SA JPMorgan Ultra-Short Bond Portfolio (formerly, SA DFA Ultra Short Bond Portfolio)
redemptions or investments, the Portfolio could be required to sell securities or to invest cash at a time when it is not advantageous to do so.
Call Risk. The risk that an issuer will exercise its right to pay principal on a debt obligation (such as a mortgage-backed security or convertible security) that is held by the Portfolio earlier than expected. This may happen when there is a decline in interest rates. Under these circumstances, the Portfolio may be unable to recoup all of its initial investment and will also suffer from having to reinvest in lower-yielding securities.
Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that a counterparty to a security, loan or derivative held by the Portfolio becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform its obligations due to financial difficulties. The Portfolio may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery in a bankruptcy or other reorganization proceeding, and there may be no recovery or limited recovery in such circumstances.
Credit Risk. Credit risk applies to most debt securities, but is generally not a factor for obligations backed by the "full faith and credit" of the U.S. Government. The Portfolio could lose money if the issuer of a debt security is unable or perceived to be unable to pay interest or to repay principal when it becomes due. Debt securities backed by an issuer's taxing authority may be subject to legal limits on the issuer's power to increase taxes or otherwise raise revenue, or may be dependent on legislative appropriation or government aid. Certain debt securities are backed only by revenues derived from a particular project or source, rather than by an issuer's taxing authority, and thus may have a greater risk of default.
An issuer with a lower credit rating will be more likely than a higher rated issuer to default or otherwise become unable to honor its financial obligations. Issuers with low credit ratings typically issue junk bonds. In addition to the risk of default, junk bonds may be more volatile, less liquid, more difficult to value and more susceptible to adverse economic conditions or investor perceptions than other bonds.
Derivatives Risk. A derivative is any financial instrument whose value is based on, and determined by, another security, index, rate or benchmark (i.e., stock options, futures, caps, floors, etc.). To the extent a derivative contract is used to hedge another position in the Portfolio, the Portfolio will be exposed to the risks associated with hedging described below. To the extent an option, futures contract, swap, or other derivative is used to enhance return, rather than as a hedge, the Portfolio will be directly exposed to the risks of the contract. Unfavorable changes in the value of the underlying security, index, rate or
benchmark may cause sudden losses. Gains or losses from the Portfolio's use of derivatives may be substantially greater than the amount of the Portfolio's investment. Certain derivatives have the potential for undefined loss. Derivatives are also associated with various other risks, including market risk, leverage risk, hedging risk, counterparty risk, valuation risk, regulatory risk, illiquidity risk and interest rate risk. The primary risks associated with the Portfolio's use of derivatives are market risk, counterparty risk and hedging risk.
ESG Investment Risk. The Portfolio's adherence to its ESG criteria and application of related analyses when selecting investments may impact the Portfolio's performance, including relative to similar funds that do not adhere to such criteria or apply such analyses. Additionally, the Portfolio's adherence to its ESG criteria and application of related analyses in connection with identifying and selecting investments may require subjective analysis and may be more difficult if data about a particular company or market is limited, such as with respect to issuers in emerging markets countries. The Portfolio may invest in companies that do not reflect the beliefs and values of any particular investor. Socially responsible norms differ by country and region, and a company's ESG practices or the subadviser's assessment of such may change over time.
Floating Rate Securities Risk. Floating rate securities reset whenever there is a change in a specified index rate. In most cases, these reset provisions reduce the impact of changes in market interest rates on the value of the security. However, the value of these securities may decline if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as other interest rates. Conversely, these securities will not generally increase in value if interest rates decline. The absence of an active market for these securities could make it difficult for the Portfolio to dispose of them if the issuer defaults.
Variable and floating rate obligations normally will involve industrial development or revenue bonds which provide that the rate of interest is set as a specific percentage of a designated base rate, such as rates on Treasury Bonds or Bills or the prime rate at a major commercial bank, and that a bondholder can demand payment of the obligations on behalf of a Portfolio on short notice at par plus accrued interest, which amount may be more or less than the amount the bondholder paid for them. The maturity of floating or variable rate obligations (including participation interests therein) is deemed to be the longer of (i) the notice period required before a Portfolio is entitled to receive payment of the obligation upon demand, or (ii) the period remaining until the obligation's next interest rate adjustment. If not redeemed by a Portfolio through the