Mutual Funds

What is a mutual fund?

A mutual fund¹ is a professionally-managed investment that is made of individual stocks, bonds, or money market securities. It pools the money of many investors, so it has the buying power to invest in hundreds of different securities at once. Consequently the overall success of a mutual fund does not depend upon the performance of any single investment.

Mutual funds are divided into three general categories. Equity funds invest in stocks; income funds invest in bonds; and money market funds hold cash investments. Mutual funds do involve risk, as they are not insured or guaranteed. That's why it's important to work with a financial professional - like a John Hancock representative.

Choose John Hancock for your investment needs

When you come to John Hancock for your mutual fund¹ investment, you are choosing a company with a strong record of success and stability. Since 1862 - nearly a century and a half - John Hancock has been helping individuals and institutions increase and protect wealth. Today our financial professionals offer a broad array of insurance and investment products - including mutual fund investments - to help you reach your financial goals. Through John Hancock you can choose from equity, income, international and sector mutual fund investments. Our experienced fund managers take a disciplined, time-tested team approach to portfolio management and research, partnering with outside financial professionals with whom we have a mutual approach to investing, in order provide you with as much knowledge and experience as possible.

The benefits of a mutual fund

A mutual fund¹ offers several advantages as an investment product. It typically offers a higher rate of return than traditional savings vehicles. Since a mutual fund is comprised of a variety of different holdings, it provides a more even level of performance than individual stocks. A poor performance of one investment within the fund will likely be offset by a better performance of other investments.

A mutual fund allows you to invest in many different sectors of the market, such as technology, health care and financial service funds. And you can select funds that invest in specific asset classes, too, like bonds or foreign stocks.

A mutual fund also gives you liquidity - you can usually sell your shares at any time in order to access their cash value. And because they are managed by experienced investment professionals who are highly skilled in research and analysis, you don't have to spend countless hours researching dozens of stocks and bonds in order to manage your investments.

For more information on working with a John Hancock professional, click here.

¹A fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses should be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information about the fund. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing or sending money. For a prospectus and more information please click here www.johnhancock.com.