September 1, 2013
as amended March 4, 2014
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Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks.
You can find the Funds prospectus, statement of additional information and other information about the Fund online at
www.franklintempleton.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236 or by
sending an e-mail request to prospectus@franklintempleton.com. The Fund's prospectus and statement of additional information, both dated September 1, 2013, as may be supplemented, are all incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.
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Class A
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Class C
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Class R6
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Advisor Class
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FBDIX
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Pending
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Pending
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FTDZX
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Franklin
Strategic Series
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SUMMARY PROSPECTUS
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Franklin Biotechnology
Discovery Fund
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Investment Goal
Capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
These tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts in Class A if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at
least $50,000 in Franklin Templeton funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and under Your Account on page 49 in the Fund's Prospectus and under Buying and Selling Shares on page 53 of the Funds
Statement of Additional Information.
SHAREHOLDER FEES
(fees paid directly from your investment)
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Class A
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Class C
1
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Class R6
2
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Advisor
Class
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Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as percentage of offering price)
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5.75%
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None
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None
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None
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Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as percentage of the lower of original purchase price or sale proceeds)
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None
3
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1.00%
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None
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None
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1. The Fund will begin offering Class C shares on March 4, 2014.
2. The Fund began offering Class R6 shares on May 1, 2013.
3. There is a 1% contingent deferred sales charge that applies to investments of $1 million or more (see "Sales Charges-Class
A" under "Choosing a Share Class") and purchases by certain retirement plans without an initial sales charge.
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
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(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
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Class A
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Class C
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Class R6
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Advisor
Class
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Management fees
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0.50%
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0.50%
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0.50%
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0.50%
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Distribution and service (12b-1) fees
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0.29%
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1.00%
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None
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None
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Other expenses
1
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0.42%
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0.42%
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0.21%
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0.42%
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Acquired fund fees and expenses
2
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0.01%
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0.01%
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0.01%
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0.01%
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Total annual Fund operating expenses
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1.22%
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1.93%
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0.72%
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0.93%
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Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement
3
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-0.01%
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-0.01%
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-0.01%
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-0.01%
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Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement
2
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1.21%
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1.92%
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0.71%
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0.92%
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1. Other expenses for Class R6 represent an estimate of expenses, including the effect of this Class's lower shareholder servicing
fees.
2. Total annual Fund operating expenses differ from the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights,
which reflect the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include acquired fund fees and expenses.
3. Management has contractually agreed in advance to reduce its fee as a result of the Fund's investment in a Franklin Templeton
money fund (acquired fund) for at least the next 12-month period. Contractual fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement agreements
may not be terminated during the term set forth above.
Example
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual
funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your
shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's
operating expenses remain the same. The Example reflects adjustments made to the Fund's operating expenses due to the fee
waiver and/or expense reimbursement by management for the 1 Year numbers only. Although your actual costs may be higher or
lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
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1 Year
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3 Years
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5 Years
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10 Years
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Class A
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$ 691
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$ 939
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$ 1,206
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$ 1,967
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Class C
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$ 295
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$ 605
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$ 1,041
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$ 2,254
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Class R6
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$ 73
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$ 229
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$ 400
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$ 894
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Advisor Class
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$ 94
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$ 295
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$ 514
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$ 1,143
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If you do not sell your shares:
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Class C
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$ 195
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$ 605
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$ 1,041
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$ 2,254
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Portfolio Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A
higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held
in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual Fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the
Fund's performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 33.64% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets in securities of biotechnology companies and
discovery research firms. The Fund predominantly invests in equity securities, primarily common stock. For the Funds investment purposes, a biotechnology
company or discovery research firm is one that has at least 50% of its earnings derived from biotechnology activities, or
at least 50% of its assets devoted to such activities, based on the companys most recent fiscal year. Biotechnology
activities are research, development, manufacture, and distribution of various biotechnological or biomedical products, services,
and processes. This may include companies involved with genomics, genetic engineering, and gene therapy. It also includes
companies involved in the application and development of biotechnology in areas such as health care, pharmaceuticals, and
agriculture. In addition to its investments in biotechnology companies, the Fund may also invest up to 20% of its net assets
in equity or debt securities of any type of foreign or U.S. issuer. The Fund is a "non-diversified" fund, which means it generally
invests a greater portion of its assets in the securities of one or more issuers and invests overall in a smaller number of
issuers than a diversified fund.
The Fund may invest a substantial portion of its assets in equity securities of smaller capitalization companies, which are
generally companies with market capitalizations of less than $1.5 billion at the time of the Funds investment.
The Fund anticipates that under normal conditions, it will invest more of its assets in U.S. securities than in securities
of any other single country. It is currently anticipated that the Funds investments in foreign securities will not exceed
20% of its total assets. The Fund may buy foreign securities that are traded in the U.S. or in foreign markets, as well as
American, European, and Global Depositary Receipts.
The investment manager is a research driven, fundamental investor, pursuing a growth strategy. As a "bottom-up" investor focusing
primarily on individual securities, the investment manager seeks companies that have identifiable drivers of future earnings
growth and that present, in the investment manager's opinion, the best trade-off between that potential earnings growth, business
and financial risk, and valuation.
Principal Risks
You could lose money by investing in the Fund. Mutual fund shares are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed
by, any bank, and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other agency
of the U.S. government.
Biotechnology Industry
The biotechnology industry is affected by government regulatory requirements, regulatory approval for new drugs and medical
products, patent considerations, product liability, and similar matters. In addition, this industry is characterized by competition
and rapid technological developments which may make a companys products or services obsolete in a short period of time.
In the past, the biotechnology sector has experienced considerable volatility in reaction to research and other business developments
which may affect only one, or a few companies within the sector. The market values of investments in the biotechnology industry
are often based upon speculation and expectations about future products, research progress, and new product filings with regulatory
authorities. In addition, compared to more developed industries, there may be a thin trading market in biotechnology securities.
Concentration
By focusing on an industry or a group of industries, the Fund carries much greater risks of adverse developments and price
movements in such industries than a fund that invests in a wider variety of industries. Because the Fund concentrates in a
specific industry or group of industries, there is also the risk that the Fund will perform poorly during a slump in demand
for securities of companies in such industries.
Market
The market values of securities owned by the Fund will go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. A securitys
market value may be reduced by market activity or other results of supply and demand unrelated to the issuer. This is a basic
risk associated with all securities. When there are more sellers than buyers, prices tend to fall. Likewise, when there are
more buyers than sellers, prices tend to rise.
Stock prices tend to go up and down more dramatically than those of debt securities. A slower-growth or recessionary economic
environment could have an adverse effect on the prices of the various stocks held by the Fund.
Growth Style Investing
Growth stock prices reflect projections of future earnings or revenues, and can, therefore, fall dramatically if the company
fails to meet those projections. Prices of these companies securities may be more volatile than other securities, particularly
over the short term.
Smaller Companies
Securities issued by smaller companies may be more volatile in price than those of larger companies, involve substantial risks
and should be considered speculative. Such risks may include greater sensitivity to economic conditions, less certain growth
prospects, lack of depth of management and funds for growth and development and limited or less developed product lines and
markets. In addition, smaller companies may be particularly affected by interest rate increases, as they may find it more
difficult to borrow money to continue or expand operations, or may have difficulty in repaying any loans.
Foreign Securities
Investing in foreign securities typically involves more risks than investing in U.S. securities, including risks related to
currency exchange rates and policies, country or government specific issues, less favorable trading practices or regulation
and greater price volatility. Certain of these risks also may apply to securities of U.S. companies with significant foreign
operations.
Non-Diversification
Because the Fund is non-diversified, it may be more sensitive to economic, business, political or other changes affecting
individual issuers or investments than a diversified fund, which may result in greater fluctuation in the value of the Funds
shares and greater risk of loss.
Management
The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed investment portfolio. The Fund's investment manager
applies investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee
that these decisions will produce the desired results.
The Fund is not managed to track a benchmark. Overweighting investments in an industry or group of industries relative to
the Funds benchmark increases the risk that the Fund will underperform its benchmark because a general decline in the
prices of stocks in that industry or group of industries will affect the Fund to a greater extent than its benchmark. Conversely,
if the Fund underweights its investment in an industry or group of industries relative to the Funds benchmark, the Fund
will participate in any general increase in the value of companies in that industry or group of industries to a lesser extent
than the Funds benchmark.
Performance
The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows changes
in the Fund's performance from year to year for Class A shares. The table shows how the Fund's average annual returns for
1 year, 5 years, 10 years or since inception, as applicable, compared with those of a broad measure of market performance. The Fund's past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the
future. You can obtain updated performance information at franklintempleton.com or by calling (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236.
The secondary index in the table below shows how the Fund's performance compares to a group of securities that aligns more
closely with the Fund's investment strategies.
Sales charges are not reflected in the bar chart, and if those charges were included, returns would be less than those shown.
CLASS A ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
Best Quarter:
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Q2'03
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22.17%
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Worst Quarter:
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Q1'05
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-15.75%
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As of June 30, 2013, the Fund's year-to-date return was 30.10%.
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AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
(figures reflect sales charges)
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For the periods ended December 31, 2013
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1 Year
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5 Years
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10 Years
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Franklin Biotechnology Discovery Fund - Class A
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Return Before Taxes
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21.90%
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9.14%
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10.50%
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Return After Taxes on Distributions
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21.87%
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8.65%
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10.26%
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Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares
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14.24%
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7.82%
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9.34%
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Franklin Biotechnology Discovery Fund - Advisor Class
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29.72%
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10.65%
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11.26%
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S&P 500
®
Index (index reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
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16.00%
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1.66%
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7.10%
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NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (index reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
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31.91%
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11.37%
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11.16%
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Performance information for Class R6 shares is not shown because this class did not have a full calendar year of operations
as of the date of this prospectus.
No one index is representative of the Fund's portfolio.
Historical performance for Class C and Advisor Class shares prior to their inception is based on the performance of Class
A shares. Class C and Advisor Class performance has been adjusted to reflect differences in sales charges and 12b-1 expenses
(with respect to Class C only) between classes.
The after-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not
reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ
from those shown. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements,
such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns are shown only for Class A and after-tax returns
for other classes will vary.
Investment Manager
Franklin Advisers, Inc. (Advisers)
Portfolio Managers
EVAN MCCULLOCH, CFA
Vice President of Advisers and portfolio manager of the Fund since 1997.
JEREL A. BANKS, M.D., PH.D.
Portfolio Manager of Advisers and portfolio manager of the Fund since 2012.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
You may purchase or redeem shares of the Fund on any business day online through our website at franklintempleton.com, by
mail (Franklin Templeton Investor Services, P.O. Box 997151, Sacramento, CA 95899-7151), or by telephone at (800) 632-2301.
The minimum initial purchase for most accounts is $1,000 (or $50 under an automatic investment plan).
Taxes
The Funds distributions are generally taxable to you as ordinary income, capital gains, or some combination of both,
unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account, in
which case your distributions would generally be taxed when withdrawn from the tax-deferred account.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related
companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict
of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another
investment. Ask your financial advisor or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.
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Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc.
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
franklintempleton.com
Franklin Biotechnology
Discovery Fund
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Investment Company Act file #811-06243
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© 2014 Franklin Templeton Investments. All rights reserved.
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402 PSUM 03/14
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00070449
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