Investments, Risks, and Performance
Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund
The Fund invests at least 99.5% of its total assets in cash, government securities, or repurchase agreements that are collateralized fully by such securities. The Fund also has a policy to invest, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its net assets in government securities or in repurchase agreements that are collateralized by government securities. The government securities in which the Fund may invest include any security issued or guaranteed as to principal or interest by the United States, or by a person controlled or supervised by and acting as an instrumentality of the Government of the United States pursuant to authority granted by the Congress of the United States, or any certificate of deposit for any of the foregoing.
Under normal circumstances, the Fund's investments include U.S. Treasury bills, notes and other obligations issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities, and repurchase agreements secured by such obligations. In addition, the Fund may invest in variable and floating rate instruments and when-issued and delayed delivery securities, and forward commitment settlement securities transactions. The Fund invests in a portfolio of securities maturing in 397 calendar days or less (with certain exceptions as permitted by applicable regulation) and maintains a dollar-weighted average maturity of 60 calendar days or less.
The securities purchased by the Fund are subject to the quality, diversification, and other requirements of Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"), and other rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
You could lose money by investing in the Fund. Although the Fund seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it cannot guarantee it will do so. An investment in the Fund is not a bank account and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The Fund's sponsor is not required to reimburse the Fund for losses, and you should not expect that the sponsor will provide financial support to the Fund at any time, including during periods of market stress.
Selection Risk - Because this Fund is actively managed, there can be no guarantee that investment decisions made for the Fund will produce the desired results.
Interest Rate Risk - Debt securities held by a fund may decline in value due to rising interest rates. Macroeconomic factors, such as inflationary trends, can heighten interest rate risk.
U.S. Government Obligations Risk - Certain securities in which a fund may invest, including securities issued by certain government agencies and government sponsored enterprises, are not guaranteed by the U.S. Government or supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. It is possible that issuers of U.S. government securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to its agencies and authorities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
Treasury Obligations Risk - Direct obligations of the U.S. Treasury have historically involved little risk of loss of principal if held to maturity. However, due to fluctuations in interest rates, the market value of such securities may vary during the period shareholders own shares of a fund. Because U.S. Treasury obligations trade actively outside the United States, their prices may rise and fall as changes in global economic conditions affect the demand for these securities. In addition, changes in the credit rating or financial condition of the U.S. government may cause the value of U.S. Treasury Obligations to decline.
Repurchase Agreements and Purchase and Sale Contracts Risk - If the other party to a repurchase agreement or purchase and sale contract defaults on its obligation under the agreement, a fund may suffer delays and incur costs or lose money in exercising its rights under the agreement. If the seller fails to repurchase the security in either situation and the market value of the security declines, the fund may lose money.
Credit Risk - The failure of the issuer of a debt security to pay interest or repay principal in a timely manner may have an adverse impact on a fund's earnings.
Market Risk - The market value of portfolio securities may go up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably.
Income Risk - Falling interest rates may cause a fund's income to decline.