Delaware Covered Call Strategy Fund

Delaware Covered Call Strategy Fund

Key features

US large-cap equity exposure to help participate in market growth

Utilizes an options-based strategy with the goal of providing downside protection

Seeks consistent equity-like returns with lower volatility to help weather market cycles

Daily pricing as of 06/05/2023

NAV
$12.27
NAV 1-day net change
-0.01
Max offer price
$12.27

Total net assets as of 04/30/2023

All share classes
$99.5 million

Overview

Fund information
Inception date 04/01/2016
Dividends paid (if any) Quarterly
Capital gains paid (if any) November or December
Fund identifiers
NASDAQ FRCDX
CUSIP 24611D201

Benchmark and peer group

CBOE S&P 500® BuyWrite Index (view definition)

Morningstar Derivative Income Category (view definition)

Lipper Alternative Long/Short Equity Funds Average (view definition)

Performance

The performance quoted represents past performance and does not guarantee future results. Investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted.

Total returns may reflect waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the manager and/or distributor for some or all of the periods shown. Performance would have been lower without such waivers and reimbursements.

Average annual total return as of month-end (05/31/2023)

Returns for less than one year are not annualized.

Benchmark lifetime returns are as of the Fund's inception date.

Index performance returns do not reflect any management fees, transaction costs, or expenses. Indices are unmanaged and one cannot invest directly in an index.

Average annual total return as of quarter-end (03/31/2023)

Returns for less than one year are not annualized.

Benchmark lifetime returns are as of the Fund's inception date.

Index performance returns do not reflect any management fees, transaction costs, or expenses. Indices are unmanaged and one cannot invest directly in an index.

Overall Morningstar RatingTM

Institutional Class shares - as of 04/30/2023

Rating No. of funds
Overall 2 80
3 years 3 80
5 years 2 69
Morningstar category Derivative Income

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar rating is based on risk-adjusted returns.

Morningstar ranking - as of 04/30/2023
1 year 18 / 87
3 years 45 / 80
5 years 37 / 69
10 years n/a
Morningstar category Derivative Income

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar ranking is based on historical total returns.

Lipper ranking - as of 04/30/2023
1 year 46 / 223
3 years 49 / 197
5 years 79 / 174
10 years n/a
Lipper classification Lipper Alternative Long/Short Eqty Fds

(View Lipper disclosure)

The Lipper ranking is based on historical total returns.

Expense ratio

Gross
1.11%
Net
1.06%

Net expense ratio reflects a contractual waiver of certain fees and/or expense reimbursements from January 30, 2023 through January 30, 2024. Please see the fee table in the Fund's prospectus for more information.

Calendar year total returns @ NAV

Year
Annual return
Year
Annual return
2022
-9.23%
2021
17.27%
2020
-1.15%
2019
22.01%
2018
-10.58%
2017
11.40%

Portfolio

Portfolio characteristics as of 04/30/2023

Number of holdings
56
Market cap (median) Source: FactSet
$228.3 billion
Market cap (weighted average) Source: FactSet
$753.7 billion
Portfolio turnover (last fiscal year)
12%
Beta (relative to CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index) (view definition)
0.94
Annualized standard deviation, 3 years (view definition)
12.58

Portfolio composition as of 05/31/2023
Total may not equal 100% due to rounding.

Domestic equities
96.4%
Cash, cash equivalents and other assets
3.4%
International equities & depositary receipts
0.2%

Top 10 equity holdings as of 05/31/2023

Holdings are as of the date indicated and subject to change.

List may exclude cash and cash equivalents.

Holding
% of portfolio
Holding
% of portfolio
APPLE INC
9.51
MICROSOFT CORP
9.14
ALPHABET INC CLASS A
5.66
BROADCOM INC
4.61
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC
4.42
MASTERCARD INC CLASS A
4.39
HOME DEPOT INC
4.31
BOOKING HOLDINGS INC
4.09
EXXON MOBIL CORP
4.07
NVIDIA CORP
4.01

Total % Portfolio in Top 10 holdings - 54.21%

List of monthly holdingsList of quarterly holdings

Sector allocation as of 05/31/2023

List may exclude cash, cash equivalents, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that are used for cash management purposes. Please see the Fund’s complete list of holdings for more information.

Sector
Fund
Sector
Fund
Information technology
28.1%
Financials
14.4%
Consumer discretionary
12.4%
Industrials
9.6%
Healthcare
9.4%
Energy
7.8%
Consumer staples
5.8%
Communication services
5.5%
Utilities
3.6%

Sector designations may be different than the sector designations presented in other Fund materials. The sector designations may represent the investment manager’s internal sector classifications, which may result in the sector designations for one fund being different than another fund's sector designations.

Distribution history - annual distributions (Institutional Class)1,2
Distributions ($ per share)

Year
Capital gains3
Net investment income
Year
Capital gains3
Net investment income
2023
0.000
0.030
2022
1.307
0.103
2021
0.000
0.068
2020
0.000
0.162
2019
0.000
0.155
2018
0.000
0.166
2017
0.000
0.143
2016
0.017
0.102
2015
0.000
0.000
2014
0.000
0.000
2013
0.000
0.000

1If a Fund makes a distribution from any source other than net income, it is required to provide shareholders with a notice disclosing the source of such distribution (each a "Notice"). The amounts and sources of distributions reported above and in each Notice are only estimates and are not provided for tax reporting purposes. Each Fund will send each shareholder a Form 1099 DIV for the calendar year that will provide definitive information on how to report the Fund's distributions for federal income tax purposes. The information in the table above will not be updated to reflect any subsequent recharacterization of dividends and distributions. Click here to see recent Notices pertaining to the Fund (if any).

2Information on return of capital distributions (if any) is only provided from June 1, 2014 onward.

3Includes both short- and long-term capital gains.

Management

Investment manager

Delaware Management Company (DMC)

Sub-advisor

Ziegler Capital Management, LLC (ZCM)

Sean C Hughes

Sean C. Hughes, CFA

  • Chief Investment Officer – Options-Based Strategies, Senior Portfolio Manager — Ziegler Capital Management, LLC
  • Start date on the Fund: October 2019
  • Years of industry experience: 19
  • Read bio
Pamela Brown

Pamela Brown 

  • Portfolio Manager, Senior Trader
  • Start date on the Fund: March 2023
  • Years of industry experience: 30
  • Read bio

Fees

Shareholder fees
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases as a percentage of offering price none
Maximum contingent deferred sales charge (load) as a percentage of original purchase price or redemption price, whichever is lower none
Annual fund operating expenses
Management fees 0.80%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees none
Other expenses 0.31%
Total annual fund operating expenses 1.11%
Fee waivers and expense reimbursements1 (0.05%)
Total annual fund operating expenses after fee waivers and expense reimbursements 1.06%

Please see the prospectus and SAI for additional information.

1Net expense ratio reflects a contractual waiver of certain fees/and/or expense reimbursements from January 30, 2023 through January 30, 2024. Please see the fee table in the Fund's prospectus for more information.

Institutional Class shares are available only to certain investors. See the prospectus for more information.

1 The Fund’s investment manager, Delaware Management Company (Manager), has contractually agreed to waive all or a portion of its investment advisory fees and/or pay/reimburse expenses (excluding any acquired fund fees and expenses, taxes, interest, short sale dividend and interest expenses, brokerage fees, certain insurance costs, and nonroutine expenses or costs, including, but not limited to, those relating to reorganizations, litigation, conducting shareholder meetings, and liquidations) in order to prevent total annual fund operating expenses from exceeding 1.06% of the Fund’s average daily net assets from January 28, 2022 through January 28, 2023. These waivers and reimbursements may only be terminated by agreement of the Manager and the Fund.

Resources

Ziegler Capital Management, LLC (ZCM), a US registered investment advisor, is the sub-advisor to the Series. As sub-advisor, Ziegler Capital Management, LLC (ZCM) is responsible for day-to-day management of the Series' assets. Delaware Management Company (DMC), a series of Macquarie Investment Management Business Trust (MIMBT), has ultimate responsibility for all investment advisory services.

Carefully consider the Fund's investment objectives, risk factors, charges, and expenses before investing. This and other information can be found in the Fund's prospectus and it's summary prospectus, which may be obtained by visiting delawarefunds.com/literature or calling 877 693-3546. Investors should read the prospectus and the summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Carefully consider the Fund's investment objectives, risk factors, charges, and expenses before investing. This and other information can be found in the Fund's prospectus and it's summary prospectus, which may be obtained by visiting delawarefunds.com/literature or calling 800 523-1918. Investors should read the prospectus and the summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

Narrowly focused investments may exhibit higher volatility than investments in multiple industry sectors.

The Fund may experience portfolio turnover in excess of 100%, which could result in higher transaction costs and tax liability.

Writing call options involves risks.

There is no guarantee that dividend-paying stocks will continue to pay dividends.

A covered call is a transaction in which the investor selling call options owns the equivalent amount of the underlying security. Call options are financial contracts that give the option buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy a security at a specified price within a specific time period. The investor's long position in the asset is the "cover" because it means the seller can deliver the shares if the buyer of the call option chooses to exercise.

By writing covered call options, the Fund will give up the opportunity to benefit from potential increases in the value of a Fund asset above the exercise price, but will bear the risk of declines in the value of the asset. Writing call options may expose the Fund to significant additional costs. Derivatives may be difficult to sell, unwind or value.

Writing call options may significantly reduce or eliminate the amount of Fund dividends that qualify to be taxed to non-corporate shareholders at a lower rate. Covered calls also are subject to federal tax rules that may: (1) limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions by the Fund; (2) convert the Fund’s long-term capital gains into higher taxed short-term capital gains or ordinary income; (3) convert the Fund’s ordinary losses or deductions to capital losses, the deductibility of which is more limited; and/or (4) cause the Fund to recognize income or gains without a corresponding receipt of cash.

The risks of investing in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) typically reflect the risks of the types of instruments in which the ETFs invest. Because ETFs are investment companies, a fund will bear its proportionate share of the fees and expenses of an investment in an ETF. As a result, a fund’s expenses may be higher and performance may be lower.

Investments in small and/or medium-sized companies typically exhibit greater risk and higher volatility than larger, more established companies.

Investing in ADRs may have some limitations for investors such as the absence of voting rights.

Natural or environmental disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, and other severe weather-related phenomena generally, and widespread disease, including pandemics and epidemics, have been and can be highly disruptive to economies and markets, adversely impacting individual companies, sectors, industries, markets, currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the Fund’s investments. Given the increasing interdependence among global economies and markets, conditions in one country, market, or region are increasingly likely to adversely affect markets, issuers, and/or foreign exchange rates in other countries. These disruptions could prevent the Fund from executing advantageous investment decisions in a timely manner and could negatively impact the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund.

All third-party marks cited are the property of their respective owners.

Not FDIC Insured • No Bank Guarantee • May Lose Value

You can check the background of your investment professional on FINRA's BrokerCheck.

Nothing presented should be construed as a recommendation to purchase or sell any security or follow any investment technique or strategy.

You can check the background of your investment professional on FINRA's BrokerCheck.