497K 1 d217014d497k.htm NUVEEN INVESTMENT FUNDS, INC. Nuveen Investment Funds, Inc.
         

Nuveen Real Asset Income Fund

 


Ticker
Class A–NRIAX
Class C–NRICX
Class R6–NRIFX
Class I–NRIIX

 


30 April
2021
as supplemented
1 October 2021

 

This summary prospectus is designed to provide investors with key Fund information in a clear and concise format. Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s complete prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus, reports to shareholders and other information about the Fund online at www.nuveen.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling (800) 257-8787 or by sending an e-mail request to mutualfunds@nuveen.com. If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the prospectus, reports to shareholders and other information will also be available from your financial intermediary. The Fund’s prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated April 30, 2021, are incorporated by reference into this summary prospectus and may be obtained, free of charge, at the website, phone number or e-mail address noted above.

As permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of the Fund’s annual and semi-annual shareholder reports will not be sent to you by mail unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports. Instead, the reports will be made available on the Fund’s website (www.nuveen.com), and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications from the Fund electronically at any time by contacting your financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank) through which you hold your Fund shares or, if you are a direct investor, by enrolling at www.nuveen.com/e-reports.

You may elect to receive all future shareholder reports in paper free of charge at any time by contacting your financial intermediary or, if you are a direct investor, by calling 800-257-8787 and selecting option #1. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held in your account with your financial intermediary or, if you are a direct investor, to all your directly held Nuveen Funds and any other directly held funds within the same group of related investment companies.

 

Summary
Prospectus

1


Nuveen Real Asset Income Fund

Investment Objective

The principal investment objective of the Fund is to seek a high level of current income. The secondary objective is to seek capital appreciation.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund or in other Nuveen Mutual Funds. More information about these and other discounts, as well as eligibility requirements for each share class, is available from your financial advisor and in “How You Can Buy and Sell Shares” on page 50 of the Fund’s prospectus and “Purchase and Redemption of Fund Shares” on page S-71 of the Fund’s statement of additional information. In addition, more information about sales charge discounts and waivers for purchases of shares through specific financial intermediaries is set forth in the appendix to the Fund’s prospectus entitled “Variations in Sales Charge Reductions and Waivers Available Through Certain Intermediaries.”

The tables and examples below do not reflect any commissions that shareholders may be required to pay directly to their financial intermediaries when buying or selling Class I shares.

Shareholder Fees

(fees paid directly from your investment)

                 
 

Class A

 

Class C

 

Class R6

 

Class I

 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases
(as a percentage of offering price)

5.75%

 

None

 

None

 

None

 

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load)
(as a percentage of the lesser of purchase price or redemption proceeds)1

None

 

1.00%

 

None

 

None

 

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends

None

 

None

 

None

 

None

 

Exchange Fee

None

 

None

 

None

 

None

 

Annual Low Balance Account Fee (for accounts under $1,000)2

$15

 

$15

 

None

 

$15

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

                                 
 

Class A

 

Class C

 

Class R6

 

Class I

 

Management Fees

 

0.72

%

 

0.72

%

 

0.72

%

 

0.72

%

Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees

 

0.25

%

 

1.00

%

 

0.00

%

 

0.00

%

Other Expenses

 

0.19

%

 

0.19

%

 

0.10

%

 

0.19

%

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

 

1.16

%

 

1.91

%

 

0.82

%

 

0.91

%

Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements3

 

0.00

%

 

0.00

%

 

(0.01

)%

 

0.00

%

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements

 

1.16

%

 

1.91

%

 

0.81

%

 

0.91

%

1 The contingent deferred sales charge on Class C shares applies only to redemptions within 12 months of purchase.

2 Fee applies to the following types of accounts under $1,000 held directly with the Fund: individual retirement accounts (IRAs), Coverdell Education Savings Accounts and accounts established pursuant to the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) or Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA).

3 The Fund’s investment adviser has agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse expenses through July 31, 2022 so that the total annual operating expenses of the Fund (excluding 12b-1 distribution and/or service fees, interest expenses, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, fees incurred in acquiring and disposing of portfolio securities and extraordinary expenses) do not exceed 0.95% of the average daily net assets of any class of Fund shares. However, because Class R6 shares are not subject to sub-transfer agent and similar fees, the total annual operating expenses for the Class R6 shares will be less than the expense limitation. This expense limitation may be terminated or modified prior to that date only with the approval of the Board of Directors of the Fund.

Example

The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then either redeem or do not redeem your shares at the end of a period. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year, that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same and that the fee waivers currently in place are not renewed beyond July 31, 2022. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

2


                           
 

Class A

 

Class C

 

Class R6

 

Class I

 

1 Year

$

686

 

$

194

 

$

83

 

$

93

 

3 Years

$

922

 

$

600

 

$

261

 

$

290

 

5 Years

$

1,177

 

$

1,032

 

$

454

 

$

504

 

10 Years

$

1,903

 

$

2,233

 

$

1,012

 

$

1,120

 

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 104% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of the sum of its net assets and the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes in securities issued by real asset related companies that are generating income at the time of purchase. Real asset related companies are defined as: (i) companies that are in the energy, telecommunications, utilities or materials sectors; (ii) companies in the real estate or transportation industry groups; (iii) companies, if not in one of these sectors or industries, that (a) derive at least 50% of their revenues or profits from the ownership, management, operation, development, construction, renovation, financing, or sale of real assets, or (b) have at least 50% of the fair market value of their assets invested in real assets; or (iv) pooled investment vehicles that primarily invest in the foregoing companies or that are otherwise designed primarily to provide investment exposure to real assets.

The categories of real assets on which the Fund will focus its investments are infrastructure and real estate. Infrastructure consists of the physical structures and networks upon which the operation, growth and development of a community depends, which include water, sewer, and energy utilities; transportation and communication networks; health care facilities, government accommodations, and other public service facilities; and shipping, timber, steel, alternative energy, and other resources and services necessary for the construction and maintenance of these physical structures and networks. In normal market conditions, the Fund will invest at least 25% of its assets, collectively, in securities of issuers in the infrastructure and real estate industries.

The Fund will invest in both equity securities and debt securities, but will not invest more than 40% of its net assets in debt securities. All or a portion of the Fund’s debt securities may be rated lower than investment grade (BB/Ba or lower). Equity securities in which the Fund may invest may be of any market capitalization, including small- and mid-capitalization companies, and include common stock, preferred securities, hybrid securities and convertible securities, as well as interests in real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), exchange-traded notes (“ETNs”), other investment companies (including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”)) and equity securities issued by master limited partnerships (“MLPs”). Debt securities in which the Fund may invest include corporate debt obligations, mortgage-backed securities and debt securities issued by MLPs.

The Fund may invest in securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, but that may be resold to qualified institutional buyers in accordance with the provisions of Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933 (“Rule 144A securities”).

The Fund will invest in non-U.S. securities, but will limit its exposure to emerging markets to 50% of its net assets at the time of purchase.

The Fund may utilize derivatives, including options, futures contracts, options on futures contracts, and forward foreign currency exchange contracts. The Fund may use these derivatives to manage market or business risk, enhance the Fund’s return, or hedge against adverse movements in currency exchange rates.

In selecting securities for the Fund, the sub-adviser will utilize a team-based investment philosophy and primarily employ a bottom-up approach that relies on fundamental research by its Real Assets Team and its Taxable Fixed Income Team. The sub-adviser will complement its bottom-up approach with top-down research. The sub-adviser seeks to invest opportunistically based on market conditions, which may cause frequent trading of portfolio securities and a high portfolio turnover rate.

Principal Risks

The value of your investment in this Fund will change daily. You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or

3


any other government agency. The principal risks of investing in the Fund listed below are presented alphabetically to facilitate your ability to find particular risks and compare them with the risks of other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a "principal risk" of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears.

Active Management Risk—The Fund’s sub-adviser actively manages the Fund’s investments. Consequently, the Fund is subject to the risk that the investment techniques and risk analyses employed by the Fund’s sub-adviser may not produce the desired results. This could cause the Fund to lose value or its investment results to lag relevant benchmarks or other funds with similar objectives.

Bond Market Liquidity Risk—Reductions in trading activity or dealer inventories of bonds, which provide an indication of the ability of financial intermediaries to “make markets” in those bonds, have the potential to decrease liquidity and increase price volatility in the fixed income markets in which the Fund invests, particularly during periods of economic or market stress. In addition, federal banking regulations may cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of bonds, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell bonds. As a result of this decreased liquidity, the Fund may have to accept a lower price to sell a security, sell other securities to raise cash, or give up an investment opportunity, any of which could have a negative effect on performance. If the Fund needed to sell large blocks of bonds to meet shareholder redemption requests or to raise cash, those sales could further reduce the bonds’ prices and hurt performance.

Call Risk—If, during periods of falling interest rates, an issuer calls higher-yielding debt securities held by the Fund, the Fund may have to reinvest in securities with lower yields or higher risk of default, which may adversely impact the Fund’s performance.

Convertible Security Risk—Convertible securities are subject to certain risks of both equity and debt securities. The value of convertible securities may decline in response to such factors as rising interest rates and fluctuations in the market price of the common stock underlying the convertible securities.

Credit Risk—Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or other obligated party of a security may be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a security may decline because of concerns about the issuer’s ability or willingness to make such payments.

Credit Spread Risk—Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of the Fund’s debt securities. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities.

Currency Risk—Changes in currency exchange rates will affect the value of non-U.S. securities, the value of dividends and interest earned from such securities, gains and losses realized on the sale of such securities, and derivative transactions tied to such securities. A strong U.S. dollar relative to these other currencies will adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.

Cybersecurity Risk—Cybersecurity risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, its investment adviser or sub-adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor or other service provider or a financial intermediary to suffer a data breach, data corruption or lose operational functionality. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact the Fund or its shareholders. Additionally, a cybersecurity breach could affect the issuers in which the Fund invests, which may cause the Fund’s investments to lose value.

Derivatives Risk—The use of derivatives involves additional risks and transaction costs which could leave the Fund in a worse position than if it had not used these instruments. Derivative instruments can be used to acquire or to transfer the risk and returns of a security or other asset without buying or selling the security or asset. These instruments may entail investment exposures that are greater than their cost would suggest. As a result, a small investment in derivatives can result in losses that greatly exceed the original investment. Derivatives can be highly volatile, illiquid and difficult to value. An over-the-counter derivative transaction between the Fund and a counterparty that is not cleared through a central counterparty also involves the risk that a loss may be sustained as a result of the failure of the counterparty to the contract to make required payments. The payment obligation for a cleared derivative transaction is guaranteed by a central counterparty, which exposes the Fund to the creditworthiness of the central counterparty.

4


Emerging Markets Risk—The risk of foreign investment often increases in countries with emerging markets. For example, these countries may have more unstable governments than developed countries and their economies may be based on only a few industries. Because their financial markets may be very small, prices of financial instruments in emerging market countries may be volatile and difficult to determine. Financial instruments of issuers in these countries may have lower overall liquidity than those of issuers in more developed countries. Financial and other reporting by companies and government entities also may be less reliable or difficult to obtain in emerging market countries. In addition, foreign investors such as the Fund are subject to a variety of special restrictions in many emerging market countries. Shareholder claims and regulatory actions that are available in the U.S. may be difficult or impossible to pursue in emerging market countries.

Equity Security Risk—Equity securities in the Fund’s portfolio may decline significantly in price over short or extended periods of time, and such declines may occur because of declines in the equity market as a whole, or because of declines in only a particular country, company, industry, or sector of the market.

ETF Risk—An ETF is subject to the risks of the underlying securities that it holds. In addition, for index-based ETFs, the performance of an ETF may diverge from the performance of such index (commonly known as tracking error). ETFs are subject to fees and expenses (like management fees and operating expenses) that do not apply to an index, and the Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any such fees and expenses paid by the ETFs in which it invests. Moreover, ETF shares may trade at a premium or discount to their net asset value. As ETFs trade on an exchange, they are subject to the risks of any exchange-traded instrument, including: (i) an active trading market for its shares may not develop or be maintained, (ii) market makers or authorized participants may decide to reduce their role or step away from these activities in times of market stress, (iii) trading of its shares may be halted by the exchange, and (iv) its shares may be delisted from the exchange.

ETN Risk—Like other index-tracking instruments, ETNs are subject to the risk that the value of the index may decline, at times sharply and unpredictably. In addition, ETNs—which are debt instruments—are subject to risk of default by the issuer.

Foreign Investment Risk—Non-U.S. issuers or U.S. issuers with significant non-U.S. operations may be subject to risks in addition to those of issuers located in or that principally operate in the United States as a result of, among other things, political, social and economic developments abroad and different legal, regulatory and tax environments. To the extent the Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in the securities of companies in a single country or region, it may be more susceptible to adverse conditions affecting that country or region.

Frequent Trading Risk—The Fund's portfolio turnover rate may exceed 100%. Frequent trading of portfolio securities may produce capital gains, which are taxable to shareholders when distributed. Frequent trading may also increase the amount of commissions or mark-ups to broker-dealers that the Fund pays when it buys and sells securities, which may detract from the Fund’s performance.

High Yield Securities Risk—High yield securities, which are rated below investment grade and commonly referred to as “junk” bonds, are high risk investments that may cause income and principal losses for the Fund. They generally are considered to be speculative with respect to the ability to pay interest and repay principal, have greater credit risk, are less liquid and have more volatile prices than investment grade securities.

Income Risk—The Fund's income could decline during periods of falling interest rates or when the Fund experiences defaults on debt securities or defaults or deferrals on preferred securities it holds.

Infrastructure Sector Risk—Because the Fund invests significantly in infrastructure-related securities, the Fund has greater exposure to adverse economic, regulatory, political, legal and other changes affecting the issuers of such securities. Additionally, infrastructure-related entities may be subject to regulation by various governmental authorities and affected by government regulation of rates charged to consumers, service interruptions, environmental matters or the imposition of special tariffs and changes in tax law. Infrastructure companies may be focused in the energy, industrials and utilities sectors. At times, the performance of securities in these infrastructure sectors may lag the performance of other sectors or the broader market as a whole. A downturn in these sectors could have an adverse impact on the Fund.

Interest Rate Risk—Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the Fund’s fixed-rate securities will decline because of rising interest rates. Very low or negative interest rates may magnify interest rate risk. Changing interest rates, including rates that fall below zero, may have unpredictable effects on markets, result in heightened market volatility and detract from the Fund’s performance to the extent that it is exposed to such interest rates. Fixed-rate securities may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates than would normally be the case due to the current period of historically low rates and the effect of potential government fiscal policy initiatives and resulting market reaction to those initiatives. When interest

5


rates change, the values of longer-duration fixed-rate securities usually change more than the values of shorter-duration fixed-rate securities. Conversely, fixed-rate securities with shorter durations or maturities will be less volatile but may provide lower returns than fixed-rate securities with longer durations or maturities. Rising interest rates also may lengthen the duration of securities with call features, since exercise of the call becomes less likely as interest rates rise, which in turn will make the securities more sensitive to changes in interest rates and result in even steeper price declines in the event of further interest rate increases.

Market Risk—The market value of the Fund’s investments may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably and for short or extended periods of time, due to the particular circumstances of individual issuers or due to general conditions impacting issuers more broadly. Global economies and financial markets have become highly interconnected, and thus economic, market or political conditions or events in one country or region might adversely impact the value of the Fund’s investments whether or not the Fund invests in such country or region. Events such as war, terrorism, natural and environmental disasters and the spread of infectious illnesses or other public health emergencies may have a severe negative impact on the global economy, could cause financial markets to experience extreme volatility and losses, and could result in the disruption of trading and the reduction of liquidity in many instruments.

Master Limited Partnership Risk—An investment in an MLP exposes the Fund to the legal and tax risks associated with investing in partnerships. MLPs may have limited financial resources, their securities may be relatively illiquid, and they may be subject to more erratic price movements because of the underlying assets they hold.

Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk—These securities generally can be prepaid at any time, and prepayments that occur either more quickly or more slowly than expected can adversely impact the value of such securities. They are also subject to extension risk, which is the risk that rising interest rates could cause mortgages underlying the securities to be prepaid more slowly than expected, thereby lengthening the duration of such securities, increasing their sensitivity to interest rate changes and causing their prices to decline. Mortgage-backed securities are particularly sensitive to prepayment risk, given that the term to maturity for mortgage loans is generally substantially longer than the expected lives of those securities. A mortgage-backed security may be negatively affected by the quality of the mortgages underlying such security, the credit quality of its issuer or guarantor, and the nature and structure of its credit support. Mortgage-backed securities that are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government are subject to the risk of default on the underlying mortgage, particularly during periods of economic downturn.

Other Investment Companies and Pooled Investment Vehicles Risk—When the Fund invests in other investment companies or pooled investment vehicles, including ETFs, you bear both your proportionate share of Fund expenses and, indirectly, the expenses of the other investment companies or pooled investment vehicles. Furthermore, the Fund is exposed to the risks to which the other investment companies or pooled investment vehicles may be subject.

Preferred Security Risk—Preferred securities generally are subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. In addition, preferred securities are subject to other risks, such as having no or limited voting rights, being subject to special redemption rights, having distributions deferred or skipped, having floating interest rates or dividends, which may result in a decline in value in a falling interest rate environment, having fixed interest rates or dividends, which may result in a decline in value in a rising interest rate environment, having limited liquidity, changing or unfavorable tax treatments and possibly being issued by companies in heavily regulated industries.

Real Estate Investment Risk—The Fund's investments in the real estate market have many of the same risks as direct ownership of real estate. These risks include, among others: declines in the value of real estate; risks related to general and local economic conditions; possible lack of availability of mortgage funds or other limits to accessing the credit or capital markets; defaults by borrowers or tenants, particularly during an economic downturn; and changes in interest rates. The real estate sector is highly sensitive to general and local economic conditions and developments and is characterized by intense competition and periodic overbuilding. Real estate values have been subject to substantial fluctuations and declines on a local, regional and national basis in the past and may continue to be in the future.

REITs Risk— In addition to the risks associated with investing in securities of real estate companies and real estate related companies, REITs are subject to certain additional risks. REITs may be affected by changes in real estate values, rents, property taxes and interest rates. Further, REITs are dependent upon specialized management skills and cash flows, and may have their investments in relatively few properties, or in a small geographic area or a single property type. Failure of a company to qualify as a REIT under federal tax law, or changes to federal tax law or regulations governing REITs, may have adverse consequences to the Fund. In addition, REITs have their own expenses, and the Fund will bear

6


a proportionate share of those expenses. Many REITs utilize leverage (and some may be highly leveraged), which increases investment risk and could potentially magnify the Fund’s losses.

Rule 144A Securities Risk—The market for Rule 144A securities typically is less active than the market for publicly-traded securities. Rule 144A securities carry the risk that their liquidity may become impaired and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the securities promptly or at reasonable prices.

Small- and Mid-Cap Company Risk—Even larger REITs may be small- to medium-sized companies in relation to the equity markets as a whole. Securities of small-cap companies involve substantial risk. Prices of small-cap securities may be subject to more abrupt or erratic movements, and to wider fluctuations, than security prices of larger, more established companies or broader market averages in general. It may be difficult to sell small-cap securities at the desired time and price. While mid-cap securities may be slightly less volatile than small-cap securities, they still involve similar risks.

Valuation Risk—The debt securities in which the Fund invests typically are valued by a pricing service utilizing a range of market-based inputs and assumptions, including readily available market quotations obtained from broker-dealers making markets in such instruments, cash flows and transactions for comparable instruments. There is no assurance that the Fund will be able to sell a portfolio security at the price established by the pricing service, which could result in a loss to the Fund. Pricing services generally price debt securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional “round lot” size, but some trades may occur in smaller, “odd lot” sizes, often at lower prices than institutional round lot trades. Different pricing services may incorporate different assumptions and inputs into their valuation methodologies, potentially resulting in different values for the same securities. As a result, if the Fund were to change pricing services, or if the Fund’s pricing service were to change its valuation methodology, there could be a material impact, either positive or negative, on the Fund’s net asset value.

Fund Performance

The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the potential risks of investing in the Fund. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available at www.nuveen.com/performance or by calling (800) 257-8787.

The bar chart below shows the variability of the Fund’s performance from year to year for Class A shares. The bar chart and highest/lowest quarterly returns that follow do not reflect sales charges, and if these charges were reflected, the returns would be less than those shown.

 

Class A Annual Total Return*

PerformanceBarChartData(2012:17.22,2013:6.13,2014:15.4,2015:-3.19,2016:9.6,2017:12.07,2018:-6.38,2019:22.39,2020:-3.71)

* Class A year-to-date total return as of March 31, 2021 was 2.42%.The performance of the other share classes will differ due to their different expense structures.

During the nine-year period ended December 31, 2020, the Fund’s highest and lowest quarterly returns were 13.54%
and -25.52%, respectively, for the quarters ended June 30, 2020 and March 31, 2020.

7


The table below shows the variability of the Fund’s average annual returns and how they compare over the time periods indicated with those of broad measures of market performance and an index of funds with similar investment objectives. The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index is the Fund’s primary benchmark. The Fund’s secondary benchmark has changed. Until March 31, 2021, the Fund used a custom secondary benchmark comprised of a 28% weighting in the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Global Infrastructure Index, a 21% weighting in the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Index, an 18% weighting in the Wells Fargo Hybrid & Preferred Securities REIT Index, a 15% weighting in the Bloomberg Barclays Global Capital Securities Index and an 18% weighting in the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index. Beginning April 1, 2021, the Fund will use a custom secondary benchmark comprised of a 25% weighting in the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Index, a 22% weighting in the S&P Global Infrastructure Index, a 20% weighting in the ICE Hybrid & Preferred Infrastructure 7% Issuer Constrained Custom Index, a 13% weighting in the FTSE NAREIT Preferred Stock Index and a 20% weighting in the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index because it more closely reflects the Fund’s investable universe. All after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. After-tax returns are shown for Class A shares only; after-tax returns for other share classes will vary. Your own actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Fund shares in tax-deferred accounts such as IRAs or employer-sponsored retirement plans.

Both the bar chart and the table assume that all distributions have been reinvested. Performance reflects fee waivers, if any, in effect during the periods presented. If any such waivers had not been in place, returns would have been reduced.

                                 

 

 

 

 

 

Average Annual Total Returns

 

 

 

 

 

for the Periods Ended

 

 

 

 

 

December 31, 2020

 

 

Inception
Date

1 Year

5 Years

Since
Inception
(Class A,
Class C
& Class I)

Since
Inception
(Class R6)

Class A (return before taxes)

 

9/13/11

 

 

(9.24

)%

 

5.02

%

 

6.71

%

 

N/A

 

Class A (return after taxes on distributions)

 

 

 

 

(10.66

)%

 

3.09

%

 

4.50

%

 

N/A

 

Class A (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares)

 

 

 

 

(5.27

)%

 

3.14

%

 

4.33

%

 

N/A

 

Class C (return before taxes)

 

9/13/11

 

 

(4.43

)%

 

5.47

%

 

6.60

%

 

N/A

 

Class R6 (return before taxes)

 

6/30/16

 

 

(3.40

)%

 

N/A

 

 

N/A

 

 

5.04

%

Class I (return before taxes)

 

9/13/11

 

 

(3.47

)%

 

6.52

%

 

7.66

%

 

N/A

 

Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

 

 

 

 

7.11

%

 

8.59

%

 

7.19

%

 

7.49

%

Real Asset Income Blend2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

 

 

 

 

0.81

%

 

6.76

%

 

7.20

%

 

5.47

%

Lipper Real Returns Funds Category3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(reflects no deduction for taxes or sales loads)

 

 

 

 

0.51

%

 

5.07

%

 

2.16

%

 

3.55

%

   
                                 

1

An index that covers the universe of fixed-rate, non-investment-grade corporate debt of issuers in non-emerging market countries. Eurobonds and debt issues from countries designated as emerging markets are excluded.

2

A custom index comprised of a weighting of 28% Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Global Infrastructure Index (Net Return), 21% FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Developed Index (Net Return), 18% Wells Fargo Hybrid & Preferred Securities REIT Index, 15% Bloomberg Barclays Global Capital Securities Index and 18% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index.

3

Represents the average annualized returns for all reporting funds in the Lipper Real Returns Funds Category.

Management

Investment Adviser

Nuveen Fund Advisors, LLC

Sub-Adviser

Nuveen Asset Management, LLC

Portfolio Managers

     

Name

Title

Portfolio Manager of Fund Since

Jay L. Rosenberg

Senior Managing Director

September 2011

Brenda A. Langenfeld, CFA

Managing Director

April 2015

Tryg T. Sarsland

Managing Director

April 2015

Jean C. Lin, CFA

Managing Director

January 2019

Benjamin T. Kerl

Managing Director

October 2021

8


Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase, redeem or exchange shares of the Fund on any business day through a financial advisor or other financial intermediary. The Fund’s initial and subsequent investment minimums generally are as follows, although certain financial intermediaries may impose their own investment minimums and the Fund may reduce or waive the minimums in some cases:

       
 

Class A and Class C

Class R6

Class I

Eligibility and Minimum Initial Investment

$3,000 for all accounts except:

 $2,500 for Traditional/
Roth IRA accounts.

 $2,000 for Coverdell
Education Savings
Accounts.

 $250 for accounts opened through fee-based programs.

 No minimum for retirement plans.

Available only to certain qualified retirement plans and other investors as described in the prospectus and through fee-based programs.

$1 million for all accounts except:

 $100,000 for clients of financial intermediaries who charge such clients an ongoing fee for advisory, investment, consulting or related services.

 No minimum for certain qualified retirement plans and certain other categories of eligible investors as described in the prospectus.

Available only through fee-based programs and certain retirement plans, and to other limited categories of investors as described in the prospectus.

$100,000 for all accounts except:

 $250 for clients of financial intermediaries and family offices that have accounts holding Class I shares with an aggregate value of at least $100,000 (or that are expected to reach this level).

 No minimum for eligible retirement plans and certain other categories of eligible investors as described in the prospectus.

Minimum
Additional
Investment

$100

No minimum.

No minimum.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred account, such as an IRA or 401(k) plan (in which case you may be taxed upon withdrawal of your investment from such account).

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank or financial advisor), the Fund, its distributor or its investment adviser may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other financial intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial advisor or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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