Since the launch of its first fund in 1937, Putnam Investments has come a long way. It is now a well-established specialist investment manager backed by Franklin Templeton following its acquisition in January 2024. Putnam had approximately $162.3 billion in assets under management as of December 2025.
It has a global presence in North America, Europe and Asia, with key offices in Boston, London and Singapore, and its investment capabilities are extended through Franklin Templeton’s broader international infrastructure.
Below, we share with you three top-ranked Putnam mutual funds, namely Putnam U.S. Research PLJMX, Putnam Large Cap Value Fund PEQLX and Putnam Small Cap Growth PSGRX. Each has earned a Zacks Mutual Fund Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and is expected to outperform its peers in the future. Investors can click here to see the complete list of funds.
Putnam U.S. Research usually invests the majority of its net assets, including any investment borrowings, in equity securities of U.S.-based companies. Any change to this policy requires prior notice to shareholders.
Putnam U.S. Research has a three-year annualized return of 20.5%. As of October 2025, PLJMX held 136 issues, with 7.3% of its net assets invested in Microsoft.
Putnam Large Cap Value Fund primarily seeks capital growth and income by investing mainly in undervalued stocks, with advisors evaluating valuation, financial strength, growth potential, competitive position and future earnings, cash flows and dividends when making investment decisions.
Putnam Large Cap Value Fund has three-year annualized returns of 18%. PEQLX has an expense ratio of 0.62%.
Putnam Small Cap Growth invests primarily in common stocks of small U.S. companies, focusing on growth firms with strong earnings potential and characteristics that may drive stock price gains, similar to those in the Russell 2000 Growth Index.
Putnam Small Cap Growth has a three-year annualized return of 15.1%. William J. Monroe has been the fund manager of PSGRX since 2017.
To view the Zacks Rank and the past performance of all Putnam mutual funds, investors can click here to see the complete list of Putnam mutual funds.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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