Portfolio Turnover. The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 13% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund seeks to
track the investment results of the S&P Global 1200 Consumer Staples (Sector) Capped Index (the “Underlying Index”), which is designed to measure the
performance of global equities in the consumer staples sector (as determined by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC (the “Index Provider” or “SPDJI”)). The Underlying Index uses a capping methodology to limit the weight of the securities of any single issuer (as determined by SPDJI) to a maximum of 10% of the Underlying Index. Additionally, the capping methodology limits the sum of the weights of the securities of all issuers that individually constitute more than 5% of the weight of the Underlying Index to a maximum of 25% of the weight of the Underlying Index in the aggregate. In order to implement this capping methodology, the Underlying Index rebalances quarterly to limit: (i) the weight of any single issuer to a maximum of 10%, and (ii) the aggregate weight of all issuers that individually exceed 4.50% of the Underlying Index weight to maximum of 22.50%. Between
scheduled quarterly index reviews, the
Underlying Index is rebalanced at the end of any day on which all issuers that individually constitute more than 5% of the weight of the Underlying Index collectively represent more than 25% of the weight of the Underlying Index in the aggregate. In implementing this capping methodology, SPDJI may consider two or more companies as belonging to the same issuer where there is reasonable evidence of common control. The Underlying Index is a subset of the S&P Global 1200TM, which is designed to measure the performance of
large-capitalization stocks from major global markets, as determined by SPDJI. As of March 31, 2023, a significant portion of the Underlying Index is represented by securities of companies in the consumer staples industry or sector. The components of the Underlying Index are likely to change over time. As of March 31, 2023, the Underlying Index was composed of securities of companies in the following countries: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom (the “U.K.”) and the U.S.
BFA uses an indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to “beat” the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.
Indexing may eliminate the chance that the
Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active
management, such as poor security