or sell less liquid or illiquid securities at a loss if needed to raise cash to conduct operations, including to meet redemption requests. Further, the lack of an established secondary market for floating rate loans may make it more difficult to value illiquid loans, exposing the Fund to the risk that the price at which it sells loans will be less than the price at which they were valued when held by the Fund.
•Non-Diversification Risk: As a “non-diversified” mutual fund, the Fund may hold a smaller number of portfolio securities than many other funds. To the extent the Fund invests in a relatively small number of issuers, a decline in the market value of a particular security held by the Fund may affect its value more than if it invested in a larger number of issuers. The value of Fund shares may be more volatile than the values of shares of more diversified funds.
•Sector Focus Risk: The Fund may invest a larger portion of its assets in one or more sectors than many other mutual funds, and thus will be more susceptible to negative events affecting those sectors.
•Active Management Risk: A portfolio manager’s judgments about the potential value or price appreciation of an investment may prove to be incorrect or fail to have the intended results, which could negatively impact the Fund’s performance.
• Floating Rate Loan Risk: Floating rate loans (or bank loans) are usually rated below investment grade and thus are subject to high yield/high risk or “junk” securities risk . The market for floating rate loans is a private interbank resale market and thus may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and delayed settlement periods. Purchases and sales of loans are generally subject to contractual restrictions that must be fulfilled before a loan can be bought or sold. These restrictions may hamper the Fund’s ability to buy or sell loans and negatively affect the transaction price. Prices of below investment grade loans are also more volatile, are more sensitive to negative news about the economy or the issuer, and have greater liquidity risk and price volatility. The value and the income streams of interests in loans (including participation interests in lease financings and assignments in secured variable or floating rate loans) will decline if borrowers delay payments or fail to pay altogether. A significant rise in market interest rates could increase this risk. Although loans may be fully collateralized when purchased, such collateral may become illiquid or decline in value.
A significant portion of the floating rate loans held by the Fund may be “covenant lite” loans that contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower or other borrower-
friendly characteristics and offer less protections for investors than covenant loans. It may take longer than seven days for transactions in loans to settle. This may result in cash proceeds not being immediately available to the Fund, requiring the Fund to borrow cash which would increase the Fund’s expenses. The Fund is also subject to credit risk with respect to the issuer of the loan, and an issuer’s long-term ability to make payments on below investment grade loans is considered speculative. Investments in junior loans involve a higher degree of overall risk.
U.S. federal securities laws afford certain protections against fraud and misrepresentation in connection with the offering or sale of a security, as well as against manipulation of trading markets for securities. However, it is unclear whether these protections are available to an investment in a loan.
• Foreign Investment Risk: Exposure to a foreign market through investments in foreign issuers (companies or other entities) can involve additional risks relating to market, economic, political, regulatory, geopolitical, or other conditions of that market. These factors can make investments in foreign issuers more volatile and less liquid than U.S. investments. Trade disputes and the threat of, or actual imposition of, tariffs may adversely impact the price of foreign securities. Less stringent regulatory, accounting, and disclosure requirements and general supervision for issuers and markets are more common in certain foreign countries. Enforcing legal rights can be difficult, costly, and slow in certain foreign countries, and can be particularly difficult against foreign governments. In addition, foreign markets can react differently to these conditions than the U.S. market. Markets and economies throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, and conditions or events in one market, country or region may adversely impact investments or issuers in, or foreign exchange rates with, another market, country, or region. Foreign securities may include American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”). Unsponsored ADRs, EDRs and GDRs are organized independently and without the cooperation of the foreign issuer of the underlying securities. In addition, the issuing bank may deduct shareholder distribution, custody, foreign currency exchange, and other fees from the payment of dividends.
•Mortgage-Related and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk: Mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities, including collateralized loan obligation transactions (“CLOs”), are subject to certain risks affecting the housing market, the market for the assets underlying such securities