Delaware High-Yield Opportunities Fund

Delaware High-Yield Opportunities Fund

Key features

A research-driven high yield bond fund seeking long-term growth and income

Leverages the team's deep credit expertise and sizable presence in corporate bond market

An experienced management team with more than 25 years average industry experience

Daily pricing as of 02/03/2023

NAV
$3.41
NAV 1-day net change
-0.02
Max offer price
$3.41

Total net assets as of 12/31/2022

All share classes
$480.0 million

Overview

Fund information
Inception date 12/30/1996
Dividends paid (if any) Monthly
Capital gains paid (if any) December
Fund identifiers
NASDAQ DHOIX
CUSIP 245908843

Benchmark and peer group

ICE BofAML US High Yield Constrained Index (view definition)

Morningstar High-Yield Bond Category (view definition)

Lipper High Yield 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 (01/31/2023)

Returns for less than one year are not annualized.

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 (12/31/2022)

Returns for less than one year are not annualized.

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 12/31/2022

MorningstarMorningstarMorningstar
Rating No. of funds
Overall 3 627
3 years 3 627
5 years 4 577
10 years 3 404
Morningstar category Morningstar High-Yield Bond Category

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar rating is based on risk-adjusted returns.

Morningstar ranking - as of 12/31/2022
1 year 311 / 682
3 years 173 / 625
5 years 126 / 579
10 years 167 / 414
Morningstar category Morningstar High-Yield Bond Category

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar ranking is based on historical total returns.

Lipper ranking - as of 12/31/2022
1 year 226 / 520
3 years 129 / 485
5 years 92 / 439
10 years 134 / 310
Lipper classification Lipper High Yield Funds Average

(View Lipper disclosure)

The Lipper ranking is based on historical total returns.

Expense ratio

Gross
0.84%
Net
0.63%

Net expense ratio reflects a contractual waiver of certain fees and/or expense reimbursements from November 28, 2022 through November 28, 2023. 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
-10.65%
2021
5.35%
2020
7.25%
2019
16.18%
2018
-4.37%
2017
7.28%
2016
13.48%
2015
-6.52%
2014
-0.47%
2013
9.10%

Portfolio

Portfolio characteristics as of 12/31/2022

Number of holdings
211
Number of credit issuers
159
Portfolio turnover (last fiscal year)
50%
Effective duration (weighted average) (view definition)
4.01 years
Effective maturity (weighted average) (view definition)
6.05 years
Yield to maturity (view definition)
8.69%
Average market price (view definition)
$86.59
Average coupon (view definition)
6.00%
Yield to worst (view definition)
8.70%
SEC 30-day yield with waiver (view definition)
8.07%
SEC 30-day yield without waiver (view definition)
7.85%
Annualized standard deviation, 3 years (view definition)
10.74

Portfolio composition as of 12/31/2022
Total may not equal 100% due to rounding.

Credits
76.6%
Foreign bonds
16.9%
Cash and cash equivalents
6.5%

Top 10 fixed income holdings as of 12/31/2022

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

List excludes cash and cash equivalents.

Holding
% of portfolio
Holding
% of portfolio
Applied Systems Inc. 7.500 9/19/2027
1.89
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. 5.500 4/1/2028
1.68
Avantor Funding Inc. 3.875 11/1/2029
1.17
EQM Midstream Partners LP 4.750 1/15/2031
1.12
Carnival Corp. 5.750 3/1/2027
1.11
Cco Holdings LLC 4.500 8/15/2030
1.10
Sirius xm Radio Inc. 4.000 7/15/2028
1.05
Murphy Oil Corporation 6.375 7/15/2028
1.03
Genesis Energy LP 8.000 1/15/2027
0.99
Connect Finco Sarl 6.750 10/1/2026
0.88

Total % Portfolio in Top 10 holdings - 12.02%

List of monthly holdingsList of quarterly holdings

Fixed income sectors as of 12/31/2022

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
Energy
13.8%
Healthcare
8.3%
Media
8.2%
Technology & electric
7.6%
Basic industry
7.0%
Telecommunications
6.6%
Leisure
6.2%
Capital goods
5.2%
Services
5.1%
Financial services
4.5%
Retail
4.5%
Insurance
3.3%
Emerging markets
3.0%
Utility
2.6%
Automotive
2.4%
Transportation
1.9%
Banking
1.6%
Real estate
1.0%
Consumer goods
0.9%

Credit quality as of 12/31/2022

Rating
Fund
Rating
Fund
AAA
6.5%
BBB
3.2%
BB
34.5%
B
41.2%
CCC
14.2%
CC
0.3%
Not rated
0.1%

Total may not equal 100% due to rounding. The Fund’s investment manager, Delaware Management Company (DMC), a series of Macquarie Investment Management Business Trust, receives “Credit Quality” ratings for the underlying securities held by the Fund from three “nationally recognized statistical rating organizations” (NRSROs): Standard & Poor’s (S&P), Moody’s Investors Service, and Fitch, Inc. The credit quality breakdown is calculated by DMC based on the NRSRO ratings. If two or more NRSROs have assigned a rating to a security the higher rating (lower value) is used. If only one NRSRO rates a security, that rating is used. For securities rated by an NRSRO other than S&P, that rating is converted to the equivalent S&P credit rating. Securities that are unrated by any of the three NRSROs are included in the “not rated” category when applicable. Unrated securities do not necessarily indicate low quality. More information about securities ratings is contained in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information.

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

Year
Capital gains3
Net investment income
Return of capital
Year
Capital gains3
Net investment income
Return of capital
2023
0.000
0.018
0.000
2022
0.000
0.200
0.000
2021
0.001
0.191
0.000
2020
0.000
0.203
0.000
2019
0.000
0.211
0.000
2018
0.000
0.217
0.000
2017
0.000
0.212
0.000
2016
0.000
0.212
0.003
2015
0.000
0.244
0.000
2014
0.058
0.250
0.000
2013
0.000
0.286
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

Adam Brown

Adam H. Brown, CFA

  • Managing Director, Senior Portfolio Manager
  • Start date on the Fund: November 2014
  • Years of industry experience: 24
  • Read bio
John McCarthy

John P. McCarthy, CFA

  • Managing Director, Senior Portfolio Manager
  • Start date on the Fund: December 2012
  • Years of industry experience: 36
  • 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 0.65%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees none
Other expenses 0.19%
Total annual fund operating expenses 0.84%
Fee waivers and expense reimbursements1 (0.21%)
Total annual fund operating expenses after fee waivers and expense reimbursements 0.63%

Please see the prospectus and SAI for additional information.

1Net expense ratio reflects a contractual waiver of certain fees/and/or expense reimbursements from November 28, 2022 through November 28, 2023. 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.

1The 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 12b-1 fees, 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 0.69% of the Fund’s average daily net assets for all classes other than R6, and 0.58% of the Fund's Class R6 shares' average daily net assets, from November 26, 2021 through November 30, 2022. These waivers and reimbursements may only be terminated by agreement of the Manager and the Fund. Additionally, the Fund’s Class A shares are subject to a blended 12b-1 fee of 0.10% on all shares acquired prior to June 1, 1992, and 0.25% on all shares acquired on or after June 1, 1992. All Class A shares currently bear 12b-1 fees at the same rate, the blended rate based on the formula described above. This method of calculating Class A 12b-1 fees may be discontinued at the sole discretion of the Fund’s Board of Trustees (Board).

Resources

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.

The Fund's investment manager, Delaware Management Company (Manager), may seek investment advice and recommendations from its affiliates: Macquarie Investment Management Europe Limited (MIMEL), Macquarie Investment Management Austria Kapitalanlage AG (MIMAK), and Macquarie Investment Management Global Limited (MIMGL) (together, the “Affiliated Sub-Advisors”). The Manager may also permit these Affiliated Sub-Advisors to execute Fund security trades on behalf of the Manager and exercise investment discretion for securities in certain markets where DMC believes it will be beneficial to utilize an Affiliated Sub-Advisor’s specialized market knowledge.

Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

Fixed income securities and bond funds can lose value, and investors can lose principal, as interest rates rise. They also may be affected by economic conditions that hinder an issuer’s ability to make interest and principal payments on its debt.

The Fund may also be subject to prepayment risk, the risk that the principal of a bond that is held by a portfolio will be prepaid prior to maturity, at the time when interest rates are lower than what the bond was paying. A portfolio may then have to reinvest that money at a lower interest rate.

High yielding, non-investment-grade bonds (junk bonds) involve higher risk than investment grade bonds.

The high yield secondary market is particularly susceptible to liquidity problems when institutional investors, such as mutual funds and certain other financial institutions, temporarily stop buying bonds for regulatory, financial, or other reasons. In addition, a less liquid secondary market makes it more difficult for the Fund to obtain precise valuations of the high yield securities in its portfolio.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, which may involve additional expenses and are subject to risk, including the risk that an underlying security or securities index moves in the opposite direction from what the portfolio manager anticipated. A derivatives transaction depends upon the counterparties’ ability to fulfill their contractual obligations.

International investments entail risks including fluctuation in currency values, differences in accounting principles, or economic or political instability. Investing in emerging markets can be riskier than investing in established foreign markets due to increased volatility, lower trading volume, and higher risk of market closures. In many emerging markets, there is substantially less publicly available information and the available information may be incomplete or misleading. Legal claims are generally more difficult to pursue.

IBOR risk is the risk that changes related to the use of the London interbank offered rate (LIBOR) or similar rates (such as EONIA) could have adverse impacts on financial instruments that reference these rates. The abandonment of these rates and transition to alternative rates could affect the value and liquidity of instruments that reference them and could affect investment strategy performance.

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

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