.

		Learn more about Mutual Fund Asset Classes
		Learn more about Mutual Fund Investment Objectives

Diversification

Diversification is one of the best ways to reduce investment risk. By owning a variety of different investments, you greatly reduce the chance of losing some of your investment due to the poor performance of a single company or industry. It is possible to build a well-diversified portfolio by selecting one stock or bond at a time, but identifying, researching, and tracking investment opportunities requires a substantial commitment of both time and resources. When you purchase a mutual fund, your investment is automatically diversified across dozens and sometimes hundreds of different securities.

Professional Management

Few investors have the time or expertise to manage their personal investments. Instead, they prefer to rely on the highly skilled professionals who manage mutual fund assets. Mutual fund portfolio managers and analysts have the training, time and technological resources to analyze economic trends and find the best opportunities to buy and sell securities.

Buying Power

By pooling the money of many investors, mutual funds make even the most expensive securities affordable. Mutual funds buy securities in much larger quantities than most individual investors could. This enables them to negotiate better prices and pay lower brokerage commissions as a result.

Tax Considerations

Investors normally pay income tax on dividends and taxable interest distributions from mutual funds each year. In addition, capital gains distributions are taxed as either short-term or long-term gains, depending on how long the securities were held by the fund. This can create a tax burden for investors who are not investing in tax-advantaged accounts like IRAs, qualified retirement plans or annuities. In fact, the average stock fund investor loses up to 3% of total return in taxes each year!¹

If you are in a top tax bracket and would prefer to avoid paying current taxes altogether, mutual funds can help. Tax-free bond funds and tax-free money market funds generally allow you to avoid paying federal income tax on your earnings. Income from some funds is exempt from both federal and state taxes.

Convenience

Investing in mutual funds is easy and convenient. You can buy, sell, or exchange shares on any day through the mail, over the telephone, or via the Internet. In addition, at Armada Funds investors can set up a Planned Investment Program (PIP) and automatically invest in the mutual fund of their choice by periodically transferring money from their bank account. Tracking account performance is a snap with easy-to-read quarterly account statements.

¹ Source: KPMG Peat Marwick LLP, An Educational Analysis of Tax-Managed Mutual Funds and the Taxable Investor.

NOT FDIC INSURED · NO BANK GUARANTEE · MAY LOSE VALUE

You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the Armada Funds carefully before investing. A prospectus may be downloaded and viewed with this and other information about the Funds or may be obtained by contacting an investment professional or by calling 1-800-622-FUND (3863.) Please read it carefully before you invest or send money.

National City Investment Management Company (IMC) serves as investment adviser to Armada Funds for which it receives an investment advisory fee. Shares of Armada Funds are distributed by Professional Funds Distributor, LLC (PFD), 760 Moore Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406. PFD is not affiliated with IMC and is not a bank.