NATIONAL
MUNICIPAL FUND
blackrock.com/nm
Institutional: MANLX A: MDNLX C: MFNLX
2 0 17
The BlackRock National Municipal Fund has helped investors
by delivering a history of attractive income exempt from federal
income tax while providing strong risk-adjusted returns.
FUND HIGHLIGHT
High-Quality Municipal Holding
Commitment to Credit Research
Balancing Yield and Risk
Municipal bonds are exempt from federal
income tax, playing an important role in
protecting investment income. Today’s
market, however, requires more than
finding attractive tax-exempt yields; it
demands extensive credit research to
uncover value while keeping a careful eye
on risk. For over 30 years, credit research
has been the hallmark of the BlackRock
National Municipal Fund, a high-quality
municipal fund designed to generate a high
level of income exempt from federal income
taxes. This steadfast commitment has
prepared BlackRock for today’s market.
Senior Portfolio Manager Walter O’Connor
has led the fund since 1995 and has
over 29 years of municipal investment
experience. He is backed by 17 credit
analysts who produce proprietary analysis
and create internal ratings independent
of the major credit agencies. In addition to
employing BlackRock’s leading-edge risk
manage­ment capabilities, as one of the
largest municipal managers, BlackRock
provides investors access to institutional
quality, pricing and inventories.
The BlackRock National Municipal Fund
aims to provide a competitive after-tax
yield and above-average returns while
minimizing risk. To accomplish this
objective, the fund’s well-seasoned
credit research team focuses on finding
the right sectors and the right securities.
Over the last decade, the fund has
successfully balanced yield and risk,
delivering an attractive total return
relative to category averages.
THE BLACKROCK NATIONAL MUNICIPAL FUND HAS OUTPERFORMED WITH LESS RISK THAN PEERS
3-Year Annualized Return vs. Standard Deviation as of 3/31/17
RETURN
4.0%
Morningstar Muni National
Long Category Average
The Fund (A)
3.0
Morningstar Muni
Intermediate Category Average
Morningstar Quartile
Rankings* (Investor A)
Absolute Rank
As of 3/31/17
1 year
1st
41/286 funds
3 year
1st
44/256 funds
5 year
1st
28/224 funds
10 year
1st
11/150 funds
2.0
3 Yr.
3 Yr.
3 Yr.
Return Std. Dev Sharpe
The Fund (A@MSC)
MDNLX
1.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
RISK
4.0%
3.42
2.73
1.17
M* Intermediate Cat
2.71
3.06
0.83
M* National Long
3.67
3.51
0.98
Source: Lipper, Morningstar as of 3/31/17. Risk is represented by annualized standard deviation, a statistical measure of the volatility of return.
Total/Net, Including Investment Related expenses as stated in this fund’s most recent prospectus are 0.85%/0.70% for Investor A shares.
Performance data quoted represents past performance and is no guarantee of future results. Investment returns and principal values may fluctuate
so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than
that shown. All returns assume reinvestment of all dividend and capital gain distributions. Refer to blackrock.com for current month-end performance.
Investment returns reflect total fund operating expenses, net of all fees, waivers and/or expense reimbursements. The share classes have different sales
charges, fees and other features. The average annual total return for BlackRock National Municipal Fund Investor A shares as of 3/31/17 without/with
current maximum initial sales charge of 4.25%: 1 Year, 0.33% / -3.94%; 5 years, 3.44% / 2.54%; 10 years, 4.21% / 3.76%. Investment dividend expense,
interest expense, acquired fund fees and expenses and certain other fund expenses are included in the Net, Including Investment Related expenses.
Investor A shares have contractual waivers with an end date of 10/31/17 terminable upon 90 days’ notice.
Net excluding investment related annual fund expenses for Investor A shares are 0.69%. Investment dividend expense, interest expense, acquired fund
fees and expenses and certain other fund expenses are excluded in the Net, Excluding Investment Related expenses.
* Morningstar Category: Muni National Interm. Rankings are based on total return excluding sales charges, independently calculated and not combined to create an overall ranking.
20170427-149127-406192
SEC YIELD As of 3/31/17
4%
3.29%
2
1.86%
0
The Fund
Tax-Equivalent Yield
The unsubsidized 30-day SEC yield for BLK National Municipal Fund (A) as of 3/31/17 is 1.76%, and the
unsubsidized tax-equivalent yield is 3.10%.
30-day SEC Yield: A standard calculation of yield introduced by the SEC in order to provide fairer comparison among funds.
This yield reflects the interest earned after deducting the fund’s expenses during the most recent 30-day period by the average
investor in the fund. Negative 30-Day SEC Yield results when accrued expenses of the past 30 days exceed the income
collected during the past 30 days. Unsubsidized SEC Yield: Represents what a fund’s 30-Day SEC Yield would have been had
no fee waiver or expense reimbursement been in place over the period. Tax-equivalent yield assumes a 43.4% tax rate and is
shown for illustrative purposes only. Each individual’s tax burden will vary.
A HISTORY OF STRONG PERFORMANCE WHILE GENERATING
RETIREMENT INCOME2
Hypothetical growth of a $100,000 investment since fund inception under two scenarios
$1,200,000
Total Income Collected
Ending Value
$0
$1,255,256
$289,992
$398,353
— Buy & Hold
$1,000,000
— Taking Income
Portfolio Management
Walter O’Connor, CFA
Senior Portfolio Manager
30 years of investment experience
Michael Kalinoski, CFA
Senior Portfolio Manager
24 years of investment experience
Jim Schwartz, CFA
Lead Research Analyst
30 years of investment experience
OVERALL MORNINGSTAR RATING™
«««««
$800,000
$600,000
Institutional shares are rated against
256 Muni National Interm. Funds, as of
3/31/17 based on risk-adjusted total
return. Ratings are determined monthly
and subject to change.1
$400,000
$200,000
$0
12/79
12/84
12/89
12/94
12/99
12/04
12/09
Buy and Hold
03/17
Taking Income
Source: BlackRock. The “Taking Income” portfolio assumes an initial withdrawal of 4% of the
portfolio at the end of 1979 and each year that amount is increased by 3% to account for inflation.
As of 3/31/17.
Want to know more?
Institutional shares have limited
availability and may be purchased at
various minimums. See prospectus
for details.
blackrock.com/nm
Important Risks: The fund is actively managed and its characteristics will vary. Bond values fluctuate in price so the value of your investment can go down
depending on market conditions. Fixed income risks include interest-rate and credit risk. Typically, when interest rates rise, there is a corresponding decline
in bond values. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the bond issuer will not be able to make principal and interest payments. Non-investment-grade debt
securities (high-yield/junk bonds) may be subject to greater market fluctuations, risk of default or loss of income and principal than higher-rated securities.
The fund may use derivatives to hedge its investments or to seek to enhance returns. Derivatives entail risks relating to liquidity, leverage and credit that may
reduce returns and increase volatility. There may be less information on the financial condition of municipal issuers than for public corporations. The market for
municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. Some investors may be subject to Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). Capital gains distributions, if any,
are taxable.
1 The Morningstar RatingTM for funds, or “star rating”, is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closedend funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is
calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product’s monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations
and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive
2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-,
five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119
months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give
the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods. The fund was rated against the following
numbers of US-domiciled Muni National Long funds over the following time periods: 256 in the last 3 years, 224 in the last 5 years and 150 in the last 10 years. With respect to these Muni
National Interm. funds, the fund received a Morningstar Rating of 4, 5 and 5 stars for the 3-, 5- and 10-year periods, respectively. Other classes may have different performance characteristics.
2 Based on a hypothetical investment of $100,000 in Investor A shares on 11/2/79 with an initial sales charge of 3.25%, resulting in a net investment of $96,750, and assuming reinvestment
of all distributions. Performance for other share classes will vary. The actual inception date for Investor A shares is 10/21/94. Total returns for periods prior to Investor A inception are based on
the fund’s Institutional share returns, adjusted to reflect the higher A share fees. The inception date for the Institutional shares is 11/2/79. This information may be considered when assessing the
fund’s performance, but does not represent actual performance of the share class.
You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the fund carefully before investing. The prospectus and, if
available, the summary prospectus contain this and other information about the fund, and are available, along with information on other
BlackRock funds by calling 800-882-0052 or from your financial professional. The prospectus should be read carefully before investing.
©2017 BlackRock, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BLACKROCK is a registered trademark of BlackRock, Inc. All other trademarks are those of their respective owners.
Prepared by BlackRock Investments, LLC, member FINRA.
Not FDIC Insured • May Lose Value • No Bank Guarantee
Lit. No. NATMUNI-FHL-0317
008737A-0417
20170427-149127-406192