Morningstar News

Payden & Rygel Operates in the 'Sweet Spot' of the High Yield Market

LOS ANGELES, July 8 PRNewswire — The Payden High Income Fund (PYHRX) has earned a 4-star rating from Morningstar for overall performance for the period ended June 30, 2008(i). The fund invests in global growth companies whose high yield bonds yield a premium to US Treasury bonds. The fund invests in the higher quality segment of the market and looks for companies with superior management teams and value-added products.

Payden & Rygel, one of the largest global independent investment managers in the country, has more than $50 billion under management. The firm leverages its size to invest in deals in the $200-$300 million range or "sweet spot" of the high yield market.

"With $1.5 billion in high yield bond assets, we are big enough to get good issue allocations and to obtain good execution when we buy or sell bonds," says Sabur Moini, portfolio manager of the Payden High Income Fund. "And our size gives us an expanded opportunity set. We can be selective and opportunistic, without buying the market as larger managers must. Many larger managers become, in effect, index funds."

"The Payden High Income Fund's 4-star rating is evidence that our process works," says Joan Payden, CEO of Payden & Rygel. The firm's high yield team identifies "overlooked jewels," i.e. companies that are often below the radar of larger managers due to size constraints. "These companies are often prime investments as they typically offer a higher coupon/greater yield than their larger brethren, yet often have better relative growth and de-leveraging prospects," she says.

For more information about the fund or to see a prospectus, visit http://www.payden.com. Journalists may contact DAI Communications with inquires: Angela Dailey at (714) 921-8449 or dailey@daicommunications.com. For Payden & Rygel public relations, contact Kim Tipton at ktipton@payden-rygel.com or call (213) 625-1900.

About Payden & Rygel

Payden & Rygel (http://www.payden.com) is one of the largest global independent investment managers in the US, with more than $50 billion in assets under management. Since 1983, the firm has advised corporations, foundations, endowments, pension plans, public funds and individual investors on their overall investment strategies. Payden & Rygel offers a full array of investment strategies, including US and global fixed-income and equity, as well as leading edge absolute-return strategies. Headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in London, Dublin, Frankfurt and Hong Kong, Payden & Rygel is adviser to the Paydenfunds family of US-based mutual funds and to the firm's Irish-domiciled funds.

(i)An overall rating is based on a weighted average of the fund's ratings for the three-, five- and ten-year periods, if applicable. The number of funds in the high yield bond category tracked by Morningstar was 476 for the overall period.

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 funds monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of funds in each category receive five stars, the next 22.5% receive four stars, and the next 35% receive three stars. Highly rated funds are defined as those that have a four or five star Morningstar rating. An overall rating is based on a weighted average of the fund's ratings for the three-, five-, and ten-year periods, if applicable. Data provided by Morningstar, Inc. Although gathered from reliable sources, data completeness and accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Morningstar is a registered trademark of Morningstar, Inc. and is not affiliated with Paydenfunds.

Investing in high yield securities offers different rewards and challenges from investing in investment-grade securities, including higher volatility, greater credit risk, and the issues' more speculative nature. Before investing, investors should carefully read and consider investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other important information about the fund, which are contained in the prospectus. The Paydenfunds are distributed by Payden & Rygel Distributors, member FINRA.

SOURCE Payden & Rygel

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