Morningstar Upgrades Ratings on Three Northern Funds Tax-Exempt Funds

January 2009

Three Northern Funds tax-exempt funds received upgraded 5- or 4-star overall ratings from Morningstar as of December 31, 2008.

Northern Tax-Exempt Fund was awarded an overall five-star rating among 250 municipal national long-term funds.
Northern California Tax-Exempt Fund also received an overall five-star rating among 152 municipal California long-term funds.
Northern Intermediate Tax-Exempt Fund received a four-star overall rating among 237 municipal national intermediate funds.

View all Northern Funds that received 5- or 4-star Overall Morningstar Ratings.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Ratings reflect fee waivers in effect; in their absence, ratings may have been lower.

*Star ratings are based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a fund’s monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The overall rating is a weighted average of the 3-, 5-, and 10-year (if applicable) returns. 5 stars = top 10% of funds in an asset category; 4 stars = next 22.5% of funds; 3 stars = next 35%; 2 stars = next 22.5% and 1 star = next 10%. A fund must be in existence three years to be rated. Ratings are subject to change monthly.

Northern Tax-Exempt Fund received 5 stars for the 3-, 5- and 10-year periods as of December 31, 2008, among 250, 241 and 206 municipal national long-term funds, respectively. Northern California Tax-Exempt Fund received 5 stars for the 3- and 5-year periods and 4 stars for the 10-year period as of December 31, 2008, among 152, 145 and 115 municipal California long-term funds, respectively. Northern Intermediate Tax-Exempt Fund received 4 stars for the 3- and 5-year periods and 3 stars for the 10-year period among 237, 214 and 127 municipal national intermediate funds, respectively.

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Not FDIC insured | May lose value | No bank guarantee

An investment in Northern Funds is not insured by the FDIC, and is not a deposit or obligation of, or guaranteed by The Northern Trust Company or any affiliate. An investment in Northern Funds involves risks, including possible loss of principal.

Shares of Northern Funds are distributed by Northern Funds Distributors, LLC, not affiliated with Northern Trust.

Shares of the Northern Funds are offered only by a current Prospectus and are intended solely for persons to whom shares of US registered funds may be sold. This site shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of shares of the Northern Funds in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.