Guggenheim's Flagship Fixed Income Mutual Funds Receive 5-Star Overall Morningstar Ratings

NEW YORK, Dec. 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Guggenheim Investments, the global asset management and investment advisory business of Guggenheim Partners, is pleased to announce that three of its flagship fixed-income mutual funds have earned the highest-possible overall Morningstar rating at their earliest eligibility.

The three funds – Guggenheim Total Return Bond Fund, Guggenheim Macro Opportunities Fund, and Guggenheim Floating Rate Strategies Fund – achieved 3-year track records on November 30, 2014 and received 5-star Overall Morningstar Ratings^TM across various share classes.

Guggenheim Total Return Bond Fund received a 5-star rating for its Class I shares. The fund was rated against 911 funds in Morningstar's Intermediate-Term Bond category. The performance of the fund's Class I shares is in the top 1% of its Morningstar category for the same time period.

Guggenheim Macro Opportunities Fund received a 5-star rating for its Class I shares. The fund was rated against 213 funds in Morningstar's Nontraditional Bond category. The performance of the fund's Class I shares is in the top 1% of its Morningstar category for the same time period.

Guggenheim Floating Rate Strategies Fund received a 5-star rating for its Class I shares. The fund was rated against 190 funds in Morningstar's Bank Loan category. The performance of the fund's Class I shares is in the top 6% of its Morningstar category for the same period.

"These star ratings from Morningstar provide compelling validation of our deep bench of experienced investment professionals and our disciplined and repeatable investment processes," said Guggenheim Chairman of Investments and Global CIO Scott Minerd. "Most importantly, it underscores our ongoing commitment to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns for our clients."

Minerd, a member of the portfolio management team of all three funds, leads a robust team of investment professionals who manage more than $140 billion in fixed income assets. Overall, there are more than 850 people in Guggenheim Investments working toward client success.

"Our investment philosophy is based on our belief that capturing attractive yields across the fixed-income universe, while remaining focused on the preservation of capital, is the surest path to superior long-term investment results," said Anne Walsh, Assistant CIO and a member of the portfolio management team of all three funds. "Our investment approach emphasizes relative value analysis and rigorous research designed to provide downside protection and maximize risk-adjusted returns."

Guggenheim Total Return Bond Fund invests primarily in high-quality, investment-grade fixed-income securities across multiple sectors. The fund employs an active approach, offering the opportunity to capitalize on changing relative values in fixed income.

Guggenheim Macro Opportunities Fund has the flexibility to invest across a broad array of fixed-income securities and offers exposure to the investment team's highest-conviction ideas in the current market environment through an opportunistic investment strategy. As part of an overall fixed-income allocation, the Fund may serve as a potential alpha generator, or source of additional risk-adjusted return, as well as a complement to benchmark-dedicated fixed-income strategies.

Guggenheim Floating Rate Strategies Fund invests primarily in bank loans and other floating-rate securities, and offers opportunities for investors that may help hedge interest rate and inflation exposure. The fund may complement a core fixed-income allocation, providing potential diversification benefits and protection from rising interest rates as well as the potential to maximize current income.

About Guggenheim Investments

Guggenheim Investments is the global asset management and investment advisory division of Guggenheim Partners, and manages more than $194 billionⁱ in assets across fixed income, equity, and alternatives. We focus on the return and risk needs of insurance companies, corporate and public pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations, consultants, wealth managers, and high-net-worth investors. Our 250+ investment professionals perform rigorous research to understand market trends and identify undervalued opportunities in areas that are often complex and underfollowed. This approach to investment management has enabled us to deliver innovative strategies providing diversification and attractive long-term results.

Guggenheim Investments offers investors a broad range of ETPs—domestic and international equity, fixed-income and currency—to provide the core building blocks for portfolios, access to hard-to-reach market segments, as well as targeted investment choices.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

*Source: ©2014 Morningstar Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained herein is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers. It may not be copied or distributed and is not warranted to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Ratings are based on a risk-adjusted return measure that accounts for variation in a fund's monthly performance, placing more emphasis on the downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. With-load ratings include the effect of sales charges, loads and redemption fees. Had fees not been waived and/or expenses reimbursed currently or in the past, the Morningstar rating would have been lower. The overall rating is derived from a weighted average of three- five- and 10-year rating metrics, as applicable.

Ratings are subject to change every month. A fund is eligible for a Morningstar rating three years after inception. The top 10% of funds in a category receive five stars, the next 22.5% four stars, the next 35% three stars, the next 22.5% two stars and the bottom 10% one star. (Each share class is counted as a fraction of one fun within this scale and rated separately, which may cause slight variations in the distribution percentages.) Ratings for other share classes may differ due to different performance characteristics.   

The Funds may not be suitable for all investors. ● The Funds' market value will change in response to interest rate changes and market conditions among other factors.  In general, bond prices rise when interest rates fall and vice versa. ● You may have a gain or loss when you sell your shares.  ● It is important to note that the Funds are not guaranteed by the U.S. government. ● The Funds may have exposure to high yield securities, municipal securities, floating rate securities, foreign securities, derivative instruments, real estate, commodity markets and other fixed income securities. ● Exposure to high yield securities may subject a Fund to greater volatility. ● Investments in municipal securities can be affected by events that affect the municipal bond market. ● Investments in syndicated bank loans generally offer a floating interest rate and involve special types of risks. ● Investments in foreign securities carry additional risks when compared to U.S. securities, due to the impact of diplomatic, political or economic developments in the country in question (investments in emerging markets securities are generally subject to an even greater level of risks). ● Investments in derivative instruments can be more volatile and less liquid, increasing the risk of loss when compared to traditional securities.  Certain of the derivative instruments are also subject to the risks of counterparty default and adverse tax treatment. ● Investments in real estate securities subjects a Fund to the same risks as direct investments in real estate, which is particularly sensitive to economic downturns. ● When market conditions are deemed appropriate, the Funds may use leverage to the full extent permitted by their investment policies and restrictions and applicable law.  Leveraging will exaggerate the effect on net asset value of any increase or decrease in the market value of the Fund's portfolio. ● Please see each Fund's prospectus for more information on these and other risks.

Read a fund's prospectus and summary prospectus (if available) carefully before investing. It contains the fund's investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other information, which should be considered carefully before investing. Obtain a prospectus and summary prospectus (if available) at www.guggenheiminvestments.com or call 800.820.0888.

¹ Guggenheim Investments total asset figure is as of 09.30.2014 and includes $12.1bn of leverage for Assets Under Management and $0.4bn of leverage for Serviced Assets. Total assets include assets from Security Investors, LLC, Guggenheim Partners Investment Management, LLC, Guggenheim Funds and its affiliated entities, and some business units including Guggenheim Real Estate, LLC, Guggenheim Aviation, GS GAMMA Advisors, LLC, Guggenheim Partners Europe Limited, Transparent Value Advisors, LLC, and Guggenheim Partners India Management. Values from some funds are based upon prior periods.

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SOURCE Guggenheim Partners