investments may be
difficult, such as during periods of market turmoil or reduced liquidity, and for investments that may, for example, trade infrequently or irregularly. In these
and other circumstances, an investment may be valued using fair value methodologies, which are inherently subjective, reflect good faith judgments based on
available information and may not accurately estimate the price at which the Fund could sell the investment at that time. Liquidity and valuation risks are heightened in a changing interest rate or volatile environment, particularly for fixed-income and other debt instruments.
Management Risk—The Fund is actively managed, which means that investment
decisions are made based on investment views. There is no guarantee that the investment views will produce the desired results or expected returns. As a result of these and other factors, the Fund may lose value or fail to meet its investment objective or underperform its benchmark index or funds with similar investment objectives and strategies. Furthermore, active and frequent trading that can accompany active management, also called “high turnover,” may have a negative impact on performance. Active and frequent trading may result in higher brokerage costs or mark-up charges and tax costs, which are ultimately passed on to shareholders of the Fund. Active and frequent trading may also result in adverse tax consequences.
Market Risk—The value of, or income generated by, the investments held by the
Fund may fluctuate rapidly and unpredictably. These fluctuations may be frequent and significant. In addition, the Fund may incur losses as a result of various market and economic factors, such as those affecting (or perceived to affect) individual companies or issuers or particular industries, or from broader influences, such as general market conditions. In addition, responses to government actions or interventions as well as developments related to economic, political (including geopolitical), social, public health, market, extreme weather, natural or man-made disasters, U.S. trade disputes or other disputes with specific countries that result in additional tariffs, trade barriers and/or investment restrictions in certain securities in those countries, or other conditions or events may cause volatility in financial markets and reduced liquidity in equity, credit and/or debt markets, which could adversely impact the Fund and its investments and their value and performance. Certain securities may be difficult to value under such conditions. The Fund’s investments may perform poorly or underperform the general securities markets or other types of securities.
Non-Diversified Fund Risk—The Fund is non-diversified and may invest in a smaller number of instruments than a diversified
fund would. This increased investment in fewer issuers may result in the Fund’s shares being more sensitive to economic results of those issuing the
securities. The value of the Fund’s shares may also be more volatile than the value of a fund which invests in more securities.
Preferred Securities Risk—A company’s preferred stock generally pays dividends only after the company makes required
payments to holders of its bonds and other debt. For this reason, the value of preferred stock will usually react more strongly than bonds and other debt to
actual or perceived changes in the company’s financial condition or prospects.
Prepayment Risk—Certain debt instruments,
including loans and mortgage- and other asset-backed securities, are subject to the risk that payments on principal may occur more quickly or earlier than
expected. If this occurs, the Fund might be forced to forego future interest income on the principal repaid early and to reinvest income or proceeds at generally lower interest rates, thus reducing the Fund’s yield. These types of instruments are particularly subject to prepayment risk, and offer less potential for gains, during periods of declining interest rates.
Privately Issued Mortgage-Related Securities
Risk—Privately issued mortgage-related securities may not be subject to the same
underwriting requirements for the underlying mortgages that are applicable to those mortgage-related securities that have a government or government-sponsored
entity guarantee. As a result, the mortgage loans underlying privately issued mortgage-related securities may, and frequently do, have less favorable collateral,
credit risk, or other underwriting characteristics than government or government-sponsored mortgage-related securities and have wider variances in a number of terms including interest rate, term, size, purpose, and borrower characteristics. The risk of nonpayment is greater for mortgage-related securities that are backed by loans that were originated under weak underwriting standards, including loans made to borrowers with limited means to make repayment. A level of risk exists for all loans, although, historically, the poorest performing loans have been those classified as subprime. “Subprime” loans are loans made to borrowers with lower credit ratings and/or a shorter credit history, who are more likely to default on their loan obligations as compared to more credit-worthy borrowers. Privately issued mortgage-related securities are not traded on an exchange. There may be a limited market for the securities, especially when there is a perceived weakness in the mortgage and real estate market sectors. Without an active trading market, mortgage-related securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may be particularly difficult to value because of the complexities involved in assessing the value of the underlying mortgage loans.