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GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund
GMO GLOBAL DEVELOPED EQUITY ALLOCATION FUND
Investment objective
Total return greater than that of its benchmark, the MSCI World Index.
Fees and expenses
The tables below describe the fees and expenses that you may bear if you buy and hold shares of the Fund.
Shareholder fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
Shareholder Fees
GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund
Class III
Purchase premium (as a percentage of amount invested) 0.08%
Redemption fee (as a percentage of amount redeemed) 0.08%
Annual Fund operating expenses
(expenses that you bear each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund
Class III
Management fee none
Shareholder service fee none
Other expenses 0.01%
Acquired fund fees and expenses (underlying fund expenses) 0.55% [1]
Total annual fund operating expenses 0.56%
Expense reimbursement (0.01%) [2]
Total annual fund operating expenses 0.55% [3]
[1] These indirect expenses include, to the extent applicable, purchase premiums and redemption fees ("transaction fees") charged by certain underlying funds. Net fees and expenses of underlying funds (before addition of transaction fees) and indirect transaction fees were approximately 0.53% and 0.02%, respectively.
[2] Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. LLC ("GMO") has contractually agreed to reimburse the Fund for the following expenses: audit expenses, fund accounting expenses, pricing service expenses, expenses of non-investment related tax services, transfer agency expenses, expenses of non-investment related legal services provided to the Fund by or at the direction of GMO, federal securities law filing expenses, printing expenses, state and federal registration fees and custody expenses. This reimbursement will continue through at least June 30, 2017, and may not be terminated prior to this date without the action or consent of the Fund's Board of Trustees.
[3] after expense reimbursement (Fund and underlying fund expenses)
Example
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same as those shown in the table. The one year amounts shown reflect the expense reimbursement noted in the expense table. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
If you sell your shares
Expense Example
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund | Class III | USD ($) 73 202 343 754
If you do not sell your shares
Expense Example, No Redemption
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund | Class III | USD ($) 64 193 333 741
Portfolio turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities. A higher portfolio turnover rate may result in higher transaction costs and, when Fund shares are held in a taxable account, higher taxes. These transaction costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During its fiscal year ended February 29, 2016, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate (excluding short-term investments) was 14% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal investment strategies
The Fund is a fund of funds and invests primarily in equities traded in U.S. and non-U.S. markets (including emerging markets) through shares of the Equity Funds, Alpha Only Fund, and Risk Premium Fund (collectively, the “underlying GMO Funds”) (see “Additional Information About the Funds’ Investment Strategies, Risks, and Expenses — Asset Allocation Funds”). The Fund also may invest directly in securities (including other underlying funds) and derivatives.

GMO uses its multi-year forecasts of returns among asset classes, together with its assessment of the relative risks of such asset classes, to determine the Fund’s allocations to particular underlying GMO Funds. An important component of those forecasts is GMO’s expectation that valuations ultimately revert to their fundamental fair (or intrinsic) value. GMO changes the Fund’s holdings of the underlying GMO Funds in response to changes in GMO’s investment outlook and market valuations and may use redemptions or purchases of Fund shares to rebalance the Fund’s investments. The factors GMO considers and investment methods GMO uses can change over time.

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests (including through investment in the underlying GMO Funds) at least 80% of its assets in equities (see “Name Policies”). In addition, under normal circumstances, the Fund invests (including through investment in the underlying GMO Funds) at least 80% of its assets in equities tied economically to developed markets (see “Name Policies”). The Fund also may invest in equities in emerging markets, but those investments typically will represent 10% or less of the Fund’s net assets measured at the time of purchase. The term “equities” refers to direct and indirect (e.g., through the underlying GMO Funds) investments in common and preferred stocks and other stock-related securities, such as convertible securities, depositary receipts, and equity real estate investment trusts (REITs) and income trusts. The term “developed markets” means those countries included in the MSCI World Index, a global developed markets equity index, and countries with similar characteristics (e.g., countries that have sustained economic development, sufficient liquidity for listed companies and accessible markets).

The Fund may invest in securities of companies of any market capitalization.

The Fund also may invest in U.S. Treasury Fund, in money market funds unaffiliated with GMO, or directly in the types of investments typically held by money market funds.
Principal risks of investing in the Fund
The value of the Fund’s shares changes with the value of the Fund’s investments. Many factors can affect this value, and you may lose money by investing in the Fund. References to investments include those held directly by the Fund and indirectly through the Fund’s investments in underlying funds (including underlying GMO Funds). Some of the underlying funds are non-diversified investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and therefore a decline in the market price of a particular security held by those underlying funds may affect the performance of those underlying funds more than if they were diversified investment companies. The principal risks of investing in the Fund are summarized below. For a more complete discussion of these risks, including those risks to which the Fund is exposed as a result of its investments in the underlying funds, see “Description of Principal Risks.”
  • Market Risk – Equities – The market price of an equity may decline due to factors affecting the issuer, its industry or the economy and equity markets generally. If an underlying fund purchases an equity for less than its fundamental fair (or intrinsic) value as determined by GMO, the Fund runs the risk that the market price of the equity will not appreciate or will decline due to GMO’s incorrect assessment of the equity’s fundamental fair (or intrinsic) value. An underlying fund also may purchase equities that typically trade at higher multiples of current earnings than other securities, and the market prices of these equities often are more sensitive to changes in future earnings expectations than the market prices of equities trading at lower multiples. Declines in stock market prices generally are likely to reduce the net asset value of the Fund’s shares.

  • Management and Operational Risk – The Fund runs the risk that GMO’s investment techniques will fail to produce desired results. GMO often uses quantitative models as part of its investment process. GMO’s models are not necessarily predictive of future market events and use simplifying assumptions that can limit their effectiveness. In addition, the data on which the models are based is subject to limitations (e.g., inaccuracies, staleness) that could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. The Fund also runs the risk that GMO’s assessment of an investment (including a company’s fundamental fair (or intrinsic) value) may be wrong or that deficiencies in GMO’s or another service provider’s internal systems or controls will cause losses for the Fund or impair Fund operations.

  • Non-U.S. Investment Risk – The market prices of many non-U.S. securities fluctuate more than those of U.S. securities. Many non-U.S. securities markets are less stable, smaller, less liquid, and less regulated than U.S. securities markets, and the cost of trading in those markets often is higher than in U.S. securities markets. Transactions in non-U.S. securities generally involve higher commission rates, transfer taxes, and custodial costs than similar transactions in U.S. securities. In addition, the Fund may be subject to non-U.S. taxes, including potentially on a retroactive basis, on (i) capital gains it realizes or dividends, interest, or other amounts it realizes or accrues in respect of non-U.S. investments; (ii) transactions in those investments; and (iii) repatriation of proceeds generated from the sale or other disposition of those investments. Also, the Fund needs a license to invest directly in many non-U.S. securities markets, and the Fund is subject to the risk that it could not invest if its license were terminated or suspended. In some non-U.S. securities markets, prevailing custody and trade settlement practices (e.g., the requirement to pay for securities prior to receipt) expose the Fund to credit and other risks. Further, adverse changes in investment regulations, capital requirements or exchange controls could adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments. These and other risks (e.g., nationalization, expropriation or other confiscation of assets of non-U.S. issuers) tend to be greater for investments in companies tied economically to emerging countries, the economies of which may be predominantly based on only a few industries or dependent on revenues from particular commodities and which often are more volatile than the economies of developed countries.

  • Derivatives and Short Sales Risk – The use of derivatives involves the risk that their value may not change as expected relative to changes in the value of the underlying assets, rates, or indices. Derivatives also present other risks, including market risk, illiquidity risk, currency risk, credit risk, and counterparty risk. The market price of an option is affected by many factors, including changes in the market prices or dividend rates of underlying securities (or in the case of indices, the securities in such indices); the time remaining before expiration; changes in interest rates or exchange rates; and changes in the actual or perceived volatility of the relevant stock market and underlying securities. The Fund may create short investment exposure by taking a derivative position in which the value of the derivative moves in the opposite direction from the price of an underlying investment, pool of investments, index or currency. The risks of loss associated with derivatives that provide short investment exposure and short sales of securities are theoretically unlimited.

  • Fund of Funds Risk – The Fund is indirectly exposed to all of the risks of an investment in the underlying funds (including underlying GMO Funds) in which it invests, including the risk that those underlying funds will not perform as expected. Because the Fund bears the fees and expenses of the underlying funds in which it invests, a reallocation of the Fund’s investments to underlying funds with higher fees or expenses will increase the Fund’s total expenses. The fees and expenses associated with an investment in the Fund are less predictable than those associated with an investment in funds that charge a fixed management fee.

  • Small Company Risk – Smaller companies may have limited product lines, markets, or financial resources, may lack the competitive strength of larger companies, may have inexperienced managers or may depend on a few key employees. The securities of companies with smaller market capitalizations often are less widely held and trade less frequently and in lesser quantities, and their market prices often fluctuate more, than the securities of companies with larger market capitalizations.

  • Currency Risk – Fluctuations in exchange rates can adversely affect the market value of foreign currency holdings and investments denominated in foreign currencies.

  • Leveraging Risk – The use of reverse repurchase agreements and other derivatives and securities lending creates leverage. Leverage increases the Fund’s losses when the value of its investments (including derivatives) declines.

  • Counterparty Risk – The Fund runs the risk that the counterparty to a derivatives contract, a clearing member used by the Fund to hold a cleared derivatives contract, or a borrower of the Fund’s securities will be unable or unwilling to make timely settlement payments, return the Fund’s margin or otherwise honor its obligations.

  • Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk – Geopolitical and other events may disrupt securities markets and adversely affect global economies and markets. Those events, as well as other changes in non-U.S. and U.S. economic and political conditions, could adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments.

  • Focused Investment Risk – Investments focused in countries, regions, sectors, industries, or issuers (or in sectors within a country or region) that are subject to the same or similar risk factors and investments whose prices are closely correlated are subject to greater overall risk than investments that are more diversified or whose prices are not as closely correlated.

  • Large Shareholder Risk – To the extent that a large number of shares of the Fund is held by a single shareholder (e.g., an institutional investor), the Fund is subject to the risk that a redemption by that shareholder of all or a large portion of its Fund shares will require the Fund to sell securities at disadvantageous prices or otherwise disrupt the Fund’s operations.

  • Illiquidity Risk – Low trading volume, lack of a market maker, large position size, or legal restrictions may limit or prevent the Fund or an underlying fund from selling particular securities or closing derivative positions at desirable prices.

  • Market Risk – Fixed Income Investments – The market price of a fixed income investment can decline due to market-related factors, including rising interest rates and widening credit spreads, or decreased liquidity stemming from the market’s uncertainty about the value of a fixed income investment (or class of fixed income investments).

  • Credit Risk – The Fund runs the risk that the issuer or guarantor of a fixed income investment or the obligor of an obligation underlying an asset-backed security will be unable or unwilling to satisfy its obligation to pay principal and interest or otherwise to honor its obligations in a timely manner. The market price of a fixed income investment will normally decline as a result of the issuer’s, guarantor’s, or obligor’s failure to meet its payment obligations, or in anticipation of such failure.

Performance
The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s annual total returns from year to year for the periods indicated and by comparing the Fund’s average annual total returns for different calendar periods with those of a broad-based index. Purchase premiums and redemption fees are not reflected in the bar chart, but are reflected in the table; as a result, the returns in the table are lower than the returns in the bar chart. Returns in the table reflect current purchase premiums and redemption fees. 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 your tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant if you are tax-exempt or if you hold your Fund shares through tax-advantaged arrangements (such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account). Updated performance information for the Fund is available at www.gmo.com. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future performance.
Annual Total Returns/Class III Shares
Years Ending December 31
Bar Chart
Highest Quarter: 14.41% (3Q2010)
Lowest Quarter: – 15.27% (4Q2008)
Year-to-Date (as of 3/31/16): 0.81%
Average Annual Total Returns
Periods Ending December 31, 2015
Average Annual Total Returns - GMO Global Developed Equity Allocation Fund
1 Year
5 Years
10 Years
Incept.
Inception Date
Class III (4.38%) 6.51% 4.87% 5.59% Jun. 16, 2005
Class III | Return After Taxes on Distributions (6.67%) 5.12% 3.61% 4.32% Jun. 16, 2005
Class III | Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares (0.10%) 5.33% 4.00% 4.59% Jun. 16, 2005
MSCI World Index (returns reflect no deduction for fees or expenses, but are net of withholding tax on dividend reinvestments) (0.87%) 7.59% 4.98% 5.62% Jun. 16, 2005