And the Wnnei As er - Alger

by Spain, Italy and Portugal. we present the top perform-

Throw in budgetary wran- ers over the past one, three,

And the

gling in the U.S. and you have all the ingredients

five, ten and 20 years in 11 fund categories--ten stock-

Winners Are...

for FUD--fear, uncertainty fund groups and one group

and doubt.

for alternative investments--

The biggest difference be- along with our suggestions

tween now and then is that about which funds you

Stock funds overcame widespread angst

the past year's results you'll should consider buying. The

to score impressive gains. We list which funds

see on the following pages lists include only funds that

did best and which are worth owning now.

are so much better than the require modest amounts to

one-year returns you read get started and that are

about in the September 2010 available to all classes of

TO QUOTE THAT IMMORTAL

Greece's debt woes.

issue. Have investors lost

customers. The lists exclude

stock-market observer Yogi Berra, "It's like d?j? vu all over again." A year ago at this time, we wrote that

Fast forward a year, and the situation is shockingly similar. The jobless rate remains above 9%. Americans

their minds? Maybe, but the

. now two-year-old-plus bull LY market has a solid foundaON tion: surprisingly robust

leveraged index funds-- those that seek to return a multiple of a benchmark's results. Had we not done

despite 12 months of solid

SE performance for stocks and U stock funds, investors L . weren't feeling especially NA ON chipper. The explanations O TI for our malaise: high unemS U ployment, worries about ER IB a double-dip recession and

still fret about a double-dip (although it's probably time to stop calling it that, given that the Great Recession ended more than two years ago). And investors continue to obsess over Greek debt, not to mention bonds issued

corporate earnings gains (a product of intense costcutting and strong overseas sales) and nearly invisible interest rates, which are forcing investors to take risks to earn decent returns.

On the pages that follow,

that, leveraged funds would have dominated the one-year returns in several categories. Besides, we believe most people are better off passing on these turbocharged funds.

MANUEL SCHIFFRES

OR P ISTR LARGE-COMPANY STOCK FUNDS Growth funds dominate the list of one-year leaders

Y F R D WITH THE ECONOMY EXPANDING AT A P FO snail's pace, it's not surprising that funds CO T specializing in fast-growing companies domiD O nate the short-term winners list. Over longer E N periods, a few value-conscious managers, NT such as Donald Yacktman, stand out. With RI his son Stephen, Yacktman runs two eponyP mous top performers. Many top funds,

fund, a growth-oriented fund run deftly by Will Danoff since 1990, is a member of the Kiplinger 25. Amana Growth and Amana In-

1 year

1. Legg Mason ClearBridge Aggressive Gro A 2. Columbia Select Large Cap Growth A 3. Transamerica Morgan Stanley Cap Gro A 4. Wells Fargo Advantage Growth Inv 5. Rydex S&P 500 Pure Growth H

49.0% 49.0 48.8 48.1 46.0

come adhere to Islamic principles and so don't invest in companies that lend money. That helped big-time during the financial crisis.

3 years 1. Reynolds Blue Chip Growth 2. Yacktman Focused 3. Yacktman Fund 4. Monetta Young Investor 5. Pin Oak Equity

22.0% 19.3 18.4 17.0 15.4

including Yacktman's, hold relatively few

6. Morgan Stanley Focus Growth A

45.8

6. Marsico Flexible Capital

13.9

stocks or make big sector bets. Of course, a focused strategy can backfire, as it has in 2011 for Fairholme Fund, which is heavily

7. First Investors Select Gro A

45.2

8. Eaton Vance Atlanta Cap Focused Gro A 44.9

9. Morgan Stanley Multi Cap Gro A

44.3

10. Saratoga Large Cap Gro Instl

44.1

7. Pimco Fundamental IndexPlus TR A

13.2

8. Munder Growth Opportunities A

12.8

9. Wells Fargo Advantage Omega Growth A 12.8

10. Wells Fargo Advantage Growth Inv

12.7

invested in financial stocks. Fidelity Contra-

CATEGORY AVERAGE

30.6%

CATEGORY AVERAGE

2.7%

5 years

1. Reynolds Blue Chip Growth 2. Yacktman Focused 3. Alger Spectra A 4. Yacktman Fund 5. Wells Fargo Advantage Growth Inv 6. Fidelity OTC 7. Nuveen Tradewinds Value Opps A 8. Wells Fargo Advantage Omega Growth A 9. Pin Oak Equity 10. Parnassus Workplace

CATEGORY AVERAGE

14.1% 11.7 11.3 10.7 10.7 10.4 9.8 9.8 9.5 9.5 2.8%

10 years

1. Yacktman Focused 2. Yacktman Fund 3. ICON Materials S 4. CGM Focus 5. Fairholme Fund 6. Gamco Westwood Income AAA 7. Amana Trust Income 8. Amana Trust Growth 9. Columbia Strategic Inv A? 10. Wasatch Large Cap Value

CATEGORY AVERAGE

13.1% 12.1 11.2 11.1 10.2

8.1 8.1 7.7 7.4 7.2 2.7%

20 years

1. Calamos Growth A 2. Alger Spectra A 3. Vanguard Primecap Investor** 4. Mairs & Power Growth 5. Fidelity Contrafund 6. Sequoia Fund 7. Weitz Partners Value 8. Legg Mason ClearBridge Aggressive Gro A 9. Longleaf Partners 10. Gabelli Asset AAA

CATEGORY AVERAGE

13.7% 12.3 12.3 12.3 12.0 11.8 11.7 11.5 11.5 11.3

8.5%

Returns are annualized through June 30, 2011. **Closed to new investors. #Closed to new investors; other share classes may be open. ?Annualized data based on another share class with a longer history. SOURCE: ? 2011 Morningstar Inc.

(#70041) Excerpted and adapted with permission from the September 2011 issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance. ? 2011 The Kiplinger Washington Editors Inc.

For more information about reprints from Kiplinger's Personal Finance, contact PARS International Corp. at 212-221-9595.

This abridged Kiplinger's reprint, originally published by Kiplinger in September 2011, is considered sales literature for the Alger fund mentioned only and not for any other products shown. For the period ending June 30, 2011, the Alger Spectra Fund Class A returned the following:

Average Annual Total Returns as of 6/30/11

Spectra ? Class A

2Q

YTD

1 yr

3 yr

5 yr

10 yr

Without Maximum Sales Charge

0.23%

7.31%

36.72%

8.54%

11.28%

5.81%

With Maximum Sales Charge

-5.01%

1.71%

29.53%

6.60%

10.10%

5.24%

Total Fund Operating Expenses Not Annualized

Per Prospectus Dated 3/1/11

1.74%

NLY.

O

SE The performance data quoted represents past performance, which is not an indication or a guarantee of future results. U Investment and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more L . or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. For performance A N data current to the most recent month-end, visit us at , or call (800) 992-3863. Performance figures assume all N IO distributions are reinvested. Returns with a maximum sales charge reflect a front-end sales charge on Class A shares of 5.25%. O T The Fund may charge a redemption fee of 2% on shares purchased and redeemed (including by exchange) within 30 days of S U purchase that, if applied, would reduce the performance shown. The cost of borrowing money to leverage could exceed the returns for ER IB securities purchased or the securities purchased may actually go down in value; thus, the Fund's net asset value could decrease more P R quickly than if it had not borrowed. R IST On 9/24/08, the Fund's name was changed from Spectra Fund to Alger Spectra Fund, and the Fund's Class N shares were redesignated as Class A shares. The Fund operated as a closed end fund FO D from 8/23/1978 to 2/12/1996.The calculation of total return during that time assumes dividends were reinvested at market value. Had dividends not been reinvested, performance would have R been lower. Historical performance shown is that of the Fund's Class N shares, which were redesignated as Class A shares on 9/24/08. Alger Spectra Fund A bears the risk that the market price PY O of a security increases after the Fund borrows the security in order to sell it short, and the Fund suffers a loss when it replaces the borrowed security at the higher price. The use of short sales F could increase Alger Spectra's exposure to the market, magnifying losses and increasing volatility. CO OT Risk Disclosures: Investing in the stock market involves gains and losses and may not be suitable for all investors. Growth stocks tend to be more volatile than other stocks, as the prices of growth stocks D N tend to be higher in relation to their companies'earnings and may be more sensitive to market, political, and economic developments. Foreign investing involves special risks including currency risk and TE risks related to political, social, or economic conditions. Small- and mid-capitalization stocks are subject to greater risk than larger stocks owing to such factors as limited liquidity, inexperienced manageN ment and limited financial resources. The Fund can leverage (borrow) to achieve its investment objectives. The cost of borrowing money to leverage could exceed the returns for securities purchased or I the securities purchased may go down in value; leverage may, however, cause the Fund's net asset value to decrease more quickly than if the fund had not borrowed. In order to engage in a short sale, PR the Fund arranges with a broker to borrow the security being sold short. In order to close out its short position, the Fund will replace the security by purchasing the security at the price prevailing at the

time of replacement. The Fund will incur a loss if the price of the security sold short has increased since the time of the short sale and may experience a gain if the price has decreased since the short sale.

There are additional risks when investing in an active investment strategy, such as increased short term trading, additional transaction costs and potentially increased taxes that a shareholder may pay,

which can lower the actual return on an investment.

Before investing, carefully consider the Funds' investment objective, risks, charges, and expenses. For a prospectus or summary prospectus containing this and other information, or for the Funds' most recent month-end performance data, visit alger. com or call (800) 992-3863. Please read the Prospectus carefully before you invest.

Distributor: Fred Alger & Company, Incorporated. Member NYSE Euronext, SIPC. NOT FDIC INSURED. NOT BANK GUARANTEED. MAY LOSE VALUE.

8.10.11

Fred Alger & Company, Incorporated ? 111FifthAvenue,NewYork,NY10003 ? 800.992.3863 ?

KIP-0911

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