Delaware Strategic Income Fund

Delaware Strategic Income Fund

Key features

A multisector bond fund designed for high income

An actively managed bond portfolio investing across all fixed income sectors in search of income opportunities

A management team with experience managing through market cycles

Daily pricing as of 10/11/2024

NAV
NAV 1-day net change
Max offer price
$7.56

Total net assets as of 09/30/2024

All share classes
NaN million

Overview

Fund information
Fund identifiers
NASDAQ DUGIX
CUSIP 246094502

Benchmark and peer group

Bloomberg US Aggregate Index (view definition)

Morningstar Multisector Bond Category (view definition)

Lipper Multi-Sector Income 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 (as applicable) 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 ()

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 (09/30/2024)

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 09/30/2024

MorningstarMorningstarMorningstar
Rating No. of funds
Overall 3 325
3 years 3 325
5 years 4 272
10 years 3 189
Morningstar category Multisector Bond

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar rating is based on risk-adjusted returns.

Morningstar ranking - as of 09/30/2024
1 year 172 / 358
3 years 149 / 325
5 years 55 / 272
10 years 93 / 189
Morningstar category Multisector Bond

(View Morningstar disclosure)

The Morningstar ranking is based on historical total returns.

Lipper ranking - as of 09/30/2024
1 year 160 / 369
3 years 116 / 340
5 years 46 / 294
10 years 91 / 196
Lipper classification Lipper Multi-Sector Income Funds Average

(View Lipper disclosure)

The Lipper ranking is based on historical total returns.

Expense ratio

Gross
0.95%
Net
0.59%

Net expense ratio reflects a contractual waiver of certain fees and/or expense reimbursements from November 30, 2023 through November 29, 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
2023
9.68%
2022
-10.29%
2021
1.29%
2020
9.90%
2019
12.18%
2018
-4.38%
2017
6.02%
2016
2.54%
2015
-0.28%
2014
5.89%

Portfolio

Portfolio characteristics as of 09/30/2024

Number of holdings
235
Number of credit issuers
209
Portfolio turnover (last fiscal year)
160%
Effective duration (weighted average) (view definition)
2.72 years
Effective maturity (weighted average) (view definition)
4.86 years
Yield to maturity (view definition)
7.01%
Average market price (view definition)
$99.26
Average coupon (view definition)
6.88%
Yield to worst (view definition)
6.70%
SEC 30-day yield with waiver (view definition)
6.44%
SEC 30-day yield without waiver (view definition)
6.15%
Annualized standard deviation, 3 years (view definition)
7.06

Portfolio composition as of 06/30/2024
Total may not equal 100% due to rounding.

Credits
74.3%
Asset-backed securities
11.9%
Mortgage-backed securities
10.1%
U.S. government securities
3.7%

Top 10 fixed income holdings as of 06/30/2024

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

List excludes cash and cash equivalents.

Holding
% of portfolio
Holding
% of portfolio
CAS_23-R07
2.36
STACR_21-HQA2
1.97
CAS_22-R02
1.38
CAS_22-R01
1.36
STACR_23-HQA2
1.19
CAS_23-R08
1.16
PEER HOLDING BV
1.01
IRON MOUNTAIN INC
1.00
TRANS UNION LLC
1.00
SEALED AIR CORPORATION
1.00

Total % Portfolio in Top 10 holdings - 13.43%

List of monthly holdings

Fixed income sectors as of 09/30/2024

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
High yield corporates
39.6%
Bank loans
18.3%
Asset-backed securities/CLO
15.4%
Investment grade corporates
11.3%
Emerging markets
8.4%
RMBS
3.0%
Government related
1.0%
Other
1.2%

Credit quality as of 09/30/2024

Rating
Fund
Rating
Fund
AAA
1.6%
AA
0.7%
A
9.7%
BBB
24.7%
BB
25.3%
B
36.8%
CCC
0.1%
CC
0.1%
C
0.0%
Not rated
1.1%

Total may not equal 100% due to rounding. The Fund’s investment manager, Delaware Management Company (DMC) 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 NSRO ratings and the index credit quality rules. 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
2024
0.000
0.339
0.000
2023
0.000
0.385
0.000
2022
0.000
0.349
0.000
2021
0.000
0.339
0.000
2020
0.000
0.341
0.000
2019
0.000
0.354
0.000
2018
0.000
0.343
0.027
2017
0.000
0.370
0.000
2016
0.000
0.221
0.009
2015
0.000
0.250
0.000
2014
0.000
0.248
0.038

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

Janaki Rao

Janaki Rao 

  • Managing Director, Head of US Multisector
  • Start date on the Fund: May 2024
  • Years of industry experience: 31
  • Read bio
Vivek Bommi

Vivek Bommi 

  • Managing Director, Head of Leveraged Credit
  • Start date on the Fund: May 2024
  • Years of industry experience: 25
  • 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 0.55%
Distribution and service (12b-1) fees none
Other expenses 0.40%
Total annual fund operating expenses 0.95%
Fee waivers and expense reimbursements (0.36%)
Total annual fund operating expenses after fee waivers and expense reimbursements 0.59%

Please see the prospectus and SAI for additional 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 0.59% of the Fund’s 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

Significant Fund Event

On May 6, 2024, the portfolio management responsibilities of the Fund changed, and Janaki Rao and Vivek Bommi now serve as portfolio managers of the Fund.

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 its 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 its 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, Macquarie Investment Management Austria Kapitalanlage AG, and Macquarie Investment Management Global Limited (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 can lose value, including the possible loss of principal. An issuer of a fixed income security may be unable to make interest payments and/or repay principal in a timely manner. The prices of bonds and other fixed income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise. Fixed income securities with longer maturities or duration generally are more sensitive to interest rate changes.

The principal on a fixed income security may be prepaid prior to maturity, which may require reinvestment at a lower interest rate.

High yield securities (“junk bonds”) are subject to reduced creditworthiness of issuers, increased risk of default, and a more limited and less liquid secondary market. High yield securities may also be subject to greater price volatility and risk of loss of income and principal than higher-rated securities.

Mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and asset-backed securities (ABS) are subject to credit risk and interest rate risk and may also be subject to prepayment risk and extension risk. In addition, MBS and ABS may decline in value, become more volatile, face difficulties in valuation, or experience reduced liquidity due to changes in interest rates or general economic conditions. Certain MBS, such as collateralized mortgage obligations, real estate mortgage investment conduits, and stripped MBS may be more susceptible to these risks than other MBS.

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.

If and when the Fund invests in forward foreign currency contracts or uses other investments to hedge against currency risks, the Fund will be subject to special risks, including counterparty risk.

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

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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