Fund Evaluator:
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z (PDSZX)
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Best Performing in Muni National Short Over the Last Year
| 4.7% | PGIM Short Duration Muni Z (PDSZX) |
| 4.3% | BlackRock Short Duration Muni Inv A1 (MDLMX) |
| 4.0% | Vanguard Ltd-Term Tx-Ex Adm (VMLUX) |
| 3.9% | Vanguard Ltd-Term Tx-Ex (VMLTX) |
| 3.8% | T. Rowe Price Tax-Free Shrt-Interm (PRFSX) |
Fund Details
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z Overview
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z (PDSZX) is an actively managed Municipal Bond Muni National Short fund. PGIM launched the fund in 2014.
The investment seeks a high level of current income exempt from federal income taxes. The fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal conditions, at least 80% of its investable assets in municipal bonds that pay interest which is exempt from regular federal personal income tax. It seeks to maintain a weighted average portfolio duration of approximately four years or less.
About PGIM Short Duration Muni Z (PDSZX)
There are 4 members of the management team with an average tenure of 10.23 years: Lee Friedman (2014), John Dittemer (2014), Jason Appleson (2021), Robert Tipp (2014). 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 1-8 Year Municipal TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has 296 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 12.7% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Municipal Bond fund group. PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has 0.8% 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 91.9% (91.0% domestic bond, 0.8% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has 8.1% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $192 million in total assets, which is below the $630 million average for the Muni National Short 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.
PDSZX 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 PGIM Short Duration Muni Z expense ratio is below average compared to funds in the Muni National Short category. PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has an expense ratio of 0.32%, which is 45% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. 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. PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has a portfolio turnover rate of 65%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 51% for the Muni National Short category.
Recently, in the month of June 2026, PGIM Short Duration Muni Z returned 0.5%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Muni National Short category had an average return of 0.3%. 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.
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z has a trailing yield of 3.22%, which is above the 2.77% 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.
PGIM Short Duration Muni Z Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 1.6%, 0.4 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 4.7% over the past year (grade of A), 4.0% over the past three years (grade of A) and 1.5% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 1.9% per year over the past 10 years (grade of A).
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PDSZX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 6/30/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| PDSZX Return (NAV) | 0.5% | 1.3% | 4.7% | 4.0% | 1.5% | 1.9% |
| PDSZX Grade | A | A | A | A | D | A |
| +/- Category | 0.1% | 0.3% | 1.1% | 0.5% | -0.2% | 0.3% |
| Muni National Short Avg | 0.3% | 1.0% | 3.6% | 3.5% | 1.6% | 1.6% |
| PDSZX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
PDSZX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 6/30/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| PDSZX Return (NAV) | 1.6% | 4.6% | 2.6% | 4.9% | -5.9% | 0.5% | 2.8% | 5.9% | 1.3% | 5.1% | -0.1% |
| PDSZX Grade | A | A | C | A | F | B | B | A | C | A | C |
| +/- Category | 0.4% | 0.6% | -0.0% | 1.0% | -2.7% | 0.1% | 0.4% | 2.5% | 0.1% | 3.2% | 0.0% |
| Muni National Short Avg | 1.3% | 4.0% | 2.6% | 3.9% | -3.2% | 0.4% | 2.4% | 3.4% | 1.2% | 1.9% | -0.1% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 2.7% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.22 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.35 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | D (78% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.47 |
| R-Squared: | 94% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 3.2% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $337 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 193 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 65% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 4 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 12.1 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 10.2 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Friedman Lee (2014), Dittemer John (2014), Tipp Robert (2014), Appleson Jason (2021) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 5/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 296 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 12.7% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.8% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 91.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.8% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 8.1% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | PGIM |
| Phone Number: | 800-225-1852 |
| Website: | www.prudentialfunds.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | May 29, 2014 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| 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: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.32% ( Rating : Below Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.58% |
| Share Class: | PGIM Short Duration Muni Z |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
