Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust

04/29/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/29/2024 04:01

Summary Prospectus by Investment Company - Form 497K

Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust
SummaryProspectus
April 29, 2024
GOLDMAN SACHS VARIABLE INSURANCE TRUST
Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares

Before you invest, you may want to review the Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio (the "Fund") Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund's Prospectus, reports to shareholders and other information about the Fund online at http://www.gsamfunds.com/vitfunds. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 800-621-2550 or by sending an e-mail request to [email protected]. The Fund's Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information ("SAI"), both dated April 29, 2024, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.
Investment Objective
The Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio (the "Fund") seeks long-term growth of capital.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell Institutional Shares of the Fund. This table does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Fund as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, overall fees and expenses would be higher.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fees
0.15%
Other Expenses
0.62%
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses
0.75%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses1
1.52%
Fee Waiver and Expense Limitation2
(0.56)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Limitation1
0.96%
1
The "Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses" do not correlate to the ratios of the net and total expenses to average net assets provided in the Financial Highlights, which reflect the operating expenses of the Fund and do not include Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses.
2
The Investment Adviser has agreed to (i) waive all management fees payable by the Fund and (ii) reduce or limit "Other Expenses" (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, transfer agency fees and expenses, service fees and shareholder administration fees (as applicable), taxes, interest, brokerage fees, expenses of shareholder meetings, litigation and indemnification, and extraordinary expenses) to 0.204% of the Fund's average daily net assets and an amount equal to any management fees it earns as an investment adviser to any of the affiliated money market funds in which the Fund invests. These arrangements will remain in effect through at least April 29, 2025, and prior to such date the Investment Adviser may not terminate the arrangements without the approval of the Board of Trustees.
Expense 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. This Example does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Fund as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, the costs shown below would be higher. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in Institutional Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Institutional Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same (except that the Example incorporates any applicable fee waiver and/or expense limitation arrangements for only the first year). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Institutional Shares
$98
$425
$776
$1,765

Portfolio Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities or instruments (i.e., "turns over" its portfolio). A high rate of portfolio turnover may result in increased transaction costs, including brokerage commissions, which must be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. These costs are not reflected in the annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example above, but are reflected in the Fund's performance. The Fund's portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 was 23% of the average value of its portfolio.
2 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
Principal Strategy
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing in a combination of underlying variable insurance funds and mutual funds that currently exist or that may become available for investment in the future for which Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. ("GSAM" or the "Investment Adviser") or an affiliate now or in the future acts as investment adviser or principal underwriter (the "Underlying Funds") without considering or canvassing the universe of unaffiliated investment companies available. The Fund invests in Underlying Funds that pursue a variety of strategies and invest in a variety of asset classes. The Investment Adviser selects strategies and asset classes based on the desired risk profile and investment objective for the Fund. The Fund invests primarily in a portfolio of Underlying Funds that provide exposure to Liquid Alternatives Strategies and Satellite and Real Assets ("Underlying Asset Classes and Strategies"). Liquid Alternatives Strategies generally include, but are not limited to, momentum or trend trading strategies (investment decisions based on trends in asset prices over time), hedge fund beta (long term total returns consistent with investment results that approximate the return and risk patterns of a diversified universe of hedge funds), long/short strategies or relative value strategies (which seek to capture mispricings across securities, sectors and regions), tactical allocation strategies (investment decisions based on market conditions that seek to monetize short-term dislocations across asset classes) and unconstrained fixed income strategies (which have the ability to invest across various fixed income sectors). Satellite and Real Assets generally include, but are not limited to, global real estate securities, emerging markets equity and debt, and high yield and bank loans.
Through its investments in Underlying Funds and/or unaffiliated exchange-traded funds ("ETFs"), the Fund may indirectly invest in the following to obtain exposure to Underlying Asset Classes and Strategies: (i) equity securities, including common and preferred stocks, real estate investment trusts ("REITs"), pooled investment vehicles (including other unaffiliated investment companies and ETFs) and partnership interests, including master limited partnerships ("MLPs"); (ii) fixed income and/or floating rate securities, including debt issued by corporations, debt issued by governments (including the U.S. and foreign governments), their agencies, instrumentalities, sponsored entities, and political subdivisions, covered bonds, notes, debentures, debt participations, convertible bonds, non-investment grade securities (commonly known as "junk bonds"), bank loans and other direct indebtedness; (iii) mortgage-backed and other mortgage-related securities, asset-backed securities, municipal securities, to be announced ("TBA") securities and custodial receipts; (iv) currencies; and (v) restricted securities eligible for resale pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933 ("144A Securities"). These investments may be publicly traded or privately issued or negotiated. The Fund may also invest directly in all of the above instruments. The Fund may invest without restriction as to issuer capitalization, country, currency, maturity or credit rating.
The Fund and certain Underlying Funds may also invest in derivatives for both hedging and investment purposes. The Fund's derivative exposure (which will primarily be obtained through its investments in the Underlying Funds) may include (i) futures contracts, including futures based on equity or fixed income securities and/or equity or fixed income indices, interest rate futures, currency futures and swap futures; (ii) swaps, including equity, currency, interest rate, total return, variance and credit default swaps and swaps on futures contracts; (iii) options, including long and short positions in call options and put options on indices, individual securities or currencies, swaptions and options on futures contracts; (iv) forward contracts, including forwards based on equity or fixed income securities and/or equity or fixed income indices,
currency forwards, interest rate forwards, swap forwards and non-deliverable forwards; and (v) other instruments, including structured securities, credit linked notes, exchange-traded notes and contracts for differences ("CFDs"). The Fund's direct derivatives investments are expected to consist primarily of futures, options on indices and currency forwards, which the Fund may use to gain exposure to certain markets or currencies.
The Fund intends to invest no more than 20% of its total assets in Underlying Funds that are managed by an investment advisor other than GSAM or its affiliates. In managing the Fund, the Investment Adviser seeks to budget or allocate portfolio risk, as opposed to capital. The Investment Adviser adjusts the Fund's risk exposures based on changes to its macro-economic views, changes to absolute and relative valuations across the Fund's exposures, and changes in the risk characteristics of the Fund's investments over time. The Investment Adviser may make short- to medium-term allocation adjustments to each Underlying Asset Class and Strategy and their constituents based on reasoned views of short- to medium-term market conditions with the goal of improving the Fund's investments over time. The Investment Adviser may change the Fund's allocation ranges, Underlying Asset Classes and Strategies and underlying investments from time to time at its discretion to incorporate its market views into the investment process and to react to changes in the macro-economic environment. THE PARTICULAR UNDERLYING FUNDS IN WHICH THE FUND MAY INVEST MAY BE CHANGED FROM TIME TO TIME WITHOUT SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL OR NOTICE.
Principal Risks of the Fund
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The investment program of the Fund is speculative, entails substantial risks and includes alternative investment techniques not employed by traditional mutual funds. The Fund should not be relied upon as a complete investment program. The Fund investment techniques (if they do not perform as designed) may increase the volatility of performance and the risk of investment loss, including the loss of the entire amount that is invested, and there can be no assurance that the investment objective of the Fund will be achieved. Moreover, certain investment techniques which the Fund may employ in its investment program can substantially increase the adverse impact to which the Fund investments may be subject. There is no assurance that the investment processes of the Fund will be successful, that the techniques utilized therein will be implemented successfully or that they are adequate for their intended uses, or that the discretionary element of the investment processes of the Fund will be exercised in a manner that is successful or that is not adverse to the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a bank deposit and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") or any government agency. Investors should carefully consider these risks before investing. The Fund's principal risks are presented below in alphabetical order, and not in the order of importance or potential exposure.
Derivatives Risk.The Fund's use of options, futures, options on indices, currency forwards and other derivative instruments may result in losses, including due to adverse market movements. These instruments, which may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other assets and instruments, may increase market exposure and be illiquid or less liquid, volatile, difficult to price and leveraged so that small changes in the value of the underlying assets or instruments may produce disproportionate losses to the Fund. Certain derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the
3 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
transaction will not fulfill its contractual obligations. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.
Expenses Risk.By investing in the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs indirectly through the Fund, the investor will incur not only a proportionate share of the expenses of the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs held by the Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees), but also the expenses of the Fund.
Investing in the Underlying Funds and Unaffiliated ETFs. The investments of the Fund are concentrated in the Underlying Funds, and the Fund's investment performance is directly related to the investment performance of the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs it holds. The ability of the Fund to meet its investment objective is directly related to the ability of the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs to meet their objectives, as well as the allocation among those Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs by the Investment Adviser.
Investments in Affiliated Underlying Funds. The Investment Adviser will have the authority to select and substitute Underlying Funds. The Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates are compensated by the Fund and by certain Underlying Funds for advisory and/or principal underwriting services provided. The Investment Adviser is subject to conflicts of interest in allocating Fund assets among certain Underlying Funds both because the fees payable to it and/or its affiliates by the Underlying Funds differ and because the Investment Adviser and its affiliates are also responsible for managing the Underlying Funds. The portfolio managers may also be subject to conflicts of interest in allocating Fund assets among the various Underlying Funds because the Fund's portfolio management team may also manage some of the Underlying Funds. The Trustees and officers of the Goldman Sachs Variable Insurance Trust may also have conflicting interests in fulfilling their fiduciary duties to both the Fund and the Underlying Funds for which GSAM or its affiliates now or in the future serve as investment adviser or principal underwriter. In addition, the Investment Adviser's authority to allocate investments among affiliated and unaffiliated investment companies creates conflicts of interest. For example, investing in affiliated investment companies could cause the Fund to incur higher fees and may cause the Investment Adviser and/or its affiliates to receive greater compensation, increase assets under management or support particular investment strategies or affiliated investment companies. In selecting actively managed Underlying Funds, the Investment Adviser generally expects to select affiliated investment companies without considering or canvassing the universe of unaffiliated investment companies available even though there may (or may not) be one or more unaffiliated investment companies that may be a more appropriate addition to the Fund, that investors may regard as a more attractive investment for the Fund, or that may have higher returns. To the extent that an investment in an affiliated investment company is not available, including as the result of capacity constraints, only then will the Investment Adviser consider unaffiliated investment companies.
Investments of the Underlying Funds. Because the Fund invests in the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs, the Fund's shareholders will be affected by the investment policies and practices of the Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund allocates to those Underlying Funds and unaffiliated ETFs. See the Principal Risks of the Underlying Funds below.
Large Shareholder Transactions Risk. The Fund may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders purchase or redeem large amounts of shares of the Fund. Such large shareholder redemptions, which may occur rapidly or unexpectedly, may cause the Fund to sell portfolio securities at times when it would not otherwise do
so, which may negatively impact the Fund's NAV and liquidity. Similarly, large Fund share purchases may adversely affect the Fund's performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash or otherwise maintains a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. These transactions may also increase transaction costs. In addition, a large redemption could result in the Fund's current expenses being allocated over a smaller asset base, leading to an increase in the Fund's expense ratio.
Market Risk.The value of the securities in which the Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors or governments and/or general economic conditions throughout the world due to increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets. Events such as war, military conflict, acts of terrorism, social unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, sanctions, the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats could also significantly impact the Fund and its investments.
Tax Diversification Risk. The Fund intends to meet the diversification requirements that are applicable to insurance company separate accounts under Subchapter L of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") (the "Diversification Requirements"). In order for the Fund to qualify for "look through" treatment under the Diversification Requirements, Fund shares must be sold only to persons permitted to hold shares, directly or indirectly (each, a "Permitted Investor"), under Section 817 of the Code and Treasury Regulation 1.817-5(f), as supplemented by published rulings and procedures issued thereunder by the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). To the extent an investor in Fund shares no longer qualifies as a Permitted Investor, and such investor fails to restore its status as a Permitted Investor or obtain a waiver or closing agreement with respect to such failure from the IRS, the Fund may no longer qualify for "look through" treatment. Therefore, in testing compliance with the Diversification Requirements, an investor in the Fund, such as, for example, an insurance company separate account, no longer would be able to look through the Fund to its underlying investments. Instead, the Fund would be considered a single investment for purposes of the Diversification Requirements.
A failure to satisfy the Diversification Requirements (whether resulting from investors in Fund shares or otherwise) could have significant adverse tax consequences for variable contract owners whose contract values are determined by investment in the Fund. See "Taxation" in the Statement of Additional Information (the "SAI") for more information.
Temporary Investments. Although the Fund normally seeks to invest primarily in the Underlying Funds, the Fund may invest a portion of its assets in high-quality, short-term debt obligations to maintain liquidity, to meet shareholder redemptions and for other short-term cash needs. For temporary defensive purposes during abnormal market or economic conditions, the Fund may invest without limitation in short-term obligations. When the Fund's assets are invested in such investments, the Fund may not be achieving its investment objective.
Principal Risks of the Underlying Funds
Absence of Regulation. Certain Underlying Funds engage in over-the-counter ("OTC") transactions, which trade in a dealer network, rather than on an exchange. In general, there is less governmental regulation and supervision of transactions in the OTC markets than of transactions entered into on organized exchanges.
Asian Investment Risk. Investing in certain Asian issuers may involve a higher degree of risk and special considerations not typically associated with investing in issuers from more established economies or securities markets. The Underlying Fund's investments in Asian issuers increase
4 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
the risks to the Underlying Fund of conditions and developments that may be particular to Asian countries, such as: volatile economic cycles and/or securities markets; adverse changes to exchange rates; social, political, military, regulatory, economic or environmental developments; or natural disasters.
Call/Prepayment Risk. An issuer could exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by an Underlying Fund (such as a mortgage-backed security) earlier than expected. This may happen when there is a decline in interest rates, when credit spreads change, or when an issuer's credit quality improves. Under these circumstances, the Underlying Fund may be unable to recoup all of its initial investment and will also suffer from having to reinvest in lower-yielding securities.
Collateralized Loan Obligations Risk. An Underlying Fund may invest in collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs") and other similarly structured investments. A CLO is an asset-backed security whose underlying collateral is a pool of loans, which may include, among others, domestic and foreign floating rate and fixed rate senior secured loans, senior unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade or equivalent unrated loans. In addition to the normal risks associated with loan- and credit-related securities discussed elsewhere in the Prospectus (e.g., loan-related investments risk, interest rate risk and default risk), investments in CLOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to, the risk that: (i) distributions from the collateral may not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) an Underlying Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs that are subordinate to other tranches; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes among investors regarding the characterization of proceeds; and (v) the CLO's manager may perform poorly.
CLOs issue classes or "tranches" that offer various maturity, risk and yield characteristics. Losses caused by defaults on underlying assets are borne first by the holders of subordinate tranches. Despite the protection from subordinate tranches, more senior tranches of CLOs can experience losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and disappearance of more subordinate tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CLO securities as a class. An Underlying Fund's investments in CLOs primarily consist of investment grade tranches.
Commodity Sector Risk. Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Underlying Fund to greater volatility than investments in more traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked investments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, livestock disease, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments. The prices of energy, industrial metals, precious metals, agriculture and livestock sector commodities may fluctuate widely due to factors such as changes in value, supply and demand and governmental regulatory policies. The commodity-linked investments in which the Underlying Fund's subsidiary may enter into may involve counterparties in the financial services sector, and events affecting the financial services sector may cause the subsidiary's, and therefore the Underlying Fund's, share value to fluctuate.
Conflict of Interest Risk.Affiliates of the Investment Adviser may participate in the primary and secondary market for loan obligations. Because of limitations imposed by applicable law, the presence of the Investment Adviser's affiliates in the loan obligations market may restrict the Underlying Fund's ability to acquire some loan obligations or affect the timing or price of such acquisitions. Also, because the
Investment Adviser may wish to invest in the publicly traded securities of a borrower, it may not have access to material non-public information regarding the borrower to which other lenders have access.
Counterparty Risk. Many of the protections afforded to cleared transactions, such as the security afforded by transacting through a clearing house, might not be available in connection with OTC transactions. Therefore, in those instances in which the Underlying Fund enters into uncleared OTC transactions, the Underlying Fund will be subject to the risk that its direct counterparty will not perform its obligations under the transactions and that the Underlying Fund will sustain losses.
Credit/Default Risk. An issuer or guarantor of fixed income securities held by an Underlying Fund (which may have low credit ratings) may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal or default on any other obligation. Additionally, the credit quality of securities may deteriorate rapidly, which may impair an Underlying Fund's liquidity and cause significant deterioration in net asset value ("NAV"). These risks are heightened in market environments where interest rates are rising as well as in connection with an Underlying Fund's investments in non-investment grade fixed income securities.
Derivatives Risk.An Underlying Fund's use of options, forwards, futures, swaps, structured securities and other derivative instruments may result in losses, including due to adverse market movements. These instruments, which may pose risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, currencies or other assets and instruments, may increase market exposure and be illiquid or less liquid, volatile, difficult to price and leveraged so that small changes in the value of the underlying assets or instruments may produce disproportionate losses to the Underlying Fund. Certain derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will not fulfill its contractual obligations. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.
Dividend-Paying Investments Risk. The Underlying Fund's investments in dividend-paying securities could cause the Underlying Fund to underperform other funds. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, can fall out of favor with the market, causing such securities to underperform securities that do not pay dividends. Depending upon market conditions and political and legislative responses to such conditions, dividend-paying securities that meet the Underlying Fund's investment criteria may not be widely available and/or may be highly concentrated in only a few market sectors. In addition, issuers that have paid regular dividends or distributions to shareholders may not continue to do so at the same level or at all in the future. This may limit the ability of the Underlying Fund to produce current income.
Expenses Risk. Because the Underlying Funds may invest in pooled investment vehicles (including investment companies and ETFs, partnerships and REITs), the investor will incur indirectly through the Fund a proportionate share of the expenses of the other pooled investment vehicles, partnerships and REITs held by the Underlying Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees), in addition to the expenses of the Underlying Fund.
Extension Risk. An issuer could exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by the Underlying Fund (such as a mortgage-backed security) later than expected. This may happen when there is a rise in interest rates. Under these circumstances, the value of the obligation will decrease, and the Underlying Fund will also suffer from the inability to reinvest in higher yielding securities.
5 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
Floating and Variable Rate Obligations Risk. For floating and variable rate obligations, there may be a lag between an actual change in the underlying interest rate benchmark and the reset time for an interest payment of such an obligation, which could harm or benefit an Underlying Fund, depending on the interest rate environment or other circumstances. In a rising interest rate environment, for example, a floating or variable rate obligation that does not reset immediately would prevent an Underlying Fund from taking full advantage of rising interest rates in a timely manner. However, in a declining interest rate environment, an Underlying Fund may benefit from a lag due to an obligation's interest rate payment not being immediately impacted by a decline in interest rates.
Certain floating and variable rate obligations have an interest rate floor feature, which prevents the interest rate payable by the security from dropping below a specified level as compared to a reference interest rate (the "reference rate"), such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR"), a term SOFR rate published by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (CBA) calculated using certain derivatives markets ("Term SOFR") or another rate determined using SOFR values. Such a floor protects an Underlying Fund from losses resulting from a decrease in the reference rate below the specified level. However, if the reference rate is below the floor, there will be a lag between a rise in the reference rate and a rise in the interest rate payable by the obligation, and an Underlying Fund may not benefit from increasing interest rates for a significant amount of time.
Some floating or variable rate obligations or investments of an Underlying Fund may reference (or may have previously referenced) the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). As a result of benchmark reforms, publication of most LIBOR settings has ceased. Some LIBOR settings continue to be published but only on a temporary, synthetic and non-representative basis and are expected to cease being published in September 2024. Regulated entities have generally ceased entering into new LIBOR contracts in connection with regulatory guidance or prohibitions. Public and private sector actors have worked to establish alternative reference rates, like SOFR or Term SOFR, to be used in place of LIBOR. There is no assurance that any such alternative reference rate will be similar to or produce the same value or economic equivalence as LIBOR or that it will have the same volume or liquidity as did LIBOR which may affect the value, volatility, liquidity or return on certain of an Underlying Fund's floating and variable rate obligations and investments and result in costs incurred in connection with changing reference rates used for positions, closing out positions and entering into new trades. For example, LIBOR was previously calculated using the average rate at which a selection of large global banks reported they could borrow from one another and SOFR is a measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight, collateralized by the U.S. Treasury securities, and is based on directly observable U.S. Treasury-backed repurchase transactions. Certain of an Underlying Fund's obligations or investments may have transitioned from LIBOR or may transition from LIBOR in the future. The transition from LIBOR to alternative reference rates may result in operational issues for an Underlying Fund or its obligations or investments. Any pricing adjustments to the Fund's obligations or investments resulting from use of an alternative reference rate may also adversely affect an Underlying Fund's performance and/or NAV. No assurances can be given as to the impact of the LIBOR transition (and the timing of any such impact) on an Underlying Fund and its obligations and investments.
Foreign and Emerging Countries Risk. Foreign securities may be subject to risk of loss because of more or less foreign government regulation; less public information; less stringent investor protections; less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards; and less economic, political and social stability in
the countries in which the Underlying Fund invests. The imposition of sanctions, exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions), confiscations, trade restrictions (including tariffs) and other government restrictions by the United States and other governments, or from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, may also result in losses. The type and severity of sanctions and other similar measures, including counter sanctions and other retaliatory actions, that may be imposed could vary broadly in scope, and their impact is impossible to predict. For example, the imposition of sanctions and other similar measures could, among other things, cause a decline in the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by the sanctioned country or companies located in or economically tied to the sanctioned country and increase market volatility and disruption in the sanctioned country and throughout the world. Sanctions and other similar measures could limit or prevent the Fund from buying and selling securities (in the sanctioned country and other markets), significantly delay or prevent the settlement of securities transactions, and significantly impact the Fund's liquidity and performance. Foreign risk also involves the risk of negative foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, which may cause the value of securities denominated in such foreign currency (or other instruments through which the Underlying Fund has exposure to foreign currencies) to decline in value. Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. These risks are more pronounced in connection with the Underlying Fund's investments in securities of issuers located in, or otherwise economically tied to, emerging and frontier countries.
Geographic Risk.If an Underlying Fund focuses its investments in issuers located in a particular country or geographic region, the Underlying Fund may be subjected to a greater extent than if investments were less focused, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular to that country or region, such as: adverse securities markets; adverse exchange rates; adverse social, political, regulatory, economic, business, environmental or other developments; or natural disasters.
Index Risk. To the extent that an index-tracking strategy is used with respect to a portion of the Underlying Fund's assets, including through investment in an ETF that seeks to track an index or implementation of a sub-strategy by a transition manager, the Underlying Fund will be negatively affected by general declines in the securities and asset classes represented in the relevant index. There is no guarantee that the Underlying Fund, or relevant portion of the Underlying Fund, will achieve a high degree of correlation to the relevant index. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Underlying Fund's ability, or the ability of an ETF in which it invests, to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order for the relevant portion of the Underlying Fund to track the relevant index. In addition, because that portion of the Underlying Fund is not "actively" managed, unless a specific security is removed from the relevant index, the Underlying Fund or an ETF in which it invests generally would not sell a security because the security's issuer was in financial trouble. At times when an index-tracking strategy is used with respect to a portion of the Underlying Fund's assets, the Underlying Fund's performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift all of their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Industry Concentration Risk. An Underlying Fund concentrates its investments in securities of companies in the infrastructure group of industries. This concentration subjects the Underlying Fund to greater risk of loss as a result of adverse economic, business, political, environmental or other developments in such industries than if its investments were diversified across different industries.
6 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
Infrastructure Company Risk. Infrastructure companies are susceptible to various factors that may negatively impact their businesses or operations, including costs associated with compliance with and changes in environmental, governmental and other regulations, rising interest costs in connection with capital construction and improvement programs, government budgetary constraints that impact publicly funded projects, the effects of general economic conditions throughout the world, surplus capacity and depletion concerns, increased competition from other providers of services, uncertainties regarding the availability of fuel and other natural resources at reasonable prices, the effects of energy conservation policies, unfavorable tax laws or accounting policies and high leverage. Infrastructure companies will also be affected by innovations in technology that could render the way in which a company delivers a product or service obsolete and natural or man-made disasters.
Interest Rate Risk. When interest rates increase, fixed income securities or instruments held by the Underlying Fund will generally decline in value. Long-term fixed income securities or instruments will normally have more price volatility because of this risk than short-term fixed income securities or instruments. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Underlying Fund performance. In addition, changes in monetary policy may exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates. Funds with longer average portfolio durations will generally be more sensitive to changes in interest rates than funds with a shorter average portfolio duration. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Underlying Fund.
Investment Style Risk. Different investment styles (e.g., "growth", "value" or "quantitative") tend to shift in and out of favor depending upon market and economic conditions and investor sentiment. The Underlying Fund may outperform or underperform other funds that invest in similar asset classes but employ different investment styles.
Large Shareholder Transactions Risk. An Underlying Fund may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders purchase or redeem large amounts of shares of the Underlying Fund. Such large shareholder redemptions, which may occur rapidly or unexpectedly, may cause an Underlying Fund to sell portfolio securities at times when it would not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Underlying Fund's NAV and liquidity. Similarly, large Underlying Fund share purchases may adversely affect the Underlying Fund's performance to the extent that the Underlying Fund is delayed in investing new cash or otherwise maintains a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. These transactions may also increase transaction costs. In addition, a large redemption could result in the Underlying Fund's current expenses being allocated over a smaller asset base, leading to an increase in the Underlying Fund's expense ratio.
Leverage Risk. Borrowing and the use of derivatives may result in leverage and may increase market exposure and make an Underlying Fund more volatile. The use of leverage may cause an Underlying Fund to liquidate portfolio positions to satisfy its obligations or to meet margin/collateral requirements when it may not be advantageous to do so. The use of leverage by an Underlying Fund can substantially increase the Underlying Fund's investment risks and cause losses to be realized more quickly.
Liquidity Risk. An Underlying Fund may make investments that are illiquid or that may become less liquid in response to market developments or adverse investor perceptions. Illiquid investments may be more difficult to value. Liquidity risk may also refer to the risk that an Underlying Fund will not be able to pay redemption proceeds within the allowable time period because of unusual market conditions,
declining prices of the securities sold, an unusually high volume of redemption requests, or other reasons. To meet redemption requests, an Underlying Fund may be forced to sell securities at an unfavorable time and/or under unfavorable conditions. Liquidity risk may be the result of, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed income securities or the lack of an active market. The potential for liquidity risk may be magnified by a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed income funds may be higher than normal, potentially causing increased supply in the market due to selling activity. These risks may be more pronounced in connection with an Underlying Fund's investments in securities of issuers located in emerging market countries. Redemptions by large shareholders may have a negative impact on an Underlying Fund's liquidity.
Loan-Related Investments Risk. In addition to risks generally associated with debt investments (e.g., interest rate risk and default risk), loan-related investments such as loan participations and assignments are subject to other risks. Although a loan obligation may be fully collateralized at the time of acquisition, the collateral may decline in value, be or become illiquid or less liquid, or lose all or substantially all of its value subsequent to investment. Many loan investments are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale and certain loan investments may be or become illiquid or less liquid and more difficult to value, particularly in the event of a downgrade of the loan or the borrower. There is less readily available, reliable information about most loan investments than is the case for many other types of securities. Substantial increases in interest rates may cause an increase in loan obligation defaults. With respect to loan participations, an Underlying Fund may not always have direct recourse against a borrower if the borrower fails to pay scheduled principal and/or interest; may be subject to greater delays, expenses and risks than if the Underlying Fund had purchased a direct obligation of the borrower; and may be regarded as the creditor of the agent lender or counterparty (rather than the borrower), subjecting the Underlying Fund to the creditworthiness of that lender as well. Investors in loans, such as an Underlying Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.
The market for loan obligations may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, an Underlying Fund may not receive the proceeds from the sale of a loan for a period after the sale. As a result, sale proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet the Underlying Fund's redemption obligations for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Underlying Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions, such as borrowing from its credit facility, if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. During periods of heightened redemption activity or distressed market conditions, an Underlying Fund may seek to obtain expedited trade settlement, which will generally incur additional costs (although expedited trade settlement will not always be available).
Senior loans hold the most senior position in the capital structure of a business entity, and are typically secured with specific collateral, but are nevertheless usually rated below investment grade. Because second lien loans are subordinated or unsecured and thus lower in priority of payment to senior loans, they are subject to the additional risk that the cash flow of the borrower and property securing the loan or debt, if any, may be insufficient to meet scheduled payments after giving effect to the senior secured obligations of the borrower. Second lien loans generally have greater price volatility than senior loans and may be less
7 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
liquid. Generally, loans have the benefit of restrictive covenants that limit the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets or impose other obligations. To the extent a loan does not have certain covenants (or has less restrictive covenants), an investment in the loan will be particularly sensitive to the risks associated with loan investments.
Management Risk.A strategy used by the Investment Adviser may fail to produce the intended results. The Investment Adviser attempts to execute a complex strategy with respect to certain of the Underlying Funds using proprietary quantitative models. Investments selected using these models may perform differently than expected as a result of the factors used in the models, the weight placed on each factor, changes from the factors' historical trends, and technical issues in the construction and implementation of the models (including, for example, data problems and/or software issues). There is no guarantee that the Investment Adviser's use of these quantitative models will result in effective investment decisions for an Underlying Fund. Additionally, commonality of holdings across quantitative money managers may amplify losses. The Investment Adviser may occasionally make changes to the selection or weight of individual securities, currencies or markets in the Underlying Fund, as a result of changes to a quantitative model, the method of applying that model, or the judgment of the Investment Adviser.
Market Risk. The value of the securities in which an Underlying Fund invests may go up or down in response to the prospects of individual companies, particular sectors or governments and/or general economic conditions throughout the world due to increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets. Events such as war, military conflict, acts of terrorism, social unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, sanctions, the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats could also significantly impact an Underlying Fund and its investments.
Master Limited Partnership Risk. Investments in securities of an MLP involve risks that differ from investments in common stock, including risks related to limited control and limited rights to vote on matters affecting the MLP. Certain MLP securities may trade in lower volumes due to their smaller capitalizations, and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements and lower market liquidity. MLPs are generally considered interest-rate sensitive investments. During periods of interest rate volatility, these investments may not provide attractive returns.
Investments in securities of an MLP also include tax-related risks. For example, to the extent a distribution received by an Underlying Fund from an MLP is treated as a return of capital, the Underlying Fund's adjusted tax basis in the interests of the MLP may be reduced, which will result in an increase in an amount of income or gain (or decrease in the amount of loss) that will be recognized by the Underlying Fund for tax purposes upon the sale of any such interests or upon subsequent distributions in respect of such interests.
Mid-Cap and Small-Cap Risk. Investments in mid-capitalization and small-capitalization companies involve greater risks than those associated with larger, more established companies. These securities may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements and may lack sufficient market liquidity, and these issuers often face greater business risks.
Mortgage-Backed and Other Asset-Backed Securities Risk.Mortgage-related and other asset-backed securities are subject to credit/default, interest rate and certain additional risks, including "extension risk" (i.e., in periods of rising interest rates, issuers may pay principal later than expected) and "prepayment risk" (i.e., in periods of declining interest rates, issuers may pay principal more quickly than expected, causing an Underlying Fund to reinvest proceeds at lower prevailing
interest rates). Due to these risks, asset-backed securities may become more volatile in certain interest rate environments. Mortgage-backed securities offered by non-governmental issuers are subject to other risks as well, including failures of private insurers to meet their obligations and unexpectedly high rates of default on the mortgages backing the securities, particularly during periods of rising interest rates. Other asset-backed securities are subject to risks similar to those associated with mortgage-backed securities, as well as risks associated with the nature and servicing of the assets backing the securities. Asset-backed securities may not have the benefit of a security interest in collateral comparable to that of mortgage assets, resulting in additional credit risk.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to call/prepayment risk, credit/default risk, interest rate risk and certain additional risks. An Underlying Fund may be more sensitive to adverse economic, business or political developments if it invests a substantial portion of its assets in the bonds of similar projects (such as those relating to education, health care, housing, transportation, and utilities), industrial development bonds, or in particular types of municipal securities (such as general obligation bonds, private activity bonds and moral obligation bonds). While interest earned on municipal securities is generally not subject to federal tax, any interest earned on taxable municipal securities is fully taxable at the federal level and may be subject to tax at the state level.
NAV Risk. The NAV of an Underlying Fund and the value of the Underlying Fund's investment will fluctuate.
Non-Diversification Risk. Certain of the Underlying Funds are non-diversified, meaning that they are permitted to invest a larger percentage of their assets in one or more issuers or in fewer issuers than diversified mutual funds. Thus, an Underlying Fund may be more susceptible to adverse developments affecting any single issuer held in its portfolio, and may be more susceptible to greater losses because of these developments.
Non-Hedging Foreign Currency Trading Risk. Certain Underlying Funds may engage in forward foreign currency transactions for both hedging and non-hedging purposes. An Underlying Fund's investment adviser may purchase or sell foreign currencies through the use of forward contracts based on the investment adviser's judgment regarding the direction of the market for a particular foreign currency or currencies. In pursuing this strategy, the Underlying Fund's investment adviser seeks to profit from anticipated movements in currency rates by establishing "long" and/or "short" positions in forward contracts on various foreign currencies. Foreign exchange rates can be extremely volatile and a variance in the degree of volatility of the market or in the direction of the market from the investment adviser's expectations may produce significant losses to the Underlying Fund. Some of these transactions may also be subject to interest rate risk.
Non-Investment Grade Fixed Income Securities Risk. Non-investment grade fixed income securities and unrated securities of comparable credit quality (commonly known as "junk bonds") are considered speculative and are subject to the increased risk of an issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payment obligations. These securities may be subject to greater price volatility due to such factors as specific issuer developments, interest rate sensitivity, negative perceptions of the junk bond markets generally and less liquidity.
Other Investment Companies Risk. By investing in other investment companies (including ETFs) indirectly through the Underlying Fund, investors will incur a proportionate share of the expenses of the other investment companies held by the Underlying Fund (including operating costs and investment management fees) in addition to the fees regularly
8 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
borne by the Underlying Fund. In addition, the Underlying Fund will be affected by the investment policies, practices and performance of such investment companies in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Underlying Fund invests therein.
Portfolio Turnover Rate Risk. A high rate of portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater expenses which must be borne by an Underlying Fund and its shareholders (including the Fund), and is also likely to result in short-term capital gains taxable to shareholders of the Underlying Fund.
REIT Risk. REITs whose underlying properties are concentrated in a particular industry or geographic region are subject to risks affecting such industries and regions. The securities of REITs involve greater risks than those associated with larger, more established companies and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements because of interest rate changes, economic conditions and other factors. Securities of such issuers may lack sufficient market liquidity to enable an Underlying Fund to effect sales at an advantageous time or without a substantial drop in price.
Short Position Risk. An Underlying Fund may enter into a short position through a futures contract, an option or swap agreement or through short sales of any instrument that the Underlying Fund may purchase for investment. Taking short positions involves leverage of the Underlying Fund's assets and presents various risks. If the value of the underlying instrument or market in which the Underlying Fund has taken a short position increases, then the Underlying Fund will incur a loss equal to the increase in value from the time that the short position was entered into plus any related interest payments or other fees. Taking short positions involves the risk that losses may be disproportionate, may exceed the amount invested and may be unlimited.
Sovereign Default Risk. An issuer of non-U.S. sovereign debt held by an Underlying Fund, or the governmental authorities that control the repayment of the debt, may be unable or unwilling to repay the principal or interest when due. This may result from political or social factors, the general economic environment of a country, levels of borrowing rates, foreign debt, or foreign currency exchange rates.
Special Situation Investments Risk. An Underlying Fund may make investments in event-driven situations such as recapitalizations, financings, corporate and financial restructurings, acquisitions, divestitures, reorganizations or other situations in public or private companies that may provide the Underlying Fund with an opportunity to provide debt and/or equity financing, typically on a negotiated basis. The Investment Adviser of the Underlying Fund will seek special situation investment opportunities with limited downside risk relative to their potential upside. These investments are complicated and an incorrect assessment of the downside risk associated with an investment could result in significant losses to the Underlying Fund.
Stable NAV Risk. The Underlying Financial Square Government Fund may not be able to maintain a stable $1.00 share price at all times. If any money market fund fails to maintain a stable NAV (or if there is a perceived threat of such a failure), other money market funds, including the Underlying Financial Square Government Fund, could be subject to increased redemption activity, which could adversely affect the Underlying Fund's NAV. Shareholders of the Underlying Financial Square Government Fund should not rely on or expect the Investment Adviser or an affiliate to purchase distressed assets from the Underlying Fund, make capital infusions into the Underlying Fund, enter into capital support agreements with the Underlying Fund or take other actions to help the Underlying Fund maintain a stable $1.00 share price.
Stock Risk. Stock prices have historically risen and fallen in periodic cycles. U.S.and foreign stock markets have experienced periods of substantial price volatility in the past and may do so again in the future.
Subsidiary Risk. The subsidiaries of certain Underlying Funds are not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended ("Investment Company Act") and are not subject to all the investor protections of the Investment Company Act. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of an Underlying Fund and/or its subsidiary to operate as intended and could adversely affect the Underlying Fund.
Swaps Risk. In a standard "swap" transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns, differentials in rates of return or some other amount earned or realized on the "notional amount" of predetermined investments or instruments, which may be adjusted for an interest factor. Swaps can involve greater risks than direct investment in securities, because swaps may be leveraged and subject to counterparty risk (e.g., the risk of a counterparty's defaulting on the obligation or bankruptcy), credit risk and pricing risk (i.e., swaps may be difficult to value). Swaps may also be considered illiquid. It may not be possible for the Underlying Fund to liquidate a swap position at an advantageous time or price, which may result in significant losses.
Tax Diversification Risk. The Underlying Fund intends to meet the diversification requirements that are applicable to insurance company separate accounts under Subchapter L of the Code (the "Diversification Requirements"). To satisfy the Diversification Requirements applicable to variable annuity contracts, the value of the assets of the Underlying Fund invested in securities issued by the U.S. government must remain below specified thresholds. For these purposes, each U.S. government agency or instrumentality is treated as a separate issuer. In addition, Underlying Fund shares must be sold only to a Permitted Investor, under Section 817 of the Code and Treasury Regulation 1.817-5(f), as supplemented by published rulings and procedures issued thereunder by the IRS, in order for the Underlying Fund to qualify for "look through" treatment under the Diversification Requirements. To the extent an investor in Underlying Fund shares no longer qualifies as a Permitted Investor, and such investor fails to restore its status as a Permitted Investor or obtain a waiver or closing agreement with respect to such failure from the IRS, the Underlying Fund may no longer qualify for "look through" treatment. Therefore, in testing compliance with the Diversification Requirements, an investor in the Underlying Fund, such as, for example, an insurance company separate account, no longer would be able to look through the Underlying Fund to its underlying investments. Instead, the Underlying Fund would be considered a single investment for purposes of the Diversification Requirements.
Operating as a "government money market fund," as such term is defined in or interpreted under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, may make it difficult for the Underlying Fund to meet the Diversification Requirements. This difficulty may be exacerbated by the potential increase in demand for the types of securities in which the Underlying Fund invests as a result of changes to the rules that govern SEC registered money market funds.
A failure to satisfy the Diversification Requirements (whether resulting from the Underlying Fund's investments, investors in Underlying Fund shares or otherwise) could have significant adverse tax consequences for variable contract owners whose contract values are determined by investment in the Underlying Fund. Guidance published by the Internal Revenue Service provides a safe harbor pursuant to which certain insurance company separate accounts will be deemed to satisfy the
9 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
Diversification Requirements where such accounts invest in a "government money market fund" under Rule 2a-7 and certain other requirements are satisfied. See "Taxation" in the SAI for more information.
Tax Risk. Certain Underlying Funds will seek to gain exposure to the commodity markets primarily through investments in a subsidiary and/or commodity index-linked structured notes. Historically, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") has issued private letter rulings in which the IRS specifically concluded that income and gains from investments in commodity index-linked structured notes (the "Notes Rulings") or a wholly-owned foreign subsidiary that invests in commodity-linked instruments are "qualifying income" for purposes of compliance with Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code"). However, while certain Underlying Funds have received such a private letter ruling, others have not, and those that have not are unable to rely on private letter rulings issued to other taxpayers.
The IRS issued a revenue procedure, which states that the IRS will not in the future issue private letter rulings that would require a determination of whether an asset (such as a commodity index-linked note) is a "security" under the Investment Company Act. In connection with issuing such revenue procedure, the IRS has revoked the Note Rulings on a prospective basis. In light of the revocation of the Note Rulings, the Underlying Funds intend to limit their investments in commodity index-linked structured notes.

The IRS issued final regulations that would generally treat an Underlying Fund's income inclusion with respect to a subsidiary as qualifying income either if (i) there is a current distribution out of the earnings and profits of a subsidiary that are attributable to such income inclusion or (ii) such inclusion is derived with respect to the Underlying Fund's business of investing in stock, securities, or currencies. The tax treatment of certain Underlying Funds' investments in a subsidiary may be adversely affected by future legislation, Treasury Regulations, court decisions and/or guidance issued by the IRS (which may be retroactive) that could affect whether income derived from such investments is "qualifying income" under Subchapter M of Code, or otherwise affect the character, timing and/or amount of the Underlying Funds' taxable income or any gains and distributions made by the Underlying Funds. In connection with investments in a subsidiary, certain Underlying Funds have obtained or may seek to obtain an opinion of counsel that their income from such investments should constitute "qualifying income." However, no assurances can be provided that the IRS would not be able to successfully assert that the Underlying Funds' income from such investments was not "qualifying income", in which case an Underlying Fund would fail to qualify as a regulated investment company ("RIC") under Subchapter M of the Code if over 10% of its gross income was derived from these investments. If an Underlying Fund failed to qualify as a RIC, it would be subject to federal and state income tax on all of its taxable income at regular corporate tax rates with no deduction for any distributions paid to shareholders, which would significantly adversely affect the returns to, and could cause substantial losses for, Underlying Fund shareholders.
U.S. Government Securities Risk. The U.S. government may not provide financial support to U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law. U.S.
Government Securities issued by those agencies, instrumentalities and government sponsored enterprises, including those issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae"), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac") and the Federal Home Loan Banks, are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and, therefore, are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. Government Securities held by an Underlying Fund may greatly exceed their current resources, including any legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that issuers of U.S. Government Securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.
Further Information on Investment Objectives, Strategies and Risks of the Underlying Funds. A concise description of the investment objectives, practices and risks of each of the Underlying Funds that are currently expected to be used for investment by the Fund as of the date of the Prospectus is provided beginning on page 17 of the Prospectus.
Performance
The bar chart and table below provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing: (a) changes in the performance of the Fund's Institutional Shares from year to year; and (b) how the average annual total returns of the Fund's Institutional Shares compare to those of a broad-based securities market index.The Fund's past performance is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown. In addition, performance reflects Fund level expenses but does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Fund as an investment option for any contract or policy. Had performance reflected all of those fees and expenses, performance would have been reduced. Updated performance information is available at no cost at www.gsamfunds.com/vit or by calling the phone number on the back cover of the Prospectus.
CALENDAR YEAR
During the periods shown in the chart above:
Returns
Quarter ended
Best Quarter Return
6.46%
June 30, 2020
Worst Quarter Return
-7.32%
March 31, 2020
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN
For the period ended December 31, 2023
1 Year
5 Years
Since
Inception
Inception
Date
Institutional Shares
7.90%
4.41%
1.59%
4/25/2014
ICE Bank of America Merrill Lynch Three-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index (reflects no deduction for fees or expenses)
5.01%
1.88%
1.29%
10 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
Portfolio Management
Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. is the investment adviser for the Fund (the "Investment Adviser" or "GSAM").
Portfolio Managers: Neill Nuttall, Managing Director and Co-Chief Investment Officer, Multi-Asset Solutions (MAS) Group, has managed the Fund since 2019; and Alexandra Wilson-Elizondo, Managing Director, has managed the Fund since 2022.
Buying and Selling Fund Shares
Fund shares are not sold directly to the public. Fund shares may be purchased and redeemed by separate accounts that fund variable annuity and variable life insurance contracts issued by participating insurance companies and other qualified purchasers. Orders received from separate accounts and other qualified purchasers to purchase or redeem Fund shares are effected on business days. Individual investors may purchase or redeem Fund shares indirectly through variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance policies offered through the separate accounts.
Tax Information
Provided that the Fund and separate accounts investing in the Fund satisfy applicable tax requirements, the Fund will not be subject to federal tax. Special tax rules apply to life insurance companies, variable annuity contracts and variable life insurance contracts. For information on federal income taxation of owners of variable annuity or variable life insurance contracts, see the prospectus for the applicable contract.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
The Fund and/or its related companies may pay participating insurance companies and securities dealers for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the insurance company and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your insurance company's website for more information.
11 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
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12 Summary Prospectus - Goldman Sachs Multi-Strategy Alternatives Portfolio - Institutional Shares
VITMSASUMI-24