497K 1 d783197d497k.htm DECLINE OF THE RETAIL STORE ETF Decline of the Retail Store ETF

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SUMMARY PROSPECTUS

OCTOBER 1, 2019

 

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PROSHARES DECLINE OF THE RETAIL STORE ETF

 

 

 

 

Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of the Fund’s annual and semi-annual shareholder reports will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports. Instead, the reports will be made available on the Fund’s website (www.proshares.com), and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications from the Fund electronically anytime by contacting your financial intermediary (such as your brokerage firm).

Beginning on January 1, 2019, you may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. Please contact your financial intermediary to request that you continue to receive paper copies of your shareholder reports. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held in your account that you invest in through your financial intermediary.

 

   

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This Summary Prospectus is designed to provide investors with key fund information in a clear and concise format. Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s Full Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. The Fund’s Full Prospectus, dated October 1, 2019, and Statement of Additional Information, dated October 1, 2019, and as each hereafter may be supplemented, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus. All of this information may be obtained at no cost either: online at ProShares.com/resources/prospectus_reports.html; by calling 866-PRO-5125 (866-776-5125); or by sending an email request to info@ProShares.com. The Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this Summary Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 


 

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Important Information About the Fund

ProShares Decline of the Retail Store ETF (the “Fund”) seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to the inverse (-1x) of the return of the Solactive-ProShares Bricks and Mortar Retail Store Index (the “Index”) for a single day, not for any other period. A “single day” is measured from the time the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”) to the time of the Fund’s next NAV calculation. The return of the Fund for periods longer than a single day will be the result of its return for each day compounded over the period. The Fund’s returns for periods longer than a single day will very likely differ in amount, and possibly even direction, from the Fund’s stated multiple (-1x) times the return of the Fund’s Index for the same period. For periods longer than a single day, the Fund will lose money if the Index’s performance is flat, and it is possible that the Fund will lose money even if the level of the Index falls. Longer holding periods, higher Index volatility, and inverse exposure each exacerbate the impact of compounding on an investor’s returns. During periods of higher Index volatility, the volatility of the Index may affect the Fund’s return as much as or more than the return of the Index.

The Fund presents different risks than other types of funds. The Fund may not be suitable for all investors and should be used only by knowledgeable investors who understand the consequences of seeking daily inverse (-1x) investment results, including the impact of compounding on Fund performance. Investors in the Fund should actively manage and monitor their investments, as frequently as daily. An investor in the Fund could potentially lose the full principal value of his/her investment within a single day.

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks capital appreciation from the decline of bricks and mortar retailers through short exposure (-1x) to the index. The Fund does not seek to achieve its stated investment objective over a period of time greater than a single day.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

The table below describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy or hold shares of the Fund.

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses

 

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

 

Management Fees

     0.65%  

Other Expenses

     0.00%  
  

 

 

 

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

     0.65%  
  

 

 

 

Example: This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds.

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of each period. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses

remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your approximate costs would be:

 

1 Year   3 Years     5 Years     10 Years  

$66

    $208       $362       $810  

The Fund pays transaction and financing costs associated with the purchase and sale of securities and derivatives. In addition, investors may pay brokerage commissions on their purchases and sales of the Fund’s shares. These costs are not reflected in the table or the example above.

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when the Fund’s shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the example above, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s annual portfolio turnover rate was 0% of the average value of its entire portfolio. The Fund’s portfolio turnover rate is calculated without regard to derivatives transactions. If such transactions were included, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate may be significantly higher.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund invests in financial instruments that ProShare Advisors LLC (“ProShare Advisors”) believes, in combination, should produce daily returns consistent with the Fund’s investment objective. The Index is constructed and maintained by Solactive AG. The Index seeks to measure the performance of publicly traded “bricks and mortar” retail companies whose retail revenue is derived principally from in-store sales. Short exposure may be attractive to investors who believe bricks and mortar stores face threats from ongoing trends, such as the growth of online shopping and markets oversaturated with stores. The Fund is designed to benefit on each single day that the Index declines in value. Companies must derive more than 50% of their global revenues from retail operations and more than 75% of their retail revenues from in-store sales to be included in the Index. In addition, a company must be domiciled in the US; its securities must be listed on a U.S. stock exchange and must meet certain liquidity and market capitalization requirements. The Index includes only U.S. companies. The Index is rebalanced monthly to equal weight and reconstituted in June each year.

The Fund will invest principally in the financial instruments set forth below. The Fund expects that its cash balances maintained in connection with the use of financial instruments will typically be held in money market instruments.

 

 

Derivatives — The Fund invests in derivatives, which are financial instruments whose value is derived from the value of an underlying asset or assets, such as stocks, bonds, funds (including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”)), interest rates or indexes. The Fund invests in derivatives as a substitute for directly shorting stocks in order to seek returns for a single day

 


 

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that are inverse (-1x) to the returns of the Index for that day. These derivatives principally include:

 

  ¡    Swap Agreements — Contracts entered into primarily with major global financial institutions for a specified period ranging from a day to more than one year. In a standard “swap” transaction, two parties agree to exchange the return (or differentials in rates of return) earned or realized on particular predetermined investments or instruments. The gross return to be exchanged or “swapped” between the parties is calculated with respect to a “notional amount,” e.g., the return on or change in value of a particular dollar amount invested in a “basket” of securities or an ETF representing a particular index.

 

  Money Market Instruments — The Fund invests in short-term cash instruments that have a remaining maturity of 397 days or less and exhibit high quality credit profiles, for example:

 

  ¡    U.S. Treasury Bills — U.S. government securities that have initial maturities of one year or less, and are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

 

  ¡    Repurchase Agreements — Contracts in which a seller of securities, usually U.S. government securities or other money market instruments, agrees to buy the securities back at a specified time and price. Repurchase agreements are primarily used by the Fund as a short-term investment vehicle for cash positions.

ProShare Advisors uses a mathematical approach to investing. Using this approach, ProShare Advisors determines the type, quantity and mix of investment positions that it believes, in combination, the Fund should hold to produce daily returns consistent with the Fund’s investment objective. The Fund may gain inverse exposure to only a representative sample of the securities in the Index or to securities not contained in the Index or in financial instruments, with the intent of obtaining exposure with aggregate characteristics similar to those of the inverse of the single day returns of the Index. In managing the assets of the Fund, ProShare Advisors does not invest the assets of the Fund in securities or financial instruments based on ProShare Advisors’ view of the investment merit of a particular security, instrument, or company, nor does it conduct conventional investment research or analysis or forecast market movement or trends. The Fund seeks to remain fully invested at all times in securities and/or financial instruments that, in combination, provide inverse exposure to the single day returns of the Index, consistent with its investment objective, without regard to market conditions, trends or direction. The Fund seeks investment results for a single day only, measured as the time the Fund calculates its NAV to the next time the Fund calculates its NAV, and not for any other period.

The Fund seeks to engage in daily rebalancing to position its portfolio so that its exposure to the Index is consistent with the Fund’s daily investment objective. The time and manner in which the Fund rebalances its portfolio may vary from day to day at the discretion of ProShare Advisors, depending on market conditions and other circumstances. The Index’s movements during the day will affect whether the Fund’s portfolio needs to be rebalanced.

For example, if the Index has risen on a given day, net assets of the Fund should fall (assuming there were no Creation Units issued). As a result, the Fund’s inverse exposure will need to be decreased. Conversely, if the Index has fallen on a given day, net assets of the Fund should rise (assuming there were no Creation Unit redemptions). As a result, the Fund’s inverse exposure will need to be increased.

Daily rebalancing and the compounding of each day’s return over time means that the return of the Fund for a period longer than a single day will be the result of each day’s returns compounded over the period, which will very likely differ in amount, and possibly even direction, from the inverse (-1x) of the return of the Index for the same period. The Fund will lose money if the Index’s performance is flat over time, and the Fund can lose money regardless of the performance of the Index, as a result of daily rebalancing, the Index’s volatility, compounding of each day’s return and other factors. See “Principal Risks” below.

The Fund will concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent as the Index is so concentrated. As of May 31, 2019, the Index was concentrated in the consumer discretionary and retailing industry groups.

Please see “Investment Objectives, Principal Investment Strategies and Related Risks” in the Fund’s Prospectus for additional details.

Principal Risks

An investor in the Fund could potentially lose the full principal value of his/her investment within a single day.

While the realization of certain of these risks may benefit the Fund because the Fund seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to the inverse (-1x) of the daily return of the Index, such occurrences may introduce more volatility to the Fund, which could have a significant negative impact on Fund performance.

 

 

Risk Associated with the Use of Derivatives — Investing in derivatives may be considered aggressive and may expose the Fund to greater risks and may result in larger losses or smaller gains than investing directly in the reference asset(s) underlying those derivatives. These risks include counterparty risk, liquidity risk and increased correlation risk. When the Fund uses derivatives, there may be imperfect correlation between the value of the reference asset(s) underlying the derivative (e.g., the securities in the Index) and the derivative, which may prevent the Fund from achieving its investment objective. Because derivatives often require only a limited initial investment, the use of derivatives also may expose the Fund to losses in excess of those amounts initially invested. The Fund may use a combination of swaps on the Index and swaps on an ETF that is designed to track the performance of the Index. The performance of an ETF may not track the performance of the Index due to embedded costs and other factors. Thus, to the extent the Fund invests in swaps that use an ETF as the reference asset, the Fund may be subject to greater correlation risk

 


 

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and may not achieve as high a degree of correlation with the Index as it would if the Fund only used swaps on the Index. Moreover, with respect to the use of swap agreements, if the Index has a dramatic intraday move that causes a material decline in the Fund’s net assets, the terms of a swap agreement between the Fund and its counterparty may permit the counterparty to immediately close out the transaction with the Fund. In that event, the Fund may be unable to enter into another swap agreement or invest in other derivatives to achieve the desired exposure consistent with the Fund’s investment objective. This, in turn, may prevent the Fund from achieving its investment objective, even if the Index reverses all or a portion of its intraday move by the end of the day. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning. Any costs associated with using derivatives will also have the effect of lowering the Fund’s return.

 

  Compounding Risk — The Fund has a single day investment objective, and the Fund’s performance for any other period is the result of its return for each day compounded over the period. This usually will differ in amount, and possibly even direction, from the inverse (-1x) of the daily return of the Fund’s Index for the same period, before accounting for fees and expenses. Compounding affects all investments, but has a more significant impact on an inverse fund. This effect becomes more pronounced as Index volatility and holding periods increase. Fund performance for a period longer than a single day can be estimated given any set of assumptions for the following factors: (a) Index volatility; (b) Index performance; (c) period of time; (d) financing rates associated with inverse exposure; (e) other Fund expenses; and (f) dividends or interest paid with respect to securities in the Index. The chart below illustrates the impact of two principal factors — Index volatility and Index performance — on Fund performance. The chart shows estimated Fund returns for a number of combinations of Index volatility and Index performance over a one-year period. Actual volatility, Index and Fund performance may differ significantly from the chart below. Performance shown in the chart assumes: (a) no Fund expenses; and (b) borrowing/lending rates (to obtain inverse exposure) of zero percent. If Fund expenses and/or actual borrowing/lending rates were reflected, the Fund’s performance would be different than shown.

 

  

Areas shaded darker represent those scenarios where the Fund can be expected to return less than the inverse (-1x) of the performance of the Index.

Estimated Fund Returns

 

Index Performance     One Year Volatility Rate  
One
Year
Index
  Inverse (-1x)
of the
One Year
Index
    10%     25%     50%     75%     100%  
 
-60%     60%       147.5%       134.9%       94.7%       42.4%       -8.0%  
 
-50%     50%       98.0%       87.9%       55.8%       14.0%       -26.4%  
 
-40%     40%       65.0%       56.6%       29.8%       -5.0%       -38.7%  
 
-30%     30%       41.4%       34.2%       11.3%       -18.6%       -47.4%  
 
-20%     20%       23.8%       17.4%       -2.6%       -28.8%       -54.0%  
 
-10%     10%       10.0%       4.4%       -13.5%       -36.7%       -59.1%  
 
0%     0%       -1.0%       -6.1%       -22.1%       -43.0%       -63.2%  
 
10%     -10%       -10.0%       -14.6%       -29.2%       -48.2%       -66.6%  
 
20%     -20%       -17.5%       -21.7%       -35.1%       -52.5%       -69.3%  
 
30%     -30%       -23.8%       -27.7%       -40.1%       -56.2%       -71.7%  
 
40%     -40%       -29.3%       -32.9%       -44.4%       -59.3%       -73.7%  
 
50%     -50%       -34.0%       -37.4%       -48.1%       -62.0%       -75.5%  
 
60%     -60%       -38.1%       -41.3%       -51.3%       -64.4%       -77.0%  

 

  

The foregoing table is intended to isolate the effect of Index volatility and Index performance on the return of the Fund and is not a representation of actual returns. For example, the Fund may incorrectly be expected to achieve a -20% return on a yearly basis if the Index return were 20%, absent the effects of compounding. As the table shows, with Index volatility of 50%, the Fund could be expected to return -35.1% under such a scenario. The Fund’s actual returns may be significantly better or worse than the returns shown above as a result of any of the factors discussed above or in “Principal Risks — Correlation Risk” below.

 

  

The Index was created in November 2017. For the period since the inception of the Index through May 31, 2019, the Index’s annualized historical volatility rate was 21.34%. Due to the Index’s limited operating history, the S&P Retail Select Industry Total Return Index is used for comparative purposes. The S&P Retail Select Industry Total Return Index’s annualized historical volatility rate for the five-year period ended May 31, 2019 was 18.25%. The S&P Retail Select Industry Total Return Index’s highest May to May volatility rate during the five-year period was 20.12% (May 31, 2016). The Index’s annualized total return performance for the period since the inception of the Index through May 31, 2019 was -4.50%. The S&P Retail Select Industry Total Return Index’s annualized total return performance for the five-year period ended May 31, 2019 was 0.51%. Historical index volatility and performance are not indications of what the index volatility and performance will be in the future. The volatility of U.S. exchange-traded securities or instruments that reflect the value of the index may differ from the volatility of the index.

 


 

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For additional graphs and charts demonstrating the effects of Index volatility and Index performance on the long-term performance of the Fund, see “Understanding the Risks and Long-Term Performance of Daily Objective Funds — The Impact of Compounding” in the Fund’s Prospectus and “Special Note Regarding the Correlation Risks of Geared Funds” in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”).

 

  Correlation Risk — A number of factors may affect the Fund’s ability to achieve a high degree of inverse correlation with the Index, and there is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of inverse correlation. Failure to achieve a high degree of inverse correlation may prevent the Fund from achieving its investment objective, and the percentage change of the Fund’s NAV each day may differ, perhaps significantly in amount, and possibly even direction, from the inverse (-1x) of the percentage change of the Index on such day.

 

  

In order to achieve a high degree of inverse correlation with the Index, the Fund seeks to rebalance its portfolio daily to keep exposure consistent with its investment objective. Being materially under- or overexposed to the Index may prevent the Fund from achieving a high degree of inverse correlation with the Index and may expose the Fund to greater leverage risk. Market disruptions or closure, regulatory restrictions, market volatility, illiquidity in the markets for the financial instruments in which the Fund invests, and other factors will adversely affect the Fund’s ability to adjust exposure to requisite levels. The target amount of portfolio exposure is impacted dynamically by the Index’s movements, including intraday movements. Because of this, it is unlikely that the Fund will have perfect inverse (-1x) exposure during the day or at the end of each day and the likelihood of being materially under- or overexposed is higher on days when the Index is volatile, particularly when the Index is volatile at or near the close of the trading day.

 

  

A number of other factors may also adversely affect the Fund’s inverse correlation with the Index, including fees, expenses, transaction costs, financing costs associated with the use of derivatives, income items, valuation methodology, accounting standards and disruptions or illiquidity in the markets for the securities or financial instruments in which the Fund invests. The Fund may not have investment exposure to all securities in the Index, or its weighting of investment exposure to securities may be different from that of the Index. In addition, the Fund may invest in securities not included in the Index. The Fund may take or refrain from taking positions in order to improve tax efficiency, comply with regulatory restrictions, or for other reasons, each of which may negatively affect the Fund’s correlation with the Index. The Fund may also be subject to large movements of assets into and out of the Fund, potentially resulting in the Fund being over- or underexposed to the Index and may be impacted by Index reconstitutions and Index rebalancing events. Additionally, the Fund’s underlying investments may trade on markets that may not be open on the same day as the Fund, which may cause a difference between the change in the performance of the Fund and change in the level of the Index on such day. Any of these factors could

  decrease correlation between the performance of the Fund and the Index and may hinder the Fund’s ability to meet its daily investment objective on or around that day.

 

  Rebalancing Risk — If for any reason the Fund is unable to rebalance all or a portion of its portfolio, or if all or a portion of the portfolio is rebalanced incorrectly, the Fund’s investment exposure may not be consistent with the Fund’s investment objective. In these instances, the Fund may have investment exposure to the Index that is significantly greater or less than its stated multiple. As a result, the Fund may be more exposed to leverage risk than if it had been properly rebalanced and may not achieve its investment objective.

 

  Leverage Risk — Leverage increases the risk of a total loss of an investor’s investment, may increase the volatility of the Fund, and may magnify any differences between the performance of the Fund and its underlying Index or benchmark.

In addition to the foregoing risks, the remaining principal risks are listed in alphabetical order.

 

  Counterparty Risk — The Fund will invest in derivatives involving third parties (i.e., counterparties). The use of derivatives involves risks that are different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The Fund will be subject to credit risk (i.e., the risk that a counterparty is or is perceived to be unwilling or unable to make timely payments or otherwise meet its contractual obligations) with respect to the amount it expects to receive from counterparties to derivatives and repurchase agreements entered into by the Fund. If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or fails to perform its obligations, or if any collateral posted by the counterparty for the benefit of the Fund is insufficient or there are delays in the Fund’s ability to access such collateral, the value of an investment in the Fund may decline.

 

  Early Close/Late Close/Trading Halt Risk — An exchange or market may close early, close late or issue trading halts on specific securities or financial instruments. The ability to trade certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may disrupt the Fund’s creation and redemption process, potentially affect the price at which the Fund’s shares trade in the secondary market, and/or result in the Fund being unable to trade certain securities or financial instruments. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments and/or may incur substantial trading losses. If trading in the Fund’s shares halt, investors may be temporarily unable to trade shares of the Fund.

 

 

Equity and Market Risk — Equity markets are volatile, and the value of securities, swaps, futures and other instruments correlated with equity markets may fluctuate dramatically from day to day. Equity markets are subject to corporate, political, regulatory, market and economic developments, as well as developments that impact specific economic sectors, industries or segments of the market. Further, stocks in the Index may underperform other equity investments. Volatility in the markets and/or market developments may cause the

 


 

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value of an investment in the Fund to decrease over short or long periods of time. As a fund seeking daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to the inverse (-1x) of the daily return of the Index, the value of an investment in the Fund is expected to decline when market conditions cause the level of the Index to rise.

 

  Exposure to Consumer Discretionary Industry Risk — The Fund is subject to risks faced by companies in the consumer discretionary industry, including: the fact that securities prices and profitability may be tied closely to the performance of the domestic and international economy, interest rates, competition and consumer confidence; heavy dependence on disposable household income and consumer spending; severe competition; and changes in demographics and consumer tastes, which can affect the success of consumer products.

 

  Exposure to Large-Cap Company Investment Risk — Exposure to stocks of large-cap companies may subject the Fund to certain risks. Although returns on investments in large-cap companies are often perceived as being less volatile than the returns of companies with smaller market capitalizations, the return on large-cap securities could trail the returns on investments in smaller and mid-sized companies for a number of reasons. For example, large-cap companies may be unable to respond quickly to new competitive challenges, such as changes in technology, and also may not be able to attain the high growth rate of successful smaller companies.

 

  Exposure to Retailing Industry Risk — The Fund is subject to the risks faced by companies in the retailing industry, including: changes in domestic and international economies, consumer confidence, disposable household income and spending, and consumer tastes and preferences; intense competition; changing demographics; marketing and public perception; dependence on third-party suppliers and distribution systems; intellectual property infringement; legislative or regulatory changes and increased government supervision; thin capitalization; dependence on a relatively few number of high volume sales days to achieve overall results; and dependence on outside financing, which may be difficult to obtain. The retailing industry may also be affected by risks that affect the broader consumer discretionary industry.

 

  Index Performance Risk — The Fund is linked to an Index maintained by a third party provider unaffiliated with the Fund or ProShare Advisors. There can be no guarantee or assurance that the methodology used by the third party provider to create the Index will result in the Fund achieving positive returns. Further, there can be no guarantee that the methodology underlying the Index or the daily calculation of the Index will be free from error. It is also possible that the value of the Index may be subject to intentional manipulation by third-party market participants. The Index used by the Fund may underperform other asset classes and may underperform other similar indices. Each of these factors could have a negative impact on the performance of the Fund.

 

  Intraday Price Performance Risk — The intraday performance of shares of the Fund traded in the secondary market generally
   

will be different from the performance of the Fund when measured from one NAV calculation-time to the next. When shares are bought intraday, the performance of the Fund’s shares relative to the Index until the Fund’s next NAV calculation time will generally be greater than or less than the Fund’s stated multiple times the performance of its Index.

 

  Inverse Correlation Risk — Investors will lose money when the Index rises — a result that is the opposite from traditional funds. A single day or intraday increase in the level of the Index approaching 100% may result in the total loss or almost total loss of an investor’s investment, even if the Index subsequently moves lower.

 

  Liquidity Risk — In certain circumstances, such as the disruption of the orderly markets for the financial instruments in which the Fund invests, the Fund might not be able to acquire or dispose of certain holdings quickly or at prices that represent true market value in the judgment of ProShare Advisors. Markets for the financial instruments in which the Fund invests may be disrupted by a number of events, including but not limited to economic crises, natural disasters, excessive volatility, new legislation, or regulatory changes inside or outside of the U.S. For example, regulation limiting the ability of certain financial institutions to invest in certain instruments would likely reduce the liquidity of those securities. These situations may prevent the Fund from limiting losses, realizing gains or achieving a high inverse correlation with the Index.

 

  Market Price Variance Risk — Investors buy and sell Fund shares in the secondary market at market prices, which may be different from the NAV per share of the Fund (i.e., the secondary market price may trade at a price greater than NAV (a premium) or less than NAV (a discount). The market price of the Fund’s shares will fluctuate in response to changes in the value of the Fund’s holdings, supply and demand for shares and other market factors. In addition, the instruments held by the Fund may be traded in markets on days and at times when the Fund’s listing exchange is closed for trading. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may vary, perhaps significantly, on days and at times when investors are unable to purchase or sell Fund shares. ProShare Advisors cannot predict whether shares will trade above, below or at a price equal to the value of the Fund’s holdings.

 

  Non-Diversification Risk — The Fund is classified as “non-diversified” under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and has the ability to invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in financial instruments with a single counterparty or a few counterparties. This may increase the Fund’s volatility and cause the credit of one or a relatively smaller number of counterparties to have a greater impact on the Fund’s performance. Notwithstanding the Fund’s status as a “non-diversified” investment company under the 1940 Act, the Fund intends to qualify as a “regulated investment company” (“RIC”) accorded special tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code, which imposes its own diversification requirements that are less restrictive than the requirements applicable to “diversified” investment companies under the 1940 Act.
 


 

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  Portfolio Turnover Risk — The Fund may incur high portfolio turnover to manage the Fund’s investment exposure. Additionally, active market trading of the Fund’s shares may cause more frequent creation or redemption activities that could, in certain circumstances, increase the number of portfolio transactions. High levels of portfolio transactions increase brokerage and other transaction costs and may result in increased taxable capital gains. Each of these factors could have a negative impact on the performance of the Fund.

 

  Short Sale Exposure Risk — The Fund may seek inverse or “short” exposure through financial instruments, which would cause the Fund to be exposed to certain risks associated with selling short. These risks include, under certain market conditions, an increase in the volatility and decrease in the liquidity of the instruments underlying the short position, which may lower the Fund’s return, result in a loss, have the effect of limiting the Fund’s ability to obtain inverse exposure through financial instruments, or require the Fund to seek inverse exposure through alternative investment strategies that may be less desirable or more costly to implement. To the extent that, at any particular point in time, the instruments underlying the short position may be thinly traded or have a limited market, including due to regulatory action, the Fund may be unable to meet its investment objective due to a lack of available securities or counterparties. During such periods, the Fund’s ability to issue additional Creation Units may be adversely affected. Obtaining inverse exposure through these instruments may be considered an aggressive investment technique. Any income, dividends or payments by the assets underlying the Fund’s short positions will negatively impact the Fund.

 

  Tax Risk — In order to qualify for the special tax treatment accorded a RIC and its shareholders, the Fund must derive at least 90% of its gross income for each taxable year from “qualifying income,” meet certain asset diversification tests at the end of each taxable quarter, and meet annual distribution requirements. The Fund’s pursuit of its investment strategies will potentially be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify for such treatment and could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to so qualify. The Fund can make certain investments, the treatment of which for these purposes is unclear. If, in any year, the Fund were to fail to qualify for the special tax treatment accorded a RIC and its shareholders, and were ineligible to or were not to cure such failure, the Fund would be taxed in the same manner as an ordinary corporation subject to U.S. federal income tax on all its income at the fund level. The resulting taxes could substantially reduce the Fund’s net assets and the amount of income available for distribution. In addition, in order to requalify for taxation as a RIC, the Fund could be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay substantial taxes and interest, and make certain distributions. Please see the SAI for more information.

 

  Valuation Risk — In certain circumstances (e.g., if ProShare Advisors believes market quotations do not accurately reflect the fair value of an investment, or a trading halt closes an exchange or market early), ProShare Advisors may, in its sole discretion, choose to determine a fair value price as the basis
   

for determining the market value of such investment for such day. The fair value of an investment determined by ProShare Advisors may be different from other value determinations of the same investment. Portfolio investments that are valued using techniques other than market quotations, including “fair valued” securities, may be subject to greater fluctuation in their value from one day to the next than would be the case if market quotations were used. In addition, there is no assurance that the Fund could sell a portfolio investment for the value established for it at any time, and it is possible that the Fund would incur a loss because a portfolio security is sold at a discount to its established value.

Please see “Investment Objectives, Principal Investment Strategies and Related Risks” in the Fund’s Prospectus for additional details.

Investment Results

The bar chart below shows the Fund’s investment results during its first full calendar year of operations, and the table shows how the Fund’s average annual total returns for various periods compare with a broad measure of market performance. In addition, the Fund’s performance information reflects applicable fee waivers and expense limitations (if any) in effect during the periods presented. Absent such fee waivers/expense limitations, if any, performance would have been lower. This information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Past results (before and after taxes) are not predictive of future results. Updated information on the Fund’s results can be obtained by visiting ProShares.com.

Annual Returns as of December 31

 

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Best Quarter (ended 12/31/2018): 22.68%

Worst Quarter (ended 6/30/2018): -8.71%

The year-to-date return as of the most recent quarter,

which ended June 30, 2019, was 4.04%.

 


 

8   ::  PROSHARES DECLINE OF THE RETAIL STORE ETF   LOGO    PROSHARES.COM

 

 

Average Annual Total Returns

 

As of December 31, 2018   One
Year
    Since
Inception
    Inception
Date
 
Before Taxes     10.60%       -6.32%       11/14/2017  
After Taxes on Distributions     10.29%       -6.57%        
After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares     6.26%       -4.93%        
Solactive-ProShares Bricks and Mortar Retail Store Index     -12.05%       3.37%        

 

# 

Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes. Adjusted to reflect the reinvestment of income paid by issuers in the Index. “Since Inception” returns are calculated from the date the Fund commenced operations, not the date of inception of the Index.

Average annual total returns are shown on a before- and after-tax basis for the Fund. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as a retirement account. After-tax returns may exceed the return before taxes due to a tax benefit from realizing a capital loss on a sale of shares.

Annual returns are required to be shown and should not be interpreted as suggesting that the Fund should or should not be held for longer periods of time.

Management

The Fund is advised by ProShare Advisors. Michael Neches, Senior Portfolio Manager, and Tarak Davé, Portfolio Manager, have jointly and primarily managed the Fund since November 2017 and April 2018, respectively.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

The Fund will issue and redeem shares only to Authorized Participants (typically broker-dealers) in exchange for the deposit or delivery of a basket of assets (securities and/or cash) in large blocks, known as Creation Units, each of which is comprised of 25,000 shares. Retail investors may only purchase and sell shares on a national securities exchange through a broker-dealer. Because the Fund’s shares trade at market prices rather than at NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (a premium) or less than NAV (a discount).

Tax Information

Income and capital gains distributions you receive from the Fund are subject to federal income taxes and may also be subject to state and local taxes. The Fund intends to distribute income, if any, quarterly and capital gains, if any, at least annually. Distributions for this Fund may be higher than those of most ETFs.

 

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Investment Company Act file number 811-21114

ProShares Trust

7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 1000E Bethesda, MD 20814

866.PRO.5125 866.776.5125

ProShares.com

 

 

Receive investor materials electronically:

Shareholders may sign up for electronic delivery of investor materials. By doing so, you will receive the information faster and help us reduce the impact on the environment of providing these materials. To enroll in electronic delivery,

 

1.

Go to www.icsdelivery.com

2.

Select the first letter of your brokerage firm’s name.

3.

From the list that follows, select your brokerage firm. If your brokerage firm is not listed, electronic delivery may not be available. Please contact your brokerage firm.

4.

Complete the information requested, including the e-mail address where you would like to receive notifications for electronic documents.

Your information will be kept confidential and will not be used for any purpose other than electronic delivery. If you change your mind, you can cancel electronic delivery at any time and revert to physical delivery of your materials. Just go to www.icsdelivery.com, perform the first three steps above, and follow the instructions for cancelling electronic delivery. If you have any questions, please contact your brokerage firm.

 

© 2019 ProShare Advisors LLC. All rights reserved    EMTY-OCT19