INTRODUCTION TO MUTUAL FUND PROSPECTUSES
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A prospectus is an invaluable information source for any mutual fund investor. It's your key to the assets, management, and investment strategy of the mutual fund. This tutorial introduces the major parts of mutual fund prospectuses, the information they contain, and how they can help you choose a mutual fund for yourself.

This tutorial covers only open-ended funds, which are funds whose shares are sold back to them instead of to other investors. We will discuss the following aspects of prospectuses:

• WHAT IS A MUTUAL FUND PROSPECTUS?
• MUTUAL FUND OBJECTIVES
• MUTUAL FUND MANAGEMENT
• MUTUAL FUND EXPENSES IN THE PROSPECTUS
• THE MUTUAL FUND SHAREHOLDER MANUAL
• MUTUAL FUND DETAILS FOUND IN THE PROSPECTUS
• SUMMARY OF THE MUTUAL FUND PROSPECTUS

Before we get into the major parts, let's first find out what a prospectus is.