Download Columbia Marsico International Opportunities Fund

FIRST QUARTER 2015
INVESTMENT COMMENTARY
CLASS A | MAIOX
CLASS C | MCIOX
Continued U.S. dollar
strength, economic slowing
in China and echo effects
from lower energy prices
suggest that the U.S.
economy has room to
extend employment gains
for some time before
inflation becomes a genuine
risk.
Fund strategy
CLASS R | CMORX
CLASS R4 | CLFRX
CLASS Z | NMOAX
Columbia Marsico International
Opportunities Fund
Fund performance
 Excluding sales charges, Class A shares of Columbia Marsico International
Opportunities Fund returned 5.17%, outperforming its benchmark, the MSCI EAFE Net
Index, which returned 4.88% for the quarter ending March 31, 2015. For up-to-date
performance information, please check online at columbiathreadneedle.com/us.
 Stock selection in the consumer services industry group was the largest driver of
performance for the quarter, as select holdings in this area of investment advanced
nicely. The fund benefited from a lack of exposure to the two weakest performing
sectors of the benchmark index, utilities and energy.
 Stock selection in the software and services industry group was the largest negative
performance driver in the period. Stock selection in the transportation industry group
hurt returns, as the performance of all four of the fund’s holdings in this area of
investment lagged the return of the benchmark index industry group.
Market environment
 Invests in international companies
with sustainable and aboveaverage growth potential across
the market cap spectrum
 Top-down macroeconomic view
with a bottom-up fundamental
research process to construct a
concentrated portfolio of highquality growth companies
 Marsico Capital’s global research
effort is comprised of experienced
investment professionals solely
focused on growth investing
Global equity market indices diverged in the first quarter of 2015, with international equity
markets generally outperforming U.S. equity markets. U.S. equities were choppy, as
market participants appeared to discount the possibility of some monetary policy firming
during the second half of 2015. The S&P 500 Index rose a modest 0.95% during the
quarter.
In contrast, certain major international equity markets posted strong gains, and the MSCI
EAFE Index rose 4.88% in U.S. dollar terms. The effect of relative currency movements
was pronounced during the quarter, with the U.S. dollar strengthening compared to many
international currencies, including the euro. Accordingly, U.S. investors in international
markets generally experienced more muted gains after translating international investment
performance from local currency into U.S. dollar returns. For example, the MSCI Euro
Average annual total returns (%) for period ending March 31, 2015
Columbia Marsico International
Opportunities Fund
3-mon.
1-year
3-year
5.17
4.90
7.25
6.01
5.30
-0.86
-1.16
5.14
4.76
4.67
Class Z
5.34
5.20
7.53
6.29
5.56
MSCI EAFE Net (USD) Index
4.88
-0.92
9.02
6.16
4.95
Class A without sales charge
Class A with 5.75% maximum sales charge
Expense ratio1
Share
class
Without waiver
(gross)
With waiver
(net)
A
1.41%
—
Z
1.16%
—
5-year 10-year
Performance data shown represents past performance and is not a guarantee of future results. The
investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed,
may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than
the performance data shown. Please visit columbiathreadneedle.com/us for performance data
current to the most recent month end. Class Z shares are sold at net asset value and have limited
eligibility. Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. offers multiple share classes, not all
necessarily available through all firms, and the share class ratings may vary. Contact us for details.
Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc.
225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110-2804
columbiathreadneedle.com/us
800.426.3750
1149292 (04/15)
FIRST QUARTER 2015
INVESTMENT COMMENTARY
Columbia Marsico
International Opportunities Fund
Top holdings (% of net assets)
as of March 31, 2015
Liberty Global PLC-Series C
6.00
Tencent Holdings Ltd
5.57
Alibaba Group Holding-Sp ADR
4.33
Endo International PLC
4.31
Baidu Inc ADR
4.25
NXP Semiconductors NV
4.11
Valeant Pharmaceuticals
International
4.00
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd
3.93
ASML Holding NV
3.86
Actavis PLC
3.82
Top holdings exclude short-term holdings
and cash, if applicable. Fund holdings are
as of the date given, are subject to change
at any time, and are not recommendations
to buy or sell any security.
Top five contributors - Effect on
return (%) as of March 31, 2015
Tencent Holdings Ltd
1.37
Domino's Pizza
0.83
NXP Semiconductors NV
0.74
FANUC Corp
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings
Ltd
0.64
0.59
Top five detractors - Effect on
return (%) as of March 31, 2015
Alibaba Group Holding-Sp ADR
-0.86
Micron Technology Inc
-0.44
ASML Holding NV
-0.39
Baidu Inc ADR
-0.38
Priceline Group Inc
-0.28
Index soared 18.53% in local currency terms during the quarter, but rose only 5.20% after
translating the return into U.S. dollar terms.
Long-term interest rates fell modestly in both the United States and abroad during the
period, and oil prices roughly stabilized at approximately half of mid-2014 price levels. A
difficult U.S. winter weighed on many measures of spending and output in the first quarter.
Activity in Europe and Japan remained stagnant, and China’s economic barometers
continued to signal fading economic momentum.
“Don’t fight the central bank” seemed to be the message reflected in equity market
movements during the period. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi delivered
on his promise to be an aggressive buyer of European sovereign debt, and yields fell
sharply during the quarter across all European sovereign debt, except that of Greece.
Notably, two-year rates on debt issued by Germany, France, Sweden, the Netherlands
and Switzerland fell into negative territory. Portugal, Italy and Spain’s short-term interest
rates each fell to roughly zero. European equities soared amid this sharp fall in sovereign
borrowing costs. On a smaller scale, the Bank of Japan’s continued commitment to very
easy money contributed to enthusiasm for purchasing Japanese shares, and the MSCI
Japan Index rose by 10.21% in U.S. dollar terms during the quarter.
Stepping back from the immediate focus on central bank intentions, economic
fundamentals continued to look most favorable in the United States. However, weatherinduced weakness weighed on February spending and March employment numbers.
Thus, for the second year in a row, first quarter U.S. economic growth statistics were
generally soft. Last year, U.S. fundamentals rebounded as bad weather receded, and it
seems reasonable to believe that a similar outcome may unfold in 2015.
There were few signs of meaningful inflationary pressures in the United States during the
period. Headline inflation was negative for the quarter as energy price declines worked
their way through the economy. Consumer prices were nearly unchanged over the 12months ending February 28, 2015, and the annualized pace for core inflation (which
excludes volatile food and energy prices) fell to 1% over the six months ending February
28, 2015.
Sector weights (%): fund vs. benchmark
as of March 31, 2015
Info tech
34.41
4.91
Cons disc
28.32
13.12
Health care
24.21
11.43
9.82
Industrials
12.68
3.24
Financials
Cons staples
0.00
Energy
0.00
Materials
0.00
Telecom svcs
0.00
Utilities
0.00
0
26.01
11.02
Columbia Marsico
International
Opportunities Fund
MSCI EAFE Net Index
5.11
7.46
4.70
3.58
10
20
30
40
Source: FactSet
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FIRST QUARTER 2015
INVESTMENT COMMENTARY
Meanwhile, economic momentum in both Europe and Japan remained muted. Enthusiasm
for better times ahead in both regions may hinge on some policy-related lifts from
extensions of easy monetary policies. China also has indicated that it will begin easing
monetary conditions. The Chinese economy continues to look soft. For example, China’s
freight traffic is down double digits over the first two months of the year. China’s currency,
given its rough peg to the U.S. dollar, has appreciated sharply vs. most of its other trading
partners. Thus, pressures on its export sector are growing, as a stronger currency makes
Chinese goods more expensive for overseas consumers. These headwinds complicate
China’s efforts to unwind its boom in real estate in a measured manner.
Continued U.S. dollar strength, economic slowing in China and echo effects from lower
energy prices suggest that the U.S. economy has room to extend employment gains for
some time before inflation becomes a genuine risk. Employment appears to remain weak
at present. A resumption of job strength in the United States. warmer weather and better
spending could give the Federal Reserve some justification for raising U.S. overnight rate
in the later part of this year. Nonetheless, continued weak inflationary readings may augur
a delay in tightening. Fed Chair Yellen’s remarks have made it clear that the Federal Open
Market Committee is not yet fully committed to raising the federal funds rate this year,
absent evidence of some firming in inflation. In addition, Yellen’s comments indicated that
there is little likelihood that a comprehensive tightening process — a multi-step ratcheting
up of overnight rates — will begin this year, even if the overnight rate is adjusted upward
once or twice in the quarters ahead.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index posted a return of 2.2% for the first quarter and trailed
the performance of many developed international equity markets. For the past couple of
years, the potential for U.S. interest rate hikes have fueled concerns that emerging
economies will be vulnerable as flows of capital move away from emerging economies.
Those countries that have incurred significant US dollar-denominated debt will likely be
hardest hit. Low energy prices have further strained the economies of certain energyproducing emerging market countries.
Sector performance
At a global industry classification standards (GICS) sector level, developed international
equity returns varied from 9.6% to -4.8% (using the MSCI EAFE Index as a point of
reference). Utilities, which ended calendar year 2014 as a top performing sector, reversed
course in the quarter, emerging as the worst performing sector. Energy sector
performance was also disappointing. On the positive end of the spectrum, health care and
consumer discretionary topped the leader board in the quarter due, in part, to strong
performance in the pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and life sciences, and automobiles
and components industry groups.
GICS industry group performance was also diverse. On average, the MSCI EAFE Index’s
20 industry groups returned 6.4%. In terms of the underlying dynamics of equity market
performance, while both value and growth equities advanced nicely in the quarter, growthoriented stocks had the upper hand on their value counterparts as the MSCI EAFE Growth
Index and the MSCI EAFE Value Index posted returns of 5.9% and 3.9%, respectively.
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FIRST QUARTER 2015
INVESTMENT COMMENTARY
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Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses
of a mutual fund carefully before investing. For a free prospectus or a summary
prospectus, which contains this and other important information about the funds,
visit columbiathreadneedle.com/us. Read the prospectus carefully before
investing.
Columbia Threadneedle Investments (Columbia Threadneedle) is the global brand name of the
Columbia and Threadneedle group of companies.
The views expressed are as of the date given, may change as market or other conditions change,
and may differ from views expressed by other Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC
(CMIA) associates or affiliates. Actual investments or investment decisions made by CMIA and its
affiliates, whether for its own account or on behalf of clients, may not necessarily reflect the views
expressed. This information is not intended to provide investment advice and does not take into
consideration individual investor circumstances. Investment decisions should always be made
based on an investor's specific financial needs, objectives, goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance.
Asset classes described may not be suitable for all investors. Past performance does not
guarantee future results and no forecast should be considered a guarantee either. Since
economic and market conditions change frequently, there can be no assurance that the trends
described here will continue or that any forecasts are accurate.
Additional performance information: All results shown assume reinvestment of distributions and
do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on fund distributions or the
redemption of fund shares.
1
Expense ratios are generally based on the fund's most recently completed fiscal year and are not
adjusted for current asset levels or other changes. In general, expense ratios increase as net
assets decrease. See the fund's prospectus for additional details.
The MSCI EAFE Index is a capitalization weighted index that tracks the total return of common
stocks in 21 developed-market countries within Europe, Australasia and the Far East.
The S&P 500 Index is an index of 500 stocks chosen for market size, liquidity and industry
grouping, among other factors. The S&P 500 is designed to be a leading indicator of U.S. equities
and is meant to reflect the risk/return characteristics of the large cap universe.
The MSCI Europe Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to measure the
equity market performance of the developed markets in Europe.
Investment Risks
Market risk may affect a single
issuer, sector of the economy,
industry or the market as a whole.
Growth securities, at times, may
not perform as well as value
securities or the stock market in
general and may be out of favor
with investors. International
investing involves certain risks and
volatility due to potential political,
economic or currency instabilities
and different financial and
accounting standards. Risks are
enhanced for emerging market
issuers.
The MSCI Japan Index (Net) is a free-float adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to track the
equity market performance of Japanese securities listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange, Osaka Stock Exchange, JASDAQ
and Nagoya Stock Exchange.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure
equity market performance of emerging markets.
The MSCI EAFE Growth Index is an unmanaged index compiled from a composite of securities markets in Europe,
Australia and the Far East. The index represents the growth half of the market capitalizations of each country index,
determined by price/book value (P/BV), from the standard MSCI country indices.
The MSCI EAFE Value Index captures large and mid cap securities exhibiting overall value style characteristics across
Developed Markets countries* around the world, excluding the US and Canada. The value investment style
characteristics for index construction are defined using three variables: book value to price, 12-month forward earnings to
price and dividend yield. With 504 constituents, the index targets 50% coverage of the free float-adjusted market
capitalization of the MSCI EAFE Index.
Indices shown are unmanaged and do not reflect the impact of fees. It is not possible to invest
directly in an index.
Columbia funds are distributed by Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., member
FINRA and managed by Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (“CMIA”).
Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC ("MCM") has retained Marsico Capital
Management LLC to serve as investment subadviser to the Columbia Marsico funds. As the
investment subadviser, MCM makes the investment decisions and manages all or a portion of
certain funds. MCM is an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. MCM is not affiliated with CMIA.
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