Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio
Data updated: 2026-08-20
C000050283 — Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio. Long Total / Aggregate Bond · $1.40B AUM · 0.75% expense ratio. Holdings, fees, performance and SEC filings.
C000050283 Fund Overview
Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio is a US mutual fund managed by Northwestern Mutual Series Fund INC, categorised as Long Total / Aggregate Bond. ABC INVEST provides holdings, performance, costs, cashflows, risk data, prospectus documents and SEC filings, sourced from SEC filings.
- Type: US mutual fund
- Manager: Northwestern Mutual Series Fund INC
- Category: Long Total / Aggregate Bond
- Assets under management: $1.40B
- 1-year return: 7.3%
- SEC CIK: 0000742212
- SEC series ID: S000018235
- Share class ID: C000050283
C000050283 Investment Objective and Strategy
Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio describes its objective and strategy as follows, from its latest prospectus filed with the SEC by Northwestern Mutual Series Fund INC.
Investment objective
The investment objective of the Portfolio is to seek maximum total return, consistent with prudent investment management.
Principal investment strategy
Normally, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of net assets (plus any borrowings for investment purposes) in debt securities. The debt securities may be represented by forwards or derivatives such as options, futures contracts or swap agreements that have economic characteristics that are similar to the debt securities included in the 80% policy. The average portfolio duration of the Portfolio normally varies from three to eight years, based on the advisers forecast for interest rates. Duration is a measure of the sensitivity of the price of the Portfolios fixed income securities to changes in interest rates; the longer the duration, the more sensitive the price will be to changes in interest rates. The Portfolio may invest , without limitation, in high yield securities subject to a maximum of 10% of its total assets in securities rated below B by Moodys or equivalently rated by S&P or Fitch or, if unrated, determined by the Portfolios adviser to be of comparable quality.
High yield securities, commonly referred to as junk bonds, are non-investment grade securities. A security is considered to be non-investment grade when it is rated below investment grade by at least two of the three credit ratings agencies (BB+ or lower by S&P; Ba1 or lower by Moodys; BB+ or lower by Fitch) or , if unrated, determined by the Portfolios adviser to be of comparable quality. The Portfolio may invest, without limitation, in securities denominated in foreign currencies and U.S. dollar denominated securities of foreign issuers. In addition, the Portfolio may invest , without limitation, in fixed income securities of issuers that are economically tied to emerging securities markets. The Portfolio may invest in illiquid securities. The Portfolio may also invest up to 10% of its net assets in preferred stocks.
The Portfolio may invest , without limitation, in derivative instruments, such as options, futures contracts or swap agreements including the purchase or sale of credit defaults swaps, and interest rate swaps (to take a position on interest rates moving either up or down), in municipal bonds, contingent convertible securities, or in mortgage- or asset-backed securities, subject to the Portfolios objective and policies. The Portfolio may utilize currency forwards and currency options to manage or hedge currency exposure. The Portfolio may invest in mortgage- or asset-backed securities which are non-investment grade. Mortgage-backed securities may include residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities issued by a Federal agency and private label residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities.
The adviser may invest in derivatives at any time it deems appropriate, generally when relative value and liquidity conditions make these investments more attractive relative to cash bonds. The Portfolio may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued, delayed delivery or forward commitment basis and may engage in short sales. A short sale involves the sale of a security that is borrowed from a broker or other institution, and which must be purchased in the market at a later date and returned to the lender. The Portfolio may, without limitation, seek to obtain market exposure to the securities in which it primarily invests by entering into a series of purchase and sale contracts or by using other investment techniques (such as buy backs or dollar rolls). The Portfolio may invest in repurchase agreements; however, it may not invest more than 10% of its total assets in repurchase agreements which have maturities of more than seven days, nor invest in any repurchase agreements with maturities over 30 days.
The Portfolio may invest up to 10% of its net assets in fixed- and floating-rate loans, including senior loans, and such investments may be in the form of loan participations and assignments. Senior loans are considered speculative instruments. The total return sought by the Portfolio consists of income earned on the Portfolios investments, plus capital appreciation, if any, which generally arises from a decrease in interest rates or improving credit fundamentals for a particular sector or security. The Portfolio may engage in frequent and active trading of portfolio securities to achieve its investment objective, particularly during periods of volatile market movements. In selecting securities for a Portfolio, the adviser develops an outlook for interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates and the economy, analyzes credit and call risks, which involves both macro and fundamental analysis.
The proportion of a Portfolios assets committed to investment in securities with particular characteristics (such as quality, sector, interest rate or maturity) varies based on the advisers outlook for the U.S. and foreign economies, the financial markets and other factors. The adviser attempts to identify areas of the bond market that are undervalued relative to the rest of the market. The adviser identifies these areas by grouping bonds into the following sectors: money markets, governments, corporates, mortgages, asset-backed and international. Sophisticated proprietary software then assists in evaluating sectors and pricing specific securities. Once investment opportunities are identified, the adviser will shift assets among sectors depending upon changes in relative valuations and credit spreads.
The Portfolio may sell a position when, in the advisers opinion, it no longer represents a good value, when a superior risk/return opportunity exists in a substitute position, or when it no longer fits within the Portfolios macroeconomic or structural strategy.
C000050283 Holdings
Top 10 holdings of Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio by percentage of net assets, from the fund's latest SEC N-PORT filing.
| Holding | % of net assets |
|---|---|
| Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. | 3.49% |
| Umbs, Tba | 2.14% |
| Umbs, Tba | 2.03% |
| Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | 2.01% |
| Umbs, Tba | 1.45% |
| Titulos De Tesoreria | 1.43% |
| Umbs, Tba | 1.30% |
| United States Treasury | 1.28% |
| Cashmere Valley Bank | 1.24% |
| Umbs, Tba | 1.15% |
C000050283 Portfolio Allocation
Asset-class allocation of Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio by percentage of net assets, from the latest SEC N-PORT filing.
| Asset class | Allocation |
|---|---|
| Fixed Income | 64.6% |
| Securitized | 33.5% |
| Cash & Equivalents | 5.7% |
| Loans | 4.5% |
| Derivatives | 0.9% |
| Real Estate | 0.5% |
| Equity | 0.1% |
C000050283 Performance
Total returns for C000050283 (as of 2026-10-01), from SEC filings.
| Period | Total return |
|---|---|
| YTD | 2.1% |
| 1 year | 7.3% |
| 3 years (annualised) | 8.3% |
| 5 years (annualised) | 2.0% |
C000050283 Risk Information
Risk metrics for C000050283, derived from monthly returns in SEC filings.
- 1-year volatility (annualised): 3.5%
C000050283 Costs and Fees
C000050283 costs about $75 per $10,000 invested per year in fund expenses.
- Net expense ratio: 0.75%
- Gross expense ratio: 0.85%
- Portfolio turnover: 36%
- Brokerage commissions: 0.21 bps of average net assets (SEC N-CEN)
C000050283 Cashflows
Over the 12 months to 2026-06, Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio had net inflows of $54.04M, from monthly SEC N-PORT filings.
| Month | Net flow |
|---|---|
| 2026-06 | −$450.33K |
| 2026-05 | $1.36M |
| 2026-04 | −$2.14M |
| 2026-03 | −$2.83M |
| 2026-02 | −$1.46M |
| 2026-01 | −$4.29M |
C000050283 Debt Constituents
Largest debt holdings of Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio by percentage of net assets, from the latest SEC N-PORT filing.
| Debt holding | % of net assets |
|---|---|
| Titulos De Tesoreria | 1.43% |
| United States Treasury | 1.28% |
| Republic Of South Africa | 1.14% |
| European Union | 1.06% |
| United States Treasury | 1.04% |
| Argentina Republic Government International Bonds | 0.87% |
| Saudi International Bond | 0.71% |
| Romania | 0.56% |
| Saudi Government International Bonds | 0.55% |
| Abu Dhabi Government International Bonds | 0.50% |
C000050283 Prospectus and SEC Filings
Official Multi-Sector Bond Portfolio filings on SEC EDGAR — prospectus, portfolio holdings and annual reports.
- Prospectus (485BPOS) — filed 2026-04-24
- Prospectus (485BPOS) — filed 2025-04-25
- Prospectus supplement (497) — filed 2025-05-02
- Portfolio holdings (N-PORT) — filed 2026-08-20
- Portfolio holdings (N-PORT) — filed 2026-05-27
- Portfolio holdings (N-PORT) — filed 2026-02-23
- Annual census (N-CEN) — filed 2026-03-12
- Annual census (N-CEN) — filed 2025-03-11
Related Funds
Other Long Total / Aggregate Bond funds tracked on ABC INVEST:
Data Sources
ABC INVEST compiles this page from public filings made to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through EDGAR: portfolio holdings and monthly cashflows from Form N-PORT, expenses and returns from fund prospectuses (Form 485BPOS) and the SEC DERA Risk/Return Summary data sets, annual data from Form N-CEN, and shareholder reports from Form N-CSR.