Allocating assets to only one or a small number of the investment options (other than the Target Date ‘Lifecycle’ or Target Risk ‘Lifestyle’ options) should not be considered a balanced investment program. In particular, allocating assets to a small number of options concentrated in particular business or market sectors will subject your account to increased risk and volatility. Examples of business or market sectors where this risk may be particularly high include: a) technology-related businesses, including Internet-related businesses, b) small-cap securities and c) foreign securities. John Hancock does not provide advice regarding appropriate investment allocations.
Loss of Money Because the investment’s market value may fluctuate up and down, an investor may lose money, including part of the principal, when he or she buys or sells the investment.
Equity Securities The value of equity securities, which include common, preferred, and convertible preferred stocks, will fluctuate based on changes in their issuers’ financial conditions, as well as overall market and economic conditions, and can decline in the event of deteriorating issuer, market, or economic conditions.
Credit and Counterparty The issuer or guarantor of a fixed-income security, counterparty to an OTC derivatives contract, or other borrower may not be able to make timely principal, interest, or settlement payments on an obligation. In this event, the issuer of a fixed-income security may have its credit rating downgraded or defaulted, which may reduce the potential for income and value of the portfolio.
Quantitative Investing Holdings selected by quantitative analysis may perform differently from the market as a whole based on the factors used in the analysis, the weighting of each factor, and how the factors have changed over time.
Derivatives Investments in derivatives may be subject to the risk that the advisor does not correctly predict the movement of the underlying security, interest rate, market index, or other financial asset, or that the value of the derivative does not correlate perfectly with either the overall market or the underlying asset from which the derivative's value is derived. Because derivatives usually involve a small investment relative to the magnitude of liquidity and other risks assumed, the resulting gain or loss from the transaction will be disproportionately magnified. These investments may result in a loss if the counterparty to the transaction does not perform as promised.
Hedging Strategies The advisor’s use of hedging strategies to reduce risk may limit the opportunity for gains compared with unhedged investments, and there is no guarantee that hedges will actually reduce risk.
Technology Sector Concentrating assets in the technology sector may disproportionately subject the portfolio to the risks of that industry, including loss of value because of intense competitive pressures, short product cycles, dependence on intellectual property rights, legislative or regulatory changes, and other factors.
Not FDIC Insured The investment is not a deposit or obligation of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank and is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other U.S. governmental agency.
Index Correlation/Tracking Error A portfolio that tracks an index is subject to the risk that certain factors may cause the portfolio to track its target index less closely, including if the advisor selects securities that are not fully representative of the index. The portfolio will generally reflect the performance of its target index even if the index does not perform well, and it may underperform the index after factoring in fees, expenses, transaction costs, and the size and timing of shareholder purchases and redemptions.
Restricted/Illiquid Securities Restricted and illiquid securities may fall in price because of an inability to sell the securities when desired. Investing in restricted securities may subject the portfolio to higher costs and liquidity risk.
Merger and Replacement Transition Risk for Sub-Account. Once the plan fiduciary has been notified and unless they elect otherwise, in the case of fund mergers and replacements, the affected funds that are being merged or replaced may implement the redemption of your interest by payment in cash or by distributing assets in kind. In either case, the redemption of your interest by the affected fund, as well as the investment of the redemption proceeds by the ''new'' fund, may result in transaction costs to the funds because the affected funds may find it necessary to sell securities and the ''new'' funds will find it necessary to invest the redemption proceeds. Also, the redemption and reinvestment processes, including any transition period that may be involved in completing such mergers and replacements, could be subject to market gains or losses, including those from currency exchange rates. The transaction costs and potential market gains or losses could have an impact on the value of your investment in the affected fund and in the ''new'' fund, and such market gains or losses could also have an impact on the value of any existing investment that you or other investors may have in the ''new'' fund. Although there can be no assurances that all risks can be eliminated, John Hancock as manager of the underlying funds will use its best efforts to manage and minimize such risks and costs.
Management Performance is subject to the risk that the advisor’s asset allocation and investment strategies do not perform as expected, which may cause the portfolio to underperform its benchmark, other investments with similar objectives, or the market in general. The investment is subject to the risk of loss of income and capital invested, and the advisor does not guarantee its value, performance, or any particular rate of return.
Market/Market Volatility The market value of the portfolio’s securities may fall rapidly or unpredictably because of changing economic, political, or market conditions, which may reduce the value of the portfolio.
Risk of Increase in Expenses for Sub-Account. Your actual costs of investing in the fund may be higher than the expenses shown in "Annual fund operating expenses" for a variety of reasons. For example, expense ratios may be higher than those shown if a fee limitation is changed or terminated or if average net assets decrease. Net assets are more likely to decrease and fund expense ratios are more likely to increase when markets are volatile.
ETF Investments in exchange-traded funds generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities they are designed to track, although they may be subject to greater liquidity risk and higher costs than owning the underlying securities directly because of their management fees. Shares of ETFs are subject to market trading risk, potentially trading at a premium or discount to net asset value.
Other The investment’s performance may be impacted by its concentration in a certain type of security, adherence to a particular investing strategy, or a unique aspect of its structure and costs.
Industry and Sector Investing Concentrating assets in a particular industry, sector of the economy, or markets may increase volatility because the investment will be more susceptible to the impact of market, economic, regulatory, and other factors affecting that industry or sector compared with a more broadly diversified asset allocation.