| Nuveen | Summary Prospectus |
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
(formerly TIAA-CREF Social Choice Equity Fund)
MARCH 1, 2024, AS SUPPLEMENTED MAY 6, 2024 AND JUNE 18, 2024
Class: | Class R6 | Class I | Premier | Retirement | Class A |
Ticker: | TISCX | TICHX | TRPSX | TRSCX | TICRX |
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 Fund’s prospectus, reports to shareholders and other information about the Fund online at www.nuveen.com/prospectus. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 800-257-8787 or by sending an e-mail request to mutualfunds@nuveen.com. The Fund’s prospectus and Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”), each dated March 1, 2024, as subsequently supplemented, and the sections of the Fund’s shareholder report dated October 31, 2023 from “Summary Portfolio of Investments” through “Notes to Financial Statements,” are incorporated into this Summary Prospectus by reference and may be obtained free of charge at the website, phone number or e-mail address noted above.
Investment objective
The Fund seeks a favorable long-term total return that reflects the investment performance of the U.S. equity markets, as represented by the benchmark index, while giving special consideration to certain environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) criteria.
Fees and expenses
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund or in other Nuveen Mutual Funds. More information about these and other discounts, as well as eligibility requirements for each share class, is available from your financial advisor and in “How You Can Buy and Sell Shares” on page 127 of the Fund’s Prospectus and “Purchase and Redemption of Fund Shares” on page 104 of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information. In addition, more information about sales charge discounts and waivers for
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund ■ Summary Prospectus 1
purchases of shares through specific financial intermediaries is set forth in the appendix to the Fund’s Prospectus entitled “Variations in Sales Charge Reductions and Waivers Available Through Certain Intermediaries.”
The tables and examples below do not reflect any commissions that shareholders may be required to pay directly to their financial intermediaries when buying or selling Class I shares.
SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment)
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| Premier
| Retirement Class |
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Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering price) | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 5.75% | |||||
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | |||||
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on reinvested dividends and other distributions | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | |||||
Redemption or exchange fee | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | |||||
Annual low balance account fee | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | $15.00 |
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
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| Premier
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| Retirement
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Management fees | 0.15% |
| 0.15% |
| 0.15% |
| 0.15% |
| 0.15% |
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Distribution (Rule 12b-1) fees | — |
| — |
| 0.15% |
| — |
| 0.25% |
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Other expenses | 0.03% |
| 0.12% |
| 0.05% |
| 0.28% |
| 0.06% |
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Total annual Fund operating expenses | 0.18% |
| 0.27% |
| 0.35% |
| 0.43% |
| 0.46% |
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Waivers and expense reimbursements1 | — |
| — |
| — |
| — |
| — |
| |
Total annual Fund
operating expenses after | 0.18% |
| 0.27% |
| 0.35% |
| 0.43% |
| 0.46% |
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1 | Under the Fund’s expense reimbursement arrangements, the Fund’s investment adviser, Teachers Advisors, LLC, has contractually agreed to reimburse the Fund for any Total annual Fund operating expenses (excluding interest, taxes, brokerage commissions or other transactional expenses, Acquired fund fees and expenses and extraordinary expenses) that exceed: (i) 0.22% of average daily net assets for Class R6 shares; (ii) 0.37% of average daily net assets for Class I shares; (iii) 0.37% of average daily net assets for Premier Class shares; (iv) 0.47% of average daily net assets for Retirement Class shares; and (v) 0.57% of average daily net assets for Class A shares of the Fund. These expense reimbursement arrangements will continue through at least February 28, 2025, unless changed with approval of the Board of Trustees. |
Example
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in shares of 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 your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s
2 Summary Prospectus ■ Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
operating expenses, before fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, remain the same. The example assumes that the Fund’s fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement arrangements will each remain in place for the duration noted in the table above. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
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| Premier
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| Retirement
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1 year | $ | 18 |
| $ | 28 |
| $ | 36 |
| $ | 44 |
| $ | 619 |
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3 years | $ | 58 |
| $ | 87 |
| $ | 113 |
| $ | 138 |
| $ | 714 |
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5 years | $ | 101 |
| $ | 152 |
| $ | 197 |
| $ | 241 |
| $ | 818 |
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10 years | $ | 230 |
| $ | 343 |
| $ | 443 |
| $ | 542 |
| $ | 1,121 |
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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 fiscal year ended October 31, 2023, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 15% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal investment strategies
Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its assets in large-cap equity securities that meet the Fund’s ESG criteria. The Fund attempts to achieve the return of the U.S. stock market as represented by its benchmark, the S&P 500® Index, while taking into consideration certain ESG criteria, which include criteria relating to carbon emissions and fossil fuel reserves. See “Additional information about the Fund’s benchmark index” in the non-summary portion of the Prospectus for more information about the Fund’s benchmark. For purposes of the 80% investment policy, “large-cap” securities are equity securities that at the time of purchase have a market capitalization within the range of companies included in the S&P 500 Index and “assets” means net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes.
When selecting investments for the Fund, Teachers Advisors, LLC (“Advisors”), the Fund’s investment adviser, considers certain ESG criteria. The ESG criteria are generally implemented based on data provided by independent research vendor(s). The evaluation process favors companies with leadership in ESG performance relative to their peers. Typically, environmental assessment categories include climate change, natural resource use, waste management and environmental opportunities. Social evaluation categories include human capital, product safety and social opportunities. Governance assessment categories include corporate governance, business ethics and government and public policy. How well companies adhere to international norms and principles and involvement in major ESG controversies (examples of which may relate to the
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund ■ Summary Prospectus 3
environment, customers, human rights and community, labor rights and supply chain, and governance) are other considerations.
The ESG evaluation process is conducted on an industry-specific basis and involves the identification of key performance indicators, which are given more or less relative weight compared to the broader range of potential assessment categories. When ESG concerns exist, the evaluation process gives careful consideration to how companies address the risks and opportunities they face in the context of their sector or industry and relative to their peers. The Fund will not generally invest in companies significantly involved in certain business activities, including but not limited to the production of alcohol, tobacco, military weapons, firearms, nuclear power, thermal coal and gambling products and services.
In addition to the overall ESG performance evaluation, the Fund favors companies that (1) demonstrate leadership in managing and mitigating their current carbon emissions and (2) do not have evidence of fossil fuel reserves ownership, regardless of industry. The determination of leadership criteria takes into consideration company carbon emissions both in absolute terms (e.g., tons of carbon emitted directly into the atmosphere) and in relative terms (e.g., tons of carbon emitted per unit of economic output such as sales). Reserves are fossil fuel deposits that have not yet been extracted. Evidence of fossil fuel reserves ownership includes company disclosure and statements regarding ownership.
After the ESG evaluation process is conducted, Advisors then uses quantitative investment techniques to attempt to closely match, to the extent practicable, the overall risk characteristics of the benchmark index. Under these quantitative investment techniques, the Fund uses a risk model to evaluate the stocks in which the Fund may invest and to inform the construction of a broadly diversified group of stocks.
While Advisors generally invests in companies that meet the ESG criteria, it is not required to invest in every company that meets these criteria. In addition, concerns with respect to one ESG assessment category may not automatically eliminate an issuer from being considered an eligible Fund investment. The ESG criteria the Fund takes into consideration are non-fundamental investment policies and may be changed without the approval of the Fund’s shareholders.
The Board of Trustees of the Trust or a designated committee thereof (“Board of Trustees”) reviews the ESG criteria used to evaluate securities held by the Fund and the ESG vendor(s) that provide the data that help inform these criteria. Subject to Board review, Advisors has the right to change the ESG vendor(s) at any time and to add to the number of vendors providing the ESG data.
Investing on the basis of ESG criteria is qualitative and subjective by nature. There can be no assurance that every Fund investment will meet ESG criteria, or will do so at all times, or that the ESG criteria or any judgment exercised by Advisors will reflect the beliefs or values of any particular investor.
The Fund is not restricted from investing in any securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities. The Fund
4 Summary Prospectus ■ Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
may also invest in securities issued by other countries or their agencies or instrumentalities as approved by the Board of Trustees. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its assets in foreign investments.
Principal investment risks
You could lose money over short or long periods by investing in this Fund. An investment in the Fund, due to the nature of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, typically is subject to the following principal investment risks:
· ESG Risk—The risk that because the Fund’s ESG criteria exclude securities of certain issuers for nonfinancial reasons, the Fund may forgo some market opportunities available to funds that do not use these criteria.
· Low-Carbon Risk—The risk that because the Fund’s investment strategy includes a special emphasis on companies with low current carbon emissions and an absence of fossil fuel reserves ownership, the Fund’s portfolio might exclude certain issuers for nonfinancial reasons and the Fund may forgo some market opportunities that otherwise would be available.
· Market Risk—The risk that market prices of portfolio investments held by the Fund may fall rapidly or unpredictably due to a variety of factors, including changing economic, political or market conditions. Market risk may affect a single issuer, industry or sector of the economy, or it may affect the market as a whole. Such conditions may add significantly to the risk of volatility in the net asset value (“NAV”) of the Fund’s shares and adversely affect the Fund and its investments. From time to time, the Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in companies in one or more related sectors or industries, which would make the Fund more vulnerable to adverse developments affecting such sectors or industries. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in companies in the information technology sector, although this may change over time.
· Issuer Risk (often called Financial Risk)—The risk that an issuer’s earnings prospects, credit rating and overall financial position will deteriorate, causing a decline in the value of the issuer’s financial instruments over short or extended periods of time.
· Foreign Investment Risk—Foreign markets can be more volatile than the U.S. market due to increased risks of adverse issuer, political, regulatory, currency, market or economic developments as well as armed conflicts and can result in greater price volatility and perform differently from financial instruments of U.S. issuers. This risk may be heightened in emerging or developing markets. Foreign investments may also have lower liquidity and be more difficult to value than investments in U.S. issuers. Foreign investments may also be subject to risk of loss because of more or less foreign government regulation, less public information, less stringent investor protections and less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards. Changes in the value of foreign currencies may make the return on an investment increase or decrease,
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund ■ Summary Prospectus 5
unrelated to the quality or performance of the investment itself. The imposition of sanctions, exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions), confiscations, trade restrictions (including tariffs) and other restrictions by the United States or other governments may also negatively impact the Fund’s investments. Economic sanctions and other similar governmental actions or developments could, among other things, effectively restrict or eliminate the Fund’s ability to purchase or sell certain foreign securities or groups of foreign securities, and/or thus may make the Fund’s investments in such securities less liquid (or illiquid) or more difficult to value. The type and severity of sanctions and other measures that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict.
· Large-Cap Risk—The risk that large-capitalization companies are more mature and may grow more slowly than the economy as a whole and tend to go in and out of favor based on market and economic conditions.
· Mid-Cap Risk—The risk that the stocks of mid-capitalization companies often experience greater price volatility, lower trading volume and lower overall liquidity than the stocks of larger, more established companies.
· Small-Cap Risk—The risk that the stocks of small-capitalization companies often experience greater price volatility than large- or mid-sized companies because small-cap companies are often newer or less established than larger companies and are likely to have more limited resources, products and markets. Securities of small-cap companies often have lower overall liquidity than securities of larger companies as a result of there being a smaller market for their securities, which can have an adverse effect on the pricing of these securities and on the ability to sell these securities when Advisors deems it appropriate.
· Active Management Risk—The risk that Advisors’ strategy, investment selection or trading execution may cause the Fund to underperform relative to the benchmark index or mutual funds with similar investment objectives and may not produce expected returns.
· Benchmark Risk—The risk that the Fund’s performance may not correspond to its benchmark index for any period of time and may underperform such index or the overall financial market. Additionally, to the extent that the Fund’s investments vary from the composition of its benchmark index, the Fund’s performance could potentially vary from the index’s performance to a greater extent than if the Fund merely attempted to replicate the index.
· Quantitative Analysis Risk—The risk that stocks selected using quantitative modeling and analysis could perform differently from the market as a whole and the risk that such quantitative analysis and modeling may not adequately take into account certain factors, may contain design flaws or inaccurate assumptions and may rely on inaccurate data inputs, which may result in losses to the Fund.
6 Summary Prospectus ■ Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
Please see the non-summary portion of the Prospectus for more detailed information about the risks described above.
Past performance
The following chart and table help illustrate some of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year. The bar chart shows the annual total returns of Class R6 of the Fund, before taxes, in each full calendar year for the last ten years. Because the expenses vary across share classes, the performance of Class R6 may vary from the other share classes. Below the bar chart are the best and worst returns of Class R6 for a calendar quarter during the full calendar-year periods covered by the bar chart. The performance table following the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns for Class R6, Class I, Premier, Retirement and Class A classes over the applicable one-year, five-year, ten-year and since-inception periods ended December 31, 2023, and how those returns compare to those of the Fund’s benchmark index. After-tax performance is shown only for Class R6 shares, and after-tax returns for the other classes of shares will vary from the after-tax returns presented for Class R6 shares.
The returns shown below reflect previous agreements by Advisors to waive or reimburse the Fund for certain fees and expenses. Without these waivers and reimbursements, the returns of the Fund would have been lower. Past performance of the Fund (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how it will perform in the future. The benchmark index listed below is unmanaged, and you cannot invest directly in an index. The returns for the benchmark index reflect no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes.
For current performance information of each share class, including performance to the most recent month-end, please visit www.nuveen.com/performance or by calling 800-257-8787.
ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR CLASS R6 SHARES (%)
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
Best quarter: 22.26%, for the quarter ended June 30, 2020. Worst quarter: -20.49%, for the quarter ended March 31, 2020.
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund ■ Summary Prospectus 7
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
For the Periods Ended December 31, 2023
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| Inception date |
| One year |
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| Five years |
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| Ten years |
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Class R6 | 7/1/1999 |
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| Return before taxes |
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| 22.49 | % |
| 15.05 | % |
| 11.00 | % |
| Return after taxes on distributions |
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| 20.87 | % |
| 13.60 | % |
| 9.58 | % |
| Return after taxes on distributions and sale of |
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| Fund shares |
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| 14.38 | % |
| 11.91 | % |
| 8.69 | % |
Class I | 12/4/2015 |
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| Return before taxes |
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| 22.41 | % |
| 14.96 | % |
| 10.94 | %# |
Premier Class | 9/30/2009 |
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| Return before taxes |
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| 22.35 | % |
| 14.87 | % |
| 10.83 | % |
Retirement Class | 10/1/2002 |
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| Return before taxes |
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| 22.20 | % |
| 14.76 | % |
| 10.72 | % |
Class A* | 3/31/2006 |
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| Return before taxes |
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| 15.18 | % |
| 13.39 | % |
| 10.05 | % |
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S&P 500® Index |
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(reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) |
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| 26.29 | % |
| 15.69 | % |
| 12.03 | % | |
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Russell 3000® Index |
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(reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) |
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| 25.96 | % |
| 15.16 | % |
| 11.48 | % | |
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Current performance of the Fund’s shares may be higher or lower than that shown above. | |||||||||||
# | The performance shown for the Class I that is prior to its inception date is based on performance of the Class R6. The performance for these periods has not been restated to reflect the actual expenses of the Class I. If these actual expenses had been reflected, the performance of the Class I shown for these periods would have been different because the Class I has different expenses than the Class R6. | ||||||||||
* | The Class A average annual total returns have been restated to reflect a maximum up-front sales charge of 5.75% applicable to the purchase of Class A shares, which was effective as of May 6, 2024. | ||||||||||
After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates in effect during the periods shown and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(a), 401(k) or 403(b) plans or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). After-tax returns are shown for only one class, and after-tax returns for other classes will vary. | |||||||||||
Previously, the Fund compared its performance to the Russell 3000 Index, instead of the S&P 500 Index shown in the chart above. The returns of the S&P 500 Index are more appropriate for comparison purposes due to a change in the Fund’s investment strategies to attempt to achieve the return of the U.S. stock market as represented by the S&P 500 Index, while taking into consideration certain ESG criteria, which include criteria related to carbon emissions and fuel reserves.
8 Summary Prospectus ■ Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
Portfolio management
Investment Adviser. Teachers Advisors, LLC.
Portfolio Managers.
Name: | Philip James (Jim) Campagna, CFA | Darren Tran, CFA | Nazar Romanyak, CFA |
Title: | Managing Director | Managing Director | Senior Director |
Experience on Fund: | since 2005 | since 2022 | since 2024 |
Purchase and sale of Fund shares
You may purchase, redeem or exchange shares of the Fund on any day that the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) or its affiliated exchanges, NYSE Arca Equities or NYSE American, are open for trading (each such day a “Business Day”) directly from the Fund (for certain share classes) or through a financial advisor, employee benefit plan or other financial intermediary. The Fund’s initial and subsequent investment minimums generally are as follows, although certain financial intermediaries may impose their own investment minimums and the Fund may reduce or waive the minimums in some cases:
Eligibility and Minimum Initial Investment | Minimum Additional Investment | |
Class A | Availability only through certain financial intermediaries or by contacting the Fund directly as described in the Prospectus. $2,500 for all accounts except: · $2,000 for Traditional/Roth IRA accounts and Coverdell Education Savings Accounts. · $250 for accounts opened through fee-based program. · No minimum for retirement plans. | $100 |
Class R6 | Available only to certain eligible investors as described in the Prospectus and through fee-based programs. $1 million for all accounts except: · $1,000 for clients of financial intermediaries who charge such clients an ongoing fee for advisory, investment, consulting or related services. | No minimum. |
Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund ■ Summary Prospectus 9
Eligibility and Minimum Initial Investment | Minimum Additional Investment | |
Class I | Available only through fee-based programs and certain retirement plans, and to other limited categories of investors as described in the Prospectus. $100,000 for all accounts except: · $250 for clients of financial intermediaries and family offices that have accounts holding Class I shares with an aggregate value of at least $100,000 (or that are expected to reach this level). · No minimum for eligible retirement plans and certain other categories of eligible investors as described in the Prospectus. | No minimum. |
Premier Class, Retirement Class | Available only through certain employee benefit plans, other types of savings plans or accounts and certain financial intermediaries as described in the Prospectus. No minimum. | No minimum. |
Tax information
The Fund intends to make distributions to shareholders that may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains. Distributions made to tax-exempt shareholders or shareholders who hold Fund shares in a tax-deferred account are generally not subject to income tax in the current year, but redemptions made from tax-deferred accounts may be subject to income tax.
Payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediary compensation
If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and/or its related companies may pay the financial intermediary for providing investor services. The Fund’s related companies may also pay the financial 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 financial intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
10 Summary Prospectus ■ Nuveen Large Cap Responsible Equity Fund
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| Printed on paper containing recycled fiber | A11970 (6/24) |
A11970
(6/24)