BSBAX
Short Bond Fund
Northern Funds
Expense ratio1
0.41%
Net assets2
$188.43M
Holdings2
240
Category
Allocation
2025 return3
5.64%

Investment objective & strategy

As of July 29, 2025 · prospectus

Objective. The Fund seeks to maximize total return (capital appreciation and income) with minimal reasonable risk.

Strategy. The Fund will seek capital appreciation and current income in its attempt to maximize total return. In doing so, the Fund will invest, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets in bonds and other fixed-income securities. These may include: ? Obligations of the U.S. government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, including obligations issued by private issuers that are guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities; ? Obligations of U.S. state and local governments, and foreign governments; ? Obligations of domestic and foreign banks and corporations; ? Debentures and convertible securities; ? Mortgage and other asset-backed securities; ? Inflation-indexed securities; ? Stripped securities evidencing ownership of future interest or … The Fund will seek capital appreciation and current income in its attempt to maximize total return. In doing so, the Fund will invest, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets in bonds and other fixed-income securities. These may include: ? Obligations of the U.S. government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, including obligations issued by private issuers that are guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities; ? Obligations of U.S. state and local governments, and foreign governments; ? Obligations of domestic and foreign banks and corporations; ? Debentures and convertible securities; ? Mortgage and other asset-backed securities; ? Inflation-indexed securities; ? Stripped securities evidencing ownership of future interest or principal payments on debt obligations; and ? Repurchase agreements relating to the above instruments. The Fund may also seek to obtain exposure to these securities through investments in affiliated or unaffiliated investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Although the Fund will generally invest primarily in investment grade domestic debt obligations (i.e., obligations rated within the top four rating categories by a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (NRSRO) or of comparable quality as determined by NTI), it may also invest up to 20% of its total assets in domestic and foreign debt obligations that are rated below-investment grade (commonly referred to as junk bonds). Credit ratings are determined at the time of purchase. The Fund may also invest in securities that are subject to resale restrictions such as those contained in Rule 144A promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933. In buying and selling securities for the Fund, NTI uses a relative value approach. This approach involves an analysis of general economic and market conditions. It also involves the use of models that analyze and compare expected returns and assumed risks. Under the relative value approach, NTI will emphasize particular securities and types of securities (such as treasury, agency, asset-backed, mortgage-related and corporate securities) that the team believes will provide a favorable return in light of these risks. The Funds dollar-weighted average maturity, under normal circumstances, will range between one and three years. From time to time the Fund may have a focused investment (i.e., investment exposure comprising more than 15% of its total assets) in one or more particular sectors. As of March 31, 2025, the Fund had focused investments in the financials and industrials sectors. NTI may engage in active trading, and will not consider portfolio turnover a limiting factor in making decisions for the Fund. In seeking to achieve its investment objective, the Fund may invest in U.S. Treasury futures, which are considered to be derivative instruments, for various purposes, including to manage duration, credit and interest rate risks, and for cash management.

Top holdings

As of March 31, 2026 · N-PORT
SecurityTickerValue% of fund
FUT. U.S. T-BONDS JUN26 $77.38M 41.06%
U.S. Treasury Bills $9.71M 5.15%
US TREASURY N/B $8.85M 4.70%
US TREASURY N/B $4.46M 2.37%
US TREASURY N/B $3.64M 1.93%
JPMCC 2019-COR5 A4 $3.57M 1.89%
FORDR 2021-1 C FORDR $3.45M 1.83%
Northern Institutional Funds GOVT PTFL BNGXX $2.53M 1.34%
ONEOK INC $2.22M 1.18%
IQVIA INC SR SECURED 02/29 6.25 IQV $2.21M 1.17%
View all holdings →

Allocation by sector

As of March 31, 2026 · N-PORT
View portfolio breakdown →

Portfolio moves

Dec 31, 2025 → Mar 31, 2026
Opened
41
Exited
42
Increased
2
Decreased
67
Unchanged
130

How many positions this fund opened, exited, grew, trimmed, or left unchanged between its two most recent N-PORT snapshots — net changes between point-in-time reports, not a trade log.

View portfolio moves →

Similar funds

Funds whose portfolios most overlap this one, by weight
FundOverlapNet exp.
LOW-DURATION BOND FUND · GLDYX, GLDZX 28% 0.38%
Fixed Income Fund · NOFIX 26% 0.45%
Core Bond Fund · NOCBX 25% 0.42%
View all similar funds →

Advisers

As of March 31, 2025 · N-CEN
FirmRole
NORTHERN TRUST INVESTMENTS, INC. Adviser

Footnotes

  1. Expense ratio as of July 29, 2025, from the fund's prospectus.
  2. Net assets and holdings count as of March 31, 2026, from the fund's N-PORT filing.
  3. Total return for calendar year 2025, before tax and after fund expenses. Computed by compounding the twelve monthly total returns the fund reported in its SEC N-PORT filings for 2025 (the latest prospectus does not yet chart this year).

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