hat tip, margo I.
Saturna Capital Named Best Fund Manager U.S.
Amana Income Named Best U.S. Equity Fund.
Dubai, UAE; April 2, 2007 — Saturna Capital Corporation, a U.S. investment management company, has received the 2006 Best Fund Manager – U.S. Award for management of the Amana Growth Fund (AMAGX) and Amana Income Fund (AMANX) from Failaka Advisors, a recognized leader in the field of Islamic funds research.
Amana Income has also received Failaka’s 2006 Best U.S. Equity Fund Award for being the highest returning Islamic fund focusing on U.S. equities.
The U.S.-registered Amana Funds are designed for Muslim American investors who wish to invest according to Islamic principles (Sharia). In addition to the 2005 Failaka award, the funds have also received strong long-term performance ratings from US fund rating agencies. The Amana Growth Fund, which returned 15.41 percent in 2006, has received a five-star Morningstar rating for its performance in the large growth category for Overall, three, five and ten-year periods. The Amana Income Fund returned 20.20 percent last year and is rated five stars for its Overall, three and five-year performance in the large value category, and four stars for the ten year period.
“We are honored to receive this prestigious award that recognizes our efforts to deliver strong and consistent investment results, while adhering to Islamic principles,” said Nicholas Kaiser, the funds’ portfolio manager and president of Saturna Capital Corporation. “We attribute our success to our investment philosophy and the ability to stay the course in various market conditions. As you can see from the rating agencies like Morningstar, we are getting recognition here at home and it’s satisfying to see Amana Funds now being internationally recognized.”
Failaka Advisors was founded in 1996, and has its main offices in the Dubai Media City, U.A.E. with a satellite office in Chicago. Failaka produces an annual Islamic Fund Report which compiles information from a comprehensive database on the world’s Sharia-compliant equity funds and offers customized research and consulting services.
Saturna Capital, established in 1989 in Bellingham, WA, is the investment adviser and administrator of the Amana Mutual Funds Trust, which includes the Amana Growth and Amana Income funds, and the Saturna Investment Trust. Saturna Investment Trust consists of six funds: Sextant Growth (domestic equities), Sextant International (ADRs and foreign stocks), Sextant Core Fund (blend of equity and debt securities), Sextant Bond Income (long-term bonds), Sextant Short-Term Bond and the Idaho Tax-Exempt Fund. Saturna Capital also manages private accounts for families, businesses and endowments. Saturna Brokerage Services provides general discount brokerage services and underwrites the Saturna mutual funds.
Average annual returns before taxes for the year ended Dec. 31, 2006 were as follows:
| 1 Year | 5 Years | 10 Years | Expense Ratio* | |
| Amana Income Fund | 21.20% | 12.17% | 9.70% | 1.50% |
| Amana Growth Fund | 15.41% | 11.34% | 13.13% | 1.42% |
| *Expense ratios are as of the Funds’ prospectus dated 8/15/2006. Earnings credits for custody fees further reduced operating expense to 1.41% for the Growth Fund and 1.49% for the Income Fund. | ||||
Performance data quoted represents past performance which is no guarantee of future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than the original cost. The Adviser has absorbed, currently or in the past, certain Fund expenses, without which total returns would have been lower. Returns quoted above do not reflect the potential deduction of a 2% redemption penalty on shares redeemed within 30 calendar days of purchase. Current performance may be significantly higher or lower that data quoted herein. Performance current to the most recent month-end can be obtained by visiting the Adviser’s Average Annual Returns page. Please consider an investment’s objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. To obtain this and other important information about the Amana Funds in a free prospectus, please visit each individual Fund’s page by following the link above, visit our Request/Download Literature page or call 1-800-728-8762. Please read it carefully before you invest.
The Failaka criteria for “Best Fund Manager- U.S.” and “Best U.S. Equity Fund” are as follows:
The fund company must:
- Have been duly nominated by fully and accurately completing the required nomination form
- Have been established for over 5-years as a Sharia compliant fund manager
- Have provided a consistent and long-term return relative to prevailing market conditions
- Manage more than one Sharia compliant fund
- Have surpassed the benchmark for its equity fund(s) in the year for which the award is given.
In the case of a tie, credence is given to:
- the higher returning fund/family of funds
- the better relative performance as compared to the relevant benchmark
- asset growth over the past year
- any notable achievement or advancement in the field of Islamic compliant asset management.
Additionally for the “Best U.S. Equity Fund” award, the fund company must have had the highest return for the past year. The fund’s 3 year track record is also taken into consideration when judging overall performance versus the fund’s target benchmark.
The “Best Fund Manager – U.S.” award is given to the manager based in the U.S. with the most consistent performance in any geographic market across all Sharia compliant fund categories. The manager must have at least a 3-year history in managing such funds.
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Morningstar Rankings™ as of 12/31/2006
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| Category: Large Value | Overall | 3-Year | 5-Year | 10-Year |
| Amana Income Fund |  |
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| Funds in category | 1111 | 1111 | 835 | 397 |
| Category: Large Growth | Overall | 3-Year | 5-Year | 10-Year |
| Amana Growth Fund | |
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| Funds in category | 1405 | 1405 | 1109 | 447 |
| Morningstar is a leading provider of independent investment research on mutual funds and other securities. For each fund with at least a three-year history, Morningstar calculates a Morningstar Rating™ based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a fund’s monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. These ratings change monthly. The top 10% of funds in an investment category receive five stars, the next 22.5% receive four stars, the next 35% receive three stars, the next 22.5% receive two stars, and the bottom 10% receive one star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a fund is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five- and ten-year (if applicable) Morningstar Ratings. Morningstar does not guarantee the accuracy of this information. | ||||
