NAPERVILLE, Ill., Feb. 26, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- John P. Calamos, President and Chief Investment Officer of CALAMOS(r) ASSET MANAGEMENT, INC., has announced that the CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund (A shares) has been awarded an Overall Morningstar Rating of four stars among 4,238 domestic equity funds as of 1/31/01. With this achievement, the overall Morningstar ratings of CALAMOS Funds (A shares) are as follows:
Morningstar Ratings (Overall) as of January 31, 2001
Overall
CALAMOS Convertible A 4*
CALAMOS Convertible Growth and Income A 5*
CALAMOS Global Convertible A 4**
CALAMOS Growth A 5*
CALAMOS Market Neutral A 4*
* Out of 4,238 domestic equity funds
** Out of 1,293 international equity funds
This achievement is particularly noteworthy since the CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund is compared with domestic equity funds. The Market Neutral Fund's objective is to provide an above-average income stream for shareholders consistent with stability of principal, primarily through the use of convertible securities.
The Fund uses hedging activities intended to help neutralize the ups and downs of both the stock and bond markets. To help counter the volatility in the markets, CALAMOS employs a convertible stock hedge as its primary investment strategy. This strategy involves owning a particular convertible security and at the same time, selling stock short. By offsetting the gains and losses in these transactions, the Fund has been able to earn a fairly level rate of return, despite the swings in the market, up or down.
In the current volatile investment environment, the Fund's performance against Morningstar criteria has benefited from its lower risk in comparison to the broad equity markets as well as from its positive performance. The CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund A shares had a load-adjusted average annual total return of 5.04% for one year, 10.13% for five years and 9.40% for ten years, all as of December 31, 2000.
CALAMOS ASSET MANAGEMENT has been specializing in convertible investing for over two decades, and the firm introduced the Market Neutral Fund in 1990, building on this expertise. CALAMOS' rigorous four-step investment discipline-assessment of credit worthiness, company growth prospects, risk/reward, and convertible fit within the overall portfolio-has also benefited the firm's other convertible funds and its equity Growth Fund.
Commenting on the Market Neutral Fund's achievement, Calamos said, "We are pleased with this recognition for the CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund and expect that it will bring the Fund to the attention of a wider range of investors. While convertible arbitrage is not unusual in the world of hedge funds, this fund offers investors access to a similar -- but less leveraged -- strategy through a mutual fund. Since the fund is an alternative investment pursuing attractive absolute returns that are uncorrelated to any index, investors and their financial advisors may find the Fund useful for enhancing portfolio diversification as well as pursuing current income."
About CALAMOS ASSET MANAGEMENT, INC.
CALAMOS ASSET MANAGEMENT, INC. is an independent asset management firm specializing in convertible bond research and management. Headquartered in Naperville, CALAMOS provides professional money management services to clients that include major corporations, public and private institutions, pension funds, insurance companies and individuals. The firm has experience in convertible bonds since 1977 and currently manages approximately $6.2 billion in assets. The firm also is investment advisor to a family of seven mutual funds.
RE: CALAMOS Convertible Fund (CCVIX)
CALAMOS Convertible Growth and Income Fund (CVTRX)
CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund (CVSIX)
CALAMOS Growth Fund (CVGRX)
CALAMOS Global Convertible Fund (CVLOX)
CALAMOS Convertible Technology Fund
CALAMOS High Yield Fund
For a prospectus containing more information, including fees and expenses, call CALAMOS FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC., the Funds' distributor, at 1-800-582-6959. Please read it carefully before investing.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
Market Neutral Fund: Unlike the Market Neutral Fund, the principal and interest of government bonds and U.S. Treasury bills are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government and offer a guarantee as to the repayment of principal and interest at maturity. Convertible Bonds: In addition to market risk, there are certain risks associated with an investment in a convertible bond such as default risk (risk that the company issuing a convertible security will be unable to repay principal and interest) and interest rate risk (risk that the security may decrease in value if interest rates increase). Global Convertible Fund: The Fund may invest up to 25% of its assets in the securities of foreign issuers. Investing outside the U.S. offers both risks and rewards. Increased volatility, changes in the value of foreign currencies, and difficulty in obtaining information are some of the risks involved. Convertible Technology Fund: As a non-diversified fund, investments may be concentrated in a small number of securities, which may present increased risk because each investment has a greater effect on the Fund's performance. Growth Fund: Investments by the CALAMOS Growth Fund in smaller companies present greater risks than investments in larger companies. I-shares are also available for institutional investors.
Investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Performance shown reflects the effects of an expense reimbursement, which improved results. Average annual total return -- measures net investment income and capital gain or loss from portfolio investments as an annualized average, assuming reinvestment of income and capital gain distribution. Where indicated, returns for A-shares have been adjusted for the maximum sales charge of 4.75%.
Note: Different types of bonds have varying levels of risk. Unlike convertible bonds, the principal and interest of government bonds and US Treasury bills are guaranteed by the full faith and credit of the United States.
Morningstar as of 1/31/01: CALAMOS Growth and Income Fund Class A (inception 9/22/88) 5 stars Overall and for 3, 5 and 10 years out of 4238, 4238, 2598 and 831 domestic equity funds respectively. CALAMOS Growth Fund Class A (inception 9/4/90) 5 stars Overall and for 3, 5 and 10 years out of 4238, 4238, 2598 and 831 domestic equity funds respectively. CALAMOS Global Convertible Fund Class A (inception 9/6/96) 4 stars Overall and for 3 years out of 1293 international equity funds. CALAMOS Convertible Fund Class A (inception 6/21/85) 4 stars Overall and for 3, 5 and 10 years out of 4238, 4238, 2598 and 831 domestic equity funds respectively. CALAMOS Market Neutral Fund Class A (inception 9/4/90) 4 stars Overall and for 3 and 5 years, 3 stars for 10 years out of 4238, 4238, 2598 and 831 domestic equity funds respectively.
Source: Morningstar, Inc. Ratings are for Class A shares. Morningstar proprietary ratings on U.S.-domiciled funds reflect historical risk-adjusted performance and are subject to change every month. Ratings are calculated from a Fund's 3-, 5-, and 10-year average annual returns in excess of 90-day T-bill returns with appropriate fee adjustments and a risk factor that reflects fund performance below 90-day T-bill returns. The Overall Morningstar Rating(tm) is a weighted average based on the 3-, 5- and 10-year risk-adjusted performance. The top 10% of funds in an investment category receive five stars, the next 22.5% receive four stars, and the next 35% receive three stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. Ratings reflect the effect of sales charges. The funds were rated exclusively against U.S.-domiciled funds.