Interest
Rate Risk—Fixed income and other debt instruments are subject to the possibility that interest rates could change (or are expected to change). Changes in interest rates (or the expectation of such changes) can be difficult to forecast and may adversely affect the Fund’s investments in these instruments, such as the value or liquidity of, and income generated by, the investments. Interest rates may change as a result of a variety of factors, and the change may be sudden and significant, with unpredictable impacts on the financial markets and the Fund’s investments. Fixed income and other debt instruments with longer durations are more sensitive to changes in interest rates and, thus, subject to more volatility than similar instruments with shorter durations. Generally, when interest rates increase, the values of previously issued fixed income and other debt instruments decline and when interest rates decrease, the values of fixed income and other debt instruments rise. During periods of rising interest rates, changes in interest rates on adjustable rate securities may lag behind changes in market rates, which may cause the value of such securities to decline until their interest rates reset to market rates. During periods of declining interest rates, because the interest rates on adjustable rate securities generally reset downward, their market value is unlikely to rise to the same extent as the value of comparable fixed rate securities. The Fund’s yield, returns, and performance may be adversely affected by changing interest rates and the Fund’s NAV per share may be more volatile during changing interest rate environments. Changes in fiscal, economic, monetary and other policies or measures have in the past, and may in the future, cause or exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates. Changes in interest rates may also lead to an increase in Fund redemptions, which may result in high portfolio turnover costs and lower valuations, thereby adversely affecting the Fund’s performance.
Investment in Investment Vehicles Risk—The
Fund may seek to gain certain exposure through investments in other investment vehicles. Investing in other investment vehicles, including ETFs and other mutual
funds, subjects the Fund to those risks affecting the investment vehicle, including the possibility that the value of the underlying securities held by the investment vehicle could decrease or the portfolio becomes illiquid. Moreover, the Fund and its shareholders will incur its pro rata share of the underlying vehicles’ expenses, which will reduce the Fund’s performance. In addition, investments in an ETF or a listed closed-end fund are subject to, among other risks, the risk that the shares may trade at a discount or premium relative to the NAV of the shares and the listing exchange may halt trading of the shares.
Liquidity and Valuation Risk—It may be difficult for the Fund to purchase and
sell particular investments to meet redemption requests or otherwise within a reasonable time at a fair price, or the price at which it has been valued by the Advisor for purposes of the Fund’s NAV, causing the Fund to be less liquid and unable to realize what the Advisor believes should be the price of the investment. Valuation of portfolio 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.
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 (including, but not limited, to the threat or imposition of tariffs, trade restrictions, currency restrictions or similar actions) as well as developments related to economic, political (including geopolitical), social, public health, market, extreme weather, natural or man-made disasters 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. Under such conditions, the Fund (or an underlying fund) may experience significant redemption activity by shareholders and could be forced to sell portfolio securities or other assets at unfavorable prices in an effort to generate sufficient cash to pay redeeming shareholders. 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-Diversification Risk—The Fund is
considered non-diversified and can invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of individual issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the
market value of a single issuer's securities could cause greater fluctuations in the value of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified fund. The Fund may become diversified for periods of time solely as a result of changes in the composition of the underlying index (e.g., changes in the
relative market capitalization or weights of one or more index component stocks).