Federated Hermes MDT Small Cap Core ETF
Portfolio of Investments
May 31, 2026 (unaudited)  
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—99.6%
 
Communication Services—1.8%
60
1
AMC Global Media, Inc.
$        583
93,002
1
Bumble, Inc.
    294,816
11,722
1
Grindr, Inc.
    146,525
105,782
1
Lumen Technologies, Inc.
  1,162,544
21,909
1
QuinStreet, Inc.
    274,301
22,624
1
Sphere Entertainment Co.
  3,132,972
 
TOTAL
5,011,741
 
Consumer Discretionary—8.3%
31,849
1
Adient PLC
    728,068
24,273
 
Advance Auto Parts, Inc.
  1,462,206
14,983
1
American Public Education, Inc.
    741,209
140,129
1
Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc.
    858,991
156,357
 
Bloomin Brands, Inc.
  1,319,653
61,987
1
Capri Holdings Ltd.
  1,147,379
177,079
1
Chegg, Inc.
    231,973
96,203
1
Coursera, Inc.
    518,534
38,342
 
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.
  1,296,726
134,069
1
EVgo, Inc.
    297,633
5,449
1
Frontdoor, Inc.
    338,219
55,686
 
Garrett Motion, Inc.
  1,824,273
40,956
1
Helen of Troy Ltd.
  1,111,546
47,957
 
Kohl’s Corp.
    688,663
417,146
 
Krispy Kreme, Inc.
  1,468,354
58,087
1
National Vision Holdings, Inc.
    972,957
75,863
1
PetMed Express, Inc.
    164,623
13,454
 
Polaris, Inc., Class A
    949,449
17,897
1
Revolve Group, Inc.
    350,781
13,874
1
Rush Street Interactive, Inc.
    351,567
8,247
1
Shake Shack, Inc.
    530,365
136,406
1
Stoneridge, Inc.
  1,018,953
68,439
 
Super Group SGHC Ltd.
    852,066
202,976
1
Sweetgreen, Inc.
  2,021,641
18,355
1
Victoria’s Secret & Co.
  1,009,525
37,696
 
Wolverine World Wide, Inc.
    661,565
 
TOTAL
22,916,919
 
Consumer Staples—1.2%
28,502
1
Medifast, Inc.
    357,130
76,861
 
MGP Ingredients, Inc.
  1,356,597
52,663
1
The Simply Good Foods Co.
    606,678
4,778
1
United Natural Foods, Inc.
    245,350
4,924
1
Vita Coco Co., Inc./The
    369,940
31,930
1
Vital Farms, Inc.
    319,619
 
TOTAL
3,255,314
 
Energy—4.7%
16,886
 
Archrock, Inc.
    565,512
44,577
 
Ardmore Shipping Corp.
    716,798
58,031
1
CNX Resources Corp.
  1,955,064
1
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Energy—continued
14,999
 
CVR Energy, Inc.
$    498,267
29,535
 
Delek US Holdings, Inc.
  1,314,603
46,690
1
DMC Global, Inc.
    317,959
11,195
 
Excelerate Energy, Inc.
    368,763
4,386
 
International Seaways, Inc.
    338,555
22,598
 
Kodiak Gas Services, Inc.
  1,510,676
15,107
 
Magnolia Oil & Gas Corp.
    413,328
4,497
1
Nabors Industries Ltd.
    416,557
6,146
 
Northern Oil and Gas, Inc.
    133,799
28,804
1
Oil States International, Inc.
    244,834
26,359
 
Peabody Energy Corp.
    713,011
145,522
1
Talos Energy, Inc.
  2,134,808
13,606
1
Tidewater, Inc.
    999,905
10,665
 
World Kinect Corp.
    307,259
 
TOTAL
12,949,698
 
Financials—16.6%
28,160
 
Acadian Asset Management, Inc.
  2,036,250
39,428
 
Amalgamated Financial Corp.
  1,635,473
45,915
 
Artisan Partners Asset Management, Inc.
  1,719,058
7,609
 
Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior SA, Class E
    424,887
65,343
 
BankUnited, Inc.
  3,031,262
2,491
 
Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
    221,873
174,081
 
BrightSpire Capital, Inc.
  1,004,447
65,995
 
Byline Bancorp, Inc.
  2,183,775
8,239
 
Capital Bancorp, Inc.
    262,989
55,485
 
CNO Financial Group, Inc.
  2,550,645
11,454
 
Compass Diversified Trust
    130,003
11,651
1
Customers Bancorp, Inc.
    875,456
44,776
 
FB Financial Corp.
  2,359,247
17,542
 
First Business Financial Services, Inc.
  1,009,016
36,740
 
Fulton Financial Corp.
    796,891
84,882
 
Hamilton Insurance Group Ltd.
  2,513,356
7,332
 
Hancock Whitney Corp.
    499,456
3,223
 
HCI Group, Inc.
    496,568
8,437
 
Hometrust Bancshares, Inc.
    392,067
20,854
 
Jackson Financial, Inc.
  2,150,256
4,966
1
Lemonade, Inc.
    288,028
57,795
1
LendingClub Corp.
  1,031,641
15,187
1
LendingTree, Inc.
    580,143
20,800
 
Marex Group PLC
  1,101,152
9,510
 
Mercantile Bank Corp.
    503,935
10,901
 
Mercury General Corp.
  1,068,625
1,625
1
NCR Atleos Corp.
     72,475
29,115
 
OFG Bancorp
  1,326,479
7,662
1
Palomar Holdings, Inc.
    820,140
6,798
 
Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp.
    294,013
2,275
 
Preferred Bank Los Angeles, CA
    217,991
3,027
 
RLI Corp.
    151,471
2,633
1
Root, Inc.
    137,074
2,303
 
ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc.
    179,611
13,896
 
Sierra Bancorp
    527,770
51,354
1
Siriuspoint Ltd.
  1,096,408
2
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Financials—continued
35,756
1
Skyward Specialty Insurance Group, Inc.
$  1,577,555
62,728
1
Slide Insurance Holdings, Inc.
  1,130,986
14,253
 
StoneCo Ltd.
    163,197
12,233
1
Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc.
  1,217,061
37,006
 
The Bank of NT Butterfield & Son Ltd.
  2,089,359
46,832
 
Trustmark Corp.
  2,068,101
6,004
 
UMB Financial Corp.
    788,085
6,607
 
Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.
    244,591
7,476
 
Victory Capital Holdings, Inc.
    632,096
16,624
 
Western New England Bancorp, Inc.
    220,600
 
TOTAL
45,821,562
 
Health Care—17.1%
16,140
1
4D Molecular Therapeutics, Inc.
    159,947
109,641
1
ADMA Biologics, Inc.
    874,935
17,193
1
Alignment Healthcare, Inc.
    263,397
29,229
1
AMN Healthcare Services, Inc.
    846,764
47,310
1
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    678,899
8,490
1
AnaptysBio, Inc.
    472,638
16,880
1
Apogee Therapeutics, Inc.
  1,386,523
161,474
1
Aquestive Therapeutics, Inc.
    649,126
70,043
1
Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc.
  1,503,123
83,660
1
Arvinas, Inc.
    751,267
7,314
1
Axsome Therapeutics, Inc.
  1,714,987
38,334
1
Azenta, Inc.
    877,082
3,402
1
Bicara Therapeutics, Inc.
     73,994
129
1
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
      1,149
20,355
1
Bridgebio Pharma, Inc.
  1,348,722
63,912
1
BrightSpring Health Services, Inc.
  3,942,092
5,123
1
Catalyst Pharmaceutical Partners, Inc.
    159,991
6,305
1
Celcuity, Inc.
    837,808
14,965
1
CG Oncology, Inc.
    932,170
2,263
1
Cytokinetics, Inc.
    173,708
51,825
1
Emergent BioSolutions, Inc.
    472,644
62,243
1
Erasca, Inc.
    799,200
25,180
1
EyePoint, Inc.
    341,944
12,562
1
Guardant Health, Inc.
  1,629,166
2,220
1
Haemonetics Corp.
    150,538
6,034
1
Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc.
    401,502
26,223
1
Harmony Biosciences Holdings, Inc.
    828,385
91,038
1
ImmunityBio, Inc.
    684,606
75,461
1
Indivior Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
  2,718,105
26,504
1
Innovage Holding Corp.
    201,165
68,219
1
Inogen, Inc.
    442,741
1,192
1
Insmed, Inc.
    127,437
47,560
1
Intellia Therapeutics, Inc.
    669,169
3,445
1
IRhythm Holdings, Inc.
    392,386
62,348
1
Janux Therapeutics, Inc.
    909,657
23,576
1
Keros Therapeutics, Inc.
    265,230
1,827
1
Krystal Biotech, Inc.
    564,598
2,568
1
Lantheus Holdings, Inc.
    255,002
47,062
1
Larimar Therapeutics, Inc.
    163,776
5,865
 
LeMaitre Vascular, Inc.
    555,122
3
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Health Care—continued
29,310
1
Liquidia Corp.
$  1,813,117
997
1
Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    495,778
31,245
1
Mirum Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
  3,171,368
211,853
1
Myriad Genetics, Inc.
    841,056
16,819
1
Neogen Corp.
    150,866
11,116
1
Omeros Corp.
    122,721
760
1
Pediatrix Medical Group, Inc.
     16,370
4,144
 
Phibro Animal Health Corp.
    127,594
19,325
1
PROCEPT BioRobotics Corp.
    508,827
133,052
1
Prothena Corp. PLC
  1,354,469
11,451
1
PTC Therapeutics, Inc.
    845,656
25,752
1
QuidelOrtho Corp.
    335,291
9,299
1
Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    821,288
52,158
1
Rocket Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    160,125
12,566
1
Septerna, Inc.
    379,493
5,025
1
Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    232,055
53,691
1
Tactile Systems Technology, Inc.
  1,321,336
66,764
1
Teladoc Health, Inc.
    508,074
12,665
1
TransMedics Group, Inc.
    851,088
8,833
1
Travere Therapeutics, Inc.
    416,741
2,175
1
TruBridge, Inc.
     56,463
52,235
1
Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    336,916
15,687
1
Varex Imaging Corp.
    160,478
1,759
1
Vaxcyte, Inc.
     90,413
123
1
Viridian Therapeutics, Inc.
      2,167
114,868
1
Wave Life Sciences Ltd.
    755,832
79,362
1
Zentalis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
    317,448
42,165
1
Zevra Therapeutics, Inc.
    488,692
16,669
1
Zymeworks, Inc.
    418,892
 
TOTAL
47,321,309
 
Industrials—20.0%
21,535
1
Allegiant Travel Co.
  1,972,821
13,951
 
Apogee Enterprises, Inc.
    535,858
11,262
 
Atkore, Inc.
    932,606
11,836
 
Atmus Filtration Technologies, Inc.
    553,688
19,494
1
Bloom Energy Corp.
  5,555,790
19,380
1
Blue Bird Corp.
  1,313,383
51,305
1
BrightView Holdings, Inc.
    634,130
585
 
Comfort Systems USA, Inc.
  1,069,503
17,389
1
CoreCivic, Inc.
    366,560
27,845
 
Costamare, Inc.
    428,256
3,020
 
Emcor Group, Inc.
  2,496,996
2,112
 
EnerSys, Inc.
    481,473
65,172
1
Fluence Energy, Inc.
  1,230,447
48,103
1
Fluor Corp.
  2,201,193
34,139
1
Forrester Research, Inc.
    240,680
49,529
1
Fuelcell Energy, Inc.
  1,072,798
3,571
1
Gibraltar Industries, Inc.
    138,019
10,254
 
Granite Construction, Inc.
  1,403,157
10,163
 
Griffon Corp.
    894,141
79,500
1,2
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc.
    429,300
13,567
1
Hurco Co., Inc.
    232,945
4
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Industrials—continued
3,848
1
Huron Consulting Group, Inc.
$    413,237
12,526
 
Hyster-Yale, Inc.
    454,944
3,020
 
ICF International, Inc.
    207,897
18,102
 
Insperity, Inc.
    623,976
21,968
1
Intuitive Machines, Inc.
    962,857
71,828
1
JELD-WEN Holding, Inc.
    155,149
12,337
 
Kennametal, Inc.
    404,654
12,341
1
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions
    791,428
27,116
1
Legence Corp.
  2,270,694
28,327
 
Leonardo DRS, Inc.
  1,381,225
34,608
1
Manitowoc, Inc.
    409,413
92,603
 
Mueller Water Products, Inc.
  2,334,522
14,581
1
NextPower, Inc.
  2,280,468
42,115
 
Pitney Bowes, Inc.
    678,052
37,882
1
Planet Labs PBC
  1,937,286
10,890
 
Powell Industries, Inc.
  3,097,334
23,828
 
Primoris Services Corp.
  2,997,086
18,422
1
SkyWest, Inc.
  1,577,844
2,164
1
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc.
  1,862,858
9,159
 
Tecnoglass, Inc.
    394,661
2,303
 
Tennant Co.
    198,311
13,790
 
TriNet Group, Inc.
    629,927
302,507
1
TTEC Holdings, Inc.
    822,819
36,889
1
Upwork, Inc.
    325,361
18,841
1
V2X, Inc.
  1,566,252
54,942
 
Wabash National Corp.
    435,690
5,288
 
Watts Industries, Inc., Class A
  1,633,886
8,876
 
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corp.
    417,172
 
TOTAL
55,448,747
 
Information Technology—18.3%
69,415
1
Adtran Holdings, Inc.
  1,148,818
5,260
 
Advanced Energy Industries, Inc.
  1,589,467
11,525
1
Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.
    519,893
24,574
1
Applied Digital Corp.
  1,161,859
4,989
1
Applied Optoelectronics, Inc.
    790,307
69,855
1
Arteris, Inc.
  2,511,287
34,119
1
Asana, Inc.
    262,716
50,199
1
AvePoint, Inc.
    547,671
5,742
1
Axcelis Technologies, Inc.
    863,654
11,691
 
Badger Meter, Inc.
  1,448,515
84
1
Blackline, Inc.
      2,470
48,799
1
C3.AI, Inc.
    525,565
14,032
1
Calix, Inc.
    557,772
83,425
1
Cerence, Inc.
  1,072,846
44,114
1
Cipher Digital, Inc.
  1,043,296
10,438
 
Clear Secure, Inc.
    578,787
6,325
1
Cohu, Inc.
    333,644
7,490
1
Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd.
  1,767,865
19,406
1
Everforth, Inc.
    440,128
34,009
1
Evolv Technologies Holdings, Inc.
    219,358
22,843
1
Extreme Networks, Inc.
    605,568
833
1
Fabrinet
    544,915
5
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Information Technology—continued
13,845
1
FormFactor, Inc.
$  1,724,949
70,488
1
Freshworks, Inc.
    684,438
72,821
1
Grid Dynamics Holdings, Inc.
    524,311
26,496
 
Hackett Group, Inc.
    305,499
10,903
1
Hut 8 Mining Corp.
  1,361,021
153,901
1
indie Semiconductor, Inc.
    767,966
2,124
1
Insight Enterprises, Inc.
    225,951
4,657
1
Intapp, Inc.
    107,530
1,091
 
InterDigital, Inc.
    275,030
1,536
1
Itron, Inc.
    126,689
5,711
 
Kulicke & Soffa Industries, Inc.
    581,894
473
1
LiveRamp Holdings, Inc.
     17,766
16,481
1
MaxLinear, Inc.
  1,531,579
178,094
 
Methode Electronics, Inc., Class A
  2,055,205
14,477
 
Napco Security Technologies, Inc.
    543,322
47,410
1
Navitas Semiconductor Corp.
  1,261,106
14,709
1
NetScout Systems, Inc.
    612,189
22,292
1
nLight, Inc.
  1,652,283
18,859
1
Pagerduty, Inc.
    187,647
43,035
1
Par Technology Corp.
    664,460
15,753
 
Power Integrations, Inc.
  1,323,252
14,855
1
Q2 Holdings, Inc.
    703,384
4,420
1
Qualys, Inc.
    483,062
4,969
1
Semtech Corp.
    757,971
1,703
1
Sitime Corp.
  1,209,471
156,907
1
Sprinklr, Inc.
    875,541
51,863
1
SPS Commerce, Inc.
  2,943,225
35,185
1
Tenable Holdings, Inc.
    993,273
55,625
1
Terawulf, Inc.
  1,421,775
15,149
1
Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc.
  1,296,300
111,667
1
Unisys Corp.
    512,552
25,909
1
Viant Technology, Inc.
    329,562
30,707
1
ViaSat, Inc.
  2,475,598
15,792
1
Viavi Solutions, Inc.
    766,860
715
 
Vistance Networks, Inc.
      8,923
103,390
1
Weave Communications, Inc.
    622,408
2,819
1
Workiva, Inc.
    140,330
 
TOTAL
50,610,723
 
Materials—4.0%
50,292
1
Aspen Aerogels, Inc.
    321,869
13,031
1
Clearwater Paper Corp.
    212,405
59,594
 
Coeur Mining, Inc.
  1,151,356
22,746
 
Commercial Metals Corp.
  1,729,833
34,598
1
Compass Minerals International, Inc.
  1,104,368
30,692
1
Constellium SE
  1,051,508
29,464
1
Contango Silver & Gold, Inc.
    592,521
121,079
 
Hecla Mining Co.
  2,151,574
5,168
 
Koppers Holdings, Inc.
    210,854
25,688
 
Mativ Holdings, Inc.
    228,110
32,452
1
Perimeter Solutions, Inc.
  1,047,551
37,838
1
SSR Mining, Inc.
  1,181,302
6
Shares
 
 
Value
         
 
COMMON STOCKS—continued
 
Materials—continued
2,322
 
Warrior Met Coal, Inc.
$    219,522
 
TOTAL
11,202,773
 
Real Estate—5.8%
124,665
 
American Healthcare REIT, Inc.
  6,094,872
138,320
 
Brandywine Realty Trust
    428,792
98,901
1
Cushman & Wakefield Ltd.
  1,230,328
10,827
 
Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc.
    331,090
101,987
 
Newmark Group, Inc.
  1,424,758
65,579
 
Outfront Media, Inc.
  2,114,267
127,645
2
Postal Realty Trust, Inc.
  2,940,941
47,917
1
Real Brokerage, Inc./The
     86,251
40,785
 
RMR Group, Inc./The
    813,661
17,801
 
Tanger, Inc.
    642,082
 
TOTAL
16,107,042
 
Utilities—1.8%
4,686
 
Avista Corp.
    194,329
13,313
 
California Water Service Group
    600,416
1,206
 
Chesapeake Utilities Corp.
    148,724
48
1
Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc.
        638
11,138
 
ONE Gas, Inc.
    865,868
16,955
 
Otter Tail Corp.
  1,469,320
31,396
 
Portland General Electric Co.
  1,573,568
 
TOTAL
4,852,863
 
TOTAL COMMON STOCKS
(IDENTIFIED COST $243,507,184)
275,498,691
 
INVESTMENT COMPANY—1.2%
3,326,657
 
Federated Hermes Government Obligations Fund, Premier Shares, 3.54%3
(IDENTIFIED COST $3,326,657)
  3,326,657
 
TOTAL INVESTMENT IN SECURITIES—100.8%
(IDENTIFIED COST $246,833,841)
278,825,348
 
OTHER ASSETS AND LIABILITIES - NET—(0.8%)4
(2,176,834)
 
NET ASSETS—100%
$276,648,514
An affiliated company is a company in which the Fund, alone or in combination with other Federated Hermes funds, has ownership of at least 5% of the voting shares. Transactions with affiliated companies during the period ended May 31, 2026, were as follows:  
Affiliated
Value
as of
2/28/2026
Purchases
at Cost
Proceeds
from Sales
Change in
Unrealized
Appreciation/
Depreciation
Net
Realized
Gain/(Loss)
Value as of
5/31/2026
Shares held
as of
5/31/2026
Dividend
Income
Consumer Discretionary:
Advance Auto Parts, Inc.
$788,671
$557,083
$(61,596)
$179,022
$(974)
$1,462,206
24,273
$4,830
Health Care:
EyePoint, Inc.
$336,239
$145,350
$(68,233)
$(58,555)
$(12,857)
$341,944
25,180
$—
Industrials:
TTEC Holdings, Inc.
$477,712
$334,982
$(43,184)
$79,166
$(25,857)
$822,819
302,507
$—
TOTAL OF AFFILIATED COMPANIES TRANSAC-
TIONS
$1,602,622
$1,037,415
$(173,013)
$199,633
$(39,688)
$2,626,969
351,960
$4,830
7
Transactions with affiliated investment companies, which are funds managed by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser, during the period ended May 31, 2026, were as follows:  
 
Federated
Hermes Government
Obligations Fund,
Premier Shares*
Value as of 2/28/2026
$—
Purchases at Cost
$4,095,195
Proceeds from Sales
$(768,538)
Change in Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation
$—
Net Realized Gain/(Loss)
$—
Value as of 5/31/2026
$3,326,657
Shares Held as of 5/31/2026
3,326,657
Dividend Income
$—
 
*
All or a portion of the balance/activity for the fund relates to cash collateral received on securities lending transactions.
 
1
Non-income-producing security.
2
All or a portion of these securities are temporarily on loan to unaffiliated broker/dealers. As of May 31, 2026, securities subject to this type of arrangement and
related collateral were as follows:
 
Fair Value of
Securities Loaned
Collateral
Received
$3,241,997
$3,326,657
 
3
7-day net yield.
4
Assets, other than investments in securities, less liabilities.
Note: The categories of investments are shown as a percentage of net assets at May 31, 2026.
Investment Valuation
In calculating its net asset value (NAV), the Fund generally values investments as follows:
■ Equity securities or ETFs listed on an exchange or traded through a regulated market system are valued at their last reported sale price or official closing price in their principal exchange or market.
■ Shares of other mutual funds or non-exchange-traded investment companies are valued based upon their reported NAVs, or NAV per share practical expedient, as applicable.
■ For securities that are fair valued in accordance with procedures established by and under the general supervision of the Federated MDTA LLC (the “Adviser”), certain factors may be considered, such as: the last traded or purchase price of the security, information obtained by contacting the issuer or dealers, analysis of the issuer’s financial statements or other available documents, fundamental analytical data, the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition, the movement of the market in which the security is normally traded, public trading in similar securities or derivative contracts of the issuer or comparable issuers, movement of a relevant index, or other factors including but not limited to industry changes and relevant government actions.
If any price, quotation, price evaluation or other pricing source is not readily available when the NAV is calculated, if the Fund cannot obtain price evaluations from a pricing service or from more than one dealer for an investment within a reasonable period of time as set forth in the Adviser’s valuation policies and procedures for the Fund, or if information furnished by a pricing service, in the opinion of the Adviser’s valuation committee (“Valuation Committee”) is deemed not representative of the fair value of such security, the Fund uses the fair value of the investment determined in accordance with the procedures described below. There can be no assurance that the Fund could obtain the fair value assigned to an investment if it sold the investment at approximately the time at which the Fund determines its NAV per share, and the actual value obtained could be materially different. The trading prices of the Fund’s shares listed on its exchange may differ from the Fund’s NAV and will normally be affected by market forces, such as supply and demand, economic conditions, the market value of the Fund’s disclosed portfolio holdings and other factors. As a result, trading prices may be lower, higher or the same as the Fund’s NAV; and investors may pay more than NAV when buying shares and receive less than NAV when selling shares through the exchange.
Fair Valuation and Significant Events Procedures
Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, the Fund’s Board of Trustees (the “Trustees”) has designated the Adviser as the Fund’s valuation designee to perform any fair value determinations for securities and other assets held by the Fund. The Adviser is subject to the Trustees’ oversight and certain reporting and other requirements intended to provide the Trustees the information needed to oversee the Adviser’s fair value determinations.
The Adviser, acting through its Valuation Committee, is responsible for determining the fair value of investments for which market quotations are not readily available. The Valuation Committee is comprised of officers of the Adviser and certain of the Adviser’s affiliated companies and determines fair value and oversees the calculation of the NAV. The Valuation Committee is also authorized to use pricing services to provide fair value evaluations of the current value of certain investments for purposes of calculating the NAV. The Valuation Committee employs various methods for reviewing third-party pricing-service evaluations including periodic reviews of third-party pricing services’ policies, procedures and valuation methods (including key inputs, methods, models and assumptions), transactional back-testing, comparisons of evaluations of different pricing services, and review of price challenges by the Adviser based
8
on recent market activity. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the Valuation Committee determines the fair value of the investment in accordance with procedures adopted by the Adviser. The Trustees periodically review the fair valuations made by the Valuation Committee. The Trustees have also approved the Adviser’s fair valuation and significant events procedures as part of the Fund’s compliance program and will review any changes made to the procedures.
Factors considered by pricing services in evaluating an investment include the yields or prices of investments of comparable quality, coupon, maturity, call rights and other potential prepayments, terms and type, reported transactions, indications as to values from dealers and general market conditions. Some pricing services provide a single price evaluation reflecting the bid-side of the market for an investment (a “bid” evaluation). Other pricing services offer both bid evaluations and price evaluations indicative of a price between the prices bid and ask for the investment (a “mid” evaluation). The Fund normally uses bid evaluations for any U.S. Treasury and Agency securities, mortgage-backed securities and municipal securities. The Fund normally uses mid evaluations for any other types of fixed-income securities and any OTC derivative contracts. In the event that market quotations and price evaluations are not available for an investment, the fair value of the investment is determined in accordance with procedures adopted by the Adviser.
The Adviser has also adopted procedures requiring an investment to be priced at its fair value whenever the Valuation Committee determines that a significant event affecting the value of the investment has occurred between the time as of which the price of the investment would otherwise be determined and the time as of which the NAV is computed. An event is considered significant if there is both an affirmative expectation that the investment’s value will change in response to the event and a reasonable basis for quantifying the resulting change in value. Examples of significant events that may occur after the close of the principal market on which a security is traded, or after the time of a price evaluation provided by a pricing service or a dealer, include:
■ With respect to securities traded principally in foreign markets, significant trends in U.S. equity markets or in the trading of foreign securities index futures contracts;
■ Political or other developments affecting the economy or markets in which an issuer conducts its operations or its securities are traded;
■ Announcements concerning matters such as acquisitions, recapitalizations, litigation developments, or a natural disaster affecting the issuer’s operations or regulatory changes or market developments affecting the issuer’s industry.
For other significant events, the Fund may seek to obtain more current quotations or price evaluations from alternative pricing sources. If a reliable alternative pricing source is not available, the Valuation Committee will determine the fair value of the investment in accordance with the fair valuation procedures approved by the Adviser. The Trustees periodically review fair valuations made in response to significant events.
Various inputs are used in determining the value of the Fund’s investments. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:
Level 1—quoted prices in active markets for identical securities.
Level 2—other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.). Also includes securities valued at amortized cost.
Level 3—significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).
The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.
As of May 31, 2026, all investments of the Fund utilized Level 1 inputs in valuing the Fund’s assets carried at fair value.  
The following acronym(s) are used throughout this portfolio:
 
REIT
—Real Estate Investment Trust
9