TIAA-CREF Wins Lipper Best Overall Large Fund Group Award for Third Consecutive Year

Recognition honors outstanding three-year risk-adjusted performance across asset classes
Award underscores commitment to building clients’ long-term financial well-being
TIAA-CREF first company to win award three years in a row
NEW YORK, April 1, 2015 — TIAA-CREF, a leading financial services provider, today announced its designation as the Best Overall Large Fund Group by Lipper.  This year’s award marks the third consecutive year that Lipper has recognized TIAA-CREF for demonstrating the best three-year risk-adjusted performance across multiple asset classes relative to peers in the Large Fund Group category, an unprecedented achievement in the history of the awards.
TIAA-CREF was one of 48 firms eligible for this year’s Large Fund Group award.i The award was presented to Carol Deckbar, executive vice president and chief executive officer of TIAA-CREF Asset Management, during the 2015 Lipper Fund Awards Ceremony, which took place on Tuesday, March 31, 2015 in New York.
“We are extremely honored to receive this award for the third year in a row,” said Robert Leary, executive vice president and president, Asset Management, TIAA-CREF. “Congratulations go out to the entire TIAA-CREF Asset Management organization, whose expertise and ongoing commitment to helping our clients achieve their long-term financial goals made this possible.”
TIAA-CREF’s proven research-based investment approach dates back to the firm’s founding in 1918.  In addition to this award, TIAA-CREF ranked eighth out of 56 fund families in this year’s Barron’s/Lipper Fund Family Survey based on five-year asset-weighted performance within five asset classes.ii TIAA-CREF mutual funds also demonstrate strong Morningstar ratings, with 70 percent of funds earning 4- or 5-star Morningstar ratings as of Dec. 31, 2014 based on risk adjusted performance (52% are 4 stars and 18% are 5 stars).iii The expense ratios of TIAA-CREF mutual funds, which include equity, fixed income, target-date, target-risk and multi-asset class products, are among the lowest in the industry.iv
“This award is very meaningful because it speaks to the success we’ve achieved in aligning our firm with the long-term interests of our clients,” said Deckbar. “We believe this is powerful affirmation of our culture and investment approach because the Lipper Award is based on long-term, consistent, risk-adjusted performance across asset classes. Working to create outcomes that really matter for clients is why our company exists.”
TIAA-CREF launched its first mutual fund in 1997 and today has 62 mutual funds supported by a team of more than 300 seasoned investment professionals with an average of 17 years of experience, including a centralized research group that provides deep expertise across a wide range of asset classes. In 2014, TIAA-CREF expanded its mutual fund capabilities through the acquisition of Nuveen Investments. Together, TIAA-CREF and Nuveen manage approximately $143 billion in mutual fund assets.
About TIAA-CREF
TIAA-CREF (www.tiaa.org) is a national financial services organization with $851 billion in assets under management (as of 12.31.14) and is the leading provider of retirement services in the academic, research, medical and cultural fields.
About the Lipper Fund Awards
The Lipper Fund Awards are part of the Thomson Reuters Awards for Excellence, a global family of awards that celebrate exceptional performance throughout the professional investment community. The Thomson Reuters Awards for Excellence recognize the world's top funds, fund management firms, sell-side firms, research analysts and investor relations teams. The Thomson Reuters Awards for Excellence also include the Extel Survey Awards, the StarMine Analyst Awards and the StarMine Broker Rankings. For more information, please contact markets.awards@thomsonreuters.com or visit www.excellence.thomsonreuters.com .
iThe Lipper Award is given to the group with the lowest average decile ranking of three years’ Consistent Return for eligible funds over the three-year period ended 11.20.12, 11.30.13, and 11.30.14 respectively. TIAA-CREF was ranked against 36 fund companies in 2012 and 48 fund companies in 2013 and 2014 with at least five equity, five bond, or three mixed-asset portfolios. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
iiRankings are quantitative and based on Lipper performance data. Each fund family is given an asset-weighted score within the five asset classes: U.S. Equity, World Equity, Mixed Equity, Taxable Bond and Tax-Exempt Bond. Each fund’s return was measured against all those in its Lipper category, and the resulting percentile ranking was then weighted by asset size relative to the fund family’s other assets in its general category. The family’s overall ranking was then determined by weighting the five fund categories in proportion to their overall importance within Lipper’s fund universe. TIAA-CREF does not qualify for the 10-year ranking.
iiiMorningstar ratings are based on the lowest cost share class for each mutual fund, based on U.S. open end mutual funds. For a fund with multiple share classes and the same pricing, the share class with the longest performance history is used. Morningstar ratings may be higher or lower on a monthly basis. Morningstar is an independent service that rates mutual funds. 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. Morningstar proprietary ratings reflect historical risk-adjusted performance and can change every month. They are calculated from the fund’s three-, five- and ten-year average annual returns in excess of 90-day Treasury bill returns with appropriate fee adjustments, and a risk factor that reflects fund performance below 90-day T-bill returns. The overall star ratings are Morningstar’s published ratings, which are weighted averages of its three-, five- and ten-year ratings for periods ended December 31, 2014. Past performance cannot guarantee future results. For current performance and rankings, please visit www.tiaa-cref.org/public/tcfpi/InvestResearch.
ivBased on Morningstar data, the expense ratio on all mutual fund products and variable annuity accounts managed by TIAA-CREF is generally less than half the mutual fund industry average (67% are less than half the Morningstar U.S. Open-End Fund Universe average and 56% are less than half the Morningstar U.S. Open-End Fund Universe median). Source: Morningstar Direct, December 2014 expense comparisons by category. Our mutual fund and variable annuity products are subject to various fees and expenses, including but not limited to management, administrative and distribution fees; our variable annuity products have an additional mortality and expense risk charge.
TIAA-CREF products may be subject to market and other risk factors. See the applicable product literature, or visit www.tiaa.org for details.
You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. Please call 877-518-9161or log on to www.tiaa.org for product and fund prospectuses that contain this and other information. Please read the prospectuses carefully before investing.
TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Teachers Personal Investors Services, Inc., and Nuveen Securities, LLC, Members FINRA and SIPC, distribute securities products.
Annuity contracts and certificates are issued by Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA) and College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF), New York, NY.
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