Strategy. The Fund invests, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of borrowings for investment purposes) in fixed income securities and other instruments, such as derivatives and certain investment companies (see below), with economic characteristics similar to fixed income securities. The Funds assets are allocated across different fixed-income market sectors and maturities. Most of the Funds investments are in fixed income securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies; corporate bonds; convertible securities; asset-backed securities (ABS), including collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) and other collateralized debt obligations (CDOs); privately-issued securities (e.g., Rule 144A securities); floating rate securities; and mortgage-related and mortgage-backed securities (MBS), including pass-through securities, collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), adjustable rate … Show more… The Fund invests, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of borrowings for investment purposes) in fixed income securities and other instruments, such as derivatives and certain investment companies (see below), with economic characteristics similar to fixed income securities. The Funds assets are allocated across different fixed-income market sectors and maturities. Most of the Funds investments are in fixed income securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies; corporate bonds; convertible securities; asset-backed securities (ABS), including collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) and other collateralized debt obligations (CDOs); privately-issued securities (e.g., Rule 144A securities); floating rate securities; and mortgage-related and mortgage-backed securities (MBS), including pass-through securities, collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), adjustable rate mortgage securities (ARMs), interest-only securities (IOs), principal-only securities (POs), inverse floaters, privately-issued MBS, commercial MBS (CMBS), and mortgage dollar rolls. A mortgage dollar roll is a transaction in which the Fund sells mortgage-related securities for immediate settlement and simultaneously purchases the same type of securities for forward settlement at a discount. The Fund may purchase or sell securities which it is eligible to purchase or sell on a when-issued and delayed-delivery basis and may make contracts to purchase or sell such securities for a fixed price at a future date beyond normal settlement time (forward commitments), including to be announced MBS (TBA). The purchase or sale of securities on a when-issued basis or on a delayed delivery basis or through a forward commitment involves the purchase or sale of securities by the Fund at an established price with payment and delivery taking place in the future. The Fund will invest primarily in securities denominated in U.S. dollars. The Fund may invest in securities issued by foreign entities, including emerging market securities, and obligations of non-U.S. governments or their subdivisions, agencies and government-sponsored enterprises. The Fund may also invest in other investment companies, including other open-end or closed-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that have characteristics that are consistent with the Funds investment objective. The Fund may also invest in preferred stocks. The Fund may invest in futures, primarily interest rate and U.S. Treasury futures, and in swaps, primarily interest rate swaps. The Fund may buy or sell futures or swaps to gain or hedge exposure to risk factors or to alter the Funds investment characteristics. The Funds portfolio is constructed by combining the investment styles and strategies of multiple sub-advisers that have been or will be retained by the Adviser (each a Sub-adviser). Each Sub-adviser may use both its own proprietary and external research and securities selection processes to manage its allocated portion of the Funds assets. The Fund is designed to allow managers to invest in various fixed income market sectors. Portfolio securities may be sold at any time. Sales may occur when a Sub-adviser seeks to take advantage of what a Sub-adviser considers to be a better investment opportunity, when a Sub-adviser believes the portfolio securities no longer represent relatively attractive investment opportunities, when a Sub-adviser perceives deterioration in the credit fundamentals of the issuer, or when a Sub-adviser believes it would be appropriate to do so in order to readjust the asset allocation of its portion of the Funds investment portfolio. The Adviser is responsible for determining the amount of Fund assets allocated to each Sub-adviser. The Adviser allocates Fund assets to the following Sub-advisers: Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated (Baird), J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc. (JPMIM), Loomis, Sayles & Company, L.P. (Loomis Sayles), and PGIM, Inc. (PGIM). The Adviser may adjust allocations to the Sub-advisers at any time or make recommendations to the Board with respect to the hiring, termination or replacement of a Sub-adviser. Below is a summary of each Sub-advisers principal investment strategies. Bairds Principal Investment Strategies Bairds strategy is based on its belief that the bond market is very efficient in discounting risk and return over time, and bond market benchmarks accurately reflect this relationship between risk and return across the duration curve. Baird believes interest rates are extremely difficult to consistently forecast over time and accordingly employs a duration-neutral, risk-controlled approach. Baird sets the duration of its allocated portion of the Funds assets equal to that of the Funds benchmark, thus aiming to ensure a high degree of predictability in tracking benchmark returns. Baird then adds incremental value through security selection, yield curve positioning, sector allocation and competitive execution of trades. Bairds philosophy is implemented strictly in the U.S. dollar-denominated, cash bond market, and Baird normally invests in U.S. government and other public sector entities, ABS and MBS of U.S. and U.S. dollar-denominated foreign issuers, and corporate debt of U.S. and foreign issuers. JPMIMs Principal Investment Strategies JPMIM incorporates a bottom-up, value-oriented approach in managing its allocated portion of the Funds assets. Taking a long-term approach, JPMIM looks for individual fixed income investments that it believes will perform well over market cycles. JPMIM is value-oriented and makes decisions to purchase and sell individual securities and instruments after performing a risk/reward analysis that includes an evaluation of interest rate risk, credit risk, duration, liquidity, and the complex legal and technical structure of the transaction. Loomis Sayles Principal Investment Strategies Loomis Sayles investment philosophy focuses on research-driven, relative value investing on a risk-adjusted basis, seeking to add value primarily through security selection while continually managing risk in the portfolio. Loomis Sayles objective with respect to its allocated portion is to consistently outperform, over time, a broad-based market-weighted benchmark that measures the investment grade, U.S. dollar-denominated, fixed-rate taxable fixed income market, including Treasury securities, government-related and corporate securities, MBS, ABS, and CMBS. Under normal circumstances, Loomis Sayles will seek to invest in U.S. dollar-denominated, investment grade fixed income securities, including Treasury securities; agency securities; credit; MBS (including TBAs), ABS and CMBS; corporate bonds issued by U.S. and foreign companies; and mortgage dollar rolls. PGIMs Principal Investment Strategies PGIMs strategy is based on the philosophy that research-driven security selection is the most consistent strategy for adding value to client portfolios. PGIM complements that base strategy with modest sector rotation, duration management, and disciplined trade execution. PGIM uses a team approach to attempt to add value by tilting toward fixed income sectors that it believes are attractive and by utilizing its extensive research capabilities to choose attractive fixed-income securities within sectors. In managing the Funds assets, PGIM uses a combination of top-down economic analysis and bottom-up research in conjunction with proprietary quantitative models and risk management systems. In the top-down economic analysis, PGIM develops views on economic, policy and market trends. In its bottom-up research, PGIM develops an internal rating and outlook on issuers. The rating and outlook are determined based on a thorough review of the financial health and trends of the issuer. PGIM may also consider investment factors such as expected total return, yield, spread and potential for price appreciation as well as credit quality, maturity and risk. PGIM may invest in a security based upon the expected total return rather than the yield of such security. Show less