Portfolio Valuation: Steward Funds, Inc. (individually a ‘‘Fund’’ and, collectively, the ‘‘Funds’’) consists of eleven Funds — Steward Covered Call Income Fund, Steward Global Equity
Income Fund, Steward International Enhanced Index Fund, Steward Select Bond Fund, Steward Values Enhanced Large Cap Fund, Steward Values Enhanced Small-Mid Cap Fund, Steward Equity Market Neutral Fund, Steward Large Cap Core Fund, Steward Large Cap
Growth Fund, Steward Large Cap Value Fund and Steward Small Cap Growth Fund. The Steward Small Cap Growth Fund was liquidated on August 23, 2024. Fund investments are recorded at fair value. The Funds’ Board of Directors (the
“Board”) has designated the Funds’ investment adviser, Crossmark Global Investments, Inc. (“Crossmark Global Investments” or the “Adviser”), to serve as the valuation designee to perform fair value
determinations for applicable Fund investments and has approved the Adviser’s valuation procedures for the Funds. Fund investments are valued using various valuation methodologies, including the following:
Equity securities listed on a domestic exchange
are valued at the official closing price or last trade price, or the last bid price if there was no trade that day. Equity securities traded on The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (“NASDAQ”) use the official closing price, if available, and
otherwise, use the last trade price, or the last bid price if there was no trade on that day. Equity securities that are traded in the over-the-counter market only, but that are not included on NASDAQ, are valued at the last trade price. Equity
securities listed on a foreign exchange are valued at the official closing price or last trade price, or, if there was no trade that day, the last bid price or the mean of the last bid and asked prices, depending on the exchange. American Depositary
Receipts (ADRs) and Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) listed on an exchange are priced at the official closing price or the last trade price. Open-end money market mutual funds are valued at net asset value per share. Exchange-traded equity options
are valued at the (i) settlement price (official closing price) or last trade price, or, (ii) if there was no trade that day, at the mean of the last bid and asked prices. Prices are generally provided by approved third-party pricing services.
Domestic fixed income securities, including
short-term instruments, are priced at an evaluated bid price provided by an approved third-party pricing service. Foreign fixed income securities are priced at the mean of evaluated bid and asked prices provided by an approved third-party pricing
service. Third-party pricing services typically use information provided by market makers or estimates of market values obtained from yield data relating to investments or securities with similar characteristics. The service providers’
internal models use inputs that are observable such as, among other things, issuer details, interest rates, yield curves, prepayment speeds, credit risks/spreads, default rates and quoted prices for similar assets. Short-term debt obligations (those
with remaining maturities of 60 days or less) are valued at amortized cost.
If a Fund investment cannot be valued in
accordance with the above valuation methodologies or other routine valuation methodologies established by the Adviser, the Adviser’s Valuation Committee will value the investment in accordance with the Adviser’s valuation
procedures.
Accounting principals generally
accepted in the United States of America (‘‘GAAP’’) establishes a fair value hierarchy for inputs used in measuring fair value that maximizes the use of observable inputs and minimizes the use of unobservable inputs by
requiring that the most observable inputs be used when available. Observable inputs are those that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability based on market data obtained from sources independent of the Funds. Unobservable
inputs reflect the Funds’ assumptions about the inputs market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.
The fair value hierarchy is categorized into three
levels based on the inputs as follows:
Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical securities and net asset values for money market funds.
Level 2 — Other significant observable inputs other than Level 1 quoted prices (including, but not limited to, quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds and credit risks).
Level 3 — Significant unobservable inputs (including the Funds’ own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).
Pursuant to the Adviser's valuation procedures,
equity securities and written options contracts are generally categorized as Level 1 securities in the fair value hierarchy (unless there is a fair valuation event, in which case affected securities are generally categorized as Level 2). Debt
securities are generally categorized as Level 2 securities in the fair value hierarchy. Money market funds are generally categorized as Level 1 securities in the fair value hierarchy. Changes in valuation techniques may result in transfers in or out
of an assigned level within the fair value hierarchy.
