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SUMMARY PROSPECTUS

 

Franklin Mutual Shares Fund

Franklin
Mutual Series Funds

May 1, 2019  

Franklin Templeton


Class A Class C Class R Class R6 Class Z
TESIX TEMTX TESRX FMSHX MUTHX
 


Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s prospectus, statement of additional information, reports to shareholders and other information about the Fund online at www.franklintempleton.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236 or by sending an e-mail request to prospectus@franklintempleton.com. The Fund's prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated May 1, 2019, as may be supplemented, are all incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.


Internet Delivery of Fund Reports Unless You Request Paper Copies: Effective January 1, 2021, as permitted by the SEC, paper copies of the Fund's shareholder reports will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request them from the Fund or your financial intermediary. Instead, the reports will be made available on a website, and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. If you have not signed up for electronic delivery, we would encourage you to join fellow shareholders who have. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications electronically from the Fund by calling (800) 632-2301 or by contacting your financial intermediary.

You may elect to continue to receive paper copies of all your future shareholder reports free of charge by contacting your financial intermediary or, if you invest directly with a Fund, calling (800) 632-2301 to let the Fund know of your request. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held in your account.





Franklin Mutual Shares Fund

Investment Goal

Capital appreciation, which may occasionally be short term. The secondary goal is income.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

These 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 in Class A if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in Franklin Templeton funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and under “Your Account” on page 150 in the Fund's Prospectus and under “Buying and Selling Shares” on page 81 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 Appendix A - "Intermediary Sales Charge Discounts and Waivers" to the Fund's prospectus.

Please note that the tables and examples below do not reflect any transaction fees that may be charged by financial intermediaries, or commissions that a shareholder may be required to pay directly to its financial intermediary when buying or selling Class R6 or Class Z shares.


Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

    Class A  Class C1  Class R  Class R6  Class Z 
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as percentage of offering price)  5.50%  None  None  None  None 
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as percentage of the lower of original purchase price or sale proceeds)  None2  1.00%  None  None  None 

1. Effective October 5, 2018, Class C shares of the Fund convert automatically to Class A shares of the Fund on a monthly basis in the month of, or the month following, the 10-year anniversary of the Class C shares’ purchase date. Such conversions are on the basis of the relative net asset values of the two classes, are not subject to Class A shares’ sales charges and are not expected to be a taxable event for federal income tax purposes. Certain shares that are invested through retirement plans, omnibus accounts or in certain other instances may not automatically convert if the financial intermediary does not have the ability to track purchases to credit individual shareholders’ holding periods. (See “Your Account – Choosing a Share Class – Sales Charges - Class C – Automatic Conversion of Class C Shares to Class A Shares After 10-Year Holding Period” for more information.)

2. There is a 1% contingent deferred sales charge that applies to investments of $1 million or more (see "Investments of $1 Million or More" under "Choosing a Share Class") and purchases by certain retirement plans without an initial sales charge on shares sold within 18 months of purchase.


Annual Fund Operating Expenses

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

    Class A  Class C  Class R  Class R6  Class Z 
Management fees  0.65%  0.65%  0.65%  0.65%  0.65% 
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees  0.25%  1.00%  0.50%  None  None 
Other expenses  0.11%  0.11%  0.11%  0.04%1  0.11% 
Acquired fund fees and expenses2  0.01%  0.01%  0.01%  0.01%  0.01% 
Total annual Fund operating expenses2  1.02%  1.77%  1.27%  0.70%1  0.77% 

1. The transfer agent has contractually agreed to cap transfer agency fees for Class R6 shares of the Fund so that transfer agency fees for that class do not exceed 0.02% until April 30, 2020. Contractual fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement agreements may not be changed or terminated during the time period set forth above.

2. Total annual Fund operating expenses differ from the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights, which reflect the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

Example

This 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 redeem all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same. The Example reflects adjustments made to the Fund's operating expenses due to the fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by management for the 1 Year numbers only. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

    1 Year  3 Years  5 Years  10 Years 
Class A    $ 648  $ 857  $ 1,082  $ 1,729 
Class C    $ 280  $ 557  $ 959  $ 2,084 
Class R    $ 129  $ 403  $ 697  $ 1,534 
Class R6    $ 72  $ 224  $ 390  $ 871 
Class Z    $ 79  $ 246  $ 428  $ 954 
If you do not sell your shares: 
Class C    $ 180  $ 557  $ 959  $ 2,084 

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 20.72% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests primarily in equity securities (including securities convertible into, or that the investment manager expects to be exchanged for, common or preferred stock) of U.S. and foreign companies that the investment manager believes are available at market prices less than their value based on certain recognized or objective criteria (intrinsic value). Following this value-oriented strategy, the Fund invests primarily in undervalued securities (securities trading at a discount to intrinsic value). The equity securities in which the Fund invests are primarily common stock. To a lesser extent, the Fund also invests in merger arbitrage securities and the debt and equity of distressed companies.

The Fund may invest a significant portion (up to 35%) of its assets in foreign securities, which may include sovereign debt and participations in foreign government debt. The Fund presently does not intend to invest more than 20% of its assets in foreign securities. Although the investment manager will search for investments across a large number of countries and regions, from time to time, based on economic conditions, the Fund may have significant positions in particular countries or regions.

The Fund is not limited to pre-set maximums or minimums governing the size of the companies in which it may invest. However, the Fund generally invests the equity portion of its portfolio primarily to predominantly in companies with market capitalizations greater than $5 billion, with a portion in smaller companies.

The Fund regularly attempts to hedge (protect) against currency risks, largely using currency forward contracts and currency futures contracts (including currency index futures contracts) when, in the investment manager’s opinion, it would be advantageous to the Fund to do so. The Fund may also, from time to time, attempt to hedge against market risk using a variety of derivatives.

Portfolio Selection

The investment manager employs a research driven, fundamental value strategy for the Fund. Investments are generally selected based on the investment manager's own analysis of the security's intrinsic value, including for equity securities, an analysis of book value, cash flow potential, long-term earnings and multiples of earnings. The investment manager examines each investment separately and there are no set criteria as to specific value parameters, asset size, earnings or industry type.

Principal Risks

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. Mutual fund shares are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank, and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other agency of the U.S. government.

Market   The market values of securities or other investments owned by the Fund will go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. The market value of a security or other investment may be reduced by market activity or other results of supply and demand unrelated to the issuer. This is a basic risk associated with all investments. When there are more sellers than buyers, prices tend to fall. Likewise, when there are more buyers than sellers, prices tend to rise.

Stock prices tend to go up and down more dramatically than those of debt securities. A slower-growth or recessionary economic environment could have an adverse effect on the prices of the various stocks held by the Fund.

Smaller and Midsize Companies   Securities issued by smaller and midsize companies may be more volatile in price than those of larger companies, involve substantial risks and should be considered speculative. Such risks may include greater sensitivity to economic conditions, less certain growth prospects, lack of depth of management and funds for growth and development, and limited or less developed product lines and markets. In addition, smaller and midsize companies may be particularly affected by interest rate increases, as they may find it more difficult to borrow money to continue or expand operations, or may have difficulty in repaying any loans.

Value Style Investing   A value stock may not increase in price as anticipated by the investment manager if other investors fail to recognize the company's value and bid up the price, the markets favor faster-growing companies, or the factors that the investment manager believes will increase the price of the security do not occur or do not have the anticipated effect.

Foreign Securities (non-U.S.)   Investing in foreign securities typically involves more risks than investing in U.S. securities, including risks related to currency exchange rates and policies, country or government specific issues, less favorable trading practices or regulation and greater price volatility. Certain of these risks also may apply to securities of U.S. companies with significant foreign operations.

Regional Focus   Because the Fund may invest at least a significant portion of its assets in companies in a specific region, including Europe, the Fund is subject to greater risks of adverse developments in that region and/or the surrounding regions than a fund that is more broadly diversified geographically. Political, social or economic disruptions in the region, even in countries in which the Fund is not invested, may adversely affect the value of investments held by the Fund. Current political uncertainty surrounding the European Union (EU) and its membership, including the 2016 referendum in which the United Kingdom voted to exit the EU, may increase market volatility. The financial instability of some countries in the EU together with the risk of such instability impacting other more stable countries may increase the economic risk of investing in companies in Europe.

Derivative Instruments   The performance of derivative instruments depends largely on the performance of an underlying instrument, such as a currency, security, interest rate or index, and such instruments often have risks similar to the underlying instrument, in addition to other risks. Derivatives involve costs and can create economic leverage in the Fund’s portfolio, which may result in significant volatility and cause the Fund to participate in losses (as well as gains) in an amount that significantly exceeds the Fund’s initial investment. Certain derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Other risks include illiquidity, mispricing or improper valuation of the derivative instrument, and imperfect correlation between the value of the derivative and the underlying instrument so that the Fund may not realize the intended benefits. The successful use of derivatives will usually depend on the investment manager’s ability to accurately forecast movements in the market relating to the underlying instrument. Should a market or markets, or prices of particular classes of investments move in an unexpected manner, especially in unusual or extreme market conditions, the Fund may not achieve the anticipated benefits of the transaction, and it may realize losses, which could be significant. If the investment manager is not successful in using such derivative instruments, the Fund’s performance may be worse than if the investment manager did not use such derivative instruments at all. When a derivative is used for hedging, the change in value of the derivative may also not correlate specifically with the currency, security, interest rate, index or other risk being hedged. Derivatives also may present the risk that the other party to the transaction will fail to perform. There is also the risk, especially under extreme market conditions, that an instrument, which usually would operate as a hedge, provides no hedging benefits at all.

Merger Arbitrage Securities and Distressed Companies   A merger or other restructuring, or a tender or exchange offer, proposed or pending at the time the Fund invests in merger arbitrage securities may not be completed on the terms or within the time frame contemplated, which may result in losses to the Fund. Debt obligations of distressed companies typically are unrated, lower-rated, in default or close to default and are generally more likely to become worthless than the securities of more financially stable companies.

Liquidity   From time to time, the trading market for a particular security or type of security or other investments in which the Fund invests may become less liquid or even illiquid. Reduced liquidity will have an adverse impact on the Fund’s ability to sell such securities or other investments when necessary to meet the Fund’s liquidity needs, which may arise or increase in response to a specific economic event or because the investment manager wishes to purchase particular investments or believes that a higher level of liquidity would be advantageous. Reduced liquidity will also generally lower the value of such securities or other investments. Market prices for such securities or other investments may be relatively volatile.

Management   The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed investment portfolio. The Fund's investment manager applies investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that these decisions will produce the desired results.

Performance

The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows changes in the Fund's performance from year to year for Class A shares. The table shows how the Fund's average annual returns for 1 year, 5 years, 10 years or since inception, as applicable, compared with those of a broad measure of market performance. The Fund's past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. You can obtain updated performance information at franklintempleton.com or by calling (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236.

Sales charges are not reflected in the bar chart, and if those charges were included, returns would be less than those shown.

Class A Annual Total Returns


Best Quarter:  Q2'09  17.02% 
Worst Quarter:  Q3'11  -15.96% 
As of March 31, 2019, the Fund's year-to-date return was 10.08%. 


Average Annual Total Returns
(figures reflect sales charges)

For the periods ended December 31, 2018

    1 Year  5 Years  10 Years 
Franklin Mutual Shares Fund - Class A         
         Return Before Taxes  -14.17%  2.01%  8.52% 
         Return After Taxes on Distributions  -15.56%  0.50%  7.53% 
         Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares  -7.44%  1.49%  6.94% 
Franklin Mutual Shares Fund - Class C    -10.72%  2.42%  8.35% 
Franklin Mutual Shares Fund - Class R    -9.41%  2.94%  8.90% 
Franklin Mutual Shares Fund - Class R6    -8.88%  3.56%  5.82%1 
Franklin Mutual Shares Fund - Class Z    -8.95%  3.45%  9.45% 
S&P 500® Index (index reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)  -4.38%  8.50%  13.12% 

1. Since inception May 1, 2013.

The figures in the average annual total returns table above reflect the Class A maximum front-end sales charge of 5.50%. Prior to September 10, 2018, Class A shares were subject to a maximum front-end sales charge of 5.75%. If the prior maximum front-end sales charge of 5.75% was reflected, performance for Class A in the average annual total returns table would be lower.

The 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. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns are shown only for Class A and after-tax returns for other classes will vary.

Investment Manager

Franklin Mutual Advisers, LLC (Franklin Mutual)

Portfolio Managers

Peter A. Langerman   Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Franklin Mutual and portfolio manager of the Fund since 2005.

F. David Segal, CFA   Portfolio Manager of Franklin Mutual and portfolio manager of the Fund since 2005.

Debbie A. Turner, CFA   Portfolio Manager of Franklin Mutual and portfolio manager of the Fund since 2001.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase or redeem shares of the Fund on any business day online through our website at franklintempleton.com, by mail (Franklin Templeton Investor Services, P.O. Box 33030, St. Petersburg, FL 33733-8030), or by telephone at (800) 632-2301. For Class A, C and R the minimum initial purchase for most accounts is $1,000 (or $25 under an automatic investment plan). Class R6 and Class Z are only available to certain qualified investors and the minimum initial investment will vary depending on the type of qualified investor, as described under "Your Account — Choosing a Share Class — Qualified Investors — Class R6" and "— Class Z" in the Fund's prospectus. There is no minimum investment for subsequent purchases.

Taxes

The Fund’s distributions are generally taxable to you as ordinary income, capital gains, or some combination of both, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account, in which case your distributions would generally be taxed when withdrawn from the tax-deferred 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), the Fund and its related companies 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 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.


Franklin Templeton

Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc.
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
franklintempleton.com

Franklin Mutual Shares Fund

Investment Company Act file #811-05387

© 2019 Franklin Templeton. All rights reserved.

474 PSUM 05/19

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