Summary

• BlackRock Event Driven Equity returned +0.48% (net, institutional) during the quarter.
• The Fund remains well-diversified with 86 investments across the spectrum of corporate events.
• The fund invests in companies that have announced or are expected to undergo material change – catalysts that will impact their stock prices.

Performance: Event Driven Equity returned +0.48% (net, institutional) during the quarter. By sub-strategy, hard catalyst positioning contributed to returns in Q1. Within the hard catalyst portfolio, 12 mergers closed during the period. While merger spreads widened modestly during the period, the environment for M&A remained