LOM Fixed Income Fund has been awarded three five-star ratings from Morningstar Inc. — the highest rating a fund can receive from the independent mutual fund analysis and ratings company — putting it in the top 10 percent of rated funds.

The fund received a five-star Overall Morningstar Rating, five-star Three-year Morningstar Ratingand five-star Five-year Morningstar Rating.

Morningstar calculates a rating based on risk-adjusted return measure that account for variation in a fund's monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads, and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance.

The top 10 percent of funds in each category receive five stars, the next 22.5 percent receive four stars, the next 35 percent receive three stars, the next 22.5 percent receive two stars and the bottom 10 percent receive one star.

The Overall Morningstar Ratingfor a fund is derived from a weighted average of performance figures associated with its three and five-year Morningstar Rating metrics. The LOM Fixed Income Fund was rated against 146 US dollar short bond funds.

Morningstar said that the LOM Fixed Income Fund is an absolute return, investment grade bond fund, with a short duration strategy that offers higher returns with low risk levels and is ideal for clients who require liquidity on short notice.

"These clients emphasise positive quarterly returns and have an objective of outperforming, over a market cycle, short term deposits, bonds and money funds," the report read.

"This is a particularly attractive area of the yield curve that has historically offered a consistent annual total rate of return.

"The LOM Fixed Income fund has been managed by Jon Heckscher since 2001. During this period the fund has never had an annual period of negative returns."