Total | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abbey Capital Futures Strategy Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Abbey Capital Futures Strategy Fund (the “Fund”) is to seek long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund (the “Shares”). You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information – Sales Charges” and in the section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information – Reducing or Eliminating the Front-End Sales Charge.” Financial intermediaries may impose different sales charge waivers for Class A Shares and Class T Shares, and these variations are described in in Class A Shares or at least in Class T Shares of the Fund.Appendix A of the Prospectus. Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class A, Class C and Class T Shares, and $1,000,000 in Class I Shares, in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs of investing in the Fund would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
You would pay the following expenses on Class C Shares if you did not redeem your shares at the end of the period: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 0% of the average value of its portfolio. In accordance with industry practice, derivative instruments and instruments with a maturity of one year or less at the time of acquisition are excluded from the calculation of the portfolio turnover rate, which leads to the 0% portfolio turnover rate reported above. If those instruments were included in the calculation, the Fund would have a high portfolio turnover rate. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by allocating its assets between a “Managed Futures” strategy and a “Fixed Income” strategy.
The Managed Futures strategy will be achieved by the Fund investing a portion of its assets in Abbey Capital Onshore Series LLC, a wholly-owned and controlled Delaware series limited liability company (the “Onshore Subsidiary”) and up to 25% of its total assets in Abbey Capital Master Offshore Fund Limited, a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the “Cayman Subsidiary”). The Cayman Subsidiary will in turn invest all or substantially all of its assets in segregated portfolios of Abbey Capital Offshore Fund SPC (the “SPC” and, together with the Onshore Subsidiary and the Cayman Subsidiary, the “Subsidiaries”), a wholly-owned and controlled segregated portfolio company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands. The Cayman Subsidiary will serve solely as an intermediate entity through which the Fund will invest in the SPC. The Cayman Subsidiary makes no independent investment decisions and has no investment or other discretion over the Fund’s investable assets. The Adviser may allocate assets of the SPC and the Onshore Subsidiary to multiple Managed Futures portfolios (the “Segregated Portfolios”) that include investment styles or sub-strategies such as (i) trend following, (ii) discretionary, fundamentals-based investing with a focus on macroeconomic analysis, (iii) strategies that pursue both fundamental and technical trading approaches, (iv) other specialized approaches to specific or individual market sectors such as equities, interest rates, metals, agricultural and soft commodities, and (v) systematic trading strategies which incorporate technical and fundamental variables.
The Managed Futures strategy investments are designed to achieve capital appreciation in the financial and commodities futures markets. The Adviser intends to allocate the assets of the SPC and the Onshore Subsidiary to one or more Trading Advisers to manage in percentages determined at the discretion of the Adviser. Each Trading Adviser will manage one or more of its own Segregated Portfolios. Each Trading Adviser invests according to a Managed Futures strategy in one or a combination of (i) options, (ii) futures, (iii) forwards, (iv) spot contracts, or (v) swaps, including total return swaps, each of which may be tied to (i) commodities, (ii) financial indices and instruments, (iii) foreign currencies, or (iv) equity indices. All commodities futures and commodities-related investments will be made in the Segregated Portfolios of the SPC. Each current Trading Adviser is registered with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) as a Commodity Trading Advisor. Trading Advisers that are not registered with the SEC as investment advisers provide advice only regarding matters that do not involve securities.
The Fixed Income strategy invests the Fund’s assets primarily in investment grade fixed income securities (of all durations and maturities) in order to generate interest income and capital appreciation, which may add diversification to the returns generated by the Fund’s Managed Futures strategy. The Fund must set aside liquid assets, or engage in other SEC or staff-approved measures, to “cover” open positions with respect to certain kinds of derivative instruments. The Fixed Income strategy investments may be used to help cover the Fund’s derivative positions.
The Fund’s Adviser seeks returns, in part, by (i) using Managed Futures strategy investments that are not expected to have returns that are highly correlated to the broad equity market, and (ii) through actively managed Fixed Income strategy investments that are not expected to have returns that are highly correlated to the broad equity market or the Managed Futures strategy. The Adviser believes that utilizing non-correlated strategies may mitigate losses in generally declining markets. However, there can be no assurance that losses will be avoided. Investment strategies that have historically been non-correlated or demonstrated low correlations to one another or to major world financial market indices may become correlated at certain times, such as during a liquidity crisis in global financial markets.
The trading strategies employ several different trading styles using different research and trading methodologies, in a wide range of global financial and commodity markets operating over multiple time frames. Many of the styles use systematic, automated trading systems, using a combination of mathematical, statistical, technical analysis, pattern recognition and macroeconomic models aimed at profiting from market trends of different durations. Trading Advisers may use discretionary approaches aimed at identifying value investments and turning points in trends. All Trading Advisers utilize a disciplined approach to risk management. The Adviser and Trading Advisers from time to time will employ hedging techniques. Key principles of the Fund’s sell discipline include predetermined relative-value objectives for sectors, issuers and specific securities, pricing performance or fundamental performance that varies from expectations, deteriorating fundamentals, overvaluation and alternative investments offering the opportunity to achieve more favorable risk-adjusted returns.
The markets traded include bonds, money markets, foreign exchange markets and commodity markets. Most of the trading is done in derivative markets, usually listed futures markets, but some trading in cash markets may take place when this is the most effective way to enter or exit a trading position. Both long and short positions will be taken in all markets traded. Contracts are positioned either long or short based on various characteristics related to their prices. For example, the Fund may short a particular underlying security or instrument if the Adviser or a Trading Adviser believes the price of the underlying security or instrument will decrease. The Fund invests in U.S. and non-U.S. markets and in developed and emerging markets.
As much of the trading within the Fund is in futures markets, the Fund is likely to have cash balances surplus to margin requirements. The cash portfolio will be invested on a short-term, highly liquid, basis, to meet margin calls on the futures positions.
The Fund is “non-diversified” for purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the “1940 Act”) which means that the Fund may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. The Fund may not invest more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. The Fund’s investments in certain derivative instruments and its short selling activities involve the use of leverage.
Generally, the SPC invests primarily in commodity futures but it may also invest in financial futures, options, forwards, spot contracts and swap contracts, fixed income securities, pooled investment vehicles, including those that are not registered pursuant to the 1940 Act and other investments intended to serve as margin or collateral for the SPC’s derivative positions. The Onshore Subsidiary only invests in financial futures, options, forwards, spot contracts and swap contracts, fixed income securities, pooled investment vehicles, including those that are not registered pursuant to the 1940 Act, and other investments intended to serve as margin or collateral for derivative positions. The Fund invests in the SPC in order to gain exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to regulated investment companies. Unlike the Fund and Onshore Subsidiary, the SPC may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the SPC complies with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Fund’s transactions in derivatives. The Fund complies with Section 8 and Section 18 of the 1940 Act, governing investment policies and capital structure and leverage, respectively, on an aggregate basis with the Subsidiaries. The Subsidiaries also comply with Section 17 of the 1940 Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody.
In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Subsidiaries, the Subsidiaries are subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. Unlike the Fund, none of the Subsidiaries will seek to qualify as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Fund is, directly or indirectly, the sole shareholder of each Subsidiary and does not expect shares of the Subsidiaries to be offered or sold to other investors. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
The principal risk factors affecting shareholders’ investments in the Fund (and, indirectly, in the Subsidiaries) are set forth below.
● Commodity Sector Risk: Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked derivative instruments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, livestock disease, pandemics, embargoes or other trade barriers, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments. The prices of energy, industrial metals, precious metals, agriculture and livestock sector commodities may fluctuate widely due to factors such as changes in value, supply and demand and governmental regulatory policies. The commodity-linked securities in which the Fund invests may be issued by companies in the financial services sector, and events affecting the financial services sector may cause the Fund’s Share value to fluctuate.
● Counterparty Risk: Counterparty risk is the risk that the other party(s) to an agreement or a participant to a transaction, such as a broker or the futures commission merchant, might default on a contract or fail to perform by failing to pay amounts due or failing to fulfill the obligations of the contract or transaction.
● Credit Risk: Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of the security will not be able to make principal and interest payments when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. Securities rated in the four highest categories by the rating agencies are considered investment grade but they may also have some speculative characteristics. Investment grade ratings do not guarantee that bonds will not lose value or default. In addition, the credit quality of securities may be lowered if an issuer’s financial condition changes. The Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
● Currency Risk: Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. Forward foreign currency exchange contracts may limit potential gains from a favorable change in value between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies. Unanticipated changes in currency pricing may result in poorer overall performance for the Fund than if it had not engaged in these contracts.
● Cyber Security Risk: Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cybersecurity incidents affecting third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures.
● Derivatives Risk: The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments including options, forward currency exchange contracts, swaps and futures, which may be leveraged, may result in losses. Investments in derivative instruments may result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.
● Emerging Markets Risk: Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in foreign securities of developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers.
● Fixed Income Securities Risk: Fixed income securities in which the Fund may invest are subject to certain risks, including: interest rate risk, prepayment risk and credit/default risk. Interest rate risk involves the risk that prices of fixed income securities will rise and fall in response to interest rate changes. Prepayment risk involves the risk that in declining interest rate environments prepayments of principal could increase and require the Fund to reinvest proceeds of the prepayments at lower interest rates. Credit risk involves the risk that the credit rating of a security may be lowered.
● Foreign Investments Risk: International investing is subject to special risks, including currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers either directly or through depositary receipts. Depositary receipts may be available through “sponsored” or “unsponsored” facilities. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all of the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depository of an unsponsored facility is frequently under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through, to the holders of the receipts, voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. The depository of unsponsored depositary receipts may provide less information to receipt holders.
● Forward and Futures Risk: The successful use of forward and futures contracts draws upon the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ skill and experience with respect to such instruments and are subject to special risk considerations. The primary risks associated with the use of futures contracts are (a) the imperfect correlation between the change in market value of instruments held by the Fund and the price of the forward or futures contract; (b) possible lack of a liquid secondary market, and possible regulatory position limits and restrictions, for a forward or futures contract and the resulting inability to close a forward or futures contract when desired; (c) losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which are potentially unlimited; (d) the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ inability to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors; (e) the possibility that the counterparty will default in the performance of its obligations; and (f) if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell securities from its portfolio to meet daily variation margin requirements, and the Fund may have to sell securities at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
● Government Intervention and Regulatory Changes: The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) (which was passed into law in July 2010) significantly revised and expanded the rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement authority of federal bank, securities and commodities regulators. There can be no assurance that future regulatory actions including, but not limited to, those authorized by the Dodd-Frank Act will not adversely impact the Fund. Major changes resulting from legislative or regulatory actions could materially affect the profitability of the Fund or the value of investments made by the Fund or force the Fund to revise its investment strategy or divest certain of its investments. Any of these developments could expose the Fund to additional costs, taxes, liabilities, enforcement actions and reputational risk.
● Hedging Transactions Risk: The Adviser and Trading Advisers from time to time employ various hedging techniques. The success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will be subject to the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ ability to correctly assess the degree of correlation between the performance of the instruments used in the hedging strategy and the performance of the investments in the portfolio being hedged. Since the characteristics of many securities change as markets change or time passes, the success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will also be subject to the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ ability to continually recalculate, readjust, and execute hedges in an efficient and timely manner. For a variety of reasons, the Adviser and Trading Advisers may not seek to establish a perfect correlation between such hedging instruments and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Such imperfect correlation may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, it is not possible to hedge fully or perfectly against any risk, and hedging entails its own cost.
● High Portfolio Turnover Risk: The risk that when investing on a shorter-term basis, the Fund may as a result trade more frequently and incur higher levels of brokerage fees and commissions, and cause higher levels of current tax liability to shareholders in the Fund.
● Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of fixed income securities generally increase when interest rates decline and decrease when interest rates increase. The Fund may lose money if short term or long term interest rates rise sharply or otherwise change in a manner not anticipated by the Adviser and Trading Advisers. It is likely there will be less governmental action in the near future to maintain low interest rates. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and the Fund’s investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund. Recent and any future declines in interest rate levels could cause the Fund’s earnings to fall below the Fund’s expense ratio, resulting in a negative yield, and a decline in the Fund’s share price. A general rise in interest rates may cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which could adversely affect the price and liquidity of fixed income securities and could also result in increased redemptions for the Fund. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund.
● Leveraging Risk: Investments in derivative instruments may give rise to a form of leverage. Trading Advisers may engage in speculative transactions which involve substantial risk and leverage, such as making short sales. The use of leverage by the Adviser and Trading Advisers may increase the volatility of the Fund. These leveraged instruments may result in losses to the Fund or may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) or total return, because instruments that contain leverage are more sensitive to changes in interest rates. The Fund may also have to sell assets at inopportune times to satisfy its obligations in connection with such transactions.
● Management Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk of poor stock selection. In other words, the individual stocks in the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices do not work to achieve their desired result.
● Manager Risk: If the Adviser and Trading Advisers make poor investment decisions, it will negatively affect the Fund’s investment performance.
● Market Risk: The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. Investors may lose money.
● Multi-Manager Dependence Risk: The success of the Fund’s investment strategy depends both on the Adviser’s ability to select Trading Advisers and to allocate assets to those Trading Advisers and on each Trading Adviser’s ability to execute the relevant strategy and select investments for the Fund and the Subsidiaries. The Trading Advisers’ investment styles may not always be complementary, which could adversely affect the performance of the Fund.
● New Adviser Risk: The Trading Advisers may be newly registered or not registered with the SEC and/or have not previously managed a mutual fund. Accordingly, investors in the Fund bear the risk that a Trading Adviser’s inexperience may limit its effectiveness.
● Non-Diversification Risk: The Fund is non-diversified. Compared to other funds, the Fund may invest more of its assets in a smaller number of companies. Gains or losses on a single stock may have greater impact on the Fund.
● Options Risk: Purchasing and writing put and call options are highly specialized activities and entail greater than ordinary investment risks. The Fund may not fully benefit from or may lose money on an option if changes in its value do not correspond as anticipated to changes in the value of the underlying securities.
● Quantitative Trading Strategies Risk: The Adviser and Trading Advisers may use quantitative methods to select investments. Securities or other investments selected using quantitative methods may perform differently from the market as a whole or from their expected performance for many reasons, including factors used in building the quantitative analytical framework, the weights placed on each factor, and changing sources of market returns, among others. Any errors or imperfections in quantitative analyses or models, or in the data on which they are based, could adversely affect the ability of the Adviser or a Trading Adviser to use such analyses or models effectively, which in turn could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. There can be no assurance that these methodologies will help the Fund to achieve its investment objective.
● Short Sales Risk: Short sales of securities may result in gains if a security’s price declines, but may result in losses if a security’s price rises. In a rising market, short positions may be more likely to result in losses because securities sold short may be more likely to increase in value. Short selling also involves the risks of: increased leverage, and its accompanying potential for losses; the potential inability to reacquire a security in a timely manner, or at an acceptable price; the possibility of the lender terminating the loan at any time, forcing the Fund to close the transaction under unfavorable circumstances; the additional costs that may be incurred; and the potential loss of investment flexibility caused by the Fund’s obligations to provide collateral to the lender and set aside assets to cover the open position. The Fund may engage in short sales that are either “uncovered” or “against the box.” A short sale is “against the box” if at all times during which the short position is open, the Fund owns at least an equal amount of the securities or securities convertible into, or exchangeable without further consideration for, securities of the same issue as the securities that are sold short. Short sales “against the box” may protect the Fund against the risk of losses in the value of a portfolio security because any decline in value of the security should be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding gain in the short position. Any potential gains in the security, however, would be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding loss in the short position. Short sales that are not “against the box” involve a form of investment leverage, and the amount of the Fund’s loss on a short sale is potentially unlimited.
● Subsidiary Risk: By investing in the Subsidiaries, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with each Subsidiary’s investments. The derivatives and other investments held by the Subsidiaries are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the Fund. The Subsidiaries are not registered under the 1940 Act, and, unless otherwise noted in this Prospectus, are not subject to all the investor protections of the 1940 Act. Changes in the laws of the United States, Delaware and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or the Subsidiaries to continue to operate as they currently do and could adversely affect the Fund.
● Tax Risk: In order to qualify as a RIC, the Fund must meet certain requirements regarding the source of its income, the diversification of its assets and the distribution of its income. Under the test regarding the source of a RIC’s income, at least 90% of the gross income of the RIC each year must be qualifying income, which consists of dividends, interest, gains on investment assets and other categories of investment income. In 2006, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) published a ruling that income realized from swaps with respect to a commodities index would not be qualifying income. The Fund’s investment in the SPC (via the Cayman Subsidiary) is expected to provide the Fund with exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the Code for qualification as a RIC, but there is a risk that the IRS could assert that the income derived from the investment in the SPC and certain commodity-linked structured notes will not be considered qualifying income for purposes of the Fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The IRS finalized Treasury Regulations that provide that the income from a foreign subsidiary that is a controlled foreign corporation is qualifying income for purposes of a fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes (1) to the extent the income is actually distributed by a foreign subsidiary for the RIC each year and (2) even if not distributed currently, to the extent the income is derived with respect to the fund’s business of investing in stock, securities or currencies. If the Fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC and became subject to federal income tax, shareholders of the Fund would be subject to diminished returns. Changes in the laws of the United States, Delaware and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or its Subsidiaries to operate as described in this Prospectus and the SAI and could adversely affect the Fund. For example, the Cayman Islands does not currently impose any income, corporate or capital gains tax or withholding tax on the Cayman Subsidiary or the SPC. If Cayman Islands law changes such that the Cayman Subsidiary and/or the SPC must pay Cayman Islands taxes, Fund shareholders would likely suffer decreased investment returns. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following performance information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows the performance of the Fund’s Class I Shares from year to year. Performance information represents only past performance, before and after taxes, and does not necessarily indicate future results. Updated performance information is available online at www.abbeycapital.com or by calling 1-844-261-6484 (toll free). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Abbey Capital Futures Strategy Fund – Class I Shares Total Returns for Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
During the period shown in the chart, the was (for the quarter ended ) and the was (for the quarter ended ).
The as of was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table, which includes all applicable sales loads, compares the average annual total returns of the Class I Shares, Class A Shares and Class C Shares for the one-year, five-year, and since inception periods to a broad-based market index for the same periods. Average annual returns for Class T Shares are not included because they had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. The returns for Class T Shares would be substantially similar to returns for Class I Shares because the shares are invested in the same portfolio of securities, and would differ only to the extent that the classes have different expenses. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ABBEY CAPITAL MULTI ASSET FUND | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MAFIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ABBEY CAPITAL MULTI ASSET FUND | Class A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MAFAX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ABBEY CAPITAL MULTI ASSET FUND | Class C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MAFCX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ABBEY CAPITAL MULTI ASSET FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Abbey Capital Multi Asset Fund (the “Fund”) is to seek long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (the “Shares”). You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $25,000 in Class A Shares of the Fund. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information – Sales Charges” and in the section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information – Reducing or Eliminating the Front-End Sales Charge.” Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class A and Class C Shares, and $1,000,000 in Class I Shares, of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs of investing in the Fund would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
You would pay the following expenses on Class C Shares if you did not redeem your shares at the end of the period: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 0% of the average value of its portfolio. In accordance with industry practice, derivative instruments and instruments with a maturity of one year or less at the time of acquisition are excluded from the calculation of the portfolio turnover rate, which leads to the 0% portfolio turnover rate reported above. If those instruments were included in the calculation, the Fund would have a higher portfolio turnover rate. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by allocating its assets among a “Managed Futures” strategy, a “Long U.S. Equity” strategy and a “Fixed Income” strategy.
The Managed Futures strategy will be achieved by the Fund investing in managed futures investments, including (i) options, (ii) futures, (iii) forwards, (iv) spot contracts, or (v) swaps, including total return swaps, each of which may be tied to (i) commodities, (ii) financial indices and instruments, (iii) foreign currencies, or (iv) equity indices (the “Futures Portfolio”). The Fund may invest up to 25% of its total assets in ACMAF Master Offshore Limited, a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the “Cayman Subsidiary”). The Cayman Subsidiary will in turn invest all or substantially all of its assets in segregated portfolios of ACMAF Offshore SPC (the “SPC” and, together with the Cayman Subsidiary, the “Subsidiaries”), a wholly-owned and controlled segregated portfolio company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands. The Cayman Subsidiary will serve solely as an intermediate entity through which the Fund will invest in the SPC. The Cayman Subsidiary makes no independent investment decisions and has no investment or other discretion over the Fund’s investable assets. The Adviser may allocate assets of the SPC to multiple Managed Futures portfolios (the “Segregated Portfolios”) that include investment styles or sub-strategies such as (i) trend following, (ii) discretionary, fundamentals-based investing with a focus on macroeconomic analysis, (iii) strategies that pursue both fundamental and technical trading approaches, (iv) other specialized approaches to specific or individual market sectors such as equities, interest rates, metals, agricultural and soft commodities, and (v) systematic trading strategies which incorporate technical and fundamental variables.
The Managed Futures strategy investments are designed to achieve capital appreciation in the financial and commodities futures markets. The Adviser intends to allocate a portion of the assets of the SPC to one or more Trading Advisers to manage in percentages determined at the discretion of the Adviser. Each Trading Adviser will manage one or more of its own Segregated Portfolios. All commodities futures and commodities-related investments will be made in the Segregated Portfolios of the SPC. Each current Trading Adviser is registered with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) as a Commodity Trading Advisor (“CTA”). Trading Advisers that are not registered with the SEC as investment advisers provide advice only regarding matters that do not involve securities. The trading strategies employ several different trading styles using different research and trading methodologies, in a wide range of global financial and commodity markets operating over multiple time frames. Trading Advisers may use discretionary approaches aimed at identifying value investments and turning points in trends. The Fund invests in U.S. and non-U.S. markets and in developed and emerging markets.
The Long U.S. Equity strategy will be achieved by the Adviser targeting an allocation of approximately 50% of the Fund’s total assets in a portfolio of one or more U.S. equity index futures (the “Equity Portfolio”). The Adviser will monitor the percentage of the Fund’s total assets that form the Equity Portfolio on a daily basis. The Adviser will establish ‘rebalancing thresholds’ so that if at any time the percentage of the Fund’s total assets invested in the Equity Portfolio is above or below the target allocation of approximately 50% by a specific amount, then the Adviser will seek to rebalance the Equity Portfolio back towards its target allocation of approximately 50%. Such rebalancing thresholds will be determined by the Adviser and may be subject to change from time to time.
As part of the Long U.S. Equity strategy, the Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, futures, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, and shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)) and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). The Fund may also participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”), a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund defines United States companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of the United States; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a the United States; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, within the United States.
The Fixed Income strategy invests the Fund’s assets primarily in investment grade fixed income securities (of all durations and maturities) in order to generate interest income and capital appreciation, which may add diversification to the returns generated by the Fund’s Managed Futures and Long U.S. Equity strategies. The level of the Fund’s assets invested in the Fixed Income Strategy will be managed and rebalanced pursuant to thresholds determined by the Adviser, which may be subject to change from time to time. In line with these thresholds, any proceeds of maturing fixed income securities will be substantially reinvested into additional fixed income securities. The Fund must set aside liquid assets to “cover” open positions with respect to its managed futures investments. The Fixed Income strategy investments may be used to help cover the Fund’s derivative positions. The Subsidiaries may also cover written options with offsetting purchased options in the same commodity and maturity, or by the purchase or sale of the underlying commodity future, in an amount great than or equal to that required by an exercised option.
To achieve its investment objective, the Fund’s Adviser will target approximately 100% exposure of the Fund’s net assets to Managed Futures strategy investments and approximately 50% exposure of the Fund’s net assets to Long U.S. Equity strategy investments. The Fund’s remaining net assets will be allocated to the Fixed Income strategy investments.
As much of the trading within the Fund is in futures markets, the Fund is likely to have cash balances surplus to margin requirements. The cash portfolio will be invested on a short-term, highly liquid, basis, to meet margin calls on the futures positions.
The Fund is “non-diversified” for purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the “1940 Act”), which means that the Fund may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. The Fund may not invest more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. The Fund’s investments in certain derivative instruments and its short selling activities involve the use of leverage.
Generally, the SPC invests primarily in commodity futures but it may also invest in financial futures, options, forwards, spot contracts and swap contracts, fixed income securities, pooled investment vehicles, including those that are not registered pursuant to the 1940 Act and other investments intended to serve as margin or collateral for the SPC’s derivative positions. The Fund invests in the SPC via the Cayman Subsidiary in order to gain exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the federal tax laws, rules and regulations that apply to regulated investment companies. Unlike the Fund, the SPC may invest without limitation in commodity-linked derivatives, however, the SPC will comply with the same 1940 Act asset coverage requirements with respect to its investments in commodity-linked derivatives that are applicable to the Fund’s transactions in derivatives. The Fund complies with Section 8 and Section 18 of the 1940 Act, governing investment policies and capital structure and leverage, respectively, on an aggregate basis with the Subsidiaries. The Subsidiaries also comply with Section 17 of the 1940 Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody. In addition, to the extent applicable to the investment activities of the Subsidiaries, the Subsidiaries are subject to the same fundamental investment restrictions and will follow the same compliance policies and procedures as the Fund. Unlike the Fund, the Subsidiaries will not seek to qualify as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Fund is, directly or indirectly, the sole shareholder of each Subsidiary and does not expect shares of the Subsidiaries to be offered or sold to other investors. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
The principal risk factors affecting shareholders’ investments in the Fund (and, indirectly, in the Subsidiary) are set forth below.
● Commodity Sector Risk: Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked derivative instruments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, livestock disease, pandemics, embargoes or other trade barriers, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments. The prices of energy, industrial metals, precious metals, agriculture and livestock sector commodities may fluctuate widely due to factors such as changes in value, supply and demand and governmental regulatory policies. The commodity-linked securities in which the Fund invests may be issued by companies in the financial services sector, and events affecting the financial services sector may cause the Fund’s Share value to fluctuate.
● Counterparty Risk: Counterparty risk is the risk that the other party(s) to an agreement or a participant to a transaction, such as a broker or the futures commission merchant, might default on a contract or fail to perform by failing to pay amounts due or failing to fulfill the obligations of the contract or transaction.
● Credit Risk: Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of the security will not be able to make principal and interest payments when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. Securities rated in the four highest categories by the rating agencies are considered investment grade but they may also have some speculative characteristics. Investment grade ratings do not guarantee that bonds will not lose value or default. In addition, the credit quality of securities may be lowered if an issuer’s financial condition changes. The Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
● Currency Risk: Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. Forward foreign currency exchange contracts may limit potential gains from a favorable change in value between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies. Unanticipated changes in currency pricing may result in poorer overall performance for the Fund than if it had not engaged in these contracts.
● Cyber Security Risk: Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures.
● Derivatives Risk: The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments including options, forward currency exchange contracts, swaps and futures, which may be leveraged, may result in losses. Investments in derivative instruments may result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments.
● Emerging Markets Risk: Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in foreign securities of developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers.
● Equity and Equity-Related Securities Risk: Investments in equity securities and equity derivatives in general are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time. The value of a convertible security may not increase or decrease as rapidly as the underlying common stock. Common stocks may decline over short or even extended periods of time. The purchase of rights or warrants involves the risk that the Fund could lose the purchase value of a right or warrant if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not executed prior to the right’s or warrant’s expiration. The value of securities convertible into equity securities, such as warrants or convertible debt, is also affected by prevailing interest rates, the credit quality of the issuer and any call provision.
● Fixed Income Securities Risk: Fixed income securities in which the Fund may invest are subject to certain risks, including: interest rate risk, prepayment risk and credit/default risk. Interest rate risk involves the risk that prices of fixed income securities will rise and fall in response to interest rate changes. Prepayment risk involves the risk that in declining interest rate environments prepayments of principal could increase and require the Fund to reinvest proceeds of the prepayments at lower interest rates. Credit risk involves the risk that the credit rating of a security may be lowered.
● Foreign Investments Risk: International investing is subject to special risks, including currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers either directly or through depositary receipts. Depositary receipts may be available through “sponsored” or “unsponsored” facilities. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all of the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depository of an unsponsored facility is frequently under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through, to the holders of the receipts, voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. The depository of unsponsored depositary receipts may provide less information to receipt holders.
● Forward and Futures Risk: The successful use of forward and futures contracts draws upon the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ skill and experience with respect to such instruments and are subject to special risk considerations. The primary risks associated with the use of futures contracts are (a) the imperfect correlation between the change in market value of instruments held by the Fund and the price of the forward or futures contract; (b) possible lack of a liquid secondary market, and possible regulatory position limits and restrictions, for a forward or futures contract and the resulting inability to close a forward or futures contract when desired; (c) losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which are potentially unlimited; (d) the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ inability to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors; (e) the possibility that the counterparty will default in the performance of its obligations; and (f) if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell securities from its portfolio to meet daily variation margin requirements, and the Fund may have to sell securities at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
● Government Intervention and Regulatory Changes: The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) (which was passed into law in July 2010) significantly revised and expanded the rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement authority of federal bank, securities and commodities regulators. There can be no assurance that future regulatory actions including, but not limited to, those authorized by the Dodd-Frank Act will not adversely impact the Fund. Major changes resulting from legislative or regulatory actions could materially affect the profitability of the Fund or the value of investments made by the Fund or force the Fund to revise its investment strategy or divest certain of its investments. Any of these developments could expose the Fund to additional costs, taxes, liabilities, enforcement actions and reputational risk.
● Hedging Transactions Risk: The Adviser and Trading Advisers from time to time employ various hedging techniques. The success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will be subject to the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ ability to correctly assess the degree of correlation between the performance of the instruments used in the hedging strategy and the performance of the investments in the portfolio being hedged. Since the characteristics of many securities change as markets change or time passes, the success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will also be subject to the Adviser’s and Trading Advisers’ ability to continually recalculate, readjust, and execute hedges in an efficient and timely manner. For a variety of reasons, the Adviser and Trading Advisers may not seek to establish a perfect correlation between such hedging instruments and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Such imperfect correlation may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, it is not possible to hedge fully or perfectly against any risk, and hedging entails its own cost.
● High Portfolio Turnover Risk: The risk that when investing on a shorter-term basis, the Fund may as a result trade more frequently and incur higher levels of brokerage fees and commissions, and cause higher levels of current tax liability to shareholders in the Fund.
● Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of fixed income securities generally increase when interest rates decline and decrease when interest rates increase. The Fund may lose money if short term or long term interest rates rise sharply or otherwise change in a manner not anticipated by the Adviser and Trading Advisers. It is likely there will be less governmental action in the near future to maintain low interest rates. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and the Fund’s investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund. Recent and any future declines in interest rate levels could cause the Fund’s earnings to fall below the Fund’s expense ratio, resulting in a negative yield, and a decline in the Fund’s share price. A general rise in interest rates may cause investors to move out of fixed income securities on a large scale, which could adversely affect the price and liquidity of fixed income securities and could also result in increased redemptions for the Fund. Fluctuations in interest rates may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund.
● Leveraging Risk: Investments in derivative instruments may give rise to a form of leverage. Trading Advisers may engage in speculative transactions which involve substantial risk and leverage, such as making short sales. The use of leverage by the Adviser and Trading Advisers may increase the volatility of the Fund. These leveraged instruments may result in losses to the Fund or may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) or total return, because instruments that contain leverage are more sensitive to changes in interest rates. The Fund may also have to sell assets at inopportune times to satisfy its obligations in connection with such transactions.
● Management Risk: The Fund is subject to the risk of poor stock selection. In other words, the individual stocks in the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices do not work to achieve their desired result.
● Manager Risk: If the Adviser and Trading Advisers make poor investment decisions, it will negatively affect the Fund’s investment performance.
● Market Risk: The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. Investors may lose money.
● Multi-Manager Dependence Risk: The success of the Fund’s investment strategy depends both on the Adviser’s ability to select Trading Advisers and to allocate assets to those Trading Advisers and on each Trading Adviser’s ability to execute the relevant strategy and select investments for the Fund and each Subsidiary. The Trading Advisers’ investment styles may not always be complementary, which could adversely affect the performance of the Fund.
● New Adviser Risk: The Trading Advisers may be newly registered or not registered with the SEC and/or have not previously managed a mutual fund. Accordingly, investors in the Fund bear the risk that a Trading Adviser’s inexperience may limit its effectiveness.
● Non-Diversification Risk: The Fund is non-diversified. Compared to other funds, the Fund may invest more of its assets in a smaller number of companies. Gains or losses on a single stock may have greater impact on the Fund.
● Options Risk: Purchasing and writing put and call options are highly specialized activities and entail greater than ordinary investment risks. The Fund may not fully benefit from or may lose money on an option if changes in its value do not correspond as anticipated to changes in the value of the underlying securities.
● Quantitative Trading Strategies Risk: The Adviser and Trading Advisers may use quantitative methods to select investments. Securities or other investments selected using quantitative methods may perform differently from the market as a whole or from their expected performance for many reasons, including factors used in building the quantitative analytical framework, the weights placed on each factor, and changing sources of market returns, among others. Any errors or imperfections in quantitative analyses or models, or in the data on which they are based, could adversely affect the ability of the Adviser or a Trading Adviser to use such analyses or models effectively, which in turn could adversely affect the Fund’s performance. There can be no assurance that these methodologies will help the Fund to achieve its investment objective.
● Subsidiary Risk: By investing in the Subsidiaries, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with each Subsidiary’s investments. The derivatives and other investments held by the Subsidiaries are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the Fund. The Subsidiaries are not registered under the 1940 Act, and, unless otherwise noted in this Prospectus, are not subject to all the investor protections of the 1940 Act. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or the Subsidiaries to continue to operate as they currently do and could adversely affect the Fund.
● Tax Risk: In order to qualify as a RIC, the Fund must meet certain requirements regarding the source of its income, the diversification of its assets and the distribution of its income. Under the test regarding the source of a RIC’s income, at least 90% of the gross income of the RIC each year must be qualifying income, which consists of dividends, interest, gains on investment assets and other categories of investment income. In 2006, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) published a ruling that income realized from swaps with respect to a commodities index would not be qualifying income. The Fund’s investment in the SPC (via the Cayman Subsidiary) is expected to provide the Fund with exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the Code for qualification as a RIC, but there is a risk that the IRS could assert that the income derived from the investment in the SPC and certain commodity-linked structured notes will not be considered qualifying income for purposes of the Fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The IRS finalized Treasury Regulations that provide that the income from a foreign subsidiary that is a controlled foreign corporation is qualifying income for purposes of a fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes (1) to the extent the income is actually distributed by a foreign subsidiary for the RIC each year and (2) even if not distributed currently, to the extent the income is derived with respect to the fund’s business of investing in stock, securities or currencies. If the Fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC and became subject to federal income tax, shareholders of the Fund would be subject to diminished returns. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or its Subsidiaries to operate as described in this Prospectus and the SAI and could adversely affect the Fund. For example, the Cayman Islands does not currently impose any income, corporate or capital gains tax or withholding tax on the Cayman Subsidiary or the SPC. If Cayman Islands law changes such that the Cayman Subsidiary and/or the SPC must pay Cayman Islands taxes, Fund shareholders would likely suffer decreased investment returns. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund. The bar chart below shows how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of all dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Updated performance information is available online at www.abbeycapital.com or by calling 1-844-261-6484 (toll free).
The Fund commenced operations as a series of the Company on April 11, 2018, when all of the assets of Abbey Global LP (the “Predecessor Fund”) transferred to Class I Shares of the Fund. The Fund’s objectives, policies, guidelines and restrictions are in all material respects equivalent to the Predecessor Fund. Accordingly, the performance information shown below for periods prior to April 11, 2018 is that of the Predecessor Fund. The Predecessor Fund was not registered under the 1940 Act, and thus was not subject to certain investment and operational restrictions that are imposed by the 1940 Act. If the Predecessor Fund had been registered under the 1940 Act, its performance may have been adversely affected. Accordingly, future Fund performance may be different than the Predecessor Fund’s restated past performance. The Predecessor Fund was not a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code and therefore did not distribute current or accumulated earnings and profits and was not subject to the diversification and source of income requirements applicable to regulated investment companies. Monthly returns since the inception of the Predecessor Fund are provided in Appendix A of the Prospectus. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
During the period shown in the chart, the was (for the quarter ended ) and the was (for the quarter ended ).
The as of was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Class I shares, including the Predecessor Fund, before and after taxes for the past calendar year, five-year, ten-year and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Average annual returns for Class A Shares and Class C Shares of the Fund are not included because they had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Adara Smaller Companies Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Adara Smaller Companies Fund (the “Fund”) seeks capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (the “Shares”). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year, as well as within a year. For the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 101% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowing for investment purposes) in equity securities of small or micro-cap companies. Small or micro-cap companies are generally considered to be those whose market capitalization are, at the time the Fund makes an investment, within the range of the market capitalization of companies in the Russell Microcap Index ($30.2 million to $840 million as of May 8, 2020), the Russell 2000® Index ($94.8 million to $4.4 billion as of May 8, 2020), or the S&P SmallCap 600 Index ($85 million to $5.5 billion as of November 30, 2020). Securities of companies whose market capitalization no longer meet this definition after purchase may continue to be held by the Fund.
The Fund utilizes a “multi-manager” approach whereby the Fund’s assets are allocated to one or more sub-advisers (“Sub-Advisers”) in percentages determined at the discretion of the Fund’s investment adviser, Altair Advisers LLC (the “Adviser”). The Adviser also monitors Sub-Adviser trading with the dual objectives of maximizing each Sub-Adviser’s investment flexibility and assuring that the Fund as a whole complies with its investment restrictions. Otherwise, each Sub-Adviser acts independently from the others and utilizes its own distinct investment style in selecting securities. However, each Sub-Adviser must operate within the constraints of the Fund’s investment objective and strategies and the particular investment restrictions applicable to that Sub-Adviser.
The Sub-Advisers will implement a number of different investment strategies and styles within the small and micro-cap universe. The Sub-Advisers will implement one or more of the following investment strategies summarized below:
The Fund’s Sub-Advisers will invest primarily in equities and equity-related instruments of small and micro-cap companies. Equities and equity-related instruments include common stocks, preferred stocks, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts, warrants and rights. The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPOs”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments, or “special situations”, which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company. The Sub-Advisers may also invest in real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), debt securities, and foreign securities (directly and through depository receipts). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fund Performance | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following performance information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by illustrating the variability of the Fund’s returns. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The bar chart shows changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year. Performance information represents only past performance, before and after taxes, and does not necessarily indicate future results. Updated performance information is available by calling 1-844-261-6482 (toll free). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Adara Smaller Companies Fund Total Return For Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
During the period shown in the chart, the was (for the quarter ended ) and the was (for the quarter ended ). The for the nine months ended was .
The table below compares the average annual returns of the Fund for the one year, five year, and since inception periods to a broad-based market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Aquarius International Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Aquarius International Fund (the “Fund”) seeks capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (the “Shares”). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year, as well as within a year. For the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 55% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, primarily in securities of companies located outside the United States, including emerging market countries. The Fund determines where a company is located, and thus, whether a company is considered to be located outside the United States by considering whether: (i) it is organized under the laws of or maintains its principal office in a country located outside the United States; (ii) its securities are principally traded on trading markets in countries located outside the United States; (iii) it derives at least 50% of its total revenue or profits from either goods produced or services performed or sales made in countries located outside the United States; or (iv) it has at least 50% of its assets in countries located outside the United States. The Fund may invest in companies of any size capitalization.
The Fund utilizes a “multi-manager” approach whereby the Fund’s assets are allocated to one or more sub-advisers (“Sub-Advisers”) in percentages determined at the discretion of the Fund’s investment adviser, Altair Advisers LLC (the “Adviser”). The Adviser also monitors Sub-Adviser trading with the dual objectives of maximizing each Sub-Adviser’s investment flexibility and assuring that the Fund as a whole complies with its investment restrictions. Otherwise, each Sub-Adviser acts independently from the others and utilizes its own distinct investment style in selecting securities. However, each Sub-Adviser must operate within the constraints of the Fund’s investment objective and strategies and the particular investment restrictions applicable to that Sub-Adviser.
The Sub-Advisers will implement a number of different investment strategies and styles within the international universe. The Sub-Advisers will implement one or more of the following investment strategies summarized below:
The Fund’s Sub-Advisers will invest primarily in equity securities, including common stocks, preferred stocks, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts, warrants and rights. In addition to purchasing equity securities on exchanges where the companies are located, the Fund may purchase equity securities on exchanges other than where their companies are domiciled (often traded as dual listed securities) or in the form of Depositary Receipts, which include American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”) or similar securities. The Fund may also invest in other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). Investments in ETFs based on foreign market indices are considered investments outside the U.S. The Fund may enter into currency contracts (such as spot, forward and futures) to hedge foreign currency exposure.
The Fund may invest a portion of its assets in fixed income securities, including securities issued by corporate and governmental issuers. The principal debt investments of the Fund will be fixed and floating rate securities with no reset terms.
The Fund may also invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments, or “special situations”, which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fund Performance | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following performance information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by illustrating the variability of the Fund’s returns. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The bar chart shows the Fund’s performance for one year. Performance information represents only past performance, before and after taxes, and does not necessarily indicate future results. Updated performance information is available by calling 1-844-261-6482 (toll free). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Aquarius International Fund Total Return For Calendar Year Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
During the period shown in the chart, the was (for the quarter ended ) and the was (for the quarter ended ). The for the nine months ended was .
The table below compares the average annual returns of the Fund for the one year and since inception periods to a broad-based market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bogle Investment Management Small Cap Growth Fund | Bogle Investment Management Small Cap Growth Fund Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BOGIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bogle Investment Management Small Cap Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Bogle Investment Management Small Cap Growth Fund (the “Fund”) is to provide long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses And Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 below shows what you would pay if you invested $10,000 in the Fund over the various time periods indicated and then redeemed all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation for the first year). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year, as well as within a year. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 302% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of the net assets of the portfolio (including borrowings for investment purposes) in the stocks of U.S. companies with market capitalizations, at the time of purchase, that are within the trailing twelve-month range of the market capitalizations of those companies that are included in the Russell 2000® Index (“Small Cap Stocks”). For purposes of this investment policy, stocks of U.S. companies are stocks that are listed on a securities exchange or market inside the United States. Because the Russell 2000® Index (“Index”) is modified (“reconstituted”) regularly (usually each year) to replace companies that no longer qualify for inclusion in the Index due to, among other reasons, having market capitalizations that have grown too large, the Adviser uses the trailing twelve-month range of market capitalizations to mitigate the need to trade stocks in the portfolio due to Index reconstitution. Further, the Adviser will not sell from the portfolio any holdings that the Adviser believes are likely to appreciate more than the Index solely because the market capitalizations of such holdings cause the portfolio to hold less than 80% of its net assets within this range. As such, the Fund may, from time to time, hold less than 80% of its net assets within this range. The Fund attempts to achieve its objective by taking long positions in Small Cap Stocks that the Adviser believes are undervalued given their future earnings growth prospects. As part of its investment strategy, the Adviser will continue to invest in Small Cap Stocks that the Adviser believes will appreciate more than the Index. Shareholders will be notified by the Fund sixty days in advance of any change in this 80% policy. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk/Return Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table below compares the Fund’s average annual total returns for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years and the past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indicator of how the Fund will perform in the future. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above): : (quarter ended ) : (quarter ended ) for the nine months ended : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the long-term performance of the Fund. The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by illustrating the variability of the Fund’s returns. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.boglefunds.com or by calling 1-877-264-5346. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPSCX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS SMALL CAP VALUE FUND II | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers with small market capitalizations and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics. A small market capitalization issuer generally is considered to be one whose market capitalization is, at the time the Fund makes the investment, similar to the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. The Russell 2000® Value Index is an unmanaged index that contains stocks from the Russell 2000® Index with less than average growth orientation. As of November 30, 2020, the median market capitalization of this index was $686 million and the largest stock was $13.1 billion. Please note that this range is as of a particular point in time and is subject to change.
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of small companies. The Adviser will seek to invest in companies it considers to be well managed and to have attractive fundamental financial characteristics. The Adviser believes greater potential for price appreciation exists among small companies since they tend to be less widely followed by other securities analysts and thus may be more likely to be undervalued by the market. The Fund may invest from time to time a portion of its assets, not to exceed 20% (under normal conditions) at the time of purchase, in companies with larger market capitalizations.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may also invest up to 25% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar-denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS SMALL CAP VALUE FUND II | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers with small market capitalizations and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics. A small market capitalization issuer generally is considered to be one whose market capitalization is, at the time the Fund makes the investment, similar to the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. The Russell 2000® Value Index is an unmanaged index that contains stocks from the Russell 2000® Index with less than average growth orientation. As of November 30, 2020, the median market capitalization of this index was $686 million and the largest stock was $13.1 billion. Please note that this range is as of a particular point in time and is subject to change.
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of small companies. The Adviser will seek to invest in companies it considers to be well managed and to have attractive fundamental financial characteristics. The Adviser believes greater potential for price appreciation exists among small companies since they tend to be less widely followed by other securities analysts and thus may be more likely to be undervalued by the market. The Fund may invest from time to time a portion of its assets, not to exceed 20% (under normal conditions) at the time of purchase, in companies with larger market capitalizations.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund may also invest up to 25% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar-denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II’s Investor Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Investor Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Investor Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPAVX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS ALL-CAP VALUE FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 37% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers across the capitalization spectrum and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return on equity and earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar-denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 10% of its net assets in securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain debt securities and preferred stock.
The Fund may hedge overall portfolio exposure up to 40% of its net assets through the purchase and sale of index and individual put and call options.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS ALL-CAP VALUE FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current income is a secondary objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 37% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers across the capitalization spectrum and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return on equity and earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 10% of its net assets in securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain debt securities and preferred stock.
The Fund may hedge overall portfolio exposure up to 40% of its net assets through the purchase and sale of index and individual put and call options.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund’s Investor Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Investor Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Investor Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPLEX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT EQUITY FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation while reducing exposure to general equity market risk. The Fund seeks a total return greater than that of the S&P 500® Index over a full market cycle. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage. The Fund invests, both long and short, in securities principally traded in the United States markets. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the United States equity market generally. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities. Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 125% of the Fund’s net assets.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of foreign issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets directly in equity securities of foreign issuers.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations. High yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Although the Fund compares its average total return to a broad-based securities market index, the Fund seeks returns that are not correlated to securities market returns. The Fund seeks to achieve a 12-15% return over a full market cycle; however, there can be no guarantee that such returns will be achieved. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT EQUITY FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation while reducing exposure to general equity market risk. The Fund seeks a total return greater than that of the S&P 500® Index over a full market cycle. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage. The Fund invests, both long and short, in securities principally traded in the United States markets. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the United States equity market generally. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities.
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 125% of the Fund’s net assets.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of foreign issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets directly in equity securities of foreign issuers.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations. High yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund’s Investor Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Investor Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Investor Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Although the Fund compares its average total return to a broad-based securities market index, the Fund seeks returns that are not correlated to securities market returns. The Fund seeks to achieve a 12-15% return over a full market cycle; however, there can be no guarantee that such returns will be achieved. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPRRX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT RESEARCH FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term total return. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 66% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund uses a hedged strategy. The Fund actively invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales (i.e. sales of securities the Fund does not own) are invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage.
The Fund invests, both long and short, in equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small (or “micro”) cap companies, as well as other instruments that are convertible into equity securities. Selling securities short is a form of leverage. Equity securities in which the Fund may invest include exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, rights, convertible securities, depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Fund may also invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies (denominated in either U.S. dollars or foreign currencies), put and call options, futures, indexed securities and fixed-income securities (including bonds, notes, asset-backed securities, convertible securities, Eurodollar and Yankee dollar instruments, preferred stocks and money market instruments) and high yield securities (commonly referred to as “junk bonds”). Fixed income securities in which the Fund invests include those rated between AAA and D by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, or deemed of comparable quality by the Adviser. The Adviser may also temporarily invest uninvested cash in money market funds and similar collective investment vehicles. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Adviser determines the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the U.S. equity market by investing less than 100% of its assets in net long positions. Selection of individual securities to be held long or sold short will be based on a mix of quantitative techniques and fundamental security analysis. The Adviser selects stocks on the basis of three criteria: value, fundamental business strength and momentum. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
Although the Fund seeks to follow a hedged strategy, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s portfolio or investments will be insulated from market moves or effectively hedged against risk.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The principal derivative instruments in which the Fund invests are futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT RESEARCH FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term total return. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 66% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund uses a hedged strategy. The Fund actively invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales (i.e. sales of securities the Fund does not own) are invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage.
The Fund invests, both long and short, in equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small (or “micro”)-cap companies, as well as other instruments that are convertible into equity securities. Equity securities in which the Fund may invest include exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, rights, convertible securities, depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Fund may also invest in depository receipts and equity securities of foreign companies (denominated in either U.S. dollars or foreign currencies), put and call options, futures, indexed securities and fixed-income securities (including bonds, notes, asset-backed securities, convertible securities, Eurodollar and Yankee dollar instruments, preferred stocks and money market instruments) and high yield securities (commonly referred to as “junk bonds”). Fixed income securities in which the Fund invests include those rated between AAA and D by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (“NRSRO”), or deemed of comparable quality by the Adviser. The Adviser may also temporarily invest uninvested cash in money market funds and similar collective investment vehicles. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Adviser determines the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the U.S. equity market by investing less than 100% of its assets in net long positions. Selection of individual securities to be held long or sold short will be based on a mix of quantitative techniques and fundamental security analysis. The Adviser selects stocks on the basis of three criteria: value, fundamental business strength and momentum. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
Although the Fund seeks to follow a hedged strategy, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s portfolio or investments will be insulated from market moves or effectively hedged against risk.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange-traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The principal derivative instruments in which the Fund invests are futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund’s Investor Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Investor Class has varied year to year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Investor Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WPG Partners Small/Micro Cap Value Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — WPG PARTNERS SMALL/MICRO CAP VALUE FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in common stocks, securities convertible into common stocks and in special situations. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 123% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of U.S. companies that, at the time of purchase, have a market capitalization that is within the range of the market capitalization of issuers in the Russell 2000® Value Index. As of November 30, 2020, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index is $686 million and the largest stock is $13.1 billion. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies. Although the Fund invests primarily in common stocks, the Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including (without limitation):
Special Situations: The Fund may invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company.
Strategies: The Adviser uses a value approach to select the Fund’s investments. Using this investment style, the Adviser seeks securities selling at substantial discounts to their underlying values and then holds these securities until the market values reflect what the Adviser believes to be their intrinsic values. The Adviser employs a bottom-up strategy, focusing on undervalued industries that the Adviser believes are experiencing positive change. The Adviser then uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to assess a security’s potential value. The portfolio managers managing the Fund meet with a multitude of companies annually to identify companies with increasing returns on capital in their core businesses which are selling at attractive valuations.
Factors the Adviser looks for in selecting investments include (without limitation):
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the WPG Partners Small/Micro Cap Value Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPGRX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL EQUITY FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term capital growth. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 118% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a non-diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size. The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity- related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of issuers believed by the Adviser to be undervalued in the marketplace, focusing on issuers that combine attractive valuations with catalysts for change. The Adviser applies a bottom-up stock selection process (i.e., one that focuses primarily on issuer-specific factors) in managing the Fund, using a combination of fundamental and quantitative analysis. In selecting investments for the Fund, the Adviser considers various factors such as price-to-book value, price-to-sales and earnings ratios, dividend yields, strength of management, and cash flow to identify securities that are trading at a price that appears to be lower than the issuer’s inherent value.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL EQUITY FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term capital growth. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund’s Institutional Class was 118% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a non-diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size. The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)) real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of issuers believed by the Adviser to be undervalued in the marketplace, focusing on issuers that combine attractive valuations with catalysts for change. The Adviser applies a bottom-up stock selection process (i.e., one that focuses primarily on issuer-specific factors) in managing the Fund, using a combination of fundamental and quantitative analysis. In selecting investments for the Fund, the Adviser considers various factors such as price-to-book value, price-to-sales and earnings ratios, dividend yields, strength of management, and cash flow to identify securities that are trading at a price that appears to be lower than the issuer’s inherent value.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”).An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As of the date of this Prospectus, the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund’s Investor Class has not yet commenced operations. The bar chart and table below illustrate the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class, which is offered in a separate Prospectus. Had the Investor Class been operational during the periods in the chart and table below, it would have had substantially similar annual returns as the Institutional Class because the Investor Class is invested in the same portfolio of securities. Annual returns would differ only to the extent that the Investor Class and Institutional Class do not have the same expenses. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risk of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Long/Short Fund | Investor Class | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BGRSX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Long/Short Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL LONG/SHORT FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and Fund operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs and returns might be different, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 125% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage. The Fund invests, both long and short, in securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size.
With a long position, the Fund purchases a stock outright; with a short position, the Fund sells a security that it does not own and must borrow to meet its settlement obligations. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, including return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund’s portfolio is rebalanced regularly. The Adviser assesses each investment’s changing characteristics relative to its contribution to portfolio risk. The Adviser will sell an investment held long or close out a short position that the Adviser believes no longer offers an appropriate return-to-risk tradeoff.
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects to sell securities short so that the Fund’s portfolio is approximately 50% net long with an average of between 30% and 70% net long.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry. The Fund is non-diversified, and may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by U.S. and foreign corporations and other business organizations (e.g. trusts or limited liability companies). Such high yield debt obligations are not considered to be investment grade. Non-investment grade fixed income securities (commonly known as “junk bonds”) are rated BB or lower by S&P Global, or have a comparable rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization (or, if unrated are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality at the time of investment). The Fund may invest in securities of the lowest rating category, including securities in default. The Adviser may, but is not required to, sell a bond or note held by the Fund in the event that its credit rating is downgraded.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Global Long/Short Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Long/Short Fund | Boston Partners Investor | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL LONG/SHORT FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Class shares of the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and Fund operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs and returns might be different, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 125% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage The Fund invests, both long and short, in securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size.
With a long position, the Fund purchases a stock outright; with a short position, the Fund sells a security that it does not own and must borrow to meet its settlement obligations. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, including return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund’s portfolio is rebalanced regularly. The Adviser assesses each investment’s changing characteristics relative to its contribution to portfolio risk. The Adviser will sell an investment held long or close out a short position that the Adviser believes no longer offers an appropriate return-to-risk trade-off.
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects to sell securities short so that the Fund’s portfolio is approximately 50% net long with an average of between 30% and 70% net long.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry. The Fund is non-diversified and may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by U.S. and foreign corporations and other business organizations (e.g. trusts or limited liability companies). Such high yield debt obligations are not considered to be investment grade. Non-investment grade fixed income securities (commonly known as “junk bonds”) are rated BB or lower by S&P Global, or have a comparable rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization (or, if unrated are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality at the time of investment). The Fund may invest in securities of the lowest rating category, including securities in default. The Adviser may, but is not required to, sell a bond or note held by the Fund in the event that its credit rating is downgraded.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objectives. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Boston Partners Global Long/Short Fund’s Investor Class. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Investor Class has varied year to year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Investor Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS EMERGING MARKETS DYNAMIC EQUITY FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 219% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund will pursue its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities. The Fund will invest in a non-diversified, multi-strategy long-short portfolio of equity securities and financial investments with equity like characteristics designed to provide exposure to emerging markets. Securities are selected by the Adviser using its “three circles” approach which combines a quantitative screening with a fundamental bottom up selection process. This investment strategy is grounded in the following principles: (1) low valuation stocks outperform high valuation stocks; (2) companies with strong fundamentals, e.g. high and sustainable returns on invested capital, outperform companies with weak fundamentals; and (3) stocks with positive business momentum, e.g. rising earnings estimates, outperform stocks with negative business momentum. With a long position, the Fund purchases a stock outright; with a short position, the Fund sells a security that it does not own and must borrow to meet its settlement obligations. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of issuers, including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return-on-equity and earnings growth and cash flow.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in the securities of emerging market issuers, related derivative instruments and other investments that are tied economically to emerging market countries. The Adviser considers an emerging market country to include any country that is: 1) generally recognized to be an emerging market country by the international financial community, including the World Bank; 2) classified by the United Nations as a developing country; or 3) included in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Due to the unique relationship between China and its separately administered regions, the Adviser includes Hong Kong and Macau as emerging markets, independent of above definitions 1 through 3. The Adviser determines that an investment is tied economically to an emerging market if such investment satisfies one or more of the following conditions: 1) the issuer’s primary trading market is in an emerging market; 2) the issuer is organized under the laws of, derives at least 50% of its revenue from, or has at least 50% of its assets in emerging markets; 3) the investment is included in an index representative of emerging markets; and 4) the investment is exposed to the economic risks and returns of emerging markets.
In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser will seek to identify mispriced publicly traded equity securities of emerging market companies including shorting securities that the Adviser believes will underperform and purchasing securities that the Adviser believes will outperform.
The long portion of the portfolio will emphasize low valuation, positive business momentum and high quality securities. The short portfolio will emphasize securities with high valuation risk, high balance sheet risk and signs of slowing sales and earnings momentum.
The Fund’s portfolio is rebalanced regularly to maintain the optimal risk/return trade-off. The Adviser assesses each stock’s changing characteristics relative to its contribution to portfolio risk. The Adviser will sell a stock held long or close out a short position in a stock that the Adviser believes no longer offers an appropriate return-to-risk tradeoff.
The equity securities in which the Fund will invest include equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small- or micro-cap companies, as well as exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”).
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations (e.g. trusts or limited liability companies). Such high yield debt obligations are not considered to be investment grade. Non-investment grade fixed income securities (commonly known as “junk bonds”) are rated BB or lower by S&P Global, or have a comparable rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization (or, if unrated are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality at the time of investment). The Fund may invest in securities of the lowest rating category, including securities in default. The Adviser may, but is not required to, sell a bond or note held by the Fund in the event that its credit rating is downgraded. The Fund will primarily invest in fixed income instruments, including high yield fixed income obligations, when the Fund believes that such instruments offer a better risk/reward profile than comparable equity opportunities.
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 50% of the Fund’s net assets with a typical range of 30% to 70% net long.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of non-U.S. issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States.
In addition to the short sales discussed above, the Fund may make short sales “against the box,” a transaction in which the Fund enters into a short sale of a security which the Fund owns. The proceeds of the short sale will be held by a broker until the settlement date at which time the Fund delivers the security to close the short position. The Fund receives the net proceeds from the short sale. It is currently expected that the majority of the Fund’s short sales will not be against the box.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Fund is the sole shareholder of Boston Partners Emerging Markets Long/Short Offshore Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands (the “Subsidiary”). Generally, the Subsidiary invests primarily in futures contracts traded on Indian stock exchanges. The Fund and its Subsidiary comply with the same fundamental investment restrictions on an aggregate basis, to the extent those restrictions are applicable to the investment activities of the Subsidiary. The Fund is the sole shareholder of its Subsidiary and does not expect shares of its Subsidiary to be offered or sold to other investors. An election has been made to cause the Subsidiary to be a disregarded entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes; accordingly, the assets and income of the Subsidiary will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes no differently from the other assets and income of the Fund.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
In general, the Fund’s investments will be spread over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPOs”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Fund will invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, contracts for differences, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes. Contracts for differences offer exposure to price changes in an underlying security without ownership of such security, typically by providing investors the ability to trade on margin. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund. The bar chart below shows you how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073.
The Fund commenced operations as a series of The RBB Fund, Inc. on December 15, 2015, when substantially all of the assets of Boston Partners Emerging Markets Long/Short Equity (the “Prior Account”) transferred to the Fund. The Fund is managed in all material respects in a manner equivalent to the management of the Prior Account. Accordingly, the performance information shown below for periods prior to December 15, 2015 is that of the Prior Account. The Fund’s objectives, policies, guidelines and restrictions are in all material respects equivalent to the Prior Account. The Fund is managed by Joseph F. Feeney, Jr. and Paul Korngiebel, the same Prior Account portfolio managers that managed the Prior Account since its inception in 2015. The Prior Account was not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and thus was not subject to certain investment and operational restrictions that are imposed by the 1940 Act. If the Prior Account had been registered under the 1940 Act, its performance may have been adversely affected. Accordingly, future Fund performance may be different than the Prior Account’s restated past performance. The Prior Account’s performance has been restated to reflect estimated expenses of the Fund. After-tax performance returns are not included for the Prior Account. The Prior Account was not a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code and therefore did not distribute current or accumulated earnings and profits and was not subject to the diversification and source of income requirements applicable to regulated investment companies. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class, including the Prior Account, both before and after taxes for the past calendar year and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS EMERGING MARKETS FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal period ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 177% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund will pursue its objective through a value oriented, research-driven strategy of investing in equity securities and financial instruments with equity like characteristics designed to provide exposure to emerging markets. Securities are selected by the Adviser using its “three circles” approach which combines a quantitative screening with a fundamental bottom up selection process. This investment strategy is grounded in the following principles: (1) low valuation stocks outperform high valuation stocks; (2) companies with strong fundamentals, e.g. high and sustainable returns on invested capital, outperform companies with weak fundamentals; and (3) stocks with positive business momentum, e.g. rising earnings estimates, outperform stocks with negative business momentum. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of issuers, including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return-on-equity and earnings growth and cash flow.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in the securities of emerging market issuers, related derivative instruments and other investments that are tied economically to emerging market countries. The Adviser considers an emerging market country to include any country that is: 1) generally recognized to be an emerging market country by the international financial community, including the World Bank; 2) classified by the United Nations as a developing country; or 3) included in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Due to the unique relationship between China and its separately administered regions, the Adviser includes Hong Kong and Macau as emerging markets, independent of above definitions 1 through 3. The Adviser determines that an investment is tied economically to an emerging market if such investment satisfies one or more of the following conditions: 1) the issuer’s primary trading market is in an emerging market; 2) the issuer is organized under the laws of, derives at least 50% of its revenue from, or has at least 50% of its assets in emerging markets; 3) the investment is included in an index representative of emerging markets; and 4) the investment is exposed to the economic risks and returns of emerging markets.
In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser will seek to identify mispriced publicly traded equity securities of emerging market companies and purchase securities that the Adviser believes will outperform, emphasizing low valuation, positive business momentum and high quality.
The Fund’s portfolio is rebalanced regularly to maintain the optimal risk/return trade-off. The Adviser assesses each stock’s changing characteristics relative to its contribution to portfolio risk. The Adviser will sell a stock that the Adviser believes no longer offers an appropriate return-to-risk tradeoff. The Fund’s investment adviser may engage in active trading, and will not consider portfolio turnover a limiting factor in making decisions for the Fund.
The equity securities in which the Fund will invest, which may include equity securities of non-U.S. issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States, include equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small- or micro-cap companies, as well as exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”).
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations (commonly known as “junk bonds”), such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations (e.g. trusts or limited liability companies). Such high yield debt obligations are not considered to be investment grade. Junk bonds are rated BB or lower by S&P Global, or have a comparable rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization (or, if unrated are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality at the time of investment). The Fund may invest in securities of the lowest rating category, including securities in default. The Adviser may, but is not required to, sell a bond or note held by the Fund in the event that its credit rating is downgraded. The Fund will primarily invest in fixed income instruments, including high yield debt obligations, when the Fund believes that such instruments offer a better risk/reward profile than comparable equity opportunities.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
In general, the Fund’s investments will be spread over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPOs”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Fund will invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, contracts for differences, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes. Contracts for differences offer exposure to price changes in an underlying security without ownership of such security, typically by providing investors the ability to trade on margin. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and table below illustrate the performance of the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Fund’s Institutional Class. The bar chart below shows you the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class for one year. This also provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information is available at www.boston-partners.com or 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Year Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above):
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Equity Advantage Fund | Institutional Class, Boston Partners Global Equity Advantage Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
BPCIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boston Partners Global Equity Advantage Fund | Boston Partners Institutional | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL EQUITY ADVANTAGE FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund was 124% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a non-diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size. The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity- related securities, including exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% - unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Fund, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of issuers believed by a Co-Adviser to be undervalued in the marketplace, focusing on issuers that combine attractive valuations with catalysts for change. The Fund applies a bottom-up stock selection process (i.e., one that focuses primarily on issuer-specific factors) in managing the Fund, using a combination of fundamental and quantitative analysis. In selecting investments for the Fund, the Fund considers various factors such as price-to-book value, price-to-sales and earnings ratios, dividend yields, strength of management, and cash flow to identify securities that are trading at a price that appears to be lower than the issuer’s inherent value. The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund also seeks to diversify its overall portfolio by investing, under normal circumstances, up to 20% of its assets in the Campbell Advantage strategy, a systematic trend following program, which is diversified across global futures and forwards markets (types of derivative instruments). The Campbell Advantage strategy is designed to analyze market data to identify trends occurring within and across markets and asset classes globally. By trading four major asset classes (equity index futures, fixed income futures, commodities and foreign exchange), the portfolio composition is diverse and expected to maintain low correlation with equities over time. Additionally, portfolio risk is dynamically managed through a framework intended to maximize the Campbell Advantage strategy’s ability to complement the global long equity exposure in an attempt to limit the Fund’s downside risk during extended periods of high equity market volatility.
The Fund’s investments may include investments in registered and unregistered funds managed by Campbell or an affiliate to obtain exposure to the Campbell Advantage strategy. The Fund will invest in such affiliated funds only in accordance with the applicable restrictions of the 1940 Act, including Section 12(d)(1).
The Fund is “non-diversified” for purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the “1940 Act”) which means that the Fund may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities, including securities that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund’s Co-Advisers are Boston Partners and Campbell. Boston Partners is primarily responsible for managing the equity portion of the Fund’s portfolio, including equity securities and related derivative contracts. Campbell is primarily responsible for managing the Fund’s exposure to the Campbell Advantage strategy. Campbell is also primarily responsible for determining the allocation of the Fund’s portfolio between equity and other investments. Each Co-Adviser may also from time to time consult and work collaboratively with, or be informed by the decisions of or information from, one or both of the other Co-Advisers in connection with making certain investment decisions in regards to the Fund’s investment strategies and portfolio, in addition to various compliance, operational and administrative matters. While the Co-Advisers may work collaboratively in connection with the management of the Fund’s portfolio as described above, under certain circumstances, such as, for example, when certain personnel at another Co-Adviser are not available, a Co-Adviser may make decisions or otherwise act independently from the other Co-Advisers.
The Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Co-Advisers will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not have one full calendar year of performance prior to the date of this Prospectus. Updated performance information will be available on the Fund’s website at www.boston-partners.com or by calling the Fund toll free at 1-888-261-4073. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campbell Systematic Macro Fund | Class A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
EBSAX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campbell Systematic Macro Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
EBSIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campbell Systematic Macro Fund | Class C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
EBSCX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Campbell Systematic Macro Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Campbell Systematic Macro Fund (the “Fund”) is to seek capital appreciation over the medium to long-term. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (the "Shares"). You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you invest at least $25,000 in Class A Shares of the Fund. More Information about these discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of this Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information – Sales Charges” and in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information – Reducing or Eliminating the Front End Sales Charge.” Financial Intermediaries may impose different sales charge waivers for Class A Shares, and these variations are described in the section of this Prospectus entitled “Shareholder – Information – Sales Charges”. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class A Shares and Class C Shares and $100,000 in Class I Shares in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund's performance. During the period from October 1, 2019 to August 31, 2020, the portfolio turnover rate of the Fund and the Predecessor Fund was 0% of the average value of its portfolio. In accordance with industry practice, derivative instruments and instruments with a maturity of one year or less at the time of acquisition are excluded from the calculation of the portfolio turnover rate, which leads to the 0% portfolio turnover rate reported above. If those instruments were included in the calculation, the Fund would have a higher portfolio turnover rate. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its investment objective by (i) investing its assets pursuant to the Campbell Systematic Macro Program (ii) allocating up to 25% of its total assets in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Campbell Systematic Macro Offshore Limited (the "Subsidiary"), which is organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands and employs the Adviser's Campbell Systematic Macro Program (as described below), and (iii) allocating the remainder of its assets directly in a portfolio of investment grade securities (including government securities) for cash management purposes. Securities rated in the four highest categories by the ratings agencies are considered investment grade.
The Fund invests pursuant to the Adviser's Campbell Systematic Macro Program, which uses quantitative modeling to develop and maintain systematic trading strategies driven by scientific analysis of financial data across global financial and commodity markets. The Campbell Systematic Macro Program seeks to systematically identify price trends and to develop macro and fundamental themes that exploit asset mispricing. As a pioneer in systematic trend following, innovating modeling techniques can be developed to extract relationships and to identify trends occurring within and across markets and asset classes globally. Other complimentary systematic strategies are incorporated, such as relative value (i.e., a trading strategy that looks for opportunities based on an asset’s value as compared to the value of similar assets. In contrast, absolute value looks only at an asset’s intrinsic value and does not compare it to other assets) and mean reversion (i.e., a trading strategy based on the concept that prices and returns eventually move back toward the mean or average. This mean or average can be the historical average of the price or return, or another relevant average such as the growth in the economy or the average return of an industry). A systematic process eliminates emotion, “key person” risk, and provides an ability to participate in trends during periods of extended momentum without any directional bias. Key person risk is the risk that results when a fund’s investment program is highly dependent on the investment skill and dedication of a small number of “key” persons at an adviser, which can result in decreased investment results if these “key” persons become unable to apply their full attention to the management of a fund’s investments for health or other reasons. In addition, a diversity of investment style and the ability to invest long and short across global asset classes and markets enables investment opportunities in a variety of economic environments. The Fund is generally intended to have a low correlation to the equity, bond and credit markets. There is no assurance, however, that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
The Fund intends to trade in a broad range of instruments, including but not limited to, futures (including commodity futures, index futures, equity futures, bond futures and interest rate futures), currency forwards, options and swaps (including commodity swaps, swaps on commodity futures, equity swaps, swaps on index futures, total return swaps and interest rate swaps), either by investing directly in the instruments or, indirectly, by investing in the Subsidiary which invests in the instruments. From time to time, the Fund can have significant exposure to non-U.S. dollar denominated currencies, including emerging markets currencies.
The Adviser will attempt to mitigate risk through diversification of holdings and through monitoring of the portfolio, the Fund’s counterparties, and other risk measures. Individual market positions are constrained to ensure that no one market or asset class represents an outsized portion of the Fund's portfolio risk. The Adviser evaluates changes in signals daily, and execution is controlled by its intraday risk management and execution platform. The Fund may utilize proprietary or third party trading algorithms in order to minimize market impact and reduce trading costs.
The Fund is "non-diversified" for purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the "1940 Act") which means that the Fund may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. The Fund may not invest more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.
Investments in the Subsidiary, which has the same investment objective as the Fund, are intended to provide the Fund with indirect exposure to futures contracts and commodities in a manner consistent with the limitations and requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") that apply to the Fund, which limit the amount of income the Fund may receive from certain sources. Applicable federal tax requirements generally limit the degree to which the Fund may invest in the Subsidiary to an amount not exceeding 25% of its total assets. To the extent they are applicable to the investment activities of the Subsidiary, the Subsidiary will be subject to the same investment restrictions and limitations, and follow the same compliance policies and procedures, as the Fund. The Fund complies with Section 8 and Section 18 of the 1940 Act, governing investment policies and capital structure and leverage, respectively, on an aggregate basis with the Subsidiary. The Subsidiary also complies with Section 17 of the 1940 Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund (and, indirectly, in the Subsidiary), as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund's principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
• Commodities Risk: Exposure to the commodities markets (including financial futures markets) may subject the Fund through its investment in the Subsidiary to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. Prices of commodities and related contracts may fluctuate significantly over short periods for a variety of reasons, including changes in interest rates or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as weather, disease (including pandemics), tariffs, embargoes or other trade barriers, acts of war or terrorism, or political and regulatory developments.
• Counterparty Risk: The derivative contracts entered into by the Fund or its Subsidiary may be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market. These contracts also involve exposure to credit risk, since contract performance depends in part on the financial condition of the counterparty. Relying on a counterparty exposes the Fund to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing the Fund to suffer a loss. If a counterparty defaults on its payment obligations to the Fund, this default will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. In addition, to the extent the Fund deals with a limited number of counterparties, it will be more susceptible to the credit risks associated with those counterparties. The Fund is neither restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty nor from concentrating any or all of its transactions with one counterparty. The ability of the Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties and the absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement may increase the potential for losses by the Fund.
• Credit Risk: Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of the security or a counterparty in respect of a derivative instrument will not be able to satisfy its payment obligations to the Fund when due. This may impair the Fund's liquidity or cause a deterioration in the Fund's NAV. In addition, the Fund may incur expenses in an effort to protect the Fund's interests or enforce its rights against an issuer, guarantor or counterparty or may be hindered or delayed in exercising these rights. Changes in an issuer's credit rating or the market's perception of an issuer's creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund's investment in that issuer. Securities rated in the four highest categories by the rating agencies are considered investment grade but they may also have some speculative characteristics. Investment grade ratings do not guarantee that bonds will not lose value or default. In addition, the credit quality of securities may be lowered if an issuer's financial condition changes.
• Currency Risk: The Fund's exposure to foreign currencies subjects the Fund to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. Dollar, or, in the case of short positions, that the U.S. Dollar will decline in value relative to the currency that the Fund is short. Currency rates in foreign countries may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time for any number of reasons, including changes in interest rates and the imposition of currency controls or other political developments in the U.S. or abroad.
• Cyber Security Risk: Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures.
• Derivatives Risk: Derivatives include instruments and contracts that are based on, and are valued in relation to, one or more underlying securities, financial benchmarks or indices, such as futures, options, swap agreements and forward contracts. Derivatives typically have economic leverage inherent in their terms. Such leverage will magnify any losses. See "Leverage/Volatility Risk" below. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The primary types of derivatives in which the Fund or its Subsidiary invest in are swap agreements, futures contracts and forward contracts. Futures contracts, forward contracts and swap agreements can be highly volatile, illiquid and difficult to value, and changes in the value of such instruments held directly or indirectly by the Fund may not correlate with the underlying instrument or reference assets, or the Fund's other investments. Although the value of futures contracts, forward contracts and swap agreements depends largely upon price movements in the underlying instrument or reference asset, there are additional risks associated with futures contracts, forward contracts and swap agreements that are possibly greater than the risks associated with investing directly in the underlying instruments or reference assets, including illiquidity risk, leveraging risk and counterparty credit risk. A small position in futures contracts, forward contracts or swap agreements could have a potentially large impact on the Fund's performance. Trading restrictions or limitations may be imposed by an exchange, and government regulations may restrict trading in swap agreements, futures contracts and options and forward contracts.
• Emerging Market Risk: The Fund intends to have exposure to emerging markets due to the Fund's investments in certain stock index futures and foreign exchange instruments. Emerging markets are riskier than more developed markets because they tend to develop unevenly and may never fully develop. Investments in emerging markets may be considered speculative. Emerging markets are more likely to experience hyperinflation and currency devaluations, which adversely affect returns to U.S. investors. In addition, many emerging financial markets have far lower trading volumes and less liquidity than developed markets.
• Equity Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in, or have exposure to, equity securities. Equity securities tend to be more volatile than other investment choices, such as debt and money market instruments. The value of your investment may decrease in response to overall stock market movements or the value of individual securities.
• Fixed-Income Risk: Fixed income securities, such as U.S. Treasuries, or derivatives based on fixed income securities, are subject to credit risk and interest rate risk. Credit risk, as described more fully herein, refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security will be unable to make interest payments or repay principal when it becomes due. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a debt security resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. Prices of fixed income securities tend to move inversely with changes in interest rates. Typically, a rise in rates will adversely affect fixed income security prices and, accordingly, the Fund's returns and share price. In addition, the Fund may be subject to "call" risk, which is the risk that during a period of falling interest rates the issuer may redeem a security by repaying it early (which may reduce the Fund's income if the proceeds are reinvested at lower interest rates), and "extension" risk, which occurs during a rising interest rate environment because certain obligations will be paid off by an issuer more slowly than anticipated (causing the value of those securities held by the Fund to fall).
• Foreign Market Risk: As a general rule, there is less legal and regulatory protection for investors in foreign markets than that available domestically. Additionally, trading on foreign exchanges is subject to the risks presented by exchange controls, expropriation, increased tax burdens and exposure to local economic declines and political instability. Some foreign derivative markets are so-called principals' markets in which performance is the responsibility only of the individual counterparty with whom the trader has entered into a commodity interest transaction and not of the exchange or clearing corporation. International trading activities are subject to foreign exchange risk.
• Futures and Forward Contracts and Related Risks: The successful use of forward and futures contracts draws upon the Adviser's skill and experience with respect to such instruments and are subject to special risk considerations. The primary risks associated with the use of futures and forward contracts are:
• Futures and forward contracts have a high degree of price variability and are subject to occasional rapid and substantial changes;
• the imperfect correlation between the change in market value of the forward or futures contracts and the market value of the underlying instrument or reference assets with respect to such contracts;
• possible lack of a liquid secondary market for a forward or futures contract and the resulting inability to close a forward or futures contract when desired;
• possible market disruption or other extraordinary events, including but not limited to, governmental intervention;
• potentially unlimited losses caused by unanticipated market movements;
• the Fund's inability to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors;
• the possibility that the counterparty will default in the performance of its obligations; and
• if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may either have to sell securities from its portfolio to meet daily variation margin requirements with respect to its derivative instruments or close certain positions at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.
The use of futures contracts, forward contracts and derivative instruments will have the economic effect of financial leverage. Financial leverage magnifies exposure to the swings in prices of an asset class underlying an investment and results in increased volatility, which means the Fund will have the potential for greater losses than if the Fund did not employ leverage in its investment activity. Leveraging tends to magnify, sometimes significantly, the effect of any increase or decrease in the Fund's exposure to an asset class and may cause the value of the Fund's securities or related derivatives instruments to be volatile. Accordingly, the Fund's net asset value (“NAV”) may be volatile because of its investment exposure to the Fund.
There is no assurance that the Fund's investment in a derivative instrument with leveraged exposure to certain investments and markets will enable the Fund to achieve its investment objective.
• General Market Risk: The Fund's NAV and investment return will fluctuate based upon changes in the value of its portfolio securities. You could lose money on your investment in the Fund, or the Fund could underperform other investments.
• Government Agency Risk: Direct obligations of the U.S. Government such as Treasury bills, notes and bonds are supported by its full faith and credit. Indirect obligations issued by Federal agencies and government-sponsored entities generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury. Accordingly, while U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities may be chartered or sponsored by Acts of Congress, their securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury. Some of these indirect obligations may be supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the Treasury; others are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agency's obligations; still others are supported only by the credit of the instrumentality. The maximum potential liability of the issuers of some U.S. government securities may greatly exceed their current resources, including any legal right to support from the U.S. Treasury. It is possible that the issuers of such securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.
• Government Intervention and Regulatory Changes: The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act") (which was passed into law in July 2010) significantly revised and expanded the rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement authority of federal bank, securities and commodities regulators. There can be no assurance that future regulatory actions including, but not limited to, those authorized by the Dodd-Frank Act will not adversely impact the Fund. Major changes resulting from legislative or regulatory actions could materially affect the profitability of the Fund or the value of investments made by the Fund or force the Fund to revise its investment strategy or divest certain of its investments. Any of these developments could expose the Fund to additional costs, taxes, liabilities, enforcement actions and reputational risk.
• Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of fixed income securities generally increase when interest rates decline and decrease when interest rates increase. The Fund may lose money if short term or long term interest rates rise sharply or otherwise change in a manner not anticipated by the Adviser. Securities with longer maturities tend to be more sensitive to changes in interest rates, causing them to be more volatile than securities with shorter maturities. Securities with shorter maturities tend to provide lower returns and be less volatile than securities with longer maturities. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and the Fund's investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by the Fund. Recent and any future declines in interest rate levels could cause the Fund's earnings to fall below the Fund's expense ratio, resulting in a negative yield and a decline in the Fund's share price.
• Leverage/Volatility Risk: Although the Fund will not borrow funds for trading, the Fund should be considered highly leveraged and is suitable only for investors with high tolerance for investment risk. Leverage embedded in the various derivative instruments traded may result in the Fund or its Subsidiary holding positions whose face or notional value may be many times the Fund's NAV. For example, the amount of margin funds necessary to be deposited in order to enter into a futures, forward or option contract position is typically from 2% to 10% of the total face or notional value of the contract. As a result of this leveraging, even a small movement in the price of a commodity can cause a correspondingly large profit or loss. Losses incurred on leveraged investments increase in direct proportion to the degree of leverage employed.
Furthermore, derivative instruments and futures contracts are highly volatile and are subject to occasional rapid and substantial fluctuations. Consequently, you could lose all or substantially all of your investment in the Fund should the Fund's trading positions suddenly turn unprofitable.
The Fund's NAV is expected over short-term periods to be volatile because of the significant use of direct and indirect investments that have a leveraging effect. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down asset price fluctuations over time. Rapid and dramatic price swings will result in high volatility. The Fund's returns are expected to be volatile; however, the actual or realized volatility level for longer or shorter periods may be materially higher or lower depending on market conditions and investors may suffer a significant and possibly a complete loss on their investment in the Fund.
• Liquidity Risk: The Fund is subject to liquidity risk primarily due to its investments in derivatives. Investments in derivative instruments involve the risk that the Fund may be unable to sell the derivative instrument or sell it at a reasonable price.
• Management Risk: The Adviser employs systematic modeling to make investment decisions about the attractiveness, value and potential positive or negative performance of the Fund. The models employed by the Adviser may prove to be inaccurate and may not produce the desired results.
• Non-Diversification Risk: The Fund is a non-diversified investment company, which means that more of the Fund's assets may be invested in the securities of a single issuer than could be invested in the securities of a single issuer by a diversified investment company. The Fund has a greater potential to realize losses upon the occurrence of adverse events affecting a particular issuer.
• OTC Trading Risk: Certain of the derivatives in which the Fund may invest may be traded (and privately negotiated) in the "over-the-counter" or "OTC" market. While the OTC derivatives market is the primary trading venue for many derivatives, it is largely unregulated. As a result and similar to other privately negotiated contracts, the Fund is subject to counterparty credit risk with respect to such derivative contracts.
• Portfolio Turnover Risk: The Fund may frequently buy and sell portfolio securities and other assets to rebalance the Fund's exposure to various market sectors. Higher portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying higher levels of transaction costs and generating greater tax liabilities for shareholders. Portfolio turnover risk may cause the Fund's performance to be less than you expect.
• Regulatory Risk: Governments, agencies or other regulatory bodies may adopt or change laws or regulations that could adversely affect the issuer, or market value, of an instrument held by the Fund or its Subsidiary or that could adversely impact the Fund's performance.
• Short Sales Risk: The Fund may take a short position in a derivative instrument, such as a future, or forward, or swap or a security. A short position on a derivative instrument or security involves the risk of a theoretically unlimited increase in the value of the underlying instrument. Short sales also involve transaction and other costs that will reduce potential Fund gains and increase potential Fund losses.
• Strategy Risk: The profitability of any Fund investment depends primarily on the ability of the Adviser to anticipate price movements in the relevant markets and underlying derivative instruments and futures contracts. Such price movements may be influenced by, among other things:
• changes in interest rates; • governmental, agricultural, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange control programs and policies; • weather and climate conditions; • natural disasters, such as hurricanes; • changing supply and demand relationships; • changes in balances of payments and trade; • U.S. and international rates of inflation and deflation; • currency devaluations and revaluations; • U.S. and international political and economic events; and
• changes in philosophies and emotions of various market participants.
The Fund may not take all of these factors into account.
• Subsidiary Risk: By investing in the Subsidiary, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the Subsidiary's investments. The derivatives and other investments held by the Subsidiary are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the Fund. The Subsidiary is not registered under the 1940 Act, and, unless otherwise noted in this Prospectus, is not subject to all the investor protections of the 1940 Act. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or the Subsidiary to continue to operate as it does currently and could adversely affect the Fund.
• Tax Risk: In order to qualify as a regulated investment company ("RIC"), the Fund must meet certain requirements regarding the source of its income, the diversification of its assets and the distribution of its income. Under the test regarding the source of a RIC’s income, at least 90% of the gross income of the RIC each year must be qualifying income, which consists of dividends, interest, gains on investment assets and other categories of investment income. In 2006, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") published a ruling that income realized from swaps with respect to a commodities index would not be qualifying income. The Fund's investment in the Subsidiary is expected to provide the Fund with exposure to the commodities markets within the limitations of the Code for qualification as a RIC, but there is a risk that the IRS could assert that the income derived from the Fund's investment in the Subsidiary and certain commodity-linked structured notes will not be considered qualifying income for purposes of the Fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The IRS has finalized Treasury Regulations that provide that the income from a foreign subsidiary that is a controlled foreign corporation is qualifying income for purposes of a fund remaining qualified as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes (1) to the extent the income is actually distributed by the foreign subsidiary to the RIC each year and (2) even if not distributed currently, to the extent the income is derived with respect to the fund's business of investing in stock, securities or currencies. If the Fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC and became subject to federal income tax, shareholders of the Fund would be subject to diminished returns. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or its Subsidiary to operate as described in this Prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information ("SAI") and could adversely affect the Fund. For example, the Cayman Islands does not currently impose any income, corporate or capital gains tax or withholding tax on the Subsidiary. If Cayman Islands law changes such that the Subsidiary must pay Cayman Islands taxes, Fund shareholders would likely suffer decreased investment returns. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Substantially all of the assets of the Predecessor Fund were transferred to the Fund in a tax-free reorganization (the “Reorganization”) that occurred on May 29, 2020. As a result of the Reorganization, the performance and accounting history of the Predecessor Fund prior to the date of the Reorganization is assumed by the Fund. The bar chart and performance table below provide an indication of the risk of an investment in the Fund.
The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Predecessor Fund’s performance from year to year for Class I Shares and by showing how the average annual total returns of each class of the Predecessor Fund compare with the average annual total returns of the Barclays BTOP50 Index. The bar chart shows the performance of the Predecessor Fund’s Class I Shares. Performance for classes other than those shown may vary from the performance shown to the extent the expenses for those classes differ. The Predecessor Fund’s past performance, before and after taxes, is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available at the Fund’s website, www.campbell.com or by calling the Fund at 1-844-261-6488.
The following past performance information is not indicative of any future results that may be obtained by Campbell, and it should not be assumed that investors of the Fund will experience returns, if any, comparable to those experienced by past or present investors in the Fund or the Predecessor Fund or in other pools and accounts managed by Campbell. Because of the potentially volatile nature of futures and forward contract prices, it is possible that the performance of the Fund or of some or all of the other pools and accounts advised by Campbell may change significantly during the continuing offering from the performance information which may be presented herein. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Return – Class I For the years ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
During the period shown in the bar chart, the for a quarter was (for the quarter ended ). The was (for the quarter ended ). The Fund's Class I for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns For the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Free Market U.S. Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FREE MARKET U.S. EQUITY FUND FMUEX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Free Market U.S. Equity Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. 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 and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 14% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in equity securities, such as common stocks, preferred stocks or securities convertible into stocks, of U.S. companies, or invest substantially all of their assets in such equity securities. The Fund will diversify its investments by investing primarily in investment companies focusing on different segments of the equity markets, including large (“large-cap”), small (“small-cap”) and micro-capitalization (“micro-cap”) equity securities that the Fund’s investment adviser (“Adviser”) believes offer the prospect of long-term capital appreciation. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Fund’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 2% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
U.S. Large Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of large cap companies that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. Large cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the highest 90% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are larger than or equal to the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
U.S. Small Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of small cap companies that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. Small cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 10% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
U.S. Large Company Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase all of the stocks that comprise the S&P 500® Index in approximately the proportions they are represented in the S&P 500® Index. Generally, these are the U.S. stocks with the largest market capitalizations and, as a group, they represent approximately 80% of the total market capitalization of all publicly traded U.S. stocks.
U.S. Small Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of small cap companies primarily based on market capitalization. Small cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 10% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions. There may be some overlap in the companies in which the U.S. small cap asset class and the U.S. micro cap asset class invest.
U.S. Micro Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of micro cap companies. Micro cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 5% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,500th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions. There may be some overlap in the companies in which the U.S. micro cap asset class and the U.S. small cap asset class invest.
The underlying investment companies may use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for U.S. equity securities and indices, to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows to or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
The Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Fund employs a temporary defensive measure, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Fund in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Fund in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the long-term performance of the Fund. The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
: (quarter ended ) : (quarter ended ) as of : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns of the Fund before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and past ten calendar years to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Free Market International Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FREE MARKET INTERNATIONAL EQUITY FUND FMNEX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Free Market International Equity Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. 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 and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 28% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in equity securities, such as common stocks, preferred stocks or securities convertible into stocks, of foreign companies, or invest substantially all of their assets in such equity securities. The Fund will diversify its investments by investing primarily in investment companies that focus on different segments of the foreign equity markets, including emerging markets, with little or no focus on domestic equity markets. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Fund’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 5% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
International Small Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of small companies in foreign countries with developed markets that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios, as well as economic conditions and developments in the issuer’s industry. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the maximum market capitalization of a small company with respect to each country. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Large Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of large companies in foreign countries with developed markets that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios, as well as economic conditions and developments in the issuer’s industry. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the minimum market capitalization of a large company with respect to each country or region. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Small Company Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of small companies in foreign countries with developed markets. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the maximum market capitalization of a small company with respect to each country. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Large Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of large companies in foreign countries with developed markets. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the minimum market capitalization of a large company with respect to each country or region. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
Emerging Markets Asset Class, Emerging Markets Value Asset Class, and Emerging Markets Small Cap Asset Class (collectively, the “Emerging Markets Asset Classes”): Underlying investment companies comprising each Emerging Markets Asset Class generally will purchase stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of companies located in emerging market countries, including frontier markets (emerging market countries in an earlier stage of development). The underlying investment companies investing in securities of the Emerging Markets Asset Class and the Emerging Markets Small Cap Asset Class will generally purchase the equity securities of larger and smaller companies, respectively, within each country. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine company size primarily based on market capitalization. The thresholds will vary by country or region, and the dollar amounts will change from time to time due to market conditions.
The underlying investment companies in the Emerging Markets Value Asset Class generally will purchase emerging market equity securities that are deemed by the underlying investment adviser(s) to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time.
The underlying investment companies may use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for equity securities and indices, to hedge currency exposure or to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
The Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Fund employs a temporary defensive measure, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Fund in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Fund in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the long-term performance of the Fund. The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
: (quarter ended ) : (quarter ended ) as of : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns of the Fund before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Free Market Fixed Income Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FREE MARKET FIXED INCOME FUND FMFIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Free Market Fixed Income Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks total return (consisting of current income and capital appreciation). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. 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 and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in fixed income securities that the Adviser believes offer the prospect of providing total return, or invest substantially all of their assets in such fixed income securities. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Fund’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 2% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
One-Year Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase U.S. government obligations, U.S. government agency obligations, dollar-denominated obligations of foreign issuers issued in the U.S., securities of domestic or foreign issuers denominated in U.S. dollars but not trading in the U.S.; foreign government and agency obligations, bank obligations, including the obligations of U.S. subsidiaries and branches of foreign banks, corporate obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and obligations of supranational organizations such as the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank. Generally, obligations comprising this asset class will mature within one year from the date of settlement, but substantial investments may be made in obligations maturing within two years from the date of settlement when greater returns are available.
Two-Year Global Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. and foreign governments, their agencies and instrumentalities, corporate debt obligations, bank obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and other debt obligations of domestic and foreign issuers with maturities of no more than two years. In making purchase decisions, if the expected term premium is greater for longer-term securities in the eligible maturity range, the underlying investment adviser(s) will focus investment in the longer-term area, otherwise, the underlying investment companies will focus investment in the shorter-term area of the eligible maturity range. Because many of the investments of the underlying investment companies in this asset class will be denominated in foreign currencies, the underlying investment companies may also enter into foreign currency forward contracts to attempt to protect against uncertainty in the level of future foreign currency rates, to hedge against fluctuations in currency exchange rates or to transfer balances from one currency to another.
Intermediate Government Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase debt obligations of the U.S. government and U.S. government agencies. Generally, investment companies in the asset class will purchase securities with maturities of between five and fifteen years, however such investment companies ordinarily will have an average weighted maturity of between three and ten years. The underlying investment companies may invest a portion of their assets in the obligations of foreign governments. Those obligations at the time of purchase must be either rated in the highest rating category of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization or, in the case of any obligation that is unrated, of comparable quality.
Five-Year Global Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. and foreign governments, their agencies and instrumentalities, corporate debt obligations, bank obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, obligations of other domestic and foreign issuers, securities of domestic or foreign issuers denominated in U.S. dollars but not trading in the United States, and obligations of supranational organizations. Generally, obligations comprising this asset class have a weighted average maturity not exceeding five years. In making purchase decisions, if the expected term premium is greater for longer-term securities in the eligible maturity range, the underlying investment adviser(s) will focus investment in the longer-term area, otherwise, the underlying investment companies will focus investment in the shorter-term area of the eligible maturity range. Because many of the investments of the underlying investment companies in this asset class will be denominated in foreign currencies, the underlying investment companies may also enter into foreign currency forward contracts to attempt to protect against uncertainty in the level of future foreign currency rates, to hedge against fluctuations in currency exchange rates or to transfer balances from one currency to another.
Short-Term Corporate Bond Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the ICE BofAML 1-5 Year US Corporate Index, which measures the performance of investment-grade corporate bonds of both U.S. and non- U.S. issuers that are U.S. dollar denominated and publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market and have a remaining maturity of greater than or equal to one year and less than five years.
Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the ICE BofAML 5-10 Year US Corporate Index, which measures the performance of investment-grade corporate bonds of both U.S. and non-U.S. issuers that are U.S. dollar denominated and publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market and have a remaining maturity of greater than or equal to five years and less than ten years.
Inflation Protected Securities Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) Index (Series-L), which measures the performance of the inflation-protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury, commonly known as “TIPS.” TIPS are securities issued by the U.S. Treasury that are designed to provide inflation protection to investors. TIPS are income-generating instruments whose interest and principal payments are adjusted for inflation - a sustained increase in prices that erodes the purchasing power of money. The inflation adjustment, which is typically applied monthly to the principal of the bond, follows a designated inflation index, the consumer price index (“CPI”), and TIPS’ principal payments are adjusted according to changes in the CPI. A fixed coupon rate is applied to the inflation-adjusted principal so that as inflation rises, both the principal value and the interest payments increase.
The underlying investment companies may also use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for equity securities and indices, to hedge currency exposure or to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
Certain underlying investment companies may concentrate their investments (invest more than 25% of its total assets) in obligations of U.S. and foreign banks and bank holding companies when the yield to maturity on eligible portfolio investments in banking securities as a group generally exceeds the yield to maturity on all other eligible portfolio investments as a group generally for a period of five consecutive days when the New York Stock Exchange is open for trading. While the Fund will not concentrate its investments in any one industry, the Fund may be focused on banking sectors under certain circumstances.
The Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Fund employs a temporary defensive measure, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Fund in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Fund in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the long-term performance of the Fund. The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
: (quarter ended ) : (quarter ended ) as of : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns of the Fund before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and past ten calendar years to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matson Money U.S. Equity VI Portfolio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MATSON MONEY U.S. EQUITY VI PORTFOLIO FMVUX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Matson Money U.S. Equity VI Portfolio (for this section only, the “Portfolio”) seeks long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Portfolio. This table does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, overall fees and expenses would be higher. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. This Example does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, the costs shown below would be higher.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio 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 Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Portfolio’s portfolio turnover rate was 18% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in equity securities, such as common stocks, preferred stocks or securities convertible into stocks, of U.S. companies, or invest substantially all of their assets in such equity securities. The Portfolio will diversify its investments by investing primarily in investment companies focusing on different segments of the equity markets, including large (“large-cap”), small (“small-cap”) and micro-capitalization (“micro-cap”) equity securities that the Portfolio’s investment adviser (“Adviser”) believes offer the prospect of long-term capital appreciation. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Portfolio’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Portfolio’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies, including other investment companies funded by insurance company separate accounts, that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 2% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
U.S. Large Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of large cap companies that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. Large cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the highest 90% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are larger than or equal to the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
U.S. Small Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of small cap companies that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. Small cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 10% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
U.S. Large Company Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase all of the stocks that comprise the S&P 500® Index in approximately the proportions they are represented in the S&P 500® Index. Generally, these are the U.S. stocks with the largest market capitalizations and, as a group, they represent approximately 80% of the total market capitalization of all publicly traded U.S. stocks.
U.S. Small Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of small cap companies primarily based on market capitalization. Small cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 10% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,000th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions. There may be some overlap in the companies in which the U.S. small cap asset class and the U.S. micro cap asset class invest.
U.S. Micro Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase common stocks and other equity securities of micro cap companies. Micro cap companies are generally considered companies whose market capitalizations are generally in the lowest 5% of total market capitalization or companies whose market capitalizations are smaller than the 1,500th largest U.S. company, whichever results in the higher market capitalization break. Total market capitalization is based on the market capitalization of U.S. operating companies listed on a securities exchange in the United States that is deemed appropriate by the underlying investment adviser(s). The dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions. There may be some overlap in the companies in which the U.S. micro cap asset class and the U.S. small cap asset class invest.
The underlying investment companies may use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for U.S. equity securities and indices, to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows to or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
The Portfolio reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Portfolio employs a temporary defensive measure, the Portfolio may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Portfolio in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Portfolio in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders or the holders of the variable annuity or variable life insurance policies. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Portfolio, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Portfolio or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Portfolio, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Portfolio. The information shows you how the Portfolio’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Portfolio will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table compares the average annual total returns of the Portfolio before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and since inception to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matson Money International Equity VI Portfolio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MATSON MONEY INTERNATIONAL EQUITY VI PORTFOLIO FMVIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Matson Money International Equity VI Portfolio (for this section only, the “Portfolio”) seeks long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Portfolio. This table does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, overall fees and expenses would be higher. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. This Example does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, the costs shown below would be higher.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio 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 Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Portfolio’s portfolio turnover rate was 26% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in equity securities, such as common stocks, preferred stocks or securities convertible into stocks, of foreign companies, or invest substantially all of their assets in such equity securities. The Portfolio will diversify its investments by investing primarily in investment companies that focus on different segments of the foreign equity markets, including emerging markets, with little or no focus on domestic equity markets. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Portfolio’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Portfolio’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies, including other investment companies funded by insurance company separate accounts, that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 5% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
International Small Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of small companies in foreign countries with developed markets that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios, as well as economic conditions and developments in the issuer’s industry. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the maximum market capitalization of a small company with respect to each country. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Large Cap Value Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of large companies in foreign countries with developed markets that the underlying investment adviser(s) determine to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios, as well as economic conditions and developments in the issuer’s industry. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the minimum market capitalization of a large company with respect to each country or region. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Small Company Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of small companies in foreign countries with developed markets. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the maximum market capitalization of a small company with respect to each country. This threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
International Large Cap Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase the stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of large companies in foreign countries with developed markets. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine the minimum market capitalization of a large company with respect to each country or region. The threshold will vary by country or region, and the dollar amount will change from time to time due to market conditions.
Emerging Markets Asset Class, Emerging Markets Value Asset Class, and Emerging Markets Small Cap Asset Class (collectively, the “Emerging Markets Asset Classes”): Underlying investment companies comprising each Emerging Markets Asset Class generally will purchase stocks and other equity securities, directly or through sponsored or unsponsored depositary receipts, of companies located in emerging market countries, including frontier markets (emerging market countries in an earlier stage of development). The underlying investment companies investing in securities of the Emerging Markets Asset Class and the Emerging Markets Small Cap Asset Class will generally purchase the equity securities of larger and smaller companies, respectively, within each country. The underlying investment adviser(s) determine company size primarily based on market capitalization. The thresholds will vary by country or region, and the dollar amounts will change from time to time due to market conditions.
The underlying investment companies in the Emerging Markets Value Asset Class generally will purchase emerging market equity securities that are deemed by the underlying investment adviser(s) to be value stocks at the time of purchase. An issuer’s securities are considered value stocks primarily because they have a low price in relation to their book value. In assessing value, the underlying investment adviser(s) may consider additional factors such as price to cash flow or price to earnings ratios. The criteria used for assessing value are subject to change from time to time.
The underlying investment companies may use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for equity securities and indices, to hedge currency exposure or to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
The Portfolio reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Portfolio employs a temporary defensive measure, the Portfolio may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Portfolio in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Portfolio in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders or the holders of the variable annuity or variable life insurance policies. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Portfolio, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Portfolio or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Portfolio, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Portfolio. The information shows you how the Portfolio’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Portfolio will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table compares the average annual total returns of the Portfolio before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and since inception to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matson Money Fixed Income VI Portfolio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MATSON MONEY FIXED INCOME VI PORTFOLIO FMVFX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Matson Money Fixed Income VI Portfolio (for this section only, the “Portfolio”) seeks total return (consisting of current income and capital appreciation). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Portfolio. This table does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, overall fees and expenses would be higher. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. This Example does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, the costs shown below would be higher.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs and returns might be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio 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 Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Portfolio’s portfolio turnover rate was 46% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio pursues its investment objective by investing under normal circumstances at least 80% of its net assets, including any borrowings for investment purposes, in shares of registered, open-end investment companies and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “investment companies”) that have either adopted policies to invest at least 80% of their assets in fixed income securities that the Adviser believes offer the prospect of providing total return, or invest substantially all of their assets in such fixed income securities. The purchase of shares of investment companies may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Portfolio’s own expenses.
Under normal market conditions, the Adviser expects substantially all of the Portfolio’s net assets to be invested in the securities of investment companies, including other investment companies funded by insurance company separate accounts, that invest in the types of securities described in each asset class below, with less than 2% of the net assets invested in cash or money market instruments.
One-Year Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase U.S. government obligations, U.S. government agency obligations, dollar-denominated obligations of foreign issuers issued in the U.S., securities of domestic or foreign issuers denominated in U.S. dollars but not trading in the U.S., foreign government and agency obligations, bank obligations, including the obligations of U.S. subsidiaries and branches of foreign banks, corporate obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and obligations of supranational organizations such as the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank. Generally, obligations comprising this asset class will mature within one year from the date of settlement, but substantial investments may be made in obligations maturing within two years from the date of settlement when greater returns are available.
Two-Year Global Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. and foreign governments, their agencies and instrumentalities, corporate debt obligations, bank obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and other debt obligations of domestic and foreign issuers with maturities of no more than two years. In making purchase decisions, if the expected term premium is greater for longer-term securities in the eligible maturity range, the underlying investment adviser(s) will focus investment in the longer-term area, otherwise, the underlying investment companies will focus investment in the shorter-term area of the eligible maturity range. Because many of the investments of the underlying investment companies in this asset class will be denominated in foreign currencies, the underlying investment companies may also enter into foreign currency forward contracts to attempt to protect against uncertainty in the level of future foreign currency rates, to hedge against fluctuations in currency exchange rates or to transfer balances from one currency to another.
Intermediate Government Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase debt obligations of the U.S. government and U.S. government agencies. Generally, investment companies in the asset class will purchase securities with maturities of between five and fifteen years, however such investment companies ordinarily will have an average weighted maturity of between three and ten years. The underlying investment companies may invest a portion of their assets in the obligations of foreign governments. Those obligations at the time of purchase must be either rated in the highest rating category of a nationally recognized statistical rating organization or, in the case of any obligation that is unrated, of comparable quality.
Five-Year Global Fixed Income Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will purchase obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. and foreign governments, their agencies and instrumentalities, corporate debt obligations, bank obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, obligations of other domestic and foreign issuers, securities of domestic or foreign issuers denominated in U.S. dollars but not trading in the United States, and obligations of supranational organizations. Generally, obligations comprising this asset class have a weighted average maturity not exceeding five years. In making purchase decisions, if the expected term premium is greater for longer-term securities in the eligible maturity range, the underlying investment adviser(s) will focus investment in the longer-term area, otherwise, the underlying investment companies will focus investment in the shorter-term area of the eligible maturity range. Because many of the investments of the underlying investment companies in this asset class will be denominated in foreign currencies, the underlying investment companies may also enter into foreign currency forward contracts to attempt to protect against uncertainty in the level of future foreign currency rates, to hedge against fluctuations in currency exchange rates or to transfer balances from one currency to another.
Short-Term Corporate Bond Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the ICE BofAML 1-5 Year US Corporate Index, which measures the performance of investment-grade corporate bonds of both U.S. and non- U.S. issuers that are U.S. dollar denominated and publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market and have a remaining maturity of greater than or equal to one year and less than five years.
Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the ICE BofAML 5-10 Year US Corporate Index, which measures the performance of investment-grade corporate bonds of both U.S. and non-U.S. issuers that are U.S. dollar denominated and publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market and have a remaining maturity of greater than or equal to five years and less than ten years.
Inflation Protected Securities Asset Class: The underlying investment companies generally will track the investment results of the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) Index (Series-L), which measures the performance of the inflation-protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury, commonly known as “TIPS.” TIPS are securities issued by the U.S. Treasury that are designed to provide inflation protection to investors. TIPS are income-generating instruments whose interest and principal payments are adjusted for inflation - a sustained increase in prices that erodes the purchasing power of money. The inflation adjustment, which is typically applied monthly to the principal of the bond, follows a designated inflation index, the consumer price index (“CPI”), and TIPS’ principal payments are adjusted according to changes in the CPI. A fixed coupon rate is applied to the inflation-adjusted principal so that as inflation rises, both the principal value and the interest payments increase.
The underlying investment companies may also use derivatives, such as futures contracts and options on futures contracts for equity securities and indices, to hedge currency exposure or to adjust market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows or outflows from the underlying investment company. Underlying index-based ETFs may use derivatives, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, options and swaps to help the ETF track its underlying index.
Certain underlying investment companies may concentrate their investments (invest more than 25% of its total assets) in obligations of U.S. and foreign banks and bank holding companies when the yield to maturity on eligible portfolio investments in banking securities as a group generally exceeds the yield to maturity on all other eligible portfolio investments as a group generally for a period of five consecutive days when the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open for trading. While the Portfolio will not concentrate its investments in any one industry, the Portfolio may be focused on banking sectors under certain circumstances.
The Portfolio reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets as a temporary defensive measure in cash and money market instruments such as U.S. government securities, bank obligations and commercial paper. To the extent the Portfolio employs a temporary defensive measure, the Portfolio may not achieve its investment objective. Periodically the Adviser will review the allocations for the Portfolio in each underlying investment company and may add or remove underlying investment companies and/or change the investment allocation percentages of the Portfolio in the underlying investment companies without notice to shareholders or the holders of the variable annuity or variable life insurance policies. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Portfolio, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Portfolio or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Portfolio, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Portfolio. The information shows you how the Portfolio’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Portfolio will perform in the future. Updated information is available at www.matsonmoney.com or by calling (866) 780-0357 Ext. 3863. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns of the Portfolio before and after taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and since inception to the average total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Global Opportunities Fund | Investor Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FOOLX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Global Opportunities Fund | Institutional Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FOIIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Global Opportunities Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary Section | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Global Opportunities Fund is to achieve long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fees and Expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Global Opportunities Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Shares of the Global Opportunities Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Global Opportunities Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in Investor Shares or $100,000 in Institutional Shares of the Global Opportunities Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Global Opportunities Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation agreement in place for one year). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs of investing in the Fund would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Global Opportunities 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 Global Opportunities Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Global Opportunities Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Global Opportunities Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 10%. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Global Opportunities Fund pursues its investment objective by using a quality growth investing style. The Fund invests in a focused portfolio of the common stocks of high-quality U.S. companies and the common stocks and depositary receipts of high-quality companies that are organized under the laws of other countries around the world.
The Global Opportunities Fund will invest, under normal circumstances, in at least three different countries, and will invest at least 40% of its assets outside of the United States, or, if the conditions are not favorable, will invest at least 30% of its assets outside the United States. The Global Opportunities Fund seeks to stay fully invested and does not attempt to time the market. Although the Fund does not have market capitalization constraints for its investments, it is expected that investments in the securities of U.S. companies having smaller and middle market capitalizations and the securities in foreign companies, including companies organized under the laws of emerging market countries, will be important components of the Global Opportunities Fund’s investment program. As a result, the Global Opportunities Fund has the freedom to go anywhere to make investments for its shareholders.
In identifying investments for the Global Opportunities Fund, the Adviser looks for securities of companies that have high-quality businesses with strong market positions, manageable leverage, robust streams of free cash flow, and trade at attractive prices. In managing the Global Opportunities Fund’s investment portfolio, the Adviser regularly reviews and adjusts the Global Opportunities Fund’s allocations to particular markets and sectors to maintain a diversified mix of investments that the Adviser believes offer the best overall potential for long-term growth of capital. The Global Opportunities Fund will sell securities in which it has invested based upon the Adviser’s analysis of fundamental investment criteria, including its assessment of the current value of a security relative to the security’s current market price, business fundamentals relating to the issuer, and developments affecting the issuer’s business prospects and risks.
The Global Opportunities Fund prefers to invest in high-quality businesses when possible. To identify these high-quality businesses, the Adviser engages in research to evaluate each company under consideration using four criteria: management, culture, and incentives; the economics of the business; competitive advantage; and trajectory. The Adviser’s approach employs a long-term mindset and a balance of qualitative and quantitative factors.
Management, Culture, and Incentives. The Adviser believes that management is a key element to long-term success at most businesses. Among the factors the Adviser considers are: manager and board of director fit, the clarity of vision and strategies, main-line culture and turnover, ownership in the business, the sensibility of incentives, capital allocation choices and results, external transparency and candor, and overall treatment of stakeholders.
Economics of the Business. The Adviser believes that the economic performance of a business is a signal for quality. The Adviser’s process looks at the company’s long-term return on capital, the scalability of its business model, relative and absolute margins, business and product cyclicality, and other key performance indicators to gain insight into its potential for future performance.
Competitive Advantage. The Adviser seeks companies that offer certain characteristics that allow them to generate and sustain outsized returns on capital on an absolute basis as well as in comparison to their peers. Competitive advantages may include pricing power, geographic barriers to entry, network effects, regulatory barriers to entry, and superior brands, among others. The Adviser also assesses the strength of the supporting capabilities each company possesses that reinforce these advantages to result in unique positioning.
Trajectory. Companies often display superior economics over the short term due to favorable product cycles, customer preference, temporary or tactical advantages or other reasons. As the Adviser’s desire is to own companies in the Fund that can be kept in the portfolio for many years, a core part of the Adviser’s process is to consider what the company might look like over a period of ten or more years. The Adviser considers whether the company seems likely to grow, to increase profitability through additional products or other offerings, and if it has optionality and the financial capacity that may make it a larger, stronger business in the future than it might be today.
The Global Opportunities Fund’s investment portfolio is focused, generally composed of at least 30 investment positions, with the 10 largest positions representing not more than 60% of the Global Opportunities Fund’s net assets. To limit the risks associated with highly concentrated holdings, the Global Opportunities Fund does not invest more than 5% of its net assets in any one class of the securities of any one issuer at the time of purchase. If a portfolio holding grows to be greater than 5% of the Global Opportunities Fund’s net assets the Adviser may not add additional capital to the position. However, the Adviser may maintain an allocation above 5% indefinitely, provided it continues to meet the Adviser’s investment criteria.
While investing in a particular sector is not a principal investment strategy of the Global Opportunities Fund, its portfolio may be significantly invested in a sector as a result of the portfolio management decisions made pursuant to its principal investment strategy. Currently, the Global Opportunities Fund is significantly invested in the industrials sector, communication services sector, consumer discretionary sector, and information technology sector, which means it will be more affected by the performance of such sectors than a fund that is not so significantly invested. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The value of the Global Opportunities Fund’s investments may decrease, which will cause the value of the Global Opportunities Fund’s shares to decrease. As a result, you may lose money on your investment in the Global Opportunities Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Global Opportunities Fund will achieve its investment objective. The principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Global Opportunities Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
Company and Market Risk The common stock of a company may not perform as well as expected, and may decrease in value, because of factors related to the company (such as poorer-than-expected earnings or management decisions, changes in the industry in which the company is engaged, or a reduction in the demand for a company’s products or services). General market and economic factors may adversely affect securities markets generally, which could adversely affect the value of the Global Opportunities Fund’s investments in common stocks. In addition, the rights of holders of common stock are subordinate to the rights of preferred shares and debt holders.
Cyber Security Risk Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the investment adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its investment adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or its investment adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures.
Depositary Receipts The Global Opportunities Fund may purchase depositary receipts (American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), European Depositary receipts (“EDRs”), Global Depositary receipts (“GDRs”), and Non-Voting Depositary Receipts (“NVDRs”)) to facilitate its investments in foreign securities. By investing in ADRs rather than investing directly in the securities of foreign issuers, the Global Opportunities Fund can avoid currency risks during the settlement period for purchase and sales. However, ADRs do not eliminate all the risks inherent in investing in the securities of foreign issuers.
Emerging Market Countries Investing in emerging market countries involves risks in addition to and greater than those generally associated with investing in more developed foreign markets. In many less developed markets, there is less governmental supervision and regulation of business and industry practices, stock exchanges, brokers, and listed companies than there is in more developed markets. The securities markets of certain countries in which the Global Opportunities Fund may invest may also be smaller, less liquid, and subject to greater price volatility than those of more developed markets. The Global Opportunities Fund seeks to invest no more than 50% of its net assets in emerging market countries.
Foreign Investments The Global Opportunities Fund invests in the securities of foreign companies. Investing in securities of foreign companies involves risks generally not associated with investments in the securities of U.S. companies, including the risks associated with fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, unreliable and untimely information about issuers, and political and economic instability.
Investments in Small and Mid-Capitalization Companies The Global Opportunities Fund invests in securities of companies of all sizes, including those that have relatively small market capitalizations. Investments in securities of these companies involve greater risks than do investments in larger, more established companies. The prices of securities of small-cap companies tend to be more vulnerable to adverse developments specific to the company or its industry, or the securities markets generally, than are securities of larger capitalization companies.
Sector Risk. To the extent the Global Opportunities Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors of the economy, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors.
Investment Style Risk The Global Opportunities Fund pursues a quality growth style of investing. Quality growth investing focuses on companies that appear attractively priced in light of factors such as the quality of management, sustainability of competitive advantage, or growth potential of cash flow. If the Adviser’s assessment of a company’s quality or intrinsic value or its prospects for exceeding earnings expectations or market conditions is inaccurate, the Global Opportunities Fund could suffer losses or produce poor performance relative to other funds. In addition, the stocks of quality companies can continue to be undervalued by the market for long periods of time. As a consequence of our investing style we expect the Global Opportunities Fund will underperform the market and its peers over short timeframes.
Securities Lending Risk The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker- dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information: The bar chart and performance table below illustrate the risks and volatility of an investment in the Global Opportunities Fund. The Global Opportunities Fund’s past performance, both before and after taxes, does not necessarily indicate how the Global Opportunities Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.mfamfunds.com or by calling 1-888-863-8803 (toll free).
The Global Opportunities Fund commenced operations on December 21, 2016, by acquiring the assets and liabilities of the Motley Fool Independence Fund, a series of The Motley Fool Funds Trust (the “Predecessor Fund”), in exchange for shares of the Global Opportunities Fund. Accordingly, the performance information shown below for periods prior to December 21, 2016 is that of the Predecessor Fund, which was also a publicly-sold open-end mutual fund. The Predecessor Fund was also advised by the Adviser and had the same investment objective and strategies as the Global Opportunities Fund.
The bar chart shows changes in the performance of the Global Opportunities Fund’s Investor Shares from year to year. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The for the nine months ended was .
The performance table shows how the Global Opportunities Fund’s Investor Shares and Institutional Shares average annual total returns for the periods indicated compare with those of the FTSE Global All Cap Net Tax Index, a broad measure of market performance. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PERFORMANCE TABLE (Average annual total returns for the periods ended December 31, 2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Global Opportunities Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns are shown only for Investor Shares; after-tax returns for Institutional Shares will vary to the extent each class has different expenses. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Mid-Cap Growth Fund | Investor Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TMFGX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Mid-Cap Growth Fund | Institutional Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FOGIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Mid-Cap Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary Section | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund is to achieve long-term capital appreciation. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Shares of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fees and Expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Mid-Cap Growth Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in Investor Shares or $100,000 in Institutional Shares in the Mid-Cap Growth Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year and (2) the Mid-Cap Growth Fund operating expenses remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation agreement in place for one year). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs of investing in the Fund would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Mid-Cap Growth 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 Mid-Cap Growth Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 14%. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Mid-Cap Growth Fund pursues its investment objective by using a quality growth investing style. The Fund invests in a focused portfolio of the common stocks of high-quality companies organized in the United States that are engaged in a broad range of industries.
Under normal market conditions, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in securities issued by United States companies having mid-market capitalizations. For this purpose, the Adviser currently defines mid-market capitalization companies as having similar market capitalizations to the companies in the Russell Midcap® Growth Total Return Index. That index is used for the purpose of determining range and not for targeting portfolio management. Under normal circumstances, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund seeks to stay fully invested and does not attempt to time the market.
In identifying investments for the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, the Adviser looks for securities of companies that have high-quality businesses with strong market positions, manageable leverage, robust streams of free cash flow, and trade at attractive prices. In managing the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s investment portfolio, the Adviser regularly reviews and adjusts the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s allocations to maintain a diversified mix of investments that the Adviser believes offer the best overall potential for long-term growth of capital. The Mid-Cap Growth Fund will sell securities in which it has invested based upon the Adviser’s analysis of fundamental investment criteria, including its assessment of the current value of a security relative to the security’s current market price, business fundamentals relating to the issuer, and developments affecting the issuer’s business prospects and risks.
The Mid-Cap Growth Fund prefers to invest in high-quality businesses when possible. To identify these high-quality businesses, the Adviser engages in research to evaluate each company under consideration using four criteria: management, culture, and incentives; the economics of the business; competitive advantage; and trajectory. The Adviser’s approach employs a long-term mindset and a balance of qualitative and quantitative factors.
Management, Culture, and Incentives. The Adviser believes that management is a key element to long-term success at most businesses. Among the factors the Adviser considers are: manager and board of director fit, the clarity of vision and strategies, main-line culture and turnover, ownership in the business, the sensibility of incentives, capital allocation choices and results, external transparency and candor, and overall treatment of stakeholders.
Economics of the Business. The Adviser believes that the economic performance of a business is a signal for quality. The Adviser’s process looks at the company’s long-term return on capital, the scalability of its business model, relative and absolute margins, business and product cyclicality, and other key performance indicators to gain insight into its potential for future performance.
Competitive Advantage. The Adviser seeks companies that offer certain characteristics that allow them to generate and sustain outsized returns on capital on an absolute basis as well as in comparison to their peers. Competitive advantages may include pricing power, geographic barriers to entry, network effects, regulatory barriers to entry and superior brands, among others. The Adviser also assesses the strength of the supporting capabilities each company possesses that reinforce these advantages to result in unique positioning.
Trajectory. Companies often display superior economics over the short term due to favorable product cycles, customer preference, temporary or tactical advantages or other reasons. As the Adviser’s desire is to own companies in the Fund that can be kept in the portfolio for many years, a core part of the Adviser’s process is to consider what the company might look like over a period of ten or more years. The Adviser considers whether the company seems likely to grow, to increase profitability through additional products or other offerings, and if it has optionality and the financial capacity that may make it a larger, stronger business in the future than it might be today.
The Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s investment portfolio is focused, generally composed of at least 30 investment positions, with the 10 largest positions representing not more than 60% of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s net assets. To limit the risks associated with highly concentrated holdings, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund generally does not invest more than 5% of its net assets in securities of any one issuer at the time of purchase. If a portfolio holding grows to be greater than 5% of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s net assets the Adviser may not add additional capital to the position. However, the Adviser may maintain an allocation above 5% indefinitely, provided it continues to meet the Adviser’s investment criteria.
While investing in a particular sector is not a principal investment strategy of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, its portfolio may be significantly invested in a sector as a result of the portfolio management decisions made pursuant to its principal investment strategy. Currently, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund is significantly invested in the industrials sector, consumer discretionary sector, health care sector, and information technology sector, which means it will be more affected by the performance of such sectors than a fund that is not so significantly invested. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The value of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s investments may decrease, which will cause the value of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s shares to decrease. As a result, you may lose money on your investment in the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Mid-Cap Growth Fund will achieve its investment objective. The principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. The following are the principal risks that could affect the value of your investment:
Company and Market Risk The common stock of a company may not perform as well as expected, and may decrease in value, because of factors related to the company (such as poorer-than-expected earnings or management decisions, changes in the industry in which the company is engaged, or a reduction in the demand for a company’s products or services). General market and economic factors may adversely affect securities markets generally, which could adversely affect the value of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s investments in common stocks. In addition, the rights of holders of common stock are subordinate to the rights of preferred shares and debt holders.
Cyber Security Risk Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the investment adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its investment adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or its investment adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures.
Investments in Mid-Capitalization Companies The Mid-Cap Growth Fund invests in securities of mid-capitalization companies. Investments in securities of these companies may involve greater risks than do investments in larger, more established companies. The prices of securities of mid-cap companies tend to be more vulnerable to adverse developments specific to a company or its industry, or the securities markets generally, than are securities of larger capitalization companies.
Investment Style Risk The Mid-Cap Growth Fund pursues a quality growth style of investing. Quality growth investing focuses on companies that appear attractively priced in light of factors such as the quality of management, sustainability of competitive advantage, or growth potential of cash flow. If the Adviser’s assessment of a company’s quality or intrinsic value or its prospects for exceeding earnings expectations or market conditions is inaccurate, the Mid-Cap Growth Fund could suffer losses or produce poor performance relative to other funds. In addition, the stocks of quality companies can continue to be undervalued by the market for long periods of time. As a consequence of our investing style we expect the Mid-Cap Growth Fund will underperform the market and its peers over short time frames.
Sector Risk To the extent the Small-Cap Growth Fund invests more heavily in particular sectors of the economy, its performance will be especially sensitive to developments that significantly affect those sectors.
Securities Lending Risk The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker- dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information: The bar chart and performance table below illustrate the risks and volatility of an investment in the Mid-Cap Growth Fund. The Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s past performance, both before and after taxes, does not necessarily indicate how the Mid-Cap Growth Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.mfamfunds.com or by calling 1-888-863-8803 (toll free).
The Mid-Cap Growth Fund commenced operations on December 21, 2016, by acquiring the assets and liabilities of the Motley Fool Great America Fund, a series of The Motley Fool Funds Trust (the “Predecessor Fund”), in exchange for shares of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund. Accordingly, the performance information shown below for periods prior to December 21, 2016 is that of the Predecessor Fund, which was also a publicly-sold open-end mutual fund. The Predecessor Fund was also advised by the Adviser and had the same investment objective and strategies as the Mid-Cap Growth Fund.
The bar chart shows changes in the performance of the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s Investor Shares from year to year. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The for the nine months ended was .
The performance table shows how the Mid-Cap Growth Fund’s Investor Shares and Institutional Shares average annual total returns for the periods indicated compare with those of the Russell Midcap® Growth Total Return Index, a broad measure of market performance. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PERFORMANCE TABLE (Average annual total returns for the periods ended December 31, 2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Mid-Cap Growth Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns are shown only for Investor Shares; after-tax returns for Institutional Shares will vary to the extent each class has different expenses. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Motley Fool 100 Index ETF | Motley Fool 100 Index ETF Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TMFC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Motley Fool 100 Index ETF | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Motley Fool 100 Index ETF Summary Section | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Motley Fool 100 Index ETF (the “Fool 100 Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond (before fees and expenses) generally to the total return performance of the Motley Fool 100 Index (the “Fool 100 Index” – for more on this, see the “Principal Investment Strategies” section). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fees and Expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fool 100 Fund (“Shares”). This table and the Example below do not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay on their purchases and sales of Fund Shares. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fool 100 Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fool 100 Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Fool 100 Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fool 100 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 Fool 100 Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fool 100 Fund’s performance. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fool 100 Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 26% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fool 100 Fund is an exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) and employs a “passive management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, of the Fool 100 Index. Motley Fool Asset Management, LLC (the “Adviser” or “MFAM”) serves as the investment adviser to the Fool 100 Fund . The Fool 100 Index was developed by The Motley Fool, LLC (“The Motley Fool”), an affiliate of the Adviser.
The Motley Fool 100 Index
The Fool 100 Index was established by The Motley Fool in 2017 and is a proprietary, rules-based index designed to track the performance of the 100 largest, most liquid U.S. companies that have been recommended by The Motley Fool’s analysts and newsletters.
To be eligible for inclusion in the Fool 100 Index, a company must be among the 100 largest domestic firms by market capitalization in The Motley Fool’s “recommendation universe.” That recommendation universe includes all companies domiciled in the United States that are either active recommendations of a newsletter published by The Motley Fool or are among the 150 highest rated U.S. companies in The Motley Fool’s analyst opinion database.
Each of the 100 largest company’s share of the Fool 100 Index (or “weighting”) is set to equal the company’s share of all Index companies’ aggregate market value. The Fool 100 Index is reconstituted and rebalanced quarterly. From time to time, the Fool 100 Index may include more or less than 100 companies as a result of events such as acquisitions, spin-offs and other corporate actions.
The Fool 100 Index is calculated and administered by Solactive AG (the “Index Calculation Agent”), which is not affiliated with the Fool 100 Fund, the Adviser or The Motley Fool. Additional information regarding the Fool 100 Index, including its value, is available on the websites of the Fool 100 Index at www.fool100.com and the Index Calculation Agent, at www.solactive.com.
The Fool 100 Fund’s Investment Strategy
Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Fool 100 Fund’s total assets (exclusive of any collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in the component securities of the Fool 100 Index. The Adviser expects that, over time, if it has sufficient assets, the correlation between the Fool 100 Fund’s performance and that of the Fool 100 Index, before fees and expenses, will be 95% or better.
The Fool 100 Fund will generally use a “replication” strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest in all of the component securities of the Fool 100 Index. However, the Fool 100 Fund may use a “representative sampling” strategy, meaning it may invest in a sample of the securities in the Fool 100 Index whose risk, return and other characteristics closely resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Fool 100 Index as a whole, when the Adviser believes it is in the best interests of the Fool 100 Fund (e.g., when replicating the Fool 100 Index involves practical difficulties or substantial costs, a Fool 100 Index constituent becomes temporarily illiquid, unavailable or less liquid, or as a result of legal restrictions or limitations that apply to the Fool 100 Fund but not to the Fool 100 Index).
The Fool 100 Fund generally may invest up to 20% of its total assets (exclusive of any collateral held from securities lending) in securities or other investments not included in the Fool 100 Index, but which the Adviser believes will help the Fool 100 Fund track the Fool 100 Index. For example, the Fool 100 Fund may invest in securities that are not components of the Fool 100 Index to reflect various corporate actions and other changes to the Fool 100 Index (such as reconstitutions, additions and deletions).
The Fool 100 Fund is non-diversified for the purposes of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), which means that the Fool 100 Fund may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. To the extent the Fool 100 Index concentrates (i.e., holds more than 25% of its total assets) in the securities of a particular industry, the Fool 100 Fund will concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the Fool 100 Index. As of August 31, 2020, securities in the health care, information technology, communication services and consumer discretionary sectors represented a significant portion of the Fool 100 Index.
The Fool 100 Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending securities.
The Fool 100 Fund has elected to be, and intends to continue to qualify each year for treatment as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The value of the Fool 100 Fund’s investments may decrease, which will cause the value of the Fool 100 Fund’s Shares to decrease. As a result, you may lose money on your investment in the Fool 100 Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fool 100 Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Fool 100 Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fool 100 Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information: The bar chart and performance table illustrate the risks and volatility of an investment in the Fool 100 Fund. The bar chart shows the performance of the Fool 100 Fund for the 2019 calendar year. The table illustrates how the Fool 100 Fund’s average annual total returns for the one-year and since-inception periods compare with those of a broad measure of market performance and the Fool 100 Index. Past performance, both before and after taxes, does not necessarily indicate how the Fool 100 Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.mfamfunds.com. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The for the nine months ended was .
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PERFORMANCE TABLE (Average annual total returns for the periods ended December 31, 2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fool 100 Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Small-Cap Growth ETF | MFAM Small-Cap Growth ETF Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFMS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Small-Cap Growth ETF | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MFAM Small-Cap Growth ETF Summary Section | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the MFAM Small-Cap Growth ETF (the “Small-Cap Growth Fund”) is to achieve long-term capital appreciation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fees and Expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Small-Cap Growth Fund (“Shares”). This table and the Example below do not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay on their purchases and sales of Fund Shares. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment): | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Small-Cap Growth Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Small-Cap Growth Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Small-Cap Growth 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 Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 27% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Small-Cap Growth Fund is an actively-managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) and invests primarily in equity securities of small capitalization companies listed on a United States exchange and selected by Motley Fool Asset Management, LLC (the “Adviser” or “MFAM”), the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s investment adviser. The Small-Cap Growth Fund pursues its investment objective by using a quality growth style. The Small-Cap Growth Fund invests in a focused portfolio of the common stocks of high-quality companies organized in the United States that are engaged in a broad range of industries.
Under normal market conditions, the Small-Cap Growth Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities issued by small capitalization companies. For this purpose, the Adviser currently defines small capitalization companies as being within the same range of market capitalizations as the companies in the Russell 2000 Growth Index (the “Index”). The Index is used for the purpose of determining ranges of market capitalizations and not for targeting portfolio management. Under normal circumstances, the Small-Cap Growth Fund seeks to stay fully invested and does not attempt to time the market. The Small-Cap Growth Fund is non-diversified, which means that it may invest a significant portion of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or small number of issuers. In addition, at any given time, the Small-Cap Growth Fund may have a significant portion of its net assets invested in securities of issuers within a particular sector, such as the information technology, health care, industrial and consumer discretionary sectors.
In identifying investments for the Small-Cap Growth Fund, the Adviser looks for securities of companies that have high-quality businesses with strong market positions, manageable leverage, and the potential for robust streams of free cash flow. In managing the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s investment portfolio, the Adviser regularly reviews and adjusts the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s allocations to maintain a mix of investments that the Adviser believes offer the best overall potential for long-term growth of capital. The Small-Cap Growth Fund will sell securities in which it has invested based upon the Adviser’s analysis of fundamental investment criteria, including its assessment of the current value of a security relative to the security’s current market price, business fundamentals relating to the issuer, and developments affecting the issuer’s business prospects and risks.
The Small-Cap Growth Fund prefers to invest in high-quality businesses when possible. To identify these high-quality businesses, the Adviser engages in research to evaluate each company under consideration using four criteria described in more detail below: (i) management, culture, and incentives; (ii) the economics of the business; (iii) competitive advantage; and (iv) trajectory. The Adviser’s approach prizes a long-term mindset and a balance of qualitative and quantitative factors.
Management, Culture, and Incentives.
The Adviser believes that management is a key element to long-term success at most businesses. Among the factors the Adviser considers are: manager and board of director fit, the clarity of vision and strategies, main-line culture and turnover, ownership in the business, the sensibility of incentives, capital allocation choices and results, external transparency and candor, and overall treatment of stakeholders.
Economics of the Business.
The Adviser believes that the economic performance of a business is a signal for quality. The Adviser’s process looks at the company’s long-term return on capital, the scalability of its business model, relative and absolute margins, business and product cyclicality, and other key performance indicators to gain insight into its potential for future performance.
Competitive Advantage.
The Adviser seeks companies that offer certain characteristics that allow them to generate and sustain outsized returns on capital on an absolute basis as well as in comparison to their peers. Competitive advantages may include pricing power, geographic barriers to entry, network effects, regulatory barriers to entry and superior brands, among others. The Adviser also assesses the strength of the supporting capabilities each company possesses that reinforce these advantages to result in unique positioning.
Trajectory
Companies often display superior economics over the short term due to favorable product cycles, customer preference, temporary or tactical advantages or other reasons. As the Adviser’s desire is to own companies in the Small-Cap Growth Fund that can be kept in the portfolio for many years, a core part of the Adviser’s process is to consider what the company might look like over a period of ten or more years. The Adviser considers whether the company seems likely to grow, to increase profitability through additional products or other offerings, and if it has optionality and the financial capacity that may make it a larger, stronger business in the future than it might be today.
The Small-Cap Growth Fund’s investment portfolio is focused, generally composed of at least 30 investment positions.
While investing in a particular sector is not a principal investment strategy of the Small-Cap Growth Fund, its portfolio may be significantly invested in a sector as a result of the portfolio management decisions made pursuant to its principal investment strategy. While the Small-Cap Growth Fund does not place any restrictions on its level of sector concentration, it will limit its investments in industries within any particular sector to less than 25% of the Fund’s total assets. As of August 31, 2020, the Small-Cap Growth Fund is significantly invested in the health care, industrials and information technology sectors, which means it will be more affected by the performance of such sectors than a fund that is not so significantly invested. The Small-Cap Growth Fund may not invest more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.
The Small-Cap Growth Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending securities.
The Small-Cap Growth Fund has elected to be, and intends to continue to qualify each year for treatment as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The value of the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s investments may decrease, which will cause the value of the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s Shares to decrease. As a result, you may lose money on your investment in the Small-Cap Growth Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Small-Cap Growth Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Small-Cap Growth Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Small-Cap Growth Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The bar chart and performance table illustrate the risks and volatility of an investment in the Small-Cap Growth Fund. The bar chart shows the performance of the Small-Cap Growth Fund for the 2019 calendar year. The table illustrates how the Small-Cap Growth Fund’s average annual total returns for the one-year and since-inception periods compare with those of a broad measure of market performance. Past performance, both before and after taxes, does not necessarily indicate how the Small-Cap Growth Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.mfamfunds.com. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
PERFORMANCE TABLE (Average annual total returns for the periods ended December 31, 2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Small-Cap Growth Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Orinda Income Opportunities Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION — ORINDA INCOME OPPORTUNITIES FUND | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Orinda Income Opportunities Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to maximize current income with potential for modest growth of capital. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund’s Class A shares. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in the “Distribution of Fund Shares” section of the Fund’s Prospectus and the “Other Information Regarding Maximum Sales Charge, Purchases and Redemptions” section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”). Each financial intermediary may impose different sales charges and these variations are described in Appendix A of the Fund’s Prospectus.
Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $100,000 in Class I Shares of the Fund and $10,000 in Class A and Class D Shares of the Fund (the minimum initial investment for Class A and Class D Shares is $5,000) for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that each year your investment has a 5% return and Fund operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs and returns might be different, your approximate costs of investing in the Fund would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 153% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund will attempt to achieve its investment objective by investing in U.S. and non-U.S. securities and investment instruments including, but not limited to, equity securities, debt securities, and derivatives. The Fund’s allocation to these various security types and asset classes will vary over time in response to changing market opportunities with the goal of maximizing current income.
The Fund may invest without limit in equity securities of issuers of any market capitalization. The types of equity securities in which the Fund will generally invest include common stocks, preferred stocks, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), master limited partnerships (“MLPs”), rights, warrants, depositary receipts and other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). The Fund’s equity investments may also take the form of depositary receipts including American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”). The Fund generally invests in dividend paying stocks. The Fund may invest up to 25% of its net assets in initial public offerings (“IPOs”). The Fund may also invest without limit in foreign securities, including up to 50% of its net assets in securities of issuers located in emerging markets.
The Fund will generally invest at least 50% of its net assets in REITs. As a result of its investments in REITs, the Fund will be concentrated in the real estate industry. The Fund may invest in “Rule 144A” securities, which are privately placed, restricted securities that may only be resold under certain circumstances to other qualified institutional buyers.
The Fund may invest without limit in debt securities, provided that no more than 30% of its net assets are invested in debt securities rated below investment grade (known as “junk bonds”). The types of debt securities in which the Fund may invest generally include instruments and obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. corporate and other non-governmental entities, those of U.S. and non-U.S. governmental entities, mortgage-related or mortgage-backed securities (including “sub-prime” mortgages), asset-backed securities, exchange-traded notes (“ETNs”), floating rate loans, convertible securities, inflation-linked debt securities and subordinated debt securities. The Fund invests in debt securities with a broad range of maturities and the Fund’s investments may have fixed or variable principal payments.
The Fund may invest up to 85% of its net assets in derivatives, including options, futures (such as bond, index, interest rate and currency futures, but excluding commodities futures) and swaps (such as credit-default swaps, interest rate swaps and total return swaps). These derivative instruments may be used for investment purposes, to modify or hedge the Fund’s exposure to a particular investment market related risk, to manage the volatility of the Fund, to hedge against adverse changes in the market price of securities, interest rates or currency exchange rates and as a substitute for purchasing or selling securities.
The Fund may utilize leverage (by borrowing against a line of credit for investment purposes) up to one-third of the value of its assets as part of the portfolio management process. The Fund may also sell securities short with respect to 100% of its net assets and may lend its portfolio securities to generate additional income. A short sale is the sale by the Fund of a security that it does not own in anticipation of purchasing the same security in the future at a lower price to close the short position.
The Fund will sell (or close a position in) a security when Orinda Asset Management LLC (the “Adviser”) determines that a particular security has achieved its investment expectations or the reasons for maintaining that position are no longer valid. It is expected that the Fund will have a portfolio turnover in excess of 100% on an annual basis. The Fund’s investment strategies may periodically result in a significant portion of its assets being invested in the securities of companies in the same sector of the market.
The Adviser may also invest up to 100% of the Fund’s total assets in cash, money-market instruments, bank obligations and other high-quality debt securities for temporary defensive purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary of Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Losing all or a portion of your investment is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund was reorganized following the close of business on April 28, 2017, to acquire the assets and liabilities of the Orinda Income Opportunities Fund, a series of Advisors Series Trust (the “Predecessor Fund”), in exchange for shares of the Fund. Accordingly, the Fund is the successor to the Predecessor Fund, and the following performance information shown prior to May 1, 2017, is that of the Predecessor Fund. The Fund has an investment objective, strategies and policies substantially similar to the Predecessor Fund, which was also advised by the Adviser.
The following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows changes in the Class I performance from year to year. The table shows how the Fund’s average annual returns for 1-year, 5-year and since inception periods compare with those of broad measures of market performance. The Fund’s past performance, before and after taxes, is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available at www.orindafunds.com or by calling the Fund toll-free at 1-855-467-4632 (855-4ORINDA). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total Returns for the Calendar Years Ended December 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance of the Fund (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
The Fund’s Class I for the nine months ended was . | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Average Annual Total Returns (For the periods ended December 31, 2019) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund before taxes for the past calendar year, the past five calendar years, and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SILVX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund | Class A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LVOLX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund | Class C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGICX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTIONS U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks to outperform the S&P 500® Index over a market cycle while reducing overall volatility. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts on Class A Shares if you invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information — Sales Charges” and in the section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information — Reducing or Eliminating the Front-End Sales Charge.” Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class A Shares or Class C Shares or $1,000,000 in the Class I Shares of the Fund and for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 129% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities, primarily common stocks, of companies within the Russell 1000® Index and S&P 500® Index. The Fund’s investments will generally consist of securities, which may include common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, and securities convertible into common stock. The Fund purchases equity securities traded in the U.S. on registered exchanges or the over-the-counter market. The Fund may also invest in other registered investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”).
Summit Global Investments, LLC (the “Adviser”) attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in U.S. equity securities that lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio as compared to the S&P 500® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. The Fund invests in stocks that often exhibit less volatile stock price patterns, strengthening business metrics (i.e., earnings, debt, return on assets, competition, customers, industry, etc.) and quantitative factors such as earnings variability, leverage, volatility, price/book, price/cash flow, etc. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each stock if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks, due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of volatility.
The Fund may sell a stock if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Fund’s Class I Shares (the Class with the longest performance). The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above):
for the nine months ended : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The following table, which includes all applicable sales charges (loads) and account fees, compares the Fund’s Class I, Class A and Class C Shares average annual total returns for the periods indicated to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indicator of how the Fund will perform in the future. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SCLVX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund | Class A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LVSMX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund | Class C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SMLVX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTIONS U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI U.S. Small Cap Equity Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks to outperform the Russell 2000® Index over a market cycle while reducing overall volatility. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts on Class A Shares if you invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information — Sales Charges” and in the section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information — Reducing or Eliminating the Front-End Sales Charge.” Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class A Shares or Class C Shares or $1,000,000 in the Class I Shares of the Fund and for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 151% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities, primarily common stocks of U.S. issuers with small market capitalizations. A small market capitalization issuer generally is considered to be one whose market capitalization is, at the time the Fund makes the investment, similar to the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Index. The Russell 2000® Index is a small cap stock market index measuring the performance of approximately 2,000 small cap U.S. companies. As of May 8, 2020, the minimum market capitalization of the Russell 2000® Index was $94.8 million and the largest stock was $4.4 billion. The Fund’s investments will generally consist of securities, which may include common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, and securities convertible into common stock. The Fund purchases equity securities traded in the U.S. on registered exchanges or the over-the-counter market. The Fund may also invest in other registered investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), and may invest in real estate investment trusts (“REITs”).
The Adviser attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in U.S. equity securities that lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio as compared to the Russell 2000® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. The Fund invests in stocks that often exhibit less volatile stock price patterns, strengthening business metrics (i.e., earnings, debt, return on assets, competition, customers, industry, etc.) and quantitative factors such as earnings variability, leverage, volatility, price/book, price/cash flow, etc. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each stock if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks, due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of volatility.
The Fund may sell a stock if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Fund’s Class I Shares. The information shows the Fund’s performance for one year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above):
for the nine months ended : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below, which includes all applicable sales charges (loads) and account fees, compares the Fund’s Class I, Class A and Class C Shares average annual total returns for the periods indicated to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indicator of how the Fund will perform in the future. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Global Equity Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGLIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Global Equity Fund | Class A | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGLAX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Global Equity Fund | Class C | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGLOX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Global Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTIONS Global Equity Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The investment objective of the SGI Global Equity Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) is to seek long-term capital appreciation. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Fund shares. You may qualify for sales charge discounts on Class A Shares if you invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Fund. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional, in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information — Sales Charges” and in the section of the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) entitled “Purchase and Redemption Information — Reducing or Eliminating the Front-End Sales Charge.” Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Class I Shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 $1,000,000 in Class I Shares or $10,000 in Class A Shares or Class C Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you sell your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that each year your investment has a 5% return and Fund operating expenses remain the same . Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year, as well as within a year. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 122% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities. The Fund invests, under normal market conditions, significantly (ordinarily at least 40% - unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies that (i) are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets or derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States.
The Fund’s investments in equity securities include, without limitation, common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, and securities convertible into common stock.The Fund’s investments will generally consist of securities, which may include common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, and securities convertible into common stock. The Fund purchases equity securities traded on registered exchanges or the over-the-counter market. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers either directly or through depository receipts, including American Depository Receipts (“ADRs”). The Fund may also invest in other registered investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). The Fund may invest in or have exposure to companies of any size, but primarily invests in large- and mid- capitalization companies.
The Adviser attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in equity securities that lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio as compared to global equity benchmarks. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. The Fund invests in stocks that exhibit less volatile stock price patterns, strengthening business metrics (i.e., earnings, debt, return on assets, competition, customers, industry, etc.) and quantitative factors such as earnings variability, leverage, volatility, price/book, price/cash flow, etc. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each stock if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks, due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of volatility.
The Fund may sell a stock if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Returns shown were generated under the management of the Fund’s former investment adviser and reflect a previous investment strategy. The Fund operated as a series of Scotia Institutional Funds prior to the close of business on March 21, 2014 (the “Predecessor Fund”). Before the Fund commenced operations, all of the assets and liabilities of the Predecessor Fund were transferred to the Fund in a tax-free reorganization (the “Reorganization”). The Reorganization occurred on March 21, 2014. As a result of the Reorganization, the Fund assumed the performance and accounting history of the Predecessor Fund prior to the date of the Reorganization. The performance shown for periods prior to March 21, 2014 is that of the Predecessor Fund.
The Board approved the Adviser to serve as the Global Equity Fund’s investment adviser effective January 1, 2017. Returns shown for periods prior to January 1, 2017 were generated under the management of the Global Equity Fund’s former investment adviser.
The chart below illustrates the performance of the Fund’s Class I Shares. Performance for Class A Shares and Class C Shares is not shown because Class A Shares and Class C Shares had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The chart assumes reinvestment of dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Performance reflects fee waivers in effect. If fee waivers were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the period reflected in the chart above):
for the nine months ended : | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE PERIODS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The table below compares the Fund’s Class I Shares average annual total returns for the periods indicated to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indicator of how the Fund will perform in the future. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity VI Portfolio | SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity VI Portfolio Shares | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGIVX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity VI Portfolio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SUMMARY SECTION U.S. Large Cap Equity VI Portfolio | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI U.S. Large Cap Equity VI Portfolio (the "Portfolio") seeks to outperform the S&P 500® Index over a market cycle while reducing overall volatility. There can be no guarantee that the Portfolio will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Portfolio. This table does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, overall fees and expenses would be higher. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Example: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. This Example does not reflect the fees and expenses associated with any variable annuity contract or variable life insurance policy that uses the Portfolio as an investment option. Had those fees and expenses been included, the costs shown below would be higher. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio's operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Portfolio 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 Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio's performance. No portfolio turnover rate is provided since the Portfolio had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio will invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities, primarily common stocks, of companies within the Russell 1000® Index and S&P 500® Index. The Portfolio's investments will generally consist of securities, which may include common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, and securities convertible into common stock. The Portfolio purchases equity securities traded in the U.S. on registered exchanges or the over-the-counter market. The Portfolio may also invest in other registered investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”).
Summit Global Investments, LLC (the "Adviser") attempts to lower the Portfolio’s market risk by investing in U.S. equity securities that lower the overall volatility of the Portfolio’s portfolio as compared to the S&P 500® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. The Portfolio invests in stocks that often exhibit less volatile stock price patterns, strengthening business metrics (i.e., earnings, debt, return on assets, competition, customers, industry, etc.) and quantitative factors such as earnings variability, leverage, volatility, price/book, price/cash flow, etc. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each stock if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks, due to environmental, social and/or governance ("ESG") issues. The Adviser selects securities for the Portfolio that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Portfolio’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Portfolio’s portfolio will not experience periods of volatility.
The Adviser seeks to incorporate ESG issues into existing portfolio construction practices using a combination of up to three approaches: integration, screening and thematic. Through integration, the Adviser will explicitly and/or systematically include ESG issues in its investment analysis and decisions, to better manage risks and improve returns. Screening places specified filters to lists of potential investments that rule companies in or out of contention for investment, based on the Adviser's preferences, values or ethics. Thematic investing seeks to combine attractive risk-return profiles with an intention to contribute to a specific environmental or social outcome, including impact investing. The Portfolio intends to invest in companies with measurably high ESG ratings relative to their sector peers, and screen out particular companies that do not meet its ESG criteria.
The Adviser may encourage the companies in which the Portfolio invests in to improve their ESG risk management or develop more sustainable business practices through direct engagement with a company. This may done by discussing ESG issues with companies to improve their handling, including disclosures the companies make surrounding such issues. Another way in which the Adviser may seek to improve performance through ESG is stewardship through proxy voting by formally expressing approval or disapproval through voting and proposing shareholder resolutions on specific ESG issues.
The Portfolio may sell a stock if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Portfolio may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Portfolio. The value of your investment in the Portfolio, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Portfolio or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Portfolio's principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Portfolio, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance information for the Portfolio is not included because the Portfolio had not commenced operations prior to the date of this prospectus. Performance information will be available once the Portfolio has at least one calendar year of performance. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Peak Growth Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGPKX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Peak Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary Sections SGI Peak Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI Peak Growth Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks capital appreciation. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to an intermediary for transactions in the Fund, which are not reflected in the table or the example below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class I Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the period from the Fund’s inception on June 8, 2020 to the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 5% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in securities of affiliated and unaffiliated open-end mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “Underlying Funds”). The Fund may allocate assets across six categories of Underlying Funds: domestic equities, foreign equities (including emerging markets securities), domestic investment-grade bonds, domestic high yield bonds (also known as “junk bonds”), foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds, and money market funds.
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focusing on domestic equities and large capitalization foreign equities, a lesser amount in Underlying Funds focused on small and mid-capitalization foreign equities and emerging markets, and a small amount in Underlying Funds focused on domestic investment-grade bonds, domestic high yield bonds, foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds, and money market funds.
Summit Global Investments, LLC (the “Adviser”) attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in Underlying Funds that seek to lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio as compared to the S&P 500® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each Underlying Fund if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects Underlying Funds for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of volatility.
The Adviser employs a process of assessing Underlying Funds that include ESG issues as part of their investment strategy. The Adviser considers ESG issues to be comprised of one or more of the following actions by companies: demonstrate strong environmental factors, apply extensive sustainability criteria throughout their supply chains, minimize risks and demonstrate best practices regarding air, water and public health; act as socially responsible companies in the communities in which they operate and their record of values and ethics; have strong corporate governance and exhibit excellent labor practices, and show environmental innovation such as energy efficiency and clean energy companies.
The Adviser evaluates how an Underlying Fund uses proxy votes and access to corporate management to improve ESG concerns. This process may include interviews with an Underlying Fund’s management and an examination of an Underlying Fund’s proxy voting records, prospectus and other reports. The methods that Underlying Funds use to assess ESG issues will vary.
The Fund may focus its investments in a particular industry or sector for the purpose of capitalizing on performance momentum in that industry or sector due to significant changes in market conditions or geopolitical conditions.
The Fund may sell an Underlying Fund if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
Credit Risk. The issuer of a fixed income security may not be able to make interest and principal payments when due. Generally, the lower the credit rating of a security, the greater the risk that the issuer will default on its obligation. An Underlying Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
Duration Risk. Prices of fixed income securities with longer effective maturities are more sensitive to interest rate changes than those with shorter effective maturities.
Income Risk. The Fund’s income could decline due to falling market interest rates. In a falling interest rate environment, the Fund may be required to invest in Underlying Funds that invest their assets in lower-yielding securities. Because interest rates vary, it is impossible to predict the income or yield of the Fund for any particular period.
Interest Rate Risk. The value of the Fund or an Underlying Fund may fluctuate based upon changes in interest rates and market conditions. As interest rates increase, the value of an Underlying Fund’s income-producing investments may go down. For example, bonds tend to decrease in value when interest rates rise. Debt obligations with longer maturities typically offer higher yields, but are subject to greater price movements as a result of interest rate changes than debt obligations with shorter maturities. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and an Underlying Fund’s investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by an Underlying Fund.
Prepayment Risk. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that invest in securities that are subject to fluctuations in yield, due to prepayment rates that may be faster or slower than expected.
Rating Risk. If a rating agency gives a debt security a lower rating, the value of the debt security will decline because investors will demand a higher rate of return.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not have one full calendar year of performance prior to the date of this Prospectus. Performance information will be available in the Prospectus once the Fund has at least one calendar year of performance. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Prudent Growth Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGPGX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Prudent Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary Section SGI Prudent Growth Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI Prudent Growth Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to an intermediary for transactions in the Fund, which are not reflected in the table or the example below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class I Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the period from the Fund’s inception on June 8, 2020 to the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 6% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in securities of affiliated and unaffiliated open-end mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “Underlying Funds”). The Fund may allocate assets across six categories of Underlying Funds: domestic equities, foreign equities (including emerging markets securities), domestic investment-grade bonds, domestic high yield bonds (also known as “junk bonds”), foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds, and money market funds.
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focused on domestic equities, a lesser amount in Underlying Funds focused on large capitalization foreign equities, mid-capitalization foreign equities, emerging markets and domestic investment-grade bonds, and a small amount in Underlying Funds focused on small-capitalization foreign equities, domestic high yield bonds, foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds, and money market funds.
Summit Global Investments, LLC (the “Adviser”) attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in Underlying Funds that seek to lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund seeks volatility between 60%-80% as compared to the S&P 500® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each Underlying Fund if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects Underlying Funds for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of higher volatility.
The Adviser employs a process of assessing Underlying Funds that include ESG issues as part of their investment strategy. The Adviser considers ESG issues to be comprised of one or more of the following actions by companies: demonstrate strong environmental factors, apply extensive sustainability criteria throughout their supply chains, minimize risks and demonstrate best practices regarding air, water and public health; act as socially responsible companies in the communities in which they operate and their record of values and ethics; have strong corporate governance and exhibit excellent labor practices, and show environmental innovation such as energy efficiency and clean energy companies.
The Adviser evaluates how an Underlying Fund uses proxy votes and access to corporate management to improve ESG concerns. This process may include interviews with an Underlying Fund’s management and an examination of an Underlying Fund’s proxy voting records, prospectus and other reports. The methods that Underlying Funds use to assess ESG issues will vary.
The Fund may focus its investments in a particular industry or sector for the purpose of capitalizing on performance momentum in that industry or sector due to significant changes in market conditions or geopolitical conditions.
The Fund may sell an Underlying Fund if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
Credit Risk. The issuer of a fixed income security may not be able to make interest and principal payments when due. Generally, the lower the credit rating of a security, the greater the risk that the issuer will default on its obligation. An Underlying Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
Duration Risk. Prices of fixed income securities with longer effective maturities are more sensitive to interest rate changes than those with shorter effective maturities.
Income Risk. The Fund’s income could decline due to falling market interest rates. In a falling interest rate environment, the Fund may be required to invest in Underlying Funds that invest their assets in lower-yielding securities. Because interest rates vary, it is impossible to predict the income or yield of the Fund for any particular period.
Interest Rate Risk. The value of the Fund or an Underlying Fund may fluctuate based upon changes in interest rates and market conditions. As interest rates increase, the value of an Underlying Fund’s income-producing investments may go down. For example, bonds tend to decrease in value when interest rates rise. Debt obligations with longer maturities typically offer higher yields, but are subject to greater price movements as a result of interest rate changes than debt obligations with shorter maturities. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and an Underlying Fund’s investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by an Underlying Fund.
Prepayment Risk. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that invest in securities that are subject to fluctuations in yield, due to prepayment rates that may be faster or slower than expected.
Rating Risk. If a rating agency gives a debt security a lower rating, the value of the debt security will decline because investors will demand a higher rate of return.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not have one full calendar year of performance prior to the date of this Prospectus. Performance information will be available in the Prospectus once the Fund has at least one calendar year of performance. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Conservative Fund | Class I | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGCIX | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SGI Conservative Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Summary Section SGI Conservative Fund | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Investment Objective | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The SGI Conservative Fund (for this section only, the “Fund”) seeks conservative capital appreciation. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Expenses and Fees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. Additionally, you may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to an intermediary for transactions in the Fund, which are not reflected in the table or the example below. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Class I Shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. 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 costs would be: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. For the period from the Fund’s inception on June 8, 2020 to the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 65% of the average value of its portfolio. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Investment Strategies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Fund invests in securities of affiliated and unaffiliated open-end mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “Underlying Funds”). The Fund may allocate assets across six categories of Underlying Funds: domestic equities, foreign equities (including emerging markets securities), domestic investment-grade bonds, domestic high yield bonds (also known as “junk bonds”), foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds, and money market funds.
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focused on domestic investment-grade bonds, a lesser amount in Underlying Funds focused on large capitalization domestic equities, domestic high yield bonds, and money market funds, and a small amount in Underlying Funds focused on domestic small-capitalization equities, foreign equities and emerging markets, and in foreign investment-grade and high yield bonds.
Summit Global Investments, LLC (the “Adviser”) attempts to lower the Fund’s market risk by investing in Underlying Funds that seek to lower the overall volatility of the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund seeks volatility between 20%-40% as compared to the S&P 500® Index. Volatility is a statistical measurement of the magnitude of up and down fluctuations in the value of a financial instrument or index. In addition, the Adviser reviews the idiosyncratic risks associated with each Underlying Fund if these risks are deemed elevated with increased downside risks due to environmental, social and/or governance (“ESG”) issues. The Adviser selects Underlying Funds for the Fund that it anticipates will produce a portfolio with less volatility with more capital protection and consistent returns. While the Adviser attempts to manage the Fund’s volatility, there is no guarantee that the strategy will be successful or that the Fund’s portfolio will not experience periods of higher volatility.
The Adviser employs a process of assessing Underlying Funds that include ESG issues as part of their investment strategy. The Adviser considers ESG issues to be comprised of one or more of the following actions by companies: demonstrate strong environmental factors, apply extensive sustainability criteria throughout their supply chains, minimize risks and demonstrate best practices regarding air, water and public health; act as socially responsible companies in the communities in which they operate and their record of values and ethics; have strong corporate governance and exhibit excellent labor practices, and show environmental innovation such as energy efficiency and clean energy companies.
The Adviser evaluates how an Underlying Fund uses proxy votes and access to corporate management to improve ESG concerns. This process may include interviews with an Underlying Fund’s management and an examination of an Underlying Fund’s proxy voting records, prospectus and other reports. The methods that Underlying Funds use to assess ESG issues will vary.
The Fund may focus its investments in a particular industry or sector for the purpose of capitalizing on performance momentum in that industry or sector due to significant changes in market conditions or geopolitical conditions.
The Fund may sell an Underlying Fund if the Adviser identifies fundamental, ESG, or legal risks and/or if the risk/return ranking declines due to increasing risk and/or decreasing return potential. The Fund may also decrease weight in an investment for risk control purposes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Principal Risks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
Credit Risk. The issuer of a fixed income security may not be able to make interest and principal payments when due. Generally, the lower the credit rating of a security, the greater the risk that the issuer will default on its obligation. An Underlying Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
Duration Risk. Prices of fixed income securities with longer effective maturities are more sensitive to interest rate changes than those with shorter effective maturities.
Income Risk. The Fund’s income could decline due to falling market interest rates. In a falling interest rate environment, the Fund may be required to invest in Underlying Funds that invest their assets in lower-yielding securities. Because interest rates vary, it is impossible to predict the income or yield of the Fund for any particular period.
Interest Rate Risk. The value of the Fund or an Underlying Fund may fluctuate based upon changes in interest rates and market conditions. As interest rates increase, the value of an Underlying Fund’s income-producing investments may go down. For example, bonds tend to decrease in value when interest rates rise. Debt obligations with longer maturities typically offer higher yields, but are subject to greater price movements as a result of interest rate changes than debt obligations with shorter maturities. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets and an Underlying Fund’s investments and may also affect the liquidity of fixed income securities and instruments held by an Underlying Fund.
Prepayment Risk. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that invest in securities that are subject to fluctuations in yield, due to prepayment rates that may be faster or slower than expected.
Rating Risk. If a rating agency gives a debt security a lower rating, the value of the debt security will decline because investors will demand a higher rate of return.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance Information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not have one full calendar year of performance prior to the date of this Prospectus. Performance information will be available in the Prospectus once the Fund has at least one calendar year of performance. Updated performance information may be obtained at www.sgiam.com or by calling 1-855-744-8500. |