497 1 d311877d497.htm LEGG MASON GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT TRUST Legg Mason Global Asset Management Trust

February 1, 2017

LEGG MASON GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT TRUST

Martin Currie Emerging Markets Fund

 

Share Class

  Symbol
A   [—]
A2   [—]
C   [—]
FI   MEFIX
R   [—]
I   MCEIX
IS   MCEMX

100 International Drive

Baltimore, Maryland 21202

1-877-721-1926

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

This statement of additional information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus. It should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of Martin Currie Emerging Markets Fund (the “fund”), dated February 1, 2017 (the “Prospectus”), as amended or supplemented from time to time, and is incorporated by reference in its entirety into the Prospectus.

The fund is a series of Legg Mason Global Asset Management Trust (the “Trust”), a Maryland statutory trust. This SAI relates only to the fund.

Additional information about the fund’s investments will be available in the fund’s annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders. The annual report contains financial statements that are incorporated herein by reference. The Prospectus and copies of the annual and semi-annual reports may be obtained free of charge by contacting banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, investment advisers, financial consultants or advisers, mutual fund supermarkets and other financial intermediaries that have entered into an agreement with the fund’s distributor to sell shares of the fund (each called a “Service Agent”), by writing the Trust at 100 First Stamford Place, Attn: Shareholder Services—5th Floor, Stamford, Connecticut 06902, by calling 1-877-721-1926, by sending an e-mail request to prospectus@leggmason.com or by visiting the fund’s website at www.leggmason.com/mutualfundsliterature. Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC (“LMIS” or the “distributor”), a wholly-owned broker/dealer subsidiary of Legg Mason, Inc. (“Legg Mason”), serves as the fund’s sole and exclusive distributor.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

     Page  

DESCRIPTION OF THE FUND

     1   

FUND POLICIES

     1   

INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS

     3   

ADDITIONAL RISK DISCLOSURE

     28   

ADDITIONAL TAX INFORMATION

     29   

ADDITIONAL PURCHASE AND REDEMPTION INFORMATION

     37   

VALUATION OF SHARES

     47   

DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

     47   

TAX-DEFERRED QUALIFIED PLANS—CLASS A, CLASS A2 AND CLASS C SHARES

     51   

MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND

     52   

MANAGER AND SUBADVISERS

     63   

PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE

     70   

DISTRIBUTOR

     71   

THE TRUST

     76   

CUSTODIAN AND TRANSFER AGENT

     79   

LEGAL COUNSEL

     79   

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

     80   

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

     80   

Appendix A: Description of Ratings

     A-1   

Appendix B: Proxy Voting Policies

     B-1   

THIS SAI IS NOT A PROSPECTUS AND IS AUTHORIZED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS ONLY IF PRECEDED OR ACCOMPANIED BY AN EFFECTIVE PROSPECTUS.

No person has been authorized to give any information or to make any representations not contained in the Prospectus or this SAI in connection with the offerings made by the Prospectus and, if given or made, such information or representations must not be relied upon as having been authorized by the fund or its distributor. The Prospectus and this SAI do not constitute offerings by the fund or by the distributor in any jurisdiction in which such offerings may not lawfully be made.


Description of the Fund

Martin Currie Emerging Markets Fund (the “fund”) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, as an open-end diversified management investment company.

Fund Policies

The following information supplements the information concerning the fund’s investment objective, policies and limitations found in the Prospectus.

The fund’s investment objective is to seek long term capital appreciation. The investment objective is non-fundamental and may be changed by the Trust’s Board of Trustees (the “Board”) without shareholder approval and upon notice to shareholders.

The fund has adopted the following fundamental investment limitations that cannot be changed except by a vote of its shareholders.

 

1. Borrowing: The fund may not borrow money, except (1) in an amount not exceeding 33-1/3% of the fund’s total assets (including the amount borrowed) less liabilities (other than borrowings) or (2) by entering into reverse repurchase agreements or dollar rolls;

 

2. Underwriting: The fund may not engage in the business of underwriting the securities of other issuers, except as permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, as such statute, rules, and regulations are amended from time to time or are interpreted from time to time by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) or SEC staff or to the extent that the fund may be permitted to do so by exemptive order or other relief from the SEC or SEC staff (collectively, “1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions”). This restriction does not prevent the fund from engaging in transactions involving the acquisition, disposition or resale of portfolio securities, regardless of whether the fund may be considered to be an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”);

 

3. Loans: The fund may not lend money or other assets, except to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions. This restriction does not prevent the fund from purchasing debt obligations in pursuit of its investment program, or for defensive or cash management purposes, entering into repurchase agreements, loaning its portfolio securities to financial intermediaries, institutions or institutional investors, or investing in loans, including assignments and participation interests;

 

4. Senior Securities: The fund may not issue senior securities, except as permitted under the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions;

 

5. Real Estate: The fund may not purchase or sell real estate unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments. This restriction does not prevent the fund from investing in issuers that invest, deal, or otherwise engage in transactions in or hold real estate or interests therein, investing in instruments that are secured by real estate or interests therein, or exercising rights under agreements relating to such securities, including the right to enforce security interests;

 

6. Commodities: The fund may not purchase or sell physical commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments. This restriction does not prevent the fund from engaging in transactions involving foreign currency, futures contracts and options, forward contracts, swaps, caps, floors, collars, securities purchased or sold on a forward-commitment or delayed-delivery basis or other similar financial instruments, or investing in securities or other instruments that are secured by physical commodities;

 

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7. Concentration: The fund may not make any investment if, as a result, the fund’s investments will be concentrated (as that term may be defined or interpreted by the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions) in any one industry. This restriction does not limit the fund’s investment in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities and repurchase agreements with respect thereto, or securities of municipal issuers.

With respect to the fundamental policy relating to issuing senior securities set forth in (4) above, “senior securities” are defined as fund obligations that have a priority over the fund’s shares with respect to the payment of dividends or the distribution of fund assets. The 1940 Act prohibits the fund from issuing senior securities except that the fund may borrow money in amounts of up to one third of the fund’s total assets from banks for any purpose. The fund may also borrow up to 5% of the fund’s total assets from banks or other lenders for temporary purposes, and these borrowings are not considered senior securities. The issuance of senior securities by the fund can increase the speculative character of the fund’s outstanding shares through leveraging. Leveraging of the fund’s portfolio through the issuance of senior securities magnifies the potential for gain or loss on monies, because even though the fund’s net assets remain the same, the total risk to investors is increased to the extent of the fund’s gross assets. The policy in (4) above will be interpreted not to prevent collateral arrangements with respect to swaps, options, forward or futures contracts or other derivatives, or the posting of initial or variation margin.

Although not a part of the fund’s fundamental investment limitation on concentration, it is the current position of the SEC staff that a fund’s investments are concentrated in an industry when 25% or more of the fund’s net assets are invested in issuers whose principal business is in that industry.

The foregoing fundamental investment limitations may be changed only by “the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities” of the fund, a term defined in the 1940 Act to mean the vote (a) of 67% or more of the voting securities present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the fund are present, or (b) of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the fund, whichever is less.

The fund is diversified under the 1940 Act. Although not a part of the fund’s fundamental investment restrictions, the 1940 Act currently states that the fund is diversified if it invests at least 75% of the value of its total assets in cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S. Government securities, securities of other investment companies and other securities limited in respect of any one issuer to (1) no more than 5% of the value of the fund’s total assets and (2) no more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer. The fund may only change to non-diversified status with the approval of the fund’s shareholders. Under the 1940 Act, such approval requires the affirmative vote (a) of 67% or more of the voting securities present at an annual or special meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the fund are present or represented by proxy, or (b) of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the fund, whichever is less.

Unless otherwise stated, the fund’s investment policies and limitations are non-fundamental and may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval. The following are some of the non-fundamental investment limitations that the fund currently observes:

 

1. Borrowing: The fund will not borrow for investment purposes an amount in excess of 5% of its total assets.

 

2. Illiquid Securities: The fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.

 

3. Short Sales: The fund may not sell securities short (unless it owns or has the right to obtain securities equivalent in kind and amount to the securities sold short). This restriction does not prevent the fund from entering into short positions in foreign currency, futures contracts, options, forward contracts, swaps, caps, floors, collars, securities purchased or sold on a forward-commitment or delayed-delivery basis or other financial instruments.

 

4.

Margin Purchases: The fund may not purchase securities on margin, except that (1) the fund may obtain such short-term credits as are necessary for the clearance of transactions and (2) the fund may make margin payments

 

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  in connection with foreign currency, futures contracts, options, forward contracts, swaps, caps, floors, collars, securities purchased or sold on a forward-commitment or delayed-delivery basis or other financial instruments.

 

5. Investment Companies: The fund may not invest in other registered open-end investment companies and registered unit investment trusts in reliance upon the provisions of subparagraphs (G) or (F) of Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act. The foregoing investment policy does not restrict the fund from (i) acquiring securities of other registered investment companies in connection with a merger, consolidation, reorganization, or acquisition of assets; or (ii) purchasing the securities of registered closed-end investment companies, to the extent permissible under Section 12(d)(1)(G) of the 1940 Act.

Under normal market conditions, the fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets plus borrowings for investment purposes, if any, in securities of issuers with substantial economic ties to one or more emerging market countries and other investments with similar economic characteristics.

The fund may not change its policy to invest at least 80% of its net assets as described in the preceding paragraph, unless it provides shareholders with at least 60 days’ prior written notice of such change.

Except as otherwise stated, if a fundamental or non-fundamental percentage limitation set forth in the Prospectus or this SAI is complied with at the time an investment is made, a later increase or decrease in percentage resulting from a change in the relevant parameters will not be considered to be outside the limitation. An investment will be deemed to have been made at the time the fund enters into a binding commitment to complete the investment. The fund will monitor the level of borrowing in its portfolio and will make necessary adjustments to maintain the required asset coverage. If, due to subsequent fluctuations in value or any other reasons, the value of the fund’s illiquid securities exceeds the percentage limitation applicable at the time of acquisition, the fund will consider what actions, if any, are necessary to maintain adequate liquidity. The fund monitors the portion of its total assets that is invested in illiquid securities on an ongoing basis, not only at the time of investment in such securities.

Investment Strategies and Risks

Equity Investments

Equity securities include exchange-traded and over-the-counter (“OTC”) common and preferred stocks, warrants and rights, securities convertible into common stocks, and securities of other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds, and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). Equity securities fluctuate in price based on changes in a company’s financial condition and overall market and economic conditions. The value of a particular security may decline due to factors that affect a particular industry or industries, such as an increase in production costs, competitive conditions or labor shortages; or due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or generally adverse investor sentiment. The value of an equity security can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole. The value of a company’s equity securities may deteriorate because of a variety of factors, including disappointing earnings reports by the issuer, unsuccessful products or services, loss of major customers, major litigation against the issuer or changes in government regulations affecting the issuer or the competitive environment.

Illiquid Investments and Restricted Securities

The fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. For this purpose, “illiquid investments” are those that cannot be sold or otherwise disposed of within seven days for approximately the price at which the fund values the security. Illiquid investments may include repurchase agreements with terms of greater than seven days, restricted securities other than those the subadviser has determined are liquid pursuant to guidelines established by the Board and securities involved in swap, cap, floor and collar transactions, and OTC options and their underlying collateral. Due to the absence of an active trading market, the fund may have

 

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difficulty valuing or disposing of illiquid investments promptly. Judgment plays a greater role in valuing illiquid investments than those for which a more active market exists.

Restricted securities may be sold only in privately negotiated transactions, pursuant to a registration statement filed under the 1933 Act or pursuant to an exemption from registration, such as Rule 144 or Rule 144A under the 1933 Act. The fund may be required to pay part or all of the costs of such registration, and a considerable period may elapse between the time a decision is made to sell a restricted security and the time the registration statement becomes effective.

SEC regulations permit the sale of certain restricted securities to qualified institutional buyers. The subadviser, acting pursuant to guidelines established by the Board, may determine that certain restricted securities qualified for trading on this market are liquid. If qualified institutional investors become uninterested in this market for a time, restricted securities in the fund’s portfolio may adversely affect the fund’s liquidity.

The assets used as cover for OTC options written by the fund will be considered illiquid unless the OTC options are sold to qualified dealers who agree that the fund may repurchase any OTC option it writes at a maximum price to be calculated by a formula set forth in the option agreement. The cover for an OTC option written subject to this procedure would be considered illiquid only to the extent that the maximum repurchase price under the formula exceeds the intrinsic value of the option.

Senior Securities

The 1940 Act prohibits the issuance of senior securities by a registered open-end fund with one exception. The fund may borrow from banks provided that immediately after any such borrowing there is an asset coverage of at least 300% for all borrowings of the fund. If the fund fails to meet the asset coverage requirements, the fund is required to reduce borrowings within 3 days (excluding Sundays and holidays). The fund’s non-bank borrowings for temporary purposes only, in an amount not exceeding 5% of the value of the total assets of the fund at the time the borrowing is made, are not deemed to be an issuance of a senior security.

There are various investment techniques that may give rise to an obligation of the fund to make a future payment, about which the SEC has stated it would not raise senior security concerns, provided the fund complies with SEC guidance regarding segregation of assets or cover for these investment techniques. Such investment techniques include, among other things, when-issued securities, futures and forward contracts, short-options positions and repurchase agreements.

Securities Lending

The fund may lend portfolio securities to brokers or dealers in corporate or government securities, banks or other recognized institutional borrowers of securities, provided that cash or liquid collateral, equal to at least 100% of the market value of the securities loaned, is continuously maintained by the borrower with the fund’s custodian. During the time the securities are on loan, the borrower will pay the fund an amount equivalent to any dividends or interest paid on such securities, and the fund may invest the cash collateral and earn income, or it may receive an agreed upon amount of interest income from the borrower who has delivered equivalent collateral. These loans are subject to termination at the option of the fund or the borrower. The fund may pay reasonable administrative and custodial fees in connection with a loan and may pay a negotiated portion of the interest earned on the cash or equivalent collateral to the borrower or placing broker. The fund does not have the right to vote securities on loan, but would terminate the loan and regain the right to vote if that were considered important with respect to the investment. The risks of securities lending are similar to those of repurchase agreements.

The fund presently does not expect to have on loan at any given time securities totaling more than one-third of its net asset value.

 

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Securities of Other Investment Companies

The fund may invest in the securities of other investment companies, including open-end mutual funds, closed-end funds, unit investment trusts, private investment companies and offshore investment companies. An investment in an investment company involves risks similar to those of investing directly in the investment company’s portfolio securities, including the risk that the value of the portfolio securities may fluctuate in accordance with changes in the financial condition of their issuers, the value of stocks and other securities generally, and other market factors.

In addition, investing in the securities of other investment companies involves certain other risks, costs and expenses for the fund. If the fund invests in another investment company, the fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of the advisory fees and other operating expenses of such investment company, which are in addition to the advisory fees and other operational expenses incurred by the fund. In addition, the fund could incur a sales charge in connection with purchasing an investment company security or a redemption fee upon the redemption of such security. An investment in the shares of a closed-end investment company may also involve the payment of a substantial premium over, while sales of such shares may be made at a substantial discount from, the net asset value of the issuers’ portfolio securities.

The fund may also invest in the securities of private investment companies. As with investments in other investment companies, if the fund invests in a private investment company, the fund will be charged its proportionate share of the advisory fees including incentive compensation and other operating expenses of such company. These fees, which can be substantial, would be in addition to the advisory fees and other operating expenses incurred by the fund. In addition, private investment companies are not registered with the SEC and may not be registered with any other regulatory authority. Accordingly, they are not subject to certain regulatory requirements and oversight to which registered issuers are subject. There may be very little public information available about their investments and performance. Moreover, because sales of shares of private investment companies are generally restricted to certain qualified purchasers, such shares may be illiquid and it could be difficult for the fund to sell its shares at an advantageous price and time. Finally, because shares of private investment companies are not publicly traded, a fair value for the fund’s investment in these companies typically will have to be determined under policies approved by the Board.

The fund may invest in money market instruments, including money market funds managed by Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC (“LMPFA”) or its affiliates and money market funds managed by unaffiliated advisers. Money market funds invest in high-quality, U.S. dollar-denominated short-term debt securities and must follow strict rules as to the credit quality, liquidity, diversification and maturity of their investments. The fund may lose money on its investment in money market funds. If the fund invests in money market funds it will indirectly bear its proportionate share of the management fees and other expenses that are charged by the money market fund in addition to the management fees and other expenses paid by the fund. If the fund invests in money market funds that are managed by LMPFA or its affiliates, it is possible that a conflict of interest among the fund and the affiliated funds could affect how the fund’s manager and its affiliates fulfill their fiduciary duty to the fund and the affiliated funds.

The 1940 Act provides that the fund may not purchase or otherwise acquire the securities of other “registered investment companies” (as defined in the 1940 Act) if, as a result of such purchase or acquisition, it would own: (i) more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired investment company; (ii) securities issued by any one investment company having a value in excess of 5% of the fund’s total assets; or (iii) securities issued by all investment companies having an aggregate value in excess of 10% of the fund’s total assets. Certain exceptions may be available from these limits such as when the fund invests in certain exchange-traded funds or money market funds.

The fund will invest in the securities of other investment companies, including private investment companies, when, in the subadviser’s judgment, the potential benefits of the investment justify the expense and risk of investing in such investment companies.

 

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Securities of Exchange-Traded Funds (“ETFs”)

The fund may invest in the securities of ETFs. ETFs are ownership interests in investment companies, unit investment trusts, depositary receipts, and other pooled investment vehicles that are traded on an exchange and that hold a portfolio of securities or other financial instruments (the “Underlying Assets”). The Underlying Assets are typically selected to correspond to the securities that comprise a particular broad based sector or international index, or to provide exposure to a particular industry sector or asset class.

Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are designed to be traded throughout the trading day, bought and sold based on market prices rather than net asset value. Shares can trade at either a premium or discount to net asset value. The portfolios held by ETFs are publicly disclosed on each trading day and an approximation of actual net asset value is disseminated throughout the trading day. Because of this transparency, the trading prices of ETFs tend to closely track the actual net asset value of the Underlying Assets and the fund will generally gain or lose value depending on the performance of the Underlying Assets. In the future, as new products become available, the fund may invest in ETFs that do not have this same level of transparency and, therefore, may be more likely to trade at a larger discount or premium to actual net asset values. Gains or losses on the fund’s investment in ETFs will ultimately depend on the purchase and sale price of the ETF. An active trading market for an ETF’s shares may not develop or be maintained and trading of an ETF’s shares may be halted if the listing exchange’s officials deem such action appropriate, the shares are delisted from the exchange or the activation of market-wide “circuit breakers” (which are tied to large decreases in stock prices) halts stock trading generally.

An investment in an ETF involves risks similar to investing directly in the Underlying Assets, including the risk that the value of the Underlying Assets may fluctuate in accordance with changes in the financial condition of their issuers, the value of securities and other financial instruments generally, and other market factors.

The performance of an ETF will be reduced by transaction and other expenses, including fees paid by the ETF to service providers. Investors in ETFs are eligible to receive their portion of income, if any, accumulated on the securities held in the portfolio, less fees and expenses of the ETF.

If an ETF is a registered investment company (as defined in the 1940 Act), the limitations applicable to the fund’s ability to purchase securities issued by other investment companies apply, unless an exemption is otherwise available under applicable law.

Repurchase Agreements

Under the terms of a typical repurchase agreement, the fund would acquire one or more underlying debt obligations, frequently obligations issued by the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities, for a relatively short period (typically overnight, although the term of an agreement may be many months), subject to an obligation of the seller to repurchase, and the fund to resell, the obligation at an agreed-upon time and price. The repurchase price is typically greater than the purchase price paid by the fund, thereby determining the fund’s yield. A repurchase agreement is similar to, and may be treated as, a secured loan, where the fund loans cash to the counterparty and the loan is secured by the purchased securities as collateral. All repurchase agreements entered into by the fund are required to be collateralized so that at all times during the term of a repurchase agreement, the value of the underlying securities is at least equal to the amount of the repurchase price. Also, the fund or its custodian is required to have control of the collateral, which the subadviser believes will give the fund a valid, perfected security interest in the collateral.

Repurchase agreements could involve certain risks in the event of default or insolvency of the other party, including possible delays or restrictions upon the fund’s ability to dispose of the underlying securities, the risk of a possible decline in the value of the underlying securities during the period in which the fund seeks to assert its right to them, the risk of incurring expenses associated with asserting those rights and the risk of losing all or part

 

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of the income from the agreement. If the fund enters into a repurchase agreement involving securities the fund could not purchase directly, and the counterparty defaults, the fund may become the holder of securities that it could not purchase. These repurchase agreements may be subject to greater risks. In addition, these repurchase agreements may be more likely to have a term to maturity of longer than seven days.

Repurchase agreements maturing in more than seven days are considered to be illiquid.

Pursuant to an exemptive order issued by the SEC, the fund, along with other affiliated entities managed by the manager, may transfer uninvested cash balances into one or more joint accounts for the purpose of entering into repurchase agreements secured by cash and U.S. government securities, subject to certain conditions.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements and Dollar Rolls

A reverse repurchase agreement is a portfolio management technique in which the fund temporarily transfers possession of a portfolio investment to another person, such as a financial institution or broker/dealer, in return for cash. At the same time, the fund agrees to repurchase the instrument at an agreed-upon time (normally within seven days) and price, which includes an amount essentially equivalent to an interest payment.

The fund may engage in reverse repurchase agreements as a means of raising cash to satisfy redemption requests or for other temporary or emergency purposes without the necessity of selling portfolio investments. The fund may also engage in reverse repurchase agreements in order to reinvest the proceeds in other securities or repurchase agreements. Such a use of reverse repurchase agreements would constitute a form of leverage.

The fund may also enter into dollar roll transactions in which the fund sells a fixed income security for delivery in the current month and simultaneously contracts to purchase substantially similar (same type, coupon and maturity) securities at an agreed upon future time. By engaging in a dollar roll transaction, the fund forgoes principal and interest paid on the security that is sold, but receives the difference between the current sales price and the forward price for the future purchase. The fund would also be able to invest the proceeds of the securities sold.

When the fund reinvests the proceeds of a reverse repurchase agreement or dollar roll in other securities, any fluctuations in the market value of either the securities transferred to another party (in the case of a reverse repurchase agreement), the securities purchased for future delivery (in the case of a dollar roll) or the securities in which the proceeds are invested (in either case) would affect the market value of the fund’s assets. As a result, such transactions could increase fluctuation in the fund’s net asset value. If the fund reinvests the proceeds of the agreement or dollar roll at a rate lower than the cost of the agreement or dollar roll, engaging in the agreement or dollar roll will lower the fund’s yield.

To avoid potential leveraging effects of reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls, the fund will segregate cash or other appropriate liquid securities with a value at least equal to the fund’s obligation under the agreements or dollar rolls.

The fund will not engage in reverse repurchase agreements if its total borrowings exceed 33 1/3% of its total assets.

Foreign Securities

The fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers, foreign currencies and securities of U.S. issuers with substantial foreign operations (collectively, “foreign investments”). Foreign investments present certain risks, including those resulting from fluctuations in currency exchange rates, revaluation of currencies, future political and economic developments and the possible imposition of currency exchange blockages or other foreign governmental laws or restrictions, reduced availability of public information concerning issuers, and the fact that

 

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foreign issuers are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards or other regulatory practices and requirements comparable to those applicable to domestic issuers. These risks are intensified when investing in countries with developing economies and securities markets, also known as “emerging markets.” Moreover, securities of many foreign issuers may be less liquid and their prices more volatile than those of comparable domestic issuers and transactions in securities of foreign issuers may be subject to less efficient settlement practices, including extended clearance and settlement periods. In addition, with respect to certain foreign countries, there is the possibility of expropriation, confiscatory taxation, withholding taxes and limitations on the use or removal of funds or other assets.

The costs associated with investment in the securities of foreign issuers, including withholding taxes, brokerage commissions and custodial fees, may be higher than those associated with investment in domestic issuers. In addition, foreign investment transactions may be subject to difficulties associated with the settlement of such transactions. Delays in settlement could result in temporary periods when assets of the fund are uninvested and no return can be earned thereon. The inability of the fund to make intended investments due to settlement problems could cause the fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. Inability to dispose of a portfolio security due to settlement problems could result in losses to the fund due to subsequent declines in value of the portfolio security or, if the fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, could result in liability to the purchaser. Some emerging markets have different settlement and clearance procedures. In certain markets there have been times when settlements have been unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions.

Since the fund may invest in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and since the fund may hold foreign currencies, it may be affected favorably or unfavorably by exchange control regulations or changes in exchange rates between such currencies and the U.S. dollar. Changes in the currency exchange rates may influence the value of the fund’s shares, and may also affect the value of dividends and interest earned by the fund and gains and losses realized by the fund. Exchange rates are determined by the forces of supply and demand in the foreign exchange markets. These forces are affected by the international balance of payments, other economic and financial conditions, government intervention, speculation and other factors.

In addition to purchasing foreign securities, the fund may invest in American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). Generally, ADRs, in registered form, are denominated in U.S. dollars and are designed for use in the domestic market. Usually issued by a U.S. bank or trust company, ADRs are receipts that demonstrate ownership of underlying foreign securities. For purposes of the fund’s investment policies and limitations, ADRs are considered to have the same classification as the securities underlying them. ADRs may be sponsored or unsponsored; issuers of securities underlying unsponsored ADRs are not contractually obligated to disclose material information in the United States. Accordingly, there may be less information available about such issuers than there is with respect to domestic companies and issuers of securities underlying sponsored ADRs. The fund may also invest in Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), which are receipts that are often denominated in U.S. dollars and are issued by either a U.S. or non-U.S. bank evidencing ownership of underlying foreign securities. Even where they are denominated in U.S. dollars, depositary receipts are subject to currency risk if the underlying security is denominated in a foreign currency.

Many emerging market countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation for many years. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had, and may continue to have, very negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging markets. Economies in emerging markets generally are heavily dependent upon international trade and, accordingly, have been and may continue to be affected adversely by economic conditions, trade barriers, exchange controls, managed adjustments in relative currency values and other protectionist measures imposed or negotiated by the countries with which they trade.

Because of the high levels of foreign-denominated debt owed by many emerging market countries, fluctuating exchange rates can significantly affect the debt service obligations of those countries. This could, in

 

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turn, affect local interest rates, profit margins and exports which are a major source of foreign exchange earnings. Although it might be theoretically possible to hedge for anticipated income and gains, the ongoing and indeterminate nature of the foregoing risks (and the costs associated with hedging transactions) makes it virtually impossible to hedge effectively against such risks.

To the extent an emerging market country faces a liquidity crisis with respect to its foreign exchange reserves, it may increase restrictions on the outflow of any foreign exchange. Repatriation is ultimately dependent on the ability of the fund to liquidate its investments and convert the local currency proceeds obtained from such liquidation into U.S. dollars. Where this conversion must be done through official channels (usually the central bank or certain authorized commercial banks), the ability to obtain U.S. dollars is dependent on the availability of such U.S. dollars through those channels, and if available, upon the willingness of those channels to allocate those U.S. dollars to the fund. In such a case, the fund’s ability to obtain U.S. dollars may be adversely affected by any increased restrictions imposed on the outflow of foreign exchange. If the fund is unable to repatriate any amounts due to exchange controls, it may be required to accept an obligation payable at some future date by the central bank or other governmental entity of the jurisdiction involved. If such conversion can legally be done outside official channels, either directly or indirectly, the fund’s ability to obtain U.S. dollars may not be affected as much by any increased restrictions except to the extent of the price which may be required to be paid for the U.S. dollars.

Many emerging market countries have little experience with the corporate form of business organization and may not have well-developed corporation and business laws or concepts of fiduciary duty in the business context.

The securities markets of emerging markets are substantially smaller, less developed, less liquid and more volatile than the securities markets of the United States and other more developed countries. Disclosure and regulatory standards in many respects are less stringent than in the United States and other major markets. There also may be a lower level of monitoring and regulation of emerging markets and the activities of investors in such markets; enforcement of existing regulations has been extremely limited. Investing in the securities of companies in emerging markets may entail special risks relating to the potential political and economic instability and the risks of expropriation, nationalization, confiscation or the imposition of restrictions on foreign investment, convertibility of currencies into U.S. dollars and on repatriation of capital invested. In the event of such expropriation, nationalization or other confiscation by any country, the fund could lose its entire investment in any such country.

The inability of the fund to make intended securities purchases due to settlement problems could cause the fund to miss attractive investment opportunities. Inability to dispose of a portfolio security caused by settlement problems could result either in losses to the fund due to subsequent declines in the value of the portfolio security or, if the fund has entered into a contract to sell the security, in possible liability to the purchaser.

The risk also exists that an emergency situation may arise in one or more emerging markets as a result of which trading of securities may cease or may be substantially curtailed and prices for the fund’s portfolio securities in such markets may not be readily available.

Economic, Political and Social Factors. Certain non-U.S. countries, including emerging markets, may be subject to a greater degree of economic, political and social instability. Such instability may result from, among other things: (i) authoritarian governments or military involvement in political and economic decision making; (ii) popular unrest associated with demands for improved economic, political and social conditions; (iii) internal insurgencies; (iv) hostile relations with neighboring countries; and (v) ethnic, religious and racial disaffection and conflict. Such economic, political and social instability could significantly disrupt the financial markets in such countries and the ability of the issuers in such countries to repay their obligations. In addition, it may be difficult for the fund to pursue claims against a foreign issuer in the courts of a foreign country. Investing in emerging market countries also involves the risk of expropriation, nationalization, confiscation of assets and property or the imposition of restrictions on foreign investments and on repatriation of capital invested. In the

 

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event of such expropriation, nationalization or other confiscation in any emerging market country, the fund could lose its entire investment in that country. Certain emerging market countries restrict or control foreign investment in their securities markets to varying degrees. These restrictions may limit the fund’s investment in those markets and may increase the expenses of the fund. In addition, the repatriation of both investment income and capital from certain markets in the region is subject to restrictions such as the need for certain governmental consents. Even where there is no outright restriction on repatriation of capital, the mechanics of repatriation may affect certain aspects of the fund’s operation. Economies in individual non-U.S. countries may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as growth of gross domestic product, rates of inflation, currency valuation, capital reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency and balance of payments positions. Many non-U.S. countries have experienced substantial, and in some cases extremely high, rates of inflation for many years. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had, and may continue to have, very negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging countries. Economies in emerging countries generally are dependent heavily upon international trade and, accordingly, have been and may continue to be affected adversely by trade barriers, exchange controls, managed adjustments in relative currency values and other protectionist measures imposed or negotiated by the countries with which they trade. These economies also have been, and may continue to be, affected adversely and significantly by economic conditions in the countries with which they trade. Whether or not the fund invests in securities of issuers located in or with significant exposure to countries experiencing economic, financial and other difficulties, the value and liquidity of the fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the conditions in the countries experiencing the difficulties.

Europe—Recent Events. A number of countries in Europe have experienced severe economic and financial difficulties. Many non-governmental issuers, and even certain governments, have defaulted on, or been forced to restructure, their debts; many other issuers have faced difficulties obtaining credit or refinancing existing obligations; financial institutions have in many cases required government or central bank support, have needed to raise capital, and/or have been impaired in their ability to extend credit; and financial markets in Europe and elsewhere have experienced extreme volatility and declines in asset values and liquidity. Some European governments and banks have required assistance from the governments of other countries, and more such assistance may be required in the future; it may be politically difficult for the governments providing such assistance to continue to do so, which could result in further instability. These difficulties may continue, worsen or spread within and without Europe. Responses to the financial problems by European governments, central banks and others, including austerity measures and reforms, may not work, may result in social unrest and may limit future growth and economic recovery or have other unintended consequences. Further defaults or restructurings by governments and others of their debt could have additional adverse effects on economies, financial markets and asset valuations around the world.

In addition, voters in the United Kingdom have approved withdrawal from the European Union. Other countries may seek to withdraw from the European Union and/or abandon the euro, the common currency of the European Union. A number of countries in Europe have suffered terror attacks, and additional attacks may occur in the future. Ukraine has experienced ongoing military conflict; this conflict may expand and military attacks could occur elsewhere in Europe. Europe has also been struggling with mass migration from the Middle East and Africa. The ultimate effects of these events and other socio-political or geopolitical issues are not known but could profoundly affect global economies and markets. Whether or not the fund invests in securities of issuers located in Europe or with significant exposure to European issuers or countries, these events could negatively affect the value and liquidity of the fund’s investments.

Investing in the Greater China Region

Investing in the Greater China region, consisting of Hong Kong, the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, among other locations, involves a high degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in more established economies or securities markets. Such risks may include: (a) social, economic and political uncertainty (including the risk of armed conflict); (b) the risk of nationalization or expropriation of assets or confiscatory taxation; (c) dependency on exports and the corresponding importance of international

 

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trade; (d) increasing competition from Asia’s other low-cost emerging economies; (e) greater price volatility and significantly smaller market capitalization of securities markets; (f) substantially less liquidity, particularly of certain share classes of Chinese securities; (g) currency exchange rate fluctuations and the lack of available currency hedging instruments; (h) higher rates of inflation; (i) controls on foreign investment and limitations on repatriation of invested capital and on the fund’s ability to exchange local currencies for U.S. dollars; (j) greater governmental involvement in and control over the economy; (k) uncertainty regarding the People’s Republic of China’s commitment to economic reforms; (l) the fact that Chinese companies may be smaller, less seasoned and newly-organized companies; (m) the differences in, or lack of, auditing and financial reporting standards which may result in unavailability of material information about issuers; (n) the fact that statistical information regarding the economy of the Greater China region may be inaccurate or not comparable to statistical information regarding the U.S. or other economies; (o) less extensive, and still developing, legal systems and regulatory frameworks regarding the securities markets, business entities and commercial transactions; (p) the fact that the settlement period of securities transactions in foreign markets may be longer; (q) the fact that it may be more difficult, or impossible, to obtain and/or enforce a judgment than in other countries; (r) the rapid and erratic nature of growth, particularly in the People’s Republic of China, resulting in inefficiencies and dislocations; (s) economies characterized by over-extension of credit and rising unemployment; and (t) the risk that, because of the degree of interconnectivity between the economies and financial markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, any sizable reduction in the demand for goods from China, or an economic downturn in China, could negatively affect the economies and financial markets of Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well.

The People’s Republic of China is dominated by the one-party rule of the Communist Party. Investments in China involve the risk of greater control over the economy, political and legal uncertainties and currency fluctuations or blockage. The government of the People’s Republic of China exercises significant control over economic growth through the allocation of resources, controlling payment of foreign currency denominated obligations, setting monetary policy, and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies. For over three decades, the government of the People’s Republic of China has been reforming economic and market practices and providing a larger sphere for private ownership of property. While currently contributing to growth and prosperity, the government may decide not to continue to support these economic reform programs and could possibly return to the completely centrally planned economy that existed prior to 1978.

As with all transition economies, China’s ability to develop and sustain a credible legal, regulatory, monetary, and socioeconomic system could influence the course of outside investment. The real estate market, once rapidly growing in major cities, has slowed down and may collapse. Additionally, local government debt is still very high, and local governments have few viable means to raise revenue, especially with the fall in demand for housing. Moreover, although China has tried to restructure its economy towards consumption, it remains heavily dependent on exports and is therefore susceptible to downturns abroad which may weaken demand for its exports and reduce foreign investments in the country. In particular, the economy faces the prospect of prolonged weakness in demand for Chinese exports as its major trading partners, such as the United States, Japan, and Europe, continue to experience economic uncertainty stemming from the global financial crisis and European crisis, among other things. Over the long term, China’s aging infrastructure, worsening environmental conditions, rapid and inequitable urbanization, and quickly widening urban and rural income gap, which all carry political and economic implications, are among the country’s major challenges. In addition, China continues to exercise control over the value of its currency, rather than allowing the value of the currency to be determined by market forces. This type of currency regime may experience sudden and significant currency adjustments, which may adversely impact investment returns.

The willingness and ability of the government of the People’s Republic of China to support the Greater China region markets is uncertain. Taiwan and Hong Kong do not exercise the same level of control over their economies as does the People’s Republic of China, but changes to their political and economic relationships with the People’s Republic of China could adversely impact investments in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Following the establishment of the People’s Republic of China by the Communist Party in 1949, the Chinese government renounced various debt obligations incurred by China’s predecessor governments, which obligations remain in

 

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default, and expropriated assets without compensation. There can be no assurance that the Chinese government will not take similar action in the future. An investment in the fund involves risk of a total loss. The political reunification of China and Taiwan is a highly problematic issue and is unlikely to be settled in the near future. This situation poses a threat to Taiwan’s economy and could negatively affect its stock market. Hong Kong is closely tied to China, economically and through China’s 1997 acquisition of the country as a Special Autonomous Region. China has committed by treaty to preserve Hong Kong’s autonomy and its economic, political and social freedoms until 2047. However, if China would exert its authority so as to alter the economic, political or legal structures or the existing social policy of Hong Kong, investor and business confidence in Hong Kong could be negatively affected, which in turn could negatively affect markets and business performance. Hong Kong’s success depends, in large part, on its ability to retain the legal, financial, and monetary systems that allow economic freedom and market expansion.

The Greater China region has historically been prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, droughts, floods and tsunamis and is economically sensitive to environmental events. Any such event could cause a significant impact on the economy of, or investments in, the Greater China region.

Risks of Investments in China A-shares through the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect Program—The fund may invest in China A-shares of certain Chinese companies through the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect program (“Connect Program”). The Connect Program is subject to quota limitations and an investor cannot purchase and sell the same security on the same trading day, which may restrict the fund’s ability to invest in China A-shares through the Connect Program and to enter into or exit trades on a timely basis. The Shanghai market may be open at a time when the Connect Program is not trading, with the result that prices of China A-shares may fluctuate at times when the fund is unable to add to or exit its position. Only certain China A-shares are eligible to be accessed through the Connect Program. Such securities may lose their eligibility at any time, in which case they could be sold but could no longer be purchased through the Connect Program. Because the Connect Program is new, the actual effect on the market for trading China A-shares with the introduction of large numbers of foreign investors is unknown. In addition, there is no assurance that the necessary systems required to operate the Connect Program will function properly or will continue to be adapted to changes and developments in both markets. In the event that the relevant systems do not function properly, trading through the Connect Program could be disrupted.

The Connect Program is subject to regulations promulgated by regulatory authorities for both exchanges and further regulations or restrictions, such as limitations on redemptions or suspension of trading, may adversely impact the Connect Program, if the authorities believe it necessary to assure orderly markets or for other reasons. There is no guarantee that both exchanges will continue to support the Connect Program in the future. Investments in China A-shares may not be covered by the securities investor protection programs of either exchange and, without the protection of such programs, will be subject to the risk of default by the broker. In the event that the depository of the Shanghai Stock Exchange (“ChinaClear”) defaulted, the fund may not be able to recover fully its losses from ChinaClear or may be delayed in receiving proceeds as part of any recovery process. It is currently unclear whether applicable courts would consider that the fund, rather than the nominee, if the beneficial owner of China A-shares purchased through the Connect Program. Therefore, the fund may not be able to exercise the rights of a shareholder and may be limited in its ability to pursue claims against the issuer of a security. The fund may not be able to participate in corporate actions affecting China A-shares held through the Connect Program due to time constraints or for other operational reasons. Similarly, the fund may not be able to appoint proxies or participate in shareholders’ meetings due to current limitations on the use of multiple proxies in China. Because all trades on the Connect Program in respect of eligible China A-shares must be settled in Renminbi (RMB), the Chinese currency, investors must have timely access to a reliable supply of offshore RMB, which cannot be guaranteed.

Trades on the Connect Program are subject to certain requirements prior to trading. If these requirements are not completed prior to the market opening, the fund cannot sell the shares on that trading day. In addition, these requirements may limit the number of brokers that the fund may use to execute trades. If an investor holds 5% or more of the total shares issued by a China-A share issuer, the investor must return any profits obtained from the

 

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purchase and sale of those shares if both transactions occur within a six-month period. If the fund holds 5% or more of the total shares of a China-A share issuer through its Connect Program investments, its profits may be subject to these limitations. In addition, it is not currently clear whether all accounts managed by an adviser and/ or its affiliates will be aggregated for purposes of this limitation. If that is the case, it makes it more likely that the fund’s profits may be subject to these limitations.

Foreign Currency Exposure

The fund, under normal circumstances, will invest a substantial portion of its total assets in the securities of foreign issuers which are denominated in foreign currencies and may temporarily hold uninvested cash in bank deposits in foreign currencies. Accordingly, the strength or weakness of the U.S. dollar against such foreign currencies may account for a substantial part of the fund’s investment performance. The rate of exchange between the U.S. dollar and other currencies is determined by several factors, including the supply and demand for particular currencies, central bank efforts to support particular currencies, government intervention, speculation, the relative movement of interest rates, the pace of business activity in other countries and the United States, speculation and other economic and financial conditions affecting the world economy. The fund may also be affected favorably or unfavorably by exchange control regulations.

A decline in the value of any particular currency against the U.S. dollar will cause a decline in the U.S. dollar value of the fund’s holdings of securities and cash denominated in such currency and, therefore, will cause an overall decline in the fund’s net asset value and any net investment income and capital gains derived from such securities to be distributed in U.S. dollars to shareholders of the fund. Moreover, if the value of the foreign currencies in which the fund receives its income falls relative to the U.S. dollar between receipt of the income and its conversion to U.S. dollars, the fund may be required to liquidate securities in order to make distributions if it has insufficient cash in U.S. dollars to meet distribution requirements.

Fluctuations in currency exchange rates may affect the performance of emerging market issuers in which the fund invests without regard to the effect such fluctuations have on income received or gains realized by the fund. Given the level of foreign-denominated debt owed by many emerging market countries, fluctuating exchange rates significantly affect the debt service obligations of those countries. This could, in turn, affect local interest rates, profit margins and exports which are a major source of foreign exchange earnings. Although it might be theoretically possible to hedge for anticipated income and gains, the ongoing and indeterminate nature of the foregoing risk (and the costs associated with hedging transactions) makes it virtually impossible to hedge effectively against such risks.

To some extent, if forward markets are available, currency exchange risk can be managed through hedging operations. However, governmental regulations and limited currency exchange markets in most emerging markets make it highly unlikely that the fund will be able to engage in any hedging operations in these markets, at least in the foreseeable future. If hedging opportunities become available and the subadviser elects to employ them, the fund may incur investment risks and substantial transaction costs to which it would not otherwise be subject. Whether or not it hedges, the fund will incur transaction costs in connection with conversions between various currencies.

Preferred Stock

Preferred stock pays dividends at a specified rate and generally has preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the issuer’s assets, but is junior to the debt securities of the issuer in those same respects. Unlike interest payments on debt securities, dividends on preferred stock are generally payable at the discretion of the issuer’s board of directors. Shareholders of preferred stock may suffer a loss of value if dividends are not paid. The market prices of preferred stocks are subject to changes in interest rates and are more sensitive to changes in the issuer’s creditworthiness than are the prices of debt securities. Under normal circumstances, preferred stock does not carry voting rights.

 

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Warrants and Rights

Warrants or rights may be acquired separately, or as part of a unit or attached to securities at the time of purchase, and may be deemed to be with or without value. Warrants and rights may be considered speculative in that they have no voting rights, pay no dividends, and have no rights with respect to the assets of the corporation issuing them. Warrants and rights basically are options to purchase equity securities at a specific price valid for a specific period of time. They do not represent ownership of the securities, but only the right to buy them. Warrants and rights differ from call options in that warrants are issued by the issuer of the security which may be purchased on their exercise, whereas call options may be written or issued by anyone. Rights are similar to warrants but typically are issued by a company to existing holders of its stock and provide those holders the right to purchase additional shares of stock at a later date. Rights also normally have a shorter duration than warrants. The prices of warrants and rights do not necessarily move parallel to the prices of the underlying securities. If the market price of the underlying security does not exceed the exercise price of the warrant or right plus the cost thereof before the expiration date, a fund could sustain losses on transactions in warrants that would require the fund to forgo a portion or all of the benefits of advantageous change in the market price of the underlying security. Warrants may be purchased with values that vary depending on the change in value of one or more specified indexes (“index warrants”). Index warrants are generally issued by banks or other financial institutions and give the holder the right, at any time during the term of the warrant, to receive upon exercise of the warrant a cash payment from the issuer based on the value of the underlying index at the time of the exercise. The market for warrants or rights may be very limited and it may be difficult to sell them promptly at an acceptable price.

Convertible Securities

A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. A convertible security entitles the holder to receive interest paid or accrued on debt or the dividend paid on preferred stock until the convertible security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. Before conversion or exchange, convertible securities ordinarily provide a stream of income with generally higher yields than those of common stocks of the same or similar issuers, but lower than the yield of non-convertible debt. Convertible securities are usually subordinated to comparable-tier nonconvertible securities, but rank senior to common stock in a corporation’s capital structure.

The value of a convertible security is a function of (1) its yield in comparison with the yields of other securities of comparable maturity and quality that do not have a conversion privilege and (2) its worth, at market value, if converted or exchanged into the underlying common stock. The price of a convertible security often reflects variations in the price of the underlying common stock in a way that nonconvertible debt does not. A convertible security may be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer at a price established in the convertible security’s governing instrument, which may be less than the ultimate conversion or exchange value. If a convertible security held by the fund is called for redemption, the fund will be required to (1) permit the issuer to redeem the security (2) convert it into the underlying common stock or (3) sell it to a third party.

Many convertible securities are rated below investment grade or, if unrated, are considered of comparable quality by the subadviser.

When-Issued Securities

When-issued securities are commitments to purchase securities on a “when-issued” basis. When such transactions are negotiated, the price is fixed at the time the commitment is made, but delivery and payment for the securities takes place at a later date. A fund may sell the securities subject to a when-issued purchase, which may result in a gain or a loss. When a fund purchases securities on a when-issued basis, it assumes the risks of ownership, including the risk of price fluctuation, at the time of purchase, not at the time of receipt. Purchases of when-issued securities also involve a risk of loss if the seller fails to deliver after the value of the securities has risen.

 

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The fund will maintain segregated cash or appropriate liquid securities in an amount at least equal to the amount of the fund’s when-issued or delayed-delivery commitments. On the settlement date, a fund will meet its obligations from then available cash flow, the sale of segregated securities, the sale of other securities or, although it normally would not expect to do so, from the sale of the when-issued or delayed-delivery securities themselves (which may have a greater or lesser value than the fund’s payment obligations).

Indexed Securities

Indexed securities are securities whose prices are indexed to the prices of other securities, securities indices, currencies, precious metals or other commodities or other financial indicators. Indexed securities typically are debt securities or deposits whose value at maturity and/or coupon rate is determined by reference to a specific instrument or statistic. Indexed securities do not include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, or other pooled investment vehicles that make investments designed to track the performance of a particular market index or other indicator. The performance of indexed securities fluctuates (either directly or inversely, depending upon the instrument) with the performance of the index, security, currency or other instrument to which they are indexed and may also be influenced by interest rate changes in the United States and abroad. At the same time, indexed securities are subject to the credit risks associated with the issuer of the security, and their value may substantially decline if the issuer’s creditworthiness deteriorates. The value of some indexed securities varies according to a multiple of the underlying securities, and so will be more volatile than the underlying investments and may have a leverage like effect on the fund. Recent issuers of indexed securities have included banks, corporations and certain U.S. Government agencies. The U.S. Treasury issues securities whose principal value is indexed to the Consumer Price Index (also known as “Treasury Inflation-Indexed Securities”). The adviser will use its judgment in determining whether indexed securities should be treated as short-term instruments, bonds, stock or as a separate asset class for purposes of each fund’s investment allocations, depending on the individual characteristics of the securities. Indexed securities may fluctuate according to a multiple of changes in the underlying instrument or index and, in that respect, have a leverage-like effect on a fund.

Foreign Currency Exchange-Related Securities and Warrants

Foreign currency warrants entitle the holder to receive from their issuer an amount of cash (generally, for warrants issued in the United States, in U.S. dollars) that is calculated pursuant to a predetermined formula and based on the exchange rate between a specified foreign currency and the U.S. dollar as of the exercise date of the warrant. Foreign currency warrants generally are exercisable upon their issuance and expire as of a specified date and time. Foreign currency warrants have been issued in connection with U.S. dollar-denominated debt offerings by major corporate issuers in an attempt to reduce the foreign currency exchange risk that is inherent in the international fixed income/debt marketplace. The formula used to determine the amount payable upon exercise of a foreign currency warrant may make the warrant worthless unless the applicable foreign currency exchange rate moves in a particular direction.

Foreign currency warrants are severable from the debt obligations with which they may be offered and may be listed on exchanges. Foreign currency warrants may be exercisable only in certain minimum amounts, and an investor wishing to exercise warrants who possesses less than the minimum number required for exercise may be required either to sell the warrants or to purchase additional warrants, thereby incurring additional transaction costs. In the case of any exercise of warrants, there may be a time delay between the time a holder of warrants gives instructions to exercise and the time the exchange rate relating to exercise is determined, during which time the exchange rate could change significantly, thereby affecting both the market and cash settlement values of the warrants being exercised.

The expiration date of the warrants may be accelerated if the warrants are delisted from an exchange or if their trading is suspended permanently, which would result in the loss of any remaining “time value” of the warrants (i.e., the difference between the current market value and the exercise value of the warrants) and, in the case where the warrants were “out-of-the-money,” in a total loss of the purchase price of the warrants. Warrants

 

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are generally unsecured obligations of their issuers and are not standardized foreign currency options issued by the Options Clearing Corporation (“OCC”). Unlike foreign currency options issued by the OCC, the terms of foreign currency warrants generally will not be amended in the event of governmental or regulatory actions affecting exchange rates or in the event of the imposition of other regulatory controls affecting the international currency markets. The initial public offering price of foreign currency warrants is generally considerably in excess of the price that a commercial user of foreign currencies might pay in the interbank market for a comparable option involving significantly larger amounts of foreign currencies. Foreign currency warrants are subject to significant foreign exchange risk, including risks arising from complex political and economic factors.

Financial Instruments

GENERAL. The fund may utilize synthetic foreign equity securities, including international warrants, options, futures contracts (sometimes referred to as “futures”), options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, swaps, caps, floors, collars, indexed securities and other derivative instruments (collectively, “Financial Instruments”) to attempt to enhance its return or to attempt to hedge its investments. The strategies described below may be used in an attempt to manage the fund’s foreign currency exposure (including exposure to the euro) as well as other risks of the fund’s investments that can affect its net asset value. The subadviser may determine not to hedge particular risks, and the fund may be completely unhedged at any point in time. The fund will not employ hedging strategies; however, the fund reserves the right to hedge its portfolio investments in the future. The fund may choose not to make use of derivatives for a variety of reasons, and no assurance can be given that any derivatives strategy employed will be successful.

Specifically, the fund may enter into futures contracts and related options provided that not more than 5% of its net assets are required as a futures contract deposit and/or premium; in addition, the fund may not enter into futures contracts or related options if, as a result, more than 40% of the fund’s total assets would be so invested.

The U.S. government is in the process of adopting and implementing regulations governing derivatives markets, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin and reporting requirements. The ultimate impact of the regulations remains unclear. Additional regulation of derivatives may make them more costly, may limit their availability, may disrupt markets or may otherwise adversely affect their value or performance.

Generally, the fund may purchase and sell any type of Financial Instrument. However, as an operating policy, the fund will only purchase or sell a particular Financial Instrument if the fund is authorized to invest in the type of asset by which the return on, or value of, the Financial Instrument is primarily measured. Since the fund is authorized to invest in foreign securities, the fund may purchase and sell foreign currency (including euro) derivatives. In addition, the fund’s ability to use Financial Instruments may be limited by tax considerations. See “Additional Tax Information.”

The use of Financial Instruments may be limited by applicable law and any applicable regulations of the SEC, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”), or the exchanges on which some Financial Instruments may be traded (note, however, that some Financial Instruments that the fund may use may not be listed on any exchange and may not be regulated by the SEC or the CFTC). In addition, the fund’s ability to use Financial Instruments may be limited by tax considerations.

In addition to the instruments and strategies discussed in this section, the subadviser may discover additional opportunities in connection with Financial Instruments and other similar or related techniques. These new opportunities may become available as the subadviser develops new techniques, as regulatory authorities broaden the range of permitted transactions and as new Financial Instruments or other techniques are developed. The subadviser may utilize these opportunities and techniques to the extent that they are consistent with the fund’s investment objective and permitted by its investment limitations and applicable regulatory authorities. These opportunities and techniques may involve risks different from or in addition to those summarized herein.

 

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This discussion is not intended to limit the fund’s investment flexibility, unless such a limitation is expressly stated, and therefore will be construed by the fund as broadly as possible. Statements concerning what the fund may do are not intended to limit any other activity. Also, as with any investment or investment technique, even when the Prospectus or this discussion indicates that the fund may engage in an activity, it may not actually do so for a variety of reasons, including cost considerations.

The fund is operated by persons who have claimed an exclusion, granted to operators of registered investment companies like the fund, from registration as a “commodity pool operator” with respect to the fund under the Commodity Exchange Act (the “CEA”), and, therefore, are not subject to registration or regulation with respect to the fund under the CEA. As a result, the fund is limited in its ability to trade instruments subject to the CFTC’s jurisdiction, including commodity futures (which include futures on broad-based securities indexes, interest rate futures and currency futures), options on commodity futures, certain swaps or other investments (whether directly or indirectly through investments in other investment vehicles).

Under this exclusion, the fund must satisfy one of the following two trading limitations whenever it enters into a new commodity trading position: (1) the aggregate initial margin and premiums required to establish the fund’s positions in CFTC-regulated instruments may not exceed 5% of the liquidation value of the fund’s portfolio (after accounting for unrealized profits and unrealized losses on any such investments); or (2) the aggregate net notional value of such instruments, determined at the time the most recent position was established, may not exceed 100% of the liquidation value of the fund’s portfolio (after accounting for unrealized profits and unrealized losses on any such positions). The fund would not be required to consider its exposure to such instruments if they were held for “bona fide hedging” purposes, as such term is defined in the rules of the CFTC. In addition to meeting one of the foregoing trading limitations, the fund may not market itself as a commodity pool or otherwise as a vehicle for trading in the markets for CFTC-regulated instruments.

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS AND HEDGING. Hedging strategies can be broadly categorized as “short hedges” and “long hedges.” A short hedge is a purchase or sale of a Financial Instrument intended partially or fully to offset potential declines in the value of one or more investments held in the fund’s portfolio. Thus, in a short hedge the fund takes a position in a Financial Instrument whose price is expected to move in the opposite direction of the price of the investment being hedged.

Conversely, a long hedge is a purchase or sale of a Financial Instrument intended partially or fully to offset potential increases in the acquisition cost of one or more investments that the fund intends to acquire. Thus, in a long hedge, the fund takes a position in a Financial Instrument whose price is expected to move in the same direction as the price of the prospective investment being hedged. A long hedge is sometimes referred to as an anticipatory hedge. In an anticipatory hedge transaction, the fund does not own a corresponding security and, therefore, the transaction does not relate to a security the fund owns. Rather, it relates to a security that the fund intends to acquire. If the fund does not complete the hedge by purchasing the security it anticipated purchasing, the effect on the fund’s portfolio is the same as if the transaction were entered into for speculative purposes.

Financial Instruments on securities generally are used to attempt to hedge against price movements in one or more particular securities positions that the fund owns or intends to acquire. Financial Instruments on indices, in contrast, generally are used to attempt to hedge against price movements in market sectors in which the fund has invested or expects to invest. Financial Instruments on debt securities may be used to hedge either individual securities or broad debt market sectors.

SPECIAL RISKS. The use of Financial Instruments involves special considerations and risks, certain of which are described below. In general, these techniques may increase the volatility of the fund’s portfolio and may involve a small investment of cash relative to the magnitude of the risk assumed. Risks pertaining to particular Financial Instruments are described in the sections that follow.

 

(1)

Successful use of most Financial Instruments depends upon the subadviser’s ability to predict movements of the overall securities, currency and interest rate markets, which requires different skills than predicting

 

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  changes in the prices of individual securities. There can be no assurance that any particular strategy will succeed, and use of Financial Instruments could result in a loss, regardless of whether the intent was to reduce risk or increase return.

 

(2) When Financial Instruments are used for hedging purposes, there might be an imperfect correlation, or even no correlation, between price movements of a Financial Instrument and price movements of the investments being hedged. For example, if the value of a Financial Instrument used in a short hedge increased by less than the decline in value of the hedged investment, the hedge would not be fully successful. Such a lack of correlation might occur due to factors unrelated to the value of the investments being hedged, such as speculative or other pressures on the markets in which Financial Instruments are traded. The effectiveness of hedges using Financial Instruments on indices will depend on the degree of correlation between price movements in the index and price movements in the securities or other assets being hedged. Further, a loss incurred on a particular transaction being used as a hedge does not mean that it failed to achieve its objective, if the goal was to prevent a worse loss that may have resulted had a particular securities or cash market investment suffered a substantial loss and there were no offsetting hedge.

Because there are a limited number of types of exchange-traded Financial Instruments, it is likely that the standardized contracts available will not match the fund’s current or anticipated investments exactly. The fund may invest in Financial Instruments based on securities with different issuers, maturities or other characteristics from the securities in which it typically invests, which involves a risk that the positions in Financial Instruments will not track the performance of the fund’s other investments.

Prices of Financial Instruments can also diverge from the prices of their underlying instruments, even if the underlying instruments match the fund’s investments well. Prices of Financial Instruments are affected by such factors as current and anticipated short-term interest rates, changes in volatility of the underlying instrument, and the time remaining until expiration of the contract, which may not affect security prices the same way. Imperfect correlation may also result from differing levels of demand in the markets for Financial Instruments and the securities markets, from structural differences in how Financial Instruments and securities are traded, or from the imposition of daily price fluctuation limits or trading halts. The fund may purchase or sell Financial Instruments with a greater or lesser value than the securities it wishes to hedge or intends to purchase in order to attempt to compensate for differences in volatility between the contract and the securities, although this may not be successful in all cases. If price changes in the fund’s positions in Financial Instruments are poorly correlated with its other investments, the positions may fail to produce anticipated gains or result in losses that are not offset by gains in other investments.

 

(3) If successful, the above-discussed hedging strategies can reduce risk of loss by wholly or partially offsetting the negative effect of unfavorable price movements. However, such strategies can also reduce opportunity for gain by offsetting the positive effect of favorable price movements. For example, if the fund entered into a short hedge because its subadviser projected a decline in the price of a security in the fund’s portfolio, and the price of that security increased instead, the gain from that increase might be wholly or partially offset by a decline in the price of the Financial Instrument. Moreover, if the price of the Financial Instrument declined by more than the increase in the price of the security, the fund could suffer a loss. In either such case, the fund would have been in a better position had it not attempted to hedge at all.

 

(4) As described below, the fund might be required to maintain segregated assets as “cover,” or make margin payments when it takes positions in Financial Instruments involving obligations to third parties (i.e., Financial Instruments other than purchased options). If the fund were unable to close out its positions in such Financial Instruments, it might be required to continue to maintain such assets or accounts or make such payments until the position expired or matured. These requirements might 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 that the fund sell a portfolio security at a disadvantageous time.

 

(5)

The fund’s ability to close out a position in a Financial Instrument prior to expiration or maturity depends on the existence of a liquid secondary market or, in the absence of such a market, the ability and willingness of

 

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  the other party to the transaction (the “counterparty”) to enter into a transaction closing out the position. Therefore, there is no assurance that any position can be closed out at a time and price that is favorable to the fund.

COVER. Transactions using Financial Instruments, other than purchased options, expose the fund to an obligation to another party. The fund will not enter into any such transactions unless it owns either (1) an offsetting (“covering”) position in securities, currencies or other options, futures contracts or forward contracts, or (2) cash and liquid assets held in a segregated account, or designated on the fund’s books as segregated for this purpose, with a value, marked-to-market daily, sufficient to cover its potential obligations to the extent not covered as provided in (1) above. The fund will comply with SEC guidelines regarding cover for these instruments and will, if the guidelines so require, segregate cash or liquid assets in the prescribed amount as determined daily.

Assets used as cover cannot be sold while the position in the corresponding Financial Instrument is open, unless they are replaced with other appropriate assets. As a result, the commitment of a large portion of the fund’s assets for cover or segregation could impede portfolio management or the fund’s ability to meet redemption requests or other current obligations.

ADDITIONAL RISKS OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS TRADED ON FOREIGN EXCHANGES. Financial Instruments may be traded on foreign exchanges. Such transactions may not be regulated as effectively as similar transactions in the United States, may not involve a clearing mechanism and related guarantees and are subject to the risk of governmental actions affecting trading in, or the price of, foreign securities. The value of such positions also could be adversely affected by (1) other complex foreign political, legal and economic factors, (2) lesser availability than in the United States of data on which to make trading decisions, (3) delays in the fund’s ability to act upon economic events occurring in foreign markets during non-business hours in the United States, (4) the imposition of different exercise and settlement terms and procedures and margin requirements than in the United States and (5) lesser trading volume.

OPTIONS. A call option gives the purchaser the right to buy, and obligates the writer to sell, the underlying investment at the agreed-upon price during the option period. A put option gives the purchaser the right to sell, and obligates the writer to buy, the underlying investment at the agreed-upon price during the option period. Purchasers of options pay an amount, known as a premium, to the option writer in exchange for the right under the option contract.

The purchase of call options can serve as a long hedge, and the purchase of put options can serve as a short hedge. Writing put or call options can enable the fund to enhance its return by reason of the premiums paid by the purchasers of such options. However, the fund may also suffer a loss as the result of writing options. For example, if the market price of the security underlying a put option declines to less than the exercise price of the option, minus the premium received, the fund would suffer a loss.

Writing call options can serve as a limited short hedge, because declines in the value of the hedged investment would be offset to the extent of the premium received for writing the option. However, if the security or currency appreciates to a price higher than the exercise price of the call option, it can be expected that the option will be exercised and the fund will be obligated to sell the security or currency at less than its market value. If the call option is an OTC option, the securities or other assets used as cover may be considered illiquid to the extent described under “Illiquid and Restricted Investments.”

Writing put options can serve as a limited long hedge because increases in the value of the hedged investment would be offset to the extent of the premium received for writing the option. However, if the security or currency depreciates to a price lower than the exercise price of the put option, it can be expected that the put option will be exercised and the fund will be obligated to purchase the security or currency at more than its market value. If the put option is an OTC option, the securities or other assets used as cover may be considered illiquid to the extent described under “Illiquid and Restricted Investments.”

 

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The value of an option position will reflect, among other things, the current market value of the underlying investment, the time remaining until expiration, the relationship of the exercise price to the market price of the underlying investment, the historical price volatility of the underlying investment and general market conditions. The exercise price of the options may be below, equal to or above the current market value of the underlying security or other instrument. Options that expire unexercised have no value, and the fund will realize a loss in the amount of the premium paid and any transaction costs.

The fund may effectively terminate its right or obligation under an option by entering into a closing transaction. For example, the fund may terminate its obligation under a call or put option that it had written by purchasing an identical call or put option; this is known as a closing purchase transaction. Conversely, the fund may terminate a position in a put or call option it had purchased by writing an identical put or call option; this is known as a closing sale transaction. Closing transactions permit the fund to realize profits or limit losses on an option position prior to its exercise or expiration.

A type of put that the fund may purchase is an “optional delivery standby commitment,” which is entered into by parties selling debt securities to the fund. An optional delivery standby commitment gives the fund the right to sell the security back to the seller on specified terms. This right is provided as an inducement to purchase the security.

Risks of Options on Securities. Options offer large amounts of leverage, which will result in the fund’s net asset value being more sensitive to changes in the value of the related instrument. The fund may purchase or write both exchange-traded and OTC options. Exchange-traded options in the United States are issued by a clearing organization affiliated with the exchange on which the option is listed that, in effect, guarantees completion of every exchange-traded option transaction. In contrast, OTC options are contracts between the fund and its counterparty (usually a securities dealer or a bank) with no clearing organization guarantee. Thus, when the fund purchases an OTC option, it relies on the counterparty from whom it purchased the option to make or take delivery of the underlying investment upon exercise of the option. Failure by the counterparty to do so would result in the loss of any premium paid by the fund as well as the loss of any expected benefit of the transaction.

The fund’s ability to establish and close out positions in exchange-listed options depends on the existence of a liquid market. However, there can be no assurance that such a market will exist at any particular time. Closing transactions can be made for OTC options only by negotiating directly with the counterparty, or by a transaction in the secondary market if any such market exists. There can be no assurance that the fund will in fact be able to close out an OTC option position at a favorable price prior to expiration. In the event of insolvency of the counterparty, the fund might be unable to close out an OTC option position at any time prior to its expiration, if at all.

If the fund were unable to effect a closing transaction for an option it had purchased, due to the absence of a secondary market, the imposition of price limits or otherwise, it would have to exercise the option to realize any profit. The inability to enter into a closing transaction for a covered call option written by the fund could leave the fund unable to prevent material losses because the fund would be unable to sell the investment used as cover for the written option until the option expires or is exercised.

Options on Indices. Puts and calls on indices are similar to puts and calls on securities or futures contracts except that all settlements are in cash and gain or loss depends on changes in the index in question rather than on price movements in individual securities or futures contracts. When the fund writes a call on an index, it receives a premium and agrees that, prior to the expiration date, the purchaser of the call, upon exercise of the call, will receive from the fund an amount of cash if the closing level of the index upon which the call is based is greater than the exercise price of the call. The amount of cash is equal to the difference between the closing price of the index and the exercise price of the call times a specified multiple (“multiplier”), which determines the total dollar value for each point of such difference. When the fund buys a call on an index, it pays a premium and has the

 

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same rights as to such call as are indicated above. When the fund buys a put on an index, it pays a premium and has the right, prior to the expiration date, to require the seller of the put, upon the fund’s exercise of the put, to deliver to the fund an amount of cash if the closing level of the index upon which the put is based is less than the exercise price of the put, which amount of cash is determined by the multiplier, as described above for calls. When the fund writes a put on an index, it receives a premium and the purchaser of the put has the right, prior to the expiration date, to require the fund to deliver to it an amount of cash equal to the difference between the closing level of the index and exercise price times the multiplier if the closing level is less than the exercise price.

The risks of investment in options on indices may be greater than options on securities. Because index options are settled in cash, when the fund writes a call on an index it cannot provide in advance for its potential settlement obligations by acquiring and holding the underlying securities. The fund can offset some of the risk of writing a call index option by holding a diversified portfolio of securities similar to those on which the underlying index is based. However, the fund cannot, as a practical matter, acquire and hold a portfolio containing exactly the same securities as underlie the index and, as a result, bears a risk that the value of the securities held will vary from the value of the index.

Even if the fund could assemble a portfolio that exactly reproduced the composition of the underlying index, it still would not be fully covered from a risk standpoint because of the “timing risk” inherent in writing index options. When an index option is exercised, the amount of cash that the holder is entitled to receive is determined by the difference between the exercise price and the closing index level on the date when the option is exercised. As with other kinds of options, the fund, as the call writer, will not learn that the fund has been assigned until the next business day at the earliest. The time lag between exercise and notice of assignment poses no risk for the writer of a covered call on a specific underlying security, such as common stock, because there the writer’s obligation is to deliver the underlying security, not to pay its value as of a fixed time in the past. So long as the writer already owns the underlying security, it can satisfy its settlement obligations by simply delivering it, and the risk that its value may have declined since the exercise date is borne by the exercising holder. In contrast, even if the writer of an index call holds securities that exactly match the composition of the underlying index, it will not be able to satisfy its assignment obligations by delivering those securities against payment of the exercise price. Instead, it will be required to pay cash in an amount based on the closing index value on the exercise date. By the time it learns that it has been assigned, the index may have declined, with a corresponding decline in the value of its portfolio. This “timing risk” is an inherent limitation on the ability of index call writers to cover their risk exposure by holding securities positions.

If the fund has purchased an index option and exercises it before the closing index value for that day is available, it runs the risk that the level of the underlying index may subsequently change. If such a change causes the exercised option to fall out-of-the-money, the fund will be required to pay the difference between the closing index value and the exercise price of the option (times the applicable multiplier) to the assigned writer.

OTC Options. Unlike exchange-traded options, which are standardized with respect to the underlying instrument, expiration date, contract size and strike price, the terms of OTC options (options not traded on exchanges) generally are established through negotiation with the other party to the option contract. While this type of arrangement allows the fund great flexibility to tailor the option to its needs, OTC options generally involve greater risk than exchange-traded options, which are guaranteed by the clearing organization of the exchanges where they are traded. Assets used as cover for OTC options may be considered illiquid as described under “Illiquid and Restricted Investments.”

Generally, OTC foreign currency options used by the fund are European-style options. This means that the option is only exercisable immediately prior to its expiration. This is in contrast to American-style options, which are exercisable at any time prior to the expiration date of the option.

FUTURES CONTRACTS AND OPTIONS ON FUTURES CONTRACTS. A financial futures contract sale creates an obligation by the seller to deliver the type of Financial Instrument called for in the contract in a

 

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specified delivery month for a stated price. A financial futures contract purchase creates an obligation by the purchaser to take delivery of the type of Financial Instrument called for in the contract in a specified delivery month at a stated price. Options on futures give the purchaser the right to assume a position in a futures contract at the specified option exercise price at any time during the period of the option. The purchase of futures or call options on futures can serve as a long hedge, and the sale of futures or the purchase of put options on futures can serve as a short hedge. Writing call options on futures contracts can serve as a limited short hedge, using a strategy similar to that used for writing call options on securities or indices. Similarly, writing put options on futures contracts can serve as a limited long hedge. Futures contracts and options on futures contracts can also be purchased and sold as a substitute for buying or selling securities or as a cash flow management technique.

No price is paid upon entering into a futures contract. Instead, at the inception of a futures contract the fund is required to deposit “initial margin” in an amount generally equal to 10% or less of the contract value. Margin must also be deposited when writing a call or put option on a futures contract, in accordance with applicable exchange rules. Unlike margin in securities transactions, initial margin on futures contracts does not represent a borrowing, but rather is in the nature of a performance bond or good-faith deposit that is returned to the fund at the termination of the transaction if all contractual obligations have been satisfied. Under certain circumstances, such as periods of high volatility, the fund may be required by an exchange to increase the level of its initial margin payment, and initial margin requirements might be increased generally in the future by regulatory action.

Initial margin with respect to a futures or option on futures contract is the amount of assets that must be deposited by the fund with, or for the benefit of, a futures commission merchant to initiate the fund’s futures or option positions. Initial margin is the margin deposit made by the fund when it enters into a futures or option contract; it is intended to assure performance of the contract by the fund. If the value of the fund’s account declines by a specified amount, the fund will receive a margin call and be required to post assets sufficient to restore the equity in the account to the initial margin level. This is sometimes referred to as “variation margin.” Subsequent “variation margin” payments are made to and from the futures commission merchant as the value of the account varies, a process known as “marking-to-market.” Variation margin does not involve borrowing, but rather represents a settlement of the fund’s obligations to or from a futures commission merchant. When the fund purchases an option on a futures contract, the premium paid plus transaction costs is all that is at risk. However, there may be circumstances when the purchase of an option on a futures contract would result in a loss to the fund when the use of a futures contract would not, such as when there is no movement in the value of the securities or currencies being hedged. In contrast, when the fund purchases or sells a futures contract or writes a call or put option thereon, it is subject to daily variation margin calls that could be substantial in the event of adverse price movements. If the fund has insufficient cash to meet daily variation margin requirements, it might need to sell securities at a time when such sales are disadvantageous.

Purchasers and sellers of futures contracts and options on futures can enter into offsetting closing transactions, similar to closing transactions on options, by selling or purchasing, respectively, an instrument identical to the instrument purchased or sold. Positions in futures and options on futures may be closed only on an exchange or board of trade that provides a secondary market. However, there can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for a particular contract at a particular time. In such event, it may not be possible to close a futures contract or options position.

Under certain circumstances, futures exchanges may establish daily limits on the amount that the price of a futures contract or an option on a futures contract can vary from the previous day’s settlement price; once that limit is reached, no trades may be made that day at a price beyond the limit. Daily price limits do not limit potential losses because prices could move to the daily limit for several consecutive days with little or no trading, thereby preventing liquidation of unfavorable positions.

If the fund were unable to liquidate a futures contract or an option on a futures position due to the absence of a liquid secondary market, the imposition of price limits or otherwise, it could incur substantial losses. The fund would continue to be subject to market risk with respect to the position. In addition, except in the case of

 

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purchased options, the fund would continue to be required to make daily variation margin payments and might be required to maintain the position being hedged by the future or option or to segregate cash or securities (or designate these assets on its books as segregated).

Risks of Futures Contracts and Options thereon. Successful use of futures contracts and related options depends upon the ability of the subadviser to assess movements in the direction of overall securities and interest rates, which requires different skills and techniques than assessing the value of individual securities. Moreover, futures contracts relate not to the current price level of the underlying instrument, but to the anticipated price level at some point in the future; trading of stock index futures may not reflect the trading of the securities that are used to formulate the index or even actual fluctuations in the index itself. There is, in addition, the risk that movements in the price of the futures contract will not correlate with the movements in the prices of the securities being hedged. Price distortions in the marketplace, such as resulting from increased participation by speculators in the futures market, may also impair the correlation between movements in the prices of futures contracts and movements in the prices of the hedged securities. If the price of the futures contract moves less than the price of securities that are the subject of the hedge, the hedge will not be fully effective; but if the price of the securities being hedged has moved in an unfavorable direction, the fund would be in a better position than if it had not hedged at all. If the price of the securities being hedged has moved in a favorable direction, this advantage may be partially offset by losses on the futures position.

Options have a limited life and thus can be disposed of only within a specific time period. Positions in futures contracts may be closed out only on an exchange or board of trade that provides a secondary market for such futures contracts. Although the fund intends to purchase and sell futures only on exchanges or boards of trade where there appears to be a liquid secondary market, there is no assurance that such a market will exist for any particular contract at any particular time. In such event, it may not be possible to close a futures position and, in the event of adverse price movements, the fund would continue to be required to make variation margin payments.

Purchasers of options on futures contracts pay a premium in cash at the time of purchase which, in the event of adverse price movements, could be lost. Sellers of options on futures contracts must post initial margin and are subject to additional margin calls that could be substantial in the event of adverse price movements. Because of the low margin deposits required, futures trading involves an extremely high degree of leverage; as a result, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in immediate and substantial loss, or gain, to the investor. In addition, the fund’s activities in the futures markets may result in a higher portfolio turnover rate and additional transaction costs in the form of added brokerage commissions. Because combined options positions involve multiple trades, they result in higher transaction costs and may be more difficult to open and close out.

The exchanges may impose limits on the amount by which the price of a futures contract or related option is permitted to change in a single day. If the price of a contract moves to the limit for several consecutive days, the fund may be unable during that time to close its position in that contract and may have to continue making payments of variation margin. The fund may also be unable to dispose of securities or other instruments being used as “cover” during such a period.

Index Futures. When deemed advisable by the subadviser, the fund may enter into stock index futures contracts. A stock index futures contract is an agreement pursuant to which two parties agree to take or make delivery of an amount of cash equal to the difference between the value of the index at the close of the last trading day of the contract and the price at which the index contract was originally entered into. Stock index futures contracts are based on indexes that reflect the market value of common stock of the companies included in the indexes. When the fund buys or sells a futures contract, it incurs a contractual obligation to receive or deliver the underlying instrument (or a cash payment based on the difference between the underlying instrument’s closing price and the price at which the contract was entered into) at a specified price on a specified date. For example, in the case of stock index futures contracts, if the fund anticipates an increase in the price of stocks that it intends to purchase at a later time, the fund could enter into contracts to purchase the stock index

 

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(known as taking a “long” position) as a temporary substitute for the purchase of stocks. If an increase in the market occurs that influences the stock index as anticipated, the value of the futures contracts increases and thereby serves as a hedge against the fund’s not participating in a market advance. The fund then may close out the futures contracts by entering into offsetting futures contracts to sell the stock index (known as taking a “short” position) as it purchases individual stocks.

When index futures are used for hedging purposes, the risk of imperfect correlation between movements in the price of index futures and movements in the price of the securities that are the subject of the hedge increases as the composition of the fund’s portfolio diverges from the securities included in the applicable index. The price of the index futures may move more than or less than the price of the securities being hedged. If the price of the index futures moves less than the price of the securities that are the subject of the hedge, the hedge will not be fully effective, but if the price of the securities being hedged has moved in an unfavorable direction, the fund would be in a better position than if it had not hedged at all. If the price of the securities being hedged has moved in a favorable direction, this advantage will be partially offset by the futures contract. If the price of the futures contract moves more than the price of the securities, the fund will experience either a loss or a gain on the futures contract that will not be completely offset by movements in the price of the securities that are the subject of the hedge. To compensate for the imperfect correlation of movements in the price of the securities being hedged and movements in the price of the index futures, the fund may buy or sell index futures in a greater dollar amount than the dollar amount of the securities being hedged if the historical volatility of the prices of such securities being hedged is more than the historical volatility of the prices of the securities included in the index. It is also possible that, where the fund has sold index futures contracts to hedge against decline in the market, the overall market may advance and the value of the particular securities held in the fund’s portfolio may decline. If this occurred, the fund would lose money on the futures contract and also experience a decline in value of its portfolio securities. However, while this could occur for a very brief period or to a very small degree, over time the value of a diversified portfolio of securities will tend to move in the same direction as the market indices on which the futures contracts are based. To the extent such instruments are permitted by applicable law, this risk will also apply to security futures.

Where index futures are purchased to hedge against a possible increase in the price of securities before the fund is able to invest in them in an orderly fashion, it is possible that the market may decline instead. If the fund then concludes not to invest in them at that time because of concern as to possible further market decline or for other reasons, it will realize a loss on the futures contract that is not offset by a reduction in the price of the securities it had anticipated purchasing.

*  *  *  *  *

FOREIGN CURRENCY HEDGING STRATEGIES—SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS. The fund may use options and futures contracts on foreign currencies (including the euro), as described above and forward currency contracts, as described below, to attempt to hedge against movements in the values of the foreign currencies in which the fund’s securities are denominated or to attempt to enhance the fund’s return. Currency hedges can protect against price movements in a security that the fund owns or intends to acquire that are attributable to changes in the value of the currency in which it is denominated. Such hedges do not, however, protect against price movements in the securities that are attributable to other causes. The fund may, however, determine not to hedge particular risks, and the fund may be completely unhedged at any point in time.

The fund might seek to hedge against changes in the value of a particular currency when no Financial Instruments on that currency are available or such Financial Instruments are more expensive than certain other Financial Instruments. In such cases, the fund may seek to hedge against price movements in that currency by entering into transactions using Financial Instruments on another currency or a basket of currencies, the value of which the subadviser believes will have a high degree of positive correlation to the value of the currency being hedged. The risk that movements in the price of the Financial Instrument will not correlate perfectly with movements in the price of the currency subject to the hedging transaction is magnified when this strategy is used.

 

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The value of Financial Instruments on foreign currencies depends on the value of the underlying currency relative to the U.S. dollar. Because foreign currency transactions occurring in the interbank market might involve substantially larger amounts than those involved in the use of such Financial Instruments, the fund could be disadvantaged by having to deal in the odd lot market (generally consisting of transactions of less than $1 million) for the underlying foreign currencies at prices that are less favorable than for round lots.

There is no systematic reporting of last sale information for foreign currencies or any regulatory requirement that quotations available through dealers or other market sources be firm or revised on a timely basis. Quotation information generally is representative of very large transactions in the interbank market and thus might not reflect odd-lot transactions where rates might be less favorable. The interbank market in foreign currencies is a global, round-the-clock market. To the extent the U.S. options or futures markets are closed while the markets for the underlying currencies remain open, significant price and rate movements might take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected in the markets for the Financial Instruments until they reopen.

Settlement of hedging transactions involving foreign currencies might be required to take place within the country issuing the underlying currency. Thus, the fund might be required to accept or make delivery of the underlying foreign currency in accordance with any U.S. or foreign regulations regarding the maintenance of foreign banking arrangements by U.S. residents and might be required to pay any fees, taxes and charges associated with such delivery assessed in the issuing country.

The success of foreign currency investing depends on the subadviser’s skill in analyzing and predicting currency values. Currency investing may substantially change the fund’s exposure to changes in currency exchange rates and could result in losses to the fund if currencies do not perform as the subadviser anticipates. There is no assurance that currency investments will be advantageous to the fund or that, when these investments are used as a hedge, the hedge will be implemented at an appropriate time. The projection of short-term currency market movements is extremely difficult, and the successful execution of a short-term investment strategy is highly uncertain.

FORWARD CURRENCY CONTRACTS. The fund may enter into forward currency contracts to purchase or sell foreign currencies for a fixed amount of U.S. dollars or another foreign currency. A forward currency contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date, which may be any fixed number of days (term) from the date of the forward currency contract agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time of the forward currency contract. These forward currency contracts are traded directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their customers.

Such transactions may serve as long hedges; for example, the fund may purchase a forward currency contract to lock in the U.S. dollar price of a security denominated in a foreign currency that the fund intends to acquire. Forward currency contract transactions may also serve as short hedges; for example, the fund may sell a forward currency contract to lock in the U.S. dollar equivalent of the proceeds from the anticipated sale of a security, dividend or interest payment denominated in a foreign currency.

The fund may also use forward currency contracts to hedge against a decline in the value of existing investments denominated in foreign currency. For example, if the fund owned securities denominated in euros, it could enter into a forward currency contract to sell euros in return for U.S. dollars to hedge against possible declines in the euro’s value. Such a hedge, sometimes referred to as a “position hedge,” would tend to offset both positive and negative currency fluctuations, but would not offset changes in security values caused by other factors. The fund could also hedge the position by selling another currency expected to perform similarly to the euro. This type of hedge, sometimes referred to as a “proxy hedge,” could offer advantages in terms of cost, yield or efficiency, but generally would not hedge currency exposure as effectively as a simple hedge into U.S. dollars. Proxy hedges may result in losses if the currency used to hedge does not perform similarly to the currency in which the hedged securities are denominated. The fund could, in fact, lose money on both legs of the hedge, i.e., between the euro and proxy currency, and between the proxy currency and the dollar.

 

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The cost to the fund of engaging in forward currency contracts varies with factors such as the currency involved, the length of the contract period and the market conditions then prevailing. Because forward currency contracts are usually entered into on a principal basis, no fees or commissions are involved. When the fund enters into a forward currency contract, it relies on the counterparty to make or take delivery of the underlying currency at the maturity of the contract. Failure by the counterparty to do so would result in the loss of any expected benefit of the transaction. The fund will deal only with banks, broker/dealers or other financial institutions that the subadviser deems to be of high quality and to present minimum credit risk. The use of forward currency contracts does not eliminate fluctuations in the prices of the underlying securities the fund owns or intends to acquire, but it does fix a rate of exchange in advance. In addition, although forward currency contracts limit the risk of loss due to a decline in the value of the hedged currencies, at the same time they limit any potential gain that might result should the value of the currencies increase.

As is the case with futures contracts, parties to forward currency contracts can enter into offsetting closing transactions, similar to closing transactions on futures contracts, by selling or purchasing, respectively, an instrument identical to the instrument purchased or sold. Secondary markets generally do not exist for forward currency contracts, with the result that closing transactions generally can be made for forward currency contracts only by negotiating directly with the counterparty. Thus, there can be no assurance that the fund will in fact be able to close out a forward currency contract at a favorable price prior to maturity. In addition, in the event of insolvency of the counterparty, the fund might be unable to close out a forward currency contract at any time prior to maturity. In either event, the fund would continue to be subject to market risk with respect to the position, and would continue to be required to maintain a position in securities denominated in the foreign currency or to maintain cash or liquid assets in an account.

The precise matching of forward currency contract amounts and the value of the securities involved generally will not be possible because the value of such securities, measured in the foreign currency, will change after the forward currency contract has been established. Thus, the fund might need to purchase or sell foreign currencies in the spot (i.e., cash) market to the extent such foreign currencies are not covered by forward currency contracts. The projection of short-term currency market movements is extremely difficult, and the successful execution of a short-term hedging strategy is highly uncertain.

COMBINED POSITIONS. The fund may purchase and write options in combination with each other, or in combination with futures or forward contracts, to adjust the risk and return characteristics of its overall position. For example, the fund may purchase a put option and write a call option on the same underlying instrument, in order to construct a combined position whose risk and return characteristics are similar to selling a futures contract. Another possible combined position would involve writing a call option at one strike price and buying a call option at a lower price, in order to reduce the risk of the written call option in the event of a substantial price increase. Because combined options positions involve multiple trades, they result in higher transaction costs and may be more difficult to open and close out.

TURNOVER. The fund’s options and futures activities may affect its turnover rate and brokerage commission payments. The exercise of calls or puts written by the fund, and the sale or purchase of futures contracts, may cause it to sell or purchase related investments, thus increasing its turnover rate. Once the fund has received an exercise notice on an option it has written, it cannot effect a closing transaction in order to terminate its obligation under the option and must deliver or receive the underlying securities at the exercise price. The exercise of puts purchased by the fund may also cause the sale of related investments, also increasing turnover; although such exercise is within the fund’s control, holding a protective put might cause it to sell the related investments for reasons that would not exist in the absence of the put. The fund will pay a brokerage commission each time it buys or sells a put or call or purchases or sells a futures contract. Such commissions may be higher than those that would apply to direct purchases or sales.

SWAPS, CAPS, FLOORS AND COLLARS. The fund may enter into swaps, caps, floors and collars to attempt to increase or preserve a return or a spread on a particular investment or portion of its portfolio, or to

 

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protect against any increase in the price of securities the fund anticipates purchasing at a later date. A swap involves the exchange by the fund with another party of their respective commitments to pay or receive cash flows, e.g., an exchange of floating rate payments for fixed-rate payments. The purchase of a cap entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index exceeds a predetermined value, to receive payments on a notional principal amount from the party selling the cap. The purchase of a floor entitles the purchaser, to the extent that a specified index falls below a predetermined value, to receive payments on a notional principal amount from the party selling the floor. A collar combines elements of buying a cap and a floor.

Swap agreements, including caps, floors and collars, can be individually negotiated and structured to include exposure to a variety of different types of investments (such as individual securities, baskets of securities and securities indices) or market factors (such as those described below). Depending on their structure, swap agreements may increase or decrease the overall volatility of the fund’s investments and its share price and yield because, and to the extent, these agreements affect the fund’s exposure to long- or short-term interest rates (in the United States or abroad), foreign currency values, mortgage-backed security values, corporate borrowing rates or other factors such as security prices or inflation rates.

Swap agreements will tend to shift the fund’s investment exposure from one type of investment to another. For example, if the fund agrees to exchange payments in U.S. dollars for payments in foreign currency, the swap agreement would tend to decrease the fund’s exposure to U.S. interest rates and increase its exposure to foreign currency and interest rates. Caps and floors have an effect similar to buying or writing options.

The creditworthiness of firms with which the fund enters into swaps, caps, floors or collars will be monitored by the subadviser. If a firm’s creditworthiness declines, the value of the agreement would be likely to decline, potentially resulting in losses. Changing conditions in a particular market area, such as those recently experienced in the subprime mortgage market, whether or not directly related to the referenced assets that underlie the swap agreement, may have an adverse impact on the creditworthiness of the counterparty. For example, the counterparty may have experienced losses as a result of its exposure to the subprime market that adversely affect its creditworthiness. If a default occurs by the other party to such transaction, the fund may have contractual remedies pursuant to the agreements related to the transaction.

The net amount of the excess, if any, of the fund’s obligations over its entitlements with respect to each swap will be accrued on a daily basis and an amount of cash or liquid assets having an aggregate net asset value at least equal to the accrued excess will be maintained in an account with the fund’s custodian that satisfies the requirements of the 1940 Act. The fund will also establish and maintain such accounts with respect to its total obligations under any swaps that are not entered into on a net basis and with respect to any caps or floors that are written by the fund. The subadviser and the fund believe that such covered obligations do not constitute senior securities under the 1940 Act and, accordingly, will not treat them as being subject to the fund’s restrictions on borrowing or senior securities.

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER. The fund may have an annual portfolio turnover rate significantly in excess of 100%. The portfolio turnover rate is computed by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of securities for the period by the average value of portfolio securities for that period. Short-term securities are excluded from the calculation. High portfolio turnover rates (100% or more) will involve correspondingly greater transaction costs which will be borne directly by the fund. It may also increase the amount of short-term capital gains realized by the fund and thus may affect the tax treatment of distributions paid to shareholders, because distributions of net short-term capital gains are taxable as ordinary income. The fund will take these possibilities into account as part of its investment strategies.

New Investment Products

New types of derivative instruments and hedging instruments are developed and marketed from time to time. Consistent with its investment limitations, the fund expects to invest in those new types of securities and instruments that the subadviser believes may assist the fund in achieving its investment objective.

 

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Cybersecurity Risk

With the increased use of technologies such as mobile devices and Web-based or “cloud” applications, and the dependence on the Internet and computer systems to conduct business, the fund is susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. In general, cybersecurity incidents can result from deliberate attacks or unintentional events (arising from external or internal sources) that may cause a fund to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption, physical damage to a computer or network system or lose operational capacity. Cybersecurity attacks include, but are not limited to, infection by malicious software, such as malware or computer viruses or gaining unauthorized access to digital systems, networks or devices that are used to service the fund’s operations (e.g., through “hacking,” “phishing” or malicious software coding) or other means for purposes of misappropriating assets or sensitive information, corrupting data, or causing operational disruption. Cybersecurity attacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on the fund’s websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users). In addition, authorized persons could inadvertently or intentionally release confidential or proprietary information stored on the fund’s systems.

Cybersecurity incidents affecting the fund’s manager, any subadviser and other service providers to the fund or its shareholders (including, but not limited to, fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses to both the fund and shareholders, interference with the fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value, impediments to trading, the inability of fund shareholders to transact business and the fund to process transactions (including fulfillment of fund share purchases and redemptions), violations of applicable privacy and other laws (including the release of private shareholder information) and attendant breach notification and credit monitoring costs, regulatory fines, penalties, litigation costs, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, forensic investigation and remediation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity incidents affecting issuers of securities in which the fund invests, counterparties with which the fund engages in transactions, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchange and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies and other financial institutions (including financial intermediaries and other service providers) and other parties. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred in order to safeguard against and reduce the risk of any cybersecurity incidents in the future. In addition to administrative, technological and procedural safeguards, the fund’s manager and subadviser(s) have established business continuity plans in the event of, and risk management systems to prevent or reduce the impact of, such cybersecurity incidents. However, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems, including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified, as well as the rapid development of new threats. Furthermore, the fund cannot control the cybersecurity plans and systems put in place by its service providers or any other third parties whose operations may affect the fund or its shareholders. The fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

*  *  *  *  *

Subject to prior disclosure to shareholders, the Board may, in the future, authorize the fund to invest in securities other than those listed here and in the Prospectus, provided that such investment would be consistent with the fund’s investment objective and that it would not violate any fundamental investment policies or restrictions applicable to the fund.

Additional Risk Disclosure

Investments by Other Funds and by Other Significant Investors

Certain investment companies, including those that are affiliated with the fund because they are managed by the manager or an affiliate of the manager, may invest in the fund and may at times have substantial investments in one or more funds. Other investors also may at times have substantial investments in one or more funds.

 

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From time to time, the fund may experience relatively large redemptions or investments due to transactions in fund shares by a fund or other significant investor. The effects of these transactions could adversely affect the fund’s performance. In the event of such redemptions or investments, the fund could be required to sell securities or to invest cash at a time when it is not advantageous to do so. Such transactions may increase brokerage and/or other transaction costs of the fund. A large redemption could cause the fund’s expenses to increase and could result in the fund becoming too small to be economically viable. Redemptions of fund shares could also accelerate the realization of taxable capital gains in the fund if sales of securities result in capital gains. The impact of these transactions is likely to be greater when a fund or other significant investor purchases, redeems, or owns a substantial portion of the fund’s shares.

The manager and the subadviser may be subject to potential conflicts of interest in connection with investments in the fund by an affiliated fund due to their affiliation. For example, the manager or the subadviser could have the incentive to permit an affiliated fund to become a more significant shareholder (with the potential to cause greater disruption) than would be permitted for an unaffiliated investor. Investments by an affiliated fund may also give rise to conflicts in connection with the voting of fund shares. The manager, the subadviser and/or its advisory affiliates intend to seek to address these potential conflicts of interest in the best interests of the fund’s shareholders, although there can be no assurance that such efforts will be successful. The manager and the subadviser will consider how to minimize potential adverse impacts of affiliated fund investments, and may take such actions as each deems appropriate to address potential adverse impacts, including redemption of shares in-kind, rather than in cash.

Additional Tax Information

The following is a summary of certain material U.S. federal (and, where noted, state and local) income tax considerations affecting the fund and its shareholders. This discussion is very general and, except where noted, does not address investors subject to special rules, such as investors who hold shares in the fund through an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-advantaged account. Current and prospective shareholders are therefore urged to consult their own tax advisers with respect to the specific federal, state, local and foreign tax consequences of investing in the fund. The summary is based on the laws in effect on the date of this SAI and existing judicial and administrative interpretations thereof, all of which are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect.

The Fund and Its Investments

The fund will be treated as a separate taxpayer for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The fund has elected to be treated, and intends to qualify each year, as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the ”Code”). To so qualify, the fund must, among other things: (a) derive at least 90% of its gross income in each taxable year from dividends, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans, and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock or securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including, but not limited to, gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, and net income derived from interests in “qualified publicly traded partnerships” (i.e., partnerships that are traded on an established securities market or tradable on a secondary market, other than partnerships that derive 90% of their income from interest, dividends, capital gains, and other traditionally permitted mutual fund income); and (b) diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each quarter of the fund’s taxable year, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the fund’s assets is represented by cash, securities of other RICs, U.S. government securities and other securities, with such other securities limited, in respect of any one issuer, to an amount not greater than 5% of the fund’s assets and not greater than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other RICs) of any one issuer, in the securities (other than the securities of other RICs) of any two or more issuers that the fund controls and that are determined to be engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses or related trades or businesses, or in the securities of one or more “qualified publicly traded partnerships.”

 

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The fund’s investments in partnerships, if any, including in qualified publicly traded partnerships, may result in the fund being subject to state, local or foreign income, franchise or withholding tax liabilities.

As a RIC, the fund will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the portion of its taxable investment income and capital gains that it distributes to its shareholders, provided that it satisfies a minimum distribution requirement. To satisfy the minimum distribution requirement, the fund must distribute to its shareholders at least the sum of (i) 90% of its “investment company taxable income” (i.e., generally, its taxable income other than its net capital gain, plus or minus certain other adjustments), and (ii) 90% of its net tax-exempt income for the taxable year. The fund will be subject to income tax at regular corporate tax rates on any taxable income or gains that it does not distribute to its shareholders.

If, for any taxable year, the fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC under the Code or were to fail to meet the distribution requirement, it would be taxed in the same manner as an ordinary corporation, and distributions to its shareholders would not be deductible by the fund in computing its taxable income. In addition, in the event of a failure to qualify, the fund’s distributions, including any distributions of net long-term capital gains, would be taxable to shareholders as ordinary dividend income for federal income tax purposes to the extent of the fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. However, such dividends would be eligible, subject to any generally applicable limitations, (i) to be treated as qualified dividend income in the case of shareholders taxed as individuals and (ii) for the dividends-received deduction in the case of corporate shareholders. Moreover, if the fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC in any year, it would be required to pay out its earnings and profits accumulated in that year in order to qualify again as a RIC. Under certain circumstances, the fund may cure a failure to qualify as a RIC, but in order to do so the fund may incur significant fund-level taxes and may be forced to dispose of certain assets. If the fund failed to qualify as a RIC for a period greater than two taxable years, the fund would generally be required to recognize any net built-in gains with respect to certain of its assets upon a disposition of such assets within ten years of qualifying as a RIC in a subsequent year.

The Code imposes a 4% nondeductible excise tax on the fund to the extent it does not distribute by the end of any calendar year at least the sum of (i) 98% of its ordinary income for that year and (ii) 98.2% of its capital gain net income (both long-term and short-term) for the one-year period ending, as a general rule, on October 31 of that year. For this purpose, however, any ordinary income or capital gain net income that is retained by the fund and subject to corporate income tax will be considered to have been distributed by year-end. In addition, the minimum amounts that must be distributed in any year to avoid the excise tax will be increased or decreased to reflect any underdistribution or overdistribution, as the case may be, from the previous year. The fund anticipates that it will pay such dividends and will make such distributions as are necessary to avoid the application of this excise tax.

The fund’s transactions in foreign currencies, forward contracts, options and futures contracts (including options and futures contracts on foreign currencies), if any, will be subject to special provisions of the Code (including provisions relating to “hedging transactions” and “straddles”) that, among other things, may affect the character of gains and losses realized by the fund (i.e., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital), accelerate recognition of income to the fund, and defer fund losses. These rules could therefore affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. These provisions also (a) will require the fund to “mark to market” certain types of the positions in its portfolio (i.e., treat them as if they were closed out at the end of each year) and (b) may cause the fund to recognize income prior to the receipt of cash with which to pay dividends or make distributions in amounts necessary to satisfy the distribution requirements for avoiding income and excise taxes. In order to distribute this income and avoid a tax at the fund level, the fund might be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss. The fund will monitor its transactions, will make the appropriate tax elections and will make the appropriate entries in its books and records when it acquires any foreign currency, forward contract, option, futures contract or hedged investment in order to mitigate the effect of these rules and prevent disqualification of the fund as a RIC.

 

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The fund’s investments in so-called “section 1256 contracts,” such as regulated futures contracts, most foreign currency forward contracts traded in the interbank market and options on most stock indices, are subject to special tax rules. All section 1256 contracts held by the fund at the end of its taxable year are required to be marked to their market value, and any unrealized gain or loss on those positions will be included in the fund’s income as if each position had been sold for its fair market value at the end of the taxable year. The resulting gain or loss will be combined with any gain or loss realized by the fund from positions in section 1256 contracts closed during the taxable year. Provided such positions were held as capital assets and were not part of a “hedging transaction” or part of a “straddle,” 60% of the resulting net gain or loss will be treated as long-term capital gain or loss, and 40% of such net gain or loss will be treated as short-term capital gain or loss, regardless of the period of time the positions were actually held by the fund.

In general, gain or loss on a short sale is recognized when the fund closes the sale by delivering the borrowed property to the lender, not when the borrowed property is sold. Gain or loss from a short sale is generally considered as capital gain or loss to the extent that the property used to close the short sale constitutes a capital asset in the fund’s hands. Except with respect to certain situations where the property used by the fund to close a short sale has a long-term holding period on the date of the short sale, special rules would generally treat the gains on short sales as short-term capital gains. These rules may also terminate the running of the holding period of “substantially identical property” held by the fund. Moreover, a loss on a short sale will be treated as a long-term capital loss if, on the date of the short sale, “substantially identical property” has been held by the fund for more than one year. In general, the fund will not be permitted to deduct payments made to reimburse the lender of securities for dividends paid on borrowed stock if the short sale is closed on or before the 45th day after the short sale is entered into.

As a result of entering into swap contracts, the fund may make or receive periodic net payments. The fund may also make or receive a payment when a swap is terminated prior to maturity through an assignment of the swap or other closing transaction. Periodic net payments will generally constitute ordinary income or deductions, while termination of a swap will generally result in capital gain or loss (which will be a long-term capital gain or loss if the fund has been a party to the swap for more than one year).

The fund may be required to treat amounts as taxable income or gain, subject to the distribution requirements referred to above, even though no corresponding amounts of cash are received concurrently, as a result of (1) mark-to-market rules, constructive sale rules or rules applicable to PFICs (as defined below), to partnerships or trusts in which the fund invests or to certain “appreciated financial positions,” (2) the inability to obtain cash distributions or other amounts due to currency controls or restrictions on repatriation imposed by a foreign country with respect to the fund’s investments (including through depositary receipts) in issuers in such country, or (3) tax rules applicable to debt obligations acquired with “original issue discount,” including zero- coupon or deferred payment bonds and pay-in-kind debt obligations, or to market discount if an election is made with respect to such market discount. In order to distribute this income and avoid a tax on the fund, the fund might be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss. The fund might also meet the distribution requirements by borrowing the necessary cash, thereby incurring interest expenses.

Foreign Investments. Interest or other income (including, in some cases, capital gains) received by the fund from investments in foreign securities may be subject to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes in some cases. If more than 50% of the value of the fund’s assets at the close of any taxable year consists of stock or securities of foreign corporations, which for this purpose may include obligations of foreign governmental issuers, the fund may elect, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, to treat any foreign income or withholding taxes paid by the fund as paid by its shareholders. For any year that the fund is eligible for and makes such an election, each shareholder of the fund will be required to include in income an amount equal to his or her allocable share of qualified foreign income taxes paid by the fund, and shareholders will be entitled, subject to certain holding period requirements and other limitations, to credit their portions of these amounts against their

 

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United States federal income tax due, if any, or to deduct their portions from their United States taxable income, if any. No deductions for foreign taxes paid by the fund may be claimed, however, by non-corporate shareholders who do not itemize deductions and no deductions for foreign taxes will be permitted to individuals in computing their alternative minimum tax liability. Foreign taxes paid by the fund may reduce the return from the fund’s investments. Under certain circumstances, if the fund receives a refund of foreign taxes paid in respect of a prior year, the fund’s shareholders could incur a loss, or any foreign tax credits or deductions passed through to shareholders in respect of the fund’s foreign taxes for the current year could be reduced.

Under Section 988 of the Code, gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the time the fund accrues income or receivables or expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time the fund actually collects such income or pays such liabilities are generally treated as ordinary income or ordinary loss. Similarly, gains or losses on foreign currency, foreign currency forward contracts, certain foreign currency options or futures contracts and the disposition of debt securities denominated in foreign currency, to the extent attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the acquisition and disposition dates, are also treated as ordinary income or loss.

Passive Foreign Investment Companies. If the fund purchases shares in certain foreign entities, called “passive foreign investment companies” (“PFICs”), and does not timely make certain elections, it may be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a portion of any “excess distribution” or gain from the disposition of such shares even if such income is distributed as a taxable dividend by the fund to its shareholders. Additional charges in the nature of interest may be imposed on the fund in respect of deferred taxes arising from such distributions or gains.

If the fund were to invest in a PFIC and timely elect to treat the PFIC as a “qualified electing fund” under the Code for the first year of its holding period in the PFIC stock, in lieu of the foregoing requirements, the fund would generally be required to include in income each year a portion of the ordinary earnings and net capital gains of the qualified electing fund, even if not distributed to the fund, and such amounts would be subject to the 90% and excise tax distribution requirements described above. In order to distribute this income and avoid a tax at the fund level, the fund might be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss. In order to make the “qualified electing fund” election, the fund would be required to obtain certain annual information from the PFICs in which it invests, which may be difficult or impossible to obtain.

If the fund were to invest in a PFIC and make a mark-to-market election, the fund would be treated as if it had sold and repurchased all of the PFIC stock at the end of each year. In such case, the fund would report any such gains as ordinary income and would deduct any such losses as ordinary losses to the extent of previously recognized gains. Such an election must be made separately for each PFIC owned by the fund and, once made, would be effective for all subsequent taxable years of the fund, unless revoked with the consent of the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”). By making the election, the fund could potentially ameliorate the adverse tax consequences with respect to its ownership of shares in a PFIC, but in any particular year might be required to recognize income in excess of the distributions it receives from PFICs and its proceeds from dispositions of PFIC stock. The fund might have to distribute such excess income and gain to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement and to avoid imposition of the 4% excise tax. In order to distribute this income and avoid a tax at the fund level, the fund might be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss.

Capital Losses. As of September 30, 2016, the fund had capital losses of $145,951 that are not subject to expiration and may be carried forward to offset future taxable capital gains. These capital losses have been deferred as either short-term or long-term losses and will be deemed to occur on the first day of the next taxable year in the same character as they were originally deferred.

 

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Taxation of U.S. Shareholders

Dividends and Distributions. Dividends and other distributions by the fund are generally treated under the Code as received by the shareholders at the time the dividend or distribution is made. However, if any dividend or distribution is declared by the fund in October, November or December of any calendar year and payable to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month but is actually paid during the following January, such dividend or distribution will be deemed to have been received by each shareholder on December 31 of the year in which the dividend was declared.

The fund intends to distribute annually to its shareholders substantially all of its investment company taxable income, and any net realized long-term capital gains in excess of net realized short-term capital losses (including any capital loss carryforwards). However, if the fund retains for investment an amount equal to all or a portion of its net long-term capital gains in excess of its net short-term capital losses (including any capital loss carryforwards), it will be subject to a corporate tax on the amount retained. In that event, the fund will designate such retained amounts as undistributed capital gains in a notice to its shareholders who (a) will be required to include in income for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as long-term capital gains, their proportionate shares of the undistributed amount, (b) will be entitled to credit their proportionate shares of the income tax paid by the fund on the undistributed amount against their U.S. federal income tax liabilities, if any, and to claim refunds to the extent their credits exceed their liabilities, if any, and (c) will be entitled to increase their tax basis, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, in their shares by an amount equal to the excess of the amount of undistributed net capital gain included in their respective income over their respective income tax credits. Organizations or persons not subject to U.S. federal income tax on such capital gains will be entitled to a refund of their pro rata share of such taxes paid by the fund upon timely filing appropriate returns or claims for refund with the IRS.

Distributions of net investment income and of net realized short-term capital gains, whether paid in cash or in shares, are taxable to a U.S. shareholder as ordinary income or, if certain conditions are met, as “qualified dividend income,” taxable to individual and certain other noncorporate shareholders at U.S. federal income tax rates of up to 20%. Distributions of net capital gain (i.e., the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), if any, that the fund reports as capital gain dividends are taxable as long-term capital gains, whether paid in cash or in shares, and regardless of how long a shareholder has held shares of the fund.

In general, dividends may be reported by the fund as qualified dividend income if they are attributable to qualified dividend income received by the fund. Qualified dividend income generally means dividend income received from the fund’s investments in common and preferred stock of U.S. companies and stock of certain qualified foreign corporations, provided that certain holding period and other requirements are met by both the fund and the shareholders. If 95% or more of the fund’s gross income (calculated without taking into account net capital gain derived from sales or other dispositions of stock or securities) consists of qualified dividend income, the fund may report all distributions of such income as qualified dividend income.

A foreign corporation is treated as a qualified foreign corporation for this purpose if it is incorporated in a possession of the United States or it is eligible for the benefits of certain income tax treaties with the U.S. and meets certain additional requirements. Certain foreign corporations that are not otherwise qualified foreign corporations will be treated as qualified foreign corporations with respect to dividends paid by them if the stock with respect to which the dividends are paid is readily tradable on an established securities market in the U.S. PFICs are not qualified foreign corporations for this purpose. Dividends received by the fund from REITs generally are not expected to qualify for treatment as qualified dividend income.

A dividend that is attributable to qualified dividend income of the fund that is paid by the fund to a shareholder will not be taxable as qualified dividend income to such shareholder (1) if the dividend is received with respect to any share of the fund held for fewer than 61 days during the 121-day period beginning on the date which is 60 days before the date on which such share became ex-dividend with respect to such dividend, (2) to the extent that the shareholder is under an obligation (whether pursuant to a short sale or otherwise) to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property, or (3) if the shareholder

 

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elects to have the dividend treated as investment income for purposes of the limitation on deductibility of investment interest. The “ex-dividend” date is the date on which the owner of the share at the commencement of such date is entitled to receive the next issued dividend payment for such share even if the share is sold by the owner on that date or thereafter.

Certain dividends received by the fund from U.S. corporations (generally, dividends received by the fund in respect of any share of stock (1) with a tax holding period of at least 46 days during the 91-day period beginning on the date that is 45 days before the date on which the stock becomes ex-dividend as to that dividend and (2) that is held in an unleveraged position) and distributed and appropriately so reported by the fund may be eligible for the 70% dividends-received deduction generally available to corporations under the Code. Certain preferred stock must have a holding period of at least 91 days during the 181-day period beginning on the date that is 90 days before the date on which the stock becomes ex-dividend as to that dividend in order to be eligible. Capital gain dividends distributed to the fund from other RICs are not eligible for the dividends-received deduction. In order to qualify for the deduction, corporate shareholders must meet the minimum holding period requirement stated above with respect to their fund shares, taking into account any holding period reductions from certain hedging or other transactions or positions that diminish their risk of loss with respect to their fund shares, and, if they borrow to acquire or otherwise incur debt attributable to fund shares, they may be denied a portion of the dividends-received deduction with respect to those shares. The entire dividend, including the otherwise deductible amount, will be included in determining the excess, if any, of a corporation’s adjusted current earnings over its alternative minimum taxable income, which may increase a corporation’s alternative minimum tax liability. Any corporate shareholder should consult its tax adviser regarding the possibility that its tax basis in its shares may be reduced, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, by reason of “extraordinary dividends” received with respect to the shares and, to the extent such basis would be reduced below zero, current recognition of income may be required.

Dividends and distributions from the fund will generally be taken into account in determining a shareholder’s “net investment income” for purposes of the Medicare contribution tax applicable to certain individuals, estates and trusts.

Distributions in excess of the fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits will, as to each shareholder, be treated as a tax-free return of capital to the extent of the shareholder’s basis in his or her shares of the fund, and as a capital gain thereafter (if the shareholder holds his or her shares of the fund as capital assets). Each shareholder who receives distributions in the form of additional shares will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as if receiving a distribution in an amount equal to the amount of money that the shareholder would have received if he or she had instead elected to receive cash distributions. The shareholder’s aggregate tax basis in shares of the fund will be increased by such amount.

Investors considering buying shares just prior to a dividend or capital gain distribution should be aware that, although the price of shares purchased at that time may reflect the amount of the forthcoming distribution, such dividend or distribution may nevertheless be taxable to them.

Sales of Shares. Upon the sale or exchange of his or her shares, a shareholder will generally recognize a taxable gain or loss equal to the difference between the amount realized and his or her basis in the shares. A redemption of shares by the fund will be treated as a sale for this purpose. Such gain or loss will be treated as capital gain or loss if the shares are capital assets in the shareholder’s hands, and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the shares are held for more than one year and short-term capital gain or loss if the shares are held for one year or less. Any loss realized on a sale or exchange will be disallowed to the extent the shares disposed of are replaced, including replacement through the reinvesting of dividends and capital gains distributions in the fund, within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the disposition of the shares. In such a case, the basis of the shares acquired will be increased to reflect the disallowed loss. Any loss realized by a shareholder on the sale of fund shares held by the shareholder for six months or less will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any distributions or deemed distributions

 

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of long-term capital gains received by the shareholder (including amounts credited to the shareholder as undistributed capital gains) with respect to such shares.

If a shareholder incurs a sales charge in acquiring shares of the fund, disposes of those shares within 90 days and then acquires, before February 1 of the calendar year following the calendar year of the disposition, shares in a mutual fund for which the otherwise applicable sales charge is reduced by reason of a reinvestment right (e.g., an exchange privilege), the original sales charge will not be taken into account in computing gain or loss on the original shares to the extent the subsequent sales charge is reduced. Instead, the disregarded portion of the original sales charge will be added to the tax basis in the newly acquired shares. Furthermore, the same rule also applies to a disposition of the newly acquired shares made within 90 days of the second acquisition. This provision prevents a shareholder from immediately deducting the sales charge by shifting his or her investment within a family of mutual funds.

If a shareholder recognizes a loss with respect to the fund’s shares of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder (or certain greater amounts over a combination of years), the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on IRS Form 8886. Direct shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. The fact that a loss is so reportable does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper.

If a shareholder’s shares are redeemed to pay a fee because the shareholder’s account balance is less than a certain threshold, the redemption will be treated as a taxable sale or exchange of shares, as described above. The deductibility of that fee by a shareholder that is an individual may be subject to generally applicable limitations on miscellaneous itemized deductions.

Basis Reporting. The fund, or, in the case of a shareholder holding shares through a Service Agent, the Service Agent, will report to the IRS the amount of proceeds that a shareholder receives from a redemption or exchange of fund shares. The fund will also report the shareholder’s basis in those shares and the character of any gain or loss that the shareholder realizes on the redemption or exchange (i.e., short-term or long-term), and certain related tax information. If a shareholder has a different basis for different shares of the fund in the same account (e.g., if a shareholder purchased fund shares held in the same account when the shares were at different prices), the fund will by default report the basis of the shares redeemed or exchanged using the average basis method, under which the basis per share is the average of the bases of all the shareholder’s fund shares in the account.

A shareholder may instruct the fund to use a method other than average basis for an account. If redemptions, including in connection with payment of an account fee, or exchanges have occurred in an account to which the average basis method applied, the basis of the fund shares remaining in the account will continue to reflect the average basis notwithstanding the shareholder’s subsequent election of a different method. For further assistance, shareholders who hold their shares directly with the fund may call the fund at 1-877-721-1926 Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time). Shareholders who hold shares through a Service Agent should contact the Service Agent for further assistance or for information regarding the Service Agent’s default method for calculating basis and procedures for electing to use an alternative method. Shareholders should consult their tax advisers concerning the tax consequences of applying the average basis method or electing another method of basis calculation, and should consider electing such other method prior to making redemptions or exchanges in their accounts.

Backup Withholding. The fund may be required in certain circumstances to apply backup withholding on dividends , distributions and redemption proceeds payable to non-corporate shareholders who fail to provide the fund with their correct taxpayer identification numbers or to make required certifications, or who have been notified by the IRS that they are subject to backup withholding. The backup withholding rate is 28%. Backup withholding is not an additional tax and any amount withheld may be credited against a shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liabilities.

 

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Notices. Shareholders will receive, if appropriate, various written notices after the close of the fund’s taxable year regarding the U.S. federal income tax status of certain dividends, distributions and redemption proceeds that were paid (or that are treated as having been paid) by the fund to its shareholders during the preceding taxable year.

Other Taxes. Dividends, distributions and redemption proceeds may also be subject to additional state, local and foreign taxes depending on each shareholder’s particular situation. Generally, shareholders will have to pay state or local taxes on fund dividends and other distributions, although distributions derived from interest on U.S. government obligations (but not distributions of gain from the sale of such obligations) may be exempt from certain state and local taxes.

Taxation of Non-U.S. Shareholders

Ordinary dividends and certain other payments made by the fund to non-U.S. shareholders are generally subject to federal withholding tax at a 30% rate (or such lower rate as may be determined in accordance with any applicable treaty). In order to obtain a reduced rate of withholding, a non-U.S. shareholder will be required to provide an IRS Form W-8BEN or similar form certifying its entitlement to benefits under a treaty. The withholding tax does not apply to regular dividends paid to a non-U.S. shareholder who provides an IRS Form W-8ECI, certifying that the dividends are effectively connected with the non-U.S. shareholder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States. Instead, the effectively connected dividends will be subject to regular U.S. federal income tax as if the non-U.S. shareholder were a U.S. shareholder. A non-U.S. corporation receiving effectively connected dividends may also be subject to additional “branch profits tax” imposed at a rate of 30% (or a lower treaty rate). A non-U.S. shareholder who fails to provide an IRS Form W-8BEN or other applicable form may be subject to backup withholding at the appropriate rate. Backup withholding will not be applied to payments that have already been subject to the 30% withholding tax.

The 30% withholding tax generally will not apply to distributions of the excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses or to redemption proceeds. The 30% withholding tax also will not apply to dividends that the fund reports as (a) interest-related dividends, to the extent such dividends are derived from the fund’s “qualified net interest income,” or (b) short-term capital gain dividends, to the extent such dividends are derived from the fund’s “qualified short-term gain.” “Qualified net interest income” is the fund’s net income derived from U.S.-source interest and original issue discount, subject to certain exceptions and limitations. “Qualified short-term gain” generally means the excess of the net short-term capital gain of the fund for the taxable year over its net long-term capital loss, if any. In the case of shares held through an intermediary, the intermediary may withhold even if the fund reports a payment as an interest-related dividend or a short-term capital gain dividend. Non-U.S. shareholders should contact their intermediaries with respect to the application of these rules to their accounts.

Under legislation generally known as “FATCA” (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), the fund is required to withhold 30% of certain ordinary dividends it pays, and, after December 31, 2018, 30% of the gross proceeds of share redemptions and certain capital gain dividends it pays, to shareholders that fail to meet prescribed information reporting or certification requirements. In general, no such withholding will be required with respect to a U.S. person or non-U.S. individual that timely provides the certifications required by the fund or its agent on a valid IRS Form W-9 or applicable IRS Form W-8, respectively. Shareholders potentially subject to withholding include foreign financial institutions (“FFIs”), such as non-U.S. investment funds, and non-financial foreign entities (“NFFEs”). To avoid withholding under FATCA, an FFI generally must enter into an information sharing agreement with the IRS in which it agrees to report certain identifying information (including name, address, and taxpayer identification number) with respect to its U.S. account holders (which, in the case of an entity shareholder, may include its direct and indirect U.S. owners), and an NFFE generally must identify and provide other required information to the fund or other withholding agent regarding its U.S. owners, if any. Such non-U.S. shareholders also may fall into certain exempt, excepted or deemed compliant categories as established by regulations and other guidance. A non-U.S. shareholder resident or doing business in a country that has

 

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entered into an intergovernmental agreement with the U.S. to implement FATCA will be exempt from FATCA withholding provided that the shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of the agreement.

A non-U.S. entity that invests in the fund will need to provide the fund with documentation properly certifying the entity’s status under FATCA in order to avoid FATCA withholding.

Non-U.S. investors should consult their own tax advisers regarding the impact of these requirements on their investment in the fund.

The foregoing is only a summary of certain material U.S. federal income tax consequences (and, where noted, state and local tax consequences) affecting the fund and its shareholders. Current and prospective shareholders are advised to consult their own tax advisers with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the fund.

Additional Purchase and Redemption Information

If your check to purchase shares is not honored by the institution on which it is drawn, you may be subject to extra charges in order to cover collection costs. These charges may be deducted from your shareholder account.

General

See the Prospectus for a discussion of which classes of shares of the fund are available for purchase and who is eligible to purchase shares of each class.

Investors may purchase shares from a Service Agent. In addition, certain investors, including retirement plans purchasing through certain Service Agents, may purchase shares directly from the fund. When purchasing shares of the fund, investors must specify the class of shares being purchased. Service Agents may charge their customers an annual account maintenance fee in connection with a brokerage account through which an investor purchases or holds shares. Accounts held directly at the transfer agent are not subject to a maintenance fee.

For additional information regarding applicable investment minimums and eligibility requirements for purchases of fund shares, please see the fund’s Prospectus.

Purchase orders received by the fund prior to the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE on any day the fund calculates its net asset value are priced according to the net asset value determined on that day (the “trade date”). Orders received by a Service Agent prior to the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE on any day the fund calculates its net asset value are priced according to the net asset value determined on that day, provided the order is transmitted by the Service Agent to the fund’s transfer agent in accordance with their agreed-upon procedures. Payment must be made with the purchase order.

Class I Shares. The following persons are eligible to purchase Class I shares directly from the fund: (i) current employees of the fund’s manager and its affiliates; (ii) former employees of the fund’s manager and its affiliates with existing accounts; (iii) current and former board members of investment companies managed by affiliates of Legg Mason; (iv) current and former board members of Legg Mason; and (v) the immediate families of such persons. Immediate families are such person’s spouse (and, in the case of a deceased board member, the surviving spouse) and parents, grandparents, children, and grandchildren (including step-relationships). For such investors, the minimum initial investment is $1,000 and the minimum for each purchase of additional shares is $50. Current employees may purchase additional Class I shares through a systematic investment plan.

 

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Under certain circumstances, an investor who purchases fund shares pursuant to a fee-based advisory account program of an Eligible Financial Intermediary as authorized by LMIS may be afforded an opportunity to make a conversion between one or more share classes owned by the investor in the same fund to Class I shares of the fund. Such a conversion in these particular circumstances does not cause the investor to realize taxable gain or loss.

For additional information regarding applicable investment minimums and eligibility requirements for purchases of fund shares, please see the Prospectus.

Systematic Investment Plan

Shareholders may make additions to their accounts at any time by purchasing shares through a service known as the Systematic Investment Plan. Under the Systematic Investment Plan, shareholders may arrange for automatic monthly investments in certain share classes of $50 or more by authorizing the distributor or the transfer agent to charge the shareholder’s account held with a bank or other financial institution, as indicated by the shareholder, to provide for systematic additions to the shareholder’s fund account. Shareholders have the option of selecting the frequency of the investment (on a monthly, quarterly, every alternate month, semi-annual or annual basis) as long as the investment equals a minimum of $50 per month. Shareholders may terminate participation in the Systematic Investment Plan at any time without charge or penalty. Additional information is available from the fund or a Service Agent.

Sales Charge Alternatives

The following classes of shares are available for purchase. See the Prospectus for a discussion of who is eligible to purchase certain classes and of factors to consider in selecting which class of shares to purchase.

Class A Shares and Class A2 Shares. Class A shares and Class A2 shares are sold to investors at the public offering price, which is the net asset value plus an initial sales charge, as described in the Prospectus. The sales charge is waived for shareholders purchasing Class A shares through accounts where Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC is the broker-dealer of record (“LMIS Accounts”).

Financial intermediaries that have entered into an agreement with LMIS to sell shares of the fund (“Financial Advisers”) may receive a portion of the sales charge as described in the Prospectus and may be deemed to be underwriters of the fund as defined in the 1933 Act. Sales charges are calculated based on the aggregate of purchases of Class A shares or Class A2 shares of the fund made at one time by any “person,” which includes an individual and his or her spouse and children under the age of 21, or a trustee or other fiduciary of a single trust estate or single fiduciary account. For additional information regarding sales charge reductions, see “Sales Charge Waivers and Reductions” below.

Purchases of Class A shares and Class A2 shares of $1 million or more will be made at net asset value without any initial sales charge, but are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00% on redemptions made within 18 months of purchase (except for purchases made through LMIS Accounts). The contingent deferred sales charge is waived in the same circumstances in which the contingent deferred sales charge applicable to Class C shares is waived. See “Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Provisions” and “Waivers of Contingent Deferred Sales Charge” below.

Class C Shares. Class C shares are sold at net asset value without an initial sales charge but are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00% on certain redemptions made within 12 months of purchase. See “Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Provisions” and “Waivers of Contingent Deferred Sales Charge” below. Class C shares are not available for purchase through LMIS Accounts.

Class FI, Class R, Class I and Class IS Shares. Class FI, Class R, Class I and Class IS shares are sold at net asset value with no initial sales charge on purchases and no contingent deferred sales charge upon redemption.

 

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Sales Charge Waivers and Reductions

Initial Sales Charge Waivers. Purchases of Class A shares and Class A2 shares may be made at net asset value without an initial sales charge in the following circumstances:

(a) sales to (i) current and retired board members, (ii) current employees of Legg Mason and its subsidiaries, (iii) the “immediate families” of such persons (“immediate families” are such person’s spouse, including the surviving spouse of a deceased Board Member, and children under the age of 21) and (iv) a pension, profit-sharing or other benefit plan for the benefit of such persons;

(b) sales to any employees of Service Agents having dealer, service or other selling agreements with the fund’s distributor or otherwise having an arrangement with any such Service Agent with respect to sales of fund shares, and by the immediate families of such persons or by a pension, profit-sharing or other benefit plan for the benefit of such persons (providing the purchase is made for investment purposes and such securities will not be resold except through redemption or repurchase);

(c) offers of Class A shares or Class A2 shares to any other investment company to effect the combination of such company with the fund by merger, acquisition of assets or otherwise;

(d) purchases by shareholders who have redeemed Class A shares or Class A2 shares in the fund (or Class A shares or Class A2 shares of another fund sold by the distributor that is offered with a sales charge) and who wish to reinvest their redemption proceeds in the fund, provided the reinvestment is made within 60 calendar days of the redemption;

(e) purchases by certain separate accounts used to fund unregistered variable annuity contracts;

(f) purchases by investors participating in “wrap fee” or asset allocation programs or other fee-based arrangements sponsored by broker/dealers and other financial institutions that have entered into agreements with LMIS;

(g) purchases by direct retail investment platforms through mutual fund “supermarkets,” where the sponsor links its client’s account (including IRA accounts on such platforms) to a master account in the sponsor’s name;

(h) sales through financial intermediaries who have entered into an agreement with LMIS to offer shares to self-directed investment brokerage accounts that may or may not charge a transaction fee to their customers; and

(i) purchases of Class A shares by shareholders investing through LMIS Accounts;

(j) investors investing through certain retirement plans; and

(k) investors who rollover fund shares from a qualified retirement plan into an individual retirement account administered on the same retirement plan platform.

In order to obtain such discounts, the purchaser must provide sufficient information at the time of purchase to permit verification that the purchase qualifies for the elimination of the sales charge.

All existing retirement plan shareholders who purchased Class A shares at net asset value prior to November 20, 2006, are permitted to purchase additional Class A shares at net asset value. Certain existing programs for current and prospective retirement plan investors sponsored by financial intermediaries approved by LMIS prior to November 20, 2006 will also remain eligible to purchase Class A shares at net asset value.

There are several ways you can combine multiple purchases of Class A or Class A2 shares of funds sold by the distributor to take advantage of the breakpoints in the Class A or Class A2 shares sales charge schedule. In order to take advantage of reductions in sales charges that may be available to you when you purchase fund shares, you must inform your Service Agent or the fund if you are eligible for a letter of intent or a right of accumulation and if you own shares of other funds that are eligible to be aggregated with your purchases. Certain records, such as account statements, may be necessary in order to verify your eligibility for a reduced sales charge.

 

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Accumulation Privilege—allows you to combine the current value of shares of the fund with other shares of funds sold by the distributor that are owned by:

 

   

you or

 

   

your spouse and children under the age of 21

with the dollar amount of your next purchase of Class A shares or Class A2 shares, as applicable, for purposes of calculating the initial sales charges.

If you hold fund shares in accounts at two or more Service Agents, please contact your Service Agents to determine which shares may be combined.

Shares of money market funds sold by the distributor acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge may be combined. Shares of money market funds sold by the distributor that were not acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge may not be combined. Please contact your Service Agent or the fund for additional information.

Certain trustees and other fiduciaries may be entitled to combine accounts in determining their sales charge.

Letters of Intent—These help you take advantage of breakpoints in Class A and Class A2 sales charges. Purchases of Class A and Class A2 may be aggregated for purposes of calculating each breakpoint. You may purchase Class A shares or Class A2 shares of funds distributed by LMIS over a 13-month period and pay the same sales charge, if any, as if all shares had been purchased at once. You have a choice of seven Asset Level Goal amounts, as follows:

 

(1) $25,000

   (5) $500,000

(2) $50,000

   (6) $750,000

(3) $100,000

   (7) $1,000,000

(4) $250,000

  

Each time you make a Class A or Class A2 purchase under a Letter of Intent, you will be entitled to the sales charge that is applicable to the amount of your Asset Level Goal. For example, if your Asset Level Goal is $100,000, any Class A investments you make under a Letter of Intent would be subject to the sales charge of the specific fund you are investing in for purchases of $100,000. Sales charges and breakpoints vary among the funds distributed by LMIS.

When you enter into a Letter of Intent, you agree to purchase in Eligible Accounts over a thirteen (13) month period Eligible Fund Purchases in an amount equal to the Asset Level Goal you have selected, less any Eligible Prior Purchases. For this purpose, shares are valued at the public offering price (including any sales charge paid) calculated as of the date of purchase, plus any appreciation in the value of the shares as of the date of calculation, except for Eligible Prior Purchases, which are valued at current value as of the date of calculation. Your commitment will be met if at any time during the 13-month period the value, as so determined, of eligible holdings is at least equal to your Asset Level Goal. All reinvested dividends and other distributions on shares acquired under the Letter will be credited towards your Asset Level Goal. You may include any Eligible Fund Purchases towards the Asset Level Goal, including shares of classes other than Class A shares or Class A2 shares. However, a Letter of Intent will not entitle you to a reduction in the sales charge payable on any shares other than Class A shares or Class A2 shares, and if any shares, including Class A shares or Class A2 shares, are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge, you will still be subject to that contingent deferred sales charge with respect to those shares. You must make reference to the Letter of Intent each time you make a purchase under the Letter of Intent.

Eligible Fund Purchases. Generally, any shares of a fund distributed by LMIS may be credited towards your Asset Level Goal. Shares of certain money market funds distributed by LMIS acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge and distributed by LMIS may be credited toward your Asset Level Goal.

 

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The eligible funds may change from time to time. Investors should check with their Service Agent to see which funds may be eligible.

Eligible Accounts. Purchases may be made through any account in your name, or in the name of your spouse or your children under the age of 21. You may need to provide certain records, such as account statements of any relevant accounts, in order to verify your eligibility for reduced sales charges. Contact your Service Agent to see which accounts may be credited toward your Asset Level Goal.

Eligible Prior Purchases. You may also credit towards your Asset Level Goal any Eligible Fund Purchases made in Eligible Accounts at any time prior to entering into the Letter of Intent that have not been sold or redeemed, based on the current price of those shares as of the date of calculation.

Increasing the Amount of the Letter of Intent. You may at any time increase your Asset Level Goal. You must however contact your Financial Adviser, or if you purchase your shares directly through the fund, contact the fund prior to making any purchases in an amount in excess of your current Asset Level Goal. Upon such an increase, you will be credited by way of additional shares at the then current offering price for the difference between: (a) the aggregate sales charges actually paid for shares already purchased under the Letter of Intent and (b) the aggregate applicable sales charges for the increased Asset Level Goal. The 13-month period during which the Asset Level Goal must be achieved will remain unchanged.

Sales and Exchanges. Shares acquired pursuant to a Letter of Intent, other than Escrowed Shares as defined below, may be redeemed or exchanged at any time, although any shares that are redeemed prior to meeting your Asset Level Goal will no longer count towards meeting your Asset Level Goal. However, complete liquidation of purchases made under a Letter of Intent prior to meeting the Asset Level Goal will result in the cancellation of the Letter of Intent. See “Failure to Meet Asset Level Goal” below. Exchanges in accordance with the Prospectus are permitted, and shares so exchanged will continue to count towards your Asset Level Goal, as long as the exchange results in an Eligible Fund Purchase.

Cancellation of Letter of Intent. You may cancel a Letter of Intent by notifying your Financial Adviser in writing, or if you purchase your shares directly through the fund, by notifying the fund in writing. The Letter of Intent will be automatically cancelled if all shares are sold or redeemed as set forth above. See “Failure to Meet Asset Level Goal” below.

Escrowed Shares. Shares equal in value to five percent (5%) of your Asset Level Goal as of the date of your Letter of Intent (or the date of any increase in the amount of the Letter of Intent) is accepted, will be held in escrow during the term of your Letter of Intent. The Escrowed Shares will be included in the total shares owned as reflected in your account statement and any dividends and capital gain distributions applicable to the Escrowed Shares will be credited to your account and counted towards your Asset Level Goal or paid in cash upon request. The Escrowed Shares will be released from escrow if all the terms of your Letter are met.

Failure to Meet Asset Level Goal. If the total assets under your Letter of Intent within its 13-month term are less than your Asset Level Goal or you elect to liquidate all of your holdings or otherwise cancel the Letter of Intent before reaching your Asset Level Goal, you will be liable for the difference between: (a) the sales charge actually paid and; (b) the sales charge that would have applied if you had not entered into the Letter of Intent. You may, however, be entitled to any breakpoints that would have been available to you under the accumulation privilege. An appropriate number of shares in your account will be redeemed to realize the amount due. For these purposes, by entering into a Letter of Intent, you irrevocably appoint your Financial Adviser, or if you purchase your shares directly through the fund, the fund, as your attorney-in-fact for the purposes of holding the Escrowed Shares and surrendering shares in your account for redemption. If there are insufficient assets in your account, you will be liable for the difference. Any Escrowed Shares remaining after such redemption will be released to your account.

 

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Shareholders purchasing shares at a reduced sales charge under a Letter of Intent indicate their acceptance of these terms and those in the Prospectus with their first purchase.

Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Provisions

The “Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Shares” are: (a) Class C shares; and (b) Class A shares or Class A2 shares that were purchased without an initial sales charge but are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge. A contingent deferred sales charge may be imposed on certain redemptions of these shares.

Any applicable contingent deferred sales charge will be assessed on the net asset value at the time of purchase or redemption, whichever is less.

Class C shares that are Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Shares are subject to a 1.00% contingent deferred sales charge if redeemed within 12 months of purchase. Solely for purposes of determining the number of years since a purchase payment, all purchase payments made during a month will be aggregated and deemed to have been made on the last day of the preceding statement month.

Class A shares and Class A2 shares that are Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Shares are subject to a 1.00% contingent deferred sales charge if redeemed within 18 months of purchase.

In determining the applicability of any contingent deferred sales charge, it will be assumed that a redemption is made first of shares representing capital appreciation, next of shares representing the reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions, next of shares that are not subject to the contingent deferred sales charge and finally of other shares held by the shareholder for the longest period of time. The length of time that Contingent Deferred Sales Charge Shares acquired through an exchange have been held will be calculated from the date the shares exchanged were initially acquired in one of the other funds distributed by LMIS. For federal income tax purposes, the amount of the contingent deferred sales charge will reduce the gain or increase the loss, as the case may be, on the amount realized on the redemption. LMIS receives contingent deferred sales charges in partial consideration for its expenses in selling shares.

Waivers of Contingent Deferred Sales Charge

The contingent deferred sales charge will be waived on: (a) exchanges (see “Exchange Privilege”); (b) systematic withdrawals in amounts equal to or less than 2.00% of the shareholder’s account balance at the time the withdrawals commence, up to a maximum of 12.00% in one year (see “Systematic Withdrawal Plan”); (c) redemptions of shares within 12 months following the death or disability (as defined in the Code) of the shareholder; (d) mandatory post-retirement distributions from retirement plans or individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) commencing on or after attainment of age 70 1/2 ; (except that shareholders of certain retirement plans or IRA accounts established prior to May 23, 2005, will be eligible to obtain a waiver of the contingent deferred sales charge on all funds held in those accounts at age 59 1/2 and may be required to demonstrate such eligibility at the time of redemption); (e) involuntary redemptions; (f) redemptions of shares to effect a combination of the fund with any investment company by merger, acquisition of assets or otherwise; (g) tax-free returns of an excess contribution to any retirement plan; (h) certain redemptions of shares of the fund in connection with lump-sum or other distributions made by eligible retirement plans or redemption of shares by participants in certain “wrap fee” or asset allocation programs sponsored by broker/dealers and other financial institutions that have entered into agreements with the distributor or the manager; (i) Class A shares through LMIS Accounts.

The contingent deferred sales charge is waived on new Class C shares purchased by retirement plan omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund.

A shareholder who has redeemed shares from other funds distributed by LMIS may, under certain circumstances, reinvest all or part of the redemption proceeds within 60 days in a fund distributed by LMIS and receive pro rata credit for any contingent deferred sales charge imposed on the prior redemption.

 

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To have a contingent deferred sales charge waived, you or your Financial Adviser must let the fund know at the time you redeem shares that you qualify for such a waiver. Contingent deferred sales charge waivers will be granted subject to confirmation by LMIS or the transfer agent of the shareholder’s status or holdings, as the case may be.

Determination of Public Offering Price

The fund offers its shares to the public on a continuous basis. The public offering price for each class of shares of the fund is equal to the net asset value per share at the time of purchase, plus for Class A shares and Class A2 shares an initial sales charge based on the aggregate amount of the investment. The public offering price for Class C shares (and Class A or Class A2 share purchases, including applicable rights of accumulation, equaling or exceeding $1,000,000) is equal to the net asset value per share at the time of purchase and no sales charge is imposed at the time of purchase. A contingent deferred sales charge, however, is imposed on certain redemptions of Class A, Class A2, and Class C shares (redeemed within 12 months of purchase), and on Class A and Class A2 shares when purchased in amounts equaling or exceeding $1 million (redeemed within 18 months of purchase).

Set forth below is an example of the method of computing the offering price of Class A and Class A2 shares of the fund based on an estimated net asset value of a share of the fund.

 

Class A (based on a net asset value of $10.00 and a maximum initial sales charge of 5.75%)

     $10.61   

Class A2 (based on a net asset value of $10.00 and a maximum initial sales charge of 5.75%)

   $ 10.61   

Exchange Privilege

The exchange privilege enables shareholders to acquire shares of the same class in another fund with different investment objectives when they believe that a shift between funds is an appropriate investment decision. Prior to any exchange, the shareholder should obtain and review a copy of the current prospectus of each fund into which an exchange is being considered. The Prospectus describes the requirements for exchanging shares of the fund.

Investors that hold Class A2 shares may exchange those shares for Class A2 shares of other funds sold by a financial intermediary with a direct transfer agent relationship with such funds, or if such fund does not offer Class A2, for Class A shares.

Upon receipt of proper instructions and all necessary supporting documents, shares submitted for exchange are redeemed at the then-current net asset value, and the proceeds, net of any applicable sales charge, are immediately invested in shares of the fund being acquired at that fund’s then-current net asset value. The fund reserves the right to reject any exchange request. The exchange privilege may be modified or terminated at any time after written notice to shareholders.

Additional Information Regarding the Exchange Privilege

The fund is not designed to provide investors with a means of speculation on short-term market movements. A pattern of frequent exchanges by investors can be disruptive to efficient portfolio management and, consequently, can be detrimental to the fund and its shareholders. See “Frequent trading of fund shares” in the Prospectus.

During times of drastic economic or market conditions, the fund may suspend the exchange privilege temporarily without notice and treat exchange requests based on their separate components—redemption orders

 

43


with a simultaneous request to purchase the other fund’s shares. In such a case, the redemption request would be processed at the fund’s next determined net asset value but the purchase order would be effective only at the net asset value next determined after the fund being purchased formally accepts the order, which may result in the purchase being delayed.

The exchange privilege may be modified or terminated at any time, and is available only in those jurisdictions where such exchanges legally may be made. Before making any exchange, shareholders should contact the fund transfer agent or, if they hold fund shares through a Service Agent, their Service Agent, to obtain more information and the prospectuses of the funds to be acquired through the exchange. An exchange is treated as a sale of the shares exchanged and could result in taxable gain or loss to the shareholder making the exchange. Other taxes or tax-related consequences may apply, and you should consult your tax adviser before requesting an exchange.

Systematic Withdrawal Plan

The Systematic Withdrawal Plan is available to those shareholders who own shares directly with the fund, excluding those shares held in IRAs or Coverdell education savings accounts (“Coverdell ESAs”). You should contact your Financial Adviser to determine if it offers a similar service.

Class A, Class A2 and Class C Shareholders

Class A, Class A2 and Class C shareholders having an account with a balance of $5,000 or more may elect to make withdrawals of a minimum of $50 on a monthly basis. There are two ways to receive payment of proceeds of redemptions made through the Systematic Withdrawal Plan: (1) Check mailed by a fund’s transfer agent—fund shares will be redeemed on the 25th of each month or the next business day and a check for the proceeds will be mailed within three business days; or (2) ACH to checking or savings account—redemptions of fund shares may occur on any business day of the month and the checking or savings account will be credited with the proceeds in approximately two business days. You may change the monthly amount to be paid to you without charge by notifying a fund. You may terminate the Systematic Withdrawal Plan at any time, without charge or penalty, by contacting a fund. A fund, its transfer agent, and LMIS reserve the right to modify or terminate the Systematic Withdrawal Plan at any time. See “Waivers of Contingent Deferred Sales Charge,” above, for information about application of the contingent deferred sales charge to withdrawals under the Systematic Withdrawal Plan.

Class FI, Class I and Class IS Shareholders

Certain shareholders of the fund’s Class FI, Class I or Class IS shares with an initial net asset value of $1,000,000 or more, or certain shareholders authorized by LMIS, may be eligible to participate in the Legg Mason Institutional Funds Systematic Withdrawal Plan. Receipt of payment of proceeds of redemptions made through the Systematic Withdrawal Plan will be wired through ACH to your checking or savings account—redemptions of fund shares may occur on any business day of the month and the checking or savings account will be credited with the proceeds in approximately two business days. Requests to change or discontinue the Systematic Withdrawal Plan may be made at the fund’s website, www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds, by calling the fund at 1-877-721-1926, or by writing to the fund or a Service Agent. You may change the monthly amount to be paid to you or terminate the Systematic Withdrawal Plan at any time, without charge or penalty, by notifying the fund or a Service Agent. The fund, its transfer agent and the distributor also reserve the right to modify or terminate the Systematic Withdrawal Plan at any time.

In General

The amounts paid to you each month are obtained by redeeming sufficient shares from your account to provide the withdrawal amount that you have specified.

 

44


Redemptions will be made at the net asset value per share, determined as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) on the day corresponding to the redemption option designated by the investor, less any applicable contingent deferred sales charge. If the NYSE is not open for business on that day, the shares will be redeemed at the per share net asset value determined as of the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE on the next day the NYSE is open, less any applicable contingent deferred sales charge.

Withdrawal payments are treated as a sale of shares rather than as a dividend or other distribution. A payment is taxable to the extent that the total amount of the payment exceeds the tax basis in the shares deemed sold. If the periodic withdrawals exceed reinvested dividends and other distributions, the amount of your original investment may be correspondingly reduced.

Ordinarily, you should not purchase additional shares of the fund in which you have an account if you maintain a Systematic Withdrawal Plan, because there are tax disadvantages associated with such purchases and withdrawals. The fund will not knowingly accept purchase orders from you for additional shares if you maintain a Systematic Withdrawal Plan unless your purchase is equal to at least one year’s worth of scheduled withdrawals. In addition, shareholders who maintain a Systematic Withdrawal Plan may not make periodic investments under the Plan.

Other Information Regarding Redemptions

The fund reserves the right to modify or terminate telephonic, electronic or other redemption services described in the Prospectus and this SAI at any time.

The date of a payment for redemption may not be postponed for more than seven days, and the right of redemption may not be suspended by the fund or its distributor, except (i) for any periods during which the Exchange is closed (other than for customary weekend and holiday closings), (ii) when trading in markets the fund normally utilizes is restricted, or an emergency, as defined by rules and regulations of the SEC, exists, making disposal of the fund’s investments or determination of its net asset value not reasonably practicable, or (iii) for such other periods as the SEC by regulation or order may permit for protection of the fund’s shareholders. In the case of any such suspension, you may either withdraw your request for redemption or receive payment based upon the net asset value next determined after the suspension is lifted.

Foreign securities markets may be open for trading on days when the fund is not open for business. The net asset value of fund shares may be significantly affected on days when investors do not have access to the fund to purchase and redeem shares.

Clients of certain financial intermediaries that maintain omnibus accounts with the fund’s transfer agent may obtain shares through those financial intermediaries. Such financial intermediaries may receive payments from the fund’s distributor for account servicing, and may receive payments from their clients for other services performed. Investors may be able to purchase shares from LMIS without receiving or paying for such other services.

Redemption In-Kind

The fund reserves the right, under certain conditions, to honor any request for a redemption by making payment in whole or in part by securities valued in the same way as they would be valued for purposes of computing the fund’s net asset value per share. Because redemption in-kind may be used at times of unusual illiquidity in the markets, these valuation methods may include fair value estimations. If payment is made in securities, a shareholder should expect to incur brokerage expenses in converting those securities into cash and the market price of those securities will be subject to fluctuation until they are sold. The fund does not redeem “in-kind” under normal circumstances, but would do so where the subadviser determines that it would be in the

 

45


best interests of the fund’s shareholders as a whole. A redemption in-kind may be considered the sale of securities by the fund to the shareholder receiving the securities (though the fund generally would not be required to recognize gain for tax purposes). Redemptions in-kind will not be done with LMIS or other affiliated persons of the fund except as permitted by SEC rules or orders, or other interpretive guidance from regulators.

Shares Purchased and Redeemed Through Another Securities Dealer or Other Financial Intermediary

The fund has authorized one or more financial services institutions to receive on its behalf purchase and redemption orders. Such financial services institutions are authorized to designate plan administrator intermediaries to receive purchase and redemption orders on the fund’s behalf. The fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized financial services institution or, if applicable, a financial services institution’s authorized designee, receives the order. Orders will be priced at the fund’s net asset value next computed after they are received by an authorized trust company or the financial services institution’s authorized designee and accepted by the fund.

Transferring Legg Mason Fund Shares to Another Securities Dealer or Other Financial Intermediary

You may transfer fund shares only to an account with another securities dealer or other financial intermediary that has entered into an agreement with LMIS or one of its affiliates with respect to the particular fund. Some dealers and intermediaries may have agreements with LMIS or one of its affiliates with respect to some Legg Mason Funds and not others. Depending on the dealer or intermediary to which you transfer the shares, certain shareholder services may not be available for the transferred shares. After the transfer, you may purchase additional fund shares. All future trading of fund shares, including exchanges, is subject to the rules of the dealer or intermediary and its continued agreement with the distributor that permits such trading.

You should contact your securities dealer, financial intermediary or the fund for further information on transferring fund shares.

Grandfathered Retirement Program with Exchange Features

Certain retirement plan programs with exchange features in effect prior to November 20, 2006 (collectively, the “Grandfathered Retirement Program”) that are authorized by the distributor to offer eligible retirement plan investors the opportunity to exchange all of their Class C shares or Class C1 shares, if applicable, for Class A shares of an applicable fund sold by the distributor, are permitted to maintain such share class exchange feature for current and prospective retirement plan investors.

Under the Grandfathered Retirement Program, Class C shares and Class C1 shares of the fund may be purchased by plans investing less than $3,000,000. Class C shares and Class C1 shares are eligible for exchange into Class A shares not later than eight years after the plan joins the program. They are eligible for exchange in the following circumstances: For participating plans established with the fund or another fund in the Legg Mason family of funds (including funds for which LMPFA or any predecessor serves or has served as investment manager or administrator) prior to June 2, 2003, if such plan’s total Class C and Class C1 holdings in all non-money market funds sold by the distributor equal at least $1,000,000 at the end of the fifth year after the date the participating plan enrolled in the Grandfathered Retirement Program, the participating plan will be permitted to exchange all of its Class C shares and Class C1 shares for Class A shares of the fund. For participating plans established with the fund or another fund in the Legg Mason family of funds (including funds for which LMPFA or any predecessor serves or has served as investment manager or administrator) on or after June 2, 2003, if such plan’s total Class C and Class C1 holdings in all non-money market funds sold by the distributor equal at least $3,000,000 at the end of the fifth year after the date the participating plan enrolled in the Grandfathered Retirement Program, the participating plan will be permitted to exchange all of its Class C shares and Class C1 shares for Class A shares of the fund.

 

46


Unless the exchange offer has been rejected in writing, the exchange will automatically occur within approximately 30 days after the fifth anniversary date. If the participating plan does not qualify for the five-year exchange to Class A shares, a review of the participating plan’s holdings will be performed each quarter until either the participating plan qualifies or the end of the eighth year.

Any participating plan that has not previously qualified for an exchange into Class A shares will be offered the opportunity to exchange all of its Class C shares and Class C1 shares for Class A shares of the same fund regardless of asset size at the end of the eighth year after the date the participating plan enrolled in the Grandfathered Retirement Program. Unless the exchange has been rejected in writing, the exchange will automatically occur on or about the eighth anniversary date. Once an exchange has occurred, a participating plan will not be eligible to acquire additional Class C shares and Class C1 shares, but instead may acquire Class A shares of the same fund. Any Class C shares and Class C1 shares not converted will continue to be subject to the distribution fee.

For further information regarding the Grandfathered Retirement Program, contact your Service Agent or the transfer agent. Participating plans that enrolled in the Grandfathered Retirement Program prior to June 2, 2003 should contact the transfer agent for information regarding Class C and Class C1 exchange privileges applicable to their plan.

Valuation of Shares

The net asset value per share of each class is calculated on each day, Monday through Friday, except days on which the NYSE is closed. As of the date of this SAI, the NYSE is normally open for trading every weekday except in the event of an emergency or for the following holidays (or the days on which they are observed): New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Because of the differences in distribution fees and class-specific expenses, the per share net asset value of each class will differ. Please see the Prospectus for a description of the procedures used by the fund in valuing its assets.

Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings

The fund’s Board has adopted policies and procedures (the “policy”) developed by the manager with respect to the disclosure of the fund’s portfolio securities and any ongoing arrangements to make available information about the fund’s portfolio securities. The manager believes the policy is in the best interests of the fund and its shareholders and that it strikes an appropriate balance between the desire of investors for information about fund portfolio holdings and the need to protect funds from potentially harmful disclosures.

General rules/Website disclosure

The policy provides that information regarding the fund’s portfolio holdings may be shared at any time with employees of the manager, the fund’s subadviser and other affiliated parties involved in the management, administration or operations of the fund (referred to as fund-affiliated personnel). The fund’s complete list of holdings (including the size of each position) may be made available to investors, potential investors, third parties and Legg Mason personnel that are not fund-affiliated personnel (i) upon the filing of Form N-Q or Form N-CSR in accordance with SEC rules, provided that such filings are not made until 15 calendar days following the end of the period covered by the Form N-Q or Form N-CSR or (ii) no sooner than 15 days after month end, provided that such information has been made available through public disclosure at least one day previously. Typically, public disclosure is achieved by required filings with the SEC and/or posting the information to Legg Mason’s or the fund’s Internet site that is accessible by the public, or through public release by a third party vendor.

 

47


The fund currently discloses its complete portfolio holdings 14 calendar days after quarter-end on Legg Mason’s website:www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds (click on the name of the fund).

Ongoing arrangements

Under the policy, the fund may release portfolio holdings information on a regular basis to a custodian, sub-custodian, fund accounting agent, proxy voting provider, rating agency or other vendor or service provider for a legitimate business purpose, where the party receiving the information is under a duty of confidentiality, including a duty to prohibit the sharing of non-public information with unauthorized sources and trading upon non-public information. The fund may enter into other ongoing arrangements for the release of portfolio holdings information, but only if such arrangements serve a legitimate business purpose and are with a party who is subject to a confidentiality agreement and restrictions on trading upon non-public information. None of the funds, Legg Mason or any other affiliated party may receive compensation or any other consideration in connection with such arrangements. Ongoing arrangements to make available information about the fund’s portfolio securities will be reviewed at least annually by the fund’s board.

Set forth below is a list, as of November 30, 2016, of those parties with whom the manager, on behalf of the fund, has authorized ongoing arrangements that include the release of portfolio holdings information in accordance with the policy, as well as the maximum frequency of the release under such arrangements, and the minimum length of the lag, if any, between the date of the information and the date on which the information is disclosed. The ongoing arrangements may vary for each party, and it is possible that not every party will receive information for the fund. The parties identified below as recipients are service providers, fund rating agencies, consultants and analysts.

 

Recipient

  

Frequency

  

Delay Before Dissemination

1919 Investment Counsel, LLC

   Daily    None

Bloomberg AIM

   Daily    None

Bloomberg L.P.

   Daily    None

Bloomberg Portfolio Analysis

   Daily    None

Brown Brothers Harriman

   Daily    None

Charles River

   Daily    None

Emerging Portfolio Fund Research, Inc. (EPFR), an Informa Company

   Monthly    None

Enfusion Systems

   Daily   

None

ENSO LP

   Daily    None

eVestment Alliance

   Quarterly    8-10 Days

EZE Order Management System

   Daily    None

FactSet

   Daily    None

Institutional Shareholder Services (Proxy Voting Services)

   Daily    None

ITG

   Daily    None

Middle Office Solutions, LLC

   Daily    None

Morningstar

   Daily    None

NaviSite, Inc.

   Daily    None

 

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Recipient

  

Frequency

  

Delay Before Dissemination

Personal Trading Control Center

   Daily    None

StarCompliance

   Daily    None

State Street Bank and Trust Company (Fund Custodian and Accounting Agent)

   Daily    None

SunGard/Protegent (formerly Dataware)

   Daily    None

The Bank of New York Mellon

   Daily    None

The Northern Trust Company

   Daily    None

Thomson

   Semi-annually    None

Thomson Reuters

   Daily    None

Portfolio holdings information for the fund may also be released from time to time pursuant to ongoing arrangements with the following parties:

 

Recipient

  

Frequency

  

Delay Before Dissemination

Broadridge

   Daily    None

Deutsche Bank

   Monthly    6-8 Business Days

DST International plc (DSTi)

   Daily    None

Electra Information Systems

   Daily    None

Fidelity

   Quarterly    5 Business Days

Fitch

   Monthly    6-8 Business Days

Frank Russell

   Monthly    1 Day

Glass Lewis & Co.

   Daily    None

Informa Investment Solutions

   Quarterly    8-10 Days

Interactive Data Corp

   Daily    None

Liberty Hampshire

   Weekly and Month End    None

RBC Investor and Treasury Services

   Daily    None

S&P (Rating Agency)

   Weekly Tuesday Night    1 Business Day

SunTrust

   Weekly and Month End    None

Excluded from the lists of ongoing arrangements set forth above are ongoing arrangements where either (i) the disclosure of portfolio holdings information occurs concurrently with or after the time at which the portfolio holdings information is included in a public filing with the SEC that is required to include the information, or (ii) the fund’s portfolio holdings information is made available no earlier than the day next following the day on which the fund makes the information available on its website, as disclosed in the Prospectus. The approval of the fund’s Chief Compliance Officer, or designee, must be obtained before entering into any new ongoing arrangement or altering any existing ongoing arrangement to make available portfolio holdings information, or with respect to any exceptions from the policy.

 

49


Release of limited portfolio holdings information

In addition to the ongoing arrangements described above, the fund’s complete or partial list of holdings (including size of positions) may be released to another party on a one-time basis, provided the party receiving the information has executed a non-disclosure and confidentiality agreement and provided that the specific release of information has been approved by the fund’s Chief Compliance Officer or designee as consistent with the policy. By way of illustration and not of limitation, release of non-public information about the fund’s portfolio holdings may be made (i) to a proposed or potential adviser or subadviser or other investment manager asked to provide investment management services to the fund, or (ii) to a third party in connection with a program or similar trade.

In addition, the policy permits the release to investors, potential investors, third parties and Legg Mason personnel that are not fund-affiliated personnel of limited portfolio holdings information in other circumstances, including:

 

  1. The fund’s top ten securities, current as of month-end, and the individual size of each such security position may be released at any time following month-end with simultaneous public disclosure.

 

  2. The fund’s top ten securities positions (including the aggregate but not individual size of such positions) may be released at any time with simultaneous public disclosure.

 

  3. A list of securities (that may include fund holdings together with other securities) followed by an investment professional (without position sizes or identification of particular funds) may be disclosed to sell-side brokers at any time for the purpose of obtaining research and/or market information from such brokers.

 

  4. A trade in process may be discussed only with counterparties, potential counterparties and others involved in the transaction (i.e., brokers and custodians).

 

  5. The fund’s sector weightings, yield and duration (for fixed income and money market funds), performance attribution (e.g., analysis of the fund’s out-performance or underperformance of its benchmark based on its portfolio holdings) and other summary and statistical information that does not include identification of specific portfolio holdings may be released, even if non-public, if such release is otherwise in accordance with the policy’s general principles.

 

  6. A small number of the fund’s portfolio holdings (including information that the fund no longer holds a particular holding) may be released, but only if the release of the information could not reasonably be seen to interfere with current or future purchase or sales activities of the fund and is not contrary to law.

 

  7. The fund’s portfolio holdings may be released on an as-needed basis to its legal counsel, counsel to its independent trustees and its independent public accounting firm, in required regulatory filings or otherwise to governmental agencies and authorities.

Exceptions to the policy

The fund’s Chief Compliance Officer, or designee, may, as is deemed appropriate, approve exceptions from the policy. Exceptions are granted only after a thorough examination and consultation with the manager’s legal department, as necessary. Exceptions from the policy are reported annually to the fund’s board.

Limitations of policy

The fund’s portfolio holdings policy is designed to prevent sharing of portfolio information with third parties that have no legitimate business purpose for accessing the information. The policy may not be effective to limit access to portfolio holdings information in all circumstances, however. For example, the manager or the subadviser may manage accounts other than the fund that have investment objectives and strategies similar to

 

50


those of the fund. Because these accounts, including the fund, may be similarly managed, portfolio holdings may be similar across the accounts. In that case, an investor in another account managed by the manager or the subadviser may be able to infer the portfolio holdings of the fund from the portfolio holdings in that investor’s account.

Tax-Deferred Qualified Plans—Class A, Class A2 and Class C Shares

Investors may invest in Class A, Class A2 and Class C shares of the fund through IRAs, simplified employee pension plans (“SEPs”), savings incentive match plans for employees (“SIMPLES”), other qualified retirement plans and Coverdell ESAs (collectively, “qualified plans”). In general, income earned through the investment of assets of qualified plans is not taxed to their beneficiaries until the income is distributed to those beneficiaries (or, in the case of Roth IRAs and Coverdell ESAs, not at all if certain conditions are satisfied). Investors who are considering establishing a qualified plan should consult their attorneys or other tax advisers with respect to individual tax questions. Please consult your financial adviser for further information with respect to these plans.

Individual Retirement Account—IRA

TRADITIONAL IRA. Certain Class A, Class A2 and Class C shareholders who receive compensation, including earnings from self-employment, may establish and make contributions to an IRA. Your IRA contributions can be tax-deductible if neither you nor your spouse is an active participant in a qualified employer or government retirement plan. If you or your spouse is an active participant in such a plan, your IRA contribution may be deductible, in whole or in part, depending on the amount of your and your spouse’s combined adjusted gross income. In addition, all earnings grow tax-deferred until withdrawn, at which point distributions are taxed as ordinary income to you, usually after age 59 1/2, when you may be in a lower tax bracket. Withdrawals made before age 59 1/2 are generally subject to a 10% penalty.

ROTH IRA. Unlike a traditional IRA, a Roth IRA is only available to individuals who meet certain “modified adjusted gross income” (MAGI) limitations. Under certain circumstances, a traditional IRA may be converted to a Roth IRA; these conversions are, however, subject to federal income tax.

Contributions to a Roth IRA are not deductible; however, earnings accumulate tax-free in a Roth IRA, and withdrawals of earnings are not subject to federal income tax if the account has been held for at least five years (or, in the case of earnings attributable to a conversion of a traditional IRA, the conversion occurred more than five years before the withdrawal) and the account holder has reached age 59 1/2 (or certain other conditions apply).

Simplified Employee Pension Plan—SEP

LMIS makes available to corporate and other employers a SEP for investment in Class A, Class A2 and Class C shares of the fund.

Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees—SIMPLE

An employer with no more than 100 employees that does not maintain another qualified retirement plan may establish a SIMPLE, either as a plan using separate IRAs or as part of a Code section 401(k) plan. A SIMPLE, which is not subject to the complicated nondiscrimination rules that generally apply to other qualified retirement plans, allows certain employees to make elective contributions of up to certain amounts each year and requires the employer to make matching contributions of up to 3% of each such employee’s salary or a 2% non-elective contribution.

 

51


Coverdell Education Savings Account—Coverdell ESA

A Coverdell ESA provides a vehicle for saving for a child’s education. A Coverdell ESA may be established for the benefit of any minor, and any person whose MAGI does not exceed certain levels may contribute to a Coverdell ESA, subject to certain annual limits on contributions. Contributions are not deductible and may not be made after the beneficiary reaches age 18; however, earnings accumulate tax-free, and withdrawals are not subject to tax if used to pay the qualified education expenses of the beneficiary (or a qualified family member).

For further information regarding any of the above-qualified plans, including MAGI limitations, contact your financial adviser or the fund at 1-877-721-1926.

Withholding

Withholding at the rate of 20% is required for federal income tax purposes on certain distributions (excluding, for example, certain periodic payments) from qualified retirement plans (except IRAs and SEPs), unless the recipient transfers the distribution directly to an “eligible retirement plan” (including an IRA or other qualified retirement plan) that accepts those distributions. Other distributions generally are subject to regular wage withholding or to withholding at the rate of 10% (depending on the type and amount of the distribution), unless the recipient elects not to have any withholding apply. Investors should consult their plan administrator or tax adviser for further information.

Management of the Fund

Under applicable law, the Board is responsible for management of the Trust and provides broad oversight over its affairs. The Board elects the Trust’s officers who manage the day-to-day operations of the Trust under the general direction of the Board.

The trustees of the Trust, including the trustees who are not “interested persons” of the fund (the “Independent Trustees”) as defined in the 1940 Act and executive officers of the fund, their years of birth, their principal occupations during at least the past five years (their titles may have varied during that period), the number of funds associated with Legg Mason the trustees oversee and other board memberships the trustees have held during the past five years are set forth below. The business address of each trustee (including each trustee of the fund who is not an Independent Trustee) is c/o Jane Trust, 100 International Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21202.

 

52


INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES:

 

Name, (Year of Birth) and
Position with Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Number of
Funds in Fund
Complex Overseen
by Trustee

  

Other Board
Memberships Held
by Trustee During
the Past 5 Years

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

Hearn, Ruby P.

(1940)

Trustee

   Since 2004    20    None    Senior Vice President Emerita of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (non-profit) since 2001; Member of the Institute of Medicine since 1982; formerly: Trustee of the New York Academy of Medicine (2004-2012); Director of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (2002-2012); Senior Vice President of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (1996 to 2001); Fellow of The Yale Corporation (1992 to 1998).

Lehman, Arnold L.

(1944)

Trustee and Chair

   Trustee since 1982 and Chair since 2015    20    None    Retired. Trustee of American Federation of Arts since 1998; formerly, Director of the Brooklyn Museum (1997 to 2015); formerly: Director of The Baltimore Museum of Art (1979 to 1997).

Masters, Robin J.W.

(1955)

Trustee

   Since 2002    20    Director of Cheyne Capital International Limited (investment advisory firm). Formerly: Director/Trustee of Legg Mason Institutional Funds plc, WA Fixed Income Funds plc and Western Asset Debt Securities Fund plc (2007-2011).    Retired; formerly: Chief Investment Officer of ACE Limited (insurance) (1986 to 2000).

 

53


Name, (Year of Birth) and
Position with Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Number of
Funds in Fund
Complex Overseen
by Trustee

  

Other Board
Memberships Held
by Trustee During
the Past 5 Years

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

McGovern, Jill E.

(1944)

Trustee

   Since 1989    20    Director of International Biomedical Research Alliance; Director of Lois Roth Endowment    Senior Consultant, American Institute for Contemporary German Studies (AICGS) since 2007; formerly: Chief Executive Officer of The Marrow Foundation (non-profit) (1993 to 2007); Executive Director of the Baltimore International Festival (1991 to 1993); Senior Assistant to the President of The Johns Hopkins University (1986 to 1990).

Mehlman, Arthur S.

(1942)

Trustee

   Since 2002    Trustee of all Legg Mason Funds consisting of 20 portfolios; Director/Trustee of the Royce Family of Funds consisting of 23 portfolios.    Director of Municipal Mortgage & Equity, LLC. (2004 to 2011)    Retired. Director, The University of Maryland Foundation since 1992; Director, The League for People with Disabilities since 2003; formerly: Director of Municipal Mortgage & Equity, LLC. (2004 to 2011); Partner, KPMG LLP (international accounting firm) (1972 to 2002).

O’Brien, G. Peter

(1945)

Trustee

   Since 1999    Trustee of all Legg Mason Funds consisting of 20 portfolios; Director/Trustee of the Royce Family of Funds consisting of 23 portfolios.    Director of TICC Capital Corp.    Retired. Trustee Emeritus of Colgate University; Board Member, Hill House, Inc. (residential home care); Board Member, Bridges School (pre-school); formerly: Managing Director, Equity Capital Markets Group of Merrill Lynch & Co. (1971 to 1999).

 

54


Name, (Year of Birth) and
Position with Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Number of
Funds in Fund
Complex Overseen
by Trustee

  

Other Board
Memberships Held
by Trustee During
the Past 5 Years

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

Rowan, S. Ford

(1943)

Trustee

   Since 2002    20    None    Chairman, National Center for Critical Incident Analysis, National Defense University Foundation, since 2004; Consultant to University of Maryland University College, since 2013; formerly: Lecturer in Organizational Sciences, George Washington University (2000 to 2014); Trustee, St. John’s College (2006 to 2012); Consultant, Rowan & Blewitt Inc. (management consulting) (1984 to 2007); Lecturer in Journalism, Northwestern University (1980 to 1993); Director, Santa Fe Institute (1999 to 2008).

Tarola, Robert M.

(1950)

Trustee

   Since 2004    20    Director of American Kidney Fund (renal disease assistance); Director of XBRL International, Inc. (global data standard setting); Director of Vista Outdoor, Inc. (sporting goods); formerly: Director of TeleTech Holdings, Inc. (business process outsourcing)    Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Southcoast Health System, Inc. (healthcare provider network) since 2015; President of Right Advisory LLC (corporate finance and governance consulting) since 2008; Member, Investor Advisory Group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board since 2009; formerly: Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of The Howard University (higher education and health care) (2009 to 2013); Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of W.R. Grace & Co. (specialty chemicals) (1999 to 2008) and MedStar Health, Inc. (healthcare) (1996 to 1999); Partner, Price Waterhouse, LLP (accounting and auditing) (1984 to 1996).

 

55


INTERESTED TRUSTEE:

 

Name, (Year of Birth) and
Position with Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Number of
Funds in Fund
Complex Overseen
by Trustee

  

Other Board
Memberships Held
by Trustee During the
Past 5 Years

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

Trust, Jane, CFA (1962)

Trustee, President and Chief Executive Officer^

   Since 2015    149    None    Managing Director of Legg Mason & Co., LLC (“Legg Mason & Co.”) (since 2016); Officer and/or Trustee/Director of 156 funds associated with Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC (“LMPFA”) or its affiliates (since 2015); President and Chief Executive Officer of LMPFA (since 2015); formerly, Senior Vice President of LMPFA (2015); formerly, Director of ClearBridge, LLC (formerly, Legg Mason Capital Management, LLC) (2007 to 2014); formerly, Managing Director of Legg Mason Investment Counsel & Trust Co. (2000 to 2007).

 

^ Ms. Trust is an “interested person” of the fund, as defined in the 1940 Act, because of her position with LMPFA and/or certain of its affiliates.

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS:

 

Name,
(Year of Birth)
and Position with
Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

Becker, Ted P.

(1951)

Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer

   Since 2007    Director of Global Compliance at Legg Mason, Inc. (since 2006); Chief Compliance Officer with LMPFA (since 2006); Managing Director of Compliance at Legg Mason & Co. (since 2005); Chief Compliance Officer of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2006) and Legg Mason & Co. predecessors (prior to 2006).

Berarducci, Christopher

(1974)

Treasurer

   Since 2010    Director of Legg Mason & Co. (since 2015); Treasurer of certain mutual funds associated with LMPFA (since 2010); formerly: Vice President of Legg Mason & Co. (2011 to 2015); Assistant Vice President of Legg Mason & Co. (2007 to 2011); Assistant Controller of certain mutual funds associated with LMPFA (2007 to 2010); Manager of Fund Administration at UBS Global Asset Management (prior to 2007).

 

56


Name,
(Year of Birth)
and Position with
Trust

  

Term of
Office* and
Length of
Time
Served(1)

  

Principal Occupation(s)
During the Past 5 Years

Frenkel, Robert I.

(1954)

Secretary and Chief Legal Officer

   Since 2007    Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of Legg Mason, Inc. (since 2006); Managing Director and General Counsel – U.S. Mutual Funds for Legg Mason & Co. (since 2006) and Legg Mason & Co. predecessors (since 1994); Secretary and Chief Legal Officer of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2006) and Legg Mason & Co. predecessors (prior to 2006).

Kerr, Susan

(1949)

Chief Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer

   Since 2013    Assistant Vice President of Legg Mason & Co. and LMIS (since 2010); Chief Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2013) and Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer of LMIS (since 2012); Senior Compliance Officer of LMIS (since 2011); formerly, AML Consultant, DTCC (2010); formerly, AML Consultant, Rabobank Netherlands, (2009); formerly, First Vice President, Director of Marketing & Advertising Compliance and Manager of Communications Review Group at Citigroup Inc. (1996 to 2008).

Sennett, Richard F.

(1970)

Principal Financial Officer

   Since 2011    Principal Financial Officer and Treasurer of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2011 and since 2013); Managing Director of Legg Mason & Co. and Senior Manager of the Treasury Policy group for Legg Mason & Co.’s Global Fiduciary Platform (since 2011); formerly, Chief Accountant within the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (2007 to 2011); formerly, Assistant Chief Accountant within the SEC’s Division of Investment Management (2002 to 2007).

Bailey, Jenna

(1978)

Identity Theft Prevention Officer

   Since 2015    Identity Theft Prevention Officer of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2015); Compliance Officer of Legg Mason & Co. (since 2013); Assistant Vice President of Legg Mason & Co. (since 2011); formerly, Associate Compliance Officer of Legg Mason & Co. (2011 to 2013); Risk Manager of U.S. Distribution of Legg Mason & Co. (2007 to 2011).

Kelly, Jeanne M.

(1951)

Senior Vice President

   Since 2007    Senior Vice President of certain mutual funds associated with Legg Mason & Co. or its affiliates (since 2007); Senior Vice President of LMPFA (since 2006); President and Chief Executive Officer of LMAS and LMFAM (since 2015); Managing Director of Legg Mason & Co. (since 2005) and Legg Mason & Co. predecessors (prior to 2005); formerly, Senior Vice President of LMFAM (2013 to 2015)

 

* Each Trustee and officer serves until his or her respective successor has been duly elected and qualified or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement or removal.
(1) Indicates the earliest year in which the Trustee became a board member for a fund in the Legg Mason fund complex or the officer took such office.

 

57


The trustees of the Trust were selected to serve or continue on the Board based upon some or all of the following: their skills, experience, judgment, analytical ability, intelligence, common sense, current or previous profit and non-profit board membership, experience on the Board and, for each Independent Trustee, their demonstrated willingness to take an independent and questioning stance toward management. Each trustee also now has considerable familiarity with the Trust, the fund’s manager, subadviser and distributor, and their operations, as well as the special regulatory requirements governing regulated investment companies and the special responsibilities of investment company trustees as a result, in the case of the Independent Trustees, of his or her substantial prior service as a trustee or director of certain funds in the Legg Mason-sponsored fund complex. No particular qualification, experience or background establishes the basis for any trustee’s position on the Board and the Nominating and Governance Committee and individual Board members may have attributed different weights to the various factors.

In addition, the following specific experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills apply as to a trustee as noted: Dr. Hearn, experience in senior management and on the boards of non-profit organizations devoted to health and health care, scientific analytical training and service on the governing board and policy making body for a university; Dr. Lehman, experience as chief executive officer of major museums and other entities involved in the arts, experience as Lead Independent Trustee and experience as a founding director of the Legg Mason Funds; Ms. Masters, investment management experience as chief investment officer and director of an investment advisory firm and service on the boards of other investment companies; Dr. McGovern, experience as chief executive officer of a foundation and non-profit fundraising organization devoted to programs of the National Marrow Donor Program; Mr. Mehlman, accounting, auditing and management experience with an international accounting firm, and service on the boards of a for profit publicly held entity, an academic foundation and a non-profit organization that provides services for individuals of all abilities; Mr. O’Brien, experience at senior levels of a large financial services company and service on the boards of academic institutions and a residential home care company; Mr. Rowan, experience in business and management consulting, academic experience as a lecturer in organizational sciences and journalism, experience in senior levels of a non-profit organization dedicated to the management of critical events and service on the board of a non-profit independent research and educational center; and Mr. Tarola, experience as chief financial officer and in senior management of a university, a healthcare organization and a specialty chemicals company, as an advisory group member to the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, as a partner with an international accounting firm, and in senior management of a corporate finance and governance consulting organization.

Ms. Trust was selected to join the Board based upon her investment management and risk oversight experience as an executive and portfolio manager and leadership roles within Legg Mason and affiliated entities. The Board also considered her character and integrity, her willingness to serve and willingness and ability to commit the time necessary to perform the duties of a Trustee. References to the qualifications, attributes and skills of trustees are pursuant to requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission, do not constitute holding out of the Board or any trustee as having any special expertise and shall not impose any greater responsibility or liability on any such person or on the Board by reason thereof.

The Board is responsible for overseeing the management and operations of the fund. Ms. Trust is an interested person of the fund. Independent Trustees constitute more than 75% of the Board.

The Board has three standing committees: the Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Independent Trustees Committee. Each of the Audit, Nominating and Governance, and Independent Trustees Committees is chaired by an Independent Trustee and composed of all of the Independent Trustees. Where the Board deems appropriate, it appoints ad hoc committees.

The Board Chair and the chairs of the Committees work with management personnel and counsel to set the agendas for Board and committee meetings. The Board Chair also serves as a key point person for dealings between management and the Independent Trustees. As noted below, through the committees the Independent Trustees consider and address important matters involving the fund, including those presenting conflicts or

 

58


potential conflicts of interest for management. The Independent Trustees also regularly meet outside the presence of management and are advised by experienced independent legal counsel knowledgeable in matters of investment company regulation. The Board has determined that its committees help ensure that the fund has effective and independent governance and oversight. The Board believes that its leadership structure is appropriate and facilitates the orderly and efficient flow of information to the Independent Trustees from management, including the fund’s adviser, and provides the Independent Trustees an opportunity to air their views, determine matters of significance to the fund and its shareholders, and interact and communicate effectively with management on those matters.

The Audit Committee’s purposes are (i) to oversee the Trust’s accounting and financial reporting policies and practices; (ii) to oversee the quality of the fund’s financial statements and the independent audit thereof; (iii) to oversee the integrity of the process by which the financial statements are prepared, and the independent audit thereof; and (iv) to act as liaison between the Trust’s independent auditor and the Board. The Audit Committee meets at least twice a year with the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm and officers to consider issues relating to the accounting principles used by the Trust, the auditor’s assessment of the adequacy of internal controls, the qualifications and fees of the independent registered public accounting firm, the scope of the audit services and any permissible non-audit services for which they are retained, the results of the audit and other matters.

The Nominating and Governance Committee meets as necessary to review and nominate candidates for positions as trustees and to fill vacancies on the Board and the Audit and Nominating and Governance Committees. The selection and nomination of candidates to serve as independent trustees to the Trust is committed to the discretion of the Trust’s current Independent Trustees. The Nominating and Governance Committee will accept recommendations for nominations from any source it deems appropriate and may consider nominees recommended by a shareholder. Shareholders who wish to recommend a nominee should send recommendations to the Trust’s Secretary that include all information relating to such person that is required to be disclosed in solicitations of proxies for the election of trustees. A recommendation must be accompanied by a written consent of the individual to stand for election if nominated by the Board and to serve if elected by the shareholders.

The Nominating and Governance Committee also identifies potential nominees through its network of contacts and may also engage, if it deems appropriate, a professional search firm. The Committee meets to discuss and consider such candidates’ qualifications and then chooses a candidate by majority vote. While there is no formal list of qualifications, the Nominating and Governance Committee considers, among other things, whether prospective nominees have distinguished records in their primary careers, unimpeachable integrity and substantive knowledge in areas important to the Board’s operations, such as background or education in finance, auditing, securities law, the workings of the securities markets, or investment advice, or backgrounds in senior management or sensitive fiduciary positions, such as oversight of the endowments of not-for-profit entities. For candidates to serve as Independent Trustees, independence from the Trust’s manager, advisers and subadvisers, their affiliates and other principal service providers is critical, as is an independent and questioning mindset. The Committee also considers whether the prospective candidates’ workloads would allow them to attend the vast majority of Board meetings, be available for service on Board committees and devote the additional time and effort necessary to keep up with Board matters and the rapidly changing regulatory environment in which the Trust operates. Different substantive areas may assume greater or lesser significance at particular times, in light of the Board’s present composition and the Committee’s (or the Board’s) perceptions about future issues and needs. The Nominating and Governance Committee is also responsible for recommending policies to the Board concerning, among other things, compensation for the Independent Trustees, Independent Trustee investment in the funds and Independent Trustee retirement. In addition, the Committee is responsible for overseeing the process for the annual evaluation of the performance of the Board and its Committees.

The Independent Trustees Committee’s purposes are (i) to review the Trust’s advisory, sub-advisory and distribution agreements and Rule 12b-1 Plans and related agreements in accordance with the 1940 Act; (ii) to

 

59


assist the Independent Trustees in carrying out their responsibilities pursuant to Rule 38a-1 under the 1940 Act; (iii) to assist the Independent Trustees in fulfilling their responsibilities pursuant to Rule 0-1 under the 1940 Act; (iv) to provide Independent Trustees an opportunity to exchange views and formulate positions separately from management; and (v) to oversee issues related to the Independent Trustees that are not specifically delegated to another Board Committee.

As an integral part of its responsibility for oversight of the fund in the interests of shareholders, the Board oversees risk management of the fund’s investment program and business affairs. The Board views risk management as an important responsibility of management and has emphasized to the fund’s manager and subadvisers the importance of maintaining vigorous risk management programs. Oversight of the risk management process is part of the Board’s general oversight of the fund and its service providers. The Board exercises oversight of the risk management processes through oversight by the full Board.

The fund faces a number of risks, such as investment risk, counterparty risk, valuation risk, reputational risk, risk of operational failure or lack of business continuity and legal, compliance and regulatory risk. Risk management seeks to identify and address risks, i.e., events or circumstances that could have material adverse effects on the business, operations, shareholder services, investment performance or reputation of the fund. Under the overall supervision of the Board, the fund, the manager, the subadviser and the affiliates of the manager and the subadvisers, or other service providers to the fund, employ a variety of processes, procedures and controls to identify various of those possible events or circumstances, to lessen the probability of their occurrence and/or to mitigate the effects of such events or circumstances if they do occur. Different processes, procedures and controls are employed with respect to different types of risks. Various personnel, including the fund’s and the manager’s CCO and the manager’s chief risk officer, as well as various personnel of the subadviser and other service providers such as the fund’s independent accountant, make reports to the Board with respect to various aspects of risk management, as well as events and circumstances that have arisen and responses thereto. The Board recognizes that not all risks that may affect the fund can be identified, that it may not be practical or cost-effective to eliminate or mitigate certain risks, that it may be necessary to bear certain risks (such as investment-related risks) to achieve the fund’s goals, and that the processes, procedures and controls employed to address certain risks may be limited in their effectiveness. Moreover, reports received by the trustees as to risk management matters are typically summaries of the relevant information. Furthermore, it is in the very nature of certain risks that they can be evaluated only as probabilities, and not as certainties. As a result of the foregoing and other factors, the Board’s risk management oversight is subject to substantial limitations, and no risk management program can predict the likelihood or seriousness of, or mitigate the effects of, all potential risks.

During the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016, the Audit Committee met five times, the Nominating and Governance Committee met three times and the Independent Trustees Committee met five times.

The following table shows each trustee’s ownership of shares of the fund and of all the Legg Mason Funds served by the trustee as of December 31, 2016:

 

Name of Trustee

   Dollar Range of Equity
Securities in the Fund: ($)
   Aggregate Dollar
Range of Shares in the
Legg Mason Funds
Owned by Trustee ($)

INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES:

     

Hearn, Ruby P

   None    Over 100,000

Lehman, Arnold L.

   None    Over 100,000

Masters, Robin J.W.

   10,001-50,000    Over 100,000

McGovern, Jill E.

   None    Over 100,000

 

60


Name of Trustee

   Dollar Range of Equity
Securities in the Fund: ($)
   Aggregate Dollar
Range of Shares in the
Legg Mason Funds
Owned by Trustee ($)

Mehlman, Arthur S.

   None    Over 100,000

O’Brien, G. Peter

   None    Over 100,000

Rowan, S. Ford

   None    Over 100,000

Tarola, Robert M.

   None    Over 100,000

INTERESTED TRUSTEES:

     

Trust, Jane

   None    Over 100,000

As of December 31, 2016, none of the Independent Trustees or their immediate family members owned beneficially or of record any securities of the fund’s manager, subadviser or distributor, or in a person (other than a registered investment company) directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with the manager, subadviser or distributor of the fund.

For serving as a trustee of the fund and other funds in the Fund Complex, each Independent Trustee receives an annual retainer plus fees for attending each regularly scheduled meeting and special Board meeting they attend in person or by telephone. They are also reimbursed for all out-of-pocket expenses relating to attendance at such meetings. Those Independent Trustees who serve in leadership positions of the Board or Board committees receive additional compensation. The Board reviews the level of trustee compensation periodically and trustee compensation may change from time to time. Ms. Trust, an “interested person” of the fund, as defined in the 1940 Act, does not receive compensation from the fund for her service as Trustee. The fund pays its pro rata share of the Trustees’ fees and expenses based upon asset size.

Officers of the Trust receive no compensation from the fund.

The following table provides certain information relating to the compensation of the Trust’s trustees. None of the Legg Mason Funds has any retirement plan for its trustees. Prior to January 1, 2016, certain trustees participated in a deferred compensation plan as discussed below.

 

Name of Person and Position

   Aggregate
Compensation
from the Fund* ($)
     Total
Compensation
from Legg Mason
Funds** ($)
     Total
Compensation
from Fund
Complex*** ($)
 

INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES:

        

Hearn, Ruby P. — Trustee****

     32         162,500         162,500   

Lehman, Arnold L. — Chair and Trustee

     38         197,500         197,500   

Masters, Robin J.W. — Trustee

     32         162,500         162,500   

McGovern, Jill E. — Trustee****

     34         167,500         167,500   

Mehlman, Arthur S. — Trustee

     35         177,500         436,800   

O’Brien, G. Peter — Trustee

     34         167,500         426,800   

Rowan, S. Ford — Trustee

     32         162,500         162,500   

Tarola, Robert M. — Trustee

     33         167,500         167,500   

 

61


Name of Person and Position

   Aggregate
Compensation
from the Fund* ($)
     Total
Compensation
from Legg Mason
Funds** ($)
     Total
Compensation
from Fund
Complex*** ($)
 

INTERESTED TRUSTEES:

        

Trust, Jane ***** — President, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee

     None         None         None   

 

* Represents compensation paid to the trustees by the fund for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016.
** Represents aggregate compensation paid to each trustee during the calendar year ended December 31, 2016 from the Legg Mason Funds. At the end of that period, there were 2 open-end investment companies in the Legg Mason Funds, consisting of 20 portfolios.
*** Represents aggregate compensation paid to each trustee during the calendar year ended December 31, 2016 from the Fund Complex.
**** The total amount of deferred compensation accrued by the Trust (including earnings or depreciation in value of amounts deferred) through December 31, 2016 for the participating trustees is as follows: Jill E. McGovern—$1,367,481; Ruby P. Hearn—$67,857. Effective January 1, 2016, trustees can no longer defer earned compensation.
***** Ms. Trust is not compensated for her services as a Trustee because of her affiliations with the manager.

On December 31, 2016, the trustees and officers of the fund owned beneficially or of record in the aggregate less than 1% of any class of the fund’s outstanding shares except for the following share class—Class I 31.9%.

On December 31, 2016, the following shareholders owned of record or beneficially 5% or more of a class of the outstanding shares of the fund. Unless otherwise indicated, each of the shareholders listed below may be contacted c/o Legg Mason Funds at 100 International Drive, 7th Floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, Attn: Fund Secretary.

 

CLASS

  

NAME AND ADDRESS

  

% OF CLASS HELD

FI

  

LEGG MASON FUNDING LIMITED

WALKER HOUSE, ELIZABETH WHITEHURST

PO BOX 908GT

GRAND CAYMAN

CAYMAN ISLANDS

   100.00

I

  

ROBIN JOAN WOLIN MASTERS TTEE

ROBIN MASTERS REVOCABLE TRUST

2 BETWEEN THE WALLS

PEMBROKE HM06

BERMUDA

   31.94

I

  

LEGG MASON FUNDING LIMITED

WALKER HOUSE, ELIZABETH WHITEHURST

PO BOX 908GT

GRAND CAYMAN

CAYMAN ISLANDS

   18.30

I

  

JEFFREY A NATTANS CUST FBO

SPENCER T NATTANS UTMA-MD

27 BLENHEIM FARM LN

PHOENIX MD 21131-2136

   14.18

I

  

JEFFREY A NATTANS

27 BLENHEIM FARM LN

PHOENIX MD 21131-2136

   10.26

 

62


CLASS

  

NAME AND ADDRESS

  

% OF CLASS HELD

I

  

BNYM I S TRUST CO CUST ROLLOVER IRA

CHRISTOPHER RUFFINO

1629 TUCKAWAY TRL

WEST CHESTER PA 19380-1596

   7.48

I

  

CHRISTOPHER RUFFINO &

MELANIE E RUFFINO JTWROS

1629 TUCKAWAY TRL

WEST CHESTER PA 19380-1596

   7.44

I

  

BNYM I S TRUST CO CUST IRA FBO

KAREN T NATTANS

27 BLENHEIM FARM LN

PHOENIX MD 21131-2136

   5.20

I

  

BNYM I S TRUST CO CUST IRA FBO

JEFFREY A NATTANS

27 BLENHEIM FARM LN

PHOENIX MD 21131-2136

   5.20

IS

  

LEGG MASON FUNDING LIMITED

WALKER HOUSE, ELIZABETH WHITEHURST

PO BOX 908GT

GRAND CAYMAN

CAYMAN ISLANDS

   100.00

As of September 30, 2016, Legg Mason Funding Limited, Walker House, Mary Street, P.O. Box 908GT, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, owned of record 100% of the fund’s outstanding Class FI shares, 18.30% of the fund’s outstanding Class I shares, 100% of the fund’s outstanding Class IS shares and 98.54% of the fund’s outstanding shares. Legg Mason Funding Limited is an exempted company incorporated in the Cayman Islands with limited liability. Legg Mason Funding Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Legg Mason, Inc. Legg Mason Funding Limited is a principal shareholder and control person of the fund. A principal shareholder is any person who owns of record or beneficially 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the fund. A control person is a shareholder who owns beneficially or through controlled companies more than 25% of the voting securities of a company or acknowledges the existence of control. Shareholders owning voting securities in excess of 25% may determine the outcome of any matter affecting and voted on by shareholders of the fund.

On December 31, 2016 to the Trust’s knowledge the following persons owned of record or beneficially 25% or more of the outstanding shares of the fund as set forth below. Shareholders who beneficially own 25% or more of the outstanding shares of the fund or who are otherwise deemed to “control” the fund may be able to determine or significantly influence the outcome of matters submitted to a vote of the fund’s shareholders.

 

NAME AND ADDRESS

  

% OF FUND HELD

Legg Mason Funding Limited

Walker House, Mary Street

P.O. Box 908GT

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

   98.54

Manager and Subadvisers

Manager

LMPFA, a Delaware company, with offices at 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, serves as serves as manager to the fund under a Management Agreement (“Management Agreement”).

 

63


The manager has agreed, under the Management Agreement, subject to the supervision of the fund’s Board, to provide the fund with investment research, advice, management and supervision; furnish a continuous investment program for the fund’s portfolio of securities and other investments consistent with the fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions; and place orders pursuant to its investment determinations. The manager is permitted to enter into contracts with subadvisers or subadministrators, subject to the Board’s approval. The manager has entered into subadvisory arrangements, as described below.

The manager performs administrative and management services as reasonably requested by the fund necessary for the operation of the fund, such as (i) supervising the overall administration of the fund, including negotiation of contracts and fees with and the monitoring of performance and billings of the fund’s transfer agent, shareholder servicing agents, custodian and other independent contractors or agents; (ii) providing certain compliance, fund accounting, regulatory reporting and tax reporting services; (iii) preparing or participating in the preparation of Board materials, registration statements, proxy statements and reports and other communications to shareholders; (iv) maintaining the fund’s existence; and (v) maintaining the registration and qualification of the fund’s shares under federal and state laws.

The Management Agreement will continue in effect for its initial term and thereafter from year to year, provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually (a) by the Board or by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the fund (as defined in the 1940 Act), and (b) in either event, by a majority of the Independent Trustees with such Independent Trustees casting votes in person at a meeting called for such purpose.

The Management Agreement provides that the manager may render services to others. The Management Agreement is terminable without penalty on not more than 60 days’ nor less than 30 days’ written notice by the fund when authorized either by a vote of holders of shares representing a majority of the voting power of the outstanding voting securities of the fund (as defined in the 1940 Act) or by a vote of a majority of the Trustees, or by the manager on not less than 90 days’ written notice, and will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act). The Management Agreement is not assignable by the Trust except with the consent of the manager. The Management Agreement provides that neither the manager nor its personnel shall be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss arising out of any investment or for any act or omission in the execution of security transactions for the fund, except for willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence or reckless disregard of its or their obligations and duties.

LMPFA receives for its services to the fund a management fee, calculated daily and payable monthly, at an annual rate that decreases as assets increase, as follows: 0.85% of the first $1 billion of average net assets, 0.825% of the next $1 billion of average net assets, and 0.80% of average net assets over $2 billion. Management fees are allocated between each class based on their pro rata share of fund assets.

For the fiscal year or period ended September 30, 2016 and September 30, 2015, the fund paid management fees to LMPFA as follows:

 

For the fiscal period or year
ended September 30

   Gross
Management
Fees ($)
     Management Fees
Waived/Expense
Reimbursements1 ($)
    Net Management Fees
(After
Waivers/Expense
Reimbursements) ($)
 

2016

     22,178         (356,212     (334,034

2015

     7,715         (163,895     (156,180

 

1 

Any expense limitation arrangements in place during the fund’s past three fiscal years can be found in the fund’s prospectus in effect (as amended or supplemented from time to time) for such year.

 

64


Subadvisers

Martin Currie, Inc. (“Martin Currie”), with offices at 1350 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 3010, New York, New York 10019, serves as the subadviser to the fund under a Subadvisory Agreement. Martin Currie is a New York Corporation, which is a subsidiary of Martin Currie Ltd, headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland. Under the Subadvisory Agreement, Martin Currie is responsible, subject to the general supervision of LMPFA and the Board, for the actual management of the fund’s assets, including the responsibility for making decisions and placing orders to buy, sell or hold a particular security. Martin Currie may also manage a portion of the fund’s cash and short-term instruments. For Martin Currie’s services, LMPFA (not the fund) pays Martin Currie a fee, computed daily and payable monthly, at an annual rate equal to 70% of the net fee received by LMPFA from the fund.

Western Asset Management Company (“Western Asset”), with offices at 385 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena, California 91101 and 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, manages the portion of the fund’s cash and short-term instruments allocated to it pursuant to a separate subadvisory agreement between LMPFA and Western Asset (“Western Asset Agreement”). Under the Western Asset Agreement, Western Asset, with respect to its allocated assets, is responsible, subject to the general supervision of LMPFA and the Board, for the management of the fund’s cash and short term instruments, including the responsibility for making decisions and placing orders to buy, sell or hold a particular security. For Western Asset’s services to the fund, LMPFA, not the fund, pays Western Asset 0.02% of the portion of the fund’s average daily net assets that are allocated to Western Asset by LMPFA. Western Asset, established in 1971, acts as an investment adviser to institutional accounts, such as corporate pension plans, mutual funds and endowment funds.

Each of the Subadvisory Agreement and the Western Asset Agreement will continue in effect for its initial term and thereafter from year to year provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually (a) by the Board or by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the fund (as defined in the 1940 Act), and (b) in either event, by a majority of the Independent Trustees with such Independent Trustees casting votes in person at a meeting called for such purpose. The Board or a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the fund (as defined in the 1940 Act) may terminate the Subadvisory Agreement or the Western Asset Agreement without penalty, in each case on not more than 60 days’ nor less than 30 days’ written notice to the subadviser or Western Asset. Each of the subadviser and Western Asset may terminate the Subadvisory Agreement or the Western Asset Agreement, as applicable, on 90 days’ written notice to the fund and the manager. Each of the Subadvisory Agreement and the Western Asset Agreement may be terminated upon the mutual written consent of the manager and the subadviser or Western Asset, as applicable. Each of the Subadvisory Agreement and the Western Asset Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act) by the subadviser or Western Asset, as applicable, and shall not be assignable by the manager without the consent of the subadviser or Western Asset, as applicable.

Each of the Subadvisory Agreement and the Western Asset Agreement provides that the subadviser or Western Asset, as applicable, their affiliates performing services contemplated by the Agreement, and the partners, shareholders, directors, officers and employees of the subadviser or Western Asset, as applicable, and such affiliates will not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law, or for any loss arising out of any investment, or for any act or omission in the execution of securities transactions for the fund, but the subadviser or Western Asset is not protected against any liability to the fund or the manager to which the subadviser or Western Asset would be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of its duties or by reason of its reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under the Agreement.

LMPFA, Martin Currie and Western Asset are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Legg Mason, Inc. (“Legg Mason”), a financial services holding company, which is also the parent of LMIS. Legg Mason, whose principal executive offices are at 100 International Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, is a global asset management company.

 

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Portfolio Managers

Kim Catechis and Andrew Mathewson are the fund’s portfolio managers.

Other Accounts Managed by the Portfolio Managers

The table below identifies the portfolio managers, the number of accounts (other than the fund) for which the portfolio managers have day-to-day management responsibilities and the total assets in such accounts, within each of the following categories: registered investment companies, other pooled investment vehicles, other accounts and, if applicable, the number of accounts and total assets in the accounts where fees are based on performance.

Kim Catechis

As of September 30, 2016:

 

Type of Account

   Number of
Accounts
Managed
     Total Assets
Managed
($ millions)
     Number of
Accounts
Managed for
which Advisory
Fee  is
Performance-
Based
     Assets Managed for
which Advisory Fee is
Performance-Based
($  millions)
 

Registered Investment Companies

     1         9,098         0         0   

Other pooled investment vehicle

     1         10,150         0         0   

Other accounts

     6         1,091,696         3         593,792   

Andrew Mathewson

As of September 30, 2016:

 

Type of Account

   Number of
Accounts
Managed
     Total Assets
Managed
($ millions)
     Number of
Accounts
Managed for
which Advisory
Fee  is
Performance-
Based
     Assets Managed for
which Advisory Fee is
Performance-Based
($  millions)
 

Registered Investment Companies

     1         9,098         0         0   

Other pooled investment vehicle

     1         10,150         0         0   

Other accounts

     6         1,091,696         3         593,792   

As of September 30, 2016, Kim Catechis and Andrew Mathewson did not own shares of the fund. It is not tax efficient for the portfolio managers, as residents of the United Kingdom, to invest in the fund.

Potential Conflicts of Interest

Martin Currie maintains policies and procedures reasonably designed to detect and minimize material conflicts of interest inherent in circumstances when a portfolio manager has day-to-day portfolio management responsibilities for multiple portfolios. Nevertheless, no set of policies and procedures can possibly anticipate or relieve all potential conflicts of interest. These conflicts may be real, potential, or perceived; certain of these conflicts are described in detail below.

Allocation of Limited Investment Opportunities. If a portfolio manager identifies a limited investment opportunity (including initial public offerings) that may be suitable for multiple funds and/or accounts, the

 

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investment opportunity may be allocated among these several funds or accounts, which may limit a client’s ability to take full advantage of the investment opportunity, due to liquidity constraints or other factors.

Martin Currie has adopted trade allocation procedures designed to ensure that allocations of limited investment opportunities are conducted in a fair and equitable manner between client accounts. Nevertheless, investment opportunities may be allocated differently among client accounts due to the particular characteristics of an account, such as the size of the account, cash position, investment guidelines and restrictions or its sector/ country/region exposure or other risk controls, market restrictions or for other reasons.

Similar Investment Strategies. Martin Currie and its portfolio management team may manage multiple portfolios with similar investment strategies. Investment decisions for each portfolio are generally made based on each portfolio’s investment objectives and guidelines, cash availability, and current holdings. Purchases or sales of securities for the portfolios may be appropriate for other portfolios with like objectives and may be bought or sold in different amounts and at different times in multiple portfolios. In these cases, transactions are allocated to portfolios in a manner believed by Martin Currie to be the most equitable to each client, generally utilizing a pro rata allocation methodology. Purchase and sale orders for a portfolio may be combined with those of other portfolios in the interest of achieving the most favorable net results for all clients.

Different Investment Strategies. Martin Currie may manage long-short strategies alongside long-only strategies. As such, the potential exists for short sales of securities in certain portfolios while the same security is held long in one or more other portfolios. In an attempt to mitigate the inherent risks of simultaneous management of long-short and long-only strategies, Martin Currie has established and implemented procedures to promote fair and equitable treatment of all portfolios. The procedures include monitoring and surveillance, supervisory reviews, and compliance oversight of short sale activity.

Portfolio managers may be responsible for managing multiple portfolios. Portfolio managers are aligned by investment strategy and employ similar investment models across multiple portfolios to support equitable division of time and attention required to manage all portfolios under their management.

Timing of Trades. To lessen the market impact of securities transactions, Martin Currie often limits daily trading volumes and aggregates trades for multiple funds and accounts, where feasible. However, at times, some accounts may separately trade a particular security in advance of other accounts. In such situations, a purchase may increase the value of a security previously purchased by another account, or a sale or short sale in one account may lower the sale price received in a sale by a second account.

Differences in Financial Incentives. A conflict of interest may arise where the financial or other benefits available to a portfolio manager or an investment adviser differ among the funds and/or accounts under management. For example, when the structure of an investment adviser’s management fee differs among the funds and/or accounts under its management (such as where certain funds or accounts pay higher management fees or performance-based management fees), a portfolio manager might be motivated to favor certain funds and/ or accounts over others. Performance-based fees could also create an incentive for an investment adviser to make investments that are riskier or more speculative. In addition, a portfolio manager might be motivated to favor funds and/or accounts in which he or she or the investment adviser and/or its affiliates have a financial interest. Similarly, the desire to maintain or raise assets under management or to enhance the portfolio manager’s performance record in a particular investment strategy or to derive other rewards, financial or otherwise, could influence a portfolio manager to lend preferential treatment to those funds and/or accounts that could most significantly benefit the portfolio manager.

To manage conflicts that may arise from management of portfolios with performance-based fees, performance in portfolios with like strategies is regularly reviewed by management.

Investment professionals employed by Martin Currie may manage personal accounts in which they have a fiduciary interest with holdings similar to those of client accounts. Martin Currie has implemented a Code of

 

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Ethics which is designed to address the possibility that these professionals could place their own interests ahead of those of clients. The Code of Ethics addresses this potential conflict of interest by imposing reporting requirements, blackout periods, supervisory oversight and other measures designed to reduce conflict.

Martin Currie allows its employees to trade in securities that it recommends to advisory clients in compliance with a blackout period prior to and following any client trade. In line with these restrictions, Martin Currie’s employees may buy, hold or sell securities at or about the same time that Martin Currie is purchasing, holding or selling the same or similar securities for client account portfolios and the actions taken by such individuals on a personal basis may differ from, or be inconsistent with, the nature and timing of advice or actions taken by Martin Currie for its client accounts. Martin Currie and its employees may also invest in mutual funds and other pooled investment vehicles that are managed by Martin Currie. This may result in a potential conflict of interest since Martin Currie employees have knowledge of such funds’ investment holdings, which is non-public information.

Broker Selection and Soft Dollar Usage. In addition to executing trades, some brokers provide brokerage and research services, which may result in the payment of higher brokerage commissions than might otherwise be available and may provide an incentive to increase trading with such brokers. All soft dollar arrangements in which Martin Currie is involved shall come within the safe harbor of Section 28(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and interpretations thereof as issued by the SEC. Nonetheless, the research services obtained from brokers may be may be used to service other clients than those paying commissions to the brokers providing the research services, and also may benefit some funds or accounts more than others.

Compensation

Martin Currie’s remuneration committee oversees the company’s reward policies. The overriding objective is to ensure alignment of interests with clients, while providing incentives that attract and retain exceptional people. This is closely linked with the capacity management process, which ensures that Martin Currie controls the capacity of its investment strategies to maintain liquidity and protect performance potential for its clients.

Remuneration for investment personnel blends three components: basic salary, annual performance bonus and long term incentive. Considering each in turn:

 

1. Basic salary (short-term focus)

Martin Currie benchmarks all salaries to comparable positions through a syndicate survey of asset management firms who share data on a confidential basis. This ensures that basic salaries remain competitive on an international basis. Salaries are reviewed on an annual basis using the above methodology.

 

2. Performance Bonus Pool (medium-term performance focus)

Each portfolio has an agreed performance target, typically expected to be delivered over a rolling three year measurement period. Performance based remuneration (PBR) is paid on a sliding scale for performance between a representative benchmark or proxy and a strategy’s performance target. It is paid as a percentage of the gross revenue earned by the firm for the strategy. The sliding scale used is not a straight line but is heavily geared to achieving the outperformance objective or getting very close to it, as Martin Currie wish to ensure that employee rewards closely match clients’ objectives.

Additionally, it is important that performance is achieved within the appropriate risk framework. Portfolios see a deconstruction of return to identify the low factor risk/high active share characteristics that are expected of a Martin Currie portfolio. Where portfolios reflect characteristics outside these expectations this leads to a revision to the additional discretionary pot potentially available to the team. The discretionary element of compensation is also subject to revision in line with the perception of contribution to the overall delivery of the whole investment team.

 

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Lastly, for both portfolio managers and analysts, there is a qualitative element to their performance bonus which recognises the positive contribution that they make to the investment team and the wider business. Examples include time that is spent mentoring or coaching, providing support to business projects, cross-team collaboration and contribution to client servicing or business-development activity. The quantum of the discretionary element is determined by the head of investment, who makes individual allocations following discussion with the investment team heads. The remuneration committee of the Martin Currie board has sign-off on all awards.

This process ensures both a strong correlation between performance and reward, while allowing senior management discretion to adjust reward to reflect other factors such as behaviours and the management of risk.

 

3. Long Term Incentive (longer-term performance focus)

Alignment of employee incentives to longer term Martin Currie performance and indeed broader Legg Mason performance is an important part of Martin Currie’s employment proposition – and it ensures there is strong alignment with client and shareholder interests.

Delivery of long term incentive to Martin Currie employees is achieved primarily in two ways:

 

  1. Deferral of part of the annual bonus pool into a combination of Legg Mason Stock and/or Martin Currie Funds, with a vesting period over 3 years.

 

  2. Operation of separate longer term incentive plans for key employees which have a 3 year performance or vesting period.

Through the application of the above suite of remuneration arrangements, Martin Currie has strong conviction that it delivers a highly effective, market competitive and compelling incentivisation proposition which has the appropriate calibration between short, medium and long term performance measurement. This serves to attract and retain high caliber investment professionals – but more fundamentally is designed to ensure alignment with client and shareholders’ interests.

Code of Ethics

Pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act, the fund, the manager, the subadvisers, Western Asset and the distributor each has adopted a code of ethics that permits its personnel to invest in securities for their own accounts, including securities that may be purchased or held by the fund. All personnel must place the interests of clients first and avoid activities, interests and relationships that might interfere with the duty to make decisions in the best interests of the clients. All personal securities transactions by employees must adhere to the requirements of the codes of ethics and must be conducted in such a manner as to avoid any actual or potential conflict of interest, the appearance of such a conflict or the abuse of an employee’s position of trust and responsibility. Copies of the codes of ethics applicable to personnel of the fund, the manager, the subadviser and the distributor and to the Independent Trustees of the Trust are on file with the SEC.

Proxy Voting

As the fund holds various equity securities in its portfolio, it often will have the right to vote by proxy on items of business with respect to the issuers whose securities it owns. The Legg Mason Funds have developed proxy voting procedures whereby, subject to Board oversight, the advisers and/or subadvisers that actually manage the assets of the fund are delegated the responsibility for assessing and voting the fund’s proxies in accordance with their own proxy voting policies and procedures. These policies and procedures include specific provisions to determine when a conflict exists between the fund and its adviser and the adviser’s affiliates. Copies of the proxy voting policies and procedures are attached to this SAI as Appendix B.

 

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Information regarding how the fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available without charge through www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds (click on the name of the fund) or the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov.

Portfolio Transactions and Brokerage

The portfolio turnover rate is computed by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of securities for the period by the average value of portfolio securities for that period. Short-term securities are excluded from the calculation. Variation in the fund’s portfolio turnover rate from year to year may be due to a fluctuating volume of shareholder purchase or redemption orders or market conditions.

For the fiscal year end September 30, 2016 and for the period from May 29, 2015 (date of inception) to September 30, 2015, the fund’s portfolio turnover was as follows:

 

2016

  

2015

28%

   23%

Under the Subadvisory Agreement, the subadviser is responsible for the execution of fund portfolio transactions. The subadviser places all orders for the purchase and the sale of portfolio investments with broker/ dealers selected by it in its discretion. Transactions on stock exchanges and other agency transactions involve the payment by the fund of brokerage commissions. There is generally no stated commission in the case of securities, such as U.S. Government securities, traded in the OTC markets, but the price paid by the fund usually includes an undisclosed dealer commission or markup. In selecting brokers or dealers, the subadviser must seek the most favorable price (including the applicable dealer spread or brokerage commission) and execution for such transactions, subject to the possible payment as described below of higher brokerage commissions or spreads to broker/dealers who provide research and analysis. The fund may not always pay the lowest commission or spread available. Rather, in placing orders on behalf of the fund, the subadviser also takes into account other factors bearing on the overall quality of execution, such as size of the order, difficulty of execution, efficiency of the executing broker’s facilities (including the services described below), and any risk assumed by the executing broker or dealer and, if applicable, arrangements for payment of fund expenses.

Consistent with the policy of most favorable price and execution, the subadviser may give consideration to research, statistical and other services furnished by broker/dealers to the subadviser for its use, may place orders with broker/dealers who provide supplemental investment and market research and securities and economic analysis, and may pay to these broker/dealers a higher brokerage commission than may be charged by other brokers or dealers, or a higher transaction fee on so-called “riskless principal” trades in certain Nasdaq securities. Such services include, without limitation, advice as to the value of securities; the advisability of investing in, purchasing or selling securities; advice as to the availability of securities or of purchasers or sellers of securities; and furnishing analyses and reports concerning issuers, industries, securities, economic factors and trends, portfolio strategy and the performance of accounts. Such research and analysis may be useful to the subadviser in connection with services to clients other than the fund whose brokerage generated the service. On the other hand, research and analysis received by the subadviser from brokers executing orders for clients other than the fund may be used for the fund’s benefit. The subadviser’s fee is not reduced by reason of its receiving such brokerage and research services.

The fund may use brokerage firms affiliated with the subadviser (“affiliated broker”) as its broker for agency transactions in listed and OTC securities at commission rates and under circumstances consistent with the policy of best execution. Commissions paid to affiliated brokers will not exceed “usual and customary brokerage commissions.” Rule 17e-1 under the 1940 Act defines “usual and customary” commissions to include amounts which are “reasonable and fair compared to the commission, fee or other remuneration received by other brokers in connection with comparable transactions involving similar securities being purchased or sold on a securities

 

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exchange during a comparable period of time.” In the OTC market, the fund generally deals with responsible primary market makers unless a more favorable execution can otherwise be obtained.

For the fiscal period or year ended September 30, the fund paid aggregate brokerage commissions as set forth in the table below.

 

Fiscal year or period
ended September 30,

   Aggregate Brokerage
Commissions Paid ($)
 

2016

     2,095   

2015

     14,045   

Except as permitted by SEC rules or orders, the fund may not buy securities from, or sell securities to, LMIS or its affiliated persons as principal, including so-called “riskless principal” trades. The Board has adopted procedures in conformity with Rule 10f-3 under the 1940 Act whereby the fund may purchase securities that are offered in certain underwritings in which LMIS or any of its affiliated persons is a participant. These procedures, among other things, limit the fund’s investment in the amount of securities of any class of securities offered in an underwriting in which LMIS or any of its affiliated persons is a participant so that the fund, together with all other registered investment companies having the same subadviser and all private accounts controlled by the same adviser, may not purchase more than 25% of the principal amount of the offering of such class. In addition, the fund may not purchase securities during the existence of an underwriting if LMIS is the sole underwriter of those securities. In no case in which the fund purchases securities in an underwriting in which LMIS or any affiliated person is a participant can the fund purchase the securities from LMIS or the affiliated person.

Section 11(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, prohibits LMIS from receiving compensation for executing transactions on an exchange for its affiliates, such as the fund, unless the affiliate expressly consents by written contract. Each Management Agreement, each Subadvisory Agreement and each Western Asset Agreement expressly provides such consent.

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016 and for the fiscal period ended September 30, 2015, the fund did not pay any brokerage commissions to LMIS or its affiliates.

The fund did not acquire any securities issued by its regular broker/dealers or their parents during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016. As of September 30, 2016, the fund did not own any securities issued by its regular broker/dealers or their parents.

Investment decisions for the fund are made independently from those of other funds and accounts advised by LMPFA, Martin Currie and Western Asset. However, the same security may be held in the portfolios of more than one fund or account. When two or more accounts simultaneously engage in the purchase or sale of the same security, the prices and amounts will be equitably allocated to each account. In some cases, this procedure may adversely affect the price or quantity of the security available to a particular account. In other cases, however, an account’s ability to participate in large-volume transactions may produce better executions and prices.

Distributor

LMIS, a wholly-owned broker/dealer subsidiary of Legg Mason, located at 100 International Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, serves as the sole and exclusive distributor of the fund pursuant to a written agreement (as amended, the “Distribution Agreement”).

Under the Distribution Agreement, the distributor is appointed as principal underwriter and distributor in connection with the offering and sale of shares of the fund. The distributor offers the shares on an agency or “best efforts” basis under which the fund issues only the number of shares actually sold. Shares of the fund are continuously offered by the distributor.

 

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The Distribution Agreement is renewable from year to year with respect to the fund if approved (a) by the Board or by a vote of a majority of the fund’s outstanding voting securities, and (b) by the affirmative vote of a majority of Trustees who are not parties to such agreement or interested persons of any party by votes cast in person at a meeting called for such purpose.

The Distribution Agreement is terminable with respect to the fund without penalty by the Board or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the fund, or by the distributor, on not less than 60 days’ written notice to the other party (unless the notice period is waived by mutual consent). The Distribution Agreement will automatically and immediately terminate in the event of its assignment.

LMIS may be deemed to be an underwriter for purposes of the 1933 Act. Dealer reallowances are described in the Prospectus.

LMPFA, LMIS, their affiliates and their personnel have interests in promoting sales of the Legg Mason Funds, including remuneration, fees and profitability relating to services to and sales of the funds. Associated persons of LMPFA, LMIS or their affiliates (including wholesalers registered with LMIS) may receive additional compensation related to the sale of individual Legg Mason Funds or categories of Legg Mason Funds. LMPFA, the subadvisers, and their advisory or other personnel may also benefit from increased amounts of assets under management.

Financial intermediaries, including broker/dealers, investment advisers, financial consultants or advisers, mutual fund supermarkets, insurance companies, financial institutions and other financial intermediaries through which investors may purchase shares of the fund, also may benefit from the sales of shares of the Legg Mason Funds. For example, in connection with such sales, financial intermediaries may receive compensation from the fund (with respect to the fund as a whole or a particular class of shares) and/or from LMPFA, LMIS, and/or their affiliates, as further described below. The structure of these compensation arrangements, as well as the amounts paid under such arrangements, vary and may change from time to time. In addition, new compensation arrangements may be negotiated at any time. The compensation arrangements described in this section are not mutually exclusive, and a single financial intermediary may receive multiple types of compensation.

LMIS has agreements in place with financial intermediaries defining how much each firm will be paid for the sale of a particular mutual fund from sales charges, if any, paid by fund shareholders and from Rule 12b-1 Plan fees paid to LMIS by the fund. These financial intermediaries then pay their employees or associated persons who sell fund shares from the sales charges and/or fees they receive. The financial intermediary, and/or its employees or associated persons may receive a payment when a sale is made and will, in most cases, continue to receive ongoing payments while you are invested in the fund. In other cases, LMIS may retain all or a portion of such fees and sales charges.

In addition, LMIS, LMPFA and/or certain of their affiliates may make additional payments (which are often referred to as “revenue sharing” payments) to the financial intermediaries from their past profits and other available sources, including profits from their relationships with the fund. Revenue sharing payments are a form of compensation paid to a financial intermediary in addition to the sales charges paid by fund shareholders or Rule 12b-1 Plan fees paid by the fund. LMPFA, LMIS and/or certain of its affiliates may revise the terms of any existing revenue sharing arrangement, and may enter into additional revenue sharing arrangements with other financial services firms.

Revenue sharing arrangements are intended, among other things, to foster the sale of fund shares and/or to compensate financial services firms for assisting in marketing or promotional activities in connection with the sale of fund shares. In exchange for revenue sharing payments, LMPFA and LMIS generally expect to receive the opportunity for the fund to be sold through the financial intermediaries’ sales forces or to have access to third-party platforms or other marketing programs, including but not limited to mutual fund “supermarket” platforms or other sales programs. To the extent that financial intermediaries receiving revenue sharing payments

 

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sell more shares of the fund, LMPFA and LMIS and/or their affiliates benefit from the increase in fund assets as a result of the fees they receive from the fund. LMIS, LMPFA or their affiliates consider revenue sharing arrangements based on a variety of factors and services to be provided.

Revenue sharing payments are usually calculated based on a percentage of fund sales and/or fund assets attributable to a particular financial intermediary. Payments may also be based on other criteria or factors such as, for example, a fee per each transaction. Specific payment formulas are negotiated based on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, reputation in the industry, ability to attract and retain assets, target markets, customer relationships and scope and quality of services provided. In addition, LMIS, LMPFA and/or certain of their affiliates may pay flat fees on a one-time or irregular basis for the initial set-up of the fund on a financial intermediary’s systems, participation or attendance at a financial intermediary’s meetings, or for other reasons. In addition, LMIS, LMPFA and/or certain of their affiliates may pay certain education and training costs of financial intermediaries (including, in some cases, travel expenses) to train and educate the personnel of the financial intermediaries. It is likely that financial intermediaries that execute portfolio transactions for the fund will include those firms with which LMPFA, LMIS and/or certain of their affiliates have entered into revenue sharing arrangements.

The fund generally pays the transfer agent for certain recordkeeping and administrative services. In addition, the fund may pay financial intermediaries for certain recordkeeping, administrative, sub-accounting and networking services. These services include maintenance of shareholder accounts by the firms, such as recordkeeping and other activities that otherwise would be performed by the fund’s transfer agent. Administrative fees may be paid to a firm that undertakes, for example, shareholder communications on behalf of the fund. Networking services are services undertaken to support the electronic transmission of shareholder purchase and redemption orders through the National Securities Clearing Corporation (“NSCC”). These payments are generally based on either (1) a percentage of the average daily net assets of fund shareholders serviced by a financial intermediary or (2) a fixed dollar amount for each account serviced by a financial intermediary. LMIS, LMPFA and/or their affiliates may make all or a portion of these payments.

In addition, the fund reimburses LMIS for NSCC fees that are invoiced to LMIS as the party to the agreement with NSCC for the administrative services provided by NSCC to the fund and its shareholders. These services include transaction processing and settlement through Fund/SERV, electronic networking services to support the transmission of shareholder purchase and redemption orders to and from financial intermediaries, and related recordkeeping provided by NSCC to the fund and its shareholders.

If your fund shares are purchased through a retirement plan, LMIS, LMPFA or certain of their affiliates may also make similar payments to those described in this section to the plan’s recordkeeper or an affiliate.

Revenue sharing payments, as well as the other types of compensation arrangements described in this section, may provide an incentive for financial intermediaries and their employees or associated persons to recommend or sell shares of the fund to customers and in doing so may create conflicts of interest between the firms’ financial interests and the interests of their customers. The total amount of these payments is substantial, may be substantial to any given recipient and may exceed the costs and expenses incurred by the recipient for any fund-related marketing or shareholder servicing activities.

As of December 31, 2016, LMIS, LMPFA or their affiliates made revenue sharing payments to the financial intermediaries listed below (or their affiliates or successors). It is possible that each intermediary listed is not receiving payments with respect to each fund in the Legg Mason fund complex. This list of intermediaries will change over time, and any additions, modifications or deletions thereto that have occurred since December 31, 2016 are not reflected.

Acadia Life Limited

Allianz Life Insurance Company of New York

 

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Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America

Allstate Life Insurance Company

Allstate Life Insurance Company of New York

AIG Advisor Group, Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.

AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company

Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

Commonwealth Equity Services, LLP d/b/a Commonwealth Financial Network

Delaware Life Insurance Company (F/K/A Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (U.S.))

First MetLife Investors Insurance Company

Genworth Life and Annuity Insurance Company

Genworth Life Insurance Company of New York

Goldman Sachs & Co.

The Guardian Insurance & Annuity Company, Inc.

H.D. Vest Investment Securities, Inc.

Hantz Financial Services, Inc.

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Jefferson National Life Insurance Company

JP Morgan Securities LLC

The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company

Lincoln Benefit Life Company

Lincoln Retirement Services Company LLC

Lincoln Variable Insurance Products Trust

Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York

LPL Financial LLC

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated

MetLife Insurance Company USA

MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company

Midland National Insurance Company

Minnesota Life Insurance Company

Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC

National Security Life and Annuity Company

Nationwide Financial Services, Inc.

The Ohio National Life Assurance Corporation

The Ohio National Life Insurance Company

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.

Pacific Life Insurance Company

Pacific Life & Annuity Company

PFS Investments, Inc.

Principal Securities, Inc.

Protective Life Insurance Company

Raymond James and Associates, Inc.

Raymond James Financial Services, Inc.

Security Benefit Life Insurance Company

UBS Financial Services, Inc.

U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc.

Voya Financial Partners, LLC

Voya Insurance and Annuity Company

Voya Retirement Advisors, LLC

Voya Retirement Insurance and Annuity Company

Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC

Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

 

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Wells Fargo Securities, LLC

Winterbotham Trust Company Limited

LMIS, LMPFA or their affiliates may also pay fees, from their own assets, to financial intermediaries for providing other distribution-related services as well as recordkeeping, administrative, subaccounting, and networking services (or portions thereof), and other shareholder or administrative services in connection with investments in the funds. These payments may be considered revenue sharing payments. The financial intermediaries receiving such payments may not be listed above.

You should assume that your financial intermediary receives revenue sharing payments and/or other compensation described in this SAI.

Please contact your financial intermediary for details about any payments it (and its employees) may receive from the fund and/or from LMIS, LMPFA and/or their affiliates. You should review your financial intermediary’s disclosure and/or talk to your broker/dealer or financial intermediary to obtain more information on how this compensation may have influenced your broker/dealer’s or financial intermediary’s recommendation of the fund.

Dealer Commissions and Concessions

From time to time, the fund’s distributor or the manager, at its expense, may provide compensation or promotional incentives (“concessions”) to dealers that sell or arrange for the sale of shares of the fund or a managed account strategy of which the fund is part. Such concessions provided by the fund’s distributor or the manager may include financial assistance to dealers in connection with preapproved conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, payment for travel expenses, including lodging, incurred by registered representatives and other employees for such seminars or training programs, seminars for the public, advertising and sales campaigns regarding one or more funds, and/or other dealer-sponsored events. From time to time, the fund’s distributor or manager may make expense reimbursements for special training of a dealer’s registered representatives and other employees in group meetings or to help pay the expenses of sales contests. Other concessions may be offered to the extent not prohibited by applicable laws or any self-regulatory agency, such as the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

Services and Distribution Plan

The Trust has adopted a shareholder services and distribution plan (the “12b-1 Plan”) in accordance with Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. Under the 12b-1 Plan, the fund may pay monthly fees to LMIS at an annual rate not to exceed 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the fund attributable to Class A shares, not to exceed 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the fund attributable to Class A2 shares, not to exceed 1.00% of the average daily net assets of the fund attributable to Class C shares, not to exceed 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the fund attributable to Class FI shares, and not to exceed 0.50% of the average daily net assets of the fund attributable to Class R shares. The fund will provide the Board with periodic reports of amounts expended under the 12b-1 Plan and the purposes for which such expenditures were made.

Fees under the 12b-1 Plan may be used to make payments to the distributor, Service Agents and other parties in respect of the sale of shares of the fund, for advertising, marketing or other promotional activity, and payments for preparation, printing, and distribution of prospectuses, statements of additional information and reports for recipients other than existing shareholders. The fund also may make payments to the distributor, Service Agents and others for providing personal service or the maintenance of shareholder accounts. The amounts paid to each recipient may vary based upon certain factors, including, among other things, the levels of sales of shares and/or shareholder services; provided, however, that the fees paid to a recipient with respect to a particular class that may be used to cover expenses primarily intended to result in the sale of shares of that class, or that may be used to cover expenses primarily intended for personal service and/or maintenance of shareholder

 

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accounts, may not exceed the maximum amounts, if any, as may from time to time be permitted for such services under FINRA Conduct Rule 2341 or any successor rule, in each case as amended or interpreted by FINRA.

Since fees paid under the 12b-1 Plan are not tied directly to expenses incurred by the distributor (or others), the amount of the fees paid by a class of the fund during any year may be more or less than actual expenses incurred by the distributor (or others). This type of distribution fee arrangement is characterized by the staff of the SEC as being of the “compensation variety” (in contrast to “reimbursement” arrangements by which a distributor’s payments are directly linked to its expenses). Thus, even if the distributor’s expenses exceed the fees provided for by the 12b-1 Plan, the fund will not be obligated to pay more than those fees and, if expenses incurred by the distributor (or others) are less than the fees paid to the distributor and others, they will realize a profit.

The 12b-1 Plan recognizes that various service providers to the fund, such as its manager, may make payments for distribution, marketing or sales-related expenses out of their own resources of any kind, including profits or payments received from the fund for other purposes, such as management fees. The 12b-1 Plan provides that, to the extent that such payments might be deemed to be indirect financing of any activity primarily intended to result in the sale of shares of the fund, the payments are deemed to be authorized by the 12b-1 Plan.

Under its terms, the 12b-1 Plan continues in effect for successive annual periods, provided continuance is specifically approved at least annually by vote of the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees who have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the 12b-1 Plan or in any agreements related to it (“Qualified Trustees”). The 12b-1 Plan may not be amended to increase the amount of the service and distribution fees without shareholder approval, and all amendments of the 12b-1 Plan also must be approved by the Trustees, including the Qualified Trustees, in the manner described above. The 12b-1 Plan may be terminated with respect to a class of the fund at any time, without penalty, by vote of a majority of the Qualified Trustees or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the class (as defined in the 1940 Act).

The following service and distribution fees were incurred by the fund pursuant to the distribution plan in effect during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016:

 

Class

   Service and Distribution Fees
Incurred ($)
 

Class FI

     22   

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016, LMIS incurred distribution expenses for advertising, printing and mailing prospectuses, support services and overhead expenses and compensation to Service Agents and third parties as expressed in the following table. The distributor may have made revenue sharing payments in addition to the expenses shown here.

 

Fund and
Class

  

Third Party
Fees ($)

  

Financial Consultant
Compensation (Amortized) ($)

   Marketing ($)    Printing ($)    Total ($)

FI

   0    0    3,836    4    3,840

No information is presented for Class A shares, Class A2 shares, Class C shares or Class R shares of the fund because no Class A shares, Class A2 shares, Class C shares or Class R shares of the fund were outstanding during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016.

The Trust

The certificate of trust to establish the Trust was filed with the State Department of Assessments and Taxation of Maryland on October 7, 2009.

 

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The fund is a series of the Trust, a Maryland statutory trust. A Maryland statutory trust is an unincorporated business association that is established under, and governed by, Maryland law. Maryland law provides a statutory framework for the powers, duties, rights and obligations of the trustees and shareholders of the statutory trust, while the more specific powers, duties, rights and obligations of the trustees and the shareholders are determined by the trustees as set forth in the trust’s declaration of trust. Some of the more significant provisions of the Trust’s declaration of trust (the “Declaration”) are described below.

Shareholder Voting. The Declaration provides for shareholder voting as required by the 1940 Act or other applicable laws, but otherwise permits, consistent with Maryland law, actions by the trustees of the Trust (the “Trustees”) without seeking the consent of shareholders. The Trustees may, without shareholder approval, amend the Declaration or authorize the merger or consolidation of the Trust into another trust or entity, reorganize the Trust or any series or class into another trust or entity or a series or class of another entity, sell all or substantially all of the assets of the Trust or any series or class to another entity, or a series or class of another entity, or terminate the Trust or any series or class.

The fund is not required to hold an annual meeting of shareholders, but the fund will call special meetings of shareholders whenever required by the 1940 Act or by the terms of the Declaration. The Declaration provides for “dollar-weighted voting” which means that a shareholder’s voting power is determined, not by the number of shares he or she owns, but by the dollar value of those shares determined on the record date. All shareholders of record of all series and classes of the Trust vote together, except where required by the 1940 Act to vote separately by series or by class, or when the Trustees have determined that a matter affects only the interests of one or more series or classes of shares. There is no cumulative voting on any matter submitted to a vote of the shareholders.

Election and Removal of Trustees. The Declaration provides that the Trustees may establish the number of Trustees and that vacancies on the Board may be filled by the remaining Trustees, except when election of Trustees by the shareholders is required under the 1940 Act. Trustees are then elected by a plurality of votes cast by shareholders at a meeting at which a quorum is present. The Declaration also provides that a mandatory retirement age may be set by action of two-thirds of the Trustees and that Trustees may be removed, with or without cause, by a vote of shareholders holding two-thirds of the voting power of the Trust, or by a vote of two-thirds of the remaining Trustees. The provisions of the Declaration relating to the election and removal of Trustees may not be amended without the approval of two-thirds of the Trustees.

Amendments to the Declaration. The Trustees are authorized to amend the Declaration without the vote of shareholders, but no amendment may be made that impairs the exemption from personal liability granted in the Declaration to persons who are or have been shareholders, Trustees, officers or employees of the Trust or that limits the rights to indemnification, advancement of expenses or insurance provided in the Declaration with respect to actions or omissions of persons entitled to indemnification, advancement of expenses or insurance under the Declaration prior to the amendment.

Issuance and Redemption of Shares. The fund may issue an unlimited number of shares for such consideration and on such terms as the Trustees may determine. All shares offered pursuant to the Prospectus of the fund, when issued, will be fully paid and nonassessable. Shareholders are not entitled to any appraisal, preemptive, conversion, exchange or similar rights, except as the Trustees may determine. The fund may involuntarily redeem a shareholder’s shares upon certain conditions as may be determined by the Trustees, including, for example, if the shareholder fails to provide the fund with identification required by law, or if the fund is unable to verify the information received from the shareholder. Additionally, as discussed below, shares may be redeemed in connection with the closing of small accounts.

Disclosure of Shareholder Holdings. The Declaration specifically requires shareholders, upon demand, to disclose to the fund information with respect to the direct and indirect ownership of shares in order to comply with various laws or regulations, and the fund may disclose such ownership if required by law or regulation, or as the Trustees otherwise decide.

 

77


Small Accounts. The Declaration provides that the fund may close out a shareholder’s account by redeeming all of the shares in the account if the account falls below a minimum account size (which may vary by class) that may be set by the Trustees from time to time. Alternately, the Declaration permits the fund to assess a fee for small accounts (which may vary by class) and redeem shares in the account to cover such fees, or convert the shares into another share class that is geared to smaller accounts.

Series and Classes. The Declaration provides that the Trustees may establish series and classes in addition to those currently established and that the Trustees may determine the rights and preferences, limitations and restrictions, including qualifications for ownership, conversion and exchange features, minimum purchase and account size, expenses and charges, and other features of the series and classes. The Trustees may change any of those features, terminate any series or class, combine series with other series in the Trust, combine one or more classes of a series with another class in that series or convert the shares of one class into shares of another class. Each share of the fund, as a series of the Trust, represents an interest in the fund only and not in the assets of any other series of the Trust.

Shareholder, Trustee and Officer Liability. The Declaration provides that shareholders are not personally liable for the obligations of the fund and requires the fund to indemnify a shareholder against any loss or expense arising from any such liability. The fund will assume the defense of any claim against a shareholder for personal liability at the request of the shareholder. The Declaration further provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity as a Trustee is not personally liable to any person, other than the Trust or its shareholders, in connection with the affairs of the Trust. Each Trustee is required to perform his or her duties in good faith and in a manner he or she believes to be in the best interests of the Trust. All actions and omissions of Trustees are presumed to be in accordance with the foregoing standard of performance, and any person alleging the contrary has the burden of proving that allegation.

The Declaration limits a Trustee’s liability to the Trust or any shareholder to the fullest extent permitted under current Maryland law by providing that a Trustee is liable to the Trust or its shareholders for monetary damages only (a) to the extent that it is proved that he or she actually received an improper benefit or profit in money, property, or services or (b) to the extent that a judgment or other final adjudication adverse to the Trustee is entered in a proceeding based on a finding in the proceeding that the Trustee’s action, or failure to act, was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty and was material to the cause of action adjudicated in the proceeding. The Declaration requires the Trust to indemnify any persons who are or who have been Trustees, officers or employees of the Trust to the fullest extent permitted by law against liability and expenses in connection with any claim or proceeding in which he or she is involved by virtue of having been a Trustee, officer or employee. In making any determination as to whether any person is entitled to the advancement of expenses in connection with a claim for which indemnification is sought, such person is entitled to a rebuttable presumption that he or she did not engage in conduct for which indemnification is not available.

The Declaration provides that any Trustee who serves as chair of the Board, a member or chair of a committee of the Board, lead independent Trustee, audit committee financial expert, or in any other similar capacity will not be subject to any greater standard of care or liability because of such position.

Derivative Actions. The Declaration provides a detailed process for the bringing of derivative actions by shareholders in order to permit legitimate inquiries and claims while avoiding the time, expense, distraction, and other harm that can be caused to the fund or its shareholders as a result of spurious shareholder demands and derivative actions. Prior to bringing a derivative action, a demand by no fewer than three unrelated shareholders must be made on the Trustees. The Declaration details information, certifications, undertakings and acknowledgements that must be included in the demand. The Trustees are not required to consider a demand that is not submitted in accordance with the requirements contained in the Declaration. The Declaration also requires that, in order to bring a derivative action, the complaining shareholders must be joined in the action by shareholders owning, at the time of the alleged wrongdoing, at the time of demand, and at the time the action is commenced, shares representing at least 5% of the voting power of the affected funds. The Trustees have a

 

78


period of 90 days, which may be extended by an additional 60 days, to consider the demand. If a majority of the Trustees who are considered independent for the purposes of considering the demand determine that a suit should be maintained, then the Trust will commence the suit and the suit will proceed directly and not derivatively. If a majority of the independent Trustees determines that maintaining the suit would not be in the best interests of the fund, the Trustees are required to reject the demand and the complaining shareholders may not proceed with the derivative action unless the shareholders are able to sustain the burden of proof to a court that the decision of the Trustees not to pursue the requested action was not consistent with the standard of performance required of the Trustees in performing their duties. If a demand is rejected, the complaining shareholders will be responsible for the costs and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by the Trust in connection with the consideration of the demand, if, in the judgment of the independent Trustees, the demand was made without reasonable cause or for an improper purpose. If a derivative action is brought in violation of the Declaration, the shareholders bringing the action may be responsible for the fund’s costs, including attorneys’ fees.

The Declaration further provides that the fund shall be responsible for payment of attorneys’ fees and legal expenses incurred by a complaining shareholder only if required by law, and any attorneys’ fees that the fund is obligated to pay shall be calculated using reasonable hourly rates. The Declaration also requires that actions by shareholders against the Trust or the fund be brought only in federal court in Baltimore, Maryland, or if not permitted to be brought in federal court, then in state court in Baltimore, Maryland, and that the right to jury trial be waived to the fullest extent permitted by law.

Custodian and Transfer Agent

State Street Bank and Trust Company (“State Street”), One Lincoln Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, serves as the custodian of the fund. State Street, among other things, maintains a custody account or accounts in the name of the fund, receives and delivers all assets for the fund upon purchase and upon sale or maturity, collects and receives all income and other payments and distributions on account of the assets of the fund and makes disbursements on behalf of the fund.

State Street neither determines the fund’s investment policies nor decides which securities the fund will buy or sell. For its services, State Street receives a monthly fee based upon the daily average market value of securities held in custody and also receives securities transaction charges, including out-of-pocket expenses. The fund may also periodically enter into arrangements with other qualified custodians with respect to certain types of securities or other transactions such as repurchase agreements or derivatives transactions. State Street may also act as the fund’s securities lending agent and in that case would receive a share of the income generated by such activities.

BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. (“BNY”), located at 4400 Computer Drive, Westborough, Massachusetts 01581, serves as the fund’s transfer agent. Under the transfer agency agreement with BNY, BNY maintains the shareholder account records for the fund, handles certain communications between shareholders and the fund and distributes dividends and distributions payable by the fund. For these services, BNY receives a monthly fee computed on the basis of the number of shareholder accounts it maintains for the fund during the month and is reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses.

Legal Counsel

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, One Federal Street, Boston, MA 02110, serves as counsel to the fund.

 

79


Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, 100 East Pratt Street, Suite 1900, Baltimore, MD 21202, serves as independent registered public accounting firm to the fund.

Financial Statements

The Annual Report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016, contains the fund’s financial statements, accompanying notes and the reports of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, the fund’s independent registered public accounting firm, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein (filed by Legg Mason Global Asset Management Trust on behalf of the fund on November 22, 2016 (Accession Number 0001193125-16-774897.

 

80


APPENDIX A

DESCRIPTION OF RATINGS

The ratings of Moody’s Investors Service, Inc., S&P’s Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings represent their opinions as to the quality of various debt obligations. It should be emphasized, however, that ratings are not absolute standards of quality. Consequently, debt obligations with the same maturity, coupon and rating may have different yields while debt obligations of the same maturity and coupon with different ratings may have the same yield. As described by the rating agencies, ratings are generally given to securities at the time of issuances. While the rating agencies may from time to time revise such ratings, they undertake no obligation to do so.

Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. Global Rating Scales

Ratings assigned on Moody’s global long-term and short-term rating scales are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations issued by non-financial corporates, financial institutions, structured finance vehicles, project finance vehicles, and public sector entities. Long-term ratings are assigned to issuers or obligations with an original maturity of one year or more and reflect both on the likelihood of a default on contractually promised payments and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default. Short-term ratings are assigned to obligations with an original maturity of thirteen months or less and reflect both on the likelihood of a default on contractually promised payments and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default.1,2

Moody’s differentiates structured finance ratings from fundamental ratings (i.e., ratings on nonfinancial corporate, financial institution, and public sector entities) on the global long-term scale by adding (sf) to all structured finance ratings.3 The addition of (sf) to structured finance ratings should eliminate any presumption that such ratings and fundamental ratings at the same letter grade level will behave the same. The (sf) indicator for structured finance security ratings indicates that otherwise similarly rated structured finance and fundamental securities may have different risk characteristics. Through its current methodologies, however, Moody’s aspires to achieve broad expected equivalence in structured finance and fundamental rating performance when measured over a long period of time.

Description of Moody’s Investors Service, Inc.’s Global Long-Term Obligation Ratings:

Aaa—Obligations rated Aaa are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk.

Aa—Obligations rated Aa are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.

 

1 

For certain structured finance, preferred stock and hybrid securities in which payment default events are either not defined or do not match investors’ expectations for timely payment, long-term and short-term ratings reflect the likelihood of impairment and financial loss in the event of impairment.

2  Supranational institutions and central banks that hold sovereign debt or extend sovereign loans, such as the IMF or the European Central Bank, may not always be treated similarly to other investors and lenders with similar credit exposures. Long-term and short-term ratings assigned to obligations held by both supranational institutions and central banks, as well as other investors, reflect only the credit risks faced by other investors unless specifically noted otherwise.
3  Like other global scale ratings, (sf) ratings reflect both the likelihood of a default and the expected loss suffered in the event of default. Ratings are assigned based on a rating committee’s assessment of a security’s expected loss rate (default probability multiplied by expected loss severity), and may be subject to the constraint that the final expected loss rating assigned would not be more than a certain number of notches, typically three to five notches, above the rating that would be assigned based on an assessment of default probability alone. The magnitude of this constraint may vary with the level of the rating, the seasoning of the transaction, and the uncertainty around the assessments of expected loss and probability of default.

 

A-1


A—Obligations rated A are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk.

Baa—Obligations rated Baa are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics.

Ba—Obligations rated Ba are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk.

B—Obligations rated B are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.

Caa—Obligations rated Caa are judged to be speculative of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.

Ca—Obligations rated Ca are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.

C—Obligations rated C are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest.

Note: Moody’s appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from Aa through Caa. The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category. Additionally, a “(hyb)” indicator is appended to all ratings of hybrid securities issued by banks, insurers, finance companies, and securities firms.

By their terms, hybrid securities allow for the omission of scheduled dividends, interest, or principal payments, which can potentially result in impairment if such an omission occurs. Hybrid securities may also be subject to contractually allowable write-downs of principal that could result in impairment. Together with the hybrid indicator, the long-term obligation rating assigned to a hybrid security is an expression of the relative credit risk associated with that security.

Description of Moody’s Investors Service, Inc.’s Global Short-Term Obligation Ratings:

P-1—Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-1 have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

P-2—Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

P-3—Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 have an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations.

NP—Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.

Description of Moody’s Investors Service, Inc.’s US Municipal Ratings:

US Municipal Short-Term Obligation Ratings:

While the global short-term “prime” rating scale is applied to US municipal tax-exempt commercial paper, these programs are typically backed by external letters of credit or liquidity facilities and their short-term prime ratings usually map to the long-term rating of the enhancing bank or financial institution and not to the municipality’s rating. Other short-term municipal obligations, which generally have different funding sources for repayment, are rated using two additional short-term rating scales (i.e., the MIG and VMIG scales discussed below).

 

A-2


The Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) scale is used to rate US municipal bond anticipation notes of up to three years maturity. Municipal notes rated on the MIG scale may be secured by either pledged revenues or proceeds of a take-out financing received prior to note maturity. MIG ratings expire at the maturity of the obligation, and the issuer’s long-term rating is only one consideration in assigning the MIG rating. MIG ratings are divided into three levels—MIG 1 through MIG 3—while speculative grade short-term obligations are designated SG.

MIG 1—This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing.

MIG 2—This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group.

MIG 3—This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established.

SG—This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection.

US Municipal Demand Obligation Ratings:

In the case of variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), a two-component rating is assigned: a long or short-term debt rating and a demand obligation rating. The first element represents Moody’s evaluation of risk associated with scheduled principal and interest payments. The second element represents Moody’s evaluation of risk associated with the ability to receive purchase price upon demand (“demand feature”). The second element uses a rating from a variation of the MIG scale called the Variable Municipal Investment Grade (“VMIG”) scale. VMIG ratings of demand obligations with unconditional liquidity support are mapped from the short-term debt rating (or counterparty assessment) of the support provider, or the underlying obligor in the absence of third party liquidity support, with VMIG 1 corresponding to P-1, VMIG 2 to P-2, VMIG 3 to P-3 and SG to not prime. For example, the VMIG rating for an industrial revenue bond with Company XYZ as the underlying obligor would normally have the same numerical modifier as Company XYZ’s prime rating. Transitions of VMIG ratings of demand obligations with conditional liquidity support, as shown in the diagram below, differ from transitions on the Prime scale to reflect the risk that external liquidity support will terminate if the issuer’s long-term rating drops below investment grade.

VMIG 1—This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

VMIG 2—This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

VMIG 3—This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

SG—This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have an investment grade short-term rating or may lack the structural and/or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

 

A-3


Description of S&P’s Global Ratings’ Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings:

Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings are based, in varying degrees, on S&P Global Ratings’ analysis of the following considerations: (1) the likelihood of payment—the capacity and willingness of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on a financial obligation in accordance with the terms of the obligation; (2) the nature and provisions of the financial obligation, and the promise we impute; and (3) the protection afforded by, and relative position of, the financial obligation in the event of a bankruptcy, reorganization, or other arrangement under the laws of bankruptcy and other laws affecting creditors’ rights.

Issue ratings are an assessment of default risk, but may incorporate an assessment of relative seniority or ultimate recovery in the event of default. Junior obligations are typically rated lower than senior obligations, to reflect the lower priority in bankruptcy, as noted above. (Such differentiation may apply when an entity has both senior and subordinated obligations, secured and unsecured obligations, or operating company and holding company obligations.)

AAA—An obligation rated “AAA” has the highest rating assigned by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is extremely strong.

AA—An obligation rated “AA” differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is very strong.

A—An obligation rated “A” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is still strong.

BBB—An obligation rated “BBB” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

BB, B, CCC, CC, and C—Obligations rated “BB”, “B”, “CCC”, “CC”, and “C” are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. “BB” indicates the least degree of speculation and “C” the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposures to adverse conditions.

BB—An obligation rated “BB” is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions which could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

B—An obligation rated “B” is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated “BB”, but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor’s capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

CCC—An obligation rated “CCC” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment, and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

CC—An obligation rated “CC” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The “CC” rating is used when a default has not yet occurred, but S&P Global Ratings expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default.

 

A-4


C—An obligation rated “C” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared to obligations that are rated higher.

D—An obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation’s rating is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

NR: This indicates that no rating has been requested, or that there is insufficient information on which to base a rating, or that S&P Global Ratings does not rate a particular obligation as a matter of policy.

The ratings from “AA” to “CCC” may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the major rating categories.

Description of S&P Global Ratings’ Short-Term Issue Credit Ratings:

Short-term ratings are generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market. In the U.S., for example, that means obligations with an original maturity date of no more than 365 days—including commercial paper.

A-1—A short-term obligation rated “A-1” is rated in the highest category by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on these obligations is extremely strong.

A-2—A short-term obligation rated “A-2” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is satisfactory.

A-3—A short-term obligation rated “A-3” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

B—A short-term obligation rated “B” is regarded as vulnerable and has significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties which could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments.

C—A short-term obligation rated “C” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

D—A short-term obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings’ believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation’s rating is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

 

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Description of S&P Global Ratings’ Municipal Short-Term Note Ratings Definitions:

An S&P Global Ratings U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P Global Ratings opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to the notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P Global Ratings’ analysis will review the following considerations: (1) amortization schedule—the larger the final maturity relative to other maturities, the more likely it will be treated as a note; and (2) source of payment—the more dependent the issue is on the market for its refinancing, the more likely it will be treated as a note.

Note rating symbols are as follows:

SP-1—Strong capacity to pay principal and interest. An issue determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service is given a plus (+) designation.

SP-2—Satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes.

SP-3—Speculative capacity to pay principal and interest.

Description of S&P Global Ratings’ Dual Ratings:

Dual ratings may be assigned to debt issues that have a put option or demand feature. The first component of the rating addresses the likelihood of repayment of principal and interest as due, and the second component of the rating addresses only the demand feature. The first component of the rating can relate to either a short-term or long-term transaction and accordingly use either short-term or long-term rating symbols. The second component of the rating relates to the put option and is assigned a short-term rating symbol (for example, “AAA/A-1+” or “A-1+/A-1”). With U.S. municipal short-term demand debt, the U.S. municipal short-term note rating symbols are used for the first component of the rating (for example, “SP-1+/A-1+”).

Description of S&P Global Ratings’ Active Qualifiers (Currently applied and/or outstanding)

S&P Global Ratings uses the following qualifiers that limit the scope of a rating. The structure of the transaction can require the use of a qualifier such as a “p” qualifier, which indicates the rating addressed the principal portion of the obligation only. A qualifier appears as a suffix and is part of the rating.

Federal deposit insurance limit: “L” qualifier. Ratings qualified with “L” apply only to amounts invested up to federal deposit insurance limits.

Principal: “p” qualifier. This suffix is used for issues in which the credit factors, the terms, or both, that determine the likelihood of receipt of payment of principal are different from the credit factors, terms or both that determine the likelihood of receipt of interest on the obligation. The “p” suffix indicates that the rating addresses the principal portion of the obligation only and that the interest is not rated.

Preliminary Ratings: “prelim” qualifier. Preliminary ratings, with the “prelim” suffix, may be assigned to obligors or obligations, including financial programs, in the circumstances described below. Assignment of a final rating is conditional on the receipt by S&P Global Ratings of appropriate documentation. S&P Global Ratings reserves the right not to issue a final rating. Moreover, if a final rating is issued, it may differ from the preliminary rating. (1) Preliminary ratings may be assigned to obligations, most commonly structured and project finance issues, pending receipt of final documentation and legal opinions. (2) Preliminary ratings may be assigned to obligations that will likely be issued upon the obligor’s emergence from bankruptcy or similar reorganization, based on late-stage reorganization plans, documentation and discussions with the obligor.

 

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Preliminary ratings may also be assigned to the obligors. These ratings consider the anticipated general credit quality of the reorganized or post-bankruptcy issuer as well as attributes of the anticipated obligation(s). (4) Preliminary ratings may be assigned to entities that are being formed or that are in the process of being independently established when, in S&P Global Ratings’ opinion, documentation is close to final. Preliminary ratings may also be assigned to the obligations of these entities. (5) Preliminary ratings may be assigned when a previously unrated entity is undergoing a well-formulated restructuring, recapitalization, significant financing or other transformative event, generally at the point that investor or lender commitments are invited. The preliminary rating may be assigned to the entity and to its proposed obligation(s). These preliminary ratings consider the anticipated general credit quality of the obligor, as well as attributes of the anticipated obligation(s), assuming successful completion of the transformative event. Should the transformative event not occur, S&P Global Ratings would likely withdraw these preliminary ratings. (6) A preliminary recovery rating may be assigned to an obligation that has a preliminary issue credit rating.

Termination Structures: “t” qualifier. This symbol indicates termination structures that are designed to honor their contracts to full maturity or, should certain events occur, to terminate and cash settle all their contracts before their final maturity date.

Counterparty Instrument Rating: “cir” qualifier. This symbol indicates a Counterparty Instrument Rating (CIR), which is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an issuer in a securitization structure with respect to a specific financial obligation to a counterparty (including interest rate swaps, currency swaps, and liquidity facilities). The CIR is determined on an ultimate payment basis; these opinions do not take into account timeliness of payment.

Description of Fitch Ratings’ Corporate Finance Long-Term Obligation Ratings:

Ratings of individual securities or financial obligations of a corporate issuer address relative vulnerability to default on an ordinal scale. In addition, for financial obligations in corporate finance, a measure of recovery given default on that liability is also included in the rating assessment. This notably applies to covered bonds ratings, which incorporate both an indication of the probability of default and of the recovery given a default of this debt instrument.

The relationship between issuer scale and obligation scale assumes an historical average recovery of between 30%-50% on the senior, unsecured obligations of an issuer. As a result, individual obligations of entities, such as corporations, are assigned ratings higher, lower, or the same as that entity’s issuer rating or IDR. At the lower end of the ratings scale, Fitch Ratings now additionally publishes explicit Recovery Ratings in many cases to complement issuer and obligation ratings.

AAA: Highest credit quality. “AAA” ratings denote the lowest expectation of credit risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events.

AA: Very high credit quality. “AA” ratings denote expectations of very low credit risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events.

A: High credit quality. “A” ratings denote expectations of low credit risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings.

BBB: Good credit quality. “BBB” ratings indicate that expectations of credit risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity.

 

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BB: Speculative. “BB” ratings indicate an elevated vulnerability to credit risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time; however, business or financial alternatives may be available to allow financial commitments to be met.

B: Highly speculative. “B” ratings indicate that material credit risk is present†.

CCC: Substantial credit risk. “CCC” ratings indicate that substantial credit risk is present†.

CC: Very high levels of credit risk. “CC” ratings indicate very high levels of credit risk†.

C: Exceptionally high levels of credit risk. “C” indicates exceptionally high levels of credit risk†.

Defaulted obligations typically are not assigned “RD” or “D” ratings, but are instead rated in the “B” to “C” rating categories, depending upon their recovery prospects and other relevant characteristics. This approach better aligns obligations that have comparable overall expected loss but varying vulnerability to default and loss.

Note: The modifiers “+” or “-” may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories. Such suffixes are not added to the “AAA” obligation rating category, or to corporate finance obligation ratings in the categories below “CCC”.

The subscript “emr” is appended to a rating to denote embedded market risk which is beyond the scope of the rating. The designation is intended to make clear that the rating solely addresses the counterparty risk of the issuing bank. It is not meant to indicate any limitation in the analysis of the counterparty risk, which in all other respects follows published Fitch criteria for analyzing the issuing financial institution. Fitch does not rate these instruments where the principal is to any degree subject to market risk.

Description of Fitch Ratings’ Structured, Project Finance Long-Term Obligation Ratings:

Ratings of structured and project finance obligations on the long-term scale, including the financial obligations of sovereigns, consider the obligations’ relative vulnerability to default. These ratings are typically assigned to an individual security or tranche in a transaction and not to an issuer.

AAA: Highest credit quality. “AAA” ratings denote the lowest expectation of default risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events.

AA: Very high credit quality. “AA” ratings denote expectations of very low default risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events.

A: High credit quality. “A” ratings denote expectations of low default risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings.

BBB: Good credit quality. “BBB” ratings indicate that expectations of default risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity.

BB: Speculative. “BB” ratings indicate an elevated vulnerability to default risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time.

 

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B: Highly speculative. “B” ratings indicate that material default risk is present, but a limited margin of safety remains. Financial commitments are currently being met; however, capacity for continued payment is vulnerable to deterioration in the business and economic environment.

CCC: Substantial credit risk. Default is a real possibility.

CC: Very high levels of credit risk. Default of some kind appears probable.

C: Exceptionally high levels of credit risk. Default appears imminent or inevitable.

D: Default. Indicates a default. Default generally is defined as one of the following: (1) failure to make payment of principal and/or interest under the contractual terms of the rated obligation; (2) bankruptcy filings, administration, receivership, liquidation or other winding-up or cessation of the business of an issuer/obligor; or (3) distressed exchange of an obligation, where creditors were offered securities with diminished structural or economic terms compared with the existing obligation to avoid a probable payment default.

Structured Finance Defaults: “Imminent” default, categorized under “C”, typically refers to the occasion where a payment default has been intimated by the issuer, and is all but inevitable. This may, for example, be where an issuer has missed a scheduled payment, but (as is typical) has a grace period during which it may cure the payment default. Another alternative would be where an issuer has formally announced a distressed debt exchange, but the date of the exchange still lies several days or weeks in the immediate future.

Additionally, in structured finance transactions, where analysis indicates that an instrument is irrevocably impaired such that it is not expected to pay interest and/or principal in full in accordance with the terms of the obligation’s documentation during the life of the transaction, but where no payment default in accordance with the terms of the documentation is imminent, the obligation will typically be rated in the “C” category.

Structured Finance Write-downs: Where an instrument has experienced an involuntary and, in the agency’s opinion, irreversible “write-down” of principal (i.e. other than through amortization, and resulting in a loss to the investor), a credit rating of “D” will be assigned to the instrument. Where the agency believes the “write-down” may prove to be temporary (and the loss may be “written up” again in future if and when performance improves), then a credit rating of “C” will typically be assigned. Should the “write-down” then later be reversed, the credit rating will be raised to an appropriate level for that instrument. Should the “write-down” later be deemed as irreversible, the credit rating will be lowered to “D”.

Notes: In the case of structured and project finance, while the ratings do not address the loss severity given default of the rated liability, loss severity assumptions on the underlying assets are nonetheless typically included as part of the analysis. Loss severity assumptions are used to derive pool cash flows available to service the rated liability.

The suffix “sf” denotes an issue that is a structured finance transaction. For an explanation of how Fitch determines structured finance ratings, please see our criteria available at fitchratings.com.

The modifiers “+” or “-” may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories. Such suffixes are not added to the “AAA” Long-Term Rating category, or categories below “B”.

Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates (EETCs) are corporate-structured hybrid debt securities that airlines typically use to finance aircraft equipment. Due to the hybrid characteristics of these bonds, Fitch’s rating approach incorporates elements of both the structured finance and corporate rating methodologies. Although rated as asset-backed securities, unlike other structured finance ratings, EETC ratings involve a measure of recovery given default akin to ratings of financial obligations in corporate finance, as described above.

 

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Description of Fitch Ratings’ Corporate, Public and Structured Finance Short-Term Obligation Ratings:

A short-term issuer or obligation rating is based in all cases on the short-term vulnerability to default of the rated entity or security stream and relates to the capacity to meet financial obligations in accordance with the documentation governing the relevant obligation. Short-Term Ratings are assigned to obligations whose initial maturity is viewed as “short term” based on market convention. Typically, this means up to 13 months for corporate, sovereign, and structured obligations, and up to 36 months for obligations in U.S. public finance markets.

F1: Highest short-term credit quality. Indicates the strongest intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments; may have an added “+” to denote any exceptionally strong credit feature.

F2: Good short-term credit quality. Good intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments.

F3: Fair short-term credit quality. The intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is adequate.

B: Speculative short-term credit quality. Minimal capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, plus heightened vulnerability to near term adverse changes in financial and economic conditions.

C: High short-term default risk. Default is a real possibility.

RD: Restricted default. Indicates an entity that has defaulted on one or more of its financial commitments, although it continues to meet other financial obligations. Typically applicable to entity ratings only.

D: Default. Indicates a broad-based default event for an entity, or the default of a short-term obligation.

Fitch Rating Watches and Rating Outlooks

Fitch takes certain actions in relation to its ratings. These actions can indicate a change in the relative credit quality of the rated entity or a relative change in servicing quality. In addition, actions regarding Outlooks or Watches provide an indication of a potential rating change, or other events (Data Actions) and indicate the likely direction of the rating.

Rating Watch: Rating Watches indicate that there is a heightened probability of a rating change and the likely direction of such a change. These are designated as “Positive”, indicating a potential upgrade, “Negative”, for a potential downgrade, or “Evolving”, if ratings may be raised, lowered or affirmed. However, ratings that are not on Rating Watch can be raised or lowered without being placed on Rating Watch first, if circumstances warrant such an action.

A Rating Watch is typically event-driven and, as such, it is generally resolved over a relatively short period. The event driving the Watch may be either anticipated or have already occurred, but in both cases, the exact rating implications remain undetermined. The Watch period is typically used to gather further information and/or subject the information to further analysis. Additionally, a Watch may be used where the rating implications are already clear, but where a triggering event (e.g. shareholder or regulatory approval) exists. The Watch will typically extend to cover the period until the triggering event is resolved or its outcome is predictable with a high enough degree of certainty to permit resolution of the Watch.

Rating Watches can be employed by all analytical groups and are applied to the ratings of individual entities and/or individual instruments. At the lowest categories of speculative grade (“CCC”, “CC” and “C”) the high volatility of credit profiles may imply that almost all ratings should carry a Watch. Watches are nonetheless only applied selectively in these categories, where a committee decides that particular events or threats are best communicated by the addition of the Watch designation.

 

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Rating Outlook: Ratings Outlooks indicate the direction a rating is likely to move over a one- to two-year period. They reflect financial or other trends that have not yet reached the level that would trigger a rating action, but which may do so if such trends continue. The majority of Outlooks are generally Stable, which is consistent with the historical migration experience of ratings over a one- to two-year period. Positive or Negative rating Outlooks do not imply that a rating change is inevitable and, similarly, ratings with Stable Outlooks can be raised or lowered without a prior revision to the Outlook, if circumstances warrant such an action. Occasionally, where the fundamental trend has strong, conflicting elements of both positive and negative, the Rating Outlook may be described as Evolving.

Outlooks are currently applied on the long-term scale to issuer ratings in corporate finance (including sovereigns, industrials, utilities, financial institutions and insurance companies) and public finance outside the U.S.; to issue ratings in public finance in the U.S.; to certain issues in project finance; to Insurer Financial Strength Ratings; to issuer and/or issue ratings in a number of National Rating scales; and to the ratings of structured finance transactions and covered bonds. Outlooks are not applied to ratings assigned on the short-term scale and are applied selectively to ratings in the “CCC”, “CC” and “C” categories. Defaulted ratings typically do not carry an Outlook.

Deciding When to Assign Rating Watch or Outlook

Timing is informative but not critical to the choice of a Watch rather than an Outlook. A discrete event that is largely clear and the terms of which are defined, but which will not happen for more than six months – such as a lengthy regulatory approval process—would nonetheless likely see ratings placed on Watch rather than a revision to the Outlook.

An Outlook revision may, however, be deemed more appropriate where a series of potential event risks has been identified, none of which individually warrants a Watch but which cumulatively indicate heightened probability of a rating change over the following one to two years.

A revision to the Outlook may also be appropriate where a specific event has been identified, but where the conditions and implications of that event are largely unclear and subject to high execution risk over an extended period—for example a proposed, but politically controversial, privatization.

Expected Ratings: Where a rating is referred to as “expected”, alternatively referred to as “expects to rate” or suffixed as (“EXP”), this indicates that a full rating has been assigned based upon the agency’s expectations regarding final documentation, typically based upon a review of the final draft documentation provided by the issuer. If such final documentation is received and is as expected, the expected rating will typically be converted to a final rating. Fitch may also employ “expects to rate” language for new issuers (currently unrated) for ratings that are assigned in the course of a restructuring, refinancing or corporate reorganization. The “expects to rate” will reflect and refer to the rating level expected following the conclusion of the proposed operation (debt issuance, restructure, or merger). While expected ratings typically convert to final ratings within a short time, determined by timing of transaction closure, in the period between assignment of an expected rating and a final rating, expected ratings may be raised, lowered or placed on Rating Watch or withdrawn, as with final ratings.

Private Ratings: Fitch Ratings also prepares a limited number of private ratings, for example for entities with no publicly traded debt, or where the rating is required for internal benchmarking or regulatory purposes. These ratings are generally provided directly to the rated entity, which is then responsible for ensuring that any party to whom it discloses the private rating is updated when any change in the rating occurs.

Private ratings undergo the same analysis, committee process and surveillance as published ratings, unless otherwise disclosed as “point-in-time” in nature.

 

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Program Ratings: Program ratings assigned to corporate and public finance note issuance programs (e.g. medium-term note programs) relate only to standard issues made under the program concerned; it should not be assumed that these ratings apply to every issue made under the program.

“Interest-Only” Ratings: Interest-only ratings are assigned to interest strips. These ratings do not address the possibility that a security holder might fail to recover some or all of its initial investment due to voluntary or involuntary principal repayments.

“Principal-Only” Ratings: Principal-only ratings address the likelihood that a security holder will receive its initial principal investment either before or by the scheduled maturity date.

“Rate of Return” Ratings: Ratings also may be assigned to gauge the likelihood of an investor receiving a certain predetermined internal rate of return without regard to the precise timing of any cash flows.

Matured/Paid-In-Full: a. “Matured”—This action is used when an issue has reached the end of its repayment term and rating coverage is discontinued. Denoted as “NR”. b. “Paid-In-Full”—This action indicates that the issue has been paid in full. As the issue no longer exists, it is therefore no longer rated. Denoted as “PIF”.

A designation of “Not Rated” or “NR” is used to denote securities not rated by Fitch where Fitch has rated some, but not all, securities comprising an issuance capital structure.

Withdrawn: The rating has been withdrawn and the issue or issuer is no longer rated by Fitch Ratings. Indicated in rating databases with the symbol “WD”.

“Unenhanced” Ratings: Unenhanced ratings reflect the underlying creditworthiness of financial instruments absent any credit enhancement that may be provided through bond insurance, financial guarantees, dedicated letters of credit, liquidity facilities, or intercept mechanisms.

In some cases, Fitch may choose to assign an unenhanced rating along with credit rating based on enhancement. The unenhanced rating indicates the creditworthiness of the financial instrument without considering any benefit of such enhancement. Financial obligations may be enhanced by a guarantee instrument provided by a rated third party.

Non-Credit Rating Scales: In addition, Fitch Ratings provides specialist ratings on other topics. Operational risk ratings are assigned to servicers of commercial and residential mortgages and other asset types.

Asset manager ratings opine on the relative operational and financial capabilities of asset managers, trustees and others. Fund Credit and/or Volatility Ratings are assigned to fund’s or local government investment pool’s portfolio. Many of these ratings are offered internationally and in some cases on a national basis applying appropriate ratings modifiers and identifiers.

 

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APPENDIX B

 

MARTIN CURRIE – STATEMENT OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

 

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Governance Oversight of Investee Companies and Proxy Voting

 

INTRODUCTION

 

The fundamental principle of our corporate governance policy is to protect and enhance the economic interests of our clients. In any situation our actions will always be determined by this principle. We believe that good governance of the companies in which we invest is an essential part of creating shareholder value and delivering investment performance for our clients. We also believe that Sustainability or Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors create risks and opportunities for companies and that these should be managed appropriately.

This policy has been drafted in accordance with the Financial Reporting Council’s Stewardship Code, which Martin Currie endorses. It is also intended to comply with Rule 206(4)-6 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. This policy sets forth the procedures of Martin Currie Investment Management Limited and Martin Currie Inc, (together ‘Martin Currie’) for voting proxies for clients, including investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, except where such clients require different standards to the voting of proxies to be applied on their behalf.

We have adopted the Principles of Corporate Governance developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as our global principles recognising that regulation, levels of disclosure and management accountability vary between markets. Differences in national market regulation mean that a single set of detailed guidelines is unlikely to be appropriate for all the markets in which we invest. Where overseas corporate governance codes are consistent with our overall principles we will adopt these. At a minimum we would expect companies to comply with the accepted corporate governance standard in their domestic market or to explain why doing so is not in the interest of shareholders.

We believe the OECD principles provide a strong and concise framework for determining the minimum corporate governance standards we should expect from the companies in which we invest. We have also provided more detailed principles that we regard as best practice.

We recognise that the circumstances under which companies operate vary considerably and as such we do not apply our guidelines rigidly. We take into account the specific circumstances of each company when assessing how to approach governance.

SCOPE AND PRINCIPLES

 

This policy covers:

 

    The guiding principles on which we base our corporate governance policy

 

    How we monitor the performance of investee companies, engage in dialogue and intervene where appropriate

 

    How we report to our clients

 

    How we carry out proxy voting and exercise voting rights in the best interests of our clients

These are the guiding principles from which we have formulated our corporate governance policy:

 

1. Accountability    By raising capital, companies commit themselves to earning an investment return on that capital. The board should possess the appropriate level of knowledge, skill, independence and experience to fulfill their role. The board of the company must be accountable to shareholders for the use of their capital.

 

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MARTIN CURRIE – STATEMENT OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

 

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2. Shareholders’     interests    Companies and their boards should be structured with appropriate checks and balances to ensure that they operate with integrity, and in shareholders’ long-term interests. Shareholders also have a right to timely and detailed information on the financial performance of the companies in which they invest.
3. Voting rights    We believe voting rights are central to the rights of ownership.
4. Beneficial     ownership    All shareholdings should be voted in the economic interest of the underlying shareholders or trust beneficiaries.
5. Engagement    Although voting takes place on a number of issues at Annual and Extraordinary General Meetings, there are five principal areas which Martin Currie will address in operating its voting policy:
   a)    Board structure and election of directors
   b)    Directors’ remuneration
   c)    Audit and appointment of auditors
   d)    Reporting and financial disclosure
   e)    Technical issues - particularly shares without pre-emption rights

BEST PRACTICE

 

We summarise below what we regard as best practice for the companies in which we invest. These determine how we engage and interact with investee companies and influence how we will cast votes on behalf of our clients.

Leadership

 

  Every company should be led by an effective board, which is collectively responsible for the long term success of the company.

 

  There should be a clear division of responsibilities between the running of the board and executive responsibility for running the company’s business. No one individual should have unfettered powers of decision or influence.

 

  The chairman is responsible for board leadership and ensuring its effectiveness in all aspects of its role.

 

  As part of their role as members of a unitary board, non-executive directors should constructively challenge and help develop proposals on strategy.

Effectiveness

 

  The board and its committees should have the appropriate balance of skills, experience, independence and knowledge of the company to enable them to discharge their respective duties and responsibilities effectively.

 

  There should be a formal, rigorous and transparent procedure for the appointment of new board directors.

 

  All directors should be able to allocate sufficient time to the company to discharge their responsibilities effectively.

 

  All directors should receive an appropriate induction on joining the board and should regularly update and refresh their skills and knowledge.

 

  The board should be supplied in a timely manner with information in a form and of a quality appropriate to enable it to discharge its duties.

 

  The board should undertake a formal and rigorous annual evaluation of its own performance and that of its committees and individual directors.

 

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  All directors should be submitted for re-election at regular intervals, subject to continued satisfactory performance.

Accountability

 

  The board should present a fair, balanced and understandable assessment of the company’s position and prospects.

 

  The board is responsible for determining the nature and extent of the significant risks it is willing to take in achieving its strategic objectives. The board should maintain sound risk management and internal control systems.

 

  The board should establish formal and transparent arrangements for considering how they should apply corporate reporting, risk management and internal control principles and for maintaining an appropriate relationship with the company’s auditor.

Remuneration

 

  Executive directors’ remuneration should be designed to promote the long-term success of the company. Performance-related elements should be transparent, stretching and rigorously applied.

 

  There should be a formal and transparent procedure for developing policy on executive remuneration and fixing the remuneration packages of individual directors. No director should be involved in deciding their own remuneration.

 

  Executive management should make a material long-term investment in shares of the businesses they manage.

 

  Pay should be aligned to long-term strategy and the desired corporate culture throughout the organization.

 

  Pay schemes should be clear, understandable for both investors and executives, and ensure that executive rewards reflect returns to long-term shareholders.

 

  Remuneration committees should use the discretion afforded them by shareholders to ensure that awards properly reflect business performance.

 

  Companies and shareholders should have appropriately regular discussions on strategy and long-term performance.

Relations with shareholders

 

  There should be a dialogue with shareholders based on the mutual understanding of objectives. The board as a whole has responsibility for ensuring that a satisfactory dialogue with shareholders takes place.

 

  The board should use the AGM to communicate with investors and to encourage dialogue.

MONITORING AND ENGAGEMENT

 

We believe monitoring and engagement are an essential part of being a shareholder. It allows us to improve our understanding of investee companies and their governance structures, so that our voting decisions may be better informed. The materiality and immediacy of a given issue will generally determine the level of our engagement.

To identify areas in which there are governance concerns we use a range of resources – our own fundamental research, ESG specific research, and external governance research.

 

  We hold regular meetings with the management of the companies in which we invest to discuss strategy, sustainability and performance, and to review management processes against the principles and best practice outlined above.

 

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  At a minimum we would expect companies to comply with the accepted corporate governance standard in their domestic market or to explain why doing so is not in the interest of shareholders.

 

  We believe that well-managed companies will report on material social and environmental risks and opportunities and explain how these are managed. As these are often not voting issues, we may engage directly with the company management or board where we believe there is the potential for a material impact on shareholder returns.

 

  We adopt a case-by-case approach to engaging on material governance, environmental or social issues. We will engage with management in an appropriate manner and make a record of this engagement – this may be by conference call, letter or by seeking access to the board chair or directors.

 

  We also participate in collaborative engagement where appropriate for example the collaborative engagement programs sponsored by the PRI.

 

  Where we believe that shareholder value is threatened or is not being realised, we may request that the board takes appropriate action. In most cases a robust private dialogue with executive management, non-executive directors and company advisors is our preferred way to protect our clients’ interests. We will also engage with the chairman of the board or the Senior Independent Director where appropriate.

 

  If we receive an unsatisfactory response, we will usually either sell the shares to protect our clients’ assets, contact other shareholders to discuss joint intervention.

PROXY VOTING POLICY

 

This policy applies to clients who have delegated responsibility for voting on their holdings to Martin Currie.

We recognise that we have a duty to act in the best interests of our clients. To that end, our Proxy Voting Policy is designed to enhance shareholders’ long-term economic interests. All our voting decisions are made in-house and are undertaken in accordance with our corporate governance guidelines and in line with our clients’ best interests. Proxy voting is integral to stewardship and as such we will routinely inform management of our investee companies when we are voting against them and provide our rationale for this.

Our policy is updated at least annually, taking into account emerging issues and trends, the evolution of market standards, and regulatory changes. The policy considers market-specific recommended best practices, transparency, and disclosure when addressing issues such as board structure, director accountability, corporate governance standards, executive compensation, shareholder rights, corporate transactions, and social/environmental issues.

ISS, our proxy voting advisor, also provides voting recommendations for Martin Currie in accordance with their own policy which is closely aligned with our internal policy. As appropriate, ISS engages with public issuers, shareholders, activists, and other stakeholders to seek additional information and to gain insight and context in order to provide informed vote recommendations. Martin Currie’s starting point is to act in the best interests of our clients. Our voting decisions are informed by both our own internal work and that of our proxy advisor. We assess voting matters on a case-by-case basis, taking into account a company’s circumstances but are guided by our over-arching principles

on good corporate governance. The assessment is carried out by the member of the investment team with responsibility for the stock in conjunction with the head of governance and sustainability. We recognise that regulatory frameworks vary across markets and that corporate governance practices vary internationally. We will normally vote on specific issues in line with the relevant market guidelines. Where the recommendations of our proxy advisor, both for and against proposals, are supported by our internal research we will generally vote in accordance with these recommendations.

Conflicts of Interest

Martin Currie recognises that there is a potential conflict of interest when we vote for a proxy solicited by a company with which we, or our portfolio managers, have a material business or personal relationship. In this context, the

 

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MARTIN CURRIE – STATEMENT OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

 

LOGO

 

 

March 2015

 

member of the investment team has a duty to disclose any potential, actual or apparent material conflict of interest relating to a proxy vote. Generally, a conflict is unlikely to arise if the vote is in accordance with our guidelines and that of our proxy advisor. However, if a member of the investment team wishes to vote contrary to the guidelines in relation to a company with which we have any material business or personal relationship, the matter must be referred to the Investment Executive for independent consideration. We would consider a potential conflict of interest to exist where Martin Currie or relevant staff has a material personal or business relationship with the proponent, issuer or other relevant participants in the proxy proposal.

In the event that a portfolio manager is materially conflicted they are obliged to disclose the conflict of interest and provide their justification for voting contrary to the guidelines to the Investment Executive for independent consideration. The Investment Executive is required to provide approval before the vote can be carried out. If the Investment Executive is unable to approve the vote one of the following courses of action will be taken:

 

  vote such proxy according to the specific recommendation of our proxy advisor

 

  abstain

 

  request that the Client votes such proxy

In the event that Martin Currie is materially conflicted, the firm will

 

  vote such proxy according to the specific recommendation of our proxy advisor

 

  abstain

 

  request that the client votes such proxy

The compliance team will also be informed of all instances where a conflict of interest arises in order for them to carry out an oversight role.

The portfolio services team, as part of its annual due diligence, reviews the processes and controls adopted by our proxy advisor to manage potential material conflicts of interest it may face when performing the responsibilities delegated to it by the client.

Share blocking

Proxy voting in certain countries requires ‘share blocking’. That is, shareholders wishing to vote their proxies must deposit their shares shortly before the date of the meeting (usually one week) with a designated depositary. During this blocking period, shares that will be voted at the meeting cannot be sold until the meeting has taken place and the shares are returned to the shareholders’ custodian banks. Martin Currie has determined that the value of exercising the vote does not usually outweigh the detriment of not being able to transact in the shares during this period. Accordingly, if share blocking is required we are likely to abstain from voting those shares.

Voting in emerging markets

Voting on shares in Mainland Chinese markets are not subject to Martin Currie’s standard proxy voting process. Where it is possible to vote, the portfolio managers for Mainland Chinese securities are responsible for communicating their voting intentions directly to our Portfolio Services team. However, the increasing use of access products, which do not carry voting rights for the underlying company holding, means that the level of direct equity ownership of Chinese securities is minimal. There are also jurisdictional reasons that reduce the number of China A shares on which we vote – for example, voting can frequently only happen ‘in person ‘, and it is not always practical to travel to the region of residence of the company. All Chinese investments with a listing outside of China are subject to our standard proxy voting procedure through ISS.

 

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MARTIN CURRIE – STATEMENT OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

 

LOGO

 

 

March 2015

 

Stock lending

Where we are aware that securities are on loan and if we judge a vote to be material we may advise the relevant clients recall that stock in order to cast a proxy vote. In circumstances where it is not possible or practical to assess the materiality or where it is not possible to recall the security (e.g. where the events subject to voting are not communicated by the company in sufficient time) no votes will be cast.

Martin Currie may utilise third party service providers to assist it in identifying and evaluating whether an event is material, and to assist it in recalling loaned securities for proxy voting purposes.

Proxy voting records

Clients may obtain information on how Martin Currie voted with respect to their proxies by contacting our client services team at Martin Currie Investment Management Ltd, Saltire Court, 20 Castle Terrace, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH1 2ES, tel. 44 (0) 131 229 5252, fax 44 (0) 131 222 2532, email clientservicesteam@martincurrie.com.

Martin Currie has a specific record-keeping policy which describes in greater detail the record-keeping processes as apply to proxy voting.

Martin Currie is a signatory to the UK Stewardship Code (‘the Code’). The Code aims to enhance the quality of engagement between institutional investors and companies to help improve long-term returns to shareholders and the efficient exercise of governance responsibilities by setting out good practice on engagement with investee companies. In accordance with the provisions of the Code and our Corporate Governance policy, cumulative proxy voting records are published quarterly on our website. This disclosure does not contain voting records for individual clients. Specific voting records for each client are available to those clients at any time upon request.

Martin Currie Investment Management Ltd, registered in Scotland (no 66107). Martin Currie Inc, registered in Scotland (no BR2575). Both companies are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Martin Currie Investment Management Ltd is a member of the Investment Management Association. Martin Currie Inc. is incorporated with limited liability in New York, USA.

 

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LOGO

 

Prospectus   LOGO   February 1, 2017

 

Share class (Symbol): A (LRRAX), A2 (LSRAX), C (LRRCX), FI (—), R (—), I (LRRIX), IS (LRRSX)

 

 

QS

STRATEGIC REAL RETURN FUND

 

 

 

LOGO

 

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have not approved or disapproved these securities or determined whether this Prospectus is accurate or complete. Any statement to the contrary is a crime.

 

INVESTMENT PRODUCTS: NOT FDIC INSURED • NO BANK GUARANTEE • MAY LOSE VALUE


Contents  
Investment objective      2   
Fees and expenses of the fund      2   
Principal investment strategies      3   
Principal risks      5   
Performance      10   
Management      11   
Purchase and sale of fund shares      11   
Tax information      11   
Payments to broker/dealers and other financial intermediaries      12   
More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks      13   
More on fund management      24   
Choosing a class of shares to buy      27   
Comparing the fund’s classes      28   
Sales charges      29   
More about contingent deferred sales charges      32   
Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors      33   
Buying shares      35   
Exchanging shares      37   
Redeeming shares      39   
Other things to know about transactions      40   
Dividends, other distributions and taxes      44   
Share price      46   
Consolidated Financial highlights      47   

Investment objective

The fund seeks to provide an attractive long-term real return.

Fees and expenses of the fund

The accompanying table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund.

You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $25,000 in funds sold by Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC (“LMIS”), the fund’s distributor. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary, in this Prospectus on page 29 under the heading “Sales charges” and in the fund’s statement of additional information (“SAI”) on page 52 under the heading “Sales Charge Waivers and Reductions.”

 

Shareholder fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
      Class A   Class A2   Class C    Class FI   Class R   Class I   Class IS
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a % of offering price)    5.751   5.75   None    None   None   None   None
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) (as a % of the lower of net asset value at purchase or redemption)2    None3   None3   1.00    None   None   None   None
Small account fee4    $15   $15   $15    None   None   None   None
               
Annual fund operating expenses (%)
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
      Class A   Class A2   Class C    Class FI   Class R   Class I   Class IS
Management fees    0.75   0.75   0.75    0.75   0.75   0.75   0.75
Distribution and/or service (12b-1) fees    0.25   0.25   1.00    0.25   0.50   None   None
Other expenses    0.47   0.725   0.53    0.536   0.536   0.415   0.33
Acquired fund fees and expenses    0.03   0.03   0.03    0.03   0.03   0.03   0.03
Total annual fund operating expenses7    1.50   1.75   2.31    1.56   1.81   1.19   1.11
Fees waived and/or expenses reimbursed8    (0.15)   (0.20)   (0.21)    (0.21)   (0.21)   (0.09)   (0.11)
Total annual fund operating expenses after waiving fees and/or reimbursing expenses    1.35   1.55   2.10    1.35   1.60   1.10   1.00

 

1 

The sales charge is waived for shareholders purchasing Class A shares through accounts where LMIS is the broker-dealer of record (“LMIS Accounts”).

2 

Maximum deferred sales charge (load) may be reduced over time.

3 

You may buy Class A shares or Class A2 shares in amounts of $1,000,000 or more at net asset value (without an initial sales charge), but if you redeem those shares within 18 months of their purchase, you will pay a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00%.

4 

If your shares are held in a direct account and the value of your account is below $1,000 ($250 for retirement plans that are not employer-sponsored), the fund may charge you a fee of $3.75 per account that is determined and assessed quarterly (with an annual maximum of $15.00 per account). Direct accounts generally include accounts held in the name of the individual investor on the fund’s books and records.

5 

“Other expenses” have been restated to exclude fees recaptured pursuant to the fund’s expense limitation arrangements.

6 

“Other expenses” for Class FI and R shares are estimated for the current fiscal year. Actual expenses may differ from estimates.

7 

Total fund operating expenses do not correlate with the ratios of expenses to average net assets reported in the consolidated financial highlights contained in this Prospectus and in the fund’s shareholder reports, which reflect the fund’s operating expenses and do not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

8

The manager has agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse operating expenses (other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”)), dividend expense on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses) so that total annual fund operating expenses will not exceed 1.35%, 1.55%, 2.10%, 1.35%, 1.60%, 1.10% and 1.00% for Class A, A2, C, FI, R, I and IS shares, respectively, subject to recapture as described below. In addition, total annual fund operating expenses for Class IS shares will not exceed total annual fund operating expenses for Class I shares, subject to recapture as described below. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the arrangement. These arrangements cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2018 without the Board of Trustees’ (the “Board”) consent. The manager is permitted to recapture amounts waived and/or reimbursed to a class within three years after the fiscal year in which the manager earned the fee or incurred the expense if the class’ total annual fund operating expenses have fallen to a level below the limits described above. In no case will the manager recapture any amount that would result, on any particular business day of the fund, in the class’ total annual fund operating expenses exceeding the applicable limits described above or any other lower limit then in effect. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016, amounts recaptured totaled 0.03% and 0.01% for Class A2 and Class I, respectively, and these amounts are excluded from “Other expenses.”

 

2    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Example

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes:

 

 

You invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated

 

 

Your investment has a 5% return each year and the fund’s operating expenses remain the same

 

 

You reinvest all distributions and dividends without a sales charge

Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

 

Number of years you own your shares ($)
       1 year      3 years      5 years      10 years
Class A (with or without redemption at end of period)      705      1,008      1,333      2,250
Class A2 (with or without redemption at end of period)      724      1,076      1,452      2,503
Class C (with redemption at end of period)      313      701      1,216      2,629
Class C (without redemption at end of period)      213      701      1,216      2,629
Class FI (with or without redemption at end of period)      137      471      829      1,837
Class R (with or without redemption at end of period)      163      549      960      2,109
Class I (with or without redemption at end of period)      112      369      646      1,436
Class IS (with or without redemption at end of period)      102      342      601      1,342

Portfolio turnover. The fund pays 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 shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in 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 41% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal investment strategies

Under normal market conditions, the fund, using a tactical asset allocation program, seeks to provide an attractive long-term real return. The fund defines real return as total return reduced by the impact of inflation.

In seeking to meet its investment goal, the fund implements a tactical asset allocation program overseen by the fund’s adviser, QS Investors, LLC (“QS Investors”). The fund may allocate its assets among five investment “sleeves” which the adviser believes are generally complementary to each other, with the following target allocations of the fund’s net assets:

 

 

Inflation-Linked Debt Securities (40%)

 

 

Global Equity Securities (20%)

 

 

Commodity-Linked Securities (20%)

 

 

Exchange-Traded Funds (“ETFs”) that invest in Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”) (10%)

 

 

Tactical Strategy (10%)

Actual allocations may deviate from each target allocation shown above by up to 50% of such target allocation.

The composition and asset allocation of the fund’s investment portfolio will vary over time, based on QS Investors’ overall allocation decisions, and may be changed without shareholder approval. Asset allocation decisions are based primarily on QS Investors’ evaluation of the relative attractiveness of the asset classes in which the fund invests.

The fund utilizes a “multi-manager” approach, whereby each subadviser and the adviser provide day-to-day management for one or more of the investment sleeves. Each subadviser and the adviser use different investment strategies in managing the sleeves, act independently from the others in their management of the investment sleeve for which they are responsible, and use their own methodology for selecting investments. Currently, Western Asset Management Company (“Western Asset”), Western Asset Management Company Limited in London (“WAML”) and Western Asset Management Company Ltd. in Japan (“Western Japan”) manage the Inflation-Linked Debt Securities Sleeve, and QS Investors manages the Global Equity Securities Sleeve, the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve, the REITs Sleeve and the Tactical Strategy Sleeve. QS Investors may also allocate a portion of the fund’s assets to ClearBridge Investments, LLC, either in place of, or in addition to, the subadvisers named above.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   3


Principal investment strategies cont’d

 

Under normal market conditions, the Inflation-Linked Debt Securities Sleeve invests at least 80% of its net assets in inflation-indexed fixed income securities and at least 70% of its net assets in U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (“TIPS”). The sleeve may also invest in foreign and domestic bonds, debentures and notes and high yield securities. Although the sleeve is expected to maintain a dollar-weighted average credit quality of at least A or equivalent, it may invest up to 15% of its net assets in securities rated below investment grade (commonly known as “junk bonds”). Investment grade securities are securities rated at the time of purchase by a nationally recognized statistical ratings organization (“NRSRO”) within one of the top four categories, or, if unrated, determined by the applicable subadviser to be of comparable credit quality. Although the sleeve may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity, the target average effective duration of the sleeve is expected to range within 3 years of the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Government Inflation-linked Bond (“U.S. TIPS”) Index. Based on the securities that make up the U.S. TIPS Index, the range within which the average effective duration of the sleeve is currently expected to fluctuate is 6-12 years, although this may vary. The sleeve may also buy or sell protection in connection with credit default swaps relating to corporate debt securities. The notional amount of the credit default swaps will not exceed 20% of the sleeve’s net assets at the time of investment. The sleeve’s portfolio managers employ an active process that is both top-down and bottom-up. The portfolio managers believe that unique value opportunities can be identified through in-depth and disciplined issue, issuer and sub-sector selection. Duration management, yield curve positioning and sector exposure driven by long-term perceptions of economic behavior and relative valuations are integral to the portfolio managers’ investment process.

Under normal market conditions, the Global Equity Securities Sleeve invests primarily in the common stock of domestic and foreign issuers, particularly issuers that have historically shown higher than average correlations to the components (core and food/energy) of the U.S. Consumer Price Index (“CPI”). The sleeve may invest in both U.S. and non-U.S. issuers, and may invest up to 20% of its net assets in securities of issuers located in emerging markets. The sleeve may invest in securities of companies of any market capitalization, including large-, mid- and small-capitalization companies. The sleeve usually invests in securities listed on securities exchanges, although it may invest up to 10% of its net assets in securities that are not registered for sale to the general public. The sleeve may invest directly in foreign securities or may invest in depositary receipts for securities of foreign issuers. The sleeve may, but is not required to, enter into forward currency transactions to buy or sell currencies at a future date. The sleeve may enter into these forward currency contracts only to settle transactions in securities quoted in foreign currencies and for hedging purposes. The sleeve may invest in exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) and other investment companies to pursue its strategies. The sleeve’s portfolio managers use a blend of quantitative and fundamental investment techniques to select investments.

Under normal market conditions, the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve invests primarily in a combination of commodity-linked instruments that provide exposure to the investment returns of the commodities markets, without investing directly in physical commodities. These instruments include master limited partnerships (“MLPs”), structured notes, bonds, debentures and derivatives, including swaps, forwards, futures and options. The sleeve may invest in these instruments through a wholly-owned subsidiary managed by QS Investors, other investment companies, ETFs and exchange-traded notes (“ETNs”) and may invest in cash, cash equivalents, money market funds or other similar instruments. Commodities are assets that have tangible properties, such as oil, metals and agricultural products. The sleeve’s portfolio managers use fundamental investment techniques to select investments.

Under normal market conditions, the REITs Sleeve attempts to obtain exposure to the investment returns of the real estate markets by investing primarily in ETFs that hold U.S. and non-U.S. equity securities issued by REITs.

Under normal market conditions, the Tactical Strategy Sleeve attempts to diversify the fund’s risk exposure by investing in asset classes that QS Investors believes will deliver returns that are not highly correlated with those of the fund’s other asset classes. To achieve this goal, the sleeve uses a variety of quantitative asset allocation and investment techniques. Determination of asset class exposure and selection of investment techniques depends on QS Investors’ analysis of economic trends and QS Investors’ predictions as to how various instruments and markets will correlate to one another and to economic developments. The sleeve may invest in investment companies, including ETFs, that hold domestic and foreign (including emerging markets) equity and fixed income securities, cash, cash equivalents and/or Treasury bonds. The fund may invest in “short” ETFs that seek a return similar to the inverse, or a multiple of the inverse, of a reference index. Certain investment companies and/or ETFs that the fund may invest in are benchmarked to indices that use a futures-based momentum methodology in an attempt to track prices of commodity and financial futures contracts. Investment companies using this methodology typically short the market when quantitative models anticipate declining prices. The sleeve may invest in futures to gain exposure to equity and fixed income markets and may invest in equity and equity volatility options to attempt to mitigate the effects of large unexpected declines in equity and other capital markets. The sleeve may also invest in certain currency derivatives in connection with the fund’s target net exposure to non-U.S. Dollar currencies.

Under normal market conditions, the fund expects to target a 50% net exposure to the U.S. Dollar (“USD”). Each subadviser manages its sleeve’s currency exposure independently of the fund’s overall USD exposure target. QS Investors will monitor and calculate the fund’s currency exposure daily. For purposes of this calculation, currency exposure will be determined by the local currency of a security’s issuer. To maintain the fund’s target currency exposure, QS Investors will purchase (as needed) currency instruments such as currency swaps and forward currency contracts using assets

 

4    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


from the Tactical Strategy Sleeve. QS Investors will purchase currency instruments based on its analysis of which foreign currencies it believes may provide the most effective hedges against future increases in U.S. inflation. At times, the fund may deviate either up or down from its target currency allocation due to market conditions. In addition, the fund at times may be both long and short foreign currencies in its non-USD allocation. The fund will not necessarily hedge its foreign currency exposure.

The fund may borrow money, including for investment and cash management purposes, in amounts up to 33-1/3% of the fund’s total assets, including borrowings, a practice known as “leveraging.” In addition, the fund may engage in transactions that have a leveraging effect on the fund, including investments in derivatives such as futures and options for hedging and non-hedging purposes. The fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in these types of investments.

The fund is classified as “non-diversified,” which means it may invest a larger percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers than a diversified fund.

Principal risks

Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly. You may lose part or all of your investment in the fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The fund may be exposed to these risks directly or indirectly as a result of its investments in investment vehicles such as the fund’s wholly-owned subsidiary, other investment companies, ETFs, ETNs and MLPs.

The fund is intended primarily to provide a long-term return that is greater than the effects of inflation; however, there is no assurance that it will do so. The fund will not necessarily protect against a loss, and may underperform against the broader equity markets.

The fund’s investment strategies and portfolio investments differ from those of many other mutual funds. A subadviser may devote a significant portion of the fund’s assets to pursuing an investment opportunity or strategy, including through the use of derivatives that create a form of investment leverage in the fund. This approach to investing may make the fund a more volatile investment than other mutual funds and cause the fund to perform less favorably than other mutual funds under similar market or economic conditions.

Inflationary periods may differ from one another in their effect on the securities, commodities and real estate markets, depending on, among other reasons, the root causes of the inflation, whether it is accompanied by other macroeconomic phenomena, and the nature and extent of any governmental programs to curtail the inflation. The adviser will allocate the assets to the sleeves based on its evaluation of the factors causing and surrounding inflation or that may impact inflationary trends in the future, and its predictions as to how the securities and commodity instruments and markets will perform, and as to whether and how it believes the various instruments and markets will correlate to one another and to economic trends, if at all. It may be very difficult to predict these matters. If the adviser is incorrect in its efforts to forecast or evaluate these factors or optimally allocate assets, fund performance may be affected negatively.

The portfolio managers’ selection of various instruments for the fund is based in part on historical data showing their performance in previous inflationary and other periods. Certain instruments the fund may use have not been in existence long enough to have a history that reflects prior periods of high inflation or other economic events. Instruments may also deviate from their historic patterns. The following is a summary description of certain risks of investing in the fund.

Market and interest rate risk. The market prices of the fund’s securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic or political conditions, inflation, changes in interest rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment. When market prices fall, the value of your investment will go down. The value of your investment will generally go down when interest rates rise. A rise in rates tends to have a greater impact on the prices of longer term or duration securities. Interest rates have been historically low, so the fund faces a heightened risk that interest rates may rise. A general rise in interest rates may cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which could adversely affect the price and liquidity of fixed income securities and could also result in increased redemptions from the fund. The maturity of a security may be significantly longer than its duration. A security’s maturity may be more relevant than its duration in determining the security’s sensitivity to other factors such as changes in credit quality or in the yield premium that the market may establish for certain types of securities.

Issuer risk. The value of a security can go up or down more than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, often due to disappointing earnings reports by the issuer, unsuccessful products or services, loss of major customers, major litigation against the issuer or changes in government regulations affecting the issuer or the competitive environment. The fund may experience a substantial or complete loss on an individual security.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   5


Principal risks cont’d

 

Non-diversification risk. The fund is classified as “non-diversified,” which means it may invest a larger percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers than a diversified fund. To the extent the fund invests its assets in a smaller number of issuers, the fund will be more susceptible to negative events affecting those issuers than a diversified fund.

Multi-manager risk. While QS Investors monitors the investments of each subadviser and monitors the overall management of the fund, the adviser and each subadviser make investment decisions for the investment sleeves independently from one another. It is possible that the investment styles used by a subadviser or adviser in an investment sleeve will not always be complementary to those used by others, which could adversely affect the performance of the fund.

Portfolio management risk. The value of your investment may decrease if the adviser’s or subadvisers’ judgment about the quality, relative yield, value or market trends affecting a particular security, industry, sector or region, or about interest rates is incorrect, or if there are imperfections, errors or limitations in the tools and data used by the adviser or subadvisers. In addition, the fund’s investment strategies or policies may change from time to time. Those changes may not lead to the results intended by the adviser or subadvisers and could have an adverse effect on the value or performance of the fund.

Model risk. The adviser’s or subadvisers’ investment models may not adequately take into account certain factors and may result in the fund having a lower return than if the fund were managed using another model or investment strategy.

Market sector risk. The fund may be significantly overweight or underweight in certain companies, industries or market sectors, which may cause the fund’s performance to be more sensitive to developments affecting those companies, industries or market sectors.

Stock market and equity securities risk. The securities markets are volatile and the market prices of the fund’s securities may decline generally. Securities fluctuate in price based on changes in a company’s financial condition and overall market and economic conditions. If the market prices of the securities owned by the fund fall, the value of your investment in the fund will decline.

Large capitalization company risk. Large capitalization companies may fall out of favor with investors based on market and economic conditions. In return for the relative stability and low volatility of large capitalization companies, the fund’s value may not rise as much as the value of funds that invest in companies with smaller market capitalizations.

Small and medium capitalization company risk. The fund will be exposed to additional risks as a result of its investments in the securities of small and medium capitalization companies. Small and medium capitalization companies may fall out of favor with investors; may have limited product lines, operating histories, markets or financial resources; or may be dependent upon a limited management group. The prices of securities of small and medium capitalization companies generally are more volatile than those of large capitalization companies and are more likely to be adversely affected than large capitalization companies by changes in earnings results and investor expectations or poor economic or market conditions, including those experienced during a recession. Securities of small and medium capitalization companies may underperform large capitalization companies, may be harder to sell at times and at prices the portfolio managers believe appropriate and may offer greater potential for losses.

Liquidity risk. Some assets held by the fund may be impossible or difficult to sell, particularly during times of market turmoil. These illiquid assets may also be difficult to value. Markets may become illiquid when, for instance, there are few, if any, interested buyers or sellers or when dealers are unwilling or unable to make a market for certain securities. As a general matter, dealers recently have been less willing to make markets for fixed income securities. If the fund is forced to sell an illiquid asset to meet redemption requests or other cash needs, the fund may be forced to sell at a loss. The fund may not receive its proceeds from the sale of certain securities for an extended period (for example, several weeks or even longer).

Leveraging risk. The value of your investment may be more volatile if the fund borrows or uses derivatives or other investments that have a leveraging effect on the fund’s portfolio. Other risks also will be compounded. This is because leverage generally magnifies the effect of a change in the value of an asset and creates a risk of loss of value on a larger pool of assets than the fund would otherwise have had. The fund may also have to sell assets at inopportune times to satisfy its obligations. The use of leverage is considered to be a speculative investment practice and may result in the loss of a substantial amount, and possibly all, of the fund’s assets.

The adviser and subadvisers expect that the implementation of the fund’s investment strategy, which may include a significant level of investment in derivatives, could have the effect of creating leverage in the fund in that the fund’s potential exposure may be greater than its net assets.

Credit risk. If an issuer or guarantor of a security held by the fund or a counterparty to a financial contract with the fund defaults or is downgraded, or is perceived to be less creditworthy, or if the value of the assets underlying a security declines, the value of your investment will typically decline.

High yield (“junk”) bonds risk. High yield bonds are generally subject to greater credit risks than higher-grade bonds, including the risk of default on the payment of interest or principal. High yield bonds are considered speculative, tend to be less liquid and are more difficult to value than higher grade securities. High yield bonds tend to be volatile and more susceptible to adverse events, credit downgrades and negative sentiments and may be difficult to sell at a desired price, or at all, during periods of uncertainty or market turmoil.

 

6    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Prepayment or call risk. Many issuers have a right to prepay their fixed income securities. Issuers may be more likely to prepay their securities if interest rates fall. If this happens, the fund will not benefit from the rise in the market price of the securities that normally accompanies a decline in interest rates, and will be forced to reinvest prepayment proceeds at a time when yields on securities available in the market are lower than the yield on prepaid securities. The fund may also lose any premium it paid on prepaid securities.

Extension risk. When interest rates rise, repayments of fixed income securities, particularly asset- and mortgage-backed securities, may occur more slowly than anticipated, extending the effective duration of these fixed income securities at below market interest rates and causing their market prices to decline more than they would have declined due to the rise in interest rates alone. This may cause the fund’s share price to be more volatile.

Foreign investments and emerging market risk. The fund’s investments in securities of foreign issuers or issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets involve additional risk. Foreign countries in which the fund may invest may have markets that are less liquid, less regulated and more volatile than U.S. markets. The value of the fund’s investments may decline because of factors affecting the particular issuer as well as foreign markets and issuers generally, such as unfavorable or unsuccessful government actions, reduction of government or central bank support and political or financial instability. Lack of information may also affect the value of these securities.

The risks of foreign investments are heightened when investing in issuers in emerging market countries. Emerging market countries tend to have economic, political and legal systems that are less fully developed and are less stable than those of more developed countries. They are often particularly sensitive to market movements because their market prices tend to reflect speculative expectations. Low trading volumes may result in a lack of liquidity and in extreme price volatility.

Currency risk. The value of investments in securities denominated in foreign currencies increases or decreases as the rates of exchange between those currencies and the U.S. dollar change. Currency conversion costs and currency fluctuations could erase investment gains or add to investment losses. Currency exchange rates can be volatile, and are affected by factors such as general economic conditions, the actions of the U.S. and foreign governments or central banks, the imposition of currency controls and speculation.

Sovereign debt risk. Sovereign government and supranational debt involve many of the risks of foreign and emerging markets investments as well as the risk of debt moratorium, repudiation or renegotiation and the fund may be unable to enforce its rights against the issuers.

Derivatives risk. Using derivatives can increase fund losses and reduce opportunities for gains when market prices, interest rates, currencies or the derivatives themselves, behave in a way not anticipated by the fund. Using derivatives also can have a leveraging effect and increase fund volatility. Certain derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment. Derivatives may be difficult to sell, unwind or value, and the counterparty may default on its obligations to the fund. Derivatives are generally subject to the risks applicable to the assets, rates, indices or other indicators underlying the derivative. The value of a derivative may fluctuate more than the underlying assets, rates, indices or other indicators to which it relates. Use of derivatives may have different tax consequences for the fund than an investment in the underlying security, and those differences may affect the amount, timing and character of income distributed to shareholders. The U.S. government and foreign governments are in the process of adopting and implementing regulations governing derivatives markets, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin and reporting requirements. The ultimate impact of the regulations remains unclear. Additional regulation of derivatives may make derivatives more costly, limit their availability or utility, otherwise adversely affect their performance or disrupt markets. In addition, the SEC has proposed a new rule that would change the regulation of the use of derivatives by registered investment companies, such as the fund. If the proposed rule takes effect, it could limit the ability of the fund to invest in derivatives.

Credit default swap contracts involve heightened risks and may result in losses to the fund. Credit default swaps may be illiquid and difficult to value. If the fund buys a credit default swap, it will be subject to the risk that the credit default swap may expire worthless, as the credit default swap would only generate income in the event of a default on the underlying debt security or other specified event. As a buyer, the fund would also be subject to credit risk relating to the seller’s payment of its obligations in the event of a default (or similar event). If the fund sells a credit default swap, it will be exposed to the credit risk of the issuer of the obligation to which the credit default swap relates. As a seller, the fund would also be subject to leverage risk, because it would be liable for the full notional amount of the swap in the event of a default (or similar event).

Commodities risk. Investing in commodity-linked instruments may subject the fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked instruments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, prolonged or intense speculation by investors, changes in interest rates or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, other weather phenomena, livestock disease, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments. The prices of commodities can also fluctuate widely due to supply and demand disruptions in major producing or consuming regions. To the extent the fund focuses its investments in a particular commodity, the fund will be more susceptible to risks associated with the particular commodity. No active trading market may exist for certain commodities investments.

Commodity regulatory risk. The fund is deemed a “commodity pool” and the fund’s manager is considered a “commodity pool operator” with respect to the fund under the Commodity Exchange Act. The fund’s manager is therefore subject to dual regulation by the Securities and Exchange

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   7


Principal risks cont’d

 

Commission (“SEC”) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”). Due to recent regulatory changes, additional regulatory requirements may be imposed and additional expenses may be incurred by the fund. The regulatory requirements governing the use of commodity futures (which include futures on broad-based securities indexes, interest rate futures and currency futures), options on commodity futures, certain swaps or certain other investments could change at any time.

Segregated assets risk. In connection with certain transactions that may give rise to future payment obligations, including borrowings and many types of derivatives, the fund may be required to maintain a segregated amount of cash or liquid securities to cover the position. Segregated securities cannot be sold while the position they are covering is outstanding, unless they are replaced with other securities of equal value. As a result, there is the possibility that segregation of a large percentage of the fund’s assets may, in some circumstances, limit the portfolio managers’ flexibility.

Inflation-indexed securities risk. The value of inflation-indexed fixed income securities generally fluctuates in response to changes in real interest rates, which are in turn tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if inflation were to rise at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates might decline, leading to an increase in value of inflation-indexed securities. In contrast, if nominal interest rates increased at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-indexed securities. The principal value of inflation-indexed securities declines in periods of deflation, and holders of such securities may experience a loss. Although the holders of U.S. TIPS receive no less than the par value of the security at maturity, if the fund purchases U.S. TIPS in the secondary market whose principal values have been adjusted upward due to inflation since issuance, it may experience a loss if there is a subsequent period of deflation. If inflation is lower than expected during the period the fund holds an inflation-indexed security, the fund may earn less on the security than on a conventional bond.

Because an increase in principal value of an inflation-indexed security is treated as taxable income to the owner in the year the adjustment is made, even though no cash is paid out, the fund could be required to sell other securities to pay taxes on this income, including when it is not advantageous to do so.

MLP risk. Holders of MLP units have limited control and voting rights on matters affecting the partnership. In addition, there are certain tax risks associated with an investment in MLP units and the potential for conflicts of interest exist between common unit holders and the general partner, including those arising from incentive distribution payments. The benefit the fund derives from investment in MLP units is largely dependent on the MLPs being classified as partnerships and not as corporations for federal income tax purposes. If an MLP were treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes, the MLP may incur significant federal and state tax liability, likely causing a reduction in the value of the fund’s shares. MLP entities are typically focused in the energy, natural resources and real estate sectors of the economy. A downturn in the energy, natural resources or real estate sectors of the economy could have an adverse impact on the fund. At times, the performance of securities of companies in the energy, natural resources and real estate sectors of the economy may lag the performance of other sectors or the broader market as a whole. MLPs are generally considered interest-rate sensitive investments, and during periods of interest rate volatility, may not provide attractive returns.

REIT risk. The value of real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) may be affected by the condition of the economy as a whole and changes in the value of the underlying real estate, the creditworthiness of the issuer of the investments and property taxes, interest rates, liquidity of the credit markets and the real estate regulatory environment. REITs that concentrate their holdings in specific businesses, such as apartments, offices or retail space, will be affected by conditions affecting those businesses.

Short positions risk. Short positions involve leverage and there is no limit on the amount of loss on a security that is sold short. The fund may suffer significant losses if assets that the fund sells short appreciate rather than depreciate in value. The amount of any gain will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends, interest, or expenses the fund may be required to pay in connection with the short position.

ETF and ETN risk. The fund may gain exposure to commodities, REITs and other investments by investing in ETFs and exchange-traded notes, or ETNs, that focus on these types of investments. Investing in an ETF or ETN will give the fund exposure to the securities that the ETF or ETN holds in its portfolio. The fund may invest in “short” ETFs which carry additional risks because they may invest in a variety of derivatives and may engage in short sales. ETFs are bought and sold based on market values, which rarely equal the actual net asset value of their portfolio holdings and, therefore, they could trade at either a premium or discount to net asset value. The fund will indirectly bear its pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by an ETF it invests in, including advisory fees, and will pay brokerage commissions in connection with the purchase and sale of shares of ETFs. ETFs that invest in commodities may be, or may become, subject to regulatory trading limits that could hurt the value of their securities. Additionally, ETNs and some ETFs are not structured as investment companies and thus are not regulated under the 1940 Act. An ETN’s value generally depends on the performance of the underlying index and the credit rating of the issuer.

Subsidiary risk. By investing in a wholly-owned subsidiary, the fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the subsidiary’s investments. Changes in the laws of the Cayman Islands, under which the subsidiary is organized, or changes in the laws of the United States, could prevent the

 

8    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


subsidiary from operating as described in this Prospectus and could negatively affect the fund and its shareholders. There may also be federal income tax risks associated with the fund’s investment in a wholly-owned subsidiary.

Valuation risk. The sales price the fund could receive for any particular portfolio investment may differ from the fund’s valuation of the investment, particularly for securities that trade in thin or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. Investors who purchase or redeem fund shares on days when the fund is holding fair-valued securities may receive fewer or more shares or lower or higher redemption proceeds than they would have received if the fund had not fair-valued securities or had used a different valuation methodology. The fund’s ability to value its investments may be impacted by technological issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third party service providers.

Market events risk. In the past several years financial markets, such as those in the United States, Europe, Asia and elsewhere, have experienced increased volatility, depressed valuations, decreased liquidity and heightened uncertainty. Governmental and non-governmental issuers have defaulted on, or been forced to restructure, their debts. These conditions may continue, recur, worsen or spread. Events that have contributed to these market conditions include, but are not limited to major cybersecurity events; measures to address U.S. federal and state budget deficits; downgrading of U.S. long-term sovereign debt; declines in oil and commodity prices; dramatic changes in currency exchange rates; and public sentiment.

The U.S. government and the Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have taken steps to support financial markets, including by keeping interest rates at historically low levels. 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. The Federal Reserve has reduced its market support activities and recently has begun raising interest rates. Certain foreign governments and central banks are implementing or discussing so-called negative interest rates (e.g., charging depositors who keep their cash at a bank) to spur economic growth. Further Federal Reserve or other U.S. or non-U.S. governmental or central bank actions, including interest rate increases or contrary actions by different governments, could negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the fund invests.

Policy and legislative changes in the United States and in other countries are affecting many aspects of financial regulation and may in some instances contribute to decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the financial markets. The impact of these changes on the markets, and the practical implications for market participants, may not be fully known for some time.

Economies and financial markets throughout the world are increasingly interconnected. Economic, financial or political events, trading and tariff arrangements, terrorism, natural disasters and other circumstances in one country or region could have profound impacts on global economies or markets. As a result, whether or not the fund invests in securities of issuers located in or with significant exposure to the countries directly affected, the value and liquidity of the fund’s investments may be negatively affected.

Redemption risk. The fund may experience heavy redemptions that could cause the fund to liquidate its assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value, which could cause the value of your investment to decline.

Cybersecurity risk. Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to fund assets, customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or cause the fund, the manager, the subadvisers and/or its service providers (including, but not limited to, fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality.

These risks are discussed in more detail later in this Prospectus or in the SAI.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   9


Performance

 

The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the fund. The bar chart shows changes in the fund’s performance from year to year for Class A shares. The table shows the average annual total returns of each class of the fund that has been in operation for at least one full calendar year and also compares the fund’s performance with the average annual total returns of an index or other benchmark. Performance for classes other than those shown may vary from the performance shown to the extent the expenses for those classes differ. The fund makes updated performance information, including its current net asset value, available at www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds (select fund and share class), or by calling the fund at 1-877-721-1926.

The fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the fund will perform in the future.

Sales charges are not reflected in the accompanying bar chart, and if those charges were included, returns would be less than those shown.

 

LOGO

Best Quarter (12/31/2011): 6.52    Worst Quarter (09/30/2011): (10.37)

 

Average annual total returns (%)  
(for periods ended December 31, 2016)                                  
Class A      1 year           5 years          
 
Since
inception
  
  
      
 
Inception
date
  
  
Return before taxes      (2.67)          (2.20)           0.41           02/26/2010   
Return after taxes on distributions      (3.14)          (2.81)           (0.28)              
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares      (1.12)          (1.68)           0.22              
Other Classes (Return before taxes only)                                          
Class A2      (2.79)          N/A           (4.22)           10/31/2012   
Class C      1.51          (1.78)           0.54           02/26/2010   
Class I      3.58          (0.78)           1.54           02/26/2010   
Class IS      3.63          (0.69)           (0.24)           12/15/2011   
Bloomberg Barclays U.S. TIPS Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)1      4.68           0.89           3.40              
Composite Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)2      5.41           (1.12)           1.25             

 

1 

For Class A2 and Class IS shares, each for the period from the class’ inception date to December 31, 2016, the average annual total return of the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. TIPS Index was (0.59)% and 0.87%, respectively.

2 

For Class A2 and Class IS shares, each for the period from the class’ inception date to December 31, 2016, the average annual total return of the Composite Index was (2.96)% and (0.69)%, respectively. The Composite Index reflects the blended rate of return of the following underlying indices: 40% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. TIPS Index, 20% MSCI All Country World Index, 20% S&P GSCI®, 10% FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index and 10% Citigroup 1-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index. Effective November 30, 2011, this Composite Index is hedged to 40% exposure to the U.S. dollar, as defined by the U.S. Dollar Index (USDX). The Composite Index’s unhedged currency exposure is predominantly U.S. dollar-based. The fund’s target hedged currency exposure is 40% U.S. dollar, 60% non-U.S. dollar. The fund may deviate, either up or down, from its target currency allocation due to market conditions. To better align the components of the Composite Index with the fund’s target currency exposure, a 40% U.S. dollar hedge is applied to the Composite Index by subtracting the returns of the USDX from 40% of the blended rate of return of the Composite Index. Prior to November 30, 2011, the Composite Index was hedged to 50% exposure to the USDX.

The after-tax returns are shown only for Class A shares, are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns for classes other than Class A will vary from returns shown for Class A. Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares are higher than returns before taxes for certain periods shown because they reflect the tax benefit of capital losses realized on the redemption of fund shares.

 

10    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Management

 

Investment manager: Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC

Adviser: QS Investors, LLC (“QS Investors”)

Subadvisers: QS Investors, Western Asset Management Company (“Western Asset”), Western Asset Management Company Limited in London (“WAML”), Western Asset Management Company Ltd. in Japan (“Western Japan”) and ClearBridge Investments, LLC (“ClearBridge”). QS Investors may allocate a portion of the fund’s assets to ClearBridge but does not currently do so. References to “the subadviser” include each applicable subadviser.

Portfolio managers: QS Investors: Thomas Picciochi (Head of Multi-Asset Portfolio Management Implementation of QS Investors) and Ellen Tesler (Portfolio Manager of QS Investors) have been portfolio managers of the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve, REITs Sleeve, and Tactical Strategy Sleeve subadvised by QS Investors since 2014. Adam J. Petryk (Head of Multi-Asset and Solutions of QS Investors) has been a portfolio manager of these fund Sleeves since June 2016.

Stephen A. Lanzendorf, CFA Head of Active Equity Portfolio Management Strategy, and Joseph S. Giroux, Portfolio Manager, have been portfolio managers of the Global Equity Securities Sleeve subadvised by QS Investors since 2011 and 2014, respectively.

Western Asset, WAML and Western Japan: S. Kenneth Leech has been a portfolio manager for the Inflation-Linked Debt Securities Sleeve subadvised by Western Asset, WAML and Western Japan since 2014. Frederick R. Marki has been a portfolio manager of this fund Sleeve since August 2016. These portfolio managers work together with a broader investment management team.

Purchase and sale of fund shares

You may purchase, redeem or exchange shares of the fund each day the New York Stock Exchange is open, at the fund’s net asset value determined after receipt of your request in good order, subject to any applicable sales charge.

The fund’s initial and subsequent investment minimums generally are set forth in the accompanying table:

 

Investment minimum initial/additional investment ($)     
      Class A      Class A21      Class C2      Class FI      Class R      Class I    Class IS
General    1,000/50      1,000/50      1,000/50      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
Uniform Gifts or Transfers to Minor Accounts    1,000/50      1,000/50      1,000/50      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
IRAs    250/50      250/50      250/50      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
SIMPLE IRAs    None/None      None/None      None/None      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
Systematic Investment Plans    50/50      50/50      50/50      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries    None/None      None/None      N/A      None/None      None/None      None/None    None/None
Eligible Investment Programs    None/None      None/None      N/A      None/None      None/None      None/None    None/None
Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund and certain rollover IRAs    None/None      None/None      None/None      None/None      None/None      None/None    None/None
Other Retirement Plans    None/None      None/None      None/None      N/A      N/A      1 million/None3    N/A
Institutional Investors    1,000/50      1,000/50      1,000/50      N/A      N/A      1 million/None    1 million/None

 

1 

Available to investors investing through a financial intermediary with a direct transfer agent relationship with the fund.

2 

Class C shares are not available for purchase through LMIS Accounts.

3 

Available to investors investing directly with the fund.

Your financial intermediary may impose different investment minimums.

For more information about how to purchase, redeem or exchange shares, and to learn which classes of shares are available to you, you should contact your financial intermediary, or, if you hold your shares or plan to purchase shares through the fund, you should contact the fund by phone at 1-877-721-1926, by regular mail at Legg Mason Funds, P.O. Box 9699, Providence, RI 02940-9699 or by express, certified or registered mail at Legg Mason Funds, 4400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA 01581.

Tax information

The fund’s distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income or capital gain.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   11


Payments to broker/dealers and other financial intermediaries

 

The fund’s related companies may pay broker/dealers or other financial intermediaries (such as a bank or an insurance company) for the sale of fund shares, shareholder services and other purposes. These payments create a conflict of interest by influencing your broker/dealer or other intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend the fund over another investment. Ask your financial adviser or salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s or salesperson’s website for more information.

 

12    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks

 

Important information

The fund was named QS Legg Mason Strategic Real Return Fund prior to April 1, 2016. The fund was named Legg Mason Strategic Real Return Fund prior to June 30, 2014.

The fund’s investment objective is to provide an attractive long-term real return.

The fund’s investment objective may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval and on notice to shareholders.

The fund’s investment strategies and policies may be changed from time to time without shareholder approval, unless specifically stated elsewhere in this Prospectus or in the SAI.

Target Asset Allocations

The composition of the fund’s investment portfolio will vary over time, based in part on QS Investors’ overall asset allocation decisions, and may be changed without shareholder approval. Actual allocations may deviate from the target allocations by up to 50% of such target allocation, and the percentage of the fund in each sleeve at any time may vary without limit due to performance differences. QS Investors rebalances the asset allocation to each investment sleeve of the fund at its discretion, even if performance differences among the subadvisers and the adviser result in one or more allocations being significantly higher or lower than their target allocations. Each investment sleeve of the fund also may deviate temporarily and without limit from its investment strategies for defensive purposes.

Target Allocation Process. QS Investors normally allocates assets among investment sleeves using the following process:

Utilizing proprietary research, QS Investors uses structured multi-factored models to systematically analyze the absolute and relative attractiveness of each investment sleeve. The data that drives these models is typically updated monthly, but may be updated intra-month during periods of market stress or unusual volatility. The models themselves will be monitored and adjusted as QS Investors deems necessary, based on its perception of long-term secular changes in the economy. Short-term market conditions that are exogenous to, and not captured by, the models also may be examined and added to the analysis.

Additional Information about the Investment Sleeves

Inflation-Linked Debt Securities Sleeve

Western Asset, WAML and Western Japan manage the Inflation-Linked Debt Securities Sleeve. The following additional investment limitations apply to this sleeve:

 

 

no more than 20% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in non-U.S. dollar denominated inflation-indexed securities;

 

 

no more than 10% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in un-hedged non-U.S. dollar denominated securities;

 

 

no more than 10% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in high yield securities;

 

 

no more than 10% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in emerging market securities;

 

 

no more than 10% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in loan participations and assignments; and

 

 

no more than 20% of the sleeve’s net assets may be invested in a combination of high yield securities, emerging market securities and loan participations and assignments.

Inflation-indexed securities. Inflation-indexed securities are fixed-income securities that are structured to provide protection against inflation and whose principal value or coupon (interest payment) is periodically adjusted to track changes in an official inflation measure such as an index. Inflation-protected securities denominated in the U.S. dollar include U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (“TIPS”), as well as other bonds issued by U.S. and non-U.S. government agencies and instrumentalities or corporations and derivatives related to these securities.

Credit quality. Investment grade securities are securities rated at the time of purchase by a NRSRO within one of the top four categories, or, if unrated, determined by the applicable subadviser to be of comparable credit quality. Securities rated in the lowest category of investment grade (BBB or Baa) are deemed to have speculative characteristics. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly known as “junk bonds” or “high yield securities.”

With respect to the sleeve’s use of credit default swaps, for purposes of calculating the sleeve’s average credit quality, the sleeve will utilize the credit rating and the notional amount of the debt security referenced in the credit default swap.

Duration. The sleeve’s average effective duration may fall outside of its expected average effective duration range due to market movements. If this happens, the applicable subadviser will take action to bring the sleeve’s average effective duration back within the sleeve’s expected average

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   13


More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks cont’d

 

effective duration range within a reasonable period of time. Effective duration seeks to measure the expected sensitivity of market price to changes in interest rates, taking into account the anticipated effects of structural complexities (for example, some bonds can be prepaid by the issuer). The assumptions that are made about a security’s features and options when calculating effective duration may prove to be incorrect. As a result, investors should be aware that effective duration is not an exact measurement and may not reliably predict a security’s price sensitivity to changes in yield or interest rates.

Global Equity Securities Sleeve

QS Investors manages the Global Equity Securities Sleeve. The portfolio managers invest primarily in the common stock of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers. The portfolio managers use a quantitative process that assesses stocks by relative attractiveness based on a variety of measures including value, cash flow, earnings growth and sentiment. The portfolio managers are part of a team approach to research to improve the quantitative models, and thus the models are expected to evolve over time as changes are incorporated.

Equity investments. Equity securities may include exchange-traded and over-the-counter (“OTC”) common and preferred stock, warrants and rights, securities convertible into common stocks, and securities of other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). Convertible securities may be purchased to gain additional exposure to a company or for their income or other features.

The sleeve is expected to have an annual portfolio turnover rate in excess of 100%. High turnover rates can result in increased trading costs and higher levels of realized capital gains.

Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve and REITs Sleeve

QS Investors manages the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve and the REITs Sleeve. In determining how to gain exposure to the relevant asset class in each sleeve, QS Investors will consider, among other factors, as applicable: historical tracking error relative to a desired benchmark, fees from the investment assumed directly or indirectly by the fund, credit/issuer risk (in the case of OTC derivatives for the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve), liquidity of the investment and other regulatory and operational considerations.

Real estate investment trusts. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that invest primarily in income producing real estate or real estate related loans or interests. REITs are generally classified as equity REITs, mortgage REITs or a combination of equity and mortgage REITs. Unlike corporations, REITs are not taxed on income distributed to their shareholders, provided they comply with the applicable requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management and other expenses that may be charged by the REITs in which it invests, in addition to the expenses paid by the fund.

Tactical Strategy Sleeve

QS Investors manages the Tactical Strategy Sleeve. This sleeve uses a variety of quantitative asset allocation and investment techniques. Such techniques take into account various macroeconomic factors including QS Investors’ expectations of future market volatility, predictions of future interest rates and analysis of equity, fixed income and regional market trends and forecasts.

Investment companies that the fund may invest in include ETFs and/or investment companies that are benchmarked or managed to indices using a futures-based momentum methodology. Futures-based momentum methodology aims to partially limit portfolio losses by short-selling commodity and financial futures when quantitative models anticipate significant negative trends in the equity markets. Conversely, this methodology purchases futures when quantitative models anticipate upward trending markets. During periods of cyclical inflation, commodity prices tend to increase, so a momentum strategy may benefit from these price increases. When quantitative models do not forecast strong up or down trends, momentum strategy generally assumes a market neutral position, with the aim of collecting premiums from the sale of futures.

The Tactical Strategy Sleeve may invest in certain derivative instruments, including swaps and puts, to attempt to partially protect the fund against extreme market losses. The sleeve may also invest in certain currency derivatives, including currency swaps and forward currency transactions, to further the fund’s goal of maintaining a 50% target allocation to non-U.S. Dollar currencies.

Securities of investment companies and ETFs. Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are traded on an exchange throughout a trading day and bought and sold based on market values and not at net asset value. For this reason, shares could trade at either a premium or discount to net asset value. The trading price of an ETF is expected to closely track the actual net asset value of the ETF, and the fund will generally gain or lose value consistent with the performance of the ETF’s portfolio securities. The fund will pay brokerage commissions in connection with the purchase and sale of shares of ETFs. In addition, the fund will indirectly bear its pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred by a fund it invests in, including advisory fees. These expenses are in addition to the advisory and other expenses that the fund bears directly in connection with its own operations.

 

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Derivatives

Derivatives are financial instruments whose value depends upon, or is derived from, the value of an asset, such as one or more underlying investments, indexes or currencies. The fund may engage in a variety of transactions using derivatives (including buying and selling credit default swaps), However, these instruments may not always work as intended, and in specific cases the fund may be worse off than if it had not used a hedging instrument.

A derivative contract will obligate or entitle the fund to deliver or receive an asset or cash payment based on the change in value of one or more underlying investments, indexes or currencies. When the fund enters into derivatives transactions, it may be required to segregate assets or enter into offsetting positions, in accordance with applicable regulations. Such segregation is not a hedging technique and will not limit the fund’s exposure to loss. The fund will, therefore, have investment risk with respect to both the derivative itself and the assets that have been segregated to offset the fund’s derivative exposure. If the segregated assets represent a large portion of the fund’s portfolio, this may impede portfolio management or the fund’s ability to meet redemption requests or other obligations.

In determining compliance with any percentage limitation or requirement regarding the use or investment of fund assets, the fund will normally take into account derivative or synthetic instruments or positions that, in the judgment of the subadviser(s), create or reduce, as applicable, the same type of investment exposure as the applicable category of investments.

Investment in a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary

The Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve may seek to gain exposure to certain asset classes, such as ETFs or master limited partnerships that invest primarily in commodities, through investments in Real Return Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the fund, organized as a Cayman Islands exempted company. The subsidiary may invest without limit in these investments. The subsidiary is managed by QS Investors. The fund’s investment in the subsidiary generally will not exceed 25% of the value of the fund’s total assets. The fund invests in the subsidiary in order to gain exposure to investment returns of ETFs and master limited partnerships that invest primarily in commodities within the limitations of the federal tax law requirements applicable to regulated investment companies. There may be certain federal income tax risks associated with the fund’s investment in the subsidiary. See “Dividends, distributions and taxes.”

Cash Management

The fund may hold cash reserves, repurchase agreements and money market instruments, when necessary, for anticipated securities purchases, shareholder redemptions and other operational purposes. The amount of assets the fund may hold for cash management purposes will depend on market conditions and the need to meet expected redemption requests.

Defensive Investing

The fund may depart from its principal investment strategies in response to adverse market, economic or political conditions by taking temporary defensive positions, including by investing in any type of investment grade short-term debt instruments, including government, corporate and money-market securities, repurchase agreements or cash. Although the adviser or subadvisers have the ability to take defensive positions, they may choose not to do so for a variety of reasons, even during volatile market conditions.

Investments by Other Funds

The fund may be an investment option for other funds, including affiliated funds.

Other investments

The fund may also use other strategies and invest in other securities that are described, along with their risks, in the SAI. However, the fund might not make use of all of the strategies and techniques or invest in all of the types of securities described in this Prospectus or in the SAI. New types of mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, derivative instruments and other securities or instruments are developed and marketed from time to time. Consistent with its investment limitations, the fund may invest in new types of securities and instruments.

Percentage and other limitations

For purposes of the fund’s limitations expressed as a percentage of assets or net assets, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. The fund’s compliance with its investment limitations and requirements described in this Prospectus is usually determined at the time of investment. If such a percentage limitation is complied with at the time of an investment, any subsequent change in percentage resulting from a change in asset values or characteristics, a sale of securities or a change in credit quality will not constitute a violation of that limitation.

 

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More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks cont’d

 

More on risks of investing in the fund

Stock market and equity securities risk. The securities markets are volatile and the market prices of the fund’s securities may decline generally. Securities fluctuate in price based on changes in a company’s financial condition and overall market and economic conditions. The value of a particular security may decline due to factors that affect a particular industry or industries, such as an increase in production costs, competitive conditions or labor shortages; or due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates or generally adverse investor sentiment. If the market prices of the securities owned by the fund fall, the value of your investment in the fund will decline.

Market and interest rate risk. The market prices of fixed income and other securities owned by the fund may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. If the market prices of the securities owned by the fund fall, the value of your investment in the fund will decline. The value of a security may fall due to general market conditions, such as real or perceived adverse economic or political conditions, inflation, changes in interest or currency rates, lack of liquidity in the bond markets or adverse investor sentiment. Changes in market conditions will not typically have the same impact on all types of securities. The value of a security may also fall due to specific conditions that affect a particular sector of the securities market or a particular issuer.

The market prices of securities may fluctuate significantly when interest rates change. When interest rates rise, the value of fixed income securities, and therefore the value of your investment in the fund, generally goes down. Interest rates have been historically low, so the fund faces a heightened risk that interest rates may rise. Generally, the longer the maturity or duration of a fixed income security, the greater the impact of a rise in interest rates on the security’s value. However, calculations of duration and maturity may be based on estimates and may not reliably predict a security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. Moreover, securities can change in value in response to other factors, such as credit risk. In addition, different interest rate measures (such as short- and long-term interest rates and U.S. and foreign interest rates), or interest rates on different types of securities or securities of different issuers, may not necessarily change in the same amount or in the same direction. When interest rates go down, the fund’s yield will decline. Also, when interest rates decline, investments made by the fund may pay a lower interest rate, which would reduce the income received by the fund.

Issuer risk. The value of a security can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole. The value of a company’s securities may deteriorate because of a variety of factors, including disappointing earnings reports by the issuer, unsuccessful products or services, loss of major customers, major litigation against the issuer or changes in government regulations affecting the issuer or the competitive environment.

Non-diversification risk. The fund is classified as “non-diversified,” which means it may invest a larger percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers than a diversified fund. To the extent the fund invests its assets in a smaller number of issuers, the fund will be more susceptible to negative events affecting those issuers than a diversified fund.

Multi-manager risk. While QS Investors monitors the investments of each subadviser and monitors the overall management of the fund, including rebalancing the fund’s target allocations, the adviser and each subadviser make investment decisions for their investment sleeves independently from one another. It is possible that the investment styles used by a subadviser or adviser in an investment sleeve will not always be complementary of those used by the others, which could adversely affect the performance of the fund.

Portfolio management risk. The value of your investment may decrease if the adviser’s or subadvisers’ judgment about the quality, relative yield, value or market trends affecting a particular security, industry, sector or region, or about interest rates is incorrect, or if there are imperfections, errors or limitations in the tools and data used by the adviser or subadvisers. In addition, the fund’s investment strategies or policies may change from time to time. Those changes may not lead to the results intended by the adviser or subadvisers and could have an adverse effect on the value or performance of the fund.

Model risk. The adviser’s or subadvisers’ investment models may not adequately take into account certain factors and may result in the fund having a lower return than if the fund were managed using another model or investment strategy. In addition, the investment models used by the adviser or subadvisers to evaluate securities or securities markets are based on certain assumptions concerning the interplay of market factors. The markets or the prices of individual securities may be affected by factors not foreseen in developing the models.

Market sector risk. The fund may be significantly overweight or underweight in certain companies, industries or market sectors, which may cause the fund’s performance to be more sensitive to developments affecting those companies, industries or market sectors.

Large capitalization company risk. Large capitalization companies may fall out of favor with investors based on market and economic conditions. In return for the relative stability and low volatility of large capitalization companies, the fund’s value may not rise as much as the value of funds that focus on companies with smaller market capitalizations.

 

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Small and medium capitalization company risk. The fund will be exposed to additional risks as a result of its investments in the securities of small and medium capitalization companies. Small and medium capitalization companies may fall out of favor with investors; may have limited product lines, operating histories, markets or financial resources; or may be dependent upon a limited management group. The prices of securities of small and medium capitalization companies generally are more volatile than those of large capitalization companies and are more likely to be adversely affected than large capitalization companies by changes in earnings results and investor expectations or poor economic or market conditions, including those experienced during a recession. Securities of small and medium capitalization companies may underperform large capitalization companies, may be harder to sell at times and at prices the portfolio managers believe appropriate and may offer greater potential for losses.

Liquidity risk. Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are impossible or difficult to sell. Although most of the fund’s investments must be liquid at the time of investment, investments may become illiquid after purchase by the fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. Markets may become illiquid when, for instance, there are few, if any, interested buyers or sellers or when dealers are unwilling or unable to make a market for certain securities. As a general matter, dealers recently have been less willing to make markets for fixed income securities. When the fund holds illiquid investments, the portfolio may be harder to value, especially in changing markets, and if the fund is forced to sell these investments to meet redemption requests or for other cash needs, the fund may suffer a loss. The fund may experience heavy redemptions that could cause the fund to liquidate its assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value, which could cause the value of your investment to decline. In addition, when there is illiquidity in the market for certain investments, the fund, due to limitations on illiquid investments, may be unable to achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain sector. Further, certain securities, once sold, may not settle for an extended period (for example, several weeks or even longer). The fund will not receive its sales proceeds until that time, which may constrain the fund’s ability to meet its obligations (including obligations to redeeming shareholders).

Leveraging risk. The value of your investment may be more volatile if the fund borrows or uses derivatives or other investments that have a leveraging effect on the fund’s portfolio. Other risks also will be compounded. This is because leverage generally magnifies the effect of a change in the value of an asset and creates a risk of loss of value on a larger pool of assets than the fund would otherwise have had. The fund may also have to sell assets at inopportune times to satisfy its obligations. The use of leverage is considered to be a speculative investment practice and may result in the loss of a substantial amount, and possibly all, of the fund’s assets.

The adviser and subadvisers expect that the implementation of the fund’s investment strategy, which may include a significant level of investment in derivatives, could have the effect of creating leverage in the fund in that the fund’s potential exposure may be greater than its net assets.

Credit risk. If an obligor (such as the issuer itself or a party offering credit enhancement) for a security held by the fund fails to pay, otherwise defaults, is perceived to be less creditworthy, becomes insolvent or files for bankruptcy, a security’s credit rating is downgraded or the credit quality or value of any underlying assets declines, the value of your investment in the fund could decline. If the fund enters into financial contracts (such as certain derivatives, repurchase agreements, reverse repurchase agreements, and when-issued, delayed delivery and forward commitment transactions), the fund will be subject to the credit risk presented by the counterparty. In addition, the fund may incur expenses in an effort to protect the fund’s interests or to enforce its rights. Credit risk is broadly gauged by the credit ratings of the securities in which the fund invests. However, ratings are only the opinions of the companies issuing them and are not guarantees as to quality. Securities rated in the lowest category of investment grade (Baa/BBB) may possess certain speculative characteristics. Credit risk is typically greatest for the fund’s high yield debt securities, which are rated below the Baa/BBB categories or unrated securities of comparable quality (“junk bonds”).

The fund is subject to greater levels of credit risk to the extent it holds below investment grade debt securities (that is, securities rated below the Baa/BBB categories or unrated securities of comparable quality), or “junk bonds”. These securities have a higher risk of issuer default because, among other reasons, issuers of junk bonds often have more debt in relation to total capitalization than issuers of investment grade securities. These securities are considered speculative, tend to be less liquid and are more difficult to value than higher rated securities and may involve major risk of exposure to adverse conditions and negative sentiments. These securities may be in default or in danger of default as to principal and interest. Unrated securities of comparable quality share these risks.

Prepayment or call risk. Many fixed income securities give the issuer the option to repay or call the security prior to its maturity date. Issuers often exercise this right when interest rates fall. Accordingly, if the fund holds a fixed income security subject to prepayment or call risk, it will not benefit fully from the increase in value that other fixed income securities generally experience when interest rates fall. Upon prepayment of the security, the fund would also be forced to reinvest the proceeds at then current yields, which would be lower than the yield of the security that was paid off. In addition, if the fund purchases a fixed income security at a premium (at a price that exceeds its stated par or principal value), the fund may lose the amount of the premium paid in the event of prepayment.

High yield (“junk”) bonds risk. High yield securities, often called “junk” bonds, have a higher risk of issuer default or may be in default and are considered speculative. Changes in economic conditions or developments regarding the individual issuer are more likely to cause price volatility and

 

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More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks cont’d

 

weaken the capacity of such securities to make principal and interest payments than is the case for higher grade debt securities. The value of lower-quality debt securities often fluctuates in response to company, political, or economic developments and can decline significantly over short as well as long periods of time or during periods of general or regional economic difficulty. High yield bonds may also be less liquid than higher-rated securities, which means the fund may have difficulty selling them at times, and it may have to apply a greater degree of judgment in establishing a price for purposes of valuing fund shares. High yield bonds generally are issued by less creditworthy issuers. Issuers of high yield bonds may have a larger amount of outstanding debt relative to their assets than issuers of investment grade bonds. In the event of an issuer’s bankruptcy, claims of other creditors may have priority over the claims of high yield bond holders, leaving few or no assets available to repay high yield bond holders. The fund may incur expenses to the extent necessary to seek recovery upon default or to negotiate new terms with a defaulting issuer. High yield bonds frequently have redemption features that permit an issuer to repurchase the security from the fund before it matures. If the issuer redeems high yield bonds, the fund may have to invest the proceeds in bonds with lower yields and may lose income.

Extension risk. When interest rates rise, repayments of fixed income securities, particularly asset- and mortgage-backed securities, may occur more slowly than anticipated, extending the effective duration of these fixed income securities at below market interest rates and causing their market prices to decline more than they would have declined due to the rise in interest rates alone. This may cause the fund’s share price to be more volatile.

Foreign investments and emerging market risk. The fund’s investments in securities of foreign issuers or issuers with significant exposure to foreign markets involve additional risk. Foreign countries in which the fund may invest may have markets that are less liquid, less regulated and more volatile than U.S. markets. The value of the fund’s investments may decline because of factors affecting the particular issuer as well as foreign markets and issuers generally, such as unfavorable or unsuccessful government actions, reduction of government or central bank support and political or financial instability. Lack of information may also affect the value of these securities.

The value of the fund’s foreign investments may also be affected by foreign tax laws, special U.S. tax considerations and restrictions on receiving the investment proceeds from a foreign country. Dividends or interest on, or proceeds from the sale or disposition of, foreign securities may be subject to non-U.S. withholding or other taxes.

In some foreign countries, less information is available about issuers and markets because of less rigorous accounting and regulatory standards than in the United States. It may be difficult for the fund to pursue claims against a foreign issuer in the courts of a foreign country. Some securities issued by non-U.S. governments or their subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities may not be backed by the full faith and credit of such governments. Even where a security is backed by the full faith and credit of a government, it may be difficult for the fund to pursue its rights against the government. Some non-U.S. governments have defaulted on principal and interest payments, and more may do so. In certain foreign markets, settlement and clearance procedures may result in delays in payment for or delivery of securities not typically associated with settlement and clearance of U.S. investments.

The risks of foreign investments are heightened when investing in issuers in emerging market countries. Emerging market countries tend to have economic, political and legal systems that are less fully developed and are less stable than those of more developed countries. They are often particularly sensitive to market movements because their market prices tend to reflect speculative expectations. Low trading volumes may result in a lack of liquidity and in extreme price volatility. Investors should be able to tolerate sudden, sometimes substantial, fluctuations in the value of their investments. Emerging market countries may have policies that restrict investment by foreigners or that prevent foreign investors from withdrawing their money at will.

Currency risk. The value of investments in securities denominated in foreign currencies increases or decreases as the rates of exchange between those currencies and the U.S. dollar change. Currency conversion costs and currency fluctuations could erase investment gains or add to investment losses. Currency exchange rates can be volatile, and are affected by factors such as general economic conditions, the actions of the U.S. and foreign governments or central banks, the imposition of currency controls and speculation.

Sovereign debt risk. Sovereign government and supranational debt involve many of the risks of foreign and emerging markets investments as well as the risk of debt moratorium, repudiation or renegotiation and the fund may be unable to enforce its rights against the issuers.

Derivatives risk. Derivatives involve special risks and costs and may result in losses to the fund, even when used for hedging purposes. Using derivatives can increase losses and reduce opportunities for gains when market prices, interest rates, currencies or the derivatives themselves behave in a way not anticipated by the fund, especially in abnormal market conditions. Using derivatives also can have a leveraging effect (which may increase investment losses) and increase the fund’s volatility, which is the degree to which the fund’s share price may fluctuate within a short time period. Certain derivatives have the potential for unlimited loss, regardless of the size of the initial investment. The other parties to certain derivatives transactions present the same types of credit risk as issuers of fixed income securities. Derivatives also tend to involve greater liquidity risk and they may be difficult to value. The fund may be unable to terminate or sell its derivative positions. In fact, many over-the-counter derivatives

 

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will not have liquidity beyond the counterparty to the instrument. Derivatives are generally subject to the risks applicable to the assets, rates, indices or other indicators underlying the derivative. The value of a derivative may fluctuate more than the underlying assets, rates, indices or other indicators to which it relates. Use of derivatives or similar instruments may have different tax consequences for the fund than an investment in the underlying security, and those differences may affect the amount, timing and character of income distributed to shareholders. The fund’s use of derivatives may also increase the amount of taxes payable by shareholders. The U.S. government and foreign governments are in the process of adopting and implementing regulations governing derivatives markets, including mandatory clearing of certain derivatives, margin, and reporting requirements. The ultimate impact of the regulations remains unclear. Additional regulation of derivatives may make derivatives more costly, limit their availability or utility, otherwise adversely affect their performance or disrupt markets. The fund may be exposed to additional risks as a result of the additional regulations. The extent and impact of the additional regulations are not yet fully known and may not be for some time. In addition, the SEC has proposed a new rule that would change the regulation of the use of derivatives by registered investment companies, such as the fund. If the proposed rule takes effect, it could limit the ability of the fund to invest in derivatives.

Investments by the fund in structured securities, a type of derivative, raise certain tax, legal, regulatory and accounting issues that may not be presented by direct investments in securities. These issues could be resolved in a manner that could hurt the performance of the fund.

Swap agreements tend to shift the fund’s investment exposure from one type of investment to another. For example, the fund may enter into interest rate swaps, which involve the exchange of interest payments by the fund with another party, such as an exchange of floating rate payments for fixed interest rate payments with respect to a notional amount of principal. If an interest rate swap intended to be used as a hedge negates a favorable interest rate movement, the investment performance of the fund would be less than what it would have been if the fund had not entered into the interest rate swap.

Credit default swap contracts involve heightened risks and may result in losses to the fund. Credit default swaps may be illiquid and difficult to value. If the fund buys a credit default swap, it will be subject to the risk that the credit default swap may expire worthless, as the credit default swap would only generate income in the event of a default on the underlying debt security or other specified event. As a buyer, the fund would also be subject to credit risk relating to the seller’s payment of its obligations in the event of a default (or similar event). If the fund sells a credit default swap, it will be exposed to the credit risk of the issuer of the obligation to which the credit default swap relates. As a seller, the fund would also be subject to leverage risk, because it would be liable for the full notional amount of the swap in the event of a default (or similar event).

The absence of a central exchange or market for swap transactions may lead, in some instances, to difficulties in trading and valuation, especially in the event of market disruptions. Recent legislation requires certain swaps to be executed through a centralized exchange or regulated facility and be cleared through a regulated clearinghouse. Although this clearing mechanism is generally expected to reduce counterparty credit risk, it may disrupt or limit the swap market and may not result in swaps being easier to trade or value. As swaps become more standardized, the fund may not be able to enter into swaps that meet its investment needs. The fund also may not be able to find a clearinghouse willing to accept a swap for clearing. In a cleared swap, a central clearing organization will be the counterparty to the transaction. The fund will assume the risk that the clearinghouse may be unable to perform its obligations.

The fund will be required to maintain its positions with a clearing organization through one or more clearing brokers. The clearing organization will require the fund to post margin and the broker may require the fund to post additional margin to secure the fund’s obligations. The amount of margin required may change from time to time. In addition, cleared transactions may be more expensive to maintain than over-the-counter transactions and may require the fund to deposit larger amounts of margin. The fund may not be able to recover margin amounts if the broker has financial difficulties. Also, the broker may require the fund to terminate a derivatives position under certain circumstances. This may cause the fund to lose money.

Risks associated with the use of derivatives are magnified to the extent that an increased portion of the fund’s assets are committed to derivatives in general or are invested in just one or a few types of derivatives.

Hedging risk. The decision as to whether and to what extent the fund will engage in hedging transactions to hedge against such risks as credit risk, currency risk and interest rate risk will depend on a number of factors, including prevailing market conditions, the composition of the fund and the availability of suitable transactions. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the fund will engage in hedging transactions at any given time or from time to time, even under volatile market environments, or that any such strategies, if used, will be successful. Hedging transactions involve costs and may reduce gains or result in losses.

Commodities risk. Investing in commodity-linked instruments may subject the fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked instruments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, prolonged or intense speculation by investors, changes in interest rates or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, other weather phenomena, livestock disease, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments.

 

 

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More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks cont’d

 

Commodity regulatory risk. The fund is deemed a “commodity pool” and the fund’s manager is considered a “commodity pool operator” with respect to the fund under the Commodity Exchange Act. The fund’s manager is therefore subject to dual regulation by the SEC and the CFTC. Due to recent regulatory changes, additional regulatory requirements may be imposed and additional expenses may be incurred by the fund. The regulatory requirements governing the use of commodity futures (which include futures on broad-based securities indexes, interest rate futures and currency futures), options on commodity futures, certain swaps or certain other investments could change at any time.

Segregated assets risk. In connection with certain transactions that may give rise to future payment obligations, including many types of derivatives, the fund may be required to maintain a segregated amount of cash or liquid securities to cover the position. Segregated securities cannot be sold while the position they are covering is outstanding, unless they are replaced with other securities of equal value. As a result, there is the possibility that segregation of a large percentage of the fund’s assets may, in some circumstances, limit the portfolio managers’ flexibility.

Inflation-indexed securities risk. The value of inflation-indexed fixed income securities generally fluctuates in response to changes in real interest rates, which are in turn tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if inflation were to rise at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates might decline, leading to an increase in value of inflation-indexed securities. In contrast, if nominal interest rates increased at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-indexed securities. The principal value of inflation-indexed securities declines in periods of deflation, and holders of such securities may experience a loss. Although the holders of U.S. TIPS receive no less than the par value of the security at maturity, if the fund purchases U.S. TIPS in the secondary market whose principal values have been adjusted upward due to inflation since issuance, it may experience a loss if there is a subsequent period of deflation. If inflation is lower than expected during the period the fund holds an inflation-indexed security, the fund may earn less on the security than on a conventional bond.

Because an increase in principal value of an inflation-indexed security is treated as taxable income to the owner in the year the adjustment is made, even though no cash is paid out, the fund could be required to sell other securities to pay taxes on this income, including when it is not advantageous to do so.

If real interest rates rise (i.e., if interest rates rise for reasons other than inflation, for example, due to changes in currency exchange rates), the value of inflation-indexed securities held by the fund will decline. Moreover, because the principal amount of inflation-indexed securities would be adjusted downward during a period of deflation, the fund will be subject to deflation risk with respect to its investments in these securities. Inflation-indexed securities are tied to indices that are calculated based on rates of inflation for prior periods. There can be no assurance that such indices will accurately measure the actual rate of inflation in the prices of goods and services.

MLP risk. An investment in MLP units involves certain risks which differ from an investment in the securities of a corporation. Holders of MLP units have the rights typically afforded to limited partners in a limited partnership. Additionally, conflicts of interest may exist between common unit holders and the general partner of an MLP; for example, a conflict may arise as a result of incentive distribution payments. The amount of cash that any MLP has available to pay its unit holders in the form of distributions/dividends depends on the amount of cash flow generated from such company’s operations. Cash flow from operations will vary from quarter to quarter and is largely dependent on factors affecting the MLP’s operations and factors affecting the energy, natural resources or real estate sectors in general. Investing in MLPs involves certain risks related to investing in the underlying assets of the MLPs. MLPs are generally considered interest-rate sensitive investments, and during periods of interest rate volatility, may not provide attractive returns. MLPs may be adversely affected by fluctuations in the prices of commodities and may be impacted by the levels of supply and demand for commodities. The performance of MLPs operating in the real estate sector may be linked to the performance of the real estate markets, including the risk of falling property values and declining rents, and from changes in interest rates or inflation. Much of the benefit the fund derives from its investment in equity securities of MLPs is a result of MLPs generally being treated as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A change in current tax law, or a change in the business of a given MLP, could result in an MLP being treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes and subject to corporate level tax on its income, and could reduce the amount of cash available for distribution by the MLP to its unit holders, such as the fund.

REIT risk. The fund may invest in pooled investment vehicles which invest primarily in income-producing real estate or real estate-related loans or interests, called real estate investment trusts or REITs. Investments in real estate-related securities (including REITs) expose the fund to risks similar to investing directly in real estate. The value of these investments may be affected by changes in the value of the underlying real estate, the creditworthiness of the issuer of the investments and changes in property taxes, interest rates, liquidity of the credit markets and the real estate regulatory environment. In addition, the values of REITs are affected by the condition of the economy as a whole, which affects the occupancy rates of various types of real estate (e.g., offices, shopping centers and hotels). The values of many REITs have fallen as a result of recent economic conditions, and may suffer further decline, or a prolonged period of little increase, as a result of poor economic conditions and resulting low occupancies and high foreclosure rates. Turmoil affecting foreclosures can prolong the depression of real estate prices.

 

 

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Short positions risk. Short positions involve leverage and there is no limit on the amount of loss on a security that is sold short. The fund may suffer significant losses if assets that the fund sells short appreciate rather than depreciate in value. The amount of any gain will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends, interest, or expenses the fund may be required to pay in connection with the short sale.

ETN risk. The fund may invest in exchange-traded notes or ETNs, which are debt securities that combine certain aspects of ETFs and bonds. ETNs are not structured as investment companies and thus are not regulated under the 1940 Act. ETNs, like ETFs, may be traded on stock exchanges and generally track specified market indexes. Their value depends on the performance of the underlying index and the credit rating of the issuer. ETNs do not guarantee any return of principal at maturity and do not pay any interest during their term.

ETFs risk. Investing in an ETF will give the fund exposure to the securities comprising the index on which the ETF is based and will expose the fund to risks similar to those of investing directly in those securities. Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are traded on an exchange and may trade throughout a trading day. ETFs are bought and sold based on market values and not at net asset value, and therefore, may trade at either a premium or discount to net asset value. However, the trading prices of index-based ETFs tend to closely track the actual net asset value of the underlying portfolios. The fund will generally gain or lose value on holdings of an ETF consistent with the performance of the index on which the ETF is based. The fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of the management fees and other expenses that are charged by the ETF in addition to the management fees and other expenses paid by the fund. The fund will also pay brokerage commissions in connection with the purchase and sale of shares of ETFs.

Subsidiary risk. The fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with its wholly-owned subsidiary’s investments. The investments held by the subsidiary are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the fund.

The fund’s wholly-owned subsidiary is not registered under the 1940 Act and, except as otherwise noted in this Prospectus, is not subject to its investor protections. As an investor in the subsidiary, the fund does not have all of the protections offered to investors by the 1940 Act; however, the fund wholly owns and controls the subsidiary, and the fund and the subsidiary have the same investment manager. The fund’s ownership and control make it unlikely that the subsidiary will take actions contrary to the interests of the fund or its shareholders. The Board has oversight responsibility for the fund’s investment activities, including its investments in the subsidiary and the fund’s role as the subsidiary’s sole shareholder.

Changes in the laws of the United States or the Cayman Islands, under which the subsidiary is organized, could prevent the subsidiary from operating as described in this Prospectus and could negatively affect the fund and its shareholders. For example, the Cayman Islands currently does not impose any income, corporate or capital gains tax, estate duty, inheritance tax, gift tax or withholding tax on the subsidiary. If Cayman Islands law changed and the subsidiary was required to pay Cayman Islands taxes, the investment returns of the fund would decrease.

To receive pass-through tax treatment as a regulated investment company under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Code”), the fund must, among other things, derive at least 90% of its gross income for each taxable year from sources treated under the Code as “qualifying income.” The Internal Revenue Service (“Service”) has issued to the fund a private letter ruling stating that the income it is treated as earning from a wholly-owned subsidiary is such “qualifying income.” In July 2011, the Service suspended the issuance of any further such rulings in order to re-examine the policy underlying them, and it is under some political pressure to change that policy, cease issuing any more such rulings, and even revoke the rulings it has previously issued. The tax treatment of income from commodity-related investments and the Fund’s income from the Subsidiary may be adversely affected by future legislation, Treasury Regulations, and/or guidance issued by the Service that could affect the character, timing, and/or amount of the Fund’s taxable income or capital gains and distributions it makes. If the Service were to change that policy and revoke the fund’s ruling, such that the fund’s income from the subsidiary would no longer be considered “qualifying income,” the fund may be unable to qualify as a regulated investment company for one or more taxable years.

Cash management and defensive investing risk. The value of the investments held by the fund for cash management or defensive investing purposes can fluctuate. Like other fixed income securities, they are subject to risk, including market, interest rate and credit risk. If the fund holds cash uninvested it will be subject to the credit risk of the depository institution holding the cash. If the fund holds cash uninvested, the fund will not earn income on the cash and the fund’s yield will go down. If a significant amount of the fund’s assets is used for cash management or defensive investing purposes, it may not achieve its investment objective.

Valuation risk. Many factors may influence the price at which the fund could sell any particular portfolio investment. The sales price may well differ—higher or lower—from the fund’s last valuation, and such differences could be significant, particularly for illiquid securities and securities that trade in relatively thin markets and/or markets that experience extreme volatility. If market conditions make it difficult to value some investments, the fund may value these investments using more subjective methods, such as fair value methodologies. Investors who purchase or redeem fund shares on days when the fund is holding fair-valued securities may receive fewer or more shares, or lower or higher redemption proceeds, than they would have received if the fund had not fair-valued securities or had used a different valuation methodology. The value of

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   21


More on the fund’s investment strategies, investments and risks cont’d

 

foreign securities, certain fixed income securities and currencies, as applicable, may be materially affected by events after the close of the markets on which they are traded, but before the fund determines its net asset value. The fund’s ability to value its investments may also be impacted by technological issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third party service providers.

Market events risk. In the past several years financial markets, such as those in the United States, Europe, Asia and elsewhere, have experienced increased volatility, depressed valuations, decreased liquidity and heightened uncertainty. Governmental and non-governmental issuers have defaulted on, or been forced to restructure, their debts. These conditions may continue, recur, worsen or spread. Events that have contributed to these market conditions include, but are not limited to major cybersecurity events; measures to address U.S. federal and state budget deficits; downgrading of U.S. long-term sovereign debt; declines in oil and commodity prices; dramatic changes in currency exchange rates; and public sentiment.

The U.S. government and the Federal Reserve, as well as certain foreign governments and central banks, have taken steps to support financial markets, including by keeping interest rates at historically low levels. 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. The Federal Reserve has reduced its market support activities and recently has begun raising interest rates. Certain foreign governments and central banks are implementing or discussing so-called negative interest rates (e.g., charging depositors who keep their cash at a bank) to spur economic growth. Further Federal Reserve or other U.S. or non-U.S. governmental or central bank actions, including interest rate increases or contrary actions by different governments, could negatively affect financial markets generally, increase market volatility and reduce the value and liquidity of securities in which the fund invests.

Policy and legislative changes in the United States and in other countries are affecting many aspects of financial regulation, and may in some instances contribute to decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the financial markets. The impact of these changes on the markets, and the practical implications for market participants, may not be fully known for some time.

Economies and financial markets throughout the world are increasingly interconnected. Economic, financial or political events, trading and tariff arrangements, terrorism, natural disasters and other circumstances in one country or region could have profound impacts on global economies or markets. As a result, whether or not the fund invests in securities of issuers located in or with significant exposure to the countries directly affected, the value and liquidity of the fund’s investments may be negatively affected.

Risk of increase in expenses. Your actual costs of investing in the fund may be higher than the expenses shown in “Annual fund operating expenses” for a variety of reasons. For example, expense ratios may be higher than those shown if average net assets decrease, as a result of redemptions or otherwise, or if a fee limitation is changed or terminated. Net assets are more likely to decrease and fund expense ratios are more likely to increase when markets are volatile.

Redemptions by other funds and by other significant investors. The fund may be an investment option for other Legg Mason, Inc. (“Legg Mason”) sponsored mutual funds that are managed as “funds of funds,” unaffiliated mutual funds and other investors with substantial investments in the fund. As a result, from time to time, the fund may experience relatively large redemptions and could be required to liquidate its assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value, which could cause the value of your investment to decline.

Redemption risk. The fund may experience periods of heavy redemptions that could cause the fund to liquidate its assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value, particularly during periods of declining or illiquid markets. Redemption risk is greater to the extent that the fund has investors with large shareholdings, short investment horizons, or unpredictable cash flow needs. In addition, redemption risk is heightened during periods of overall market turmoil. The redemption by one or more large shareholders of their holdings in the fund could hurt performance and/or cause the remaining shareholders in the fund to lose money. If one decision maker has control of fund shares owned by separate fund shareholders, including clients or affiliates of the fund’s investment manager, redemptions by these shareholders may further increase the fund’s redemption risk. If the fund is forced to liquidate its assets under unfavorable conditions or at inopportune times, the value of your investment could decline.

Operational risk. Your ability to transact with the fund or the valuation of your investment may be negatively impacted because of the operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors and 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 or trading counterparties. It is not possible to identify all of the operational risks that may affect the fund or to develop processes and controls that completely eliminate or mitigate the occurrence of such failures. The fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

Cybersecurity risk. Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to fund assets, customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or cause the fund, the manager, the adviser, the subadvisers and/or its service providers (including, but not limited to, fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality.

 

 

22    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Please note that there are other factors that could adversely affect your investment and that could prevent the fund from achieving its investment objective. More information about risks appears in the SAI. Before investing, you should carefully consider the risks that you will assume.

Portfolio holdings

A description of the fund’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of its portfolio holdings is available in the SAI. The fund posts its complete portfolio holdings at www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds (click on the name of the fund) on a quarterly basis. The fund intends to post its complete portfolio holdings 14 calendar days following the quarter-end. The fund intends to post partial information concerning the fund’s portfolio holdings (such as top 10 holdings or sector breakdowns, for example) on the Legg Mason funds’ website on a monthly basis. The fund intends to post this partial information 10 business days following each month-end. Such information will remain available until the next month’s or quarter’s holdings are posted.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   23


More on fund management

 

Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC (“LMPFA” or the “manager”) is the fund’s investment manager. LMPFA, with offices at 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, also serves as the investment manager of other Legg Mason-sponsored funds. LMPFA provides administrative and certain oversight services to the fund. As of September 30, 2016, LMPFA’s total assets under management were approximately $177.6 billion.

QS Investors, LLC (“QS Investors” or the “adviser”) provides the day-to-day portfolio management of the fund, except for the management of a certain portion of the fund’s cash and short-term instruments. QS Investors has offices at 880 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10022. QS Investors serves as the “manager of managers” for the fund and, subject to oversight by LMPFA, has responsibility for monitoring and coordinating the overall management of the fund, including rebalancing the fund’s target asset allocations among itself and the subadvisers, monitoring the subadvisers for the fund and ensuring that asset allocations are consistent with the guidelines that have been approved by the Board. QS Investors also provides portfolio management for a portion of the fund’s assets (“QS Investors Sleeves”).

QS Investors, subject to oversight by LMPFA, plays an active role in monitoring and evaluating each subadviser’s performance and monitors each subadviser’s compliance with applicable investment policies, guidelines and restrictions, in order to ensure that the fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions are complied with. As to assets allocated by QS Investors to any subadviser, such subadviser is responsible for monitoring and ensuring its compliance with applicable policies, guidelines and restrictions, as may be imposed by the fund or QS Investors from time to time.

Unlike many other mutual funds, the fund is not associated with any one portfolio manager, and seeks to benefit from different specialists selected from the Legg Mason team of investment managers. Short-term investment performance, by itself, is not a significant factor in allocating assets to a subadviser. QS Batterymarch Financial Management, Inc. and QS Legg Mason Global Asset Allocation, LLC were combined with QS Investors as of April 1, 2016. As of September 30, 2016, QS Investors had assets under management of $23.7 billion.

The fund’s investments, other than those selected by QS Investors in the QS Investors Sleeves, are selected by one or more of the following subadvisers, which act independently of one another (except for WAML and Western Japan, which are subject to the overall authority and oversight of Western Asset).

ClearBridge Investments, LLC (“ClearBridge”), 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, serves as a subadviser to the fund although it does not currently have assets allocated to it. ClearBridge has offices at 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018 and is an investment adviser that manages U.S. and international equity investment strategies for institutional and individual investors. The firm has been committed to delivering long-term results through active management for more than 50 years, and bases its investment decisions on fundamental research and the insights of seasoned portfolio management teams. As of September 30, 2016, ClearBridge’s total assets under management were approximately $110.8 billion, including $9.9 billion for which ClearBridge provides investment models to managed account sponsors.

Western Asset Management Company (“Western Asset”), 385 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena, California 91101 and 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10018, serves as a subadviser to the fund and manages the portion of the fund’s cash and short-term instruments allocated to it. As of September 30, 2016, Western Asset had aggregate assets under management of approximately $437.5 billion.

Western Asset Management Company Limited in London (“WAML”), 10 Exchange Place, London, England, serves as a subadviser to the fund. WAML acts as investment adviser to institutional accounts, such as corporate pension plans, mutual funds and endowment funds.

Western Asset Management Company Ltd. in Japan (“Western Japan”), 36F Shin-Marunouchi Building, 5-1 Marunouchi 1-Chrome Chiyoda-Ku, Tokyo 100-6536, Japan, serves as a subadviser to the fund. Western Japan acts as investment adviser to institutional accounts, such as corporate pension plans, mutual funds and endowment funds.

Western Asset’s investment advisory functions are highly integrated across separate legal entities in various jurisdictions, including the United States, England, Japan and others. The portion of the fund’s assets managed by Western Asset and its subsidiaries is advised using a team approach and that team approach includes drawing upon the expertise of team members in the United States and/or those formally employed by WAML or Western Japan. The primary role for team members from WAML and Western Japan is providing investment advisory services with respect to non-US currency denominated securities and foreign currency instruments related to non-U.S. countries (excluding Asian countries) and Japan, respectively. Western Asset has overall authority and oversight responsibility for the portion of the fund’s assets for which it is a subadviser.

LMPFA, QS Investors, ClearBridge, Western Asset, WAML and Western Japan are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Legg Mason, Inc. (“Legg Mason”). Legg Mason, whose principal executive offices are at 100 International Drive, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, is a global asset management company. As of September 30, 2016, Legg Mason’s asset management operations had aggregate assets under management of approximately $732.9 billion.

Portfolio managers

The following portfolio managers are employed by QS Investors to monitor and coordinate management of the fund and provide day-to-day management of the Commodity-Linked Securities Sleeve, the REITs Sleeve and the Tactical Strategy Sleeve:

Thomas Picciochi has served as a portfolio manager of the fund since 2014. Mr. Picciochi serves as a Head of Multi-Asset Portfolio Management Implementation of QS Investors and has 25 years of investment experience. He has been responsible for multi-asset portfolio

 

24    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


management and trading at QS Investors since 2010. He was formerly a senior portfolio manager for Deutsche Asset Management’s Quantitative Strategies group, and member of the Global Tactical Asset Allocation Investment Oversight Committee and portfolio manager for Absolute Return Strategies from 1999 to 2010. Prior to joining Deutsche Asset Management, he held various research and analyst positions at State Street Global Advisors, FPL Energy, Barnett Bank, Trade Finance Corporation and Reserve Financial Management over a 13 year period. He received both his B.A. and M.B.A. from the University of Miami.

Ellen Tesler has served as a portfolio manager of the fund since 2014. Ms. Tesler serves as a Portfolio Manager of QS Investors and has 16 years of investment experience. She has been a member of the portfolio management and trading group at QS Investors since 2010. She was formerly a portfolio manager within the Strategic Asset Allocation Team at Deutsche Asset Management from 2003 to 2010. At Deutsche Asset Management she also served as a quantitative analyst for fundamental equity teams from 2000 to 2002. Prior to joining Deutsche Asset Management, she spent a year as a quantitative analyst at Lord Abbett and Company. She received both her B.B.A. and M.B.A. from Pace University.

Adam J. Petryk, CFA has served as a portfolio manager of the fund since June 2016. Mr. Petryk serves as Head of Multi-Asset and Solutions for QS Investors and has 20 years of investment experience. Prior to June 2014, he served as Chief Investment Officer at Batterymarch Financial Management, Inc. (“Batterymarch”) from 2012 to 2014. At Batterymarch, he also served as Deputy Chief Investment Officer and co-head of the Developed Markets investment team from 2010 to 2012, Senior Director and Global Investment Strategist on the Developed Markets team from 2008 to 2010 and Global Investment Strategist during 2007. From 2007 to 2009, he was also the Chief Investment Officer of Legg Mason Canada Inc., an affiliate of Batterymarch. Prior to joining Batterymarch, he spent eight years at Legg Mason Canada Inc. as Chief Investment officer, head of the Quantitative Management team and Quantitative Strategist. He also performed quantitative equity analysis at Scotia Capital Markets. He received a B.S. in Computer Engineering from University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from University of Waterloo.

QS Investors’ Active Equity Portfolio Management Strategy team manages the Global Equity Securities sleeve of the fund. Members of the team may change from time to time. Stephen A. Lanzendorf, CFA and Joseph S. Giroux are responsible for the strategic oversight of the fund’s investments. Their focus is on portfolio structure, and they will be primarily responsible for ensuring that the fund complies with its investment objective, guidelines and restrictions, and QS Investors’ current investment strategies.

Mr. Lanzendorf, CFA is the Head of Active Equity Portfolio Management Strategy at QS Investors. He was formerly the Deputy Chief Investment Officer and head of the Developed Markets investment team at Batterymarch from 2012 to 2014. At Batterymarch, he also served as co-head of the Developed Markets team from 2010 to 2012 and head of the U.S. investment team from 2006 to 2010. He has a B.S. and M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Mr. Giroux is a Portfolio Manager at QS Investors. He was formerly a developed markets Portfolio Manager at Batterymarch from 2012 to 2014. Prior to joining Batterymarch, he managed both U.S. and non-U.S. assets for five years at several firms—Golden Capital Management, Wells Capital Management and Evergreen Investments—that were affiliated with or acquired by Wells Fargo. He also served as a Portfolio Manager at TriPoint Asset Management and The Boston Company Asset Management. He has a B.S. in Computer Science from New England Institute of Technology.

The following Portfolio Managers provide day-to-day management of the assets of the fund that are managed by Western Asset, WAML and Western Japan:

S. Kenneth Leech and Frederick R. Marki have been employed by Western Asset, each in the capacity of portfolio manager, for at least the past five years. The portfolio managers lead a larger team, and their focus is on portfolio structure, duration weighting and term structure decisions.

The SAI provides information about the compensation of the portfolio managers, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers and any fund shares held by the portfolio managers.

Management fee

The fund pays a management fee at an annual rate of 0.75% of its average daily net assets.

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2016, the fund paid LMPFA an effective management fee of 0.65% of the fund’s average daily net assets for management services.

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the fund’s management agreement and subadvisory agreements is available in the fund’s Semi-Annual Report for the period ended March 31, 2016.

Expense limitation

The manager has agreed to waive fees and/or reimburse operating expenses (other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales on shares of ETFs), dividend expense on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses) so that the ratio of

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   25


More on fund management cont’d

 

total annual fund operating expenses will not exceed 1.35%, 1.55%, 2.10%, 1.35%, 1.60%, 1.10% and 1.00% for Class A, Class A2, Class C, Class FI, Class R, Class I and Class IS shares, respectively, subject to recapture as described below. In addition, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses for Class IS shares will not exceed the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses for Class I shares, subject to recapture as described below. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the arrangement. These arrangements are expected to continue until December 31, 2018, may be terminated prior to that date by agreement of the manager and the Board, and may be terminated at any time after that date by the manager. These arrangements, however, may be modified by the manager to decrease total annual fund operating expenses at any time. The manager is also permitted to recapture amounts waived and/or reimbursed to a class within three years after the fiscal year in which the manager earned the fee or incurred the expense if the class’ total annual fund operating expenses have fallen to a level below the limit described above. In no case will the manager recapture any amount that would result, on any particular business day of the fund, in the class’ total annual fund operating expenses exceeding the applicable limits described above or any other lower limit then in effect.

Additional information

The fund enters into contractual arrangements with various parties, including, among others, the fund’s investment manager, the adviser and any subadvisers, who provide services to the fund. Shareholders are not parties to, or intended (or “third-party”) beneficiaries of, those contractual arrangements.

This Prospectus and the SAI provide information concerning the fund that you should consider in determining whether to purchase shares of the fund. The fund may make changes to this information from time to time. Neither this Prospectus nor the SAI is intended to give rise to any contract rights or other rights in any shareholder, other than any rights conferred explicitly by federal or state securities laws that may not be waived.

Distribution

LMIS, a wholly-owned broker/dealer subsidiary of Legg Mason, serves as the fund’s sole and exclusive distributor.

The fund has adopted a Rule 12b-1 shareholder services and distribution plan. Under the plan, the fund pays distribution and/or service fees based on annualized percentages of average daily net assets, of up to 0.25% for Class A shares; of up to 0.25% for Class A2 shares; up to 1.00% for Class C shares; up to 0.25% for Class FI shares and up to 0.50% for Class R shares. From time to time, LMIS and/or financial intermediaries may agree to a reduction or waiver of these fees. These fees are an ongoing expense and, over time, will increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than other types of sales charges. Class I shares and Class IS shares are not subject to distribution and/or service fees under the plan.

Additional payments

In addition to distribution and service fees and sales charges, the distributor, the manager and/or their affiliates make payments for distribution, shareholder servicing, marketing and promotional activities and related expenses out of their profits and other available sources, including profits from their relationships with the fund. These payments are not reflected as additional expenses in the fee table contained in this Prospectus. The recipients of these payments may include the fund’s distributor and affiliates of the manager, as well as non-affiliated broker/dealers, insurance companies, financial institutions and other financial intermediaries through which investors may purchase shares of the fund, including your financial intermediary. The total amount of these payments is substantial, may be substantial to any given recipient and may exceed the costs and expenses incurred by the recipient for any fund-related marketing or shareholder servicing activities. The payments described in this paragraph are often referred to as “revenue sharing payments.” Revenue sharing arrangements are separately negotiated between the distributor, the manager and/or their affiliates, and the recipients of these payments.

Revenue sharing payments create an incentive for an intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend or sell shares of the fund to you. Contact your financial intermediary for details about revenue sharing payments it receives or may receive. Additional information about revenue sharing payments is available in the SAI. Revenue sharing payments, as well as payments under the shareholder services and distribution plan (where applicable), also benefit the manager, the distributor and their affiliates to the extent the payments result in more assets being invested in the fund on which fees are being charged.

 

26    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Choosing a class of shares to buy

 

Individual investors can generally invest in Class A, Class A2 and Class C shares. Class C shares are not available for purchase through accounts where LMIS is the broker-dealer of record (“LMIS Accounts”). Individual investors who hold their shares through a financial intermediary that has a direct transfer agent relationship with the fund (“Direct TA Accounts”) will not be permitted to acquire Class A shares of the fund through new purchases or incoming exchanges. Direct TA Accounts will be permitted to acquire Class A2 shares. Individual investors who invest directly with the fund and who meet the $1,000,000 minimum initial investment requirement may purchase Class I shares. Retirement Plan and Institutional Investors and Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries should refer to “Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors” below for a description of the classes available to them.

Each class has different sales charges and expenses, allowing you to choose a class that may be appropriate for you.

When choosing which class of shares to buy, you should consider:

 

 

How much you plan to invest

 

 

How long you expect to own the shares

 

 

The expenses paid by each class detailed in the fee table and example at the front of this Prospectus

 

 

Whether you qualify for any reduction or waiver of sales charges

 

 

Availability of share classes

When choosing between Class A or Class A2 and Class C shares, keep in mind that, generally speaking, the larger the size of your investment and the longer your investment horizon, the more likely it will be that Class C shares will not be as advantageous as Class A or Class A2 shares. The annual distribution and/or service fees on Class C shares may cost you more over the longer term than the front-end sales charge and service fees you would have paid for larger purchases of Class A or Class A2 shares. If you are eligible to purchase Class I shares, you should be aware that Class I shares are not subject to a front-end sales charge or distribution or service fees and generally have lower annual expenses than Class A, Class A2 or Class C shares.

Each class of shares except Class A2 and Class IS shares is authorized to pay fees for recordkeeping services to Service Agents. As a result, operating expenses of classes that incur new or additional recordkeeping fees may increase over time.

You may buy shares:

 

 

Through banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, investment advisers, financial consultants or advisers, mutual fund supermarkets and other financial intermediaries that have entered into an agreement with the distributor to sell shares of the fund (each called a “Service Agent”)

 

 

Directly from the fund

Your Service Agent may provide shareholder services that differ from the services provided by other Service Agents. Services provided by your Service Agent may vary by class. You should ask your Service Agent to explain the shareholder services it provides for each class and the compensation it receives in connection with each class. Remember that your Service Agent may receive different compensation depending on the share class in which you invest.

Your Service Agent may not offer all classes of shares. You should contact your Service Agent for further information.

More information about the fund’s classes of shares is available through the Legg Mason funds’ website. You’ll find detailed information about sales charges and ways you can qualify for reduced or waived sales charges, including:

 

 

The front-end sales charges that apply to the purchase of Class A or Class A2 shares

 

 

The contingent deferred sales charges that apply to the redemption of Class C shares and certain Class A or Class A2 shares

 

 

Who qualifies for lower sales charges on Class A or Class A2 shares

 

 

Who qualifies for a sales load waiver

To visit the website, go to www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds, and click on the name of the fund. On the selected fund’s page, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the disclosure labeled “Click here for Legg Mason Funds sales charge and breakpoint information.”

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   27


Comparing the fund’s classes

 

The following table compares key features of the fund’s classes. You should also review the fee table and example at the front of this Prospectus carefully before choosing your share class. Your Service Agent can help you choose a class that may be appropriate for you. Please contact your Service Agent regarding the availability of Class FI, Class R, Class I or Class IS shares or, if you plan to purchase shares through the fund, contact the fund. You may be required to provide appropriate documentation confirming your eligibility to invest in these share classes. Your Service Agent may receive different compensation depending upon which class you choose.

 

     Key features   Initial sales charge   Contingent deferred sales
charge
  Annual distribution
and/or service fees
  Exchange privilege1
Class A  

  Initial sales charge

  You may qualify for reduction or waiver of initial sales charge

   Generally lower annual expenses than Class C

  Up to 5.75%; reduced or waived for large purchases and certain investors. No charge for purchases of $1 million or more   1.00% on purchases of $1 million or more if you redeem within 18 months of purchase; waived for certain investors   0.25% of average daily net assets   Class A shares of funds sold by the distributor
Class A2  

  Initial sales charge

  You may qualify for reduction or waiver of initial sales charge

   Generally lower annual expenses than Class C

   Available only to investors who hold shares through a financial intermediary that has a direct transfer agent relationship with the fund

  Up to 5.75%; reduced or waived for large purchases and certain investors. No charge for purchases of $1 million or more   1.00% on purchases of $1 million or more if you redeem within 18 months of purchase; waived for certain investors   0.25% of average daily net assets   Class A2 shares of funds sold by a financial intermediary with a direct transfer agent relationship with the fund, or if such fund does not offer Class A2, then for Class A shares
Class C  

  No initial sales charge

  Contingent deferred sales charge for only 1 year

   Does not convert to Class A

  Generally higher annual expenses than Class A

  Not available through LMIS Accounts

  None   1.00% if you redeem within 1 year of purchase; waived for certain investors   1.00% of average daily net assets   Class C shares of funds sold by the distributor
Class FI  

  No initial or contingent deferred sales charge

  Only offered to Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and Retirement Plans

  None   None   0.25% of average daily net assets   Class FI shares of funds sold by the distributor
Class R  

  No initial or contingent deferred sales charge

  Only offered to Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund, Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and Eligible Investment Programs

  None   None   0.50% of average daily net assets   Class R shares of funds sold by the distributor
Class I  

  No initial or contingent deferred sales charge

  Only offered to institutional and other eligible investors

   Generally lower annual expenses than all classes, except Class IS

  None   None   None   Class I shares of funds sold by the distributor
Class IS  

  No initial or contingent deferred sales charge

  Only offered to certain Institutional Investors, Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund and Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries

  Generally lower annual expenses than the other classes

  None   None   None   Class IS shares of funds sold by the distributor

 

1 

Ask your Service Agent or the fund about the funds available for exchange.

 

28    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Sales charges

 

Class A and Class A2 shares

You buy Class A or Class A2 shares at the offering price, which is the net asset value plus a sales charge. You pay a lower rate as the size of your investment increases to certain levels called breakpoints. You do not pay a sales charge on the fund’s distributions or dividends that you reinvest in additional Class A or Class A2 shares.

The table below shows the rate of sales charge you pay, depending on the amount you purchase. It also shows the amount of Service Agent compensation that will be paid out of the sales charge if you buy shares from a Service Agent. For Class A or Class A2 shares sold by the distributor, the distributor will receive the sales charge imposed on purchases of Class A or Class A2 shares (or any contingent deferred sales charge paid on redemptions) and will retain the full amount of such sales charge. Service Agents will receive a distribution and/or service fee payable on Class A or Class A2 shares at an annual rate of up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class A or Class A2 shares serviced by them.

 

Amount of investment      Sales charge
as a % of
offering price
     Sales charge
as a % of net
amount
invested
     Service Agent
commission as
a % of
offering price
Less than $25,000          5.75            6.10            5.00  
$25,000 but less than $50,000          5.00            5.26            4.25  
$50,000 but less than $100,000          4.50            4.71            3.75  
$100,000 but less than $250,000          3.50            3.63            2.75  
$250,000 but less than $500,000          2.50            2.56            2.00  
$500,000 but less than $750,000          2.00            2.04            1.60  
$750,000 but less than $1 million          1.50            1.52            1.20  
$1 million or more1          -0-            -0-            up to 1.00  

 

1 

The distributor may pay a commission of up to 1.00% to a Service Agent for purchase amounts of $1 million or more. In such cases, starting in the thirteenth month after purchase, the Service Agent will also receive an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class A or Class A2 shares held by its clients. Prior to the thirteenth month, the distributor will retain this fee. Where the Service Agent does not receive the payment of this commission, the Service Agent will instead receive the annual distribution and/or service fee starting immediately after purchase. Please contact your Service Agent for more information.

Investments of $1,000,000 or more

You do not pay an initial sales charge when you buy $1,000,000 or more of Class A or Class A2 shares. However, if you redeem these Class A or Class A2 shares within 18 months of purchase, you will pay a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00%.

Qualifying for a reduced Class A or Class A2 sales charge

There are several ways you can combine multiple purchases of shares of funds sold by the distributor to take advantage of the breakpoints in the Class A or Class A2 sales charge schedule. In order to take advantage of reductions in sales charges that may be available to you when you purchase fund shares, you must inform your Service Agent or the fund if you are eligible for a letter of intent or a right of accumulation and if you own shares of other funds that are eligible to be aggregated with your purchases. Certain records, such as account statements, may be necessary in order to verify your eligibility for a reduced sales charge.

 

 

Accumulation Privilege – allows you to combine the current value of shares of the fund with other shares of funds sold by the distributor that are owned by:

 

   

you or

 

   

your spouse and children under the age of 21

with the dollar amount of your next purchase of Class A or Class A2 shares, as applicable, for purposes of calculating the initial sales charges.

If you hold fund shares in accounts at two or more Service Agents, please contact your Service Agents to determine which shares may be combined.

Shares of money market funds sold by the distributor acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge may be combined. Shares of money market funds sold by the distributor that were not acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge may not be combined. Please contact your Service Agent or the fund for additional information.

Certain trustees and other fiduciaries may be entitled to combine accounts in determining their sales charge.

 

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Sales charges cont’d

 

 

 

Letter of Intent – allows you to purchase Class A or Class A2 shares of funds sold by the distributor over a 13-month period and pay the same sales charge, if any, as if all shares had been purchased at once. At the time you enter into the letter of intent, you select your asset goal amount. Generally, purchases of shares of funds sold by the distributor that are purchased during the 13-month period by:

 

   

you or

 

   

your spouse and children under the age of 21

are eligible for inclusion under the letter of intent, based on the public offering price at the time of the purchase and any capital appreciation on those shares. In addition, you can include the current value of any eligible holdings toward your asset goal amount.

If you hold shares of funds sold by the distributor in accounts at two or more Service Agents, please contact your Service Agents to determine which shares may be credited toward your asset goal amount.

Shares of money market funds sold by the distributor acquired by exchange from other funds offered with a sales charge may be credited toward your asset goal amount. Please contact your Service Agent for additional information.

If you do not meet your asset goal amount, shares in the amount of any sales charges due, based on the amount of your actual purchases, will be redeemed from your account.

Waivers for certain Class A and Class A2 investors

Class A and Class A2 initial sales charges are waived for certain types of investors, including:

 

 

Shareholders investing in Class A shares through LMIS Accounts

 

 

Employees of Service Agents

 

 

Investors who redeemed Class A or Class A2 shares of a fund sold by the distributor in the past 60 days, if the investor’s Service Agent is notified

 

 

Directors and officers of any Legg Mason-sponsored fund

 

 

Employees of Legg Mason and its subsidiaries

 

 

Investors investing through certain Retirement Plans

 

 

Investors who rollover fund shares from a qualified retirement plan into an individual retirement account administered on the same retirement plan platform

If you qualify for a waiver of the Class A or Class A2 initial sales charge, you must notify your Service Agent or the fund at 1-877-721-1926 at the time of purchase and provide sufficient information at the time of purchase to permit verification that the purchase qualifies for the initial sales charge waiver.

If you want to learn about additional waivers of Class A and Class A2 initial sales charges, contact your Service Agent or the fund, consult the SAI or visit the Legg Mason funds’ website, www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds, and click on the name of the fund. On the selected fund’s page, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the disclosure labeled “Click here for Legg Mason Funds sales charge and breakpoint information.”

Class C shares

You buy Class C shares at net asset value with no initial sales charge. However, if you redeem your Class C shares within one year of purchase, you will pay a contingent deferred sales charge of 1.00%. Class C shares are not available for purchase through LMIS Accounts.

LMIS generally will pay Service Agents selling Class C shares a commission of up to 1.00% of the purchase price of the Class C shares they sell. LMIS will retain the contingent deferred sales charges and an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 1.00% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class C shares serviced by these Service Agents until the thirteenth month after purchase. Starting in the thirteenth month after purchase, these Service Agents will receive an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 1.00% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class C shares serviced by them.

Class FI shares

You buy Class FI shares at net asset value with no initial sales charge and no contingent deferred sales charge when redeemed.

Service Agents receive an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class FI shares serviced by them.

 

30    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Class R shares

You buy Class R shares at net asset value with no initial sales charge and no contingent deferred sales charge when redeemed.

Service Agents receive an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 0.50% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class R shares serviced by them.

Class I and Class IS shares

You buy Class I and Class IS shares at net asset value with no initial sales charge and no contingent deferred sales charge when redeemed.

Class I and Class IS shares are not subject to any distribution and/or service fees.

 

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More about contingent deferred sales charges

 

The contingent deferred sales charge is based on the net asset value at the time of purchase or redemption, whichever is less, and therefore you do not pay a sales charge on amounts representing appreciation or depreciation.

In addition, you do not pay a contingent deferred sales charge:

 

 

When you exchange shares for shares of the same share class of another fund sold by the distributor

 

 

On shares representing reinvested distributions and dividends

 

 

On shares no longer subject to the contingent deferred sales charge

Each time you place a request to redeem shares, the fund will first redeem any shares in your account that are not subject to a contingent deferred sales charge and then redeem the shares in your account that have been held the longest.

If you redeem shares of a fund sold by the distributor and pay a contingent deferred sales charge, you may, under certain circumstances, reinvest all or part of the redemption proceeds within 60 days in any other fund sold by the distributor and receive pro rata credit for any contingent deferred sales charge imposed on the prior redemption. Please contact your Service Agent or the fund for additional information.

The distributor receives contingent deferred sales charges as partial compensation for its expenses in selling shares, including the payment of compensation to your Service Agent.

Contingent deferred sales charge waivers

The contingent deferred sales charge for each share class will generally be waived:

 

 

On payments made through certain systematic withdrawal plans

 

 

On certain distributions from a Retirement Plan

 

 

For Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund

 

 

For involuntary redemptions of small account balances

 

 

For 12 months following the death or disability of a shareholder

To have your contingent deferred sales charge waived, you or your Service Agent must let the fund know at the time you redeem shares that you qualify for such a waiver.

If you want to learn more about additional waivers of contingent deferred sales charges, contact your Service Agent or the fund, consult the SAI or visit the Legg Mason funds’ website, www.leggmason.com/mutualfunds, and click on the name of the fund. On the selected fund’s page, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the disclosure labeled “Click here for Legg Mason Funds sales charge and breakpoint information.”

 

32    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors

 

Retirement Plans

“Retirement Plans” include 401(k) plans, 457 plans, employer-sponsored 403(b) plans, profit-sharing plans, non-qualified deferred compensation plans, employer sponsored benefit plans (including health savings accounts), other similar employer-sponsored retirement and benefit plans, and individual retirement accounts that are administered on the same IRA recordkeeping platform and that invest in the fund through a single omnibus account pursuant to a special contractual arrangement with the fund or the distributor. Retirement Plans do not include individual retirement vehicles, such as traditional and Roth IRAs (absent an exception that is explicitly described in this Prospectus), Coverdell education savings accounts, individual 403(b)(7) custodial accounts, Keogh plans, SEPs, SARSEPs, SIMPLE IRAs or similar accounts.

Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund can generally invest in Class A, Class A2, Class C, Class FI, Class R, Class I and Class IS shares.

Investors who rollover fund shares from a Retirement Plan into an individual retirement account administered on the same retirement plan platform may hold, purchase and exchange shares of the fund to the same extent as the applicable Retirement Plan.

Although Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund are not subject to minimum initial investment requirements for any of these share classes, certain investment minimums may be imposed by a financial intermediary. The distributor may impose certain additional requirements. Please contact your Service Agent for more information.

Other Retirement Plans

“Other Retirement Plans” include Retirement Plans investing through brokerage accounts and also include certain Retirement Plans with direct relationships to the fund that are neither Institutional Investors nor investing through omnibus accounts. Other Retirement Plans and individual retirement vehicles, such as IRAs, are treated like individual investors for purposes of determining sales charges and any applicable sales charge reductions or waivers.

“Other Retirement Plans” do not include arrangements whereby an investor would rollover fund shares from a Retirement Plan into an individual retirement account administered on the same retirement plan platform. Such arrangements are deemed to be “Retirement Plans” and are subject to the rights and privileges described under “Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors — Retirement Plans.”

Other Retirement Plan investors can generally invest in Class A, Class A2, Class C, and Class I shares. Individual retirement vehicles may also choose between these share classes.

Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries

“Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries” are investors who invest in the fund through financial intermediaries that (i) charge such investors an ongoing fee for advisory, investment, consulting or similar services, or (ii) have entered into an agreement with the distributor to offer Class A, Class A2, Class FI, Class R, Class I or Class IS shares through a no-load network or platform (“Eligible Investment Programs”). Such investors may include pension and profit sharing plans, other employee benefit trusts, endowments, foundations and corporations. Eligible Investment Programs may also include college savings vehicles such as Section 529 plans and direct retail investment platforms through mutual fund “supermarkets,” where the sponsor links its client’s account (including IRA accounts on such platforms) to a master account in the sponsor’s name. The financial intermediary may impose separate investment minimums.

Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries may generally invest in Class A, Class A2, Class FI, Class R, Class I or Class IS shares. Class I and Class IS shares are available for exchange from Class A, Class A2 or Class C shares of the fund by participants in Eligible Investment Programs.

Institutional Investors

“Institutional Investors” may include corporations, banks, trust companies, insurance companies, investment companies, foundations, endowments, defined benefit plans and other similar entities. The distributor or the financial intermediary may impose additional eligibility requirements or criteria to determine if an investor, including the types of investors listed above, qualifies as an Institutional Investor.

Institutional Investors may invest in Class I or Class IS shares if they meet the $1,000,000 minimum initial investment requirement. Institutional Investors may also invest in Class A, Class A2 and Class C shares, which have different investment minimums, fees and expenses.

Class A shares — Retirement Plans

Retirement Plans may buy Class A shares. Under certain programs for current and prospective Retirement Plan investors sponsored by financial intermediaries, the initial sales charge and contingent deferred sales charge for Class A shares are waived where:

 

 

Such Retirement Plan’s recordkeeper offers only load-waived shares, and

 

 

Fund shares are held on the books of the fund through an omnibus account.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   33


Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors cont’d

 

LMIS does not pay Service Agents selling Class A shares to Retirement Plans with a direct omnibus relationship with the fund a commission on the purchase price of Class A shares sold by them. However, for certain Retirement Plans that are permitted to purchase shares at net asset value, LMIS may pay Service Agents commissions of up to 1.00% of the purchase price of the Class A shares that are purchased with regular ongoing plan contributions. Please contact your Service Agent for more information.

Class A2 shares — Retirement Plans

Retirement Plans may buy Class A2 shares. Under certain programs for current and prospective Retirement Plan investors sponsored by financial intermediaries, the initial sales charge and contingent deferred sales charge for Class A2 shares are waived where:

 

 

Such Retirement Plan’s recordkeeper offers only load-waived shares, and

 

 

Fund shares are held on the books of the fund through an omnibus account.

LMIS does not pay Service Agents selling Class A2 shares to Retirement Plans with a direct omnibus relationship with the Fund a commission on the purchase price of Class A2 shares sold by them. However, for certain Retirement Plans that are permitted to purchase shares at net asset value, LMIS may pay Service Agents commissions of up to 1.00% of the purchase price of the Class A2 shares that are purchased with regular ongoing plan contributions. Please contact your Service Agent for more information.

Class C shares — Retirement Plans

Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund may buy Class C shares at net asset value without paying a contingent deferred sales charge. LMIS does not pay Service Agents selling Class C shares to Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund a commission on the purchase price of Class C shares sold by them. Instead, immediately after purchase, LMIS may pay these Service Agents an annual distribution and/or service fee of up to 1.00% of the average daily net assets represented by the Class C shares serviced by them.

Certain Retirement Plan programs with exchange features in effect prior to November 20, 2006, as approved by LMIS, remain eligible for exchange from Class C shares to Class A shares in accordance with the program terms. Please see the SAI for more details.

Class FI shares

Class FI shares are offered only to Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and Retirement Plans.

Class R shares

Class R shares are offered only to Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund (either at the plan level or at the level of the financial intermediary), to Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and through Eligible Investment Programs.

Class I shares

Class I shares are offered only to Institutional Investors and individual investors (investing directly with the fund) who meet the $1,000,000 minimum initial investment requirement, Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund and certain rollover IRAs, Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and other investors authorized by LMIS.

Certain waivers of these requirements for individuals associated with the fund, Legg Mason or its affiliates are discussed in the SAI.

Class IS shares

Class IS shares may be purchased only by Retirement Plans with omnibus accounts held on the books of the fund (either at the plan level or at the level of the financial intermediary), certain rollover IRAs and Institutional Investors, Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and other investors authorized by LMIS. In order to purchase Class IS shares, an investor must hold its shares in one account, which is not subject to payment of recordkeeping, account servicing, networking or similar fees by the fund to any intermediary.

Other considerations

Plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries and other financial intermediaries may choose to impose qualification requirements that differ from the fund’s share class eligibility standards. In certain cases this could result in the selection of a share class with higher distribution and/or service fees than otherwise would have been charged. The fund is not responsible for, and has no control over, the decision of any plan sponsor, plan fiduciary or financial intermediary to impose such differing requirements. Please consult with your plan sponsor, plan fiduciary or financial intermediary for more information about available share classes.

Your Service Agent may not offer all share classes. Please contact your Service Agent for additional details.

 

34    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Buying shares

 

Generally   

You may buy shares at their net asset value next determined after receipt by your Service Agent or the transfer agent of your purchase request in good order, plus any applicable sales charge.

 

The fund may not be available for sale in certain states. Prospective investors should inquire as to whether the fund is available for sale in their state of residence.

 

You must provide the following information for your order to be processed:

 

    Name of fund being bought

 

   Class of shares being bought

 

    Dollar amount or number of shares being bought (as applicable)

 

   Account number (if existing account)

Through a Service Agent   

You should contact your Service Agent to open a brokerage account and make arrangements to buy shares.

 

Your Service Agent may charge an annual account maintenance fee.

Through the fund   

Investors should contact the fund at 1-877-721-1926 to open an account and make arrangements to buy shares.

 

For initial purchases, complete and send your account application to the fund at one of the following addresses:

 

Regular Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds

P.O. Box 9699

Providence, RI 02940-9699

 

Express, Certified or Registered Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds

4400 Computer Drive

Westborough, MA 01581

 

Subsequent purchases should be sent to the same addresses. Enclose a check to pay for the shares. The fund will accept checks from other fund families and investment companies as long as the registration name on your fund account is the same as that listed on the check.

 

For more information, please call the fund between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time).

Through a systematic investment plan   

You may authorize your Service Agent or the transfer agent to transfer funds automatically from (i) a regular bank account, (ii) cash held in a brokerage account with a Service Agent, (iii) another Legg Mason fund or (iv) certain money market funds, in order to buy shares on a regular basis.

 

    Amounts transferred must meet the applicable minimums (see “Purchase and sale of fund shares”)

 

    Amounts may be transferred monthly, every alternate month, quarterly, semi-annually or annually

 

    If you do not have sufficient funds in your account on a transfer date, you may be charged a fee

 

For more information, please contact your Service Agent or the fund, or consult the SAI.

Additional information about purchases

Certain Service Agents may have agreements to purchase shares of the fund with payment generally to follow the next business day, but no later than three business days after the order is placed. If payment is not received by that time, your order is subject to cancellation and you and the Service Agent could be held liable for resulting fees or losses. If you pay with a check or ACH transfer that does not clear or if your payment is not received in a timely manner, your purchase may be cancelled and you may be liable for any loss to the fund. The fund and its agents have the right to reject or cancel any purchase due to nonpayment.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   35


Buying shares cont’d

 

Account registration changes

Changes in registration or certain account options for accounts held directly with the fund must be made in writing. Medallion signature guarantees may be required. (See “Other things to know about transactions—Medallion signature guarantees” below.) All correspondence must include the account number and must be sent to one of the following addresses:

Regular Mail:

Legg Mason Funds

P.O. Box 9699

Providence, RI 02940-9699

Express, Certified or Registered Mail:

Legg Mason Funds

4400 Computer Drive

Westborough, MA 01581

 

36    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Exchanging shares

 

Generally   

You may exchange shares of the fund for the same class of shares of other funds sold by the distributor on any day that both the fund and the fund into which you are exchanging are open for business. For investors who qualify as Clients of Eligible Financial Intermediaries and participate in Eligible Investment Programs made available through their financial intermediaries (such as investors in fee-based advisory or mutual fund “wrap” programs), an exchange may be made from Class A, Class A2 or Class C shares to Class I or Class IS shares of the same fund under certain limited circumstances. Please refer to the section of this Prospectus titled “Retirement and Institutional Investors — eligible investors” or contact your financial intermediary for more information.

 

Investors that hold Class A2 shares may exchange those shares for Class A2 shares of other funds sold by a financial intermediary with a direct transfer agent relationship with such funds, or if such fund does not offer Class A2, for Class A shares.

 

An exchange of shares of one fund for shares of another fund is considered a sale and generally results in a capital gain or loss for federal income tax purposes, unless you are investing through an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-advantaged account. An exchange of shares of one class directly for shares of another class of the same fund normally should not be taxable for federal income tax purposes. You should talk to your tax advisor before making an exchange.

 

The exchange privilege is not intended as a vehicle for short-term trading. The fund may suspend or terminate your exchange privilege if you engage in a pattern of excessive exchanges.

Legg Mason offers a distinctive family of funds tailored to help meet the varying needs of large and small investors   

You may exchange shares at their net asset value next determined after receipt by your Service Agent or the transfer agent of your exchange request in good order.

 

   If you bought shares through a Service Agent, contact your Service Agent to learn which funds your Service Agent makes available to you for exchanges

 

   If you bought shares directly from the fund, contact the fund at 1-877-721-1926 to learn which funds are available to you for exchanges

 

    Exchanges may be made only between accounts that have identical registrations

 

   Not all funds offer all classes

 

    Some funds are offered only in a limited number of states. Your Service Agent or the fund will provide information about the funds offered in your state

 

Always be sure to read the prospectus of the fund into which you are exchanging shares.

Investment minimums, sales charges and other requirements   

   In most instances, your shares will not be subject to an initial sales charge or a contingent deferred sales charge at the time of the exchange. You may be charged an initial or contingent deferred sales charge if the shares being exchanged were not subject to a sales charge

 

    Except as noted above, your contingent deferred sales charge (if any) will continue to be measured from the date of your original purchase of shares subject to a contingent deferred sales charge, and you will be subject to the contingent deferred sales charge of the fund that you originally purchased

 

   You will generally be required to meet the minimum investment requirement for the class of shares of the fund or share class into which your exchange is made (except in the case of systematic exchange plans)

 

    Your exchange will also be subject to any other requirements of the fund or share class into which you are exchanging shares

 

    The fund may suspend or terminate your exchange privilege if you engage in a pattern of excessive exchanges

By telephone    Contact your Service Agent or, if you hold shares directly with the fund, call 1-877-721-1926 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) for information. Exchanges are priced at the net asset value next determined. Telephone exchanges may be made only between accounts that have identical registrations and may be made on any day the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open.

 

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Exchanging shares cont’d

 

By mail   

Contact your Service Agent or, if you hold shares directly with the fund, write to the fund at one of the following addresses:

 

Regular Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds
P.O. Box 9699
Providence, RI 02940-9699

 

Express, Certified or Registered Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds
4400 Computer Drive
Westborough, MA 01581

Through a systematic exchange plan   

You may be permitted to schedule automatic exchanges of shares of the fund for shares of other funds available for exchange. All requirements for exchanging shares described above apply to these exchanges. In addition:

 

    Exchanges may be made monthly, every alternate month, quarterly, semi-annually or annually

 

    Each exchange must meet the applicable investment minimums for systematic investment plans (see “Purchase and sale of fund shares”)

 

For more information, please contact your Service Agent or the fund or consult the SAI.

 

38    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Redeeming shares

 

Generally   

You may redeem shares at their net asset value next determined after receipt by your Service Agent or the transfer agent of your redemption request in good order, less any applicable contingent deferred sales charge. Redemptions made through your Service Agent may be subject to transaction fees or other conditions as set by your Service Agent.

 

If the shares are held by a fiduciary or corporation, partnership or similar entity, other documents may be required.

Redemption proceeds   

Your redemption proceeds normally will be sent within 3 business days after your request is received in good order, but in any event within 7 days, except that your proceeds may be delayed for up to 10 days if your share purchase was made by check.

 

Your redemption proceeds may be delayed, or your right to receive redemption proceeds suspended, if the NYSE is closed (other than on weekends or holidays) or trading is restricted, if an emergency exists, or otherwise as permitted by order of the SEC.

 

If you have a brokerage account with a Service Agent, your redemption proceeds will be sent to your Service Agent. Your redemption proceeds can be sent by check to your address of record or by wire or electronic transfer (ACH) to a bank account designated by you. To change the bank account designated to receive wire or electronic transfers, you will be required to deliver a new written authorization and may be asked to provide other documents. You may be charged a fee on a wire or an electronic transfer (ACH). In other cases, unless you direct otherwise, your proceeds will be paid by check mailed to your address of record.

 

The fund reserves the right to pay redemption proceeds by giving you securities. You may pay transaction costs to dispose of the securities, and you may receive less for them than the price at which they were valued for purposes of the redemption.

By mail   

Contact your Service Agent or, if you hold shares directly with the fund, write to the fund at one of the following addresses:

 

Regular Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds
P.O. Box 9699
Providence, RI 02940-9699

 

Express, Certified or Registered Mail:

 

Legg Mason Funds
4400 Computer Drive
Westborough, MA 01581

 

Your written request must provide the following:

 

    The fund name, the class of shares being redeemed and your account number

 

   The dollar amount or number of shares being redeemed

 

    Signature of each owner exactly as the account is registered

 

   Medallion signature guarantees, as applicable (see “Other things to know about transactions”)

By telephone   

If your account application permits, you may be eligible to redeem shares by telephone. Contact your Service Agent or, if you hold shares directly with the fund, call 1-877-721-1926 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. (Eastern time) for more information. Please have the following information ready when you call:

 

   Name of fund being redeemed

 

    Class of shares being redeemed

 

   The dollar amount or number of shares being redeemed

 

    Account number

Systematic withdrawal plans   

You may be permitted to schedule automatic redemptions of a portion of your shares. To qualify, you must own shares of the fund with a value of at least $5,000 and each automatic redemption must be at least $50 per transaction per month and $150 quarterly per fund.

 

The following conditions apply:

 

    Redemptions may be made monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually

 

   If your shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge, the charge will be required to be paid upon redemption. However, the charge will be waived if your automatic redemptions are equal to or less than 2% per month of your account balance on the date the redemptions commence, up to a maximum of 12% in one year

 

    You must elect to have all dividends and distributions reinvested

 

For more information, please contact your Service Agent or the fund or consult the SAI.

 

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Other things to know about transactions

 

When you buy, exchange or redeem shares, your request must be in good order. This means you have provided the following information, without which your request may not be processed:

 

 

Name of the fund

 

 

Your account number

 

 

In the case of a purchase (including a purchase as part of an exchange transaction), the class of shares being bought

 

 

In the case of an exchange or redemption, the class of shares being exchanged or redeemed (if you own more than one class)

 

 

Dollar amount or number of shares being bought, exchanged or redeemed

 

 

In certain circumstances, the signature of each owner exactly as the account is registered (see “Redeeming shares”)

In certain circumstances, such as during periods of market volatility, severe weather and emergencies, shareholders may experience difficulties placing exchange or redemption orders by telephone. In that case, shareholders should consider using the fund’s other exchange and redemption procedures described under “Exchanging shares” and “Redeeming shares.”

The transfer agent or the fund will employ reasonable procedures to confirm that any telephone, electronic or other exchange or redemption request is genuine, which may include recording calls, asking the caller to provide certain personal identification information, employing identification numbers, sending you a written confirmation or requiring other confirmation procedures from time to time. If these procedures are followed, neither the fund nor its agents will bear any liability for these transactions, subject to applicable law.

The fund has the right to:

 

 

Suspend the offering of shares permanently or for a period of time

 

 

Waive or change minimum initial and additional investment amounts

 

 

Reject any purchase or exchange order

 

 

Change, revoke or suspend the exchange privilege

 

 

Suspend telephone transactions

 

 

Suspend or postpone redemptions of shares on any day when trading on the NYSE is restricted or as otherwise permitted by the SEC

 

 

Redeem shares if information provided in the application should prove to be incorrect in any manner judged by the fund to be material (e.g., in a manner such as to render the shareholder ineligible to purchase shares of that class)

 

 

Delay sending out redemption proceeds for up to seven days if, in the judgment of the adviser or subadvisers, the fund could be adversely affected by immediate payment. The fund may delay redemptions beyond seven days, or suspend redemptions, only as permitted by the SEC or the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended

 

 

Close your account after a period of inactivity, as determined by state law, and transfer your shares to the appropriate state

For your protection, the fund or your Service Agent may request additional information in connection with large redemptions, unusual activity in your account, or otherwise to ensure your redemption request is in good order. Please contact your Service Agent or the fund for more information.

Medallion signature guarantees

To be in good order, your redemption request must include a Medallion signature guarantee if you:

 

 

Are redeeming shares and sending the proceeds to an address or bank not currently on file

 

 

Changed your account registration or your address within 30 days

 

 

Want the check paid to someone other than the account owner(s)

 

 

Are transferring the redemption proceeds to an account with a different registration

A Medallion signature guarantee may also be required if you:

 

 

Are making changes to the account registration after the account has been opened; and

 

 

Are transferring shares to an account in another Legg Mason fund with a different account registration

When a Medallion signature guarantee is called for, the shareholder should have a Medallion signature guarantee stamped under his or her signature. You can obtain a signature guarantee from most banks, dealers, brokers, credit unions and federal savings and loan institutions, national securities exchanges, registered securities associations and clearing agencies (each an “Eligible Guarantor Institution”), but not from a notary public. The fund and its agents reserve the right to reject any Medallion signature guarantee pursuant to written signature guarantee standards or

 

40    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


procedures, which may be revised in the future to permit them to reject Medallion signature guarantees from Eligible Guarantor Institutions. The fund may change the signature guarantee requirements from time to time without prior notice to shareholders.

Restrictions on the availability of the fund outside the United States

The distribution of this Prospectus and the offering of shares of the fund are restricted in certain jurisdictions. This Prospectus is not an offer or solicitation in any jurisdiction where such offer or solicitation is unlawful, where the person making an offer or solicitation is not authorized to make it or a person receiving an offer or solicitation may not lawfully receive it or may not lawfully invest in the fund. Investors should inform themselves as to the legal requirements within their own country before investing in the fund.

This Prospectus, and the offer of shares hereunder, are not directed at persons outside the United States. In particular, the fund is not intended to be marketed to prospective investors in any member state of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway (collectively, the “European Economic Area” or “EEA”). No notification or application has been made to the competent authority of any member state of the EEA under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (or any applicable legislation or regulations made thereunder) to market the fund to investors in the EEA and it is not intended that any such notification or application shall be made.

U.S. citizens with addresses in the United States, and non-U.S. citizens who reside in the United States and have U.S. addresses, are permitted to establish accounts with the fund. For these purposes, the “United States” and “U.S.” include U.S. territories.

The fund generally does not permit persons who do not reside in the United States or who do not have U.S. addresses to establish accounts. Therefore, U.S. citizens residing in foreign countries, as well as non-U.S. citizens residing in foreign countries, generally will not be permitted to establish accounts with the fund.

For further information, you or your Service Agent may contact the fund at 1-877-721-1926 or 1-203-703-6002.

Anti-money laundering

Federal anti-money laundering regulations require all financial institutions to obtain, verify and record information that identifies each person who opens an account. When you sign your account application, you may be asked to provide additional information in order for the fund to verify your identity in accordance with these regulations. Accounts may be restricted and/or closed, and the monies withheld, pending verification of this information or as otherwise required under these and other federal regulations.

Small account fees/Mandatory redemptions

Small accounts may be subject to a small account fee or to mandatory redemption, as described below, depending on whether the account is held directly with the fund or through a Service Agent.

Direct accounts

Direct accounts generally include accounts held in the name of the individual investor on the fund’s books and records. To offset the relatively higher impact on fund expenses of servicing smaller direct accounts, if your shares are held in a direct account and the value of your account is below $1,000 (if applicable, $250 for retirement plans that are not employer-sponsored) for any reason (including declines in net asset value), the fund may charge you a fee of $3.75 per account that is determined and assessed quarterly on the next-to-last business day of the quarter (with an annual maximum of $15.00 per account). The small account fee will be charged by redeeming shares in your account. If the value of your account is $3.75 or less, the amount in the account may be exhausted to pay the small account fee. The small account fee will not be assessed on systematic investment plans until the end of the first quarter after the account has been established for 21 months. Payment of the small account fee through a redemption of fund shares may result in tax consequences to you (see “Taxes” for more information).

The small account fee will not be charged on, if applicable: (i) Retirement Plans (but will be charged on other plans that are not employer-sponsored such as traditional and Roth individual retirement accounts, Coverdell education savings accounts, individual 403(b)(7) custodial accounts, Keogh plans, SEPs, SARSEPs, SIMPLE IRAs or similar accounts); (ii) Legg Mason funds that have been closed to subsequent purchases for all classes; (iii) accounts that do not have a valid address as evidenced by mail being returned to the fund or its agents; and (iv) Class FI, Class R, Class I and Class IS shares.

If your share class is no longer offered, you may not be able to bring your account up to the minimum investment amount (although you may exchange into existing accounts of other Legg Mason funds in which you hold the same share class, to the extent otherwise permitted by those funds and subject to any applicable sales charges).

The small account fee is calculated on a fund-by-fund basis. If you have accounts in multiple funds, they will not be aggregated for the purpose of calculating the small account fee.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   41


Other things to know about transactions cont’d

 

Non-direct accounts

“Non-direct accounts” include omnibus accounts and accounts jointly maintained by the Service Agent and the fund. Such accounts are not subject to the small account fee that may be charged to direct accounts.

The fund reserves the right to ask you to bring your non-direct account up to a minimum investment amount determined by your Service Agent if the aggregate value of the fund shares in your account is less than $500 for any reason (including solely due to declines in net asset value and/or failure to invest at least $500 within a reasonable period). You will be notified in writing and will have 60 days to make an additional investment to bring your account value up to the required level. If you choose not to do so within this 60-day period, the fund may close your account and send you the redemption proceeds. If your share class is no longer offered, you may not be able to bring your account up to the minimum investment amount. Some shareholders who hold accounts in multiple classes of the same fund may have those accounts aggregated for the purposes of these calculations. If your account is closed, you will not be eligible to have your account reinstated without imposition of any sales charges that may apply to your new purchase. Please contact your Service Agent for more information. Any redemption of fund shares may result in tax consequences to you (see “Taxes” for more information).

This policy does not apply to: (i) certain broker-controlled accounts established through the National Securities Clearing Corporation’s Networking system; (ii) qualified retirement plans (such as 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, profit sharing plans and money purchase plans); (iii) accounts with an active systematic investment plan; (iv) accounts with an active systematic withdrawal plan; (v) accounts that do not have a valid address as evidenced by mail being returned to the fund or its agents and (vi) accounts identified to us by the applicable financial intermediary or Service Agent as being fee-based accounts.

All accounts

The fund may, with prior notice, change the minimum size of accounts subject to mandatory redemption, which may vary by class, implement fees for small non-direct accounts or change the amount of the fee for small direct accounts.

Subject to applicable law, the fund may, with prior notice, adopt other policies from time to time requiring mandatory redemption of shares in certain circumstances.

For more information, please contact your Service Agent or the fund or consult the SAI.

Frequent trading of fund shares

Frequent purchases and redemptions of fund shares may interfere with the efficient management of the fund, increase fund transaction costs, and have a negative effect on the fund’s long-term shareholders. For example, in order to handle large flows of cash into and out of the fund, the adviser or subadvisers may need to allocate more assets to cash or other short-term investments or sell securities, rather than maintaining full investment in securities selected to achieve the fund’s investment objective. Frequent trading may cause the fund to sell securities at less favorable prices. Transaction costs, such as brokerage commissions and market spreads, can detract from the fund’s performance. In addition, the return received by long-term shareholders may be reduced when trades by other shareholders are made in an effort to take advantage of certain pricing discrepancies, when, for example, it is believed that the fund’s share price, which is determined at the close of the NYSE on each trading day, does not accurately reflect the value of the fund’s investments. Funds investing in foreign securities have been particularly susceptible to this form of arbitrage, but other funds could also be affected.

Because of the potential harm to funds sold by the fund’s distributor and their long-term shareholders, the Board has approved policies and procedures that are intended to detect and discourage excessive trading and market timing abuses through the use of various surveillance techniques. Under these policies and procedures, the fund may limit additional exchanges or purchases of fund shares by shareholders who are believed by the manager to be engaged in these abusive trading activities in the fund or in other funds sold by the distributor. In the event that an exchange or purchase request is rejected, the shareholder may nonetheless redeem its shares. The intent of the policies and procedures is not to inhibit legitimate strategies, such as asset allocation, dollar cost averaging, or similar activities that may nonetheless result in frequent trading of fund shares.

Under the fund’s policies and procedures, the fund reserves the right to restrict or reject purchases of shares (including exchanges) without prior notice whenever a pattern of excessive trading by a shareholder is detected in funds sold by the distributor. A committee established by the manager administers the policy. The policy provides that the committee may take action, which may include using its best efforts to restrict a shareholder’s trading privileges in funds sold by the distributor, if that shareholder has engaged in one or more “Round Trips” across all funds sold by the distributor. However, the committee has the discretion to determine that action is not necessary if it is determined that the pattern of trading is not abusive or harmful. In making such a determination, the committee will consider, among other things, the nature of the shareholder’s account, the reason for the frequent trading, the amount of trading and the particular funds in which the trading has occurred. Additionally, the committee has the discretion to make inquiries or to take any action against a shareholder whose trading appears inconsistent with the frequent trading policy, regardless of the number of Round Trips. Examples of the types of actions the committee may take include heightened surveillance of a shareholder account, providing a written warning letter to an account holder, restricting the shareholder from purchasing additional shares in the fund altogether

 

42    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


or imposing other restrictions (such as requiring purchase orders to be submitted by mail) that would deter the shareholder from trading frequently in the fund. The committee will generally follow a system of progressive deterrence, although it is not required to do so.

A “Round Trip” is defined as a purchase (including subscriptions and exchanges) into a fund sold by the distributor either preceded or followed by a sale (including redemptions and exchanges) of the same or a similar number of shares out of that fund within 30 days of such purchase. Purchases and sales of the fund’s shares pursuant to an automatic investment plan or similar program for periodic transactions are not considered in determining Round Trips. These policies and procedures do not apply to money market funds sold by the distributor.

The policies apply to any account, whether a direct account or accounts with financial intermediaries such as investment advisers, broker/dealers or retirement plan administrators, commonly called omnibus accounts, where the intermediary holds fund shares for a number of its customers in one account. The fund’s ability to monitor trading in omnibus accounts may, however, be severely limited due to the lack of access to an individual investor’s trading activity when orders are placed through these types of accounts. There may also be operational and technological limitations on the ability of the fund’s service providers to identify or terminate frequent trading activity within the various types of omnibus accounts. The distributor has entered into agreements with intermediaries requiring the intermediaries to, among other things, help identify frequent trading activity and prohibit further purchases or exchanges by a shareholder identified as having engaged in frequent trading.

The fund has also adopted policies and procedures to prevent the selective release of information about the fund’s holdings, as such information may be used for market-timing and similar abusive practices.

The policies provide for ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of current policies and surveillance tools, and the Board reserves the right to modify these or adopt additional policies and restrictions in the future. Shareholders should be aware, however, that any surveillance techniques currently employed by the fund or other techniques that may be adopted in the future may not be effective, particularly where the trading takes place through certain types of omnibus accounts. Furthermore, the fund may not apply its policies consistently or uniformly, resulting in the risk that some shareholders may be able to engage in frequent trading while others will bear the costs and effects of that trading.

Although the fund will attempt to monitor shareholder transactions for certain patterns of frequent trading activity, there can be no assurance that all such trading activity can be identified, prevented or terminated. Monitoring of shareholder transactions may only occur for shareholder transactions that exceed a certain transaction amount threshold, which may change from time to time. The fund reserves the right to refuse any client or reject any purchase order for shares (including exchanges) for any reason.

Record ownership

If you hold shares through a Service Agent, your Service Agent may establish and maintain your account and be the shareholder of record. In the event that the fund holds a shareholder meeting, your Service Agent, as record holder, will be entitled to vote your shares and may seek voting instructions from you. If you do not give your Service Agent voting instructions, your Service Agent, under certain circumstances, may nonetheless be entitled to vote your shares.

Confirmations and account statements

If you bought shares directly from the fund, you will receive a confirmation from the fund after each transaction (except a reinvestment of dividends or capital gain distributions, an investment made through the Systematic Investment Plan, exchanges made through a systematic exchange plan and withdrawals made through the Systematic Withdrawal Plan). Shareholders will receive periodic account statements.

To assist you in the management of your account you may direct the transfer agent to send copies of your confirmations and/or periodic statements to another party whom you designate, at no charge.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   43


Dividends, other distributions and taxes

 

Dividends and other distributions

The fund generally pays dividends and distributes capital gain, if any, once in December and at such other times as are necessary. The fund may pay additional distributions and dividends in order to avoid a federal tax.

You can elect to receive dividends and/or other distributions in cash.

Unless you elect to receive dividends and/or other distributions in cash, your dividends and capital gain distributions will be automatically reinvested in shares of the same class you hold, at the net asset value determined on the reinvestment date. You do not pay a sales charge on reinvested distributions or dividends.

If you hold shares directly with the fund and you elect to receive dividends and/or distributions in cash, you have the option to receive such dividends and/or distributions via a direct deposit to your bank account or, provided that the dividend and/or distribution is $10.00 or more, by check. If you choose to receive dividends and/or distributions via check, amounts less than $10.00 will automatically be reinvested in fund shares as described above.

If you do not want dividends and/or distributions in amounts less than $10.00 to be reinvested in fund shares, you must elect to receive dividends and distributions via a direct deposit to your bank account.

If you hold Class A, Class A2 or Class C shares directly with the fund, you may instruct the fund to have your dividends and/or distributions invested in the corresponding class of shares of another fund sold by the distributor, subject to the following conditions:

 

 

You have a minimum account balance of $10,000 in the fund and

 

 

The other fund is available for sale in your state.

To change those instructions, you must notify your Service Agent or the fund at least three days before the next distribution is to be paid.

Please contact your Service Agent or the fund to discuss what options are available to you for receiving your dividends and other distributions.

The Board reserves the right to revise the dividend policy or postpone the payment of dividends, if warranted in the Board’s judgment, due to unusual circumstances.

Taxes

The following discussion is very general, applies only to shareholders who are U.S. persons, and does not address shareholders subject to special rules, such as those who hold fund shares through an IRA, 401(k) plan or other tax-advantaged account. Except as specifically noted, the discussion is limited to federal income tax matters, and does not address state, local, foreign or non-income taxes. Further information regarding taxes, including certain federal income tax considerations relevant to non-U.S. persons, is included in the SAI. Because each shareholder’s circumstances are different and special tax rules may apply, you should consult your tax adviser about federal, state, local and/or foreign tax considerations that may be relevant to your particular situation.

In general, redeeming shares, exchanging shares and receiving dividends and distributions (whether received in cash or reinvested in additional shares or shares of another fund) are all taxable events. An exchange between classes of shares of the same fund normally is not taxable for federal income tax purposes, whether or not the shares are held in a taxable account.

The fund may not invest more than 25% of the value of its total assets in the securities of MLPs that are treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as qualified publicly traded partnerships (“QPTPs”) (“the 25% Limitation”). A QPTP means a partnership (i) whose interests are traded on an established securities market or readily tradable on a secondary market or the substantial equivalent thereof; (ii) that derives at least 90% of its annual income from (a) dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including but not limited to gain from options, futures and forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or foreign currencies, (b) real property rents, (c) gain from the sale or other disposition of real property, (d) the exploration, development, mining or production, processing, refining, transportation (including pipelines transporting gas, oil, or products thereof), or the marketing of any mineral or natural resource (including fertilizer, geothermal energy, and timber), industrial source carbon dioxide, or the transportation or storage of certain fuels, and (e) in the case of a partnership a principal activity of which is the buying and selling of commodities, income and gains from commodities or futures, forwards, and options with respect to commodities; and (iii) that derives less than 90% of its annual income from the items listed in (a) above. The 25% Limitation generally does not apply to publicly traded partnerships that are not energy- or commodity-focused, such as, for instance, finance-related partnerships. An investment in a royalty trust will be subject to the 25% Limitation if the royalty trust is treated for tax purposes as a QPTP.

The fund may seek to gain exposure to certain asset classes, such as ETFs or MLPs that invest primarily in commodities, through investments in Real Return Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the fund (the “Subsidiary”). To qualify as a regulated investment company, the fund must, among

 

44    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


other things, derive at least 90% of its gross income for each taxable year from sources treated under the Code as “qualifying income.” Generally, income from commodities is not qualifying income. The Service has issued to the fund a private letter ruling stating that the income it is treated as earning from the Subsidiary is “qualifying income.” The Subsidiary is expected to be treated as a “controlled foreign corporation” (a “CFC”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Under proposed Treasury Regulations issued in September 2016, certain income derived by a regulated investment company from a CFC would generally constitute “qualifying income” only to the extent the CFC makes distributions to the regulated investment company out of the CFC’s earnings and profits attributable to that income. There can be no assurance that the Service will not revoke the private letter ruling it issued to the fund. It is possible that any such revocation could be retroactive to a date to be specified by the Service. If the Service revokes the private letter ruling, the Subsidiary intends to make all necessary distributions such that the fund’s income derived from the Subsidiary will constitute qualifying income.

The following table summarizes the tax status of certain transactions related to the fund.

 

Transaction   Federal income tax status
Redemption or exchange of shares   Usually capital gain or loss; long-term only if shares are owned more than one year
Dividends of investment income and distributions of net short-term capital gain   Ordinary income, or in certain cases qualified dividend income
Distributions of net capital gain (excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss)   Long-term capital gain

Distributions attributable to short-term capital gains are taxable to you as ordinary income. Distributions attributable to qualified dividend income received by the fund, if any, may be eligible to be taxed to noncorporate shareholders at the reduced rates applicable to long-term capital gain if certain requirements are satisfied. Distributions of net capital gain reported by the fund as capital gain dividends are taxable to you as long-term capital gain regardless of how long you have owned your shares. Noncorporate shareholders ordinarily pay tax at reduced rates on long-term capital gain.

You may want to avoid buying shares when the fund is about to declare a dividend or capital gain distribution because it will be taxable to you even though it may economically represent a return of a portion of your investment.

A Medicare contribution tax is imposed at the rate of 3.8% on net investment income of U.S. individuals with income exceeding specified thresholds, and on undistributed net investment income of certain estates and trusts. Net investment income generally includes for this purpose dividends and capital gain distributions paid by the fund and gain on the redemption or exchange of fund shares.

A dividend declared by the fund in October, November or December and paid during January of the following year will, in certain circumstances, be treated as paid in December for tax purposes.

If the fund meets certain requirements with respect to its holdings, it may elect to “pass through” to shareholders foreign taxes that it pays, in which case each shareholder will include the amount of such taxes in computing gross income, but will be eligible to claim a credit or deduction for such taxes, subject to generally applicable limitations on such deductions and credits. The fund’s investment in certain foreign securities, foreign currencies or foreign currency derivatives may accelerate fund distributions to shareholders and increase the distributions taxed to shareholders as ordinary income.

After the end of each year, your Service Agent or the fund will provide you with information about the distributions and dividends you received and any redemptions of shares during the previous year. Because each shareholder’s circumstances are different and special tax rules may apply, you should consult your tax adviser about your investment in the fund.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   45


Share price

 

You may buy, exchange or redeem shares at their net asset value next determined after receipt of your request in good order, adjusted for any applicable sales charge. The fund’s net asset value per share is the value of its assets minus its liabilities divided by the number of shares outstanding. Net asset value is calculated separately for each class of shares.

The fund calculates its net asset value every day the NYSE is open. The fund generally values its securities and other assets and calculates its net asset value as of the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE, normally at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern time). If the NYSE closes at a time other than the scheduled closing time, the fund will calculate its net asset value as of the scheduled closing time. The NYSE is closed on certain holidays listed in the SAI.

In order to buy, redeem or exchange shares at a certain day’s price, you must place your order with your Service Agent or the transfer agent before the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE on that day to receive that day’s price. If the NYSE closes early on that day, you must place your order prior to the scheduled closing time. It is the responsibility of the Service Agent to transmit all orders to buy, exchange or redeem shares to the transfer agent on a timely basis.

Valuation of the fund’s securities and other assets is performed in accordance with procedures approved by the Board. These procedures delegate most valuation functions to the manager, which generally uses independent third party pricing services approved by the Board. Under the procedures, assets are valued as follows:

 

 

Equity securities and certain derivative instruments that are traded on an exchange are valued at the closing price (which may be reported at a different time than the time at which the fund’s NAV is calculated) or, if that price is unavailable or deemed by the manager not representative of market value, the last sale price. Where a security is traded on more than one exchange (as is often the case overseas), the security is generally valued at the price on the exchange considered by the manager to be the primary exchange. In the case of securities not traded on an exchange, or if exchange prices are not otherwise available, the prices are typically determined by independent third party pricing services that use a variety of techniques and methodologies.

 

 

The valuations for fixed income securities and certain derivative instruments are typically the prices supplied by independent third party pricing services, which may use market prices or broker/dealer quotations or a variety of fair valuation techniques and methodologies. Short-term fixed income securities that will mature in 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost, unless it is determined that using this method would not reflect an investment’s fair value.

 

 

For investments in exchange-traded funds, the market price is usually the closing sale or official closing price on that exchange.

 

 

The valuations of securities traded on foreign markets and certain fixed income securities will generally be based on prices determined as of the earlier closing time of the markets on which they primarily trade. The prices of foreign equity securities typically are adjusted using a fair value model developed by an independent third party pricing service to estimate the value of those securities at the time of closing of the NYSE. When the fund holds securities or other assets that are denominated in a foreign currency, the fund will normally use the currency exchange rates as of 4:00 p.m. (Eastern time). Foreign markets are open for trading on weekends and other days when the fund does not price its shares. Therefore, the value of the fund’s shares may change on days when you will not be able to purchase or redeem the fund’s shares.

 

 

If independent third party pricing services are unable to supply prices for a portfolio investment, or if the prices supplied are deemed by the manager to be unreliable, the market price may be determined by the manager using quotations from one or more broker/dealers. When such prices or quotations are not available, or when the manager believes that they are unreliable, the manager may price securities using fair value procedures approved by the Board. These procedures permit, among other things, the use of a formula or other method that takes into consideration market indices, yield curves and other specific adjustments to determine fair value. Fair value of a security is the amount, as determined by the manager in good faith, that the fund might reasonably expect to receive upon a current sale of the security. The fund may also use fair value procedures if the manager determines that a significant event has occurred between the time at which a market price is determined and the time at which the fund’s net asset value is calculated.

Many factors may influence the price at which the fund could sell any particular portfolio investment. The sales price may well differ—higher or lower—from the fund’s last valuation, and such differences could be significant, particularly for securities that trade in relatively thin markets and/or markets that experience extreme volatility. Moreover, valuing securities using fair value methodologies involves greater reliance on judgment than valuing securities based on market quotations. A fund that uses fair value methodologies may value those securities higher or lower than another fund using market quotations or its own fair value methodologies to price the same securities. There can be no assurance that the fund could obtain the value assigned to a security if it were to sell the security at approximately the time at which the fund determines its net asset value. Investors who purchase or redeem fund shares on days when the fund is holding fair-valued securities may receive a greater or lesser number of shares, or higher or lower redemption proceeds, than they would have received if the fund had not fair-valued the security or had used a different methodology.

 

46    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


Consolidated Financial highlights

 

The consolidated financial highlights table is intended to help you understand the performance of each class for the past five years, unless otherwise noted. Class FI and Class R of the fund have not begun operations as of the date of this Prospectus and therefore have no financial highlights to report. The returns for Class FI and Class R shares will differ from those of other classes to the extent that their expenses differ. Certain information reflects financial results for a single fund share. Total return represents the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the fund, assuming reinvestment of all dividends and other distributions. Unless otherwise noted, this information has been audited by the fund’s independent registered public accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, whose report, along with the fund’s consolidated financial statements, is incorporated by reference into the fund’s SAI (see back cover) and is included in the fund’s annual report. The fund’s annual report is available upon request by calling toll-free 1-877-721-1926.

 

For a share of each class of beneficial interest outstanding throughout each year ended September 30, unless otherwise noted:  
Class A Shares1      2016        2015        20142        20133        20123        20113  
Net asset value, beginning of year        $11.57           $13.78           $14.20           $14.16           $13.27           $12.73   
Income (loss) from operations:                              

Net investment income (loss)

       0.01           (0.06)           0.04           0.06           0.10           0.18   

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)

       0.48           (1.96)           (0.06)           0.26           0.87           0.87   

Total income (loss) from operations

       0.49           (2.02)           (0.02)           0.32           0.97           1.05   
Less distributions from:                              

Net investment income

                                     (0.22)           (0.07)           (0.51)   

Net realized gains

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.06)           (0.01)             

Total distributions

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.28)           (0.08)           (0.51)   
Net asset value, end of year        $11.63           $11.57           $13.78           $14.20           $14.16           $13.27   

Total return4

       4.41        (14.82)        (0.15)        2.27        7.39        8.42
Net assets, end of year (000s)        $1,143           $1,864           $3,697           $5,156           $7,573           $7,201   
Ratios to average net assets:                              

Gross expenses5

       1.47 %6         1.49 %6         1.58 %7         1.52        1.51        2.46

Net expenses5,8,9

       1.33 6         1.32 6         1.32 7         1.32           1.31           1.31   

Net investment income (loss)

       0.07           (0.49)           0.32 7         0.41           0.75           1.33   
Portfolio turnover rate        41        65        25        55        66        70

 

1

Per share amounts have been calculated using the average shares method.

 

2

For the period December 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014.

 

3

For the year ended November 30.

 

4

Performance figures, exclusive of sales charges, may reflect compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements. In the absence of compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, the total return would have been lower. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

 

5

Does not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

 

6

Reflects recapture of fees waived and/or expenses reimbursed from prior fiscal years.

 

7

Annualized.

 

8

As a result of an expense limitation arrangement, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses, other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of ETFs), dividend expenses on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses, to average net assets of Class A shares did not exceed 1.35%. This expense limitation arrangement cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2017 without the Board of Trustees’ consent. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the expense limitation arrangement.

 

9

Reflects fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   47


Consolidated Financial highlights cont’d

 

 

For a share of each class of beneficial interest outstanding throughout each year ended September 30, unless otherwise noted:  
Class A2 Shares1      2016        2015        20142        20133        20124  
Net asset value, beginning of year        $11.47           $13.69           $14.13           $14.16           $14.01   
Income (loss) from operations:                         

Net investment income (loss)

       (0.00) 5         (0.06)           0.02           0.03           0.01   

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)

       0.46           (1.97)           (0.06)           0.27           0.14   

Total income (loss) from operations

       0.46           (2.03)           (0.04)           0.30           0.15   
Less distributions from:                         

Net investment income

                                     (0.27)             

Net realized gains

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.06)             

Total distributions

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.33)             
Net asset value, end of year        $11.50           $11.47           $13.69           $14.13           $14.16   

Total return6

       4.27        (15.07)        (0.30)        2.17        1.07
Net assets, end of year (000s)        $1,358           $1,435           $1,844           $1,672           $154   

Ratios to average net assets:

                        

Gross expenses7

       1.75 %8         1.77        2.08 %9         1.83 %8         1.74 %9 

Net expenses7,10,11

       1.53 8         1.53           1.52 9         1.49 8         1.51 9 

Net investment income (loss)

       (0.01)           (0.50)           0.17 9         0.24           1.20 9 
Portfolio turnover rate        41        65        25        55        66

 

1 

Per share amounts have been calculated using the average shares method.

 

2

For the period December 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014.

 

3

For the year ended November 30.

 

4

For the period October 31, 2012 (inception date) to November 30, 2012.

 

5

Amount represents less than $0.005 per share.

 

6

Performance figures, exclusive of sales charges, may reflect compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements. In the absence of compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, the total return would have been lower. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

 

7

Does not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

 

8

Reflects recapture of expenses waived/reimbursed from prior fiscal years.

 

9

Annualized.

 

10

As a result of an expense limitation arrangement, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses, other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of ETFs), dividend expenses on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses, to average net assets of Class A2 shares did not exceed 1.55%. This expense limitation arrangement cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2017 without the Board of Trustees’ consent. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the expense limitation arrangement.

 

11

Reflects fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements.

 

48    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


For a share of each class of beneficial interest outstanding throughout each year ended September 30, unless otherwise noted:

 
Class C Shares1      2016        2015        20142        20133        20123        20113  
Net asset value, beginning of year        $11.35           $13.63           $14.13           $14.07           $13.22           $12.66   
Income (loss) from operations:                              

Net investment income (loss)

       (0.07)           (0.17)           (0.05)           (0.05)           (0.00) 4         0.08   

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)

       0.46           (1.92)           (0.05)           0.26           0.86           0.89   

Total income (loss) from operations

       0.39           (2.09)           (0.10)           0.21           0.86           0.97   
Less distributions from:                              

Net investment income

                                     (0.09)           (0.00) 4         (0.41)   

Net realized gains

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.06)           (0.01)             

Total distributions

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.15)           (0.01)           (0.41)   
Net asset value, end of year        $11.31           $11.35           $13.63           $14.13           $14.07           $13.22   

Total return5

       3.68        (15.50)        (0.74)        1.49        6.52        7.79
Net assets, end of year (000s)        $373           $490           $1,035           $1,260           $1,808           $2,061   
Ratios to average net assets:             

Gross expenses6

       2.28        2.32 %7         2.42 %8         2.43        2.45        3.41

Net expenses6,9,10

       2.08           2.07 7         2.07 8         2.07           2.06           2.06   

Net investment income (loss)

       (0.62)           (1.33)           (0.42) 8         (0.33)           (0.02)           0.57   
Portfolio turnover rate        41        65        25        55        66        70

 

1

Per share amounts have been calculated using the average shares method.

 

2

For the period December 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014.

 

3

For the year ended November 30.

 

4

Amount represents less than $0.005 per share.

 

5

Performance figures, exclusive of CDSC, may reflect compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements. In the absence of compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, the total return would have been lower. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

 

6

Does not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

 

7

Reflects recapture of expenses waived/reimbursed from prior fiscal years.

 

8

Annualized.

 

9

As a result of an expense limitation arrangement, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses, other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of ETFs), dividend expenses on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses, to average net assets of Class C shares did not exceed 2.10%. This expense limitation arrangement cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2017 without the Board of Trustees’ consent. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the expense limitation arrangement.

 

10 

Reflects fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   49


Consolidated Financial highlights cont’d

 

 

For a share of each class of beneficial interest outstanding throughout each year ended September 30, unless otherwise noted:

 
Class I Shares1      2016        2015        20142        20133        20123        20113  
Net asset value, beginning of year        $11.77           $14.02           $14.42           $14.19           $13.30           $12.75   
Income (loss) from operations:                              

Net investment income (loss)

       0.05           (0.01)           0.07           0.10           (0.04)           0.07   

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)

       0.48           (2.01)           (0.07)           0.26           1.05           1.03   

Total income (loss) from operations

       0.53           (2.02)           (0.00) 4         0.36           1.01           1.10   
Less distributions from:                              

Net investment income

                 (0.04)                     (0.07)           (0.11)           (0.55)   

Net realized gains

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.06)           (0.01)             

Total distributions

       (0.43)           (0.23)           (0.40)           (0.13)           (0.12)           (0.55)   
Net asset value, end of year        $11.87           $11.77           $14.02           $14.42           $14.19           $13.30   

Total return5

       4.68        (14.62)        (0.01)        2.59        7.64        8.76
Net assets, end of year (000s)        $906           $808           $955           $890           $613           $122,282   
Ratios to average net assets:                              

Gross expenses6

       1.17 %7         1.24 %7         1.44 %8         1.26 %7         1.22        1.61

Net expenses6,9,10

       1.08 7         1.08 7         1.07 8         1.07 7         1.06           1.06   

Net investment income (loss)

       0.47           (0.05)           0.61 8         0.69           (0.32)           0.61   
Portfolio turnover rate        41        65        25        55        66        70

 

1 

Per share amounts have been calculated using the average shares method.

 

2 

For the period December 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014.

 

3 

For the year ended November 30.

 

4 

Amount represents less than $0.005 per share.

 

5 

Performance figures may reflect compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements. In the absence of compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, the total return would have been lower. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

 

6 

Does not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

 

7 

Reflects recapture of fees waived and/or expenses reimbursed from prior fiscal years.

 

8 

Annualized.

 

9 

As a result of an expense limitation arrangement, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses, other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of ETFs), dividend expenses on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses, to average net assets of Class I shares did not exceed 1.10%. This expense limitation arrangement cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2017 without the Board of Trustees’ consent. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the expense limitation arrangement.

 

10 

Reflects fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements.

 

50    QS Strategic Real Return Fund


For a share of each class of beneficial interest outstanding throughout each year ended September 30, unless otherwise noted:  
Class IS Shares1      2016        2015        20142        20133        20124  
Net asset value, beginning of year        $11.62           $13.85           $14.22           $14.19           $12.99   
Income (loss) from operations:                         

Net investment income

       0.06           0.01           0.08           0.10           0.15   

Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)

       0.48           (2.00)           (0.05)           0.26           1.17   

Total income (loss) from operations

       0.54           (1.99)           0.03           0.36           1.32   
Less distributions from:                         

Net investment income

                 (0.05)                     (0.27)           (0.12)   

Net realized gains

       (0.43)           (0.19)           (0.40)           (0.06)           (0.00) 5 

Total distributions

       (0.43)           (0.24)           (0.40)           (0.33)           (0.12)   
Net asset value, end of year        $11.73           $11.62           $13.85           $14.22           $14.19   

Total return6

       4.83        (14.58)        0.21        2.60        10.25
Net assets, end of year (000s)        $118,083           $115,721           $137,031           $133,765           $123,690   

Ratios to average net assets:

                        

Gross expenses7

       1.08        1.04        1.08 %8         1.09        1.06 %8 

Net expenses7,9,10

       0.98           0.98           0.97 8         0.97           0.96 8 

Net investment income

       0.55           0.04           0.70 8         0.74           1.16 8 
Portfolio turnover rate        41        65        25        55        66

 

1

Per share amounts have been calculated using the average shares method.

 

2

For the period December 1, 2013 through September 30, 2014.

 

3

For the year ended November 30.

 

4

For the period December 15, 2011 (inception date) to November 30, 2012.

 

5

Amount represents less than $0.005 per share.

 

6

Performance figures may reflect compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements. In the absence of compensating balance arrangements, fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, the total return would have been lower. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Total returns for periods of less than one year are not annualized.

 

7

Does not include fees and expenses of the Underlying Funds in which the Fund invests.

 

8

Annualized.

 

9

As a result of an expense limitation arrangement, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses, other than interest, brokerage commissions (except for brokerage commissions paid on purchases and sales of shares of ETFs), dividend expenses on short sales, taxes and extraordinary expenses, to average net assets of Class IS shares did not exceed 1.00%. In addition, the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses for Class IS shares did not exceed the ratio of total annual fund operating expenses for Class I shares. These expense limitation arrangements cannot be terminated prior to December 31, 2017 without the Board of Trustees’ consent. Acquired fund fees and expenses are subject to the expense limitation arrangement.

 

10

Reflects fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements.

 

QS Strategic Real Return Fund   51


Legg Mason Funds Privacy and Security Notice

 

Your Privacy and the Security of Your Personal Information is Very Important to the Legg Mason Funds

This Privacy and Security Notice (the “Privacy Notice”) addresses the Legg Mason Funds’ privacy and data protection practices with respect to nonpublic personal information the Funds receive. The Legg Mason Funds include any funds sold by the Funds’ distributor, Legg Mason Investor Services, LLC, as well as Legg Mason-sponsored closed-end funds and certain closed-end funds managed or sub-advised by Legg Mason or its affiliates. The provisions of this Privacy Notice apply to your information both while you are a shareholder and after you are no longer invested with the Funds.

The Type of Nonpublic Personal Information the Funds Collect About You

The Funds collect and maintain nonpublic personal information about you in connection with your shareholder account. Such information may include, but is not limited to:

 

 

Personal information included on applications or other forms;

 

 

Account balances, transactions, and mutual fund holdings and positions;

 

 

Online account access user IDs, passwords, security challenge question responses; and

 

 

Information received from consumer reporting agencies regarding credit history and creditworthiness (such as the amount of an individual’s total debt, payment history, etc.).

How the Funds Use Nonpublic Personal Information About You

The Funds do not sell or share your nonpublic personal information with third parties or with affiliates for their marketing purposes, or with other financial institutions or affiliates for joint marketing purposes, unless you have authorized the Funds to do so. The Funds do not disclose any nonpublic personal information about you except as may be required to perform transactions or services you have authorized or as permitted or required by law. The Funds may disclose information about you to:

 

 

Employees, agents, and affiliates on a “need to know” basis to enable the Funds to conduct ordinary business or comply with obligations to government regulators;

 

 

Service providers, including the Funds’ affiliates, who assist the Funds as part of the ordinary course of business (such as printing, mailing services, or processing or servicing your account with us) or otherwise perform services on the Funds’ behalf, including companies that may perform marketing services solely for the Funds;

 

 

The Funds’ representatives such as legal counsel, accountants and auditors; and

 

 

Fiduciaries or representatives acting on your behalf, such as an IRA custodian or trustee of a grantor trust.

Except as otherwise permitted by applicable law, companies acting on the Funds’ behalf are contractually obligated to keep nonpublic personal information the Funds provide to them confidential and to use the information the Funds share only to provide the services the Funds ask them to perform.

The Funds may disclose nonpublic personal information about you when necessary to enforce their rights or protect against fraud, or as permitted or required by applicable law, such as in connection with a law enforcement or regulatory request, subpoena, or similar legal process. In the event of a corporate action or in the event a Fund service provider changes, the Funds may be required to disclose your nonpublic personal information to third parties. While it is the Funds’ practice to obtain protections for disclosed information in these types of transactions, the Funds cannot guarantee their privacy policy will remain unchanged.

Keeping You Informed of the Funds’ Privacy and Security Practices

The Funds will notify you annually of their privacy policy as required by federal law. While the Funds reserve the right to modify this policy at any time they will notify you promptly if this privacy policy changes.

The Funds’ Security Practices

The Funds maintain appropriate physical, electronic and procedural safeguards designed to guard your nonpublic personal information. The Funds’ internal data security policies restrict access to your nonpublic personal information to authorized employees, who may use your nonpublic personal information for Fund business purposes only.

Although the Funds strive to protect your nonpublic personal information, they cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you provide or transmit to them, and you do so at your own risk. In the event of a breach of the confidentiality or security of your nonpublic personal information, the Funds will attempt to notify you as necessary so you can take appropriate protective steps. If you have consented to the Funds using electronic communications or electronic delivery of statements, they may notify you under such circumstances using the most current email address you have on record with them.

In order for the Funds to provide effective service to you, keeping your account information accurate is very important. If you believe that your account information is incomplete, not accurate or not current, or if you have questions about the Funds’ privacy practices, write the Funds using the contact information on your account statements, email the Funds by clicking on the Contact Us section of the Funds’ website at www.leggmason.com, or contact the Funds at 1-877-721-1926.

 

THIS PAGE IS NOT PART OF THE PROSPECTUS


QS

Strategic Real Return Fund

 

You may visit www.leggmason.com/mutualfundsliterature for a free copy of a Prospectus, Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) or an Annual or Semi-Annual Report.

Shareholder reports Additional information about the fund’s investments is available in the fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to shareholders. In the fund’s Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the fund’s performance during its last fiscal year. The independent registered public accounting firm’s report and consolidated financial statements in the fund’s Annual Report are incorporated by reference into (are legally a part of) this Prospectus.

The fund sends only one report to a household if more than one account has the same last name and same address. Contact your Service Agent or the fund if you do not want this policy to apply to you.

Statement of additional information The SAI provides more detailed information about the fund and is incorporated by reference into (is legally a part of) this Prospectus.

You can make inquiries about the fund or obtain shareholder reports or the SAI (without charge) by contacting your Service Agent, by calling the fund at 1-877-721-1926, or by writing to the fund at 100 First Stamford Place, Attn: Shareholder Services – 5th Floor, Stamford, Connecticut 06902.

Information about the fund (including the SAI) can be reviewed and copied at the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) Public Reference Room in Washington, D.C. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-202-551-8090. Reports and other information about the fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of this information may be obtained for a duplicating fee by electronic request at the following E-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing the SEC’s Public Reference Room, Washington, D.C. 20549-1520.

If someone makes a statement about the fund that is not in this Prospectus, you should not rely upon that information. Neither the fund nor the distributor is offering to sell shares of the fund to any person to whom the fund may not lawfully sell its shares.

(Investment Company Act

file no. 811-22338)

LMFX012131ST 2/17