Fund Evaluator:
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst (CMNZX)
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Best Performing in Muni Minnesota Over the Last Year
| 8.5% | Sit MN Tax-Free Income (SMTFX) |
| 6.7% | Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst (CMNZX) |
| 4.3% | Fidelity Minnesota Municipal Income (FIMIX) |
Fund Details
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst Overview
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst (CMNZX) is an actively managed Municipal Bond Muni Minnesota fund. Columbia Threadneedle launched the fund in 2010.
The investment seeks to provide shareholders with a high level of income generally exempt from federal income tax as well as from Minnesota State and local tax. Under normal market circumstances, the fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in municipal obligations that are generally exempt from U.S. federal income tax as well as from Minnesota State and local income tax. It may invest in debt instruments of any maturity and does not seek to maintain a particular dollar-weighted average maturity. The fund is non-diversified.
About Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst (CMNZX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 1.59 years: Shannon Rinehart (2024), Doug Rangel (2025), Travis Bates (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: Bloomberg Municipal TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Bloomberg Municipal Minnesota TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has 242 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 19.2% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a nondiversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Municipal Bond fund group. Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has 0.9% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 97.3% (96.4% domestic bond, 0.9% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has 2.7% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $211 million in total assets, which is above the $148 million average for the Muni Minnesota category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
CMNZX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Muni Minnesota category. Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has an expense ratio of 0.56%, which is 34% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a B. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has a portfolio turnover rate of 13%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.1 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 19% for the Muni Minnesota category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst returned -2.6%, which earned it a grade of F, as the Muni Minnesota category had an average return of -2.1%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst has a trailing yield of 3.41%, which is above the 3.20% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt Inst Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned -0.1%, 0.2 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of D. The fund has returned 6.7% over the past year (grade of B), 3.5% over the past three years (grade of A) and -0.1% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 1.5% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
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CMNZX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| CMNZX Return (NAV) | -2.6% | -1.1% | 6.7% | 3.5% | -0.1% | 1.5% |
| CMNZX Grade | F | D | B | A | D | C |
| +/- Category | -0.5% | -0.3% | 0.8% | 0.5% | -0.2% | 0.2% |
| Muni Minnesota Avg | -2.1% | -0.8% | 5.8% | 3.0% | 0.1% | 1.4% |
| CMNZX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
CMNZX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| CMNZX Return (NAV) | -0.1% | 4.4% | 3.0% | 5.3% | -12.0% | 1.9% | 4.6% | 7.7% | 0.5% | 5.4% | 0.3% |
| CMNZX Grade | D | A | B | B | F | B | A | A | C | B | A |
| +/- Category | -0.2% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.5% | -2.7% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 0.1% | 0.7% | 0.4% |
| Muni Minnesota Avg | 0.2% | 3.7% | 2.2% | 4.8% | -9.3% | 1.3% | 4.0% | 6.7% | 0.4% | 4.7% | -0.1% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 7.3% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.59 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.19 - High |
| Category Risk Grade: | D (80% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.26 |
| R-Squared: | 98% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 3.4% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $483 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 212 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 13% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 2.0 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 1.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Rinehart Shannon (2024), Rangel Doug (2025), Bates Travis (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 242 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 19.2% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | Yes |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.9% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 96.4% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.9% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 2.7% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Columbia Threadneedle |
| Phone Number: | 800-345-6611 |
| Website: | www.columbiamanagement.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | September 27, 2010 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $2,000 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | 0.00% |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.56% ( Rating : Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.85% |
| Share Class: | Columbia Minnesota Tax-Exempt A |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
