0000928816-17-002426.txt : 20171128 0000928816-17-002426.hdr.sgml : 20171128 20171128123811 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0000928816-17-002426 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: N-Q PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 2 CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT: 20170930 FILED AS OF DATE: 20171128 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20171128 EFFECTIVENESS DATE: 20171128 FILER: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: PUTNAM MULTI-CAP GROWTH FUND CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0000865177 IRS NUMBER: 043091455 STATE OF INCORPORATION: MA FISCAL YEAR END: 0630 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: N-Q SEC ACT: 1940 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 811-06128 FILM NUMBER: 171224856 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: ONE POST OFFICE SQUARE CITY: BOSTON STATE: MA ZIP: 02109 BUSINESS PHONE: 6172921000 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: ONE POST OFFICE SQUARE CITY: BOSTON STATE: MA ZIP: 02109 FORMER COMPANY: FORMER CONFORMED NAME: PUTNAM NEW OPPORTUNITIES FUND DATE OF NAME CHANGE: 19920703 0000865177 S000006295 PUTNAM MULTI-CAP GROWTH FUND C000017306 Class A Shares PNOPX C000017307 Class B Shares PNOBX C000017308 Class C Shares PNOCX C000017309 Class M Shares PNOMX C000017310 Class R Shares PNORX C000017311 Class Y Shares PNOYX N-Q 1 a_multicapgrowth.htm PUTNAM MULTI-CAP GROWTH FUND a_multicapgrowth.htm


UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM N-Q

QUARTERLY SCHEDULE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS OF REGISTERED
MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANY



Investment Company Act file number: (811-06128)
Exact name of registrant as specified in charter: Putnam Multi-Cap Growth Fund
Address of principal executive offices: One Post Office Square, Boston, Massachusetts 02109
Name and address of agent for service: Robert T. Burns, Vice President
One Post Office Square
Boston, Massachusetts 02109
Copy to:         Bryan Chegwidden, Esq.
Ropes & Gray LLP
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10036
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (617) 292-1000
Date of fiscal year end: June 30, 2018
Date of reporting period: September 30, 2017



Item 1. Schedule of Investments:













Putnam Multi-Cap Growth Fund

The fund's portfolio
9/30/17 (Unaudited)
COMMON STOCKS (99.0%)(a)
Shares Value
Aerospace and defense (4.8%)
Airbus SE (France) 240,708 $22,876,072
BWX Technologies, Inc. 339,000 18,990,780
Northrop Grumman Corp. 377,649 108,657,170
United Technologies Corp. 419,300 48,672,344
199,196,366
Auto components (0.1%)
Pirelli & C SpA (Italy)(NON) 543,236 4,173,330
4,173,330
Banks (3.0%)
Bank of America Corp. 3,733,500 94,606,890
PacWest Bancorp 577,900 29,189,729
123,796,619
Beverages (2.5%)
Constellation Brands, Inc. Class A 139,600 27,843,220
Heineken NV (Netherlands) 610,936 60,400,778
Monster Beverage Corp.(NON) 306,789 16,950,092
105,194,090
Biotechnology (4.4%)
Biogen, Inc.(NON) 110,700 34,662,384
Bioverativ, Inc.(NON) 335,900 19,169,813
Celgene Corp.(NON) 308,868 45,039,132
Clovis Oncology, Inc.(NON)(S) 227,100 18,713,040
Ovid Therapeutics, Inc. (acquired 5/5/17, cost $4,137,150)(F)(RES) 308,869 2,382,307
Prothena Corp. PLC (Ireland)(NON)(S) 125,600 8,135,112
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(NON) 48,300 21,595,896
Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(NON) 215,100 32,703,804
182,401,488
Building products (1.9%)
Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc. 390,600 26,260,038
Johnson Controls International PLC 1,364,100 54,959,589
81,219,627
Capital markets (2.8%)
BlackRock, Inc. 74,700 33,397,623
Charles Schwab Corp. (The) 830,100 36,308,574
Hamilton Lane, Inc. Class A(S) 177,316 4,760,935
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. 450,500 30,949,350
WisdomTree Investments, Inc.(S) 987,530 10,053,055
115,469,537
Chemicals (3.7%)
Albemarle Corp. 264,800 36,094,888
FMC Corp. 206,600 18,451,446
Praxair, Inc. 180,900 25,278,966
Sherwin-Williams Co. (The) 115,200 41,246,208
Symrise AG (Germany) 417,388 31,705,100
152,776,608
Commercial services and supplies (—%)
New Bigfoot Other Assets GmbH (acquired 8/2/13, cost $69) (Private) (Germany)(F)(RES)(NON) 52 46
New Middle East Other Assets GmbH (acquired 8/2/13, cost $29) (Private) (Germany)(F)(RES)(NON) 22 20
66
Construction materials (0.5%)
Summit Materials, Inc. Class A(NON) 656,800 21,037,304
21,037,304
Consumer finance (—%)
Oportun Financial Corp. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $1,831,199) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 642,526 1,551,257
1,551,257
Diversified financial services (0.3%)
Challenger, Ltd. (Australia) 1,073,406 10,526,388
10,526,388
Electrical equipment (0.4%)
Rockwell Automation, Inc. 100,600 17,927,926
17,927,926
Energy equipment and services (0.2%)
Select Energy Services, Inc. 144A Class A-1(NON) 577,015 9,186,079
9,186,079
Equity real estate investment trusts (REITs) (0.6%)
Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc.(R) 669,600 24,701,544
24,701,544
Food products (1.0%)
Blue Buffalo Pet Products, Inc.(NON)(S) 534,900 15,164,415
McCormick & Co., Inc. (non-voting shares) 279,600 28,698,144
43,862,559
Health-care equipment and supplies (8.1%)
Becton Dickinson and Co. 548,037 107,387,850
Boston Scientific Corp.(NON) 1,720,869 50,197,749
Danaher Corp. 956,300 82,031,414
DENTSPLY Sirona, Inc. 368,000 22,010,080
GenMark Diagnostics, Inc.(NON) 830,585 7,998,534
Intuitive Surgical, Inc.(NON) 53,700 56,163,756
Penumbra, Inc.(NON)(S) 164,362 14,841,889
340,631,272
Health-care providers and services (2.5%)
Humana, Inc. 155,100 37,787,013
UnitedHealth Group, Inc. 343,900 67,352,815
105,139,828
Hotels, restaurants, and leisure (2.6%)
Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc.(NON)(S) 286,700 15,046,016
Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc. 455,667 31,646,073
Las Vegas Sands Corp. 377,600 24,226,816
Lindblad Expeditions Holdings, Inc.(NON) 1,120,776 11,992,303
Yum China Holdings, Inc. (China)(NON) 625,700 25,009,229
107,920,437
Household durables (0.6%)
FabFurnish GmbH (acquired 8/2/13, cost $69) (Private) (Germany)(F)(RES)(NON) 104 92
PulteGroup, Inc. 988,200 27,007,506
27,007,598
Insurance (0.6%)
Prudential PLC (United Kingdom) 1,084,095 25,952,247
25,952,247
Internet and direct marketing retail (5.3%)
Amazon.com, Inc.(NON) 156,877 150,813,704
Expedia, Inc.(S) 204,200 29,392,548
Global Fashion Holding SA (acquired 8/2/13, cost $3,488,697) (Private) (Luxembourg)(F)(RES)(NON) 82,353 881,239
Priceline Group, Inc. (The)(NON) 22,990 42,090,552
223,178,043
Internet software and services (13.4%)
Alibaba Group Holding, Ltd. ADR (China)(NON)(S) 573,350 99,023,279
Alphabet, Inc. Class C(NON) 253,060 242,712,377
Delivery Hero Holding GmbH (acquired 6/12/15, cost $6,354,151) (Private) (Germany)(F)(RES)(NON) 247,500 8,819,488
Facebook, Inc. Class A(NON) 860,413 147,018,769
LogMeIn, Inc. 156,200 17,189,810
Okta, Inc.(NON)(S) 199,696 5,633,424
Tencent Holdings, Ltd. (China) 826,600 35,735,691
556,132,838
IT Services (5.4%)
Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. 343,556 32,084,695
PayPal Holdings, Inc.(NON) 714,600 45,755,838
Visa, Inc. Class A 1,390,000 146,283,600
224,124,133
Life sciences tools and services (1.3%)
Agilent Technologies, Inc. 649,800 41,717,160
Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. Class A(NON) 50,800 11,288,776
53,005,936
Machinery (3.7%)
Cummins, Inc. 213,700 35,908,011
Dover Corp. 355,000 32,443,450
Fortive Corp. 421,700 29,852,143
KION Group AG (Germany) 216,185 20,688,575
Middleby Corp. (The)(NON)(S) 265,800 34,067,586
152,959,765
Media (3.5%)
Charter Communications, Inc. Class A(NON) 158,400 57,565,728
Comcast Corp. Class A 886,200 34,100,976
DISH Network Corp. Class A(NON) 194,900 10,569,427
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.(NON)(S) 1,041,827 45,371,566
147,607,697
Oil, gas, and consumable fuels (1.8%)
Cheniere Energy, Inc.(NON) 359,200 16,178,368
EOG Resources, Inc. 211,700 20,479,858
Plains GP Holdings LP Class A(NON) 725,217 15,860,496
Suncor Energy, Inc. (Canada) 651,900 22,836,057
75,354,779
Pharmaceuticals (0.8%)
Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC(NON) 183,467 26,832,049
Medicines Co. (The)(NON)(S) 178,700 6,619,048
33,451,097
Professional services (0.3%)
IHS Markit, Ltd. (United Kingdom)(NON) 246,550 10,867,924
10,867,924
Road and rail (2.3%)
Norfolk Southern Corp. 741,482 98,053,580
98,053,580
Semiconductors and semiconductor equipment (4.6%)
Broadcom, Ltd. 254,800 61,799,192
Cavium, Inc.(NON)(S) 235,200 15,509,088
KLA-Tencor Corp. 234,100 24,814,600
Micron Technology, Inc.(NON) 553,500 21,769,155
NVIDIA Corp. 132,000 23,597,640
Qorvo, Inc.(NON) 281,600 19,903,488
STMicroelectronics NV (France) 1,230,700 23,900,194
191,293,357
Software (9.4%)
Activision Blizzard, Inc. 445,800 28,758,558
Adobe Systems, Inc.(NON) 371,200 55,375,616
Microsoft Corp. 2,230,500 166,149,942
Pegasystems, Inc. 255,000 14,700,750
Proofpoint, Inc.(NON)(S) 230,900 20,139,098
RealPage, Inc.(NON) 582,200 23,229,780
RingCentral, Inc. Class A(NON) 363,300 15,167,775
salesforce.com, Inc.(NON) 478,100 44,664,102
ServiceNow, Inc.(NON) 204,800 24,070,144
Talend SA ADR (France)(NON)(S) 53,268 2,180,792
394,436,557
Specialty retail (2.7%)
Home Depot, Inc. (The) 613,900 100,409,484
Ulta Beauty, Inc.(NON) 61,300 13,857,478
114,266,962
Technology hardware, storage, and peripherals (3.2%)
Apple, Inc. 875,532 134,936,992
134,936,992
Textiles, apparel, and luxury goods (0.7%)
Adidas AG (Germany) 130,536 29,529,297
29,529,297
Total common stocks (cost $2,960,736,103) $4,138,871,127

CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCKS (0.2%)(a)
Shares Value
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. A-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $4,999) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 1,754 $4,235
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. B-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $95,634) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 30,360 81,014
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. C-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $224,601) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 44,126 190,266
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. D-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $325,791) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 64,006 275,986
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. E-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $182,702) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 33,279 154,771
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. F, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $551,501) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 71,810 467,191
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. F-1, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $1,546,855) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 542,756 1,310,381
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. G, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 6/23/15, cost $1,955,989) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 686,312 1,656,970
Oportun Financial Corp. Ser. H, 8.00% cv. pfd. (acquired 2/6/15, cost $5,967,941) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 2,096,000 5,055,552
UNEXT.com, LLC zero% cv. pfd. (acquired 4/14/00, cost $10,451,238) (Private)(F)(RES)(NON) 125,000 —
Total convertible preferred stocks (cost $21,307,251) $9,196,366

WARRANTS (—%)(a)(NON)
Expiration date Strike Price Warrants Value
Neuralstem, Inc. Ser. K (acquired 4/20/17, cost $—)(RES) 1/9/22 $42.00 55,497 $—
Total warrants (cost $—) $—

SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS (6.8%)(a)
Principal amount/shares Value
Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC 1.25%(AFF) Shares 209,455,275 $209,455,275
Putnam Short Term Investment Fund 1.17%(AFF) Shares 66,202,960 66,202,960
State Street Institutional U.S. Government Money Market Fund, Premier Class 0.92%(P) Shares 563,000 563,000
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.033%, 12/7/17 $604,000 602,909
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.037%, 12/14/17 1,172,000 1,169,724
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.040%, 1/18/18 241,000 240,270
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.065%, 2/1/18(SEG)(SEGSF) 504,000 502,181
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.081%, 2/15/18(SEG)(SEGSF) 1,556,000 1,549,652
U.S. Treasury Bills 1.091%, 2/8/18(SEG)(SEGSF) 2,600,000 2,589,938
Total short-term investments (cost $282,875,764) $282,875,909

TOTAL INVESTMENTS
Total investments (cost $3,264,919,118) $4,430,943,402













FORWARD CURRENCY CONTRACTS at 9/30/17 (aggregate face value $136,116,982) (Unaudited)


Unrealized
Contract Delivery Aggregate appreciation/
Counterparty Currency type* date Value face value (depreciation)
Bank of America N.A.
British Pound Sell 12/20/17 $21,394,159 $20,726,267 $(667,892)
JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A.
Euro Sell 12/20/17 67,142,606 67,544,337 401,731
State Street Bank and Trust Co.
Australian Dollar Sell 10/18/17 7,080,099 7,163,043 82,944
UBS AG
Euro Sell 12/20/17 40,340,712 40,683,335 342,623
Unrealized appreciation 827,298
Unrealized depreciation (667,892)
Total $159,406












FUTURES CONTRACTS OUTSTANDING at 9/30/17 (Unaudited)
           
     
    Number of contracts Notional amount Value   Expiration   date Unrealized appreciation/ (depreciation)
             
  NASDAQ 100 Index E-Mini (Long) 15 $1,793,790 $1,794,750   Dec-17 $28,440
  Russell 2000 Index E-Mini (Long) 6 447,258 447,870   Dec-17 10,213
  S&P 500 Index E-Mini (Long) 43 5,416,624 5,409,615   Dec-17 43,932
  S&P Mid Cap 400 Index E-Mini (Long) 7 1,257,158 $1,256,990   Dec-17 13,986
             
  Unrealized appreciation         96,571
  Unrealized depreciation         —
  Total         $96,571












Key to holding's abbreviations
ADR American Depository Receipts: represents ownership of foreign securities on deposit with a custodian bank
Notes to the fund's portfolio
Unless noted otherwise, the notes to the fund's portfolio are for the close of the fund's reporting period, which ran from July 1, 2017 through September 30, 2017 (the reporting period). Within the following notes to the portfolio, references to "ASC 820" represent Accounting Standards Codification 820 Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, references to "Putnam Management" represent Putnam Investment Management, LLC, the fund's manager, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Putnam Investments, LLC and references to "OTC", if any, represent over-the-counter.
(a) Percentages indicated are based on net assets of $4,181,336,289.
(NON) This security is non-income-producing.
(RES) This security is restricted with regard to public resale. The total fair value of this security and any other restricted securities (excluding 144A securities), if any, held at the close of the reporting period was $22,830,815, or 0.6% of net assets.
(AFF) Affiliated company. For investments in Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC and Putnam Short Term Investment Fund, the rate quoted in the security description is the annualized 7-day yield of the fund at the close of the reporting period. Transactions during the period with any company which is under common ownership or control were as follows:
Name of affiliate Fair value as of 6/30/17 Purchase cost Sale proceeds Investment income Shares outstanding and fair value as of 9/30/17
Short-term investments
Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC*# $127,054,475 $273,514,388 $191,113,588 $391,693 $209,455,275
Putnam Short Term Investment Fund** 41,210,183 226,372,211 201,379,434 122,863 66,202,960
Total Short-term investments $168,264,658 $499,886,599 $392,493,022 $514,556 $275,658,235
* No management fees are charged to Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC. There were no realized or unrealized gains or losses during the period.
# The fund may lend securities, through its agent, to qualified borrowers in order to earn additional income. The loans are collateralized by cash in an amount at least equal to the fair value of the securities loaned. The fair value of securities loaned is determined daily and any additional required collateral is allocated to the fund on the next business day. The remaining maturities of the securities lending transactions are considered overnight and continuous. The risk of borrower default will be borne by the fund's agent; the fund will bear the risk of loss with respect to the investment of the cash collateral. The fund received cash collateral of $209,455,275, which is invested in Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC, a limited liability company managed by an affiliate of Putnam Management. Investments in Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC are valued at its closing net asset value each business day. There are no management fees charged to Putnam Cash Collateral Pool, LLC. The rate quoted in the security description is the annualized 7-day yield at the close of the reporting period. At the close of the reporting period, the value of securities loaned amounted to $206,147,118.
** Management fees charged to Putnam Short Term Investment Fund have been waived by Putnam Management. There were no realized or unrealized gains or losses during the period.

(SEG) This security, in part or in entirety, was pledged and segregated with the broker to cover margin requirements for futures contracts at the close of the reporting period. Collateral at period end totaled $1,663,008.
(SEGSF) This security, in part or in entirety, was pledged and segregated with the custodian for collateral on certain derivative contracts at the close of the reporting period. Collateral at period end totaled $680,214.
(F) This security is valued by Putnam Management at fair value following procedures approved by the Trustees. Securities are classified as Level 3 for ASC 820 based on the securities' valuation inputs. At the close of the reporting period, fair value pricing was also used for certain foreign securities in the portfolio.
(P) This security was pledged, or purchased with cash that was pledged, to the fund for collateral on certain derivative contracts. The rate quoted in the security description is the annualized 7-day yield of the fund at the close of the reporting period.
(R) Real Estate Investment Trust.
(S) This security is on loan, in part or in entirety, at the close of the reporting period.
At the close of the reporting period, the fund maintained liquid assets totaling $694,168 to cover certain derivative contracts.
Unless otherwise noted, the rates quoted in Short-term investments security descriptions represent the weighted average yield to maturity.
144A after the name of an issuer represents securities exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers.
The dates shown on debt obligations are the original maturity dates.

Security valuation: Portfolio securities and other investments are valued using policies and procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees. The Trustees have formed a Pricing Committee to oversee the implementation of these procedures and have delegated responsibility for valuing the fund's assets in accordance with these procedures to Putnam Management. Putnam Management has established an internal Valuation Committee that is responsible for making fair value determinations, evaluating the effectiveness of the pricing policies of the fund and reporting to the Pricing Committee.
Investments for which market quotations are readily available are valued at the last reported sales price on their principal exchange, or official closing price for certain markets, and are classified as Level 1 securities under ASC 820. If no sales are reported, as in the case of some securities that are traded OTC, a security is valued at its last reported bid price and is generally categorized as a Level 2 security.
Investments in open-end investment companies (excluding exchange-traded funds), if any, which can be classified as Level 1 or Level 2 securities, are valued based on their net asset value. The net asset value of such investment companies equals the total value of their assets less their liabilities and divided by the number of their outstanding shares.
Market quotations are not considered to be readily available for certain debt obligations (including short-term investments with remaining maturities of 60 days or less) and other investments; such investments are valued on the basis of valuations furnished by an independent pricing service approved by the Trustees or dealers selected by Putnam Management. Such services or dealers determine valuations for normal institutional-size trading units of such securities using methods based on market transactions for comparable securities and various relationships, generally recognized by institutional traders, between securities (which consider such factors as security prices, yields, maturities and ratings). These securities will generally be categorized as Level 2.
Many securities markets and exchanges outside the U.S. close prior to the scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange and therefore the closing prices for securities in such markets or on such exchanges may not fully reflect events that occur after such close but before the scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange. Accordingly, on certain days, the fund will fair value certain foreign equity securities taking into account multiple factors including movements in the U.S. securities markets, currency valuations and comparisons to the valuation of American Depository Receipts, exchange-traded funds and futures contracts. The foreign equity securities, which would generally be classified as Level 1 securities, will be transferred to Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy when they are valued at fair value. The number of days on which fair value prices will be used will depend on market activity and it is possible that fair value prices will be used by the fund to a significant extent. At the close of the reporting period, fair value pricing was used for certain foreign securities in the portfolio. Securities quoted in foreign currencies, if any, are translated into U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate.
To the extent a pricing service or dealer is unable to value a security or provides a valuation that Putnam Management does not believe accurately reflects the security's fair value, the security will be valued at fair value by Putnam Management in accordance with policies and procedures approved by the Trustees. Certain investments, including certain restricted and illiquid securities and derivatives, are also valued at fair value following procedures approved by the Trustees. These valuations consider such factors as significant market or specific security events such as interest rate or credit quality changes, various relationships with other securities, discount rates, U.S. Treasury, U.S. swap and credit yields, index levels, convexity exposures, recovery rates, sales and other multiples and resale restrictions. These securities are classified as Level 2 or as Level 3 depending on the priority of the significant inputs.
To assess the continuing appropriateness of fair valuations, the Valuation Committee reviews and affirms the reasonableness of such valuations on a regular basis after considering all relevant information that is reasonably available. Such valuations and procedures are reviewed periodically by the Trustees. The fair value of securities is generally determined as the amount that the fund could reasonably expect to realize from an orderly disposition of such securities over a reasonable period of time. By its nature, a fair value price is a good faith estimate of the value of a security in a current sale and does not reflect an actual market price, which may be different by a material amount.
Futures contracts: The fund used futures contracts to equitize cash.
The potential risk to the fund is that the change in value of futures contracts may not correspond to the change in value of the hedged instruments. In addition, losses may arise from changes in the value of the underlying instruments, if there is an illiquid secondary market for the contracts, if interest or exchange rates move unexpectedly or if the counterparty to the contract is unable to perform. With futures, there is minimal counterparty credit risk to the fund since futures are exchange traded and the exchange's clearinghouse, as counterparty to all exchange traded futures, guarantees the futures against default. When the contract is closed, the fund records a realized gain or loss equal to the difference between the value of the contract at the time it was opened and the value at the time it was closed.
Futures contracts are valued at the quoted daily settlement prices established by the exchange on which they trade. The fund and the broker agree to exchange an amount of cash equal to the daily fluctuation in the value of the futures contract. Such receipts or payments are known as "variation margin".
For the fund's average number of futures contracts, see the appropriate table at the end of these footnotes.
Forward currency contracts: The fund buys and sells forward currency contracts, which are agreements between two parties to buy and sell currencies at a set price on a future date. These contracts were used to hedge foreign exchange risk.
The U.S. dollar value of forward currency contracts is determined using current forward currency exchange rates supplied by a quotation service. The fair value of the contract will fluctuate with changes in currency exchange rates. The contract is marked to market daily and the change in fair value is recorded as an unrealized gain or loss. The fund records a realized gain or loss equal to the difference between the value of the contract at the time it was opened and the value at the time it was closed when the contract matures or by delivery of the currency. The fund could be exposed to risk if the value of the currency changes unfavorably, if the counterparties to the contracts are unable to meet the terms of their contracts or if the fund is unable to enter into a closing position.
For the fund's average contract amount on forward currency contracts, see the appropriate table at the end of these footnotes.
Master agreements: The fund is a party to ISDA (International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc.) Master Agreements (Master Agreements) with certain counterparties that govern OTC derivative and foreign exchange contracts entered into from time to time. The Master Agreements may contain provisions regarding, among other things, the parties' general obligations, representations, agreements, collateral requirements, events of default and early termination. With respect to certain counterparties, in accordance with the terms of the Master Agreements, collateral posted to the fund is held in a segregated account by the fund's custodian and, with respect to those amounts which can be sold or repledged, is presented in the fund's portfolio. Collateral posted to the fund which cannot be sold or repledged totaled $575,362 at the close of the reporting period.
Collateral pledged by the fund is segregated by the fund's custodian and identified in the fund's portfolio. Collateral can be in the form of cash or debt securities issued by the U.S. Government or related agencies or other securities as agreed to by the fund and the applicable counterparty. Collateral requirements are determined based on the fund's net position with each counterparty.
Termination events applicable to the fund may occur upon a decline in the fund's net assets below a specified threshold over a certain period of time. Termination events applicable to counterparties may occur upon a decline in the counterparty's long-term and short-term credit ratings below a specified level. In each case, upon occurrence, the other party may elect to terminate early and cause settlement of all derivative and foreign exchange contracts outstanding, including the payment of any losses and costs resulting from such early termination, as reasonably determined by the terminating party. Any decision by one or more of the fund's counterparties to elect early termination could impact the fund's future derivative activity.
At the close of the reporting period, the fund had a net liability position of $667,892 on open derivative contracts subject to the Master Agreements. Collateral posted by the fund at period end for these agreements totaled $680,214 and may include amounts related to unsettled agreements.












ASC 820 establishes a three-level hierarchy for disclosure of fair value measurements. The valuation hierarchy is based upon the transparency of inputs to the valuation of the fund's investments. The three levels are defined as follows:
Level 1: Valuations based on quoted prices for identical securities in active markets.
Level 2: Valuations based on quoted prices in markets that are not active or for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.
Level 3: Valuations based on inputs that are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement.
The following is a summary of the inputs used to value the fund's net assets as of the close of the reporting period:

 Valuation inputs
Investments in securities: Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
Common stocks*:
    Consumer discretionary $652,802,033 $— $881,331
    Consumer staples 149,056,649 — —
    Energy 75,354,779 9,186,079 —
    Financials 265,218,403 10,526,388 1,551,257
    Health care 712,247,314 — 2,382,307
    Industrials 560,225,188 — 66
    Information technology 1,456,368,698 35,735,691 8,819,488
    Materials 173,813,912 — —
    Real estate 24,701,544 — —
Total common stocks 4,069,788,520 55,448,158 13,634,449
Convertible preferred stocks — — 9,196,366
Warrants — — —
Short-term investments 66,765,960 216,109,949 —
Totals by level $4,136,554,480 $271,558,107 $22,830,815



Valuation inputs
Other financial instruments: Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
Forward currency contracts $— $159,406 $—
Futures contracts 96,571 — —
Totals by level $96,571 $159,406 $—
* Common stock classifications are presented at the sector level, which may differ from the fund's portfolio presentation.

During the reporting period, transfers within the fair value hierarchy, if any (other than certain transfers involving non-U.S. equity securities as described in the Security valuation note above), did not represent, in the aggregate, more than 1% of the fund's net assets measured as of the end of the period. Transfers are accounted for using the end of period pricing valuation method.
At the start and close of the reporting period, Level 3 investments in securities represented less than 1% of the fund's net assets and were not considered a significant portion of the fund's portfolio.

Fair Value of Derivative Instruments as of the close of the reporting period
Asset derivatives Liability derivatives
Derivatives not accounted for as hedging instruments under ASC 815 Fair value Fair value
Foreign exchange contracts $827,298 $667,892
Equity contracts 96,571 —
Total $923,869 $667,892

The volume of activity for the reporting period for any derivative type that was held at the close of the period is listed below and was based on an average of the holdings of that derivative at the end of each fiscal quarter in the reporting period:
Futures contracts (number of contracts)100
Forward currency contracts (contract amount)$123,000,000
Warrants (number of warrants)55,000

For additional information regarding the fund please see the fund's most recent annual or semiannual shareholder report filed on the Securities and Exchange Commission's Web site, www.sec.gov, or visit Putnam's Individual Investor Web site at www.putnaminvestments.com



Item 2. Controls and Procedures:
(a) The registrant's principal executive officer and principal financial officer have concluded, based on their evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures as of a date within 90 days of the filing date of this report, that the design and operation of such procedures are generally effective to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed by the registrant in this report is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Commission's rules and forms.
(b) Changes in internal control over financial reporting: Not applicable

Item 3. Exhibits:
Separate certifications for the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of the registrant as required by Rule 30a-2(a) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, are filed herewith.

SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

Putnam Multi-Cap Growth Fund
By (Signature and Title):
/s/ Janet C. Smith
Janet C. Smith
Principal Accounting Officer
Date: November 28, 2017

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

By (Signature and Title):
/s/ Jonathan S. Horwitz
Jonathan S. Horwitz
Principal Executive Officer
Date: November 28, 2017

By (Signature and Title):
/s/ Janet C. Smith
Janet C. Smith
Principal Financial Officer
Date: November 28, 2017

EX-99.CERT 2 b_852certifications.htm CERTIFICATIONS b_852certifications.htm

Certifications

I, Jonathan S. Horwitz, the Principal Executive Officer of the funds listed on Attachment A, certify that:

1. I have reviewed each report on Form N-Q of the funds listed on Attachment A:

2. Based on my knowledge, each report does not contain any untrue statements of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by each report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the schedules of investments included in each report fairly present in all material respects the investments of the registrant as of the end of the fiscal quarter for which the report is filed;

4. The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrants and have:


a) designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which each report is being prepared;


b) designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;


c) evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report, based on such evaluation; and


d) disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and

5. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed to each registrant's auditors and the audit committee of each registrant's board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):


a) all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect each registrant's ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and


b) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in each registrant's internal control over financial reporting.

/s/ Jonathan S. Horwitz
_____________________________

Date: November 27, 2017
Jonathan S. Horwitz
Principal Executive Officer













Certifications

I, Janet C. Smith, the Principal Financial Officer of the funds listed on Attachment A, certify that:

1. I have reviewed each report on Form N-Q of the funds listed on Attachment A:

2. Based on my knowledge, each report does not contain any untrue statements of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by each report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the schedules of investments included in each report fairly present in all material respects the investments of the registrant as of the end of the fiscal quarter for which the report is filed;

4. The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the registrants and have:


a) designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which each report is being prepared;


b) designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;


c) evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report, based on such evaluation; and


d) disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant's most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant's internal control over financial reporting; and

5. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed to each registrant's auditors and the audit committee of each registrant's board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):


a) all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect each registrant's ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and


b) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in each registrant's internal control over financial reporting.

/s/ Janet C. Smith
_______________________________

Date: November 27, 2017
Janet C. Smith
Principal Financial Officer














Attachment A

NQ

Period (s) ended September 30, 2017
               Putnam Europe Equity Fund
               Putnam International Equity Fund
               Putnam Multi-Cap Growth Fund
               Putnam Small Cap Growth Fund
               Putnam International Value Fund

               Putnam VT Absolute 500 Fund
               Putnam VT American Government Income Fund
               Putnam VT Capital Opportunities Fund
               Putnam VT Diversified Income Fund
               Putnam VT Equity Income Fund
               Putnam VT George Putnam Balanced Fund
               Putnam VT Global Asset Allocation Fund
               Putnam VT Global Equity Fund
               Putnam VT Global Health Care Fund
               Putnam VT Global Utilities Fund
               Putnam VT Growth Opportunities Fund
               Putnam VT High Yield Fund
               Putnam VT Income Fund
               Putnam VT International Equity Fund
               Putnam VT International Value Fund
               Putnam VT International Growth Fund
               Putnam VT Investors Fund
               Putnam VT Multi-Cap Value Fund
               Putnam VT Government Money Market Fund
               Putnam VT Multi-Cap Growth Fund
               Putnam VT Research Fund
               Putnam VT Small Cap Value Fund