Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) |
Investor
A1 Shares |
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as percentage of offering price) | None 1 |
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as percentage of offering price or redemption proceeds, whichever is lower) | None 2 |
Annual
Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
Investor
A1 Shares |
Management Fee3,4 | 0.29% |
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | 0.10% |
Other Expenses | 0.13% |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses3,5 | 0.52% |
Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursement4,6 | (0.06)% |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements4,6 | 0.46% |
1 | Investor A1 Shares are subject to a maximum sales charge on purchases of 1.00%. The sales charge does not apply to dividend and capital gain reinvestments by existing shareholders and new purchases by certain employer-sponsored retirement plans, which are currently the only investors who may invest in Investor A1 Shares. |
2 | A contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of 0.50% is assessed on certain redemptions of Investor A1 Shares made within 18 months after purchase where no initial sales charge was paid at the time of purchase as part of an investment of $1,000,000 or more. The CDSC does not apply to redemptions by certain employer-sponsored retirement plans or to redemptions of shares acquired through reinvestment of dividends and capital gains by existing shareholders. |
3 | The Management Fee has been restated to reflect current fees. |
4 | As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 33, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through October 31, 2018. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Municipal Bond Fund, Inc. (the “Corporation”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
5 | The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses do not correlate to the ratios of expenses to average net assets given in the Fund’s most recent annual report, which do not include the restatement of Management Fees to reflect current expenses. |
6 | As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 33, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 0.46% of average daily net assets through October 31, 2018. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Corporation or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | |
Investor A1 Shares | $47 | $161 | $285 | $647 |
■ | Debt Securities Risk — Debt securities, such as bonds, involve interest rate risk, credit risk, extension risk, and prepayment risk, among other things. |
Interest Rate Risk — The market value of bonds and other fixed-income securities changes in response to interest rate changes and other factors. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise. | |
The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the current period of historically low rates. For example, if interest rates increase by 1%, assuming a current portfolio duration of ten years, and all other factors being equal, the value of the Fund’s investments would be expected to decrease by 10%. The magnitude of these fluctuations in the market price of bonds and other fixed-income securities is generally greater for those securities with longer maturities. Fluctuations in the market price of the Fund’s investments will not affect interest income derived from instruments already owned by the Fund, but will be reflected in the Fund’s net asset value. The Fund may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply in a manner not anticipated by Fund management. | |
To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor (such as mortgage-backed securities), the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the net asset value of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities. |
These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change. | |
A general rise in interest rates has the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed-income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from funds that hold large amounts of fixed-income securities. Heavy redemptions could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value and could hurt the Fund’s performance. | |
Credit Risk — Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security (i.e., the borrower) will not be able to make principal and interest payments when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities. | |
Extension Risk — When interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these obligations to fall. | |
Prepayment Risk — When interest rates fall, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more quickly than originally anticipated, and the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in securities with lower yields. | |
■ | Leverage Risk — Some transactions may give rise to a form of economic leverage. These transactions may include, among others, derivatives, and may expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet any required asset segregation requirements. Increases and decreases in the value of the Fund’s portfolio will be magnified when the Fund uses leverage. |
■ | Liquidity Risk — Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. The Fund’s investments in illiquid securities may reduce the returns of the Fund because it may be difficult to sell the illiquid securities at an advantageous time or price. To the extent that the Fund’s principal investment strategies involve derivatives or securities with substantial market and/or credit risk, the Fund will tend to have the greatest exposure to liquidity risk. Liquidity risk may be the result of, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed-income securities or the lack of an active market. Liquid investments may become illiquid or less liquid after purchase by the Fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. Illiquid and relatively less liquid investments may be harder to value, especially in changing markets, and if the Fund is forced to sell these investments to meet redemption requests or for other cash needs, the Fund may suffer a loss. This may be magnified in a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed-income mutual funds may be higher than normal. In addition, when there is illiquidity in the market for certain securities, the Fund, due to limitations on illiquid investments, may be subject to purchase and sale restrictions. |
■ | Market Risk and Selection Risk — Market risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Fund invests will go down in value, including the possibility that the markets will go down sharply and unpredictably. Selection risk is the risk that the securities selected by Fund management will underperform the markets, the relevant indices or the securities selected by other funds with similar investment objectives and investment strategies. This means you may lose money. |
■ | Municipal Securities Risks — Municipal securities risks include the ability of the issuer to repay the obligation, the relative lack of information about certain issuers of municipal securities, and the possibility of future legislative changes which could affect the market for and value of municipal securities. These risks include: |
General Obligation Bonds Risks — Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. | |
Revenue Bonds Risks — These payments depend on the money earned by the particular facility or class of facilities, or the amount of revenues derived from another source. | |
Private Activity Bonds Risks — Municipalities and other public authorities issue private activity bonds to finance development of industrial facilities for use by a private enterprise. The private enterprise pays the principal and interest on the bond, and the issuer does not pledge its faith, credit and taxing power for repayment. | |
Moral Obligation Bonds Risks — Moral obligation bonds are generally issued by special purpose public authorities of a state or municipality. If the issuer is unable to meet its obligations, repayment of these bonds becomes a moral commitment, but not a legal obligation, of the state or municipality. | |
Municipal Notes Risks — Municipal notes are shorter term municipal debt obligations. If there is a shortfall in the anticipated proceeds, the notes may not be fully repaid and the Fund may lose money. |
Municipal Lease Obligations Risks — In a municipal lease obligation, the issuer agrees to make payments when due on the lease obligation. Although the issuer does not pledge its unlimited taxing power for payment of the lease obligation, the lease obligation is secured by the leased property. | |
Tax-Exempt Status Risk — The Fund and its investment manager will rely on the opinion of issuers’ bond counsel and, in the case of derivative securities, sponsors’ counsel, on the tax-exempt status of interest on municipal bonds and payments under derivative securities. Neither the Fund nor its investment manager will independently review the bases for those tax opinions, which may ultimately be determined to be incorrect and subject the Fund and its shareholders to substantial tax liabilities. | |
■ | Variable Rate Demand Obligations Risks — Variable rate demand obligations are floating rate securities that combine an interest in a long-term municipal bond with a right to demand payment before maturity from a bank or other financial institution. If the bank or financial institution is unable to pay, the Fund may lose money. |
As
of 12/31/16 Average Annual Total Returns |
1 Year | 5 Years | 10 Years |
BlackRock Short-Term Municipal Fund — Investor A1 Shares | |||
Return Before Taxes | (0.17)% | 0.23% | 1.43% |
Return After Taxes on Distributions | (0.18)% | 0.23% | 1.43% |
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | 0.08% | 0.28% | 1.40% |
S&P
® Municipal Bond Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
0.77% | 3.55% | 4.20% |
S&P
® Limited Maturity Municipal Bond Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
0.37% | 0.88% | 2.22% |
Name | Portfolio
Manager of the Fund Since |
Title |
William Henderson | 2016 | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. |
Kevin A. Schiatta, CFA | 2016 | Director of BlackRock, Inc. |
Marie Sheehan | 2007 | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. |
Investor A1 Shares | |
Minimum
Initial Investment |
Available only for purchase by certain employer-sponsored retirement plans and for dividend and capital gain reinvestment by existing shareholders. |
Minimum
Additional Investment |
No subsequent minimum. |