Mar. 01, 2021
1290 High Yield Bond Fund
1290 High Yield Bond Fund – Class A (TNHAX), T (TNHCX), I (TNHIX) and R (TNHRX) Shares
Investment Objective:
Seeks to maximize current income.
FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND
The following table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $100,000 in 1290 Funds’ funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in the “How Sales Charges are Calculated” and “Ways to Reduce or Eliminate Sales Charges” sections of the Fund’s Prospectus, and the “Purchase, Redemption and Pricing of Shares” section of the Fund’s statement of additional information.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Example
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the periods indicated, that your investment has a 5% return each year, that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same and that the Expense Limitation Arrangement is not renewed. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, whether you redeem or hold your shares, your costs would be:
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 59% of the average value of its portfolio.
INVESTMENTS, RISKS, AND PERFORMANCE Principal Investment Strategy:
Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in a broad range of high-yield, below investment-grade bonds. For purposes of this investment policy, a debt security is considered a “bond.” Debt securities represent an issuer’s obligation to repay a loan of money that generally pays interest to the holder. Bank loans, bonds, loan participations, notes and debentures are examples of debt securities. It is expected that the Fund willinvest primarily in high-yield corporate bonds as well as floating rate loans, and participations in and assignments of loans. Securities below investment grade include those securities that at the time of purchase are rated Ba1 or lower by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”), or BB+ or lower by Fitch Ratings Ltd. (“Fitch”) or by Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings (“S&P”) or, if unrated, deemed to be of comparable quality by the Fund’s investment adviser, Equitable Investment Management Group, LLC (“EIM” or the ”Adviser”), or the Fund’s sub-adviser, AXA Investment Managers, Inc. (“AXA IM” or the “Sub-Adviser”). The below investment grade securities in which the Fund invests are generally rated at least Ca by Moody’s or at least CC by Fitch or S&P or, if unrated, deemed to be of comparable quality by the Adviser or the Sub-Adviser. The Fund may continue to hold securities that are downgraded below these ratings subsequent to purchase. The Fund does not normally invest in securities that are in default or have defaulted with respect to the payment of interest or repayment of principal, but may do so depending on market or other conditions. The Fund may invest in debt securities issued by companies of any size. The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in debt securities of issuers located outside the United States, including emerging markets issuers and U.S. dollar-denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers.The Fund may invest in securities of any maturity because AXA IM places greater emphasis on credit risk in selecting securities than either maturity or duration. Certain debt instruments in which the Fund may invest may be structured as pay-in-kind securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.The Fund may also lend its portfolio securities to earn additional income.
Principal Risks:
An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The value of your investment may fall, sometimes sharply, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.The following risks can negatively affect the Fund’s performance. The most significant risks as of the date of this Prospectus are presented first, followed by additional principal risks in alphabetical order. Market Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that the securities markets will move down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably, based on overall economic conditions and other factors, which may negatively affect Fund performance. Securities markets also may experience long periods of decline in value. Changes in the financial condition of a single issuer can impact a market as a whole. Geo-political risks, including terrorism, tensions or open conflict between nations, or political or economic dysfunction within some nations that are major players on the world stage, may lead to instability in world economies and markets, may lead to increased market volatility, and may have adverse long-term effects. Events such as natural disasters, public health crises (such as epidemics and pandemics) and social unrest, and governments’ reactions to such events, could cause uncertainty in the markets and may adversely affect the performance of the global economy. Adverse market conditions may not have the same impact on all types of securities. In addition, markets and market participants are increasingly reliant on information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact upon a single issuer, a group of issuers, or the market at large. Non-Investment Grade Securities Risk: Bonds rated below BBB by S&P or Fitch or below Baa by Moody’s (or, if unrated, determined by the investment manager to be of comparable quality) are speculative in nature and are subject to additional risk factors such as increased possibility of default, illiquidity of the security, and changes in value based on changes in interest rates. Non-investment grade bonds, sometimes referred to as “junk bonds,” are usually issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings, or by those companies with questionable credit strength. The creditworthiness of issuers of non-investment grade debt securities may be more complex to analyze than that of issuers of investment grade debt securities, and reliance on credit ratings may present additional risks. Credit Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that the issuer or guarantor of a fixed income security, or the counterparty to a transaction, is unable or unwilling, or is perceived as unable or unwilling, to make timely interest or principal payments, or otherwise honor its obligations, which may cause the Fund’s holdings to lose value. The downgrade of a security’s credit rating may decrease its value. Lower credit quality also may lead to greater volatility in the price of a security and may negatively affect a security’s liquidity. The credit quality of a security can deteriorate suddenly and rapidly. Liquidity Risk: From time to time, there may be little or no active trading market for a particular investment in which the Fund may invest or is invested. In such a market, the value of such an investment and the Fund’s share price may fall dramatically. Illiquid investments may be difficult or impossible to sell or purchase at an advantageous time or price or in sufficient amounts to achieve the Fund’s desired level of exposure. To meet redemption requests during periods of illiquidity, the Fund may be forced to dispose of investments at unfavorable times or prices and/or under unfavorable conditions, which may result in a loss or may be costly to the Fund. Investments that are illiquid or that trade in lower volumes may be more difficult to value. The Fund also may not receive its proceeds from the sale of certain investments for an extended period of time. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased may later become illiquid, sometimes abruptly, particularly in times of overall economic distress or adverse investor perception. An inability to sell a portfolio position can adversely affect the Fund’s value or prevent the Fund from being able to take advantage of other investment opportunities. During periods of market stress, an investment or even an entire market segment may become illiquid, sometimes abruptly, which can adversely affect the Fund’s ability to limit losses. In addition, a reduction in the ability or willingness of dealers and other institutional investors to make a market in certain securities may result in decreased liquidity in certain markets. Sector Risk: From time to time, based on market or economic conditions, the Fund may have significant positions in one or more sectors of the market. To the extent the Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors. Individual sectors may be more volatile, and may perform differently, than the broader market. The industries that constitute a sector may all react in the same way to economic, political or regulatory events. Loan Risk: Loan interests are subject to liquidity risk, prepayment risk, extension risk, the risk of subordination to other creditors, restrictions on resale, and the lack of a regular trading market and publicly available information. Loan interests may be difficult to value and may have extended trade settlement periods. As a result, the proceeds from the sale of a loan may not be available to make additional investments or to meet redemption obligations until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loan. The extended trade settlement periods could force the Fund to liquidate other securities to meet redemptions and may present a risk that the Fund may incur losses in order to timely honor redemptions. There is a risk that the value of any collateral securing a loan in which the Fund has an interest may decline and that the collateral may not be sufficient to cover the amount owed on the loan. In the event the borrower defaults, the Fund’s access to the collateral may be limited or delayed by bankruptcy or other insolvency laws. Loans may not be considered “securities,” and purchasers, such as the Fund, therefore may not have the benefit of the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws. To the extent that the Fund invests in loan participations and assignments, it is subject to the risk that the financial institution acting as agent for all interests in a loan might fail financially. It is also possible that the Fund could be held liable, or may be called upon to fulfill other obligations, as a co-lender. Interest Rate Risk: Changes in interest rates may affect the yield, liquidity and value of investments in income producing or debt securities. Changes in interest rates also may affect the value of other securities. When interest rates rise, the value of the Fund’s debt securities generally declines. Conversely, when interest rates decline, the value of the Fund’s debt securities generally rises. Typically, the longer the maturity or duration of a debt security, the greater the effect a change in interest rates could have on the security’s price. Thus, the sensitivity of the Fund’s debt securities to interest rate risk will increase with any increase in the duration of those securities. Very low or negative interest rates may magnify interest rate risk. A significant or rapid rise in interest rates also could result in losses to the Fund. Portfolio Management Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that strategies used by an investment manager and its securities selections fail to produce the intended results. An investment manager’s judgments or decisions about the quality, relative yield or value of, or market trends affecting, a particular security or issuer, industry, sector, region or market segment, or about the economy or interest rates, may be incorrect or otherwise may not produce the intended results, which may result in losses to the Fund. In addition, many processes used in Fund management, including security selection, rely, in whole or in part, on the use of various technologies. The Fund may suffer losses if there are imperfections, errors or limitations in the quantitative, analytic or other tools, resources, information and data used, or the analyses employed or relied on, by an investment manager, or if such tools, resources, information or data are used incorrectly, fail to produce the desired results, or otherwise do not work as intended. There can be no assurance that the use of these technologies will result in effective investment decisions for the Fund. Foreign Securities Risk: Investments in foreign securities involve risks in addition to those associated with investments in U.S. securities. Foreign markets may be less liquid, more volatile and subject to less government supervision and regulation than U.S. markets, and it may take more time to clear and settle trades involving foreign securities, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments and cause it to lose money. Security values also may be negatively affected by changes in the exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies. Differences between U.S. and foreign legal, political and economic systems, regulatory regimes and market practices, as well as trade barriers and other protectionist trade policies (including those of the U.S.), governmental instability, or other political or economic actions, also may adversely impact security values. World markets, or those in a particular region, may all react in similar fashion to important economic, political or other developments. Events and evolving conditions in certain economies or markets may alter the risks associated with investments tied to countries or regions that historically were perceived as comparatively stable and make such investments riskier and more volatile. Regardless of where a company is organized or its stock is traded, its performance may be significantly affected by events in regions from which it derives its profits or in which it conducts significant operations. Currency Risk: Investments that are denominated in or that provide exposure to foreign currencies are subject to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. dollar. Any such decline may erode or reverse any potential gains from an investment in securities denominated in foreign currency or may widen existing loss. In the case of hedging positions, there is the risk that the U.S. dollar will decline in value relative to the currency being hedged. Currency rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. Emerging Markets Risk: Investments in emerging market countries are more susceptible to loss than investments in more developed foreign countries and may present market, credit, currency, liquidity, legal, political, technical and other risks different from, or greater than, the risks of investing in more developed foreign countries. Emerging market countries may be more likely to experience rapid and significant adverse developments in their political or economic structures, intervene in financial markets, restrict foreign investments, impose high withholding or other taxes on foreign investments, impose restrictive exchange control regulations, or nationalize or expropriate the assets of private companies, which may have negative impacts on transaction costs, market price, investment returns and the legal rights and remedies available to the Fund. In addition, the securities markets of emerging market countries generally are smaller, less liquid and more volatile than those of more developed foreign countries, and emerging market countries often have less uniformity in regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial reporting requirements or standards, which may impact the availability and quality of information about issuers, and less reliable clearance and settlement, registration and custodial procedures. Securities of issuers traded on foreign exchanges may be suspended. The likelihood of such suspensions may be higher for securities of issuers in emerging market countries than in countries with more developed markets. The risks associated with investments in emerging market countries often are significant, and vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and company to company. European Economic Risk: The economies of European Union (“EU”) member countries and their trading partners, as well as the broader global economy, may be adversely affected by changes in the euro’s exchange rate, changes in EU or governmental regulations on trade, and the threat of default or an actual default by an EU member country on its sovereign debt, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments and cause it to lose money. The United Kingdom (“UK”) left the EU on January 31, 2020, commonly referred to as “Brexit.” Following a transition period, the UK’s post-Brexit trade agreement with the EU went into effect on January 1, 2021. The agreement governs the new relationship between the UK and the EU with respect to trading goods and services, but significant aspects of the relationship remain unsettled and subject to further negotiation and agreement. The political, regulatory, economic and market consequences of Brexit are uncertain, and the ultimate ramifications may not be known for some time. The negative impact on not only the UK and European economies but also the broader global economy could be significant, potentially resulting in increased volatility and illiquidity, which could adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. Any further withdrawals from the EU could cause additional market disruption globally. Investment Grade Securities Risk: Securities rated in the lower investment grade rating categories (e.g., BBB or Baa) are considered investment grade securities, but are somewhat riskier than higher rated obligations because they are regarded as having only an adequate capacity to pay principal and interest, are considered to lack outstanding investment characteristics, and may possess certain speculative characteristics. Large Shareholder Risk: A significant percentage of the Fund’s shares may be owned or controlled by the Adviser and its affiliates, other Funds advised by the Adviser (including funds of funds), or other large shareholders. Accordingly, the Fund is subject to the potential for large-scale inflows and outflows as a result of purchases and redemptions of its shares by such shareholders. These inflows and outflows could negatively affect the Fund’s net asset value and performance. Leveraging Risk: When the Fund leverages its holdings, the value of an investment in the Fund will be more volatile and all other risks will tend to be compounded. Investments that create leverage can result in losses to the Fund that exceed the amount originally invested and may accelerate the rate of losses (some of which may be sudden or substantial). For certain investments that create leverage, relatively small market fluctuations can result in large changes in the value of such investments. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s use of any leverage will be successful. Prepayment Risk and Extension Risk: Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a security held by the Fund may pay off principal more quickly than originally anticipated. This may occur when interest rates fall. The Fund may have to reinvest the proceeds in an investment offering a lower yield, may not benefit from any increase in value that might otherwise result from declining interest rates and may lose any premium it paid to acquire the security. Extension risk is the risk that the issuer of a security held by the Fund may pay off principal more slowly than originally anticipated. This may occur when interest rates rise. The Fund may be prevented from reinvesting the proceeds it would have received at a given time in an investment offering a higher yield. Privately Placed and Other Restricted Securities Risk. Restricted securities, which include privately placed securities, are securities that cannot be offered for public resale unless registered under the applicable securities laws or that have a contractual restriction that prohibits or limits their resale. Before they are registered, such securities may be sold only in a privately negotiated transaction or pursuant to an exemption from registration. Difficulty in selling securities may result in a loss or be costly to the Fund. Rule 144A is designed to facilitate efficient trading among institutional investors by permitting the sale of certain unregistered securities to qualified institutional buyers. To the extent restricted securities held by the Fund qualify under Rule 144A and an institutional market develops for those securities, the Fund likely will be able to dispose of the securities without registering them. To the extent that institutional buyers become, for a time, uninterested in purchasing these securities, investing in Rule 144A securities could increase the level of the Fund’s illiquidity. The Adviser or Sub-Adviser may determine that certain securities qualified for trading under Rule 144A are liquid. Where registration of a security is required, the Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses, and a considerable period may elapse between the time the Fund desires to sell (and therefore decides to seek registration of) the security, and the time the Fund may be permitted to sell the security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than prevailed when it desired to sell. The risk that securities may not be sold for the price at which the Fund is carrying them is greater with respect to restricted securities than it is with respect to registered securities. The illiquidity of the market, as well as the lack of publicly available information regarding these securities, also may make it difficult to determine a fair value for certain securities for purposes of computing the Fund’s net asset value. Redemption Risk: The Fund may experience periods of heavy redemptions that could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value. Redemption risk is heightened during periods of declining or illiquid markets. Heavy redemptions could hurt the Fund’s performance. Market developments and other factors, including a general rise in interest rates, have the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed income securities. The market-making capacity of dealers has been reduced in recent years, in part as a result of structural changes, such as fewer proprietary trading desks at broker-dealers and increased regulatory capital requirements. In addition, significant securities market disruptions related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic have led to dislocation in the market for a variety of fixed income securities (including, without limitation, commercial paper, corporate debt securities, certificates of deposit, asset-backed debt securities and municipal obligations), which has decreased liquidity and sharply reduced returns in certain cases. Increased redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed income securities, coupled with a reduction in the ability or willingness of dealers and other institutional investors to buy or hold fixed income securities, may result in decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the fixed income markets. Securities Lending Risk: The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to seek income. There is a risk that a borrower may default on its obligations to return loaned securities. The Fund will be responsible for the risks associated with the investment of cash collateral and may lose money on its investment of cash collateral or may fail to earn sufficient income on its investment to meet obligations to the borrower. Securities lending may introduce leverage into the Fund. In addition, delays may occur in the recovery of loaned securities from borrowers, which could interfere with the Fund’s ability to vote proxies or to settle transactions. Zero Coupon and Pay-in-Kind Securities Risk: A zero coupon or pay-in-kind security pays no interest in cash to its holder during its life. Accordingly, zero coupon securities usually trade at a deep discount from their face or par value and, together with pay-in-kind securities, will be subject to greater fluctuations in market value in response to changing interest rates than debt obligations of comparable maturities that make current distribution of interest in cash.
Risk/Return Bar Chart and Table
The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns for the past one-year, five-year and since inception periods through December 31, 2020, compared to the returns of a broad-based securities market index. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future performance.The performance results shown in the bar chart do not reflect any sales charges or account fees, which would reduce the performance results.The performance of Class T shares for periods prior to March 1, 2017 has been adjusted to reflect the current sales charges applicable to Class T shares.
Calendar Year Annual Total Returns — Class I
Best quarter (% and time period) Worst quarter (% and time period) 8.99% (2020 2nd Quarter) –10.18% (2020 1st Quarter)
Average Annual Total Returns
After-tax returns 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 (IRAs). The returns after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares may exceed the returns before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit from any losses on a sale of fund shares at the end of the measurement period. After-tax returns are shown only for Class I shares. After-tax returns for other Classes may vary.
1290 High Yield Bond Fund \| Class A Shares
On shares purchased without an initial sales charge and redeemed within 12 months of purchase.

Mar. 01, 2021

1290 High Yield Bond Fund

1290 High Yield Bond Fund – Class A (TNHAX), T (TNHCX), I (TNHIX) and R (TNHRX) Shares

Investment Objective:

Seeks to maximize current income.

FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND

The following table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $100,000 in 1290 Funds’ funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in the “How Sales Charges are Calculated” and “Ways to Reduce or Eliminate Sales Charges” sections of the Fund’s Prospectus, and the “Purchase, Redemption and Pricing of Shares” section of the Fund’s statement of additional information.

Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Example

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the periods indicated, that your investment has a 5% return each year, that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same and that the Expense Limitation Arrangement is not renewed. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, whether you redeem or hold your shares, your costs would be:

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 59% of the average value of its portfolio.

INVESTMENTS, RISKS, AND PERFORMANCE Principal Investment Strategy:

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in a broad range of high-yield, below investment-grade bonds. For purposes of this investment policy, a debt security is considered a “bond.” Debt securities represent an issuer’s obligation to repay a loan of money that generally pays interest to the holder. Bank loans, bonds, loan participations, notes and debentures are examples of debt securities. It is expected that the Fund willinvest primarily in high-yield corporate bonds as well as floating rate loans, and participations in and assignments of loans. Securities below investment grade include those securities that at the time of purchase are rated Ba1 or lower by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”), or BB+ or lower by Fitch Ratings Ltd. (“Fitch”) or by Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings (“S&P”) or, if unrated, deemed to be of comparable quality by the Fund’s investment adviser, Equitable Investment Management Group, LLC (“EIM” or the ”Adviser”), or the Fund’s sub-adviser, AXA Investment Managers, Inc. (“AXA IM” or the “Sub-Adviser”). The below investment grade securities in which the Fund invests are generally rated at least Ca by Moody’s or at least CC by Fitch or S&P or, if unrated, deemed to be of comparable quality by the Adviser or the Sub-Adviser. The Fund may continue to hold securities that are downgraded below these ratings subsequent to purchase. The Fund does not normally invest in securities that are in default or have defaulted with respect to the payment of interest or repayment of principal, but may do so depending on market or other conditions. The Fund may invest in debt securities issued by companies of any size. The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in debt securities of issuers located outside the United States, including emerging markets issuers and U.S. dollar-denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers.The Fund may invest in securities of any maturity because AXA IM places greater emphasis on credit risk in selecting securities than either maturity or duration. Certain debt instruments in which the Fund may invest may be structured as pay-in-kind securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.The Fund may also lend its portfolio securities to earn additional income.

Principal Risks:

An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The value of your investment may fall, sometimes sharply, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.The following risks can negatively affect the Fund’s performance. The most significant risks as of the date of this Prospectus are presented first, followed by additional principal risks in alphabetical order. Market Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that the securities markets will move down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably, based on overall economic conditions and other factors, which may negatively affect Fund performance. Securities markets also may experience long periods of decline in value. Changes in the financial condition of a single issuer can impact a market as a whole. Geo-political risks, including terrorism, tensions or open conflict between nations, or political or economic dysfunction within some nations that are major players on the world stage, may lead to instability in world economies and markets, may lead to increased market volatility, and may have adverse long-term effects. Events such as natural disasters, public health crises (such as epidemics and pandemics) and social unrest, and governments’ reactions to such events, could cause uncertainty in the markets and may adversely affect the performance of the global economy. Adverse market conditions may not have the same impact on all types of securities. In addition, markets and market participants are increasingly reliant on information data systems. Inaccurate data, software or other technology malfunctions, programming inaccuracies, unauthorized use or access, and similar circumstances may impair the performance of these systems and may have an adverse impact upon a single issuer, a group of issuers, or the market at large. Non-Investment Grade Securities Risk: Bonds rated below BBB by S&P or Fitch or below Baa by Moody’s (or, if unrated, determined by the investment manager to be of comparable quality) are speculative in nature and are subject to additional risk factors such as increased possibility of default, illiquidity of the security, and changes in value based on changes in interest rates. Non-investment grade bonds, sometimes referred to as “junk bonds,” are usually issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings, or by those companies with questionable credit strength. The creditworthiness of issuers of non-investment grade debt securities may be more complex to analyze than that of issuers of investment grade debt securities, and reliance on credit ratings may present additional risks. Credit Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that the issuer or guarantor of a fixed income security, or the counterparty to a transaction, is unable or unwilling, or is perceived as unable or unwilling, to make timely interest or principal payments, or otherwise honor its obligations, which may cause the Fund’s holdings to lose value. The downgrade of a security’s credit rating may decrease its value. Lower credit quality also may lead to greater volatility in the price of a security and may negatively affect a security’s liquidity. The credit quality of a security can deteriorate suddenly and rapidly. Liquidity Risk: From time to time, there may be little or no active trading market for a particular investment in which the Fund may invest or is invested. In such a market, the value of such an investment and the Fund’s share price may fall dramatically. Illiquid investments may be difficult or impossible to sell or purchase at an advantageous time or price or in sufficient amounts to achieve the Fund’s desired level of exposure. To meet redemption requests during periods of illiquidity, the Fund may be forced to dispose of investments at unfavorable times or prices and/or under unfavorable conditions, which may result in a loss or may be costly to the Fund. Investments that are illiquid or that trade in lower volumes may be more difficult to value. The Fund also may not receive its proceeds from the sale of certain investments for an extended period of time. Certain investments that were liquid when purchased may later become illiquid, sometimes abruptly, particularly in times of overall economic distress or adverse investor perception. An inability to sell a portfolio position can adversely affect the Fund’s value or prevent the Fund from being able to take advantage of other investment opportunities. During periods of market stress, an investment or even an entire market segment may become illiquid, sometimes abruptly, which can adversely affect the Fund’s ability to limit losses. In addition, a reduction in the ability or willingness of dealers and other institutional investors to make a market in certain securities may result in decreased liquidity in certain markets. Sector Risk: From time to time, based on market or economic conditions, the Fund may have significant positions in one or more sectors of the market. To the extent the Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors. Individual sectors may be more volatile, and may perform differently, than the broader market. The industries that constitute a sector may all react in the same way to economic, political or regulatory events. Loan Risk: Loan interests are subject to liquidity risk, prepayment risk, extension risk, the risk of subordination to other creditors, restrictions on resale, and the lack of a regular trading market and publicly available information. Loan interests may be difficult to value and may have extended trade settlement periods. As a result, the proceeds from the sale of a loan may not be available to make additional investments or to meet redemption obligations until potentially a substantial period after the sale of the loan. The extended trade settlement periods could force the Fund to liquidate other securities to meet redemptions and may present a risk that the Fund may incur losses in order to timely honor redemptions. There is a risk that the value of any collateral securing a loan in which the Fund has an interest may decline and that the collateral may not be sufficient to cover the amount owed on the loan. In the event the borrower defaults, the Fund’s access to the collateral may be limited or delayed by bankruptcy or other insolvency laws. Loans may not be considered “securities,” and purchasers, such as the Fund, therefore may not have the benefit of the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws. To the extent that the Fund invests in loan participations and assignments, it is subject to the risk that the financial institution acting as agent for all interests in a loan might fail financially. It is also possible that the Fund could be held liable, or may be called upon to fulfill other obligations, as a co-lender. Interest Rate Risk: Changes in interest rates may affect the yield, liquidity and value of investments in income producing or debt securities. Changes in interest rates also may affect the value of other securities. When interest rates rise, the value of the Fund’s debt securities generally declines. Conversely, when interest rates decline, the value of the Fund’s debt securities generally rises. Typically, the longer the maturity or duration of a debt security, the greater the effect a change in interest rates could have on the security’s price. Thus, the sensitivity of the Fund’s debt securities to interest rate risk will increase with any increase in the duration of those securities. Very low or negative interest rates may magnify interest rate risk. A significant or rapid rise in interest rates also could result in losses to the Fund. Portfolio Management Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk that strategies used by an investment manager and its securities selections fail to produce the intended results. An investment manager’s judgments or decisions about the quality, relative yield or value of, or market trends affecting, a particular security or issuer, industry, sector, region or market segment, or about the economy or interest rates, may be incorrect or otherwise may not produce the intended results, which may result in losses to the Fund. In addition, many processes used in Fund management, including security selection, rely, in whole or in part, on the use of various technologies. The Fund may suffer losses if there are imperfections, errors or limitations in the quantitative, analytic or other tools, resources, information and data used, or the analyses employed or relied on, by an investment manager, or if such tools, resources, information or data are used incorrectly, fail to produce the desired results, or otherwise do not work as intended. There can be no assurance that the use of these technologies will result in effective investment decisions for the Fund. Foreign Securities Risk: Investments in foreign securities involve risks in addition to those associated with investments in U.S. securities. Foreign markets may be less liquid, more volatile and subject to less government supervision and regulation than U.S. markets, and it may take more time to clear and settle trades involving foreign securities, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments and cause it to lose money. Security values also may be negatively affected by changes in the exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies. Differences between U.S. and foreign legal, political and economic systems, regulatory regimes and market practices, as well as trade barriers and other protectionist trade policies (including those of the U.S.), governmental instability, or other political or economic actions, also may adversely impact security values. World markets, or those in a particular region, may all react in similar fashion to important economic, political or other developments. Events and evolving conditions in certain economies or markets may alter the risks associated with investments tied to countries or regions that historically were perceived as comparatively stable and make such investments riskier and more volatile. Regardless of where a company is organized or its stock is traded, its performance may be significantly affected by events in regions from which it derives its profits or in which it conducts significant operations. Currency Risk: Investments that are denominated in or that provide exposure to foreign currencies are subject to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. dollar. Any such decline may erode or reverse any potential gains from an investment in securities denominated in foreign currency or may widen existing loss. In the case of hedging positions, there is the risk that the U.S. dollar will decline in value relative to the currency being hedged. Currency rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. Emerging Markets Risk: Investments in emerging market countries are more susceptible to loss than investments in more developed foreign countries and may present market, credit, currency, liquidity, legal, political, technical and other risks different from, or greater than, the risks of investing in more developed foreign countries. Emerging market countries may be more likely to experience rapid and significant adverse developments in their political or economic structures, intervene in financial markets, restrict foreign investments, impose high withholding or other taxes on foreign investments, impose restrictive exchange control regulations, or nationalize or expropriate the assets of private companies, which may have negative impacts on transaction costs, market price, investment returns and the legal rights and remedies available to the Fund. In addition, the securities markets of emerging market countries generally are smaller, less liquid and more volatile than those of more developed foreign countries, and emerging market countries often have less uniformity in regulatory, accounting, auditing and financial reporting requirements or standards, which may impact the availability and quality of information about issuers, and less reliable clearance and settlement, registration and custodial procedures. Securities of issuers traded on foreign exchanges may be suspended. The likelihood of such suspensions may be higher for securities of issuers in emerging market countries than in countries with more developed markets. The risks associated with investments in emerging market countries often are significant, and vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and company to company. European Economic Risk: The economies of European Union (“EU”) member countries and their trading partners, as well as the broader global economy, may be adversely affected by changes in the euro’s exchange rate, changes in EU or governmental regulations on trade, and the threat of default or an actual default by an EU member country on its sovereign debt, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments and cause it to lose money. The United Kingdom (“UK”) left the EU on January 31, 2020, commonly referred to as “Brexit.” Following a transition period, the UK’s post-Brexit trade agreement with the EU went into effect on January 1, 2021. The agreement governs the new relationship between the UK and the EU with respect to trading goods and services, but significant aspects of the relationship remain unsettled and subject to further negotiation and agreement. The political, regulatory, economic and market consequences of Brexit are uncertain, and the ultimate ramifications may not be known for some time. The negative impact on not only the UK and European economies but also the broader global economy could be significant, potentially resulting in increased volatility and illiquidity, which could adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. Any further withdrawals from the EU could cause additional market disruption globally. Investment Grade Securities Risk: Securities rated in the lower investment grade rating categories (e.g., BBB or Baa) are considered investment grade securities, but are somewhat riskier than higher rated obligations because they are regarded as having only an adequate capacity to pay principal and interest, are considered to lack outstanding investment characteristics, and may possess certain speculative characteristics. Large Shareholder Risk: A significant percentage of the Fund’s shares may be owned or controlled by the Adviser and its affiliates, other Funds advised by the Adviser (including funds of funds), or other large shareholders. Accordingly, the Fund is subject to the potential for large-scale inflows and outflows as a result of purchases and redemptions of its shares by such shareholders. These inflows and outflows could negatively affect the Fund’s net asset value and performance. Leveraging Risk: When the Fund leverages its holdings, the value of an investment in the Fund will be more volatile and all other risks will tend to be compounded. Investments that create leverage can result in losses to the Fund that exceed the amount originally invested and may accelerate the rate of losses (some of which may be sudden or substantial). For certain investments that create leverage, relatively small market fluctuations can result in large changes in the value of such investments. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s use of any leverage will be successful. Prepayment Risk and Extension Risk: Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a security held by the Fund may pay off principal more quickly than originally anticipated. This may occur when interest rates fall. The Fund may have to reinvest the proceeds in an investment offering a lower yield, may not benefit from any increase in value that might otherwise result from declining interest rates and may lose any premium it paid to acquire the security. Extension risk is the risk that the issuer of a security held by the Fund may pay off principal more slowly than originally anticipated. This may occur when interest rates rise. The Fund may be prevented from reinvesting the proceeds it would have received at a given time in an investment offering a higher yield. Privately Placed and Other Restricted Securities Risk. Restricted securities, which include privately placed securities, are securities that cannot be offered for public resale unless registered under the applicable securities laws or that have a contractual restriction that prohibits or limits their resale. Before they are registered, such securities may be sold only in a privately negotiated transaction or pursuant to an exemption from registration. Difficulty in selling securities may result in a loss or be costly to the Fund. Rule 144A is designed to facilitate efficient trading among institutional investors by permitting the sale of certain unregistered securities to qualified institutional buyers. To the extent restricted securities held by the Fund qualify under Rule 144A and an institutional market develops for those securities, the Fund likely will be able to dispose of the securities without registering them. To the extent that institutional buyers become, for a time, uninterested in purchasing these securities, investing in Rule 144A securities could increase the level of the Fund’s illiquidity. The Adviser or Sub-Adviser may determine that certain securities qualified for trading under Rule 144A are liquid. Where registration of a security is required, the Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses, and a considerable period may elapse between the time the Fund desires to sell (and therefore decides to seek registration of) the security, and the time the Fund may be permitted to sell the security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than prevailed when it desired to sell. The risk that securities may not be sold for the price at which the Fund is carrying them is greater with respect to restricted securities than it is with respect to registered securities. The illiquidity of the market, as well as the lack of publicly available information regarding these securities, also may make it difficult to determine a fair value for certain securities for purposes of computing the Fund’s net asset value. Redemption Risk: The Fund may experience periods of heavy redemptions that could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value. Redemption risk is heightened during periods of declining or illiquid markets. Heavy redemptions could hurt the Fund’s performance. Market developments and other factors, including a general rise in interest rates, have the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed income securities. The market-making capacity of dealers has been reduced in recent years, in part as a result of structural changes, such as fewer proprietary trading desks at broker-dealers and increased regulatory capital requirements. In addition, significant securities market disruptions related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic have led to dislocation in the market for a variety of fixed income securities (including, without limitation, commercial paper, corporate debt securities, certificates of deposit, asset-backed debt securities and municipal obligations), which has decreased liquidity and sharply reduced returns in certain cases. Increased redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed income securities, coupled with a reduction in the ability or willingness of dealers and other institutional investors to buy or hold fixed income securities, may result in decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the fixed income markets. Securities Lending Risk: The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to seek income. There is a risk that a borrower may default on its obligations to return loaned securities. The Fund will be responsible for the risks associated with the investment of cash collateral and may lose money on its investment of cash collateral or may fail to earn sufficient income on its investment to meet obligations to the borrower. Securities lending may introduce leverage into the Fund. In addition, delays may occur in the recovery of loaned securities from borrowers, which could interfere with the Fund’s ability to vote proxies or to settle transactions. Zero Coupon and Pay-in-Kind Securities Risk: A zero coupon or pay-in-kind security pays no interest in cash to its holder during its life. Accordingly, zero coupon securities usually trade at a deep discount from their face or par value and, together with pay-in-kind securities, will be subject to greater fluctuations in market value in response to changing interest rates than debt obligations of comparable maturities that make current distribution of interest in cash.

Risk/Return Bar Chart and Table

The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns for the past one-year, five-year and since inception periods through December 31, 2020, compared to the returns of a broad-based securities market index. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future performance.The performance results shown in the bar chart do not reflect any sales charges or account fees, which would reduce the performance results.The performance of Class T shares for periods prior to March 1, 2017 has been adjusted to reflect the current sales charges applicable to Class T shares.

Calendar Year Annual Total Returns — Class I

Best quarter (% and time period) Worst quarter (% and time period) 8.99% (2020 2nd Quarter) –10.18% (2020 1st Quarter)

Average Annual Total Returns

After-tax returns 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 (IRAs). The returns after taxes on distributions and sale of fund shares may exceed the returns before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit from any losses on a sale of fund shares at the end of the measurement period. After-tax returns are shown only for Class I shares. After-tax returns for other Classes may vary.

1290 High Yield Bond Fund | Class A Shares

On shares purchased without an initial sales charge and redeemed within 12 months of purchase.