Eagle Point Credit Company Inc.
Annual Report – December 31, 2023
Table of Contents
Letter to Stockholders and Management Discussion of Company Performance
February 22, 2024
Dear Fellow Stockholders:
We are pleased to provide you with the enclosed report of Eagle Point Credit Company Inc. (“we”, “us”, “our”, or the “Company”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.
The Company is a closed-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) and is advised by Eagle Point Credit Management LLC (the “Adviser”). The Company’s primary investment objective is to generate high current income, with a secondary objective to generate capital appreciation. We seek to achieve these objectives by investing primarily in equity and junior debt tranches of collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”). We may also invest in other securities or instruments that are related investments or that are consistent with our investment objectives.
The Company had a strong 2023. For the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company recorded an increase in net assets resulting from operations of $117 million, or $1.80 per weighted average common share.1 This represents a GAAP ROE of 20.79% during the year.2 The Company’s GAAP net investment income net of net realized capital losses was $1.08 per weighted average common share (excluding unrealized appreciation/depreciation). During 2023, our portfolio generated recurring cash flows of $3.22 per share and we paid $1.86 per share in cash distributions with record dates during the year to our shareholders. From December 31, 2022 through December 31, 2023, the Company’s net asset value (“NAV”) per common share increased to $9.21 from $9.07.
During 2023, we:
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Increased our aggregate monthly common distribution by 14% to $0.16 per share beginning in April 2023 by declaring variable supplemental monthly distributions3 of $0.02 per common share, in addition to our regular monthly distributions of $0.14 per common share. |
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Strengthened our balance sheet via our at-the-market program, opportunistically deploying the capital into discounted CLO equity investments in the secondary market, many of which had effective yields of over 20%. |
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Continued to receive strong and consistent cash flows from our investment portfolio in excess of expenses and common stock distributions. |
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
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Managed our CLO equity portfolio such that the Weighted Average Remaining Reinvestment Period (“WARRP”) of the Company’s CLO equity portfolio stood at 2.4 years as of December 31, 2023, compared to the market average of 1.6 years. |
We continue to be bullish on the Company’s portfolio and the broader economy. In our view, CLOs generally are not particularly sensitive to interest rate movements, as underlying broadly syndicated loans (“BSLs”) and CLO liabilities are both principally floating rate. Because so much of our cash flow is attributable to the difference in spreads between a CLO’s loans and its liabilities, we don’t believe CLO equity cash flows would decline meaningfully in a declining interest rate environment. We also believe having as long of a WARRP as possible provides both near-term protection from loan price volatility and the ability to capitalize on discounted prices to build par in the long run.
During 2023, we actively deployed $238 million in net capital into CLO equity, CLO debt, loan accumulation facilities and other investments. Our Adviser focused principally on the CLO secondary market, as CLO secondary opportunities offered hundreds of basis points of additional yield compared to opportunities in the CLO primary market.
Our portfolio continued to generate strong recurring cash flows throughout the year. Recurring cash flows from our investment portfolio, which excludes cash received from called CLOs, totaled $208 million, or $3.22 per weighted average common share, compared to cash flows of $163 million, or $3.62 per weighted average common share, received in 2022.
We believe our portfolio continues to have the potential for further meaningful upside. The weighted average expected yield of our CLO equity portfolio (excluding called CLOs), based on current market values, was 27.10% as of December 31, 2023, which we believe represents an attractive value. This compares to 27.86% as of December 31, 2022.4
Subsequent to year end, we were pleased to raise an additional $47.1 million in net proceeds for investment through the issuance of 8.00% Series F Term Preferred Stock due 2029 (the “Series F Term Preferred Stock”).
Today, we have no financing maturities prior to April 2028. All of our debt and preferred stock is fixed rate and we have no secured or “repo”-style financing whatsoever. The weighted average maturity of our outstanding financing stood at 6.2 years as of December 31, 2023, compared to 7.2 years as of December 31, 2022.5
As of January 31, 2024, management’s unaudited estimate of the range of the Company’s NAV per common share was between $9.22 and $9.32. The midpoint of this range represents an increase of 0.7% compared to the NAV per common share as of December 31, 2023. As of February 15, 2024, we have approximately $52 million in cash available for investment.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Company Overview
Common Stock
The Company’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol “ECC.” As of December 31, 2023, the NAV per share of the Company’s common stock was $9.21. The trading price of our common stock may, and often does, differ from NAV per share. The closing price per share of our common stock was $9.50 on December 29, 2023, representing a 3.15% premium to NAV per share as of year end.6 For the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company’s total return to common shareholders, on a market price basis and assuming reinvestment of distributions, was approximately 18.92%.7
From our initial public offering (“IPO”) on October 7, 2014 through December 31, 2023, our common stock has traded on average at a 10.9% premium to NAV. As of February 15, 2024, the closing price per share of common stock was $9.97, a premium of 7.55% compared to the midpoint of management’s unaudited and estimated NAV range of $9.22 to $9.32 as of January 31, 2024.
In connection with our at-the-market offering program, the Company sold 20.2 million shares of our common stock during the year ended December 31, 2023 at premiums to NAV for total net proceeds to the Company of approximately $202 million. The common stock issuance resulted in $0.33 per common share of NAV accretion.
The Company paid 12 monthly distributions of $0.14 per share of common stock from January 2023 through December 2023, and paid nine variable supplemental monthly distributions of $0.02 per share of common stock from April 2023 through December 2023. In the aggregate, we paid cumulative monthly distributions of $1.86 per share to common stockholders in 2023. Please note the actual frequency, components and amount of such distributions are subject to variation over time.
An investor who purchased common stock as part of our IPO at $20.00 per share has received total cash distributions of $19.99 per share since the IPO through December 31, 2023 – in other words, the investor has essentially received a full return on their initial cash investment, while still owning their shares in the Company. As of January 2024, IPO-to-date common distributions officially exceeded our IPO price. A certain portion of these distributions was comprised of a return of capital as reported on Form 1099-DIV.8
We also want to highlight the Company’s dividend reinvestment plan for common stockholders. This plan allows common stockholders to have their distributions automatically reinvested into new shares of common stock. If the prevailing market price of our common stock exceeds our NAV per share, such reinvestment is at a discount (up to five percent) to the prevailing market price. If the prevailing market price of our common stock is less than our NAV per share, such
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
reinvestment is at the prevailing market price, subject to the terms in the dividend reinvestment plan. We encourage all common stockholders to carefully review the terms of the plan. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan” in the enclosed report.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Other Securities
In addition to our common stock, the Company has six other securities which trade on the NYSE, which are summarized below:
Security |
NYSE Symbol |
Par Amount Outstanding |
Rate |
Payment Frequency |
Callable |
Maturity |
6.50% Series C Term Preferred Stock due 2031 |
ECCC |
$54.3 million |
6.50% |
Monthly |
June 2024 |
June 2031 |
6.75% Series D Preferred Stock |
ECC PRD |
$28.9 million |
6.75% |
Monthly |
November 2026 |
None |
8.00% Series F Term Preferred Stock due 2029 |
ECCF |
$49.0 million |
8.00% |
Monthly |
January 2026 |
January 2029 |
6.6875% Notes due 2028 |
ECCX |
$32.4 million |
6.6875% |
Quarterly |
Callable |
April 2028 |
6.75% Notes due 2031 |
ECCW |
$44.9 million |
6.75% |
Quarterly |
March 2024 |
March 2031 |
5.375% Notes due 2029 |
ECCV |
$93.3 million |
5.375% |
Quarterly |
January 2025 |
January 2029 |
The weighted average maturity on our outstanding notes and preferred stock as of December 31, 2023 was approximately 6.2 years, compared to 7.2 years at the end of 2022. In addition, all of our financing is fixed rate, providing us with added certainty in a potentially further rising rate environment.5
Pursuant to our at-the-market offering program, the Company sold 65,458 shares of its 6.75% Series D Preferred Stock (the “Series D Preferred Stock”) during the year ended December 31, 2023 for total net proceeds to the Company of approximately $1.3 million. These are perpetual securities and we believe represent a very valuable component of the Company’s capital structure.
Subsequent to year-end, the Company issued its Series F Term Preferred Stock at a fixed rate of 8.00%, generating net proceeds to the Company of $47.1 million.
As of December 31, 2023, we had debt and preferred securities outstanding which totaled approximately 27% of our total assets (less current liabilities). Based on the midpoint of management’s estimated January 31, 2024 NAV, leverage slightly increased to 30% as a result of the issuance of the Series F Term Preferred Stock. Over the long term, management expects to operate the Company generally with leverage within a range of 25% to 35% of total assets
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
under normal market conditions. As market conditions evolve, or should significant opportunities present themselves, the Company may incur leverage outside of this range, subject to applicable regulatory and contractual limits.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Portfolio Overview
2023 Portfolio Update
The secondary market was a key focus for our portfolio throughout 2023, as CLO secondary levels offered hundreds of basis points of additional yield relative to comparable investments in the CLO primary market. While the new issue market typically prices at or around par, the CLO secondary market provided opportunities to buy attractive investments at material discounts. During 2023, the Adviser invested $105 million in the secondary CLO equity market at a weighted average effective yield of 21.74%.
Our portfolio continued to generate consistently strong cash flows in 2023. During the year, the Company received cash distributions from our portfolio, excluding called CLOs, of $208 million, or $3.22 per weighted average common share. Further, the Company deployed $238 million in net capital into CLO equity, CLO debt, loan accumulation facilities and other investments.
Included within this annual report, you will find detailed portfolio information, including certain look-through information related to the underlying collateral characteristics of the CLO equity investments that we held as of December 31, 2023.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Market Overview9
Loan Market
Despite a few periods of considerable volatility in 2023, the BSL market capped off its strongest year since 2009. The Credit Suisse Leverage Loan Index10 (“CSLLI”) recorded a total return of 13.04% in 2023. Firming BSL prices, higher floating rate coupons, and below average loan default levels drove performance through most of the year, as demand from investors seeking yields amidst the higher-for-longer environment overshadowed intermittent risk-off periods during the year. From November into year-end, economic data pointed investors towards a “soft landing” – or even “no landing” – scenario, igniting a broad rally across debt markets, including BSLs and CLOs.
Average BSL prices finished 2023 at 95.32. This is an increase from 91.89 at the beginning of the year, but still below pre-Ukraine war levels. As such, with a significant share of high-quality issuers still trading at discounted prices, we believe this represents a path to further upside. Additionally, markets like these allow CLO collateral managers to improve underlying loan portfolios through relative value swaps.
The trailing 12-month average default rate ended 2023 at 1.53%. This compares to 0.72% for 2022 but remains comfortably below the long-term average of 2.70%.11 The Fund’s underlying portfolio has a materially lower default exposure at only 0.40%. According to JP Morgan, default activity for December 2023 was the lowest since October 2022, highlighting that while higher costs are impacting many BSL issuers, their fundamentals are holding up well. Indeed, third quarter earnings show continued growth in issuers’ revenue and EBITDA, helping to offset the effects of rising rates.
Refinancing activity by BSL issuers increased on a year-over-year basis, accounting for over 58% of 2023’s new supply volume, compared to 26% in 2022. The 12-month trailing loan repayment rate increased to nearly 17.6% in December, its highest monthly level for the year. With only 7% of the outstanding loan market at year-end set to mature prior to 2026, the often-feared maturity wall has been pushed out: debt coming due in 2025 was cut down by 58% in 2023 to $83.1 billion, and 2026 maturities were reduced by 26% to $175 billion. Only 5.9% of the loan portfolios underlying our CLO equity positions mature prior to 2026.
For 2023, mutual funds and ETFs investing in U.S. leveraged loans experienced net outflows of $17 billion, compared to net outflows of $13 billion in 2022.12 The high-yield mutual fund/ETF market, by comparison, recorded $7 billion of net outflows in 2023 after recording $49 billion of net outflows in 2022. While these are significant sums of money, they represent a small fraction of the overall $1.4 trillion BSL market.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
A notable dynamic that picked up steam during the second half of the year was the trend of stressed BSLs being prepaid and refinanced into new facilities from private credit funds and business development companies (“BDCs”). Due to the sheer amount of capital raised for private credit, we even saw CCC-rated loans getting paid off at par as companies refinanced their BSL debt in the private credit market. The prepayment of CCC-rated loans allows reinvesting CLOs to redeploy capital into higher quality discounted loan issues. This has been a good trend for CLOs and if it continues into 2024, as we expect, the potential reduction of tail risk is net positive for CLOs. Overall, private credit managers refinanced around $16 billion of BSLs in 2023, according to LCD Pitchbook.
CLO Market
The CLO market saw $116 billion of new CLO issuance in 2023, according to LCD Pitchbook. Wide liability spreads and a generally unattractive CLO equity arbitrage did little to deter the less economically sensitive captive CLO funds from issuing CLOs. We believe due to the misalignment of incentive, many CLO issuers with captive CLO funds are willing to accept suboptimal CLO equity returns in order to generate new fee streams for themselves. Of the 208 new BSL CLOs issued during the year, we estimate over 80% were supported by captive CLO funds, while economically sensitive investors like our Adviser focused on the attractive opportunities in the secondary market.
CLO refinancing and reset volumes declined in 2023. Of the $24.6 billion in refinancings and resets across 57 transactions in 2023, $14.7 billion occurred in the last three months of the year, per LCD Pitchbook data, as CLO debt spreads tightened with the year-end rally.
By the end of 2023, CLO AAA discount margins averaged approximately 175 basis points over the secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”), a tightening of 53 basis points since the end of 2022. Though the financing cost of new issue CLOs tightened throughout 2023, liability spreads are still wider than what we view to be attractive. The Company’s portfolio enjoys a weighted average CLO AAA financing cost of 145 basis points. That said, while we believe that most current CLO equity IRRs for new issues do not represent attractive value, some do and we do expect the tightening among primary CLO AAAs spreads will help improve the CLO equity arbitrage in 2024. Indeed, we have recently seen the return of some large AAA investors, providing new sources of demand for AAA tranches.
Additional Information
In addition to the Company’s regulatory requirement to file certain quarterly and annual portfolio information as described further in the enclosed report, the Company makes a monthly estimate of NAV and certain additional financial information available to investors via our website (www.eaglepointcreditcompany.com). This information includes (1) an estimated range of the Company’s net investment income and realized capital gains or losses per share of common
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
stock for each calendar quarter end, generally made available within the first fifteen days after the applicable calendar month end, (2) an estimated range of the Company’s NAV per share of common stock for the prior month end and certain additional portfolio-level information, generally made available within the first fifteen days after the applicable calendar month end, and (3) during the latter part of each month, an updated estimate of NAV, if applicable, and, with respect to each calendar quarter end, an updated estimate of the Company’s net investment income and realized capital gains or losses per share for the applicable quarter, if available.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Subsequent Developments
Management’s unaudited estimate of the range of the Company’s NAV per share of common stock was between $9.22 and $9.32 as of January 31, 2024. The midpoint of this range represents an increase of 0.7% compared to the NAV per common share as of December 31, 2023.
On January 18, 2024, the Company closed an underwritten public offering of 1,400,000 shares of Series F Term Preferred Stock, resulting in net proceeds to the Company of $33.6 million after payment of underwriting discounts, commissions and estimated offering expenses. Subsequently, on January 31, 2024, the underwriters purchased an additional 160,000 shares of its Series F Term Preferred Stock pursuant to the underwriters’ overallotment option, which resulted in additional net proceeds to the Company of approximately $3.9 million after payment of underwriting discounts.
On January 23, 2024, the Company reopened the underwritten public offering of the Series F Term Preferred Stock selling an additional 400,000 shares of Series F Term Preferred Stock, resulting in net proceeds to the Company of approximately $9.6 million after payment of underwriting discounts, commissions and estimated offering expenses.
On January 31, 2024, the Company paid an aggregate monthly distribution of $0.16 per common share, inclusive of a variable supplemental distribution of $0.02 per share and a regular distribution of $0.14 per share, to holders of record on January 11, 2024. Additionally, and as previously announced, the Company declared aggregate monthly distributions of $0.16 per common share, inclusive of variable supplemental distributions of $0.02 per share and regular distributions of $0.14 per share, payable on each of February 29, 2024, March 28, 2024, April 30, 2024, May 31, 2024 and June 28, 2024 to holders of record on February 9, 2024, March 8, 2024, April 10, 2024, May 13, 2024 and June 10, 2024, respectively.
On January 31, 2024, the Company paid a monthly distribution of $0.135417 per share of the Company’s 6.50% Series C Term Preferred Stock due 2031 (the “Series C Term Preferred Stock”) to holders of record on January 11, 2024. Additionally, and as previously announced, the Company declared distributions of $0.135417 per share on Series C Term Preferred Stock, payable on each of February 29, 2024, March 28, 2024, April 30, 2024, May 31, 2024 and June 28, 2024 to holders of record on February 9, 2024, March 8, 2024, April 10, 2024, May 13, 2024 and June 10, 2024, respectively.
On January 31, 2024, the Company paid a monthly distribution of $0.140625 per share of the Company’s Series D Preferred Stock to holders of record on January 11, 2024. Additionally, and as previously announced, the Company declared distributions of $0.140625 per share on Series D Preferred Stock, payable on each of February 29, 2024, March 28, 2024, April 30, 2024, May 31, 2024 and June 28, 2024 to holders of record on February 9, 2024, March 8, 2024, April 10, 2024, May 13, 2024 and June 10, 2024, respectively.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
As previously announced, the Company declared a distribution of $0.227778 per share on the Company’s Series F Term Preferred Stock, payable on February 29, 2024 to holders of record as of February 9, 2024. The Company also declared distributions of $0.166667 per share on Series F Term Preferred Stock, payable on March 28, 2024, April 30, 2024, May 31, 2024 and June 28, 2024 to holders of record as of March 8, 2024, April 10, 2024, May 13, 2024 and June 10, 2024, respectively.
At a special meeting of stockholders held on February 13, 2024, stockholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Company's Certificate of Incorporation to increase the number of authorized shares of the Company’s common stock from 100 million to 200 million, which had the effect of increasing the total number of authorized shares of common stock and preferred stock from 120 million to 220 million in the aggregate.
In the period from January 1, 2024 through February 15, 2024, the Company received cash distributions on its investment portfolio of $50.4 million. During that same period, the Company made net new investments totaling $95.5 million. As of February 15, 2024, the Company had approximately $52 million of cash available for investment.
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Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
Management remains keenly focused on continuing to create value for our stockholders. We appreciate the trust and confidence our fellow stockholders have placed in the Company.
Thomas Majewski
Chief Executive Officer
This letter is intended to assist stockholders in understanding the Company’s performance during the twelve months ended December 31, 2023. The views and opinions in this letter were current as of February 15, 2024. Statements other than those of historical facts included herein may constitute forward-looking statements and are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors. The Company undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement made herein. Information contained on our website is not incorporated by reference into this stockholder letter and you should not consider information contained on our website to be part of this stockholder letter or any other report we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
Please see page 15 for endnotes.
ABOUT OUR ADVISER
Eagle Point Credit Management LLC is a specialist asset manager focused on investing in CLO Securities and other income-oriented credit investments. As of December 31, 2023, our Adviser had approximately $9.1 billion of assets under management (inclusive of undrawn capital commitments).13
Notes
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“Weighted average common share” is calculated based on the average daily number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period and “per common share” refers to per share of the Company’s common stock. |
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Return on our common equity reflects the Company’s cumulative monthly performance net of applicable expenses and fees measured against beginning capital adjusted for any common equity issued during the period. |
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The declared supplemental distributions during 2023 relate to the excess of the Company’s estimated taxable income for the tax year ended November 30, 2022 over the aggregate amount distributed to common stockholders for the same time period. In the event any future supplemental distributions are declared, amounts may vary. |
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Weighted average effective yield is based on an investment’s amortized cost and expected future cash flows whereas weighted average expected yield is based on an investment’s fair market value and expected future cash flows as of the applicable period end as disclosed in the Company’s financial statements, which is subject to change from period to period. |
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For purposes of the weighted average maturity calculation, a 10-year maturity is assumed for the Series D Preferred Stock. |
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An investment company trades at a premium when the market price at which its common shares trade is more than its net asset value per common share. Alternatively, an investment company trades at a discount when the market price at which its common shares trade is less than its net asset value per common share. |
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Total return based on market value is calculated assuming shares of the Company’s common stock were purchased at the market price as of the beginning of the period, and distributions paid to common stockholders during the period were reinvested at prices obtained by the Company’s dividend reinvestment plan, and the total number of shares were sold at the closing market price per share on the last day of the period. Total return does not reflect any sales load. |
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To date, a portion of common stock distributions has been estimated to be a return of capital as noted under the Tax Information section on the Company’s website. The actual components of the Company's distributions for U.S. tax reporting purposes can only be finally determined as of the end of each fiscal year of the Company and are thereafter reported on Form 1099-DIV. A distribution comprised in whole or in part by a return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Company’s investment performance and should not be confused with “yield” or “income”. Future distributions may consist of a return of capital. Not a guarantee of future distributions or yield. |
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JPMorgan Chase & Co.; S&P Capital IQ; Pitchbook LCD; Credit Suisse |
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The CSLLI tracks the investable universe of the US dollar-denominated leveraged loan market. The performance of an index is not an exact representation of any particular investment, as you cannot invest directly in an index. |
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“Par-weighted default rate” represents the rate of obligors who fail to remain current on their loans based on the par amount. |
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JPMorgan Chase & Co. North American Credit Research – JPM High Yield and Leveraged Loan Research (cumulative 2023 reports). |
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Calculated in the aggregate with certain affiliated advisers. |
Past performance is not indicative of, or a guarantee of, future performance.
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