INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The Low Duration Bond Fund seeks to maximize current income, consistent with preservation of capital.
FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND
The table below describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment):
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
| Management Fees | 0.30% |
| Distribution (12b-1) Fees | 0.19% |
| Other Expenses | 0.09% |
| Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses | 0.01% |
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | 0.59% |
(1) Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses will not correlate to the ratio of Expenses to Average Net Assets found in the “Financial Highlights” section of the Prospectus, which reflects the operating expenses of the Fund, but does not include Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses.
EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
| 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | |
 | ||||
| $60 | $189 | $329 | $738 | |
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions,
when it buys and sells securities (or "turns
over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio
turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These
costs, which are not reflected in annual fund
operating expenses or in the example, affect
the Fund's performance. During the most recent
fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate
was 87% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under
normal circumstances, at least 70% of its net
assets in highly rated fixed income securities
or unrated securities that are determined by
the Adviser to be of similar quality. Up to 30%
of the Fund's net assets may be invested in securities
rated below highly rated securities but not more
than 20% may be below investment grade. The Fund
also invests at least 80% of its net assets plus
borrowings for investment purposes in fixed income
securities it regards as bonds. Under normal
conditions, the portfolio duration is up to three
years and the dollar-weighted average maturity
ranges from one to five years. The Fund invests
in the U.S. and abroad, including emerging markets
and may purchase securities of varying maturities
issued by domestic and foreign corporations and
governments
Investments include various types of bonds and other securities, typically corporate bonds, notes, collateralized bond obligations, collateralized debt obligations, mortgage-related and asset-backed securities, bank loans, money-market securities, swaps, futures, municipal securities, credit default swaps, private placements and restricted securities. These investments may have interest rates that are fixed, variable or floating.
Derivatives will be used in an effort to hedge investments, for risk management, or to increase income or gains for the Fund. The Fund may also seek to obtain market exposure to the securities in which it invests by entering into a series of purchase and sale contracts or by using other investment techniques such as reverse repurchase agreements.
PRINCIPAL RISKS
Because the Fund holds securities with
fluctuating market prices, the value of the Fund’s
shares will vary as its portfolio securities increase
or decrease in value. Therefore, the value of your
investment in the Fund could go down as well as
up. You can lose money by investing in the Fund.
The principal risks affecting the Fund that can cause a decline in value are:
Market Risk
The risk that returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will underperform
returns from the general securities markets or other types of securities.
Interest Rate Risk
The risk that debt securities will decline
in value because of changes in interest
rates.
Credit Risk
The risk that an issuer will default in the
payment of principal and/or interest on
a security.
Foreign Securities Risk
The value of the Fund's investments in foreign securities also depends on changing currency values, different political and economic environments and other overall economic conditions in the countries where the Fund invests. Emerging market debt securities tend to be of lower credit quality and subject to greater risk of default than higher rated securities from more developed markets.
Prepayment Risk of Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities
The risk that in times of declining interest
rates, the Fund's higher yielding securities
will be prepaid and the Fund will have
to replace them with securities having
a lower yield.
Extension Risk of Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities
The risk that in times of rising interest
rates prepayments will slow causing securities
considered short or intermediate term to
be long-term securities which fluctuate
more widely in response to changes in interest
rates than shorter term securities.
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk
The risk that the impairment of the value
of the collateral underlying the security
such as non-payment of loans, will result
in a reduction in the value of the security.
Derivatives and
Swaps Risks
The risk that changes in the value of a derivative
may not correlate perfectly with the underlying
asset, reference rate or index and the Fund
could lose more than the principal amount
invested.
Swaps also involve the risks that the counterparty
may default and the potential lack of liquidity.
Liquidity Risk
The risk that there may be no willing buyer
of the Fund's portfolio securities and
the Fund may have to sell those securities
at a lower price or may not be able to
sell the securities at all each of which
would have a negative effect on performance.
Securities Selection Risk
The risk that the securities held by the
Fund will underperform other funds investing
in the same asset class or benchmarks that
are representative of the asset class because
of the portfolio managers' choice of securities.
Portfolio Management Risk
The risk that an investment strategy may
fail to produce the intended results.
Please see "Additional Fund Information-Principal Risks" for a more detailed description of the risks of investing in the Fund.
Your investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency, entity or person.
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows changes in the Fund's performance from year to year. The table compares the average annual total returns of the Fund to a broad-based securities market index. Total returns would have been lower if certain fees and expenses had not been waived or reimbursed. The Fund's past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information for the Fund is available on our website at www.mwamllc.com or by calling (800) 241-4671.
ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR YEARS ENDED 12/31
Year-to-Date Total Return as of June 30, 2011: 1.87%
| Highest Performance Quarter (quarter ended September 30, 2009) |
Lowest Performance Quarter (quarter ended December 31, 2008) |
| |
| 8.19% | -8.05% |
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
(FOR THE PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31,
2010)
| Low Duration Bond Fund (Class M Shares) | 1 Year | 5 Years | 10 Years | Since Inception March 31, 1997 |
| ||||
| Return Before Taxes | 10.30% | 3.34% | 3.57% | 4.55% |
| Return After Taxes on Distributions | 9.13% | 1.58% | 1.75% | 2.42% |
| Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
6.67% | 1.80% | 1.94% | 2.56% |
| BofA Merrill Lynch 1-3 Year U.S. Treasury Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
2.35% | 4.17% | 3.92% | 4.59% |
After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares may be higher than returns before taxes because the calculations assume that the investor received a tax deduction for any loss incurred on the sale of the shares.
INVESTMENT ADVISER
Metropolitan West Asset Management, LLC.
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
Tad Rivelle, Founding Partner, Chief Investment
Officer and Generalist Portfolio Manager of
the Adviser, has been a member of the team
managing the Fund since 1996.
Steve Kane, CFA, Founding Partner and Generalist Portfolio Manage of the Adviser, has been a member of the team managing the Fund since 1996.
Laird Landmann, Founding Partner and Generalist Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been a member of the team managing the Fund since 1996.
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
You may purchase or redeem shares of the Funds on any business day (normally any day that the New York Stock Exchange is open). Generally, purchase and redemption orders for the Fund shares are processed at the net asset value next calculated after an order is received by the Fund. You may conduct transactions by mail (Metropolitan West Funds c/o
BNY Mellon Investment Servicing, P.O. Box 9793, Providence, RI 02940), or telephone (800) 241-4671. You may also purchase or redeem Fund shares through your dealer or financial advisor.
The following table provides the Fund's minimum initial and subsequent investment requirements. The minimums may be reduced or waived in some cases.
| Type of Account | Minimum Initial Investment |
Subsequent Investments |
| ||
| Regular Accounts | $ 5,000 | $ 0 |
| Individual Retirement Accounts | $ 1,000 | $ 0 |
| Automatic Investment Plan | $ 5,000 | $ 100 |
TAX INFORMATION
Dividends and capital gains distributions you receive from the Fund are subject to federal income taxes and may also be subject to state and local taxes, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account. Such tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal from those arrangements.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
If you purchase shares of the Funds through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and/or the Adviser may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. Shareholders who purchase or hold shares through an intermediary may inquire about such payments from that intermediary. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.
LEGAL DISCLOSURES The Fund's current Prospectus and Statement
of Additional Information, both dated July
29, 2011, are incorporated by reference into
this Summary Prospectus. The Securities and Exchange Commission has
not approved or disapproved these securities
or passed the adequacy of this prospectus.
Any representation to the contrary is a criminal
offense.
Before you invest, you may want to review the
Fund's Prospectus, which contains more information
about the Fund and its risks. You can find the
Fund's Prospectus, Statement
of Additional Information and other information
about the Fund online at www.mwamllc.com/literature.php.
You can also get this information at no cost
by calling (800) 241-4671 or by sending an email
request to metwestclientservices@tcw.com.
