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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM N-CSR

 

CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED

MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES

 

Investment Company Act file number 811-23476

 

DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in charter)

 

2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200

Tampa, FL 33602

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code)

 

Ronald R. Redell

President and Chief Executive Officer

c/o DoubleLine Capital LP

2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200

Tampa, FL 33602

(Name and address of agent for service)

 

(813) 791-7333

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code

 

Date of fiscal year end: September 30

 

Date of reporting period: September 30, 2024

 

 
 

 

Item 1. Reports to Stockholders.

 

(a)

 


Annual Report
September 30, 2024
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
NYSE: DLY
DoubleLine || 2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200 || Tampa, FL 33602 || (813) 791-7333
fundinfo@doubleline.com || www.doubleline.com


Table of Contents
 
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
3

Chairman’s Letter
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024

Dear DoubleLine Funds Shareholder,
On behalf of the DoubleLine Funds, I am pleased to deliver the Annual Report for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2024. On the following pages, you will find specific information regarding each Fund’s operation and holdings. In addition, we discuss each Fund’s investment performance and the main drivers of that performance during the reporting period.
Over the 12-month period, financial markets, including many of the sectors in which the DoubleLine Funds invest, faced divergent risks and fluctuating risk sentiment. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates in September by 50 basis points (bps), after holding the federal funds rate steady since the Fed’s last hike in July 2023. Inflation continued its downward trajectory over the past 12 months and fell below 2.50% in September, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, but remained above the Fed’s 2% target rate. For the period, the S&P 500® Index returned 36.33%, and the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index returned 11.57%.
In January, the Fed announced that the Bank Term Funding Program (BTFP) would cease making loans as of March 11. The BTFP was created in March 2023 to head off potential contagion throughout the banking sector after regional lenders Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were taken under receivership by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The BTFP offered loans of up to one year in length to banks that pledged qualifying collateral such as U.S. Treasuries and Agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS), among other assets.
In early August, the market went through a bout of volatility after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly hiked interest rates at its July monetary policy meeting. The decision was likely motivated at least in part by the value of the Japanese yen, which had weakened to 160 yen to one U.S. dollar in July, a level not seen since the 1980s. The ensuing weeks brought large market movements, with the Tokyo Stock Exchange Price Index losing 12%, and the CBOE Volatility Index temporarily eclipsing 65 on August 5. Relative calm then returned to the markets as the S&P 500® and other indices returned to repeatedly setting all-time highs in September.
Economic fundamentals were largely resilient during the reporting period, and domestic growth was supported by continued consumer spending. U.S. second quarter gross domestic product was revised higher in September, with the third estimate reporting the economy grew at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 3.0% quarter-over-quarter versus the second estimate of 2.8% growth released a month prior. The U-3 unemployment rate weakened during the 12-month period, finishing at 4.1%. Furthermore, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data for August showed the ratio of vacancies per unemployed job seeker to be 1.13, down meaningfully over the reporting period. But bearish signals remain. U.S. manufacturing has been in contractionary territory since March, as tracked by the ISM Manufacturing PMI, while the Conference Board Leading Economic Index remained in negative territory throughout the period.
Over the period, the two-year Treasury yield fell 140 bps, the five-year yield fell 105 bps, the 10-year yield fell 79 bps, and the 30-year yield fell 58 bps. Traditional fixed-income sectors, including Treasuries, Agency MBS and investment grade corporate bonds, all benefited from falling interest rates along the Treasury curve. Sector returns across the fixed income universe were largely positive, with credit spreads tightening and lower-quality assets outperforming their higher-quality peers.
Global central banks largely loosened policy rates in the period, as slowing growth and the downward trajectory of inflation turned out to be a global phenomenon. The European Central Bank cut its deposit rate another 25 bps in September after a 25-bp cut in June, and the Bank of England cut its deposit rate 25 bps at the end of July.
While the Russia-Ukraine war raged on in the 12-month period, European equities returned 19.51%, as tracked by the MSCI Europe Index. In the Middle East, military conflict continued to widen in the region after the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas. The price of oil has been volatile as the intensity of the fighting has ebbed and flowed. Over the period, the price of oil fell 24.70%, as tracked by Brent crude prices.
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In China, structural issues surrounding the real estate sector and an aging population continued to overshadow hopes for a return to pre-COVID-19 growth rates. In response, the People’s Bank of China announced a stimulus package in September aimed at pulling China’s economy out of its deflationary funk. The package offers more funding and interest rate cuts to restore confidence in the world’s second largest economy after a slew of disappointing data raised concerns of a prolonged structural slowdown. This package varies from previous China stimulus packages in that it is focused on capital transfers to the financial system and provides some support, on the margin, via vouchers and social financing rather than infrastructure investment. Chinese financial assets rallied in response to the stimulus, but time will tell if the enthusiasm translates into improving economic growth.
The DoubleLine investment team strives to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns to our investors through full economic cycles and variable interest-rate environments using a time-tested process. Therefore, we are confident in our ability to take advantage of future opportunities by drawing upon the extensive experience of our team.
If you have any questions regarding the DoubleLine Funds, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1 (877) DLINE 11 / 1 (877) 354-6311 or visit our website www.doubleline.com, where our investment management team offers deeper insights and analysis on relevant capital market activity impacting investors today. Thank you for your continued support and entrusting DoubleLine with your investments. We deeply value your trust, and we will continue to work diligently to meet your broad investment needs.
Sincerely,

Ronald Redell, CFA
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
November 1, 2024
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
5

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Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
For the 12-month period ended September 30, 2024, the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund outperformed the benchmark Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index return of 11.57% on a net asset value basis. The Fund’s performance was primarily driven by its substantial overweight relative to the index to higher-yielding credit assets. Every sector in the Fund generated a positive return, with collateralized loan obligations the biggest contributor to performance, as strong fundamentals caused spreads to tighten for lower-rated credit tranches in the fund. Emerging markets credit was another top contributor, as spreads tightened materially in some frontier market economies. Although there were no sectors that detracted from performance, asset-backed securities was the laggard sector, as some of the more esoteric subsectors experienced modest spread widening.
12-Month Period Ended 9-30-24
12-Months
Total Return based on NAV
19.15%
Total Return based on Market Price
23.75%
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index*
11.57%
*
Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes.
For additional performance information, please refer to the “Performance Summary.”
The Fund seeks to pay regular monthly distributions out of its net investment income at a rate that reflects its current and projected net income performance. To permit the Fund to maintain more stable monthly distributions, the Fund may pay distributions at a rate different than the amount of net income actually earned by the Fund during the period. Distributions are determined on a tax basis, which may differ from amounts recorded in the accounting records. In instances where the distributions exceed the earned net investment income, the Fund would report a negative undistributed net ordinary income. Refer to Note 5 – Income Tax Information for additional information regarding the amounts of undistributed net ordinary income and undistributed net long-term capital gains and the character of the actual distributions paid by the Fund during the period. If a portion of the Fund’s distributions is from sources other than net investment income, shareholders will be notified of the estimated composition of such distribution through a Section 19 notice. For financial reporting purposes, the per share amounts of the Fund’s distributions for the reporting period are presented in the Financial Highlights.
Opinions expressed herein are as of September 30, 2024, and are subject to change at any time, are not guaranteed and should not be considered investment advice. Fund holdings and sector allocations are subject to change at any time and are not recommendations to buy or sell any security. Please refer to the Schedule of Investments for a complete list of Fund holdings as of period end.
There are risks associated with an investment in the Fund. Shares of closed-end investment companies frequently trade at a discount to their net asset value, which may increase investors’ risk of loss. Investors should consider the Fund’s investment objective, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. An investment in the Fund should not constitute a complete investment program.
This document is not an offer to sell securities or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities, nor shall there be any sale or offer of these securities, in any jurisdiction where such sale or offer is not permitted.
The Fund’s shares are only available for purchase through broker/dealers on the secondary market. Unlike an open-end mutual fund, closed-end funds typically offer a fixed number of shares for sale. After the initial public offering, shares are bought in the secondary marketplace, and the market price of the shares is determined by supply and demand, not by NAV, often at a lower price than the NAV. A closed-end fund is not required to buy its shares back from investors upon request.
Investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible. An investment in the Fund involves certain risks arising from, among other things, the Fund’s ability to invest without limit in debt securities that are at the time of investment rated below investment grade or unrated securities judged by DoubleLine to be of comparable quality (a category of investment that includes securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk bonds”). Securities of below investment grade quality are regarded as having predominantly speculative characteristics with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and to repay principal when due. An investment in the Fund is also subject to the risk of the use of leverage. Investments in debt securities typically decline in value when interest rates rise. This risk is usually greater for longer-term debt securities. Investments in asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities include additional risks that investors should be aware of including credit risk, prepayment risk, possible illiquidity and default, as well as increased susceptibility to adverse economic developments. Investments in debt securities typically decline in value when interest rates rise. This risk is usually greater for longer-term debt securities. Investments in lower rated and non-rated securities present a greater risk of loss to principal and interest than higher rated securities. Investments in asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities include additional risks that investors should be aware of including credit risk,
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(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
prepayment risk, possible illiquidity and default, as well as increased susceptibility to adverse economic developments. The Fund may invest in foreign securities which involves greater volatility and political, economic and currency risks and differences in accounting methods. These risks are greater for investments in emerging markets. Derivatives involve risks different from, and in certain cases, greater than the risks presented by more traditional investments. Derivatives may involve certain costs and risks such as liquidity, interest rate, market, credit, management and the risk that a position could not be closed when most advantageous. Investing in derivatives could lose more than the amount invested. Exchange-traded fund investments involve additional risks such as the market price trading at a discount to its net asset value, an active secondary trading market may not develop or be maintained, or trading may be halted by the exchange in which they trade, which may impact a fund’s ability to sell its shares. Floating rate loans and other floating rate investments are subject to credit risk, interest rate risk, counterparty risk and financial services risks, among others. Investment strategies may not achieve the desired results due to implementation lag, other timing factors, portfolio management decision-making, economic or market conditions or other unanticipated factors. In addition, the Fund may invest in other asset classes and investments such as, among others, REITs, credit default swaps, short sales, derivatives and smaller companies which include additional risks. Additional principal risks for the Fund can be found in the prospectus.
Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against loss in a declining market.
The Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. You can obtain the Fund’s most recent periodic reports and certain other regulatory filings by calling 1 (877) DLINE 11 / 1 (877) 354-6311, or visiting www.doubleline.com. You should read these reports and other filings carefully before investing.
The performance shown assumes the reinvestment of all dividends and distributions and does not reflect any reductions for taxes. Total return does not reflect broker commissions or sales charges in connection with the purchase or sale of Fund shares. Performance reflects management fees and other fund expenses.
Performance data quoted represents past performance; past performance does not guarantee future results and does not reflect the deduction of any taxes a shareholder would pay on fund distributions or the sale of fund shares. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares when sold may be worth more or less than the original cost. Current performance of the Fund may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. Performance data current to the most recent month-end may be obtained by calling 1 (877) DLINE 11 / 1 (877) 354-6311 or by visiting www.doubleline.com/funds/yield-opportunities-fund/.
Credit ratings from Moody’s Investor Services, Inc. (“Moody’s”) range from the highest rating of Aaa for bonds of the highest quality that offer the lowest degree of investment risk to the lowest rating of C for the lowest rated class of bonds. Credit ratings from S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) range from the highest rating of AAA for bonds of the highest quality that offer the lowest degree of investment risk to the lowest rating of D for bonds that are in default. Credit ratings are determined from the highest available credit rating from any Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (“NRSRO”). DoubleLine chooses to display credit ratings using S&P’s rating convention, although the rating itself might be sourced from another NRSRO. In limited situations when the rating agency has not issued a formal rating, the rating agency will classify the security as nonrated.
Index Descriptions and Other Definitions
An investment cannot be made directly in an index. The performance of any index mentioned in this commentary has not been adjusted for ongoing expenses applicable to fund investments.
The index descriptions provided herein are based on information provided on the respective index provider’s website or from other third-party sources. The Fund and DoubleLine have not verified these index descriptions and disclaim responsibility for their accuracy and completeness.
The reference and link to any websites in this Annual Report have been provided as a convenience, and the information contained on such website is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report.
Agency—Refers to mortgage-backed securities (MBS) whose principal and interest are guaranteed by a U.S. government agency such as Fannie Mae (FNMA) or Freddie Mac (FHLMC).
Asset-Backed Securities (ABS)—Investment securities, such as bond or notes, that are collateralized by a pool of assets, such as loans, leases, credit card debt, royalties or receivables.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
7

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance(Cont.)
Basis Points (bps)—Basis points (or basis point (bp)) refer to a common unit of measure for interest rates and other percentages in finance. One basis point is equal to 1/100th of 1%, or 0.01% or 0.0001, and is used to denote the percentage change in a financial instrument. The relationship between percentage changes and basis points can be summarized as: 1% change = 100 basis points;
0.01% = 1 basis point.
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index—This index (the “Agg”) represents securities that are SEC registered, taxable and U.S. dollar denominated. It covers the U.S. investment grade, fixed-rate bond market, with components for government and corporate securities, mortgage pass-through securities and asset-backed securities. These major sectors are subdivided into more specific indices that are calculated and reported on a regular basis.
Brent Crude Oil—Major trading classification of sweet light crude oil that serves as a benchmark price for purchases of oil worldwide. Brent is known as a light, sweet oil because it contains 0.24% sulfur, making it “sweet,” and has a low density, making it “light.”
CBOE Volatility Index (VIX)—This real-time market index represents the market’s expectation of 30-day forward-looking volatility and is derived from the price inputs of S&P 500 Index options. Calculated and published by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), the index is also known by such names as the “Fear Gauge” or “Fear Index.”
Collateralized Loan Obligation (CLO)—Single security backed by a pool of debt.
Conference Board Leading Economic Index (LEI)—This index tracks a group of composite indexes (manufacturers’ orders, initial unemployment insurance claims, et al.) as a means of gauging the strength of a particular industry or the economy.
Consumer Price Index (CPI)—This index, compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, examines the weighted average of the prices of a basket of consumer goods and services, such as transportation, food and medical care. It is calculated by averaging price changes for each item in the basket. Changes in the CPI are used to assess price changes associated with the cost of living. The CPI is one of the most frequently used statistics for identifying periods of inflation or deflation.
Federal Funds Rate—Target interest rate, set by the Federal Reserve at its Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings, at which commercial banks borrow and lend their excess reserves to each other overnight. The Fed sets a target federal funds rate eight times a year, based on prevailing economic conditions.
Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)—Branch of the Federal Reserve System that determines the direction of monetary policy specifically by directing open market operations. The FOMC comprises the seven board governors and five (out of 12) Federal Reserve Bank presidents.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP)—Market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP is considered an indicator of a country’s standard of living.
Investment Grade (IG)—Rating that signifies a municipal or corporate bond presents a relatively low risk of default. Bonds below this designation are considered to have a high risk of default and are commonly referred to as high yield (HY) or “junk bonds.” The higher the bond rating the more likely the bond will return 100 cents on the U.S. dollar.
ISM Manufacturing PMI—This index (which used to be called the ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index) is compiled by the Institute for Supply Management and tracks the economic health of the manufacturing sector. The index is based on five major indicators: new orders, inventory levels, production, supplier deliveries and employment environment. A number below 50 is considered a contractionary signal for the economy; a number above 50 is considered expansionary.
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS)—Conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, JOLTS involves the monthly collection, processing and dissemination of job openings and labor turnover data. The data, collected from sampled establishments on a voluntary basis, includes employment, job openings, hires, quits, layoffs, discharges and other separations. The number of unfilled jobs – used to calculate the job openings rate – is an important measure of the unmet demand for labor, providing a more complete picture of the U.S. labor market than by looking solely at the unemployment rate.
Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS)—Investment similar to a bond that is made up of a bundle of home loans bought from the banks that issued them. Investors in MBS receive periodic payments similar to bond coupon payments.
MSCI Europe Index —This index is U.S. dollar denominated and represents the performance of mid- and large-capitalization equities across 15 developed markets in Europe. With 424 constituents, it covers approximately 85% of the free-float-adjusted market capitalization in each country.
Net Asset Value (NAV)—Net value of an entity calculated as the total value of the entity’s assets minus the total value of its liabilities. Most commonly used in the context of a mutual fund or an exchange-traded fund (ETF), the NAV represents the per share/unit price of the fund at a specific date or time.
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(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
S&P 500® Index—This unmanaged capitalization-weighted index of the stocks of the 500 largest publicly traded U.S. companies is designed to measure performance of the broad domestic economy through changes in the aggregate market value of the 500 stocks, which represent all major industries.
Spread —Difference between yields on differing debt instruments, calculated by deducting the yield of one instrument from another. The higher the yield spread, the greater the difference between the yields offered by each instrument. The spread can be measured between debt instruments of differing maturities, credit ratings or risk.
Tokyo Stock Exchange Price Index (TOPIX)—This index tracks all domestic companies of the exchange’s first section and includes 33 industries.
U-3 Unemployment Rate —Officially recognized rate of unemployment, compiled and released monthly by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, measuring the number of unemployed people as a percentage of the labor force.
This commentary may include statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” under the U.S. securities laws. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, projections, estimates, and information about possible or future results related to the Fund and market or regulatory developments. The views expressed above are not guarantees of future performance or economic results and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from the views expressed herein.
DoubleLine has no obligation to provide revised assessments in the event of changed circumstances. While we have gathered this information from sources believed to be reliable, DoubleLine cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information provided. Securities discussed are not recommendations and are presented as examples of issue selection or portfolio management processes. They have been picked for comparison or illustration purposes only. No security presented within is either offered for sale or purchase. DoubleLine reserves the right to change its investment perspective and outlook without notice as market conditions dictate or as additional information becomes available.
Investment strategies may not achieve the desired results due to implementation lag, other timing factors, portfolio management decision making, economic or market conditions or other unanticipated factors. The views and forecasts expressed in this material are as of the date indicated, are subject to change without notice, may not come to pass and do not represent a recommendation or offer of any particular security, strategy, or investment. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
DoubleLine® is a registered trademark of DoubleLine Capital LP.
Foreside Fund Services, LLC provides marketing review services for DoubleLine Capital LP.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
9

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Performance Summary
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
DLY
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
Returns as of September 30, 2024
1 Year
3 Years
Annualized
Since
Inception
Annualized
(2-26-20 to 9-30-24)
Total Return based on NAV
19.15%
1.74%
3.78%
Total Return based on Market Price
23.75%
4.66%
4.50%
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index1
11.57%
−1.39%
−0.32%
Performance data quoted represents past performance; past performance does not guarantee future results and does not reflect the deduction of any taxes a shareholder would pay on fund distributions or the sale of fund shares. The performance information shown assumes reinvestment of all dividends and distributions. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor's shares when sold may be worth more or less than the original cost. Current performance of the Fund may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. Performance reflects management fees and other fund expenses. Performance data current to the most recent month-end may be obtained by calling (877) 354-6311 or by visiting www.doubleline.com.
1
Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes.
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Growth of Investment
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
Value of a $10,000 Investment1

Average Annual Total Returns1
As of September 30, 2024
 
1 Year
Since Inception
Annualized
(2/26/2020)
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
Total Return based on NAV
19.15%
3.78%
Total Return based on Market Price
23.75%
4.50%
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
11.57%
−0.32%
1
Past performance is not an indication of future results. Returns represent past performance and reflect changes in share prices, the reinvestment of all dividends and capital gains, and the effects of compounding. The section entitled “Summary of Updated Information Regarding the Fund” contains more complete information on the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the investment company, which investors should read and consider carefully before investing. The returns shown do not reflect taxes a shareholder would pay on distributions or redemptions. The returns shown do not reflect commissions that may be paid in respect of shares purchased in connection with the Fund’s offering of Common Shares under the Fund’s Shelf Registration (see Note 13). If it were reflected the Fund’s performance shown would be lower. The total investment return and principal value of your investment will fluctuate, and your shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be higher or lower than the performance data quoted. Please call (877) 354-6311 or visit www.doubleline.com to receive performance results current to the most recent month-end.
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index-This index (the “Agg”) represents securities that are SEC registered, taxable and dollar denominated. It covers the U.S. investment grade, fixed-rate bond market, with components for government and corporate securities, mortgage pass-through securities and asset-backed securities. These major sectors are subdivided into more specific indexes that are calculated and reported on a regular basis. Index performance reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes.
The Fund’s investments likely will diverge widely from the components of the benchmark index which could lead to performance dispersion between the Fund and the benchmark index, meaning that the Fund could outperform or underperform the index at any given time.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
11

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of InvestmentsDoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
ASSET BACKED OBLIGATIONS - 2.3%
Affirm, Inc.
1,300,000
Series 2023-B-D
8.78%(a)
09/15/2028
1,334,517
Apollo Aviation Securitization Equity Trust
497,899
Series 2024-1A-B
6.90%(a)
05/16/2049
510,111
Blue Stream Communications LLC
2,500,000
Series 2023-1A-C
8.90%(a)
05/20/2053
2,391,738
Castlelake Aircraft Securitization Trust
1,503,722
Series 2021-1A-C
7.00%(a)
01/15/2046
1,423,097
Compass Datacenters LLC
750,000
Series 2024-1A-B
7.00%(a)
02/25/2049
774,310
JetBlue Airways Corp.
1,109,418
Series 2019-1
8.00%
11/15/2027
1,135,489
JOL Air Ltd.
3,485,718
Series 2019-1-B
4.95%(a)
04/15/2044
3,322,032
Kestrel Aircraft Funding USA LLC
897,494
Series 2018-1A-A
4.25%(a)
12/15/2038
864,428
MACH 1 Cayman Ltd.
868,376
Series 2019-1-B
4.34%(a)
10/15/2039
713,595
Marlette Funding Trust
8,192
Series 2021-1A-R
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
06/16/2031
141,551
Pagaya AI Debt Selection Trust
2,425,852
Series 2021-3-CERT
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
05/15/2029
69,622
2,303,922
Series 2021-5-CERT
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
08/15/2029
109,501
326,779
Series 2022-2-AB
6.10%(a)(d)
01/15/2030
327,597
SOFI Alternative Trust
55,000
Series 2021-2-R1
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
08/15/2030
238,245
SoFi Professional Loan Program LLC
20,000
Series 2018-C-R1
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
01/25/2048
167,710
Start Ltd./Bermuda
264,028
Series 2019-1-C
6.41%(a)
03/15/2044
246,056
Start/Bermuda
2,681,140
Series 2018-1-A
4.09%(a)
05/15/2043
2,603,757
Switch ABS Issuer LLC
1,000,000
Series 2024-2A-C
10.03%(a)
06/25/2054
1,047,202
Upstart Securitization Trust
4,000
Series 2021-2-CERT
0.00%(b)(c)
06/20/2031
337,307
3,300
Series 2021-5-CERT
0.00%(a)(b)(c)
11/20/2031
132,440
Total Asset Backed Obligations
(Cost $16,944,525)
17,890,305
BANK LOANS - 14.1%
AAdvantage Loyalty IP Ltd.
907,500
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.75% Floor)
10.29%
04/20/2028
934,344
Access CIG LLC
1,961,242
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.00%, 0.50% Floor)
10.25%
08/18/2028
1,972,098
ADMI Corp.
1,119,231
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.50% Floor)
8.71%
12/23/2027
1,097,842
908,138
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.75%, 0.00% Floor)
10.60%
12/23/2027
910,689
AI Aqua Merger Sub, Inc.
818,734
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.50% Floor)
8.70%
07/31/2028
818,693
Allied Universal Holdco LLC
1,014,769
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.50% Floor)
8.70%
05/15/2028
1,006,017
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Altice France SA
547,229
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.50%, 0.00% Floor)
10.80%
08/31/2028
411,790
Alvaria Holdco (Aspect Software) Second-Out T/L
577,009
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 1.00%, 0.75% Floor)
6.08%
05/18/2028
260,378
20,080
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 1.00% or 6.50% PIK, 0.75% Floor)
6.08%
05/18/2028
9,061
Alvaria Holdco (Aspect Software) Third-Out T/L A
1,346,354
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 2.00%, 0.00% Floor)
6.97%
05/18/2028
107,708
39,557
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 2.00% + 5.50% PIK, 0.00% Floor)
6.97%
05/18/2028
3,165
American Tire Distributors, Inc.
1,415,309
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 6.25%, 0.75% Floor)
11.80%
10/23/2028
856,856
Applied Systems, Inc.
670,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
9.85%
02/23/2032
691,477
Apro LLC
1,025,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.00% Floor)
8.87%
07/09/2031
1,029,807
Artera Services LLC
1,965,113
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.00% Floor)
9.10%
02/10/2031
1,920,583
Ascend Learning LLC
3,022,391
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.75%, 0.50% Floor)
10.70%
12/10/2029
2,933,609
Astra Acquisition Corp.
277,224
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 6.75%, 2.00% Floor)
12.08%
02/25/2028
229,819
438,485
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 2.00% Floor)
9.85%
10/25/2028
91,352
3,249,219
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 8.88%, 0.75% Floor)
13.74%
10/25/2029
378,745
Asurion LLC
305,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
10.21%
02/03/2028
287,190
1,425,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
10.21%
01/22/2029
1,322,243
Aveanna Healthcare LLC
2,800,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.00%, 0.50% Floor)
12.21%
12/10/2029
2,650,382
Bausch + Lomb Corp.
407,701
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.27%
05/10/2027
406,739
12
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
955,350
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.00% Floor)
8.85%
09/29/2028
955,952
BCPE Empire Holdings, Inc.
194,025
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
12/26/2028
194,329
Boxer Parent Co., Inc.
2,040,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.00% Floor)
9.01%
07/30/2031
2,038,378
2,500,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.75%, 0.00% Floor)
11.01%
07/30/2032
2,464,588
Brand Industrial Services, Inc.
1,151,731
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.50% Floor)
9.75%
08/01/2030
1,122,402
Carnival Corp.
117,555
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 2.75%, 0.75% Floor)
8.00%
08/09/2027
118,032
Cengage Learning, Inc.
756,200
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (6 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 1.00% Floor)
9.54%
03/24/2031
758,752
Central Parent LLC
635,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
7.85%
07/06/2029
629,180
ClubCorp Holdings, Inc.
1,646,292
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.00%, 0.00% Floor)
9.87%
09/18/2026
1,650,852
67,112
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.00%, 0.00% Floor)
9.87%
09/18/2026
67,298
Constant Contact, Inc.
4,500,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.50%, 0.00% Floor)
13.07%
02/12/2029
4,162,500
CoreLogic, Inc.
246,193
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.50% Floor)
8.46%
06/02/2028
244,369
Cornerstone Building Brands, Inc.
525,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.50% Floor)
9.60%
05/15/2031
519,915
Crosby US Acquisition Corp.
501,219
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.50% Floor)
9.25%
08/16/2029
502,785
Cross Financial Corp.
1,161,240
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.75% Floor)
8.35%
09/15/2027
1,162,691
Dcert Buyer, Inc.
467,558
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.00% Floor)
9.25%
10/16/2026
454,848
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
940,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 7.00%, 0.00% Floor)
12.25%
02/16/2029
816,461
Deerfield Dakota Holding LLC
2,039,303
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 1.00% Floor)
8.35%
04/09/2027
2,000,679
Dexko Global, Inc.
784,075
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.00% Floor)
8.85%
10/04/2028
768,099
DG Investment Intermediate Holdings 2, Inc.
915,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 6.75%, 0.75% Floor)
11.71%
03/29/2029
862,959
Directv Financing LLC
1,527,379
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.75% Floor)
10.21%
08/02/2029
1,506,377
Dynasty Acquisition Co., Inc.
315,175
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.35%
08/24/2028
315,775
Edelman Financial Engines Center LLC
2,180,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
10.10%
10/06/2028
2,179,095
Edgewater Generation LLC
1,250,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.00% Floor)
9.10%
08/01/2030
1,262,500
EG America LLC
965,138
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.50%, 0.00% Floor)
10.72%
02/07/2028
965,944
Eisner Advisory Group LLC
1,201,663
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
02/28/2031
1,207,251
Element Materials Technology Group US Holdings, Inc.
225,975
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.50% Floor)
8.35%
06/25/2029
226,823
Ellucian Holdings, Inc.
415,149
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.50% Floor)
8.45%
10/29/2029
416,672
Fertitta Entertainment LLC/NV
1,930,190
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
01/29/2029
1,927,044
FinThrive Software Intermediate Holdings, Inc.
785,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 6.75%, 0.50% Floor)
11.71%
12/17/2029
345,565
Flynn America LP
544,781
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.50% Floor)
9.46%
07/31/2028
540,015
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
13

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of Investments DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (Cont.)
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
544,781
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.50% Floor)
9.46%
07/31/2028
540,014
Gainwell Acquisition Corp.
3,129,316
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.75% Floor)
8.70%
10/01/2027
2,986,541
Garda World Security Corp.
1,114,315
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.60%
02/01/2029
1,115,568
GIP II Blue Holding LP
176,227
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 1.00% Floor)
9.00%
09/29/2028
177,108
Grant Thornton LLP/Chicago
320,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
8.10%
05/30/2031
320,824
Groupe Solmax, Inc.
187,937
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.75% Floor)
10.11%
07/24/2028
174,564
269,249
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.75% Floor)
10.11%
07/24/2028
250,089
186,488
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.75% Floor)
10.35%
07/24/2028
173,218
344,040
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.75% Floor)
10.35%
07/24/2028
319,558
Helios Software Holdings, Inc.
923,400
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.00% Floor)
8.35%
07/15/2030
921,092
Hexion Holdings Corp.
2,282,777
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.50% Floor)
9.77%
03/15/2029
2,269,126
INEOS US Finance LLC
2,099,138
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
8.10%
02/19/2030
2,100,638
INEOS US Petrochem LLC
1,009,925
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.00% Floor)
9.20%
03/29/2029
1,011,506
Kenan Advantage Group, Inc.
1,054,707
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
8.10%
01/25/2029
1,052,950
Klockner Pentaplast of America, Inc.
1,168,798
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (6 mo. SOFR US + 4.73%, 0.50% Floor)
9.72%
02/09/2026
1,103,866
Kronos Acquisition Holdings, Inc.
1,345,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.00% Floor)
9.31%
07/08/2031
1,264,300
Lasership, Inc.
333,203
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.50%, 0.00% Floor)
12.37%
05/07/2029
139,279
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
LBM Acquisition LLC
2,214,975
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.75% Floor)
8.97%
06/06/2031
2,175,637
LC Ahab US Bidco LLC
690,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.35%
05/01/2031
693,885
Lereta LLC
372,036
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.75% Floor)
10.21%
08/07/2028
303,210
LifePoint Health, Inc.
1,308,433
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.00% Floor)
10.05%
11/16/2028
1,309,414
269,325
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.00% Floor)
8.96%
05/14/2031
269,686
Mitchell International, Inc.
2,465,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
10.10%
06/17/2032
2,427,002
Modena Buyer LLC
1,805,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.50%, 0.00% Floor)
9.10%
07/01/2031
1,732,240
Needle Holdings LLC
93,629
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 9.50%, 0.00% Floor)
14.35%
04/28/2028
79,585
NEP Group, Inc.
1,103,255
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.25% + 1.50% PIK, 0.00% Floor)
8.12%
08/19/2026
1,061,193
12,704
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.25% + 1.50% PIK, 0.00% Floor)
8.12%
08/19/2026
12,220
NGL Energy Operating LLC
303,475
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.00% Floor)
8.60%
02/03/2031
302,358
Nouryon USA LLC
1,105,069
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.63%
04/03/2028
1,108,180
286,850
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.63%
04/03/2028
287,657
OneDigital Borrower LLC
2,570,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.50% Floor)
10.10%
07/02/2032
2,550,725
Ontario Gaming GTA LP
1,156,263
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.89%
08/01/2030
1,156,621
Par Petroleum LLC
999,775
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.50% Floor)
9.06%
02/28/2030
1,003,004
Polaris Newco LLC
679,744
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.50% Floor)
9.51%
06/05/2028
669,303
14
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Potters Borrower LP
275,814
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 0.00% Floor)
8.60%
12/14/2027
277,596
Pretium PKG Holdings, Inc.
960,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 6.75%, 0.50% Floor)
12.07%
10/01/2029
388,800
Pretzel Parent T/L B (TAIT)
550,000
Senior Secured Term Loan
9.35%(e)
08/14/2031
552,063
Radiology Partners, Inc.
1,122,886
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.50% + 1.50% PIK, 0.00% Floor)
8.88%
01/31/2029
1,103,241
10,784
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.50% + 1.50% PIK, 0.00% Floor)
8.88%
01/31/2029
10,596
Restaurant Technologies, Inc.
2,072,505
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
04/02/2029
1,970,724
197,339
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
04/02/2029
187,647
197,339
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
04/02/2029
187,648
Skillsoft Finance II, Inc.
462,250
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.75% Floor)
10.22%
07/14/2028
379,664
Southern Veterinary Partners LLC
513,890
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (6 mo. SOFR US + 3.75%, 1.00% Floor)
8.00%
10/05/2027
515,496
Standard Aero Ltd.
121,523
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.00% Floor)
8.35%
08/24/2028
121,755
Staples, Inc.
310,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.75%)
10.69%
09/10/2029
282,432
StubHub Holdco Sub LLC
2,682,760
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.00% Floor)
9.60%
03/15/2030
2,684,987
Team Health Holdings, Inc.
803,446
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 1.00% Floor)
10.50%
03/02/2027
770,682
Titan Acquisition Ltd./Canada
2,957,588
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.00%, 0.00% Floor)
10.33%
02/15/2029
2,946,911
Travelport Finance Luxembourg Sarl
1,220,570
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.00%, 1.00% Floor)
​11.60%
09/29/2028
1,060,981
373,270
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.00%, 1.00% Floor)
​11.60%
09/29/2028
324,465
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Trident TPI Holdings, Inc.
555,786
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.00%, 0.50% Floor)
8.60%
09/18/2028
557,309
Triton Water Holdings, Inc.
1,527,109
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
03/31/2028
1,526,193
United Natural Foods, Inc.
1,087,275
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.75%)
10.00%
05/01/2031
1,092,711
Univision Communications, Inc.
1,132,105
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
8.85%
06/25/2029
1,118,667
Vantage Specialty Chemicals, Inc.
216,150
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.50% Floor)
9.87%
10/26/2026
214,529
Viad Corp.
1,877,688
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
9.10%
07/31/2028
1,880,035
Vibrantz Technologies, Inc.
871,111
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
9.70%
04/23/2029
851,594
Victra Holdings LLC
788,942
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 5.25%, 0.00% Floor)
9.85%
03/29/2029
796,831
Vortex Opco LLC
541,757
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.25%, 0.50% Floor)
9.12%
12/15/2028
391,419
VT Topco, Inc.
893,261
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.50%, 0.50% Floor)
8.35%
08/12/2030
897,075
Wand NewCo 3, Inc.
311,927
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
7.85%
01/30/2031
311,927
535,948
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (1 mo. SOFR US + 3.25%, 0.00% Floor)
8.10%
01/30/2031
535,948
WaterBridge Midstream Operating LLC
1,400,000
Senior Secured First Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 4.75%, 0.00% Floor)
9.39%
06/27/2029
1,355,501
WWEX Uni Topco Holdings LLC
165,000
Senior Secured Second Lien Term Loan (3 mo. SOFR US + 7.00%, 0.75% Floor)
12.60%
07/26/2029
161,425
Total Bank Loans
(Cost $118,747,568)
111,237,730
COLLATERALIZED LOAN OBLIGATIONS - 16.9%
Aimco CDO
500,000
Series 2019-10A-ERR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.65%, 5.65% Floor)
10.93%(a)
07/22/2037
502,989
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
15

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of Investments DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (Cont.)
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
2,000,000
Series 2021-15A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.21%, 5.95% Floor)
11.50%(a)
10/17/2034
2,015,916
Apidos CLO
1,450,000
Series 2018-18A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.96%, 5.70% Floor)
11.24%(a)
10/22/2030
1,458,321
Babson CLO Ltd./Cayman Islands
1,500,000
Series 2019-2A-CR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 3.66%, 3.40% Floor)
8.96%(a)
04/15/2036
1,514,646
2,000,000
Series 2020-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.91%, 6.65% Floor)
12.21%(a)
10/15/2036
2,005,957
Bain Capital Credit CLO
8,000,000
Series 2019-3A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.36%, 7.36% Floor)
12.64%(a)
10/21/2034
7,756,670
1,250,000
Series 2022-3A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.35%, 7.35% Floor)
12.64%(a)
07/17/2035
1,240,943
Buttermilk Park CLO
750,000
Series 2018-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.01%, 5.75% Floor)
11.31%(a)
10/15/2031
747,096
Canyon Capital CLO Ltd.
1,000,000
Series 2021-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.67%, 6.41% Floor)
11.97%(a)
04/15/2034
959,312
Canyon CLO
1,850,000
Series 2020-2A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.79%, 6.53% Floor)
12.09%(a)
10/15/2034
1,852,759
2,000,000
Series 2021-3A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.46%, 6.20% Floor)
11.76%(a)
07/15/2034
1,957,339
Carlyle Global Market Strategies
1,875,000
Series 2020-2A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.96%, 6.70% Floor)
12.25%(a)
01/25/2035
1,889,741
1,000,000
Series 2021-1A-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.26%, 6.00% Floor)
11.56%(a)
04/15/2034
1,002,966
CIFC Funding Ltd.
2,000,000
Series 2013-1A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.91%, 0.00% Floor)
12.20%(a)
07/16/2030
1,996,087
3,350,000
Series 2013-3RA-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.16%, 5.90% Floor)
11.44%(a)
04/24/2031
3,334,893
1,750,000
Series 2017-5A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.15%, 6.15% Floor)
11.48%(a)
07/17/2037
1,757,768
4,650,000
Series 2019-3A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.06%, 6.80% Floor)
12.35%(a)
10/16/2034
4,686,360
2,000,000
Series 2020-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.51%, 6.51% Floor)
11.81%(a)
07/15/2036
2,014,902
1,500,000
Series 2020-4A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.11%, 7.11% Floor)
12.41%(a)
01/15/2034
1,508,259
Dryden Senior Loan Fund
2,000,000
Series 2017-54A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.46%, 0.00% Floor)
11.74%(a)
10/19/2029
1,908,506
1,000,000
Series 2020-77A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.13%, 6.13% Floor)
11.26%(a)
05/20/2034
992,230
2,500,000
Series 2021-87A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.41%, 6.15% Floor)
11.54%(a)
05/20/2034
2,521,179
Highbridge Loan Management Ltd.
2,000,000
Series 13A-18-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.76%, 5.50% Floor)
11.06%(a)
10/15/2030
2,002,328
1,550,000
Series 2013-2A-CR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 3.16%, 2.90% Floor)
8.44%(a)
10/20/2029
1,561,456
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
1,000,000
Series 6A-2015-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.36%, 0.00% Floor)
10.60%(a)
02/05/2031
1,003,818
ING Investment Management CLO Ltd.
2,000,000
Series 2013-3A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.16%, 5.90% Floor)
11.44%(a)
10/18/2031
2,000,303
Katayma CLO Ltd.
1,000,000
Series 2024-2A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.33%, 7.33% Floor)
12.62%(a)
04/20/2037
1,039,650
Madison Park Funding Ltd.
2,500,000
Series 2020-45A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.61%, 6.35% Floor)
11.91%(a)
07/15/2034
2,513,469
2,000,000
Series 2021-38A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.26%, 6.26% Floor)
11.55%(a)
07/17/2034
2,002,929
Magnetite CLO Ltd.
500,000
Series 2020-26A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.21%, 5.95% Floor)
11.50%(a)
07/25/2034
502,874
1,000,000
Series 2020-28A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.41%, 6.15% Floor)
11.69%(a)
01/20/2035
1,006,565
Marble Point CLO
2,500,000
Series 2018-1A-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 3.26%, 0.00% Floor)
8.55%(a)
07/16/2031
2,498,994
Milos Clo
4,000,000
Series 2017-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.41%, 6.15% Floor)
11.69%(a)
10/20/2030
3,977,246
Neuberger Berman CLO Ltd.
2,500,000
Series 2017-16SA-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.51%, 6.25% Floor)
11.81%(a)
04/15/2034
2,513,708
7,000,000
Series 2019-34A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.50%, 6.50% Floor)
11.78%(a)
01/20/2035
7,026,404
500,000
Series 2020-38A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 3.26%, 3.00% Floor)
8.54%(a)
10/20/2035
501,429
3,000,000
Series 2020-38A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.51%, 6.25% Floor)
11.79%(a)
10/20/2035
3,015,175
Octagon Investment Partners Ltd.
750,000
Series 2019-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.86%, 6.60% Floor)
12.15%(a)
10/25/2032
754,790
1,500,000
Series 2019-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.26%, 7.00% Floor)
12.54%(a)
01/20/2035
1,409,416
5,000,000
Series 2019-1A-INC
0.00%(a)(b)(c)(d)
10/25/2032
2,034,524
1,000,000
Series 2020-2A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.86%, 6.60% Floor)
12.16%(a)
07/15/2036
880,691
4,000,000
Series 2021-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.76%, 6.50% Floor)
12.06%(a)
04/15/2034
3,710,142
Octagon Loan Funding
1,000,000
Series 2014-1A-ERR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.26%, 6.00% Floor)
11.36%(a)
11/18/2031
933,828
OHA Credit Funding
3,000,000
Series 2019-3A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.51%, 6.25% Floor)
11.79%(a)
07/02/2035
3,029,522
Point Au Roche Park CLO
500,000
Series 2021-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.36%, 6.10% Floor)
11.64%(a)
07/20/2034
503,410
Reese Park Ltd.
1,000,000
Series 2020-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.76%, 6.76% Floor)
12.06%(a)
10/15/2034
1,006,481
16
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
RR Ltd./Cayman Islands
5,000,000
Series 2017-2A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.06%, 5.80% Floor)
11.36%(a)
04/15/2036
5,023,223
1,000,000
Series 2019-6A-DR (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.11%, 5.85% Floor)
11.41%(a)
04/15/2036
991,107
Sound Point CLO Ltd.
3,000,000
Series 2020-1A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.12%, 7.12% Floor)
12.40%(a)
07/20/2034
2,843,511
4,000,000
Series 2020-2A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.82%, 6.56% Floor)
12.11%(a)
10/25/2034
3,734,104
7,000,000
Series 2021-2A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.62%, 6.36% Floor)
11.91%(a)
07/25/2034
6,284,698
2,000,000
Series 2021-3A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.87%, 6.61% Floor)
12.16%(a)
10/25/2034
1,807,703
7,000,000
Series 2021-4A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.96%, 6.96% Floor)
12.25%(a)
10/25/2034
6,383,343
Thompson Park CLO Ltd.
2,000,000
Series 2021-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.57%, 6.57% Floor)
11.87%(a)
04/15/2034
2,011,821
Trimaran CAVU LLC
3,000,000
Series 2019-1A-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 4.41%, 4.15% Floor)
9.69%(a)
07/20/2032
2,977,360
Voya CLO Ltd.
1,350,000
Series 2017-2A-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.28%, 0.00% Floor)
11.58%(a)
06/07/2030
1,326,377
2,700,000
Series 2018-1A-D (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.46%, 0.00% Floor)
10.74%(a)
04/19/2031
2,579,231
Wind River CLO Ltd.
2,500,000
Series 2017-3A-ER (3 mo. Term SOFR + 7.31%, 7.05% Floor)
12.61%(a)
04/15/2035
2,375,914
1,000,000
Series 2018-1A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 5.76%, 0.00% Floor)
11.06%(a)
07/15/2030
969,538
1,000,000
Series 2018-2A-E (3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.01%, 0.00% Floor)
11.31%(a)
07/15/2030
967,757
Total Collateralized Loan Obligations
(Cost $134,051,987)
133,329,678
FOREIGN CORPORATE BONDS - 14.2%
1,600,000
ABM Investama Tbk PT
9.50%(a)
08/05/2026
1,616,953
150,000
ACI Airport Sudamerica SA
6.88%(a)
11/29/2034
145,155
3,259,537
Acu Petroleo Luxembourg Sarl
7.50%
01/13/2032
3,274,499
688,000
Adani International Container Terminal Pvt Ltd.
3.00%
02/16/2031
610,360
3,900,000
Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd.
5.00%
08/02/2041
3,406,918
1,380,000
Adani Renewable Energy RJ Ltd./Kodangal Solar Parks Pvt Ltd./Wardha Solar Maharash
4.63%
10/15/2039
1,183,367
4,344,000
AI Candelaria Spain SA
5.75%
06/15/2033
3,558,372
1,000,000
AI Candelaria Spain SA
5.75%(a)
06/15/2033
819,147
470,827
Alpha Holding SAB de CV
10.00%(f)
12/19/2024
2,576
942,731
Alpha Holding SAB de CV
9.00%(a)(f)
02/10/2025
5,157
2,356,827
Alpha Holding SAB de CV
9.00%(f)
02/10/2025
12,892
4,000,000
Altice France Holding SA
6.00%(a)
02/15/2028
1,249,634
1,700,000
ARD Finance SA
7.25% PIK
6.50%(a)
06/30/2027
384,952
135,144
Autopistas del Sol SA/Costa Rica
7.38%
12/30/2030
133,963
700,000
Braskem Idesa SAPI
7.45%
11/15/2029
606,953
3,200,000
Braskem Idesa SAPI
6.99%(a)
02/20/2032
2,524,415
4,300,000
Braskem Netherlands Finance BV
5.88%
01/31/2050
3,371,071
3,000,000
BRF SA
5.75%
09/21/2050
2,604,185
2,750,000
Camposol SA
6.00%
02/03/2027
2,478,803
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
4,300,000
Canacol Energy Ltd.
5.75%
11/24/2028
2,278,080
2,998,000
CAP SA
3.90%
04/27/2031
2,465,855
2,700,000
Cemex SAB de CV
(5 yr. CMT Rate + 4.53%)
5.13%(g)
06/08/2026
2,661,195
600,000
Cia de Minas Buenaventura SAA
5.50%
07/23/2026
592,508
333,333
Comision Federal de Electricidad
5.00%
07/30/2049
279,167
2,000,000
Connect Finco SARL / Connect US Finco LLC
6.75%(a)
10/01/2026
2,000,000
3,000,000
Coruripe Netherlands BV
10.00%
02/10/2027
2,846,750
200,000
Cosan Overseas Ltd.
8.25%(g)
11/05/2024
205,312
4,600,000
Credito Real SAB de CV SOFOM ER
9.50%(f)
02/07/2026
474,260
2,200,000
CSN Resources SA
4.63%
06/10/2031
1,788,075
1,700,000
CSN Resources SA
5.88%
04/08/2032
1,449,766
1,150,000
CT Trust
5.13%
02/03/2032
1,055,114
725,000
eG Global Finance PLC
12.00%(a)
11/30/2028
809,847
3,900,000
Empresas Publicas de Medellin ESP
4.38%
02/15/2031
3,453,650
800,000
Fideicomiso Irrevocable de Administracion y Fuente de Pago Numero CIB/4323, 2.00% PIK
11.00%(a)
09/12/2030
814,000
1,203,020
Fideicomiso PA Pacifico Tres
8.25%
01/15/2035
1,206,028
2,500,000
Frigorifico Concepcion SA
7.70%(a)
07/21/2028
1,748,275
1,450,000
Frigorifico Concepcion SA
7.70%
07/21/2028
1,014,000
4,000,000
Garda World Security Corp.
9.50%(a)
11/01/2027
4,008,916
1,925,000
Garda World Security Corp.
8.25%(a)
08/01/2032
1,972,039
3,340,000
Global Aircraft Leasing Co. Ltd.
8.75%(a)
09/01/2027
3,393,453
3,100,000
Gran Tierra Energy, Inc.
9.50%(a)
10/15/2029
2,944,822
1,650,000
Grupo Aval Ltd.
4.38%
02/04/2030
1,470,408
2,443,043
Guara Norte Sarl
5.20%
06/15/2034
2,328,784
4,795,000
Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. / Titan Co.-Borrower LLC
9.00%(a)
02/15/2029
5,009,629
845,000
Kronos Acquisition Holdings, Inc.
8.25%(a)
06/30/2031
849,250
1,665,000
Kronos Acquisition Holdings, Inc.
10.75%(a)
06/30/2032
1,573,974
2,000,000
KUO SAB De CV
5.75%
07/07/2027
1,967,167
400,000
LD Celulose International GmbH
7.95%(a)
01/26/2032
410,750
600,000
MARB BondCo PLC
3.95%
01/29/2031
532,364
1,400,000
Metinvest BV
7.75%
10/17/2029
901,439
2,675,000
Mexarrend SAPI de CV
10.25%(f)
07/24/2025
136,425
1,200,000
Minerva Luxembourg SA
4.38%
03/18/2031
1,067,089
1,400,000
Movida Europe SA
7.85%(a)
04/11/2029
1,348,937
2,200,000
Movida Europe SA
7.85%
04/11/2029
2,119,758
3,468,520
MV24 Capital BV
6.75%
06/01/2034
3,394,073
1,183,275
Oi SA
7.50% + 6.00% PIK
10.00%(a)
06/30/2027
1,029,449
2,623,738
Oi SA
8.00% PIK
8.50%(a)
12/31/2028
262,374
438,000
Operadora de Servicios Mega SAB de CV Sofom ER
8.25%(a)(f)
02/11/2025
153,300
3,302,000
Operadora de Servicios Mega SAB de CV Sofom ER
8.25%(f)
02/11/2025
1,155,700
947,100
Prumo Participacoes e Investimentos S/A
7.50%
12/31/2031
951,771
2,300,000
Sasol Financing USA LLC
5.50%
03/18/2031
2,054,116
530,000
Seaspan Corp.
5.50%(a)
08/01/2029
505,270
3,800,000
Simpar Europe SA
5.20%
01/26/2031
3,156,337
1,085,000
Telesat Canada / Telesat LLC
5.63%(a)
12/06/2026
520,850
1,200,000
Termocandelaria Power SA
7.75%(a)
09/17/2031
1,230,054
312,059
TransJamaican Highway Ltd.
5.75%
10/10/2036
287,679
2,099,000
Tullow Oil PLC
10.25%(a)
05/15/2026
1,906,782
311,423
UEP Penonome II SA
6.50%(a)
10/01/2038
270,622
2,750,000
Unigel Luxembourg SA
8.75%(f)
10/01/2026
691,350
4,400,000
UPL Corp. Ltd.
(5 yr. CMT Rate + 3.87%)
5.25%(g)
02/27/2025
3,353,460
200,000
Vedanta Resources Finance II PLC
9.25%
04/23/2026
198,756
3,666,000
Vedanta Resources Ltd.
13.88%
12/09/2028
3,762,057
Total Foreign Corporate Bonds
(Cost $131,926,100)
112,050,458
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
17

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of Investments DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (Cont.)
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
FOREIGN GOVERNMENT BONDS, FOREIGN AGENCIES AND FOREIGN GOVERNMENT SPONSORED CORPORATIONS - 5.6%
400,000
Aeropuerto Internacional de Tocumen SA
4.00%
08/11/2041
323,760
3,900,000
Aeropuerto Internacional de Tocumen SA
5.13%
08/11/2061
3,095,956
5,200,000
Brazilian Government International Bond
4.75%
01/14/2050
3,991,233
600,000
Colombia Government International Bond
4.13%
02/22/2042
415,153
5,100,000
Colombia Government International Bond
5.00%
06/15/2045
3,774,883
4,200,000
Comision Federal de Electricidad
4.68%
02/09/2051
3,150,683
2,365,000
Ecopetrol SA
5.88%
05/28/2045
1,776,905
3,150,000
Ecopetrol SA
5.88%
11/02/2051
2,291,850
3,100,000
Empresa de Transmision Electrica SA
5.13%
05/02/2049
2,450,017
400,000
FIEMEX Energia - Banco Actinver SA Institucion de Banca Multiple
7.25%(a)
01/31/2041
417,780
200,000
Mexico City Airport Trust
5.50%
07/31/2047
173,717
4,900,000
Mexico Government International Bond
4.40%
02/12/2052
3,776,186
4,300,000
OCP SA
5.13%
06/23/2051
3,509,574
5,600,000
Panama Government International Bond
3.87%
07/23/2060
3,541,717
5,700,000
Petroleos del Peru SA
5.63%
06/19/2047
3,909,214
3,700,000
Petroleos Mexicanos
6.38%
01/23/2045
2,581,675
1,800,000
Petroleos Mexicanos
6.75%
09/21/2047
1,290,905
4,200,000
Republic of South Africa Government International Bond
5.65%
09/27/2047
3,508,155
Total Foreign Government Bonds, Foreign Agencies and Foreign Government Sponsored Corporations (Cost $48,773,405)
43,979,363
NON-AGENCY COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE BACKED OBLIGATIONS - 24.9%
ACREC Trust
2,310,000
Series 2023-FL2-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.48%, 3.48% Floor)
8.58%(a)
02/19/2038
2,334,426
Alen Mortgage Trust
7,500,000
Series 2021-ACEN-F (1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.11%, 5.00% Floor)
10.21%(a)
04/15/2034
2,681,250
AREIT Ltd.
3,000,000
Series 2024-CRE9-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.09%, 3.09% Floor)
8.17%(a)
05/17/2041
3,005,514
AREIT Trust
1,930,000
Series 2022-CRE6-D (30 day avg SOFR US + 2.85%, 2.85% Floor)
8.19%(a)
01/20/2037
1,901,046
1,000,000
Series 2022-CRE7-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.44%, 4.44% Floor)
9.52%(a)
06/17/2039
1,004,490
4,375,000
Series 2023-CRE8-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.02%, 4.02% Floor)
9.11%(a)
08/17/2041
4,380,128
BANK
18,317,000
Series 2018-BN12-XE
1.50%(a)(d)(h)
05/15/2061
813,623
6,978,000
Series 2018-BN12-XF
1.50%(a)(d)(h)
05/15/2061
304,750
20,061,456
Series 2018-BN12-XG
1.50%(a)(d)(h)
05/15/2061
827,174
18,522,000
Series 2019-BN16-XF
1.14%(a)(d)(h)
02/15/2052
756,087
9,261,000
Series 2019-BN16-XG
1.14%(a)(d)(h)
02/15/2052
374,274
4,631,000
Series 2019-BN16-XH
1.14%(a)(d)(h)
02/15/2052
183,272
6,366,937
Series 2019-BN16-XJ
1.14%(a)(d)(h)
02/15/2052
236,863
21,359,000
Series 2022-BNK43-XD
2.40%(a)(d)(h)
08/15/2055
2,963,918
78,024,266
Series 2023-BNK46-XA
0.75%(d)(h)
08/15/2056
3,049,633
BANK5 Trust
219,685,492
Series 2023-5YR1-XA
0.48%(d)(h)
04/15/2056
2,035,166
65,071,170
Series 2023-5YR4-XA
1.26%(d)(h)
12/15/2056
2,347,436
BBCMS Trust
3,000,000
Series 2020-C7-D
3.71%(a)(d)
04/15/2053
1,655,670
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
BDS Ltd.
2,500,000
Series 2021-FL7-E (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.91%, 2.80% Floor)
7.93%(a)
06/16/2036
2,467,235
Beast Mortgage Trust
6,000,000
Series 2021-1818-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 6.11%, 6.25% Floor)
11.21%(a)
03/15/2036
2,445,005
Benchmark Mortgage Trust
7,464,000
Series 2018-B4-D
2.90%(a)(d)
07/15/2051
5,946,584
12,324,000
Series 2021-B26-XF
1.50%(a)(d)(h)
06/15/2054
923,190
2,890,000
Series 2024-V10-D
4.50%(a)
10/15/2029
2,582,099
BMO Mortgage Trust
134,063,508
Series 2023-5C1-XA
0.82%(d)(h)
08/15/2056
2,697,492
BrightSpire Capital, Inc.
3,106,000
Series 2024-FL2-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.54%, 3.54% Floor)
8.51%(a)
08/19/2037
3,115,163
BSPDF Issuer Ltd.
2,250,000
Series 2021-FL1-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.86%, 2.75% Floor)
7.96%(a)
10/15/2036
2,182,509
BSREP Commercial Mortgage Trust
4,738,531
Series 2021-DC-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.96%, 3.85% Floor)
9.06%(a)
08/15/2038
2,881,776
BX Trust
2,500,000
Series 2021-VIEW-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.04%, 4.93% Floor)
10.14%(a)
06/15/2036
2,251,266
3,989,950
Series 2022-PSB-E (1 mo. Term SOFR + 6.34%, 6.34% Floor)
11.43%(a)
08/15/2039
3,959,536
BXMT Ltd.
1,190,000
Series 2020-FL3-AS (1 mo. Term SOFR + 1.86%, 1.86% Floor)
6.95%(a)
11/15/2037
1,136,582
CALI Mortgage Trust
1,547,000
Series 2024-SUN-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.79%, 2.79% Floor)
7.89%(a)
07/15/2041
1,553,250
Carbon Capital VI Commercial Mortgage Trust
1,148,218
Series 2019-FL2-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.96%, 2.85% Floor)
8.06%(a)
10/15/2035
595,071
Citigroup Commercial Mortgage Trust
4,569,823
Series 2015-GC27-D
4.55%(a)(d)
02/10/2048
4,214,174
Citigroup/Deutsche Bank Commercial Mortgage Trust
1,221,000
Series 2016-C1-C
3.47%(d)
05/10/2049
1,075,691
Computershare Corporate Trust
2,000,000
Series 2016-C33-D
3.12%(a)
03/15/2059
1,681,900
4,514,242
Series 2016-C34-C
5.22%(d)
06/15/2049
4,212,485
3,200,000
Series 2017-RC1-D
3.25%(a)
01/15/2060
2,510,644
Credit Suisse Mortgage Capital Certificates
18,014,000
Series 2016-NXSR-XE
1.00%(a)(d)(h)
12/15/2049
314,377
CSAIL Commercial Mortgage Trust
53,850,213
Series 2017-CX9-XA
0.73%(d)(h)
09/15/2050
589,127
2,500,000
Series 2020-C19-E
2.50%(a)
03/15/2053
1,316,191
13,238,000
Series 2020-C19-XD
1.23%(a)(d)(h)
03/15/2053
687,114
CSWF
4,000,000
Series 2018-TOP-H (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.66%, 3.61% Floor)
8.76%(a)
08/15/2035
3,760,747
Del Amo Fashion Center Trust
2,100,000
Series 2017-AMO-C
3.76%(a)(d)
06/05/2035
1,925,063
DOLP Trust
4,000,000
Series 2021-NYC-F
3.70%(a)(d)
05/10/2041
2,693,677
18
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Granite Point Mortgage Trust, Inc.
1,780,000
Series 2021-FL4-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.06%, 1.95% Floor)
6.98%(a)
12/15/2036
1,707,164
Great Wolf Trust
2,500,000
Series 2024-WLF2-E (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.64%)
8.73%(a)
05/15/2041
2,492,502
1,000,000
Series 2024-WOLF-E (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.64%, 3.64% Floor)
8.74%(a)
03/15/2039
1,004,870
Greystone Commercial Real Estate Notes
2,650,000
Series 2021-FL3-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.31%, 2.20% Floor)
7.41%(a)
07/15/2039
2,571,931
GS Mortgage Securities Corp. II
1,859,000
Series 2014-GC26-D
4.62%(a)(d)
11/10/2047
1,144,586
2,149,788
Series 2015-GC28-D
4.53%(a)(d)
02/10/2048
2,000,615
7,203,501
Series 2016-GS3-XA
1.31%(d)(h)
10/10/2049
119,245
3,000,000
Series 2021-ARDN-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.11%, 5.00% Floor)
10.21%(a)
11/15/2036
2,968,191
3,000,000
Series 2021-ARDN-H (1 mo. Term SOFR + 6.05%, 5.93% Floor)
11.14%(a)
11/15/2026
2,969,279
2,000,000
Series 2023-SHIP-D
6.27%(a)(d)
09/10/2038
1,989,504
HGI CRE CLO Ltd.
1,040,000
Series 2021-FL2-E (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.56%, 2.56% Floor)
7.66%(a)
09/17/2036
1,028,950
2,000,000
Series 2022-FL3-B (30 day avg SOFR US + 2.60%, 2.60% Floor)
7.94%(a)
04/20/2037
2,005,600
HIG RCP LLC
4,000,000
Series 2023-FL1-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.61%, 3.61% Floor)
8.71%(a)
09/19/2038
4,050,000
JP Morgan Chase Commercial Mortgage Securities
2,702,717
Series 2007-C1-AJ
7.05%(d)
02/15/2051
2,680,692
4,000,000
Series 2019-MFP-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.10%, 4.05% Floor)
9.19%(a)
07/15/2036
3,822,906
4,000,000
Series 2019-MFP-XG
0.50%(a)(d)(h)
07/15/2036
13,802
JPMBB Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust
4,739,077
Series 2014-C23-XA
0.63%(d)(h)
09/15/2047
71
2,265,000
Series 2015-C27-D
3.92%(a)(d)
02/15/2048
555,028
41,147,608
Series 2015-C32-XA
1.24%(d)(h)
11/15/2048
190,155
JPMDB Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust
25,460,000
Series 2020-COR7-XB
0.55%(d)(h)
05/13/2053
571,765
10,244,000
Series 2020-COR7-XD
2.10%(a)(d)(h)
05/13/2053
881,411
KREF
3,250,000
Series 2021-FL2-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.11%, 2.00% Floor)
7.20%(a)
02/15/2039
3,148,795
LoanCore
5,000,000
Series 2021-CRE5-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.46%, 2.46% Floor)
7.56%(a)
07/15/2036
4,955,900
1,750,000
Series 2021-CRE6-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.96%, 2.85% Floor)
8.06%(a)
11/15/2038
1,704,192
MF1 Multifamily Housing Mortgage Loan Trust
1,500,000
Series 2022-FL10-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.73%, 5.73% Floor)
10.69%(a)
09/17/2037
1,509,787
3,000,000
Series 2023-FL12-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.78%, 3.78% Floor)
8.74%(a)
10/19/2038
3,019,497
3,016,000
Series 2023-FL12-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.27%, 5.27% Floor)
10.24%(a)
10/19/2038
3,057,446
1,500,000
Series 2024-FL14-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.84%, 4.84% Floor)
9.80%(a)
03/19/2039
1,514,360
2,450,000
Series 2024-FL15-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.94%, 2.94% Floor)
7.95%(a)
08/18/2041
2,453,636
MFT Trust
600,000
Series 2020-ABC-D
3.59%(a)(d)
02/10/2042
291,115
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Morgan Stanley ABS Capital I, Inc.
456,165,024
Series 2022-L8-XA
0.09%(d)(h)
04/15/2055
1,617,926
Morgan Stanley Bank of America Merrill Lynch Trust
734,550
Series 2014-C16-B
4.44%(d)
06/15/2047
703,012
7,186,250
Series 2015-C21-C
4.26%(d)
03/15/2048
6,440,095
5,000,000
Series 2015-C27-D
3.24%(a)(d)
12/15/2047
4,266,610
Morgan Stanley Capital I, Inc.
5,000,000
Series 2019-PLND-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 3.76%, 3.65% Floor)
8.86%(a)
05/15/2036
288,952
PFP III Ltd.
1,602,000
Series 2023-10-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.12%, 4.12% Floor)
9.21%(a)
09/16/2038
1,615,704
2,700,000
Series 2024-11-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.99%, 2.99% Floor)
8.07%(a)
09/17/2039
2,704,633
Ready Capital Corp.
749,789
Series 2021-FL5-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.36%, 2.25% Floor)
7.22%(a)
04/25/2038
752,751
2,200,000
Series 2021-FL6-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.51%, 2.40% Floor)
7.37%(a)
07/25/2036
2,172,174
2,000,000
Series 2022-FL10-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.27%, 4.27% Floor)
9.12%(a)
10/25/2039
2,014,848
2,887,000
Series 2023-FL11-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.28%, 4.28% Floor)
9.14%(a)
10/25/2039
2,896,709
2,000,000
Series 2023-FL12-C (1 mo. Term SOFR + 4.55%, 4.55% Floor)
9.40%(a)
05/25/2038
2,045,056
SMR Mortgage Trust
4,944,657
Series 2022-IND-G (1 mo. Term SOFR + 7.50%, 7.50% Floor)
12.60%(a)
02/15/2039
4,272,297
Starwood Property Mortgage Trust
1,750,000
Series 2019-FL1-D (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.46%, 2.46% Floor)
7.56%(a)
07/15/2038
1,721,540
2,225,000
Series 2022-FL3-B (30 day avg SOFR US + 1.95%, 1.95% Floor)
7.29%(a)
11/15/2038
2,162,035
TPG Real Estate Finance Issuer Ltd.
2,510,000
Series 2021-FL4-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 1.96%, 1.85% Floor)
7.05%(a)
03/15/2038
2,486,790
2,479,500
Series 2022-FL5-B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 2.45%, 2.45% Floor)
7.53%(a)
02/15/2039
2,460,795
UBS Commercial Mortgage Trust
2,500,000
Series 2018-C14-C
5.37%(d)
12/15/2051
2,194,486
UBS-Barclays Commercial Mortgage Trust
6,891,216
Series 2013-C5-C
3.84%(a)(d)
03/10/2046
5,810,225
Wachovia Bank Commercial Mortgage Trust
3,121,148
Series 2005-C21-E
5.13%(a)(d)
10/15/2044
1,108,008
Total Non-Agency Commercial Mortgage Backed Obligations
(Cost $229,598,636)
196,730,309
NON-AGENCY RESIDENTIAL COLLATERALIZED MORTGAGE OBLIGATIONS - 18.7%
ACE Securities Corp.
8,771,473
Series 2006-HE4-A2B (1 mo. Term SOFR + 0.33%, 0.22% Floor)
5.19%
10/25/2036
3,366,943
AMSR Trust
10,000,000
Series 2020-SFR4-G2
4.87%(a)
11/17/2037
9,883,610
Countrywide Alternative Loan Trust
5,541,824
Series 2005-J12-2A1 (1 mo. Term SOFR + 0.65%, 0.54% Floor, 11.00% Cap)
5.51%
08/25/2035
2,819,355
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
19

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of Investments DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (Cont.)
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
Deephaven Residential Mortgage Trust
10,000,000
Series 2020-2-B3
5.79%(a)(d)
05/25/2065
9,904,169
Fannie Mae Connecticut Avenue Securities
6,708,283
Series 2019-R05-1B1 (30 day avg SOFR US + 4.21%, 0.00% Floor)
9.49%(a)
07/25/2039
6,997,362
3,579,958
Series 2019-R07-1B1 (30 day avg SOFR US + 3.51%, 0.00% Floor)
8.79%(a)
10/25/2039
3,712,283
Federal National Mortgage Association
8,400,000
Series 2021-R02-2B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 6.20%, 0.00% Floor)
11.48%(a)
11/25/2041
8,850,611
Freddie Mac Structured Agency Credit Risk Debt Notes
9,250,000
Series 2020-DNA1-B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 5.36%, 0.00% Floor)
10.64%(a)
01/25/2050
10,235,961
3,000,000
Series 2020-DNA2-B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 4.91%, 0.00% Floor)
10.19%(a)
02/25/2050
3,235,353
6,000,000
Series 2020-DNA6-B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 5.65%, 0.00% Floor)
10.93%(a)
12/25/2050
6,826,028
22,000,000
Series 2020-HQA2-B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 7.71%, 0.00% Floor)
12.99%(a)
03/25/2050
26,455,242
9,750,000
Series 2020-HQA5-B2 (30 day avg SOFR US + 7.40%, 0.00% Floor)
12.68%(a)
11/25/2050
11,945,696
GS Mortgage-Backed Securities Trust
1,500,000
Series 2020-NQM1-B2
6.89%(a)(d)
09/27/2060
1,568,817
Homeward Opportunities Fund I Trust
8,000,000
Series 2020-2-B1
5.45%(a)(d)
05/25/2065
7,962,276
JP Morgan Alternative Loan Trust
6,128,389
Series 2007-A2-12A1 (1 mo. Term SOFR + 0.51%, 0.40% Floor, 11.50% Cap)
5.37%
06/25/2037
2,241,868
Rithm Capital Corp.
4,102,000
Series 2020-NQM2-B1
4.08%(a)(d)
05/24/2060
3,590,439
2,886,000
Series 2020-NQM2-B2
4.08%(a)(d)
05/24/2060
2,422,448
TBW Mortgage Backed Pass Through Certificates
4,235,501
Series 2007-2-A1A
5.96%(d)
07/25/2037
1,262,301
Verus Securitization Trust
2,500,000
Series 2020-2-B1
5.36%(a)(d)
05/25/2060
2,487,979
5,000,000
Series 2020-4-B2
5.60%(a)(d)
05/25/2065
5,056,158
1,235,000
Series 2020-INV1-B1
5.75%(a)(d)
03/25/2060
1,243,780
3,300,000
Series 2020-INV1-B2
6.00%(a)(d)
03/25/2060
3,333,434
Vista Point Securitization Trust
9,222,000
Series 2020-1-B2
5.38%(a)(d)
03/25/2065
8,848,433
3,396,000
Series 2020-2-B2
5.16%(a)(d)
04/25/2065
2,967,935
Total Non-Agency Residential Collateralized Mortgage Obligations
(Cost $140,717,096)
147,218,481
US CORPORATE BONDS - 19.6%
7,425,000
Allied Universal Holdco LLC / Allied Universal Finance Corp.
9.75%(a)
07/15/2027
7,447,988
1,980,000
Anywhere Real Estate Group LLC / Anywhere Co.-Issuer Corp.
7.00%(a)
04/15/2030
1,841,217
1,580,000
Artera Services LLC
8.50%(a)
02/15/2031
1,565,628
1,975,000
ASP Unifrax Holdings, Inc.
7.50%(a)
09/30/2029
866,357
3,580,000
AthenaHealth Group, Inc.
6.50%(a)
02/15/2030
3,441,742
1,710,000
Bausch + Lomb Corp.
8.38%(a)
10/01/2028
1,810,463
5,105,000
BCPE Empire Holdings, Inc.
7.63%(a)
05/01/2027
5,126,400
2,510,000
Brand Industrial Services, Inc.
10.38%(a)
08/01/2030
2,690,973
4,000,000
Caesars Entertainment, Inc.
8.13%(a)
07/01/2027
4,084,864
595,000
Carnival Corp.
7.63%(a)
03/01/2026
600,881
5,995,000
Castle US Holding Corp.
9.50%(a)
02/15/2028
2,607,825
690,000
CHS/Community Health Systems, Inc.
10.88%(a)
01/15/2032
761,232
1,865,000
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.
7.50%(a)
06/01/2029
1,607,861
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
2,335,000
Cobra AcquisitionCo LLC
6.38%(a)
11/01/2029
1,930,792
1,580,000
Cornerstone Building Brands, Inc.
9.50%(a)
08/15/2029
1,624,355
3,700,000
CVR Partners LP / CVR Nitrogen Finance Corp.
6.13%(a)
06/15/2028
3,625,014
3,895,000
Dealer Tire LLC / DT Issuer LLC
8.00%(a)
02/01/2028
3,880,837
1,550,000
Directv Financing LLC
8.88%(a)
02/01/2030
1,560,751
1,175,000
DISH DBS Corp.
5.75%(a)
12/01/2028
1,028,825
5,583,000
Embarq Corp.
8.00%
06/01/2036
2,494,792
3,550,000
Fertitta Entertainment LLC / Fertitta Entertainment Finance Co., Inc.
6.75%(a)
01/15/2030
3,309,711
1,200,000
Frontier Communications Holdings LLC
6.75%(a)
05/01/2029
1,209,322
1,655,000
Frontier Communications Holdings LLC
8.63%(a)
03/15/2031
1,785,654
1,640,000
Full House Resorts, Inc.
8.25%(a)
02/15/2028
1,643,624
335,000
GrafTech Global Enterprises, Inc.
9.88%(a)
12/15/2028
268,750
1,675,000
Gray Television, Inc.
10.50%(a)
07/15/2029
1,751,125
3,400,000
Helios Software Holdings, Inc. / ION Corporate Solutions Finance Sarl
8.75%(a)
05/01/2029
3,478,424
965,000
Hightower Holding LLC
6.75%(a)
04/15/2029
926,282
1,285,000
Hightower Holding LLC
9.13%(a)
01/31/2030
1,342,225
3,580,000
Illuminate Buyer LLC / Illuminate Holdings IV, Inc.
9.00%(a)
07/01/2028
3,622,842
1,340,000
JetBlue Airways Corp. / JetBlue Loyalty LP
9.88%(a)
09/20/2031
1,412,749
3,010,000
LBM Acquisition LLC
6.25%(a)
01/15/2029
2,849,001
3,360,000
Level 3 Financing, Inc.
10.50%(a)
04/15/2029
3,679,364
1,545,000
LifePoint Health, Inc.
11.00%(a)
10/15/2030
1,745,288
3,100,000
LifePoint Health, Inc.
10.00%(a)
06/01/2032
3,411,913
1,370,000
Lions Gate Capital Holdings LLC
5.50%(a)
04/15/2029
1,005,604
1,845,000
Mativ Holdings, Inc.
8.00%(a)
10/01/2029
1,885,451
1,840,000
Mavis Tire Express Services Topco Corp.
6.50%(a)
05/15/2029
1,769,596
2,550,000
McGraw-Hill Education, Inc.
5.75%(a)
08/01/2028
2,522,062
2,200,000
Michaels Cos., Inc.
5.25%(a)
05/01/2028
1,626,007
1,155,000
Michaels Cos., Inc.
7.88%(a)
05/01/2029
677,713
750,000
ModivCare Escrow Issuer, Inc.
5.00%(a)
10/01/2029
467,846
915,000
Nabors Industries, Inc.
8.88%(a)
08/15/2031
871,231
4,395,000
Newfold Digital Holdings Group, Inc.
6.00%(a)
02/15/2029
2,948,583
1,985,000
NGL Energy Operating LLC / NGL Energy Finance Corp.
8.38%(a)
02/15/2032
2,047,140
250,000
Olympus Water US Holding Corp.
6.25%(a)
10/01/2029
242,206
1,030,000
OneMain Finance Corp.
9.00%
01/15/2029
1,092,333
4,700,000
PetSmart, Inc. / PetSmart Finance Corp.
7.75%(a)
02/15/2029
4,644,260
1,765,000
Premier Entertainment Sub LLC / Premier Entertainment Finance Corp.
5.88%(a)
09/01/2031
1,205,773
4,393,276
Radiology Partners, Inc.
9.78% PIK
9.78%(a)
02/15/2030
4,157,137
3,330,000
Sabre GLBL, Inc.
8.63%(a)
06/01/2027
3,277,966
955,000
Staples, Inc.
10.75%(a)
09/01/2029
927,831
4,170,000
SWF Holdings I Corp.
6.50%(a)
10/01/2029
2,669,008
3,410,000
TKC Holdings, Inc.
10.50%(a)
05/15/2029
3,431,930
885,000
TMS International Corp./DE
6.25%(a)
04/15/2029
843,635
4,130,000
Trident TPI Holdings, Inc.
12.75%(a)
12/31/2028
4,589,975
2,985,000
United Natural Foods, Inc.
6.75%(a)
10/15/2028
2,849,873
2,460,000
Uniti Group LP / Uniti Group Finance, Inc. / CSL Capital LLC
6.50%(a)
02/15/2029
2,138,508
1,395,000
Univision Communications, Inc.
6.63%(a)
06/01/2027
1,400,481
3,190,000
Univision Communications, Inc.
8.50%(a)
07/31/2031
3,205,904
845,000
Venture Global LNG, Inc.
8.38%(a)
06/01/2031
892,832
1,050,000
Vibrantz Technologies, Inc.
9.00%(a)
02/15/2030
982,038
4,285,000
Victra Holdings LLC / Victra Finance Corp.
7.75%(a)
02/15/2026
4,322,811
3,440,000
Victra Holdings LLC / Victra Finance Corp.
8.75%(a)
09/15/2029
3,614,909
4,885,000
Viking Cruises Ltd.
9.13%(a)
07/15/2031
5,345,333
899,745
Vortex Opco LLC
8.00%(a)
04/30/2030
368,895
20
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
206,640
Vortex Opco LLC
(3 mo. Term SOFR + 6.25%, 0.50% Floor)
10.84%(a)
04/30/2030
206,950
3,280,000
Weatherford International Ltd.
8.63%(a)
04/30/2030
3,420,209
2,540,000
Wheel Pros, Inc.
6.50%(a)(f)
05/15/2029
28,575
Total US Corporate Bonds (Cost $166,838,715)
154,715,676
US GOVERNMENT AND AGENCY MORTGAGE BACKED OBLIGATIONS - 3.4%
Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.
6,298,845
Series 313-S1Pool S1-3249 (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 5.79%, 0.00% Floor, 5.90% Cap)
0.44%(h)(i)
09/15/2043
810,855
2,096,976
Series 3997-SA (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 6.39%, 0.00% Floor, 6.50% Cap)
1.04%(h)(i)
02/15/2042
246,037
2,867,785
Series 4091-VI (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 4.89%, 0.00% Floor, 5.00% Cap)
0.00%(h)(i)
11/15/2040
245,354
4,838,906
Series 4119-SC (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 6.04%, 0.00% Floor, 6.15% Cap)
0.69%(h)(i)
10/15/2042
642,682
2,651,982
Series 4643-SA (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 5.89%, 0.00% Floor, 6.00% Cap)
0.54%(h)(i)
01/15/2047
381,086
7,779,391
Series 4863-IA
4.50%(h)
03/15/2045
970,556
14,939,125
Series 5004-SD (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 6.10%, 0.00% Floor, 6.10% Cap)
0.82%(h)(i)
08/25/2050
2,610,966
Federal National Mortgage Association
6,457,014
Series 2012-124-SE (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 6.04%, 0.00% Floor, 6.15% Cap)
0.76%(h)(i)
11/25/2042
898,400
8,075,477
Series 2012-84-HS (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 5.89%, 0.00% Floor, 6.00% Cap)
0.61%(h)(i)
08/25/2042
1,010,136
4,566,788
Series 2017-69-ES (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 6.04%, 0.00% Floor, 6.15% Cap)
0.76%(h)(i)
09/25/2047
621,887
6,062,908
Series 2019-25-SB (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 5.94%, 0.00% Floor, 6.05% Cap)
0.66%(h)(i)
06/25/2049
668,852
42,053,356
Series 2019-M26-X1
0.70%(d)(h)
03/25/2030
903,327
FREMF Mortgage Trust
2,765,578
Series 2018-KF56-C (30 day avg SOFR US + 5.91%, 5.80% Floor)
11.26%(a)
11/25/2028
2,433,918
7,483,117
Series 2019-KF71-C (30 day avg SOFR US + 6.11%, 6.00% Floor)
11.46%(a)
10/25/2029
7,205,024
Government National Mortgage Association
9,427,272
Series 2019-22-SA (-1 x 1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.49%, 0.00% Floor, 5.60% Cap)
0.52%(h)(i)
02/20/2045
1,016,548
Principal
Amount $
Security Description
Rate
Maturity
Value $
5,141,241
Series 2020-21-NS (-1 x 1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.94%, 0.00% Floor, 6.05% Cap)
0.97%(h)(i)
04/20/2048
600,063
6,190,493
Series 2020-47-SL (-1 x 1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.26%, 0.00% Floor, 5.37% Cap)
0.29%(h)(i)
07/20/2044
507,265
10,733,569
Series 2020-61-SU (-1 x 1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.49%, 0.00% Floor, 5.60% Cap)
0.39%(h)(i)
07/16/2045
1,004,282
4,141,539
Series 2020-77-SU (-1 x 1 mo. Term SOFR + 5.99%, 0.00% Floor, 6.10% Cap)
1.02%(h)(i)
09/20/2047
556,631
23,600,935
Series 2021-97-SG (-1 x 30 day avg SOFR US + 2.60%, 0.00% Floor, 2.60% Cap)
0.00%(h)(i)
06/20/2051
214,717
31,165,317
Series 2021-H04-BI
0.95%(d)(h)
02/01/2071
1,612,537
31,970,732
Series 2021-H07-AI
0.32%(d)(h)
05/20/2071
1,890,740
Total US Government and Agency Mortgage Backed Obligations
(Cost $31,865,890)
27,051,863
Shares
Security Description
 
 
Value $
COMMON STOCKS - 0.0%(j)
62,660
JOANN, Inc.(c)(k)
5,254
Oi SA(c)
​   
1,366
12,858
Riverbed - Class B(c)(k)
1,672
Total Common Stocks
(Cost $–)
3,038
PREFERRED STOCKS - 1.3%
430,000
AGNC Investment Corp. Series F (3 mo. LIBOR US + 4.70%)(g)(l)
10,543,600
Total Preferred Stocks
(Cost $9,302,263)
10,543,600
REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS - 0.9%
650,000
AGNC Investment Corp.
6,799,000
Total Real Estate Investment Trusts
(Cost $6,489,783)
6,799,000
SHORT TERM INVESTMENTS - 0.3%
673,129
First American Government Obligations Fund - U
4.84%(m)
673,129
673,129
JPMorgan US Government Money Market Fund - IM
4.86%(m)
673,129
673,129
MSILF Government Portfolio - Institutional
4.83%(m)
673,129
Total Short Term Investments (Cost $2,019,387)
2,019,387
Total Investments - 122.2%(n) (Cost $1,037,275,355)
963,568,888
Other Liabilities in Excess of Assets - (22.2)%
(174,992,949)
NET ASSETS - 100.0%
$788,575,939
SECURITY TYPE BREAKDOWN as a % of Net Assets:
Non-Agency Commercial Mortgage Backed Obligations
24.9%
US Corporate Bonds
19.6%
Non-Agency Residential Collateralized Mortgage Obligations
18.7%
Collateralized Loan Obligations
16.9%
Foreign Corporate Bonds
14.2%
Bank Loans
14.1%
Foreign Government Bonds, Foreign Agencies and Foreign Government Sponsored Corporations
5.6%
US Government and Agency Mortgage Backed Obligations
3.4%
Asset Backed Obligations
2.3%
Preferred Stocks
1.3%
Real Estate Investment Trusts
0.9%
Short Term Investments
0.3%
Common Stocks
0.0%(j)
Other Assets and Liabilities
(22.2)%
Net Assets
​100.0%
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
21

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Schedule of Investments DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (Cont.)
INVESTMENT BREAKDOWN as a % of Net Assets:
Non-Agency Commercial Mortgage Backed Obligations
24.9%
Non-Agency Residential Collateralized Mortgage Obligations
18.7%
Collateralized Loan Obligations
16.9%
Energy
4.4%
Commercial Services
4.3%
Electronics/Electric
3.5%
US Government and Agency Mortgage Backed Obligations
3.4%
Chemicals/Plastics
3.3%
Foreign Government Bonds, Foreign Agencies and Foreign Government Sponsored Corporations
3.2%
Retailers (other than Food/Drug)
3.1%
Transportation
3.0%
Healthcare
2.9%
Media
2.6%
Consumer Products
2.4%
Asset Backed Obligations
2.3%
Real Estate
2.2%
Technology
2.0%
Telecommunications
1.9%
Finance
1.8%
Hotels/Motels/Inns and Casinos
1.7%
Mining
1.4%
Utilities
1.4%
Industrial Equipment
1.4%
Construction
1.2%
Building and Development (including Steel/Metals)
1.1%
Chemical Products
0.9%
Containers and Glass Products
0.9%
Leisure
0.8%
Business Equipment and Services
0.7%
Diversified Manufacturing
0.6%
Automotive
0.6%
Insurance
0.5%
Food Service
0.4%
Food Products
0.4%
Pulp & Paper
0.3%
Short Term Investments
0.3%
Conglomerates
0.3%
Aerospace & Defense
0.2%
Beverage and Tobacco
0.2%
Consumer Staples
0.1%
Other Assets and Liabilities
(22.2)%
Net Assets
​100.0%
(a)
Security exempt from registration under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933. These securities may be resold in transactions exempt from registration to qualified institutional buyers.
(b)
Security pays interest at rates that represent residual cashflows available after more senior tranches have been paid.  The interest rate disclosed reflects the estimated rate in effect as of period end.
(c)
Value determined using significant unobservable inputs.
(d)
Coupon rate is variable based on the weighted average coupon of the underlying collateral. To the extent the weighted average coupon of the underlying assets which comprise the collateral increases or decreases, the coupon rate of this security will increase or decrease correspondingly. The rate disclosed is as of period end.
(e)
Coupon rate is variable or floats based on components including but not limited to reference rate and spread. These securities may not indicate a reference rate and/or spread in their description. The rate disclosed is as of period end.
(f)
Security is in default or has failed to make a scheduled payment. Income is not being accrued.
(g)
Perpetual maturity. The date disclosed is the next call date of the security.
(h)
Interest only security
(i)
Inverse floating rate security whose interest rate moves in the opposite direction of reference interest rates.  Reference interest rates are typically based on a negative multiplier or slope.  Interest rate may also be subject to a cap or floor.
(j)
Represents less than 0.05% of net assets.
(k)
Non-income producing security.
(l)
Securities referencing LIBOR are expected to transition to an alternative reference rate by the security’s next scheduled coupon reset date.
(m)
Seven-day yield as of period end.
(n)
Under the Fund's credit agreement, the Lender, through their agent, have been granted a security interest in all of the Fund's investments in consideration of the Fund's borrowings under the line of credit with the Lender (See Note 9).
CMT   Constant Maturity Treasury Rate
LIBOR London Interbank Offered Rate
PIK   ​ A payment-in-kind security in which the issuer may make interest or dividend payments in cash or additional securities. These additional securities generally have the same terms as the original holdings.
SOFR Secured Overnight Financing Rate
22
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
September 30, 2024
Futures Contracts
 
 
 
 
 
Description
Long/ Short
Contract Quantity
Expiration Date
Notional Amount(1)
Unrealized
Appreciation
(Depreciation)/
Value
10 Year U.S. Ultra Treasury Notes
Long
275
12/19/2024
$32,531,641
$(19,933)
(1)
Notional Amount is determined based on the number of contracts multiplied by the contract size and the quoted daily settlement price in US dollars.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
23

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Statement of Assets and Liabilities
September 30, 2024
ASSETS
Investments in Unaffiliated Securities, at Value*
$961,549,501
Short Term Investments*
2,019,387
Cash
1,134,180
Interest and Dividends Receivable
12,331,129
Receivable for Investments Sold
2,935,880
Deposit at Broker for Futures
715,000
Receivable for Fund Shares Sold
246,277
Prepaid Expenses and Other Assets
54,454
Total Assets
980,985,808
LIABILITIES:
Loan Payable (See Note 9)
178,000,000
Payable for Investments Purchased
11,615,877
Investment Advisory Fees Payable
1,064,318
Interest Expense Payable
943,069
Professional Fees Payable
279,670
Administration, Fund Accounting and Custodian Fees Payable
219,877
Variation Margin Payable
141,797
Accrued Expenses
91,755
Trustees Fees Payable (See Note 7)
53,506
Total Liabilities
192,409,869
Commitments and Contingencies (See Note 2, Note 8 and Note 9)
Net Assets
$788,575,939
NET ASSETS CONSISTS OF:
Capital Stock ($0.00001 par value)
$481
Paid-in Capital
952,991,595
Total Distributable Earnings (Loss) (See Note 5)
(164,416,137)
Net Assets
$788,575,939
*Identified Cost:
Investments in Unaffiliated Securities
​$1,035,255,968
Short Term Investments
2,019,387
Shares Outstanding and Net Asset Value Per Share:
Shares Outstanding (unlimited authorized)
48,139,349
Net Asset Value Per Share
$16.38
24
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Statement of Operations
For the Year Ended September 30, 2024
INVESTMENT INCOME
Income:
Interest
​$87,982,595
Dividends from Unaffiliated Securities
1,805,487
Total Investment Income
89,788,082
Expenses:
Investment Advisory Fees
12,678,211
Interest Expense
12,120,188
Professional Fees
482,594
Administration, Fund Accounting and Custodian Fees
338,813
Miscellaneous Expenses
249,555
Shareholder Reporting Expenses
206,983
Trustees Fees
126,281
Registration Fees
46,686
Insurance Expenses
21,539
Total Expenses
26,270,850
Net Investment Income (Loss)
63,517,232
REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS) ON INVESTMENTS
Net Realized Gain (Loss) on:
Investments in Unaffiliated Securities
(22,611,064)
Futures
1,392,059
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on:
Investments in Unaffiliated Securities
88,659,199
​Futures
1,621,831
Unfunded Loan Commitments
(183)
Net Realized and Unrealized Gain (Loss) on Investments
69,061,842
NET INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS RESULTING FROM OPERATIONS
$ 132,579,074
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
25

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Statements of Changes in Net Assets
 
 
Year Ended
September 30,
 
2024
2023
OPERATIONS
Net Investment Income (Loss)
​$63,517,232
$62,044,771
Net Realized Gain (Loss) on Investments
(21,219,005)
(28,079,997)
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on Investments
90,280,847
26,248,178
Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations
132,579,074
60,212,952
DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS
From Earnings
(70,172,952)
(67,143,269)
Total Distributions to Shareholders
(70,172,952)
(67,143,269)
NET SHARE TRANSACTIONS
Proceeds from Issuance of common shares in connection with the shelf offering
2,785,831
Commissions and offering expenses associated with the issuance of common shares in connection with the shelf offering
(25,837)
Issuance of common shares from reinvestment of distributions
413,919
Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Net Share Transactions
3,173,913
Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets
$65,580,035
$(6,930,317)
NET ASSETS:
Beginning of Period
$ 722,995,904
$729,926,221
End of Period
$788,575,939
$ 722,995,904
26
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Statement of Cash Flows
For the Year Ended September 30, 2024
CASH FLOWS PROVIDED BY (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Operations
​$132,579,074
Adjustments to Reconcile the Change in Net Assets from Operations to Net Cash Provided By (Used In) Operating activities:
Purchases of Long Term Investments
(314,070,533)
Proceeds from Disposition of Long Term Investments
307,471,069
Net (Purchases of) Proceeds from Disposition of Short Term Investments
2,123,244
Net Amortization (Accretion of Premiums/Discounts and Other Cost Adjustments
4,809,520
Net Realized (Gain) Loss on:
Investments on Unaffiliated Securities
22,611,064
Net Change in Unrealized Depreciation (Appreciation) on:
Investments on Unaffiliated Securities
(88,659,199)
Unfunded Loan Commitments
183
(Increase) Decrease in:
Interest and Dividends Receivable
679,835
Receivable for Investments Sold
(2,014,371 )
Prepaid Expenses and Other Assets
(705)
Receivable for Variation Margin
123,047
Increase (Decrease) in:
Payable for Variation Margin
141,797
Payable for Investments Purchased
8,140,374
Investment Advisory Fees Payable
45,987
Interest Expense Payable
(113,853 )
Trustees Fees Payable
13,538
Administration, Fund Accounting and Custodian Fees Payable
(11,310 )
Payable to Broker for Dividend Reinvestment
(208,853 )
Accrued Expenses
49,891
Professional Fees Payable
196,849
Net Cash Provided By (Used In) Operating Activities
73,906,648
CASH FLOWS PROVIDED BY (USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Cash Distributions Paid to Common Stockholders
(69,759,033 )
Issuance of shares, net of fees
2,513,717
Increase in borrowings
28,000,000
Decrease in borrowings
(35,000,000 )
Net Cash Provided By (Used In) Financing Activities
(74,245,316)
NET CHANGE IN CASH
Cash at Beginning of Period
2,187,848
Cash at End of Period
$1,849,180
SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURE OF CASH FLOW AND NON-CASH INFORMATION:
Additional Paid-in Capital from Dividend Reinvestment
$413,919
Cash Paid for Interest on Loan Outstanding
$12,234,041
RECONCILIATION OF RESTRICTED AND UNRESTRICTED CASH AT THE END OF THE YEAR TO THE STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES:
Cash
$1,134,180
Deposit at Broker for Futures
715,000
Cash at End of Period
$1,849,180
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
27

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Financial Highlights
 
 
Year Ended September 30,
Period Ended
September 30, 2020(a)
2024
2023
2022
2021
Net Asset Value, Beginning of Period
$15.08
$15.22
$20.22
$19.09
$20.00
Income (Loss) from Investments Operations:
Net Investment Income (loss)(b)
1.32
1.29
1.27
1.27
0.55
Net Gain (Loss) on Investments (Realized and Unrealized)
1.44
(0.03)
(4.87)
1.26
(0.76)
Total from Investment Operations
2.76
1.26
(3.60)
2.53
(0.21)
Less Distributions:
Distributions from Net investment Income
(1.46)
(1.40)
(1.34)
(1.40)
(0.57)
Return of Capital
(0.06)
(c)
(0.13)
Total Distributions
(1.46)
(1.40)
(1.40)
(1.40)
(0.70)
Proceeds from Issuance of Common Shares:
Premiums less commissions and offering costs on issuance of common shares
(See Note 13)
(c)(d)
Total capital stock transactions
(c)(d)
Net Asset Value, End of Period
$16.38
$15.08
$15.22
$20.22
$19.09
Market Price, End of Period
$16.59
$14.73
$13.49
$19.11
$18.29
Total Return on Net Asset Value(e)
19.15%
8.63%
(18.63)%
13.53%
(0.83)%(f)
Total Return on Market Price(g)
23.75%
20.50%
(23.13)%
12.36%
(4.95)%(f)
Supplemental Data and Ratios:
Net Assets, End of Period (000’s)
$788,576
$722,996
$729,926
$969,487
$915,498
Ratio to Average Net Assets:
Expenses, including interest expense
3.46%
3.42%
2.60%
2.22%
1.86%(h)
Net Investment Income (Loss)
8.37%
8.52%
7.01%
6.30%
5.11%(h)
Portfolio Turnover Rate
33%
14%
19%
44%
16%(f)
The following table sets forth information regarding the Fund’s outstanding senior securities as of the end of each of the Fund’s last ten fiscal periods, as applicable.
Fiscal Year/Period Ended
Total Amount Outstanding(i)
Asset
Coverage per
$1,000 of
Senior
Securities
Average Market
Value per $1,000
of Senior Securities
(Excluding Bank
Loans)
Type of Senior
Security
September 30, 2024
$178,943,069
$5,407
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2023
$186,056,922
$4,886
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2022
$225,838,222
$4,232
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2021
$325,316,182
$3,980
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2020(a)
$250,260,922
$4,658
N/A
Loan
(a)
Commenced operations on February 26, 2020.
(b)
Calculated based on average shares outstanding during the period.
(c)
Less than $0.005 per share.
(d)
Represents the premium on the at the market offering of $0.0007 per share less underwriting and offering costs of $0.0006 per share for the period ended September 30, 2024.
(e)
Total return on Net Asset Value is computed based upon the Net Asset Value of common stock on the first business day and the closing Net Asset Value on the last business day of the period. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan.
(f)
Not Annualized
(g)
Total return on Market Price is computed based upon the New York Stock Exchange market price of the Fund’s shares and excludes the effect of brokerage commissions. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan. Total return on Market Price does not reflect any sales load paid by investors.
(h)
Annualized
(i)
Includes accrued interest payable on amounts outstanding as of the end of the relevant fiscal year/period.
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The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

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Notes to Financial Statements
September 30, 2024
1. Organization
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (the “Fund”) was formed as a closed-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), and originally classified as a non-diversified fund. The Fund is currently operating as a diversified fund. The Fund was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on September 17, 2019 and commenced operations on February 26, 2020. The Fund is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “DLY”. The Fund’s investment objective is to seek a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income.
The Fund has a limited term and intends to terminate as of the first business day following the twelfth anniversary of the effective date of the Fund’s initial registration statement, February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”); provided that the Fund’s Board of Trustees (the “Board”) may, by a vote of the majority of the Board and seventy-five percent (75%) of the Continuing Trustees, as such term is defined in the Fund’s Second Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust (a “Board Action Vote”), without shareholder approval, extend the Dissolution Date (i) once for up to one year, and (ii) once for up to an additional six months, to a date up to and including the eighteenth month after the initial Dissolution Date, which later date shall then become the Dissolution Date. At the Dissolution Date, each holder of common shares of beneficial interest (“Common Shareholder”) would be paid a pro rata portion of the Fund’s net assets as determined as of the Dissolution Date. The Board may, by a Board Action Vote, cause the Fund to conduct a tender offer, as of a date within twelve months preceding the Dissolution Date (as may be extended as described above), to all Common Shareholders to purchase 100% of the then outstanding common shares of the Fund at a price equal to the net asset value (“NAV”) per common share on the expiration date of the tender offer (an “Eligible Tender Offer”). In an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund will offer to purchase all Common Shares held by each Common Shareholder; provided that if the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below $200 million (the “Dissolution Threshold”), the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer, and the Fund will terminate as otherwise scheduled.
The fiscal year end for the Fund is September 30, and the period covered by these Financial Statements is for the year ended September 30, 2024 (the “period end”).
2. Significant Accounting Policies
The Fund is an investment company that applies the accounting and reporting guidance issued in Topic 946, Financial Services – Investment Companies, by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”). The following is a summary of the significant accounting policies of the Fund. These policies are in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”).
A. Security Valuation. The Fund has adopted US GAAP fair value accounting standards which establish a definition of fair value and set out a hierarchy for measuring fair value. These standards require additional disclosures about the various inputs and valuation techniques used to develop the measurements of fair value and a discussion of changes in valuation techniques and related inputs during the period. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:
Level 1—Unadjusted quoted market prices in active markets for identical securities
Level 2—Quoted prices for identical or similar assets in markets that are not active, or inputs derived from observable market data
Level 3—Significant unobservable inputs (including the reporting entity’s estimates and assumptions)
Valuations for domestic and foreign fixed income securities are normally determined on the basis of evaluations provided by independent pricing services. Vendors typically value such securities based on one or more inputs described in the following table which is not intended to be a complete list. The table provides examples of inputs that are commonly relevant for valuing particular classes of fixed income securities in which the Fund is authorized to invest. However, these classifications are not exclusive, and any of the inputs may be used to value any other class of fixed-income securities. Securities that use similar valuation techniques and inputs as described in the following table are categorized as Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy. To the extent the significant inputs are unobservable, the values generally would be categorized as Level 3. Assets and liabilities may be transferred between levels.
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September 30, 2024
Fixed-income class
Examples of Inputs
All
Benchmark yields, transactions, bids, offers, quotations from dealers and trading systems, new issues, spreads and other relationships observed in the markets among comparable securities; and proprietary pricing models such as yield measures calculated using factors such as cash flows, financial or collateral performance and other reference data (collectively referred to as “standard inputs”)
Corporate bonds and notes; convertible securities
Standard inputs and underlying equity of the issuer
US bonds and notes of government and government agencies
Standard inputs
Residential and commercial mortgage-backed obligations; asset-backed obligations (including collateralized loan obligations)
Standard inputs and cash flows, prepayment information, default rates, delinquency and loss assumptions, collateral characteristics, credit enhancements and specific deal information, trustee reports
Bank loans
Standard inputs
Investments in registered open-end management investment companies will be valued based upon the net asset value (“NAV”) of such investments and are categorized as Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy.
Common stocks, exchange-traded funds and financial derivative instruments, such as futures contracts or options contracts, that are traded on a national securities or commodities exchange, are typically valued at the last reported sales price, in the case of common stocks and exchange-traded funds, or, in the case of futures contracts or options contracts, the settlement price determined by the relevant exchange. To the extent these securities are actively traded and valuation adjustments are not applied, they are categorized as Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy.
Over-the-counter financial derivative instruments, such as forward currency exchange contracts, options contracts, or swap agreements, derive their values from underlying asset prices, indices, reference rates, other inputs or a combination of these factors. These instruments are normally valued on the basis of valuations obtained from counterparties, published index closing levels or evaluated prices supplied by independent pricing services, some or all of which may be based on market data from trading on exchanges that closed significantly before the time as of which the Fund calculates its NAV. Forward foreign currency contracts are generally valued based on rates provided by independent data providers. The Fund does not normally take into account trading, clearances or settlements that take place after the close of the principal exchange or market on which such securities are traded. Depending on the instrument and the terms of the transaction, the value of the derivative instruments can be estimated by a pricing service provider using a series of techniques, such as simulation pricing models. The pricing models use issuer details and other inputs that are observed from actively quoted markets such as indices, spreads, interest rates, curves, dividends and exchange rates. Derivatives that use similar valuation techniques and inputs as described above are normally categorized as Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.
The Fund’s holdings in whole loans, securitizations and certain other types of alternative lending-related instruments may be valued based on prices provided by a third-party pricing service.
Senior secured floating rate loans for which an active secondary market exists to a reliable degree will be valued at the mean of the last available bid/ask prices in the market for such loans, as provided by an independent pricing service. Where an active secondary market does not exist to a reliable degree in the judgment of DoubleLine Capital LP (the “Adviser” or “DoubleLine Capital”), such loans will be valued at fair value based on certain factors.
In respect of certain commercial real estate-related, residential real estate-related and certain other investments for which a limited market may exist, the Valuation Designee (as defined below) may value such investments based on appraisals conducted by an independent valuation advisor or a similar pricing agent. However, an independent valuation firm may not be retained to undertake an evaluation of an asset unless the NAV, market price and other aspects of an investment exceed certain significance thresholds.
The Board of Trustees has adopted a pricing and valuation policy for use by the Fund and its Valuation Designee in calculating the Fund’s NAV. Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act, the Fund has designated the Adviser as its “Valuation Designee” to perform all of the fair value determinations as well as to perform all of the responsibilities that may be performed by the Valuation Designee in accordance with Rule 2a-5. The Valuation Designee is authorized to make all necessary determinations of the fair values of portfolio securities and other assets for which market quotations are not readily available or if it is deemed that the prices obtained from brokers and dealers or independent pricing services are unreliable.
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
The following is a summary of the fair valuations according to the inputs used to value the Fund’s investments as of September 30, 2024:
Category
Investments in Securities
Level 1
Preferred Stocks
$10,543,600
Real Estate Investment Trusts
6,799,000
Short Term Investments
2,019,387
Total Level 1
19,361,987
Level 2
Non-Agency Commercial Mortgage Backed Obligations
$196,730,309
US Corporate Bonds
154,715,676
Non-Agency Residential Collateralized Mortgage Obligations
147,218,481
Collateralized Loan Obligations
131,295,154
Foreign Corporate Bonds
112,050,458
Bank Loans
111,237,730
Foreign Government Bonds, Foreign Agencies and Foreign Government Sponsored Corporations
43,979,363
US Government and Agency Mortgage Backed Obligations
27,051,863
Asset Backed Obligations
16,693,929
Total Level 2
940,972,963
Level 3
Collateralized Loan Obligations
$2,034,524
Asset Backed Obligations
1,196,376
Common Stocks
3,038
Total Level 3
3,233,938
Total
$963,568,888
Other Financial Instruments
Level 1
Futures Contracts
$(19,933)
Total Level 1
(19,933)
Level 2
Level 3
Total
$(19,933)
See the Schedule of Investments for further disaggregation of investment categories.
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September 30, 2024
B. Federal Income Taxes. The Fund has elected to be taxed as a “regulated investment company” and intends to distribute substantially all of its taxable income to its shareholders and otherwise comply with the provisions of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”), applicable to regulated investment companies. Therefore, no provision for federal income taxes has been made.
The Fund may be subject to a nondeductible 4% excise tax calculated as a percentage of certain undistributed amounts of net investment income and net capital gains.
The Fund has followed the authoritative guidance on accounting for and disclosure of uncertainty in tax positions, which requires the Fund to determine whether a tax position is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination, including resolution of any related appeals or litigation processes, based on the technical merits of the position. The Fund has determined that there was no effect on the financial statements from following this authoritative guidance. In the normal course of business, the Fund is subject to examination by federal, state and local jurisdictions, where applicable, for tax years for which applicable statutes of limitations have not expired. The Fund identifies its major tax jurisdictions as U.S. Federal, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the State of Florida. The Fund’s tax returns are subject to examination by relevant tax authorities until expiration of the applicable statute of limitations, which is generally three years after the filing of the tax return, but which can be extended to six years in certain circumstances.
C. Security Transactions, Investment Income. Investment securities transactions are accounted for on trade date. Gains and losses realized on sales of securities are determined on a specific identification basis. Interest income, including non-cash interest, is recorded on an accrual basis. Discounts/premiums on debt securities purchased, which may include residual and subordinate notes, are accreted/amortized over the life of the respective securities using the effective interest method except for certain deep discount bonds where management does not expect the par value above the bond’s cost to be fully realized. Dividend income and corporate action transactions, if any, are recorded on the ex-date. Non-cash dividends included in dividend income, if any, are recorded at the fair market value of securities received. Paydown gains and losses on mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities are recorded as components of interest income on the Statement of Operations.
D. Dividends and Distributions to Shareholders. Dividends from net investment income will be declared and paid monthly. The Fund will distribute any net realized long or short-term capital gains at least annually. Distributions are recorded on the ex-dividend date.
Income and capital gain distributions are determined in accordance with income tax regulations which may differ from US GAAP. Permanent book and tax basis differences relating to shareholder distributions will result in reclassifications between paid-in capital, undistributed (accumulated) net investment income (loss), and/or undistributed (accumulated) realized gain (loss).Undistributed (accumulated) net investment income or loss may include temporary book and tax basis differences which will reverse in a subsequent period. Any taxable income or capital gain remaining at fiscal year end is distributed in the following year.
E. Use of Estimates. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
F. Share Valuation. The NAV per share of the Fund is calculated by dividing the sum of the value of the securities held by the Fund, plus cash and other assets, minus all liabilities (including estimated accrued expenses), by the total number of shares outstanding, rounded to the nearest cent. The Fund’s NAV is typically calculated on days when the NYSE opens for regular trading.
G. Unfunded Loan Commitments. The Fund may enter into certain credit agreements, of which all or a portion may be unfunded. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund did not have any unfunded positions.
The Fund may also enter into certain credit agreements designed to provide standby short term or “bridge” financing to a borrower. Typically, the borrower is not economically incented to draw on the bridge loan. The Fund is obligated to fund these commitments at the borrower’s discretion. At the end of the period, the Fund maintained with its custodian liquid investments having an aggregate value at least equal to the par value of its unfunded loan commitments and bridge loans. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund had no outstanding bridge loan commitments.
H. Guarantees and Indemnifications. Under the Fund’s organizational documents, each Trustee and officer of the Fund is indemnified, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act, against certain liabilities that may arise out of performance of their duties to the
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
Fund. Additionally, in the normal course of business, the Fund enters into contracts that contain a variety of indemnification clauses. The Fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Fund that have not yet occurred. However, the Fund has not had prior claims or losses pursuant to these contracts.
3. Related Party Transactions
The Adviser provides the Fund with investment management services under an Investment Management Agreement (the “Agreement”). Under the Agreement, the Adviser manages the investment of the assets of the Fund, places orders for the purchase and sale of its portfolio securities and is responsible for providing certain resources to assist with the day-to-day management of the Fund’s business affairs. As compensation for its services, the Adviser is entitled to a monthly fee at the annual rate of 1.35% of the average daily total managed assets of the Fund. Total managed assets means the total assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and/or preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings). For purposes of calculating total managed assets, the liquidation preference of any preferred shares outstanding shall not be considered a liability. DoubleLine Asset Management Company LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Adviser, owned 7,327 shares of the Fund as of the period end. The Adviser has arrangements with DoubleLine Group LP to provide personnel and other resources to the Fund.
4. Purchases and Sales of Securities
For the year ended September 30, 2024, purchases and sales of investments, excluding U.S. Government securities and short term investments, were $314,070,533 and $307,471,069, respectively. There were no transactions in U.S. Government securities (defined as long-term U.S. Treasury bills, notes and bonds) during the period.
5. Income Tax Information
The tax character of distributions for the Fund was as follows:
 
Year Ended September 30,
2024
2023
Distributions Paid From:
Ordinary Income
​$70,172,952
$67,143,269
The amount and character of tax-basis distributions and composition of net assets, including undistributed (accumulated) net investment income (loss), are finalized at fiscal year-end; accordingly, tax-basis balances have not been determined as of the date of this report.
The cost basis of investments for federal income tax purposes as of September 30, 2024, was as follows:
Tax Cost of Investments
​$1,047,553,960
Gross Tax Unrealized Appreciation
78,991,057
Gross Tax Unrealized Depreciation
(162,976,129)
Net Tax Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)
(83,985,072)
As of September 30, 2024, the components of accumulated earnings (losses) for income tax purposes were as follows:
Net Tax Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)
​$(83,985,072)
Undistributed Ordinary Income
3,860,240
Other Accumulated Gains (Losses)
(84,291,305)
Total Distributable Earnings (Loss)
(164,416,137)
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September 30, 2024
As of September 30, 2024, $84,272,800 was available as a capital loss carryforward (comprised of $34,687,799 short-term and $49,585,001 long-term). For tax purposes, capital losses can be carried forward indefinitely to offset capital gains in future taxable years. During the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund did not utilize short-term or long-term capital loss carryover.
The Fund may elect to defer to the first day of the next taxable year all or part of any late-year ordinary loss or post-October capital loss. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund did not defer any qualified late year losses.
Additionally, US GAAP requires that certain components of net assets relating to permanent differences be reclassified between financial and tax reporting. These reclassifications have no effect on net assets or NAV per share. The permanent differences primarily relate to paydown losses, swaps, market discount and return of capital. For the year ended September 30, 2024, the following table shows the reclassifications made:
 
Paid-in
Capital
Total Distributable Earnings (Loss)
$—
$—
If the Fund estimates that a portion of its regular distributions to shareholders may be comprised of amounts from sources other than net investment income, as determined in accordance with the Fund’s policies and practices, the Fund will notify shareholders of the estimated composition of such distribution through a Section 19 Notice. For these purposes, the Fund estimates the source or sources from which a distribution is paid, to the close of the period as of which it is paid, in reference to its expected tax character. It is important to note that differences exist between the Fund’s daily internal accounting records and practices, the Fund’s financial statements presented in accordance with US GAAP, and recordkeeping practices under income tax regulations. It is possible that the Fund may not issue a Section 19 Notice in situations where the Fund’s financial statements prepared later and in accordance with US GAAP might later report that the sources of those distributions included capital gains and/or a return of capital. Please visit https://doubleline.com/closed-end-funds/ for the most recent Section 19 Notice, if applicable. Information provided to you on a Section 19 notice is an estimate only and subject to change; final determination of a distribution’s tax character will be reported on Form 1099 DIV sent to shareholders for the calendar year.
6. Share Transactions
Transactions in the Fund’s shares were as follows:
 
Year Ended September 30, 2024
Year Ended September 30, 2023
Shares
Amount
Shares
Amount
Shares Sold (net of fees)
​168,215
$2,759,994
$
Reinvested Dividends
25,355
413,919
Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets Resulting from Net Share Transactions
​193,570
$3,173,913
$
7. Trustees Fees
Trustees who are not affiliated with the Adviser and its affiliates received, as a group, fees of $126,281 from the Fund during the year ended September 30, 2024. These trustees may elect to defer the cash payment of part or all of their compensation. These deferred amounts, which remain as liabilities of the Fund, are treated as if invested in shares of the Fund or other funds managed by the Adviser and its affiliates. These amounts represent general, unsecured liabilities of the Fund and vary according to the total returns of the selected funds. Trustees Fees in the Fund’s Statement of Operations are shown as $126,281 which includes $122,523 in current fees (either paid in cash or deferred) and an increase of $3,758 in the value of the deferred amounts. Certain trustees and officers of the Fund are also officers of the Adviser; such trustees and officers are not compensated by the Fund.
8. Bank Loans
The Fund may make loans directly to borrowers and may acquire or invest in loans made by others (“loans”). The Fund may acquire a loan interest directly by acting as a member of the original lending syndicate. Alternatively, the Fund may acquire some or all of the interest of a bank or other lending institution in a loan to a particular borrower by means of a novation, an assignment or a participation. The loans in which the Fund may invest include those that pay fixed rates of interest and those that pay floating rates—i.e., rates that adjust periodically by reference to a base lending rate, plus a spread. These base lending rates are primarily the
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) and secondarily, the prime rate offered by one or more major United States banks (the Prime Rate). Base lending rates may be subject to a floor, or minimum rate. Rates for SOFR are generally 1 or 3-month tenors and may also be subject to a credit spread adjustment. The Fund may purchase and sell interests in bank loans on a when-issued and delayed delivery basis, with payment delivery scheduled for a future date.
Securities purchased on a delayed delivery basis are marked to market daily and no income accrues to the Fund prior to the date the Fund actually takes delivery of such securities. These transactions are subject to market fluctuations and are subject, among other risks, to the risk that the value at delivery may be more or less than the trade purchase price.
9. Credit Facility
U.S. Bank, National Association (the “Bank”) has made available to the Fund a $225,000,000 revolving unsecured credit facility. Under the terms of the agreement, interest is charged at the rate of one-month daily SOFR plus 0.10% plus 1.15% (applicable margin), subject to certain conditions that may cause the rate of interest to increase. This rate represents a floating rate of interest that may change over time.
The Fund was also responsible for paying a non-usage fee (“commitment fee”) of 0.25% if the exposure is less than 75% of the commitment amount and 0.125% if the exposure is 75% or greater of the commitment amount. The credit facility will terminate by the earlier of February 24, 2025 or the date the committed amount is reduced to $0, but is also subject to earlier termination in accordance with its terms. The Fund pledges its assets as collateral to secure obligations under the credit facility. The Fund retains the risk and rewards of the ownership of assets pledged to secure obligations under the credit facility. The Fund is subject to various restrictive covenants in its credit facility. If the Fund fails to meet or satisfy any of these covenants, the Fund may be in default under the agreements governing the credit facility, and its lenders could elect to accelerate the Fund’s obligation to repurchase certain assets, declare outstanding amounts due and payable, terminate their commitments, require the posting of additional collateral or enforce their rights against existing collateral.
As of September 30, 2024, the amount of total outstanding borrowings was $178,000,000 which approximates fair value. The borrowings are categorized as Level 2 within the fair value hierarchy.
For the year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund’s activity under the credit facility was as follows:
 
Maximum
Amount
Available
Average
Borrowings
Maximum
Amount
Outstanding
Interest
Expense
Commitment
Fee
Average
Interest Rate
$225,000,000
$180,267,760
$190,000,000
$12,014,879
$105,309
​6.56%
10. Additional Disclosures about Derivative Instruments
The following disclosures provide information on the Fund’s use of derivatives and certain related risks. The location and fair value amounts of these instruments on the Fund’s Statement of Assets and Liabilities and the realized gains and losses and changes in unrealized gains and losses on the Fund’s Statement of Operations, each categorized by type of derivative contract, are included in the following tables.
The average volume of derivative activity for the year ended September 30, 2024 was as follows:
Average Market Value
Futures Contracts - Long
$439,237
Futures Contracts Futures contracts typically involve a contractual commitment to buy or sell a particular instrument or index unit at a specified price on a future date. Risks associated with the use of futures contracts include the potential for imperfect correlation between the change in market value of the securities held by the Fund and the prices of futures contracts and the possibility of an illiquid market. Futures contracts are valued based upon their quoted daily settlement prices determined by the relevant exchange. Upon entering into a futures contract, the Fund is required to deposit with its futures broker an amount of cash in accordance with the initial margin requirements of the broker or exchange. Such collateral is recorded in deposit at broker for futures in the Fund’s Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Futures contracts are marked-to-market daily and an appropriate payment reflecting the change in value (“variation margin”) is made or received by or for the accounts of the Fund. The variation margin is recorded on the Fund’s
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September 30, 2024
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September 30, 2024
Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Gains or losses are recognized but not considered realized until the contracts expire or are closed and are recorded in net realized gain (loss) on futures on the Fund’s Statement of Operations. Futures contracts involve, to varying degrees, risk of loss in excess of the variation margin disclosed on the Fund’s Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
The Fund’s derivative instrument holdings are summarized in the following tables.
The effect of derivative instruments on the Fund’s Statement of Assets and Liabilities as of September 30, 2024 was as follows:
 
Derivatives not
accounted for as
hedging instruments
Statement of Assets and Liabilities Location(a)
Interest
Rate Risk
Net Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on:
Futures
$(19,933)
(a)
An exchange traded investment’s value reflects the cumulative value. Only the current day’s variation margin is reported on the Fund's Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
The effect of derivative instruments on the Fund’s Statement of Operations for the year ended September 30, 2024 was as follows:
 
Derivatives not
accounted for as
hedging instruments
Statement of Operations Location
Interest
Rate Risk
Net Realized Gain (Loss) on:
Futures
$1,392,059
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on:
Futures
$1,621,831
11. Principal Risks
Below are summaries of some, but not all, of the principal risks of investing in the Fund, each of which could adversely affect the Fund’s NAV, market price, yield, and total return. The Fund’s prospectus provided additional information regarding these and other risks of investing in the Fund at the time of the initial public offering of the Fund’s shares.
Market Discount Risk: The price of the Fund’s common shares will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their net asset value.
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk: Unless the limited term provision of the Fund’s Declaration of Trust is amended by shareholders in accordance with the Declaration of Trust, or unless the Fund completes a tender offer and converts to perpetual existence, the Fund will terminate on or about February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”). The Fund is not a so called “target date” or “life cycle” fund whose asset allocation becomes more conservative over time as its target date, often associated with retirement, approaches. Because the assets of the Fund will be liquidated in connection with the dissolution, the Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with dispositions of portfolio securities. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to the Dissolution Date and may be required to sell portfolio securities when it otherwise would not, including at times when market conditions are not favorable, which may cause the Fund to lose money.
Leverage Risk: Leverage is a speculative technique that may expose the Fund to greater risk and increased costs. When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the investment return to Common Shareholders will likely be more volatile. There can be no assurance that a leveraging strategy will be used by the Fund or that it will be successful.
Liquidity Risk: the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell a portfolio investment at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment.
Portfolio Management Risk: the risk that an investment strategy may fail to produce the intended results or that the securities held by the Fund will underperform other comparable funds because of the portfolio managers’ choice of investments.
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
Valuation Risk: the risk that the Fund will not value its investments in a manner that accurately reflects their market values or that the Fund will not be able to sell any investment at a price equal to the valuation ascribed to that investment for purposes of calculating the Fund’s net asset value. The valuation of the Fund’s investments involves subjective judgment and some valuations may involve assumptions, projections, opinions, discount rates, estimated data points and other uncertain or subjective amounts, all of which may prove inaccurate. In addition, the valuation of certain investments held by the Fund may involve the significant use of unobservable and non-market inputs. Certain securities in which the Fund may invest may be more difficult to value accurately, especially during periods of market disruptions or extreme market volatility.
Investment and Market Risk: the risk that markets will perform poorly or that the returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will underperform returns from the general securities markets or other types of investments. Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention or general market conditions, including real or perceived adverse, political, economic or market conditions, tariffs and trade disruptions, inflation, recession, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. Certain securities may be difficult to value during such periods. The value of securities and other instruments traded in over-the-counter markets, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. Further, the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have from time to time taken steps to support financial markets. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve may, conversely, reduce market support activities, including by taking action intended to increase certain interest rates. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. Changes in government activities in this regard, such as changes in interest rate policy, can negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the Fund invests.
Credit Risk: the risk that an issuer, counterparty or other obligor to the Fund will fail to pay its obligations to the Fund when they are due, which may reduce the Fund’s income and/or reduce, in whole or in part, the value of the Fund’s investment. Actual or perceived changes in the financial condition of an obligor, changes in economic, social or political conditions that affect a particular type of security, instrument, or obligor, and changes in economic, social or political conditions generally can increase the risk of default by an obligor, which can affect a security’s or other instrument’s credit quality or value and an obligor’s ability to honor its obligations when due. The values of lower-quality debt securities (including debt securities commonly known as “high yield” securities or “junk bonds”), including floating rate loans, tend to be particularly sensitive to these changes. Certain debt securities in the lowest investment grade category also may be considered to possess some speculative characteristics by certain rating agencies. The values of securities or instruments also may decline for a number of other reasons that relate directly to the obligor, such as management performance, financial leverage, and reduced demand for the obligor’s goods and services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the obligor and the value of its assets.
Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that debt instruments will change in value because of changes in interest rates. The value of an instrument with a longer duration (whether positive or negative) will be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than a similar instrument with a shorter duration.
Debt Securities Risk: In addition to certain of the other risks described herein such as interest rate risk and credit risk, debt securities generally also are subject to the following risks:
Redemption Risk: Debt securities sometimes contain provisions that allow for redemption in the event of tax or security law changes in addition to call features at the option of the issuer. In the event of a redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return.
Extension Risk: the risk that if interest rates rise, repayments of principal on certain debt securities, including, but not limited to, floating rate loans and mortgage-related securities, may occur at a slower rate than expected and the expected maturity of those securities could lengthen as a result. Securities that are subject to extension risk generally have a greater potential for loss when prevailing interest rates rise, which could cause their values to fall sharply.
Spread Risk: Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of the debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood or risk of default by the issuer.
Limited Voting Rights: Debt securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases when interest payments have not been made and the issuer is in default. Even in such cases, such rights may be limited to the terms of the debenture or other agreements.
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September 30, 2024
Prepayment/Reinvestment Risk: the risk that income may decline when the Fund invests proceeds from investment income, sales of portfolio securities or matured, traded, pre-paid or called debt obligations, negatively effecting dividend levels and market price, NAV and/or overall return of the common shares.
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks: include the risks that borrowers may default on their mortgage obligations or the guarantees underlying the mortgage-backed securities will default or otherwise fail and that, during periods of falling interest rates, mortgage-backed securities will be called or prepaid, which may result in the Fund having to reinvest proceeds in other investments at a lower interest rate. During periods of rising interest rates, the average life of a mortgage- backed security may extend, which may lock in a below-market interest rate, increase the security’s duration, and reduce the value of the security. Enforcing rights against the underlying assets or collateral may be difficult, or the underlying assets or collateral may be insufficient if the issuer defaults. The values of certain types of mortgage-backed securities, such as inverse floaters and interest-only and principal-only securities, may be extremely sensitive to changes in interest rates and prepayment rates. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities.
Foreign Investment Risk: the risk that investments in foreign securities or in issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets, as compared to investments in U.S. securities or in issuers with predominantly domestic market exposure, may be more vulnerable to economic, political, and social instability and subject to less government supervision, less protective custody practices, lack of transparency, inadequate regulatory and accounting standards, delayed or infrequent settlement of transactions, and foreign taxes. If the Fund buys securities denominated in a foreign currency, receives income in foreign currencies or holds foreign currencies from time to time, the value of the Fund’s assets, as measured in U.S. dollars, can be affected unfavorably by changes in exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar or with respect to other foreign currencies. Foreign markets are also subject to the risk that a foreign government could restrict foreign exchange transactions or otherwise implement unfavorable currency regulations. In addition, foreign securities may be subject to currency exchange rates or regulations, the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other government restrictions, higher transaction and other costs, reduced liquidity, and delays in settlement.
Foreign Currency Risk: the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments denominated in foreign currencies.
Emerging Markets Risk: the risk that investing in emerging markets, as compared to foreign developed markets, increases the likelihood that the Fund will lose money, due to more limited information about the issuer and/or the security; higher brokerage costs; different accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less developed legal systems; fewer investor protections; less regulatory oversight; thinner trading markets; the possibility of currency blockages or transfer restrictions; an emerging market country’s dependence on revenue from particular commodities or international aid; and the risk of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse political or economic developments.
Collateralized Debt Obligations (“CDOs”) Risk: the risks of an investment in a collateralized debt obligation (“CDO”) depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. Normally, collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in CDOs may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Fund may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk: Asset-backed securities involve the risk that borrowers may default on the obligations backing them and that the values of and interest earned on such investments will decline as a result. Loans made to lower quality borrowers, including those of sub-prime quality, involve a higher risk of default.
Credit Default Swaps Risk: Credit default swaps provide exposure to one or more reference obligations but involve greater risks than investing in the reference obligation directly, and expose the Fund to liquidity risk, counterparty risk and credit risk. A buyer of a credit default swap will lose its investment and recover nothing should no event of default occur. When the Fund acts as a seller of a credit default swap, it is exposed to many of the same risks of leverage described herein since if an event of default occurs the seller must pay the buyer the full notional value of the reference obligation(s).
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
U.S. Government Securities Risk: the risk that debt securities issued or guaranteed by certain U.S. Government agencies, instrumentalities, and sponsored enterprises are not supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, and so investments in their securities or obligations issued by them involve greater risk than investments in other types of U.S. Government securities.
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk: the risk that investments in debt obligations of sovereign governments may lose value due to the government entity’s unwillingness or inability to repay principal and interest when due in accordance with the terms of the debt or otherwise in a timely manner.
Loan Risk: the risk that (i) if the Fund holds a loan through another financial institution, or relies on a financial institution to administer the loan, its receipt of principal and interest on the loan may be subject to the credit risk of that financial institution; (ii) any collateral securing a loan may be insufficient or unavailable to the Fund because, for example, the value of the collateral securing a loan can decline, be insufficient to meet the obligations of the borrower, or be difficult to liquidate, and the Fund’s rights to collateral may be limited by bankruptcy or insolvency laws; (iii) investments in highly leveraged loans or loans of stressed, distressed, or defaulted issuers may be subject to significant credit and liquidity risk; (iv) a bankruptcy or other court proceeding could delay or limit the ability of the Fund to collect the principal and interest payments on that borrower’s loans or adversely affect the Fund’s rights in collateral relating to a loan; (v) there may be limited public information available regarding the loan and the relevant borrower(s); (vi) the use of a particular interest rate benchmark may limit the Fund’s ability to achieve a net return to shareholders that consistently approximates the average published Prime Rate of U.S. banks; (vii) the prices of certain floating rate loans that include a feature that prevents their interest rates from adjusting if market interest rates are below a specified minimum level may appreciate less than other instruments in response to changes in interest rates should interest rates rise but remain below the applicable minimum level; (viii) if a borrower fails to comply with various restrictive covenants that may be found in loan agreements, the borrower may default in payment of the loan; (ix) if the Fund invests in loans that contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans (“covenant lite” loans), it may have fewer rights against the borrowers of such loans, including fewer protections against the possibility of default and fewer remedies in the event of default; (x) the loan is unsecured; (xi) there is a limited secondary market; (xii) transactions in loans may settle on a delayed basis, and the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a substantial period of time after the sale, which may result in sale proceeds related to the sale of loans not being available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund’s redemption obligations until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loans; (xiii) loans may be difficult to value and may be illiquid, which may adversely affect an investment in the Fund. Investments in loans through a purchase of a loan, loan origination or a direct assignment of a financial institution’s interests with respect to a loan may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner, in whole or in part, of any collateral, which could include, among other assets, real estate or other real or personal property, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and holding or disposing of the collateral. In addition, it is conceivable that under emerging legal theories of lender liability, the Fund as holder of a partial interest in a loan could be held liable as co-lender for acts of the agent lender.
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk: Debt instruments rated below investment grade or debt instruments that are unrated and of comparable or lesser quality are predominantly speculative. These instruments, commonly known as “junk bonds,” have a higher degree of default risk and may be less liquid than higher-rated bonds. These instruments may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific corporate developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of high yield investments generally, general economic downturn, and less secondary market liquidity.
Defaulted Securities Risk: the significant risk of the uncertainty of repayment of defaulted securities (e.g., a security on which a principal or interest payment is not made when due) and obligations of distressed issuers. Because the issuer of such securities is in default and is likely to be in distressed financial condition, repayment of defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers (including insolvent issuers or issuers in payment or covenant default, in workout or restructuring or in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings) is subject to significant uncertainties.
Real Estate Risk: the risk that real estate-related investments may decline in value as a result of factors affecting the real estate sector, such as the supply of real property in certain markets, changes in zoning laws, delays in completion of construction, changes in real estate values, changes in property taxes, levels of occupancy, and local and regional and general market conditions. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, and the possible failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment available to REITs under the Internal Revenue Code, or the exemption from registration under the 1940 Act. REITs are not diversified and are heavily dependent on cash flow earned on the property interests they hold.
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September 30, 2024
Derivatives Risk: the risk that an investment in derivatives will not perform as anticipated by the Adviser, may not be available at the time or price desired, cannot be closed out at a favorable time or price, will increase the Fund’s transaction costs, or will increase the Fund’s volatility; that derivatives may create investment leverage; that, when a derivative is used as a substitute for or alternative to a direct cash investment, the transaction may not provide a return that corresponds precisely or at all with that of the cash investment; that the positions may be improperly executed or constructed; that the Fund’s counterparty will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations; or that, when used for hedging purposes, derivatives will not provide the anticipated protection, causing the Fund to lose money on both the derivatives transaction and the exposure the Fund sought to hedge. Recent changes in regulation relating to the Fund’s use of derivatives and related instruments could potentially limit or impact the Fund’s ability to invest in derivatives, limit the Fund’s ability to employ certain strategies that use derivatives and/or adversely affect the value of derivatives and the Fund’s performance.
Counterparty Risk: the risk that the Fund will be subject to credit risk presented with respect to the counterparties to derivative contracts and other instruments entered into directly by the Fund or held by special purpose or structured vehicles in which the Fund invests; that the Fund’s counterparty will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations; that the Fund will be unable to enforce contractual remedies if its counterparty defaults; that if a counterparty (or an affiliate of a counterparty) becomes bankrupt, the Fund may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery or may obtain limited or no recovery in a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding. To the extent that the Fund enters into multiple transactions with a single or a small set of counterparties, it will be subject to increased counterparty risk.
Unrated Securities Risk: Unrated securities may be less liquid than comparable rated securities and involve the risk that the Adviser may not accurately evaluate the security’s comparative credit rating and value. Some or all of the unrated instruments in which the Fund may invest will involve credit risk comparable to or greater than that of rated debt securities of below investment grade quality.
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk: the risk that an investment in a structured product, which includes, among other things, CDOs, mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities and certain types of structured notes, may decline in value due to changes in the underlying instruments, indexes, interest rates or other factors on which the product is based (“reference measure”). Depending on the reference measure used and the use of multipliers or deflators (if any), changes in interest rates and movement of the reference measure may cause significant price and cash flow fluctuations. In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities discussed herein, structured products carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from underlying investments will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the underlying investments may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the security may be subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results; and (v) because the structured products are generally privately offered and sold, they may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market, which may increase the Fund’s illiquidity and reduce the Fund’s income and the value of the investment, and the Fund may be unable to find qualified buyers for these securities.
Issuer Risk: Issuer risk is the risk that the market price of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, including due to factors affecting securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself.
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk: the risk that markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, political, economic or market developments, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity, which may cause the Fund to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and potentially at unfavorable prices.
Tax Risk: to qualify as a regulated investment company under the Internal Revenue Code, the Fund must meet requirements regarding, among other things, the source of its income. Certain investments do not give rise to qualifying income for this purpose. Any income the Fund derives from investments in instruments that do not generate qualifying income must be limited to a maximum of 10% of the Fund’s annual gross income. If the Fund were to earn non-qualifying income in excess of 10% of its annual gross income, it could fail to qualify as a regulated investment company for that year. If the Fund were to fail to qualify as a regulated investment company, the Fund would be subject to tax and shareholders of the Fund would be subject to the risk of diminished returns.
Operational and Information Security Risks: An investment in the Fund, like any fund, can involve operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors, human errors, inadequate or failed internal or external processes, failures in systems and technology, changes in personnel and errors caused by third-party service providers. The occurrence of any of these
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Notes to Financial Statements (Cont.)
failures, errors or breaches could result in investment losses to the Fund, a loss of information, regulatory scrutiny, reputational damage or other events, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Fund. While the Fund seeks to minimize such events through controls and oversight, there may still be failures that could cause losses to the Fund.
12. Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
In December 2022, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued an Accounting Standards Update, ASU 2022-06, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848) – Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848 (“ASU 2022-06”). ASU 2022-06 is an amendment to ASU 2020-04, which provided optional guidance to ease the potential accounting burden due to the discontinuation of the London Interbank Offered Rate and other interbank-offered based reference rates and which was effective as of March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022. ASU 2022-06 extends the effective period through December 31, 2024. Management did not adopt the optional guidance provided by ASU 2022-06 and does not intend to do so.
In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-07, "Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures ("ASU 2023-07")," which enhances disclosure requirements about significant segment expenses that are regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker (the "CODM"). ASU 2023-07, among other things, (i) requires a single segment public entity to provide all of the disclosures as required by Topic 280, (ii) requires a public entity to disclose the title and position of the CODM and an explanation of how the CODM uses the reported measure(s) of segment profit or loss in assessing segment performance and deciding how to allocate resources and (iii) provides the ability for a public entity to elect more than one performance measure. ASU 2023-07 is effective for the fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods beginning with the first quarter ended March 31, 2025. Early adoption is permitted and retrospective adoption is required for all prior periods presented. The Fund is currently assessing the impact of this guidance, however, the Fund does not expect a material impact on its financial statements.
13. Common Shares Offering
The Fund has the authority to issue an unlimited number of common shares of beneficial interest, par value $0.00001 per share (“Common Shares”).
On September 29, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission declared effective a registration statement relating to an offering of the Common Shares and filed using the “shelf” registration process (the “Shelf Registration”). The Fund has entered into a distribution agreement with Foreside Fund Services, LLC (“Foreside”), who has entered into a sub-placement agent agreement (the “Sub-Placement Agent Agreement”) with UBS Securities LLC (the “Sub-Placement Agent”), relating to the Common Shares offered in connection with the Shelf Registration. In accordance with the terms of the Sub-Placement Agent Agreement, the Fund may offer Common Shares having a value of up to $250,000,000, par value $0.00001 per share, from time to time through Foreside and the Sub-Placement Agent, as its agents for the offer and sale of the Common Shares. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund had sold 168,215 Common Shares, which represents a value of $2,788,326, pursuant to the Shelf Registration.
Under the 1940 Act, the Fund may not sell any Common Shares at a price below the NAV of such Common Shares, exclusive of any distributing commission or discount. Sales of the Common Shares, if any, may be made in negotiated transactions or transactions that are deemed to be “at the market” as defined in Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, including sales made directly on the NYSE or sales made to or through a market maker other than on an exchange at prices related to the prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices. Any proceeds from the Fund’s offering of its Common Shares will be invested in accordance with its investment objective and policies as set forth in its Registration Statement.
14. Subsequent Events
In preparing these financial statements, the Fund has evaluated events and transactions for potential recognition or disclosure through the date the financial statements were issued. Since the period ended September 30, 2024, through the date of issuance, the Fund had sold 45,997 Common Shares, which represents a value of $760,446 pursuant to the Shelf Registration outlined in Note 13. The Fund has determined there are no additional subsequent events that would need to be disclosed in the Fund’s financial statements.
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September 30, 2024
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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
September 30, 2024
To the Shareholders and Board of Trustees
of DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund:
Opinion on the Financial Statements and Financial Highlights
We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities of DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (the “Fund”), including the schedule of investments, as of September 30, 2024, the related statements of operations and cash flows for the year then ended, the statements of changes in net assets for each of the two years in the period then ended, the financial highlights for each of the four years in the period then ended and for the period from February 26, 2020 (commencement of operations) through September 30, 2020, and the related notes. In our opinion, the financial statements and financial highlights present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund as of September 30, 2024, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the two years in the period then ended, and the financial highlights for each of the four years in the period then ended and for the period from February 26, 2020 (commencement of operations) through September 30, 2020 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Fund’s financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Fund is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Fund’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and financial highlights, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and financial highlights. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and financial highlights. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of September 30, 2024, by correspondence with the custodian, agent banks, and brokers; when replies were not received from agent banks and brokers, we performed other auditing procedures. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.


Costa Mesa, California
November 20, 2024
We have served as the auditor of one or more DoubleLine Funds investment companies since 2013.
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Federal Tax Information
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, certain dividends paid by the Fund may be subject to a maximum tax rate of 15% (20% for taxpayers with taxable income greater than $492,300 for single individuals and $553,850 for married couples filing jointly), as provided for by the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 and The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The percentage of dividends declared from ordinary income designated as qualified dividend income was as follows:
Qualified Dividend Income
​0.00%
For corporate shareholders, the percent of ordinary income distributions qualifying for the corporate dividends received deduction for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, was as follows:
Dividends Received Deduction
​0.00%
The percentage of taxable ordinary income distributions that are designated as short-term capital gain distributions under Internal Revenue Code Section 871(k)(2)(c) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, was as follows:
Qualified Short-term Gains
​0.00%
The percentage of taxable ordinary income distributions that are designated as interest related dividends under Internal Revenue Code Section 871(k)(1)(c) for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, was as follows:
Qualified Interest Income
​61.66%
Shareholders are advised to consult their own tax adviser with respect to the tax consequences of their investment in the Fund.
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September 30, 2024
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Distribution Information
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
For purposes of Section 19 of the 1940 Act, the Fund estimated the periodic sources of any dividends paid during the period covered by this report. Pursuant to Rule 19a-1(e) under the 1940 Act, the table below sets forth the source information for dividends paid during the twelve-month period ended September 30, 2024 calculated as of each distribution period pursuant to Section 19 of the 1940 Act. The information below is not provided for U.S. federal income tax reporting purposes. The final tax character of all dividends and distributions is reported on Form 1099-DIV (for shareholders who receive U.S. federal tax reporting) at the end of each calendar year.
DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund
Net Investment
Income*
Net Realized
Capital Gains*
Paid-in
Surplus or
Other Capital
Sources**
Total
(per common share)
October 2023
$0.1072
$0.0000
$0.0095
$0.1167
November 2023
$0.1162
$0.0000
$0.0005
$0.1167
December 2023
​$0.1797
$0.0000
$0.0000
​$0.1797
January 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
February 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
March 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
April 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
May 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
June 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
July 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
August 2024
​$0.1167
$0.0000
​$0.0000
$0.1167
September 2024
$0.1104
$0.0000
$0.0063
$0.1167
*
The source of dividends provided in the table may differ, in some respects, from information presented in this report prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or U.S. GAAP. Accordingly, the information in the table may differ from information in the accompanying financial statements that are presented on the basis of U.S. GAAP and may differ from tax information presented in the footnotes. Amounts shown may include accumulated, as well as fiscal period net income and net profits.
**
Occurs when a fund distributes an amount greater than its accumulated net income and net profits. Amounts are not reflective of a fund’s net income, yield, earnings or investment performance.
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Trustee and Officers
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
Name, Address, and
Year of Birth(1)
Position with Trust
Term of Office
and Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years
Number of
Portfolios
Overseen(2)
Other Directorships
Held by Trustee
During Past 5 Years
Independent Trustees
 
 
 
 
 
Joseph J. Ciprari, 1964
Trustee
Class II (2025)*/Since Inception
Executive Vice President, Pointivo, Inc., a software development firm. President, Remo Consultants, a real estate financial consulting firm. Formerly, Managing Director, UBS AG. Formerly, Managing Director, Ally Securities LLC.
26
None
Yury Friedman,1956
Trustee
Class I (2027)*/Since December 2023
Retired. Formerly, Managing Director, Institutional Fixed Income, Citigroup.
26
None
William A. Odell,1965
Trustee
Class II (2025)*/Since
May 2024
Retired. Formerly, Vice President and Regional Sales Manager, Fidelity Investments.
26
None
John C. Salter, 1957
Trustee
Class III (2026)*/Since Inception
American Veterans Group, an investment bank and broker dealer specializing in financial services to American military veteran communities. Formerly, Partner, Stark Municipal Brokers. Formerly, Managing Director, Municipals, Tullet Prebon Financial Services LLC (d/b/a Chapdelaine). Formerly, Partner, Stark, Salter & Smith, a securities brokerage firm specializing in tax exempt bonds.
26
None
(1)
The address of each Independent Trustee is c/o DoubleLine Funds, 2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200, Tampa, FL, 33602. The Statement of Additional Information includes additional information about the Fund’s Trustees and may be obtained, without charge, upon request, by calling 877-DLine11 (877-354-6311) and on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.
(2)
Includes each series of DoubleLine Funds Trust, each series of DoubleLine ETF Trust, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund, and DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund.
*
The common shareholders of the Fund are expected to vote to elect trustees of the relevant class at the annual shareholders meeting in the year indicated above.
The following Trustee is an interested person of the Fund as defined in the 1940 Act because he is an officer of the Adviser and holds direct or indirect ownership interests in DoubleLine Capital LP and DoubleLine Alternatives LP. Additionally, Mr. Redell is an officer of the Fund.
Name, Address, and
Year of Birth(1)
Position with Trust
Term of Office
and Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years
Number of
Portfolios
Overseen(2)
Other Directorships
Held by Trustee
During Past 5 Years
Interested Trustee
 
 
 
 
 
Ronald R. Redell, 1970
Trustee, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
Class I (2027)*/Since Inception
Trustee, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (since November 2019); Trustee, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (since January 2013); President, DoubleLine Group LP (since January 2019 and Executive from January 2013 to January 2019); Trustee, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (since July 2011); Executive, DoubleLine Capital (since July 2010); President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since January 2010).
9
Formerly, Interested Trustee, DoubleLine Funds Trust (January 2019 to September 2023)
(1)
The address of each Interested Trustee is c/o DoubleLine Funds, 2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200, Tampa, FL, 33602.
(2)
Includes each series of DoubleLine ETF Trust, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund, and DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund.
*
The common shareholders of the Fund are expected to vote to elect trustees of the relevant class at the annual shareholders meeting in the year indicated above.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
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Officers
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
The officers of the Trust who are not also trustees of the Fund are included in the table below. The business address for each officer is c/o DoubleLine Funds, 2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200, Tampa, Florida 33602.
Name and
Year of Birth
Position(s) Held
with the Fund(s)
Term of Office
and Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years
Henry V. Chase 1949
Treasurer and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer
DBL/DSL/DLY: Indefinite/Since January 2020
Treasurer and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer, DoubleLine ETF Trust (since November 2021); Treasurer and Principal Financial and Accounting Officer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since January 2020); Chief Financial Officer, DoubleLine Group LP (since January 2013); Vice President, DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (since November 2019); Vice President, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (since May 2019); Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2019); Vice President, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (since May 2019).
Youse Guia 1972
Chief Compliance Officer
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since March 2018
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP (since December 2021); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine ETF Trust (since November 2021); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Group LP (since March 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since March 2018); Formerly, Executive Vice President and Deputy Chief Compliance Officer, Pacific Investment Management Company LLC (“PIMCO”) (from April 2014 to February 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, PIMCO Managed Accounts Trust (from September 2014 to February 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, PIMCO-sponsored closed-end funds (from September 2014 to February 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, PIMCO Flexible Credit Income Fund (from February 2017 to February 2018). Formerly, Head of Compliance, Allianz Global Investors U.S. Holdings LLC (from October 2012 to March 2014); Chief Compliance Officer, Allianz Funds, Allianz Multi-Strategy Trust, Allianz Global Investors Sponsored Closed-End Funds, Premier Multi-Series VIT and The Korea Fund, Inc. (from October 2004 to December 2013).
Cris Santa Ana 1965
Vice President and Secretary
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Vice President Since Inception and Secretary Since July 2018
DLY: Indefinite Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since April 2011); Chief Risk Officer, DoubleLine Group LP (since June 2010). Formerly, Chief Operating Officer, DoubleLine Capital (from December 2009 through May 2010).
Winnie Han 1988
Assistant Treasurer
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since May 2017
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Assistant Treasurer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2017); Assistant Treasurer, Mutual Funds, DoubleLine Group LP (since December 2020). Formerly, Assistant Treasurer, DL Onshore Funds, DoubleLine Group LP (March 2017-December 2020); Investment Accounting Supervisor, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (June 2016 to March 2017); Manager, PricewaterhouseCoopers (January 2011 to June 2016).
Earl A. Lariscy 1966
Vice President and Assistant Secretary
DBL: Indefinite/Vice President Since May 2012 and Assistant Secretary Since Inception
DSL: Indefinite/Since Inception
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2012); General Counsel, DoubleLine Group LP (since April 2010).
David Kennedy 1964
Vice President
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since May 2012
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2012); Manager, Trading and Settlements, DoubleLine Group LP (since December 2009).
Patrick A. Townzen 1978
Vice President
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since September 2012
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since September 2012); Chief Operating Officer, DoubleLine Group LP (since March 2023). Formerly, Director of Operations, DoubleLine Group LP (since March 2018); Manager of Operations, DoubleLine Group LP (from September 2012 to March 2018).
Brady J. Femling 1987
Vice President
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since May 2017
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2017); Accountant, Registered Fund, DoubleLine Group LP (since March 2024). Formerly, Mutual Fund Treasury Analyst, DoubleLine Group LP (since April 2013); Fund Accounting Supervisor, ALPS Fund Services (From October 2009 to April 2013).
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(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
Name and
Year of Birth
Position(s) Held
with the Fund(s)
Term of Office
and Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years
Neal L. Zalvan 1973
Vice President
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since May 2017
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since May 2016); Legal/Compliance, DoubleLine Group LP (since January 2013); Formerly, Anti-Money Laundering Officer, DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (from November 2019 to September 2020); Anti-Money Laundering Officer, DoubleLine Capital LP, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund, DoubleLine Equity LP and DoubleLine Alternatives (from March 2016 to September 2020).
Jeffrey J. Sherman 1977
Vice President
DBL/DSL/DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Deputy Chief Investment Officer, DoubleLine Group LP (since June 2016); President and Portfolio Manager, DoubleLine Alternatives LP (since April 2015 and May 2015, respectively); Portfolio Manager, DoubleLine Capital LP (since September 2010); Fixed Income Asset Allocation, DoubleLine Capital LP (since December 2009).
Adam D. Rossetti 1978
Vice President
DBL/DSL: Indefinite/Since February 2019
DLY: Indefinite/Since Inception
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since February 2019); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Alternatives LP (since June 2015); Legal/Compliance, DoubleLine Group LP (since April 2015). Formerly, Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Capital LP (from August 2017 to March 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Equity LP (from August 2017 to March 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (from August 2017 to March 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (from August 2017 to March 2018); Chief Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (from August 2017 to March 2018); Vice President and Counsel, PIMCO (from April 2012 to April 2015).
Grace Walker 1970
Assistant Treasurer
Indefinite/ Since January 2020
Assistant Treasurer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since January 2020); Treasurer, DoubleLine Funds (Luxembourg) and DoubleLine Cayman Unit Trust (since March 2017); Treasurer, UCITS Funds, DoubleLine Group (since July 2023). Formerly, Treasurer, UCITS Funds Assistant Treasurer (from December 2020 to July 2023); Assistant Treasurer, DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (from January 2013 to May 2017); Assistant Treasurer, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (from March 2012 to May 2017); Assistant Treasurer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (from March 2012 to May 2017).
Dawn Oswald 1980
Vice President
Indefinite/ Since January 2020
Vice President, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since January 2020); Pricing Manager, DoubleLine Group LP (since January 2018). Formerly, Operations Specialist, DoubleLine Group LP (from July 2016 to January 2018); Global Securities Fixed Income Valuation Senior Analyst, Capital Group (from April 2015 to July 2016). Global Securities Fair Valuation Analyst, Capital Group (from January 2010 to April 2015).
Lisa Chen 1979
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer
Indefinite/Since September 2023
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer, DoubleLine Funds Trust (since September 2023); Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer, DoubleLine ETF Trust (Since September 2023); Compliance Manager, DoubleLine Group LP (Since March 2022). Formerly, Vice President, Senior Compliance Officer, PIMCO (From April 2016 – February 2022).
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
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Additional Information Regarding the Fund
(Unaudited) September 30,2024
Summary of Fund Expenses
The following table is intended to assist investors in understanding the fees and expenses (annualized) that an investor in DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund’s (the “Fund”) common shares of beneficial interest (the “Common Shares”) bears, directly or indirectly. The table reflects the use of leverage in the form of borrowings (e.g., loans, lines of credit) in an amount equal to 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets and 22.57% of the Fund’s total net assets (with respect to each percentage, including the amounts of leverage obtained through the use of such instruments and/or borrowings), and shows Fund expenses as a percentage of net assets attributable to Common Shares. The percentage above does not reflect the Fund’s use of other forms of economic leverage, such as credit default swaps or other derivative instruments (where applicable). The table and the example below are based on the Fund’s capital structure as of September 30, 2024. The extent of the Fund’s assets attributable to leverage, and the Fund’s associated expenses, are likely to vary (perhaps significantly) from these figures over time.
Shareholder Transaction Expenses
Percentage of
Offering Price
Sales Load Paid by Investors(1)
See Footnote 1 below
Dividend Reinvestment Plan Fees(2)
None
Annual Expenses
Percentage of
Net Assets
Attributable to
Common Shares
Management Fees(3)
1.67%
Administration Fees(4)
0.02%
Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds(5)
1.60%
Other Expenses(6)
0.17%
Total Annual Expenses
3.46%
(1)
As of September 30, 2024, the Fund had an effective registration statement under which it may offer and sell additional Common Shares of the Fund. The maximum sales load paid by investors in an offering under that registration statement is presently expected to be 1.00% of the offering price.
(2)
You will pay brokerage charges if you direct your broker or the plan agent to sell your Common Shares that you acquired pursuant to a dividend reinvestment plan. You will also bear a pro rata share of brokerage commissions incurred in connection with open-market purchases pursuant to the Fund’s Dividend Reinvestment Plan. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan”.
(3)
The Fund pays DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”) a monthly management fee for its investment management services in an amount equal to 1.35% of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets. In accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), the table above shows the Fund’s management fee as a percentage of average net assets, which reflects the Fund’s use of leverage. “Total managed assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings).
(4)
The Master Services Agreement between the Fund and U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Administrator”), obligates the Fund to pay the Administrator a fee of 0.02% of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets for providing administration, bookkeeping, pricing, and other services to the Fund. The Administrator will also be reimbursed by the Fund for out-of-pocket expenses that are reasonably incurred by it in performing its duties under the Master Services Agreement.
(5)
Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds represents the Fund’s annualized interest expense based on the Fund’s total borrowings as of September 30, 2024, and the interest rate applicable on that date. The Fund’s credit facility is subject to floating interest rates and, therefore, the actual amount of interest expense borne by the Fund will vary over time in accordance with the level of the Fund’s use of borrowings, variations in market interest rates and/or the Fund’s borrowings outstanding. If the Fund were to engage in greater levels of borrowings or pay higher interest rates in connection with such borrowings, the actual Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds incurred as a percentage of net assets would be higher than that shown in the table.
(6)
Other expenses are estimated for the Fund’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2025.
Example
As required by relevant SEC regulations, the following example illustrates the expenses that you would pay on a $1,000 investment in Common Shares (and do not pay any Shareholder Transaction Expenses), assuming (a) the Fund’s net assets do not increase or decrease, (b) the Fund’s total annual expenses are 3.46% of net assets attributable to Common Shares in years 1 through 10 (assuming the Fund obtains leverage through borrowings in an amount equal to 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets) and (c) a 5% annual return(1):
 
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Total Expenses Incurred
$45
$115
$188
$380
(1)
The example above should not be considered a representation of future expenses. Actual expenses may be higher or lower than those shown. The example assumes that “Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds”, “Other Expenses” and “Total Annual Expenses” set forth in the Annual Expenses table remain the same each year and that all dividends and distributions are reinvested at net asset value. Actual expenses may be greater or less than those assumed. Moreover,
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(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
the Fund’s actual rate of return may be greater or less than the hypothetical 5% annual return shown in the example. If the above example reflected Shareholder Transaction Expenses that may be paid in respect of shares purchased in connection with the Fund’s offering of Common Shares under the Fund’s Shelf Registration (see Note 13), the Total Expenses incurred shown above would have been higher.
Market and Net Asset Value
The Fund’s Common Shares, which trade on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) under the symbol “DLY”, have traded both at a premium and a discount to their net asset value per Common Share (“NAV”).
The following table sets forth, for each of the periods indicated, the high and low closing market prices of the Fund’s Common Shares on the NYSE and the corresponding NAV and premium/discount to NAV on the days when the Fund’s Common Shares experienced such high and low closing market prices.
 
Common Share Market Price
Common Share Net Asset Value
Premium (Discount) as a % of Net Asset Value
Quarter
High
Low
High
Low
High
Low
September 30, 2024
$16.79
$ 15.67
$ 16.45
$ 15.95
2.07%
​-1.76%
June 30, 2024
$ 15.97
$ 15.04
$ 16.14
$ 15.81
​-1.05%
​-4.87%
March 31, 2024
$ 15.94
$ 14.70
$ 16.21
$ 15.70
​-1.67%
​-6.37%
December 31, 2023
$ 15.05
$ 13.65
$ 15.78
$ 14.67
​-4.63%
​-6.95%
September 30, 2023
$ 15.18
$ 14.02
$ 15.40
$ 15.05
​-1.43%
​-6.84%
June 30, 2023
$ 14.53
$ 13.44
$ 15.25
$ 14.92
​-4.72%
​-9.92%
March 31, 2023
$ 14.86
​$13.22
$ 15.76
$ 14.90
​-5.71%
​-11.28%
December 31, 2022
$ 14.24
$ 12.96
$ 15.38
$ 14.75
​-7.41%
​-12.14%
(1)
Premium and discount information is shown for the days when the Fund experienced its high and low closing market prices, respectively, per share during the respective quarter.
The Fund’s NAV at the close of business on September 30, 2024 was $16.38 and the last reported sale price of a Common Share on the NYSE on that day was $16.59, representing a 1.28% premium to such NAV. As of September 30, 2024, the net assets of the Fund attributable to Common Shares were $788,575,939 and the Fund had outstanding 48,139,349 Common Shares.
Shares of a closed-end investment company, including the Fund, may frequently trade at prices lower than their net asset value per share. The Board of Trustees of the Fund will regularly monitor the relationship between the market price per Common Share and the NAV. If the Common Shares were to trade at a substantial discount to their NAV for an extended period of time, the Board of Trustees may consider the repurchase of the Fund’s Common Shares on the open market or in private transactions, the making of a tender offer for such shares or the conversion of the Fund to an open-end investment company or other actions. The Fund cannot assure you that the Board of Trustees will decide to take or propose any of these actions irrespective of the duration or amount of any discount to NAV at which the Fund’s Common Shares may trade, or that any actions taken will actually reduce any such discount.
Unresolved Staff Comments
The Fund does not believe that there are any material unresolved written comments, received 180 days or more before September 30, 2024 from the staff of the SEC regarding any of the Fund’s periodic or current reports under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or the 1940 Act, or its registration statement.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
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Summary of Updated Information Regarding the Fund
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
The following information in this annual report is a summary of certain information about the Fund and changes since the Fund’s last annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023. This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you invested in the Fund.
Investment Objective and Strategies
There have been no material changes to the Fund’s investment objective or principal investment strategies since the Fund’s last annual report to shareholders.
The following summarizes the Fund’s current investment objective and principal investment strategies:
Investment Objective
To seek a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income. The Fund cannot assure you that it will achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s investment objective may be changed by the Board without prior notice to or approval of the Fund’s shareholders.
Principal Investment Strategies
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will seek to achieve its investment objective by investing in a portfolio of investments selected for its potential to provide a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income. The Fund may invest in debt securities and other income-producing investments of issuers anywhere in the world, including in emerging markets, and may invest in investments of any credit quality. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund invests substantially, and may thereafter continue to invest substantially, in debt instruments of below investment grade quality (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk bonds”) and unrated instruments. The Fund may invest in securities of any or no maturity or negative duration, and there are no limits on the duration of the Fund’s portfolio.
The Fund’s investment adviser, DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”), allocates the Fund’s assets among sectors of the debt market, and among investments within those sectors, in an attempt to construct a portfolio providing the potential for a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income, consistent with what DoubleLine considers an appropriate level of risk in light of market conditions prevailing at the time. In managing the Fund’s investments, the Adviser uses a controlled risk approach. The techniques of this approach attempt to control the principal risk components of the fixed-income markets and include consideration of:
the relative values and fundamentals of the different sectors of the debt market
the relative values of securities within a sector
the shape of the yield curve; and
fluctuations in the overall level of interest rates.
DoubleLine selects investments over time to implement its long-term strategic investment view. It also buys and sells securities opportunistically in response to short-term market, economic, political, or other developments or otherwise as opportunities may present themselves. DoubleLine manages the Fund under an integrated risk management framework overseen by the Fund’s portfolio management team and DoubleLine’s risk management team. DoubleLine expects that the Fund will normally not invest more than 50% of its total assets in a single sector of the debt market (excluding the U.S. Government securities sector), as determined by the Adviser. Generally, the sectors of the debt market among which the Adviser expects to allocate the Fund’s assets principally from time to time include, among others, commercial mortgage-backed securities, agency residential mortgage-backed securities, non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities, non-mortgage-related asset-backed securities, investment grade corporate debt, high yield corporate debt, bank and other loans, international sovereign debt, emerging market debt, collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), U.S. Government securities, and municipal debt. The Fund has historically had and may continue to have significant holdings of securitized credit, such as commercial mortgage-backed securities, non-agency residential mortgage- backed securities, non-mortgage-related asset-backed securities and CLOs.
Within each sector, the Fund may invest in debt securities and other income-producing investments based on DoubleLine’s assessment of the potential returns and risks of particular securities and other investments within that sector. Such securities may include, by way of example, mortgage-related securities of any kind, including commercial and residential mortgage-backed
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securities; other asset-backed securities; below investment grade debt (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” or “junk bonds”); debt securities issued by domestic or foreign (including emerging market) corporate or other issuers; obligations of foreign (including emerging market) sovereigns or their agencies or instrumentalities; supra-national obligations; CLOs, including commercial real estate CLOs (“CRE CLOs”); equity, mortgage, or hybrid real estate investment trust (“REIT”) securities; bank loans and assignments and other fixed and floating rate loans (including, among others, senior loans, second lien or other subordinated or unsecured loans, delayed funding loans, debtor-in-possession loans, exit facilities and revolving credit facilities); municipal securities and other debt securities issued by state or local governments and their agencies, authorities and by other government-sponsored enterprises; payment-in-kind securities; zero-coupon bonds; convertible bonds and securities; inflation-indexed bonds; structured notes and other hybrid instruments; credit-linked trust certificates; preferred securities; commercial paper; and cash and cash equivalents. The Fund may also invest without limit in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations; however, as of September 30, 2024, the Fund has invested, and may thereafter continue to invest, substantially in debt securities and other income-producing investments that involve substantially greater credit risk than those investments. The rate of interest on the debt and other income-producing investments that the Fund may purchase may be fixed, floating, or variable.
The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities of any kind. Mortgage-backed securities may include, among other things, securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations or securities of domestic or foreign private issuers. Mortgage-backed securities may be issued or guaranteed by banks or other financial institutions, other private issuers, special-purpose vehicles established for such purpose, or government agencies or instrumentalities. Privately- issued mortgage-backed securities include any mortgage-backed security other than those issued or guaranteed as to principal or interest by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations.
Mortgage-backed securities may include, without limitation, interests in pools of residential mortgages or commercial mortgages, and may relate to domestic or non-U.S. mortgages. Mortgage-backed securities also include, but are not limited to, securities representing interests in, collateralized or backed by, or whose values are determined in whole or in part by reference to, any number of mortgages or pools of mortgages or the payment experience of such mortgages or pools of mortgages, including Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (“REMICs”), which could include re-securitizations of REMICs (“Re-REMICs”), credit default swaps, mortgage pass-through securities, mortgage servicing rights, inverse floaters, collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”), multiclass pass-through securities, private mortgage pass-through securities, stripped mortgage securities (generally interest-only and principal-only securities), credit risk transfer securities, and debt instruments collateralized or secured by other mortgage-related assets. The collateral backing mortgage-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may include, without limitation, performing, non-performing and/or re-performing loans, non-qualifying mortgage loans, and loans secured by a single asset and issued by a single borrower. The commercial mortgage-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may also include securitizations backed by a single mortgage on a single property. The Fund may invest in bonds, including unguaranteed mezzanine bonds and subordinate bonds, securitized through Freddie Mac’s “K-Deal” program, which securitizes mortgage loans backed by multi-family apartment properties.
The Fund may invest in asset-backed securities of any type, including securitizations of a wide variety of non-mortgage-related receivables, such as credit card and automobile finance receivables, home-equity sharing agreements, student loans, consumer loans, loans issued or sponsored by online or similar retail or alternative lending platforms, installment loan contracts, home equity loans, mobile home loans, boat loans, business and small business loans, project finance loans, airplane leases, and leases of various other types of real and personal property, and other income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights. The loans underlying the asset-backed securities and similar obligations in which the Fund may invest may include loans that contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans (“covenant-lite” loans) and loans of subprime quality.
In pursuing its investment objective, the Fund may invest significantly in residential and/or commercial real estate or mortgage- related loans, consumer loans, business and small business loans, construction or project finance loans, or other types of loans, which loans may include secured and unsecured notes, senior loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinated loans, or mezzanine loans, any of which may be covenant-lite or loans of subprime quality. The Fund may make direct investments in individual loans or in pools of loans and in whole loans as well as in loan participations or assignments, itself or with other clients of the Adviser or its related parties. In addition, although, as of September 30, 2024, the Fund has no present intention to do so, the Fund may itself or in conjunction with others originate any of the foregoing types of loans. The Fund intends to hire third-party service providers to service loans the Fund originates, if any. The Fund may also be involved in, or finance, the origination of loans to corporations, other legal entities or individuals, including foreign entities and individuals.
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September 30, 2024
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Summary of Updated Information Regarding the Fund (Cont.)
The Fund may invest in any level of the capital structure of an issuer of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, including subordinated or residual tranches, risk retention tranches of collateralized mortgage-backed securities or other eligible securitizations, and the equity or “first loss” tranche (such as the “E Notes” of aircraft asset-backed securities). The Fund may invest in mortgage- or asset-backed securities that are designed to have leveraged investment exposure to the underlying mortgages or assets. The Fund may also gain or adjust its exposure to mortgage- or asset-backed securities through derivatives, such as credit default swap or futures transactions. The Fund may also invest in credit risk transfer securities that, while not backed by mortgage loans, have credit exposure to a pool of mortgage loans acquired by the government-sponsored entity or private entity issuing the securities.
Certain mortgage- and other asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may represent an inverse interest-only class of security for which the holders are entitled to receive no payments of principal and are entitled only to receive interest at a rate that will vary inversely with a specified index or reference rate, or a multiple thereof. The Fund may invest in collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) (including CLOs and collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”)) and other structured products sponsored or managed by, or otherwise affiliated with, the Adviser or related parties of the Adviser. Such investments may include investments in debt or equity interests issued by the CDO or structured product as well as investments purchased on the secondary market, and the Fund may invest in any tranche of the CDO or structured product, including an equity tranche.
The Fund may invest in debt instruments of any credit quality and may invest without limit in debt securities that are at the time of investment rated below investment grade or unrated securities judged by DoubleLine to be of comparable quality. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Fund will not acquire any corporate bond, CLO, corporate loan, or sovereign and quasi sovereign obligation that is rated at the time of investment Caa1 or below by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) and CCC+ or below by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Fitch, Inc. (“Fitch”) or any such securities that are unrated if it would cause the Fund to have more than 20% of its total managed assets invested in such investments. The 20% limitation does not apply to rated or unrated mortgage- and asset-backed securities of any kind (e.g. commercial mortgage-backed securities and residential mortgage-backed securities) or loans or other obligations secured, collateralized or supported by real estate or real estate related assets of any kind (e.g., mortgages). In the case of split ratings, DoubleLine will categorize the security according to the highest rating assigned. In addition, the Fund will not purchase securities that are in default as to the repayment of principal and/or interest at the time of acquisition by the Fund.
The Fund will normally invest at least 25% of its total assets in issuers involved in one or more real estate-related industries. Investments in issuers involved in real estate-related industries include, without limitation, investments in mortgage-related obligations issued or guaranteed by government agencies or other government entities or by private originators or issuers; instruments of any kind that are backed by or that provide exposure to one or more real estate-related mortgages; interests in issuers that deal in, hold, or invest in mortgages, real estate, or other real estate-related assets; real estate investment trusts of any kind; instruments whose performance is based on or relates to payments made on real estate mortgages or other real estate- related obligations; instruments secured by any interest in real estate; and other investments that the Adviser determines provide exposure to real estate or one or more of the foregoing.
The Fund may invest without limit in securities of foreign issuers and may invest up to 30% of its total managed assets in securities of issuers domiciled or organized in emerging market countries. For these purposes, an “emerging market country” is a country that, at the time the Fund invests in the related instruments, is classified as an emerging or developing economy by any supranational organization such as the World Bank or the United Nations, or related entities, or is considered an emerging market country for purposes of constructing a major emerging market securities index, such as the J.P. Morgan or Bank of America suite of emerging market indices (e.g., the JP Morgan GBI-EM Global Diversified Index or the ICE Bank of America Broad Local Emerging Markets non-Sovereign Index). The Fund may take positions in various foreign (non-U.S.) currencies, including by actual holdings of those currencies and through forward, futures, swap, and option contracts with respect to foreign currencies, for hedging, or as a substitute for actual purchases or sales of the currencies in question; the Fund may also invest without limit in investments denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, including the local currencies of emerging markets. The Fund may (but is not required to) attempt to hedge some of its exposure to foreign currencies in order to reduce the risk of loss due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar.
The Adviser monitors the duration of the Fund’s portfolio securities to seek to assess and, in its discretion, adjust the Fund’s exposure to interest rate risk. However, the Fund may invest in securities of any or no maturity or negative duration, and there are no limits on the duration of the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser retains broad discretion to modify the Fund’s duration within a wide range, including the discretion to construct a portfolio of investments for the Fund with a negative duration. Duration is a measure of the expected life of a fixed income instrument that is used to determine the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates. The Adviser may seek to manage the dollar-weighted average effective duration of the Fund’s portfolio through the use of derivatives and other instruments (including, among others, Treasury futures and other futures contracts, inverse floaters, interest rate swaps, total return
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swaps, and options, including options on swap agreements (“swaptions”)). The Fund may incur costs in implementing duration management strategies, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will engage in duration management strategies or that any duration management strategy employed by the Fund will be successful.
The Fund may invest in common stocks and other equity securities from time to time, including, among others, those it has received through the conversion of a convertible security held by the Fund or in connection with the restructuring of a debt security. The Fund may invest in securities that have not been registered for public sale, including securities eligible for purchase and sale pursuant to Rule 144A or Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and other securities issued in private placements. The Fund also may invest without limit in securities of other open- or closed-end investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) and investment companies sponsored or managed by the Adviser or its related parties. The Fund may invest in securities of companies with small and medium market capitalizations.
Portfolio securities may be sold at any time. Sales may occur when the Adviser determines to take advantage of what it considers to be a better investment opportunity, when the portfolio managers believe the portfolio securities no longer represent relatively attractive investment opportunities, when there is perceived deterioration in the credit fundamentals of the issuer, or when the individual security has reached the portfolio managers’ sell target. The Fund will not invest in securities in default at time of purchase, however, the Fund is not required to sell any securities that default after acquisition.
The Fund may invest indirectly by investing in derivatives or through wholly-owned and controlled subsidiaries (each, a “Subsidiary”). The Fund may be exposed to the different types of investments described herein through its investments in a Subsidiary. The allocation of the Fund’s assets to a Subsidiary will vary from time to time and the Fund’s portfolio may include some or all of the investments described herein.
Note Regarding Investment Limitations
Where the foregoing states that the Fund or the Adviser will not, or does not intend to, make investments in excess of a stated percentage of the Fund’s total assets, “total assets” includes amounts of leverage obtained through borrowings, any preferred shares that may be outstanding, the use of reverse repurchase agreements, or dollar roll transactions. With respect to any reverse repurchase agreement or dollar roll transaction, “total assets” includes any proceeds from the sale of an asset of the Fund to a counterparty in such a transaction, in addition to the value of the asset subject to the reverse repurchase agreement or dollar roll transaction, as of the relevant measuring date. Except as otherwise noted, all percentage limitations apply only at the time of investment.
Derivatives
The Fund may use various derivatives strategies for hedging purposes or to gain, or reduce, long or short exposure to one or more asset classes, issuers, currencies or reference assets, or to manage the dollar-weighted average effective duration of the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund also may enter into derivatives transactions with the purpose or effect of creating investment leverage. The Fund reserves the right to invest in derivatives of any kind and for any investment purpose, including, for example, the following: futures contracts and options on futures contracts, in order to gain efficient long or short investment exposures as an alternative to cash investments or to hedge against portfolio exposures; interest rate swaps, in order to gain indirect long or short exposures to interest rates, issuers, or currencies or to hedge against portfolio exposures; and total return swaps and credit derivatives, put and call options, and exchange-traded and structured notes, in order to take indirect long or short positions on indexes, securities, currencies, commodities or other indicators of value or to hedge against portfolio exposures. The Fund may, for hedging purposes or as a substitute for direct long or short investments in debt securities, make use of credit default swaps. The Fund may engage in short sales, either to earn additional return or to hedge existing investments.
Leverage
The Fund currently uses, and may in the future use, financial leverage. U.S. Bank National Association (“U.S. Bank”) has made available to the Fund a $225,000,000 revolving unsecured credit facility. Under the terms of the agreement, interest is charged at the rate of one-month daily SOFR plus 0.10% plus 1.15% (applicable margin), subject to certain conditions that may cause the rate of interest to increase. This rate represents a floating rate of interest that may change over time. The Fund was also responsible for paying a non-usage fee (“commitment fee”) of 0.25% if the exposure is less than 75% of the commitment amount and 0.125% if the exposure is 75% or greater of the commitment amount. The credit facility will terminate by the earlier of February 24, 2025 or the date the committed amount is reduced to $0, but is also subject to earlier termination in accordance with its terms. The Fund pledges its assets as collateral to secure obligations under the credit agreement. The Fund retains the risks and rewards of the ownership of assets pledged
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to secure obligations under the credit agreement. The Fund is subject to various restrictive covenants in its credit facility. If the Fund fails to meet or satisfy any of these covenants, the Fund may be in default under the agreements governing the credit facility, and its lenders could elect to accelerate the Fund’s obligation to repurchase certain assets, declare outstanding amounts due and payable, terminate their commitments, require the posting of additional collateral or enforce their rights against existing collateral. In the event the credit agreement is terminated, the Fund may be required to sell securities in order to pay amounts due thereunder, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to obtain a replacement source of leverage.
The Fund may seek to use leverage through a variety of measures, including the issuance of preferred shares or a combination of borrowings and the issuance of preferred shares. The Fund may also use reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions.
The Fund also may enter into transactions other than borrowings, the issuance of preferred shares, reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions that may give rise to a form of leverage or that have leverage embedded in them including, among others, transactions involving credit default swap contracts and/or other transactions. Other such transactions include loans of portfolio securities, transactions involving derivative instruments, short sales and when-issued, delayed delivery, and forward commitment transactions.
These transactions may represent a form of investment leverage and will create special risks. The use of these forms of additional leverage will increase the volatility of the Fund’s investment portfolio and could result in larger losses than if the strategies were not used.
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will not (i) issue preferred shares, (ii) borrow money through loans or draw on lines of credit from banks or other credit facilities, (iii) enter into reverse repurchase agreements or dollar roll transactions, or (iv) write credit default swaps with the intention on the part of the Adviser to create investment leverage, if as a result the amount of investment leverage the Adviser determines to be attributable to the activities listed in (i) through (iv) above in the aggregate would exceed 50% of the Fund’s total assets (including, for purposes of the 50% limit, the amounts of leverage obtained through such activities) (the “50% leverage policy”). Written credit default swaps entered into by the Fund to hedge, manage or reduce risk or to equitize a cash position (i.e., obtain investment exposure in an amount equal to or less than the Fund’s position in cash, cash equivalents, high-quality short-term debt instruments and other similar investments) will not be considered to have been made for the purpose of creating investment leverage and therefore will not be subject to the 50% leverage policy; the Adviser generally will determine whether an investment has the effect of creating investment leverage by evaluating the effect of the investment on the exposure and risk profile of the Fund as a whole. It is possible that following the incurrence of any amount of investment leverage, the value of the assets of the Fund will decline due to market conditions or other factors and that the 50% leverage limit will as a result be exceeded. In that case, the leverage risk to Common Shareholders will increase.
The Fund will use leverage opportunistically and may choose to increase, decrease, or eliminate its use of leverage over time and from time to time based on DoubleLine’s assessment of the yield curve environment, interest rate trends, market conditions, and other factors. There is no assurance that the Fund will issue preferred shares, borrow money through loans or draw on lines of credit from banks or other credit facilities, enter into reverse repurchase agreements, or dollar roll transactions and/or use other forms of leverage. If used, there is no assurance that the Fund’s leveraging strategies will be successful. The use of leverage will increase the volatility of the performance of the Fund’s investment portfolio and could result in the Fund experiencing greater losses than if leverage were not used. The net proceeds the Fund obtains from the use of leverage will be invested in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective and policies as described in the Fund’s currently effective Prospectus. So long as the rate of return, net of applicable Fund expenses, on the investments purchased by the Fund exceeds the costs of such leverage to the Fund, the use of leverage should help the Fund to achieve an investment return greater than it would if it were not leveraged, although use of leverage may result in losses greater than if the Fund had not used leverage.
The 1940 Act generally prohibits the Fund from engaging in most forms of leverage representing indebtedness unless immediately after the issuance of the leverage the Fund has satisfied the asset coverage test with respect to senior securities representing indebtedness prescribed by the 1940 Act; that is, the value of the Fund’s total assets less all liabilities and indebtedness not represented by senior securities (for these purposes, “total net assets”) is at least 300% of the senior securities representing indebtedness (effectively limiting the use of leverage through senior securities representing indebtedness to 33 1⁄3% of the Fund’s total net assets, including assets attributable to such leverage). In addition, the Fund is not permitted to declare any cash dividend or other distribution on its Common Shares unless, at the time of such declaration, this asset coverage test is satisfied with respect to indebtedness other than certain privately arranged debt that is not intended to be publicly distributed.
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Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act (the “Derivatives Rule”) regulates a registered investment company’s use of derivatives and certain other transactions that create future payment and/or delivery obligations by the Fund. The Derivatives Rule prescribes specific value-at-risk limits for certain derivatives users and requires certain derivatives users to adopt and implement a derivatives risk management program (including the appointment of a derivatives risk manager and the implementation of certain testing requirements), and prescribes reporting requirements in respect of derivatives. Subject to certain conditions, if a fund qualifies as a “limited derivatives user,” as defined in the Derivatives Rule, it is not subject to the full requirements of the Derivatives Rule. In connection with the adoption of the Derivatives Rule, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) rescinded certain of its prior guidance regarding asset segregation and coverage requirements in respect of derivatives transactions and related instruments. With respect to reverse repurchase agreements or other similar financing transactions in particular, the Derivatives Rule permits a fund to enter into such transactions if the fund either (i) complies with the asset coverage requirements of Section 18 of the 1940 Act, and combines the aggregate amount of indebtedness associated with all reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing with the aggregate amount of any other senior securities representing indebtedness when calculating the relevant asset coverage ratio, or (ii) treats all reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions as derivatives transactions for all purposes under the Derivatives Rule.
The Fund has adopted procedures for investing in derivatives and other transactions in compliance with the Derivatives Rule. Compliance with the Derivatives Rule could adversely affect the value or performance of the Fund. Limits or restrictions applicable to the counterparties or issuers, as applicable, with which the Fund may engage in derivative transactions could also limit or prevent the Fund from using certain instruments.
Additional or other new regulations or guidance issued by the SEC or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) or their staffs could, among other things, restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in leveraging and derivatives transactions, and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.
Because the fees received by the Adviser are based on the total managed assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions, or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions, or similar transactions, and borrowings), there is a financial incentive for the Adviser to cause the Fund to use leverage, which creates a conflict of interest between the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Common Shareholders, on the other hand.
Leveraging is a speculative technique and there are special risks and costs involved. By using leverage, the Fund will seek to obtain a higher return for Common Shareholders than if the Fund did not use leverage. The Fund cannot assure you that any use of borrowings, an issuance of preferred shares, the use of reverse repurchase agreements, or dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and/or the use of derivatives strategies will result in a higher investment return on your Common Shares, and it may result in losses. When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the yield to Common Shareholders will be more volatile. Leveraging transactions pursued by the Fund may increase its duration and sensitivity to interest rate movements. In addition, fees and expenses of repurchase agreements and borrowings, any future issuance of preferred shares, and other forms of leverage borne by the Fund are borne entirely by the Common Shareholders and not by preferred shareholders, if any, and will reduce the investment return of the Common Shares.
Effects of Leverage
Assuming the Fund uses leverage in the form of borrowings representing 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets (including the amounts of leverage obtained through such borrowings), which reflects approximately the percentage of the Fund’s total assets attributable to such borrowings as of September 30, 2024, at an annual effective interest expense of 6.13% payable by the Fund on such borrowings (based on market interest rates as of September 30, 2024), the annual return that the Fund’s portfolio must experience in order to cover such costs of the borrowings would be 1.13%.
The information below is designed to illustrate the effects of leverage through the use of certain senior securities under the 1940 Act and does not reflect the Fund’s use of certain other forms of economic leverage achieved through the use of other instruments or transactions, such as reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions, credit default swaps, total return swaps or other derivative instruments. These figures are merely estimates based on current market conditions, used for illustration purposes only.
These assumed investment portfolio returns are hypothetical figures and are not necessarily indicative of the investment portfolio returns experienced or expected to be experienced by the Fund. Your actual returns may be greater or less than those appearing
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below. In addition, actual expenses associated with borrowings or other forms of leverage, if any, used by the Fund may vary frequently and may be significantly higher or lower than the rate used for the example below.
Assumed Portfolio Total Return
​−10.00%
​−5.00%
0.00%
5.00%
10.00%
Common Share Total Return
​-13.64%
​-7.51%
​-1.38%
4.75%
10.87%
Common Shares total return is composed of two elements—the distributions paid by the Fund to holders of Common Shares (the amount of which is largely determined by the net investment income of the Fund after paying interest expenses on the Fund’s leveraging transactions as described above and other Fund expenses) and gains or losses on the value of the securities and other instruments the Fund owns. As required by SEC rules, the table assumes that the Fund is more likely to suffer capital losses than to enjoy capital appreciation. For example, to assume a total return of 0%, the Fund must assume that the income it receives on its investments is entirely offset by Fund expenses and losses in the value of those investments.
The Fund’s willingness to use leverage, and the extent to which leverage is used at any time, will depend on many factors, including, among other things, DoubleLine’s assessment of the yield curve environment, interest rate trends, market conditions and other factors.
Principal Risk Factors
Investing in the Fund involves risks, including the risk that you may receive little or no return on your investment or that you may lose part or even all of your investment. The section below does not describe all risks associated with an investment in the Fund. Additional risks and uncertainties also may adversely affect and impair the Fund.
Limited Prior History
The Fund commenced investment operations on February 26, 2020. It has a limited history of operations and is subject to all of the business risks and uncertainties associated with any new business.
Market Discount Risk
As with any stock, the price of the Fund’s common shares of beneficial interest (the “Common Shares”) will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. If you sell your Common Shares, the price received may be more or less than your original investment. The Common Shares are designed for long-term investors and should not be treated as trading vehicles. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their NAV. The Fund cannot assure you that Common Shares will trade at a price equal to or higher than NAV in the future, and they may trade at a price lower than NAV. In addition to the Fund’s NAV, the Fund’s market price may be affected by factors related to the Fund such as dividend payments (which will in turn be affected by Fund expenses, including the costs of the Fund’s leverage, amounts of interest payments made by the Fund’s portfolio holdings, appreciation/depreciation of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, regulations affecting the timing and character of Fund distributions, and other factors), portfolio credit quality, liquidity, call protection, market supply and demand and similar factors relating to the Fund’s portfolio holdings. The Fund’s market price may also be affected by general market or economic conditions, including market trends affecting securities values generally or values of closed-end fund shares more specifically.
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk
In accordance with the Fund’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration of Trust”), the Fund intends to terminate as of the first business day following the twelfth anniversary of the effective date of the Fund’s initial registration statement, February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”); provided that the Board may, by a vote of a majority of the Board and seventy-five percent (75%) of the Continuing Trustees, as defined below (a “Board Action Vote”), without shareholder approval, extend the Dissolution Date (i) once for up to one year and (ii) once for up to an additional six months, to a date up to and including the eighteenth month after the initial Dissolution Date, which later date shall then become the Dissolution Date. At the Dissolution Date, each holder of common shares of beneficial interest (“Common Shareholder”) would be paid a pro rata portion of the Fund’s net assets as determined as of the Dissolution Date. “Continuing Trustees” are the members of the Board who either (i) have been a member of the Board for a period of at least thirty-six months (or since the commencement of the Fund’s operations, if less than thirty-six months) or (ii) were nominated to serve as a member of the Board by a majority of the Continuing Trustees then members of the Board.
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The Board may, by a Board Action Vote, cause the Fund to conduct a tender offer, as of a date within twelve months preceding the Dissolution Date (as may be extended as described above), to all Common Shareholders to purchase 100% of the then outstanding Common Shares of the Fund at a price equal to the NAV per Common Share on the expiration date of the tender offer (the “Eligible Tender Offer”). In an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund will offer to purchase all Common Shares held by each Common Shareholder; provided that if the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below $200 million (the “Dissolution Threshold”), the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer, and the Fund will terminate as otherwise scheduled. If an Eligible Tender Offer is conducted and the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets greater than or equal to the Dissolution Threshold, all Common Shares properly tendered and not withdrawn will be purchased by the Fund pursuant to the terms of the Eligible Tender Offer. Following the completion of an Eligible Tender Offer, the Board may, by a Board Action Vote, eliminate the Dissolution Date and scheduled termination of the Fund without shareholder approval and the Fund would continue to operate indefinitely thereafter. The Board may, to the extent it deems appropriate and without shareholder approval, adopt a plan of liquidation at any time preceding the anticipated Dissolution Date, which plan of liquidation may set forth the terms and conditions for implementing the termination of the existence of the Fund, including the commencement of the winding down of its investment operations and the making of one or more liquidating distributions to Common Shareholders prior to the Dissolution Date.
Because the assets of the Fund will be liquidated in connection with the dissolution, the Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with dispositions of portfolio securities. The Fund is not a so called “target date” or “life cycle” fund whose asset allocation becomes more conservative over time as its target date, often associated with retirement, approaches. In addition, the Fund is not a “target term” fund and thus does not seek to return the Fund’s initial public offering price per Common Share upon termination of the Fund or in a tender offer. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to the Dissolution Date and may be required to sell portfolio securities when it otherwise would not, including at times when market conditions are not favorable, which may cause the Fund to lose money. In particular, the Fund’s portfolio may still have large exposures to illiquid securities as the Dissolution Date approaches, and losses due to portfolio liquidation may be significant.
Beginning one year before the Dissolution Date (the “Wind-Down Period”), the Fund may begin liquidating all or a portion of the Fund’s portfolio, and the Fund may deviate from its investment strategy and may not achieve its investment objective. As a result, during the Wind-Down Period, the Fund’s distributions may decrease, and such distributions may include a return of capital. It is expected that Common Shareholders will receive cash in any liquidating distribution from the Fund, regardless of their participation in the Fund’s automatic dividend reinvestment plan. However, if on the Dissolution Date the Fund owns securities or other investments for which no market exists or securities or other investments that are trading at depressed prices, such securities or other investments may be placed in a liquidating trust. The Fund cannot predict the amount, if any, of securities or other investments that will be required to be placed in a liquidating trust. The disposition of portfolio investments by the Fund could also cause market prices of such instruments, and hence the NAV and market price of the Common Shares, to decline.
Moreover, in conducting such portfolio transactions, the Fund may need to deviate from its investment policies and may not achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s portfolio composition may change as its portfolio holdings mature or are called or sold in anticipation of an Eligible Tender Offer or the Dissolution Date. During such period(s), it is possible that the Fund will hold a greater percentage of its total assets in shorter term and lower yielding securities and cash and cash equivalents than it would otherwise, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and adversely impact the Fund’s performance and distributions to Common Shareholders, which may in turn adversely impact the market value of the Common Shares. In addition, the Fund may be required to reduce its leverage, which could also adversely impact its performance. The additional cash or cash equivalents held by the Fund could be obtained through reducing the Fund’s distributions to Common Shareholders and/or holding cash in lieu of reinvesting, which could limit the ability of the Fund to participate in new investment opportunities. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to or around the Dissolution Date, which may exacerbate the foregoing risks and considerations. A Common Shareholder may be subject to the foregoing risks over an extended period of time, particularly if the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer and is also subsequently terminated by or around the Dissolution Date.
If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund anticipates that funds to pay the aggregate purchase price of shares accepted for purchase pursuant to the tender offer will be first derived from any cash on hand and then from the proceeds from the sale of portfolio investments held by the Fund. In addition, the Fund may be required to dispose of portfolio investments in connection with any reduction in the Fund’s outstanding leverage necessary in order to maintain the Fund’s desired leverage ratios following a tender offer. The risks related to the disposition of securities in connection with the Fund’s dissolution also would be present in connection with the disposition of securities in connection with an Eligible Tender Offer. It is likely that during the pendency of a tender offer, and possibly for a time thereafter, the Fund will hold a greater than normal percentage of its total assets in cash and cash equivalents, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and decrease returns to shareholders. The tax effect of any
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such dispositions of portfolio investments will depend on the difference between the price at which the investments are sold and the tax basis of the Fund in the investments. Any capital gains recognized on such dispositions, as reduced by any capital losses the Fund realizes in the year of such dispositions and by any available capital loss carryforwards, will be distributed to shareholders as capital gain dividends (to the extent of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) or ordinary dividends (to the extent of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses) during or with respect to such year, and such distributions will generally be taxable to Common Shareholders. If the Fund’s tax basis for the investments sold is less than the sale proceeds, the Fund will recognize capital gains, which the Fund will be required to distribute to Common Shareholders. In addition, the Fund’s purchase of tendered Common Shares pursuant to a tender offer will have tax consequences for tendering Common Shareholders and may have tax consequences for non-tendering Common Shareholders.
The purchase of Common Shares by the Fund pursuant to a tender offer will have the effect of increasing the proportionate interest in the Fund of non-tendering Common Shareholders. All Common Shareholders remaining after a tender offer may be subject to proportionately higher expenses due to the reduction in the Fund’s total assets resulting from payment for the tendered Common Shares. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may result in less investment flexibility, reduced diversification and greater volatility for the Fund, and may have an adverse effect on the Fund’s investment performance. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may also cause Common Shares to become thinly traded or otherwise negatively impact secondary trading of Common Shares. A reduction in net assets, and the corresponding increase in the Fund’s expense ratio, could result in lower returns and put the Fund at a disadvantage relative to its peers and potentially cause the Fund’s Common Shares to trade at a wider discount to NAV than it otherwise would. Furthermore, the portfolio of the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer could be significantly different and, therefore, Common Shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund could be subject to greater risk. For example, the Fund may be required to sell its more liquid, higher quality portfolio investments to purchase Common Shares that are tendered in an Eligible Tender Offer, which would leave a less liquid, lower quality portfolio for remaining shareholders. The prospects of an Eligible Tender Offer may attract arbitrageurs who would purchase the Common Shares prior to the tender offer for the sole purpose of tendering those shares which could have the effect of exacerbating the risks described herein for shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer.
The Fund is not required to conduct an Eligible Tender Offer. If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, there can be no assurance that the number of tendered Common Shares would not result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below the Dissolution Threshold, in which case the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer and the Fund will dissolve on the Dissolution Date (subject to possible extensions). The Adviser has a conflict of interest in recommending to the Board that the Dissolution Date be eliminated and the Fund have a perpetual existence, because the Adviser would continue to earn fees for managing the Fund. The Fund is not required to conduct additional tender offers following an Eligible Tender Offer and conversion to perpetual existence. Therefore, remaining Common Shareholders may not have another opportunity to participate in a tender offer.
Leverage Risk
The Fund’s use of leverage (as described under “Leverage” in the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies above) creates the opportunity for increased net income and capital appreciation, but also creates special risks for Common Shareholders. There is no assurance that the Fund’s leveraging strategies will be successful. Leverage is a speculative technique that exposes the Fund to greater risk and increased costs. The interest expense payable by the Fund with respect to its reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings and/or dividends payable with respect to any outstanding preferred shares may be based on shorter-term interest rates that periodically reset. So long as the Fund’s portfolio investments provide a higher rate of return (net of applicable Fund expenses) than the interest expenses, dividend expenses and other costs to the Fund of such leverage, the investment of the proceeds thereof should generate more income than will be needed to pay the costs of the leverage. If so, and all other things being equal, the excess would be used to pay higher dividends to Common Shareholders than if the Fund were not so leveraged. If, however, interest rates rise relative to the rate of return on the Fund’s portfolio, the interest and other costs to the Fund of leverage, including interest expenses on borrowings, the dividend rate on any outstanding preferred shares and/or the cost of the use of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls or similar transactions, could exceed the rate of return on the debt obligations and other investments held by the Fund, thereby reducing the return to Common Shareholders.
When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the investment return to Common Shareholders will likely be more volatile. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s use of leverage will result in a higher investment return on the Common Shares, and it may result in losses. In addition, fees and expenses of any form of leverage used by the Fund will be borne entirely by the Common Shareholders and not by preferred shareholders, if any, and will reduce the investment return of the Common Shares. In addition, any preferred shares issued by the Fund may pay cumulative dividends, which may tend to increase leverage risk.
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Leverage creates several major types of risks for Common Shareholders, including:
the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV and market price of Common Shares, and of the investment return to Common Shareholders, than a comparable portfolio without leverage;
the possibility either that Common Share dividends will fall if the interest and other costs of leverage rise, or that dividends paid on Common Shares will fluctuate because such costs vary over time;
the effects of leverage in a declining market or a rising interest rate environment, as leverage is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV of the Common Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged and may result in a greater decline in the market value of the Common Shares; and
the Fund’s creditors, counterparties to the Fund’s leveraging transactions and any preferred shareholders of the Fund will have priority of payment over the Fund’s Common Shareholders.
The use by the Fund of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions or similar transactions to obtain leverage also involves special risks. For instance, the market value of the securities that the Fund is obligated to repurchase under a reverse repurchase agreement may decline below the repurchase price and the securities may not be returned to the Fund.
In addition to borrowings, an issuance of preferred shares, reverse repurchase agreements and/or dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, the Fund’s use of other transactions that may give rise to a form of leverage (including, among others, credit default swap contracts and other transactions, loans of portfolio securities, transactions involving derivative instruments, short sales, and when issued, delayed delivery, and forward commitment transactions) gives rise to the associated leverage risks described above, and may adversely affect the Fund’s income, distributions, and total returns to Common Shareholders. The Fund also may seek to offset derivatives positions against one another or against other assets in an attempt to manage effective market exposure resulting from derivatives in its portfolio. To the extent that any positions do not behave in relation to one another as expected by the Adviser, the Fund may perform as if it is leveraged through use of these derivative strategies.
Counterparties to the Fund’s other leveraging transactions (e.g., total return swaps, reverse repurchases, loans of portfolio securities, short sales and when-issued, delayed delivery and forward commitment transactions, credit default swaps, basis swaps and other swap agreements, futures and forward contracts, call and put options or other derivatives), if any, would have seniority over the Fund’s Common Shares.
Regulations or guidance issued by applicable regulators including the SEC or the CFTC or their staffs could, among other things, restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by making certain types of derivatives transactions no longer available to the Fund) and/or increase the costs of such leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by increasing margin or capital requirements), and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.
The Fund’s ability to utilize leverage, invest in accordance with its principal investment strategies, and make distributions to Common Shareholders may also be limited by asset coverage requirements applicable to the use of certain transactions that may involve leverage, restrictions imposed by the Fund’s creditors, and guidelines or restrictions imposed by rating agencies that provide ratings for preferred shares or in connection with liquidity arrangements for preferred shares.
Because the fees received by the Adviser are based on the total managed assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings), the Adviser has a financial incentive to cause the Fund to use leverage, which creates a conflict of interest between the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Common Shareholders, on the other hand.
Liquidity Risk
Liquidity risk is the risk that the Fund may invest in securities that trade in lower volumes and may be less liquid than other investments or that the Fund’s investments may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquidity may be the result of, for example, low trading volumes, lack of a market maker, or contractual or legal restrictions that limit or prevent the Fund from selling securities or closing positions. When there is no willing buyer and investments cannot be readily sold or closed out, the Fund may have to sell an investment at a lower price than the price at which the Fund is carrying the investments, may not be able to sell the investments at all, may miss other investment opportunities and may hold investments it would prefer to sell, any of which would have a negative effect on the Fund’s performance and may cause the Fund to
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hold an investment longer than the Adviser would otherwise determine. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a portfolio investment at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment or that the Fund may be forced to sell large amounts of securities more quickly than it normally would in the ordinary course of business. In such a case, the sale proceeds received by the Fund may be substantially less than if the Fund had been able to sell the securities in more-orderly transactions, and the sale price may be substantially lower than the price previously used by the Fund to value the securities for purposes of determining the Fund’s NAV.
In addition, if the Fund sells investments with extended settlement times (e.g., certain kinds of loans), the settlement proceeds from the sales will not be available to the Fund for a substantial period of time. The Fund may be forced to sell other investment positions with shorter settlement cycles when the Fund would not otherwise have done so, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. Additionally, the market for certain investments may become illiquid under adverse market or economic conditions (e.g., if interest rates rise or fall significantly, if there is significant inflation or deflation, increased selling of debt securities generally across other funds, pools and accounts, changes in investor perception, geopolitical events (such as trading halts, sanctions or wars), or changes in government intervention in the financial markets) independent of any specific adverse changes in the conditions of a particular issuer. In such cases, shares of the Fund, due to limitations on investments in illiquid securities and the difficulty in purchasing and selling such securities or instruments, may decline in value or the Fund may be unable to achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain issuer or sector. During periods of substantial market disruption, a large portion of the Fund’s assets could potentially experience significant levels of illiquidity. The values of illiquid investments are often more volatile than the values of more liquid investments. It may be more difficult to determine a fair value of an illiquid investment than those of more liquid comparable investments.
Portfolio Management Risk
Portfolio management risk is the risk that an investment strategy may fail to produce the intended results. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular asset classes, sectors, securities, or other investments may prove to be incorrect and may not anticipate actual market movements or the impact of economic conditions generally. No matter how well a portfolio manager evaluates market conditions, the investments a portfolio manager chooses may fail to produce the intended result, and you could lose money on your investment in the Fund.
Valuation Risk
Valuation risk is the risk that the Fund will not value its investments in a manner that accurately reflects their market values or that the Fund will not be able to sell any investment at a price equal to the valuation ascribed to that investment for purposes of calculating the Fund’s NAV. The valuation of the Fund’s investments involves subjective judgment and some valuations may involve assumptions, projections, opinions, discount rates, estimated data points and other uncertain or subjective amounts, all of which may prove inaccurate. In addition, the valuation of certain investments held by the Fund may involve the significant use of unobservable and non-market inputs. Certain securities in which the Fund may invest may be more difficult to value accurately, especially during periods of market disruptions or extreme market volatility. As a result, there can be no assurance that fair value pricing will result in adjustments to the prices of securities or other assets, or that fair value pricing will reflect actual market value, and it is possible that the fair value determined for a security or other asset will be materially different from quoted or published prices, from the prices used by others for the same security or other asset and/or from the value that actually could be or is realized upon the sale of that security or other asset. Technological issues or other service disruption issues involving third party service providers may also cause a Fund to value its investments incorrectly. Incorrect valuations of a Fund’s portfolio holdings could result in a Fund’s shareholder transactions being effected at an NAV that does not accurately reflect the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio, resulting in the dilution of shareholder interests.
Investment and Market Risk
An investment in Common Shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. An investment in Common Shares represents an indirect investment in the securities and other instruments owned by the Fund. The market price of securities and other instruments may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Securities may decline in value due to factors affecting markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular issuer, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities. Common Shares are subject to the risk that markets will perform poorly or that the returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will
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underperform returns from the general securities markets or other types of investments. Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, political, economic or market developments, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. Certain securities may be difficult to value during such periods. The value of securities and other instruments traded in over-the-counter markets, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. Further, the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have from time to time taken steps to support financial markets. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve may, conversely, reduce market support activities, including by taking action intended to increase certain interest rates. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. Changes in government activities in this regard, such as changes in interest rate policy, can negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the Fund invests.
Credit Risk
Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or counterparty will fail to pay its obligations to the Fund when they are due. If an investment’s issuer or counterparty fails to pay interest or otherwise fails to meet its obligations to the Fund, the Fund’s income might be reduced and the value of the investment might fall or be lost entirely. Financial strength and solvency of an issuer are the primary factors influencing credit risk. Changes in the financial condition of an issuer or counterparty, changes in specific economic, social or political conditions that affect a particular type of security, other instrument or an issuer, and changes in economic, social or political conditions generally can increase the risk of default by an issuer or counterparty, which can affect a security’s or other instrument’s credit quality or value and an issuer’s or counterparty’s ability to pay interest and principal when due. The values of lower-quality debt securities (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities and “junk” bonds) and floating rate loans, tend to be particularly sensitive to these changes. The values of securities also may decline for a number of other reasons that relate directly to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the issuer and the value of its assets. Credit risk is heightened to the extent the Fund has fewer counterparties.
In addition, lack of or inadequacy of collateral or credit enhancements for a fixed income security may affect its credit risk. Credit risk of a security may change over time, and securities which are rated by rating agencies may be subject to downgrade, which may have an indirect impact on the market price of securities. Ratings are only opinions of the agencies issuing them as to the likelihood of re-payment. They are not guarantees as to quality and they do not reflect market risk.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt securities and other obligations of all kinds.
Interest Rate Risk
Interest rate risk is the risk that debt instruments will change in value because of changes in interest rates. Interest rate changes may affect the value of a fixed income instrument directly (especially in the case of fixed rate instruments) and indirectly (especially in the case of adjustable-rate instruments). The value of an instrument with a longer duration (whether positive or negative) will be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than a similar instrument with a shorter duration. Bonds and other debt instruments typically have a positive duration. The value of a debt instrument with positive duration will generally decline if interest rates increase. Certain other investments, such as inverse floaters and certain derivative instruments, may have a negative duration. The value of instruments with a negative duration will generally decline if interest rates decrease. Inverse floaters, interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. The prices of long-term debt obligations generally fluctuate more than prices of short-term debt obligations as interest rates change. Because the Fund’s weighted average effective duration generally will fluctuate as interest rates change, the Common Share NAV and market price per share may tend to fluctuate more in response to changes in market interest rates than if the Fund invested mainly in short-term debt securities. During periods of rising interest rates, the average life of certain types of securities may extend due to lower than expected rates of pre-payments, which could cause the securities’ durations to extend and expose the securities to more price volatility. This may lock in a below market yield, increase the security’s duration and reduce the securities’ value. In addition to directly affecting debt securities, rising interest rates also may have an adverse effect on the value of any equity securities held by the Fund. The Fund’s use of leverage will tend to increase Common Share interest rate risk.
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DoubleLine may use certain strategies, including investments in structured notes or interest rate futures contracts or swap, cap, floor or collar transactions, for the purpose of reducing the interest rate sensitivity of the Fund’s portfolio, although there is no assurance that it will do so or that such strategies will be successful. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate volatility and liquidity risk. In market environments where interest rates are rising, issuers may be less willing or able to make principal and interest payments on fixed-income investments when due.
Yield curve risk is the risk associated with either a flattening or steepening of the yield curve. The yield curve is a representation of market interest rates of obligations with durations of different lengths. When the yield curve is “steep,” longer-term obligations bear higher rates of interest than similar shorter-term obligations; when the curve “flattens,” the difference between those interest rates is reduced. If the yield curve is “inverted,” longer term obligations bear lower interest rates than shorter term obligations. If the Fund’s portfolio is structured to perform favorably in a particular interest rate environment, a change in the yield curve could result in losses to the Fund.
Variable and floating rate debt securities are generally less sensitive to interest rate changes, as compared to fixed rate debt instruments, but may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value at all or to the same extent as fixed rate instruments when interest rates decline. Inverse floating rate debt securities may decrease in value if interest rates increase.
Inverse floating rate debt securities also may exhibit greater price volatility than a fixed rate debt obligation with similar credit quality. When the Fund holds variable or floating rate securities, a decrease (or, in the case of inverse floating rate securities, an increase) in market interest rates will adversely affect the income received from such securities and the NAV of the Common Shares.
Debt Securities Risk
In addition to certain of the other risks described herein such as interest rate risk and credit risk, debt securities generally also are subject to the following risks:
Redemption Risk—Debt securities sometimes contain provisions that allow for redemption in the event of tax or security law changes in addition to call features at the option of the issuer. In the event of a redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return.
Extension Risk—This is the risk that if interest rates rise, repayments of principal on certain debt securities, including, but not limited to, floating rate loans and mortgage-related securities, may occur at a slower rate than expected and the expected maturity of those securities could lengthen as a result. Securities that are subject to extension risk generally have a greater potential for loss when prevailing interest rates rise, which could cause their values to fall sharply. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Liquidity Risk—Certain debt securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities, such as U.S. Government securities or common shares or other equity securities.
Spread Risk—Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of the debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood or risk of default by the issuer.
Limited Voting Rights—Debt securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases when interest payments have not been made and the issuer is in default. Even in such cases, such rights may be limited to the terms of the debenture or other agreements.
Prepayment/Reinvestment Risk—Many types of debt securities, including floating rate loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities, may reflect an interest in periodic payments made by borrowers. Although debt securities and other obligations typically mature after a specified period of time, borrowers may pay them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, all or a portion of the obligation will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay an obligation which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, there is a greater likelihood that the Fund’s higher yielding securities will be pre-paid and the Fund will probably be unable to reinvest those proceeds in an investment with as great a yield, causing the Fund’s yield to decline. Securities subject to prepayment risk generally offer less potential for gains when prevailing interest rates fall. If the Fund buys those investments at a premium, accelerated prepayments on those investments could cause the Fund to lose a portion of its principal investment and result in lower yields to shareholders. The
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increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation, especially with respect to certain loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. The effect of prepayments on the price of a security may be difficult to predict and may increase the security’s price volatility. Interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. Income from the Fund’s portfolio may decline when the Fund invests the proceeds from investment income, sales of portfolio securities or matured, traded or called debt obligations. A decline in income received by the Fund from its investments is likely to have a negative effect on the dividend levels and market price, NAV and/or overall return of the Common Shares.
The Fund’s investments in debt securities may include, but are not limited to, senior, junior, secured and unsecured bonds, notes and other debt securities, and may be fixed rate, floating rate, zero coupon and inflation linked, among other things. The Fund may invest in convertible bonds, which are fixed income securities that are exercisable into other debt or equity securities, and “synthetic” convertible securities, which are created through a combination of separate securities that possess the two principal characteristics of a traditional convertible security, i.e., an income-producing security (“income-producing component”) and the right to acquire an equity security (“convertible component”). The market value of a debt security may be affected by the credit rating of the issuer, the issuer’s performance, perceptions of the issuer in the marketplace, management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services. There is a risk that the issuers of the debt securities in which the Fund may invest may not be able to meet their obligations on interest or principal payments at the time called for by an instrument.
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks
Mortgage-backed securities include, among other things, participation interests in pools of residential mortgage loans purchased from individual lenders by a federal agency or originated and issued by private lenders and involve, among others, the following risks:
Credit and Market Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Investments by the Fund in fixed rate and floating rate mortgage-backed securities will entail credit risks (i.e., the risk of non-payment of interest and principal) and market risks (i.e., the risk that interest rates and other factors could cause the value of the instrument to decline). Many issuers or servicers of mortgage-backed securities guarantee timely payment of interest and principal on the securities, whether or not payments are made when due on the underlying mortgages. This kind of guarantee generally increases the quality of a security, but does not mean that the security’s market value and yield will not change. The values of mortgage-backed securities may change because of changes in the market’s perception of the credit quality of the assets held by the issuer of the mortgage-backed securities or an entity, if any, providing credit support in respect of the mortgage-backed securities. In addition, an unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may limit substantially the pool’s ability to make payments of principal or interest to the Fund as a holder of such securities, reducing the values of those securities or in some cases rendering them worthless. The Fund also may purchase securities that are not guaranteed or subject to any credit support, or that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities. An investment in a privately issued mortgage-backed security is generally less liquid and subject to greater credit risks than an investment in a mortgage-backed security that is issued or otherwise guaranteed by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation.
Mortgage-backed securities may be structured similarly to collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) and may be subject to similar risks. For example, the cash flows from the collateral held by the mortgage-backed security may be split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Interest holders in senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rates but are generally subject to less credit risk than more junior tranches because, should there be any default, senior tranches are typically paid first. The most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are due to be paid the highest interest rates but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying mortgage loan default. If some loans default and the cash collected by the issuer of the mortgage-backed security is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first.
Like bond investments, the value of fixed rate mortgage-backed securities will tend to rise when interest rates fall, and fall when rates rise. Floating rate mortgage-backed securities generally tend to have more moderate changes in price when interest rates rise or fall, but their current yield will generally be affected. In addition, the mortgage-backed securities market in general may be adversely affected by changes in governmental legislation or regulation. Factors that could affect the value of a mortgage-backed security include, among other things, the types and amounts of insurance, if any, which an individual mortgage or that specific mortgage-
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backed security carries, the default and delinquency rate of the mortgage pool, the amount of time the mortgage loan has been outstanding, the loan-to-value ratio of each mortgage and the amount of overcollateralization or under collateralization of a mortgage pool. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities.
The residential mortgage market in the United States has experienced difficulties at times, and the same or similar events may adversely affect the performance and market value of certain of the Fund’s mortgage-related investments. Delinquencies and losses on residential mortgage loans (especially subprime and second-lien mortgage loans) generally increase in a recession and potentially could begin to increase again. A decline in or flattening of housing values (as has been experienced and may again be experienced in many housing markets) may exacerbate such delinquencies and losses. Borrowers with adjustable rate mortgage loans may be more sensitive to changes in interest rates, which affect their monthly mortgage payments, and may be unable to secure replacement mortgages at comparably low interest rates. Also, a number of residential mortgage loan originators have experienced serious financial difficulties or bankruptcy. Reduced investor demand for mortgage-related securities has resulted and again may result in limited new issuances of mortgage-related securities and limited liquidity in the secondary market for mortgage-related securities, which can adversely affect the market value of mortgage-related securities and limit the availability of attractive investment opportunities for the Fund. It is possible that such limited liquidity in secondary markets could return and worsen.
The values of mortgage-backed securities may be substantially dependent on the servicing of the underlying mortgage pools, and therefore are subject to risks associated with the negligence or malfeasance by their servicers and to the credit risk of their servicers. In certain circumstances, the mishandling of related documentation also may affect the rights of security holders in and to the underlying collateral.
Some government sponsored mortgage-related securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”), the principal guarantor of such securities, is a wholly owned United States government corporation within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Other government-sponsored mortgage-related securities are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Issuers of such securities include Fannie Mae (formally known as the Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddie Mac (formally known as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored corporation which is subject to general regulation by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Pass-through securities issued by Fannie Mae are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by Fannie Mae. Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress and subject to general regulation by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Participation certificates representing interests in mortgages from Freddie Mac’s national portfolio are guaranteed as to the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal by Freddie Mac. The U.S. government has provided financial support to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the past, but there can be no assurances that it will support these or other government-sponsored entities in the future.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to securitizations involving mortgage loans and other obligations underlying mortgage-backed securities.
Liquidity Risk of Mortgage-Backed Securities. The liquidity of mortgage-backed securities varies by type of security; at certain times the Fund may encounter difficulty in disposing of such investments. Investments in privately issued mortgage-backed securities may have less liquidity than mortgage-backed securities that are issued by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation. Because mortgage-backed securities have the potential to be less liquid than other securities, the Fund may be more susceptible to liquidity risks than funds that invest in other securities. In the past, in stressed markets, certain types of mortgage-backed securities suffered periods of illiquidity when disfavored by the market. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a mortgage-backed security at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment.
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (“CMBS”) Risks. CMBS include securities that reflect an interest in, or are secured by, mortgage loans on commercial real property. Many of the risks of investing in commercial mortgage-backed securities reflect the risks of investing in the real estate securing the underlying mortgage loans. These risks reflect the effects of local and other economic conditions on real estate markets, the ability of tenants to make loan payments and the ability of a property to attract and retain tenants. Commercial mortgage-backed securities may be less liquid and exhibit greater price volatility than other types of mortgage- or asset-backed securities.
With respect to risk retention tranches (i.e., eligible residual interests initially held by the sponsors of collateralized mortgage- backed securities and other eligible securitizations pursuant to the U.S. Risk Retention Rules), a third-party purchaser, such as the Fund, must
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hold its retained interest, unhedged, for at least five years following the closing of the securitization transaction, after which it is entitled to transfer its interest in the securitization to another person that meets the requirements for a third-party purchaser. Even after the required holding period has expired, due to the limited market for such investments, no assurance can be given as to what, if any, exit strategies will ultimately be available for any given position. In addition, there is limited guidance on the application of the laws and regulations applicable to such investments. There can be no assurance that the applicable federal agencies charged with the implementation of the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules (the FDIC, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Board, the SEC, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) could not take positions in the future that differ from the interpretation of such rules taken or embodied in such securitizations, or that the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules will not change. Furthermore, in situations where the Fund invests in risk retention tranches of securitizations structured by third parties, the Fund may be required to execute one or more letters or other agreements, the exact form and nature of which will vary (each, a “Risk Retention Agreement”) under which it will make certain undertakings designed to ensure such securitization complies with the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules. Such Risk Retention Agreements may include a variety of representations, warranties, covenants and other indemnities, each of which may run to various transaction parties. If the Fund breaches any undertakings in any Risk Retention Agreement, it will be exposed to claims by the other parties thereto, including for any losses incurred as a result of such breach.
Prepayment, Extension and Redemption Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities may reflect an interest in monthly payments made by the borrowers who receive the underlying mortgage loans. Although the underlying mortgage loans are for specified periods of time, such as 20 or 30 years, the borrowers can, and historically have often paid them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, a portion of the mortgage-backed security which represents an interest in the underlying mortgage loan will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay a mortgage which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, a portion of the Fund’s higher yielding securities are likely to be redeemed and the Fund will probably be unable to replace them with securities having as great a yield. Prepayments can result in lower yields to shareholders. The increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation. This is known as prepayment risk. Mortgage-backed securities also are subject to extension risk. Extension risk is the possibility that rising interest rates may cause prepayments to occur at a slower than expected rate. This particular risk may effectively change a security which was considered short or intermediate term into a long-term security. The values of long-term securities generally fluctuate more widely in response to changes in interest rates than short or intermediate-term securities. In addition, a mortgage-backed security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer. If a mortgage-backed security held by the Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to permit the issuer to redeem or pay-off the security, which could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (“CMOs”) Risks. CMOs are debt obligations collateralized by mortgage loans or mortgage pass-through securities. The expected average life of CMOs is determined using mathematical models that incorporate prepayment assumptions and other factors that involve estimates of future economic and market conditions. These estimates may vary from actual future results, particularly during periods of extreme market volatility. Further, under certain market conditions, the average weighted life of certain CMOs may not accurately reflect the price volatility of such securities. For example, in periods of supply and demand imbalances in the market for such securities and/or in periods of sharp interest rate movements, the prices of CMOs may fluctuate to a greater extent than would be expected from interest rate movements alone. CMOs issued by private entities are not obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and are not guaranteed by any government agency, although the securities underlying a CMO may be subject to a guarantee. Therefore, if the collateral securing the CMO, as well as any third party credit support or guarantees, is insufficient to make payments when due, the holder could sustain a loss.
Adjustable Rate Mortgages (“ARMs”) Risks. ARMs contain maximum and minimum rates beyond which the mortgage interest rate may not vary over the lifetime of the security. In addition, many ARMs provide for additional limitations on the maximum amount by which the mortgage interest rate may adjust for any single adjustment period. Alternatively, certain ARMs contain limitations on changes in the required monthly payment. In the event that a monthly payment is not sufficient to pay the interest accruing on an ARM, any excess interest is added to the principal balance of the mortgage loan, which is repaid through future monthly payments. If the monthly payment for such an instrument exceeds the sum of the interest accrued at the applicable mortgage interest rate and the principal payment required at such point to amortize the outstanding principal balance over the remaining term of the loan, the excess is used to reduce the then-outstanding principal balance of the ARM. In addition, certain ARMs may provide for an initial fixed, below-market or teaser interest rate. During this initial fixed-rate period, the payment due from the related mortgagor may be less than that of a traditional loan. However, after the teaser rate expires, the monthly payment required to be made by the mortgagor may increase significantly when the interest rate on the mortgage loan adjusts. This increased burden on the mortgagor may increase the risk of delinquency or default on the mortgage loan and in turn, losses on the mortgage-backed security into which that loan has been bundled.
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Interest and Principal Only Securities Risks. Stripped mortgage-backed securities are usually structured with two classes that receive different portions of the interest and principal distributions on a pool of debt instruments, such as mortgage loans. In one type of stripped mortgage-backed security, one class will receive all of the interest from the mortgage assets (the interest-only, or “IO” class), while the other class will receive all of the principal from the mortgage assets (the principal-only, or “PO” class). The yield to maturity (the expected rate of return on a bond if held until the end of its lifetime) on an IO class is extremely sensitive to the rate of principal payments (including prepayments) on the underlying mortgage assets, and a rapid rate of principal payments may have a material adverse effect on the Fund’s yield to maturity from these securities. If the assets underlying the IO class experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, the Fund may fail to recoup fully, or at all, its initial investment in these securities. PO class securities tend to decline in value if prepayments are slower than anticipated. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Inverse Floaters and Related Securities Risks. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments expose the Fund to the same risks as investments in debt securities and derivatives, as well as other risks, including those associated with leverage and increased volatility. An investment in these securities typically will involve greater risk than an investment in a fixed rate security. Distributions on inverse floaters and similar instruments will typically bear an inverse relationship to short-term interest rates and typically will be reduced or, potentially, eliminated as interest rates rise. The rate at which interest is paid on an inverse floater may vary by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in a reference rate of interest (typically a short-term interest rate) , and the market prices of inverse floaters may as a result be highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and in prepayment rates on the underlying securities, and may decrease in value significantly when interest rates or prepayment rates change. The effect of the reference rate multiplier in inverse floaters is associated with greater volatility in their market values. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments that have mortgage-backed securities underlying them will expose the Fund to the risks associated with those mortgage-backed securities and the values of those investments may be especially sensitive to changes in prepayment rates on the underlying mortgage-backed securities.
Foreign Investing Risk
Investments in foreign securities or in issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets may involve greater risks than investments in domestic securities. To the extent that investments are made in a limited number of countries, events in those countries will have a more significant impact on the Fund. As compared to U.S. companies, foreign issuers generally disclose less financial and other information publicly and are subject to less stringent and less uniform accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards. In addition, there may be limited information generally regarding factors affecting a particular foreign market, issuer, or security.
Foreign countries typically impose less thorough regulations on brokers, dealers, stock exchanges, corporate insiders and listed companies than does the United States and foreign securities markets may be less liquid and more volatile than domestic markets. Investment in foreign securities involves higher costs than investment in U.S. securities, including higher transaction and custody costs as well as the imposition of additional taxes by foreign governments, and as a result investments in foreign securities may be subject to issues relating to security registration or settlement. In addition, security trading and custody practices abroad may offer less protection to investors such as the Fund. Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect an investment in a foreign security or in foreign markets or issuers generally. Settlement of transactions in some foreign markets may be delayed or may be less frequent than in the United States which could affect the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio. Custody practices and regulations abroad may offer less protection to investors, such as the Fund, and the Fund may be limited in its ability to enforce contractual rights or obligations.
Because foreign securities generally are denominated and pay dividends or interest in foreign currencies, and the Fund may hold various foreign currencies from time to time, the value of the Fund’s assets, as measured in U.S. dollars, can be affected unfavorably by changes in exchange rates with respect to the U.S. dollar or with respect to other foreign currencies or by unfavorable currency regulations imposed by foreign governments. If the Fund invests in securities issued by foreign issuers, the Fund may be subject to these risks even if the investment is denominated in United States dollars. This risk may be heightened with respect to issuers whose revenues are principally earned in a foreign currency but whose debt obligations have been issued in United States dollars or other hard currencies.
Foreign issuers may become subject to sanctions imposed by the U.S. or another country or other governmental or non-governmental organizations, which could result in the immediate freeze of the foreign issuers’ assets or securities and/or make their securities worthless. The imposition of such sanctions, such as sanctions imposed against Russia, Russian entities and Russian
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individuals in 2022, could impair the market value of the securities of such foreign issuers and limit the Fund’s ability to buy, sell, receive or deliver the securities. Sanctions, or the threat of sanctions, may cause volatility in regional and global markets and may negatively impact the performance of various sectors and industries, as well as companies in other countries, which could have a negative effect on the performance of the Fund.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. On January 31, 2020, the UK left the EU (commonly known as “Brexit”). An agreement between the UK and the EU governing their future trade relationship became effective January 1, 2021, but critical aspects of the relationship remain unresolved and subject to further negotiation and agreement. Brexit has resulted in volatility in European and global markets and could have negative long-term impacts on financial markets in the UK and throughout Europe. There is still considerable uncertainty relating to the potential consequences of the exit and whether the UK’s exit will increase the likelihood of other countries also departing the EU. During this period of uncertainty, the negative impact on not only the UK and European economies, but the broader global economy, could be significant, potentially resulting in increased market volatility and illiquidity, political, economic, and legal uncertainty, and lower economic growth for companies that rely significantly on Europe for their business activities and revenues. Any further exits from the EU, or the possibility of such exits, or the abandonment of the euro, may cause additional market disruption globally and introduce new legal and regulatory uncertainties.
If one or more EMU countries were to stop using the euro as its primary currency, the Fund’s investments in such countries may be redenominated into a different or newly adopted currency. As a result, the value of those investments could decline significantly and unpredictably. In addition, securities or other investments that are redenominated may be subject to liquidity risk and the risk that the Fund may not be able to value investments accurately to a greater extent than similar investments currently denominated in euros. To the extent a currency used for redenomination purposes is not specified in respect of certain EMU-related investments, or should the euro cease to be used entirely, the currency in which such investments are denominated may be unclear, making such investments particularly difficult to value or dispose of. The Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek judicial or other clarification of the denomination or value of such securities.
Foreign Currency Risk
Currency risk is the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. Currency risk includes both the risk that currencies in which the Fund’s investments are traded and/or in which the Fund receives income, or currencies in which the Fund has taken an active investment position, will decline in value relative to other currencies. In the case of hedging positions, currency risk includes the risk that the currency the Fund is seeking exposure to will decline in value relative to the foreign currency being hedged. Currency exchange rates fluctuate significantly for many reasons, including changes in supply and demand in the currency exchange markets, actual or perceived changes in interest rates, intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments, central banks, or supranational agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, and currency controls or other political and economic developments in the U.S. or abroad. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and major devaluations have historically occurred in certain countries. A devaluation of the currency in which portfolio securities are denominated will negatively impact the value of those securities.
Except as otherwise provided in the Fund’s principal investment strategies, the Fund may take derivatives (or spot) positions in currencies to which the Fund is exposed through its investments. This presents the risk that the Fund could lose money on both its currency exposure through a portfolio investment and its currency exposure through a derivatives (or spot) position. The Fund also may take overweighted or underweighted currency positions and/or hedge the currency exposure of the securities in which it has invested. The Fund may take positions in currencies different from the currencies in which its portfolio investments are denominated. As a result, the Fund’s currency exposure may differ (in some cases significantly) from the currency exposure of its investments and/or its benchmarks.
Exposure to emerging market currencies may entail greater risk than exposure to developed market currencies.
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Emerging Markets Risk
Investing in the securities of emerging market countries, as compared to foreign developed markets, involves substantial additional risk due to more limited information about the issuer and/or the security; higher brokerage costs; different accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less developed legal systems and thinner trading markets; the possibility of currency blockages or transfer restrictions; an emerging market country’s dependence on revenue from particular commodities or international aid; and the risk of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse political or economic developments, such as the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other governmental restrictions.
Political and economic structures in many emerging market countries may undergo significant evolution and rapid development, and such countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristics of more developed countries. Emerging market countries tend to have a greater degree of economic, political and social instability than the U.S. and other developed countries. Such social, political and economic instability could disrupt the financial markets in which the Fund invests and adversely affect the value of its investment portfolio. Some of these countries have in the past failed to recognize private property rights and have at times nationalized or expropriated the assets of private companies. In addition, unanticipated political or social developments may affect the value of investments in emerging markets and the availability of additional investments in these markets. The small size, limited trading volume and relative inexperience of the securities markets in these countries may make investments in securities traded in emerging markets illiquid and more volatile than investments in securities traded in more developed countries, and the Fund may be required to establish special custodial or other arrangements before making investments in securities traded in emerging markets.
There may be little financial or accounting information available with respect to issuers of emerging market securities, and it may be difficult as a result to assess the value or prospects of an investment in such securities.
The securities markets of emerging market countries may be substantially smaller, less developed, less liquid and more volatile than the major securities markets in the United States and other developed nations. The limited size of many securities markets in emerging market countries and limited trading volume in issuers compared to the volume in U.S. securities or securities of issuers in other developed countries could cause prices to be erratic for reasons other than factors that affect the quality of the securities and investments in emerging markets can become illiquid. For example, limited market size may cause prices to be unduly influenced by traders who control large positions. Adverse publicity and investors’ perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value and liquidity of portfolio securities, especially in these markets. In addition, emerging market countries’ exchanges and broker-dealers may generally be subject to less regulation than their counterparts in developed countries. Emerging market securities markets, exchanges and market participants may lack the regulatory oversight and sophistication necessary to deter or detect market manipulation in such exchanges or markets, which may result in losses to the Fund to the extent it holds investments trading in such exchanges or markets. Brokerage commissions and dealer mark-ups, custodial expenses and other transaction costs are generally higher in emerging market countries than in developed countries. As a result, funds that invest in emerging market countries have operating expenses that are higher than funds investing in other securities markets.
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, which regulates auditors of U.S. public companies, is unable to inspect audit work papers in certain foreign countries. Investors in foreign countries often have limited rights and few practical remedies to pursue shareholder claims, including class actions or fraud claims, and the ability of the SEC, the U.S. Department of Justice and other authorities to bring and enforce actions against foreign issuers or foreign persons is limited. Regulatory regimes outside of the U.S. may not require or enforce corporate governance standards comparable to that of the U.S., which may result in less protections for investors in such issuers and make such issuers more susceptible to actions not in the best interest of the issuer or its investors.
In certain emerging market countries, governments participate to a significant degree, through ownership or regulation, in their respective economies. Action by these governments could have a significant adverse effect on market prices of securities and payment of dividends. In addition, most emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation. Inflation and rapid fluctuation in inflation rates have had and may continue to have very negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.
Emerging market countries may have different clearance and settlement procedures than in the U.S., including significantly longer settlement cycles for purchases and sales of securities, and in certain markets there may be times when settlements fail to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions. Further, custody practices abroad may offer less protection generally to investors, such as the Fund, and satisfactory custodial services for investment securities may not be available in some emerging market countries, which may result in the Fund incurring additional costs and delays in transporting and custodying such securities outside such countries. Delays in settlement or other problems could result in periods when the Fund’s assets are uninvested and no return is earned thereon. The Fund’s inability to make intended security purchases due to settlement
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problems or the risk of intermediary counterparty failures could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. The inability to dispose of a portfolio security due to settlement problems could result either in losses to the Fund due to subsequent declines in the value of such portfolio security or, if the Fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, could result in possible liability to the purchaser. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and future devaluations may adversely affect the value of assets denominated in such currencies. Many emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation or deflation for many years, and future inflation may adversely affect the economies and securities markets of such countries.
When debt and similar obligations issued by foreign issuers are denominated in a currency (e.g., the U.S. dollar or the euro) other than the local currency of the issuer, the subsequent strengthening of the non-local currency against the local currency will generally increase the burden of repayment on the issuer and may increase significantly the risk of default by the issuer.
Emerging market countries have and may in the future impose capital controls, foreign currency controls and repatriation controls. In addition, some currency hedging techniques may be unavailable in emerging market countries, and the currencies of emerging market countries may experience greater volatility in exchange rates as compared to those of developed countries.
Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk
CDOs include CBOs, CLOs, and other similarly structured securities. A CBO is a trust which may be backed by a diversified pool of high risk, below investment grade fixed income securities. A CLO is a trust typically collateralized by a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinate loans, and mezzanine loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans and including loans that may be covenant-lite. CDOs may charge management fees and administrative expenses. The cash flows from the CDO trust are generally split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Holders of interests in the senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rate payments but those interests generally involve less credit risk as they are typically paid before junior tranches. The holders of interests in the most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are entitled to be paid the highest interest rate payments but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying debt instrument default. If some debt instruments default and the cash collected by the CDO is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first. Since it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CDO trust typically has higher ratings and lower potential yields than the underlying securities, and can be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity tranche, more senior CDO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of protecting tranches, market anticipation of defaults and aversion to CDO securities as a class.
The risks of an investment in a CDO depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. Normally, CBOs, CLOs and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, there may be a limited secondary market for investments in CDOs and such investments may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Fund may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt obligations.
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk
Asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest include obligations backed by, among others, motor vehicle installment sales or installment loan contracts; home equity loans; leases of various types of real, personal and other property (including those relating to aircrafts, telecommunication, energy, and/or other infrastructure assets and infrastructure-related assets); receivables from credit card agreements and automobile finance agreements: home equity sharing agreements; student loans; consumer loans; mobile home loans; boat loans; business and small business loans; project finance loans; airplane leases; and other non-mortgage-
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related income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights. They may also include asset-backed securities backed by whole loans or fractions of whole loans issued by alternative lending platforms and securitized by those platforms or other entities (such as third-party originators or brokers). Any of these loans may be of sub-prime quality or made to an obligor with a sub-prime credit history.
Asset-backed securities involve the risk that borrowers may default on the obligations backing them and that the values of and interest earned on such investments will decline as a result. Loans made to lower quality borrowers, including those of sub-prime quality, involve a higher risk of default. Such loans, including those made by alternative lending platforms, may be difficult to value, may have limited payment histories, and may be subject to significant changes in value over time as economic conditions change. Therefore, the values of asset-backed securities backed by lower quality loans, including those of sub-prime quality, may suffer significantly greater declines in value due to defaults, payment delays or a perceived increased risk of default, especially during periods when economic conditions worsen. In addition, most or all securities backed by the collateral described above do not involve any credit enhancement provided by the U.S. government or any other party, and certain asset-backed securities do not have the benefit of a security interest in the related collateral.
Asset-backed securities tend to increase in value less than traditional debt securities of similar maturity and credit quality when interest rates decline, but are subject to a similar risk of decline in market value during periods of rising interest rates. Certain assets underlying asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment, which may reduce the overall return to asset-backed security holders. In a period of declining interest rates, pre-payments on asset-backed securities may increase and the Fund may be unable to reinvest those prepaid amounts in investments providing the same rate of interest as the pre-paid obligations.
The values of asset-backed securities may also be substantially dependent on the servicing of and diligence performed by their servicers or sponsors or the originating alternative lending platforms. For example, the Fund may suffer losses due to a servicer’s, sponsor’s or platform’s negligence or malfeasance, such as through the mishandling of certain documentation affecting security holders’ rights in and to underlying collateral or the failure to update or collect accurate and complete borrower information. In addition, the values of asset-backed securities may be adversely affected by the credit quality of the servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform, as applicable. Certain services, sponsors or originating alternative lending platforms may have limited operating histories to evaluate. The insolvency of a servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform may result in added costs and delays in addition to losses associated with a decline in the value of underlying assets. The Fund also may experience delays in payment or losses on its investments if the full amount due on underlying collateral is not realized, which may occur because of unanticipated legal or administrative costs of enforcing the contracts, depreciation or damage to the collateral securing certain contracts, under-collateralization or other factors.
Credit Default Swaps Risk
A credit default swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty that enables the Fund to buy or sell protection against a credit event related to a particular issuer. One party, acting as a protection buyer, makes periodic payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, to the other party, a protection seller, in exchange for a promise by the protection seller to make a payment to the protection buyer if a negative credit event (such as a delinquent payment or default) occurs with respect to a referenced bond or group of bonds. Credit default swaps may also be structured based on the debt of a basket of issuers, rather than a single issuer, and may be customized with respect to the default event that triggers purchase or other factors (for example, the Nth default within a basket, or defaults by a particular combination of issuers within the basket, may trigger a payment obligation). As a credit protection seller in a credit default swap contract, the Fund would be required to pay the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation to the counterparty following certain negative credit events as to a specified third-party debtor, such as default by a U.S. or non-U.S. corporate issuer on its debt obligations. In return for its obligation, the Fund would receive from the counterparty a periodic stream of payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, over the term of the contract provided that no event of default has occurred. If no default occurs, the Fund would keep the stream of payments, and would have no payment obligations to the counterparty. The Fund may sell credit protection in order to earn additional income and/or to take a synthetic long position in the underlying security or basket of securities.
The Fund may enter into credit default swap contracts as protection buyer in order to hedge against the risk of default on the debt of a particular issuer or basket of issuers or attempt to profit from a deterioration or perceived deterioration in the creditworthiness of the particular issuer(s) (also known as buying credit protection). This would involve the risk that the investment may expire worthless and would only generate gain in the event of an actual default by the issuer(s) of the underlying obligation(s) (or, as applicable, a credit downgrade or other indication of financial instability). It would also involve the risk that the seller may fail to satisfy its payment obligations to the Fund. The purchase of credit default swaps involves costs, which will reduce the Fund’s return.
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A protection seller may have to pay out amounts following a negative credit event greater than the value of the reference obligation delivered to it by its counterparty and the amount of periodic payments previously received by it from the counterparty. When the Fund acts as a seller of a credit default swap, it is exposed to, among other things, leverage risk because if an event of default occurs the seller must pay the buyer the full notional value of the reference obligation. Each party to a credit default swap is subject to the credit risk of its counterparty. The value of the credit default swap to each party will change, at times significantly, based on changes in the actual or perceived creditworthiness of the underlying issuer. A protection buyer may lose its investment and recover nothing should an event of default not occur. The Fund may seek to realize gains on its credit default swap positions, or limit losses on its positions, by selling those positions in the secondary market. There can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist at any given time for any particular credit default swap or for credit default swaps generally.
The parties to a credit default swap are generally required to post collateral to each other. If the Fund posts initial or periodic collateral to its counterparty, it may not be able to recover that collateral from the counterparty in accordance with the terms of the swap. In addition, if the Fund receives collateral from its counterparty, it may be delayed or prevented from realizing on the collateral in the event of the insolvency or bankruptcy of the counterparty (or of its affiliates). The Fund may exit its obligations under a credit default swap only by terminating the contract and paying applicable breakage fees, or by entering into an offsetting credit default swap position, which may cause the Fund to incur more losses. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to exit a credit default swap position effectively when it seeks to do so.
U.S. Government Securities Risk
Some U.S. Government securities, such as Treasury bills, notes, and bonds and mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States; others are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; others are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agency’s obligations; still others are supported only by the credit of the issuing agency, instrumentality, or enterprise. Although U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises may be chartered or sponsored by Congress, they are not funded by Congressional appropriations, and their securities are not issued by the U.S. Treasury, their obligations are not supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, and so investments in their securities or obligations issued by them involve greater risk than investments in other types of U.S. Government securities. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to its agencies and sponsored entities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
In addition, certain governmental entities have been subject to regulatory scrutiny regarding their accounting policies and practices and other concerns that may result in legislation, changes in regulatory oversight and/or other consequences that could adversely affect the credit quality, availability or investment character of securities issued or guaranteed by these entities.
The events surrounding the U.S. federal government debt ceiling and any resulting agreement (and similar political, economic and other developments) could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. For example, a downgrade of the long-term sovereign credit rating of the U.S. could increase volatility in both stock and bond markets, result in higher interest rates and lower Treasury prices and increase the costs of all kinds of debt. These events and similar events in other areas of the world could have significant adverse effects on the economy generally and could result in significant adverse impacts on issuers of securities held by the Fund and the Fund itself. The Adviser cannot predict the effects of these or similar events in the future on the U.S. economy and securities markets or on the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser may not timely anticipate or manage existing, new or additional risks, contingencies or developments. In recent periods, the values of U.S. Government securities have been affected substantially by increased demand for them around the world. Changes in the demand for U.S. Government securities may occur at any time and may result in increased volatility in the values of those securities.
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk
Investments in countries’ government debt obligations involve special risks. Certain countries have historically experienced, and may continue to experience, high rates of inflation, high interest rates, exchange rate fluctuations, large amounts of external debt, balance of payments and trade difficulties and extreme poverty and unemployment. The issuer or governmental authority that controls the repayment of a country’s debt may not be able or willing to repay the principal and/or interest when due in accordance with the terms of such debt. A debtor’s willingness or ability to repay principal and interest due in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation and, in the case of a government debtor, the extent of its foreign currency reserves or its inability to sufficiently manage fluctuations in relative currency valuations, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the government debtor’s policy towards principal international lenders such as the International Monetary Fund and the political and social constraints to which a government debtor
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may be subject. Government debtors may default on their debt and also may be dependent on expected disbursements from foreign governments, multilateral agencies and others abroad to reduce principal and interest arrearages on their debt. The commitment on the part of these governments, agencies and others to make such disbursements may be conditioned on a debtor’s implementation of economic reforms and/or economic performance and the timely service of such debtor’s obligations.
Failure to implement such reforms, achieve such levels of economic performance or repay principal or interest when due may result in the cancellation of such third parties’ commitments to lend funds to the government debtor, which may further impair such debtor’s ability or willingness to service its debts on a timely basis.
As a result of the foregoing, a government obligor may default on its obligations. If such an event occurs, the Fund may have limited (or no) legal recourse against the issuer and/or guarantor. Remedies must, in some cases, be pursued in the courts of the defaulting party itself, and the ability of the holder of foreign government debt securities to obtain recourse may be subject to the political climate in the relevant country. In addition, no assurance can be given that the holders of more senior fixed income securities, such as commercial bank debt, will not contest payments to the holders of other foreign government debt securities in the event of default under their commercial bank loan agreements. There is no bankruptcy proceeding by which sovereign debt on which governmental entities have defaulted may be collected in whole or in part. In addition, foreign governmental entities may enjoy various levels of sovereign immunity, and it may be difficult or impossible to bring a legal action against a foreign governmental entity or to enforce a judgment against such an entity.
Government obligors in emerging market countries are among the world’s largest debtors to commercial banks, other governments, international financial organizations and other financial institutions. The issuers of the government debt securities in which the Fund may invest have in the past experienced substantial difficulties in servicing their external debt obligations, which led to defaults on certain obligations and the restructuring of certain indebtedness. Restructuring arrangements have included, among other things, reducing and rescheduling interest and principal payments by negotiating new or amended credit agreements, and obtaining new credit to finance interest payments. Holders of certain foreign government debt securities may be requested to participate in the restructuring of such obligations and to extend further loans to their issuers. There can be no assurance that the foreign government debt securities in which the Fund may invest will not be subject to similar restructuring arrangements or to requests for new credit, which may adversely affect the Fund’s holdings. Furthermore, certain participants in the secondary market for such debt may be directly involved in negotiating the terms of these arrangements and may therefore have access to information not available to other market participants.
Loan Risk
Investments in loans are generally subject to the same risks as investments in other types of debt obligations, including, among others, credit risk, interest rate risk, prepayment risk, and extension risk. In addition, in many cases loans are subject to the risks associated with below-investment grade securities. This means loans are often subject to significant credit risks, including a greater possibility that the borrower will be adversely affected by changes in market or economic conditions and may default or enter bankruptcy. This risk of default will increase in the event of an economic downturn or a substantial increase in interest rates (which will increase the cost of the borrower’s debt service). The risks of investing in loans include the risk that the borrowers on loans held by the Fund may be unable to honor their payment obligations due to adverse conditions in the industry or industries in which they operate.
The interest rates on floating rate loans typically adjust only periodically. Accordingly, adjustments in the interest rate payable under a loan may trail prevailing interest rates significantly, especially if there are limitations placed on the amount the interest rate on a loan may adjust in a given period. Certain floating rate loans have a feature that prevents their interest rates from adjusting if market interest rates are below a specified minimum level. When interest rates are low, this feature could result in the interest rates of those loans becoming fixed at the applicable minimum level until interest rates rise above that level. Although this feature is intended to result in these loans yielding more than they otherwise would when interest rates are low, the feature might also result in the prices of these loans becoming more sensitive to changes in interest rates should interest rates rise but remain below the applicable minimum level.
In addition, investments in loans may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Floating rate loans generally are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. The liquidity of floating rate loans, including the volume and frequency of secondary market trading in such loans, varies significantly over time and among individual floating rate loans. For example, if the credit quality of the borrower
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related to a floating rate loan unexpectedly declines significantly, secondary market trading in that floating rate loan can also decline. The secondary market for loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads, and extended trade settlement periods, which may increase the expenses of the Fund or cause the Fund to be unable to realize the full value of its investment in the loan, resulting in a material decline in the Fund’s NAV.
During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for loans may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell loans it holds, and, for loans it is able to sell in such circumstances, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated.
The Fund may make loans directly to borrowers or may acquire an interest in a loan by means of an assignment or a participation. In an assignment, the Fund may be required generally to rely upon the assigning financial institution to demand payment and enforce its rights against the borrower, but would otherwise be entitled to the benefit of all of the financial institution’s rights in the loan. The Fund may also purchase a participating interest in a portion of the rights of a lending institution in a loan. In such case, the Fund will generally be entitled to receive from the lending institution amounts equal to the payments of principal, interest and premium, if any, on the loan received by the institution, but generally will not be entitled to enforce its rights directly against the agent bank or the borrower, and must rely for that purpose on the lending institution.
Investments in loans through a purchase of a loan, loan origination or a direct assignment of a financial institution’s interests with respect to a loan may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner, in whole or in part, of any collateral, which could include, among other assets, real estate or other real or personal property, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and holding or disposing of the collateral. In addition, it is conceivable that under emerging legal theories of lender liability, the Fund as holder of a partial interest in a loan could be held liable as co-lender for acts of the agent lender.
Loans and certain other forms of direct indebtedness may not be classified as “securities” under the federal securities laws and, therefore, when the Fund purchases such instruments, it may not be entitled to the protections against fraud and misrepresentation contained in the federal securities laws.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to loans.
Additional risks of investments in loans may include:
Agent/Intermediary Risk. If the Fund holds a loan through another financial intermediary, as is the case with a participation, or relies on another financial intermediary to administer the loan, as is the case with most multi-lender facilities, the Fund’s receipt of principal and interest on the loan and the value of the Fund’s loan investment will depend at least in part on the credit standing of the financial intermediary and therefore will be subject to the credit risk of the intermediary. The Fund will be required to rely upon the financial intermediary from which it purchases a participation interest to collect and pass on to the Fund such payments and to enforce the Fund’s rights and may not be able to cause the financial intermediary to take what it considers to be appropriate action. As a result, an insolvency, bankruptcy or reorganization of the financial intermediary may delay or prevent the Fund from receiving principal, interest and other amounts with respect to the Fund’s interest in the loan. In addition, if the Fund relies on a financial intermediary to administer a loan, the Fund is subject to the risk that the financial intermediary may be unwilling or unable to demand and receive payments from the borrower in respect of the loan, or otherwise unwilling or unable to perform its administrative obligations.
Highly Leveraged Transactions Risk. The Fund may invest in loans made in connection with highly leveraged transactions. These transactions may include operating loans, leveraged buyout loans, leveraged capitalization loans and other types of acquisition financing. Those loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans. If the Fund voluntarily or involuntarily sold those types of loans, it might not receive the full value it expected.
Stressed, Distressed or Defaulted Borrowers Risk. The Fund can also invest in loans of borrowers that are experiencing, or are likely to experience, financial difficulty. These loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans and are generally considered speculative. In addition, the Fund can invest in loans of borrowers that have filed for bankruptcy protection or that have had involuntary bankruptcy petitions filed against them by creditors. Various laws enacted for the protection of debtors may apply to
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loans. A bankruptcy proceeding or other court proceeding could delay or limit the ability of the Fund to collect the principal and interest payments on that borrower’s loans or adversely affect the Fund’s rights in collateral relating to a loan. If a lawsuit is brought by creditors of a borrower under a loan, a court or a trustee in bankruptcy could take certain actions that would be adverse to the Fund. For example:
Other creditors might convince the court to set aside a loan or the collateralization of the loan as a “fraudulent conveyance” or “preferential transfer.” In that event, the court could recover from the Fund the interest and principal payments that the borrower made before becoming insolvent. There can be no assurance that the Fund would be able to prevent that recapture.
A bankruptcy court may restructure the payment obligations under the loan so as to reduce the amount to which the Fund would be entitled.
The court might discharge the amount of the loan that exceeds the value of the collateral.
The court could subordinate the Fund’s rights to the rights of other creditors of the borrower under applicable law, decreasing, potentially significantly, the likelihood of any recovery on the Fund’s investment.
Limited Information Risk. Because there may be limited public or other information available regarding loan investments, the Fund’s investments in such instruments may be particularly dependent on the analytical abilities of the Fund’s portfolio managers.
Interest Rate Benchmarks Risk. Interest rates on loans typically adjust periodically often based on changes in a benchmark rate plus a premium or spread over the benchmark rate. The benchmark rate may be the Prime Rate, or other base lending rates used by commercial lenders (each as defined in the applicable loan agreement).
Some benchmark rates may reset daily; others reset less frequently. Certain floating or variable rate loans may permit the borrower to select an interest rate reset period of up to one year or longer. Investing in loans with longer interest rate reset periods may increase fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV as a result of changes in interest rates. Interest rates on loans with longer periods between benchmark resets will typically trail market interest rates in a rising interest rate environment.
Certain loans may permit the borrower to change the base lending or benchmark rate during the term of the loan. One benchmark rate may not adjust to changing market or interest rates to the same degree or as rapidly as another, permitting the borrower the option to select the benchmark rate that is most advantageous to it and less advantageous to the Fund. To the extent the borrower elects this option, the interest income and total return the Fund earns on the investment may be adversely affected as compared to other investments where the borrower does not have the option to change the base lending or benchmark rate.
Restrictive Loan Covenants Risk. Borrowers must comply with various restrictive covenants that may be contained in loan agreements. They may include restrictions on dividend payments and other distributions to stockholders, provisions requiring the borrower to maintain specific financial ratios, and limits on total debt. They may include requirements that the borrower prepay the loan with any free cash flow. A break of a covenant that is not waived by the agent bank (or the lenders) is normally an event of default that provides the agent bank or the lenders the right to call the outstanding amount on the loan. If a lender accelerates the repayment of a loan because of the borrower’s violation of a restrictive covenant under the loan agreement, the borrower might default in payment of the loan.
Some of the loans in which the Fund may invest or to which the Fund may obtain exposure may be “covenant-lite.” Such loans contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans. Such loans generally do not include terms which allow the lender to monitor the performance of the borrower and declare a default or force a borrower into bankruptcy restructuring if certain criteria are breached. Under such loans, lenders typically must rely on covenants that restrict a borrower from incurring additional debt or engaging in certain actions. Such covenants can be breached only by an affirmative action of the borrower, rather than by a deterioration in the borrower’s financial condition. Accordingly, the Fund may have fewer rights against a borrower when it invests in or has exposure to such loans and so may have a greater risk of loss on such investments as compared to investments in or exposure to loans with additional or more conventional covenants.
Senior Loan and Subordination Risk. In addition to the risks typically associated with debt securities and loans generally, senior loans are also subject to the risk that a court could subordinate a senior loan, which typically holds a senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, to presently existing or future indebtedness or take other action detrimental to the holders of senior loans.
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The Fund’s investments in senior loans may be collateralized with one or more of (1) working capital assets, such as accounts receivable and inventory, (2) tangible fixed assets, such as real property, buildings and equipment, (3) intangible assets such as trademarks or patents, or (4) security interests in shares of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries or affiliates. In the case of loans to a non-public company, the company’s shareholders or owners may provide collateral in the form of secured guarantees and/or security interests in assets they own. However, the value of the collateral may decline after the Fund buys the senior loan, particularly if the collateral consists of equity securities of the borrower or its affiliates. If a borrower defaults, insolvency laws may limit the Fund’s access to the collateral, or the lenders may be unable to liquidate the collateral. A bankruptcy court might find that the collateral securing the senior loan is invalid or require the borrower to use the collateral to pay other outstanding obligations. If the collateral consists of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries, the stock may lose all of its value in the event of a bankruptcy, which would leave the Fund exposed to greater potential loss. As a result, a collateralized senior loan may not be fully collateralized and can decline significantly in value.
If a borrower defaults on a collateralized senior loan, the Fund may receive assets other than cash or securities in full or partial satisfaction of the borrower’s obligation under the senior loan. Those assets may be illiquid, and the Fund might not be able to realize the benefit of the assets for legal, practical or other reasons. The Fund might hold those assets until the Adviser determined it was appropriate to dispose of them. If the collateral becomes illiquid or loses some or all of its value, the collateral may not be sufficient to protect the Fund in the event of a default of scheduled interest or principal payments.
The Fund can invest in senior loans that are not secured. If the borrower is unable to pay interest or defaults in the payment of principal, there will be no collateral on which the Fund can foreclose. Therefore, these loans typically present greater risks than collateralized senior loans.
Due to restrictions on transfers in loan agreements and the nature of the private syndication of senior loans including, for example, the lack of publicly-available information, some senior loans are not as easily purchased or sold as publicly-traded securities. Some senior loans and other Fund investments are illiquid, which may make it difficult for the Fund to value them or dispose of them at an acceptable price. Direct investments in senior loans and investments in participation interests in or assignments of senior loans may be limited.
Settlement Risk. Transactions in many loans settle on a delayed basis, and the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of such loans for a substantial period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of such loans may not be available to make additional investments until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loans.
Collateral Impairment Risk. Even if a loan to which the Fund is exposed is secured, there can be no assurance that the collateral will, when recovered and liquidated, generate sufficient (or any) funds to offset any losses associated with a defaulting loan. It is possible that the same collateral could secure multiple loans, in which case the liquidation proceeds of the collateral may be insufficient to cover the payments due on all the loans secured by that collateral. This risk is increased if the Fund’s loans are secured by a single asset. There can be no guarantee that the collateral can be liquidated and any costs associated with such liquidation could reduce or eliminate the amount of funds otherwise available to offset the payments due under the loan. Moreover, the Fund’s security interests may be unperfected for a variety of reasons, including the failure to make a required filing by the servicer and, as a result, the Fund may not have priority over other creditors as it expected.
Unsecured Loans Risk. Subordinated or unsecured loans are lower in priority of payment to secured loans and are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. This risk is generally higher for subordinated unsecured loans or debt, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral.
Servicer Risk. The Fund’s direct and indirect investments in loans are typically serviced by the originating lender or a third-party servicer. In the event that the servicer is unable to service the loan, there can be no guarantee that a backup servicer will be able to assume responsibility for servicing the loans in a timely or cost-effective manner; any resulting disruption or delay could jeopardize payments due to the Fund in respect of its investments or increase the costs associated with the Fund’s investments.
Direct Lending Risk. The Fund may seek to originate loans, including, without limitation, commercial real estate or mortgage- related-loans or other types of loans, which may be in the form of whole loans, secured and unsecured notes, senior and second lien loans, mezzanine loans or similar investments. The Fund will be responsible for the expenses associated with originating a loan (whether or not consummated). This may include significant legal and due diligence expenses, which will be indirectly borne by the Fund and Common Shareholders.
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Direct lending involves risks beyond those associated with investing in loans. If a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner of any collateral and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning, operating, maintaining and disposing of the collateral. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to losses resulting from default and foreclosure and also operating and maintaining the property. Any costs or delays involved in the effectuation of a foreclosure of the loan or a liquidation of the underlying assets will further reduce the proceeds and thus increase the loss. There is no assurance that the Fund will correctly evaluate the value of the assets collateralizing the loan. In the event of a reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to the borrower, the Fund may lose all or part of the amounts advanced to the borrower. There is no assurance that the protection of the Fund’s interests is adequate, including the validity or enforceability of the loan and the maintenance of the anticipated priority and perfection of the applicable security interests. Furthermore, there is no assurance that claims will not be asserted that might interfere with enforcement of the Fund’s rights.
There are no restrictions on the credit quality of the Fund’s loans. Loans may be deemed to have substantial vulnerability to default in payment of interest and/or principal. There can be no assurance as to the levels of defaults and/or recoveries that may be experienced on loans in which the Fund has invested. Certain of the loans in which the Fund may invest have uncertainties and/or exposure to adverse conditions, and may be considered to be predominantly speculative. Generally, such loans offer a higher return potential than better quality loans, but involve greater volatility of price and greater risk of loss of income and principal. The market values of certain of these loans also tend to be more sensitive to changes in economic conditions than better quality loans.
Loans to issuers operating in workout modes or under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or the equivalent laws of member states of the European Union are, in certain circumstances, subject to certain potential liabilities that may exceed the amount of the loan. For example, under certain circumstances, lenders who have inappropriately exercised control of the management and policies of a debtor may have their claims subordinated or disallowed or may be found liable for damages suffered by parties as a result of such actions.
Various state licensing requirements could apply to the Fund with respect to investments in, or the origination and servicing of, loans and similar assets and it may take a substantial period of time for the Fund to obtain any necessary licenses or comply with other applicable regulatory requirements. The licensing requirements could apply depending on the location of the borrower, the location of the collateral securing the loan, or the location where the Fund or the Adviser operates or has offices. In states that require licensure for or otherwise regulate loan origination, the Fund or Advisor will be required to comply with applicable laws and regulations, including consumer protection and anti-fraud laws, which could impose restrictions on the Fund’s or Advisor’s ability to take certain actions to protect the value of its investments in such assets and impose compliance costs, or the Fund will have to forego investment opportunities subject to that state’s laws and regulations. Failure to comply with such laws and regulations could lead to, among other penalties, a loss of the Fund’s or Advisor’s license, which in turn could require the Fund to divest assets located in or secured by real property located in that state. In addition to laws governing the activities of lenders and servicers, some states require purchasers of certain loans to be licensed or registered in order to own loans connected to the state (e.g., made in the state or secured by property in the state) and, in certain states, to collect a rate of interest above a specified rate. These risks will also apply to issuers and entities in which the Fund invests that hold similar assets, as well as any origination company or servicer in which the Fund owns an interest. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund does not hold any licenses to originate loans in any states where a license is required, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will obtain any such licenses timely or ever.
Foreign Loan Risk. Loans involving foreign borrowers may involve risks not ordinarily associated with exposure to loans to U.S. entities and individuals. The foreign lending industry may be subject to less governmental supervision and regulation than exists in the U.S.; conversely, foreign regulatory regimes applicable to the lending industry may be more complex and more restrictive than those in the U.S., resulting in higher costs associated with such investments, and such regulatory regimes may be subject to interpretation or change without prior notice to investors, such as the Fund. Foreign lending may not be subject to accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S. Due to differences in legal systems, there may be difficulty in obtaining or enforcing a court judgment outside the United States.
Lender Liability. A number of judicial decisions have upheld judgments of borrowers against lending institutions on the basis of various evolving legal theories, collectively termed “lender liability.” Generally, lender liability is founded on the premise that a lender has violated a duty (whether implied or contractual) of good faith, commercial reasonableness and fair dealing, or a similar duty owed to the borrower or has assumed an excessive degree of control over the borrower resulting in the creation of a fiduciary duty owed to the borrower or its other creditors or shareholders. If a loan held by the Fund were found to have been made or serviced under circumstances that give rise to lender liability, the borrower’s obligation to repay that loan could be reduced or eliminated or the Fund’s recovery on that loan could be otherwise impaired, which would adversely impact the value of that loan. In limited cases, courts
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have subordinated the loans of a senior lender to a borrower to claims of other creditors of the borrower when the senior lender or its agents, such as a loan servicer, is found to have engaged in unfair, inequitable or fraudulent conduct with respect to the other creditors. If a loan held by the Fund were subject to such subordination, it would be junior in right of payment to other indebtedness of the borrower, which could adversely impact the value of that loan.
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk
Debt instruments rated below investment grade and debt instruments that are unrated and of comparable or lesser quality are predominantly speculative. They are usually issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings or by companies with questionable credit strength. These instruments, commonly known as “junk bonds,” have a higher degree of default risk and may be less liquid than higher-rated bonds. These instruments may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific corporate developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of high yield investments generally, general economic downturn, and less secondary market liquidity. This potential lack of liquidity may make it more difficult for the Fund to value these instruments accurately. An economic downturn could severely affect the ability of issuers (particularly those that are highly leveraged) to service their debt obligations or to repay their obligations upon maturity.
Distressed and Defaulted Securities Risk
Distressed and defaulted securities risk refers to the uncertainty of repayment of defaulted securities (e.g., a security on which a principal or interest payment is not made when due) and obligations of distressed issuers. Because the issuer of such securities is in default and/or is likely to be in distressed financial condition, repayment of defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers (including insolvent issuers or issuers in payment or covenant default, in workout or restructuring or in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings) is subject to significant uncertainties. Insolvency laws and practices in foreign markets, and especially emerging market countries are different than those in the U.S. and the effect of these laws and practices cannot be predicted with certainty. Investments in defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers are considered speculative and entail high risk.
REIT Risk
The Fund may invest in REITs. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that own, and typically operate, income-producing real estate. If a REIT meets certain requirements, including distributing to shareholders substantially all of its taxable income (other than net capital gains), then it is not taxed on the income distributed to shareholders. REITs are subject to management fees and other expenses, and so the Fund will bear its proportionate share of the costs of the REITs’ operations. There are three general categories of REITs: Equity REITs, Mortgage REITs and Hybrid REITs. Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and investments in mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, and the possible failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), or an exemption under the 1940 Act. REITs are not diversified and are heavily dependent on cash flow earned on the property interests they hold.
Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time-consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of a Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
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Mortgage REITs are exposed to the risks specific to the real estate market as well as the risks that relate specifically to the way in which mortgage REITs are organized and operated. Mortgage REITs receive principal and interest payments from the owners of the mortgaged properties. Accordingly, mortgage REITs are subject to the credit risk of the borrowers to whom they extend credit, and are subject to the risks described under “Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk” and “Debt Securities Risk.” Mortgage REITs are also subject to significant interest rate risk. Mortgage REITs typically use leverage and many are highly leveraged, which exposes them to the risks of leverage. Leverage risk refers to the risk that leverage created from borrowing may impair a mortgage REIT’s liquidity, cause it to liquidate positions at an unfavorable time and increase the volatility of the values of securities issued by the mortgage REIT. The use of leverage may not be advantageous to a mortgage REIT. To the extent that a mortgage REIT incurs significant leverage, it may incur substantial losses if its borrowing costs increase or if the assets it purchases with leverage decrease in value.
The Fund’s investment in a REIT may result in the Fund making distributions that constitute a return of capital to Fund shareholders for federal income tax purposes. In addition, distributions attributable to REITs made by the Fund to Fund shareholders will not qualify for the corporate dividends-received deduction, or, generally, for treatment as qualified dividend income. Certain distributions made by the Fund attributable to dividends received by the Fund from REITs may qualify as “qualified REIT dividends” in the hands of non-corporate shareholders.
Real Estate Risk
The value of the Fund’s portfolio could change in light of factors affecting the real estate sector. Factors affecting real estate values include the supply of real property in certain markets, changes in zoning laws, delays in completion of construction, changes in real estate values, changes in property taxes, levels of occupancy, adequacy of rent to cover operating expenses, and local and, regional, and general market conditions. The value of real estate-related investments also may be affected by changes in interest rates, macroeconomic developments, and social and economic trends.
To the extent that the Fund invests in real estate related investments, including REITs, real estate-related loans or real-estate linked derivative instruments, it will be subject to the risks associated with owning real estate and with the real estate industry generally. These include difficulties in valuing and disposing of real estate, the possibility of declines in the value of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, the possibility of adverse changes in the climate for real estate, environmental liability risks, the risk of increases in property taxes and operating expenses, possible adverse changes in zoning laws, the risk of casualty or condemnation losses, limitations on rents, the possibility of adverse changes in interest rates and in the credit markets and the possibility of borrowers paying off mortgages sooner than expected, which may lead to reinvestment of assets at lower prevailing interest rates.
To the extent that the Fund invests in REITs, it will also be subject to the risk that a REIT may default on its obligations or go bankrupt. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Fund, a shareholder will indirectly bear his or her proportionate share of the expenses of the REITs. The Fund’s investments in REITs could cause the Fund to recognize income in excess of cash received from those securities and, as a result, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities, including when it is not advantageous to do so, in order to make distributions. An investment in a REIT or a real estate-linked derivative instrument that is linked to the value of a REIT is subject to additional risks, such as poor performance by the manager of the REIT, adverse changes to the tax laws or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time- consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of the Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
Municipal Bond Risk
Investing in the municipal bond market involves the risks of investing in debt securities generally and certain other risks. The amount of public information available about the municipal bonds in the Fund’s portfolio is generally less than that for corporate equities or bonds, and the investment performance of the Fund’s investment in municipal bonds may therefore be more dependent on the analytical abilities of the Adviser than its investments in taxable bonds. The secondary market for municipal bonds also tends to be less well developed or liquid than many other securities markets, which may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to sell municipal bonds at attractive prices.
The ability of municipal issuers to make timely payments of interest and principal may be diminished during general economic downturns, by litigation, legislation or political events, or by the bankruptcy of the issuer. Laws, referenda, ordinances or regulations
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enacted in the future by Congress or state legislatures or the applicable governmental entity could extend the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or impose other constraints on enforcement of such obligations, or on the ability of municipal issuers to levy taxes. Issuers of municipal securities also might seek protection under the bankruptcy laws. In the event of bankruptcy of such an issuer, the Fund could experience delays in collecting principal and interest and the Fund may not, in all circumstances, be able to collect all principal and interest to which it is entitled. To enforce its rights in the event of a default in the payment of interest or repayment of principal, or both, the Fund may take possession of and manage the assets securing the issuer’s obligations on such securities, which may increase the Fund’s operating expenses. Any income derived from the Fund’s ownership or operation of such assets may not be tax exempt.
The Fund may invest in revenue bonds, which are typically issued to fund a wide variety of capital projects including: electric, gas, water and sewer systems; highways, bridges and tunnels; port and airport facilities; colleges and universities; and hospitals. Because the principal security for a revenue bond is generally the net revenues derived from a particular facility or group of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or other specific revenue source, there is no guarantee that the particular project will generate enough revenue to pay its obligations, in which case the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected.
Interest on municipal obligations, while generally exempt from U.S. federal income tax, may not be exempt from U.S. federal alternative minimum tax. The Fund does not expect to be eligible to pass the tax-exempt character of such interest through to the Common Shareholders.
Hedging Strategy Risk
Certain of the investment techniques that the Fund may employ for hedging will expose the Fund to additional or increased risks. For example, there may be an imperfect correlation between changes in the value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings and hedging positions entered into by the Fund, which may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, the Fund’s success in using hedge instruments is subject to the Adviser’s ability to predict correctly changes in the relationships of such hedge instruments to the Fund’s portfolio holdings, and there can be no assurance that the Adviser’s judgment in this respect will be accurate. Consequently, the use of hedging transactions might result in a poorer overall performance for the Fund, whether or not adjusted for risk, than if the Fund had not hedged its portfolio holdings. The Adviser is under no obligation to engage in any hedging strategies, and may, in its discretion, choose not to. Even if the Adviser desires to hedge some of the Fund’s risks, suitable hedging transactions may not be available or, if available, attractive. A failure to hedge may result in losses to the value of the Fund’s investments.
Short Sales and Short Position Risk
To the extent the Fund makes use of short sales or takes short positions for investment and/or risk management purposes, the Fund may be subject to certain risks associated with selling short. Short sales are transactions in which the Fund sells securities or other instruments that the Fund does not own. Short exposure with respect to securities or market segments may also be achieved through the use of derivative instruments, such as forwards, futures or swaps on indices or on individual securities. When the Fund engages in a short sale or short position on a security or other instrument, it may borrow the security or other instrument sold short and deliver it to the counterparty. The Fund will ordinarily have to pay a fee or premium to borrow the security and will be obligated to repay the lender of the security any dividends or interest that accrues on the security during the period of the loan. The amount of any gain from a short sale will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends, interest or expenses the Fund pays in connection with the short sale. Short sales and short positions expose the Fund to the risk that it may be required to cover its short position at a time when the securities underlying the short position or exposure have appreciated in value, thus resulting in a loss to the Fund. The Fund may engage in short sales when it does not own or have the right to acquire the security sold short at no additional cost. The Fund’s loss on a short sale or position theoretically could be unlimited in a case in which the Fund is unable, for whatever reason, to close out its short position. In addition, the Fund’s short selling strategies may limit its ability to benefit from increases in the markets. Short selling involves a form of financial leverage that may exaggerate any losses realized by the Fund. Also, there is the risk that the counterparty to a short sale may fail to honor its contractual terms, causing a loss to the Fund.
The Fund may borrow an instrument from a broker or other institution and sell it to establish a short position in the instrument. The Fund may also enter into a derivative transaction in order to establish a short position with respect to a reference asset. The Fund may make a profit or incur a loss depending upon whether the market price of the instrument or the value of the position decreases or increases between the date the Fund established the short position and the date on which the Fund must replace the borrowed
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instrument or otherwise close out the transaction. An increase in the value of an instrument, index or interest rate with respect to which the Fund has established a short position will result in a loss to the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to close out the position at any particular time or at an acceptable price. The loss to the Fund from a short position is potentially unlimited.
Convertible Securities Risk
The Fund may invest in convertible securities. Convertible securities include bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stock and other securities that may be converted into or exchanged for, at a specific price or formula within a particular period of time, a prescribed amount of common stock or other equity securities of the same or a different issuer. Convertible securities may entitle the holder to receive interest paid or accrued on debt or dividends paid or accrued on preferred stock until the security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. The market value of a convertible security is a function of its investment value and its conversion value. A security’s investment value represents the value of the security without its conversion feature (i.e., a nonconvertible fixed income security). The investment value may be determined by reference to its credit quality and the current value of its yield to maturity or probable call date. At any given time, investment value is dependent upon such factors as the general level of interest rates, the yield of similar nonconvertible securities, the financial strength of the issuer and the seniority of the security in the issuer’s capital structure. A security’s conversion value is determined by multiplying the number of shares the holder is entitled to receive upon conversion or exchange by the current price of the underlying security.
Focused Investment Risk
A fund that invests a substantial portion of its assets in a particular market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries or asset class is subject to greater risk than a fund that invests in a more diverse investment portfolio. In addition, the value of such a fund is more susceptible to any single economic, market, political, regulatory or other occurrence affecting, for example, the particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the fund is invested. This is because, for example, issuers in a particular market, industry, region, sector or asset class may react similarly to specific economic, market, regulatory, political or other developments. The particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the Fund may focus its investments may change over time and the Fund may alter its focus at inopportune times. To the extent the Fund invests in the securities of a limited number of issuers, it is particularly exposed to adverse developments affecting those issuers, and a decline in the market value of a particular security held by the Fund may affect the Fund’s performance more than if the Fund invested in the securities of a larger number of issuers. In addition, the limited number of issuers to which the Fund may be exposed may provide the Fund exposure to substantially the same market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries, or asset class, which may increase the risk of loss as a result of focusing the Fund’s investments, as discussed above.
Derivatives Risk
The Fund’s use of derivatives may involve risks different from, or greater than, the risks associated with investing in more traditional investments, such as stocks and bonds. Any use of derivatives strategies entails the risks of investing directly in the securities, instruments or assets underlying the derivatives strategies, as well as the risks of using derivatives generally. Derivatives can be highly complex and may perform in ways unanticipated by the Adviser and may not be available at the time or price desired. Derivatives positions may also be improperly executed or constructed.
The Fund’s use of derivatives involves the risk that the other party to the derivative contract will fail to make required payments or otherwise to comply with the terms of the contract. In the event the counterparty to a derivative instrument defaults and/or becomes insolvent, the Fund potentially could lose all or a large portion of the value of its investment in the derivative instrument. Derivatives transactions can create investment leverage and may be highly volatile, and the Fund could lose significantly more than the amount it invests. Because most derivatives involve contractual arrangements with a counterparty, the Fund’s ability to enter into them requires a willing counterparty. The Fund’s ability to close out or unwind a derivatives position prior to expiration or maturity may also depend on the ability and willingness of the counterparty to enter into a transaction closing out the position.
Derivatives may be difficult to value, illiquid and/or volatile. The Fund may not be able to close out or sell a derivative position at an advantageous price or time.
Use of derivatives may affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders and, therefore, may increase the amount of taxes payable by taxable shareholders.
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The Fund may use derivatives to create investment leverage and the Fund’s use of derivatives may otherwise cause its portfolio to be leveraged. Leverage increases the Fund’s portfolio losses when the value of its investments declines. Since many derivatives involve leverage, adverse changes in the value or level of the underlying asset, rate, or index may result in a loss substantially greater than the amount invested in the derivative itself. Some derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment.
When the Fund enters into a derivatives transaction as a substitute for or alternative to a direct cash investment, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the derivative transaction may not provide a return that corresponds precisely or at all with that of the underlying investment. When the Fund uses a derivative for hedging purposes, it is possible that the derivative will not in fact provide the anticipated protection, and the Fund could lose money on both the derivative transaction and the exposure the Fund sought to hedge. While hedging strategies involving derivatives can reduce the risk of loss, they can also reduce the opportunity for gain or even result in losses by offsetting favorable price movements in other Fund investments.
The derivatives markets are subject to various global regulations, and additional future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such regulation could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions or its ability to effect its investment strategy and cause the Fund to lose value. In particular, the U.S. government, the United Kingdom, the European Union and various other jurisdictions have adopted mandatory minimum margin requirements for bilateral derivatives. Such requirements could increase the amount of margin required to be provided by the Fund in connection with its derivatives transactions and, therefore, make its derivatives transactions more expensive and potentially impair its ability to effect its investment strategy. U.S. government legislation providing for regulation of the derivatives market also includes clearing, reporting, and registration requirements, which could restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in derivatives transactions or increase the cost or uncertainty involved in such transactions. The European Union and the United Kingdom (and some other jurisdictions) have implemented or are in the process of implementing similar requirements, which will affect the Fund when it enters into a derivatives transaction with a counterparty subject to such requirements.
The Fund typically will be required to post collateral or make margin payments in connection with entering into derivatives transactions. Assets that are used as margin or collateral may be required to be in the form of cash or liquid securities. If markets move against the Fund’s position, the Fund will generally be required to post additional assets and may have to dispose of existing investments to obtain assets acceptable as collateral or margin. This may prevent the Fund from pursuing its investment objective. Assets that are used as margin or collateral typically may be invested, and these investments are subject to risk and may result in losses to the Fund. These losses may be substantial, and may be in addition to losses incurred by using the derivative in question. If the Fund is unable to close out its position, it may be required to continue to maintain such accounts and fulfill its payment obligations until the position expires or matures, and the Fund will continue to be subject to investment risk on the assets. In addition, the Fund may not be able to recover the full amount of its margin from its counterparty or an intermediary if such entity were to experience financial difficulty. Margin and collateral requirements may impair the Fund’s ability to sell a portfolio security or make an investment at a time when it would otherwise be favorable to do so, or require the Fund to sell a portfolio security or close out a derivatives position at a disadvantageous time or price.
Rule 18f-4 governs the Fund’s use of derivative investments and certain financing transactions. Among other things, Rule 18f-4 requires funds that invest in derivative instruments beyond a specified limited amount to apply a value-at-risk based limit to their use of certain derivative instruments and financing transactions and to adopt and implement a derivatives risk management program. Funds that use derivative instruments (beyond certain currency and interest rate hedging transactions) to a limited degree are not subject to the full requirements of Rule 18f-4. Regulatory limitations on derivatives transactions could have the effect of restricting the Fund’s use of derivative investments and financing transactions and prevent the Fund from implementing its principal investment strategies as described herein, which may result in changes to the Fund’s principal investment strategies and could adversely affect the Fund’s performance and its ability to achieve its investment objective.
While legislative and regulatory measures may provide protections for some market participants, they are evolving and still being implemented and their effects on derivatives markets activities cannot be reliably predicted. Current and future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such adverse developments could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions and cause the Fund to lose value.
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Risks Related to the Fund’s Clearing Broker and Central Clearing Counterparty
Transactions in some types of derivatives, including futures, options on futures, and certain swaps (including interest rate swaps and index credit default swaps) are required to be (or are capable of being) centrally cleared. In a transaction involving those derivatives (“cleared derivatives”), the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members. In cleared derivatives positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from a clearing house through its accounts at clearing members. Clearing members guarantee performance of their clients’ obligations to the clearing house. There is a risk that assets deposited by the Fund with any clearing member as margin for cleared derivatives may, in certain circumstances, be used to satisfy losses of other clients of the Fund’s clearing member. In addition, the assets of the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of the clearing member’s bankruptcy, as the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the clearing member’s customers for the relevant account class. Similarly, all customer funds held by a clearing member and/or at a clearing house in connection with cleared derivatives are generally held on a commingled omnibus basis and are not identified to the name of the clearing member’s individual customers. In the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a clearing member or clearing house, the Fund might experience a loss of funds deposited through its clearing member as margin with the clearing house, a loss of unrealized profits on its open positions, and the loss of funds owed to it as realized profits on closed positions. Such a bankruptcy or insolvency might also cause a substantial delay before the Fund could obtain the return of funds owed to it by a clearing member who was a member of such clearing house.
In some ways, cleared derivative arrangements are less favorable to funds than bilateral arrangements. For example, the Fund may be required to provide more margin for cleared derivatives positions than for bilateral derivatives positions. Also, in contrast to a bilateral derivatives position, following a period of notice to the Fund, a clearing member generally can require termination of an existing cleared derivatives position at any time or an increase in margin requirements above the margin that the clearing member required at the beginning of a transaction. Clearing houses also have broad rights to increase margin requirements for existing positions or to terminate those positions at any time. Any increase in margin requirements or termination of existing cleared derivatives positions by the clearing member or the clearing house could interfere with the ability of the Fund to pursue its investment strategy. Further, any increase in margin requirements by a clearing member could expose the Fund to greater credit risk to its clearing member because margin for cleared derivatives positions in excess of a clearing house’s margin requirements may be held by the clearing member. Also, the Fund is subject to risk if it enters into a swap that is required to be cleared (or that the Adviser expects to be cleared), and no clearing member is willing or able to clear the transaction on the Fund’s behalf. In those cases, the position might have to be terminated, and the Fund could lose some or all of the benefit of the position, including loss of an increase in the value of the position and/or loss of hedging protection, or could realize a loss. In addition, the documentation governing the relationship between the Fund and clearing members is drafted by the clearing members and generally is less favorable to the Fund than typical bilateral derivatives documentation.
Counterparty Risk
The Fund will be subject to credit risk presented by another party (whether a clearing corporation in the case of exchange-traded or cleared instruments or another third party in the case of over-the-counter instruments) that promises to honor an obligation to the Fund with respect to the derivative contracts and other instruments entered into by the Fund. There can be no assurance that a counterparty will be able or willing to meet its obligations. If such a party becomes bankrupt or insolvent or otherwise fails or is unwilling to perform its obligations to the Fund due to financial difficulties or for other reasons, the Fund may experience significant losses or delays in enforcing contractual remedies and/or obtaining any recovery from the counterparty, including realizing on any collateral the counterparty has provided in respect of the counterparty’s obligations to the Fund or recovering collateral that the Fund has provided and is entitled to recover. In addition, in the event of the bankruptcy, insolvency or other event of default (e.g., cross-default) of a counterparty to a derivative transaction, the derivative transaction would typically be terminated at its fair market value. If the Fund is owed this fair market value in the termination of the derivative transaction and its claim is unsecured, the Fund will likely be treated as a general creditor of such counterparty. The Fund may obtain only a limited recovery or may obtain no recovery in such circumstances. Counterparty risk with respect to certain exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives may be further complicated by global financial reform legislation. Subject to certain U.S. federal income tax limitations, the Fund is not subject to any limit with respect to the number or the value of transactions it can enter into with a single counterparty. To the extent that the Fund enters into multiple transactions with a single or a small number of counterparties, it will be subject to increased counterparty risk.
New regulatory requirements may also limit the ability of the Fund to protect its interests in the event of an insolvency of a derivatives counterparty. In the event of a counterparty’s (or its affiliate’s) insolvency, the Fund’s ability to exercise remedies, such as the
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termination of transactions, netting of obligations and realization on collateral, could be stayed or eliminated under special resolution regimes adopted in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and various other jurisdictions. Such regimes provide government authorities with broad authority to intervene when a financial institution is experiencing financial difficulty. In particular, with respect to counterparties who are subject to such proceedings in the European Union or the United Kingdom, the liabilities of such counterparties to the Fund could be reduced, eliminated, or converted to equity in such counterparties (sometimes referred to as a “bail in”).
Unrated Securities Risk
Unrated securities (which are not rated by a rating agency) may be less liquid than comparable rated securities and involve the risk that the Adviser may not accurately evaluate the security’s comparative credit rating and value. To the extent that the Fund invests in unrated securities, the Fund’s success in achieving its investment objective may depend more heavily on the Adviser’s creditworthiness analysis than if the Fund invested exclusively in rated securities. Some or all of the unrated instruments in which the Fund may invest will involve credit risk comparable to or greater than that of rated debt securities of below investment grade quality.
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk
Generally, structured investments are interests in entities organized and operated for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of underlying investment interests or securities. These investment entities may be structured as trusts or other types of pooled investment vehicles. This type of restructuring generally involves the deposit with or purchase by an entity of the underlying investments and the issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying investments or referencing an indicator related to such investments. The cash flow or rate of return on the underlying investments may be apportioned among the newly issued securities to create different investment characteristics, such as varying maturities, credit quality, payment priorities and interest rate provisions. Structured products include, among other things, CDOs, mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities and certain types of structured notes.
The cash flow or rate of return on a structured investment may be determined by applying a multiplier to the rate of total return on the underlying investments or referenced indicator. Application of a multiplier is comparable to the use of financial leverage, a speculative technique. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss. As a result, a relatively small decline in the value of the underlying investments or referenced indicator could result in a relatively large loss in the value of a structured product. Holders of structured products indirectly bear risks associated with the underlying investments, index or reference obligation, and are subject to counterparty risk. The Fund generally has the right to receive payments to which it is entitled only from the structured product, and generally does not have direct rights against the issuer. While certain structured investment vehicles enable the investor to acquire interests in a pool of securities without the brokerage and other expenses associated with directly holding the same securities, investors in structured vehicles generally pay their share of the investment vehicle’s administrative and other expenses.
Structured products are generally privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. Certain structured products may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market and may have the effect of increasing the Fund’s illiquidity to the extent that the Fund, at a particular point in time, may be unable to find qualified buyers for these securities. In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities discussed herein, structured products carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from underlying investments will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the underlying investments may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the security may be subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Structured notes are derivative securities for which the amount of principal repayment and/or interest payments is based on the movement of one or more “factors.” These factors may include, but are not limited to, currency exchange rates, interest rates (such as the prime lending rate or another industry standard floating rate), referenced bonds and stock indices. Some of these factors may or may not correlate to the total rate of return on one or more underlying instruments referenced in such notes. In some cases, the impact of the movements of these factors may increase or decrease through the use of multipliers or deflators.
Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Depending on the factor used and the use of multipliers or deflators, changes in interest rates and movement of the factor may cause significant price fluctuations. Additionally, changes in the reference instrument or security may cause the interest rate on the structured note to be reduced to zero
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and any further changes in the reference instrument may then reduce the principal amount payable on maturity. In the case of structured notes where the reference instrument is a debt instrument, such as credit-linked notes, the Fund will be subject to the credit risk of the issuer of the reference instrument and the issuer of the structured note.
Issuer Risk
Issuer risk is the risk that the market price of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, including due to factors affecting securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself.
Equity Securities, Small- and Mid-Capitalization Companies and Related Market Risk
The market price of common stocks and other equity securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Equity securities may decline in value due to factors affecting equity securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of equity securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular company, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. They also may decline due to factors which affect a particular industry or industries, such as labor shortages or increased production costs and competitive conditions within an industry. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities.
Confidential Information Access Risk
In managing the Fund, the Adviser may seek to avoid the receipt of material, non-public information (“Confidential Information”) about the issuers of floating rate loans or other investments being considered for acquisition by the Fund or held in the Fund’s portfolio if the receipt of the Confidential Information would restrict one or more of the Adviser’s clients, including, potentially, the Fund, from trading in securities they hold or in which they may invest. In many instances, issuers offer to furnish Confidential Information to prospective purchasers or holders of the issuer’s loans or other securities. In circumstances when the Adviser declines to receive Confidential Information from these issuers, the Fund may be disadvantaged in comparison to other investors, including with respect to evaluating the issuer and the price the Fund would pay or receive when it buys or sells those investments, and the Fund may not take advantage of investment opportunities that it otherwise might have if it had received such Confidential Information. Further, in situations when the Fund is asked, for example, to grant consents, waivers or amendments with respect to such investments, the Adviser’s ability to assess such consents, waivers and amendments may be compromised.
In certain circumstances, the Adviser may determine to receive Confidential Information, including on behalf of clients other than the Fund. Receipt of Confidential Information by the Adviser could limit the Fund’s ability to sell certain investments held by the Fund or pursue certain investment opportunities on behalf of the Fund, potentially for a substantial period of time. In certain situations, the Adviser may create information walls around persons having access to the Confidential Information to limit the restrictions on others at the Adviser. Those measures could impair the ability of those persons to assist in managing the Fund. Also, certain issuers of floating rate loans, other bank loans and related investments may not have any publicly traded securities (“Private Issuers”) and may offer private information pursuant to confidentiality agreements or similar arrangements. The Adviser may access such private information, while recognizing that the receipt of that information could potentially limit a Fund’s ability to trade in certain securities if the Private Issuer later issues publicly traded securities. If the Adviser intentionally or unintentionally comes into possession of Confidential Information, it may be unable, potentially for a substantial period of time, to sell certain investments held by a Fund.
Restricted Securities, Rule 144A/Regulation S Securities Risk
The Fund may hold securities that the Fund is prevented or limited by law or the terms of an agreement from selling (a “restricted security”). To the extent that the Fund is permitted to sell a restricted security, there can be no assurance that a trading market will exist at any particular time and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the security promptly at reasonable prices or at all. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering the securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting registration. Also, restricted securities may be difficult to value because market quotations may not be readily available, and the values of restricted securities may have significant volatility. Limitations on the resale of restricted securities may have an adverse effect on their marketability, and may prevent the Fund from disposing of them promptly at reasonable prices. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering such securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting such registration.
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Inflation/Deflation Risk
Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from the Fund’s investments will be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of payments at future dates. As inflation increases, the real value of the Fund’s portfolio could decline. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements. There can be no assurance that this trend will not continue or that efforts to slow or reverse inflation will not harm the economy and asset values. Deflation risk is the risk that prices throughout the economy decline over time. Deflation may have an adverse effect on the creditworthiness of issuers and may make issuer default more likely, which may result in a decline in the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk
Various market risks can affect the price or liquidity of an issuer’s securities in which the Fund may invest. Returns from the securities in which the Fund invests may underperform returns from the various general securities markets. Different types of securities tend to go through cycles of outperformance and underperformance in comparison to the general securities markets. Adverse events occurring with respect to an issuer’s performance or financial position can depress the value of the issuer’s securities. The liquidity in a market for a particular security will affect its value and may be affected by factors relating to the issuer, as well as the depth of the market for that security. Other market risks that can affect value include a market’s current attitudes about types of securities, market reactions to political or economic events, including litigation, and tax and regulatory effects (including lack of adequate regulations for a market or particular type of instrument). During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for certain investments held by the Fund, such as loans, may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell the investments it holds, and, for those investments it is able to sell in such circumstances, the sale price may be significantly lower than, and the trade settlement period may be longer than, anticipated.
Events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to significant market volatility, reductions in economic activity, market closures, and declines in global financial markets. These effects and the effects of other infectious illness outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics may be short term or may last for an extended period of time, and in either case could result in a substantial economic downturn or recession. Governmental responses may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social, economic, market and financial risks. These events may have a significant adverse effect on the Fund’s performance and on the liquidity of the Fund’s investments and have the potential to impair the ability of the Adviser or the Fund’s other service providers to serve the Fund and could lead to operational disruptions that negatively impact the Fund.
Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, or general market conditions, including real or perceived adverse political, economic or market conditions, tariffs and trade disruptions, inflation, recession, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. During those periods, the Fund may have to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and potentially at unfavorable prices. Securities may be difficult to value during such periods. Market risk involves the risk that the value of the Fund’s investment portfolio will change, potentially frequently and in large amounts, as the prices of its investments go up or down. During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for some or all of the Fund’s investments may become highly volatile and/or illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell some or all of its investments and, for certain assets, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated. The fewer the number of issuers in which the Fund invests and/or the greater the use of leverage, the greater the potential volatility of the Fund’s portfolio. Recently there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities low markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate, volatility and liquidity risk.
The United States government and the Federal Reserve and foreign governments and central banks may take steps to support financial markets. They might, for example, take steps to support markets and economic activity generally and to set or maintain low interest rates, such as by purchasing bonds or making financing broadly available to investors. Such actions may be intended to support certain asset classes or segments of the markets, but not others, and can have disproportionate, adverse, and unexpected effects on some asset classes or sectors, including those in which the Fund invests. For example, efforts by governments to provide debt relief to certain consumers or market participants or to support certain aspects of the market could significantly and adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments, the Fund’s earnings, or the Fund’s risk profile, and have other unintended or unexpected effects. Other measures taken by governments and regulators, including, for example, steps to reverse, withdraw, curtail or taper such activities, could have a material adverse effect on prices for the Fund’s portfolio of investments and on the management of the Fund. The withdrawal of support, failure of efforts in response to a financial or other crisis, or investor perception that those efforts are not succeeding could negatively affect financial markets generally as well as the values and liquidity of the Fund’s investments.
Events leading to limited liquidity, defaults, non-performance or other adverse developments that affect one industry, such as the financial services industry, or concerns or rumors about any events of these kinds, have in the past and may in the future lead to
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market-wide liquidity problems, may spread to other industries, and could negatively affect the value and liquidity of the Fund’s investments. For example, in response to the rapidly declining financial condition of regional banks Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) and Signature Bank (“Signature”), the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (the “CDFPI”) and the New York State Department of Financial Services (the “NYSDFS”) closed SVB and Signature on March 10, 2023 and March 12, 2023, respectively, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) was appointed as receiver for SVB and Signature. Although the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC have taken measures to stabilize the financial system, uncertainty and liquidity concerns in the broader financial services industry remain. Additionally, should there be additional systemic pressure on the financial system and capital markets, there can be no assurances of the response of any government or regulator, and any response may not be as favorable to industry participants as the measures currently being pursued. In addition, highly publicized issues related to the U.S. and global capital markets in the past have led to significant and widespread investor concerns over the integrity of the capital markets. The situation related to SVB Signature and other regional banks could in the future lead to further rules and regulations for public companies, banks, financial institutions and other participants in the U.S. and global capital markets, and complying with the requirements of any such rules or regulations may be burdensome. Even if not adopted, evaluating and responding to any such proposed rules or regulations could results in increased costs and require significant attention from the Adviser.
Federal, state, and other governments, their regulatory agencies, or self regulatory organizations may take actions that affect the regulation of the securities in which the Fund invests or the issuers of such securities in ways that are unforeseeable. Legislation or regulation also may change the way in which the Fund or the Adviser are regulated. Such legislation, regulation, or other government action could limit or preclude the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and affect the Fund’s performance.
Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, natural disasters and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect the Fund’s investments or markets generally. In addition, political developments in foreign countries or the United States may at times subject such countries to sanctions from the U.S. government, foreign governments and/or international institutions that could negatively affect the Fund’s investments in issuers located in, doing business in or with assets in such countries. Any or all of the risks described herein can increase some or all of the other risks associated with the Fund’s investments, including, among others, counterparty risk, debt securities risks, liquidity risk, and valuation risk.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the euro and the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries (such as those in the UK) to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. In January 2020, the United Kingdom withdrew from the EU. During an 11-month transition period, the UK and the EU agreed to a Trade and Cooperation Agreement which sets out the agreement for certain parts of the future relationship between the EU and the UK from January 1, 2021. The Trade and Cooperation Agreement does not include an agreement on financial services which is yet to be agreed. From January 1, 2021, EU law ceased to apply in the UK. However, many EU laws have been transposed into English law and these transposed laws will continue to apply until such time as they are repealed, replaced or amended. Depending on the terms of any future agreement between the EU and the UK on financial services, substantial amendments to English law may occur. Significant uncertainty remains in the market regarding the ramifications of these developments, and the range and potential implications of possible political, regulatory, economic and market outcomes are difficult to predict. The markets may be further disrupted and adversely affected by the withdrawal at various times given the uncertainty surrounding the country’s trade, financial, and other arrangements.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the resulting responses by the United States and other countries, and the potential for wider conflict could increase volatility and uncertainty in the financial markets and adversely affect regional and global economies. The United States and other countries have imposed broad-ranging economic sanctions on Russia, certain Russian individuals, banking entities and corporations, and Belarus as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and may impose sanctions on other countries that provide military or economic support to Russia. The extent and duration of Russia’s military actions and the repercussions of such actions (including any retaliatory actions or countermeasures that may be taken by those subject to sanctions, including cyber attacks) are impossible to predict, but could result in significant market disruptions, including in certain industries or sectors, such as the oil and natural gas markets, and may negatively affect global supply chains, inflation and global growth. These and any related events could significantly impact the Fund’s performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even if the Fund does not have direct exposure to Russian issuers or issuers in other countries affected by the invasion.
The Fund may continue to issue additional shares and to make additional investments in instruments in accordance with the Fund’s principal investment strategies to strive to meet the Fund’s investment objective under all types of market conditions, including unfavorable market conditions.
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Portfolio Turnover Risk
The length of time the Fund has held a particular security is not generally a consideration in investment decisions. A change in the securities held by the Fund is known as portfolio turnover. Portfolio turnover generally involves a number of direct and indirect costs and expenses to the Fund, including, for example, brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and bid/ask spreads, and transaction costs on the sale of securities and reinvestment in other securities, and may result in the realization of taxable capital gains (including short-term capital gains, which are generally taxable to shareholders subject to tax at ordinary income rates). Portfolio turnover risk includes the risk that frequent purchases and sales of portfolio securities may result in higher Fund expenses and may result in larger distributions of taxable capital gains to investors as compared to a fund that trades less frequently.
Legal and Regulatory Risk
Legal, tax and regulatory changes (which may apply with retroactive effect) could occur and may adversely affect the Fund and its ability to pursue its investment strategies and/or increase the costs of implementing such strategies. New (or revised) laws or regulations may be imposed by the CFTC, the SEC, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), the U.S. Federal Reserve or other banking regulators, other governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that supervise the financial markets that could adversely affect the Fund. In particular, these agencies have implemented or are implementing a variety of new rules pursuant to financial reform legislation in the United States. The EU, the United Kingdom and some other jurisdictions have implemented or are implementing similar requirements. The Fund also may be adversely affected by changes in the enforcement or interpretation of existing statutes and rules by these governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations.
In addition, the securities and derivatives markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. The CFTC, the SEC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized under these statutes, regulations and otherwise to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The Fund and the Adviser have historically been eligible for exemptions from certain regulations. However, there is no assurance that the Fund and the Adviser will continue to be eligible for such exemptions.
The CFTC, certain foreign regulators and many futures exchanges have established (and continue to evaluate and revise) speculative position limits, referred to as “position limits,” on the maximum net long or net short positions which any person or entity may hold or control in certain futures and options on futures contracts. In addition, U.S. federal position limits apply to swaps that are economically equivalent to futures contracts on certain agricultural, metals and energy commodities. Unless an exemption applies, all positions owned or controlled by the same person or entity, even if in different accounts, must be aggregated for purposes of determining whether the applicable position limits have been exceeded, unless an exemption applies. Thus, even if the Fund does not intend to exceed applicable position limits, it is possible that different clients managed by the Adviser and its related parties may be aggregated for this purpose. Therefore, trading decisions of the Adviser may have to be modified and positions held by the Fund may have to be liquidated in order to avoid exceeding such limits. Any modifications of trading decisions or elimination of open positions, if it occurs, may adversely affect the performance of the Fund and the Fund’s ability to pursue its investment strategies. A violation of position limits could also lead to regulatory action materially adverse to a Fund’s investment strategies. The Fund may also be affected by other regimes, including those of the EU and UK, and trading venues that impose position limits on commodity derivatives contracts.
Rules implementing the credit risk retention requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) for asset-backed securities require the sponsor of certain securitization vehicles (or a majority owned affiliate of such sponsor) to retain, and to refrain from transferring, selling, conveying to a third party, or hedging the credit risk on a portion of the assets transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of the asset-backed securities of such vehicle, subject to certain exceptions. These requirements may increase the costs to originators, securitizers, and, in certain cases, collateral managers of securitization vehicles in which the Fund may invest, which costs could be passed along to the Fund as an investor in such vehicles. In addition, the costs imposed by the risk retention rules on originators, securitizers and/or collateral managers may result in a reduction of the number of new offerings of asset-backed securities and thus in fewer investment opportunities for the Fund. A reduction in the number of new securitizations could also reduce liquidity in the markets for certain types of financial assets that are typically held by securitization vehicles, which in turn could negatively affect the returns on the Fund’s investment in asset-backed securities.
Investors should also be aware that some EU-regulated institutions (including banks, certain investment firms, and authorized managers of alternative investment funds) are restricted from investing in securitizations (including U.S.-related securitizations), unless, in summary: (i) the institution is able to demonstrate that it has undertaken certain due diligence in respect of various matters, including its investment position, the underlying assets, and (in the case of authorized managers of alternative investment funds) the sponsor and the originator of the securitization; and (ii) the originator, sponsor, or original lender of the securitization has explicitly disclosed to the institution that it will retain, on an ongoing basis, a net economic interest of not less than 5% of specified credit risk
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Summary of Updated Information Regarding the Fund (Cont.)
tranches or asset exposures related to the securitization. Although these requirements do not apply directly to the Fund, the costs of compliance, in the case of any securitization within the EU risk retention rules in which the Fund has invested or is seeking to invest, could be indirectly borne by the Fund and the other investors in the securitization.
Tax Risk
The Fund has elected to be treated as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under the Code and intends each year to qualify and be eligible to be treated as such. If the Fund qualifies as a RIC, it generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its net investment income or net short-term or long-term capital gains, distributed (or deemed distributed) to shareholders, provided that, for each taxable year, the Fund distributes (or is treated as distributing) to its shareholders an amount equal to or exceeding 90% of its “investment company taxable income” as that term is defined in the Code (which includes, among other things, dividends, taxable interest and the excess of any net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, as reduced by certain deductible expenses). The Fund intends to distribute all or substantially all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain each year. In order for the Fund to qualify as a RIC in any taxable year, the Fund must meet certain asset diversification tests and at least 90% of its gross income for such year must be certain types of qualifying income. If for any taxable year the Fund were to fail to meet the income or diversification test described above, the Fund could in some cases cure the failure, including by paying a fund-level tax and, in the case of a diversification test failure, disposing of certain assets. Some of the income and gain that the Fund may recognize, such as income and gain from real estate assets received upon foreclosure of a loan held by the Fund, generally does not constitute qualifying income, and whether certain other income and gain that the Fund may recognize constitutes qualifying income is not certain. The Fund’s investments therefore may be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify as a RIC and may bear on the Fund’s ability to so qualify.
The Fund may hold certain investments that do not give rise to qualifying income through one or more wholly-owned and controlled Subsidiaries treated as U.S. corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such Subsidiaries will be required to pay U.S. corporate income tax on their earnings, which ultimately will reduce the yield on such investments. Depending on the assets held by the Subsidiary and other considerations, a Subsidiary may qualify and elect to be treated as a REIT for federal income tax purposes, in which case such Subsidiary generally would not be subject to U.S. corporate income tax to the extent such Subsidiary timely distributes all its income and gain. The Fund may not invest more than 25% of its total assets in (i) any one Subsidiary or (i) two or more Subsidiaries that are treated as being in the same, similar or related trades or businesses for purposes of the diversification tests applicable to RICs.
If the Fund were ineligible to or otherwise did not cure such failure for any year, or were otherwise to fail to qualify as a RIC accorded special tax treatment in any taxable year, it would be treated as a corporation subject to U.S. federal income tax, thereby subjecting any income earned by the Fund to tax at the corporate level and, when such income is distributed, to a further tax as dividends at the shareholder level to the extent of the Fund’s current or accumulated earnings and profits.
Repurchase Agreements Risk
In the event of a default or bankruptcy by a selling financial institution under a repurchase agreement, the Fund will seek to sell the underlying security serving as collateral. However, this could involve certain costs or delays, and, to the extent that proceeds from any sale were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss.
Zero-Coupon Bond Risk
Zero-coupon bonds are issued at a significant discount from their principal amount in lieu of paying interest periodically. Because zero-coupon bonds do not pay current interest in cash, their value is subject to greater fluctuation in response to changes in market interest rates than bonds that pay interest currently. Zero-coupon bonds allow an issuer to avoid the need to generate cash to meet current interest payments. Accordingly, such bonds may involve greater credit risks than bonds paying interest currently in cash. The Fund is required to accrue interest income on such investments and to distribute such amounts at least annually to shareholders even though the investments do not make any current interest payments. Thus, it may be necessary at times for the Fund to liquidate other investments in order to satisfy its distribution requirements under the Code.
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Operational and Information Security Risks
The Fund and its service providers depend on complex information technology and communications systems to conduct business functions, making them susceptible to operational and information security risks. Any problems relating to the performance and effectiveness of security procedures used by the Fund or its service providers to protect the Fund’s assets, such as algorithms, codes, passwords, multiple signature systems, encryption and telephone call-backs, may have an adverse impact on an investment in the Fund. For example, design or system failures or malfunctions, human error, faulty software or data processing systems, power or communications outages, acts of God, or cyber- attacks may lead to operational disruptions and potential losses to the Fund. Cyber-attacks include, among other behaviors, stealing or corrupting data maintained online or digitally, denial of service attacks on websites, the unauthorized release of confidential information and causing operational disruption. Successful cyber- attacks against, or security breakdowns of, the Fund or its Adviser, custodian, fund accountant, fund administrator, transfer agent, pricing vendors and/or other third party service providers may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders. For instance, cyber- attacks or other operational issues may interfere with the processing of shareholder transactions, impact the Fund’s ability to calculate its NAV, cause the release of private shareholder information or confidential Fund information, impede trading, cause reputational damage, and subject the Fund to regulatory fines, penalties or financial losses, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. The Fund also may incur substantial costs for cybersecurity risk management in order to guard against any cyber incidents in the future.
Furthermore, as the Fund’s assets grow, it may become a more appealing target for cybersecurity threats such as hackers and malware. In general, cyber-attacks result from deliberate attacks but unintentional events may have effects similar to those caused by cyber-attacks. Additionally, outside parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees of the Fund or the Adviser or its service providers to disclose sensitive information in order to gain access to the Fund’s infrastructure. Similar types of risks also are present for issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, which could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers, and may cause the Fund’s investment in such securities to lose value. In addition, cyber- attacks involving a counterparty to the Fund could affect such a counterparty’s ability to meet its obligations to the Fund, which may result in losses to the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the adoption of work-from-home arrangements by the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers could increase all of the above risks, create additional data and information accessibility concerns, and make the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers more susceptible to operational disruptions, any of which could adversely impact their operations. While the Fund or its service providers may have established business continuity plans and systems designed to guard against such operational failures and cyber-attacks and the adverse effects of such events, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified, in large part because different, evolving or unknown threats or risks may emerge in the future. The Adviser and the Fund do not control the business continuity and cybersecurity plans and systems put in place by third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have no or limited indemnification obligations to the Adviser or the Fund.
Preferred Securities Risk
In addition to many of the risks associated with both debt securities (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk) and common shares or other equity securities, preferred securities typically contain provisions that allow an issuer, under certain conditions, to skip (in the case of noncumulative preferred securities) or defer (in the case of cumulative preferred securities) dividend payments. If the Fund owns a preferred security that is deferring its distributions, the Fund may be required to report income for tax purposes while it is not receiving any distributions.
In addition, preferred securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases in which dividends are in arrears beyond a certain time period, which varies by issue. Preferred securities are generally subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income and liquidation payments, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. Preferred securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities.
Other Investment Companies Risk
As a shareholder in an investment company, the Fund will bear its ratable share of that investment company’s expenses, and would remain subject to payment of the Fund’s investment management fees with respect to the assets so invested. Common Shareholders would therefore be subject to duplicative expenses to the extent the Fund invests in other investment companies. In addition, these other investment companies may use leverage, in which case an investment would subject the Fund to additional risks associated with leverage.
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Summary of Updated Information Regarding the Fund (Cont.)
Anti-Takeover Provisions Risk
The Fund’s Declaration of Trust includes provisions that could limit the ability of other entities or persons to acquire control of the Fund or to convert the Fund to open-end status. These provisions in the Declaration of Trust could have the effect of depriving the Common Shareholders of opportunities to sell their Common Shares at a premium over the then-current market price of the Common Shares or at NAV.
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Changes to Board of Trustees
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
Effective December 18, 2023, the Board of Trustees elected Yury Friedman to the Board of Trustees, and Mr. Friedman was classified as a Class I Trustee following the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders.
Effective January 1, 2024, Raymond Woolson resigned as a Trustee of the Fund. Effective May 14, 2024, the Board of Trustees elected William Odell to the Board of Trustees to serve as a Class II Trustee.
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Portfolio Managers
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
The portfolio managers of the Fund are Jeffrey E. Gundlach (since the Fund’s inception) and Jeffrey J. Sherman (since the Fund’s inception). Since the Fund’s last annual report to shareholders, there have been no changes in the persons who are primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio.
Information About Proxy Voting
Information about how the Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities held during the most recent twelve month period ended June 30th is available no later than the following August 31st without charge, upon request, by calling 877-DLine11 (877-354-6311) or email fundinfo@doubleline.com and on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
A description of the Fund’s proxy voting policies and procedures is available (i) without charge, upon request, by calling 877-DLine11 (877-354-6311) or email fundinfo@doubleline.com; and (ii) on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Information About Portfolio Holdings
The Fund intends to disclose its portfolio holdings on a quarterly basis by posting the holdings on the Fund’s website. The disclosure will be made by posting the Annual, Semi-Annual and Part F of Form N-PORT filings on the Fund’s website.
The Fund is required to file its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the SEC for its first and third fiscal quarters on Part F of Form N-PORT. When available, the Fund’s Part F of Form N-PORT is available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Householding—Important Notice Regarding Delivery of Shareholder Documents
In an effort to conserve resources, the Fund intends to reduce the number of duplicate Annual and Semi-Annual Reports you receive by sending only one copy of each to addresses where we reasonably believe two or more accounts are from the same family. If you would like to discontinue householding of your accounts, please call toll-free 877-DLine11 (877-354-6311) to request individual copies of these documents. We will begin sending individual copies thirty days after receiving your request to stop householding.
Fund Certification
The Fund is listed for trading on the NYSE and has filed with the NYSE its annual chief executive officer certification regarding compliance with the NYSE’s listing standards. The Fund filed with the SEC the certification of its chief executive officer and principal financial officer required by section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
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Dividend Reinvestment Plan
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
Unless the registered owner of Common Shares elects to receive cash by contacting U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC (the “Plan Administrator”), all dividends, capital gains and returns of capital, if any, declared on Common Shares will be automatically reinvested by the Plan Administrator for shareholders in the Fund’s Automatic Dividend Reinvestment Plan (the “Plan”), in additional Common Shares. Common Shareholders who elect not to participate in the Plan will receive all dividends and other distributions payable in cash directly to the shareholder of record (or, if the Common Shares are held in street or other nominee name, then to such nominee) by the Plan Administrator as dividend disbursing agent. Participation in the Plan is completely voluntary and may be terminated or resumed at any time without penalty by providing notice in writing to the Plan Administrator at least 5 days prior to the dividend/distribution record date; otherwise such termination or resumption will be effective with respect to any subsequently declared dividend or other distribution.
Whenever the Fund declares an income dividend, a capital gain distribution or other distribution (collectively referred to as “dividends”) payable either in shares or cash, non-participants in the Plan will receive cash and participants in the Plan will receive a number of Common Shares, determined in accordance with the following provisions. The Common Shares will be acquired by the Plan Administrator for the participants’ accounts, depending upon the circumstances described below, either (i) through receipt of additional unissued but authorized Common Shares from the Fund (“Newly Issued Common Shares”) or (ii) by purchase of outstanding Common Shares on the open market (“Open- Market Purchases”) on the New York Stock Exchange or elsewhere. If, on the payment date for any Dividend, the market price per Common Share plus estimated brokerage trading fees is equal to or greater than the NAV per Common Share (such condition is referred to here as “market premium”), the Plan Administrator shall receive Newly Issued Common Shares, including fractions of shares from the Fund for each Plan participant’s account. The number of Newly Issued Common Shares to be credited to each participant’s account will be determined by dividing the dollar amount of the Dividend by the NAV per Common Share on the date of issuance; provided that, if the NAV per Common Share is less than or equal to 95% of the current market value on the date of issuance, the dollar amount of the Dividend will be divided by 95% of the market price per Common Share on the date of issuance for purposes of determining the number of shares issuable under the Plan. If, on the payment date for any Dividend, the NAV per Common Share is greater than the market value plus estimated brokerage trading fees (such condition being referred to here as a “market discount”), the Plan Administrator will seek to invest the Dividend amount in Common Shares acquired on behalf of the participants in Open-Market Purchases.
In the event of a market discount on the payment date for any Dividend, the Plan Administrator will have until the last business day before the next date on which the Common Shares trade on an “ex-dividend” basis or in no event more than 30 days after the record date for such Dividend, whichever is sooner (the “Last Purchase Date”), to invest the Dividend amount in Common Shares acquired in Open-Market Purchases. It is contemplated that the Fund will pay monthly Dividends. If, before the Plan Administrator has completed its Open-Market Purchases, the market price per Common Share exceeds the NAV per Common Share, the average per Common Share purchase price paid by the Plan Administrator may exceed the NAV of the Common Shares, resulting in the acquisition of fewer Common Shares than if the Dividend had been paid in Newly Issued Common Shares on the Dividend payment date. If the Plan Administrator is unable to invest the full Dividend amount in Open-Market Purchases during the purchase period or if the market discount shifts to a market premium during the purchase period, the Plan Administrator may cease making Open- Market Purchases and may instead receive the Newly Issued Common Shares from the Fund for each participant’s account, in respect of the uninvested portion of the Dividend, at the NAV per Common Share at the close of business on the Last Purchase Date provided that, if the NAV is less than or equal to 95% of the then current market price per Common Share, the dollar amount of the Dividend will be divided by 95% of the market price on the date of issuance for purposes of determining the number of shares issuable under the Plan.
The Plan Administrator maintains all registered shareholders’ accounts in the Plan and furnishes written confirmation of all transactions in the accounts, including information needed by shareholders for tax records. Common Shares in the account of each Plan participant will be held by the Plan Administrator in non-certificated form in the name of the Plan participant, and each shareholder proxy will include those shares purchased or received pursuant to the Plan. The Plan Administrator will forward all proxy solicitation materials to participants and vote proxies for shares held under the Plan in accordance with the instructions of the participants.
In the case of Common Shares owned by a beneficial owner but registered with the Plan Administrator in the name of a nominee, such as a bank, a broker or other financial intermediary (each, a “Nominee”), the Plan Administrator will administer the Plan on the basis of the number of Common Shares certified from time to time by the Nominee as participating in the Plan. The Plan Administrator will not take instructions or elections from a beneficial owner whose Common Shares are registered with the Plan Administrator in the name of a Nominee. If a beneficial owner’s Common Shares are held through a Nominee and are not registered with the Plan Administrator as participating in the Plan, neither the beneficial owner nor the Nominee will be participants in or have distributions reinvested under the Plan with respect to those Common Shares. If a beneficial owner of Common Shares held in the name of a Nominee wishes to participate in the Plan, and the Shareholder’s Nominee is unable or unwilling to become a registered shareholder and a Plan
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participant with respect to those Common Shares on the beneficial owner’s behalf, the beneficial owner may request that the Nominee arrange to have all or a portion of his or her Common Shares registered with the Plan Administrator in the beneficial owner’s name so that the beneficial owner may be enrolled as a participant in the Plan with respect to those Common Shares. Please contact your Nominee for details or for other possible alternatives. Participants whose shares are registered with the Plan Administrator in the name of one Nominee may not be able to transfer the shares to another firm or Nominee and continue to participate in the Plan.
There will be no brokerage charges with respect to Common Shares issued directly by the Fund as a result of dividends payable either in Common Shares or in cash. However, each participant will pay a pro rata share of brokerage trading fees incurred in connection with Open-Market Purchases. The automatic reinvestment of Dividends will not relieve participants of any federal, state or local income tax that may be payable (or required to be withheld) on such Dividends. Participants that request a sale of Common Shares through the Plan Administrator are subject to brokerage commissions.
The Fund reserves the right to amend or terminate the Plan. There is no direct service charge to participants with regard to purchases in the Plan; however, the Fund reserves the right to amend the Plan to include a service charge payable by the participants.
All correspondence, questions, or requests for additional information concerning the Plan should be directed to the Plan Administrator by calling toll-free 877-DLine11 (877-354-6311) or by writing to U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC at P.O. Box 701, Milwaukee, WI 53201. Be sure to include your name, address, daytime phone number, Social Security or tax I.D. number and a reference to DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund on all correspondence.
The Plan Administrator accepts instructions only from the registered owners of accounts. If you purchased or hold your Fund shares through an intermediary, in most cases your intermediary’s nominee will be the registered owner with the Fund. Accordingly, questions regarding your participation in the Plan or the terms of any reinvestments should be directed to your intermediary in the first instance.
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DoubleLine Privacy Policy Notice
(Unaudited) September 30, 2024
What Does DoubleLine Do With Your Personal Information?
This notice provides information about how DoubleLine (“we,” “our” and “us”) collects, discloses, and protects your personal information, and how you might choose to limit our ability to disclose certain information about you. Please read this notice carefully.
Why We Need Your Personal Information
All financial companies need to disclose customers’ personal information to run their everyday businesses, to appropriately tailor the services offered (where applicable), and to comply with our regulatory obligations. Accordingly, information, confidential and proprietary, plays an important role in the success of our business. However, we recognize that you have entrusted us with your personal and financial data, and we recognize our obligation to keep this information secure. Maintaining your privacy is important to us, and we hold ourselves to a high standard in its safekeeping and use. Most importantly, DoubleLine does not sell its customers’ non-public personal information to any third parties. DoubleLine uses its customers’ non-public personal information primarily to complete financial transactions that its customers request (where applicable), to make its customers aware of other financial products and services offered by a DoubleLine affiliated company, and to satisfy obligations we owe to regulatory bodies.
Information We May Collect
We may collect various types of personal data about you, including:
Your personal identification information, which may include your name and passport information, your IP address, politically exposed person (“PEP”) status, and such other information as may be necessary for us to provide our services to you and to complete our customer due diligence process and discharge anti-money laundering obligations;
Your contact information, which may include postal address and e-mail address and your home and mobile telephone numbers;
Your family relationships, which may include your marital status, the identity of your spouse and the number of children that you have;
Your professional and employment information, which may include your level of education and professional qualifications, your employment, employer’s name and details of directorships and other offices which you may hold; and
Financial information, risk tolerance, sources of wealth and your assets, which may include details of shareholdings and beneficial interests in financial instruments, your bank details and your credit history.
Where We Obtain Your Personal Information
Information we receive about you on applications or other forms;
Information you may give us orally;
Information about your transactions with us or others;
Information you submit to us in correspondence, including emails or other electronic communications; and
Information about any bank account you use for transfers between your bank account and any DoubleLine investment account, including information provided when effecting wire transfers.
Information Collected from Websites
Websites maintained by DoubleLine or its service providers may use a variety of technologies to collect information that help DoubleLine and its service providers understand how the website is used. Information collected from your web browser (including small files stored on your device that are commonly referred to as “cookies”) allow the websites to recognize your web browser and help to personalize and improve your user experience and enhance navigation of the website. You can change your cookie preferences by changing the setting on your web browser to delete or reject cookies. If you delete or reject cookies, some website pages may not function properly. Our websites may contain links that are maintained or controlled by third parties with privacy policies that may differ, in some cases significantly, from the privacy policies described in this notice. Please read the privacy policies of such third parties and understand that accessing their websites is at your own risk. Please contact your DoubleLine representative if you would like to receive more information about the privacy policies of third parties.
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We also use web analytics services, which currently include but are not limited to Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics. Such web analytics services use cookies and similar technologies to evaluate visitor’s use of the domain, compile statistical reports on domain activity, and provide other services related to our websites. For more information about Google Analytics, or to opt out of Google Analytics, please go to https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout. For more information about Adobe Analytics, or to opt out of Adobe Analytics, please go to: http://www.adobe.com/privacy/opt-out.html.
How and Why We May Disclose Your Information
DoubleLine does not disclose any non-public personal information about our customers or former customers without the customer’s authorization, except that we may disclose the information listed above, as follows:
It may be necessary for DoubleLine to provide information to nonaffiliated third parties in connection with our performance of the services we have agreed to provide to you. For example, it might be necessary to do so in order to process transactions and maintain accounts.
DoubleLine will release any of the non-public information listed above about a customer if directed to do so by that customer or if DoubleLine is required or authorized by law to do so, such as for the purpose of compliance with regulatory requirements or in the case of a court order, legal investigation, or other properly executed governmental request.
In order to alert a customer to other financial products and services offered by an affiliate, DoubleLine may disclose information to an affiliate, including companies using the DoubleLine name. Such products and services may include, for example, other investment products offered by a DoubleLine company. If you prefer that we not disclose non-public personal information about you to our affiliates for this purpose, you may direct us not to make such disclosures (other than disclosures permitted by law) by contacting us at Privacy@DoubleLine.com or at 1 (800) 285- 1545. If you limit this sharing and you have a joint account, your decision will be applied to all owners of the account.
We will limit access to your personal account information to those agents and vendors who need to know that information to provide products and services to you. We do not share your information to nonaffiliated third parties for marketing purposes. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to guard your non-public personal information.
Notice Related to the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and to “Natural Persons” Residing in the State of California
DoubleLine collects and uses information that identifies, describes, references, links or relates to, or is associated with, a particular consumer or device (“Personal Information”). Personal Information we collect from our customers and consumers is covered under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (“GLBA”) and is therefore excluded from the scope of the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (together, “CCPA”).
However, for California residents who are not DoubleLine customers or consumers, as those terms are defined by GLBA, the personal information we collect about you is subject to the CCPA. As such, you have privacy rights with respect to your personal information. Please review the following applicable California privacy notice that is available at https://www.doubleline.com, or by contacting us at Privacy@DoubleLine.com or at 1 (800) 285-1545.
CA Privacy Notice for Website Visitors, Media Subscribers and Business Representatives CA Privacy Notice for Employees
Notice to “Natural Persons” Residing in the European Economic Area (The “EEA”)
If you reside in the EEA, we may transfer your personal information outside the EEA, and will ensure that it is protected and transferred in a manner consistent with legal requirements applicable to the information. This can be done in a number of different ways, for instance:
the country to which we send the personal information may have been assessed by the European Commission as providing an “adequate” level of protection for personal data; or
the recipient may have signed a contract based on standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission.
In other circumstances, the law may permit us to otherwise transfer your personal information outside the EEA. In all cases, however, any transfer of your personal information will be compliant with applicable data protection law.
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DoubleLine Privacy Policy Notice(Cont.)
Notice to Investors in Cayman Islands Investment Funds
If you are a natural person, please review this notice as it applies to you directly. If you are a legal representative of a corporate or entity investor that provides us with any personal information about individuals (i.e., natural persons), you agree to furnish a copy of this notice to each such individual or otherwise advise them of its content.
Any international transfer of personal information will be compliant with the requirements of the Data Protection Act, 2017 of the Cayman Islands.
Privacy for Children
DoubleLine is concerned about the privacy of children. Our website and our services are not targeted at individuals under 18 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect any personal information from an individual under 18. If we learn that a child under the age of 13 (or such higher age as required by applicable law) has submitted personally identifiable information online without parental consent, we will take all reasonable measures to delete such information from its databases and to not use such information for any purpose (except where necessary to protect the safety of the child or others as required or allowed by law). If you become aware of any personally identifiable information, we have collected from children under 13 (or such higher age as required by applicable law), please contact us at Privacy@DoubleLine.com or at 1 (800) 285-1545. We do not sell or share any personal information and have no actual knowledge about selling or sharing personal information of individuals under the age of 16.
Retention of Personal Information and Security
Your personal information will be retained for as long as required:
for the purposes for which the personal information was collected;
in order to establish or defend legal rights or obligations or to satisfy any reporting or accounting obligations; and/or
as required by data protection laws and any other applicable laws or regulatory requirements, including, but not limited to, U.S. laws and regulations applicable to our business.
We will undertake commercially reasonable efforts to protect the personal information that we hold with appropriate security measures.
Access to and Control of Your Personal Information
Depending on your country of domicile or applicable law, you may have the following rights in respect of the personal information about you that we process:
the right to access and port personal information;
the right to rectify personal information;
the right to restrict the use of personal information;
the right to request that personal information is erased; and
the right to object to processing of personal information.
Although you have the right to request that your personal information be deleted at any time, applicable laws or regulatory requirements may prohibit us from doing so. In addition, if you invest in a DoubleLine fund through a financial intermediary, DoubleLine may not have access to personal information about you.
If you wish to exercise any of the rights set out above, please contact us at Privacy@DoubleLine.com or at 1 (800) 285-1545.
Changes to DoubleLine’s Privacy Policy
DoubleLine reserves the right to modify its privacy policy at any time, but in the event that there is a change that affects the content of this notice materially, DoubleLine will promptly inform its customers of such changes in accordance with applicable law.
Annual Report
September 30, 2024
97

TABLE OF CONTENTS


Investment Adviser:
DoubleLine Capital LP
2002 North Tampa Street
Suite 200
Tampa, FL 33602
Administrator and Transfer Agent:
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC
P.O. Box 701
Milwaukee, WI 53201
Custodian:
U.S. Bank, N.A.
1555 North River Center Drive
Suite 302
Milwaukee, WI 53212
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm:
Deloitte & Touche LLP
695 Town Center Drive
Suite 1200
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Legal Counsel:
Ropes & Gray LLP
Prudential Tower
800 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02199
Contact Information:
doubleline.com
fundinfo@doubleline.com
(877) DLine11 or (877) 354-6311
DL-ANNUAL-DLY
DoubleLine || 2002 North Tampa Street, Suite 200 || Tampa, FL 33602 || (813) 791-7333
fundinfo@doubleline.com || www.doubleline.com

 

 

(b)Not applicable.

 

Item 2. Code of Ethics.

 

The Registrant has adopted a code of ethics that applies to the Registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer and principal accounting officer. The Registrant has not made any substantive amendments to its code of ethics during the period covered by this report. The Registrant has not granted any waivers from any provisions of the code of ethics during the period covered by this report. A copy of the Registrant’s Code of Ethics is filed herewith.

 

Item 3. Audit Committee Financial Expert.

 

The Registrant’s Audit Committee members have substantial financial expertise and include members with considerable professional experience in the financial markets, the securities markets, and the investment banking and investment management industries, including in respect of the type of financial accounting or valuation issues that are likely to come before the Audit Committee. Although the Registrant does not currently have an Audit Committee member designated as an “audit committee financial expert,” as defined under instructions to Item 3(a), serving on its Audit Committee, the Registrant’s Audit Committee has determined that its members collectively have sufficient financial expertise and experience to address any issues that are likely to come before the committee. 

 

Item 4. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.

 

The Registrant has engaged its principal accountant to perform audit services, audit-related services, tax services and other services during the past two fiscal years. “Audit services” refer to performing an audit of the Registrant’s annual financial statements or services that are normally provided by the accountant in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements for those fiscal years. “Audit-related services” refer to the assurance and related services by the principal accountant that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit. “Tax services” refer to professional services rendered by the principal accountant for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning. There were no “Other services” provided by the principal accountant. The following table details the aggregate fees billed or expected to be billed for each of the last two fiscal years for audit fees, audit-related fees, tax fees and other fees by the principal accountant.

 

  FYE 9/30/2024 FYE 9/30/2023
(a) Audit Fees  $87,749  $98,570
(b) Audit-Related Fees  N/A  $15,000
(c) Tax Fees  $11,240  $11,240
(d) All Other Fees  N/A  N/A

 

(e)(1) The audit committee has adopted pre-approval policies and procedures that require the audit committee to pre-approve all audit and non-audit services of the Registrant, including services provided to any entity affiliated with the Registrant.

 

 

(e)(2) The percentage of fees billed by Deloitte & Touche LLP applicable to non-audit services pursuant to waiver of pre-approval requirement were as follows:

 

  FYE 9/30/2024 FYE 9/30/2023
Audit-Related Fees 0% 0%
Tax Fees 0% 0%
All Other Fees 0% 0%

 

(f) All of the principal accountant’s hours spent on auditing the Registrant’s financial statements were attributed to work performed by full-time permanent employees of the principal accountant.

 

(g) The following table indicates the non-audit fees billed or expected to be billed by the Registrant’s accountant for services to the Registrant and to the Registrant’s investment adviser (and any other controlling entity, etc.—not sub-adviser) for the last two years.

 

Non-Audit Related Fees FYE 9/30/2024 FYE 9/30/2023
Registrant  $11,240  $11,240
Registrant’s Investment Adviser N/A N/A

 

(h) The audit committee of the board of trustees/directors has considered whether the provision of non-audit services that were rendered to the Registrant’s investment adviser is compatible with maintaining the principal accountant’s independence and has concluded that the provision of such non-audit services by the accountant has not compromised the accountant’s independence.

 

(i) The Registrant has not been identified by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as having filed an annual report issued by a registered public accounting firm branch or office that is located in a foreign jurisdiction where the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is unable to inspect or completely investigate because of a position taken by an authority in that jurisdiction.

 

(j) The Registrant is not a foreign issuer.

 

Item 5. Audit Committee of Listed Registrants.

 

(a) The Registrant is an issuer as defined in Rule 10A-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, (the “Act”) and has a separately-designated standing audit committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Act. The independent members of the committee are as follows: Joseph J. Ciprari, John C. Salter, William A. Odell, and Yury Friedman.

 

(b) Not applicable.

 

Item 6. Investments.

 

(a) Schedule of Investments is included as part of the report to shareholders filed under Item 1 of this Form.

 

(b) Not applicable.

 

 

Item 7. Financial Statements and Financial Highlights for Open-End Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable to closed-end investment companies.

 

Item 8. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants for Open-End Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable to closed-end investment companies.

 

Item 9. Proxy Disclosure for Open-End Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable to closed-end investment companies.

 

Item 10. Remuneration Paid to Directors, Officers, and Others of Open-End Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable to closed-end investment companies.

 

Item 11. Statement Regarding Basis for Approval of Investment Advisory Contract.

 

There were no approvals or renewals of investment advisory contracts during the most recent fiscal half-year.

 

 

Item 12. Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

 

DoubleLine Capital LP

DoubleLine Alternatives LP

DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP

DoubleLine Funds Trust

DoubleLine ETF Trust

DoubleLine Closed-End Funds

 

Proxy Voting, Corporate Actions and Class Actions Policy

 

I.       Background

 

Rule 206(4)-6 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”), requires investment advisers that exercise voting authority with respect to client securities to: (i) adopt and implement written policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that client securities are voted in the best interest of clients, which must include how an adviser addresses material conflicts that may arise between an adviser’s interests and those of its clients; (ii) provide a concise summary of its proxy voting policies and procedures and, upon request, furnish a copy of the full policies and procedures to its clients; and (iii) disclose how clients may obtain information with respect to how the adviser voted their securities.

 

This Proxy Voting, Corporate Actions and Class Actions Policy (the “Proxy Policy”) is adopted by DoubleLine Capital LP, DoubleLine Alternatives LP and DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP (the “Advisers,” or each applicable “Adviser”) to govern the Advisers’ proxy voting, corporate actions and class actions activities involving client investments, and along with the DoubleLine Funds Trust (“DFT”), the DoubleLine ETF Trust (“DET”), the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (“DBL”), the DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (“DSL”), and the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (“DLY”) (DBL, DSL, and DLY are collectively, the “DoubleLine Closed-End Funds” and together with DFT and DET, each a “Fund,” collectively the “Funds,” and together with the Advisers, “DoubleLine”), to help ensure compliance with applicable disclosure and reporting requirements.

 

II.       Policy

 

Employees must handle all proxy voting, corporate actions and class actions (“Proxy Matters”) with reasonable care and diligence, and solely in the best interest of DoubleLine clients. Accordingly, all Proxy Matter proposals must immediately be forwarded to the Trade Management team to ensure that each proposal is processed timely and in accordance with the Proxy Policy.

 

The Adviser generally will exercise proxy voting, corporate actions and class actions authority on behalf of clients only where the client has expressly delegated such authority in writing. If directed to do so by the client, the Adviser will process each proposal in a manner that seeks to enhance the economic value of client investments.

 

Proxy Voting Guidelines and Corporate Actions

 

Designated employees from the Portfolio Management team will review the specific facts and circumstances surrounding each proxy and corporate action proposal to determine a course of action that promotes the best interest of clients (including, if so directed, to maximize the value of client investments). The Advisers adopt the Proxy Voting Guidelines (the “Guidelines,” see Attachment A) as a framework for analyzing proxy and corporate action proposals on a consistent basis.

 

The Portfolio Management team may, in their discretion, vote proxies and corporate actions in a manner that is inconsistent with the Guidelines (or instruct applicable parties to do so) when they determine, after conducting reasonable due diligence, that doing so is in the best interest of the client. They may consult with the Proxy Voting Committee (the “Proxy Committee”), DoubleLine senior management or a third-party expert such as a proxy voting service provider to make such determinations.

 

 

Class Actions

 

In the event that a client investment becomes the subject of a class action lawsuit, the Adviser will assess, among other factors, the potential financial impact of participating in such legal action. If the Adviser determines that participating in the class action is in the best interest of the client, the Adviser will recommend that the client or its custodian submit appropriate documentation on the client’s behalf, subject to contractual or other authority. The Adviser may consider other factors in determining whether participation in a class action lawsuit is in the best interest of the client, including (i) the costs that likely would be incurred by the client, (ii) the resources that likely would be expended in participating in the class action, and (iii) other available options for pursuing legal recourse against the issuer. If appropriate, the Adviser may also notify the client about the class action without making a recommendation as to participation, which would allow clients to decide on how to proceed. The Advisers provide no assurance to former clients that applicable class action information will be delivered to them.

 

Conflicts of Interest

 

Employees must be diligent with respect to actual and potential conflicts of interest when handling client investments. This covers conflicts between the interests of DoubleLine, employees and clients, including conflicts between two or more clients. As a general matter, conflicts should be avoided where practicable. In cases where it cannot be avoided, the conflict must be mitigated as much as possible and then fully and fairly disclosed to the client, such that the client can make an informed decision and, where applicable, provide an informed consent. As required under the Code of Ethics and the Outside Business Activities and Affiliations Policy, employees must report, and in some cases request pre-approval for, certain transactions, activities and affiliations that may present a conflict of interest. Moreover, employees from the Portfolio Management and Trade Management teams who are directly involved in the implementation of the Proxy Policy and members of the Proxy Committee should seek to identify, and report to the Proxy Committee, any conflict of interest related to any proposal or the Proxy Policy in general.

 

If a material conflict involving a client is deemed to exist with respect to a proposal, the Proxy Committee will generally seek to resolve such conflicts in the best interest of the applicable client by pursuing any one of the following courses of action: (i) voting (or not voting) in accordance with the Guidelines; (ii) convening a Proxy Committee meeting to assess and implement available measures; (iii) voting in accordance with the recommendation of an independent third-party service provider chosen by the Proxy Committee; (iv) voting (or not voting) in accordance with the instructions of such client; or (v) not voting with respect to the proposal if consistent with the Adviser’s fiduciary obligations.

 

In the event that an Adviser invests in a Fund with other public shareholders, the Adviser will vote the shares of such Fund in the same proportion as the votes of the other shareholders. Under this “echo voting” approach, the Adviser’s potential conflict is mitigated by replicating the voting preferences expressed by the other shareholders.

 

Client Inquiries

 

Employees must immediately forward any inquiry about DoubleLine’s proxy voting policy and practices, including historical voting records, to the Trade Management team. The Trade Management team will record the identity of the client, the date of the request, and the disposition of each request and coordinate the appropriate response with the Investor Services team or other applicable party.

 

The Adviser shall furnish the information requested, free of charge, to the client within ten (10) business days. A copy of the written response should be attached and maintained with the client’s written request, if applicable, and stored in an appropriate file. Clients can require the delivery of the proxy voting record relevant to their accounts for the five-year period prior to their request.

 

 

The Funds are required to furnish a description of the Proxy Policy within three (3) business days of receipt of a shareholder request, by first -class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery. The Funds rely upon the fund administrator to process such requests.

 

The Trade Management team shall forward to the Proxy Committee all Proxy Matter inquiries, including proxy solicitations or an Adviser’s voting intention on a pending proposal, from third parties that are not duly authorized by a client.

 

III.       Third-Party Proxy Agent

 

To assist in carrying out its proxy voting obligations, DoubleLine has retained a third-party proxy voting service provider, currently Glass, Lewis & Co. (“Glass Lewis”), as its proxy voting agent. Pursuant to an agreement with DoubleLine, Glass Lewis obtains proxy ballots related to client investments, evaluates the facts and circumstances relating to each proposal and communicates to the Adviser the recommendation from the issuer’s management (where available) and Glass Lewis’ broad recommendation. The Adviser shall vote on proposals in its discretion and in a manner consistent with the Proxy Policy or instructs Glass Lewis to do so on its behalf.

 

In the event that DoubleLine determines that a recommendation from Glass Lewis (or from any other third-party proxy voting service provider retained by DoubleLine) was based on a material factual error, DoubleLine will investigate the error, taking into account, among other things, the nature of the error and the recommendation, and seek to determine whether the vote or other actions related to the proposal would change in light of the error and whether the service provider is taking reasonable steps to reduce similar errors in the future. DoubleLine will also inform the Proxy Committee of the error to determine if it is a material compliance matter under Rule 206(4)-7 of the Advisers Act or Rule 38a-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), or if further remedial action is necessary.

 

IV.       Responsible Investment Matters

 

The Advisers integrate environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors into its research and decision-making process to gain a more holistic view of the relevant investment risks, better understand the potential drivers of performance, and strive for better risk-adjusted returns. In particular, the Advisers seek to identify and understand material ESG factors that have a potential financial impact on an issuer and the valuation of client investments. As stewards of client investments, the Advisers view proxy voting as an opportunity to influence the financial impact of such material ESG factors (if applicable) and, through the Guidelines, ensure that proposals are consistently reviewed and voted in a manner that seeks to enhance the economic value of client investments. The Advisers also may consider material ESG factors in determining how to address corporate actions and class actions.

 

V.       Limitations

 

Securities on Loan

 

The Adviser may not be able to take action with respect to a proposal when the client’s relevant securities are on loan in accordance with a securities lending program or are controlled by a securities lending agent or custodian acting independently of DoubleLine. In addition, the Adviser will not recall securities if the potential economic impact of the proposal is insignificant or less than the economic benefit gained if the securities remained on loan (such as the interest income from the loan arrangement) or if recalling the securities is otherwise not in the best interest of the client. In the event that the Adviser determines that a proposal could reasonably enhance the economic value of the client’s investment, the Adviser will make reasonable efforts to inform the client and recall the securities. Employees cannot make any representation that any securities on loan will be recalled successfully or in time for submitting a vote on a pending proposal.

 

 

 

Foreign Markets

 

In certain markets, shares of securities may be blocked or frozen at the custodian or other designated depositary for certain periods typically around the shareholder meeting date. In such cases, the Adviser cannot guarantee that the blocked securities can be processed in time for submitting a vote on a pending proposal. In addition, where the Adviser determines that there are unusual costs to the client or administrative difficulties associated with voting on a proposal, which more typically might be the case with respect to proposals involving non-U.S. issuers and foreign markets, the Adviser reserves the right to not vote on the proposal unless the Adviser determines that the potential benefits exceed the anticipated cost to the client.

 

Proofs-of-Claim

 

The Advisers do not complete proofs-of-claim on behalf of clients for current or historical holdings other than for the Funds and private funds offered by DoubleLine; however, an Adviser may provide reasonable assistance to other existing clients by sharing related information that is in the Adviser’s possession. The Advisers do not undertake to complete, or provide any assistance for, proofs-of-claim involving securities that had been held by any former client. The Advisers will complete proofs-of-claim for the Funds and private funds offered by DoubleLine or provide reasonable access to the applicable administrator to file such proofs-of-claim when appropriate.

 

Contractual Obligations

 

In certain limited circumstances, particularly in the area of structured finance, the Adviser may, on behalf of clients, enter into voting agreements or other contractual obligations that govern proxy and corporate action proposals. In the event of a conflict between any such contractual requirements and the Guidelines, the Adviser will vote in accordance with its contractual obligations.

 

VI.       Other Regulatory Matters and Responsibilities

 

Form N-PX Filings

 

A.Rule 30b1-4 under the 1940 Act requires open-end and closed-end management investment companies to file an annual record of proxies voted on Form N-PX. The Funds shall file Form N-PX in compliance with Rule 30b1-4, including certain new requirements which include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

Identification of Proxy Voting Matters – funds must use the same language as the issuer’s proxy card (where a proxy card is required under Rule 14a-4 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the “Exchange Act”); and if the matter relates to an election of directors, identify each director separately in the same order as on the proxy card, even if the election of directors is presented as a single matter.

 

Categorization of Voting Matters – funds are required to categorize the votes reported on Form N-PX consistent with a list of categories outlined in the amended form. The categories will be non-exclusive, and funds must select all categories applicable to each proxy matter.

 

Quantitative Disclosures and Securities Lending – funds must disclose the number of shares voted or instructed to be cast (if the fund had not received confirmation of the actual number of votes cast) and how those shares were voted (e.g., for, against or abstain). If the votes were cast in multiple manners (e.g., both for and against), funds will be required to disclose the number of shares voted or instructed to be voted in each manner. Additionally, funds must disclose the number of shares loaned but not recalled and, therefore, not voted by the fund.

 

Structured Data Language – funds must file their reports using a custom XML format.
 

 

Joint Reporting – funds are permitted to report on its Form N-PX on behalf of a series or a manager so long as the fund presents the complete voting record of each included series separately and provide the required quantitative information for each included manager separately. Funds must also provide certain information (generally, their name and other identifying information such as their legal entity identifier) in the summary page about the included series or managers.

 

Standardized Order – funds must submit information based on the specific Form N-PX format and standardized order of disclosure requirements.

 

Fund Notice Reports – funds are now permitted to indicate on the cover page of Form N-PX if no securities were subject to a vote and, therefore, do not have any proxy votes to report.

 

Website Posting – funds that have a website must make the most recently filed Form N-PX report publicly available as soon as reasonably practicable. Funds may satisfy the requirement by providing a direct link to the relevant HTML-rendered Form N-PX report on EDGAR.

 

B.Rule 14Ad-1 under the Exchange Act requires institutional investment managers subject to section 13(f) of the Exchange Act, which may include certain Advisers, to report annually on Form N-PX how the managers voted proxies relating to executive compensation matters (commonly referred to as “say-on-pay” votes). When reporting say-on-pay votes, managers are required to comply with the other requirements of Form N-PX for their say-on-pay votes (including the new requirements as described above, except that a manager is not required to disclose or provide access to its proxy voting records on its website).

 

The Legal team shall be primarily responsible for DoubleLine’s Form N-PX filings. DoubleLine may rely on the applicable fund administrator or other service provider to prepare and submit required Form N-PX filings. The Trade Management team shall assist the Legal team and, as necessary, the relevant service provider by furnishing complete and accurate information required under Form N-PX (including by causing such information to be provided by any third-party proxy voting service provider). Form N-PX must be filed each year no later than August 31 and must contain applicable proxy voting records for the most recent twelve-month period ending June 30.

 

Proxy Voting Disclosures

 

The Legal team will ensure that (i) a concise summary of the Proxy Policy which includes how conflicts of interest are addressed, and (ii) instructions for obtaining a copy of the Proxy Policy and accessing relevant proxy voting records free of charge (e.g., via a toll-free telephone number, the Funds’ website, etc.) are provided within each Adviser’s Form ADV Part 2A and the Funds’ Statement of Additional Information, registration statement and Form N-CSR, in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

 

VII.       Policy Governance

 

DoubleLine established the Proxy Voting Committee to help ensure compliance with the Proxy Policy. The Proxy Committee, whose members include the Chief Risk Officer and the Chief Compliance Officer (or their respective designees), meets on an as-needed basis. The Proxy Committee will (i) monitor compliance with the Proxy Policy, including by periodically sampling Proxy Matters for review, (ii) review, no less frequently than annually, the adequacy of the Proxy Policy to ensure it has been effectively implemented and that it continues to be designed to ensure that Proxy Matters are addressed in a manner that promotes the best interest of clients, (iii) periodically review, as needed, the adequacy and effectiveness of Glass Lewis or other third-party proxy voting service provider retained by DoubleLine, and (iv) review conflicts of interest that may arise under the Proxy Policy, including changes to the businesses of DoubleLine or the service provider retained by DoubleLine to determine whether those changes present new or additional conflicts of interest that should be addressed pursuant to the Proxy Policy.

 

The Proxy Committee shall have primary responsibility for managing DoubleLine’s relationship with Glass Lewis and any other third-party proxy voting service provider, including overseeing their compliance with the Proxy Policy, as well as reviewing periodically instances in which Glass Lewis does not provide a recommendation with respect to a proposal, or when Glass Lewis commits material errors.

 

 

VIII.       Books and Records

 

The Trade Management team shall maintain all proxy voting records whether internally or through a third party in compliance with Rule 204-2 of the Advisers Act. The Trade Management team will maintain records which include, but are not limited to: (i) copies of each proxy statement that each Adviser receives regarding securities held by clients; (ii) a record of each vote that each Adviser cast on behalf of each client; (iii) any documentation that is material to each Adviser’s decision on voting a proxy or that describes the basis for that decision; (iv) a written description of each Adviser’s analysis when deciding to vote a proxy in a manner inconsistent with the Guidelines or when an Adviser has identified a material conflict of interest, (v) each written request from a client for information about how the Adviser voted proxies; and (vi) the Adviser’s written response to each client oral or written request for such information. The Trade Management team shall also ensure that comparable documentation related to corporate actions and class actions involving client investments is maintained.

 

The Legal team shall maintain investment management agreements which may include the Adviser’s written authorization to process Proxy Matters or client-specified proxy voting guidelines.

 

DoubleLine must maintain all books and records described in the Proxy Policy for a period of not less than five (5) years from the end of the fiscal year during which the last entry was made on such record, the first two (2) years of which shall be onsite at its place of business.

 

 

History of Amendments:

 

Effective as of August 2023

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET and DoubleLine Closed-End Funds: August 17, 2023

 

Effective as of August 2022

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET and Closed-End Funds: August 18, 2022

 

Updated and effective as of May 2022

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET and Closed-End Funds: May 19, 2022

 

Updated and effective as of February 15, 2022

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET, DSL, DBL and DLY: February 15, 2022

 

Updated and effective as of January 2022

Effective as of January 2021

Approved by the boards of DFT, DSL, DBL and DLY: December 15, 2020

Last reviewed December 2020

 

Updated and effective as of February 2020

Approved by the boards of DFT, DSL, DBL and DLY: November 21, 2019

Last reviewed November 2019

 

Reviewed and approved by the Boards of the DoubleLine Funds Trust, DoubleLine Equity Funds, DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund and DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund: August 20, 2015

 

Adopted by the DoubleLine Equity Funds Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Equity Funds Board: May 22, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Equity Funds Board: November 20, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Equity Funds Board: August 21, 2014

Adopted by the DoubleLine Income Solutions Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Income Solutions Board of Trustees: May 22, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Income Solutions Board of Trustees: November 20, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Income Solutions Board of Trustees: August 21, 2014

 

Adopted by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: August 24, 2011

Renewed and approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: May 22, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: November 20, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: August 21, 2014

 

Adopted by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: March 25, 2010

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: March 1, 2011

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: August 25, 2011

Renewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: May 22, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: November 20, 2013

Renewed, reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Funds Trust Board: August 21, 2014

 

 

Attachment A to the Proxy Voting, Corporate Actions and Class Actions Policy

Effective July 1, 2023

 

Guidelines

 

The Advisers have a fiduciary duty to clients, and shall exercise diligence and care, with respect to its proxy voting authority. Accordingly, the Advisers will review each proposal to determine the relevant facts and circumstances and adopt the following guidelines as a framework for analysis in seeking to maximize the value of client investments. The guidelines do not address all potential voting matters and actual votes by the Advisers may vary based on specific facts and circumstances.

 

A.       Director Elections

 

Directors play a critical role in ensuring that the company and its management serve the interests of its shareholders by providing leadership and appropriate oversight. We believe that the board of directors should have the requisite industry knowledge, business acumen and understanding of company stakeholders in order to discharge its duties effectively.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Frequency of Elections

Electing all directors annually.

  For

Uncontested Elections

Voting management nominees, unless the nominee lacks independence or focus, has had chronic absences or presents other material concerns to the detriment of the effectiveness of the board.

  For

Majority Voting

Allowing majority voting unless incumbent directors must resign if they do not receive a majority vote in an uncontested election.

  For

Cumulative Voting

Allowing cumulative voting unless the company previously adopted a majority voting policy.

  For

Changes in Board Structure

Changing the board structure, such as the process for vacancies or director nominations, or the board size, unless there is an indication that the change is an anti-takeover device, or it diminishes shareholder rights.

  For

Stock Ownership

Requiring directors to own company shares.

X Against

Contested Elections

The qualifications of nominees on both slates, management track record and strategic plan for enhancing shareholder value, and company financial performance generally will be considered when voting nominees in a contested election.

X Case-by-Case
 

 

B.       Section 14A Say-On-Pay Votes

 

Current law requires companies to allow shareholders to cast non-binding advisory votes on the compensation for named executive officers, including the frequency of such votes. The Advisers generally support proposals for annual votes, as well as the ratification of executive compensation unless the compensation structure or any prior actions taken by the board or compensation committee warrant a case-by-case analysis.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Frequency of Say-On-Pay Votes

Annual shareholder advisory votes regarding executive compensation.

X For

Compensation Disclosures

Seeking additional disclosures related to executive and director pay unless similar information is already provided in existing disclosures or reporting.

X For

Executive Compensation Advisory

Executive compensation proposals generally will be assessed based on its structure, prevailing industry practice and benchmarks, and any problematic prior pay practices or related issues involving the board/compensation committee.

X Case-by-Case

Golden Parachute Advisory

Golden parachute proposals, in general, will be assessed based on the existing change-in-control arrangements, the nature and terms of the triggering event(s) and the amount to be paid.

X Case-by-Case

 

C.       Audit-Related

 

The Advisers generally support proposals for the selection or ratification of independent auditors, subject to a consideration of any conflicts of interest, poor accounting practices or inaccurate prior opinions and related fees.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Appointment of Auditors

Selecting or ratifying independent auditors, unless there is a material conflict of interest, a history of poor accounting practice or inaccurate opinions, or excessive fees.

  For

Non-Audit/Consulting Services

Other alternative service providers, conflicts of interest, and company disclosures are areas of consideration when voting proposals to limit other engagements with auditors.

X Case-by-Case

Indemnification of Auditors

Indemnification of auditors generally will be assessed based on the nature of the engagement, the auditor’s work history and field of expertise, and the terms of the agreement such as its impact on the ability of shareholders to pursue legal recourse against the auditor for certain acts or omissions.

X Case-by-Case
 

 

Rotation of Auditors

Shareholder proposals requiring auditor rotation generally will be assessed based on any audit issues involving the company, the auditor’s tenure with the company, and policies and practices surrounding auditor evaluations.

X Case-by-Case

 

D.       Investment Company Matters

 

When the Advisers invest in a DoubleLine Fund with other public shareholders, the Advisers will vote the shares of such fund in the same proportion as the votes of the other shareholders. Under this “echo voting” approach, the Advisers’ potential conflict is mitigated by replicating the voting preferences expressed by the other shareholders. With respect to specific proposals involving the DoubleLine Funds, the Advisers generally support recommendations by the fund’s board unless applicable laws and regulations prohibit the Advisers from doing so.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote
Share Classes Issuance of new classes or series of shares.   For

Investment Objectives

Changing a fundamental investment objective to nonfundamental.

  Against

Investment Restrictions

Changing fundamental restrictions to nonfundamental generally will be assessed in consideration of the target investments, reason(s) for the change and its impact on the portfolio.

  Case-by-Case

Distribution Agreements

Distribution agreements generally will be assessed based on the distributor’s services and reputation, applicable fees, and other terms of the agreement.

  Case-by-Case

Investment Advisory Agreements

Investment advisory agreements generally will be assessed based on the applicable fees, fund category and investment objective, and performance.

  Case-by-Case

 

E.       Shareholder Rights and Defenses

 

The Advisers believe that companies have a fundamental obligation to protect the rights of shareholders. Therefore, the Advisers generally support proposals that hold the board and management accountable in serving the best interest of shareholders and that uphold their rights. However, the Advisers generally will not support proposals from certain shareholders that are hostile, disruptive, or are otherwise counter to the best interest of the Advisers’ clients.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Appraisal Rights

Providing shareholders with rights of appraisal.

X For

Fair Price Provision

Fair price provisions that ensures each shareholder’s securities will be purchased at the same price if the company is acquired in disagreement with the board. However, fair price provisions may not be supported if it is used as an anti-takeover device by the board.

X For
 

 

Special Meetings

Providing or restoring rights to call a special meeting so long as the threshold to call a meeting is no less than 10 percent of outstanding shares.

X For

Confidential Voting

Allowing shareholders to vote confidentially.

X For

Written Consents

Allowing shareholders to act by written consent.

X For

Greenmail

Adopting anti-greenmail charter or bylaw amendments or otherwise restricting the company’s ability to make greenmail payments for repurchasing shares at a premium to prevent a hostile takeover.

X For

Supermajority Vote

Requiring a supermajority vote, unless there are disproportionate substantial shareholders that weaken minority votes.

  Against

Bundled Proposals

Bundled or conditional proposals generally will be reviewed to determine the benefit or cost of the matters included or if there is a controversy or any matter that is adverse to shareholder interests.

  Case-by-Case

Preemptive Rights

Preemptive rights, in general, will be assessed based on the size of the company and its shareholder base, for which larger publicly held companies with a broad shareholder base may be less ideal.

  Case-by-Case

Shareholder Rights Plans (Poison Pills)

Poison pills generally will be assessed based on the company’s governance practices, existing takeover defenses, and the terms of the plan, including the triggering mechanism, duration, and redemption/rescission features. Requests to have shareholders ratify plans generally will be supported.

X Case-by-Case

 

F.      Extraordinary Transactions

 

Proposals for transactions that may affect the ownership interests or voting rights of shareholders, such as mergers, asset sales and corporate or debt restructuring, will be assessed on a case-by-case basis generally in consideration of the economic outcome for shareholders, the potential dilution of shareholder rights and its impact on corporate governance, among other relevant factors.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Reincorporation

Reincorporating in another state or country in support of the rights and economic interests of shareholders.

  For

Merger, Corporate Restructuring and Spin Offs

Merger, corporate restructuring and spin off proposals generally will be assessed with the view of maximizing the economic value of shareholder interests. The purchase or sale price and other deal terms will be reviewed, among other factors, to ensure that that the transaction is aligned with the long-term interests of shareholders.

  Case-by-Case
 

 

Debt Restructuring

The terms of the transaction, current capital markets environment, and conflicts of interest are factors that generally will be considered for ensuring that the proposal enhances the economic value of shareholder interests.

  Case-by-Case

Liquidations and Asset Sales

As with other transaction proposals, the long-term economic impact of the transaction will be the focus of review of such proposals and, in general, factors such as the sale price, costs and conflicts of interest will be considered.

  Case-by-Case

 

G.     Capital Structure

 

The Advisers believe that the prudent management of debt and equity to finance company operations and growth, and which is supportive of shareholders’ rights and economic interests, is critical to financial viability.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Common Stock

Issuing common stock for recapitalizations, stock splits, dividends or otherwise reasonably amending outstanding shares for a specific purpose.

  For

Multi-Class Shares

Adopting multi-class share structures so long as they have equal voting rights.

  For

Repurchase Programs

Adopting plans to repurchase shares in the open market unless shareholders cannot participate on equal terms.

  For

Blank Check Preferred Stock

Allowing the board to issue preferred shares without prior shareholder approval and setting the terms and voting rights of preferred shares at the board’s discretion.

  Against

Recapitalization Plans

The rationale and objectives; current capital markets environment; impact on shareholder interests including conversion terms, dividends and voting rights; and any material conflicts of interest are factors that generally will be considered when reviewing proposals to reclassify debt or equity capital.

  Case-by-Case

 

H. Compensation

 

The Advisers believe that compensation arrangements should align the economic interests of directors, management, and employees with those of shareholders and consider factors such as (1) local norms, (2) industry-specific practices and performance benchmarks, and (3) the structure of base and incentive compensation. The Advisers generally support transparency (e.g., disclosures related to the performance metrics and how they promote better corporate performance, etc.) and periodic reporting with respect to compensation.

 

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Employee 401 (k) Plan

Adopting a 401 (k) plan for employees.

  For

Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP)

Requiring shareholder approval to adopt a broad-based ESOP or to increase outstanding shares for an existing plan unless the allocation of outstanding shares to the ESOP exceeds five percent or 10 percent among all stock-based plans.

  For

Recoupment Provisions (Clawbacks)

Adopting clawback provisions in cases of revised financial results or performance indicators on which prior compensation payments were based, as well as for willful misconduct or violations of law or regulation that result in financial or reputational harm to the company.

X For

Limits on Executive or Director Compensation

Setting limits on executive or director compensation unless there is a substantial deviation from industry practice or any problematic issue involving the board/compensation committee or prior pay practices.

X Against

Equity-Based and Other Incentive Plans

Incentive plans, in general, will be assessed based on the prevailing local and industry-specific practices and performance benchmarks, the terms of the plan and whether they are aligned with company goals and shareholder interests, the cost of the plan, and the overall compensation structure.

  Case-by-Case

Severance Agreements for Executives (Golden Parachutes)

Golden parachutes generally will be assessed based on the existing change-in-control arrangements, the nature and terms of the triggering event(s) and the amount to be paid.

  Case-by-Case

 

I.       Corporate Governance

 

The Advisers believe that authority and accountability for establishing business strategies, corporate policies and compensation generally should rest with the board and management. The independence, qualifications, and integrity of the board as well as the effectiveness of management and their oversight, which must be aligned with shareholder interests, are essential to good governance. The following general guidelines reflect these principles although material environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, which have a potential financial impact on the company and the valuation of client investments, if any, are also considered.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Quorum Requirements

Establishing a majority requirement, unless shareholder turnout has been an issue, or a reduced quorum is reasonable based on applicable laws or regulations and the market capitalization or ownership structure of the company.

  For

Annual Meetings

Changing the date, time, or location of annual meetings, unless the proposed schedule or location is unreasonable.

  For
 

 

Board Size

Setting the board size, so long as the proposal is consistent with the prevailing industry practice and applicable laws or regulations.

  For

Proxy Access

Allowing shareholders to nominate director candidates in proxy ballots with reasonable limitations (e.g., minimum percentage and duration of ownership and a cap on board representation) for preventing potential abuse by certain shareholders.

X For

Independent Directors

Requiring the board chair and a majority of directors to be independent directors. Proposals for a lead independent director may be supported in cases where the board chair is not independent.

X For

Independent Committees

Requiring independent directors exclusively for the audit, compensation, nominating and governance committees.

X For

Removal of Directors

Removing a director without cause.

X For

Indemnification of Directors and Officers

Indemnifying directors and officers for acts and omissions made in good faith and were believed to be in the best interest of the company. Limitations on liability involving willful misconduct or violations of law or regulation, or a breach of fiduciary duty, generally will be voted against.

  For

Term Limits for Directors

Imposing term limits on directors unless the director evaluation process is ineffective and related issues persist.

X Against
Classified Boards Establishing a classified board.   Against

Adjournment of Meetings

Providing management the authority to adjourn annual or special meetings without reasonable grounds.

  Against

Amendments to Bylaws

Giving the board the authority to amend bylaws without shareholder approval.

  Against

 

J.       Environment or Climate

 

The Advisers would generally consider the recommendations of management for shareholder proposals involving environmental issues as it believes that, in most cases, elected directors and management are in the best position to address such matters. In addition, reporting that provides meaningful information for evaluating the financial impact of environmental policies and practices is generally supported unless it is unduly costly or burdensome or it places the company at a competitive disadvantage. Material ESG factors, which have a potential financial impact on the company and the valuation of client investments, if any, are also considered.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Environmental and Climate Disclosures

Providing environmental/climate-related disclosures and reporting unless it is duplicative or unsuitable.

  For
 

 

Environmental and Climate Policies

Environmental and climate policies generally will be assessed based on the company’s related governance practices, local and industry-specific practices, the nature and extent of environmental and climate risks applicable to the company, and the economic benefit to shareholders.

  Case-by-Case

 

K.      Human Rights or Human Capital/Workforce

 

The Advisers would generally consider the recommendations of management for shareholder proposals involving social issues as it believes that, in most cases, elected directors and management are in the best position to address such matters. In addition, reporting that provides meaningful information for evaluating the financial impact of social policies and practices is generally supported unless it is unduly costly or burdensome or it places the company at a competitive disadvantage. Material ESG factors, which have a potential financial impact on the company and the valuation of client investments, if any, are also considered.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Human Rights and Labor Disclosures

Providing human rights and labor-related disclosures and reporting unless it is duplicative or unsuitable.

  For

Human Rights and Labor Policies

Human rights and labor policies generally will be assessed based on the company’s related governance practices, applicable law or regulations, local and industry-specific practices, the nature and extent of supply chain or reputational risks applicable to the company, and their economic benefit to shareholders.

  Case-by-Case

 

L.       Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

 

The Advisers generally support reporting that provides meaningful information for evaluating the financial impact of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies and practices unless it is unduly costly or burdensome. For policy proposals, the Advisers will consider existing policies, regulations and applicable local standards and best practices, to determine if they provide an added benefit to shareholders. Material ESG factors, which have a potential financial impact on the company and the valuation of client investments, if any, are also considered.

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

DEI Disclosures

Providing Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO-1) Reports, and other additional disclosures or reporting unless it is duplicative or unsuitable.

  For

Anti-Discrimination Policy

Adopting an anti-discrimination and harassment policy.

  For

Other DEI Policies

Other DEI policies generally will be assessed based on the company’s related governance practices, applicable law or regulations, and local and industry-specific practices.

  Case-by-Case
 

 

M. Other Social Issues

 

Proposal Shareholder Proposal Anticipated Vote

Political Contribution and Activities

Political contributions and lobbying activities generally will be reviewed in consideration of legal restrictions and requirements, applicable policies and historical practice, and its cost-benefit to the company. Related disclosures to shareholders generally are supported.

  Case-by-Case

Charitable Contributions

Charitable contributions, in general, will be reviewed in consideration of applicable policies and historical practice, conflicts of interests, as well as the cost-benefit of charitable spending. Related disclosures to shareholders generally are supported.

  Case-by-Case
 

 

 

Item 13. Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

 

(a)(1) The following provides biographical information about the individuals who are primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Registrant’s portfolio (“Portfolio Managers”) as of the date of this filing:

 

Jeffrey E. Gundlach (Portfolio Manager since the Fund’s inception)

 

Mr. Jeffrey E. Gundlach is the founder and Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”). Mr. Gundlach has been Chief Executive Officer of DoubleLine since its inception in December 2009.

 

Jeffrey J. Sherman (Portfolio Manager since the Fund’s inception)

 

Mr. Sherman was named as DoubleLine Capital’s Deputy Chief Investment Officer in June 2016. He has been a Portfolio Manager of DoubleLine Capital since September 2010. He has been President of DoubleLine Alternatives LP since April 2015.

 

 

(a)(2) The following provides information on other accounts managed on a day-to-day basis by the Portfolio Managers listed above as of September 30, 2024:

 

Name of Portfolio Manager Number of Accounts Total Assets of
Accounts ($ millions)
Number of Accounts
Subject to a Performance
Fee
Total Assets of Accounts
Subject to a Performance
Fee ($ millions)
Jeffrey E. Gundlach        
Registered investment companies 32 $66,602 - -
Other pooled investment vehicles 22 $7,216 2 $731
Other accounts 68 $16,939 3 $1,803
Jeffrey J. Sherman        
Registered investment companies 24 $33,429 - -
Other pooled investment vehicles 14 $3,567 - -
Other accounts 16 $3,808 - -

 

Conflicts of Interest

 

From time to time, potential and actual conflicts of interest may arise between a portfolio manager’s management of the investments of the Fund, on the one hand, and the management of other accounts, on the other. Potential and actual conflicts of interest also may result because of the Adviser’s other business activities. Other accounts managed by a portfolio manager might have similar investment objectives or strategies as the Fund, be managed (benchmarked) against the same index the Fund tracks, or otherwise hold, purchase, or sell securities that are eligible to be held, purchased or sold by the Fund. The other accounts might also have different investment objectives or strategies than the Fund.

 

Knowledge and Timing of Fund Trades. A potential conflict of interest may arise as a result of the portfolio managers’ management of the Fund. Because of their positions with the Fund, the portfolio managers know the size, timing and possible market impact of the Fund’s trades. It is theoretically possible that a portfolio manager could use this information to the advantage of other accounts under management, and also theoretically possible that actions could be taken (or not taken) to the detriment of the Fund.

 

 

Investment Opportunities. A potential conflict of interest may arise as a result of a portfolio manager’s management of a number of accounts with varying investment guidelines. Often, an investment opportunity may be suitable for both the Fund and other accounts managed by the portfolio manager, but securities may not be available in sufficient quantities for both the Fund and the other accounts to participate fully. Similarly, there may be limited opportunity to sell an investment held by the Fund and another account. The Adviser has adopted policies and procedures reasonably designed to allocate investment opportunities on a fair and equitable basis over time.

 

Under the Adviser’s allocation procedures, investment opportunities are allocated among various investment strategies based on individual account investment guidelines, the Adviser’s investment outlook, cash availability and a series of other factors. The Adviser has also adopted additional internal practices to complement the general trade allocation policy that are designed to address potential conflicts of interest due to the side-by-side management of the Fund and certain pooled investment vehicles, including investment opportunity allocation issues. Conflicts potentially limiting the Fund’s investment opportunities may also arise when the Fund and other clients of the Adviser invest in different parts of an issuer’s capital structure, such as when the Fund owns senior debt obligations of an issuer and other clients own junior tranches of the same issuer. In such circumstances, decisions over whether to trigger an event of default, over the terms of any workout, or how to exit an investment may result in conflicts of interest. In order to minimize such conflicts, a portfolio manager may avoid certain investment opportunities that would potentially give rise to conflicts with other clients of the Adviser or the Adviser may enact internal procedures designed to minimize such conflicts, which could have the effect of limiting the Fund’s investment opportunities. Additionally, if the Adviser acquires material non-public confidential information in connection with its business activities for other clients, a portfolio manager or other investment personnel may be restricted from purchasing securities or selling certain securities for the Fund or other clients. When making investment decisions where a conflict of interest may arise, the Adviser will endeavor to act in a fair and equitable manner between the Fund and other clients; however, in certain instances the resolution of the conflict may result in the Adviser acting on behalf of another client in a manner that may not be in the best interest, or may be opposed to the best interest, of the Fund.

 

Broad and Wide-Ranging Activities. The portfolio managers, the Adviser and its affiliates engage in a broad spectrum of activities. In the ordinary course of their business activities, the portfolio managers, the Adviser and its affiliates may engage in activities where the interests of certain divisions of the Adviser and its affiliates or the interests of their clients may conflict with the interests of the shareholders of the Fund.

 

Possible Future Activities. The Adviser and its affiliates may expand the range of services that it provides over time. Except as provided herein, the Adviser and its affiliates will not be restricted in the scope of its business or in the performance of any such services (whether now offered or undertaken in the future) even if such activities could give rise to conflicts of interest, and whether or not such conflicts are described herein. The Adviser and its affiliates have, and will continue to develop, relationships with a significant number of companies, financial sponsors and their senior managers, including relationships with clients who may hold or may have held investments similar to those intended to be made by the Fund. These clients may themselves represent appropriate investment opportunities for the Fund or may compete with the Fund for investment opportunities.

 

 

Performance Fees and Personal Investments. A portfolio manager may advise certain accounts with respect to which the advisory fee is based entirely or partially on performance or in respect of which the portfolio manager may have made a significant personal investment. Such circumstances may create a conflict of interest for a portfolio manager in that the portfolio manager may have an incentive to allocate the investment opportunities that he or she believes might be the most profitable to such other accounts instead of allocating them to the Fund. The Adviser has adopted policies and procedures reasonably designed to allocate investment opportunities between the Fund and performance fee based accounts on a fair and equitable basis over time.

 

Use of Leverage. During periods in which the Fund is using leverage, the fees paid to the Adviser for investment advisory services, which may directly or indirectly affect the portfolio managers’ compensation, will be higher than if the Fund did not use leverage because the fees paid will be calculated on the basis of the Fund’s total managed assets, including assets attributable to reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions and/or borrowings, and to any preferred shares that may be outstanding, which may create an incentive for a portfolio manager to leverage the Fund or to leverage using strategies that increase the Adviser’s fee.

 

(a)(3) The following describes how the Adviser is compensated as of September 30, 2024:

 

The Fund pays a monthly fee to the Adviser, computed and paid at the annual rate (as a percentage of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets) of 1.35%. “Total managed assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and/or preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities representing reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and/or borrowings). For purposes of calculating “total managed assets,” the liquidation preference of any preferred shares outstanding is not considered a liability. With respect to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar rolls or similar transactions, “total managed assets” also includes any proceeds from the sale of an asset of the Fund to a counterparty in such a transaction, in addition to the value of the asset so sold as of the relevant measuring date. The average daily total managed assets of the Fund for any month is determined by taking an average of all of the determinations of total managed assets during such month at the close of business on each business day during such month.

 

The overall objective of the compensation program for portfolio managers is for the Adviser to attract competent and expert investment professionals and to retain them over the long-term. Compensation is comprised of several components which, in the aggregate are designed to achieve these objectives and to reward the portfolio managers for their contribution to the success of their clients and the Adviser. Portfolio managers are compensated through a combination of base salary, discretionary bonus and equity participation in the Adviser. Bonuses and equity generally represent most of the portfolio managers’ compensation. However, in some cases, portfolio managers may have a profit sharing interest in the revenue or income related to the areas for which the portfolio managers are responsible. Such profit sharing arrangements can comprise a significant portion of a portfolio manager’s overall compensation.

 

Salary. Salary is agreed to with managers at time of employment and is reviewed from time to time. It does not change significantly and often does not constitute a significant part of a portfolio manager’s compensation.

 

 

Discretionary Bonus/Guaranteed Minimums. Portfolio managers receive discretionary bonuses. However, in some cases, pursuant to contractual arrangements, some portfolio managers may be entitled to a mandatory minimum bonus if the sum of their salary and profit sharing does not reach certain levels.

 

Equity Incentives. Portfolio managers may participate in equity incentives based on overall firm performance of the Adviser, through direct ownership interests in the Adviser or participation in stock option or stock appreciation plans of Adviser. These ownership interests or participation interests provide eligible portfolio managers the opportunity to participate in the financial performance of the Adviser as a whole. Participation is generally determined in the discretion of Adviser, taking into account factors relevant to a portfolio manager’s contribution to the success of Adviser.

 

Other Plans and Compensation Vehicles. Portfolio managers may elect to participate in the Adviser’s 401(k) plan, to which they may contribute a portion of their pre- and post-tax compensation to the plan for investment on a tax-deferred basis. The Adviser may also choose, from time to time to offer certain other compensation plans and vehicles, such as a deferred compensation plan, to portfolio managers.

 

Summary. As described above, an investment professional’s total compensation is determined through a subjective process that evaluates numerous quantitative and qualitative factors, including the contribution made to the overall investment process. Not all factors apply to each investment professional and there is no particular weighting or formula for considering certain factors. Among the factors considered are: relative investment performance of portfolios (although there are no specific benchmarks or periods of time used in measuring performance); complexity of investment strategies; participation in the investment team’s dialogue; contribution to business results and overall business strategy; success of marketing/business development efforts and client servicing; seniority/length of service with the firm; management and supervisory responsibilities; and fulfillment of the Adviser’s leadership criteria.

 

(a)(4) The following provides information about the dollar range of equity securities in the Registrant beneficially owned by the Portfolio Managers as of September 30, 2024:

 

  Aggregate Dollar Range of Beneficial
Portfolio Manager Ownership in the Registrant
Jeffrey E. Gundlach None
Jeffery J. Sherman None
   

Item 14. Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers.

 

There were no purchases made by or on behalf of the Registrant or any “affiliated purchaser,” as defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, of shares of the Registrant’s equity securities that are registered by the Registrant pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act made in the period covered by this report.

 

Item 15. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.

There have been no material changes to the procedures by which shareholders may recommend nominees to the Registrant’s board of trustees. 

 

 

Item 16. Controls and Procedures.

 

(a)The Registrant’s Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer have reviewed the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Act”)) as of a date within 90 days of the filing of this report, as required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the Act and Rules 13a-15(b) or 15d-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Based on their review, such officers have concluded that the disclosure controls and procedures are effective in ensuring that information required to be disclosed in this report is appropriately recorded, processed, summarized and reported and made known to them by others within the Registrant and by the Registrant’s service provider.

 

(b)There were no changes in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Act) that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Item 17. Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies

 

The Registrant did not engage in securities lending activities during the fiscal year reported on this Form N-CSR.

 

Item 18. Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation.

 

(a) Not applicable.

 

(b) Not applicable.

 

Item 19. Exhibits.

 

(a)(1) Any code of ethics or amendment thereto, that is the subject of the disclosure required by Item 2, to the extent that the Registrant intends to satisfy Item 2 requirements through filing an exhibit. Filed herewith.

 

(2) Any policy required by the listing standards adopted pursuant to Rule 10D-1 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240. 10D-1) by the registered national securities exchange or registered national securities association upon which the Registrant’s securities are listed. Not applicable.

 

(3) A separate certification for each Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer of the Registrant as required by Rule 30a-2(a) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (17 CFR 270.30a-2(a)). Filed herewith.

 

(4) Any written solicitation to purchase securities under Rule 23c-1 under the Act sent or given during the period covered by the report by or on behalf of the Registrant to 10 or more persons. Not applicable.

 

 

(5) Change in the Registrant’s independent public accountant. There was no change in the Registrant’s independent public accountant for the period covered by this report.

 

(b)Certifications pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Furnished herewith.

 

(c)

CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

 

We consent to the incorporation by reference in Registration Statement No. 333-273025 on Form N-2 of our report dated November 20, 2024, relating to the financial statements and financial highlights of DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund and appearing in this Annual Report on Form N-CSR for the year ended September 30, 2024.

 

/s/ Deloitte & Touche LLP

 

Costa Mesa, California

November 20, 2024

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

  (Registrant) DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund  
       
  By (Signature and Title)*   /s/ Ronald R. Redell  
    Ronald R. Redell, President and Chief Executive Officer  

 

  Date 11/29/2024  

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

  By (Signature and Title)*   /s/ Ronald R. Redell  
    Ronald R. Redell, President and Chief Executive Officer  

 

  Date 11/29/2024  

  

  By (Signature and Title)*   /s/ Henry V. Chase  
    Henry V. Chase, Treasurer and  
    Principal Financial and Accounting Officer  

 

  Date 11/29/2024  
 

EX.99CODE

 

DoubleLine Funds Trust

DoubleLine ETF Trust

DoubleLine Closed-End Funds

SUPPLEMENTAL CODE OF ETHICS

FOR

PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE, FINANCIAL AND ACCOUNTING OFFICERS

This Supplemental Code of Ethics (the “Code”) has been adopted by the applicable Board of Trustees (each a “Board” and collectively the “Boards”) of the DoubleLine Funds Trust (“DFT”), the DoubleLine ETF Trust (“DET”), the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund (“DBL”), the DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund (“DSL”), and the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund (“DLY” and with DBL and DSL, the “DoubleLine Closed-End Funds” and with DFT and DET, each, the “Trust” and together the “Trusts”) so that each principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller and any persons performing similar functions on behalf of the Trusts (collectively, the “Officers”), regardless of whether such persons are employed by the Trusts, or a third party, will be guided and reminded of their responsibilities to the Trusts, other officers, shareholders of DET, DBL, DSL, DLY or of the various series of the Trust (each a “Fund” and collectively with DET, DBL, DSL, and DLY, the “Funds”), and governmental authorities. Officers are required to act in accordance with the guidance and standards set forth in this Code. Officers covered by this Code are listed in Appendix A.

This Code is intended to serve as the code of ethics described in Section 406 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and Form N-CSR. To the extent that an Officer is subject to a Trust’s, code of ethics adopted pursuant to Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Rule 17j-1 Code”), this Code is intended to supplement and be interpreted in the context of the Rule 17j-1 Code. This Code also should be interpreted in the context of all applicable laws, regulations, a Trust’s governing instruments and by-laws, as amended, and all other governance and disclosure policies and documents adopted by such Trust’s Board. All Officers must become familiar and fully comply with this Code. Because this Code cannot and does not cover every applicable law or provide answers to all questions that might arise, all Officers are expected to use their best judgment about any particular course of action and to seek guidance as needed.

The purpose of this Code is to set standards for the Officers that are reasonably designed to deter wrongdoing and that promote:

 

   

honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships;

 

 

   

full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that a Trust files with, or submits to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and in other public communications by a Trust;

 

   

compliance with applicable governmental laws, rules and regulations;

 

   

the prompt internal reporting of violations of the Code to the appropriate persons as set forth in the Code; and

 

   

accountability for adherence to the Code.

 

1.

HONEST AND ETHICAL CONDUCT

 

  a.

Honesty, Diligence and Professional Responsibility

Officers are expected to observe both the form and the spirit of the ethical principles contained in this Code. Officers must perform their duties and responsibilities for each Trust:

 

   

with honesty, diligence, and a commitment to professional and ethical responsibility;

 

   

carefully, thoroughly and in a timely manner; and

 

   

in conformity with applicable professional and technical standards.

Officers who are certified public accountants are expected carry out their duties and responsibilities in a manner consistent with the principles governing the accounting profession, including any guidelines or principles issued by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board or the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants from time to time.

 

  b.

Objectivity / Avoidance of Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest

In the performance of their duties and responsibilities for a Trust, Officers must not subordinate their judgment to personal gain and advantage, or be unduly influenced by their own interests or by the interests of persons other than a Trust.

Officers should be sensitive to the possibility of conflicts of interest, whether real or apparent, and are required to disclose any actual or apparent conflicts of interest that reasonably could be expected to give rise to any violation of this Code or call into question the Officer’s objectivity. While it is impossible to describe all conflicts that may arise, a conflict should be considered to exist whenever an Officer participates, directly or indirectly, in any material investment, interest, association, activity or relationship that a reasonable observer would view as likely to impair the Officer’s objectivity. Disclosure of conflicts should be made to the Chief Compliance Officer or other appropriate senior executive or to a member of the Board. Officers that are unsure whether a particular fact pattern gives rise to a conflict of interest or whether a particular transaction or relationship is “material” should bring such matter to the attention of the Chief Compliance Officer.

 

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  c.

Preparation of Financial Statements

Officers must not knowingly make any misrepresentations regarding a Fund’s financial statements or any facts in the preparation of a Fund’s financial statements, and must comply with all applicable laws, standards, principles, guidelines, rules and regulations in the preparation of the Fund’s financial statements. This section is intended to prohibit an officer from knowingly:

 

   

making, or permitting or directing another to make, materially false or misleading entries in a Fund’s financial statements or records;

 

   

failing to correct a Fund’s financial statements or records that are materially false or misleading when he or she has the authority to record an entry; and

 

   

signing, or permitting or directing another to sign, a document containing materially false or misleading financial information.

No Officer may (i) express an opinion or state affirmatively that the financial statements or other financial data of a Fund are presented in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles, or (ii) state that he or she is not aware of any material modifications that should be made to such statements or data in order for them to be in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles, if such Officer knows that such statements or data contain any departure from generally accepted accounting principles then in effect in the United States.

Officers must follow the laws, standards, principles, guidelines, rules and regulations established by all applicable governmental bodies, commissions or other regulatory agencies in the preparation of financial statements, records and related information. If an Officer prepares financial statements, records or related information for purposes of reporting to such bodies, commissions or regulatory agencies, the Officer must follow the requirements of such organizations in addition to generally accepted accounting principles.

If an Officer and his or her supervisor have a disagreement or dispute relating to the preparation of financial statements or the recording of transactions, the Officer should take the following steps to ensure that the situation does not constitute an impermissible subordination of judgment:

 

   

The Officer should consider whether (i) the entry or the failure to record a transaction in the records, or (ii) the financial statement presentation or the nature or omission of disclosure in the financial statements, as proposed by the supervisor, represents the use of an acceptable alternative or does not materially misrepresent the facts or result in an omission of a material fact. If, after appropriate research or consultation, the Officer concludes that the matter has authoritative support and/or does not result in a material misrepresentation, the Officer need do nothing further.

 

-3-

 

 

   

If the Officer concludes that (i) the entry or the failure to record a transaction in the records, or (ii) the financial statement presentation or the nature or omission of disclosure in the financial statements, as proposed by the supervisor, does not represent the use of an acceptable alternative or that it materially misrepresents the facts or result in an omission of a material fact, the Officer should follow the reporting procedures set forth in Section 4 of this Code.

 

  d.

Obligations to the Independent Auditor of a Fund

In dealing with a Fund’s independent auditor, Officers must be candid and not knowingly misrepresent facts or knowingly fail to disclose material facts, and must respond fully to specific inquiries and requests by the Fund’s independent auditor.

Officers must not take any action, or direct any person to take any action, to fraudulently influence, coerce, manipulate or mislead a Fund’s independent auditor in the performance of an audit of the Fund’s financial statements for the purpose of rendering such financial statements materially misleading.

 

2.

FULL, FAIR, ACCURATE, TIMELY AND UNDERSTANDABLE DISCLOSURE

It is each Trusts policy to provide full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that each Trust files with, or submits to, the SEC and in any other public communications by each Trust. Each Trust has designed and implemented disclosure controls and procedures to carry out this policy.

Officers are expected to use their best efforts to promote, facilitate, and prepare full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in all reports and documents that each Trust files with, or submits to, the SEC and in any other public communications by a Trust.

Officers must review each Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures to ensure they are aware of and carry out their duties and responsibilities in accordance therewith. Officers are responsible for monitoring the integrity and effectiveness of each Trust’s disclosure controls and procedures.

 

3.

COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS, RULES AND REGULATIONS

Officers are expected to know, respect and comply with all laws, rules and regulations applicable to the conduct of a Trust’s business. If an Officer is in doubt about the legality or propriety of an action, business practice or policy, the Officer should seek advice from the Officer’s supervisor or a Trust’s legal counsel.

In the performance of their work, Officers must not knowingly be a party to any illegal activity or engage in acts that would serve to discredit a Trust.

Officers are expected to promote a Trust’s compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations. To promote such compliance, Officers may establish and maintain mechanisms to educate employees carrying out the finance and compliance functions of a Trust about any applicable laws, rules or regulations that affect the operation of the finance and compliance functions and a Trust generally.

 

-4-

 

 

4.

REPORTING OF VIOLATIONS OF THIS CODE

Officers should promptly report any conduct or actions by themselves or another Officer that do not comply or otherwise violate this Code. Officers and each Trust shall adhere to the following reporting procedures:

 

   

Any Officer who questions whether a situation, activity or practice violates this Code, or is otherwise required to be reported hereunder, must immediately report the same to the Audit Committee of the applicable Trust or to the applicable Trust’s legal counsel. The person receiving the report shall consider the matter and respond to the Officer within a reasonable time. The Principal Executive Officer (or equivalent) shall summarize all such reports for the Board each quarter, if any.

 

   

The member of the Audit Committee receiving the report shall consider the matter, refer it to the full Audit Committee if he or she deems appropriate, and respond to the Officer within a reasonable time.

 

   

If, after receiving a response, the reporting Officer concludes that appropriate action was not taken, he or she should consider any responsibility that may exist to communicate to third parties, such as regulatory authorities or the Fund’s independent auditor. In this matter, the Officer may wish to consult with his or her own legal counsel.

 

   

The Audit Committee and a Trust will not be responsible for monitoring or enforcing this reporting of violations policy, but rather each Officer is responsible for self-compliance with this reporting of violations policy.

 

   

If the Audit Committee determines that an Officer violated this Code, failed to report a known or suspected violation of this Code, or provided intentionally false or malicious information in connection with an alleged violation of this Code, a Trust may take disciplinary action against any such Officer to the extent the Audit Committee deems appropriate.

 

   

The identity of any Officer who reports violations or suspected violations in good faith will be maintained in confidence, to the extent reasonable and subject to legal and regulatory requirements, and no retaliation shall be made against the individual making such report and, indeed, any retaliation for the reporting of a violation of this Code shall itself constitute a violation of this Code.

 

   

A Trust or the Audit Committee may report violations to the appropriate authorities if or as necessary.

 

-5-

 

 

5.

ACCOUNTABILITY AND APPLICABILITY

All Officers will be held accountable for adherence to this Code. Based upon its review of the matters reported to it, the Audit Committee will determine appropriate sanctions or other actions to take in respect of any violations of this Code. The Audit Committee may consider actions taken by DoubleLine in respect of Officers who are also employees of DoubleLine, choosing to accept such actions as the final sanction or impose additional sanctions as it deems necessary. This Code is applicable to all Officers, regardless of whether such persons are employed by a Trust or a third party. If an Officer is aware of a person (“Potential Officer”) who may be considered an Officer as defined by this Code, the Officer should inform legal counsel to a Trust of such Potential Officer However, the absence of such a determination will not be deemed to relieve any person of his or her duties under this Code.

 

6.

DISCLOSURE OF THIS CODE

This Code must be disclosed by a Trust in the manner prescribed by the SEC, which currently requires disclosure by at least one of the following methods:

 

   

by filing a copy of the Code with the SEC;

 

   

by posting the text of the Code on the Trusts’, website; or

 

   

by providing, without charge, a copy of the Code to any person upon request.

 

7.

WAIVERS

Any waiver from a provision of this Code, including an implicit waiver, may be made only by the applicable Board or a committee of such Board to which such responsibility has been delegated. Such Trust must disclose any grant of a waiver that constitutes a material departure from a provision of the Code. Such disclosure currently is required to be made in the manner set forth above in Section 6 (Disclosure of this Code).

 

8.

AMENDMENTS

This Code may be amended or changed by the affirmative vote of a majority of a Board or Boards. Any amendment or change must be disclosed by the Trust in the manner prescribed by the SEC. Currently, disclosure of amendments is required to be made in the manner set forth above in Section 6 (Disclosure of this Code), provided that the Trusts are not required to disclose any amendment that is purely technical, administrative, or otherwise non-substantive in nature. Any amendments to this Code will be provided to the Officers.

 

-6-

 

 

9.

INTERNAL USE

The Code is intended solely for the internal use by the Trusts and does not constitute an admission, by or on behalf of any Trust, as to any fact, circumstance, or legal conclusion.

History of Amendments

Updated and effective as of May 2022

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET and the DoubleLine Closed-End Funds: May 19, 2022

Updated and effective as of February 2022

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DET, DSL, DBL and DLY: February 15, 2022

Updated and effective as of February 2020

Approved by the Boards of DFT, DSL, DBL and DLY: November 21, 2019

Last reviewed November 2019

Approved by the DFT Board of Trustees: March 25, 2010

Reviewed and approved by the DFT Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: August 24, 2011

Reviewed and approved by the DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Approved by the DoubleLine Equity Funds Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Approved by the DoubleLine Income Solutions Funds Board of Trustees: March 19, 2013

Reviewed and Approved by the Boards of DFT, DEF, DBL and DSL: February 26, 2015

 

-7-

 

 

Appendix A

Persons Covered by this Code of Conduct:

Ronald R. Redell, Principal Executive Officer

Henry V. Chase, Principal Financial Officer

 

EX.99.CERT

 

CERTIFICATIONS

 

I, Ronald R. Redell, certify that:

 

1.I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund;
2.Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3.Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the Registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4.The Registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the Registrant and have:
(a)Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the Registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b)Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
(c)Evaluated the effectiveness of the Registrant's disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report based on such evaluation; and
(d)Disclosed in this report any change in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and
5.The Registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the Registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the Registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a)All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and
(b)Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date:  11/29/2024   /s/ Ronald R. Redell
     

Ronald R. Redell

President and Chief Executive Officer

 

 

CERTIFICATIONS

 

I, Henry V. Chase, certify that:

 

1.I have reviewed this report on Form N-CSR of DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund;
2.Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3.Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations, changes in net assets, and cash flows (if the financial statements are required to include a statement of cash flows) of the Registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4.The Registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Investment Company Act of 1940) for the Registrant and have:
(a)Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the Registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b)Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;
(c)Evaluated the effectiveness of the Registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this report based on such evaluation; and
(d)Disclosed in this report any change in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and
5.The Registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed to the Registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the Registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a)All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial information; and
(b)Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date:  11/29/2024   /s/ Henry V. Chase
     

Henry V. Chase

Treasurer and

Principal Financial and Accounting Officer

 

EX.99.906CERT

 

Certification Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act

 

Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, each of the undersigned officers of the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund, does hereby certify, to such officer’s knowledge, that the report on Form N-CSR of the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund for the year ended September 30, 2024 fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as applicable, and that the information contained in the Form N-CSR fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the DoubleLine Yield Opportunities for the stated period.

 

/s/ Ronald R. Redell   /s/ Henry V. Chase

Ronald R. Redell

President and Chief Executive Officer

 

Henry V. Chase

Treasurer and

Principal Financial and Accounting Officer

Dated:  11/29/2024   Dated:  11/29/2024

 

This statement accompanies this report on Form N-CSR pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and shall not be deemed as filed by DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

 
v3.24.3
N-2 - USD ($)
3 Months Ended 12 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2024
Jun. 30, 2024
Mar. 31, 2024
Dec. 31, 2023
Sep. 30, 2023
Jun. 30, 2023
Mar. 31, 2023
Dec. 31, 2022
Sep. 30, 2024
Sep. 30, 2022
Sep. 30, 2021
Sep. 30, 2020
Cover [Abstract]                        
Entity Central Index Key                 0001788399      
Amendment Flag                 false      
Document Type                 N-CSR      
Entity Registrant Name                 DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund      
Document Period End Date                 Sep. 30, 2024      
Fee Table [Abstract]                        
Shareholder Transaction Expenses [Table Text Block]                
Shareholder Transaction Expenses
Percentage of
Offering Price
Sales Load Paid by Investors(1)
See Footnote 1 below
Dividend Reinvestment Plan Fees(2)
None
(1)
As of September 30, 2024, the Fund had an effective registration statement under which it may offer and sell additional Common Shares of the Fund. The maximum sales load paid by investors in an offering under that registration statement is presently expected to be 1.00% of the offering price.
(2)
You will pay brokerage charges if you direct your broker or the plan agent to sell your Common Shares that you acquired pursuant to a dividend reinvestment plan. You will also bear a pro rata share of brokerage commissions incurred in connection with open-market purchases pursuant to the Fund’s Dividend Reinvestment Plan. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan”.
     
Sales Load [Percent]                 1.00%      
Dividend Reinvestment and Cash Purchase Fees                 $ 0      
Other Transaction Expenses [Abstract]                        
Annual Expenses [Table Text Block]                
Annual Expenses
Percentage of
Net Assets
Attributable to
Common Shares
Management Fees(3)
1.67%
Administration Fees(4)
0.02%
Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds(5)
1.60%
Other Expenses(6)
0.17%
Total Annual Expenses
3.46%
(3)
The Fund pays DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”) a monthly management fee for its investment management services in an amount equal to 1.35% of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets. In accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), the table above shows the Fund’s management fee as a percentage of average net assets, which reflects the Fund’s use of leverage. “Total managed assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings).
(4)
The Master Services Agreement between the Fund and U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Administrator”), obligates the Fund to pay the Administrator a fee of 0.02% of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets for providing administration, bookkeeping, pricing, and other services to the Fund. The Administrator will also be reimbursed by the Fund for out-of-pocket expenses that are reasonably incurred by it in performing its duties under the Master Services Agreement.
(5)
Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds represents the Fund’s annualized interest expense based on the Fund’s total borrowings as of September 30, 2024, and the interest rate applicable on that date. The Fund’s credit facility is subject to floating interest rates and, therefore, the actual amount of interest expense borne by the Fund will vary over time in accordance with the level of the Fund’s use of borrowings, variations in market interest rates and/or the Fund’s borrowings outstanding. If the Fund were to engage in greater levels of borrowings or pay higher interest rates in connection with such borrowings, the actual Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds incurred as a percentage of net assets would be higher than that shown in the table.
(6)
Other expenses are estimated for the Fund’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2025.
     
Management Fees [Percent]                 1.67%      
Interest Expenses on Borrowings [Percent]                 1.60%      
Other Master Fund Expenses [Percent]                 0.02%      
Other Annual Expenses [Abstract]                        
Other Annual Expenses [Percent]                 0.17%      
Total Annual Expenses [Percent]                 3.46%      
Expense Example [Table Text Block]                
Example
As required by relevant SEC regulations, the following example illustrates the expenses that you would pay on a $1,000 investment in Common Shares (and do not pay any Shareholder Transaction Expenses), assuming (a) the Fund’s net assets do not increase or decrease, (b) the Fund’s total annual expenses are 3.46% of net assets attributable to Common Shares in years 1 through 10 (assuming the Fund obtains leverage through borrowings in an amount equal to 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets) and (c) a 5% annual return(1):
 
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Total Expenses Incurred
$45
$115
$188
$380
(1)
The example above should not be considered a representation of future expenses. Actual expenses may be higher or lower than those shown. The example assumes that “Interest Expense on Borrowed Funds”, “Other Expenses” and “Total Annual Expenses” set forth in the Annual Expenses table remain the same each year and that all dividends and distributions are reinvested at net asset value. Actual expenses may be greater or less than those assumed. Moreover,
the Fund’s actual rate of return may be greater or less than the hypothetical 5% annual return shown in the example. If the above example reflected Shareholder Transaction Expenses that may be paid in respect of shares purchased in connection with the Fund’s offering of Common Shares under the Fund’s Shelf Registration (see Note 13), the Total Expenses incurred shown above would have been higher.
     
Expense Example, Year 01                 $ 45      
Expense Example, Years 1 to 3                 115      
Expense Example, Years 1 to 5                 188      
Expense Example, Years 1 to 10                 $ 380      
Purpose of Fee Table , Note [Text Block]                 The following table is intended to assist investors in understanding the fees and expenses (annualized) that an investor in DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund’s (the “Fund”) common shares of beneficial interest (the “Common Shares”) bears, directly or indirectly. The table reflects the use of leverage in the form of borrowings (e.g., loans, lines of credit) in an amount equal to 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets and 22.57% of the Fund’s total net assets (with respect to each percentage, including the amounts of leverage obtained through the use of such instruments and/or borrowings), and shows Fund expenses as a percentage of net assets attributable to Common Shares. The percentage above does not reflect the Fund’s use of other forms of economic leverage, such as credit default swaps or other derivative instruments (where applicable). The table and the example below are based on the Fund’s capital structure as of September 30, 2024. The extent of the Fund’s assets attributable to leverage, and the Fund’s associated expenses, are likely to vary (perhaps significantly) from these figures over time.      
Other Expenses, Note [Text Block]                 Other expenses are estimated for the Fund’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2025.      
Management Fee not based on Net Assets, Note [Text Block]                 The Fund pays DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”) a monthly management fee for its investment management services in an amount equal to 1.35% of the Fund’s average daily total managed assets. In accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), the table above shows the Fund’s management fee as a percentage of average net assets, which reflects the Fund’s use of leverage. “Total managed assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings).      
Financial Highlights [Abstract]                        
Senior Securities [Table Text Block]                
The following table sets forth information regarding the Fund’s outstanding senior securities as of the end of each of the Fund’s last ten fiscal periods, as applicable.
Fiscal Year/Period Ended
Total Amount Outstanding(i)
Asset
Coverage per
$1,000 of
Senior
Securities
Average Market
Value per $1,000
of Senior Securities
(Excluding Bank
Loans)
Type of Senior
Security
September 30, 2024
$178,943,069
$5,407
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2023
$186,056,922
$4,886
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2022
$225,838,222
$4,232
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2021
$325,316,182
$3,980
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2020(a)
$250,260,922
$4,658
N/A
Loan
(a)
Commenced operations on February 26, 2020.
(b)
Calculated based on average shares outstanding during the period.
(c)
Less than $0.005 per share.
(d)
Represents the premium on the at the market offering of $0.0007 per share less underwriting and offering costs of $0.0006 per share for the period ended September 30, 2024.
(e)
Total return on Net Asset Value is computed based upon the Net Asset Value of common stock on the first business day and the closing Net Asset Value on the last business day of the period. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan.
(f)
Not Annualized
(g)
Total return on Market Price is computed based upon the New York Stock Exchange market price of the Fund’s shares and excludes the effect of brokerage commissions. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan. Total return on Market Price does not reflect any sales load paid by investors.
(h)
Annualized
(i)
Includes accrued interest payable on amounts outstanding as of the end of the relevant fiscal year/period.
     
Senior Securities Amount $ 178,943,069       $ 186,056,922       $ 178,943,069 $ 225,838,222 $ 325,316,182 $ 250,260,922
Senior Securities Coverage per Unit $ 5,407       $ 4,886       $ 5,407 $ 4,232 $ 3,980 $ 4,658
Senior Securities, Note [Text Block]                
The following table sets forth information regarding the Fund’s outstanding senior securities as of the end of each of the Fund’s last ten fiscal periods, as applicable.
Fiscal Year/Period Ended
Total Amount Outstanding(i)
Asset
Coverage per
$1,000 of
Senior
Securities
Average Market
Value per $1,000
of Senior Securities
(Excluding Bank
Loans)
Type of Senior
Security
September 30, 2024
$178,943,069
$5,407
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2023
$186,056,922
$4,886
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2022
$225,838,222
$4,232
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2021
$325,316,182
$3,980
N/A
Loan
September 30, 2020(a)
$250,260,922
$4,658
N/A
Loan
(a)
Commenced operations on February 26, 2020.
(b)
Calculated based on average shares outstanding during the period.
(c)
Less than $0.005 per share.
(d)
Represents the premium on the at the market offering of $0.0007 per share less underwriting and offering costs of $0.0006 per share for the period ended September 30, 2024.
(e)
Total return on Net Asset Value is computed based upon the Net Asset Value of common stock on the first business day and the closing Net Asset Value on the last business day of the period. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan.
(f)
Not Annualized
(g)
Total return on Market Price is computed based upon the New York Stock Exchange market price of the Fund’s shares and excludes the effect of brokerage commissions. Dividends and distributions are assumed to be reinvested at the prices obtained under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan. Total return on Market Price does not reflect any sales load paid by investors.
(h)
Annualized
(i)
Includes accrued interest payable on amounts outstanding as of the end of the relevant fiscal year/period.
     
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Investment Objectives and Practices [Text Block]                
Investment Objective and Strategies
There have been no material changes to the Fund’s investment objective or principal investment strategies since the Fund’s last annual report to shareholders.
The following summarizes the Fund’s current investment objective and principal investment strategies:
Investment Objective
To seek a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income. The Fund cannot assure you that it will achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s investment objective may be changed by the Board without prior notice to or approval of the Fund’s shareholders.
Principal Investment Strategies
Under normal market conditions, the Fund will seek to achieve its investment objective by investing in a portfolio of investments selected for its potential to provide a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income. The Fund may invest in debt securities and other income-producing investments of issuers anywhere in the world, including in emerging markets, and may invest in investments of any credit quality. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund invests substantially, and may thereafter continue to invest substantially, in debt instruments of below investment grade quality (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk bonds”) and unrated instruments. The Fund may invest in securities of any or no maturity or negative duration, and there are no limits on the duration of the Fund’s portfolio.
The Fund’s investment adviser, DoubleLine Capital LP (“DoubleLine” or the “Adviser”), allocates the Fund’s assets among sectors of the debt market, and among investments within those sectors, in an attempt to construct a portfolio providing the potential for a high level of total return, with an emphasis on current income, consistent with what DoubleLine considers an appropriate level of risk in light of market conditions prevailing at the time. In managing the Fund’s investments, the Adviser uses a controlled risk approach. The techniques of this approach attempt to control the principal risk components of the fixed-income markets and include consideration of:
the relative values and fundamentals of the different sectors of the debt market
the relative values of securities within a sector
the shape of the yield curve; and
fluctuations in the overall level of interest rates.
DoubleLine selects investments over time to implement its long-term strategic investment view. It also buys and sells securities opportunistically in response to short-term market, economic, political, or other developments or otherwise as opportunities may present themselves. DoubleLine manages the Fund under an integrated risk management framework overseen by the Fund’s portfolio management team and DoubleLine’s risk management team. DoubleLine expects that the Fund will normally not invest more than 50% of its total assets in a single sector of the debt market (excluding the U.S. Government securities sector), as determined by the Adviser. Generally, the sectors of the debt market among which the Adviser expects to allocate the Fund’s assets principally from time to time include, among others, commercial mortgage-backed securities, agency residential mortgage-backed securities, non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities, non-mortgage-related asset-backed securities, investment grade corporate debt, high yield corporate debt, bank and other loans, international sovereign debt, emerging market debt, collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), U.S. Government securities, and municipal debt. The Fund has historically had and may continue to have significant holdings of securitized credit, such as commercial mortgage-backed securities, non-agency residential mortgage- backed securities, non-mortgage-related asset-backed securities and CLOs.
Within each sector, the Fund may invest in debt securities and other income-producing investments based on DoubleLine’s assessment of the potential returns and risks of particular securities and other investments within that sector. Such securities may include, by way of example, mortgage-related securities of any kind, including commercial and residential mortgage-backed
securities; other asset-backed securities; below investment grade debt (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” or “junk bonds”); debt securities issued by domestic or foreign (including emerging market) corporate or other issuers; obligations of foreign (including emerging market) sovereigns or their agencies or instrumentalities; supra-national obligations; CLOs, including commercial real estate CLOs (“CRE CLOs”); equity, mortgage, or hybrid real estate investment trust (“REIT”) securities; bank loans and assignments and other fixed and floating rate loans (including, among others, senior loans, second lien or other subordinated or unsecured loans, delayed funding loans, debtor-in-possession loans, exit facilities and revolving credit facilities); municipal securities and other debt securities issued by state or local governments and their agencies, authorities and by other government-sponsored enterprises; payment-in-kind securities; zero-coupon bonds; convertible bonds and securities; inflation-indexed bonds; structured notes and other hybrid instruments; credit-linked trust certificates; preferred securities; commercial paper; and cash and cash equivalents. The Fund may also invest without limit in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations; however, as of September 30, 2024, the Fund has invested, and may thereafter continue to invest, substantially in debt securities and other income-producing investments that involve substantially greater credit risk than those investments. The rate of interest on the debt and other income-producing investments that the Fund may purchase may be fixed, floating, or variable.
The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities of any kind. Mortgage-backed securities may include, among other things, securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations or securities of domestic or foreign private issuers. Mortgage-backed securities may be issued or guaranteed by banks or other financial institutions, other private issuers, special-purpose vehicles established for such purpose, or government agencies or instrumentalities. Privately- issued mortgage-backed securities include any mortgage-backed security other than those issued or guaranteed as to principal or interest by the U.S. Government or its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored corporations.
Mortgage-backed securities may include, without limitation, interests in pools of residential mortgages or commercial mortgages, and may relate to domestic or non-U.S. mortgages. Mortgage-backed securities also include, but are not limited to, securities representing interests in, collateralized or backed by, or whose values are determined in whole or in part by reference to, any number of mortgages or pools of mortgages or the payment experience of such mortgages or pools of mortgages, including Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (“REMICs”), which could include re-securitizations of REMICs (“Re-REMICs”), credit default swaps, mortgage pass-through securities, mortgage servicing rights, inverse floaters, collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”), multiclass pass-through securities, private mortgage pass-through securities, stripped mortgage securities (generally interest-only and principal-only securities), credit risk transfer securities, and debt instruments collateralized or secured by other mortgage-related assets. The collateral backing mortgage-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may include, without limitation, performing, non-performing and/or re-performing loans, non-qualifying mortgage loans, and loans secured by a single asset and issued by a single borrower. The commercial mortgage-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may also include securitizations backed by a single mortgage on a single property. The Fund may invest in bonds, including unguaranteed mezzanine bonds and subordinate bonds, securitized through Freddie Mac’s “K-Deal” program, which securitizes mortgage loans backed by multi-family apartment properties.
The Fund may invest in asset-backed securities of any type, including securitizations of a wide variety of non-mortgage-related receivables, such as credit card and automobile finance receivables, home-equity sharing agreements, student loans, consumer loans, loans issued or sponsored by online or similar retail or alternative lending platforms, installment loan contracts, home equity loans, mobile home loans, boat loans, business and small business loans, project finance loans, airplane leases, and leases of various other types of real and personal property, and other income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights. The loans underlying the asset-backed securities and similar obligations in which the Fund may invest may include loans that contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans (“covenant-lite” loans) and loans of subprime quality.
In pursuing its investment objective, the Fund may invest significantly in residential and/or commercial real estate or mortgage- related loans, consumer loans, business and small business loans, construction or project finance loans, or other types of loans, which loans may include secured and unsecured notes, senior loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinated loans, or mezzanine loans, any of which may be covenant-lite or loans of subprime quality. The Fund may make direct investments in individual loans or in pools of loans and in whole loans as well as in loan participations or assignments, itself or with other clients of the Adviser or its related parties. In addition, although, as of September 30, 2024, the Fund has no present intention to do so, the Fund may itself or in conjunction with others originate any of the foregoing types of loans. The Fund intends to hire third-party service providers to service loans the Fund originates, if any. The Fund may also be involved in, or finance, the origination of loans to corporations, other legal entities or individuals, including foreign entities and individuals.
The Fund may invest in any level of the capital structure of an issuer of mortgage- or asset-backed securities, including subordinated or residual tranches, risk retention tranches of collateralized mortgage-backed securities or other eligible securitizations, and the equity or “first loss” tranche (such as the “E Notes” of aircraft asset-backed securities). The Fund may invest in mortgage- or asset-backed securities that are designed to have leveraged investment exposure to the underlying mortgages or assets. The Fund may also gain or adjust its exposure to mortgage- or asset-backed securities through derivatives, such as credit default swap or futures transactions. The Fund may also invest in credit risk transfer securities that, while not backed by mortgage loans, have credit exposure to a pool of mortgage loans acquired by the government-sponsored entity or private entity issuing the securities.
Certain mortgage- and other asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may represent an inverse interest-only class of security for which the holders are entitled to receive no payments of principal and are entitled only to receive interest at a rate that will vary inversely with a specified index or reference rate, or a multiple thereof. The Fund may invest in collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) (including CLOs and collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”)) and other structured products sponsored or managed by, or otherwise affiliated with, the Adviser or related parties of the Adviser. Such investments may include investments in debt or equity interests issued by the CDO or structured product as well as investments purchased on the secondary market, and the Fund may invest in any tranche of the CDO or structured product, including an equity tranche.
The Fund may invest in debt instruments of any credit quality and may invest without limit in debt securities that are at the time of investment rated below investment grade or unrated securities judged by DoubleLine to be of comparable quality. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Fund will not acquire any corporate bond, CLO, corporate loan, or sovereign and quasi sovereign obligation that is rated at the time of investment Caa1 or below by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) and CCC+ or below by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Fitch, Inc. (“Fitch”) or any such securities that are unrated if it would cause the Fund to have more than 20% of its total managed assets invested in such investments. The 20% limitation does not apply to rated or unrated mortgage- and asset-backed securities of any kind (e.g. commercial mortgage-backed securities and residential mortgage-backed securities) or loans or other obligations secured, collateralized or supported by real estate or real estate related assets of any kind (e.g., mortgages). In the case of split ratings, DoubleLine will categorize the security according to the highest rating assigned. In addition, the Fund will not purchase securities that are in default as to the repayment of principal and/or interest at the time of acquisition by the Fund.
The Fund will normally invest at least 25% of its total assets in issuers involved in one or more real estate-related industries. Investments in issuers involved in real estate-related industries include, without limitation, investments in mortgage-related obligations issued or guaranteed by government agencies or other government entities or by private originators or issuers; instruments of any kind that are backed by or that provide exposure to one or more real estate-related mortgages; interests in issuers that deal in, hold, or invest in mortgages, real estate, or other real estate-related assets; real estate investment trusts of any kind; instruments whose performance is based on or relates to payments made on real estate mortgages or other real estate- related obligations; instruments secured by any interest in real estate; and other investments that the Adviser determines provide exposure to real estate or one or more of the foregoing.
The Fund may invest without limit in securities of foreign issuers and may invest up to 30% of its total managed assets in securities of issuers domiciled or organized in emerging market countries. For these purposes, an “emerging market country” is a country that, at the time the Fund invests in the related instruments, is classified as an emerging or developing economy by any supranational organization such as the World Bank or the United Nations, or related entities, or is considered an emerging market country for purposes of constructing a major emerging market securities index, such as the J.P. Morgan or Bank of America suite of emerging market indices (e.g., the JP Morgan GBI-EM Global Diversified Index or the ICE Bank of America Broad Local Emerging Markets non-Sovereign Index). The Fund may take positions in various foreign (non-U.S.) currencies, including by actual holdings of those currencies and through forward, futures, swap, and option contracts with respect to foreign currencies, for hedging, or as a substitute for actual purchases or sales of the currencies in question; the Fund may also invest without limit in investments denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, including the local currencies of emerging markets. The Fund may (but is not required to) attempt to hedge some of its exposure to foreign currencies in order to reduce the risk of loss due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar.
The Adviser monitors the duration of the Fund’s portfolio securities to seek to assess and, in its discretion, adjust the Fund’s exposure to interest rate risk. However, the Fund may invest in securities of any or no maturity or negative duration, and there are no limits on the duration of the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser retains broad discretion to modify the Fund’s duration within a wide range, including the discretion to construct a portfolio of investments for the Fund with a negative duration. Duration is a measure of the expected life of a fixed income instrument that is used to determine the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates. The Adviser may seek to manage the dollar-weighted average effective duration of the Fund’s portfolio through the use of derivatives and other instruments (including, among others, Treasury futures and other futures contracts, inverse floaters, interest rate swaps, total return
swaps, and options, including options on swap agreements (“swaptions”)). The Fund may incur costs in implementing duration management strategies, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will engage in duration management strategies or that any duration management strategy employed by the Fund will be successful.
The Fund may invest in common stocks and other equity securities from time to time, including, among others, those it has received through the conversion of a convertible security held by the Fund or in connection with the restructuring of a debt security. The Fund may invest in securities that have not been registered for public sale, including securities eligible for purchase and sale pursuant to Rule 144A or Regulation S under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and other securities issued in private placements. The Fund also may invest without limit in securities of other open- or closed-end investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) and investment companies sponsored or managed by the Adviser or its related parties. The Fund may invest in securities of companies with small and medium market capitalizations.
Portfolio securities may be sold at any time. Sales may occur when the Adviser determines to take advantage of what it considers to be a better investment opportunity, when the portfolio managers believe the portfolio securities no longer represent relatively attractive investment opportunities, when there is perceived deterioration in the credit fundamentals of the issuer, or when the individual security has reached the portfolio managers’ sell target. The Fund will not invest in securities in default at time of purchase, however, the Fund is not required to sell any securities that default after acquisition.
The Fund may invest indirectly by investing in derivatives or through wholly-owned and controlled subsidiaries (each, a “Subsidiary”). The Fund may be exposed to the different types of investments described herein through its investments in a Subsidiary. The allocation of the Fund’s assets to a Subsidiary will vary from time to time and the Fund’s portfolio may include some or all of the investments described herein.
     
Risk Factors [Table Text Block]                
11. Principal Risks
Below are summaries of some, but not all, of the principal risks of investing in the Fund, each of which could adversely affect the Fund’s NAV, market price, yield, and total return. The Fund’s prospectus provided additional information regarding these and other risks of investing in the Fund at the time of the initial public offering of the Fund’s shares.
Market Discount Risk: The price of the Fund’s common shares will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their net asset value.
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk: Unless the limited term provision of the Fund’s Declaration of Trust is amended by shareholders in accordance with the Declaration of Trust, or unless the Fund completes a tender offer and converts to perpetual existence, the Fund will terminate on or about February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”). The Fund is not a so called “target date” or “life cycle” fund whose asset allocation becomes more conservative over time as its target date, often associated with retirement, approaches. Because the assets of the Fund will be liquidated in connection with the dissolution, the Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with dispositions of portfolio securities. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to the Dissolution Date and may be required to sell portfolio securities when it otherwise would not, including at times when market conditions are not favorable, which may cause the Fund to lose money.
Leverage Risk: Leverage is a speculative technique that may expose the Fund to greater risk and increased costs. When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the investment return to Common Shareholders will likely be more volatile. There can be no assurance that a leveraging strategy will be used by the Fund or that it will be successful.
Liquidity Risk: the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell a portfolio investment at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment.
Portfolio Management Risk: the risk that an investment strategy may fail to produce the intended results or that the securities held by the Fund will underperform other comparable funds because of the portfolio managers’ choice of investments.
Valuation Risk: the risk that the Fund will not value its investments in a manner that accurately reflects their market values or that the Fund will not be able to sell any investment at a price equal to the valuation ascribed to that investment for purposes of calculating the Fund’s net asset value. The valuation of the Fund’s investments involves subjective judgment and some valuations may involve assumptions, projections, opinions, discount rates, estimated data points and other uncertain or subjective amounts, all of which may prove inaccurate. In addition, the valuation of certain investments held by the Fund may involve the significant use of unobservable and non-market inputs. Certain securities in which the Fund may invest may be more difficult to value accurately, especially during periods of market disruptions or extreme market volatility.
Investment and Market Risk: the risk that markets will perform poorly or that the returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will underperform returns from the general securities markets or other types of investments. Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention or general market conditions, including real or perceived adverse, political, economic or market conditions, tariffs and trade disruptions, inflation, recession, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. Certain securities may be difficult to value during such periods. The value of securities and other instruments traded in over-the-counter markets, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. Further, the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have from time to time taken steps to support financial markets. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve may, conversely, reduce market support activities, including by taking action intended to increase certain interest rates. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. Changes in government activities in this regard, such as changes in interest rate policy, can negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the Fund invests.
Credit Risk: the risk that an issuer, counterparty or other obligor to the Fund will fail to pay its obligations to the Fund when they are due, which may reduce the Fund’s income and/or reduce, in whole or in part, the value of the Fund’s investment. Actual or perceived changes in the financial condition of an obligor, changes in economic, social or political conditions that affect a particular type of security, instrument, or obligor, and changes in economic, social or political conditions generally can increase the risk of default by an obligor, which can affect a security’s or other instrument’s credit quality or value and an obligor’s ability to honor its obligations when due. The values of lower-quality debt securities (including debt securities commonly known as “high yield” securities or “junk bonds”), including floating rate loans, tend to be particularly sensitive to these changes. Certain debt securities in the lowest investment grade category also may be considered to possess some speculative characteristics by certain rating agencies. The values of securities or instruments also may decline for a number of other reasons that relate directly to the obligor, such as management performance, financial leverage, and reduced demand for the obligor’s goods and services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the obligor and the value of its assets.
Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that debt instruments will change in value because of changes in interest rates. The value of an instrument with a longer duration (whether positive or negative) will be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than a similar instrument with a shorter duration.
Debt Securities Risk: In addition to certain of the other risks described herein such as interest rate risk and credit risk, debt securities generally also are subject to the following risks:
Redemption Risk: Debt securities sometimes contain provisions that allow for redemption in the event of tax or security law changes in addition to call features at the option of the issuer. In the event of a redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return.
Extension Risk: the risk that if interest rates rise, repayments of principal on certain debt securities, including, but not limited to, floating rate loans and mortgage-related securities, may occur at a slower rate than expected and the expected maturity of those securities could lengthen as a result. Securities that are subject to extension risk generally have a greater potential for loss when prevailing interest rates rise, which could cause their values to fall sharply.
Spread Risk: Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of the debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood or risk of default by the issuer.
Limited Voting Rights: Debt securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases when interest payments have not been made and the issuer is in default. Even in such cases, such rights may be limited to the terms of the debenture or other agreements.
Prepayment/Reinvestment Risk: the risk that income may decline when the Fund invests proceeds from investment income, sales of portfolio securities or matured, traded, pre-paid or called debt obligations, negatively effecting dividend levels and market price, NAV and/or overall return of the common shares.
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks: include the risks that borrowers may default on their mortgage obligations or the guarantees underlying the mortgage-backed securities will default or otherwise fail and that, during periods of falling interest rates, mortgage-backed securities will be called or prepaid, which may result in the Fund having to reinvest proceeds in other investments at a lower interest rate. During periods of rising interest rates, the average life of a mortgage- backed security may extend, which may lock in a below-market interest rate, increase the security’s duration, and reduce the value of the security. Enforcing rights against the underlying assets or collateral may be difficult, or the underlying assets or collateral may be insufficient if the issuer defaults. The values of certain types of mortgage-backed securities, such as inverse floaters and interest-only and principal-only securities, may be extremely sensitive to changes in interest rates and prepayment rates. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities.
Foreign Investment Risk: the risk that investments in foreign securities or in issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets, as compared to investments in U.S. securities or in issuers with predominantly domestic market exposure, may be more vulnerable to economic, political, and social instability and subject to less government supervision, less protective custody practices, lack of transparency, inadequate regulatory and accounting standards, delayed or infrequent settlement of transactions, and foreign taxes. If the Fund buys securities denominated in a foreign currency, receives income in foreign currencies or holds foreign currencies from time to time, the value of the Fund’s assets, as measured in U.S. dollars, can be affected unfavorably by changes in exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar or with respect to other foreign currencies. Foreign markets are also subject to the risk that a foreign government could restrict foreign exchange transactions or otherwise implement unfavorable currency regulations. In addition, foreign securities may be subject to currency exchange rates or regulations, the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other government restrictions, higher transaction and other costs, reduced liquidity, and delays in settlement.
Foreign Currency Risk: the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments denominated in foreign currencies.
Emerging Markets Risk: the risk that investing in emerging markets, as compared to foreign developed markets, increases the likelihood that the Fund will lose money, due to more limited information about the issuer and/or the security; higher brokerage costs; different accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less developed legal systems; fewer investor protections; less regulatory oversight; thinner trading markets; the possibility of currency blockages or transfer restrictions; an emerging market country’s dependence on revenue from particular commodities or international aid; and the risk of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse political or economic developments.
Collateralized Debt Obligations (“CDOs”) Risk: the risks of an investment in a collateralized debt obligation (“CDO”) depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. Normally, collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in CDOs may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Fund may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk: Asset-backed securities involve the risk that borrowers may default on the obligations backing them and that the values of and interest earned on such investments will decline as a result. Loans made to lower quality borrowers, including those of sub-prime quality, involve a higher risk of default.
Credit Default Swaps Risk: Credit default swaps provide exposure to one or more reference obligations but involve greater risks than investing in the reference obligation directly, and expose the Fund to liquidity risk, counterparty risk and credit risk. A buyer of a credit default swap will lose its investment and recover nothing should no event of default occur. When the Fund acts as a seller of a credit default swap, it is exposed to many of the same risks of leverage described herein since if an event of default occurs the seller must pay the buyer the full notional value of the reference obligation(s).
U.S. Government Securities Risk: the risk that debt securities issued or guaranteed by certain U.S. Government agencies, instrumentalities, and sponsored enterprises are not supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, and so investments in their securities or obligations issued by them involve greater risk than investments in other types of U.S. Government securities.
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk: the risk that investments in debt obligations of sovereign governments may lose value due to the government entity’s unwillingness or inability to repay principal and interest when due in accordance with the terms of the debt or otherwise in a timely manner.
Loan Risk: the risk that (i) if the Fund holds a loan through another financial institution, or relies on a financial institution to administer the loan, its receipt of principal and interest on the loan may be subject to the credit risk of that financial institution; (ii) any collateral securing a loan may be insufficient or unavailable to the Fund because, for example, the value of the collateral securing a loan can decline, be insufficient to meet the obligations of the borrower, or be difficult to liquidate, and the Fund’s rights to collateral may be limited by bankruptcy or insolvency laws; (iii) investments in highly leveraged loans or loans of stressed, distressed, or defaulted issuers may be subject to significant credit and liquidity risk; (iv) a bankruptcy or other court proceeding could delay or limit the ability of the Fund to collect the principal and interest payments on that borrower’s loans or adversely affect the Fund’s rights in collateral relating to a loan; (v) there may be limited public information available regarding the loan and the relevant borrower(s); (vi) the use of a particular interest rate benchmark may limit the Fund’s ability to achieve a net return to shareholders that consistently approximates the average published Prime Rate of U.S. banks; (vii) the prices of certain floating rate loans that include a feature that prevents their interest rates from adjusting if market interest rates are below a specified minimum level may appreciate less than other instruments in response to changes in interest rates should interest rates rise but remain below the applicable minimum level; (viii) if a borrower fails to comply with various restrictive covenants that may be found in loan agreements, the borrower may default in payment of the loan; (ix) if the Fund invests in loans that contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans (“covenant lite” loans), it may have fewer rights against the borrowers of such loans, including fewer protections against the possibility of default and fewer remedies in the event of default; (x) the loan is unsecured; (xi) there is a limited secondary market; (xii) transactions in loans may settle on a delayed basis, and the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a substantial period of time after the sale, which may result in sale proceeds related to the sale of loans not being available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund’s redemption obligations until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loans; (xiii) loans may be difficult to value and may be illiquid, which may adversely affect an investment in the Fund. Investments in loans through a purchase of a loan, loan origination or a direct assignment of a financial institution’s interests with respect to a loan may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner, in whole or in part, of any collateral, which could include, among other assets, real estate or other real or personal property, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and holding or disposing of the collateral. In addition, it is conceivable that under emerging legal theories of lender liability, the Fund as holder of a partial interest in a loan could be held liable as co-lender for acts of the agent lender.
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk: Debt instruments rated below investment grade or debt instruments that are unrated and of comparable or lesser quality are predominantly speculative. These instruments, commonly known as “junk bonds,” have a higher degree of default risk and may be less liquid than higher-rated bonds. These instruments may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific corporate developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of high yield investments generally, general economic downturn, and less secondary market liquidity.
Defaulted Securities Risk: the significant risk of the uncertainty of repayment of defaulted securities (e.g., a security on which a principal or interest payment is not made when due) and obligations of distressed issuers. Because the issuer of such securities is in default and is likely to be in distressed financial condition, repayment of defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers (including insolvent issuers or issuers in payment or covenant default, in workout or restructuring or in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings) is subject to significant uncertainties.
Real Estate Risk: the risk that real estate-related investments may decline in value as a result of factors affecting the real estate sector, such as the supply of real property in certain markets, changes in zoning laws, delays in completion of construction, changes in real estate values, changes in property taxes, levels of occupancy, and local and regional and general market conditions. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, and the possible failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment available to REITs under the Internal Revenue Code, or the exemption from registration under the 1940 Act. REITs are not diversified and are heavily dependent on cash flow earned on the property interests they hold.
Derivatives Risk: the risk that an investment in derivatives will not perform as anticipated by the Adviser, may not be available at the time or price desired, cannot be closed out at a favorable time or price, will increase the Fund’s transaction costs, or will increase the Fund’s volatility; that derivatives may create investment leverage; that, when a derivative is used as a substitute for or alternative to a direct cash investment, the transaction may not provide a return that corresponds precisely or at all with that of the cash investment; that the positions may be improperly executed or constructed; that the Fund’s counterparty will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations; or that, when used for hedging purposes, derivatives will not provide the anticipated protection, causing the Fund to lose money on both the derivatives transaction and the exposure the Fund sought to hedge. Recent changes in regulation relating to the Fund’s use of derivatives and related instruments could potentially limit or impact the Fund’s ability to invest in derivatives, limit the Fund’s ability to employ certain strategies that use derivatives and/or adversely affect the value of derivatives and the Fund’s performance.
Counterparty Risk: the risk that the Fund will be subject to credit risk presented with respect to the counterparties to derivative contracts and other instruments entered into directly by the Fund or held by special purpose or structured vehicles in which the Fund invests; that the Fund’s counterparty will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations; that the Fund will be unable to enforce contractual remedies if its counterparty defaults; that if a counterparty (or an affiliate of a counterparty) becomes bankrupt, the Fund may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery or may obtain limited or no recovery in a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding. To the extent that the Fund enters into multiple transactions with a single or a small set of counterparties, it will be subject to increased counterparty risk.
Unrated Securities Risk: Unrated securities may be less liquid than comparable rated securities and involve the risk that the Adviser may not accurately evaluate the security’s comparative credit rating and value. Some or all of the unrated instruments in which the Fund may invest will involve credit risk comparable to or greater than that of rated debt securities of below investment grade quality.
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk: the risk that an investment in a structured product, which includes, among other things, CDOs, mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities and certain types of structured notes, may decline in value due to changes in the underlying instruments, indexes, interest rates or other factors on which the product is based (“reference measure”). Depending on the reference measure used and the use of multipliers or deflators (if any), changes in interest rates and movement of the reference measure may cause significant price and cash flow fluctuations. In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities discussed herein, structured products carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from underlying investments will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the underlying investments may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the security may be subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results; and (v) because the structured products are generally privately offered and sold, they may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market, which may increase the Fund’s illiquidity and reduce the Fund’s income and the value of the investment, and the Fund may be unable to find qualified buyers for these securities.
Issuer Risk: Issuer risk is the risk that the market price of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, including due to factors affecting securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself.
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk: the risk that markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, political, economic or market developments, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity, which may cause the Fund to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and potentially at unfavorable prices.
Tax Risk: to qualify as a regulated investment company under the Internal Revenue Code, the Fund must meet requirements regarding, among other things, the source of its income. Certain investments do not give rise to qualifying income for this purpose. Any income the Fund derives from investments in instruments that do not generate qualifying income must be limited to a maximum of 10% of the Fund’s annual gross income. If the Fund were to earn non-qualifying income in excess of 10% of its annual gross income, it could fail to qualify as a regulated investment company for that year. If the Fund were to fail to qualify as a regulated investment company, the Fund would be subject to tax and shareholders of the Fund would be subject to the risk of diminished returns.
Operational and Information Security Risks: An investment in the Fund, like any fund, can involve operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors, human errors, inadequate or failed internal or external processes, failures in systems and technology, changes in personnel and errors caused by third-party service providers. The occurrence of any of these
failures, errors or breaches could result in investment losses to the Fund, a loss of information, regulatory scrutiny, reputational damage or other events, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Fund. While the Fund seeks to minimize such events through controls and oversight, there may still be failures that could cause losses to the Fund.
Principal Risk Factors
Investing in the Fund involves risks, including the risk that you may receive little or no return on your investment or that you may lose part or even all of your investment. The section below does not describe all risks associated with an investment in the Fund. Additional risks and uncertainties also may adversely affect and impair the Fund.
Limited Prior History
The Fund commenced investment operations on February 26, 2020. It has a limited history of operations and is subject to all of the business risks and uncertainties associated with any new business.
Market Discount Risk
As with any stock, the price of the Fund’s common shares of beneficial interest (the “Common Shares”) will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. If you sell your Common Shares, the price received may be more or less than your original investment. The Common Shares are designed for long-term investors and should not be treated as trading vehicles. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their NAV. The Fund cannot assure you that Common Shares will trade at a price equal to or higher than NAV in the future, and they may trade at a price lower than NAV. In addition to the Fund’s NAV, the Fund’s market price may be affected by factors related to the Fund such as dividend payments (which will in turn be affected by Fund expenses, including the costs of the Fund’s leverage, amounts of interest payments made by the Fund’s portfolio holdings, appreciation/depreciation of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, regulations affecting the timing and character of Fund distributions, and other factors), portfolio credit quality, liquidity, call protection, market supply and demand and similar factors relating to the Fund’s portfolio holdings. The Fund’s market price may also be affected by general market or economic conditions, including market trends affecting securities values generally or values of closed-end fund shares more specifically.
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk
In accordance with the Fund’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration of Trust”), the Fund intends to terminate as of the first business day following the twelfth anniversary of the effective date of the Fund’s initial registration statement, February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”); provided that the Board may, by a vote of a majority of the Board and seventy-five percent (75%) of the Continuing Trustees, as defined below (a “Board Action Vote”), without shareholder approval, extend the Dissolution Date (i) once for up to one year and (ii) once for up to an additional six months, to a date up to and including the eighteenth month after the initial Dissolution Date, which later date shall then become the Dissolution Date. At the Dissolution Date, each holder of common shares of beneficial interest (“Common Shareholder”) would be paid a pro rata portion of the Fund’s net assets as determined as of the Dissolution Date. “Continuing Trustees” are the members of the Board who either (i) have been a member of the Board for a period of at least thirty-six months (or since the commencement of the Fund’s operations, if less than thirty-six months) or (ii) were nominated to serve as a member of the Board by a majority of the Continuing Trustees then members of the Board.
The Board may, by a Board Action Vote, cause the Fund to conduct a tender offer, as of a date within twelve months preceding the Dissolution Date (as may be extended as described above), to all Common Shareholders to purchase 100% of the then outstanding Common Shares of the Fund at a price equal to the NAV per Common Share on the expiration date of the tender offer (the “Eligible Tender Offer”). In an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund will offer to purchase all Common Shares held by each Common Shareholder; provided that if the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below $200 million (the “Dissolution Threshold”), the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer, and the Fund will terminate as otherwise scheduled. If an Eligible Tender Offer is conducted and the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets greater than or equal to the Dissolution Threshold, all Common Shares properly tendered and not withdrawn will be purchased by the Fund pursuant to the terms of the Eligible Tender Offer. Following the completion of an Eligible Tender Offer, the Board may, by a Board Action Vote, eliminate the Dissolution Date and scheduled termination of the Fund without shareholder approval and the Fund would continue to operate indefinitely thereafter. The Board may, to the extent it deems appropriate and without shareholder approval, adopt a plan of liquidation at any time preceding the anticipated Dissolution Date, which plan of liquidation may set forth the terms and conditions for implementing the termination of the existence of the Fund, including the commencement of the winding down of its investment operations and the making of one or more liquidating distributions to Common Shareholders prior to the Dissolution Date.
Because the assets of the Fund will be liquidated in connection with the dissolution, the Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with dispositions of portfolio securities. The Fund is not a so called “target date” or “life cycle” fund whose asset allocation becomes more conservative over time as its target date, often associated with retirement, approaches. In addition, the Fund is not a “target term” fund and thus does not seek to return the Fund’s initial public offering price per Common Share upon termination of the Fund or in a tender offer. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to the Dissolution Date and may be required to sell portfolio securities when it otherwise would not, including at times when market conditions are not favorable, which may cause the Fund to lose money. In particular, the Fund’s portfolio may still have large exposures to illiquid securities as the Dissolution Date approaches, and losses due to portfolio liquidation may be significant.
Beginning one year before the Dissolution Date (the “Wind-Down Period”), the Fund may begin liquidating all or a portion of the Fund’s portfolio, and the Fund may deviate from its investment strategy and may not achieve its investment objective. As a result, during the Wind-Down Period, the Fund’s distributions may decrease, and such distributions may include a return of capital. It is expected that Common Shareholders will receive cash in any liquidating distribution from the Fund, regardless of their participation in the Fund’s automatic dividend reinvestment plan. However, if on the Dissolution Date the Fund owns securities or other investments for which no market exists or securities or other investments that are trading at depressed prices, such securities or other investments may be placed in a liquidating trust. The Fund cannot predict the amount, if any, of securities or other investments that will be required to be placed in a liquidating trust. The disposition of portfolio investments by the Fund could also cause market prices of such instruments, and hence the NAV and market price of the Common Shares, to decline.
Moreover, in conducting such portfolio transactions, the Fund may need to deviate from its investment policies and may not achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s portfolio composition may change as its portfolio holdings mature or are called or sold in anticipation of an Eligible Tender Offer or the Dissolution Date. During such period(s), it is possible that the Fund will hold a greater percentage of its total assets in shorter term and lower yielding securities and cash and cash equivalents than it would otherwise, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and adversely impact the Fund’s performance and distributions to Common Shareholders, which may in turn adversely impact the market value of the Common Shares. In addition, the Fund may be required to reduce its leverage, which could also adversely impact its performance. The additional cash or cash equivalents held by the Fund could be obtained through reducing the Fund’s distributions to Common Shareholders and/or holding cash in lieu of reinvesting, which could limit the ability of the Fund to participate in new investment opportunities. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to or around the Dissolution Date, which may exacerbate the foregoing risks and considerations. A Common Shareholder may be subject to the foregoing risks over an extended period of time, particularly if the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer and is also subsequently terminated by or around the Dissolution Date.
If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund anticipates that funds to pay the aggregate purchase price of shares accepted for purchase pursuant to the tender offer will be first derived from any cash on hand and then from the proceeds from the sale of portfolio investments held by the Fund. In addition, the Fund may be required to dispose of portfolio investments in connection with any reduction in the Fund’s outstanding leverage necessary in order to maintain the Fund’s desired leverage ratios following a tender offer. The risks related to the disposition of securities in connection with the Fund’s dissolution also would be present in connection with the disposition of securities in connection with an Eligible Tender Offer. It is likely that during the pendency of a tender offer, and possibly for a time thereafter, the Fund will hold a greater than normal percentage of its total assets in cash and cash equivalents, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and decrease returns to shareholders. The tax effect of any
such dispositions of portfolio investments will depend on the difference between the price at which the investments are sold and the tax basis of the Fund in the investments. Any capital gains recognized on such dispositions, as reduced by any capital losses the Fund realizes in the year of such dispositions and by any available capital loss carryforwards, will be distributed to shareholders as capital gain dividends (to the extent of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) or ordinary dividends (to the extent of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses) during or with respect to such year, and such distributions will generally be taxable to Common Shareholders. If the Fund’s tax basis for the investments sold is less than the sale proceeds, the Fund will recognize capital gains, which the Fund will be required to distribute to Common Shareholders. In addition, the Fund’s purchase of tendered Common Shares pursuant to a tender offer will have tax consequences for tendering Common Shareholders and may have tax consequences for non-tendering Common Shareholders.
The purchase of Common Shares by the Fund pursuant to a tender offer will have the effect of increasing the proportionate interest in the Fund of non-tendering Common Shareholders. All Common Shareholders remaining after a tender offer may be subject to proportionately higher expenses due to the reduction in the Fund’s total assets resulting from payment for the tendered Common Shares. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may result in less investment flexibility, reduced diversification and greater volatility for the Fund, and may have an adverse effect on the Fund’s investment performance. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may also cause Common Shares to become thinly traded or otherwise negatively impact secondary trading of Common Shares. A reduction in net assets, and the corresponding increase in the Fund’s expense ratio, could result in lower returns and put the Fund at a disadvantage relative to its peers and potentially cause the Fund’s Common Shares to trade at a wider discount to NAV than it otherwise would. Furthermore, the portfolio of the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer could be significantly different and, therefore, Common Shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund could be subject to greater risk. For example, the Fund may be required to sell its more liquid, higher quality portfolio investments to purchase Common Shares that are tendered in an Eligible Tender Offer, which would leave a less liquid, lower quality portfolio for remaining shareholders. The prospects of an Eligible Tender Offer may attract arbitrageurs who would purchase the Common Shares prior to the tender offer for the sole purpose of tendering those shares which could have the effect of exacerbating the risks described herein for shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer.
The Fund is not required to conduct an Eligible Tender Offer. If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, there can be no assurance that the number of tendered Common Shares would not result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below the Dissolution Threshold, in which case the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer and the Fund will dissolve on the Dissolution Date (subject to possible extensions). The Adviser has a conflict of interest in recommending to the Board that the Dissolution Date be eliminated and the Fund have a perpetual existence, because the Adviser would continue to earn fees for managing the Fund. The Fund is not required to conduct additional tender offers following an Eligible Tender Offer and conversion to perpetual existence. Therefore, remaining Common Shareholders may not have another opportunity to participate in a tender offer.
Leverage Risk
The Fund’s use of leverage (as described under “Leverage” in the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies above) creates the opportunity for increased net income and capital appreciation, but also creates special risks for Common Shareholders. There is no assurance that the Fund’s leveraging strategies will be successful. Leverage is a speculative technique that exposes the Fund to greater risk and increased costs. The interest expense payable by the Fund with respect to its reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings and/or dividends payable with respect to any outstanding preferred shares may be based on shorter-term interest rates that periodically reset. So long as the Fund’s portfolio investments provide a higher rate of return (net of applicable Fund expenses) than the interest expenses, dividend expenses and other costs to the Fund of such leverage, the investment of the proceeds thereof should generate more income than will be needed to pay the costs of the leverage. If so, and all other things being equal, the excess would be used to pay higher dividends to Common Shareholders than if the Fund were not so leveraged. If, however, interest rates rise relative to the rate of return on the Fund’s portfolio, the interest and other costs to the Fund of leverage, including interest expenses on borrowings, the dividend rate on any outstanding preferred shares and/or the cost of the use of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls or similar transactions, could exceed the rate of return on the debt obligations and other investments held by the Fund, thereby reducing the return to Common Shareholders.
When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the investment return to Common Shareholders will likely be more volatile. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s use of leverage will result in a higher investment return on the Common Shares, and it may result in losses. In addition, fees and expenses of any form of leverage used by the Fund will be borne entirely by the Common Shareholders and not by preferred shareholders, if any, and will reduce the investment return of the Common Shares. In addition, any preferred shares issued by the Fund may pay cumulative dividends, which may tend to increase leverage risk.
Leverage creates several major types of risks for Common Shareholders, including:
the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV and market price of Common Shares, and of the investment return to Common Shareholders, than a comparable portfolio without leverage;
the possibility either that Common Share dividends will fall if the interest and other costs of leverage rise, or that dividends paid on Common Shares will fluctuate because such costs vary over time;
the effects of leverage in a declining market or a rising interest rate environment, as leverage is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV of the Common Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged and may result in a greater decline in the market value of the Common Shares; and
the Fund’s creditors, counterparties to the Fund’s leveraging transactions and any preferred shareholders of the Fund will have priority of payment over the Fund’s Common Shareholders.
The use by the Fund of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions or similar transactions to obtain leverage also involves special risks. For instance, the market value of the securities that the Fund is obligated to repurchase under a reverse repurchase agreement may decline below the repurchase price and the securities may not be returned to the Fund.
In addition to borrowings, an issuance of preferred shares, reverse repurchase agreements and/or dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, the Fund’s use of other transactions that may give rise to a form of leverage (including, among others, credit default swap contracts and other transactions, loans of portfolio securities, transactions involving derivative instruments, short sales, and when issued, delayed delivery, and forward commitment transactions) gives rise to the associated leverage risks described above, and may adversely affect the Fund’s income, distributions, and total returns to Common Shareholders. The Fund also may seek to offset derivatives positions against one another or against other assets in an attempt to manage effective market exposure resulting from derivatives in its portfolio. To the extent that any positions do not behave in relation to one another as expected by the Adviser, the Fund may perform as if it is leveraged through use of these derivative strategies.
Counterparties to the Fund’s other leveraging transactions (e.g., total return swaps, reverse repurchases, loans of portfolio securities, short sales and when-issued, delayed delivery and forward commitment transactions, credit default swaps, basis swaps and other swap agreements, futures and forward contracts, call and put options or other derivatives), if any, would have seniority over the Fund’s Common Shares.
Regulations or guidance issued by applicable regulators including the SEC or the CFTC or their staffs could, among other things, restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by making certain types of derivatives transactions no longer available to the Fund) and/or increase the costs of such leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by increasing margin or capital requirements), and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.
The Fund’s ability to utilize leverage, invest in accordance with its principal investment strategies, and make distributions to Common Shareholders may also be limited by asset coverage requirements applicable to the use of certain transactions that may involve leverage, restrictions imposed by the Fund’s creditors, and guidelines or restrictions imposed by rating agencies that provide ratings for preferred shares or in connection with liquidity arrangements for preferred shares.
Because the fees received by the Adviser are based on the total managed assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings), the Adviser has a financial incentive to cause the Fund to use leverage, which creates a conflict of interest between the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Common Shareholders, on the other hand.
Liquidity Risk
Liquidity risk is the risk that the Fund may invest in securities that trade in lower volumes and may be less liquid than other investments or that the Fund’s investments may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquidity may be the result of, for example, low trading volumes, lack of a market maker, or contractual or legal restrictions that limit or prevent the Fund from selling securities or closing positions. When there is no willing buyer and investments cannot be readily sold or closed out, the Fund may have to sell an investment at a lower price than the price at which the Fund is carrying the investments, may not be able to sell the investments at all, may miss other investment opportunities and may hold investments it would prefer to sell, any of which would have a negative effect on the Fund’s performance and may cause the Fund to
hold an investment longer than the Adviser would otherwise determine. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a portfolio investment at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment or that the Fund may be forced to sell large amounts of securities more quickly than it normally would in the ordinary course of business. In such a case, the sale proceeds received by the Fund may be substantially less than if the Fund had been able to sell the securities in more-orderly transactions, and the sale price may be substantially lower than the price previously used by the Fund to value the securities for purposes of determining the Fund’s NAV.
In addition, if the Fund sells investments with extended settlement times (e.g., certain kinds of loans), the settlement proceeds from the sales will not be available to the Fund for a substantial period of time. The Fund may be forced to sell other investment positions with shorter settlement cycles when the Fund would not otherwise have done so, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. Additionally, the market for certain investments may become illiquid under adverse market or economic conditions (e.g., if interest rates rise or fall significantly, if there is significant inflation or deflation, increased selling of debt securities generally across other funds, pools and accounts, changes in investor perception, geopolitical events (such as trading halts, sanctions or wars), or changes in government intervention in the financial markets) independent of any specific adverse changes in the conditions of a particular issuer. In such cases, shares of the Fund, due to limitations on investments in illiquid securities and the difficulty in purchasing and selling such securities or instruments, may decline in value or the Fund may be unable to achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain issuer or sector. During periods of substantial market disruption, a large portion of the Fund’s assets could potentially experience significant levels of illiquidity. The values of illiquid investments are often more volatile than the values of more liquid investments. It may be more difficult to determine a fair value of an illiquid investment than those of more liquid comparable investments.
Portfolio Management Risk
Portfolio management risk is the risk that an investment strategy may fail to produce the intended results. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular asset classes, sectors, securities, or other investments may prove to be incorrect and may not anticipate actual market movements or the impact of economic conditions generally. No matter how well a portfolio manager evaluates market conditions, the investments a portfolio manager chooses may fail to produce the intended result, and you could lose money on your investment in the Fund.
Valuation Risk
Valuation risk is the risk that the Fund will not value its investments in a manner that accurately reflects their market values or that the Fund will not be able to sell any investment at a price equal to the valuation ascribed to that investment for purposes of calculating the Fund’s NAV. The valuation of the Fund’s investments involves subjective judgment and some valuations may involve assumptions, projections, opinions, discount rates, estimated data points and other uncertain or subjective amounts, all of which may prove inaccurate. In addition, the valuation of certain investments held by the Fund may involve the significant use of unobservable and non-market inputs. Certain securities in which the Fund may invest may be more difficult to value accurately, especially during periods of market disruptions or extreme market volatility. As a result, there can be no assurance that fair value pricing will result in adjustments to the prices of securities or other assets, or that fair value pricing will reflect actual market value, and it is possible that the fair value determined for a security or other asset will be materially different from quoted or published prices, from the prices used by others for the same security or other asset and/or from the value that actually could be or is realized upon the sale of that security or other asset. Technological issues or other service disruption issues involving third party service providers may also cause a Fund to value its investments incorrectly. Incorrect valuations of a Fund’s portfolio holdings could result in a Fund’s shareholder transactions being effected at an NAV that does not accurately reflect the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio, resulting in the dilution of shareholder interests.
Investment and Market Risk
An investment in Common Shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. An investment in Common Shares represents an indirect investment in the securities and other instruments owned by the Fund. The market price of securities and other instruments may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Securities may decline in value due to factors affecting markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular issuer, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities. Common Shares are subject to the risk that markets will perform poorly or that the returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will
underperform returns from the general securities markets or other types of investments. Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, political, economic or market developments, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. Certain securities may be difficult to value during such periods. The value of securities and other instruments traded in over-the-counter markets, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. Further, the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have from time to time taken steps to support financial markets. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve may, conversely, reduce market support activities, including by taking action intended to increase certain interest rates. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. Changes in government activities in this regard, such as changes in interest rate policy, can negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the Fund invests.
Credit Risk
Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or counterparty will fail to pay its obligations to the Fund when they are due. If an investment’s issuer or counterparty fails to pay interest or otherwise fails to meet its obligations to the Fund, the Fund’s income might be reduced and the value of the investment might fall or be lost entirely. Financial strength and solvency of an issuer are the primary factors influencing credit risk. Changes in the financial condition of an issuer or counterparty, changes in specific economic, social or political conditions that affect a particular type of security, other instrument or an issuer, and changes in economic, social or political conditions generally can increase the risk of default by an issuer or counterparty, which can affect a security’s or other instrument’s credit quality or value and an issuer’s or counterparty’s ability to pay interest and principal when due. The values of lower-quality debt securities (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities and “junk” bonds) and floating rate loans, tend to be particularly sensitive to these changes. The values of securities also may decline for a number of other reasons that relate directly to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the issuer and the value of its assets. Credit risk is heightened to the extent the Fund has fewer counterparties.
In addition, lack of or inadequacy of collateral or credit enhancements for a fixed income security may affect its credit risk. Credit risk of a security may change over time, and securities which are rated by rating agencies may be subject to downgrade, which may have an indirect impact on the market price of securities. Ratings are only opinions of the agencies issuing them as to the likelihood of re-payment. They are not guarantees as to quality and they do not reflect market risk.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt securities and other obligations of all kinds.
Interest Rate Risk
Interest rate risk is the risk that debt instruments will change in value because of changes in interest rates. Interest rate changes may affect the value of a fixed income instrument directly (especially in the case of fixed rate instruments) and indirectly (especially in the case of adjustable-rate instruments). The value of an instrument with a longer duration (whether positive or negative) will be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than a similar instrument with a shorter duration. Bonds and other debt instruments typically have a positive duration. The value of a debt instrument with positive duration will generally decline if interest rates increase. Certain other investments, such as inverse floaters and certain derivative instruments, may have a negative duration. The value of instruments with a negative duration will generally decline if interest rates decrease. Inverse floaters, interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. The prices of long-term debt obligations generally fluctuate more than prices of short-term debt obligations as interest rates change. Because the Fund’s weighted average effective duration generally will fluctuate as interest rates change, the Common Share NAV and market price per share may tend to fluctuate more in response to changes in market interest rates than if the Fund invested mainly in short-term debt securities. During periods of rising interest rates, the average life of certain types of securities may extend due to lower than expected rates of pre-payments, which could cause the securities’ durations to extend and expose the securities to more price volatility. This may lock in a below market yield, increase the security’s duration and reduce the securities’ value. In addition to directly affecting debt securities, rising interest rates also may have an adverse effect on the value of any equity securities held by the Fund. The Fund’s use of leverage will tend to increase Common Share interest rate risk.
DoubleLine may use certain strategies, including investments in structured notes or interest rate futures contracts or swap, cap, floor or collar transactions, for the purpose of reducing the interest rate sensitivity of the Fund’s portfolio, although there is no assurance that it will do so or that such strategies will be successful. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate volatility and liquidity risk. In market environments where interest rates are rising, issuers may be less willing or able to make principal and interest payments on fixed-income investments when due.
Yield curve risk is the risk associated with either a flattening or steepening of the yield curve. The yield curve is a representation of market interest rates of obligations with durations of different lengths. When the yield curve is “steep,” longer-term obligations bear higher rates of interest than similar shorter-term obligations; when the curve “flattens,” the difference between those interest rates is reduced. If the yield curve is “inverted,” longer term obligations bear lower interest rates than shorter term obligations. If the Fund’s portfolio is structured to perform favorably in a particular interest rate environment, a change in the yield curve could result in losses to the Fund.
Variable and floating rate debt securities are generally less sensitive to interest rate changes, as compared to fixed rate debt instruments, but may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value at all or to the same extent as fixed rate instruments when interest rates decline. Inverse floating rate debt securities may decrease in value if interest rates increase.
Inverse floating rate debt securities also may exhibit greater price volatility than a fixed rate debt obligation with similar credit quality. When the Fund holds variable or floating rate securities, a decrease (or, in the case of inverse floating rate securities, an increase) in market interest rates will adversely affect the income received from such securities and the NAV of the Common Shares.
Debt Securities Risk
In addition to certain of the other risks described herein such as interest rate risk and credit risk, debt securities generally also are subject to the following risks:
Redemption Risk—Debt securities sometimes contain provisions that allow for redemption in the event of tax or security law changes in addition to call features at the option of the issuer. In the event of a redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return.
Extension Risk—This is the risk that if interest rates rise, repayments of principal on certain debt securities, including, but not limited to, floating rate loans and mortgage-related securities, may occur at a slower rate than expected and the expected maturity of those securities could lengthen as a result. Securities that are subject to extension risk generally have a greater potential for loss when prevailing interest rates rise, which could cause their values to fall sharply. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Liquidity Risk—Certain debt securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities, such as U.S. Government securities or common shares or other equity securities.
Spread Risk—Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of the debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood or risk of default by the issuer.
Limited Voting Rights—Debt securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases when interest payments have not been made and the issuer is in default. Even in such cases, such rights may be limited to the terms of the debenture or other agreements.
Prepayment/Reinvestment Risk—Many types of debt securities, including floating rate loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities, may reflect an interest in periodic payments made by borrowers. Although debt securities and other obligations typically mature after a specified period of time, borrowers may pay them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, all or a portion of the obligation will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay an obligation which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, there is a greater likelihood that the Fund’s higher yielding securities will be pre-paid and the Fund will probably be unable to reinvest those proceeds in an investment with as great a yield, causing the Fund’s yield to decline. Securities subject to prepayment risk generally offer less potential for gains when prevailing interest rates fall. If the Fund buys those investments at a premium, accelerated prepayments on those investments could cause the Fund to lose a portion of its principal investment and result in lower yields to shareholders. The
increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation, especially with respect to certain loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. The effect of prepayments on the price of a security may be difficult to predict and may increase the security’s price volatility. Interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. Income from the Fund’s portfolio may decline when the Fund invests the proceeds from investment income, sales of portfolio securities or matured, traded or called debt obligations. A decline in income received by the Fund from its investments is likely to have a negative effect on the dividend levels and market price, NAV and/or overall return of the Common Shares.
The Fund’s investments in debt securities may include, but are not limited to, senior, junior, secured and unsecured bonds, notes and other debt securities, and may be fixed rate, floating rate, zero coupon and inflation linked, among other things. The Fund may invest in convertible bonds, which are fixed income securities that are exercisable into other debt or equity securities, and “synthetic” convertible securities, which are created through a combination of separate securities that possess the two principal characteristics of a traditional convertible security, i.e., an income-producing security (“income-producing component”) and the right to acquire an equity security (“convertible component”). The market value of a debt security may be affected by the credit rating of the issuer, the issuer’s performance, perceptions of the issuer in the marketplace, management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services. There is a risk that the issuers of the debt securities in which the Fund may invest may not be able to meet their obligations on interest or principal payments at the time called for by an instrument.
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks
Mortgage-backed securities include, among other things, participation interests in pools of residential mortgage loans purchased from individual lenders by a federal agency or originated and issued by private lenders and involve, among others, the following risks:
Credit and Market Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Investments by the Fund in fixed rate and floating rate mortgage-backed securities will entail credit risks (i.e., the risk of non-payment of interest and principal) and market risks (i.e., the risk that interest rates and other factors could cause the value of the instrument to decline). Many issuers or servicers of mortgage-backed securities guarantee timely payment of interest and principal on the securities, whether or not payments are made when due on the underlying mortgages. This kind of guarantee generally increases the quality of a security, but does not mean that the security’s market value and yield will not change. The values of mortgage-backed securities may change because of changes in the market’s perception of the credit quality of the assets held by the issuer of the mortgage-backed securities or an entity, if any, providing credit support in respect of the mortgage-backed securities. In addition, an unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may limit substantially the pool’s ability to make payments of principal or interest to the Fund as a holder of such securities, reducing the values of those securities or in some cases rendering them worthless. The Fund also may purchase securities that are not guaranteed or subject to any credit support, or that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities. An investment in a privately issued mortgage-backed security is generally less liquid and subject to greater credit risks than an investment in a mortgage-backed security that is issued or otherwise guaranteed by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation.
Mortgage-backed securities may be structured similarly to collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) and may be subject to similar risks. For example, the cash flows from the collateral held by the mortgage-backed security may be split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Interest holders in senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rates but are generally subject to less credit risk than more junior tranches because, should there be any default, senior tranches are typically paid first. The most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are due to be paid the highest interest rates but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying mortgage loan default. If some loans default and the cash collected by the issuer of the mortgage-backed security is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first.
Like bond investments, the value of fixed rate mortgage-backed securities will tend to rise when interest rates fall, and fall when rates rise. Floating rate mortgage-backed securities generally tend to have more moderate changes in price when interest rates rise or fall, but their current yield will generally be affected. In addition, the mortgage-backed securities market in general may be adversely affected by changes in governmental legislation or regulation. Factors that could affect the value of a mortgage-backed security include, among other things, the types and amounts of insurance, if any, which an individual mortgage or that specific mortgage-
backed security carries, the default and delinquency rate of the mortgage pool, the amount of time the mortgage loan has been outstanding, the loan-to-value ratio of each mortgage and the amount of overcollateralization or under collateralization of a mortgage pool. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities.
The residential mortgage market in the United States has experienced difficulties at times, and the same or similar events may adversely affect the performance and market value of certain of the Fund’s mortgage-related investments. Delinquencies and losses on residential mortgage loans (especially subprime and second-lien mortgage loans) generally increase in a recession and potentially could begin to increase again. A decline in or flattening of housing values (as has been experienced and may again be experienced in many housing markets) may exacerbate such delinquencies and losses. Borrowers with adjustable rate mortgage loans may be more sensitive to changes in interest rates, which affect their monthly mortgage payments, and may be unable to secure replacement mortgages at comparably low interest rates. Also, a number of residential mortgage loan originators have experienced serious financial difficulties or bankruptcy. Reduced investor demand for mortgage-related securities has resulted and again may result in limited new issuances of mortgage-related securities and limited liquidity in the secondary market for mortgage-related securities, which can adversely affect the market value of mortgage-related securities and limit the availability of attractive investment opportunities for the Fund. It is possible that such limited liquidity in secondary markets could return and worsen.
The values of mortgage-backed securities may be substantially dependent on the servicing of the underlying mortgage pools, and therefore are subject to risks associated with the negligence or malfeasance by their servicers and to the credit risk of their servicers. In certain circumstances, the mishandling of related documentation also may affect the rights of security holders in and to the underlying collateral.
Some government sponsored mortgage-related securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”), the principal guarantor of such securities, is a wholly owned United States government corporation within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Other government-sponsored mortgage-related securities are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Issuers of such securities include Fannie Mae (formally known as the Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddie Mac (formally known as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored corporation which is subject to general regulation by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Pass-through securities issued by Fannie Mae are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by Fannie Mae. Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress and subject to general regulation by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Participation certificates representing interests in mortgages from Freddie Mac’s national portfolio are guaranteed as to the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal by Freddie Mac. The U.S. government has provided financial support to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the past, but there can be no assurances that it will support these or other government-sponsored entities in the future.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to securitizations involving mortgage loans and other obligations underlying mortgage-backed securities.
Liquidity Risk of Mortgage-Backed Securities. The liquidity of mortgage-backed securities varies by type of security; at certain times the Fund may encounter difficulty in disposing of such investments. Investments in privately issued mortgage-backed securities may have less liquidity than mortgage-backed securities that are issued by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation. Because mortgage-backed securities have the potential to be less liquid than other securities, the Fund may be more susceptible to liquidity risks than funds that invest in other securities. In the past, in stressed markets, certain types of mortgage-backed securities suffered periods of illiquidity when disfavored by the market. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a mortgage-backed security at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment.
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (“CMBS”) Risks. CMBS include securities that reflect an interest in, or are secured by, mortgage loans on commercial real property. Many of the risks of investing in commercial mortgage-backed securities reflect the risks of investing in the real estate securing the underlying mortgage loans. These risks reflect the effects of local and other economic conditions on real estate markets, the ability of tenants to make loan payments and the ability of a property to attract and retain tenants. Commercial mortgage-backed securities may be less liquid and exhibit greater price volatility than other types of mortgage- or asset-backed securities.
With respect to risk retention tranches (i.e., eligible residual interests initially held by the sponsors of collateralized mortgage- backed securities and other eligible securitizations pursuant to the U.S. Risk Retention Rules), a third-party purchaser, such as the Fund, must
hold its retained interest, unhedged, for at least five years following the closing of the securitization transaction, after which it is entitled to transfer its interest in the securitization to another person that meets the requirements for a third-party purchaser. Even after the required holding period has expired, due to the limited market for such investments, no assurance can be given as to what, if any, exit strategies will ultimately be available for any given position. In addition, there is limited guidance on the application of the laws and regulations applicable to such investments. There can be no assurance that the applicable federal agencies charged with the implementation of the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules (the FDIC, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Board, the SEC, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) could not take positions in the future that differ from the interpretation of such rules taken or embodied in such securitizations, or that the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules will not change. Furthermore, in situations where the Fund invests in risk retention tranches of securitizations structured by third parties, the Fund may be required to execute one or more letters or other agreements, the exact form and nature of which will vary (each, a “Risk Retention Agreement”) under which it will make certain undertakings designed to ensure such securitization complies with the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules. Such Risk Retention Agreements may include a variety of representations, warranties, covenants and other indemnities, each of which may run to various transaction parties. If the Fund breaches any undertakings in any Risk Retention Agreement, it will be exposed to claims by the other parties thereto, including for any losses incurred as a result of such breach.
Prepayment, Extension and Redemption Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities may reflect an interest in monthly payments made by the borrowers who receive the underlying mortgage loans. Although the underlying mortgage loans are for specified periods of time, such as 20 or 30 years, the borrowers can, and historically have often paid them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, a portion of the mortgage-backed security which represents an interest in the underlying mortgage loan will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay a mortgage which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, a portion of the Fund’s higher yielding securities are likely to be redeemed and the Fund will probably be unable to replace them with securities having as great a yield. Prepayments can result in lower yields to shareholders. The increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation. This is known as prepayment risk. Mortgage-backed securities also are subject to extension risk. Extension risk is the possibility that rising interest rates may cause prepayments to occur at a slower than expected rate. This particular risk may effectively change a security which was considered short or intermediate term into a long-term security. The values of long-term securities generally fluctuate more widely in response to changes in interest rates than short or intermediate-term securities. In addition, a mortgage-backed security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer. If a mortgage-backed security held by the Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to permit the issuer to redeem or pay-off the security, which could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (“CMOs”) Risks. CMOs are debt obligations collateralized by mortgage loans or mortgage pass-through securities. The expected average life of CMOs is determined using mathematical models that incorporate prepayment assumptions and other factors that involve estimates of future economic and market conditions. These estimates may vary from actual future results, particularly during periods of extreme market volatility. Further, under certain market conditions, the average weighted life of certain CMOs may not accurately reflect the price volatility of such securities. For example, in periods of supply and demand imbalances in the market for such securities and/or in periods of sharp interest rate movements, the prices of CMOs may fluctuate to a greater extent than would be expected from interest rate movements alone. CMOs issued by private entities are not obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and are not guaranteed by any government agency, although the securities underlying a CMO may be subject to a guarantee. Therefore, if the collateral securing the CMO, as well as any third party credit support or guarantees, is insufficient to make payments when due, the holder could sustain a loss.
Adjustable Rate Mortgages (“ARMs”) Risks. ARMs contain maximum and minimum rates beyond which the mortgage interest rate may not vary over the lifetime of the security. In addition, many ARMs provide for additional limitations on the maximum amount by which the mortgage interest rate may adjust for any single adjustment period. Alternatively, certain ARMs contain limitations on changes in the required monthly payment. In the event that a monthly payment is not sufficient to pay the interest accruing on an ARM, any excess interest is added to the principal balance of the mortgage loan, which is repaid through future monthly payments. If the monthly payment for such an instrument exceeds the sum of the interest accrued at the applicable mortgage interest rate and the principal payment required at such point to amortize the outstanding principal balance over the remaining term of the loan, the excess is used to reduce the then-outstanding principal balance of the ARM. In addition, certain ARMs may provide for an initial fixed, below-market or teaser interest rate. During this initial fixed-rate period, the payment due from the related mortgagor may be less than that of a traditional loan. However, after the teaser rate expires, the monthly payment required to be made by the mortgagor may increase significantly when the interest rate on the mortgage loan adjusts. This increased burden on the mortgagor may increase the risk of delinquency or default on the mortgage loan and in turn, losses on the mortgage-backed security into which that loan has been bundled.
Interest and Principal Only Securities Risks. Stripped mortgage-backed securities are usually structured with two classes that receive different portions of the interest and principal distributions on a pool of debt instruments, such as mortgage loans. In one type of stripped mortgage-backed security, one class will receive all of the interest from the mortgage assets (the interest-only, or “IO” class), while the other class will receive all of the principal from the mortgage assets (the principal-only, or “PO” class). The yield to maturity (the expected rate of return on a bond if held until the end of its lifetime) on an IO class is extremely sensitive to the rate of principal payments (including prepayments) on the underlying mortgage assets, and a rapid rate of principal payments may have a material adverse effect on the Fund’s yield to maturity from these securities. If the assets underlying the IO class experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, the Fund may fail to recoup fully, or at all, its initial investment in these securities. PO class securities tend to decline in value if prepayments are slower than anticipated. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Inverse Floaters and Related Securities Risks. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments expose the Fund to the same risks as investments in debt securities and derivatives, as well as other risks, including those associated with leverage and increased volatility. An investment in these securities typically will involve greater risk than an investment in a fixed rate security. Distributions on inverse floaters and similar instruments will typically bear an inverse relationship to short-term interest rates and typically will be reduced or, potentially, eliminated as interest rates rise. The rate at which interest is paid on an inverse floater may vary by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in a reference rate of interest (typically a short-term interest rate) , and the market prices of inverse floaters may as a result be highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and in prepayment rates on the underlying securities, and may decrease in value significantly when interest rates or prepayment rates change. The effect of the reference rate multiplier in inverse floaters is associated with greater volatility in their market values. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments that have mortgage-backed securities underlying them will expose the Fund to the risks associated with those mortgage-backed securities and the values of those investments may be especially sensitive to changes in prepayment rates on the underlying mortgage-backed securities.
Foreign Investing Risk
Investments in foreign securities or in issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets may involve greater risks than investments in domestic securities. To the extent that investments are made in a limited number of countries, events in those countries will have a more significant impact on the Fund. As compared to U.S. companies, foreign issuers generally disclose less financial and other information publicly and are subject to less stringent and less uniform accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards. In addition, there may be limited information generally regarding factors affecting a particular foreign market, issuer, or security.
Foreign countries typically impose less thorough regulations on brokers, dealers, stock exchanges, corporate insiders and listed companies than does the United States and foreign securities markets may be less liquid and more volatile than domestic markets. Investment in foreign securities involves higher costs than investment in U.S. securities, including higher transaction and custody costs as well as the imposition of additional taxes by foreign governments, and as a result investments in foreign securities may be subject to issues relating to security registration or settlement. In addition, security trading and custody practices abroad may offer less protection to investors such as the Fund. Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect an investment in a foreign security or in foreign markets or issuers generally. Settlement of transactions in some foreign markets may be delayed or may be less frequent than in the United States which could affect the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio. Custody practices and regulations abroad may offer less protection to investors, such as the Fund, and the Fund may be limited in its ability to enforce contractual rights or obligations.
Because foreign securities generally are denominated and pay dividends or interest in foreign currencies, and the Fund may hold various foreign currencies from time to time, the value of the Fund’s assets, as measured in U.S. dollars, can be affected unfavorably by changes in exchange rates with respect to the U.S. dollar or with respect to other foreign currencies or by unfavorable currency regulations imposed by foreign governments. If the Fund invests in securities issued by foreign issuers, the Fund may be subject to these risks even if the investment is denominated in United States dollars. This risk may be heightened with respect to issuers whose revenues are principally earned in a foreign currency but whose debt obligations have been issued in United States dollars or other hard currencies.
Foreign issuers may become subject to sanctions imposed by the U.S. or another country or other governmental or non-governmental organizations, which could result in the immediate freeze of the foreign issuers’ assets or securities and/or make their securities worthless. The imposition of such sanctions, such as sanctions imposed against Russia, Russian entities and Russian
individuals in 2022, could impair the market value of the securities of such foreign issuers and limit the Fund’s ability to buy, sell, receive or deliver the securities. Sanctions, or the threat of sanctions, may cause volatility in regional and global markets and may negatively impact the performance of various sectors and industries, as well as companies in other countries, which could have a negative effect on the performance of the Fund.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. On January 31, 2020, the UK left the EU (commonly known as “Brexit”). An agreement between the UK and the EU governing their future trade relationship became effective January 1, 2021, but critical aspects of the relationship remain unresolved and subject to further negotiation and agreement. Brexit has resulted in volatility in European and global markets and could have negative long-term impacts on financial markets in the UK and throughout Europe. There is still considerable uncertainty relating to the potential consequences of the exit and whether the UK’s exit will increase the likelihood of other countries also departing the EU. During this period of uncertainty, the negative impact on not only the UK and European economies, but the broader global economy, could be significant, potentially resulting in increased market volatility and illiquidity, political, economic, and legal uncertainty, and lower economic growth for companies that rely significantly on Europe for their business activities and revenues. Any further exits from the EU, or the possibility of such exits, or the abandonment of the euro, may cause additional market disruption globally and introduce new legal and regulatory uncertainties.
If one or more EMU countries were to stop using the euro as its primary currency, the Fund’s investments in such countries may be redenominated into a different or newly adopted currency. As a result, the value of those investments could decline significantly and unpredictably. In addition, securities or other investments that are redenominated may be subject to liquidity risk and the risk that the Fund may not be able to value investments accurately to a greater extent than similar investments currently denominated in euros. To the extent a currency used for redenomination purposes is not specified in respect of certain EMU-related investments, or should the euro cease to be used entirely, the currency in which such investments are denominated may be unclear, making such investments particularly difficult to value or dispose of. The Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek judicial or other clarification of the denomination or value of such securities.
Foreign Currency Risk
Currency risk is the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. Currency risk includes both the risk that currencies in which the Fund’s investments are traded and/or in which the Fund receives income, or currencies in which the Fund has taken an active investment position, will decline in value relative to other currencies. In the case of hedging positions, currency risk includes the risk that the currency the Fund is seeking exposure to will decline in value relative to the foreign currency being hedged. Currency exchange rates fluctuate significantly for many reasons, including changes in supply and demand in the currency exchange markets, actual or perceived changes in interest rates, intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments, central banks, or supranational agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, and currency controls or other political and economic developments in the U.S. or abroad. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and major devaluations have historically occurred in certain countries. A devaluation of the currency in which portfolio securities are denominated will negatively impact the value of those securities.
Except as otherwise provided in the Fund’s principal investment strategies, the Fund may take derivatives (or spot) positions in currencies to which the Fund is exposed through its investments. This presents the risk that the Fund could lose money on both its currency exposure through a portfolio investment and its currency exposure through a derivatives (or spot) position. The Fund also may take overweighted or underweighted currency positions and/or hedge the currency exposure of the securities in which it has invested. The Fund may take positions in currencies different from the currencies in which its portfolio investments are denominated. As a result, the Fund’s currency exposure may differ (in some cases significantly) from the currency exposure of its investments and/or its benchmarks.
Exposure to emerging market currencies may entail greater risk than exposure to developed market currencies.
Emerging Markets Risk
Investing in the securities of emerging market countries, as compared to foreign developed markets, involves substantial additional risk due to more limited information about the issuer and/or the security; higher brokerage costs; different accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less developed legal systems and thinner trading markets; the possibility of currency blockages or transfer restrictions; an emerging market country’s dependence on revenue from particular commodities or international aid; and the risk of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse political or economic developments, such as the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other governmental restrictions.
Political and economic structures in many emerging market countries may undergo significant evolution and rapid development, and such countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristics of more developed countries. Emerging market countries tend to have a greater degree of economic, political and social instability than the U.S. and other developed countries. Such social, political and economic instability could disrupt the financial markets in which the Fund invests and adversely affect the value of its investment portfolio. Some of these countries have in the past failed to recognize private property rights and have at times nationalized or expropriated the assets of private companies. In addition, unanticipated political or social developments may affect the value of investments in emerging markets and the availability of additional investments in these markets. The small size, limited trading volume and relative inexperience of the securities markets in these countries may make investments in securities traded in emerging markets illiquid and more volatile than investments in securities traded in more developed countries, and the Fund may be required to establish special custodial or other arrangements before making investments in securities traded in emerging markets.
There may be little financial or accounting information available with respect to issuers of emerging market securities, and it may be difficult as a result to assess the value or prospects of an investment in such securities.
The securities markets of emerging market countries may be substantially smaller, less developed, less liquid and more volatile than the major securities markets in the United States and other developed nations. The limited size of many securities markets in emerging market countries and limited trading volume in issuers compared to the volume in U.S. securities or securities of issuers in other developed countries could cause prices to be erratic for reasons other than factors that affect the quality of the securities and investments in emerging markets can become illiquid. For example, limited market size may cause prices to be unduly influenced by traders who control large positions. Adverse publicity and investors’ perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value and liquidity of portfolio securities, especially in these markets. In addition, emerging market countries’ exchanges and broker-dealers may generally be subject to less regulation than their counterparts in developed countries. Emerging market securities markets, exchanges and market participants may lack the regulatory oversight and sophistication necessary to deter or detect market manipulation in such exchanges or markets, which may result in losses to the Fund to the extent it holds investments trading in such exchanges or markets. Brokerage commissions and dealer mark-ups, custodial expenses and other transaction costs are generally higher in emerging market countries than in developed countries. As a result, funds that invest in emerging market countries have operating expenses that are higher than funds investing in other securities markets.
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, which regulates auditors of U.S. public companies, is unable to inspect audit work papers in certain foreign countries. Investors in foreign countries often have limited rights and few practical remedies to pursue shareholder claims, including class actions or fraud claims, and the ability of the SEC, the U.S. Department of Justice and other authorities to bring and enforce actions against foreign issuers or foreign persons is limited. Regulatory regimes outside of the U.S. may not require or enforce corporate governance standards comparable to that of the U.S., which may result in less protections for investors in such issuers and make such issuers more susceptible to actions not in the best interest of the issuer or its investors.
In certain emerging market countries, governments participate to a significant degree, through ownership or regulation, in their respective economies. Action by these governments could have a significant adverse effect on market prices of securities and payment of dividends. In addition, most emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation. Inflation and rapid fluctuation in inflation rates have had and may continue to have very negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.
Emerging market countries may have different clearance and settlement procedures than in the U.S., including significantly longer settlement cycles for purchases and sales of securities, and in certain markets there may be times when settlements fail to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions. Further, custody practices abroad may offer less protection generally to investors, such as the Fund, and satisfactory custodial services for investment securities may not be available in some emerging market countries, which may result in the Fund incurring additional costs and delays in transporting and custodying such securities outside such countries. Delays in settlement or other problems could result in periods when the Fund’s assets are uninvested and no return is earned thereon. The Fund’s inability to make intended security purchases due to settlement
problems or the risk of intermediary counterparty failures could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. The inability to dispose of a portfolio security due to settlement problems could result either in losses to the Fund due to subsequent declines in the value of such portfolio security or, if the Fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, could result in possible liability to the purchaser. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and future devaluations may adversely affect the value of assets denominated in such currencies. Many emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation or deflation for many years, and future inflation may adversely affect the economies and securities markets of such countries.
When debt and similar obligations issued by foreign issuers are denominated in a currency (e.g., the U.S. dollar or the euro) other than the local currency of the issuer, the subsequent strengthening of the non-local currency against the local currency will generally increase the burden of repayment on the issuer and may increase significantly the risk of default by the issuer.
Emerging market countries have and may in the future impose capital controls, foreign currency controls and repatriation controls. In addition, some currency hedging techniques may be unavailable in emerging market countries, and the currencies of emerging market countries may experience greater volatility in exchange rates as compared to those of developed countries.
Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk
CDOs include CBOs, CLOs, and other similarly structured securities. A CBO is a trust which may be backed by a diversified pool of high risk, below investment grade fixed income securities. A CLO is a trust typically collateralized by a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinate loans, and mezzanine loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans and including loans that may be covenant-lite. CDOs may charge management fees and administrative expenses. The cash flows from the CDO trust are generally split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Holders of interests in the senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rate payments but those interests generally involve less credit risk as they are typically paid before junior tranches. The holders of interests in the most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are entitled to be paid the highest interest rate payments but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying debt instrument default. If some debt instruments default and the cash collected by the CDO is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first. Since it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CDO trust typically has higher ratings and lower potential yields than the underlying securities, and can be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity tranche, more senior CDO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of protecting tranches, market anticipation of defaults and aversion to CDO securities as a class.
The risks of an investment in a CDO depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. Normally, CBOs, CLOs and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, there may be a limited secondary market for investments in CDOs and such investments may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Fund may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt obligations.
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk
Asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest include obligations backed by, among others, motor vehicle installment sales or installment loan contracts; home equity loans; leases of various types of real, personal and other property (including those relating to aircrafts, telecommunication, energy, and/or other infrastructure assets and infrastructure-related assets); receivables from credit card agreements and automobile finance agreements: home equity sharing agreements; student loans; consumer loans; mobile home loans; boat loans; business and small business loans; project finance loans; airplane leases; and other non-mortgage-
related income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights. They may also include asset-backed securities backed by whole loans or fractions of whole loans issued by alternative lending platforms and securitized by those platforms or other entities (such as third-party originators or brokers). Any of these loans may be of sub-prime quality or made to an obligor with a sub-prime credit history.
Asset-backed securities involve the risk that borrowers may default on the obligations backing them and that the values of and interest earned on such investments will decline as a result. Loans made to lower quality borrowers, including those of sub-prime quality, involve a higher risk of default. Such loans, including those made by alternative lending platforms, may be difficult to value, may have limited payment histories, and may be subject to significant changes in value over time as economic conditions change. Therefore, the values of asset-backed securities backed by lower quality loans, including those of sub-prime quality, may suffer significantly greater declines in value due to defaults, payment delays or a perceived increased risk of default, especially during periods when economic conditions worsen. In addition, most or all securities backed by the collateral described above do not involve any credit enhancement provided by the U.S. government or any other party, and certain asset-backed securities do not have the benefit of a security interest in the related collateral.
Asset-backed securities tend to increase in value less than traditional debt securities of similar maturity and credit quality when interest rates decline, but are subject to a similar risk of decline in market value during periods of rising interest rates. Certain assets underlying asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment, which may reduce the overall return to asset-backed security holders. In a period of declining interest rates, pre-payments on asset-backed securities may increase and the Fund may be unable to reinvest those prepaid amounts in investments providing the same rate of interest as the pre-paid obligations.
The values of asset-backed securities may also be substantially dependent on the servicing of and diligence performed by their servicers or sponsors or the originating alternative lending platforms. For example, the Fund may suffer losses due to a servicer’s, sponsor’s or platform’s negligence or malfeasance, such as through the mishandling of certain documentation affecting security holders’ rights in and to underlying collateral or the failure to update or collect accurate and complete borrower information. In addition, the values of asset-backed securities may be adversely affected by the credit quality of the servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform, as applicable. Certain services, sponsors or originating alternative lending platforms may have limited operating histories to evaluate. The insolvency of a servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform may result in added costs and delays in addition to losses associated with a decline in the value of underlying assets. The Fund also may experience delays in payment or losses on its investments if the full amount due on underlying collateral is not realized, which may occur because of unanticipated legal or administrative costs of enforcing the contracts, depreciation or damage to the collateral securing certain contracts, under-collateralization or other factors.
Credit Default Swaps Risk
A credit default swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty that enables the Fund to buy or sell protection against a credit event related to a particular issuer. One party, acting as a protection buyer, makes periodic payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, to the other party, a protection seller, in exchange for a promise by the protection seller to make a payment to the protection buyer if a negative credit event (such as a delinquent payment or default) occurs with respect to a referenced bond or group of bonds. Credit default swaps may also be structured based on the debt of a basket of issuers, rather than a single issuer, and may be customized with respect to the default event that triggers purchase or other factors (for example, the Nth default within a basket, or defaults by a particular combination of issuers within the basket, may trigger a payment obligation). As a credit protection seller in a credit default swap contract, the Fund would be required to pay the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation to the counterparty following certain negative credit events as to a specified third-party debtor, such as default by a U.S. or non-U.S. corporate issuer on its debt obligations. In return for its obligation, the Fund would receive from the counterparty a periodic stream of payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, over the term of the contract provided that no event of default has occurred. If no default occurs, the Fund would keep the stream of payments, and would have no payment obligations to the counterparty. The Fund may sell credit protection in order to earn additional income and/or to take a synthetic long position in the underlying security or basket of securities.
The Fund may enter into credit default swap contracts as protection buyer in order to hedge against the risk of default on the debt of a particular issuer or basket of issuers or attempt to profit from a deterioration or perceived deterioration in the creditworthiness of the particular issuer(s) (also known as buying credit protection). This would involve the risk that the investment may expire worthless and would only generate gain in the event of an actual default by the issuer(s) of the underlying obligation(s) (or, as applicable, a credit downgrade or other indication of financial instability). It would also involve the risk that the seller may fail to satisfy its payment obligations to the Fund. The purchase of credit default swaps involves costs, which will reduce the Fund’s return.
A protection seller may have to pay out amounts following a negative credit event greater than the value of the reference obligation delivered to it by its counterparty and the amount of periodic payments previously received by it from the counterparty. When the Fund acts as a seller of a credit default swap, it is exposed to, among other things, leverage risk because if an event of default occurs the seller must pay the buyer the full notional value of the reference obligation. Each party to a credit default swap is subject to the credit risk of its counterparty. The value of the credit default swap to each party will change, at times significantly, based on changes in the actual or perceived creditworthiness of the underlying issuer. A protection buyer may lose its investment and recover nothing should an event of default not occur. The Fund may seek to realize gains on its credit default swap positions, or limit losses on its positions, by selling those positions in the secondary market. There can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist at any given time for any particular credit default swap or for credit default swaps generally.
The parties to a credit default swap are generally required to post collateral to each other. If the Fund posts initial or periodic collateral to its counterparty, it may not be able to recover that collateral from the counterparty in accordance with the terms of the swap. In addition, if the Fund receives collateral from its counterparty, it may be delayed or prevented from realizing on the collateral in the event of the insolvency or bankruptcy of the counterparty (or of its affiliates). The Fund may exit its obligations under a credit default swap only by terminating the contract and paying applicable breakage fees, or by entering into an offsetting credit default swap position, which may cause the Fund to incur more losses. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to exit a credit default swap position effectively when it seeks to do so.
U.S. Government Securities Risk
Some U.S. Government securities, such as Treasury bills, notes, and bonds and mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States; others are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; others are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agency’s obligations; still others are supported only by the credit of the issuing agency, instrumentality, or enterprise. Although U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises may be chartered or sponsored by Congress, they are not funded by Congressional appropriations, and their securities are not issued by the U.S. Treasury, their obligations are not supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, and so investments in their securities or obligations issued by them involve greater risk than investments in other types of U.S. Government securities. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to its agencies and sponsored entities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
In addition, certain governmental entities have been subject to regulatory scrutiny regarding their accounting policies and practices and other concerns that may result in legislation, changes in regulatory oversight and/or other consequences that could adversely affect the credit quality, availability or investment character of securities issued or guaranteed by these entities.
The events surrounding the U.S. federal government debt ceiling and any resulting agreement (and similar political, economic and other developments) could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. For example, a downgrade of the long-term sovereign credit rating of the U.S. could increase volatility in both stock and bond markets, result in higher interest rates and lower Treasury prices and increase the costs of all kinds of debt. These events and similar events in other areas of the world could have significant adverse effects on the economy generally and could result in significant adverse impacts on issuers of securities held by the Fund and the Fund itself. The Adviser cannot predict the effects of these or similar events in the future on the U.S. economy and securities markets or on the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser may not timely anticipate or manage existing, new or additional risks, contingencies or developments. In recent periods, the values of U.S. Government securities have been affected substantially by increased demand for them around the world. Changes in the demand for U.S. Government securities may occur at any time and may result in increased volatility in the values of those securities.
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk
Investments in countries’ government debt obligations involve special risks. Certain countries have historically experienced, and may continue to experience, high rates of inflation, high interest rates, exchange rate fluctuations, large amounts of external debt, balance of payments and trade difficulties and extreme poverty and unemployment. The issuer or governmental authority that controls the repayment of a country’s debt may not be able or willing to repay the principal and/or interest when due in accordance with the terms of such debt. A debtor’s willingness or ability to repay principal and interest due in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation and, in the case of a government debtor, the extent of its foreign currency reserves or its inability to sufficiently manage fluctuations in relative currency valuations, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the government debtor’s policy towards principal international lenders such as the International Monetary Fund and the political and social constraints to which a government debtor
may be subject. Government debtors may default on their debt and also may be dependent on expected disbursements from foreign governments, multilateral agencies and others abroad to reduce principal and interest arrearages on their debt. The commitment on the part of these governments, agencies and others to make such disbursements may be conditioned on a debtor’s implementation of economic reforms and/or economic performance and the timely service of such debtor’s obligations.
Failure to implement such reforms, achieve such levels of economic performance or repay principal or interest when due may result in the cancellation of such third parties’ commitments to lend funds to the government debtor, which may further impair such debtor’s ability or willingness to service its debts on a timely basis.
As a result of the foregoing, a government obligor may default on its obligations. If such an event occurs, the Fund may have limited (or no) legal recourse against the issuer and/or guarantor. Remedies must, in some cases, be pursued in the courts of the defaulting party itself, and the ability of the holder of foreign government debt securities to obtain recourse may be subject to the political climate in the relevant country. In addition, no assurance can be given that the holders of more senior fixed income securities, such as commercial bank debt, will not contest payments to the holders of other foreign government debt securities in the event of default under their commercial bank loan agreements. There is no bankruptcy proceeding by which sovereign debt on which governmental entities have defaulted may be collected in whole or in part. In addition, foreign governmental entities may enjoy various levels of sovereign immunity, and it may be difficult or impossible to bring a legal action against a foreign governmental entity or to enforce a judgment against such an entity.
Government obligors in emerging market countries are among the world’s largest debtors to commercial banks, other governments, international financial organizations and other financial institutions. The issuers of the government debt securities in which the Fund may invest have in the past experienced substantial difficulties in servicing their external debt obligations, which led to defaults on certain obligations and the restructuring of certain indebtedness. Restructuring arrangements have included, among other things, reducing and rescheduling interest and principal payments by negotiating new or amended credit agreements, and obtaining new credit to finance interest payments. Holders of certain foreign government debt securities may be requested to participate in the restructuring of such obligations and to extend further loans to their issuers. There can be no assurance that the foreign government debt securities in which the Fund may invest will not be subject to similar restructuring arrangements or to requests for new credit, which may adversely affect the Fund’s holdings. Furthermore, certain participants in the secondary market for such debt may be directly involved in negotiating the terms of these arrangements and may therefore have access to information not available to other market participants.
Loan Risk
Investments in loans are generally subject to the same risks as investments in other types of debt obligations, including, among others, credit risk, interest rate risk, prepayment risk, and extension risk. In addition, in many cases loans are subject to the risks associated with below-investment grade securities. This means loans are often subject to significant credit risks, including a greater possibility that the borrower will be adversely affected by changes in market or economic conditions and may default or enter bankruptcy. This risk of default will increase in the event of an economic downturn or a substantial increase in interest rates (which will increase the cost of the borrower’s debt service). The risks of investing in loans include the risk that the borrowers on loans held by the Fund may be unable to honor their payment obligations due to adverse conditions in the industry or industries in which they operate.
The interest rates on floating rate loans typically adjust only periodically. Accordingly, adjustments in the interest rate payable under a loan may trail prevailing interest rates significantly, especially if there are limitations placed on the amount the interest rate on a loan may adjust in a given period. Certain floating rate loans have a feature that prevents their interest rates from adjusting if market interest rates are below a specified minimum level. When interest rates are low, this feature could result in the interest rates of those loans becoming fixed at the applicable minimum level until interest rates rise above that level. Although this feature is intended to result in these loans yielding more than they otherwise would when interest rates are low, the feature might also result in the prices of these loans becoming more sensitive to changes in interest rates should interest rates rise but remain below the applicable minimum level.
In addition, investments in loans may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Floating rate loans generally are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. The liquidity of floating rate loans, including the volume and frequency of secondary market trading in such loans, varies significantly over time and among individual floating rate loans. For example, if the credit quality of the borrower
related to a floating rate loan unexpectedly declines significantly, secondary market trading in that floating rate loan can also decline. The secondary market for loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads, and extended trade settlement periods, which may increase the expenses of the Fund or cause the Fund to be unable to realize the full value of its investment in the loan, resulting in a material decline in the Fund’s NAV.
During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for loans may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell loans it holds, and, for loans it is able to sell in such circumstances, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated.
The Fund may make loans directly to borrowers or may acquire an interest in a loan by means of an assignment or a participation. In an assignment, the Fund may be required generally to rely upon the assigning financial institution to demand payment and enforce its rights against the borrower, but would otherwise be entitled to the benefit of all of the financial institution’s rights in the loan. The Fund may also purchase a participating interest in a portion of the rights of a lending institution in a loan. In such case, the Fund will generally be entitled to receive from the lending institution amounts equal to the payments of principal, interest and premium, if any, on the loan received by the institution, but generally will not be entitled to enforce its rights directly against the agent bank or the borrower, and must rely for that purpose on the lending institution.
Investments in loans through a purchase of a loan, loan origination or a direct assignment of a financial institution’s interests with respect to a loan may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner, in whole or in part, of any collateral, which could include, among other assets, real estate or other real or personal property, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and holding or disposing of the collateral. In addition, it is conceivable that under emerging legal theories of lender liability, the Fund as holder of a partial interest in a loan could be held liable as co-lender for acts of the agent lender.
Loans and certain other forms of direct indebtedness may not be classified as “securities” under the federal securities laws and, therefore, when the Fund purchases such instruments, it may not be entitled to the protections against fraud and misrepresentation contained in the federal securities laws.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to loans.
Additional risks of investments in loans may include:
Agent/Intermediary Risk. If the Fund holds a loan through another financial intermediary, as is the case with a participation, or relies on another financial intermediary to administer the loan, as is the case with most multi-lender facilities, the Fund’s receipt of principal and interest on the loan and the value of the Fund’s loan investment will depend at least in part on the credit standing of the financial intermediary and therefore will be subject to the credit risk of the intermediary. The Fund will be required to rely upon the financial intermediary from which it purchases a participation interest to collect and pass on to the Fund such payments and to enforce the Fund’s rights and may not be able to cause the financial intermediary to take what it considers to be appropriate action. As a result, an insolvency, bankruptcy or reorganization of the financial intermediary may delay or prevent the Fund from receiving principal, interest and other amounts with respect to the Fund’s interest in the loan. In addition, if the Fund relies on a financial intermediary to administer a loan, the Fund is subject to the risk that the financial intermediary may be unwilling or unable to demand and receive payments from the borrower in respect of the loan, or otherwise unwilling or unable to perform its administrative obligations.
Highly Leveraged Transactions Risk. The Fund may invest in loans made in connection with highly leveraged transactions. These transactions may include operating loans, leveraged buyout loans, leveraged capitalization loans and other types of acquisition financing. Those loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans. If the Fund voluntarily or involuntarily sold those types of loans, it might not receive the full value it expected.
Stressed, Distressed or Defaulted Borrowers Risk. The Fund can also invest in loans of borrowers that are experiencing, or are likely to experience, financial difficulty. These loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans and are generally considered speculative. In addition, the Fund can invest in loans of borrowers that have filed for bankruptcy protection or that have had involuntary bankruptcy petitions filed against them by creditors. Various laws enacted for the protection of debtors may apply to
loans. A bankruptcy proceeding or other court proceeding could delay or limit the ability of the Fund to collect the principal and interest payments on that borrower’s loans or adversely affect the Fund’s rights in collateral relating to a loan. If a lawsuit is brought by creditors of a borrower under a loan, a court or a trustee in bankruptcy could take certain actions that would be adverse to the Fund. For example:
Other creditors might convince the court to set aside a loan or the collateralization of the loan as a “fraudulent conveyance” or “preferential transfer.” In that event, the court could recover from the Fund the interest and principal payments that the borrower made before becoming insolvent. There can be no assurance that the Fund would be able to prevent that recapture.
A bankruptcy court may restructure the payment obligations under the loan so as to reduce the amount to which the Fund would be entitled.
The court might discharge the amount of the loan that exceeds the value of the collateral.
The court could subordinate the Fund’s rights to the rights of other creditors of the borrower under applicable law, decreasing, potentially significantly, the likelihood of any recovery on the Fund’s investment.
Limited Information Risk. Because there may be limited public or other information available regarding loan investments, the Fund’s investments in such instruments may be particularly dependent on the analytical abilities of the Fund’s portfolio managers.
Interest Rate Benchmarks Risk. Interest rates on loans typically adjust periodically often based on changes in a benchmark rate plus a premium or spread over the benchmark rate. The benchmark rate may be the Prime Rate, or other base lending rates used by commercial lenders (each as defined in the applicable loan agreement).
Some benchmark rates may reset daily; others reset less frequently. Certain floating or variable rate loans may permit the borrower to select an interest rate reset period of up to one year or longer. Investing in loans with longer interest rate reset periods may increase fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV as a result of changes in interest rates. Interest rates on loans with longer periods between benchmark resets will typically trail market interest rates in a rising interest rate environment.
Certain loans may permit the borrower to change the base lending or benchmark rate during the term of the loan. One benchmark rate may not adjust to changing market or interest rates to the same degree or as rapidly as another, permitting the borrower the option to select the benchmark rate that is most advantageous to it and less advantageous to the Fund. To the extent the borrower elects this option, the interest income and total return the Fund earns on the investment may be adversely affected as compared to other investments where the borrower does not have the option to change the base lending or benchmark rate.
Restrictive Loan Covenants Risk. Borrowers must comply with various restrictive covenants that may be contained in loan agreements. They may include restrictions on dividend payments and other distributions to stockholders, provisions requiring the borrower to maintain specific financial ratios, and limits on total debt. They may include requirements that the borrower prepay the loan with any free cash flow. A break of a covenant that is not waived by the agent bank (or the lenders) is normally an event of default that provides the agent bank or the lenders the right to call the outstanding amount on the loan. If a lender accelerates the repayment of a loan because of the borrower’s violation of a restrictive covenant under the loan agreement, the borrower might default in payment of the loan.
Some of the loans in which the Fund may invest or to which the Fund may obtain exposure may be “covenant-lite.” Such loans contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans. Such loans generally do not include terms which allow the lender to monitor the performance of the borrower and declare a default or force a borrower into bankruptcy restructuring if certain criteria are breached. Under such loans, lenders typically must rely on covenants that restrict a borrower from incurring additional debt or engaging in certain actions. Such covenants can be breached only by an affirmative action of the borrower, rather than by a deterioration in the borrower’s financial condition. Accordingly, the Fund may have fewer rights against a borrower when it invests in or has exposure to such loans and so may have a greater risk of loss on such investments as compared to investments in or exposure to loans with additional or more conventional covenants.
Senior Loan and Subordination Risk. In addition to the risks typically associated with debt securities and loans generally, senior loans are also subject to the risk that a court could subordinate a senior loan, which typically holds a senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, to presently existing or future indebtedness or take other action detrimental to the holders of senior loans.
The Fund’s investments in senior loans may be collateralized with one or more of (1) working capital assets, such as accounts receivable and inventory, (2) tangible fixed assets, such as real property, buildings and equipment, (3) intangible assets such as trademarks or patents, or (4) security interests in shares of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries or affiliates. In the case of loans to a non-public company, the company’s shareholders or owners may provide collateral in the form of secured guarantees and/or security interests in assets they own. However, the value of the collateral may decline after the Fund buys the senior loan, particularly if the collateral consists of equity securities of the borrower or its affiliates. If a borrower defaults, insolvency laws may limit the Fund’s access to the collateral, or the lenders may be unable to liquidate the collateral. A bankruptcy court might find that the collateral securing the senior loan is invalid or require the borrower to use the collateral to pay other outstanding obligations. If the collateral consists of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries, the stock may lose all of its value in the event of a bankruptcy, which would leave the Fund exposed to greater potential loss. As a result, a collateralized senior loan may not be fully collateralized and can decline significantly in value.
If a borrower defaults on a collateralized senior loan, the Fund may receive assets other than cash or securities in full or partial satisfaction of the borrower’s obligation under the senior loan. Those assets may be illiquid, and the Fund might not be able to realize the benefit of the assets for legal, practical or other reasons. The Fund might hold those assets until the Adviser determined it was appropriate to dispose of them. If the collateral becomes illiquid or loses some or all of its value, the collateral may not be sufficient to protect the Fund in the event of a default of scheduled interest or principal payments.
The Fund can invest in senior loans that are not secured. If the borrower is unable to pay interest or defaults in the payment of principal, there will be no collateral on which the Fund can foreclose. Therefore, these loans typically present greater risks than collateralized senior loans.
Due to restrictions on transfers in loan agreements and the nature of the private syndication of senior loans including, for example, the lack of publicly-available information, some senior loans are not as easily purchased or sold as publicly-traded securities. Some senior loans and other Fund investments are illiquid, which may make it difficult for the Fund to value them or dispose of them at an acceptable price. Direct investments in senior loans and investments in participation interests in or assignments of senior loans may be limited.
Settlement Risk. Transactions in many loans settle on a delayed basis, and the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of such loans for a substantial period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of such loans may not be available to make additional investments until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loans.
Collateral Impairment Risk. Even if a loan to which the Fund is exposed is secured, there can be no assurance that the collateral will, when recovered and liquidated, generate sufficient (or any) funds to offset any losses associated with a defaulting loan. It is possible that the same collateral could secure multiple loans, in which case the liquidation proceeds of the collateral may be insufficient to cover the payments due on all the loans secured by that collateral. This risk is increased if the Fund’s loans are secured by a single asset. There can be no guarantee that the collateral can be liquidated and any costs associated with such liquidation could reduce or eliminate the amount of funds otherwise available to offset the payments due under the loan. Moreover, the Fund’s security interests may be unperfected for a variety of reasons, including the failure to make a required filing by the servicer and, as a result, the Fund may not have priority over other creditors as it expected.
Unsecured Loans Risk. Subordinated or unsecured loans are lower in priority of payment to secured loans and are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. This risk is generally higher for subordinated unsecured loans or debt, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral.
Servicer Risk. The Fund’s direct and indirect investments in loans are typically serviced by the originating lender or a third-party servicer. In the event that the servicer is unable to service the loan, there can be no guarantee that a backup servicer will be able to assume responsibility for servicing the loans in a timely or cost-effective manner; any resulting disruption or delay could jeopardize payments due to the Fund in respect of its investments or increase the costs associated with the Fund’s investments.
Direct Lending Risk. The Fund may seek to originate loans, including, without limitation, commercial real estate or mortgage- related-loans or other types of loans, which may be in the form of whole loans, secured and unsecured notes, senior and second lien loans, mezzanine loans or similar investments. The Fund will be responsible for the expenses associated with originating a loan (whether or not consummated). This may include significant legal and due diligence expenses, which will be indirectly borne by the Fund and Common Shareholders.
Direct lending involves risks beyond those associated with investing in loans. If a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner of any collateral and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning, operating, maintaining and disposing of the collateral. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to losses resulting from default and foreclosure and also operating and maintaining the property. Any costs or delays involved in the effectuation of a foreclosure of the loan or a liquidation of the underlying assets will further reduce the proceeds and thus increase the loss. There is no assurance that the Fund will correctly evaluate the value of the assets collateralizing the loan. In the event of a reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to the borrower, the Fund may lose all or part of the amounts advanced to the borrower. There is no assurance that the protection of the Fund’s interests is adequate, including the validity or enforceability of the loan and the maintenance of the anticipated priority and perfection of the applicable security interests. Furthermore, there is no assurance that claims will not be asserted that might interfere with enforcement of the Fund’s rights.
There are no restrictions on the credit quality of the Fund’s loans. Loans may be deemed to have substantial vulnerability to default in payment of interest and/or principal. There can be no assurance as to the levels of defaults and/or recoveries that may be experienced on loans in which the Fund has invested. Certain of the loans in which the Fund may invest have uncertainties and/or exposure to adverse conditions, and may be considered to be predominantly speculative. Generally, such loans offer a higher return potential than better quality loans, but involve greater volatility of price and greater risk of loss of income and principal. The market values of certain of these loans also tend to be more sensitive to changes in economic conditions than better quality loans.
Loans to issuers operating in workout modes or under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or the equivalent laws of member states of the European Union are, in certain circumstances, subject to certain potential liabilities that may exceed the amount of the loan. For example, under certain circumstances, lenders who have inappropriately exercised control of the management and policies of a debtor may have their claims subordinated or disallowed or may be found liable for damages suffered by parties as a result of such actions.
Various state licensing requirements could apply to the Fund with respect to investments in, or the origination and servicing of, loans and similar assets and it may take a substantial period of time for the Fund to obtain any necessary licenses or comply with other applicable regulatory requirements. The licensing requirements could apply depending on the location of the borrower, the location of the collateral securing the loan, or the location where the Fund or the Adviser operates or has offices. In states that require licensure for or otherwise regulate loan origination, the Fund or Advisor will be required to comply with applicable laws and regulations, including consumer protection and anti-fraud laws, which could impose restrictions on the Fund’s or Advisor’s ability to take certain actions to protect the value of its investments in such assets and impose compliance costs, or the Fund will have to forego investment opportunities subject to that state’s laws and regulations. Failure to comply with such laws and regulations could lead to, among other penalties, a loss of the Fund’s or Advisor’s license, which in turn could require the Fund to divest assets located in or secured by real property located in that state. In addition to laws governing the activities of lenders and servicers, some states require purchasers of certain loans to be licensed or registered in order to own loans connected to the state (e.g., made in the state or secured by property in the state) and, in certain states, to collect a rate of interest above a specified rate. These risks will also apply to issuers and entities in which the Fund invests that hold similar assets, as well as any origination company or servicer in which the Fund owns an interest. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund does not hold any licenses to originate loans in any states where a license is required, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will obtain any such licenses timely or ever.
Foreign Loan Risk. Loans involving foreign borrowers may involve risks not ordinarily associated with exposure to loans to U.S. entities and individuals. The foreign lending industry may be subject to less governmental supervision and regulation than exists in the U.S.; conversely, foreign regulatory regimes applicable to the lending industry may be more complex and more restrictive than those in the U.S., resulting in higher costs associated with such investments, and such regulatory regimes may be subject to interpretation or change without prior notice to investors, such as the Fund. Foreign lending may not be subject to accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S. Due to differences in legal systems, there may be difficulty in obtaining or enforcing a court judgment outside the United States.
Lender Liability. A number of judicial decisions have upheld judgments of borrowers against lending institutions on the basis of various evolving legal theories, collectively termed “lender liability.” Generally, lender liability is founded on the premise that a lender has violated a duty (whether implied or contractual) of good faith, commercial reasonableness and fair dealing, or a similar duty owed to the borrower or has assumed an excessive degree of control over the borrower resulting in the creation of a fiduciary duty owed to the borrower or its other creditors or shareholders. If a loan held by the Fund were found to have been made or serviced under circumstances that give rise to lender liability, the borrower’s obligation to repay that loan could be reduced or eliminated or the Fund’s recovery on that loan could be otherwise impaired, which would adversely impact the value of that loan. In limited cases, courts
have subordinated the loans of a senior lender to a borrower to claims of other creditors of the borrower when the senior lender or its agents, such as a loan servicer, is found to have engaged in unfair, inequitable or fraudulent conduct with respect to the other creditors. If a loan held by the Fund were subject to such subordination, it would be junior in right of payment to other indebtedness of the borrower, which could adversely impact the value of that loan.
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk
Debt instruments rated below investment grade and debt instruments that are unrated and of comparable or lesser quality are predominantly speculative. They are usually issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings or by companies with questionable credit strength. These instruments, commonly known as “junk bonds,” have a higher degree of default risk and may be less liquid than higher-rated bonds. These instruments may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific corporate developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of high yield investments generally, general economic downturn, and less secondary market liquidity. This potential lack of liquidity may make it more difficult for the Fund to value these instruments accurately. An economic downturn could severely affect the ability of issuers (particularly those that are highly leveraged) to service their debt obligations or to repay their obligations upon maturity.
Distressed and Defaulted Securities Risk
Distressed and defaulted securities risk refers to the uncertainty of repayment of defaulted securities (e.g., a security on which a principal or interest payment is not made when due) and obligations of distressed issuers. Because the issuer of such securities is in default and/or is likely to be in distressed financial condition, repayment of defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers (including insolvent issuers or issuers in payment or covenant default, in workout or restructuring or in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings) is subject to significant uncertainties. Insolvency laws and practices in foreign markets, and especially emerging market countries are different than those in the U.S. and the effect of these laws and practices cannot be predicted with certainty. Investments in defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers are considered speculative and entail high risk.
REIT Risk
The Fund may invest in REITs. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that own, and typically operate, income-producing real estate. If a REIT meets certain requirements, including distributing to shareholders substantially all of its taxable income (other than net capital gains), then it is not taxed on the income distributed to shareholders. REITs are subject to management fees and other expenses, and so the Fund will bear its proportionate share of the costs of the REITs’ operations. There are three general categories of REITs: Equity REITs, Mortgage REITs and Hybrid REITs. Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and investments in mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, and the possible failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), or an exemption under the 1940 Act. REITs are not diversified and are heavily dependent on cash flow earned on the property interests they hold.
Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time-consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of a Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
Mortgage REITs are exposed to the risks specific to the real estate market as well as the risks that relate specifically to the way in which mortgage REITs are organized and operated. Mortgage REITs receive principal and interest payments from the owners of the mortgaged properties. Accordingly, mortgage REITs are subject to the credit risk of the borrowers to whom they extend credit, and are subject to the risks described under “Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk” and “Debt Securities Risk.” Mortgage REITs are also subject to significant interest rate risk. Mortgage REITs typically use leverage and many are highly leveraged, which exposes them to the risks of leverage. Leverage risk refers to the risk that leverage created from borrowing may impair a mortgage REIT’s liquidity, cause it to liquidate positions at an unfavorable time and increase the volatility of the values of securities issued by the mortgage REIT. The use of leverage may not be advantageous to a mortgage REIT. To the extent that a mortgage REIT incurs significant leverage, it may incur substantial losses if its borrowing costs increase or if the assets it purchases with leverage decrease in value.
The Fund’s investment in a REIT may result in the Fund making distributions that constitute a return of capital to Fund shareholders for federal income tax purposes. In addition, distributions attributable to REITs made by the Fund to Fund shareholders will not qualify for the corporate dividends-received deduction, or, generally, for treatment as qualified dividend income. Certain distributions made by the Fund attributable to dividends received by the Fund from REITs may qualify as “qualified REIT dividends” in the hands of non-corporate shareholders.
Real Estate Risk
The value of the Fund’s portfolio could change in light of factors affecting the real estate sector. Factors affecting real estate values include the supply of real property in certain markets, changes in zoning laws, delays in completion of construction, changes in real estate values, changes in property taxes, levels of occupancy, adequacy of rent to cover operating expenses, and local and, regional, and general market conditions. The value of real estate-related investments also may be affected by changes in interest rates, macroeconomic developments, and social and economic trends.
To the extent that the Fund invests in real estate related investments, including REITs, real estate-related loans or real-estate linked derivative instruments, it will be subject to the risks associated with owning real estate and with the real estate industry generally. These include difficulties in valuing and disposing of real estate, the possibility of declines in the value of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, the possibility of adverse changes in the climate for real estate, environmental liability risks, the risk of increases in property taxes and operating expenses, possible adverse changes in zoning laws, the risk of casualty or condemnation losses, limitations on rents, the possibility of adverse changes in interest rates and in the credit markets and the possibility of borrowers paying off mortgages sooner than expected, which may lead to reinvestment of assets at lower prevailing interest rates.
To the extent that the Fund invests in REITs, it will also be subject to the risk that a REIT may default on its obligations or go bankrupt. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Fund, a shareholder will indirectly bear his or her proportionate share of the expenses of the REITs. The Fund’s investments in REITs could cause the Fund to recognize income in excess of cash received from those securities and, as a result, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities, including when it is not advantageous to do so, in order to make distributions. An investment in a REIT or a real estate-linked derivative instrument that is linked to the value of a REIT is subject to additional risks, such as poor performance by the manager of the REIT, adverse changes to the tax laws or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time- consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of the Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
Municipal Bond Risk
Investing in the municipal bond market involves the risks of investing in debt securities generally and certain other risks. The amount of public information available about the municipal bonds in the Fund’s portfolio is generally less than that for corporate equities or bonds, and the investment performance of the Fund’s investment in municipal bonds may therefore be more dependent on the analytical abilities of the Adviser than its investments in taxable bonds. The secondary market for municipal bonds also tends to be less well developed or liquid than many other securities markets, which may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to sell municipal bonds at attractive prices.
The ability of municipal issuers to make timely payments of interest and principal may be diminished during general economic downturns, by litigation, legislation or political events, or by the bankruptcy of the issuer. Laws, referenda, ordinances or regulations
enacted in the future by Congress or state legislatures or the applicable governmental entity could extend the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or impose other constraints on enforcement of such obligations, or on the ability of municipal issuers to levy taxes. Issuers of municipal securities also might seek protection under the bankruptcy laws. In the event of bankruptcy of such an issuer, the Fund could experience delays in collecting principal and interest and the Fund may not, in all circumstances, be able to collect all principal and interest to which it is entitled. To enforce its rights in the event of a default in the payment of interest or repayment of principal, or both, the Fund may take possession of and manage the assets securing the issuer’s obligations on such securities, which may increase the Fund’s operating expenses. Any income derived from the Fund’s ownership or operation of such assets may not be tax exempt.
The Fund may invest in revenue bonds, which are typically issued to fund a wide variety of capital projects including: electric, gas, water and sewer systems; highways, bridges and tunnels; port and airport facilities; colleges and universities; and hospitals. Because the principal security for a revenue bond is generally the net revenues derived from a particular facility or group of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or other specific revenue source, there is no guarantee that the particular project will generate enough revenue to pay its obligations, in which case the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected.
Interest on municipal obligations, while generally exempt from U.S. federal income tax, may not be exempt from U.S. federal alternative minimum tax. The Fund does not expect to be eligible to pass the tax-exempt character of such interest through to the Common Shareholders.
Hedging Strategy Risk
Certain of the investment techniques that the Fund may employ for hedging will expose the Fund to additional or increased risks. For example, there may be an imperfect correlation between changes in the value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings and hedging positions entered into by the Fund, which may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, the Fund’s success in using hedge instruments is subject to the Adviser’s ability to predict correctly changes in the relationships of such hedge instruments to the Fund’s portfolio holdings, and there can be no assurance that the Adviser’s judgment in this respect will be accurate. Consequently, the use of hedging transactions might result in a poorer overall performance for the Fund, whether or not adjusted for risk, than if the Fund had not hedged its portfolio holdings. The Adviser is under no obligation to engage in any hedging strategies, and may, in its discretion, choose not to. Even if the Adviser desires to hedge some of the Fund’s risks, suitable hedging transactions may not be available or, if available, attractive. A failure to hedge may result in losses to the value of the Fund’s investments.
Short Sales and Short Position Risk
To the extent the Fund makes use of short sales or takes short positions for investment and/or risk management purposes, the Fund may be subject to certain risks associated with selling short. Short sales are transactions in which the Fund sells securities or other instruments that the Fund does not own. Short exposure with respect to securities or market segments may also be achieved through the use of derivative instruments, such as forwards, futures or swaps on indices or on individual securities. When the Fund engages in a short sale or short position on a security or other instrument, it may borrow the security or other instrument sold short and deliver it to the counterparty. The Fund will ordinarily have to pay a fee or premium to borrow the security and will be obligated to repay the lender of the security any dividends or interest that accrues on the security during the period of the loan. The amount of any gain from a short sale will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends, interest or expenses the Fund pays in connection with the short sale. Short sales and short positions expose the Fund to the risk that it may be required to cover its short position at a time when the securities underlying the short position or exposure have appreciated in value, thus resulting in a loss to the Fund. The Fund may engage in short sales when it does not own or have the right to acquire the security sold short at no additional cost. The Fund’s loss on a short sale or position theoretically could be unlimited in a case in which the Fund is unable, for whatever reason, to close out its short position. In addition, the Fund’s short selling strategies may limit its ability to benefit from increases in the markets. Short selling involves a form of financial leverage that may exaggerate any losses realized by the Fund. Also, there is the risk that the counterparty to a short sale may fail to honor its contractual terms, causing a loss to the Fund.
The Fund may borrow an instrument from a broker or other institution and sell it to establish a short position in the instrument. The Fund may also enter into a derivative transaction in order to establish a short position with respect to a reference asset. The Fund may make a profit or incur a loss depending upon whether the market price of the instrument or the value of the position decreases or increases between the date the Fund established the short position and the date on which the Fund must replace the borrowed
instrument or otherwise close out the transaction. An increase in the value of an instrument, index or interest rate with respect to which the Fund has established a short position will result in a loss to the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to close out the position at any particular time or at an acceptable price. The loss to the Fund from a short position is potentially unlimited.
Convertible Securities Risk
The Fund may invest in convertible securities. Convertible securities include bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stock and other securities that may be converted into or exchanged for, at a specific price or formula within a particular period of time, a prescribed amount of common stock or other equity securities of the same or a different issuer. Convertible securities may entitle the holder to receive interest paid or accrued on debt or dividends paid or accrued on preferred stock until the security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. The market value of a convertible security is a function of its investment value and its conversion value. A security’s investment value represents the value of the security without its conversion feature (i.e., a nonconvertible fixed income security). The investment value may be determined by reference to its credit quality and the current value of its yield to maturity or probable call date. At any given time, investment value is dependent upon such factors as the general level of interest rates, the yield of similar nonconvertible securities, the financial strength of the issuer and the seniority of the security in the issuer’s capital structure. A security’s conversion value is determined by multiplying the number of shares the holder is entitled to receive upon conversion or exchange by the current price of the underlying security.
Focused Investment Risk
A fund that invests a substantial portion of its assets in a particular market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries or asset class is subject to greater risk than a fund that invests in a more diverse investment portfolio. In addition, the value of such a fund is more susceptible to any single economic, market, political, regulatory or other occurrence affecting, for example, the particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the fund is invested. This is because, for example, issuers in a particular market, industry, region, sector or asset class may react similarly to specific economic, market, regulatory, political or other developments. The particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the Fund may focus its investments may change over time and the Fund may alter its focus at inopportune times. To the extent the Fund invests in the securities of a limited number of issuers, it is particularly exposed to adverse developments affecting those issuers, and a decline in the market value of a particular security held by the Fund may affect the Fund’s performance more than if the Fund invested in the securities of a larger number of issuers. In addition, the limited number of issuers to which the Fund may be exposed may provide the Fund exposure to substantially the same market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries, or asset class, which may increase the risk of loss as a result of focusing the Fund’s investments, as discussed above.
Derivatives Risk
The Fund’s use of derivatives may involve risks different from, or greater than, the risks associated with investing in more traditional investments, such as stocks and bonds. Any use of derivatives strategies entails the risks of investing directly in the securities, instruments or assets underlying the derivatives strategies, as well as the risks of using derivatives generally. Derivatives can be highly complex and may perform in ways unanticipated by the Adviser and may not be available at the time or price desired. Derivatives positions may also be improperly executed or constructed.
The Fund’s use of derivatives involves the risk that the other party to the derivative contract will fail to make required payments or otherwise to comply with the terms of the contract. In the event the counterparty to a derivative instrument defaults and/or becomes insolvent, the Fund potentially could lose all or a large portion of the value of its investment in the derivative instrument. Derivatives transactions can create investment leverage and may be highly volatile, and the Fund could lose significantly more than the amount it invests. Because most derivatives involve contractual arrangements with a counterparty, the Fund’s ability to enter into them requires a willing counterparty. The Fund’s ability to close out or unwind a derivatives position prior to expiration or maturity may also depend on the ability and willingness of the counterparty to enter into a transaction closing out the position.
Derivatives may be difficult to value, illiquid and/or volatile. The Fund may not be able to close out or sell a derivative position at an advantageous price or time.
Use of derivatives may affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders and, therefore, may increase the amount of taxes payable by taxable shareholders.
The Fund may use derivatives to create investment leverage and the Fund’s use of derivatives may otherwise cause its portfolio to be leveraged. Leverage increases the Fund’s portfolio losses when the value of its investments declines. Since many derivatives involve leverage, adverse changes in the value or level of the underlying asset, rate, or index may result in a loss substantially greater than the amount invested in the derivative itself. Some derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment.
When the Fund enters into a derivatives transaction as a substitute for or alternative to a direct cash investment, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the derivative transaction may not provide a return that corresponds precisely or at all with that of the underlying investment. When the Fund uses a derivative for hedging purposes, it is possible that the derivative will not in fact provide the anticipated protection, and the Fund could lose money on both the derivative transaction and the exposure the Fund sought to hedge. While hedging strategies involving derivatives can reduce the risk of loss, they can also reduce the opportunity for gain or even result in losses by offsetting favorable price movements in other Fund investments.
The derivatives markets are subject to various global regulations, and additional future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such regulation could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions or its ability to effect its investment strategy and cause the Fund to lose value. In particular, the U.S. government, the United Kingdom, the European Union and various other jurisdictions have adopted mandatory minimum margin requirements for bilateral derivatives. Such requirements could increase the amount of margin required to be provided by the Fund in connection with its derivatives transactions and, therefore, make its derivatives transactions more expensive and potentially impair its ability to effect its investment strategy. U.S. government legislation providing for regulation of the derivatives market also includes clearing, reporting, and registration requirements, which could restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in derivatives transactions or increase the cost or uncertainty involved in such transactions. The European Union and the United Kingdom (and some other jurisdictions) have implemented or are in the process of implementing similar requirements, which will affect the Fund when it enters into a derivatives transaction with a counterparty subject to such requirements.
The Fund typically will be required to post collateral or make margin payments in connection with entering into derivatives transactions. Assets that are used as margin or collateral may be required to be in the form of cash or liquid securities. If markets move against the Fund’s position, the Fund will generally be required to post additional assets and may have to dispose of existing investments to obtain assets acceptable as collateral or margin. This may prevent the Fund from pursuing its investment objective. Assets that are used as margin or collateral typically may be invested, and these investments are subject to risk and may result in losses to the Fund. These losses may be substantial, and may be in addition to losses incurred by using the derivative in question. If the Fund is unable to close out its position, it may be required to continue to maintain such accounts and fulfill its payment obligations until the position expires or matures, and the Fund will continue to be subject to investment risk on the assets. In addition, the Fund may not be able to recover the full amount of its margin from its counterparty or an intermediary if such entity were to experience financial difficulty. Margin and collateral requirements may impair the Fund’s ability to sell a portfolio security or make an investment at a time when it would otherwise be favorable to do so, or require the Fund to sell a portfolio security or close out a derivatives position at a disadvantageous time or price.
Rule 18f-4 governs the Fund’s use of derivative investments and certain financing transactions. Among other things, Rule 18f-4 requires funds that invest in derivative instruments beyond a specified limited amount to apply a value-at-risk based limit to their use of certain derivative instruments and financing transactions and to adopt and implement a derivatives risk management program. Funds that use derivative instruments (beyond certain currency and interest rate hedging transactions) to a limited degree are not subject to the full requirements of Rule 18f-4. Regulatory limitations on derivatives transactions could have the effect of restricting the Fund’s use of derivative investments and financing transactions and prevent the Fund from implementing its principal investment strategies as described herein, which may result in changes to the Fund’s principal investment strategies and could adversely affect the Fund’s performance and its ability to achieve its investment objective.
While legislative and regulatory measures may provide protections for some market participants, they are evolving and still being implemented and their effects on derivatives markets activities cannot be reliably predicted. Current and future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such adverse developments could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions and cause the Fund to lose value.
Risks Related to the Fund’s Clearing Broker and Central Clearing Counterparty
Transactions in some types of derivatives, including futures, options on futures, and certain swaps (including interest rate swaps and index credit default swaps) are required to be (or are capable of being) centrally cleared. In a transaction involving those derivatives (“cleared derivatives”), the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members. In cleared derivatives positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from a clearing house through its accounts at clearing members. Clearing members guarantee performance of their clients’ obligations to the clearing house. There is a risk that assets deposited by the Fund with any clearing member as margin for cleared derivatives may, in certain circumstances, be used to satisfy losses of other clients of the Fund’s clearing member. In addition, the assets of the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of the clearing member’s bankruptcy, as the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the clearing member’s customers for the relevant account class. Similarly, all customer funds held by a clearing member and/or at a clearing house in connection with cleared derivatives are generally held on a commingled omnibus basis and are not identified to the name of the clearing member’s individual customers. In the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a clearing member or clearing house, the Fund might experience a loss of funds deposited through its clearing member as margin with the clearing house, a loss of unrealized profits on its open positions, and the loss of funds owed to it as realized profits on closed positions. Such a bankruptcy or insolvency might also cause a substantial delay before the Fund could obtain the return of funds owed to it by a clearing member who was a member of such clearing house.
In some ways, cleared derivative arrangements are less favorable to funds than bilateral arrangements. For example, the Fund may be required to provide more margin for cleared derivatives positions than for bilateral derivatives positions. Also, in contrast to a bilateral derivatives position, following a period of notice to the Fund, a clearing member generally can require termination of an existing cleared derivatives position at any time or an increase in margin requirements above the margin that the clearing member required at the beginning of a transaction. Clearing houses also have broad rights to increase margin requirements for existing positions or to terminate those positions at any time. Any increase in margin requirements or termination of existing cleared derivatives positions by the clearing member or the clearing house could interfere with the ability of the Fund to pursue its investment strategy. Further, any increase in margin requirements by a clearing member could expose the Fund to greater credit risk to its clearing member because margin for cleared derivatives positions in excess of a clearing house’s margin requirements may be held by the clearing member. Also, the Fund is subject to risk if it enters into a swap that is required to be cleared (or that the Adviser expects to be cleared), and no clearing member is willing or able to clear the transaction on the Fund’s behalf. In those cases, the position might have to be terminated, and the Fund could lose some or all of the benefit of the position, including loss of an increase in the value of the position and/or loss of hedging protection, or could realize a loss. In addition, the documentation governing the relationship between the Fund and clearing members is drafted by the clearing members and generally is less favorable to the Fund than typical bilateral derivatives documentation.
Counterparty Risk
The Fund will be subject to credit risk presented by another party (whether a clearing corporation in the case of exchange-traded or cleared instruments or another third party in the case of over-the-counter instruments) that promises to honor an obligation to the Fund with respect to the derivative contracts and other instruments entered into by the Fund. There can be no assurance that a counterparty will be able or willing to meet its obligations. If such a party becomes bankrupt or insolvent or otherwise fails or is unwilling to perform its obligations to the Fund due to financial difficulties or for other reasons, the Fund may experience significant losses or delays in enforcing contractual remedies and/or obtaining any recovery from the counterparty, including realizing on any collateral the counterparty has provided in respect of the counterparty’s obligations to the Fund or recovering collateral that the Fund has provided and is entitled to recover. In addition, in the event of the bankruptcy, insolvency or other event of default (e.g., cross-default) of a counterparty to a derivative transaction, the derivative transaction would typically be terminated at its fair market value. If the Fund is owed this fair market value in the termination of the derivative transaction and its claim is unsecured, the Fund will likely be treated as a general creditor of such counterparty. The Fund may obtain only a limited recovery or may obtain no recovery in such circumstances. Counterparty risk with respect to certain exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives may be further complicated by global financial reform legislation. Subject to certain U.S. federal income tax limitations, the Fund is not subject to any limit with respect to the number or the value of transactions it can enter into with a single counterparty. To the extent that the Fund enters into multiple transactions with a single or a small number of counterparties, it will be subject to increased counterparty risk.
New regulatory requirements may also limit the ability of the Fund to protect its interests in the event of an insolvency of a derivatives counterparty. In the event of a counterparty’s (or its affiliate’s) insolvency, the Fund’s ability to exercise remedies, such as the
termination of transactions, netting of obligations and realization on collateral, could be stayed or eliminated under special resolution regimes adopted in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and various other jurisdictions. Such regimes provide government authorities with broad authority to intervene when a financial institution is experiencing financial difficulty. In particular, with respect to counterparties who are subject to such proceedings in the European Union or the United Kingdom, the liabilities of such counterparties to the Fund could be reduced, eliminated, or converted to equity in such counterparties (sometimes referred to as a “bail in”).
Unrated Securities Risk
Unrated securities (which are not rated by a rating agency) may be less liquid than comparable rated securities and involve the risk that the Adviser may not accurately evaluate the security’s comparative credit rating and value. To the extent that the Fund invests in unrated securities, the Fund’s success in achieving its investment objective may depend more heavily on the Adviser’s creditworthiness analysis than if the Fund invested exclusively in rated securities. Some or all of the unrated instruments in which the Fund may invest will involve credit risk comparable to or greater than that of rated debt securities of below investment grade quality.
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk
Generally, structured investments are interests in entities organized and operated for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of underlying investment interests or securities. These investment entities may be structured as trusts or other types of pooled investment vehicles. This type of restructuring generally involves the deposit with or purchase by an entity of the underlying investments and the issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying investments or referencing an indicator related to such investments. The cash flow or rate of return on the underlying investments may be apportioned among the newly issued securities to create different investment characteristics, such as varying maturities, credit quality, payment priorities and interest rate provisions. Structured products include, among other things, CDOs, mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities and certain types of structured notes.
The cash flow or rate of return on a structured investment may be determined by applying a multiplier to the rate of total return on the underlying investments or referenced indicator. Application of a multiplier is comparable to the use of financial leverage, a speculative technique. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss. As a result, a relatively small decline in the value of the underlying investments or referenced indicator could result in a relatively large loss in the value of a structured product. Holders of structured products indirectly bear risks associated with the underlying investments, index or reference obligation, and are subject to counterparty risk. The Fund generally has the right to receive payments to which it is entitled only from the structured product, and generally does not have direct rights against the issuer. While certain structured investment vehicles enable the investor to acquire interests in a pool of securities without the brokerage and other expenses associated with directly holding the same securities, investors in structured vehicles generally pay their share of the investment vehicle’s administrative and other expenses.
Structured products are generally privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. Certain structured products may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market and may have the effect of increasing the Fund’s illiquidity to the extent that the Fund, at a particular point in time, may be unable to find qualified buyers for these securities. In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities discussed herein, structured products carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from underlying investments will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the underlying investments may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the security may be subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Structured notes are derivative securities for which the amount of principal repayment and/or interest payments is based on the movement of one or more “factors.” These factors may include, but are not limited to, currency exchange rates, interest rates (such as the prime lending rate or another industry standard floating rate), referenced bonds and stock indices. Some of these factors may or may not correlate to the total rate of return on one or more underlying instruments referenced in such notes. In some cases, the impact of the movements of these factors may increase or decrease through the use of multipliers or deflators.
Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Depending on the factor used and the use of multipliers or deflators, changes in interest rates and movement of the factor may cause significant price fluctuations. Additionally, changes in the reference instrument or security may cause the interest rate on the structured note to be reduced to zero
and any further changes in the reference instrument may then reduce the principal amount payable on maturity. In the case of structured notes where the reference instrument is a debt instrument, such as credit-linked notes, the Fund will be subject to the credit risk of the issuer of the reference instrument and the issuer of the structured note.
Issuer Risk
Issuer risk is the risk that the market price of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, including due to factors affecting securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself.
Equity Securities, Small- and Mid-Capitalization Companies and Related Market Risk
The market price of common stocks and other equity securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Equity securities may decline in value due to factors affecting equity securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of equity securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular company, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. They also may decline due to factors which affect a particular industry or industries, such as labor shortages or increased production costs and competitive conditions within an industry. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities.
Confidential Information Access Risk
In managing the Fund, the Adviser may seek to avoid the receipt of material, non-public information (“Confidential Information”) about the issuers of floating rate loans or other investments being considered for acquisition by the Fund or held in the Fund’s portfolio if the receipt of the Confidential Information would restrict one or more of the Adviser’s clients, including, potentially, the Fund, from trading in securities they hold or in which they may invest. In many instances, issuers offer to furnish Confidential Information to prospective purchasers or holders of the issuer’s loans or other securities. In circumstances when the Adviser declines to receive Confidential Information from these issuers, the Fund may be disadvantaged in comparison to other investors, including with respect to evaluating the issuer and the price the Fund would pay or receive when it buys or sells those investments, and the Fund may not take advantage of investment opportunities that it otherwise might have if it had received such Confidential Information. Further, in situations when the Fund is asked, for example, to grant consents, waivers or amendments with respect to such investments, the Adviser’s ability to assess such consents, waivers and amendments may be compromised.
In certain circumstances, the Adviser may determine to receive Confidential Information, including on behalf of clients other than the Fund. Receipt of Confidential Information by the Adviser could limit the Fund’s ability to sell certain investments held by the Fund or pursue certain investment opportunities on behalf of the Fund, potentially for a substantial period of time. In certain situations, the Adviser may create information walls around persons having access to the Confidential Information to limit the restrictions on others at the Adviser. Those measures could impair the ability of those persons to assist in managing the Fund. Also, certain issuers of floating rate loans, other bank loans and related investments may not have any publicly traded securities (“Private Issuers”) and may offer private information pursuant to confidentiality agreements or similar arrangements. The Adviser may access such private information, while recognizing that the receipt of that information could potentially limit a Fund’s ability to trade in certain securities if the Private Issuer later issues publicly traded securities. If the Adviser intentionally or unintentionally comes into possession of Confidential Information, it may be unable, potentially for a substantial period of time, to sell certain investments held by a Fund.
Restricted Securities, Rule 144A/Regulation S Securities Risk
The Fund may hold securities that the Fund is prevented or limited by law or the terms of an agreement from selling (a “restricted security”). To the extent that the Fund is permitted to sell a restricted security, there can be no assurance that a trading market will exist at any particular time and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the security promptly at reasonable prices or at all. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering the securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting registration. Also, restricted securities may be difficult to value because market quotations may not be readily available, and the values of restricted securities may have significant volatility. Limitations on the resale of restricted securities may have an adverse effect on their marketability, and may prevent the Fund from disposing of them promptly at reasonable prices. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering such securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting such registration.
Inflation/Deflation Risk
Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from the Fund’s investments will be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of payments at future dates. As inflation increases, the real value of the Fund’s portfolio could decline. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements. There can be no assurance that this trend will not continue or that efforts to slow or reverse inflation will not harm the economy and asset values. Deflation risk is the risk that prices throughout the economy decline over time. Deflation may have an adverse effect on the creditworthiness of issuers and may make issuer default more likely, which may result in a decline in the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk
Various market risks can affect the price or liquidity of an issuer’s securities in which the Fund may invest. Returns from the securities in which the Fund invests may underperform returns from the various general securities markets. Different types of securities tend to go through cycles of outperformance and underperformance in comparison to the general securities markets. Adverse events occurring with respect to an issuer’s performance or financial position can depress the value of the issuer’s securities. The liquidity in a market for a particular security will affect its value and may be affected by factors relating to the issuer, as well as the depth of the market for that security. Other market risks that can affect value include a market’s current attitudes about types of securities, market reactions to political or economic events, including litigation, and tax and regulatory effects (including lack of adequate regulations for a market or particular type of instrument). During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for certain investments held by the Fund, such as loans, may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell the investments it holds, and, for those investments it is able to sell in such circumstances, the sale price may be significantly lower than, and the trade settlement period may be longer than, anticipated.
Events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to significant market volatility, reductions in economic activity, market closures, and declines in global financial markets. These effects and the effects of other infectious illness outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics may be short term or may last for an extended period of time, and in either case could result in a substantial economic downturn or recession. Governmental responses may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social, economic, market and financial risks. These events may have a significant adverse effect on the Fund’s performance and on the liquidity of the Fund’s investments and have the potential to impair the ability of the Adviser or the Fund’s other service providers to serve the Fund and could lead to operational disruptions that negatively impact the Fund.
Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, or general market conditions, including real or perceived adverse political, economic or market conditions, tariffs and trade disruptions, inflation, recession, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. During those periods, the Fund may have to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and potentially at unfavorable prices. Securities may be difficult to value during such periods. Market risk involves the risk that the value of the Fund’s investment portfolio will change, potentially frequently and in large amounts, as the prices of its investments go up or down. During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for some or all of the Fund’s investments may become highly volatile and/or illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell some or all of its investments and, for certain assets, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated. The fewer the number of issuers in which the Fund invests and/or the greater the use of leverage, the greater the potential volatility of the Fund’s portfolio. Recently there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities low markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate, volatility and liquidity risk.
The United States government and the Federal Reserve and foreign governments and central banks may take steps to support financial markets. They might, for example, take steps to support markets and economic activity generally and to set or maintain low interest rates, such as by purchasing bonds or making financing broadly available to investors. Such actions may be intended to support certain asset classes or segments of the markets, but not others, and can have disproportionate, adverse, and unexpected effects on some asset classes or sectors, including those in which the Fund invests. For example, efforts by governments to provide debt relief to certain consumers or market participants or to support certain aspects of the market could significantly and adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments, the Fund’s earnings, or the Fund’s risk profile, and have other unintended or unexpected effects. Other measures taken by governments and regulators, including, for example, steps to reverse, withdraw, curtail or taper such activities, could have a material adverse effect on prices for the Fund’s portfolio of investments and on the management of the Fund. The withdrawal of support, failure of efforts in response to a financial or other crisis, or investor perception that those efforts are not succeeding could negatively affect financial markets generally as well as the values and liquidity of the Fund’s investments.
Events leading to limited liquidity, defaults, non-performance or other adverse developments that affect one industry, such as the financial services industry, or concerns or rumors about any events of these kinds, have in the past and may in the future lead to
market-wide liquidity problems, may spread to other industries, and could negatively affect the value and liquidity of the Fund’s investments. For example, in response to the rapidly declining financial condition of regional banks Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) and Signature Bank (“Signature”), the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (the “CDFPI”) and the New York State Department of Financial Services (the “NYSDFS”) closed SVB and Signature on March 10, 2023 and March 12, 2023, respectively, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) was appointed as receiver for SVB and Signature. Although the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC have taken measures to stabilize the financial system, uncertainty and liquidity concerns in the broader financial services industry remain. Additionally, should there be additional systemic pressure on the financial system and capital markets, there can be no assurances of the response of any government or regulator, and any response may not be as favorable to industry participants as the measures currently being pursued. In addition, highly publicized issues related to the U.S. and global capital markets in the past have led to significant and widespread investor concerns over the integrity of the capital markets. The situation related to SVB Signature and other regional banks could in the future lead to further rules and regulations for public companies, banks, financial institutions and other participants in the U.S. and global capital markets, and complying with the requirements of any such rules or regulations may be burdensome. Even if not adopted, evaluating and responding to any such proposed rules or regulations could results in increased costs and require significant attention from the Adviser.
Federal, state, and other governments, their regulatory agencies, or self regulatory organizations may take actions that affect the regulation of the securities in which the Fund invests or the issuers of such securities in ways that are unforeseeable. Legislation or regulation also may change the way in which the Fund or the Adviser are regulated. Such legislation, regulation, or other government action could limit or preclude the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and affect the Fund’s performance.
Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, natural disasters and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect the Fund’s investments or markets generally. In addition, political developments in foreign countries or the United States may at times subject such countries to sanctions from the U.S. government, foreign governments and/or international institutions that could negatively affect the Fund’s investments in issuers located in, doing business in or with assets in such countries. Any or all of the risks described herein can increase some or all of the other risks associated with the Fund’s investments, including, among others, counterparty risk, debt securities risks, liquidity risk, and valuation risk.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the euro and the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries (such as those in the UK) to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. In January 2020, the United Kingdom withdrew from the EU. During an 11-month transition period, the UK and the EU agreed to a Trade and Cooperation Agreement which sets out the agreement for certain parts of the future relationship between the EU and the UK from January 1, 2021. The Trade and Cooperation Agreement does not include an agreement on financial services which is yet to be agreed. From January 1, 2021, EU law ceased to apply in the UK. However, many EU laws have been transposed into English law and these transposed laws will continue to apply until such time as they are repealed, replaced or amended. Depending on the terms of any future agreement between the EU and the UK on financial services, substantial amendments to English law may occur. Significant uncertainty remains in the market regarding the ramifications of these developments, and the range and potential implications of possible political, regulatory, economic and market outcomes are difficult to predict. The markets may be further disrupted and adversely affected by the withdrawal at various times given the uncertainty surrounding the country’s trade, financial, and other arrangements.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the resulting responses by the United States and other countries, and the potential for wider conflict could increase volatility and uncertainty in the financial markets and adversely affect regional and global economies. The United States and other countries have imposed broad-ranging economic sanctions on Russia, certain Russian individuals, banking entities and corporations, and Belarus as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and may impose sanctions on other countries that provide military or economic support to Russia. The extent and duration of Russia’s military actions and the repercussions of such actions (including any retaliatory actions or countermeasures that may be taken by those subject to sanctions, including cyber attacks) are impossible to predict, but could result in significant market disruptions, including in certain industries or sectors, such as the oil and natural gas markets, and may negatively affect global supply chains, inflation and global growth. These and any related events could significantly impact the Fund’s performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even if the Fund does not have direct exposure to Russian issuers or issuers in other countries affected by the invasion.
The Fund may continue to issue additional shares and to make additional investments in instruments in accordance with the Fund’s principal investment strategies to strive to meet the Fund’s investment objective under all types of market conditions, including unfavorable market conditions.
Portfolio Turnover Risk
The length of time the Fund has held a particular security is not generally a consideration in investment decisions. A change in the securities held by the Fund is known as portfolio turnover. Portfolio turnover generally involves a number of direct and indirect costs and expenses to the Fund, including, for example, brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and bid/ask spreads, and transaction costs on the sale of securities and reinvestment in other securities, and may result in the realization of taxable capital gains (including short-term capital gains, which are generally taxable to shareholders subject to tax at ordinary income rates). Portfolio turnover risk includes the risk that frequent purchases and sales of portfolio securities may result in higher Fund expenses and may result in larger distributions of taxable capital gains to investors as compared to a fund that trades less frequently.
Legal and Regulatory Risk
Legal, tax and regulatory changes (which may apply with retroactive effect) could occur and may adversely affect the Fund and its ability to pursue its investment strategies and/or increase the costs of implementing such strategies. New (or revised) laws or regulations may be imposed by the CFTC, the SEC, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), the U.S. Federal Reserve or other banking regulators, other governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that supervise the financial markets that could adversely affect the Fund. In particular, these agencies have implemented or are implementing a variety of new rules pursuant to financial reform legislation in the United States. The EU, the United Kingdom and some other jurisdictions have implemented or are implementing similar requirements. The Fund also may be adversely affected by changes in the enforcement or interpretation of existing statutes and rules by these governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations.
In addition, the securities and derivatives markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. The CFTC, the SEC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized under these statutes, regulations and otherwise to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The Fund and the Adviser have historically been eligible for exemptions from certain regulations. However, there is no assurance that the Fund and the Adviser will continue to be eligible for such exemptions.
The CFTC, certain foreign regulators and many futures exchanges have established (and continue to evaluate and revise) speculative position limits, referred to as “position limits,” on the maximum net long or net short positions which any person or entity may hold or control in certain futures and options on futures contracts. In addition, U.S. federal position limits apply to swaps that are economically equivalent to futures contracts on certain agricultural, metals and energy commodities. Unless an exemption applies, all positions owned or controlled by the same person or entity, even if in different accounts, must be aggregated for purposes of determining whether the applicable position limits have been exceeded, unless an exemption applies. Thus, even if the Fund does not intend to exceed applicable position limits, it is possible that different clients managed by the Adviser and its related parties may be aggregated for this purpose. Therefore, trading decisions of the Adviser may have to be modified and positions held by the Fund may have to be liquidated in order to avoid exceeding such limits. Any modifications of trading decisions or elimination of open positions, if it occurs, may adversely affect the performance of the Fund and the Fund’s ability to pursue its investment strategies. A violation of position limits could also lead to regulatory action materially adverse to a Fund’s investment strategies. The Fund may also be affected by other regimes, including those of the EU and UK, and trading venues that impose position limits on commodity derivatives contracts.
Rules implementing the credit risk retention requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) for asset-backed securities require the sponsor of certain securitization vehicles (or a majority owned affiliate of such sponsor) to retain, and to refrain from transferring, selling, conveying to a third party, or hedging the credit risk on a portion of the assets transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of the asset-backed securities of such vehicle, subject to certain exceptions. These requirements may increase the costs to originators, securitizers, and, in certain cases, collateral managers of securitization vehicles in which the Fund may invest, which costs could be passed along to the Fund as an investor in such vehicles. In addition, the costs imposed by the risk retention rules on originators, securitizers and/or collateral managers may result in a reduction of the number of new offerings of asset-backed securities and thus in fewer investment opportunities for the Fund. A reduction in the number of new securitizations could also reduce liquidity in the markets for certain types of financial assets that are typically held by securitization vehicles, which in turn could negatively affect the returns on the Fund’s investment in asset-backed securities.
Investors should also be aware that some EU-regulated institutions (including banks, certain investment firms, and authorized managers of alternative investment funds) are restricted from investing in securitizations (including U.S.-related securitizations), unless, in summary: (i) the institution is able to demonstrate that it has undertaken certain due diligence in respect of various matters, including its investment position, the underlying assets, and (in the case of authorized managers of alternative investment funds) the sponsor and the originator of the securitization; and (ii) the originator, sponsor, or original lender of the securitization has explicitly disclosed to the institution that it will retain, on an ongoing basis, a net economic interest of not less than 5% of specified credit risk
tranches or asset exposures related to the securitization. Although these requirements do not apply directly to the Fund, the costs of compliance, in the case of any securitization within the EU risk retention rules in which the Fund has invested or is seeking to invest, could be indirectly borne by the Fund and the other investors in the securitization.
Tax Risk
The Fund has elected to be treated as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under the Code and intends each year to qualify and be eligible to be treated as such. If the Fund qualifies as a RIC, it generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its net investment income or net short-term or long-term capital gains, distributed (or deemed distributed) to shareholders, provided that, for each taxable year, the Fund distributes (or is treated as distributing) to its shareholders an amount equal to or exceeding 90% of its “investment company taxable income” as that term is defined in the Code (which includes, among other things, dividends, taxable interest and the excess of any net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, as reduced by certain deductible expenses). The Fund intends to distribute all or substantially all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain each year. In order for the Fund to qualify as a RIC in any taxable year, the Fund must meet certain asset diversification tests and at least 90% of its gross income for such year must be certain types of qualifying income. If for any taxable year the Fund were to fail to meet the income or diversification test described above, the Fund could in some cases cure the failure, including by paying a fund-level tax and, in the case of a diversification test failure, disposing of certain assets. Some of the income and gain that the Fund may recognize, such as income and gain from real estate assets received upon foreclosure of a loan held by the Fund, generally does not constitute qualifying income, and whether certain other income and gain that the Fund may recognize constitutes qualifying income is not certain. The Fund’s investments therefore may be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify as a RIC and may bear on the Fund’s ability to so qualify.
The Fund may hold certain investments that do not give rise to qualifying income through one or more wholly-owned and controlled Subsidiaries treated as U.S. corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such Subsidiaries will be required to pay U.S. corporate income tax on their earnings, which ultimately will reduce the yield on such investments. Depending on the assets held by the Subsidiary and other considerations, a Subsidiary may qualify and elect to be treated as a REIT for federal income tax purposes, in which case such Subsidiary generally would not be subject to U.S. corporate income tax to the extent such Subsidiary timely distributes all its income and gain. The Fund may not invest more than 25% of its total assets in (i) any one Subsidiary or (i) two or more Subsidiaries that are treated as being in the same, similar or related trades or businesses for purposes of the diversification tests applicable to RICs.
If the Fund were ineligible to or otherwise did not cure such failure for any year, or were otherwise to fail to qualify as a RIC accorded special tax treatment in any taxable year, it would be treated as a corporation subject to U.S. federal income tax, thereby subjecting any income earned by the Fund to tax at the corporate level and, when such income is distributed, to a further tax as dividends at the shareholder level to the extent of the Fund’s current or accumulated earnings and profits.
Repurchase Agreements Risk
In the event of a default or bankruptcy by a selling financial institution under a repurchase agreement, the Fund will seek to sell the underlying security serving as collateral. However, this could involve certain costs or delays, and, to the extent that proceeds from any sale were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss.
Zero-Coupon Bond Risk
Zero-coupon bonds are issued at a significant discount from their principal amount in lieu of paying interest periodically. Because zero-coupon bonds do not pay current interest in cash, their value is subject to greater fluctuation in response to changes in market interest rates than bonds that pay interest currently. Zero-coupon bonds allow an issuer to avoid the need to generate cash to meet current interest payments. Accordingly, such bonds may involve greater credit risks than bonds paying interest currently in cash. The Fund is required to accrue interest income on such investments and to distribute such amounts at least annually to shareholders even though the investments do not make any current interest payments. Thus, it may be necessary at times for the Fund to liquidate other investments in order to satisfy its distribution requirements under the Code.
Operational and Information Security Risks
The Fund and its service providers depend on complex information technology and communications systems to conduct business functions, making them susceptible to operational and information security risks. Any problems relating to the performance and effectiveness of security procedures used by the Fund or its service providers to protect the Fund’s assets, such as algorithms, codes, passwords, multiple signature systems, encryption and telephone call-backs, may have an adverse impact on an investment in the Fund. For example, design or system failures or malfunctions, human error, faulty software or data processing systems, power or communications outages, acts of God, or cyber- attacks may lead to operational disruptions and potential losses to the Fund. Cyber-attacks include, among other behaviors, stealing or corrupting data maintained online or digitally, denial of service attacks on websites, the unauthorized release of confidential information and causing operational disruption. Successful cyber- attacks against, or security breakdowns of, the Fund or its Adviser, custodian, fund accountant, fund administrator, transfer agent, pricing vendors and/or other third party service providers may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders. For instance, cyber- attacks or other operational issues may interfere with the processing of shareholder transactions, impact the Fund’s ability to calculate its NAV, cause the release of private shareholder information or confidential Fund information, impede trading, cause reputational damage, and subject the Fund to regulatory fines, penalties or financial losses, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. The Fund also may incur substantial costs for cybersecurity risk management in order to guard against any cyber incidents in the future.
Furthermore, as the Fund’s assets grow, it may become a more appealing target for cybersecurity threats such as hackers and malware. In general, cyber-attacks result from deliberate attacks but unintentional events may have effects similar to those caused by cyber-attacks. Additionally, outside parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees of the Fund or the Adviser or its service providers to disclose sensitive information in order to gain access to the Fund’s infrastructure. Similar types of risks also are present for issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, which could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers, and may cause the Fund’s investment in such securities to lose value. In addition, cyber- attacks involving a counterparty to the Fund could affect such a counterparty’s ability to meet its obligations to the Fund, which may result in losses to the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the adoption of work-from-home arrangements by the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers could increase all of the above risks, create additional data and information accessibility concerns, and make the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers more susceptible to operational disruptions, any of which could adversely impact their operations. While the Fund or its service providers may have established business continuity plans and systems designed to guard against such operational failures and cyber-attacks and the adverse effects of such events, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified, in large part because different, evolving or unknown threats or risks may emerge in the future. The Adviser and the Fund do not control the business continuity and cybersecurity plans and systems put in place by third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have no or limited indemnification obligations to the Adviser or the Fund.
Preferred Securities Risk
In addition to many of the risks associated with both debt securities (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk) and common shares or other equity securities, preferred securities typically contain provisions that allow an issuer, under certain conditions, to skip (in the case of noncumulative preferred securities) or defer (in the case of cumulative preferred securities) dividend payments. If the Fund owns a preferred security that is deferring its distributions, the Fund may be required to report income for tax purposes while it is not receiving any distributions.
In addition, preferred securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases in which dividends are in arrears beyond a certain time period, which varies by issue. Preferred securities are generally subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income and liquidation payments, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. Preferred securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities.
Other Investment Companies Risk
As a shareholder in an investment company, the Fund will bear its ratable share of that investment company’s expenses, and would remain subject to payment of the Fund’s investment management fees with respect to the assets so invested. Common Shareholders would therefore be subject to duplicative expenses to the extent the Fund invests in other investment companies. In addition, these other investment companies may use leverage, in which case an investment would subject the Fund to additional risks associated with leverage.
Anti-Takeover Provisions Risk
The Fund’s Declaration of Trust includes provisions that could limit the ability of other entities or persons to acquire control of the Fund or to convert the Fund to open-end status. These provisions in the Declaration of Trust could have the effect of depriving the Common Shareholders of opportunities to sell their Common Shares at a premium over the then-current market price of the Common Shares or at NAV.
     
Effects of Leverage [Text Block]                
Effects of Leverage
Assuming the Fund uses leverage in the form of borrowings representing 18.42% of the Fund’s total managed assets (including the amounts of leverage obtained through such borrowings), which reflects approximately the percentage of the Fund’s total assets attributable to such borrowings as of September 30, 2024, at an annual effective interest expense of 6.13% payable by the Fund on such borrowings (based on market interest rates as of September 30, 2024), the annual return that the Fund’s portfolio must experience in order to cover such costs of the borrowings would be 1.13%.
The information below is designed to illustrate the effects of leverage through the use of certain senior securities under the 1940 Act and does not reflect the Fund’s use of certain other forms of economic leverage achieved through the use of other instruments or transactions, such as reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions, credit default swaps, total return swaps or other derivative instruments. These figures are merely estimates based on current market conditions, used for illustration purposes only.
These assumed investment portfolio returns are hypothetical figures and are not necessarily indicative of the investment portfolio returns experienced or expected to be experienced by the Fund. Your actual returns may be greater or less than those appearing
below. In addition, actual expenses associated with borrowings or other forms of leverage, if any, used by the Fund may vary frequently and may be significantly higher or lower than the rate used for the example below.
Assumed Portfolio Total Return
​−10.00%
​−5.00%
0.00%
5.00%
10.00%
Common Share Total Return
​-13.64%
​-7.51%
​-1.38%
4.75%
10.87%
Common Shares total return is composed of two elements—the distributions paid by the Fund to holders of Common Shares (the amount of which is largely determined by the net investment income of the Fund after paying interest expenses on the Fund’s leveraging transactions as described above and other Fund expenses) and gains or losses on the value of the securities and other instruments the Fund owns. As required by SEC rules, the table assumes that the Fund is more likely to suffer capital losses than to enjoy capital appreciation. For example, to assume a total return of 0%, the Fund must assume that the income it receives on its investments is entirely offset by Fund expenses and losses in the value of those investments.
The Fund’s willingness to use leverage, and the extent to which leverage is used at any time, will depend on many factors, including, among other things, DoubleLine’s assessment of the yield curve environment, interest rate trends, market conditions and other factors.
     
Effects of Leverage [Table Text Block]                
Assumed Portfolio Total Return
​−10.00%
​−5.00%
0.00%
5.00%
10.00%
Common Share Total Return
​-13.64%
​-7.51%
​-1.38%
4.75%
10.87%
     
Return at Minus Ten [Percent]                 (13.64%)      
Return at Minus Five [Percent]                 (7.51%)      
Return at Zero [Percent]                 (1.38%)      
Return at Plus Five [Percent]                 4.75%      
Return at Plus Ten [Percent]                 10.87%      
Effects of Leverage, Purpose [Text Block]                 The information below is designed to illustrate the effects of leverage through the use of certain senior securities under the 1940 Act and does not reflect the Fund’s use of certain other forms of economic leverage achieved through the use of other instruments or transactions, such as reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions, credit default swaps, total return swaps or other derivative instruments. These figures are merely estimates based on current market conditions, used for illustration purposes only.
These assumed investment portfolio returns are hypothetical figures and are not necessarily indicative of the investment portfolio returns experienced or expected to be experienced by the Fund. Your actual returns may be greater or less than those appearing
below. In addition, actual expenses associated with borrowings or other forms of leverage, if any, used by the Fund may vary frequently and may be significantly higher or lower than the rate used for the example below.
     
Share Price [Table Text Block]                
The following table sets forth, for each of the periods indicated, the high and low closing market prices of the Fund’s Common Shares on the NYSE and the corresponding NAV and premium/discount to NAV on the days when the Fund’s Common Shares experienced such high and low closing market prices.
 
Common Share Market Price
Common Share Net Asset Value
Premium (Discount) as a % of Net Asset Value
Quarter
High
Low
High
Low
High
Low
September 30, 2024
$16.79
$ 15.67
$ 16.45
$ 15.95
2.07%
​-1.76%
June 30, 2024
$ 15.97
$ 15.04
$ 16.14
$ 15.81
​-1.05%
​-4.87%
March 31, 2024
$ 15.94
$ 14.70
$ 16.21
$ 15.70
​-1.67%
​-6.37%
December 31, 2023
$ 15.05
$ 13.65
$ 15.78
$ 14.67
​-4.63%
​-6.95%
September 30, 2023
$ 15.18
$ 14.02
$ 15.40
$ 15.05
​-1.43%
​-6.84%
June 30, 2023
$ 14.53
$ 13.44
$ 15.25
$ 14.92
​-4.72%
​-9.92%
March 31, 2023
$ 14.86
​$13.22
$ 15.76
$ 14.90
​-5.71%
​-11.28%
December 31, 2022
$ 14.24
$ 12.96
$ 15.38
$ 14.75
​-7.41%
​-12.14%
(1)
Premium and discount information is shown for the days when the Fund experienced its high and low closing market prices, respectively, per share during the respective quarter.
     
Lowest Price or Bid 15.67 $ 15.04 $ 14.70 $ 13.65 14.02 $ 13.44 $ 13.22 $ 12.96        
Highest Price or Bid 16.79 15.97 15.94 15.05 15.18 14.53 14.86 14.24        
Lowest Price or Bid, NAV 15.95 15.81 15.70 14.67 15.05 14.92 14.90 14.75        
Highest Price or Bid, NAV $ 16.45 $ 16.14 $ 16.21 $ 15.78 $ 15.40 $ 15.25 $ 15.76 $ 15.38        
Highest Price or Bid, Premium (Discount) to NAV [Percent] 2.07% (1.05%) (1.67%) (4.63%) (1.43%) (4.72%) (5.71%) (7.41%)        
Lowest Price or Bid, Premium (Discount) to NAV [Percent] (1.76%) (4.87%) (6.37%) (6.95%) (6.84%) (9.92%) (11.28%) (12.14%)        
Share Price $ 16.59               $ 16.59      
NAV Per Share $ 16.38               $ 16.38      
Latest Premium (Discount) to NAV [Percent]                 1.28%      
Capital Stock, Long-Term Debt, and Other Securities [Abstract]                        
Outstanding Security, Held [Shares]                 48,139,349      
Principal Risk Factors [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Principal Risk Factors
Investing in the Fund involves risks, including the risk that you may receive little or no return on your investment or that you may lose part or even all of your investment. The section below does not describe all risks associated with an investment in the Fund. Additional risks and uncertainties also may adversely affect and impair the Fund.
     
Limited Prior History [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Limited Prior History
The Fund commenced investment operations on February 26, 2020. It has a limited history of operations and is subject to all of the business risks and uncertainties associated with any new business.
     
Market Discount Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Market Discount Risk
As with any stock, the price of the Fund’s common shares of beneficial interest (the “Common Shares”) will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. If you sell your Common Shares, the price received may be more or less than your original investment. The Common Shares are designed for long-term investors and should not be treated as trading vehicles. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a discount from their NAV. The Fund cannot assure you that Common Shares will trade at a price equal to or higher than NAV in the future, and they may trade at a price lower than NAV. In addition to the Fund’s NAV, the Fund’s market price may be affected by factors related to the Fund such as dividend payments (which will in turn be affected by Fund expenses, including the costs of the Fund’s leverage, amounts of interest payments made by the Fund’s portfolio holdings, appreciation/depreciation of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, regulations affecting the timing and character of Fund distributions, and other factors), portfolio credit quality, liquidity, call protection, market supply and demand and similar factors relating to the Fund’s portfolio holdings. The Fund’s market price may also be affected by general market or economic conditions, including market trends affecting securities values generally or values of closed-end fund shares more specifically.
     
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Limited Term and Tender Offer Risk
In accordance with the Fund’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration of Trust”), the Fund intends to terminate as of the first business day following the twelfth anniversary of the effective date of the Fund’s initial registration statement, February 25, 2032 (the “Dissolution Date”); provided that the Board may, by a vote of a majority of the Board and seventy-five percent (75%) of the Continuing Trustees, as defined below (a “Board Action Vote”), without shareholder approval, extend the Dissolution Date (i) once for up to one year and (ii) once for up to an additional six months, to a date up to and including the eighteenth month after the initial Dissolution Date, which later date shall then become the Dissolution Date. At the Dissolution Date, each holder of common shares of beneficial interest (“Common Shareholder”) would be paid a pro rata portion of the Fund’s net assets as determined as of the Dissolution Date. “Continuing Trustees” are the members of the Board who either (i) have been a member of the Board for a period of at least thirty-six months (or since the commencement of the Fund’s operations, if less than thirty-six months) or (ii) were nominated to serve as a member of the Board by a majority of the Continuing Trustees then members of the Board.
The Board may, by a Board Action Vote, cause the Fund to conduct a tender offer, as of a date within twelve months preceding the Dissolution Date (as may be extended as described above), to all Common Shareholders to purchase 100% of the then outstanding Common Shares of the Fund at a price equal to the NAV per Common Share on the expiration date of the tender offer (the “Eligible Tender Offer”). In an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund will offer to purchase all Common Shares held by each Common Shareholder; provided that if the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below $200 million (the “Dissolution Threshold”), the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer, and the Fund will terminate as otherwise scheduled. If an Eligible Tender Offer is conducted and the number of properly tendered Common Shares would result in the Fund having aggregate net assets greater than or equal to the Dissolution Threshold, all Common Shares properly tendered and not withdrawn will be purchased by the Fund pursuant to the terms of the Eligible Tender Offer. Following the completion of an Eligible Tender Offer, the Board may, by a Board Action Vote, eliminate the Dissolution Date and scheduled termination of the Fund without shareholder approval and the Fund would continue to operate indefinitely thereafter. The Board may, to the extent it deems appropriate and without shareholder approval, adopt a plan of liquidation at any time preceding the anticipated Dissolution Date, which plan of liquidation may set forth the terms and conditions for implementing the termination of the existence of the Fund, including the commencement of the winding down of its investment operations and the making of one or more liquidating distributions to Common Shareholders prior to the Dissolution Date.
Because the assets of the Fund will be liquidated in connection with the dissolution, the Fund will incur transaction costs in connection with dispositions of portfolio securities. The Fund is not a so called “target date” or “life cycle” fund whose asset allocation becomes more conservative over time as its target date, often associated with retirement, approaches. In addition, the Fund is not a “target term” fund and thus does not seek to return the Fund’s initial public offering price per Common Share upon termination of the Fund or in a tender offer. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to the Dissolution Date and may be required to sell portfolio securities when it otherwise would not, including at times when market conditions are not favorable, which may cause the Fund to lose money. In particular, the Fund’s portfolio may still have large exposures to illiquid securities as the Dissolution Date approaches, and losses due to portfolio liquidation may be significant.
Beginning one year before the Dissolution Date (the “Wind-Down Period”), the Fund may begin liquidating all or a portion of the Fund’s portfolio, and the Fund may deviate from its investment strategy and may not achieve its investment objective. As a result, during the Wind-Down Period, the Fund’s distributions may decrease, and such distributions may include a return of capital. It is expected that Common Shareholders will receive cash in any liquidating distribution from the Fund, regardless of their participation in the Fund’s automatic dividend reinvestment plan. However, if on the Dissolution Date the Fund owns securities or other investments for which no market exists or securities or other investments that are trading at depressed prices, such securities or other investments may be placed in a liquidating trust. The Fund cannot predict the amount, if any, of securities or other investments that will be required to be placed in a liquidating trust. The disposition of portfolio investments by the Fund could also cause market prices of such instruments, and hence the NAV and market price of the Common Shares, to decline.
Moreover, in conducting such portfolio transactions, the Fund may need to deviate from its investment policies and may not achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s portfolio composition may change as its portfolio holdings mature or are called or sold in anticipation of an Eligible Tender Offer or the Dissolution Date. During such period(s), it is possible that the Fund will hold a greater percentage of its total assets in shorter term and lower yielding securities and cash and cash equivalents than it would otherwise, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and adversely impact the Fund’s performance and distributions to Common Shareholders, which may in turn adversely impact the market value of the Common Shares. In addition, the Fund may be required to reduce its leverage, which could also adversely impact its performance. The additional cash or cash equivalents held by the Fund could be obtained through reducing the Fund’s distributions to Common Shareholders and/or holding cash in lieu of reinvesting, which could limit the ability of the Fund to participate in new investment opportunities. The Fund does not limit its investments to securities having a maturity date prior to or around the Dissolution Date, which may exacerbate the foregoing risks and considerations. A Common Shareholder may be subject to the foregoing risks over an extended period of time, particularly if the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer and is also subsequently terminated by or around the Dissolution Date.
If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, the Fund anticipates that funds to pay the aggregate purchase price of shares accepted for purchase pursuant to the tender offer will be first derived from any cash on hand and then from the proceeds from the sale of portfolio investments held by the Fund. In addition, the Fund may be required to dispose of portfolio investments in connection with any reduction in the Fund’s outstanding leverage necessary in order to maintain the Fund’s desired leverage ratios following a tender offer. The risks related to the disposition of securities in connection with the Fund’s dissolution also would be present in connection with the disposition of securities in connection with an Eligible Tender Offer. It is likely that during the pendency of a tender offer, and possibly for a time thereafter, the Fund will hold a greater than normal percentage of its total assets in cash and cash equivalents, which may impede the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and decrease returns to shareholders. The tax effect of any
such dispositions of portfolio investments will depend on the difference between the price at which the investments are sold and the tax basis of the Fund in the investments. Any capital gains recognized on such dispositions, as reduced by any capital losses the Fund realizes in the year of such dispositions and by any available capital loss carryforwards, will be distributed to shareholders as capital gain dividends (to the extent of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) or ordinary dividends (to the extent of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses) during or with respect to such year, and such distributions will generally be taxable to Common Shareholders. If the Fund’s tax basis for the investments sold is less than the sale proceeds, the Fund will recognize capital gains, which the Fund will be required to distribute to Common Shareholders. In addition, the Fund’s purchase of tendered Common Shares pursuant to a tender offer will have tax consequences for tendering Common Shareholders and may have tax consequences for non-tendering Common Shareholders.
The purchase of Common Shares by the Fund pursuant to a tender offer will have the effect of increasing the proportionate interest in the Fund of non-tendering Common Shareholders. All Common Shareholders remaining after a tender offer may be subject to proportionately higher expenses due to the reduction in the Fund’s total assets resulting from payment for the tendered Common Shares. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may result in less investment flexibility, reduced diversification and greater volatility for the Fund, and may have an adverse effect on the Fund’s investment performance. Such reduction in the Fund’s total assets may also cause Common Shares to become thinly traded or otherwise negatively impact secondary trading of Common Shares. A reduction in net assets, and the corresponding increase in the Fund’s expense ratio, could result in lower returns and put the Fund at a disadvantage relative to its peers and potentially cause the Fund’s Common Shares to trade at a wider discount to NAV than it otherwise would. Furthermore, the portfolio of the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer could be significantly different and, therefore, Common Shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund could be subject to greater risk. For example, the Fund may be required to sell its more liquid, higher quality portfolio investments to purchase Common Shares that are tendered in an Eligible Tender Offer, which would leave a less liquid, lower quality portfolio for remaining shareholders. The prospects of an Eligible Tender Offer may attract arbitrageurs who would purchase the Common Shares prior to the tender offer for the sole purpose of tendering those shares which could have the effect of exacerbating the risks described herein for shareholders retaining an investment in the Fund following an Eligible Tender Offer.
The Fund is not required to conduct an Eligible Tender Offer. If the Fund conducts an Eligible Tender Offer, there can be no assurance that the number of tendered Common Shares would not result in the Fund having aggregate net assets below the Dissolution Threshold, in which case the Eligible Tender Offer will be canceled, no Common Shares will be repurchased pursuant to the Eligible Tender Offer and the Fund will dissolve on the Dissolution Date (subject to possible extensions). The Adviser has a conflict of interest in recommending to the Board that the Dissolution Date be eliminated and the Fund have a perpetual existence, because the Adviser would continue to earn fees for managing the Fund. The Fund is not required to conduct additional tender offers following an Eligible Tender Offer and conversion to perpetual existence. Therefore, remaining Common Shareholders may not have another opportunity to participate in a tender offer.
     
Leverage Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Leverage Risk
The Fund’s use of leverage (as described under “Leverage” in the Fund’s Investment Objective and Strategies above) creates the opportunity for increased net income and capital appreciation, but also creates special risks for Common Shareholders. There is no assurance that the Fund’s leveraging strategies will be successful. Leverage is a speculative technique that exposes the Fund to greater risk and increased costs. The interest expense payable by the Fund with respect to its reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings and/or dividends payable with respect to any outstanding preferred shares may be based on shorter-term interest rates that periodically reset. So long as the Fund’s portfolio investments provide a higher rate of return (net of applicable Fund expenses) than the interest expenses, dividend expenses and other costs to the Fund of such leverage, the investment of the proceeds thereof should generate more income than will be needed to pay the costs of the leverage. If so, and all other things being equal, the excess would be used to pay higher dividends to Common Shareholders than if the Fund were not so leveraged. If, however, interest rates rise relative to the rate of return on the Fund’s portfolio, the interest and other costs to the Fund of leverage, including interest expenses on borrowings, the dividend rate on any outstanding preferred shares and/or the cost of the use of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls or similar transactions, could exceed the rate of return on the debt obligations and other investments held by the Fund, thereby reducing the return to Common Shareholders.
When leverage is used, the NAV and market price of the Common Shares and the investment return to Common Shareholders will likely be more volatile. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s use of leverage will result in a higher investment return on the Common Shares, and it may result in losses. In addition, fees and expenses of any form of leverage used by the Fund will be borne entirely by the Common Shareholders and not by preferred shareholders, if any, and will reduce the investment return of the Common Shares. In addition, any preferred shares issued by the Fund may pay cumulative dividends, which may tend to increase leverage risk.
Leverage creates several major types of risks for Common Shareholders, including:
the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV and market price of Common Shares, and of the investment return to Common Shareholders, than a comparable portfolio without leverage;
the possibility either that Common Share dividends will fall if the interest and other costs of leverage rise, or that dividends paid on Common Shares will fluctuate because such costs vary over time;
the effects of leverage in a declining market or a rising interest rate environment, as leverage is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV of the Common Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged and may result in a greater decline in the market value of the Common Shares; and
the Fund’s creditors, counterparties to the Fund’s leveraging transactions and any preferred shareholders of the Fund will have priority of payment over the Fund’s Common Shareholders.
The use by the Fund of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions or similar transactions to obtain leverage also involves special risks. For instance, the market value of the securities that the Fund is obligated to repurchase under a reverse repurchase agreement may decline below the repurchase price and the securities may not be returned to the Fund.
In addition to borrowings, an issuance of preferred shares, reverse repurchase agreements and/or dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, the Fund’s use of other transactions that may give rise to a form of leverage (including, among others, credit default swap contracts and other transactions, loans of portfolio securities, transactions involving derivative instruments, short sales, and when issued, delayed delivery, and forward commitment transactions) gives rise to the associated leverage risks described above, and may adversely affect the Fund’s income, distributions, and total returns to Common Shareholders. The Fund also may seek to offset derivatives positions against one another or against other assets in an attempt to manage effective market exposure resulting from derivatives in its portfolio. To the extent that any positions do not behave in relation to one another as expected by the Adviser, the Fund may perform as if it is leveraged through use of these derivative strategies.
Counterparties to the Fund’s other leveraging transactions (e.g., total return swaps, reverse repurchases, loans of portfolio securities, short sales and when-issued, delayed delivery and forward commitment transactions, credit default swaps, basis swaps and other swap agreements, futures and forward contracts, call and put options or other derivatives), if any, would have seniority over the Fund’s Common Shares.
Regulations or guidance issued by applicable regulators including the SEC or the CFTC or their staffs could, among other things, restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by making certain types of derivatives transactions no longer available to the Fund) and/or increase the costs of such leveraging and derivatives transactions (for example, by increasing margin or capital requirements), and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.
The Fund’s ability to utilize leverage, invest in accordance with its principal investment strategies, and make distributions to Common Shareholders may also be limited by asset coverage requirements applicable to the use of certain transactions that may involve leverage, restrictions imposed by the Fund’s creditors, and guidelines or restrictions imposed by rating agencies that provide ratings for preferred shares or in connection with liquidity arrangements for preferred shares.
Because the fees received by the Adviser are based on the total managed assets of the Fund (including assets attributable to any reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, borrowings, and preferred shares that may be outstanding) minus accrued liabilities (other than liabilities in respect of reverse repurchase agreements, dollar roll transactions or similar transactions, and borrowings), the Adviser has a financial incentive to cause the Fund to use leverage, which creates a conflict of interest between the Adviser, on the one hand, and the Common Shareholders, on the other hand.
     
Liquidity Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Liquidity Risk
Liquidity risk is the risk that the Fund may invest in securities that trade in lower volumes and may be less liquid than other investments or that the Fund’s investments may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquidity may be the result of, for example, low trading volumes, lack of a market maker, or contractual or legal restrictions that limit or prevent the Fund from selling securities or closing positions. When there is no willing buyer and investments cannot be readily sold or closed out, the Fund may have to sell an investment at a lower price than the price at which the Fund is carrying the investments, may not be able to sell the investments at all, may miss other investment opportunities and may hold investments it would prefer to sell, any of which would have a negative effect on the Fund’s performance and may cause the Fund to
hold an investment longer than the Adviser would otherwise determine. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a portfolio investment at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment or that the Fund may be forced to sell large amounts of securities more quickly than it normally would in the ordinary course of business. In such a case, the sale proceeds received by the Fund may be substantially less than if the Fund had been able to sell the securities in more-orderly transactions, and the sale price may be substantially lower than the price previously used by the Fund to value the securities for purposes of determining the Fund’s NAV.
In addition, if the Fund sells investments with extended settlement times (e.g., certain kinds of loans), the settlement proceeds from the sales will not be available to the Fund for a substantial period of time. The Fund may be forced to sell other investment positions with shorter settlement cycles when the Fund would not otherwise have done so, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. Additionally, the market for certain investments may become illiquid under adverse market or economic conditions (e.g., if interest rates rise or fall significantly, if there is significant inflation or deflation, increased selling of debt securities generally across other funds, pools and accounts, changes in investor perception, geopolitical events (such as trading halts, sanctions or wars), or changes in government intervention in the financial markets) independent of any specific adverse changes in the conditions of a particular issuer. In such cases, shares of the Fund, due to limitations on investments in illiquid securities and the difficulty in purchasing and selling such securities or instruments, may decline in value or the Fund may be unable to achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain issuer or sector. During periods of substantial market disruption, a large portion of the Fund’s assets could potentially experience significant levels of illiquidity. The values of illiquid investments are often more volatile than the values of more liquid investments. It may be more difficult to determine a fair value of an illiquid investment than those of more liquid comparable investments.
     
Portfolio Management Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Portfolio Management Risk
Portfolio management risk is the risk that an investment strategy may fail to produce the intended results. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular asset classes, sectors, securities, or other investments may prove to be incorrect and may not anticipate actual market movements or the impact of economic conditions generally. No matter how well a portfolio manager evaluates market conditions, the investments a portfolio manager chooses may fail to produce the intended result, and you could lose money on your investment in the Fund.
     
Valuation Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Valuation Risk
Valuation risk is the risk that the Fund will not value its investments in a manner that accurately reflects their market values or that the Fund will not be able to sell any investment at a price equal to the valuation ascribed to that investment for purposes of calculating the Fund’s NAV. The valuation of the Fund’s investments involves subjective judgment and some valuations may involve assumptions, projections, opinions, discount rates, estimated data points and other uncertain or subjective amounts, all of which may prove inaccurate. In addition, the valuation of certain investments held by the Fund may involve the significant use of unobservable and non-market inputs. Certain securities in which the Fund may invest may be more difficult to value accurately, especially during periods of market disruptions or extreme market volatility. As a result, there can be no assurance that fair value pricing will result in adjustments to the prices of securities or other assets, or that fair value pricing will reflect actual market value, and it is possible that the fair value determined for a security or other asset will be materially different from quoted or published prices, from the prices used by others for the same security or other asset and/or from the value that actually could be or is realized upon the sale of that security or other asset. Technological issues or other service disruption issues involving third party service providers may also cause a Fund to value its investments incorrectly. Incorrect valuations of a Fund’s portfolio holdings could result in a Fund’s shareholder transactions being effected at an NAV that does not accurately reflect the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio, resulting in the dilution of shareholder interests.
     
Investment and Market Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Investment and Market Risk
An investment in Common Shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. An investment in Common Shares represents an indirect investment in the securities and other instruments owned by the Fund. The market price of securities and other instruments may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Securities may decline in value due to factors affecting markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular issuer, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities. Common Shares are subject to the risk that markets will perform poorly or that the returns from the securities in which the Fund invests will
underperform returns from the general securities markets or other types of investments. Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, political, economic or market developments, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. Certain securities may be difficult to value during such periods. The value of securities and other instruments traded in over-the-counter markets, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. Further, the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund may decline in value due to factors affecting securities markets generally or particular industries. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have from time to time taken steps to support financial markets. The U.S. government and the U.S. Federal Reserve may, conversely, reduce market support activities, including by taking action intended to increase certain interest rates. This and other government intervention may not work as intended, particularly if the efforts are perceived by investors as being unlikely to achieve the desired results. Changes in government activities in this regard, such as changes in interest rate policy, can negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the Fund invests.
     
Credit Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Credit Risk
Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or counterparty will fail to pay its obligations to the Fund when they are due. If an investment’s issuer or counterparty fails to pay interest or otherwise fails to meet its obligations to the Fund, the Fund’s income might be reduced and the value of the investment might fall or be lost entirely. Financial strength and solvency of an issuer are the primary factors influencing credit risk. Changes in the financial condition of an issuer or counterparty, changes in specific economic, social or political conditions that affect a particular type of security, other instrument or an issuer, and changes in economic, social or political conditions generally can increase the risk of default by an issuer or counterparty, which can affect a security’s or other instrument’s credit quality or value and an issuer’s or counterparty’s ability to pay interest and principal when due. The values of lower-quality debt securities (including debt securities commonly referred to as “high yield” securities and “junk” bonds) and floating rate loans, tend to be particularly sensitive to these changes. The values of securities also may decline for a number of other reasons that relate directly to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the issuer and the value of its assets. Credit risk is heightened to the extent the Fund has fewer counterparties.
In addition, lack of or inadequacy of collateral or credit enhancements for a fixed income security may affect its credit risk. Credit risk of a security may change over time, and securities which are rated by rating agencies may be subject to downgrade, which may have an indirect impact on the market price of securities. Ratings are only opinions of the agencies issuing them as to the likelihood of re-payment. They are not guarantees as to quality and they do not reflect market risk.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt securities and other obligations of all kinds.
     
Debt Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Debt Securities Risk
In addition to certain of the other risks described herein such as interest rate risk and credit risk, debt securities generally also are subject to the following risks:
Redemption Risk—Debt securities sometimes contain provisions that allow for redemption in the event of tax or security law changes in addition to call features at the option of the issuer. In the event of a redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return.
Extension Risk—This is the risk that if interest rates rise, repayments of principal on certain debt securities, including, but not limited to, floating rate loans and mortgage-related securities, may occur at a slower rate than expected and the expected maturity of those securities could lengthen as a result. Securities that are subject to extension risk generally have a greater potential for loss when prevailing interest rates rise, which could cause their values to fall sharply. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Liquidity Risk—Certain debt securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities, such as U.S. Government securities or common shares or other equity securities.
Spread Risk—Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of the debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood or risk of default by the issuer.
Limited Voting Rights—Debt securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases when interest payments have not been made and the issuer is in default. Even in such cases, such rights may be limited to the terms of the debenture or other agreements.
Prepayment/Reinvestment Risk—Many types of debt securities, including floating rate loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities, may reflect an interest in periodic payments made by borrowers. Although debt securities and other obligations typically mature after a specified period of time, borrowers may pay them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, all or a portion of the obligation will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay an obligation which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, there is a greater likelihood that the Fund’s higher yielding securities will be pre-paid and the Fund will probably be unable to reinvest those proceeds in an investment with as great a yield, causing the Fund’s yield to decline. Securities subject to prepayment risk generally offer less potential for gains when prevailing interest rates fall. If the Fund buys those investments at a premium, accelerated prepayments on those investments could cause the Fund to lose a portion of its principal investment and result in lower yields to shareholders. The
increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation, especially with respect to certain loans, mortgage-backed securities and asset-backed securities. The effect of prepayments on the price of a security may be difficult to predict and may increase the security’s price volatility. Interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. Income from the Fund’s portfolio may decline when the Fund invests the proceeds from investment income, sales of portfolio securities or matured, traded or called debt obligations. A decline in income received by the Fund from its investments is likely to have a negative effect on the dividend levels and market price, NAV and/or overall return of the Common Shares.
The Fund’s investments in debt securities may include, but are not limited to, senior, junior, secured and unsecured bonds, notes and other debt securities, and may be fixed rate, floating rate, zero coupon and inflation linked, among other things. The Fund may invest in convertible bonds, which are fixed income securities that are exercisable into other debt or equity securities, and “synthetic” convertible securities, which are created through a combination of separate securities that possess the two principal characteristics of a traditional convertible security, i.e., an income-producing security (“income-producing component”) and the right to acquire an equity security (“convertible component”). The market value of a debt security may be affected by the credit rating of the issuer, the issuer’s performance, perceptions of the issuer in the marketplace, management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services. There is a risk that the issuers of the debt securities in which the Fund may invest may not be able to meet their obligations on interest or principal payments at the time called for by an instrument.
     
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Mortgage-Backed Securities Risks
Mortgage-backed securities include, among other things, participation interests in pools of residential mortgage loans purchased from individual lenders by a federal agency or originated and issued by private lenders and involve, among others, the following risks:
Credit and Market Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Investments by the Fund in fixed rate and floating rate mortgage-backed securities will entail credit risks (i.e., the risk of non-payment of interest and principal) and market risks (i.e., the risk that interest rates and other factors could cause the value of the instrument to decline). Many issuers or servicers of mortgage-backed securities guarantee timely payment of interest and principal on the securities, whether or not payments are made when due on the underlying mortgages. This kind of guarantee generally increases the quality of a security, but does not mean that the security’s market value and yield will not change. The values of mortgage-backed securities may change because of changes in the market’s perception of the credit quality of the assets held by the issuer of the mortgage-backed securities or an entity, if any, providing credit support in respect of the mortgage-backed securities. In addition, an unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may limit substantially the pool’s ability to make payments of principal or interest to the Fund as a holder of such securities, reducing the values of those securities or in some cases rendering them worthless. The Fund also may purchase securities that are not guaranteed or subject to any credit support, or that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities. An investment in a privately issued mortgage-backed security is generally less liquid and subject to greater credit risks than an investment in a mortgage-backed security that is issued or otherwise guaranteed by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation.
Mortgage-backed securities may be structured similarly to collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”) and may be subject to similar risks. For example, the cash flows from the collateral held by the mortgage-backed security may be split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Interest holders in senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rates but are generally subject to less credit risk than more junior tranches because, should there be any default, senior tranches are typically paid first. The most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are due to be paid the highest interest rates but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying mortgage loan default. If some loans default and the cash collected by the issuer of the mortgage-backed security is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first.
Like bond investments, the value of fixed rate mortgage-backed securities will tend to rise when interest rates fall, and fall when rates rise. Floating rate mortgage-backed securities generally tend to have more moderate changes in price when interest rates rise or fall, but their current yield will generally be affected. In addition, the mortgage-backed securities market in general may be adversely affected by changes in governmental legislation or regulation. Factors that could affect the value of a mortgage-backed security include, among other things, the types and amounts of insurance, if any, which an individual mortgage or that specific mortgage-
backed security carries, the default and delinquency rate of the mortgage pool, the amount of time the mortgage loan has been outstanding, the loan-to-value ratio of each mortgage and the amount of overcollateralization or under collateralization of a mortgage pool. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are subordinate in their right to receive payment of interest and repayment of principal to other classes of the issuer’s securities.
The residential mortgage market in the United States has experienced difficulties at times, and the same or similar events may adversely affect the performance and market value of certain of the Fund’s mortgage-related investments. Delinquencies and losses on residential mortgage loans (especially subprime and second-lien mortgage loans) generally increase in a recession and potentially could begin to increase again. A decline in or flattening of housing values (as has been experienced and may again be experienced in many housing markets) may exacerbate such delinquencies and losses. Borrowers with adjustable rate mortgage loans may be more sensitive to changes in interest rates, which affect their monthly mortgage payments, and may be unable to secure replacement mortgages at comparably low interest rates. Also, a number of residential mortgage loan originators have experienced serious financial difficulties or bankruptcy. Reduced investor demand for mortgage-related securities has resulted and again may result in limited new issuances of mortgage-related securities and limited liquidity in the secondary market for mortgage-related securities, which can adversely affect the market value of mortgage-related securities and limit the availability of attractive investment opportunities for the Fund. It is possible that such limited liquidity in secondary markets could return and worsen.
The values of mortgage-backed securities may be substantially dependent on the servicing of the underlying mortgage pools, and therefore are subject to risks associated with the negligence or malfeasance by their servicers and to the credit risk of their servicers. In certain circumstances, the mishandling of related documentation also may affect the rights of security holders in and to the underlying collateral.
Some government sponsored mortgage-related securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”), the principal guarantor of such securities, is a wholly owned United States government corporation within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Other government-sponsored mortgage-related securities are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Issuers of such securities include Fannie Mae (formally known as the Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddie Mac (formally known as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored corporation which is subject to general regulation by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Pass-through securities issued by Fannie Mae are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by Fannie Mae. Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation chartered by Congress and subject to general regulation by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Participation certificates representing interests in mortgages from Freddie Mac’s national portfolio are guaranteed as to the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal by Freddie Mac. The U.S. government has provided financial support to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the past, but there can be no assurances that it will support these or other government-sponsored entities in the future.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to securitizations involving mortgage loans and other obligations underlying mortgage-backed securities.
Liquidity Risk of Mortgage-Backed Securities. The liquidity of mortgage-backed securities varies by type of security; at certain times the Fund may encounter difficulty in disposing of such investments. Investments in privately issued mortgage-backed securities may have less liquidity than mortgage-backed securities that are issued by a federal government agency or sponsored corporation. Because mortgage-backed securities have the potential to be less liquid than other securities, the Fund may be more susceptible to liquidity risks than funds that invest in other securities. In the past, in stressed markets, certain types of mortgage-backed securities suffered periods of illiquidity when disfavored by the market. It is possible that the Fund may be unable to sell a mortgage-backed security at a desirable time or at the value the Fund has placed on the investment.
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (“CMBS”) Risks. CMBS include securities that reflect an interest in, or are secured by, mortgage loans on commercial real property. Many of the risks of investing in commercial mortgage-backed securities reflect the risks of investing in the real estate securing the underlying mortgage loans. These risks reflect the effects of local and other economic conditions on real estate markets, the ability of tenants to make loan payments and the ability of a property to attract and retain tenants. Commercial mortgage-backed securities may be less liquid and exhibit greater price volatility than other types of mortgage- or asset-backed securities.
With respect to risk retention tranches (i.e., eligible residual interests initially held by the sponsors of collateralized mortgage- backed securities and other eligible securitizations pursuant to the U.S. Risk Retention Rules), a third-party purchaser, such as the Fund, must
hold its retained interest, unhedged, for at least five years following the closing of the securitization transaction, after which it is entitled to transfer its interest in the securitization to another person that meets the requirements for a third-party purchaser. Even after the required holding period has expired, due to the limited market for such investments, no assurance can be given as to what, if any, exit strategies will ultimately be available for any given position. In addition, there is limited guidance on the application of the laws and regulations applicable to such investments. There can be no assurance that the applicable federal agencies charged with the implementation of the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules (the FDIC, the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Board, the SEC, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency) could not take positions in the future that differ from the interpretation of such rules taken or embodied in such securitizations, or that the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules will not change. Furthermore, in situations where the Fund invests in risk retention tranches of securitizations structured by third parties, the Fund may be required to execute one or more letters or other agreements, the exact form and nature of which will vary (each, a “Risk Retention Agreement”) under which it will make certain undertakings designed to ensure such securitization complies with the Final U.S. Risk Retention Rules. Such Risk Retention Agreements may include a variety of representations, warranties, covenants and other indemnities, each of which may run to various transaction parties. If the Fund breaches any undertakings in any Risk Retention Agreement, it will be exposed to claims by the other parties thereto, including for any losses incurred as a result of such breach.
Prepayment, Extension and Redemption Risks of Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities may reflect an interest in monthly payments made by the borrowers who receive the underlying mortgage loans. Although the underlying mortgage loans are for specified periods of time, such as 20 or 30 years, the borrowers can, and historically have often paid them off sooner. When a prepayment happens, a portion of the mortgage-backed security which represents an interest in the underlying mortgage loan will be prepaid. A borrower is more likely to prepay a mortgage which bears a relatively high rate of interest. This means that in times of declining interest rates, a portion of the Fund’s higher yielding securities are likely to be redeemed and the Fund will probably be unable to replace them with securities having as great a yield. Prepayments can result in lower yields to shareholders. The increased likelihood of prepayment when interest rates decline also limits market price appreciation. This is known as prepayment risk. Mortgage-backed securities also are subject to extension risk. Extension risk is the possibility that rising interest rates may cause prepayments to occur at a slower than expected rate. This particular risk may effectively change a security which was considered short or intermediate term into a long-term security. The values of long-term securities generally fluctuate more widely in response to changes in interest rates than short or intermediate-term securities. In addition, a mortgage-backed security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer. If a mortgage-backed security held by the Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to permit the issuer to redeem or pay-off the security, which could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (“CMOs”) Risks. CMOs are debt obligations collateralized by mortgage loans or mortgage pass-through securities. The expected average life of CMOs is determined using mathematical models that incorporate prepayment assumptions and other factors that involve estimates of future economic and market conditions. These estimates may vary from actual future results, particularly during periods of extreme market volatility. Further, under certain market conditions, the average weighted life of certain CMOs may not accurately reflect the price volatility of such securities. For example, in periods of supply and demand imbalances in the market for such securities and/or in periods of sharp interest rate movements, the prices of CMOs may fluctuate to a greater extent than would be expected from interest rate movements alone. CMOs issued by private entities are not obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and are not guaranteed by any government agency, although the securities underlying a CMO may be subject to a guarantee. Therefore, if the collateral securing the CMO, as well as any third party credit support or guarantees, is insufficient to make payments when due, the holder could sustain a loss.
Adjustable Rate Mortgages (“ARMs”) Risks. ARMs contain maximum and minimum rates beyond which the mortgage interest rate may not vary over the lifetime of the security. In addition, many ARMs provide for additional limitations on the maximum amount by which the mortgage interest rate may adjust for any single adjustment period. Alternatively, certain ARMs contain limitations on changes in the required monthly payment. In the event that a monthly payment is not sufficient to pay the interest accruing on an ARM, any excess interest is added to the principal balance of the mortgage loan, which is repaid through future monthly payments. If the monthly payment for such an instrument exceeds the sum of the interest accrued at the applicable mortgage interest rate and the principal payment required at such point to amortize the outstanding principal balance over the remaining term of the loan, the excess is used to reduce the then-outstanding principal balance of the ARM. In addition, certain ARMs may provide for an initial fixed, below-market or teaser interest rate. During this initial fixed-rate period, the payment due from the related mortgagor may be less than that of a traditional loan. However, after the teaser rate expires, the monthly payment required to be made by the mortgagor may increase significantly when the interest rate on the mortgage loan adjusts. This increased burden on the mortgagor may increase the risk of delinquency or default on the mortgage loan and in turn, losses on the mortgage-backed security into which that loan has been bundled.
Interest and Principal Only Securities Risks. Stripped mortgage-backed securities are usually structured with two classes that receive different portions of the interest and principal distributions on a pool of debt instruments, such as mortgage loans. In one type of stripped mortgage-backed security, one class will receive all of the interest from the mortgage assets (the interest-only, or “IO” class), while the other class will receive all of the principal from the mortgage assets (the principal-only, or “PO” class). The yield to maturity (the expected rate of return on a bond if held until the end of its lifetime) on an IO class is extremely sensitive to the rate of principal payments (including prepayments) on the underlying mortgage assets, and a rapid rate of principal payments may have a material adverse effect on the Fund’s yield to maturity from these securities. If the assets underlying the IO class experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, the Fund may fail to recoup fully, or at all, its initial investment in these securities. PO class securities tend to decline in value if prepayments are slower than anticipated. The values of interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments.
Inverse Floaters and Related Securities Risks. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments expose the Fund to the same risks as investments in debt securities and derivatives, as well as other risks, including those associated with leverage and increased volatility. An investment in these securities typically will involve greater risk than an investment in a fixed rate security. Distributions on inverse floaters and similar instruments will typically bear an inverse relationship to short-term interest rates and typically will be reduced or, potentially, eliminated as interest rates rise. The rate at which interest is paid on an inverse floater may vary by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in a reference rate of interest (typically a short-term interest rate) , and the market prices of inverse floaters may as a result be highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and in prepayment rates on the underlying securities, and may decrease in value significantly when interest rates or prepayment rates change. The effect of the reference rate multiplier in inverse floaters is associated with greater volatility in their market values. Investments in inverse floaters and similar instruments that have mortgage-backed securities underlying them will expose the Fund to the risks associated with those mortgage-backed securities and the values of those investments may be especially sensitive to changes in prepayment rates on the underlying mortgage-backed securities.
     
Foreign Investing Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Foreign Investing Risk
Investments in foreign securities or in issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets may involve greater risks than investments in domestic securities. To the extent that investments are made in a limited number of countries, events in those countries will have a more significant impact on the Fund. As compared to U.S. companies, foreign issuers generally disclose less financial and other information publicly and are subject to less stringent and less uniform accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards. In addition, there may be limited information generally regarding factors affecting a particular foreign market, issuer, or security.
Foreign countries typically impose less thorough regulations on brokers, dealers, stock exchanges, corporate insiders and listed companies than does the United States and foreign securities markets may be less liquid and more volatile than domestic markets. Investment in foreign securities involves higher costs than investment in U.S. securities, including higher transaction and custody costs as well as the imposition of additional taxes by foreign governments, and as a result investments in foreign securities may be subject to issues relating to security registration or settlement. In addition, security trading and custody practices abroad may offer less protection to investors such as the Fund. Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect an investment in a foreign security or in foreign markets or issuers generally. Settlement of transactions in some foreign markets may be delayed or may be less frequent than in the United States which could affect the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio. Custody practices and regulations abroad may offer less protection to investors, such as the Fund, and the Fund may be limited in its ability to enforce contractual rights or obligations.
Because foreign securities generally are denominated and pay dividends or interest in foreign currencies, and the Fund may hold various foreign currencies from time to time, the value of the Fund’s assets, as measured in U.S. dollars, can be affected unfavorably by changes in exchange rates with respect to the U.S. dollar or with respect to other foreign currencies or by unfavorable currency regulations imposed by foreign governments. If the Fund invests in securities issued by foreign issuers, the Fund may be subject to these risks even if the investment is denominated in United States dollars. This risk may be heightened with respect to issuers whose revenues are principally earned in a foreign currency but whose debt obligations have been issued in United States dollars or other hard currencies.
Foreign issuers may become subject to sanctions imposed by the U.S. or another country or other governmental or non-governmental organizations, which could result in the immediate freeze of the foreign issuers’ assets or securities and/or make their securities worthless. The imposition of such sanctions, such as sanctions imposed against Russia, Russian entities and Russian
individuals in 2022, could impair the market value of the securities of such foreign issuers and limit the Fund’s ability to buy, sell, receive or deliver the securities. Sanctions, or the threat of sanctions, may cause volatility in regional and global markets and may negatively impact the performance of various sectors and industries, as well as companies in other countries, which could have a negative effect on the performance of the Fund.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. On January 31, 2020, the UK left the EU (commonly known as “Brexit”). An agreement between the UK and the EU governing their future trade relationship became effective January 1, 2021, but critical aspects of the relationship remain unresolved and subject to further negotiation and agreement. Brexit has resulted in volatility in European and global markets and could have negative long-term impacts on financial markets in the UK and throughout Europe. There is still considerable uncertainty relating to the potential consequences of the exit and whether the UK’s exit will increase the likelihood of other countries also departing the EU. During this period of uncertainty, the negative impact on not only the UK and European economies, but the broader global economy, could be significant, potentially resulting in increased market volatility and illiquidity, political, economic, and legal uncertainty, and lower economic growth for companies that rely significantly on Europe for their business activities and revenues. Any further exits from the EU, or the possibility of such exits, or the abandonment of the euro, may cause additional market disruption globally and introduce new legal and regulatory uncertainties.
If one or more EMU countries were to stop using the euro as its primary currency, the Fund’s investments in such countries may be redenominated into a different or newly adopted currency. As a result, the value of those investments could decline significantly and unpredictably. In addition, securities or other investments that are redenominated may be subject to liquidity risk and the risk that the Fund may not be able to value investments accurately to a greater extent than similar investments currently denominated in euros. To the extent a currency used for redenomination purposes is not specified in respect of certain EMU-related investments, or should the euro cease to be used entirely, the currency in which such investments are denominated may be unclear, making such investments particularly difficult to value or dispose of. The Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek judicial or other clarification of the denomination or value of such securities.
     
Foreign Currency Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Foreign Currency Risk
Currency risk is the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. Currency risk includes both the risk that currencies in which the Fund’s investments are traded and/or in which the Fund receives income, or currencies in which the Fund has taken an active investment position, will decline in value relative to other currencies. In the case of hedging positions, currency risk includes the risk that the currency the Fund is seeking exposure to will decline in value relative to the foreign currency being hedged. Currency exchange rates fluctuate significantly for many reasons, including changes in supply and demand in the currency exchange markets, actual or perceived changes in interest rates, intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments, central banks, or supranational agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, and currency controls or other political and economic developments in the U.S. or abroad. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and major devaluations have historically occurred in certain countries. A devaluation of the currency in which portfolio securities are denominated will negatively impact the value of those securities.
Except as otherwise provided in the Fund’s principal investment strategies, the Fund may take derivatives (or spot) positions in currencies to which the Fund is exposed through its investments. This presents the risk that the Fund could lose money on both its currency exposure through a portfolio investment and its currency exposure through a derivatives (or spot) position. The Fund also may take overweighted or underweighted currency positions and/or hedge the currency exposure of the securities in which it has invested. The Fund may take positions in currencies different from the currencies in which its portfolio investments are denominated. As a result, the Fund’s currency exposure may differ (in some cases significantly) from the currency exposure of its investments and/or its benchmarks.
Exposure to emerging market currencies may entail greater risk than exposure to developed market currencies.
     
Emerging Markets Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Emerging Markets Risk
Investing in the securities of emerging market countries, as compared to foreign developed markets, involves substantial additional risk due to more limited information about the issuer and/or the security; higher brokerage costs; different accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less developed legal systems and thinner trading markets; the possibility of currency blockages or transfer restrictions; an emerging market country’s dependence on revenue from particular commodities or international aid; and the risk of expropriation, nationalization or other adverse political or economic developments, such as the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other governmental restrictions.
Political and economic structures in many emerging market countries may undergo significant evolution and rapid development, and such countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristics of more developed countries. Emerging market countries tend to have a greater degree of economic, political and social instability than the U.S. and other developed countries. Such social, political and economic instability could disrupt the financial markets in which the Fund invests and adversely affect the value of its investment portfolio. Some of these countries have in the past failed to recognize private property rights and have at times nationalized or expropriated the assets of private companies. In addition, unanticipated political or social developments may affect the value of investments in emerging markets and the availability of additional investments in these markets. The small size, limited trading volume and relative inexperience of the securities markets in these countries may make investments in securities traded in emerging markets illiquid and more volatile than investments in securities traded in more developed countries, and the Fund may be required to establish special custodial or other arrangements before making investments in securities traded in emerging markets.
There may be little financial or accounting information available with respect to issuers of emerging market securities, and it may be difficult as a result to assess the value or prospects of an investment in such securities.
The securities markets of emerging market countries may be substantially smaller, less developed, less liquid and more volatile than the major securities markets in the United States and other developed nations. The limited size of many securities markets in emerging market countries and limited trading volume in issuers compared to the volume in U.S. securities or securities of issuers in other developed countries could cause prices to be erratic for reasons other than factors that affect the quality of the securities and investments in emerging markets can become illiquid. For example, limited market size may cause prices to be unduly influenced by traders who control large positions. Adverse publicity and investors’ perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value and liquidity of portfolio securities, especially in these markets. In addition, emerging market countries’ exchanges and broker-dealers may generally be subject to less regulation than their counterparts in developed countries. Emerging market securities markets, exchanges and market participants may lack the regulatory oversight and sophistication necessary to deter or detect market manipulation in such exchanges or markets, which may result in losses to the Fund to the extent it holds investments trading in such exchanges or markets. Brokerage commissions and dealer mark-ups, custodial expenses and other transaction costs are generally higher in emerging market countries than in developed countries. As a result, funds that invest in emerging market countries have operating expenses that are higher than funds investing in other securities markets.
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, which regulates auditors of U.S. public companies, is unable to inspect audit work papers in certain foreign countries. Investors in foreign countries often have limited rights and few practical remedies to pursue shareholder claims, including class actions or fraud claims, and the ability of the SEC, the U.S. Department of Justice and other authorities to bring and enforce actions against foreign issuers or foreign persons is limited. Regulatory regimes outside of the U.S. may not require or enforce corporate governance standards comparable to that of the U.S., which may result in less protections for investors in such issuers and make such issuers more susceptible to actions not in the best interest of the issuer or its investors.
In certain emerging market countries, governments participate to a significant degree, through ownership or regulation, in their respective economies. Action by these governments could have a significant adverse effect on market prices of securities and payment of dividends. In addition, most emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation. Inflation and rapid fluctuation in inflation rates have had and may continue to have very negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.
Emerging market countries may have different clearance and settlement procedures than in the U.S., including significantly longer settlement cycles for purchases and sales of securities, and in certain markets there may be times when settlements fail to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions. Further, custody practices abroad may offer less protection generally to investors, such as the Fund, and satisfactory custodial services for investment securities may not be available in some emerging market countries, which may result in the Fund incurring additional costs and delays in transporting and custodying such securities outside such countries. Delays in settlement or other problems could result in periods when the Fund’s assets are uninvested and no return is earned thereon. The Fund’s inability to make intended security purchases due to settlement
problems or the risk of intermediary counterparty failures could cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. The inability to dispose of a portfolio security due to settlement problems could result either in losses to the Fund due to subsequent declines in the value of such portfolio security or, if the Fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, could result in possible liability to the purchaser. The currencies of certain emerging market countries have sometimes experienced devaluations relative to the U.S. dollar, and future devaluations may adversely affect the value of assets denominated in such currencies. Many emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation or deflation for many years, and future inflation may adversely affect the economies and securities markets of such countries.
When debt and similar obligations issued by foreign issuers are denominated in a currency (e.g., the U.S. dollar or the euro) other than the local currency of the issuer, the subsequent strengthening of the non-local currency against the local currency will generally increase the burden of repayment on the issuer and may increase significantly the risk of default by the issuer.
Emerging market countries have and may in the future impose capital controls, foreign currency controls and repatriation controls. In addition, some currency hedging techniques may be unavailable in emerging market countries, and the currencies of emerging market countries may experience greater volatility in exchange rates as compared to those of developed countries.
     
Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk
CDOs include CBOs, CLOs, and other similarly structured securities. A CBO is a trust which may be backed by a diversified pool of high risk, below investment grade fixed income securities. A CLO is a trust typically collateralized by a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinate loans, and mezzanine loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans and including loans that may be covenant-lite. CDOs may charge management fees and administrative expenses. The cash flows from the CDO trust are generally split into two or more portions, called tranches, varying in risk and yield. Senior tranches are paid from the cash flows from the underlying assets before the junior tranches and equity or “first loss” tranches. Losses are first borne by the equity tranches, next by the junior tranches, and finally by the senior tranches. Holders of interests in the senior tranches are entitled to the lowest interest rate payments but those interests generally involve less credit risk as they are typically paid before junior tranches. The holders of interests in the most junior tranches, such as equity tranches, typically are entitled to be paid the highest interest rate payments but suffer the highest risk of loss should the holder of an underlying debt instrument default. If some debt instruments default and the cash collected by the CDO is insufficient to pay all of its investors, those in the lowest, most junior tranches suffer losses first. Since it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CDO trust typically has higher ratings and lower potential yields than the underlying securities, and can be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the equity tranche, more senior CDO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of protecting tranches, market anticipation of defaults and aversion to CDO securities as a class.
The risks of an investment in a CDO depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Fund invests. Normally, CBOs, CLOs and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, there may be a limited secondary market for investments in CDOs and such investments may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Fund may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to debt obligations.
     
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Asset-Backed Securities Investment Risk
Asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest include obligations backed by, among others, motor vehicle installment sales or installment loan contracts; home equity loans; leases of various types of real, personal and other property (including those relating to aircrafts, telecommunication, energy, and/or other infrastructure assets and infrastructure-related assets); receivables from credit card agreements and automobile finance agreements: home equity sharing agreements; student loans; consumer loans; mobile home loans; boat loans; business and small business loans; project finance loans; airplane leases; and other non-mortgage-
related income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights. They may also include asset-backed securities backed by whole loans or fractions of whole loans issued by alternative lending platforms and securitized by those platforms or other entities (such as third-party originators or brokers). Any of these loans may be of sub-prime quality or made to an obligor with a sub-prime credit history.
Asset-backed securities involve the risk that borrowers may default on the obligations backing them and that the values of and interest earned on such investments will decline as a result. Loans made to lower quality borrowers, including those of sub-prime quality, involve a higher risk of default. Such loans, including those made by alternative lending platforms, may be difficult to value, may have limited payment histories, and may be subject to significant changes in value over time as economic conditions change. Therefore, the values of asset-backed securities backed by lower quality loans, including those of sub-prime quality, may suffer significantly greater declines in value due to defaults, payment delays or a perceived increased risk of default, especially during periods when economic conditions worsen. In addition, most or all securities backed by the collateral described above do not involve any credit enhancement provided by the U.S. government or any other party, and certain asset-backed securities do not have the benefit of a security interest in the related collateral.
Asset-backed securities tend to increase in value less than traditional debt securities of similar maturity and credit quality when interest rates decline, but are subject to a similar risk of decline in market value during periods of rising interest rates. Certain assets underlying asset-backed securities are subject to prepayment, which may reduce the overall return to asset-backed security holders. In a period of declining interest rates, pre-payments on asset-backed securities may increase and the Fund may be unable to reinvest those prepaid amounts in investments providing the same rate of interest as the pre-paid obligations.
The values of asset-backed securities may also be substantially dependent on the servicing of and diligence performed by their servicers or sponsors or the originating alternative lending platforms. For example, the Fund may suffer losses due to a servicer’s, sponsor’s or platform’s negligence or malfeasance, such as through the mishandling of certain documentation affecting security holders’ rights in and to underlying collateral or the failure to update or collect accurate and complete borrower information. In addition, the values of asset-backed securities may be adversely affected by the credit quality of the servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform, as applicable. Certain services, sponsors or originating alternative lending platforms may have limited operating histories to evaluate. The insolvency of a servicer, sponsor or originating alternative lending platform may result in added costs and delays in addition to losses associated with a decline in the value of underlying assets. The Fund also may experience delays in payment or losses on its investments if the full amount due on underlying collateral is not realized, which may occur because of unanticipated legal or administrative costs of enforcing the contracts, depreciation or damage to the collateral securing certain contracts, under-collateralization or other factors.
     
Credit Default Swaps Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Credit Default Swaps Risk
A credit default swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty that enables the Fund to buy or sell protection against a credit event related to a particular issuer. One party, acting as a protection buyer, makes periodic payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, to the other party, a protection seller, in exchange for a promise by the protection seller to make a payment to the protection buyer if a negative credit event (such as a delinquent payment or default) occurs with respect to a referenced bond or group of bonds. Credit default swaps may also be structured based on the debt of a basket of issuers, rather than a single issuer, and may be customized with respect to the default event that triggers purchase or other factors (for example, the Nth default within a basket, or defaults by a particular combination of issuers within the basket, may trigger a payment obligation). As a credit protection seller in a credit default swap contract, the Fund would be required to pay the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation to the counterparty following certain negative credit events as to a specified third-party debtor, such as default by a U.S. or non-U.S. corporate issuer on its debt obligations. In return for its obligation, the Fund would receive from the counterparty a periodic stream of payments, which may be based on, among other things, a fixed or floating rate of interest, over the term of the contract provided that no event of default has occurred. If no default occurs, the Fund would keep the stream of payments, and would have no payment obligations to the counterparty. The Fund may sell credit protection in order to earn additional income and/or to take a synthetic long position in the underlying security or basket of securities.
The Fund may enter into credit default swap contracts as protection buyer in order to hedge against the risk of default on the debt of a particular issuer or basket of issuers or attempt to profit from a deterioration or perceived deterioration in the creditworthiness of the particular issuer(s) (also known as buying credit protection). This would involve the risk that the investment may expire worthless and would only generate gain in the event of an actual default by the issuer(s) of the underlying obligation(s) (or, as applicable, a credit downgrade or other indication of financial instability). It would also involve the risk that the seller may fail to satisfy its payment obligations to the Fund. The purchase of credit default swaps involves costs, which will reduce the Fund’s return.
A protection seller may have to pay out amounts following a negative credit event greater than the value of the reference obligation delivered to it by its counterparty and the amount of periodic payments previously received by it from the counterparty. When the Fund acts as a seller of a credit default swap, it is exposed to, among other things, leverage risk because if an event of default occurs the seller must pay the buyer the full notional value of the reference obligation. Each party to a credit default swap is subject to the credit risk of its counterparty. The value of the credit default swap to each party will change, at times significantly, based on changes in the actual or perceived creditworthiness of the underlying issuer. A protection buyer may lose its investment and recover nothing should an event of default not occur. The Fund may seek to realize gains on its credit default swap positions, or limit losses on its positions, by selling those positions in the secondary market. There can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist at any given time for any particular credit default swap or for credit default swaps generally.
The parties to a credit default swap are generally required to post collateral to each other. If the Fund posts initial or periodic collateral to its counterparty, it may not be able to recover that collateral from the counterparty in accordance with the terms of the swap. In addition, if the Fund receives collateral from its counterparty, it may be delayed or prevented from realizing on the collateral in the event of the insolvency or bankruptcy of the counterparty (or of its affiliates). The Fund may exit its obligations under a credit default swap only by terminating the contract and paying applicable breakage fees, or by entering into an offsetting credit default swap position, which may cause the Fund to incur more losses. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to exit a credit default swap position effectively when it seeks to do so.
     
U.S. Government Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
U.S. Government Securities Risk
Some U.S. Government securities, such as Treasury bills, notes, and bonds and mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States; others are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; others are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agency’s obligations; still others are supported only by the credit of the issuing agency, instrumentality, or enterprise. Although U.S. Government-sponsored enterprises may be chartered or sponsored by Congress, they are not funded by Congressional appropriations, and their securities are not issued by the U.S. Treasury, their obligations are not supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, and so investments in their securities or obligations issued by them involve greater risk than investments in other types of U.S. Government securities. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to its agencies and sponsored entities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
In addition, certain governmental entities have been subject to regulatory scrutiny regarding their accounting policies and practices and other concerns that may result in legislation, changes in regulatory oversight and/or other consequences that could adversely affect the credit quality, availability or investment character of securities issued or guaranteed by these entities.
The events surrounding the U.S. federal government debt ceiling and any resulting agreement (and similar political, economic and other developments) could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. For example, a downgrade of the long-term sovereign credit rating of the U.S. could increase volatility in both stock and bond markets, result in higher interest rates and lower Treasury prices and increase the costs of all kinds of debt. These events and similar events in other areas of the world could have significant adverse effects on the economy generally and could result in significant adverse impacts on issuers of securities held by the Fund and the Fund itself. The Adviser cannot predict the effects of these or similar events in the future on the U.S. economy and securities markets or on the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser may not timely anticipate or manage existing, new or additional risks, contingencies or developments. In recent periods, the values of U.S. Government securities have been affected substantially by increased demand for them around the world. Changes in the demand for U.S. Government securities may occur at any time and may result in increased volatility in the values of those securities.
     
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Sovereign Debt Obligations Risk
Investments in countries’ government debt obligations involve special risks. Certain countries have historically experienced, and may continue to experience, high rates of inflation, high interest rates, exchange rate fluctuations, large amounts of external debt, balance of payments and trade difficulties and extreme poverty and unemployment. The issuer or governmental authority that controls the repayment of a country’s debt may not be able or willing to repay the principal and/or interest when due in accordance with the terms of such debt. A debtor’s willingness or ability to repay principal and interest due in a timely manner may be affected by, among other factors, its cash flow situation and, in the case of a government debtor, the extent of its foreign currency reserves or its inability to sufficiently manage fluctuations in relative currency valuations, the availability of sufficient foreign exchange on the date a payment is due, the relative size of the debt service burden to the economy as a whole, the government debtor’s policy towards principal international lenders such as the International Monetary Fund and the political and social constraints to which a government debtor
may be subject. Government debtors may default on their debt and also may be dependent on expected disbursements from foreign governments, multilateral agencies and others abroad to reduce principal and interest arrearages on their debt. The commitment on the part of these governments, agencies and others to make such disbursements may be conditioned on a debtor’s implementation of economic reforms and/or economic performance and the timely service of such debtor’s obligations.
Failure to implement such reforms, achieve such levels of economic performance or repay principal or interest when due may result in the cancellation of such third parties’ commitments to lend funds to the government debtor, which may further impair such debtor’s ability or willingness to service its debts on a timely basis.
As a result of the foregoing, a government obligor may default on its obligations. If such an event occurs, the Fund may have limited (or no) legal recourse against the issuer and/or guarantor. Remedies must, in some cases, be pursued in the courts of the defaulting party itself, and the ability of the holder of foreign government debt securities to obtain recourse may be subject to the political climate in the relevant country. In addition, no assurance can be given that the holders of more senior fixed income securities, such as commercial bank debt, will not contest payments to the holders of other foreign government debt securities in the event of default under their commercial bank loan agreements. There is no bankruptcy proceeding by which sovereign debt on which governmental entities have defaulted may be collected in whole or in part. In addition, foreign governmental entities may enjoy various levels of sovereign immunity, and it may be difficult or impossible to bring a legal action against a foreign governmental entity or to enforce a judgment against such an entity.
Government obligors in emerging market countries are among the world’s largest debtors to commercial banks, other governments, international financial organizations and other financial institutions. The issuers of the government debt securities in which the Fund may invest have in the past experienced substantial difficulties in servicing their external debt obligations, which led to defaults on certain obligations and the restructuring of certain indebtedness. Restructuring arrangements have included, among other things, reducing and rescheduling interest and principal payments by negotiating new or amended credit agreements, and obtaining new credit to finance interest payments. Holders of certain foreign government debt securities may be requested to participate in the restructuring of such obligations and to extend further loans to their issuers. There can be no assurance that the foreign government debt securities in which the Fund may invest will not be subject to similar restructuring arrangements or to requests for new credit, which may adversely affect the Fund’s holdings. Furthermore, certain participants in the secondary market for such debt may be directly involved in negotiating the terms of these arrangements and may therefore have access to information not available to other market participants.
     
Loan Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Loan Risk
Investments in loans are generally subject to the same risks as investments in other types of debt obligations, including, among others, credit risk, interest rate risk, prepayment risk, and extension risk. In addition, in many cases loans are subject to the risks associated with below-investment grade securities. This means loans are often subject to significant credit risks, including a greater possibility that the borrower will be adversely affected by changes in market or economic conditions and may default or enter bankruptcy. This risk of default will increase in the event of an economic downturn or a substantial increase in interest rates (which will increase the cost of the borrower’s debt service). The risks of investing in loans include the risk that the borrowers on loans held by the Fund may be unable to honor their payment obligations due to adverse conditions in the industry or industries in which they operate.
The interest rates on floating rate loans typically adjust only periodically. Accordingly, adjustments in the interest rate payable under a loan may trail prevailing interest rates significantly, especially if there are limitations placed on the amount the interest rate on a loan may adjust in a given period. Certain floating rate loans have a feature that prevents their interest rates from adjusting if market interest rates are below a specified minimum level. When interest rates are low, this feature could result in the interest rates of those loans becoming fixed at the applicable minimum level until interest rates rise above that level. Although this feature is intended to result in these loans yielding more than they otherwise would when interest rates are low, the feature might also result in the prices of these loans becoming more sensitive to changes in interest rates should interest rates rise but remain below the applicable minimum level.
In addition, investments in loans may be difficult to value and may be illiquid. Floating rate loans generally are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. The liquidity of floating rate loans, including the volume and frequency of secondary market trading in such loans, varies significantly over time and among individual floating rate loans. For example, if the credit quality of the borrower
related to a floating rate loan unexpectedly declines significantly, secondary market trading in that floating rate loan can also decline. The secondary market for loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads, and extended trade settlement periods, which may increase the expenses of the Fund or cause the Fund to be unable to realize the full value of its investment in the loan, resulting in a material decline in the Fund’s NAV.
During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for loans may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell loans it holds, and, for loans it is able to sell in such circumstances, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated.
The Fund may make loans directly to borrowers or may acquire an interest in a loan by means of an assignment or a participation. In an assignment, the Fund may be required generally to rely upon the assigning financial institution to demand payment and enforce its rights against the borrower, but would otherwise be entitled to the benefit of all of the financial institution’s rights in the loan. The Fund may also purchase a participating interest in a portion of the rights of a lending institution in a loan. In such case, the Fund will generally be entitled to receive from the lending institution amounts equal to the payments of principal, interest and premium, if any, on the loan received by the institution, but generally will not be entitled to enforce its rights directly against the agent bank or the borrower, and must rely for that purpose on the lending institution.
Investments in loans through a purchase of a loan, loan origination or a direct assignment of a financial institution’s interests with respect to a loan may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner, in whole or in part, of any collateral, which could include, among other assets, real estate or other real or personal property, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and holding or disposing of the collateral. In addition, it is conceivable that under emerging legal theories of lender liability, the Fund as holder of a partial interest in a loan could be held liable as co-lender for acts of the agent lender.
Loans and certain other forms of direct indebtedness may not be classified as “securities” under the federal securities laws and, therefore, when the Fund purchases such instruments, it may not be entitled to the protections against fraud and misrepresentation contained in the federal securities laws.
During periods of deteriorating economic conditions, such as recessions or periods of rising unemployment, delinquencies and losses generally increase, sometimes dramatically, with respect to loans.
Additional risks of investments in loans may include:
Agent/Intermediary Risk. If the Fund holds a loan through another financial intermediary, as is the case with a participation, or relies on another financial intermediary to administer the loan, as is the case with most multi-lender facilities, the Fund’s receipt of principal and interest on the loan and the value of the Fund’s loan investment will depend at least in part on the credit standing of the financial intermediary and therefore will be subject to the credit risk of the intermediary. The Fund will be required to rely upon the financial intermediary from which it purchases a participation interest to collect and pass on to the Fund such payments and to enforce the Fund’s rights and may not be able to cause the financial intermediary to take what it considers to be appropriate action. As a result, an insolvency, bankruptcy or reorganization of the financial intermediary may delay or prevent the Fund from receiving principal, interest and other amounts with respect to the Fund’s interest in the loan. In addition, if the Fund relies on a financial intermediary to administer a loan, the Fund is subject to the risk that the financial intermediary may be unwilling or unable to demand and receive payments from the borrower in respect of the loan, or otherwise unwilling or unable to perform its administrative obligations.
Highly Leveraged Transactions Risk. The Fund may invest in loans made in connection with highly leveraged transactions. These transactions may include operating loans, leveraged buyout loans, leveraged capitalization loans and other types of acquisition financing. Those loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans. If the Fund voluntarily or involuntarily sold those types of loans, it might not receive the full value it expected.
Stressed, Distressed or Defaulted Borrowers Risk. The Fund can also invest in loans of borrowers that are experiencing, or are likely to experience, financial difficulty. These loans are subject to greater credit and liquidity risks than other types of loans and are generally considered speculative. In addition, the Fund can invest in loans of borrowers that have filed for bankruptcy protection or that have had involuntary bankruptcy petitions filed against them by creditors. Various laws enacted for the protection of debtors may apply to
loans. A bankruptcy proceeding or other court proceeding could delay or limit the ability of the Fund to collect the principal and interest payments on that borrower’s loans or adversely affect the Fund’s rights in collateral relating to a loan. If a lawsuit is brought by creditors of a borrower under a loan, a court or a trustee in bankruptcy could take certain actions that would be adverse to the Fund. For example:
Other creditors might convince the court to set aside a loan or the collateralization of the loan as a “fraudulent conveyance” or “preferential transfer.” In that event, the court could recover from the Fund the interest and principal payments that the borrower made before becoming insolvent. There can be no assurance that the Fund would be able to prevent that recapture.
A bankruptcy court may restructure the payment obligations under the loan so as to reduce the amount to which the Fund would be entitled.
The court might discharge the amount of the loan that exceeds the value of the collateral.
The court could subordinate the Fund’s rights to the rights of other creditors of the borrower under applicable law, decreasing, potentially significantly, the likelihood of any recovery on the Fund’s investment.
Limited Information Risk. Because there may be limited public or other information available regarding loan investments, the Fund’s investments in such instruments may be particularly dependent on the analytical abilities of the Fund’s portfolio managers.
Interest Rate Benchmarks Risk. Interest rates on loans typically adjust periodically often based on changes in a benchmark rate plus a premium or spread over the benchmark rate. The benchmark rate may be the Prime Rate, or other base lending rates used by commercial lenders (each as defined in the applicable loan agreement).
Some benchmark rates may reset daily; others reset less frequently. Certain floating or variable rate loans may permit the borrower to select an interest rate reset period of up to one year or longer. Investing in loans with longer interest rate reset periods may increase fluctuations in the Fund’s NAV as a result of changes in interest rates. Interest rates on loans with longer periods between benchmark resets will typically trail market interest rates in a rising interest rate environment.
Certain loans may permit the borrower to change the base lending or benchmark rate during the term of the loan. One benchmark rate may not adjust to changing market or interest rates to the same degree or as rapidly as another, permitting the borrower the option to select the benchmark rate that is most advantageous to it and less advantageous to the Fund. To the extent the borrower elects this option, the interest income and total return the Fund earns on the investment may be adversely affected as compared to other investments where the borrower does not have the option to change the base lending or benchmark rate.
Restrictive Loan Covenants Risk. Borrowers must comply with various restrictive covenants that may be contained in loan agreements. They may include restrictions on dividend payments and other distributions to stockholders, provisions requiring the borrower to maintain specific financial ratios, and limits on total debt. They may include requirements that the borrower prepay the loan with any free cash flow. A break of a covenant that is not waived by the agent bank (or the lenders) is normally an event of default that provides the agent bank or the lenders the right to call the outstanding amount on the loan. If a lender accelerates the repayment of a loan because of the borrower’s violation of a restrictive covenant under the loan agreement, the borrower might default in payment of the loan.
Some of the loans in which the Fund may invest or to which the Fund may obtain exposure may be “covenant-lite.” Such loans contain fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans. Such loans generally do not include terms which allow the lender to monitor the performance of the borrower and declare a default or force a borrower into bankruptcy restructuring if certain criteria are breached. Under such loans, lenders typically must rely on covenants that restrict a borrower from incurring additional debt or engaging in certain actions. Such covenants can be breached only by an affirmative action of the borrower, rather than by a deterioration in the borrower’s financial condition. Accordingly, the Fund may have fewer rights against a borrower when it invests in or has exposure to such loans and so may have a greater risk of loss on such investments as compared to investments in or exposure to loans with additional or more conventional covenants.
Senior Loan and Subordination Risk. In addition to the risks typically associated with debt securities and loans generally, senior loans are also subject to the risk that a court could subordinate a senior loan, which typically holds a senior position in the capital structure of a borrower, to presently existing or future indebtedness or take other action detrimental to the holders of senior loans.
The Fund’s investments in senior loans may be collateralized with one or more of (1) working capital assets, such as accounts receivable and inventory, (2) tangible fixed assets, such as real property, buildings and equipment, (3) intangible assets such as trademarks or patents, or (4) security interests in shares of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries or affiliates. In the case of loans to a non-public company, the company’s shareholders or owners may provide collateral in the form of secured guarantees and/or security interests in assets they own. However, the value of the collateral may decline after the Fund buys the senior loan, particularly if the collateral consists of equity securities of the borrower or its affiliates. If a borrower defaults, insolvency laws may limit the Fund’s access to the collateral, or the lenders may be unable to liquidate the collateral. A bankruptcy court might find that the collateral securing the senior loan is invalid or require the borrower to use the collateral to pay other outstanding obligations. If the collateral consists of stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries, the stock may lose all of its value in the event of a bankruptcy, which would leave the Fund exposed to greater potential loss. As a result, a collateralized senior loan may not be fully collateralized and can decline significantly in value.
If a borrower defaults on a collateralized senior loan, the Fund may receive assets other than cash or securities in full or partial satisfaction of the borrower’s obligation under the senior loan. Those assets may be illiquid, and the Fund might not be able to realize the benefit of the assets for legal, practical or other reasons. The Fund might hold those assets until the Adviser determined it was appropriate to dispose of them. If the collateral becomes illiquid or loses some or all of its value, the collateral may not be sufficient to protect the Fund in the event of a default of scheduled interest or principal payments.
The Fund can invest in senior loans that are not secured. If the borrower is unable to pay interest or defaults in the payment of principal, there will be no collateral on which the Fund can foreclose. Therefore, these loans typically present greater risks than collateralized senior loans.
Due to restrictions on transfers in loan agreements and the nature of the private syndication of senior loans including, for example, the lack of publicly-available information, some senior loans are not as easily purchased or sold as publicly-traded securities. Some senior loans and other Fund investments are illiquid, which may make it difficult for the Fund to value them or dispose of them at an acceptable price. Direct investments in senior loans and investments in participation interests in or assignments of senior loans may be limited.
Settlement Risk. Transactions in many loans settle on a delayed basis, and the Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of such loans for a substantial period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of such loans may not be available to make additional investments until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loans.
Collateral Impairment Risk. Even if a loan to which the Fund is exposed is secured, there can be no assurance that the collateral will, when recovered and liquidated, generate sufficient (or any) funds to offset any losses associated with a defaulting loan. It is possible that the same collateral could secure multiple loans, in which case the liquidation proceeds of the collateral may be insufficient to cover the payments due on all the loans secured by that collateral. This risk is increased if the Fund’s loans are secured by a single asset. There can be no guarantee that the collateral can be liquidated and any costs associated with such liquidation could reduce or eliminate the amount of funds otherwise available to offset the payments due under the loan. Moreover, the Fund’s security interests may be unperfected for a variety of reasons, including the failure to make a required filing by the servicer and, as a result, the Fund may not have priority over other creditors as it expected.
Unsecured Loans Risk. Subordinated or unsecured loans are lower in priority of payment to secured loans and are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. This risk is generally higher for subordinated unsecured loans or debt, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral.
Servicer Risk. The Fund’s direct and indirect investments in loans are typically serviced by the originating lender or a third-party servicer. In the event that the servicer is unable to service the loan, there can be no guarantee that a backup servicer will be able to assume responsibility for servicing the loans in a timely or cost-effective manner; any resulting disruption or delay could jeopardize payments due to the Fund in respect of its investments or increase the costs associated with the Fund’s investments.
Direct Lending Risk. The Fund may seek to originate loans, including, without limitation, commercial real estate or mortgage- related-loans or other types of loans, which may be in the form of whole loans, secured and unsecured notes, senior and second lien loans, mezzanine loans or similar investments. The Fund will be responsible for the expenses associated with originating a loan (whether or not consummated). This may include significant legal and due diligence expenses, which will be indirectly borne by the Fund and Common Shareholders.
Direct lending involves risks beyond those associated with investing in loans. If a loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become owner of any collateral and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning, operating, maintaining and disposing of the collateral. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to losses resulting from default and foreclosure and also operating and maintaining the property. Any costs or delays involved in the effectuation of a foreclosure of the loan or a liquidation of the underlying assets will further reduce the proceeds and thus increase the loss. There is no assurance that the Fund will correctly evaluate the value of the assets collateralizing the loan. In the event of a reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to the borrower, the Fund may lose all or part of the amounts advanced to the borrower. There is no assurance that the protection of the Fund’s interests is adequate, including the validity or enforceability of the loan and the maintenance of the anticipated priority and perfection of the applicable security interests. Furthermore, there is no assurance that claims will not be asserted that might interfere with enforcement of the Fund’s rights.
There are no restrictions on the credit quality of the Fund’s loans. Loans may be deemed to have substantial vulnerability to default in payment of interest and/or principal. There can be no assurance as to the levels of defaults and/or recoveries that may be experienced on loans in which the Fund has invested. Certain of the loans in which the Fund may invest have uncertainties and/or exposure to adverse conditions, and may be considered to be predominantly speculative. Generally, such loans offer a higher return potential than better quality loans, but involve greater volatility of price and greater risk of loss of income and principal. The market values of certain of these loans also tend to be more sensitive to changes in economic conditions than better quality loans.
Loans to issuers operating in workout modes or under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or the equivalent laws of member states of the European Union are, in certain circumstances, subject to certain potential liabilities that may exceed the amount of the loan. For example, under certain circumstances, lenders who have inappropriately exercised control of the management and policies of a debtor may have their claims subordinated or disallowed or may be found liable for damages suffered by parties as a result of such actions.
Various state licensing requirements could apply to the Fund with respect to investments in, or the origination and servicing of, loans and similar assets and it may take a substantial period of time for the Fund to obtain any necessary licenses or comply with other applicable regulatory requirements. The licensing requirements could apply depending on the location of the borrower, the location of the collateral securing the loan, or the location where the Fund or the Adviser operates or has offices. In states that require licensure for or otherwise regulate loan origination, the Fund or Advisor will be required to comply with applicable laws and regulations, including consumer protection and anti-fraud laws, which could impose restrictions on the Fund’s or Advisor’s ability to take certain actions to protect the value of its investments in such assets and impose compliance costs, or the Fund will have to forego investment opportunities subject to that state’s laws and regulations. Failure to comply with such laws and regulations could lead to, among other penalties, a loss of the Fund’s or Advisor’s license, which in turn could require the Fund to divest assets located in or secured by real property located in that state. In addition to laws governing the activities of lenders and servicers, some states require purchasers of certain loans to be licensed or registered in order to own loans connected to the state (e.g., made in the state or secured by property in the state) and, in certain states, to collect a rate of interest above a specified rate. These risks will also apply to issuers and entities in which the Fund invests that hold similar assets, as well as any origination company or servicer in which the Fund owns an interest. As of September 30, 2024, the Fund does not hold any licenses to originate loans in any states where a license is required, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will obtain any such licenses timely or ever.
Foreign Loan Risk. Loans involving foreign borrowers may involve risks not ordinarily associated with exposure to loans to U.S. entities and individuals. The foreign lending industry may be subject to less governmental supervision and regulation than exists in the U.S.; conversely, foreign regulatory regimes applicable to the lending industry may be more complex and more restrictive than those in the U.S., resulting in higher costs associated with such investments, and such regulatory regimes may be subject to interpretation or change without prior notice to investors, such as the Fund. Foreign lending may not be subject to accounting, auditing, and financial reporting standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S. Due to differences in legal systems, there may be difficulty in obtaining or enforcing a court judgment outside the United States.
Lender Liability. A number of judicial decisions have upheld judgments of borrowers against lending institutions on the basis of various evolving legal theories, collectively termed “lender liability.” Generally, lender liability is founded on the premise that a lender has violated a duty (whether implied or contractual) of good faith, commercial reasonableness and fair dealing, or a similar duty owed to the borrower or has assumed an excessive degree of control over the borrower resulting in the creation of a fiduciary duty owed to the borrower or its other creditors or shareholders. If a loan held by the Fund were found to have been made or serviced under circumstances that give rise to lender liability, the borrower’s obligation to repay that loan could be reduced or eliminated or the Fund’s recovery on that loan could be otherwise impaired, which would adversely impact the value of that loan. In limited cases, courts
have subordinated the loans of a senior lender to a borrower to claims of other creditors of the borrower when the senior lender or its agents, such as a loan servicer, is found to have engaged in unfair, inequitable or fraudulent conduct with respect to the other creditors. If a loan held by the Fund were subject to such subordination, it would be junior in right of payment to other indebtedness of the borrower, which could adversely impact the value of that loan.
     
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Below Investment Grade/High Yield Securities Risk
Debt instruments rated below investment grade and debt instruments that are unrated and of comparable or lesser quality are predominantly speculative. They are usually issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings or by companies with questionable credit strength. These instruments, commonly known as “junk bonds,” have a higher degree of default risk and may be less liquid than higher-rated bonds. These instruments may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific corporate developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of high yield investments generally, general economic downturn, and less secondary market liquidity. This potential lack of liquidity may make it more difficult for the Fund to value these instruments accurately. An economic downturn could severely affect the ability of issuers (particularly those that are highly leveraged) to service their debt obligations or to repay their obligations upon maturity.
     
Distressed and Defaulted Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Distressed and Defaulted Securities Risk
Distressed and defaulted securities risk refers to the uncertainty of repayment of defaulted securities (e.g., a security on which a principal or interest payment is not made when due) and obligations of distressed issuers. Because the issuer of such securities is in default and/or is likely to be in distressed financial condition, repayment of defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers (including insolvent issuers or issuers in payment or covenant default, in workout or restructuring or in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings) is subject to significant uncertainties. Insolvency laws and practices in foreign markets, and especially emerging market countries are different than those in the U.S. and the effect of these laws and practices cannot be predicted with certainty. Investments in defaulted securities and obligations of distressed issuers are considered speculative and entail high risk.
     
REIT Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
REIT Risk
The Fund may invest in REITs. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that own, and typically operate, income-producing real estate. If a REIT meets certain requirements, including distributing to shareholders substantially all of its taxable income (other than net capital gains), then it is not taxed on the income distributed to shareholders. REITs are subject to management fees and other expenses, and so the Fund will bear its proportionate share of the costs of the REITs’ operations. There are three general categories of REITs: Equity REITs, Mortgage REITs and Hybrid REITs. Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and investments in mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, and the possible failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), or an exemption under the 1940 Act. REITs are not diversified and are heavily dependent on cash flow earned on the property interests they hold.
Equity REITs, which invest primarily in direct fee ownership or leasehold ownership of real property and derive most of their income from rents, are generally affected by changes in the values of and incomes from the properties they own. Mortgage REITs invest mostly in mortgages on real estate, which may secure, for example, construction, development or long-term loans, and the main source of their income is mortgage interest payments. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. A hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of equity REITs and mortgage REITs, generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real estate, and thus may be subject to risks associated with both real estate ownership and mortgage-related investments. Along with the risks common to different types of real estate-related investments, REITs, no matter the type, involve additional risk factors, including poor performance by the REIT’s manager, adverse changes to the tax laws, or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time-consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of a Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
Mortgage REITs are exposed to the risks specific to the real estate market as well as the risks that relate specifically to the way in which mortgage REITs are organized and operated. Mortgage REITs receive principal and interest payments from the owners of the mortgaged properties. Accordingly, mortgage REITs are subject to the credit risk of the borrowers to whom they extend credit, and are subject to the risks described under “Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk” and “Debt Securities Risk.” Mortgage REITs are also subject to significant interest rate risk. Mortgage REITs typically use leverage and many are highly leveraged, which exposes them to the risks of leverage. Leverage risk refers to the risk that leverage created from borrowing may impair a mortgage REIT’s liquidity, cause it to liquidate positions at an unfavorable time and increase the volatility of the values of securities issued by the mortgage REIT. The use of leverage may not be advantageous to a mortgage REIT. To the extent that a mortgage REIT incurs significant leverage, it may incur substantial losses if its borrowing costs increase or if the assets it purchases with leverage decrease in value.
The Fund’s investment in a REIT may result in the Fund making distributions that constitute a return of capital to Fund shareholders for federal income tax purposes. In addition, distributions attributable to REITs made by the Fund to Fund shareholders will not qualify for the corporate dividends-received deduction, or, generally, for treatment as qualified dividend income. Certain distributions made by the Fund attributable to dividends received by the Fund from REITs may qualify as “qualified REIT dividends” in the hands of non-corporate shareholders.
     
Real Estate Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Real Estate Risk
The value of the Fund’s portfolio could change in light of factors affecting the real estate sector. Factors affecting real estate values include the supply of real property in certain markets, changes in zoning laws, delays in completion of construction, changes in real estate values, changes in property taxes, levels of occupancy, adequacy of rent to cover operating expenses, and local and, regional, and general market conditions. The value of real estate-related investments also may be affected by changes in interest rates, macroeconomic developments, and social and economic trends.
To the extent that the Fund invests in real estate related investments, including REITs, real estate-related loans or real-estate linked derivative instruments, it will be subject to the risks associated with owning real estate and with the real estate industry generally. These include difficulties in valuing and disposing of real estate, the possibility of declines in the value of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, the possibility of adverse changes in the climate for real estate, environmental liability risks, the risk of increases in property taxes and operating expenses, possible adverse changes in zoning laws, the risk of casualty or condemnation losses, limitations on rents, the possibility of adverse changes in interest rates and in the credit markets and the possibility of borrowers paying off mortgages sooner than expected, which may lead to reinvestment of assets at lower prevailing interest rates.
To the extent that the Fund invests in REITs, it will also be subject to the risk that a REIT may default on its obligations or go bankrupt. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Fund, a shareholder will indirectly bear his or her proportionate share of the expenses of the REITs. The Fund’s investments in REITs could cause the Fund to recognize income in excess of cash received from those securities and, as a result, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities, including when it is not advantageous to do so, in order to make distributions. An investment in a REIT or a real estate-linked derivative instrument that is linked to the value of a REIT is subject to additional risks, such as poor performance by the manager of the REIT, adverse changes to the tax laws or failure by the REIT to qualify for the favorable tax treatment applicable to REITs under the Code. In addition, some REITs have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property. Also, the organizational documents of a REIT may contain provisions that make changes in control of the REIT difficult and time- consuming. Finally, private REITs are not traded on a national securities exchange. As such, these products may be illiquid. This reduces the ability of the Fund to redeem its investment early. Private REITs are also generally harder to value and may bear higher fees than public REITs.
     
Municipal Bond Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Municipal Bond Risk
Investing in the municipal bond market involves the risks of investing in debt securities generally and certain other risks. The amount of public information available about the municipal bonds in the Fund’s portfolio is generally less than that for corporate equities or bonds, and the investment performance of the Fund’s investment in municipal bonds may therefore be more dependent on the analytical abilities of the Adviser than its investments in taxable bonds. The secondary market for municipal bonds also tends to be less well developed or liquid than many other securities markets, which may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to sell municipal bonds at attractive prices.
The ability of municipal issuers to make timely payments of interest and principal may be diminished during general economic downturns, by litigation, legislation or political events, or by the bankruptcy of the issuer. Laws, referenda, ordinances or regulations
enacted in the future by Congress or state legislatures or the applicable governmental entity could extend the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or impose other constraints on enforcement of such obligations, or on the ability of municipal issuers to levy taxes. Issuers of municipal securities also might seek protection under the bankruptcy laws. In the event of bankruptcy of such an issuer, the Fund could experience delays in collecting principal and interest and the Fund may not, in all circumstances, be able to collect all principal and interest to which it is entitled. To enforce its rights in the event of a default in the payment of interest or repayment of principal, or both, the Fund may take possession of and manage the assets securing the issuer’s obligations on such securities, which may increase the Fund’s operating expenses. Any income derived from the Fund’s ownership or operation of such assets may not be tax exempt.
The Fund may invest in revenue bonds, which are typically issued to fund a wide variety of capital projects including: electric, gas, water and sewer systems; highways, bridges and tunnels; port and airport facilities; colleges and universities; and hospitals. Because the principal security for a revenue bond is generally the net revenues derived from a particular facility or group of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or other specific revenue source, there is no guarantee that the particular project will generate enough revenue to pay its obligations, in which case the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected.
Interest on municipal obligations, while generally exempt from U.S. federal income tax, may not be exempt from U.S. federal alternative minimum tax. The Fund does not expect to be eligible to pass the tax-exempt character of such interest through to the Common Shareholders.
     
Hedging Strategy Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Hedging Strategy Risk
Certain of the investment techniques that the Fund may employ for hedging will expose the Fund to additional or increased risks. For example, there may be an imperfect correlation between changes in the value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings and hedging positions entered into by the Fund, which may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, the Fund’s success in using hedge instruments is subject to the Adviser’s ability to predict correctly changes in the relationships of such hedge instruments to the Fund’s portfolio holdings, and there can be no assurance that the Adviser’s judgment in this respect will be accurate. Consequently, the use of hedging transactions might result in a poorer overall performance for the Fund, whether or not adjusted for risk, than if the Fund had not hedged its portfolio holdings. The Adviser is under no obligation to engage in any hedging strategies, and may, in its discretion, choose not to. Even if the Adviser desires to hedge some of the Fund’s risks, suitable hedging transactions may not be available or, if available, attractive. A failure to hedge may result in losses to the value of the Fund’s investments.
     
Short Sales and Short Position Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Short Sales and Short Position Risk
To the extent the Fund makes use of short sales or takes short positions for investment and/or risk management purposes, the Fund may be subject to certain risks associated with selling short. Short sales are transactions in which the Fund sells securities or other instruments that the Fund does not own. Short exposure with respect to securities or market segments may also be achieved through the use of derivative instruments, such as forwards, futures or swaps on indices or on individual securities. When the Fund engages in a short sale or short position on a security or other instrument, it may borrow the security or other instrument sold short and deliver it to the counterparty. The Fund will ordinarily have to pay a fee or premium to borrow the security and will be obligated to repay the lender of the security any dividends or interest that accrues on the security during the period of the loan. The amount of any gain from a short sale will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends, interest or expenses the Fund pays in connection with the short sale. Short sales and short positions expose the Fund to the risk that it may be required to cover its short position at a time when the securities underlying the short position or exposure have appreciated in value, thus resulting in a loss to the Fund. The Fund may engage in short sales when it does not own or have the right to acquire the security sold short at no additional cost. The Fund’s loss on a short sale or position theoretically could be unlimited in a case in which the Fund is unable, for whatever reason, to close out its short position. In addition, the Fund’s short selling strategies may limit its ability to benefit from increases in the markets. Short selling involves a form of financial leverage that may exaggerate any losses realized by the Fund. Also, there is the risk that the counterparty to a short sale may fail to honor its contractual terms, causing a loss to the Fund.
The Fund may borrow an instrument from a broker or other institution and sell it to establish a short position in the instrument. The Fund may also enter into a derivative transaction in order to establish a short position with respect to a reference asset. The Fund may make a profit or incur a loss depending upon whether the market price of the instrument or the value of the position decreases or increases between the date the Fund established the short position and the date on which the Fund must replace the borrowed
instrument or otherwise close out the transaction. An increase in the value of an instrument, index or interest rate with respect to which the Fund has established a short position will result in a loss to the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to close out the position at any particular time or at an acceptable price. The loss to the Fund from a short position is potentially unlimited.
     
Convertible Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Convertible Securities Risk
The Fund may invest in convertible securities. Convertible securities include bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stock and other securities that may be converted into or exchanged for, at a specific price or formula within a particular period of time, a prescribed amount of common stock or other equity securities of the same or a different issuer. Convertible securities may entitle the holder to receive interest paid or accrued on debt or dividends paid or accrued on preferred stock until the security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. The market value of a convertible security is a function of its investment value and its conversion value. A security’s investment value represents the value of the security without its conversion feature (i.e., a nonconvertible fixed income security). The investment value may be determined by reference to its credit quality and the current value of its yield to maturity or probable call date. At any given time, investment value is dependent upon such factors as the general level of interest rates, the yield of similar nonconvertible securities, the financial strength of the issuer and the seniority of the security in the issuer’s capital structure. A security’s conversion value is determined by multiplying the number of shares the holder is entitled to receive upon conversion or exchange by the current price of the underlying security.
     
Focused Investment Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Focused Investment Risk
A fund that invests a substantial portion of its assets in a particular market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries or asset class is subject to greater risk than a fund that invests in a more diverse investment portfolio. In addition, the value of such a fund is more susceptible to any single economic, market, political, regulatory or other occurrence affecting, for example, the particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the fund is invested. This is because, for example, issuers in a particular market, industry, region, sector or asset class may react similarly to specific economic, market, regulatory, political or other developments. The particular markets, industries, regions, sectors or asset classes in which the Fund may focus its investments may change over time and the Fund may alter its focus at inopportune times. To the extent the Fund invests in the securities of a limited number of issuers, it is particularly exposed to adverse developments affecting those issuers, and a decline in the market value of a particular security held by the Fund may affect the Fund’s performance more than if the Fund invested in the securities of a larger number of issuers. In addition, the limited number of issuers to which the Fund may be exposed may provide the Fund exposure to substantially the same market, industry, sector, group of industries or sectors, country, region, group of countries, or asset class, which may increase the risk of loss as a result of focusing the Fund’s investments, as discussed above.
     
Derivatives Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Derivatives Risk
The Fund’s use of derivatives may involve risks different from, or greater than, the risks associated with investing in more traditional investments, such as stocks and bonds. Any use of derivatives strategies entails the risks of investing directly in the securities, instruments or assets underlying the derivatives strategies, as well as the risks of using derivatives generally. Derivatives can be highly complex and may perform in ways unanticipated by the Adviser and may not be available at the time or price desired. Derivatives positions may also be improperly executed or constructed.
The Fund’s use of derivatives involves the risk that the other party to the derivative contract will fail to make required payments or otherwise to comply with the terms of the contract. In the event the counterparty to a derivative instrument defaults and/or becomes insolvent, the Fund potentially could lose all or a large portion of the value of its investment in the derivative instrument. Derivatives transactions can create investment leverage and may be highly volatile, and the Fund could lose significantly more than the amount it invests. Because most derivatives involve contractual arrangements with a counterparty, the Fund’s ability to enter into them requires a willing counterparty. The Fund’s ability to close out or unwind a derivatives position prior to expiration or maturity may also depend on the ability and willingness of the counterparty to enter into a transaction closing out the position.
Derivatives may be difficult to value, illiquid and/or volatile. The Fund may not be able to close out or sell a derivative position at an advantageous price or time.
Use of derivatives may affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders and, therefore, may increase the amount of taxes payable by taxable shareholders.
The Fund may use derivatives to create investment leverage and the Fund’s use of derivatives may otherwise cause its portfolio to be leveraged. Leverage increases the Fund’s portfolio losses when the value of its investments declines. Since many derivatives involve leverage, adverse changes in the value or level of the underlying asset, rate, or index may result in a loss substantially greater than the amount invested in the derivative itself. Some derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment.
When the Fund enters into a derivatives transaction as a substitute for or alternative to a direct cash investment, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the derivative transaction may not provide a return that corresponds precisely or at all with that of the underlying investment. When the Fund uses a derivative for hedging purposes, it is possible that the derivative will not in fact provide the anticipated protection, and the Fund could lose money on both the derivative transaction and the exposure the Fund sought to hedge. While hedging strategies involving derivatives can reduce the risk of loss, they can also reduce the opportunity for gain or even result in losses by offsetting favorable price movements in other Fund investments.
The derivatives markets are subject to various global regulations, and additional future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such regulation could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions or its ability to effect its investment strategy and cause the Fund to lose value. In particular, the U.S. government, the United Kingdom, the European Union and various other jurisdictions have adopted mandatory minimum margin requirements for bilateral derivatives. Such requirements could increase the amount of margin required to be provided by the Fund in connection with its derivatives transactions and, therefore, make its derivatives transactions more expensive and potentially impair its ability to effect its investment strategy. U.S. government legislation providing for regulation of the derivatives market also includes clearing, reporting, and registration requirements, which could restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in derivatives transactions or increase the cost or uncertainty involved in such transactions. The European Union and the United Kingdom (and some other jurisdictions) have implemented or are in the process of implementing similar requirements, which will affect the Fund when it enters into a derivatives transaction with a counterparty subject to such requirements.
The Fund typically will be required to post collateral or make margin payments in connection with entering into derivatives transactions. Assets that are used as margin or collateral may be required to be in the form of cash or liquid securities. If markets move against the Fund’s position, the Fund will generally be required to post additional assets and may have to dispose of existing investments to obtain assets acceptable as collateral or margin. This may prevent the Fund from pursuing its investment objective. Assets that are used as margin or collateral typically may be invested, and these investments are subject to risk and may result in losses to the Fund. These losses may be substantial, and may be in addition to losses incurred by using the derivative in question. If the Fund is unable to close out its position, it may be required to continue to maintain such accounts and fulfill its payment obligations until the position expires or matures, and the Fund will continue to be subject to investment risk on the assets. In addition, the Fund may not be able to recover the full amount of its margin from its counterparty or an intermediary if such entity were to experience financial difficulty. Margin and collateral requirements may impair the Fund’s ability to sell a portfolio security or make an investment at a time when it would otherwise be favorable to do so, or require the Fund to sell a portfolio security or close out a derivatives position at a disadvantageous time or price.
Rule 18f-4 governs the Fund’s use of derivative investments and certain financing transactions. Among other things, Rule 18f-4 requires funds that invest in derivative instruments beyond a specified limited amount to apply a value-at-risk based limit to their use of certain derivative instruments and financing transactions and to adopt and implement a derivatives risk management program. Funds that use derivative instruments (beyond certain currency and interest rate hedging transactions) to a limited degree are not subject to the full requirements of Rule 18f-4. Regulatory limitations on derivatives transactions could have the effect of restricting the Fund’s use of derivative investments and financing transactions and prevent the Fund from implementing its principal investment strategies as described herein, which may result in changes to the Fund’s principal investment strategies and could adversely affect the Fund’s performance and its ability to achieve its investment objective.
While legislative and regulatory measures may provide protections for some market participants, they are evolving and still being implemented and their effects on derivatives markets activities cannot be reliably predicted. Current and future regulation of the derivatives markets may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability or liquidity of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. Any such adverse developments could impair the effectiveness of the Fund’s derivatives transactions and cause the Fund to lose value.
     
Risks Related to the Fund's Clearing Broker and Central Clearing Counterparty [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Risks Related to the Fund’s Clearing Broker and Central Clearing Counterparty
Transactions in some types of derivatives, including futures, options on futures, and certain swaps (including interest rate swaps and index credit default swaps) are required to be (or are capable of being) centrally cleared. In a transaction involving those derivatives (“cleared derivatives”), the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members. In cleared derivatives positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from a clearing house through its accounts at clearing members. Clearing members guarantee performance of their clients’ obligations to the clearing house. There is a risk that assets deposited by the Fund with any clearing member as margin for cleared derivatives may, in certain circumstances, be used to satisfy losses of other clients of the Fund’s clearing member. In addition, the assets of the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of the clearing member’s bankruptcy, as the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the clearing member’s customers for the relevant account class. Similarly, all customer funds held by a clearing member and/or at a clearing house in connection with cleared derivatives are generally held on a commingled omnibus basis and are not identified to the name of the clearing member’s individual customers. In the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a clearing member or clearing house, the Fund might experience a loss of funds deposited through its clearing member as margin with the clearing house, a loss of unrealized profits on its open positions, and the loss of funds owed to it as realized profits on closed positions. Such a bankruptcy or insolvency might also cause a substantial delay before the Fund could obtain the return of funds owed to it by a clearing member who was a member of such clearing house.
In some ways, cleared derivative arrangements are less favorable to funds than bilateral arrangements. For example, the Fund may be required to provide more margin for cleared derivatives positions than for bilateral derivatives positions. Also, in contrast to a bilateral derivatives position, following a period of notice to the Fund, a clearing member generally can require termination of an existing cleared derivatives position at any time or an increase in margin requirements above the margin that the clearing member required at the beginning of a transaction. Clearing houses also have broad rights to increase margin requirements for existing positions or to terminate those positions at any time. Any increase in margin requirements or termination of existing cleared derivatives positions by the clearing member or the clearing house could interfere with the ability of the Fund to pursue its investment strategy. Further, any increase in margin requirements by a clearing member could expose the Fund to greater credit risk to its clearing member because margin for cleared derivatives positions in excess of a clearing house’s margin requirements may be held by the clearing member. Also, the Fund is subject to risk if it enters into a swap that is required to be cleared (or that the Adviser expects to be cleared), and no clearing member is willing or able to clear the transaction on the Fund’s behalf. In those cases, the position might have to be terminated, and the Fund could lose some or all of the benefit of the position, including loss of an increase in the value of the position and/or loss of hedging protection, or could realize a loss. In addition, the documentation governing the relationship between the Fund and clearing members is drafted by the clearing members and generally is less favorable to the Fund than typical bilateral derivatives documentation.
     
Counterparty Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Counterparty Risk
The Fund will be subject to credit risk presented by another party (whether a clearing corporation in the case of exchange-traded or cleared instruments or another third party in the case of over-the-counter instruments) that promises to honor an obligation to the Fund with respect to the derivative contracts and other instruments entered into by the Fund. There can be no assurance that a counterparty will be able or willing to meet its obligations. If such a party becomes bankrupt or insolvent or otherwise fails or is unwilling to perform its obligations to the Fund due to financial difficulties or for other reasons, the Fund may experience significant losses or delays in enforcing contractual remedies and/or obtaining any recovery from the counterparty, including realizing on any collateral the counterparty has provided in respect of the counterparty’s obligations to the Fund or recovering collateral that the Fund has provided and is entitled to recover. In addition, in the event of the bankruptcy, insolvency or other event of default (e.g., cross-default) of a counterparty to a derivative transaction, the derivative transaction would typically be terminated at its fair market value. If the Fund is owed this fair market value in the termination of the derivative transaction and its claim is unsecured, the Fund will likely be treated as a general creditor of such counterparty. The Fund may obtain only a limited recovery or may obtain no recovery in such circumstances. Counterparty risk with respect to certain exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives may be further complicated by global financial reform legislation. Subject to certain U.S. federal income tax limitations, the Fund is not subject to any limit with respect to the number or the value of transactions it can enter into with a single counterparty. To the extent that the Fund enters into multiple transactions with a single or a small number of counterparties, it will be subject to increased counterparty risk.
New regulatory requirements may also limit the ability of the Fund to protect its interests in the event of an insolvency of a derivatives counterparty. In the event of a counterparty’s (or its affiliate’s) insolvency, the Fund’s ability to exercise remedies, such as the
termination of transactions, netting of obligations and realization on collateral, could be stayed or eliminated under special resolution regimes adopted in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and various other jurisdictions. Such regimes provide government authorities with broad authority to intervene when a financial institution is experiencing financial difficulty. In particular, with respect to counterparties who are subject to such proceedings in the European Union or the United Kingdom, the liabilities of such counterparties to the Fund could be reduced, eliminated, or converted to equity in such counterparties (sometimes referred to as a “bail in”).
     
Unrated Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Unrated Securities Risk
Unrated securities (which are not rated by a rating agency) may be less liquid than comparable rated securities and involve the risk that the Adviser may not accurately evaluate the security’s comparative credit rating and value. To the extent that the Fund invests in unrated securities, the Fund’s success in achieving its investment objective may depend more heavily on the Adviser’s creditworthiness analysis than if the Fund invested exclusively in rated securities. Some or all of the unrated instruments in which the Fund may invest will involve credit risk comparable to or greater than that of rated debt securities of below investment grade quality.
     
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Structured Products and Structured Notes Risk
Generally, structured investments are interests in entities organized and operated for the purpose of restructuring the investment characteristics of underlying investment interests or securities. These investment entities may be structured as trusts or other types of pooled investment vehicles. This type of restructuring generally involves the deposit with or purchase by an entity of the underlying investments and the issuance by that entity of one or more classes of securities backed by, or representing interests in, the underlying investments or referencing an indicator related to such investments. The cash flow or rate of return on the underlying investments may be apportioned among the newly issued securities to create different investment characteristics, such as varying maturities, credit quality, payment priorities and interest rate provisions. Structured products include, among other things, CDOs, mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities and certain types of structured notes.
The cash flow or rate of return on a structured investment may be determined by applying a multiplier to the rate of total return on the underlying investments or referenced indicator. Application of a multiplier is comparable to the use of financial leverage, a speculative technique. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss. As a result, a relatively small decline in the value of the underlying investments or referenced indicator could result in a relatively large loss in the value of a structured product. Holders of structured products indirectly bear risks associated with the underlying investments, index or reference obligation, and are subject to counterparty risk. The Fund generally has the right to receive payments to which it is entitled only from the structured product, and generally does not have direct rights against the issuer. While certain structured investment vehicles enable the investor to acquire interests in a pool of securities without the brokerage and other expenses associated with directly holding the same securities, investors in structured vehicles generally pay their share of the investment vehicle’s administrative and other expenses.
Structured products are generally privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. Certain structured products may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market and may have the effect of increasing the Fund’s illiquidity to the extent that the Fund, at a particular point in time, may be unable to find qualified buyers for these securities. In addition to the general risks associated with fixed income securities discussed herein, structured products carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from underlying investments will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the underlying investments may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the security may be subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Structured notes are derivative securities for which the amount of principal repayment and/or interest payments is based on the movement of one or more “factors.” These factors may include, but are not limited to, currency exchange rates, interest rates (such as the prime lending rate or another industry standard floating rate), referenced bonds and stock indices. Some of these factors may or may not correlate to the total rate of return on one or more underlying instruments referenced in such notes. In some cases, the impact of the movements of these factors may increase or decrease through the use of multipliers or deflators.
Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Depending on the factor used and the use of multipliers or deflators, changes in interest rates and movement of the factor may cause significant price fluctuations. Additionally, changes in the reference instrument or security may cause the interest rate on the structured note to be reduced to zero
and any further changes in the reference instrument may then reduce the principal amount payable on maturity. In the case of structured notes where the reference instrument is a debt instrument, such as credit-linked notes, the Fund will be subject to the credit risk of the issuer of the reference instrument and the issuer of the structured note.
     
Issuer Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Issuer Risk
Issuer risk is the risk that the market price of securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, including due to factors affecting securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself.
     
Equity Securities, Small- and Mid-Capitalization Companies and Related Market Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Equity Securities, Small- and Mid-Capitalization Companies and Related Market Risk
The market price of common stocks and other equity securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Equity securities may decline in value due to factors affecting equity securities markets generally, particular industries represented in those markets, or the issuer itself. The values of equity securities may decline due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular company, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. They also may decline due to factors which affect a particular industry or industries, such as labor shortages or increased production costs and competitive conditions within an industry. Equity securities generally have greater price volatility than bonds and other debt securities.
     
Confidential Information Access Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Confidential Information Access Risk
In managing the Fund, the Adviser may seek to avoid the receipt of material, non-public information (“Confidential Information”) about the issuers of floating rate loans or other investments being considered for acquisition by the Fund or held in the Fund’s portfolio if the receipt of the Confidential Information would restrict one or more of the Adviser’s clients, including, potentially, the Fund, from trading in securities they hold or in which they may invest. In many instances, issuers offer to furnish Confidential Information to prospective purchasers or holders of the issuer’s loans or other securities. In circumstances when the Adviser declines to receive Confidential Information from these issuers, the Fund may be disadvantaged in comparison to other investors, including with respect to evaluating the issuer and the price the Fund would pay or receive when it buys or sells those investments, and the Fund may not take advantage of investment opportunities that it otherwise might have if it had received such Confidential Information. Further, in situations when the Fund is asked, for example, to grant consents, waivers or amendments with respect to such investments, the Adviser’s ability to assess such consents, waivers and amendments may be compromised.
In certain circumstances, the Adviser may determine to receive Confidential Information, including on behalf of clients other than the Fund. Receipt of Confidential Information by the Adviser could limit the Fund’s ability to sell certain investments held by the Fund or pursue certain investment opportunities on behalf of the Fund, potentially for a substantial period of time. In certain situations, the Adviser may create information walls around persons having access to the Confidential Information to limit the restrictions on others at the Adviser. Those measures could impair the ability of those persons to assist in managing the Fund. Also, certain issuers of floating rate loans, other bank loans and related investments may not have any publicly traded securities (“Private Issuers”) and may offer private information pursuant to confidentiality agreements or similar arrangements. The Adviser may access such private information, while recognizing that the receipt of that information could potentially limit a Fund’s ability to trade in certain securities if the Private Issuer later issues publicly traded securities. If the Adviser intentionally or unintentionally comes into possession of Confidential Information, it may be unable, potentially for a substantial period of time, to sell certain investments held by a Fund.
     
Restricted Securities, Rule 144A/Regulation S Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Restricted Securities, Rule 144A/Regulation S Securities Risk
The Fund may hold securities that the Fund is prevented or limited by law or the terms of an agreement from selling (a “restricted security”). To the extent that the Fund is permitted to sell a restricted security, there can be no assurance that a trading market will exist at any particular time and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the security promptly at reasonable prices or at all. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering the securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting registration. Also, restricted securities may be difficult to value because market quotations may not be readily available, and the values of restricted securities may have significant volatility. Limitations on the resale of restricted securities may have an adverse effect on their marketability, and may prevent the Fund from disposing of them promptly at reasonable prices. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering such securities for resale and the risk of substantial delays in effecting such registration.
     
Inflation Deflation Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Inflation/Deflation Risk
Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from the Fund’s investments will be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of payments at future dates. As inflation increases, the real value of the Fund’s portfolio could decline. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements. There can be no assurance that this trend will not continue or that efforts to slow or reverse inflation will not harm the economy and asset values. Deflation risk is the risk that prices throughout the economy decline over time. Deflation may have an adverse effect on the creditworthiness of issuers and may make issuer default more likely, which may result in a decline in the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
     
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk
Various market risks can affect the price or liquidity of an issuer’s securities in which the Fund may invest. Returns from the securities in which the Fund invests may underperform returns from the various general securities markets. Different types of securities tend to go through cycles of outperformance and underperformance in comparison to the general securities markets. Adverse events occurring with respect to an issuer’s performance or financial position can depress the value of the issuer’s securities. The liquidity in a market for a particular security will affect its value and may be affected by factors relating to the issuer, as well as the depth of the market for that security. Other market risks that can affect value include a market’s current attitudes about types of securities, market reactions to political or economic events, including litigation, and tax and regulatory effects (including lack of adequate regulations for a market or particular type of instrument). During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for certain investments held by the Fund, such as loans, may become highly illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell the investments it holds, and, for those investments it is able to sell in such circumstances, the sale price may be significantly lower than, and the trade settlement period may be longer than, anticipated.
Events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to significant market volatility, reductions in economic activity, market closures, and declines in global financial markets. These effects and the effects of other infectious illness outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics may be short term or may last for an extended period of time, and in either case could result in a substantial economic downturn or recession. Governmental responses may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social, economic, market and financial risks. These events may have a significant adverse effect on the Fund’s performance and on the liquidity of the Fund’s investments and have the potential to impair the ability of the Adviser or the Fund’s other service providers to serve the Fund and could lead to operational disruptions that negatively impact the Fund.
Markets may, in response to governmental actions or intervention, or general market conditions, including real or perceived adverse political, economic or market conditions, tariffs and trade disruptions, inflation, recession, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment, or other external factors, experience periods of high volatility and reduced liquidity. During those periods, the Fund may have to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and potentially at unfavorable prices. Securities may be difficult to value during such periods. Market risk involves the risk that the value of the Fund’s investment portfolio will change, potentially frequently and in large amounts, as the prices of its investments go up or down. During periods of severe market stress, it is possible that the market for some or all of the Fund’s investments may become highly volatile and/or illiquid. In such an event, the Fund may find it difficult to sell some or all of its investments and, for certain assets, the trade settlement period may be longer than anticipated. The fewer the number of issuers in which the Fund invests and/or the greater the use of leverage, the greater the potential volatility of the Fund’s portfolio. Recently there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities low markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate, volatility and liquidity risk.
The United States government and the Federal Reserve and foreign governments and central banks may take steps to support financial markets. They might, for example, take steps to support markets and economic activity generally and to set or maintain low interest rates, such as by purchasing bonds or making financing broadly available to investors. Such actions may be intended to support certain asset classes or segments of the markets, but not others, and can have disproportionate, adverse, and unexpected effects on some asset classes or sectors, including those in which the Fund invests. For example, efforts by governments to provide debt relief to certain consumers or market participants or to support certain aspects of the market could significantly and adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments, the Fund’s earnings, or the Fund’s risk profile, and have other unintended or unexpected effects. Other measures taken by governments and regulators, including, for example, steps to reverse, withdraw, curtail or taper such activities, could have a material adverse effect on prices for the Fund’s portfolio of investments and on the management of the Fund. The withdrawal of support, failure of efforts in response to a financial or other crisis, or investor perception that those efforts are not succeeding could negatively affect financial markets generally as well as the values and liquidity of the Fund’s investments.
Events leading to limited liquidity, defaults, non-performance or other adverse developments that affect one industry, such as the financial services industry, or concerns or rumors about any events of these kinds, have in the past and may in the future lead to
market-wide liquidity problems, may spread to other industries, and could negatively affect the value and liquidity of the Fund’s investments. For example, in response to the rapidly declining financial condition of regional banks Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) and Signature Bank (“Signature”), the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (the “CDFPI”) and the New York State Department of Financial Services (the “NYSDFS”) closed SVB and Signature on March 10, 2023 and March 12, 2023, respectively, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) was appointed as receiver for SVB and Signature. Although the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve and the FDIC have taken measures to stabilize the financial system, uncertainty and liquidity concerns in the broader financial services industry remain. Additionally, should there be additional systemic pressure on the financial system and capital markets, there can be no assurances of the response of any government or regulator, and any response may not be as favorable to industry participants as the measures currently being pursued. In addition, highly publicized issues related to the U.S. and global capital markets in the past have led to significant and widespread investor concerns over the integrity of the capital markets. The situation related to SVB Signature and other regional banks could in the future lead to further rules and regulations for public companies, banks, financial institutions and other participants in the U.S. and global capital markets, and complying with the requirements of any such rules or regulations may be burdensome. Even if not adopted, evaluating and responding to any such proposed rules or regulations could results in increased costs and require significant attention from the Adviser.
Federal, state, and other governments, their regulatory agencies, or self regulatory organizations may take actions that affect the regulation of the securities in which the Fund invests or the issuers of such securities in ways that are unforeseeable. Legislation or regulation also may change the way in which the Fund or the Adviser are regulated. Such legislation, regulation, or other government action could limit or preclude the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective and affect the Fund’s performance.
Political, social or financial instability, civil unrest, geopolitical tensions, wars, natural disasters and acts of terrorism are other potential risks that could adversely affect the Fund’s investments or markets generally. In addition, political developments in foreign countries or the United States may at times subject such countries to sanctions from the U.S. government, foreign governments and/or international institutions that could negatively affect the Fund’s investments in issuers located in, doing business in or with assets in such countries. Any or all of the risks described herein can increase some or all of the other risks associated with the Fund’s investments, including, among others, counterparty risk, debt securities risks, liquidity risk, and valuation risk.
Continuing uncertainty as to the status of the euro and the European Economic and Monetary Union (“EMU”) and the potential for certain countries (such as those in the UK) to withdraw from the institution has created significant volatility in currency and financial markets generally. Any partial or complete dissolution of the EU could have significant adverse effects on currency and financial markets, and on the values of the Fund’s portfolio investments. In January 2020, the United Kingdom withdrew from the EU. During an 11-month transition period, the UK and the EU agreed to a Trade and Cooperation Agreement which sets out the agreement for certain parts of the future relationship between the EU and the UK from January 1, 2021. The Trade and Cooperation Agreement does not include an agreement on financial services which is yet to be agreed. From January 1, 2021, EU law ceased to apply in the UK. However, many EU laws have been transposed into English law and these transposed laws will continue to apply until such time as they are repealed, replaced or amended. Depending on the terms of any future agreement between the EU and the UK on financial services, substantial amendments to English law may occur. Significant uncertainty remains in the market regarding the ramifications of these developments, and the range and potential implications of possible political, regulatory, economic and market outcomes are difficult to predict. The markets may be further disrupted and adversely affected by the withdrawal at various times given the uncertainty surrounding the country’s trade, financial, and other arrangements.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the resulting responses by the United States and other countries, and the potential for wider conflict could increase volatility and uncertainty in the financial markets and adversely affect regional and global economies. The United States and other countries have imposed broad-ranging economic sanctions on Russia, certain Russian individuals, banking entities and corporations, and Belarus as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and may impose sanctions on other countries that provide military or economic support to Russia. The extent and duration of Russia’s military actions and the repercussions of such actions (including any retaliatory actions or countermeasures that may be taken by those subject to sanctions, including cyber attacks) are impossible to predict, but could result in significant market disruptions, including in certain industries or sectors, such as the oil and natural gas markets, and may negatively affect global supply chains, inflation and global growth. These and any related events could significantly impact the Fund’s performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even if the Fund does not have direct exposure to Russian issuers or issuers in other countries affected by the invasion.
The Fund may continue to issue additional shares and to make additional investments in instruments in accordance with the Fund’s principal investment strategies to strive to meet the Fund’s investment objective under all types of market conditions, including unfavorable market conditions.
     
Portfolio Turnover Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Portfolio Turnover Risk
The length of time the Fund has held a particular security is not generally a consideration in investment decisions. A change in the securities held by the Fund is known as portfolio turnover. Portfolio turnover generally involves a number of direct and indirect costs and expenses to the Fund, including, for example, brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and bid/ask spreads, and transaction costs on the sale of securities and reinvestment in other securities, and may result in the realization of taxable capital gains (including short-term capital gains, which are generally taxable to shareholders subject to tax at ordinary income rates). Portfolio turnover risk includes the risk that frequent purchases and sales of portfolio securities may result in higher Fund expenses and may result in larger distributions of taxable capital gains to investors as compared to a fund that trades less frequently.
     
Legal and Regulatory Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Legal and Regulatory Risk
Legal, tax and regulatory changes (which may apply with retroactive effect) could occur and may adversely affect the Fund and its ability to pursue its investment strategies and/or increase the costs of implementing such strategies. New (or revised) laws or regulations may be imposed by the CFTC, the SEC, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), the U.S. Federal Reserve or other banking regulators, other governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that supervise the financial markets that could adversely affect the Fund. In particular, these agencies have implemented or are implementing a variety of new rules pursuant to financial reform legislation in the United States. The EU, the United Kingdom and some other jurisdictions have implemented or are implementing similar requirements. The Fund also may be adversely affected by changes in the enforcement or interpretation of existing statutes and rules by these governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations.
In addition, the securities and derivatives markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. The CFTC, the SEC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized under these statutes, regulations and otherwise to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The Fund and the Adviser have historically been eligible for exemptions from certain regulations. However, there is no assurance that the Fund and the Adviser will continue to be eligible for such exemptions.
The CFTC, certain foreign regulators and many futures exchanges have established (and continue to evaluate and revise) speculative position limits, referred to as “position limits,” on the maximum net long or net short positions which any person or entity may hold or control in certain futures and options on futures contracts. In addition, U.S. federal position limits apply to swaps that are economically equivalent to futures contracts on certain agricultural, metals and energy commodities. Unless an exemption applies, all positions owned or controlled by the same person or entity, even if in different accounts, must be aggregated for purposes of determining whether the applicable position limits have been exceeded, unless an exemption applies. Thus, even if the Fund does not intend to exceed applicable position limits, it is possible that different clients managed by the Adviser and its related parties may be aggregated for this purpose. Therefore, trading decisions of the Adviser may have to be modified and positions held by the Fund may have to be liquidated in order to avoid exceeding such limits. Any modifications of trading decisions or elimination of open positions, if it occurs, may adversely affect the performance of the Fund and the Fund’s ability to pursue its investment strategies. A violation of position limits could also lead to regulatory action materially adverse to a Fund’s investment strategies. The Fund may also be affected by other regimes, including those of the EU and UK, and trading venues that impose position limits on commodity derivatives contracts.
Rules implementing the credit risk retention requirements of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) for asset-backed securities require the sponsor of certain securitization vehicles (or a majority owned affiliate of such sponsor) to retain, and to refrain from transferring, selling, conveying to a third party, or hedging the credit risk on a portion of the assets transferred, sold, or conveyed through the issuance of the asset-backed securities of such vehicle, subject to certain exceptions. These requirements may increase the costs to originators, securitizers, and, in certain cases, collateral managers of securitization vehicles in which the Fund may invest, which costs could be passed along to the Fund as an investor in such vehicles. In addition, the costs imposed by the risk retention rules on originators, securitizers and/or collateral managers may result in a reduction of the number of new offerings of asset-backed securities and thus in fewer investment opportunities for the Fund. A reduction in the number of new securitizations could also reduce liquidity in the markets for certain types of financial assets that are typically held by securitization vehicles, which in turn could negatively affect the returns on the Fund’s investment in asset-backed securities.
Investors should also be aware that some EU-regulated institutions (including banks, certain investment firms, and authorized managers of alternative investment funds) are restricted from investing in securitizations (including U.S.-related securitizations), unless, in summary: (i) the institution is able to demonstrate that it has undertaken certain due diligence in respect of various matters, including its investment position, the underlying assets, and (in the case of authorized managers of alternative investment funds) the sponsor and the originator of the securitization; and (ii) the originator, sponsor, or original lender of the securitization has explicitly disclosed to the institution that it will retain, on an ongoing basis, a net economic interest of not less than 5% of specified credit risk
tranches or asset exposures related to the securitization. Although these requirements do not apply directly to the Fund, the costs of compliance, in the case of any securitization within the EU risk retention rules in which the Fund has invested or is seeking to invest, could be indirectly borne by the Fund and the other investors in the securitization.
     
Tax Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Tax Risk
The Fund has elected to be treated as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under the Code and intends each year to qualify and be eligible to be treated as such. If the Fund qualifies as a RIC, it generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its net investment income or net short-term or long-term capital gains, distributed (or deemed distributed) to shareholders, provided that, for each taxable year, the Fund distributes (or is treated as distributing) to its shareholders an amount equal to or exceeding 90% of its “investment company taxable income” as that term is defined in the Code (which includes, among other things, dividends, taxable interest and the excess of any net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, as reduced by certain deductible expenses). The Fund intends to distribute all or substantially all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain each year. In order for the Fund to qualify as a RIC in any taxable year, the Fund must meet certain asset diversification tests and at least 90% of its gross income for such year must be certain types of qualifying income. If for any taxable year the Fund were to fail to meet the income or diversification test described above, the Fund could in some cases cure the failure, including by paying a fund-level tax and, in the case of a diversification test failure, disposing of certain assets. Some of the income and gain that the Fund may recognize, such as income and gain from real estate assets received upon foreclosure of a loan held by the Fund, generally does not constitute qualifying income, and whether certain other income and gain that the Fund may recognize constitutes qualifying income is not certain. The Fund’s investments therefore may be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify as a RIC and may bear on the Fund’s ability to so qualify.
The Fund may hold certain investments that do not give rise to qualifying income through one or more wholly-owned and controlled Subsidiaries treated as U.S. corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such Subsidiaries will be required to pay U.S. corporate income tax on their earnings, which ultimately will reduce the yield on such investments. Depending on the assets held by the Subsidiary and other considerations, a Subsidiary may qualify and elect to be treated as a REIT for federal income tax purposes, in which case such Subsidiary generally would not be subject to U.S. corporate income tax to the extent such Subsidiary timely distributes all its income and gain. The Fund may not invest more than 25% of its total assets in (i) any one Subsidiary or (i) two or more Subsidiaries that are treated as being in the same, similar or related trades or businesses for purposes of the diversification tests applicable to RICs.
If the Fund were ineligible to or otherwise did not cure such failure for any year, or were otherwise to fail to qualify as a RIC accorded special tax treatment in any taxable year, it would be treated as a corporation subject to U.S. federal income tax, thereby subjecting any income earned by the Fund to tax at the corporate level and, when such income is distributed, to a further tax as dividends at the shareholder level to the extent of the Fund’s current or accumulated earnings and profits.
     
Repurchase Agreements Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Repurchase Agreements Risk
In the event of a default or bankruptcy by a selling financial institution under a repurchase agreement, the Fund will seek to sell the underlying security serving as collateral. However, this could involve certain costs or delays, and, to the extent that proceeds from any sale were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss.
     
Zero Coupon Bond Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Zero-Coupon Bond Risk
Zero-coupon bonds are issued at a significant discount from their principal amount in lieu of paying interest periodically. Because zero-coupon bonds do not pay current interest in cash, their value is subject to greater fluctuation in response to changes in market interest rates than bonds that pay interest currently. Zero-coupon bonds allow an issuer to avoid the need to generate cash to meet current interest payments. Accordingly, such bonds may involve greater credit risks than bonds paying interest currently in cash. The Fund is required to accrue interest income on such investments and to distribute such amounts at least annually to shareholders even though the investments do not make any current interest payments. Thus, it may be necessary at times for the Fund to liquidate other investments in order to satisfy its distribution requirements under the Code.
     
Operational and Information Security Risks [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Operational and Information Security Risks
The Fund and its service providers depend on complex information technology and communications systems to conduct business functions, making them susceptible to operational and information security risks. Any problems relating to the performance and effectiveness of security procedures used by the Fund or its service providers to protect the Fund’s assets, such as algorithms, codes, passwords, multiple signature systems, encryption and telephone call-backs, may have an adverse impact on an investment in the Fund. For example, design or system failures or malfunctions, human error, faulty software or data processing systems, power or communications outages, acts of God, or cyber- attacks may lead to operational disruptions and potential losses to the Fund. Cyber-attacks include, among other behaviors, stealing or corrupting data maintained online or digitally, denial of service attacks on websites, the unauthorized release of confidential information and causing operational disruption. Successful cyber- attacks against, or security breakdowns of, the Fund or its Adviser, custodian, fund accountant, fund administrator, transfer agent, pricing vendors and/or other third party service providers may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders. For instance, cyber- attacks or other operational issues may interfere with the processing of shareholder transactions, impact the Fund’s ability to calculate its NAV, cause the release of private shareholder information or confidential Fund information, impede trading, cause reputational damage, and subject the Fund to regulatory fines, penalties or financial losses, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. The Fund also may incur substantial costs for cybersecurity risk management in order to guard against any cyber incidents in the future.
Furthermore, as the Fund’s assets grow, it may become a more appealing target for cybersecurity threats such as hackers and malware. In general, cyber-attacks result from deliberate attacks but unintentional events may have effects similar to those caused by cyber-attacks. Additionally, outside parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees of the Fund or the Adviser or its service providers to disclose sensitive information in order to gain access to the Fund’s infrastructure. Similar types of risks also are present for issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, which could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers, and may cause the Fund’s investment in such securities to lose value. In addition, cyber- attacks involving a counterparty to the Fund could affect such a counterparty’s ability to meet its obligations to the Fund, which may result in losses to the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the adoption of work-from-home arrangements by the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers could increase all of the above risks, create additional data and information accessibility concerns, and make the Fund, the Adviser or its service providers more susceptible to operational disruptions, any of which could adversely impact their operations. While the Fund or its service providers may have established business continuity plans and systems designed to guard against such operational failures and cyber-attacks and the adverse effects of such events, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified, in large part because different, evolving or unknown threats or risks may emerge in the future. The Adviser and the Fund do not control the business continuity and cybersecurity plans and systems put in place by third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have no or limited indemnification obligations to the Adviser or the Fund.
     
Preferred Securities Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Preferred Securities Risk
In addition to many of the risks associated with both debt securities (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk) and common shares or other equity securities, preferred securities typically contain provisions that allow an issuer, under certain conditions, to skip (in the case of noncumulative preferred securities) or defer (in the case of cumulative preferred securities) dividend payments. If the Fund owns a preferred security that is deferring its distributions, the Fund may be required to report income for tax purposes while it is not receiving any distributions.
In addition, preferred securities typically do not provide any voting rights, except in some cases in which dividends are in arrears beyond a certain time period, which varies by issue. Preferred securities are generally subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure in terms of priority to corporate income and liquidation payments, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. Preferred securities may be substantially less liquid than many other securities.
     
Other Investment Companies Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Other Investment Companies Risk
As a shareholder in an investment company, the Fund will bear its ratable share of that investment company’s expenses, and would remain subject to payment of the Fund’s investment management fees with respect to the assets so invested. Common Shareholders would therefore be subject to duplicative expenses to the extent the Fund invests in other investment companies. In addition, these other investment companies may use leverage, in which case an investment would subject the Fund to additional risks associated with leverage.
     
Anti Takeover Provisions Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Anti-Takeover Provisions Risk
The Fund’s Declaration of Trust includes provisions that could limit the ability of other entities or persons to acquire control of the Fund or to convert the Fund to open-end status. These provisions in the Declaration of Trust could have the effect of depriving the Common Shareholders of opportunities to sell their Common Shares at a premium over the then-current market price of the Common Shares or at NAV.
     
Interest Rate Risk [Member]                        
General Description of Registrant [Abstract]                        
Risk [Text Block]                
Interest Rate Risk
Interest rate risk is the risk that debt instruments will change in value because of changes in interest rates. Interest rate changes may affect the value of a fixed income instrument directly (especially in the case of fixed rate instruments) and indirectly (especially in the case of adjustable-rate instruments). The value of an instrument with a longer duration (whether positive or negative) will be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than a similar instrument with a shorter duration. Bonds and other debt instruments typically have a positive duration. The value of a debt instrument with positive duration will generally decline if interest rates increase. Certain other investments, such as inverse floaters and certain derivative instruments, may have a negative duration. The value of instruments with a negative duration will generally decline if interest rates decrease. Inverse floaters, interest-only and principal-only securities are especially sensitive to interest rate changes, which can affect not only their prices but can also change the income flows and repayment assumptions about those investments. The prices of long-term debt obligations generally fluctuate more than prices of short-term debt obligations as interest rates change. Because the Fund’s weighted average effective duration generally will fluctuate as interest rates change, the Common Share NAV and market price per share may tend to fluctuate more in response to changes in market interest rates than if the Fund invested mainly in short-term debt securities. During periods of rising interest rates, the average life of certain types of securities may extend due to lower than expected rates of pre-payments, which could cause the securities’ durations to extend and expose the securities to more price volatility. This may lock in a below market yield, increase the security’s duration and reduce the securities’ value. In addition to directly affecting debt securities, rising interest rates also may have an adverse effect on the value of any equity securities held by the Fund. The Fund’s use of leverage will tend to increase Common Share interest rate risk.
DoubleLine may use certain strategies, including investments in structured notes or interest rate futures contracts or swap, cap, floor or collar transactions, for the purpose of reducing the interest rate sensitivity of the Fund’s portfolio, although there is no assurance that it will do so or that such strategies will be successful. Recently, there have been inflationary price movements, which have caused the fixed income securities markets to experience heightened levels of interest rate volatility and liquidity risk. In market environments where interest rates are rising, issuers may be less willing or able to make principal and interest payments on fixed-income investments when due.
Yield curve risk is the risk associated with either a flattening or steepening of the yield curve. The yield curve is a representation of market interest rates of obligations with durations of different lengths. When the yield curve is “steep,” longer-term obligations bear higher rates of interest than similar shorter-term obligations; when the curve “flattens,” the difference between those interest rates is reduced. If the yield curve is “inverted,” longer term obligations bear lower interest rates than shorter term obligations. If the Fund’s portfolio is structured to perform favorably in a particular interest rate environment, a change in the yield curve could result in losses to the Fund.
Variable and floating rate debt securities are generally less sensitive to interest rate changes, as compared to fixed rate debt instruments, but may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value at all or to the same extent as fixed rate instruments when interest rates decline. Inverse floating rate debt securities may decrease in value if interest rates increase.
Inverse floating rate debt securities also may exhibit greater price volatility than a fixed rate debt obligation with similar credit quality. When the Fund holds variable or floating rate securities, a decrease (or, in the case of inverse floating rate securities, an increase) in market interest rates will adversely affect the income received from such securities and the NAV of the Common Shares.
     

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