Security valuation and
fair value measurements — U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) defines fair value as the price the Funds would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in
an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. All investments in securities are recorded at their fair value. The Funds define the term “market value”, as used
throughout this report, as the estimated fair value. The Funds use various methods to measure fair value of their portfolio securities on a recurring basis. U.S. GAAP fair value measurement standards require
disclosure of a hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation methods. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:
• Level 1 − quoted prices in
active markets for identical securities
• Level 2 − other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)
• Level 3 − significant unobservable inputs
(including a Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments)
The inputs or methodology
used for valuing securities are not necessarily an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.
The aggregate value by
input level, as of September 30, 2023, for each Fund’s investments, is included in each Fund’s Portfolio of Investments, which also includes a breakdown of the Fund’s investments by sector
allocation. The Funds did not hold or transfer any Level 3 categorized securities during the period ended September 30, 2023.
Changes in valuation
techniques may result in transfers into or out of an investment’s assigned level within the hierarchy.
The Funds' portfolio
securities are valued as of the close of the regular session of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (currently 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time or at the time as of which the NYSE establishes official
closing prices). Portfolio securities traded on stock exchanges are valued at the last reported sale price, official close price, or last bid price if no sales are reported. Portfolio securities quoted by NASDAQ are
valued at the NASDAQ Official Closing Price (“NOCP”) or from the primary exchange on which the security trades. To the extent these securities are actively traded, they are categorized in Level 1 of the
fair value hierarchy. Shares of mutual funds in which the Funds invest are valued at their respective net asset value (“NAV”) as reported by the Underlying Funds and are categorized in Level 1.
Securities mainly
traded on a non-U.S. exchange or denominated in foreign currencies are generally valued according to the preceding closing values on that exchange, translated to U.S. dollars using currency exchange rates as of the
close of regular trading on the NYSE, and are generally categorized in Level 1. However, if an event that may change the value of a security occurs after the time that the closing value on the non-U.S. exchange was
determined, but before the close of regular trading on the NYSE, the security may be priced based on fair value and is generally categorized in Level 2. This may cause the value of the security, if held on the books
of a Fund, to be different from the closing value on the non-U.S. exchange and may affect the calculation of that Fund’s NAV. The Funds may use fair value pricing under the following circumstances, among
others:
• If the value of a security has been materially affected by events occurring before the Funds' pricing time but after the close of the primary markets on which the security is
traded.
• If the exchange on which a portfolio security is principally traded closes early or if trading in a particular portfolio security was halted during the day and did not resume prior to the Funds' NAV
calculation.
• If a security is so thinly
traded that reliable market quotations are unavailable due to infrequent trading.
• If the validity of market
quotations is not reliable.
Securities held by the
Funds that do not have readily available market quotations, significant observable inputs, or securities for which the available market quotations are not reliable, are priced at their estimated fair value using
procedures approved by the Funds’ Board of Trustees and are generally categorized in Level 3.
Each Fund is an
investment company that follows the accounting and reporting guidance of Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946 applicable to investment companies.
Security transactions—Security transactions are reflected for financial reporting purposes as of the trade date.