asset-backed securities, mortgage-related securities, U.S. government securities and agency securities, and other fixed income and income-producing debt instruments. U.S. government securities consist of U.S. Treasury securities and securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies or instrumentalities. For these purposes, the Fund defines investment grade securities as: (i) securities rated BBB-/Baa3 or higher by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (“NRSRO”), (ii) securities with comparable short-term NRSRO ratings, or (iii) unrated securities determined by the sub-adviser to be of comparable quality, each at the time of purchase. The Fund considers “split-rated” securities, i.e., when two or more NRSROs assign different ratings for the same security, to be of investment grade if at least one of the ratings of the security is comparable to or higher than the ratings disclosed above. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its assets in non-investment grade (high yield/high risk, sometimes called “junk bonds”) debt instruments. Debt instruments in which the Fund invests may include those denominated in U.S. dollars and issued by foreign entities that are primarily in developed markets. The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to generate additional income.
The Fund’s weighted average duration is expected to be within a range of one to four years. Duration is often used to measure a bond’s or fund’s sensitivity to interest rates. The longer a fund’s duration, the more sensitive it is to interest rate risk. The shorter a fund’s duration, the less sensitive it is to interest rate risk. Maturity of a debt instrument, however, refers to the specific period of time until final payment (principal and any applicable interest) is due. The duration of the Bloomberg US 1-3 Year Government/Credit Bond Index was 1.86 years as of June 30, 2026.
The sub-adviser normally invests the Fund’s assets across different groups of industries/sectors but may invest a significant percentage of the Fund’s assets in issuers in a single sector. The components of the Fund are likely to change over time.
Fundamental Research Process. The sub-adviser’s fundamental research process combines a bottom-up issuer analysis and top-down market assessment. A bottom-up issuer analysis relies upon the sub-adviser’s fundamental research analysis of individual issuers. A top-down market assessment provides a framework for portfolio risk positioning and sector allocations. Once this is determined, the sub-adviser looks for companies that it believes have sustainable competitive positions, strong management teams and the ability to repay or refinance its debt obligations. The sub-adviser performs a credit analysis on each potential issuer and a relative value analysis for each potential investment. When selecting investments, the sub-adviser may invest in instruments that it believes have the potential for capital appreciation.
Individual investment selection is based on the sub-adviser’s fundamental research process. Individual investments may be purchased or sold in the event the sub-adviser decides to adjust debt asset class weightings within the portfolio. An investment is generally sold when the sub-adviser believes that the issue has realized its price appreciation target, the issue no longer offers relative value, or an adverse change in corporate or sector fundamentals has occurred.
