-----BEGIN PRIVACY-ENHANCED MESSAGE----- Proc-Type: 2001,MIC-CLEAR Originator-Name: webmaster@www.sec.gov Originator-Key-Asymmetric: MFgwCgYEVQgBAQICAf8DSgAwRwJAW2sNKK9AVtBzYZmr6aGjlWyK3XmZv3dTINen TWSM7vrzLADbmYQaionwg5sDW3P6oaM5D3tdezXMm7z1T+B+twIDAQAB MIC-Info: RSA-MD5,RSA, B6wNlvT8D0Tf3qjp0+YDDDAJFKH26eZMQSYG5ph+5qr7cIMhmy0zok5FUtlPxbS9 Gomq312xl6vcDJKnl1YQEg== 0001318148-09-001531.txt : 20091028 0001318148-09-001531.hdr.sgml : 20091028 20091028144808 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0001318148-09-001531 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: N-CSRS PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 3 CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT: 20090831 FILED AS OF DATE: 20091028 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20091028 EFFECTIVENESS DATE: 20091028 FILER: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: FEDERATED TOTAL RETURN GOVERNMENT BOND FUND CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0000946868 IRS NUMBER: 251772145 STATE OF INCORPORATION: MA FISCAL YEAR END: 0228 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: N-CSRS SEC ACT: 1940 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 811-07309 FILM NUMBER: 091141433 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: 4000 ERICSSON DRIVE CITY: WARRENDALE STATE: PA ZIP: 15086-7561 BUSINESS PHONE: 8003417400 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: 4000 ERICSSON DRIVE CITY: WARRENDALE STATE: PA ZIP: 15086-7561 FORMER COMPANY: FORMER CONFORMED NAME: FEDERATED US GOVERNMENT SECURITIES FUND 5 10 YEARS DATE OF NAME CHANGE: 19950620 0000946868 S000009063 FEDERATED TOTAL RETURN GOVERNMENT BOND FUND C000024616 Institutional Shares FTRGX C000024617 Institutional Service Shares FTGSX N-CSRS 1 form.htm Unassociated Document
United States
Securities and Exchange Commission
Washington, D.C.  20549

Form N-CSR
Certified Shareholder Report of Registered Management Investment Companies




811-7309

(Investment Company Act File Number)


Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund
_______________________________________________________________

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)



Federated Investors Funds
4000 Ericsson Drive
 Warrendale, PA 15086-7561
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)


(412) 288-1900
(Registrant's Telephone Number)


John W. McGonigle, Esquire
Federated Investors Tower
1001 Liberty Avenue
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222-3779
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)
(Notices should be sent to the Agent for Service)






Date of Fiscal Year End:  02/28/10


Date of Reporting Period:  Six months ended 08/31/09







Item 1.                      Reports to Stockholders

Federated Investors
World-Class Investment Manager

Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund



SEMI-ANNUAL SHAREHOLDER REPORT

August 31, 2009

Institutional Shares
Institutional Service Shares

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
SHAREHOLDER EXPENSE EXAMPLE
PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS SUMMARY TABLE
PORTFOLIO OF INVESTMENTS
STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
EVALUATION AND APPROVAL OF ADVISORY CONTRACT
VOTING PROXIES ON FUND PORTFOLIO SECURITIES
QUARTERLY PORTFOLIO SCHEDULE

 

Not FDIC Insured * May Lose Value * No Bank Guarantee

 

Financial Highlights--Institutional Shares

(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)

Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
8/31/2009

   



Year Ended February 28 or 29,

    

    

2009

    

2008

    

2007

    

2006

    

2005

 


Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period

$11.36

$11.20

$10.67

$10.66

$10.86

$11.12

Income From Investment Operations:

Net investment income

0.21

0.50

0.53

0.51

0.49

0.45

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments and futures contracts

(0.02

)

0.16

0.53

0.01

(0.20

)

(0.26

)


TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS

0.19

0.66

1.06

0.52

0.29

0.19


Less Distributions:

Distributions from net investment income

(0.21

)

(0.50

)

(0.53

)

(0.51

)

(0.49

)

(0.45

)


Net Asset Value, End of Period

$11.34

$11.36

$11.20

$10.67

$10.66

$10.86


Total Return1

1.72

%

6.07

%

10.28

%

5.04

%

2.68

%

1.78

%2


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ratios to Average Net Assets:


Net expenses

0.26

%3

0.26

%

0.26

%

0.27

%

0.30

%

0.30

%


Net investment income

3.68

%3

4.43

%

4.95

%

4.84

%

4.52

%

4.16

%


Expense waiver/ reimbursement4

0.24

%3

0.38

%

0.39

%

0.41

%

0.52

%

0.64

%


Supplemental Data:


Net assets, end of period (000 omitted)

$637,737

$464,550

$458,053

$399,423

$284,131

$224,314


Portfolio turnover5

56

%

42

%

55

%

77

%

80

%

21

%


1 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

2 During the period ended February 28, 2005, the Fund was reimbursed by the Adviser, which had an impact of 0.10% on the total return.

3 Computed on an annualized basis.

4 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income ratios shown above.

5 This calculation excludes purchases and sales from dollar-roll transactions.

See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Financial Highlights--Institutional Service Shares

(For a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period)

Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
8/31/2009

   



Year Ended February 28 or 29,

    

   

    

2009

    

2008

    

2007

    

2006

    

2005

 


Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period

$11.36

$11.20

$10.67

$10.66

$10.86

$11.12

Income From Investment Operations:

Net investment income

0.19

0.46

0.50

0.47

0.46

0.42

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments and futures contracts

(0.02

)

0.16

0.53

0.01

(0.20

)

(0.26

)


TOTAL FROM INVESTMENT OPERATIONS

0.17

0.62

1.03

0.48

0.26

0.16


Less Distributions:

Distributions from net investment income

(0.19

)

(0.46

)

(0.50

)

(0.47

)

(0.46

)

(0.42

)


Net Asset Value, End of Period

$11.34

$11.36

$11.20

$10.67

$10.66

$10.86


Total Return1

1.55

%

5.71

%

9.92

%

4.69

%

2.39

%2

1.47

%3


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ratios to Average Net Assets:


Net expenses

0.60

%4

0.60

%

0.60

%

0.61

%

0.60

%

0.60

%


Net investment income

3.37

%4

4.06

%

4.62

%

4.50

%

4.22

%

3.86

%


Expense waiver/ reimbursement5

0.39

%4

0.51

%

0.51

%

0.50

%

0.59

%

0.59

%


Supplemental Data:


Net assets, end of period (000 omitted)

$169,821

$144,068

$112,299

$89,430

$61,601

$59,331


Portfolio turnover6

56

%

42

%

55

%

77

%

80

%

21

%


1 Based on net asset value, which does not reflect the sales charge, redemption fee or contingent deferred sales charge, if applicable. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

2 During the period ended February 28, 2006, the Fund was reimbursed by an affiliated shareholder services provider, which had an impact of 0.01% on the total return.

3 During the period ended February 28, 2005, the Fund was reimbursed by the Adviser, which had an impact of 0.09% on the total return.

4 Computed on an annualized basis.

5 This expense decrease is reflected in both the net expense and the net investment income ratios shown above.

6 This calculation excludes purchases and sales from dollar-roll transactions.

See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Shareholder Expense Example (unaudited)

As a shareholder of the Fund, you incur ongoing costs, including management fees and to the extent applicable, distribution (12b-1) fees and/or shareholder services fees and other Fund expenses. This Example is intended to help you to understand your ongoing costs (in dollars) of investing in the Fund and to compare these costs with the ongoing costs of investing in other mutual funds. It is based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of the period and held for the entire period from March 1, 2009 to August 31, 2009.

ACTUAL EXPENSES

The first section of the table below provides information about actual account values and actual expenses. You may use the information in this section, together with the amount you invested, to estimate the expenses that you incurred over the period. Simply divide your account value by $1,000 (for example, an $8,600 account value divided by $1,000 = 8.6), then multiply the result by the number in the first section under the heading entitled “Expenses Paid During Period” to estimate the expenses attributable to your investment during this period.

HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE FOR COMPARISON PURPOSES

The second section of the table below provides information about hypothetical account values and hypothetical expenses based on the Fund’s actual expense ratio and an assumed rate of return of 5% per year before expenses, which is not the Fund’s actual return. Thus, you should not use the hypothetical account values and expenses to estimate the actual ending account balance or your expenses for the period. Rather, these figures are required to be provided to enable you to compare the ongoing costs of investing in the Fund with other funds. To do so, compare this 5% hypothetical example with the 5% hypothetical examples that appear in the shareholder reports of the other funds.

Please note that the expenses shown in the table are meant to highlight your ongoing costs only. Therefore, the second section of the table is useful in comparing ongoing costs only, and will not help you determine the relative total costs of owning different funds.

    

Beginning
Account Value
3/1/2009

    

Ending
Account Value
8/31/2009

    

Expenses Paid
During Period1


Actual:


Institutional Shares

$1,000

$1,017.20

$1.32


Institutional Service Shares

$1,000

$1,015.50

$3.05


Hypothetical (assuming a 5% return before expenses):


Institutional Shares

$1,000

$1,023.89

$1.33


Institutional Service Shares

$1,000

$1,022.18

$3.06


1 Expenses are equal to the Funds annualized net expense ratios, multiplied by the average account value over the period, multiplied by 184/365 (to reflect the one-half year period). The annualized net expense ratios are as follows:


Institutional Shares

    

0.26%


Institutional Service Shares

0.60%


Portfolio of Investments Summary Table (unaudited)

At August 31, 2009, the Fund’s portfolio composition1 was as follows:

Type of Investments

    

Percentage of
Total Net Assets


U.S. Government Agency Securities

37.2%


U.S. Treasury Securities

33.9%


U.S. Government Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities

16.7%


FDIC Guaranteed Debt Securities

6.3%


Securities Lending Collateral2

1.0%


Cash Equivalents3

4.2%


Other Assets and Liabilities--Net4

0.7%


TOTAL

100.0%


1 See the Funds Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information for a description of the types of securities in which the Fund invests.

2 Represents cash collateral received from portfolio securities on loan which are invested in short-term investments such as repurchase agreements or money market mutual funds.

3 Cash Equivalents include any investments in money market mutual funds and/or overnight repurchase agreements other than those representing Securities Lending Collateral.

4 Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

Portfolio of Investments

August 31, 2009 (unaudited)

Principal
Amount

          

    

 

Value


U.S. TREASURY--33.9%

U.S. Treasury Bonds--14.0%

$

2,200,000

1

11.250%, 2/15/2015

$

3,172,984

5,500,000

7.250%, 5/15/2016 - 8/15/2022

7,070,594

2,050,000

8.750%, 5/15/2017

2,818,990

1,000,000

8.125%, 5/15/2021

1,402,187

39,500,000

6.250%, 8/15/2023 - 5/15/2030

49,288,202

4,000,000

7.125%, 2/15/2023

5,298,750

1,500,000

7.500%, 11/15/2024

2,088,281

9,200,000

7.625%, 2/15/2025

12,987,813

7,000,000

6.875%, 8/15/2025

9,311,093

10,848,000

5.375%, 2/15/2031

12,697,246

8,000,000

3.500%, 2/15/2039

7,072,500


TOTAL

113,208,640


U.S. Treasury Notes--19.9%

82,500,000

1

4.250%, 10/15/2010 - 8/15/2015

88,000,081

5,500,000

4.875%, 4/30/2011

5,871,895

5,000,000

0.875%, 5/31/2011

5,005,860

24,400,000

4.750%, 5/31/2012

26,633,151

9,500,000

2.625%, 6/30/2014

9,623,946

18,380,000

5.125%, 5/15/2016

20,844,787

4,100,000

4.500%, 5/15/2017

4,470,281


TOTAL

160,450,001


TOTAL U.S. TREASURY (IDENTIFIED COST $254,297,030)

273,658,641


GOVERNMENT AGENCIES--37.2%

Federal Farm Credit System--0.6%

5,000,000

5.410%, 4/17/2036

5,121,010


Federal Home Loan Bank System--15.3%

1,300,000

7.375%, 2/12/2010

1,340,747

4,450,000

7.625%, 5/14/2010

4,673,904

2,500,000

6.875%, 8/13/2010

2,649,849

3,000,000

5.125%, 9/10/2010

3,137,073

32,000,000

1.625%, 1/21/2011 - 7/27/2011

32,303,661

35,000,000

1.875%, 6/20/2012

35,187,169

12,000,000

3.625%, 10/18/2013

12,579,320

Principal
Amount

   

    

 

Value


GOVERNMENT AGENCIES--continued

Federal Home Loan Bank System--continued

$

15,100,000

4.750%, 9/11/2015

$

16,245,173

14,000,000

5.375%, 5/18/2016

15,621,886


TOTAL

123,738,782


Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation--12.9%

33,000,000

4.750%, 1/18/2011 - 1/19/2016

35,353,171

40,000,000

1

2.000%, 4/27/2012

40,279,688

18,000,000

4.500%, 1/15/2015

19,426,896

5,000,000

5.125%, 11/17/2017

5,493,250

70,000

6.750%, 9/15/2029

87,932

3,000,000

5.625%, 11/23/2035

3,091,797


TOTAL

103,732,734


Federal National Mortgage Association--3.3%

10,000,000

1.700%, 4/29/2011

10,076,427

10,000,000

4.000%, 1/18/2013

10,378,899

6,000,000

2.875%, 12/11/2013

6,116,146


TOTAL

26,571,472


Tennessee Valley Authority Bond--5.1%

37,550,000

5.500%, 7/18/2017

41,375,774


TOTAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES (IDENTIFIED COST $297,898,482)

300,539,772


MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES--15.2%

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation--8.9%

25,277,745

6.000%, 7/1/2021 - 9/1/2038

26,819,000

15,023,000

4.500%, 11/1/2023 - 7/1/2024

15,452,564

26,161,792

5.500%, 2/1/2036 - 11/1/2038

27,328,369

2,238,545

6.500%, 8/1/2037

2,390,410


TOTAL

71,990,343


Federal National Mortgage Association--6.2%

8,440

7.500%, 6/1/2012

8,908

13,293,596

5.000%, 12/1/2023 - 3/1/2024

13,878,694

7,492,779

5.500%, 8/1/2035 - 8/1/2037

7,844,858

10,652,940

6.500%, 11/1/2036 - 9/1/2037

11,420,677

16,220,171

6.000%, 1/1/2037 - 10/1/2037

17,123,073


TOTAL

50,276,210


Principal
Amount
or Shares

   

    

 

Value


MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES--continued

Government National Mortgage Association--0.1%

$

52,469

7.500%, 10/15/2026 - 10/15/2027

$

57,801

376,421

7.000%, 8/15/2027

411,196

46,130

8.000%, 10/15/2027

50,969

211,074

6.500%, 10/15/2031

228,361


TOTAL

748,327


TOTAL MORTGAGE-BACKED SECURITIES (IDENTIFIED COST $117,040,599)

123,014,880


COLLATERALIZED MORTGAGE OBLIGATIONS--1.5%

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation REMIC--1.5%

11,076,000

REMIC 2939 DK, 5.500%, 2/15/2030

11,669,066


Federal National Mortgage Association REMIC--0.0%

18,655

REMIC 1988-16 B, 9.500%, 6/25/2018

21,021

8,189

REMIC 1989-35 G, 9.500%, 7/25/2019

9,341


TOTAL

30,362


TOTAL COLLATERALIZED MORTGAGE OBLIGATIONS
(IDENTIFIED COST $11,270,880)

11,699,428


FDIC GUARANTEED DEBT--6.3%

12,500,000

Citibank NA, 1.500%, 7/12/2011

12,585,186

28,000,000

Citibank NA, 1.375%, 8/10/2011

28,121,650

10,000,000

General Electric Capital Corp., 3.000%, 12/9/2011

10,359,952


TOTAL FDIC GUARANTEED DEBT (IDENTIFIED COST $50,743,514)

51,066,788


MUTUAL FUND--5.2%

41,806,008

2,3,4

Government Obligations Fund, Institutional Shares, 0.11%
(AT NET ASSET VALUE)

41,806,008


TOTAL INVESTMENTS--99.3% (IDENTIFIED COST $773,056,513)5

801,785,517


OTHER ASSETS AND LIABILITIES -- NET--0.7%6

5,773,271


TOTAL NET ASSETS--100%

$

807,558,788


1 All or a portion of these securities are temporarily on loan to unaffiliated broker/dealers.

2 Affiliated company.

3 7-Day net yield.

4 All or a portion of this security is held as collateral for securities lending.

5 The cost of investments for federal tax purposes amounts to $772,930,256.

6 Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities. See Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

Note: The categories of investments are shown as a percentage of total net assets at August 31, 2009.

Various inputs are used in determining the value of the Fund’s investments. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:

Level 1--quoted prices in active markets for identical securities

Level 2--other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)

Level 3--significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments)

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.

The following is a summary of the inputs used, as of August 31, 2009, in valuing the Fund’s assets carried at fair value:

Valuation Inputs


    

Level 1--
Quoted
Prices and
Investments in
Mutual Funds

    

Level 2--
Other
Significant
Observable
Inputs

    

Level 3--
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs

    

Total


Debt Securities:


U.S. Treasury

$--

$273,658,641

$--

$273,658,641


Government Agencies

--

300,539,772

--

300,539,772


Mortgage-Backed Securities

--

123,014,880

--

123,014,880


Collateralized Mortgage Obligations

--

11,699,428

--

11,699,428


FDIC Guaranteed Debt

--

51,066,788

--

51,066,788


Mutual Fund

41,806,008

--

--

41,806,008


TOTAL SECURITIES

$41,806,008

$759,979,509

$--

$801,785,517


The following acronym is used throughout this portfolio:

REMIC

--Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit

See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Statement of Assets and Liabilities

August 31, 2009 (unaudited)

Assets:

    

    

Total investments in securities, at value including $41,806,008 of investments in an affiliated issuer (Note 5) and $8,098,773 of securities loaned (identified cost $773,056,513)

$

801,785,517

Income receivable

4,981,834

Receivable for investments sold

9,194,829

Receivable for shares sold

1,296,938


TOTAL ASSETS

817,259,118


Liabilities:

Payable for shares redeemed

$

745,905

Income distribution payable

569,604

Payable for collateral due to broker for securities lending

8,307,000

Payable for Directors’/Trustees’ fees

727

Payable for distribution services fee (Note 5)

12,753

Payable for shareholder services fee (Note 5)

24,136

Accrued expenses

40,205


TOTAL LIABILITIES

9,700,330


Net assets for 71,226,841 shares outstanding

$

807,558,788


Net Assets Consist of:

Paid-in capital

$

778,559,167

Net unrealized appreciation of investments

28,729,004

Accumulated net realized gain on investments and futures contracts

406,198

Distributions in excess of net investment income

(135,581

)


TOTAL NET ASSETS

$

807,558,788


Net Asset Value, Offering Price and Redemption Proceeds Per Share

Institutional Shares:

$637,737,713 ÷ 56,248,617 shares outstanding, no par value, unlimited shares authorized

$11.34


Institutional Service Shares:

$169,821,075 ÷ 14,978,224 shares outstanding, no par value, unlimited shares authorized

$11.34


See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Statement of Operations

Six Months Ended August 31, 2009 (unaudited)

Investment Income:

    

    

    

 

Dividends received from an affiliated issuer (Note 5)

$

44,667

Interest (including income on securities loaned of $105,992)

15,553,417


TOTAL INCOME

15,598,084


Expenses:

Investment adviser fee (Note 5)

$

1,428,485

Administrative personnel and services fee (Note 5)

305,828

Custodian fees

15,591

Transfer and dividend disbursing agent fees and expenses

96,531

Directors’/Trustees’ fees

6,906

Auditing fees

11,847

Legal fees

4,191

Portfolio accounting fees

80,755

Distribution services fee--Institutional Service Shares (Note 5)

214,859

Shareholder services fee--Institutional Service Shares (Note 5)

195,348

Account administration fee--Institutional Service Shares

9,399

Share registration costs

30,353

Printing and postage

13,392

Insurance premiums

2,533

Miscellaneous

5,620


TOTAL EXPENSES

2,421,638


Waivers and Reimbursement (Note 5):

Waiver/reimbursement of investment adviser fee

$

(951,335

)

Waiver of administrative personnel and services fee

(5,591

)

Waiver of distribution services fee--Institutional Service Shares

(127,497

)


TOTAL WAIVERS AND REIMBURSEMENT

(1,084,423

)


Net expenses

1,337,215


Net investment income

14,260,869


Realized and Unrealized Loss on Investments:

Net realized loss on investments

(1,858,468

)

Net change in unrealized appreciation of investments

(3,559,835

)


Net realized and unrealized loss on investments

(5,418,303

)


Change in net assets resulting from operations

$

8,842,566


See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Statement of Changes in Net Assets

    

Six Months
Ended
(unaudited)
8/31/2009

   

Year Ended
2/28/2009


Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets

Operations:

Net investment income

$

14,260,869

$

25,101,683

Net realized gain (loss) on investments and futures contracts

(1,858,468

)

9,671,573

Net change in unrealized appreciation/depreciation of investments and futures contracts

(3,559,835

)

(613,788

)


CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS

8,842,566

34,159,468


Distributions to Shareholders:

Distributions from net investment income

Institutional Shares

(11,507,780

)

(20,508,847

)

Institutional Service Shares

(2,935,894

)

(4,743,215

)


CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS

(14,443,674

)

(25,252,062

)


Share Transactions:

Proceeds from sale of shares

352,671,349

288,352,586

Net asset value of shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared

10,551,344

14,875,704

Cost of shares redeemed

(158,680,757

)

(273,869,965

)


CHANGE IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM SHARE TRANSACTIONS

204,541,936

29,358,325


Change in net assets

198,940,828

38,265,731


Net Assets:

Beginning of period

608,617,960

570,352,229


End of period (including undistributed (distributions in excess of) net investment income of $(135,581) and $47,224, respectively)

$

807,558,788

$

608,617,960


See Notes which are an integral part of the Financial Statements

Notes to Financial Statements

August 31, 2009 (unaudited)

1. ORGANIZATION

Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund (the “Trust”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Act”), as a diversified, open-end management investment company. The Trust offers two classes of shares: Institutional Shares and Institutional Service Shares. All shares of the Trust have equal rights with respect to voting, except on class-specific matters. The investment objective of the Trust is to pursue total return consistent with current income.

2. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The following is a summary of significant accounting policies consistently followed by the Trust in the preparation of its financial statements. These policies are in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).

Investment Valuation

In calculating its net asset value (NAV), the Trust generally values investments as follows:

  • Fixed-income securities acquired with remaining maturities greater than 60 days are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Board of Trustees (the “Trustees”).
  • Fixed-income securities acquired with remaining maturities of 60 days or less are valued at their cost (adjusted for the accretion of any discount or amortization of any premium).
  • Shares of other mutual funds are valued based upon their reported NAVs.
  • Derivative contracts listed on exchanges are valued at their reported settlement or closing price.
  • Over-the-counter (OTC) derivative contracts are fair valued using price evaluations provided by a pricing service approved by the Trustees.

If the Trust cannot obtain a price or price evaluation from a pricing service for an investment, the Trust may attempt to value the investment based upon the mean of bid and asked quotations or fair value the investment based on price evaluations, from one or more dealers. If any price, quotation, price evaluation or other pricing source is not readily available when the NAV is calculated, the Trust uses the fair value of the investment determined in accordance with the procedures described below. There can be no assurance that the Trust could purchase or sell an investment at the price used to calculate the Trust’s NAV.

Fair Valuation and Significant Events Procedures

The Trustees have authorized the use of pricing services to provide evaluations of the current fair value of certain investments for purposes of calculating the NAV. Factors considered by pricing services in evaluating an investment include the yields or prices of investments of comparable quality, coupon, maturity, call rights and other potential prepayments, terms and type, reported transactions, indications as to values from dealers, and general market conditions. Some pricing services provide a single price evaluation reflecting the bid-side of the market for an investment (a “bid” evaluation). Other pricing services offer both bid evaluations and price evaluations indicative of a price between the prices bid and asked for the investment (a “mid” evaluation). The Trust normally uses bid evaluations for U.S. Treasury and Agency securities and mortgage-backed securities. The Trust normally uses mid evaluations for other types of fixed-income securities and OTC derivative contracts. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the fair value of the investment is determined in accordance with procedures adopted by the Trustees.

The Trustees also have adopted procedures requiring an investment to be priced at its fair value whenever the Adviser determines that a significant event affecting the value of the investment has occurred between the time as of which the price of the investment would otherwise be determined and the time as of which the NAV is computed. An event is considered significant if there is both an affirmative expectation that the investment’s value will change in response to the event and a reasonable basis for quantifying the resulting change in value. Examples of significant events that may occur after the close of the principal market on which a security is traded, or after the time of a price evaluation provided by a pricing service or a dealer, include:

  • With respect to price evaluations of fixed-income securities determined before the close of regular trading on the NYSE, actions by the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee and other significant trends in U.S. fixed-income markets;
  • Political or other developments affecting the economy or markets in which an issuer conducts its operations or its securities are traded; and
  • Announcements concerning matters such as acquisitions, recapitalizations, litigation developments, a natural disaster affecting the issuer’s operations or regulatory changes or market developments affecting the issuer’s industry.

The Trust may seek to obtain more current quotations or price evaluations from alternative pricing sources. If a reliable alternative pricing source is not available, the Trust will determine the fair value of the investment using another method approved by the Trustees.

Repurchase Agreements

It is the policy of the Trust to require the other party to a repurchase agreement to transfer to the Trust’s custodian or sub-custodian eligible securities or cash with a market value (after transaction costs) at least equal to the repurchase price to be paid under the repurchase agreement. The eligible securities are transferred to accounts with the custodian or sub-custodian in which the Trust holds a “securities entitlement” and exercises “control” as those terms are defined in the Uniform Commercial Code. The Trust has established procedures for monitoring the market value of the transferred securities and requiring the transfer of additional eligible securities if necessary to equal at least the repurchase price. These procedures also allow the other party to require securities to be transferred from the account to the extent that their market value exceeds the repurchase price or in exchange for other eligible securities of equivalent market value.

With respect to agreements to repurchase U.S. government securities and cash items, the Trust treats the repurchase agreement as an investment in the underlying securities and not as an obligation of the other party to the repurchase agreement. Other repurchase agreements are treated as obligations of the other party secured by the underlying securities. Nevertheless, the insolvency of the other party or other failure to repurchase the securities may delay the disposition of the underlying securities or cause the Trust to receive less than the full repurchase price. Under the terms of the repurchase agreement, any amounts received by the Trust in excess of the repurchase price and related transaction costs must be remitted to the other party.

The Trust may enter into repurchase agreements in which eligible securities are transferred into joint trading accounts maintained by the custodian or sub-custodian for investment companies and other clients advised by the Trust’s Adviser and its affiliates. The Trust will participate on a pro rata basis with the other investment companies and clients in its share of the securities transferred under such repurchase agreements and in its share of proceeds from any repurchase or other disposition of such securities.

Investment Income, Gains and Losses, Expenses and Distributions

Investment transactions are accounted for on a trade-date basis. Realized gains and losses from investment transactions are recorded on an identified cost basis. Interest income and expenses are accrued daily. Dividend income and distributions to shareholders are recorded on the ex-dividend date. Inflation adjustments on Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) are included in interest income. Distributions of net investment income are declared daily and paid monthly. Non-cash dividends included in dividend income, if any, are recorded at fair value. Investment income, realized and unrealized gains and losses, and certain fund-level expenses are allocated to each class based on relative average daily net assets, except that each class may bear certain expenses unique to that class such as account administration, distribution services and shareholder services fees. Dividends are declared separately for each class. No class has preferential dividend rights; differences in per share dividend rates are generally due to differences in separate class expenses.

Premium and Discount Amortization/Paydown Gains and Losses

All premiums and discounts on fixed-income securities, other than mortgage-backed securities, are amortized/accreted. Gains and losses realized on principal payment of mortgage-backed securities (paydown gains and losses) are classified as part of investment income.

Federal Taxes

It is the Trust’s policy to comply with the Subchapter M provision of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and to distribute to shareholders each year substantially all of its income. Accordingly, no provision for federal income tax is necessary. The Trust complies with the provisions of Financial Accounting Standards Board Interpretation No. 48, “Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes”. As of and during the six months ended August 31, 2009, the Trust did not have a liability for any uncertain tax positions. The Trust recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to tax liabilities as income tax expense in the Statement of Operations. As of August 31, 2009, tax years 2006 through 2009 remain subject to examination by the Trust’s major tax jurisdictions, which include the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

When-Issued and Delayed Delivery Transactions

The Trust may engage in when-issued or delayed delivery transactions. The Trust records when-issued securities on the trade date and maintains security positions such that sufficient liquid assets will be available to make payment for the securities purchased. Securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis are marked to market daily and begin earning interest on the settlement date. Losses may occur on these transactions due to changes in market conditions or the failure of counterparties to perform under the contract.

The Trust may transact in To Be Announced Securities (TBAs). As with other delayed delivery transactions, a seller agrees to issue TBAs at a future date. However, the seller does not specify the particular securities to be delivered. Instead, the Trust agrees to accept any security that meets specified terms such as issuer, interest rate and terms of underlying mortgages. The Trust records TBAs on the trade date utilizing information associated with the specified terms of the transaction as opposed to the specific mortgages. TBAs are marked to market daily and begin earning interest on the settlement date. Losses may occur due to the fact that the actual underlying mortgages received may be less favorable than those anticipated by the Trust.

Futures Contracts

The Trust may periodically purchase and sell financial futures contracts to enhance yield, manage duration and cash flows and to potentially reduce transaction costs. Upon entering into a financial futures contract with a broker, the Trust is required to deposit in a segregated account a specified amount of cash or U.S. government securities. Futures contracts are valued daily and unrealized gains or losses are recorded in a “variation margin” account. Daily, the Trust receives from or pays to the broker a specified amount of cash based upon changes in the variation margin account. When a contract is closed, the Trust recognizes a realized gain or loss. Futures contracts have market risks, including the risk that the change in the value of the contract may not correlate with the changes in the value of the underlying securities. There is minimal counterparty risk to the Trust since futures are exchange traded and the exchange’s clearinghouse, as counterparty to all exchange traded futures, guarantees the futures against default.

At August 31, 2009, the Trust had no outstanding futures contracts.

Dollar-Roll Transactions

The Trust may engage in dollar-roll transactions in which the Trust sells mortgage-backed securities with a commitment to buy similar (same type, coupon and maturity), but not identical mortgage-backed securities on a future date at a lower price. Normally, one or both securities involved are TBA mortgage-backed securities. The Trust treats dollar-roll transactions as purchases and sales. Dollar-rolls are subject to interest rate risks and credit risks.

Securities Lending

The Trust participates in a securities lending program providing for the lending of government securities to qualified brokers. The Trust normally receives cash collateral for securities loaned that is invested in an affiliated money market fund or in short-term securities including repurchase agreements. Collateral is maintained at a minimum level of 100% of the market value of investments loaned, plus interest, if applicable. Earnings on collateral are allocated between the securities lending agent, as a fee for its services under the program, and the Trust, according to agreed-upon rates.

As of August 31, 2009, securities subject to this type of arrangement and related collateral were as follows:

Market Value of
Securities Loaned

    

Market Value
of Collateral


$8,098,773

$8,307,000


Other

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts of assets, liabilities, expenses and revenues reported in the financial statements. Actual results could differ from those estimated.

3. SHARES OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST

The following tables summarize share activity:

 

    

Six Months Ended
8/31/2009

 

    

Year Ended
2/28/2009

 


Institutional Shares:

    

Shares

 

    

Amount

 

    

Shares

 

    

 

Amount

 


Shares sold

 

24,890,676

 

$

285,911,202

17,021,400

$

190,414,858

Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared

 

686,006

 

 

7,781,992

 

 

945,614

 

 

10,531,966

 

Shares redeemed

 

(10,208,867

)

(115,611,661

)

(17,977,727

)

(201,885,639

)


NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM INSTITUTIONAL SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

15,367,815

 

$

178,081,533

(10,713

)

$

(938,815

)


 

 

    

Six Months Ended
8/31/2009

 

    

Year Ended
2/28/2009

 


Institutional Service Shares:

   

Shares

   

Amount

   

Shares

 

    

 

Amount

 


Shares sold

5,862,682

$

66,760,147

8,708,394

$

97,937,728

Shares issued to shareholders in payment of distributions declared

 

243,832

 

 

 

2,769,352

 

 

389,858

 

 

 

4,343,738

 

Shares redeemed

(3,805,887

)

(43,069,096

)

(6,445,663

)

(71,984,326

)


NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM INSTITUTIONAL SERVICE SHARE TRANSACTIONS

2,300,627

$

26,460,403

2,652,589

$

30,297,140


NET CHANGE RESULTING FROM FUND SHARE TRANSACTIONS

 

17,668,442

 

 

$

204,541,936

 

 

2,641,876

 

 

$

29,358,325

 


4. FEDERAL TAX INFORMATION

At August 31, 2009, the cost of investments for federal tax purposes was $772,930,256. The net unrealized appreciation of investments for federal tax purposes was $28,855,261. This consists of net unrealized appreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of value over cost of $30,010,507 and net unrealized depreciation from investments for those securities having an excess of cost over value of $1,155,246.

5. INVESTMENT ADVISER FEE AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH AFFILIATES

Investment Adviser Fee

Federated Investment Management Company is the Trust’s investment adviser (the “Adviser”). The advisory agreement between the Trust and the Adviser provides for an annual fee equal to 0.30% of the Trust’s average daily net assets. Prior to April 30, 2009, the advisory agreement between the Trust and the Adviser provided for an annual fee equal to 0.50% of the Trust’s average daily net assets. The Adviser may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. The Adviser can modify or terminate this voluntary waiver at any time at its sole discretion. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, the Adviser voluntarily waived $834,828 of its fee.

Administrative Fee

Federated Administrative Services (FAS), under the Administrative Services Agreement, provides the Trust with administrative personnel and services. The fee paid to FAS is based on the average aggregate daily net assets of certain Federated funds as specified below:


Administrative Fee

    

Average Aggregate Daily Net Assets
of the Federated Funds


0.150%

on the first $5 billion


0.125%

on the next $5 billion


0.100%

on the next $10 billion


0.075%

on assets in excess of $20 billion


The administrative fee received during any fiscal year shall be at least $150,000 per portfolio and $40,000 per each additional class of Shares. FAS may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. FAS can modify or terminate this voluntary waiver at any time at its sole discretion. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, the net fee paid to FAS was 0.076% of average daily net assets of the Trust. FAS waived $5,591 of its fee.

Distribution Services Fee

The Trust has adopted a Distribution Plan (the “Plan”) pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Act. Under the terms of the Plan, the Trust will compensate Federated Securities Corp. (FSC), the principal distributor, from the daily net assets of the Trust’s Institutional Service Shares to finance activities intended to result in the sale of these shares. The Plan provides that the Trust may incur distribution expenses at 0.25% of average daily net assets, annually, to compensate FSC. FSC may voluntarily choose to waive any portion of its fee. FSC can modify or terminate this voluntary waiver at any time at its sole discretion. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, FSC voluntarily waived $127,497 of its fee. When FSC receives fees, it may pay some or all of them to financial intermediaries whose customers purchase shares. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, FSC retained $87,361 of fees paid by the Trust.

Shareholder Services Fee

The Trust may pay fees (Service Fees) up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the Trust’s Institutional Service Shares to financial intermediaries or to Federated Shareholder Services Company (FSSC) for providing services to shareholders and maintaining shareholder accounts. FSSC may voluntarily reimburse the Trust for shareholder services fees. This voluntary reimbursement can be modified or terminated at any time. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, FSSC received $430 of fees paid by the Trust. An amendment to the Plan to reduce the shareholder services fee for the Trust’s Institutional Shares from 0.25% to 0.00% became effective for the Trust on April 30, 2009. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, the Trust’s Institutional Shares did not incur a shareholder services fee.

General

Certain Officers and Trustees of the Trust are Officers and Directors or Trustees of the above companies.

Transactions with Affiliated Companies

Affiliated holdings are mutual funds which are managed by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser. The Adviser has agreed to reimburse the Trust for certain investment adviser fees as a result of transactions in other affiliated mutual funds. For the six months ended August 31, 2009, the Adviser reimbursed $116,507. Transactions with the affiliated company during the six months ended August 31, 2009 were as follows:

Affiliate

    

Balance of
Shares Held
2/28/2009

    

Purchases/
Additions

    

Sales/
Reductions

    

Balance of
Shares Held
8/31/2009

    

Value

    

Dividend
Income


Government Obligations Fund, Institutional Shares

223,032,642

823,010,302

1,004,236,936

41,806,008

$41,806,008

$44,667


6. INVESTMENT TRANSACTIONS

Purchases and sales of investments, excluding long-term U.S. government securities and short-term obligations, for the six months ended August 31, 2009, were as follows:


Purchases

    

$

92,253,697


Sales

$

--


7. LINE OF CREDIT

The Trust participates in a $100,000,000 unsecured, uncommitted revolving line of credit (LOC) agreement with PNC Bank. The LOC was made available for extraordinary or emergency purposes, primarily for financing redemption payments. Borrowings are charged interest at a rate offered to the Trust by PNC Bank at the time of the borrowing. As of August 31, 2009, there were no outstanding loans. During the six months ended August 31, 2009, the Trust did not utilize the LOC.

8. INTERFUND LENDING

Pursuant to an Exemptive Order issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Trust, along with other funds advised by subsidiaries of Federated Investors, Inc., may participate in an interfund lending program. This program provides an alternative credit facility allowing the funds to borrow from other participating affiliated funds. As of August 31, 2009, there were no outstanding loans. During the six months ended August 31, 2009, the program was not utilized.

9. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

Since October 2003, Federated Investors, Inc. and related entities (collectively, “Federated”), and various Federated funds (“Federated Funds”) have been named as defendants in several class action lawsuits now pending in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. The lawsuits were purportedly filed on behalf of people who purchased, owned and/or redeemed shares of Federated-sponsored mutual funds during specified periods beginning November 1, 1998. The suits are generally similar in alleging that Federated engaged in illegal and improper trading practices including market timing and late trading in concert with certain institutional traders, which allegedly caused financial injury to the mutual fund shareholders. These lawsuits began to be filed shortly after Federated’s first public announcement that it had received requests for information on shareholder trading activities in the Federated Funds from the SEC, the Office of the New York State Attorney General (“NYAG”), and other authorities. In that regard, on November 28, 2005, Federated announced that it had reached final settlements with the SEC and the NYAG with respect to those matters. As Federated previously reported in 2004, it has already paid approximately $8.0 million to certain funds as determined by an independent consultant. As part of these settlements, Federated agreed to pay for the benefit of fund shareholders additional disgorgement and a civil money penalty in the aggregate amount of an additional $72 million. Federated entities have also been named as defendants in several additional lawsuits that are now pending in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, alleging, among other things, excessive advisory and Rule 12b-1 fees. The Board of the Federated Funds retained the law firm of Dickstein Shapiro LLP to represent the Federated Funds in these lawsuits. Federated and the Federated Funds, and their respective counsel have been defending this litigation, and none of the Federated Funds remains a defendant in any of the lawsuits (though some could potentially receive any recoveries as nominal defendants). Additional lawsuits based upon similar allegations may be filed in the future. The potential impact of these lawsuits, all of which seek unquantified damages, attorneys’ fees and expenses, and future potential similar suits is uncertain. Although we do not believe that these lawsuits will have a material adverse effect on the Federated Funds, there can be no assurance that these suits, the ongoing adverse publicity and/or other developments resulting from the regulatory investigations will not result in increased Federated Fund redemptions, reduced sales of Federated Fund shares, or other adverse consequences for the Federated Funds.

10. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

Management has evaluated subsequent events through October 20, 2009, the date the financial statements were issued, and determined that no events have occurred that require additional disclosure.

Evaluation and Approval of Advisory
Contract--May 2009

FEDERATED TOTAL RETURN GOVERNMENT BOND FUND (THE FUND)

The Fund’s Board reviewed the Fund’s investment advisory contract at meetings held in May 2009. The Board’s decision regarding the contract reflects the exercise of its business judgment on whether to continue the existing arrangements.

In this connection, the Federated funds’ Board had previously appointed a Senior Officer, whose duties include specified responsibilities relating to the process by which advisory fees are to be charged to a Federated fund. The Senior Officer has the authority to retain consultants, experts, or staff as may be reasonably necessary to assist in the performance of his duties, reports directly to the Board, and may be terminated only with the approval of a majority of the independent members of the Board. The Senior Officer prepared and furnished to the Board an independent, written evaluation that covered topics discussed below. The Board considered that evaluation, along with other information, in deciding to approve the advisory contract.

During its review of the contract, the Board considered compensation and benefits received by the Adviser. This included the fees received for services provided to the Fund by other entities in the Federated organization and research services received by the Adviser from brokers that execute Federated fund trades, as well as advisory fees. The Board is also familiar with and considered judicial decisions concerning allegedly excessive investment advisory fees, which have indicated that the following factors may be relevant to an Adviser’s fiduciary duty with respect to its receipt of compensation from a fund: the nature and quality of the services provided by the Adviser, including the performance of the fund; the Adviser’s cost of providing the services; the extent to which the Adviser may realize “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger; any indirect benefits that may accrue to the Adviser and its affiliates as a result of the Adviser’s relationship with a fund; performance and expenses of comparable funds; and the extent to which the independent Board members are fully informed about all facts the Board deems relevant bearing on the Adviser’s services and fees. The Board further considered management fees (including any components thereof) charged to institutional and other clients of the Adviser for what might be viewed as like services, and the cost to the Adviser and its affiliates of supplying services pursuant to the management fee agreements, excluding any intra-corporate profit and profit margins of the Adviser and its affiliates for supplying such services. The Board was aware of these factors and was guided by them in its review of the Fund’s advisory contract to the extent it considered them to be appropriate and relevant, as discussed further below.

The Board considered and weighed these circumstances in light of its substantial accumulated experience in governing the Fund and working with Federated on matters relating to the Federated funds, and was assisted in its deliberations by independent legal counsel. Throughout the year, the Board has requested and received substantial and detailed information about the Fund and the Federated organization that was in addition to the extensive materials that comprise and accompany the Senior Officer’s evaluation. Federated provided much of this information at each regular meeting of the Board, and furnished additional reports in connection with the particular meeting at which the Board’s formal review of the advisory contract occurred. Between regularly scheduled meetings, the Board also received information on particular matters as the need arose. Thus, the Board’s consideration of the advisory contract included review of the Senior Officer’s evaluation, accompanying data and additional reports covering such matters as: the Adviser’s investment philosophy, revenue, profitability, personnel and processes; investment and operating strategies; the Fund’s short- and long-term performance (in absolute terms, both on a gross basis and net of expenses, as well as in relationship to its particular investment program and certain competitor or “peer group” funds and/or other benchmarks, as appropriate), and comments on the reasons for performance; the Fund’s investment objectives; the Fund’s expenses (including the advisory fee itself and the overall expense structure of the Fund, both in absolute terms and relative to similar and/or competing funds, with due regard for contractual or voluntary expense limitations); the use and allocation of brokerage commissions derived from trading the Fund’s portfolio securities (if any); and the nature, quality and extent of the advisory and other services provided to the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates. The Board also considered the preferences and expectations of Fund shareholders and their relative sophistication; the continuing state of competition in the mutual fund industry and market practices; the range of comparable fees for similar funds in the mutual fund industry; the Fund’s relationship to the Federated family of funds which include a comprehensive array of funds with different investment objectives, policies and strategies which are available for exchange without the incurrence of additional sales charges; compliance and audit reports concerning the Federated funds and the Federated companies that service them (including communications from regulatory agencies), as well as Federated’s responses to any issues raised therein; and relevant developments in the mutual fund industry and how the Federated funds and/or Federated are responding to them. The Board’s evaluation process is evolutionary. The criteria considered and the emphasis placed on relevant criteria change in recognition of changing circumstances in the mutual fund marketplace.

With respect to the Fund’s performance and expenses in particular, the Board has found the use of comparisons to other mutual funds with comparable investment programs to be particularly useful, given the high degree of competition in the mutual fund business. The Board focused on comparisons with other similar mutual funds more heavily than non-mutual fund products or services because it is believed that they are more relevant. For example, other mutual funds are the products most like the Fund, they are readily available to Fund shareholders as alternative investment vehicles, and they are the type of investment vehicle in fact chosen and maintained by the Fund’s investors. The range of their fees and expenses therefore appears to be a generally reliable indication of what consumers have found to be reasonable in the precise marketplace in which the Fund competes. The Fund’s ability to deliver competitive performance when compared to its peer group was a useful indicator of how the Adviser is executing the Fund’s investment program, which in turn assisted the Board in reaching a conclusion that the nature, extent, and quality of the Adviser’s investment management services were such as to warrant continuation of the advisory contract. In this regard, the Senior Officer has reviewed Federated’s fees for providing advisory services to products outside the Federated family of funds (e.g., institutional and separate accounts). He concluded that mutual funds and institutional accounts are inherently different products. Those differences include, but are not limited to, different types of targeted investors; being subject to different laws and regulations; different legal structures; different average account sizes; different associated costs; different portfolio management techniques made necessary by different cash flows; and portfolio manager time spent in review of securities pricing. The Senior Officer did not consider these fee schedules to be determinative in judging the appropriateness of mutual fund advisory contracts.

The Senior Officer reviewed reports compiled by Federated, using data supplied by independent fund ranking organizations, regarding the performance of, and fees charged by, other mutual funds, noting his view that comparisons to fund peer groups are highly important in judging the reasonableness of proposed fees.

For the one-year, three-year and five-year periods covered by the report, the Fund’s performance was above the median of the relevant peer group.

The Board also received financial information about Federated, including reports on the compensation and benefits Federated derived from its relationships with the Federated funds. These reports covered not only the fees under the advisory contracts, but also fees received by Federated’s subsidiaries for providing other services to the Federated funds under separate contracts (e.g., for serving as the Federated funds’ administrator). The reports also discussed any indirect benefit Federated may derive from its receipt of research services from brokers who execute Federated fund trades. In addition, the Board considered the fact that, in order for a fund to be competitive in the marketplace, Federated and its affiliates frequently waived fees and/or reimbursed expenses and have disclosed to fund investors and/or indicated to the Board their intention to do so in the future, where appropriate. Moreover, the Board receives regular reports regarding the institution or elimination of these voluntary waivers. In this regard, it was noted that in November 2008, the Fund’s contractual advisory fee was reduced by 20 basis points.

Federated furnished reports, requested by the Senior Officer, that reported revenues on a fund-by-fund basis and made estimates of the allocation of expenses on a fund-by-fund basis, using allocation methodologies specified by the Senior Officer. The Senior Officer noted that, although they may apply consistent allocation processes, the inherent difficulties in allocating costs (and the unavoidable arbitrary aspects of that exercise) and the lack of consensus on how to allocate those costs may render such allocation reports unreliable. The allocation reports were considered in the analysis by the Board but were determined to be of limited use.

The Board and the Senior Officer also reviewed a report compiled by Federated comparing profitability information for Federated to other publicly held fund management companies. In this regard, the Senior Officer noted the limited availability of such information, but nonetheless concluded that Federated’s profit margins did not appear to be excessive and the Board agreed.

The Senior Officer’s evaluation also discussed the notion of possible realization of “economies of scale” as a fund grows larger. The Board considered in this regard that the Adviser has made significant and long-term investments in areas that support all of the Federated funds, such as personnel and processes for the portfolio management, compliance, and risk management functions; and systems technology; and that the benefits of these efforts (as well as any economies, should they exist) were likely to be enjoyed by the fund complex as a whole. Finally, the Board also noted the absence of any applicable regulatory or industry guidelines on this subject, which (as discussed in the Senior Officer’s evaluation) is compounded by the lack of any common industry practice or general pattern with respect to structuring fund advisory fees with “breakpoints” that serve to reduce the fee as the fund attains a certain size. The Senior Officer did not recommend institution of breakpoints in pricing Federated’s fund advisory services at this time.

It was noted in the materials for the Board meeting that for the period covered by the report, the Fund’s investment advisory fee, after waivers and expense reimbursements, if any, was below the median of the relevant peer group. The Board reviewed the fees and other expenses of the Fund with the Adviser and was satisfied that the overall expense structure of the Fund remained competitive.

The Senior Officer’s evaluation noted his belief that the information and observations contained in his evaluation supported a finding that the proposed management fees are reasonable, and that Federated appeared to provide appropriate administrative services to the Fund for the fees paid. Under these circumstances, no changes were recommended to, and no objection was raised to, the continuation of the Fund’s advisory contract. The Board concluded that the nature, quality and scope of services provided the Fund by the Adviser and its affiliates were satisfactory.

In its decision to continue an existing investment advisory contract, the Board was mindful of the potential disruptions of the Fund’s operations and various risks, uncertainties and other effects that could occur as a result of a decision to terminate or not renew an advisory contract. In particular, the Board recognized that many shareholders have invested in the Fund on the strength of the Adviser’s industry standing and reputation and with the expectation that the Adviser will have a continuing role in providing advisory services to the Fund. Thus, the Board’s approval of the advisory contract reflected the fact that it is the shareholders who have effectively selected the Adviser by virtue of having invested in the Fund.

The Board based its decision to approve the advisory contract on the totality of the circumstances and relevant factors and with a view to past and future long-term considerations. Not all of the factors and considerations identified above were necessarily relevant to the Fund, nor did the Board consider any one of them to be determinative. With respect to the factors that were relevant, the Board’s decision to approve the contract reflects its determination that Federated’s performance and actions provided a satisfactory basis to support the decision to continue the existing arrangements.

Voting Proxies on Fund Portfolio Securities

A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies, if any, relating to securities held in the Fund’s portfolio is available, without charge and upon request, by calling 1-800-341-7400. A report on “Form N-PX” of how the Fund voted any such proxies during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available from Federated’s Web site at FederatedInvestors.com. To access this information from the “Products” section of the Web site, click on the “Prospectuses and Regulatory Reports” link under “Related Information,” then select the appropriate link opposite the name of the Fund; or select the name of the Fund and from the Fund’s page, click on the “Prospectuses and Regulatory Reports” link. Form N-PX filings are also available at the SEC’s Web site at www.sec.gov.

Quarterly Portfolio Schedule

The Fund files with the SEC a complete schedule of its portfolio holdings, as of the close of the first and third quarters of its fiscal year, on “Form N-Q.” These filings are available on the SEC’s Web site at www.sec.gov and may be reviewed and copied at the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, DC. (Call 1-800-SEC-0330 for information on the operation of the Public Reference Room.) You may also access this information from the “Products” section of Federated’s Web site at FederatedInvestors.com by clicking on “Portfolio Holdings” under “Related Information,” then selecting the appropriate link opposite the name of the Fund; or select the name of the Fund and from the Fund’s page, click on the “Portfolio Holdings” link.

Mutual funds are not bank deposits or obligations, are not guaranteed by any bank, and are not insured or guaranteed by the U.S. government, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other government agency. Investment in mutual funds involves investment risk, including the possible loss of principal.

This report is authorized for distribution to prospective investors only when preceded or accompanied by the Trust’s prospectus, which contains facts concerning its objective and policies, management fees, expenses, and other information.

IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT FUND DOCUMENT DELIVERY

In an effort to reduce costs and avoid duplicate mailings, the Fund(s) intend to deliver a single copy of certain documents to each household in which more than one shareholder of the Fund(s) resides (so-called “householding”), as permitted by applicable rules. The Fund’s “householding” program covers its/their Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, and supplements to each, as well as Semi-Annual and Annual Shareholder Reports and any Proxies or information statements. Shareholders must give their written consent to participate in the “householding” program. The Fund is also permitted to treat a shareholder as having given consent (“implied consent”) if (i) shareholders with the same last name, or believed to be members of the same family, reside at the same street address or receive mail at the same post office box, (ii) the Fund gives notice of its intent to “household” at least sixty (60) days before it begins “householding” and (iii) none of the shareholders in the household have notified the Fund(s) or their agent of the desire to “opt out” of “householding.” Shareholders who have granted written consent, or have been deemed to have granted implied consent, can revoke that consent and opt out of “householding” at any time: shareholders who purchased shares through an intermediary should contact their representative; other shareholders may call the Fund at 1-800-341-7400.

 

Federated Investors
World-Class Investment Manager

Federated Securities Corp., Distributor

Cusip 31429A105
Cusip 31429A204

G01393-01 (10/09)

Federated is a registered mark of Federated Investors, Inc.
2009 © Federated Investors, Inc.

 

Item 2.                      Code of Ethics

Not Applicable
 
Item 3.                      Audit Committee Financial Expert

Not Applicable
 
Item 4.                      Principal Accountant Fees and Services

Not Applicable

Item 5.                      Audit Committee of Listed Registrants

Not Applicable

Item 6.                      Schedule of Investments

Not Applicable

Item 7.
Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies

 
Not Applicable

Item 8.
Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies

 
Not Applicable

Item 9.
Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers

 
Not Applicable

Item 10.                      Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders

Not Applicable

Item 11.                                Controls and Procedures

(a) The registrant’s President and Treasurer have concluded that the
registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in rule 30a-3(c) under the Act) are effective in design and operation and are sufficient to form the basis of the certifications required by Rule 30a-(2) under the Act, based on their evaluation of these disclosure controls and procedures within 90 days of the filing date of this report on Form N-CSR.

(b) There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in rule 30a-3(d) under the Act) during the last fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Item 12.                                Exhibits













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.

Registrant
Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund
   
By
/S/ Richard A. Novak
 
Richard A. Novak
 
Principal Financial Officer
Date
October 20, 2009
   
   
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
/S/ J. Christopher Donahue
 
J. Christopher Donahue
 
Principal Executive Officer
Date
October 20, 2009
   
   
By
/S/ Richard A. Novak
 
Richard A. Novak
 
Principal Financial Officer
Date
October 20, 2009


EX-99.CERT 2 cert302.htm Unassociated Document

N-CSR Item 12(a)(2) - Exhibits: Certifications


I, J. Christopher Donahue, certify that:

1.  
I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund ("registrant");

2.  
Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement 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 this report;

3.  
Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.  
The registrant's other certifying officers 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 registrant 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 this 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 second fiscal quarter of the period covered by this report 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 officers and I have disclosed to the registrant's auditors and the audit committee of the 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 the 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 the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.




Date: October 20, 2009
/S/ J. Christopher Donahue
J. Christopher Donahue, President - Principal Executive Officer


N-CSR Item 12(a)(2) - Exhibits: Certifications


I, Richard A. Novak, certify that:

1.  
I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund ("registrant");

2.  
Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement 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 this report;

3.  
Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.  
The registrant's other certifying officers 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 registrant 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 this 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 second fiscal quarter of the period covered by this report 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 officers and I have disclosed to the registrant's auditors and the audit committee of the 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 the 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 the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.




Date: October 20, 2009
/S/ Richard A. Novak
Richard A. Novak, Treasurer - Principal Financial Officer

EX-99.906.CERT 3 cert906.htm Unassociated Document

N-CSR Item 12(b) - Exhibits: Certifications

SECTION 906 CERTIFICATION

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C.§ 1350, the undersigned officers of Federated Total Return Government Bond Fund (Registrant”), hereby certify, to the best of our knowledge, that the Registrant’s Report on Form N-CSR for the period ended August 31, 2009(the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d), as applicable, of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 and that the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Registrant.


Dated: October 20, 2009

/s/ J. Christopher Donahue
Name: J. Christopher Donahue
Title: President, Principal Executive Officer



Dated: October 20, 2009

/s/ Richard A. Novak
Name: Richard A. Novak
Title: Treasurer, Principal Financial Officer

This certification is being furnished solely pursuant to 18 U.S.C.§ 1350 and is not being filed as part of the Report or as a separate disclosure document.


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