N-CSR 1 tm2036617d2_ncsr.htm N-CSR

  

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM N-CSR

 

CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT INVESTMENT COMPANIES

 

Investment Company Act file number    811-08104    

 

Touchstone Funds Group Trust 
(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)
 
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-4203
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip code)
 
Jill T. McGruder
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-4203
(Name and address of agent for service)

 

Registrant's telephone number, including area code:   800-638-8194

 

Date of fiscal year end: September 30

 

Date of reporting period: September 30, 2020

 

Form N-CSR is to be used by management investment companies to file reports with the Commission not later than 10 days after the transmission to stockholders of any report that is required to be transmitted to stockholders under Rule 30e-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (17 CFR 270.30e-1). The Commission may use the information provided on Form N-CSR in its regulatory, disclosure review, inspection, and policymaking roles.

 

A registrant is required to disclose the information specified by Form N-CSR, and the Commission will make this information public. A registrant is not required to respond to the collection of information contained in Form N-CSR unless the Form displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget ("OMB") control number. Please direct comments concerning the accuracy of the information collection burden estimate and any suggestions for reducing the burden to Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 450 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20549-0609. The OMB has reviewed this collection of information under the clearance requirements of 44 U.S.C. § 3507.

 

 

 

Item 1. Reports to Stockholders.

 

The Report to Shareholders is attached herewith.

 

 

 

 

September 30, 2020

Annual Report

 

Touchstone Funds Group Trust

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund

 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Beginning on January 1, 2021, as permitted by regulations adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission, paper copies of the Touchstone Fundsannual and semi-annual shareholder reports will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the shareholder reports from Touchstone Funds or from your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead, annual and semi-annual shareholder reports will be available on the Touchstone Fundswebsite (TouchstoneInvestments.com/Resources), and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

 

You may elect to receive all future annual and semi-annual shareholder reports in paper, free of charge. If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. To elect to receive paper copies of shareholder reports through the mail or otherwise change your delivery method, contact your financial intermediary or, if you hold your shares directly through Touchstone Funds, visit TouchstoneInvestments.com/Resources/Edelivery or call Touchstone Funds toll-free at 1.800.543.0407. Your election to receive shareholder reports in paper will apply to all Touchstone Funds that you hold through the financial intermediary, or directly with Touchstone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table of Contents

 

  Page
Letter from the President 3
Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) 4 - 38
Tabular Presentation of Portfolios of Investments (Unaudited) 39 - 42
Portfolios of Investments:  
Touchstone Active Bond Fund 43
Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund 52
Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund 55
Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund 57
Touchstone High Yield Fund 64
Touchstone Impact Bond Fund 68
Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund 72
Touchstone Mid Cap Fund 74
Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund 75
Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund 77
Touchstone Small Cap Fund 78
Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund 79
Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund 81
Statements of Assets and Liabilities 87 - 90
Statements of Operations 91 - 92
Statements of Changes in Net Assets 93 - 96
Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity 97 - 103
Financial Highlights 104 - 134
Notes to Financial Statements 135 - 154
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm 155
Other Items (Unaudited) 157 - 161
Management of the Trust (Unaudited) 162 - 163
Privacy Protection Policy 166

 

This report identifies the Fundsinvestments on September 30, 2020. These holdings are subject to change. Not all investments in each Fund performed the same, nor is there any guarantee that these investments will perform as well in the future. Market forecasts provided in this report may not occur.

 

2

 

 

Letter from the President

 

Dear Shareholder:

 

We are pleased to provide you with the Touchstone Funds Group Trust Annual Report. Inside you will find key financial information, as well as manager commentaries for the Funds for the 12 months ended September 30, 2020.

 

Trade-related rhetoric between the U.S. and China drove market volatility throughout 2019. However, by the end of calendar year, the U.S.-China trade discussions took a more constructive tone, culminating in an announcement of a Phase One Trade Agreement in early 2020 to reduce some tariff levels. The global economic outlook seemed poised to resume a tenuous, yet modest growth trajectory until progress was upended in the first half of 2020 as COVID-19 swept the globe, bringing with it containment measures resulting in massive shutdowns of economic activity. Following an economic lockdown during most of March and April 2020, U.S. state governors began slowly reopening their economies across the country. Although employment numbers and retail sales figures through the latter portion of the 12-month period rebounded strongly from their March 2020 lows, investor sentiment remains cautious as the stimulus programs put in place during the depths of the outbreak ended with an uncertain outlook for further support. Likewise, the rest of the world navigated a similar reopening process, though with varying paces and policies. China, for example, has seemingly been able to stem the spread of the virus and tended to recover more quickly than the U.S., Brazil and parts of Europe, who have struggled with pockets of outbreaks.

 

The last 12 months featured a lot of price action that at first glance resulted in little change. As alluded to previously, the S&P 500® Index ended 2019 on a strong note and this continued into January of 2020, but then quickly reversed into a recession-like drawdown. The severe pullback during the first quarter was followed by a strong rebound late in the quarter, which carried into the second and third quarters before stalling in September 2020 to finish with a double-digit gain. Underneath the high-level results, U.S. equity performance varied widely primarily by style with growth equities far outperforming value equities during the 12-month period. U.S. growth stocks were predominately driven by Communication Services, Consumer Discretionary, Information Technology (IT) and Health Care stocks as these underlying companies were least impacted or even benefited from the COVID-19 lockdowns. Conversely, U.S. value equities faced significant headwinds as the sudden drop in economic activity in the first half of 2020 adversely impacted cyclical sectors and value equity-tilted sectors such as Financials, Energy, Materials and Real Estate. Large cap stocks held up better largely due to their ability to weather challenging economic conditions compared to their mid cap and small cap peers. Internet behemoths such as Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook and Netflix drove the strong aforementioned growth equity returns as they benefited from the COVID-19-induced lockdown impacting everyday life and working conditions.

 

Non-U.S. developed equity markets generally trailed the U.S. over the past 12 months. Japan performed relatively well with slow growth in COVID-19 cases and aggressive stimulus measures while Europe was hit harder by the pandemic. Similar to the U.S., IT and Health Care stocks were among the top contributors in developed markets while Energy and Financials lagged. In emerging markets, equities exhibited the same pattern as the U.S. and developed markets with IT and Asia-Pacific countries who experienced COVID-19 lockdowns earlier in the year, such as China, Taiwan and South Korea, leading the way. As previously described, Asia-Pacific countries experienced an abating COVID-19 virus by the second quarter and were able to reopen their economies earlier than the U.S. and Europe.

 

Within fixed income, Treasury prices benefited and yields compressed due to U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) actions and a flight to safety during the rapid selloff of risk assets in the first half of 2020. Meanwhile, credit-sensitive sectors saw the strong results of 2019 nearly or completely erased as concerns over potential for rising defaults and technical selling pressures factored into the drawdown. During the first quarter of 2020, spreads across investment grade credit, high yield credit, bank loans and collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) all reached levels not seen since the 2008 Credit Crisis. The Fed stepped in during the volatility to provide liquidity, slashed overnight rates to zero, and provided support for the fixed income markets through new asset purchase programs. The Feds actions helped ease the volatility and negative sentiment that appeared in March, as credit spreads narrowed over the six subsequent months for a double-digit gain off the bottom.

 

Markets such as these reaffirm our belief in the importance of the steady hands of financial professionals, trust in your investment strategy, and awareness of the risks that accompany trying to time the market. Additionally, we believe that environments that are more volatile in fact create more opportunity for active managers to add value, especially those that are Distinctively Active. We greatly value your continued support. Thank you for including Touchstone as part of your investment plan.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Jill T. McGruder

President

Touchstone Funds Group Trust

 

3

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Active Bond Fund seeks to provide as high a level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of capital. Capital appreciation is a secondary goal. In deciding what securities to buy and sell for the Fund, the overall investment opportunities and risks in different sectors of the debt securities market are analyzed by focusing on maximizing total return and reducing volatility of the Funds portfolio. A disciplined sector allocation process is followed in order to build a broadly diversified portfolio of bonds.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Class A Shares) outperformed its benchmark, the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index, for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was 7.91 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the total return of the benchmark was 6.98 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

During the first three months of the period U.S.-China trade tensions cooled with both sides headed toward an eventual resolution of the dispute. Additionally, tariffs, concern over global growth, inflation consistently below the Feds target, and modest but resilient U.S. growth kept a cap on rates providing an accommodative environment in terms of easy financial conditions.

 

Given this backdrop, the outlook coming into 2020 was optimistic – fundamentals were strong, the consumer was in good shape and spending money, business earnings were healthy and trade negotiations between China and the U.S. were turning a corner. Then the global economy hit an unexpected wall in March 2020, as fears surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic turned into a state of panic, bringing the risk-on bull market to a screeching halt. Economies around the world enacted quarantine measures, issuing shelter in place orders to curb the spread of the virus. This brought activity to a grinding halt – the slowdown reverberated through the global economy. Credit was hit hard as well with the lack of liquidity in the markets intensifying the selloff. Spreads on High Yield and Investment Grade Credit alike hit levels markets had not experienced since 2008. After the market retreat in late March, economic activity rebounded throughout the second and third quarters of 2020. Activity was supported by an increase in consumer spending, strong labor markets and easy financials conditions as a result of monetary policy enacted by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) and a historic rally in risk assets. Markets reacted in line with the sharp rebound and the momentum that carried the rally in risk assets continued its torrent pace through August. The rally stalled briefly in September as hopes of another fiscal package that was anticipated by the markets did not come to fruition.

 

Portfolio Review

 

The Funds overweight spread risk versus the benchmark contributed to returns as spreads retraced a significant amount of the widening that took place in March. The Fund increased spread risk relative to the benchmark in late March and again in mid-April to take advantage of attractive valuations as a result of the sell-off in risk assets, specifically by allocating to High Yield and increasing spread risk within Investment Grade Credit. In the second and third quarters of 2020, markets continued to react to a solid rebound in economic activity due to the massive stimulus programs enacted by the Fed and Congress.

 

Interest rate management also contributed to performance as we made a number of tactical trades to position the Fund to be short and long duration versus the benchmark. The Fund was positioned to be both over- and underweight the long end of the yield curve at different points in time over the 12-month period, which contributed to returns.

 

Lastly, strong security selection in Investment Grade Credit and Securitized Assets contributed to returns. Within Investment Grade Credit, the Fund was positioned with overweights to non-defensive sectors, contributing to performance. Within Securitized Assets outperformance was largely driven by spread effects due to the retracement in out of index sectors - Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS), Agency Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS) and Collateralized Loan Obligations (CLO) - as well as Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS) 2.0, which were the top performers in the second and third quarters of 2020.

 

Outlook

 

While long-term prospects for a return to pre-COVID-19 levels exist, many near-term risks could provide some turbulence for the remainder of the year. For one, details of additional fiscal stimulus are still being debated and the chances of a package materializing before the November election are becoming slim. The necessity for additional support has been vocalized by Fed Chair Jerome Powell in recent remarks stating the Fed will continue to do its part to support financial markets; however, in order to maintain a sustainable recovery, the economy will need the aid of both monetary and fiscal stimulus. This can be seen through additional transfer payments that are needed in order to maintain consumer spending at its current level as well as ensuring businesses have the means to avoid permanent layoffs. Secondly, COVID-19 continues to linger throughout the U.S., as well as Europe, with some

 

4

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

areas showing another spike in cases as restrictions continue to ease and schools allow students to return to the classroom. Finally, uncertainty in the upcoming November election could usher volatility back into financial markets, especially in the case of a challenge to the outcome that could result in a drawn out transfer of office.

 

Even with the uncertainty facing markets in the near term, risk assets continue to offer attractive valuations from a long-term perspective. Non-Treasury sectors remain above median levels from a long-term historical perspective and the risk of defaults has decreased given a return of investor demand for yield and ample liquidity in credit markets. Record corporate profits have also been reported in recent earnings reports as companies have adapted to a changing landscape and lean work force, substantially reducing overhead costs. Certain sectors have shown incredible resiliency in this new world, particularly technology giants that have seen demand for their services increase dramatically in recent months. While some sectors (retail, leisure, airlines, and department stores) will likely feel the pain for months and probably years to come, the drivers of growth in the new economy have thrived.

 

We believe valuations of rates across the curve generally reflect the improving economic outlook and will remain low for some time given statements issued and policies enacted by the Fed. Risks to lower interest rates come from increased concerns over the global impact of COVID-19 and worse than expected economic data. Risks to higher interest rates include reopening progress and a better than expected rebound and/or a shift in Fed policy.

 

Our preference within the Securitized sector still rests in high-quality, non-government guaranteed bonds with limited COVID-19 exposure. These areas were greatly impacted given the halt in economic activity and given their focus on consumer related and retail oriented businesses. It is our belief that our preference to higher rated tranches within this sector will not result in permanent losses and will recover – the CARES Act focus on small businesses will be crucial in this regard.

 

Within Investment Grade Credit, the Fund is positioned to favor lower rated credit for non-cyclical sectors, such as utilities, while selectively adding higher quality names in cyclical sectors such as manufacturing and consumer. The Fund maintained the 15 percent nominal allocation to High Yield as current spreads continue to offer adequate compensation given current risks. The Fund continues to have a modest allocation to U.S. dollar denominated Emerging Markets debt but we will continue to monitor the impact of COVID-19 and how emerging economies are able to contain the virus and maintain sustainable economic growth.

 

5

 

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change  in  Value  of  a  $10,000  Investment  in  the  Touchstone  Active  Bond  Fund  - Class  A* and  the  Bloomberg  Barclays  U.S. Aggregate  Bond  Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares was April 12, 2012. Class Y sharesand Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class A shares for the periods prior to April 12, 2012. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Class Y and Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 3.36% of the NAV (or 3.25% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares was equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is an unmanaged index comprised of U.S. investment grade, fixed rate bond market securities, including government, government agency, corporate and mortgage-backed securities between one and ten years.

 

6

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund

 

Sub-Advised by TOBAM S.A.S.

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund seeks capital appreciation. TOBAMs methodology seeks to enhance the diversification of portfolio holdings to reduce market bias and potentially improve risk-adjusted returns. TOBAMs process selects individual stocks and their weights in an effort to reduce the correlations between individual holdings. This enables the creation of portfolios that seek to mitigate the inherent concentration risks associated with capitalization-weighted benchmarks. The lower correlations have the potential to provide a differentiated source of value than other methods of diversification. This quantitative approach creates fully invested, long-only portfolios that do not use leverage, and are designed to help guard against structural biases.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund (Class Y Shares) outperformed its benchmark, the MSCI EAFE Index, for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2020. The Funds return was 8.74 percent compared to the 0.49 percent return of the benchmark.

 

Market Environment

 

Trade-related rhetoric between the U.S. and China and uncertainty surrounding Brexit drove market volatility throughout 2019. However, by the end of the calendar year, the U.S.-China trade discussions took a more constructive tone and a resounding British election victory by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a Brexit supporter, provided a clear path for the future of Brexit. The global economic outlook seemed poised to resume a tenuous, yet modest growth trajectory until progress was upended in the first half of 2020 as COVID-19 swept the globe, bringing with it containment measures resulting in massive shutdowns of economic activity. After the downside market correction in the first quarter of 2020, with Financials, Real Estate and Energy being the worst performing sectors over the period, the second and third quarters were marked by a strong recovery. However, European markets and economies lagged significantly behind the U.S. and Japan in 2020. Europes perceived inability to get the virus under control is providing a considerable headwind for investors, as is the absence of support from a relative lack of information from the Information Technology and related Communication Services as well as the Consumer Discretionary sectors. In contrast, Japan appears to have the situation under greater control. Both Japan and Switzerland have acted as a safe harbor for investors wishing to diversify away from exposure to both the Euro and the areas economic uncertainties.

 

Portfolio Review

 

During the March 2020 sell-off, the underperformance of the Financials and Industrials sectors created Fund outperformance that continued to persist throughout the second quarter. On the back of the better than expected economic data and whatever it takescentral bank and fiscal policies, sectors that had been overly punished such as Industrials and Consumer Discretionary, rebounded strongly while Financials remained at a subdued level of performance. In the third quarter, the Health Care and Consumer Staples sectors lagged as the growth stocks related to the pandemic had already been priced in, while investors increasingly focused on industries that had suffered more through the first two quarters and were cheap, relative to long run valuations.

 

Outlook and Conclusion

 

TOBAMs Anti-Benchmark strategy does not forecast but simply seeks to maximize diversification. Thus, it does not include fundamental analysis of individual stocks, countries, sectors, economic environments or factors. No discretionary tactical or strategic asset allocation decisions are made with respect to specific regions, sectors or industries. TOBAMs investment process consists of seeking to maximize diversification from a bottom-up perspective. Securities are bought or sold in solely relation to their potential relative diversification benefits within the portfolio. A security will be completely sold when it no longer provides the most marginal diversification among all available stocks in the universe, and others purchased when they begin to provide more marginal diversification. TOBAMs patented Anti-Benchmark approach is designed to avoid explicit and implicit biases in terms of sector, style, market cap and other statistical measures. For this reason, we apply as few constraints as possible and do not rely on any given view or forecast, in order to avoid unwanted systematic exposures. The Funds portfolio reflects even risk contributions from all independent effective risk factors in the investment universe, which may include sector and country factors.

 

7

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International
Core Equity Fund - Class Y* and the MSCI EAFE Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class Y shares only, which will vary from the performance of Institutional Class shares based on the difference in fees paid by the shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of the Fund was November 19, 2018. The returns of the index listed above are based on the inception date of the Fund.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

The MSCI EAFE Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure developed market equity performance, excluding U.S. and Canada.

 

MSCI makes no express or implied warranties or representations and shall have no liability whatsoever with respect to any MSCI data contained herein. The MSCI data may not be further redistributed or used to create indices or financial products. This report is not approved or produced by MSCI.

 

8

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund

 

Sub-Advised by TOBAM S.A.S.

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® U.S. Core Equity Fund seeks capital appreciation. TOBAMs methodology seeks to enhance the diversification of portfolio holdings to reduce market bias and potentially improve risk-adjusted returns. TOBAMs process selects individual stocks and their weights in an effort to reduce the correlations between individual holdings. This enables the creation of portfolios that seek to mitigate the inherent concentration risks associated with capitalization-weighted benchmarks. The lower correlations have the potential to provide a differentiated source of value than other methods of diversification. This quantitative approach creates fully invested, long-only portfolios that do not use leverage, and are designed to help guard against structural biases.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® U.S. Core Equity Fund (Class Y Shares) underperformed its benchmark, the Russell 1000® Index, for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2020. The Funds return was 14.63 percent compared to the 16.01 percent return of the benchmark.

 

Market Environment

 

Trade-related rhetoric between the U.S. and China drove market volatility throughout 2019. However, by the end of calendar year, the U.S.-China trade discussions took a more constructive tone, culminating in an announcement of a Phase One Trade Agreement in early 2020 to reduce some tariff levels. The global economic outlook seemed poised to resume a tenuous, yet modest growth trajectory until progress was upended in the first half of 2020 as COVID-19 swept the globe, bringing with it containment measures resulting in massive shutdowns of economic activity. After the downside market correction in the first quarter of 2020, with Financials, Industrials and Energy being the worst performing sectors over the period, the second and third quarters were marked by one of the steepest market recoveries observed in the history of the U.S. market. This strong rebound fueled and fired by a dovish U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) and extensive fiscal spending packages, was to a large extent, led by the Information Technology and Consumer Discretionary stocks and more specifically the top five mega caps – Apple Inc., Amazon.com, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, Alphabet Inc. and Facebook, Inc. – that currently represent 20 percent of the market cap of the Russell 1000 Index. The top five-mega caps accounted for nearly all of the benchmarks performance year to date and this contributed to an even higher market concentration in the U.S. market cap weighted indices.

 

In September 2020, investor uncertainty increased as a clear upward trend of new COVID-19 cases caused further full, or partial, lock down of restaurants, shops and public life. This puts the U.S. economy at further risk of a possible recession. Interestingly, the last few weeks of the quarter saw a significant downside correction, with the mega caps suffering more than the broader market. Investors have become weary of mega cap growth stocks and are cautious that an economic recovery might not be as strong as initially expected.

 

Portfolio Review

 

Over the period, one could have expected that given the evolution of the Information Technology and Communication Services sector along with the high market concentration of the Anti-Benchmark® U.S. Core Equity strategy, the Fund should have underperformed by a wider margin. The underperformance of the Financials, Energy and Industrials sectors, coupled with a high asset return dispersion, contributed to Fund outperformance in the first quarter of 2020. The third quarter of 2020 however saw two different market regimes: first, a further concentration into the mega caps, which generated an outperformance for the benchmark over the first two months of the quarter. Then, an increase in dispersion and uncertainty, which detracted from the benchmarks relative performance for the quarter.

 

Outlook and Conclusion

 

TOBAMs Anti-Benchmark® strategy does not forecast but simply seeks to maximize diversification. Thus, it does not include fundamental analysis of individual stocks, countries, sectors, economic environments or factors. No discretionary tactical or strategic asset allocation decisions are made with respect to specific regions, sectors or industries. TOBAMs investment process consists of seeking to maximize diversification from a bottom-up perspective. Securities are bought or sold in solely relation to their potential relative diversification benefits within the portfolio. A security will be completely sold when it no longer provides the most marginal diversification among all available stocks in the universe, and others purchased when they begin to provide more marginal diversification. TOBAMs patented Anti-Benchmark® approach is designed to avoid explicit and implicit biases in terms of sector, style, market cap and other statistical measures. For this reason, we apply as few constraints as possible and do not rely on any given view or

 

9

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

forecast, in order to avoid unwanted systematic exposures. The Fund’s portfolio reflects even risk contributions from all independent effective risk factors in the investment universe, which may include sector and country factors.

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund - Class Y*and the Russell 1000® Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class Y shares only, which will vary from the performance of Institutional Class shares based on the difference in fees paid by the shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of the Fund was November 19, 2018. The returns of the index listed above are based on the inception date of the Fund.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

Russell 1000® Index measures the performance of the 1,000 largest companies in the Russell 3000® Index.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

10

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Ares Capital Management II LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund seeks absolute total return, primarily from income and capital appreciation. The Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund employs a flexible investment approach by allocating assets among core investments and opportunistic investments as market conditions change. It invests in several broad investment categories, including high yield bonds, bank loans, special situations, structured credit and hedges.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Class A Shares) underperformed its benchmark, the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was -0.29 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the total return of the benchmark was 1.10 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

Following a positive fourth quarter in 2019, global capital markets experienced unprecedented volatility in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the economy. Investor sentiment plunged in a dramatic manner in March as the impacts of the pandemic magnified and were further exacerbated by the onset of the Saudi-Russian oil price war. During this time default expectations increased and credit spreads rose to levels last seen during the Global Financial Crisis. Starting in late March, investor sentiment was boosted by unprecedented levels of financial stimulus being pumped into the economy and the expansion of eligibility of the U.S. Federal Reserve Boards (Fed) credit facilities.

 

Credit markets rallied significantly since the drawdown in March. Despite the rally, high yield volatility occurred during the period. While inside the post-crisis median in both markets, yields appeared attractive compared to investment grade corporates. Spreads closed the period above their respective post-crisis medians, creating an interesting dynamic for active managers when combined with yield levels.

 

Portfolio Review

 

The Fund received positive contributions from High Yield bonds, Bank Loans, and Special Situations during the period, with hedges and structured credit detracting from absolute returns. Returns were negatively impacted by capital markets volatility, which unfolded during the first quarter of 2020, particularly within the Funds Structured Credit allocation and exposure to the Energy sector.

 

Outlook

 

Credit markets have been strong thus far in the fourth quarter despite a myriad of bearish headlines: election uncertainty in the U.S, a first wave of COVID-19 cases in the White House, a second wave in Europe, and finally, President Trumps conflicting statements around additional fiscal stimulus. Loan and High Yield Bond spreads in the U.S. and Europe entered the month above their respective post-crisis medians, which we believe suggests an attractive opportunity exists, though much uncertainty remains around the economy and the U.S. elections. While many agree additional fiscal stimulus is needed in the U.S., there is much debate regarding the size and allocation of funds, pushing out the timeline of when and if a bill will be passed. Though default rates remain focused in the energy and retail sectors, and continue to trend lower, uncertainty around reopening plans suggests other industries may be vulnerable in the near term. In addition, loan documentation has started to revert to pre-pandemic standards, another potential landmine for inexperienced or pure beta investors. While this may be a lot to digest we would also note these factors, for the most part, impact capital markets overall, and that income-oriented alternatives such as Investment Grade Corporates and Sovereigns continue to yield below 3 percent and 1 percent, respectively. Overall, we believe these factors underscore the importance of active management and an allocation to leveraged credit within a balanced portfolio. In the near-term, we expect to actively rotate exposures, take advantage of pockets of volatility and continue to focus on mistake avoidance, particularly around the upcoming earnings season. We believe the macro backdrop favors experienced managers with collaborative platforms and will continue to utilize the power of our platform to manage the Fund.

 

11

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund - Class A* and the ICE B of A Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of the Fund was August 31, 2015. The returns of the index listed above are based on the inception date of the Fund.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 3.36% of the NAV (or 3.25% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares was equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index is an unmanaged index of Treasury securities maturing in 90 days that assumes reinvestment of all income.

 

12

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone High Yield Fund seeks a high level of income. Capital appreciation is a secondary consideration. The Fund primarily invests in non-investment-grade securities.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone High Yield Fund (Class A Shares) underperformed its benchmark, ICE BofA Merrill Lynch High Yield Cash Pay Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was -0.13 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was 2.35 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

The previous 12-month period has been one of the most volatile in financial history. From September 2019 through February 2020, risk assets on the whole performed well, with spreads tightening in High Yield and equities reaching their highs. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) cut rates early in the fourth quarter of 2019, and then paused its positioning in December 2019 awaiting further economic data and developments.

 

Initial COVID-19 news in early 2020, such as the January 23 shutdown of the city of Wuhan in China, caused a brief hiccup in this rally. However, by February 20 the weight of the global spread of the virus, particularly in Italy and Iran, reached a tipping point that precipitated a historic sell-off in risk assets. Within High Yield, BB- and B-rated bonds widened in a breathtakingly short timeframe. The 10-Year U.S. Treasury yield spread tightened. All ratings categories reached recessionary levels. Outliers in the quarter were concentrated in Energy and sectors which were either most or least directly impacted by COVID-19.

 

In March 2020, the Fed initiated a surprise intra-meeting rate cut of 0.50 percent after a Group of Seven (G7) central bank meeting. A further 1 percent rate cut followed soon thereafter. In addition, a series of programs were launched to stabilize fixed income markets including commercial paper, money markets, investment grade credit and fallen angels.(1)This level of support, the coordination of monetary and fiscal policy, was unprecedented and unleashed a recovery in risk assets that was as equally swift as their declines. Uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in historic daily moves across markets that were eventually quelled as the response out of the Fed and the U.S. government took hold.

 

From a sector perspective, Energy markets continued to be volatile. West Texas Instrument (WTI), a specific grade of crude oil, spent the first half of the period between $50-$60 a barrel before dipping in early 2020 and bottoming at negative levels in April. Oil recovered beginning in May and has steadily been around $40 a barrel since June. The Energy space has led the increase in defaults and continues to be the worst performing sector within the High Yield market. The composition of the Energy sector has changed significantly as it has also led the way in fallen angels. Finally, the Consumer Services, Gaming, Leisure, Entertainment and Airlines were among sectors within the High Yield market that lagged due to headwinds related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Portfolio Review

 

Overall, sector allocation posted negative returns for the 12-month period. A significant overweight to Electric Utilities and to Homebuilders were contributors as these sectors are higher quality and performed consistently through the previous 12-month volatile environment. A meaningful underweight to Aerospace was also a contributor as the sector had several highly leveraged and low-rated names that were directly impacted by the pandemic and the subsequent decline in Airline/Aerospace spending. Sector positioning within the Energy space (Oil Field Services, Midstream, and Independent Energy) detracted from performance as the Funds portfolio became significantly underweight to the sectors during the downgrade cycle, when a meaningful level of fallen angels came into the index and immediately began recovering in price.

 

Security selection contributed to performance. Positioning within Energy was mixed and produced many of the top and bottom individual contributors as the sector experienced significant volatility, and led defaults over the last 12 months. Defaults or distressed exchanges at Transocean, Valaris plc, Noble Corporation plc, and Whiting Petroleum Corporation were all additive while defaults at Unit Corp, Chesapeake Energy Corporation, and FTS International, Inc. detracted. An overweight position in Sprint Corporation contributed as the merger with T-Mobile was consummated. Default rates increased materially over the last 12 months as the economic shutdown rippled through companies and capital structures. Outside of Energy, the default of Intelsat Corporation was a contributor to performance while an overweight position in Hertz Corporation detracted.

 

(1) Investment grade bonds that have been downgraded to below-investment grade.

 

13

 

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Outlook and Conclusion

 

The investment outlook remains positive and cautious. The speed with which the economy ground to a halt and the subsequent move in risk assets from recessionary levels to recovery was unprecedented. There are a handful of large factors that we know about this cycle that have helped us develop our current outlook and positioning. We know that we have seen an enormous decline in gross domestic product (GDP) and the beginnings of a subsequent recovery. The Fed has provided unprecedented stimulus to the economy, financial conditions and risk assets while the federal government passed stimulus for individuals, households, and businesses. Default rates stand at 6-7 percent, and while we believe they are likely to peak above 10 percent, the pace of defaults is slowing as the economy heals. Finally, high yield spreads hit a wide of 1,100 basis points in March, which we believe is the largest for this cycle. All of these factors lead us to believe that we are in the repairstage of the credit cycle and should expect spreads to generally improve as companies recover from the recession, financial metrics improve and weak companies default and restructure. This outlook is balanced by a few factors that make this recovery uncertain. Foremost, the COVID-19 virus continues to spread and there remain several portions of the economy that do not have the opportunity to recover under the current circumstances. Vaccines and treatments are under development; however, the outcomes remain uncertain. The market has continued to show its resiliency as business models shift and adjust; however, with unemployment at high levels and a large portion of the economy (especially Services and Retail related segments) operating at sub-optimum levels, we believe that the pace of the recovery remains uncertain. Currently, our economic expectations are for the economy to return to 2019 levels by the end of 2021; the implication to that is there are several sectors that are recovering and growing in the current environment and there will still be several sectors by 2021 that have yet to recover.

 

At this stage, we believe the greatest opportunities for the Fund will come through credit selection. We seek to hold companies that have the ability and liquidity to withstand the volatility of the recovery and beyond. Aggregate yield levels remain low due to interest rates; however, we believe B-rated securities, in particular, look to be a good value at this stage of the cycle as a way to maximize income while limiting defaults. We remain cautious on CCC-rated securities as the market continues to shun default risk and illiquidity. The magnitude of this default cycle has yet to be determined as it will depend upon when the sectors hit hardest by this downturn (Airlines, Lodging, Restaurants, Retail, etc.) are able to generate enough revenue and margin to cover their expenses. The Fund remains underweight to these sectors, or holding higher quality positions, as we think current spreads and levels do not adequately compensate for an uncertain recovery, and potential lack of liquidity for the companies that may run into balance sheet problems. The Fund has increased its positioning within Energy as fallen angels and defaults have meaningfully changed the composition of the sector. Oil has recovered and stabilized at $40 a barrel, a level that is supportive of many higher quality credits that are now in High Yield. Many lower rated and lower quality companies remain at risk of default as liquidity for many Energy names remains thin.

 

Headwinds to our outlook would primarily be related to the pace and magnitude of the financial recovery. While the Fed has been extremely supportive of financial markets and financial conditions, a sustainable recovery needs to be predicated on consistent GDP growth. Large questions remain on how long it will take for the economy to recover to the levels of 2019, as well as when a treatment/vaccine for COVID-19 will be available to large portions of the population. We have seen structural shifts in the economy in response to the pandemic. The permanency of those shifts (employment, work from home, leisure activities, and how money is spent) has yet to be seen and the effects of those changes remain unknown. The High Yield market has experienced a significant level of repair in most of its sectors/categories. A large decline in growth or an external shock that causes a tightening of financial conditions or liquidity would also be potentially negative as the recovery remains fragile.

 

14

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone High Yield Fund - Class A* and

the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch High Yield Cash Pay Index

 

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Institutional Class shares was January 27, 2012. Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class A shares for the periods prior to January 27, 2012. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 3.36% of the NAV (or 3.25% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares was equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch High Yield Cash Pay Index is an unmanaged index used as a general measure of market performance consisting of fixed-rate, coupon-bearing bonds with an outstanding par which is greater than or equal to $50 million, a maturity range greater than or equal to one year and must be less than BBB/Baa3 rated but not in default.

 

15

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund

 

Sub-Advised by EARNEST Partners LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Impact Bond Fund seeks current income. Capital appreciation is a secondary goal. The Fund invests primarily in fixed income securities or sectors that are considered undervalued for their risk characteristics.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Impact Bond Fund (Class A Shares) underperformed its benchmark, the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index, for the 12-month period ending September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was 5.46 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was 6.98 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

The macroeconomic environment has changed drastically over the 12 months ending September 30, 2020. Entering the fourth quarter of 2019, the biggest investment risk on most peoplesradar was the type of trade deal that could be accomplished with China. What was ultimately passed was considered the Phase One Trade Agreement, meant to be a building block for a more substantial deal. It would be difficult to succinctly describe the economic data of the last twelve months. Possibly the easiest is to consider the unemployment figures. The unemployment rate began the fiscal year at 3.5 percent. It peaked at 14.7 percent in April, and finished at 7.9 percent in September. The labor force participation rate fell to 61.4 percent, the lowest it has been since 1977. Over 68 million initial jobless claims have been filed during this period.

 

Away from the devastating economic impact COVID-19 has had, the other most tangible outcome it has caused is an aggressive fiscal and monetary response. Fiscal policies provided relief to small businesses, households and corporations alike. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) unleashed a new round of quantitative easing, lowered interest rates and created a complex of liquidity facilities designed to settle the extreme volatility experienced in financial markets. To fund this the U.S. Treasury has issued vast amounts of debt. The federal deficit is now expected to approach $4 trillion for this fiscal year ending in September; the assets on the Feds balance sheet grew to over $7 trillion, nearly double where it stood last August. While the Feds actions calmed financial markets, fiscal stimulus measures have run out with no new deal in sight. While some of the economic figures have turned better, many believe these advances represent the initial easy gains one would expect to recuperate after a fall.

 

The Fed shifted not just a policy but also its overall monetary framework. In August, it stated it would no longer view a hypothetical figure of maximum employment as a proxy for inflation risk. Instead, it will consider the actual materialization of inflation as an indicator that employment is truly full. In this way, and in other more explicit ways, the Fed communicated its intention to keep interest rates at low levels for several years. It is important to definitively state that the Fed does not have a magic crystal ball to see around the bend. The central bank will be at the wheel and change its course based on the temperature of the economy. No less, it demonstrated a soured outlook on the economy, and its intent is to keep interest rates low until a significant recovery is underway.

 

While stable for most of the fourth quarter of 2019, interest rates fell hard and fast during the first quarter of 2020. While they have given some of this decline back in recent months, overall rates are down considerably. As a proxy, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury started the trailing 12-months at 1.66 percent and finished the period at 0.68 percent.

 

Though spread products outperformed matched duration U.S. Treasuries in three of the last four quarters, trailing 12-month results were due primarily to the large underperformance of spread products during the first quarter of 2020 with higher quality bonds performing best during the fiscal year.

 

As the most economically sensitive sector, U.S. Credit was the weakest during the period. Agency Single-Family Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS) was one of the strongest performing spread sectors, as investors sought the securities due to their high quality and superbly liquid markets. Other high-quality sectors, such as Agency Multi-Family and U.S. Agencies, performed roughly in-line with matched duration U.S. Treasuries.

 

Portfolio Review

 

Due to the Funds overweight to spread products, any macro-economic events that shift the demand profile for these products will likely affect the Funds relative returns. With risk sentiment downshifting during the last 12-months, a headwind was created. While sector allocations acted as headwinds to the Fund during the period, security selection within the sectors broadly benefited the portfolio. Security selection within U.S. Agencies and Agency Multi-Family MBS in particular helped offset some of the weakness due to overall sector performance. The Funds preference for secured and generally higher quality corporate bonds also benefited the Fund. However, much of this benefit was eliminated by the large underperformance of a handful of airline enhanced equipment trust certificate (EETC) bonds held by the Fund.

 

16

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

The Fund does not make any active interest rate bets and, accordingly, its effective duration was approximately matched to that of the benchmark at the end of the period. By approximately matching the benchmarks duration, the Funds interest rate risk is effectively equal to that of the benchmark over time. Furthermore, while changes in the yield curve can impact total returns, the Fund attempts to remain approximately curve neutral. Changes in interest rates had little impact on the Funds relative performance during the period.

 

Outlook

 

The pace of the economic recovery remains at the center of the fundamental backdrop. Though economic data has been better than expected, recent gains have already slowed and the expectation of a rapidV-shapedrecovery has largely dwindled. The decline in the recovery outlook has been highly correlated with the governments inability to strike another stimulus deal. While an 11th hour compromise is still an outside possibility, financial markets have largely shifted their expectations where a new deal is not passed until a new government is seated next year. While uncertainty appears to be at a premium, so are the prices and risks of U.S. Credit. This does not mean that all credit is doomed to underperform and pockets of value exist. However, the generally tight credit spreads contrasted with the high levels of economic uncertainty represent one of the bigger challenges for the Fund and markets broadly. We believe this challenge is best managed by having a targeted fundamental approach to picking credit investments, and not investing in broad market exposures.

 

This uncertain environment has led the Fed to make it painstakingly clear that it has no intention of raising interest rates unless the economic recovery is well underway and creating an inflationary environment. This has created several opportunities. Investors may continue to seek additional spread of U.S. Agency debt to avoid the low yields provided by U.S. Treasuries. In addition to the general attractiveness of spread sectors, the interest rate environment has caused prepayments on Agency Single-Family MBS to run at lightning speed. Involuntary prepayments accelerated in-line with the strained economy. Voluntary prepayments remained elevated due to attractive refinancing opportunities. With the Fed signaling that rates will remain low and the mortgage origination markets margins having ample room to narrow, the prospect of fast prepayments remaining in place has become a general expectation. These forces have caused the sector to underperform. The Funds material underweight to the sector has provided an opportunity to find a bottom-up theme in the sector. As such, we have found ways to navigate some of the prepayment risks within the sector which we think are ultimately constructive.

 

Government support for small businesses has translated into an environment of low prepay speeds. While we think this is unlikely to continue, it has also provided an opportunity to focus new investments in the space on lower premium paper. A similar situation has taken place with Agency Multi-Family MBS. Despite the rate environment, prepayments have remained subdued due to the combination of prepayment restrictions and lending standards. We are positive about the Funds positioning for a variety of reasons. First, as investors balance their preferences for yield and risk, we think having a portfolio which performs strongest during a flight to quality is compelling.

 

We also believe that the risk management of the Fund positioning is important. The additional spread that is built into the portfolio does not come at the cost of lower overall quality. We believe that the Agency Multi-Family MBS held by the portfolio are well structured securities, backed by strong underwriting. The Funds overweight to this type of structure is used to complement the structure of Agency Single-Family MBS. In a low-rate, potentially volatile environment, having a portfolio of high-quality bonds can create the positioning to handle events with less disruption. Being a good shock absorber is often an important goal of fixed income investments.

 

17

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Impact Bond Fund - Class A* and the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index

 

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Class C shares and Institutional Class shares was August 1, 2011. Class C sharesand Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class Y shares for the periods prior to August 1, 2011. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Class C and Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 3.36% of the NAV (or 3.25% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares was equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Note to Chart

 

Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is an unmanaged index comprised of U.S. investment grade, fixed rate bond market securities, including government, government agency, corporate and mortgage-backed securities between one and ten years.

  

18

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Rockefeller & Co. LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund seeks long-term growth of capital. The Fund primarily invests in equity securities of non-U.S. companies and generally focuses on larger, more established companies. The Fund selects investments based on an evaluation of a companys sustainability and impact practices which considers environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts and risks of a company, how well the company manages these impacts and risks and ascertains the companys willingness and ability to take a leadership position in implementing best practices.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund (Class A Shares) outperformed its benchmark, the MSCI All Country World ex-USA Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020.The Funds total return was 7.93 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge), while the total return of the benchmark was 3.00 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

Global equities, as measured by the MSCI All Country World Index, generated a modest, positive return during the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. Global equities posted strong gains during the fourth quarter of 2019, but performance was primarily driven by multiple expansion as opposed to earnings growth. There was also a significant bifurcation in the markets as stocks characterized as growth outperformed, while cyclical value stocks were overlooked by the market. However, a global pandemic in the early part of 2020 led to a sharp, deep sell-off. While the pandemic had a negative impact on equity markets, it also unleashed significant levels of fiscal and monetary stimulus. This led to a sharp rebound in global equity markets, but negatively impacted interest rate sensitive financials and traditional energy companies. Factors such as growth continued their relative outperformance over value, while international markets also lagged U.S. markets. However, companies with long-term secular growth opportunities, particularly those tied to renewable energy, performed well.

 

Portfolio Review

 

The Funds outperformance during the period was largely driven by strong stock selection in the Industrials, Real Estate and Communication Services sectors. The Funds sector allocation, particularly its underweight to the underperforming Energy and Financials sectors, also contributed to outperformance.

 

On a regional basis, Europe was the strongest contributor to relative performance for the period, as we took advantage of the heightened volatility to initiate positions in European companies where we believed valuations were attractive relative to business prospects. Companies such as Deutsche Post AG (Industrials sector) benefited from heightened e-commerce demand due to the pandemic. Banks detracted from relative performance, due to the low interest rate environment and heightened credit costs related to the economic downturn.

 

We made several changes to the Funds portfolio during the 12-month period. In early 2020 we exited positions that typically exhibit higher levels of economic cyclicality or positions in those industries that we believed would be negatively impacted by the pandemic. These include Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (Consumer Discretionary sector), and other European financial holdings. We added positions which tend to exhibit less economic cyclicality such as Intact Financial Corp. (Financials sector), a Canadian property and casualty insurance company. We also exited Total SA (Energy sector) on concern that traditional oil companies will continue to be challenged given regulatory pressures. We believe these regulatory pressures, however, should benefit renewable energy companies, to which we initiated several positions including Vestas Wind Systems A/S (Energy sector), a Danish manufacturer of wind turbines.

 

Outlook

 

The epic equity rally from April through August 2020 was driven by positive catalysts including exceedingly loose monetary policy, massive fiscal spending, a V-shaped recovery, and progress in therapeutics and vaccines. By now many of these catalysts are in the rearview mirror. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) has fired most of its bullets and is urging more fiscal stimulus. Unfortunately, partisan politics has so far failed to deliver on the phase 4 stimulus bill. Rising daily, new COVID-19 cases could also slow the economic recovery. While corporate earnings for the third quarter may surprise on the upside, forward guidance might be cautious if the recovery loses momentum. We still expect good news on the vaccine front, but it will take time to get much of the population vaccinated to create herd immunity. We suspect the upcoming U.S. general election will be the main driver of performance in the fourth quarter, especially at the sector level with the candidates presenting starkly different policies and priorities. As we look further down the road, we believe value and non-U.S. stocks are likely to be the new market leaders as a more sustained cyclical recovery takes hold.

 

19

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

While we have shifted the Funds portfolio slightly away from more economically cyclical stocks to those less economically cyclical, we are optimistic about the opportunity given portfolio positioning. We look to invest in companies where we believe there is lower risk of structural impairment and that have the potential to come out of the pandemic stronger.

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund - Class A* and the MSCI All Country World Ex-USA Index

 

  

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Institutional Class shares was August 23, 2019. Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class A shares for the periods prior to August 23, 2019. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

MSCI All Country World Ex-USA Index is an unmanaged capitalization-weighted index composed of companies representative of both developed and emerging markets, excluding the USA.

 

MSCI makes no express or implied warranties or representations and shall have no liability whatsoever with respect to any MSCI data contained herein. The MSCI data may not be further redistributed or used to create indices or financial products. This report is not approved or produced by MSCI.

 

20

 

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund

 

Sub-Advised by The London Company

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Mid Cap Fund seeks long-term capital growth by investing primarily in common stocks of mid-cap U.S.-listed companies. The Fund utilizes a bottom-up security selection process that screens potential investments against a proprietary quantitative model for return on capital, earnings-to-enterprise value ratio, and free cash flow yield. Its goal is to purchase financially stable companies that are believed to consistently generate high returns on unleveraged operating capital, are run by shareholder-oriented managements and are trading at a discount to their respective private market values.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Mid Cap Fund (Class A Shares) underperformed its benchmark, the Russell Midcap® Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was 3.32 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was 4.55 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

The emergence of, and global response to, the COVID-19 pandemic dominated the period. After a strong final quarter of 2019, the market sold off in the first quarter of 2020 as the severity of the impact of the pandemic became apparent. The market rebounded in the second quarter and the strength continued into the third quarter as the Government responded with strong monetary and fiscal stimulus and businesses adapted to the new environment.

 

Large-cap growth stocks, especially the so-called FAANG stocks, contributed most to the performance of the Russell 1000® Growth Index. Conversely, the Russell 1000® Value Index was down during the period. The small and mid-cap indices did not fare as well as their large cap brethren. Growth significantly outperformed Value across the market cap spectrum. Information Technology, Health Care, and Communication Services sectors generally led while Energy, Real Estate, Financials and Utilities sectors lagged accordingly.

 

Portfolio Review

 

During the 12-month period, the Funds sector allocation contributed to performance, but was offset by stock selection. At the sector level, an underweight to the Energy, Real Estate, and Utilities sectors had a positive impact on relative performance, partially offset by the negative impact of an underweight to Health Care.

 

Among the individual stocks that contributed to Fund performance were Skyworks Solutions Inc., Entegris Inc., Black Knight Inc., Citrix Systems Inc. (all from the Information Technology sector), and Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (Industrials sector). Skyworkscontribution was driven by strong earnings results reported early in 2020. The stock also had positive momentum as evidence mounted that the 5G wireless cycle is continuing and perhaps building strength. Further evidence that Apple Inc., Skyworks largest customer, is continuing with its plans to build a 5G phone helped build sentiment. Despite some industry headwinds earlier in the year, Entegris continues to gain share in its specialty chemical consumable business. These results have translated into higher returns throughout the year. We believe long-term growth drivers around advanced nodes, higher materials per wafer and higher purity requirements should add to further gain. Over the last few years, Entegris has drastically increased its size and scale while becoming one of the most diversified players in the semi-materials industry. We remain attracted to the industrys high barriers to entry, limited competitors, and high switching costs. Old Dominion Freight Line was up 43 percent in 2020 on continued strength of execution. Management quickly reduced its variable costs early in the pandemic while maintaining its focus on providing best-in-classservice to its customers. Management discipline has allowed it to steadily increase margins over the past several years. Citrix Systems has been a major beneficiary of the work-from-home situation required by the COVID-19 outbreak as its software products allow workers to securely access applications from almost anywhere. As such, in the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in the first quarter, the stock performed well. However, as the economy moved toward reopening and workers returning to the office, the stock generated positive absolute performance but lagged on a relative basis during the second quarter. Black Knight reported solid numbers in the first half of 2020 on both the top and bottom lines. Results were helped by the massive surge in mortgage refinance volumes, though partially offset by reduced foreclosure volumes (government mandated foreclosure moratorium). Even during the pandemic, Black Knight continues to win new conversions even after the large PennyMac Loan Services deconversion last year.

 

Among the individual stocks that detracted from performance were M&T Bank Corp. and Alleghany Corp. (both Financials sector), Armstrong World Industries Inc. (Industrials sector), NewMarket Corp. (Materials sector), and Store Capital Corp. (Real Estate sector). M&T Bank has underperformed this year, hit by low interest rates and concerns on credit. Interest rates are low and expected to stay low, potentially pressuring net interest income for the foreseeable future. There is also concern about worsening credit, particularly for the hospitality portfolio, as many borrowers remain heavily impacted by COVID-19 measures. Armstrong World Industries

 

21

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

had a rough second quarter, as mandatory government shutdowns in its top seven markets disproportionately hurt sales and margins. As a result, management issued second half of 2020 guidance below consensus. Unlike the rest of the market, Alleghany and the other property & casualty insurers did not experience a continued rebound during the third quarter. The return to zero interest rate policy as well as the business interruption claim overhang weigh on the industry. NewMarket lagged the market all year. The stock underperformed due to the companys nearly 100 percent exposure to the automotive industry and miles driven by motor vehicles, which is currently weak due to COVID-19. The companys second quarter earnings report was weaker than expected, as management highlighted that the global transportation market came to a near halt during the early parts of the second quarter, which greatly affected the consumption of its products. Retail-focused REIT, Store Capital declined early in the year as concern around rent collection due to the pandemic hurt the stock. Since then, the stock has rallied off its lows as rent collections have improved and economic activity has picked up, particularly in middle America. Store has been able to maintain its dividend and has resumed investment activity.

 

The Fund initiated new positions in Black Knight Inc. (Information Technology sector), Cincinnati Financial Corp. (Financials sector), and Steris PLC (Health Care sector). Black Knight is the industry leader in mortgage servicing, with approximately 60 percent market share on first liens and 19 percent on second liens. In our view, mortgage servicing is the vast majority of total Black Knight profits, but it also has an origination business and data and analytics segment. Mortgage servicing is a great recurring revenue business because it is the stock of mortgages outstanding that they get paid on, not the volume of originations. The business is characterized by highly recurring revenue and high returns on capital. We have seen insider buying of Black Knight over the past year. Cincinnati Financial is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance across the United States. We believe a history of conservative underwriting and a strong balance sheet with cash and investments exceeding debt and policy liabilities should lead to solid downside protection in the future. The stock is down in 2020 as investors fear the company will have to make large payments for business interruption insurance. We believe these fears are overblown and dont expect a material charge to the company from any future payments related to business interruption cases. The controversy is around whether or not the virus could trigger a liability. The company claims it wont have to pay without any physical damage to property. There will certainly be cases filed and we will have to see how the courts rule. Separately, the company has greater equity exposure in its reserves versus other insurance companies and the recent rally in the market could offset any lost book value from business interruption cases. Finally, pricing across the companys products has shown recent improvement, which is a good sign for future earnings. Steris is a provider of equipment, consumables, and services to hospitals, medical device manufacturers, and pharmaceutical manufacturers. Steris is the market leader in the U.S. in sterilization equipment for hospitals and contract sterilization for medical device original equipment manufacturers. We view Steris as a solid mid-single digit revenue growth story, underpinned by secular tailwinds from aging population and growth of procedures. Margins could expand and the company has historically done a good job converting adjusted net income to cash flow.

 

The Fund exited its positions in Paychex Inc., Penske Automotive Group Inc., and T. Rowe Price Group Inc.

 

Outlook

 

Looking ahead, we are encouraged by the improvement in the economic data, but risks remain. In the near term, the U.S. economy faces the dual risks of a spike in the virus across parts of the country potentially leading to delayed openings or business closings, and reduced unemployment benefits possibly limiting consumer income and consumer spending. In that environment, we anticipate significant volatility. Longer term, we remain optimistic about the prospects for the U.S. economy.

 

The companies that the Fund holds seek higher returns on capital with stronger balance sheets relative to their peers. We believe the Fund provides the opportunity to own a group of competitively advantaged businesses (judged by return on capital), with stronger balance sheets lower net debt earnings before earnings, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) at a valuation that is slightly more than the market. Typically, a higher quality portfolio of companies will trade at a premium to the market.

 

We believe the quality of the Funds portfolio positions it well for the next few years, even if the market trades modestly higher.

 

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Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Mid Cap Fund - Class A* and the Russell Midcap® Index

 

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares, Class Z shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Institutional Class shares was January 27, 2012. Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class Y shares for the periods prior to January 27, 2012. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net assets value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares, Class Z shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

Russell Midcap® Index measures the performance of the 800 smallest companies in the Russell 1000® Index.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the Index data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

23

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund

 

Sub-Advised by LMCG Investments, LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in common stocks of medium capitalization companies. The Fund seeks to identify companies believed to be selling at a discount to their intrinsic value.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund (Class A Shares) outperformed its benchmark, the Russell Midcap® Value Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020, although both posted negative returns. The Funds total return was -6.20 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was -7.30 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

To say markets were volatile in the 12 months ending September 30, 2020 would be an understatement. On the heels of strong absolute market performance in 2019, markets declined severely in 2020 with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Risk-off sentiment prevailed in the first quarter as investors struggled to price in downside scenarios related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The market regained some ground in the second quarter as U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) actions, stimulus checks, and states reopening their economies drove investors to embrace risk. Volatility returned to make equity performance choppy during the third quarter, despite the strength in the second quarter. Investors have continued to favor growth over value.

 

Portfolio Review

 

During the 12-month period, the Funds strongest contributors were the Information Technology, Consumer Staples, and Real Estate sectors. Primary detractors were the Industrials, Utilities, and Financials sectors.

 

The Information Technology sector benefited from strong stock selection, as well as a relative overweight allocation. Semiconductor holding MACOM Technology Solutions Holdings Inc. and software company Synopsys Inc. were standout performers within the sector. MACOM was well positioned for strength in the telecom and datacenter industries and it started to see revenue from several long awaited product introductions. Synopsys, a maker of design software for semiconductors, saw one of its strongest booking quarters ever earlier in 2020.

 

The Consumer Staples sectors relative performance was driven by strong stock selection, led by food product producers, Darling Ingredients Inc. and The Hain Celestial Group Inc. Darling Ingredientsearnings recovered toward the end of the period after the stock declined significantly during the first quarter. Hain Celestial benefited from COVID-19 lockdown stockpiling as consumers increased purchases of packaged food.

 

The Funds underweight to Real Estate, combined with good stock selection, drove performance in that sector.

 

Stock selection in the Industrials sector weighed on Fund performance, as did the underweight to the sector. Hexcel Corp. and Aercap Holdings NV, two stocks with aerospace exposure, were among the largest detractors. Both stocks continued to be impacted by weak travel demand because of the pandemic. We like the competitive positioning of both stocks and are closely monitoring their balance sheets and future prospects.

 

Natural gas utility, Spire Inc. weighed on returns in the Utilities sector. The company took a write-down against the value of natural gas storage assets that were acquired in 2018 and are taking longer and costing more to revamp than expected. The gas utility space is also seeing some pressure around decarbonization and ESG (environmental, social and governance) considerations. This theme has occurred before and we think is a little overdone. Natural gas will likely be a vital source of cleaner energy used in conjunction with renewables and we believe these distribution companies have long-term opportunities in the burgeoning hydrogen distribution field.

 

The Funds underweight to the benchmark in the Financials sector helped relative performance, nevertheless, subpar stock selection more than offset it resulting in a drag overall. Much of the headwind came from banks like Signature Bank and Sterling Bancorp. Despite solid results and a strong balance sheet, Signature Bank has continued to sell off due to the slow return of New York City economic activity after shutdowns in the spring.

 

On a sector basis, the Fund maintained overweight positions to the Consumer Staples and Health Care sectors, and underweight positions to the Real Estate, Communication Services and Financials sectors.

 

24

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Outlook

 

Some circumstances have changed but uncertainty still reigns supreme. This election season has already been unlike any seen before, with less than a month still left to go. Despite polls suggesting a Biden win, most investors still feel that the results and aftermath are unpredictable. COVID-19 infection numbers are again on the upswing in the U.S. and Europe, and while we are now three months closer to a potential vaccine, we believe widespread distribution is still nine months away at best. Unemployment has improved, but stimulus programs to businesses are set to expire and the statistic has benefited from people exiting the labor force. Another fiscal stimulus could be close, but discussions over the last four months have been unable to reach consensus. The upcoming winter season will undoubtedly be challenging, with further shutdowns a possibility (and consumers once again homebound), children in and out of school, and the onset of cold and flu season.

 

Yet despite all of this continued uncertainty, the market continues to chug higher driven by the prospect of low interest rates until 2023. Monetary policy has been accommodative over the decade. We believe every business and consumer that has been able to take advantage of low rates has done so. Japan and Europe have tried to stoke inflation through negative interest rates, with minimal success. Whether low rates will stimulate the economy further is an open question. We think that the likely result will be asset inflation, with equities leading the charge. Whether this develops into a bubble and when that bubble may pop is difficult to predict. Investor ebullience is not yet an issue that has been solved by quantitative models and artificial intelligence.

 

The Fund utilizes a classic value-driven philosophy based on the belief that leading businesses selling at a discount to fair value have the potential to generate excess returns. The Funds strategy focuses on stocks that are temporarily out of favor in the market, specifically companies with higher returns on capital, free cash flow and strong balance sheets. Emphasis is placed on those companies having the cash flow characteristics as well as the balance sheet strength necessary to buffer the company from any prolonged weakness. While the companies we select often dominate a particular industry niche and generally have significant barriers to entry, we believe they are able to perpetuate a higher return on capital over time. The Funds overall investment process utilizes fundamental bottom-up security selection, while risk-control measures ensure security and sector diversification.

 

25

 

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund - Class

A* and the Russell Midcap® Value Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

Russell Midcap® Value Index measures the performance of those Russell Midcap companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

26

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Sands Capital Management, LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation by primarily investing in common stocks of large-capitalization U.S. companies that are believed to have above-average potential for revenue or earnings growth. The Fund typically invests in 25 to 35 companies. Sands Capital generally seeks stocks with sustainable above-average earnings growth and capital appreciation potential. In addition, Sands Capital looks for companies that have a significant competitive advantage, a leadership position or proprietary niche, a clear mission in an understandable business, financial strength and are valued rationally in relation to comparable companies, the market and the business prospects for that particular company.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund (Class A shares) outperformed its benchmark, the Russell 1000® Growth Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was 58.43 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the total return of the benchmark was 37.53 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

U.S. growth equities (as measured by the Russell 1000® Growth Index) posted strong gains for the 12-month period, despite the global economic devastation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which ended the decade-long bull market. Growth equities for the period benefited from both technical and fundamental tailwinds, as low rates bolstered the value of future earnings, and as the recessionary environment put a premium on the growth generated by tech and tech-enabled businesses.

 

Gains were broad based among sectors, with only the Energy and Utilities sectors trading lower during the period. However, the contribution was concentrated among the faster-growing Information Technology, Consumer Discretionary, Health Care, and Communication Services sectors, which together accounted for virtually all of the benchmarks gain.

 

Portfolio Review

 

During the period, digital stay-at-home beneficiaries drove Fund results, which were largely attributable to security selection. Allocation effect was also a modest contributor. From a sector perspective, Communication Services was the standout contributor. No sectors detracted from results for the period.

 

The top five individual absolute contributors for the period were Sea Ltd., Amazon.com Inc., Netflix Inc., ServiceNow Inc. and Adobe Inc. The top five detractors were Texas Instruments Incorporated, Uber Technologies Inc., Abiomed Inc., Warner Music Group Corp., and Workday Inc.

 

The Funds sector exposures are largely a byproduct of our bottom-up investment process. While the Funds exposures remained directionally the same, the Funds Communication Servicesweight—its largest sector overweight a year ago—rose due to adds, initiations, and relative market appreciation. The bulk of this addition came from the Consumer Discretionary sector through proceeds from the sale of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The Fund maintained a zero percent weight in the Energy, Financials, Materials, Real Estate, and Utilities sectors.

 

Turnover for the period was elevated relative to history. In the Fund, we seek to own large weights in what we view as clear winners, build positions in next-generation growth leaders, and mitigate risk through high-quality duration growers with durable competitive advantages. The pandemic-induced volatility created opportunities for us to upgrade the Funds portfolio, shedding businesses that we viewed as more mature and understood by the market, while adding and/or purchasing businesses that we believe are better positioned for a new period of disruption and opportunity.

 

During the period, the Fund purchased Charter Communications Inc. (Communication Services sector), Coupa Software Inc. (Information Technology sector), Dexcom Inc. (Health Care sector), Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (Consumer Staples sector), Sea Ltd. (Communication Services sector), Snowflake Inc. and Square Inc. (both Information Technology sector), Uber Technologies Inc. (Industrials sector), Warner Music Group Corp. (Communication Services sector), and Zillow Group Inc. (Communication Services sector). The Fund sold Abiomed Inc. (Health Care sector), Activision Blizzard Inc. (Communication Services sector), Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (Consumer Discretionary sector), BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (Health Care sector), Palo Alto Networks Inc., Salesforce.com Inc., Texas Instruments Incorporated, and Workday Inc. (all Information Technology sector).

 

Outlook

 

The adage you have to be there, not getting thereis often spoken by our founder Frank Sands, Sr., and is especially important in todays rapidly changing environment for both managing risk and opportunity. Today, many of the businesses benefit from one or

 

27

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

more of the following secular trends. Many of these trends have accelerated amid the pandemic, and we believe their growth trajectory will persist beyond the crisis:

 

Internet 2.0

 

Digitization of the economy continues, and the next generation of internet businesses are disrupting the status quo by reducing transactional frictions, increasing transparency, and eliminating inefficiencies. These companies are focusing on large verticals and delivering industry-specific solutions that result in a better customer experience while reinforcing their competitive moats. Potential portfolio beneficiaries include CoStar Group Inc., Match Group Inc., Uber Technologies Inc., and Zillow Group Inc.

 

Life Sciences Innovation

 

Advances in health care and technology are enabling companies to run clinical trials and bring drugs and devices to market more efficiently than ever before. Innovative treatments are being developed for patients with diseases that were previously incurable. Medical devices are becoming increasingly sophisticated and are disrupting traditional standards of care. Potential portfolio beneficiaries include Align Technology Inc., Dexcom Inc., Edwards Lifesciences Corp., and Zoetis Inc.

 

Shifting IT Spend from Maintenance to Agility

 

Information technology spending continues to shift toward innovations that make enterprises more agile and efficient. Unlike the last decade—where suboptimal legacy processes were replaced by cloud-based software—the next generation of SaaS leaders are enabling new businesses and processes through component functions and ecosystem integration. Fast deployment, scalability, lower total cost of ownership, and easy/frequent updates create a compelling customer value proposition. Potential portfolio beneficiaries include Atlassian Corp. PLC, Coupa Software Inc., ServiceNow Inc., and Twilio Inc.

 

Financial Services Digital Revolution

 

The combination of modern technology and disruptive customer acquisition models are fundamentally changing how financial products are designed, manufactured, and distributed. New technologies are enabling access to basic financial products and services for the underbanked segments and disintermediating traditional banks through innovative offerings. We think that Smartphone proliferation, online distribution, and modern data techniques result in strong unit economics. Potential portfolio beneficiaries include Intuit Inc., Sea Ltd., Square Inc., and Visa Inc.

 

The primary risk we seek to manage is permanent loss of capital resulting from a negative business or investment outcome. Since earnings growth tends to drive stock-price returns over the long term, we closely monitor factors that could erode the underlying earnings power of the Funds businesses. Conversely, we also seek to mitigate opportunity cost, as failing to invest in value-creating businesses is also detrimental to long-term results. In both cases, we believe that our six criteria are our most powerful risk management tool, as they help us identify those businesses most likely to sustainably generate above-average growth over our investment horizon.

 

We anticipate market volatility in the near term, given the uncertainty around the U.S. election, fiscal and monetary policy, the pandemic and vaccine progress, and valuation concerns. However, we do not perceive volatility itself as risk,and will continue to monitor how and if these issues affect the long-term earnings power of the Funds businesses. Volatility can create opportunity for long-term investors as prices disconnect from fundamentals, and we will look to be opportunistic.

 

In the current environment, we believe the Funds businesses will benefit from accelerating secular trends, and believe that growth and earnings scarcity globally will merit a premium for the types of businesses the Fund seeks to own. COVID-19 will likely have a lasting impact on economies, business spaces, behaviors, and geopolitics. It is accelerating existing trends, ending others, and we believe will widen the gap between winners and losers. However, it is unlikely to change the fact that investors need appropriate absolute returns to achieve their goals, and our belief is that earnings drive equity returns over the long run, and only a select few businesses are capable of sustaining above-average growth. Leadership, innovation, and competitive advantage will distinguish the winning businesses even more in the years ahead, in our view.

 

28

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund - Class A* and the Russell 1000® Growth Index

 

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares, Class Z shares, Class R6 shares and Institutional Class based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Class A shares, Class C shares, Class R6 shares and Institutional Class was November 15, 2010, November 15, 2010, September 1, 2020 and September 1, 2020, respectively. Class A shares, Class C shares, Institutional Class and Class R6 sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class Z shares for the periods prior to November 15, 2010, November 15, 2010, September 1, 2020 and September 1, 2020, respectively. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Class A, Class C, Class Y, Institutional Class and Class R6 shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares, Class Z shares, Institutional Class shares and Class R6 shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

Russell 1000® Growth Index measures the performance of those Russell 1000 companies with higher price-to-book ratios and higher forecasted growth values.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

29

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund

 

Sub-Advised by The London Company

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Small Cap Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in common stocks of U.S. companies with small market capitalizations. The Fund utilizes a bottom-up security selection process that screens potential investments against a proprietary quantitative model for return on capital, earnings-to-enterprise value ratio, and free cash flow yield. Its goal is to purchase financially stable companies that are believed to consistently generate high returns on unleveraged operating capital, are run by shareholder-oriented managements and are trading at a discount to their respective private market values.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Small Cap Fund (Class A Shares) underperformed its benchmark, the Russell 2000® Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was -8.92 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was 0.39 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

The emergence of, and global response to, the COVID-19 pandemic dominated the period. After a strong final quarter of 2019, the market sold off in the first quarter of 2020 as the severity of the impact of the pandemic became apparent. The market rebounded in the second quarter and the strength continued into the third quarter as the Government responded with strong monetary and fiscal stimulus and businesses adapted to the new environment.

 

Large cap growth stocks, especially the so-called FAANG stocks, contributed most to the performance of the Russell 1000® Growth Index. Conversely, the Russell 1000® Value Index was down during the period. The small and mid-cap indices did not fare as well as their large cap brethren. Growth significantly outperformed Value across the market cap spectrum. Information Technology, Health Care, and Consumer Discretionary sectors generally led while Energy, Real Estate, and Financials sectors lagged accordingly.

 

Portfolio Review

 

Both sector allocation and stock selection were headwinds. At the sector level, an underweight to both Health Care and Information Technology had a negative impact on relative performance, partially offset by the positive impact of an underweight to both Financials and Utilities.

 

Among the individual stocks that contributed to Fund performance were Entegris Inc. (Information Technology sector), Masonite International Corp. (Industrials sector), Churchill Downs Inc. (Consumer Discretionary sector), Tempur-Sealy International Inc. (Consumer Discretionary), and Sturm Ruger & Co. Inc. (Consumer Discretionary). Despite some industry headwinds earlier in the year, Entegris continued to gain share in its specialty chemical consumable business. Over the last few years, Entegris has drastically increased its size and scale while becoming one of the most diversified players in the semi-materials industry. Masonites outperformance was mainly due to the positive impact of the pricing actions which took effect earlier in 2020. Those price hikes turned a double-digit decline in sales from weaker volumes into a double-digit percentage jump in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization). The stock rallied further as its only competitor followed along with its own price hikes. Similar to other companies in the gaming and entertainment industries, 2020 has been an anomalous year for Churchill Downs. The Kentucky Derby was held later than usual and without fans, and the companys casinos were shut down earlier in the year, though operations have since resumed. However, the stock performed well on strong performance from the TwinSpires online betting platform as well as industry-wide optimism around iGaming and sports betting. Tempur-Sealy held up well despite the market backdrop, and the stock rallied off of its March lows. New products, distribution network expansion, and e-commerce growth have all helped boost profitability and sales. Tempur-Sealy continued to gain share in both the traditional and alternative retail channels. Sturm Ruger surged as consumers stocked up on firearms during the pandemic and amidst the riots that appeared across the country earlier in the year. In stark contrast, sales were in a deep slump right before the beginning of the year.

 

Among the individual stocks that detracted from performance were NewMarket Corp. (Materials sector), Alexander & Baldwin Inc. (Real Estate sector), White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd. (Financials sector), Armstrong World Industries Inc. (Industrials sector) and Kaman Corp. (Industrials sector). NewMarket lagged the market all year. The stock underperformed due to the companys nearly 100 percent exposure to the automotive industry and miles driven by motor vehicles, which is currently weak due to COVID-19. The companys second quarter earnings report was weaker than expected, as management highlighted that the global transportation market came to a near halt during the early parts of the second quarter, which greatly affected the consumption of its products. Alexander & Baldwin is a pure-play on Hawaiian commercial real estate, and operating performance has suffered with the state largely shut down to tourists. Given the situation, we believe management has done as good a job as can be expected, working with tenants and preventing cash burn. White Mountains underperformed in 2020 as the broader market rebounded from pandemic-driven

 

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Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

lows due to undeployed capital within its investment portfolio. Armstrong World Industries had a rough second quarter, as mandatory government shutdowns in its top seven markets disproportionately hurt sales and margins. As a result, management issued second half of 2020 guidance below consensus. Kaman underperformed reflecting its exposure to commercial airplanes. We are encouraged that Kaman has worked to diversify its end markets in the past year, with now only 30 percent of revenues coming from commercial aerospace. The remaining revenues were more defensive, serving end markets such as healthcare, defense, and food manufacturing.

 

The Fund initiated new positions in Graham Holdings Co. (Consumer Discretionary sector), LivaNova PLC (Health Care sector), Store Capital Corp. (Real Estate sector), Cannae Holdings, Inc. (Financials sector), and ACI Worldwide Inc. (Information Technology sector) . Graham Holdings is a family-controlled conglomerate that used to own the Washington Post. Today it operates as an education and media company. The high margin broadcast TV business generates a lot of cash, funding investment in other segments, capital return, and bolt-on acquisitions. The company has a strong balance sheet with $200 million of net cash and management has been shareholder oriented regarding capital allocation. LivaNova is a medical device company that operates in two primary segments: approximately 40 percent of sales from neuromodulation (vagus nerve stimulators) and approximately 60 percent of sales from cardiovascular, which consists of heart-lung machines and other cardiopulmonary equipment, advanced circulatory support, and a small valve business. We believe the company is unique among small/SMID medical device companies due to its robust pipeline, which includes neuromodulation approaches to treatment-resistant depression, obstructive sleep apnea, and heart failure. Store Capital fills a niche in the over $3 Trillion middle market sale lease back space, providing lessees (without credit ratings) customer centric solutions to free up capital. Store Capital seeks to focus exclusively on profit center stores, receiving property level financial statements on 98 percent of assets. These underlying units generally have a better credit rating than tenants, as all other debts are subordinate to rent payments (because lessees need to continue to keep profit centers open and Store knows the profitability on a per store level). Store Capital also has a diversified client base with no single tenant representing greater than 3 percent of sales. Cannae Holdings, Inc. is a holding company that has compounded at a 20 percent return per year since its 2014 initial public offering. Through divestitures and acquisitions, today it is really just two main assets, Ceridian and Dun and Bradstreet, both driven by Bill Foley. Ceridian is now mostly a passive equity worth $1.7 Billion that they are actively monetizing. We believe Dun and Bradstreet is a unique asset with data on 360 million companies, public and private. Founded in 1841, it is still a vital source of information needed by creditors and sales departments. The attraction today revolves around the restructuring of the business and significant reinvestment opportunities. ACI Worldwide, Inc. engages in the development, marketing, installation, and support of software products and solutions primarily focused on facilitating real-time, any-to-any electronic payments. We believe revenue, margins, and return on invested capital should improve over time as ACI benefits from new management initiatives to accelerate growth, supported by the secular tailwind towards the digitization of payments and the use of real-time payments. The trend toward digital payments has only accelerated due to the pandemic.

 

The Fund sold its positions in Versum Materials (Information Technology sector), LCI Industries (Consumer Discretionary sector), MSG Networks Inc. (Communications Services sector) and Sturm, Ruger &Co. Inc. (Consumer Discretionary sector).

 

Outlook

 

Looking ahead, we are encouraged by the improvement in the economic data, but risks remain. In the near term, the U.S. economy faces the dual risks of a spike in the virus across parts of the country potentially leading to delayed openings or business closings, and reduced unemployment benefits possibly limiting consumer income and consumer spending. In that environment, we anticipate significant volatility. Longer term, we remain optimistic about the prospects for the U.S. economy.

 

We believe the quality of the portfolio positions the Fund well for the next few years, even if the market trades modestly higher.

 

31

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Small Cap Fund - Class A* and the Russell 2000® Index

 

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net assets value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

Russell 2000® Index measures the performance of the small-cap segment of the U.S. equity universe.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

32

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund

 

Sub-Advised by LMCG Investments, LLC

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund seeks long-term capital growth by investing primarily in common stocks of small capitalization companies. The Fund seeks to identify companies believed to be selling at a discount to their intrinsic value.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund (Class A Shares) outperformed its benchmark, the Russell 2000® Value Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020, although both posted negative returns. The Funds total return was -13.83 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the benchmarks total return was -14.88 percent.

 

Market Environment

 

To say markets were volatile in the 12 months ending September 30, 2020 would be an understatement. On the heels of strong absolute market performance in 2019, markets declined severely in 2020 with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Risk-off sentiment prevailed in the first quarter as investors struggled to price in downside scenarios related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The market regained some ground in the second quarter as U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed) actions, stimulus checks, and states reopening their economies drove investors to embrace risk. Volatility returned to make equity performance choppy during the third quarter, despite the strength in the second quarter. Investors have continued to favor growth over value.

 

Portfolio Review

 

During the 12-month period, the Funds performance was strongest in the Consumer Staples, Energy, Real Estate and Communication Services sectors, and weakest in Health Care, Industrials, Utilities, and Materials. The outperformance was due mainly from the Funds allocation among sectors, and stock selection results were mixed yet detracted overall.

 

Stock selection contributed in the Consumer Staples sector, particularly in the food products segment. The top performing stock overall was Darling Ingredients Inc., in the food products segment of Consumer Staples. Darling converts the waste stream from meatpacking plants into a variety of refined products for usage in food and fuel. Stockpiling of basic necessities related to the pandemic drove sales up 100 percent at retail for some food brands in March. This also contributed to the outperformance of packaged food company Hain Celestial Group Inc. and warehouse club store BJs Wholesale Club Holdings Inc., two other top performers during the 12-month period.

 

The Fund benefited from its underweight positions to Real Estate, Energy, and Financials, as those sectors in the benchmark were down significantly in the period, respectively.

 

The Funds lack of exposure to biotech companies was responsible for most of the stock selection drag in the Health Care sector. The risk/reward proposition in many biotech holdings is typically too binary for LMCGs philosophy in process. Though biotech is only a small portion of the benchmark, the trailing one-year period was particularly strong in that segment. For example, a stock that was in the sector was NuVasive, a med-tech business focused on minimally invasive spine repair. The stock underperformed early in the pandemic, as it has a higher mix of elective procedures and deferrable procedures, and COVID-19-related hospital shutdowns and higher unemployment led to increased uncertainty for surgical volumes. We believe that following a period for deferrals of elective procedures, hospitals will return to a more normal mix of procedures. We believe the company is positioned well competitively and has the potential for higher normalized profitability as management drives margins higher.

 

The Utilities sector experienced stock specific headwinds from Portland General Electric Co. Portland General suffered from elevated losses in its energy trading group and wildfires in its service area. We view both issues as transitory and added to the Funds position.

 

The Fund benefited from an overweight to the Materials sector, though that was offset by weaker stock selection in the metals & mining and chemicals segments.

 

Lastly, in the Industrials sector, performance was mixed among industries – electrical equipment, building products and machinery all added to relative performance while commercial and professional services detracted. The largest detractor was Team Inc. Much of the underperformance in the company occurred in the first quarter, as the refinery services company faced an uncertain future given the COVID-19 shocks to gasoline demand. Refiners are running at bare minimum utilization rates and shutting down whole swaths of capacity.

 

The Fund maintained an overweight to the Information Technology, Materials, and Consumer Staples sectors, and an underweight to the Real Estate, Financials, and Consumer Discretionary sectors.

 

33

 

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Outlook

 

Some circumstances have changed but uncertainty still reigns supreme. This election season has already been unlike any seen before, with less than a month still left to go. Despite polls suggesting a Biden win, most investors still feel that the results and aftermath are unpredictable. COVID-19 infection numbers are again on the upswing in the U.S. and Europe, and while we believe we are now three months closer to a potential vaccine, widespread distribution is still nine months away at best. Unemployment has improved, but stimulus programs to businesses are set to expire and the statistic has benefited from people exiting the labor force. Another fiscal stimulus could be close, but discussions over the last four months have been unable to reach consensus. The upcoming winter season will undoubtedly be challenging, with further shutdowns a possibility (and consumers once again homebound), children in and out of school, and the onset of cold and flu season.

 

Yet despite all of this continued uncertainty, the market continues to chug higher driven by the prospect of low interest rates until 2023. Monetary policy has been accommodative over the decade. We believe every business and consumer that has been able to take advantage of low rates has done so. Japan and Europe have tried to stoke inflation through negative interest rates, with minimal success. Whether low rates will stimulate the economy further is an open question. We think that the likely result will be asset inflation, with equities leading the charge. Whether this develops into a bubble and when that bubble may pop is difficult to predict. Investor ebullience is not yet an issue that has been solved by quantitative models and artificial intelligence.

 

The Fund utilizes a classic value-driven philosophy based on the belief that leading businesses selling at a discount to fair value have the potential to generate excess returns. The Funds strategy focuses on stocks that are temporarily out of favor in the market, specifically companies with higher returns on capital, free cash flow and strong balance sheets. Emphasis is placed on those companies having the cash flow characteristics as well as the balance sheet strength necessary to buffer the company from any prolonged weakness. While the companies we select often dominate a particular industry niche and generally have significant barriers to entry, we believe they are able to perpetuate a higher return on capital over time. The Funds overall investment process utilizes fundamental bottom-up security selection, while risk-control measures ensure security and sector diversification.

 

34

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund - Class A* and the Russell 2000® Value Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Class A shares, Class C shares, Class Y shares, Class Z shares and Institutional Class shares was March 1, 2011, March 1, 2011, March 1, 2011, March 4, 2002 and March 1, 2011, respectively. On June 10, 2011, Class Z shares were converted to Class A shares. Class A shares, Class C shares, Class Y sharesand Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class Z shares for the periods prior to March 1, 2011. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Class A, Class C, Class Y and Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net assets value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

Russell 2000® Value Index measures the performance of those Russell 2000 companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values.

 

The Frank Russell Company (FRC) is the source and owner of the data contained or reflected in this material and all trademarks and copyrights related thereto. The material may contain confidential information and unauthorized use, disclosure, copying, dissemination or redistribution is strictly prohibited. This is a Touchstone Investments presentation of the data, and FRC is not responsible for the formatting or configuration of this material or for any inaccuracy in the presentation thereof.

 

35

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited)

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund

 

Sub-Advised by Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.

 

Investment Philosophy

 

The Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund seeks maximum total return consistent with the preservation of capital by primarily investing in a diversified portfolio of fixed income securities of different maturities, including U.S. Treasury securities, U.S. government agency and U.S. government-sponsored enterprise securities, corporate bonds, mortgage-backed securities, commercial mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities, municipal bonds and cash equivalent securities including repurchase agreements and commercial paper. While the Fund may invest in securities of any maturity or duration, interest rate risk is managed by seeking to maintain an effective duration of one year or less under normal market conditions.

 

Fund Performance

 

The Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Class A Shares) outperformed its first benchmark, the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index, but underperformed its second benchmark, the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 1-Year U.S. Treasury Note Index, for the 12-month period ended September 30, 2020. The Funds total return was 1.32 percent (calculated excluding the maximum sales charge) while the total returns of its benchmarks were 1.10 percent and 2.37 percent, respectively.

 

Market Environment

 

While the 12-month period began with a docile macroeconomic environment during the fourth quarter of 2019, the remainder of the period was anything but that. Top-of-mind concerns at the end of 2019 included the fallout from the U.S.-China trade conflict, which had disrupted manufacturing, supply chain/global trade and business confidence. In spite of those concerns, overall economic fundamentals in the U.S. were stable or positive, with unemployment and the consumer balance sheet in historically strong shape. While the trade conflict had weighed heavily on spreads and had pressured rates lower globally, valuations of short duration assets overall were relatively full heading into year-end.

 

As news of the highly contagious COVID-19 virus began to infiltrate headlines around the beginning of the year, risk assets in the U.S. continued to rally early on. As the world watched the localized, Chinese epidemic evolve toward a full-fledged global pandemic, the reality of a total economic shutdown came into view, driving markets into a steep and unprecedented selloff. Stay-at-home orders began to sweep across the U.S. drawing many components of the economy to a standstill while fixed income spreads widened out at a rate and to a degree unparalleled even in the Great Financial Crisis. Liquidity seized up across all markets, as risk assets began trading in correlated fashion. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board (Fed), having three rate cuts during 2019 to offset recessionary risk stemming from the trade war, took action in early March 2020 to cut rates by 50 basis points. As the crisis unfolded, the Fed held an emergency Sunday meeting two weeks later to further cut rates to zero, also announcing a quantitative easing program initially sized at $700 billion. This announcement was followed by a multitude of emergency lending and liquidity facilities over the subsequent weeks demonstrating to markets that the Fed would do everything in its power to provide a backstop for markets.

 

As the economic shutdown and stay-at-home orders took effect beginning in March, weekly initial jobless claims spiked during the last week of the month. The economy went on to lose approximately 22 million jobs in total over subsequent weeks. The federal government stepped in to pass the $2.2 trillion CARES Act stimulus toward the end of March, providing much needed direct-to-consumer stimulus checks and a $600/week federal unemployment benefit among other support programs.

 

As abruptly, as risk assets sold off in March and April 2020, the sweeping efforts by the Fed and the federal government were meaningful and effective in calming markets and helping return them to functionality during the second quarter. After reaching its recessionary trough in late March, the S&P 500® Index steadily recovered through the remainder of the Funds fiscal year, ultimately returning a double-digit gain. Short duration index spreads followed a similar pattern over that time period with short-term corporates moving wider in late March before spending the second quarter recovering sharply as Fed support and federal government stimulus took effect.

 

Portfolio Review

 

With the Funds average duration positioning of 0.50 years over the course of the year, the rate move gave the Fund an advantage over the 3-month benchmark and a disadvantage versus the 1-year benchmark.

 

The other key driver of performance relative to the primary benchmark was the extreme volatility and subsequent recovery coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic and associated economic shutdowns. While even high-quality, short duration assets experienced an unprecedented rate and magnitude of spread widening during late March and early April, spreads had recovered 80-85 percent of that widening by the end of the second quarter, and by the end of the 12-month period had nearly fully round-tripped.

 

36

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Outlook

 

Given the current relatively tight level of spreads in short assets and the historically low all-in yields, Fund management is cautious to add risk in the current environment. Fundamental risk remains elevated, and yet valuations in most short assets seem to be priced for perfection.In such an environment, we believe the best opportunity is to maintain a higher quality bias and look for pockets of value particularly in short Structured Products sectors where pricing inefficiencies and/or over-simplified cash flow modeling can create opportunities to add value. We are willing to be patient for these and other opportunities to add risk when/where valuations offer more attractive compensation.

 

Consumer and commercial real estate fundamentals are key areas to watch as the economic recovery continues to play out in the U.S. With unemployment at a very high level and government talks for additional stimulus seemingly at a standstill, consumer fundamentals remain at risk for further deterioration. Likewise, certain segments of commercial real estate continue to struggle, with many hotel/leisure and retail assets suffering significantly from the broad economic shutdowns and slow reopening process.

 

We do not believe that current valuations justify increasing risk in the portfolio. As we work to reinvest cash flows in the Fund, we are doing so with a higher quality bias. Given the minimal additional compensation available for taking risk, we are managing the Fund in a way that would allow us to take advantage of potential dislocation if we were to see additional volatility in the near term.

 

37

 

 

Management’s Discussion of Fund Performance (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Comparison of the Change in Value of a $10,000 Investment in the Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund - Class A*, the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index and the ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 1-Year U.S. Treasury Note Index

 

 

*The chart above represents performance of Class A shares only, which will vary from the performance of Class C shares, Class S shares, Class Y shares, Institutional Class shares and Class Z shares based on the differences in sales loads and fees paid by shareholders in the different classes. The inception date of Class A shares, Class C shares, Class S shares, Class Y shares and Institutional Class shares was April 12, 2012, April 12, 2012, October 27, 2017, April 12, 2012 and April 12, 2012, respectively. Class A shares, Class C shares, Class S shares, Class Y sharesand Institutional Class sharesperformance was calculated using the historical performance of Class Z shares for the periods prior to April 12, 2012, April 12, 2012, October 27, 2017, April 12, 2012 and April 12, 2012 respectively. The returns have been restated for sales loads and fees applicable to Class A, Class C, Class S, Class Y and Institutional Class shares.

 

**The average annual total returns shown above are adjusted for maximum sales loads and fees, if applicable. The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares is equal to the net asset value (NAV) per share plus a sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). Class C shares are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC) of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Class S shares, Class Y shares, Class Z shares and Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges.

 

The performance of the above Fund does not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares.

 

Notes to Chart

 

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index is an unmanaged index of Treasury securities maturing in 90 days that assumes reinvestment of all income.

 

ICE BofA Merrill Lynch 1-Year U.S. Treasury Note Index is an unmanaged index comprised of a single issue purchased at the beginning of the month and held for a full month. The issue selected at each month-end rebalancing is the outstanding two-year Treasury Note Bill that matures closest to, but, not beyond one year from the rebalancing date.

 

38

 

 

Tabular Presentation of Portfolios of Investments (Unaudited)

September 30, 2020

 

The tables below provide each Funds geographic allocation, sector allocation and/or credit quality. We hope it will be useful to shareholders as it summarizes key information about each Funds investments.

 
Touchstone Active Bond Fund        
Credit Quality*   (% of Investment Securities) 
AAA/Aaa   29.0%
AA/Aa   5.7 
A/A   9.6 
BBB/Baa   26.3 
BB/Ba   10.9 
B/B   6.5 
CCC   0.4 
CC   0.1 
Not Rated   8.3 
Cash Equivalents   3.2 
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
     
Sector Allocation**   (% of Net Assets) 
Consumer Staples   21.6%
Health Care   19.3 
Consumer Discretionary   15.0 
Information Technology   10.2 
Communication Services   8.3 
Real Estate   7.4 
Materials   5.2 
Utilities   4.2 
Financials   2.9 
Industrials   2.5 
Energy   2.2 
Short-Term Investment Fund   1.3 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   (0.1)
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund
     
Geographic Allocation   (% of Net Assets) 
Common Stocks     
Japan   30.3%
United Kingdom   8.4 
Hong Kong   7.4 
Denmark   6.5 
Australia   6.4 
Netherlands   4.5 
Finland   3.9 
France   3.6 
Germany   3.2 
Belgium   3.0 
Israel   2.9 
Italy   2.3 
Luxembourg   2.2 
Sweden   2.2 
Switzerland   2.2 
United States   2.1 
China   2.0 
Norway   1.7 
New Zealand   1.7 
Ireland   1.6 
Spain   1.3 
Egypt   0.2 
Jordan   0.1 
Armenia   0.0 
Short-Term Investment Funds   4.4 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   (4.1)
Total   100.0%
      

 

*Credit quality ratings are from Standard & Poors (S&P) and Moodys Investors Service (Moodys). If agency ratings differ, the higher rating will be used. Where no rating has been assigned, it may be for reasons unrelated to the creditworthiness of the issuer.
**Sector Classifications are based upon the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®).

 

39

 

 

Tabular Presentation of Portfolios of Investments (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund
Credit Quality*   (% of Fixed Income Securities) 
BBB/Baa   5.2%
BB/Ba   43.2 
B/B   31.4 
CCC   10.8 
CC   0.5 
C or Lower   0.4 
Not Rated   6.7 
Cash equivalents   1.8 
    100.0%
      
Sector Allocation**   (% of Net Assets) 
Long Positions     
Corporate Bonds     
Communication Services   15.6 
Energy   13.7 
Industrials   12.8 
Consumer Discretionary   11.2 
Health Care   6.5 
Materials   5.0 
Real Estate   4.7 
Consumer Staples   4.6 
Information Technology   2.7 
Financials   2.5 
Utilities   2.4 
Asset-Backed Securities   9.9 
Bank Loans   5.8 
Common Stocks   0.5 
Purchased Call Options   0.0 
Purchased Put Options   0.0 
Short-Term Investment Funds   3.0 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   0.1 
    101.0%
Short Positions     
Corporate Bonds   (1.0)
Written Call Options   (0.0)
Written Put Options   (0.0)
    (1.0)
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund    
Credit Quality*  (% of Investment Securities) 
BBB/Baa   3.4%
BB/Ba   58.6 
B/B   36.5 
CCC   1.9 
Not Rated   0.2 
Cash equivalents   (0.6)
Total   100.0%
      
      
Touchstone Impact Bond Fund     
Credit Quality*   (% of Investment Securities) 
AAA/Aaa   63.2%
AA/Aa   8.0 
A/A   14.1 
BBB/Baa   9.2 
BB/Ba   1.5 
B/B   0.3 
Not Rated   0.6 
Cash Equivalents   3.1 
Total   100.0%
      

 

*Credit quality ratings are from Standard & Poors (S&P) and Moodys Investors Service (Moodys). If agency ratings differ, the higher rating will be used. Where no rating has been assigned, it may be for reasons unrelated to the creditworthiness of the issuer.
**Sector Classifications are based upon the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®)

 

40

 

 

Tabular Presentation of Portfolios of Investments (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund    
Geographic Allocation  (% of Net Assets) 
Common Stocks     
Japan   16.0%
Germany   14.4 
France   11.8 
Sweden   9.0 
Switzerland   8.6 
United Kingdom   8.2 
Canada   6.7 
Taiwan   5.0 
China   4.7 
Italy   3.8 
South Korea   3.2 
Denmark   3.0 
Singapore   1.8 
India   1.6 
United States   0.6 
Belgium   0.6 
Short-Term Investment Funds   3.3 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   (2.3)
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund    
Sector Allocation*  (% of Net Assets) 
Consumer Staples   13.2%
Utilities   12.1 
Financials   12.1 
Health Care   12.1 
Industrials   10.4 
Consumer Discretionary   9.7 
Real Estate   9.6 
Materials   7.5 
Information Technology   7.5 
Energy   1.8 
Exchange-Traded Fund   0.5 
Short-Term Investment Fund   0.9 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   2.6 
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund    
Sector Allocation*  (% of Net Assets) 
Information Technology   24.3%
Industrials   23.4 
Financials   10.9 
Materials   9.9 
Consumer Discretionary   9.0 
Consumer Staples   8.7 
Health Care   6.0 
Real Estate   2.6 
Communication Services   2.2 
Short-Term Investment Fund   2.6 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   0.4 
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund    
Sector Allocation*  (% of Net Assets) 
Information Technology   35.3%
Communication Services   31.2 
Health Care   13.0 
Consumer Discretionary   10.1 
Industrials   4.4 
Consumer Staples   2.4 
Short-Term Investment Funds   4.8 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   (1.2)
Total   100.0%
      

 

*  Sector Classifications are based upon the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®).

 

41

 

 

Tabular Presentation of Portfolios of Investments (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund    
Sector Allocation*  (% of Net Assets) 
Industrials   24.8%
Consumer Discretionary   18.7 
Financials   15.1 
Materials   12.1 
Real Estate   10.0 
Information Technology   5.2 
Consumer Staples   4.5 
Health Care   4.1 
Energy   1.5 
Short-Term Investment Fund   4.0 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   0.0 
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund        
Credit Quality**   (% of Investment Securities) 
AAA/Aaa   34.5%
AA/Aa   13.0 
A/A   17.2 
BBB/Baa   20.6 
CCC   0.1 
Not Rated   6.7 
Cash Equivalents   7.9 
Total   100.0%
      

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund    
Sector Allocation*  (% of Net Assets) 
Industrials   18.7%
Financials   15.8 
Consumer Staples   12.9 
Materials   9.0 
Information Technology   9.0 
Consumer Discretionary   8.1 
Utilities   7.4 
Health Care   5.9 
Real Estate   5.6 
Communication Services   2.2 
Energy   1.9 
Exchange-Traded Fund   2.7 
Short-Term Investment Funds   2.5 
Other Assets/Liabilities (Net)   (1.7)
Total   100.0%
      

 

*  Sector Classifications are based upon the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®).

**  Credit quality ratings are from Standard & Poor's (“S&P”) and Moody's Investors Service (“Moody's”). If agency ratings differ, the higher rating will be used. Where no rating has been assigned, it may be for reasons unrelated to the creditworthiness of the issuer.

 

42

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Active Bond Fund – September 30, 2020

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Corporate Bonds — 46.8%     
           
     Financials — 8.0%     
$755,000   Ally Financial, Inc., 5.750%, 11/20/25  $846,495 
 940,000   American Financial Group, Inc., 5.250%, 4/2/30   1,138,642 
 1,050,000   Ares Capital Corp., 3.250%, 7/15/25   1,040,067 
 200,000   Banco Nacional de Panama (Panama), 144a,2.500%, 8/11/30   197,900 
 754,000   Bank of America Corp., 3.705%, 4/24/28   852,612 
 1,000,000   Bank of America Corp. MTN, 4.000%, 1/22/25   1,114,000 
 896,000   Bank of Montreal (Canada), 3.803%, 12/15/32   998,669 
 917,000   Barclays PLC (United Kingdom), 4.610%, 2/15/23   959,629 
 612,000   Berkshire Hathaway Finance Corp., 4.250%, 1/15/49   796,357 
 665,000   Citigroup, Inc., 3.200%, 10/21/26   733,561 
 426,000   Citigroup, Inc., 4.750%, 5/18/46   534,622 
 670,000   Cooke Omega Investments, Inc. / Alpha VesselCoHoldings, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 8.500%, 12/15/22   691,775 
 1,343,000   Corestates Capital III, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.570%),0.850%, 2/15/27(A)   1,221,640 
 425,000   Credit Acceptance Corp., 6.625%, 3/15/26   438,812 
 468,000   GE Capital International Funding Co. Unlimited Co., 4.418%, 11/15/35   494,001 
 232,000   goeasy Ltd. (Canada), 144a, 5.375%, 12/1/24   234,900 
 525,000   Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The), 3.691%, 6/5/28   588,488 
 719,000   HSBC Holdings PLC (United Kingdom), 3.900%, 5/25/26   795,708 
 795,000   Huntington Bancshares, Inc., 2.550%, 2/4/30   832,704 
 1,250,000   JPMorgan Chase & Co., 2.956%, 5/13/31   1,341,130 
 961,000   JPMorgan Chase & Co., 3.509%, 1/23/29   1,080,944 
 923,000   Lloyds Banking Group PLC (United Kingdom), 3.574%, 11/7/28   1,011,223 
 732,000   Mastercard, Inc., 3.300%, 3/26/27   834,403 
 159,000   MGIC Investment Corp., 5.250%, 8/15/28   163,997 
 955,000   Morgan Stanley, 3.950%, 4/23/27   1,082,561 
 301,000   Navient Corp., 5.500%, 1/25/23   302,913 
 55,000   Navient Corp., 5.875%, 10/25/24   54,691 
 302,000   Navient Corp., 7.250%, 9/25/23   311,815 
 982,000   New York Life Global Funding, 144a, 3.000%, 1/10/28   1,099,105 
 629,000   Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. (The), 144a,3.850%, 9/30/47   710,659 
 912,000   NTC Capital I, Ser A, (3M LIBOR +0.520%),0.795%, 1/15/27(A)   852,082 
 118,000   PennyMac Financial Services, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 10/15/25   119,475 
 1,394,000   PNC Capital Trust, (3M LIBOR +0.570%), 0.816%, 6/1/28(A)   1,276,066 
 83,000   Prime Security Services Borrower LLC / PrimeFinance, Inc., 144a, 3.375%, 8/31/27   79,617 
 327,000   Prime Security Services Borrower LLC / Prime Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 4/15/26   349,687 
 143,000   Quicken Loans LLC / Quicken Loans Co.-Issuer, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 3/1/31   141,213 
 125,000   Quicken Loans, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 1/15/28   131,707 
 184,000   Springleaf Finance Corp., 8.875%, 6/1/25   203,780 
 1,164,000   Toronto-Dominion Bank (The) (Canada) MTN,1.150%, 6/12/25   1,182,899 
 1,991,000   Truist Bank, Ser A, (3M LIBOR +0.670%), 0.950%, 5/15/27(A)   1,869,836 
         28,710,385 
           
     Communication Services — 5.2%     
 403,000   Alphabet, Inc., 1.900%, 8/15/40   387,713 
 261,000   Altice Financing SA (Luxembourg), 144a, 7.500%, 5/15/26   276,276 
 554,000   Altice France SA (France), 144a, 7.375%, 5/1/26   580,537 
 122,000   ANGI Group LLC, 144a, 3.875%, 8/15/28   120,780 
 604,000   AT&T, Inc., 4.500%, 5/15/35   713,110 
 200,000   Cablevision Lightpath LLC, 144a, 3.875%, 9/15/27   200,000 
 113,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 4.250%, 2/1/31   117,120 
 343,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 4.750%, 3/1/30   363,151 
 72,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 5.125%, 5/1/27   75,760 
 754,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 5.375%, 6/1/29   817,147 
 79,000   CenturyLink, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 2/15/27   80,257 
 885,000   Charter Communications Operating LLC / Charter Communications Operating Capital, 6.484%, 10/23/45   1,187,009 
 507,000   Comcast Corp., 4.000%, 3/1/48   615,987 
 648,000   Comcast Corp., 4.150%, 10/15/28   780,852 
 363,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 3/1/24   373,008 
 57,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 7/1/28   58,568 
 405,000   Connect Finco SARL / Connect US Finco LLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 6.750%, 10/1/26   406,276 
 631,000   Cox Communications, Inc., 144a, 3.350%, 9/15/26   701,805 
 203,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 3.375%, 2/15/31   196,555 
 301,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 4.625%, 12/1/30   303,258 
 662,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 5.750%, 1/15/30   703,375 
 338,000   Deutsche Telekom International Finance BV (Germany), 8.750%, 6/15/30   525,161 
 274,000   Diamond Sports Group LLC / Diamond Sports Finance Co., 144a, 5.375%, 8/15/26   193,855 
 336,000   DISH DBS Corp., 6.750%, 6/1/21   344,400 
 125,000   EW Scripps Co. (The), 144a, 5.125%, 5/15/25   122,187 
 608,000   Front Range BidCo, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 3/1/27   598,409 
 120,000   GCI LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 10/15/28   121,200 
 443,000   GrubHub Holdings, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 7/1/27   459,612 
 117,000   Lamar Media Corp., 144a, 4.875%, 1/15/29   121,680 
 237,000   Level 3 Financing, Inc., 144a, 3.625%, 1/15/29   234,038 
 69,000   Level 3 Financing, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 9/15/27   70,898 
 65,000   MDC Partners, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 5/1/24   59,312 
 192,000   Meredith Corp., 144a, 6.500%, 7/1/25   197,760 
 489,000   Netflix, Inc., 4.875%, 4/15/28   546,457 
 50,000   Netflix, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 11/15/29   58,933 
 125,000   Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 11/1/28   127,319 
 242,000   Outfront Media Capital LLC / Outfront Media Capital Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 6/15/25   249,260 
 611,000   Photo Holdings Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 8.500%, 10/1/26   559,065 
 49,000   Sinclair Television Group, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 2/15/27   45,693 
 84,000   Sinclair Television Group, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 8/1/24   83,580 
 274,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 7/1/29   293,865 
 432,000   TEGNA, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 9/15/29   426,600 
 330,000   Telecom Italia Capital SA (Italy), 6.000%, 9/30/34   382,800 
 187,000   Telecom Italia Capital SA (Italy), 6.375%, 11/15/33   222,530 
 78,000   T-Mobile USA, Inc., 4.500%, 2/1/26   80,371 
 1,144,000   T-Mobile USA, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 4/15/30   1,298,005 
 617,000   Verizon Communications, Inc., 5.012%, 4/15/49   888,087 

 

43

 

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
         
     Corporate Bonds — 46.8% (Continued)     
           
     Communication Services — (Continued)     
$731,000   ViacomCBS, Inc., 4.950%, 5/19/50  $857,724 
 228,000   Virgin Media Secured Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 5.500%, 5/15/29   244,747 
         18,472,092 
           
     Industrials —4.9%     
 433,000   Amsted Industries, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 7/1/27   460,634 
 945,000   Bemis Co., Inc., 2.630%, 6/19/30   1,007,340 
 277,000   Boeing Co. (The), 5.040%, 5/1/27   304,952 
 554,000   Boeing Co. (The), 5.805%, 5/1/50   670,218 
 776,000   Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC, 5.750%, 5/1/40   1,121,328 
 252,000   BWX Technologies, Inc., 144a, 4.125%, 6/30/28   257,670 
 510,000   Carrier Global Corp., 144a, 3.577%, 4/5/50   541,789 
 515,000   Cascades, Inc./Cascades USA, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.375%, 1/15/28   541,394 
 1,073,000   CRH America Finance, Inc. (Ireland), 144a, 4.500%, 4/4/48   1,243,838 
 1,053,000   Eagle Materials, Inc., 4.500%, 8/1/26   1,092,423 
 369,000   Embraer Netherlands Finance BV (Brazil), 5.050%, 6/15/25   354,240 
 363,000   Embraer Netherlands Finance BV (Brazil), 5.400%, 2/1/27   344,668 
 893,000   FedEx Corp., 5.100%, 1/15/44   1,142,919 
 297,000   Fortress Transportation & Infrastructure Investors LLC, 144a, 6.750%, 3/15/22   292,545 
 54,000   Howmet Aerospace, Inc., 6.750%, 1/15/28   59,535 
 1,170,000   John Deere Capital Corp. MTN, 2.450%, 1/9/30   1,272,273 
 292,000   Moog, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 12/15/27   298,585 
 166,000   New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co., Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 3/15/26   170,980 
 797,000   Norfolk Southern Corp., 4.837%, 10/1/41   1,046,694 
 594,000   Otis Worldwide Corp., 3.112%, 2/15/40   635,913 
 176,000   Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 5/13/27   190,630 
 198,000   Plastipak Holdings, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 10/15/25   198,000 
 95,000   Reynolds Group Issuer, Inc. / Reynolds Group Issuer LLC / Reynolds Group Issuer Lu, 144a, 4.000%, 10/15/27   95,713 
 995,000   Roper Technologies, Inc., 2.950%, 9/15/29   1,095,226 
 166,000   Standard Industries, Inc., 144a, 3.375%, 1/15/31   163,841 
 48,000   Standard Industries, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 2/15/27   49,920 
 56,000   Summit Materials LLC / Summit Materials Finance Corp., 144a, 5.250%, 1/15/29   58,310 
 315,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 3/15/26   328,953 
 37,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 8.000%, 12/15/25   40,237 
 375,000   Transnet SOC Ltd. (South Africa), 144a, 4.000%, 7/26/22   371,029 
 321,000   Trivium Packaging Finance BV (Netherlands), 144a, 5.500%, 8/15/26   332,387 
 80,000   US Concrete, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 3/1/29   80,200 
 280,000   Vulcan Materials Co., 4.500%, 4/1/25   318,958 
 172,000   WESCO Distribution, Inc., 144a, 7.250%, 6/15/28   188,456 
 122,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 5/1/25   130,371 
 320,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 8/15/24   338,944 
 868,000   Xylem, Inc., 1.950%, 1/30/28   904,418 
         17,745,531 
           
     Consumer Staples — 4.6%     
 529,000   Albertsons Cos, Inc. / Safeway, Inc. / New Albertsons LP / Albertsons LLC, 144a, 4.625%, 1/15/27   541,268 
 433,000   American Builders & Contractors Supply Co., Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 1/15/28   440,036 
 27,000   American Builders & Contractors Supply Co., Inc., 144a, 5.875%, 5/15/26   28,013 
 1,173,000   Anheuser-Busch Cos, LLC / Anheuser-Busch InBev Worldwide, Inc., (Belgium), 4.900%, 2/1/46   1,446,343 
 577,000   BAT International Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 1.668%, 3/25/26   578,962 
 462,000   Cardtronics, Inc. / Cardtronics USA, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 5/1/25   462,000 
 443,000   Carriage Services, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 6/1/26   462,935 
 887,000   Cimpress PLC (Ireland), 144a, 7.000%, 6/15/26   842,650 
 873,000   Grupo Bimbo SAB de CV (Mexico), 144a, 4.500%, 1/25/22   913,280 
 1,018,000   Imperial Brands Finance PLC (United Kingdom),
144a, 4.250%, 7/21/25
   1,126,581 
 546,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 1/15/30   594,305 
 239,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 2/15/28   259,893 
 224,000   Kraft Heinz Foods Co., 144a, 3.875%, 5/15/27   237,263 
 717,000   Kroger Co. (The), 5.000%, 4/15/42   917,798 
 920,000   Mars, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 4/1/39   1,083,625 
 261,000   Mattel, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 12/31/25   275,355 
 133,000   Michaels Stores, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 10/1/27   131,836 
 335,000   Performance Food Group, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 6/1/24   335,000 
 61,000   Performance Food Group, Inc., 144a, 6.875%, 5/1/25   64,965 
 523,000   Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., 144a, 5.750%, 3/15/25   532,806 
 67,000   Post Holdings, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 4/15/30   68,926 
 58,000   Post Holdings, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 8/15/26   59,450 
 178,000   QVC, Inc., 4.375%, 9/1/28   181,560 
 290,000   QVC, Inc., 4.750%, 2/15/27   297,888 
 740,000   Reynolds American, Inc. (United Kingdom), 4.450%, 6/12/25   832,750 
 645,000   Staples, Inc., 144a, 7.500%, 4/15/26   596,083 
 653,000   Starbucks Corp., 3.350%, 3/12/50   670,095 
 256,000   Superior Plus LP / Superior General Partner, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 7/15/26   273,280 
 696,000   Sysco Corp., 5.950%, 4/1/30   882,130 
 1,048,000   UnitedHealth Group, Inc., 3.500%, 8/15/39   1,203,963 
 204,000   US Foods, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 4/15/25   215,985 
         16,557,024 
           
     Consumer Discretionary — 4.5%     
 474,000   1011778 BC ULC / New Red Finance, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.000%, 10/15/25   486,021 
 281,000   Adient US LLC, 144a, 7.000%, 5/15/26   300,947 
 1,267,000   Ashtead Capital, Inc. (United Kingdom), 144a, 4.375%, 8/15/27   1,317,680 
 328,000   Avis Budget Car Rental LLC / Avis Budget Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 3/15/25   298,496 
 389,000   Beacon Roofing Supply, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 11/1/25   381,220 
 265,000   Carnival Corp., 144a, 11.500%, 4/1/23   296,971 
 197,000   Churchill Downs, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 1/15/28   197,985 
 32,000   Colt Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 7/1/25   33,000 
 52,000   Colt Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 7/1/25   54,353 
 70,000   Dana, Inc., 5.625%, 6/15/28   72,319 
 83,000   Delta Air Lines, Inc., 3.750%, 10/28/29   70,783 
 92,000   Delta Air Lines, Inc. / SkyMiles IP Ltd., 144a, 4.750%, 10/20/28   95,522 
 152,000   FirstCash, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 9/1/28   154,850 

 

44

 

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
         
     Corporate Bonds — 46.8% (Continued)     
           
     Consumer Discretionary — (Continued)     
$151,000   Ford Motor Co., 9.000%, 4/22/25  $173,123 
 262,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.125%, 8/17/27   254,795 
 362,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.271%, 1/9/27   355,158 
 230,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.542%, 8/1/26   229,455 
 200,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 5.125%, 6/16/25   206,250 
 407,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC MTN, 4.389%, 1/8/26   402,356 
 555,000   General Motors Financial Co., Inc., 4.350%, 4/9/25   602,077 
 456,000   General Motors Financial Co., Inc., 5.650%, 1/17/29   531,931 
 261,000   Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (The), 5.125%, 11/15/23   261,000 
 109,000   Group 1 Automotive, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 8/15/28   107,093 
 557,000   Home Depot, Inc. (The), 5.950%, 4/1/41   842,246 
 1,068,000   Hyundai Capital America, 144a, 2.650%, 2/10/25   1,099,826 
 426,000   JB Poindexter & Co., Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 4/15/26   451,722 
 396,000   Lennar Corp., 4.750%, 4/1/21   399,465 
 259,000   Lennar Corp., 4.750%, 5/30/25   282,668 
 69,000   Lithia Motors, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 1/15/31   69,000 
 1,100,000   Lowe’s Cos, Inc., 4.500%, 4/15/30   1,364,613 
 117,000   Marriott International, Inc., 4.625%, 6/15/30   125,301 
 51,000   Meritor, Inc., 6.250%, 2/15/24   52,020 
 125,000   Meritor, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 6/1/25   130,625 
 358,000   Quad/Graphics, Inc., 7.000%, 5/1/22   315,040 
 127,000   Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., 144a, 11.500%, 6/1/25   147,327 
 153,000   Taylor Morrison Communities, Inc., 144a,5.875%, 6/15/27   168,300 
 394,000   Taylor Morrison Communities, Inc. /Taylor MorrisonHoldings II, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 3/1/24   419,610 
 1,225,000   Toyota Motor Credit Corp. MTN, 0.500%, 8/14/23   1,227,642 
 55,000   TRI Pointe Group, Inc., 5.700%, 6/15/28   60,225 
 141,000   United Rentals North America, Inc., 3.875%, 11/15/27   145,230 
 435,000   United Rentals North America, Inc., 5.875%, 9/15/26   458,381 
 46,000   Vail Resorts, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 5/15/25   48,818 
 909,000   Walmart, Inc., 2.850%, 7/8/24   987,657 
 83,000   WMG Acquisition Corp., 144a, 3.000%, 2/15/31   80,697 
 53,000   Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 8/15/28   51,410 
 163,000   Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 4/15/26   165,853 
         15,977,061 
           
     Energy — 4.4%     
 1,050,000   Aker BP ASA (Norway), 144a, 3.000%, 1/15/25   1,053,242 
 361,000   Apache Corp., 4.875%, 11/15/27   341,145 
 866,000   Boardwalk Pipelines LP, 4.450%, 7/15/27   932,635 
 615,000   Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. (Canada),6.250%, 3/15/38   730,385 
 718,000   Cenovus Energy, Inc. (Canada), 5.250%, 6/15/37   619,317 
 134,000   Cenovus Energy, Inc. (Canada), 5.375%, 7/15/25   128,967 
 790,000   Cheniere Corpus Christi Holdings LLC, 7.000%, 6/30/24   909,573 
 124,000   Cheniere Energy Partners LP, 5.250%, 10/1/25   126,976 
 54,000   Cheniere Energy, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 10/15/28   55,418 
 350,000   CNOOC Nexen Finance 2014 ULC (China),4.250%, 4/30/24   386,027 
 77,000   Continental Resources, Inc., 4.900%, 6/1/44   57,994 
 279,000   Delek Logistics Partners LP / Delek Logistics Finance Corp., 6.750%, 5/15/25   253,193 
 400,000   Ecopetrol SA (Colombia), 6.875%, 4/29/30   479,000 
 23,000   Endeavor Energy Resources LP / EER Finance, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 7/15/25   23,633 
 890,000   Energy Transfer Partners LP, 4.950%, 6/15/28   943,062 
 290,000   Genesis Energy LP / Genesis Energy Finance Corp., 6.000%, 5/15/23   263,175 
 43,000   Global Partners LP / GLP Finance Corp., 144a, 6.875%, 1/15/29   43,430 
 500,000   KazMunayGas National Co. JSC (Kazakhstan), 144a, 4.750%, 4/19/27   556,400 
 400,000   KazMunayGas National Co. JSC (Kazakhstan), 144a,5.750%, 4/19/47   473,888 
 63,000   MEG Energy Corp. (Canada), 144a, 6.500%, 1/15/25   61,798 
 371,000   Montage Resources Corp., 8.875%, 7/15/23   377,029 
 299,000   Murphy Oil Corp., 6.375%, 12/1/42   234,715 
 947,000   NGPL PipeCo LLC, 144a, 7.768%, 12/15/37   1,205,439 
 664,000   NuStar Logistics LP, 5.625%, 4/28/27   655,823 
 23,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 4.100%, 2/15/47   15,527 
 242,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 4.200%, 3/15/48   166,375 
 355,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 6.625%, 9/1/30   327,488 
 187,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 8.500%, 7/15/27   188,442 
 176,000   ONEOK, Inc., 6.350%, 1/15/31   204,578 
 494,000   PDC Energy, Inc., 5.750%, 5/15/26   458,704 
 200,000   Pertamina Persero PT (Indonesia), 144a, 6.450%, 5/30/44   259,082 
 200,000   Petrobras Global Finance BV (Brazil), 6.850%, 6/5/15   213,000 
 350,000   Petrobras Global Finance BV (Brazil), 7.375%, 1/17/27   414,522 
 200,000   Petroleos del Peru SA (Peru), 144a, 4.750%, 6/19/32   216,600 
 200,000   Petroleos del Peru SA (Peru), 144a, 5.625%, 6/19/47   230,000 
 100,000   Petroleos Mexicanos (Mexico), 4.875%, 1/24/22   101,000 
 204,000   Petroleos Mexicanos (Mexico), 144a, 6.840%, 1/23/30   182,070 
 181,000   Petroleos Mexicanos (Mexico), 144a, 7.690%, 1/23/50   151,497 
 95,000   Range Resources Corp., 144a, 9.250%, 2/1/26   97,612 
 47,000   Rattler Midstream LP, 144a, 5.625%, 7/15/25   47,353 
 200,000   Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Saudi Arabia), 144a, 4.250%, 4/16/39   229,897 
 53,000   Southwestern Energy Co., 8.375%, 9/15/28   52,078 
 169,000   Sunoco LP / Sunoco Finance Corp., 6.000%, 4/15/27   173,648 
 378,000   Tallgrass Energy Partners LP /Tallgrass Energy Finance Corp., 144a, 5.500%, 9/15/24   355,320 
 403,000   TerraForm Power Operating LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 1/15/30   426,172 
 350,000   YPF SA (Argentina), 144a, 6.950%, 7/21/27   233,625 
         15,656,854 
           
     Health Care — 4.2%     
 800,000   AbbVie, Inc., 4.450%, 5/14/46   952,712 
 569,000   AbbVie, Inc., 144a, 3.800%, 3/15/25   630,931 
 127,000   Acadia Healthcare Co., Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 4/15/29   128,746 
 896,000   Alcon Finance Corp. (Switzerland), 144a, 3.800%, 9/23/49   1,012,999 
 81,000   AMN Healthcare, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 10/1/27   83,025 
 310,000   AMN Healthcare, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 10/1/24   317,363 
 71,000   Avon International Operations, Inc. (United Kingdom), 144a, 7.875%, 8/15/22   71,837 
 662,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 6.125%, 4/15/25   677,722 
 236,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 2/15/29   242,740 
 247,000   Becton Dickinson and Co., (3M LIBOR +1.030%), 1.280%, 6/6/22(A)   248,709 
 518,000   Becton Dickinson and Co., 4.685%, 12/15/44   640,478 
 639,000   Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 5.000%, 8/15/45   898,604 
 670,000   Cigna Corp., 4.375%, 10/15/28   797,004 
 407,000   CommonSpirit Health, 4.187%, 10/1/49   433,030 
 380,000   CommonSpirit Health, 4.200%, 8/1/23   409,805 

 

45

 

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Corporate Bonds — 46.8% (Continued)     
           
     Health Care — (Continued)     
$1,016,000   CVS Health Corp., 4.300%, 3/25/28  $1,189,199 
 477,000   CVS Health Corp., 5.125%, 7/20/45   602,684 
 177,000   DaVita, Inc., 144a, 3.750%, 2/15/31   170,548 
 167,000   DaVita, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 6/1/30   171,058 
 1,019,000   DH Europe Finance II Sarl, 3.250%, 11/15/39   1,139,808 
 117,000   Encompass Health Corp., 4.500%, 2/1/28   117,585 
 69,000   Encompass Health Corp., 4.625%, 4/1/31   69,000 
 156,000   HCA, Inc., 3.500%, 9/1/30   158,945 
 461,000   HCA, Inc., 5.375%, 2/1/25   504,795 
 70,000   Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. / HLF Financing, Inc., 144a, 7.875%, 9/1/25   75,163 
 378,000   HLF Financing Sarl LLC / Herbalife International, Inc., 144a, 7.250%, 8/15/26   388,395 
 447,000   Horizon Therapeutics USA, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 8/1/27   474,379 
 53,000   LifePoint Health, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 4/15/25   55,783 
 366,000   MEDNAX, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 12/1/23   370,575 
 900,000   Mylan, Inc., 4.550%, 4/15/28   1,048,416 
 387,000   Select Medical Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 8/15/26   402,480 
 182,000   Teleflex, Inc., 4.875%, 6/1/26   187,915 
 53,000   Teleflex, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 6/1/28   54,855 
 290,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 5.125%, 5/1/25   292,697 
 166,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 7.500%, 4/1/25   178,450 
         15,198,435 
           
     Utilities — 3.5%     
 584,000   AmericanWater Capital Corp., 6.593%, 10/15/37   887,934 
 95,000   Calpine Corp., 144a, 5.000%, 2/1/31   96,834 
 48,000   Clearway Energy Operating LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 3/15/28   49,560 
 119,000   DPL, Inc., 4.350%, 4/15/29   127,033 
 1,090,000   DTE Energy Co. Ser D, 3.700%, 8/1/23   1,178,335 
 712,000   Duke Energy Progress LLC, 4.150%, 12/1/44   887,605 
 707,000   Edison International, 4.125%, 3/15/28   725,379 
 922,000   Electricite de France SA (France), 144a, 4.500%, 9/21/28   1,095,831 
 200,000   Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. (South Africa), 144a, 7.125%, 2/11/25   182,144 
 200,000   Genneia SA (Argentina), 144a, 8.750%, 1/20/22   154,020 
 656,000   Oncor Electric Delivery Co. LLC, 3.800%, 9/30/47   796,732 
 1,528,000   Pacific Gas and Electric Co., 3.500%, 8/1/50   1,377,677 
 853,000   PacifiCorp., 5.750%, 4/1/37   1,170,434 
 130,000   Pattern Energy Operations LP / Pattern Energy Operations, Inc., 144a, 4.500%, 8/15/28   134,875 
 200,000   Perusahaan Listrik Negara PT (Indonesia), 144a, 4.875%, 7/17/49   219,500 
 253,000   PG&E Corp., 5.000%, 7/1/28   245,410 
 47,000   PG&E Corp., 5.250%, 7/1/30   45,473 
 156,000   Rockpoint Gas Storage Canada Ltd. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 3/31/23   144,690 
 455,000   Talen Energy Supply LLC, 144a, 7.625%, 6/1/28   455,000 
 200,000   Three Gorges Finance I Cayman Islands Ltd. (China), 144a, 2.150%, 9/22/30   200,635 
 709,000   Virginia Electric & Power Co., 3.300%, 12/1/49   820,212 
 1,899,000   WEC Energy Group, Inc., (3M LIBOR +2.113%), 2.393%, 5/15/67(A)   1,541,156 
         12,536,469 
           
     Real Estate — 2.8%     
 660,000   American Homes 4 Rent LP REIT, 4.250%, 2/15/28   748,123 
 495,000   CoreCivic, Inc. REIT, 5.000%, 10/15/22   486,820 
 966,000   Crown Castle International Corp. REIT, 3.650%, 9/1/27   1,080,930 
162,000   Diversified Healthcare Trust REIT, 9.750%, 6/15/25   180,189 
 824,000   Equinix, Inc. REIT, 2.900%, 11/18/26   888,709 
 231,000   GEO Group, Inc. (The) REIT, 5.875%, 1/15/22   223,650 
 260,000   GLP Capital LP / GLP Financing II, Inc. REIT, 5.375%, 4/15/26   288,158 
 1,106,000   Healthcare Realty Trust, Inc. REIT, 2.400%, 3/15/30   1,121,053 
 247,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 5.250%, 7/15/30   257,498 
 566,000   Life Storage LP REIT, 2.200%, 10/15/30   564,555 
 496,000   MGM Growth Properties Operating Partnership LP / MGP Finance Co.-Issuer, Inc. REIT, 5.625%, 5/1/24   525,899 
 453,000   Mid-America Apartments LP REIT, 3.750%, 6/15/24   492,556 
 338,000   MPT Operating Partnership LP / MPT Finance Corp. REIT, 5.250%, 8/1/26   348,140 
 782,000   Realty Income Corp. REIT, 3.250%, 1/15/31   865,398 
 691,000   Sabra Health Care LP REIT, 5.125%, 8/15/26   747,200 
 70,000   SBA Communications Corp. REIT, 144a, 3.875%, 2/15/27   71,050 
 350,000   STORE Capital Corp. REIT, 4.500%, 3/15/28   375,058 
 710,000   STORE Capital Corp. REIT, 4.625%, 3/15/29   761,334 
         10,026,320 
           
     Information Technology — 2.7%     
 629,000   Apple, Inc., 4.650%, 2/23/46   877,904 
 97,000   Black Knight InfoServ LLC, 144a, 3.625%, 9/1/28   98,031 
 180,000   Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 9/1/28   184,779 
 86,000   Boxer Parent Co., Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 10/2/25   91,853 
 316,000   Camelot Finance SA, 144a, 4.500%, 11/1/26   322,320 
 366,000   CDK Global, Inc., 4.875%, 6/1/27   385,215 
 1,020,000   Fiserv, Inc., 3.500%, 7/1/29   1,162,714 
 960,000   Global Payments, Inc., 2.650%, 2/15/25   1,018,815 
 1,050,000   Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co., 4.650%, 10/1/24   1,187,340 
 127,000   j2 Cloud Services LLC / j2 Global Co.-Obligor, Inc., 144a, 6.000%, 7/15/25   132,080 
 46,000   Logan Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 9/1/27   46,531 
 122,000   Microchip Technology, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 9/1/25   126,582 
 544,000   Micron Technology, Inc., 5.327%, 2/6/29   654,244 
 462,000   Microsoft Corp., 3.500%, 2/12/35   569,972 
 23,000   NCR Corp., 144a, 8.125%, 4/15/25   25,421 
 852,000   NXP BV / NXP Funding LLC (Netherlands), 144a, 5.350%, 3/1/26   1,007,272 
 204,000   Open Text Corp. (Canada), 144a, 3.875%, 2/15/28   206,358 
 370,000   SS&C Technologies, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 9/30/27   393,206 
 624,000   Visa, Inc., 4.150%, 12/14/35   808,040 
 139,000   Western Digital Corp., 4.750%, 2/15/26   150,555 
 251,000   Xerox Holdings Corp., 144a, 5.000%, 8/15/25   248,056 
         9,697,288 
           
     Materials — 2.0%     
 307,000   Alcoa Nederland Holding BV, 144a, 7.000%, 9/30/26   321,583 
 31,000   Arconic Corp., 144a, 6.000%, 5/15/25   33,106 
 667,000   Braskem America Finance Co. (Brazil), 144a, 7.125%, 7/22/41   705,019 
 200,000   Braskem Netherlands Finance BV (Brazil), 144a, 4.500%, 1/10/28   192,500 
 300,000   Cemex SAB de CV (Mexico), 144a, 5.450%, 11/19/29   303,375 
 24,000   Clearwater Paper Corp., 144a, 4.750%, 8/15/28   24,060 
 210,000   Commercial Metals Co., 5.750%, 4/15/26   218,400 
 200,000   Corp. Nacional del Cobre de Chile (Chile), 144a, 4.500%, 9/16/25   225,377 
 270,000   CVR Partners LP / CVR Nitrogen Finance Corp., 144a, 9.250%, 6/15/23   249,750 

 

46

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Corporate Bonds — 46.8% (Continued)     
           
     Materials — (Continued)     
$732,000   Ecolab, Inc., 4.800%, 3/24/30  $933,697 
 181,000   FMG Resources August 2006 Pty Ltd. (Australia), 144a, 4.750%, 5/15/22   185,299 
 551,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 5.000%, 9/1/27   575,547 
 21,000   Hudbay Minerals, Inc. (Peru), 144a, 6.125%, 4/1/29   20,790 
 241,000   Hudbay Minerals, Inc. (Peru), 144a, 7.625%, 1/15/25   245,218 
 200,000   Indonesia Asahan Aluminium Persero PT (Indonesia), 6.757%, 11/15/48   256,871 
 200,000   Indonesia Asahan Aluminium Persero PT (Indonesia), 144a, 5.450%, 5/15/30   231,211 
 300,000   Industrias Penoles SAB de CV (Mexico), 144a, 5.650%, 9/12/49   348,990 
 200,000   Metinvest BV (Ukraine), 144a, 7.750%, 10/17/29   190,790 
 53,000   Minerals Technologies, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 7/1/28   54,844 
 253,000   Novelis Corp., 144a, 5.875%, 9/30/26   259,958 
 272,000   Nufarm Australia Ltd. / Nufarm Americas, Inc. (Australia), 144a, 5.750%, 4/30/26   277,467 
 789,000   Sherwin-Williams Co. (The), 4.500%, 6/1/47   980,161 
 200,000   Suzano Austria GmbH (Brazil), 3.750%, 1/15/31   200,490 
 35,000   WR Grace & Co., 144a, 4.875%, 6/15/27   36,145 
         7,070,648 
     Total Corporate Bonds  $167,648,107 
           
     U.S. Treasury Obligations — 13.7%     
 1,286,000   U.S. Treasury Bond, 1.250%, 5/15/50   1,222,504 
 12,475,000   U.S. Treasury Bond, 1.375%, 8/15/50   12,243,043 
 5,015,000   U.S. Treasury Bond, 2.250%, 8/15/49   5,981,367 
 6,965,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 0.125%, 8/31/22   6,964,728 
 3,600,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 0.250%, 6/30/25   3,598,734 
 4,230,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 0.375%, 3/31/22   4,245,367 
 3,000,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 0.625%, 5/15/30   2,991,094 
 3,930,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 1.500%, 10/31/24   4,134,790 
 3,900,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 1.500%, 11/30/24   4,106,578 
 3,660,000   U.S. Treasury Note, 1.750%, 12/31/20   3,674,743 
     Total U.S. Treasury Obligations  $49,162,948 
           
     Asset-Backed Securities —12.1%     
 2,170,884   Adams Outdoor Advertising LP, Ser 2018-1, Class A, 144a, 4.810%, 11/15/48   2,258,760 
 1,475,000   AGL CLO 6 Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2020-6A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.950%), 2.201%, 7/20/31(A)   1,478,069 
 1,400,000   Aimco CLO 11 Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2020-11A, Class A2, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.300%), 1.525%, 10/15/31(A)   1,400,000 
 1,450,000   Apidos CLO XVIII (Cayman Islands), Ser 2018-18A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.140%), 1.398%, 10/22/30(A)   1,434,031 
 1,200,000   Avis Budget Rental Car Funding AESOP LLC, Ser 2015-2A, Class B, 144a, 3.420%, 12/20/21   1,202,566 
 1,375,000   Benefit Street Partners CLO XIX Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-19A, Class B, 144a, (3M LIBOR +2.000%), 2.275%, 1/15/33(A)   1,376,063 
 825,000  

BSPRT Issuer Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2018-FL4, Class D, 144a, (1M LIBOR +2.750%),

2.902%, 9/15/35(A)

   735,492 
 1,050,000   CF Hippolyta LLC, Ser 2020-1, Class A1,144a, 1.690%, 7/15/60   1,061,866 
 1,505,000   CIFC Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2016-1A, Class A1R, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.350%), 1.621%, 10/21/31(A)   1,494,634 
2,412   CIT Home Equity Loan Trust, Ser 2002-1, Class AF5, 7.210%, 2/25/33(A)(B)   2,512 
 2,902,500   Coinstar Funding LLC, Ser 2017-1A, Class A2, 144a, 5.216%, 4/25/47   2,753,886 
 493,058   Domino’s Pizza Master Issuer LLC, Ser 2017-1A, Class A2II, 144a, 3.082%, 7/25/47   494,063 
 48,473   FFMLTTrust, Ser 2005-FFA, Class M3, 6.017%, 3/25/25(A)(B)   49,206 
 148,545   FHLMC Structured Pass Through Securities, Ser T-20, Class A5, 7.870%, 12/25/29(A)(B)   180,790 
 12,771   FNMA REMICTrust, Ser 2001-W2, Class AF6, 6.589%, 10/25/31(A)(B)   13,640 
 1,258,922   Hertz Vehicle Financing II LP, Ser 2016-4A, Class A, 144a, 2.650%, 7/25/22   1,260,751 
 781,911   Hertz Vehicle Financing II LP, Ser 2019-1A, Class A, 144a, 3.710%, 3/25/23   783,184 
 1,138,733   Hilton Grand Vacations Trust, Ser 2020-AA, Class A, 144a, 2.740%, 2/25/39   1,177,075 
 1,637,625   Jack In The Box Funding LLC, Ser 2019-1A, Class A2I, 144a, 3.982%, 8/25/49   1,678,746 
 970,000   Jersey Mike’s Funding, Ser 2019-1A, Class A2, 144a, 4.433%, 2/15/50   1,031,576 
 1,663,550   Jimmy Johns Funding LLC, Ser 2017-1A, Class A2I, 144a, 3.610%, 7/30/47   1,684,544 
 84,335   Kabbage Funding LLC, Ser 2019-1, Class A, 144a, 3.825%, 3/15/24   83,615 
 1,850,000   Madison Park Funding XVIII Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-18A, Class BR, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.600%), 1.871%, 10/21/30(A)   1,811,352 
 1,505,000   Madison Park Funding XXXV Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-35A, Class A2A, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.650%), 1.922%, 4/20/31(A)   1,504,992 
 231,700   Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust, Ser 2006-FF1, Class M4, (1M LIBOR +0.370%), 0.518%, 8/25/36(A)   231,413 
 953,227   Mid-State Capital Corp.Trust, Ser 2005-1, Class M2, 7.079%, 1/15/40   1,067,937 
 1,375,000   OHA Loan Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-1A, Class B1R2, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.900%), 2.180%, 11/15/32(A)   1,372,067 
 135,288   Orange Lake Timeshare Trust, Ser 2016-A, Class A, 144a, 2.610%, 3/8/29   136,765 
 1,300,000   TAL Advantage VII LLC, Ser 2020-1A, Class A, 144a, 2.050%, 9/20/45   1,302,323 
 700,000   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-3, Class A2, 144a, 4.000%, 3/25/54(A)(B)   726,122 
 1,475,000   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-4, Class A2, 144a, 3.750%, 4/25/55(A)(B)   1,537,554 
 650,000   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-2, Class M1, 144a, 3.750%, 4/25/57(A)(B)   704,220 
 2,284,148   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-1, Class A1, 144a, 3.750%, 3/25/58(A)(B)   2,474,484 
 600,000   Voya CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2017-4A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.130%), 1.405%, 10/15/30(A)   593,505 
 1,505,000   Voya CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-2A, Class A, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.270%), 1.542%, 7/20/32(A)   1,489,497 
 3,233,562   Wendys Funding LLC, Ser 2018-1A, Class A2I, 144a, 3.573%, 3/15/48   3,342,210 
 38,627   Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2018-1A, Class C, 144a, 2.920%, 5/15/23   38,671 

  

47

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Asset-Backed Securities — 12.1% (Continued)     
$1,475,000   Whitebox Clo II Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2020-2A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.750%), 1.992%, 10/24/31(A)  $1,475,797 
     Total Asset-Backed Securities  $43,443,978 
           
     Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations —7.0%     
 2,099   Adjustable Rate Mortgage Trust, Ser 2004-4, Class 3A1, 3.320%, 3/25/35(A)(B)   2,100 
 2,029,603   Agate Bay Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-7, Class B1, 144a, 3.745%, 10/25/45(A)(B)   2,096,075 
 3,163,018   Agate Bay Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-7, Class B2, 144a, 3.745%, 10/25/45(A)(B)   3,234,366 
 15,309   Alternative Loan Trust, Ser 2004-30CB, Class 3A1, 5.000%, 2/1/21   15,288 
 5,839   CSFB Mortgage-Backed Trust, Ser 2004-7, Class 6A1, 5.250%, 11/25/34   6,003 
 1,206,645   CSMC Trust, Ser 2013-7, Class B3,144a, 3.518%, 8/25/43(A)(B)   1,211,612 
 1,192,797   CSMC Trust, Ser 2014-OAK1, Class B4,144a, 3.736%, 11/25/44(A)(B)   1,195,765 
 1,793,787   CSMC Trust, Ser 2015-1, Class B3, 144a, 3.930%, 1/25/45(A)(B)   1,785,268 
 1,808,023   CSMC Trust, Ser 2015-2, Class B4, 144a, 3.877%, 2/25/45(A)(B)   1,738,453 
 1,813,567   CSMC Trust, Ser 2015-WIN1, Class B3, 144a, 3.844%, 12/25/44(A)(B)   1,815,287 
 1,070,522   CSMC Trust, Ser 2018-RPL9, Class A, 144a, 3.850%, 9/25/57(A)(B)   1,174,199 
 270,461   Galton Funding Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-1, Class A22, 144a, 4.000%, 2/25/59(A)(B)   279,044 
 1,109,293   GS Mortgage-Backed Securities Corp. Trust, Ser 2020-PJ3, Class A14, 144a, 3.000%, 10/25/50(A)(B)   1,137,590 
 36,115   JP Morgan Mortgage Trust, Ser 2005-A1, Class 2A1, 3.370%, 2/25/35(A)(B)   36,655 
 97,803   JP Morgan Mortgage Trust, Ser 2005-A2, Class 7CB1, 3.631%, 4/25/35(A)(B)   101,859 
 27,581   JP Morgan Mortgage Trust, Ser 2006-A4, Class 2A2, 3.443%, 6/25/36(A)(B)   23,372 
 1,744,950   JP Morgan Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-1, Class B2, 144a, 3.509%, 1/25/47(A)(B)   1,773,565 
 18,824   MASTR Alternative Loans Trust, Ser 2004-7, Class 10A1, 6.000%, 6/25/34   20,205 
 161,960   Residential Asset Securitization Trust, Ser 2006-A1, Class 1A3, 6.000%, 4/25/36   115,350 
 216,096   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-1, Class B1, 3.620%, 2/25/43(A)(B)   220,028 
 253,372   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-1, Class B2, 3.620%, 2/25/43(A)(B)   256,450 
 431,747   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-10, Class B2, 144a, 3.553%, 8/25/43(A)(B)   436,723 
 409,627   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-5, Class B1, 144a, 3.498%, 5/25/43(A)(B)   418,420 
 890,354   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-2, Class B2, 144a, 4.072%, 7/25/44(A)(B)   916,854 
 1,795,321   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-1, Class A4, 144a, 3.500%, 2/25/47(A)(B)   1,810,373 
 2,164,285   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-2, Class A1, 144a, 3.500%, 2/25/47(A)(B)   2,231,752 
 1,087,000   Sequoia Mortgage Trust, Ser 2018-CH4, Class A13, 144a, 4.500%, 10/25/48(A)(B)   1,112,616 
65,965   Washington Mutual Alternative Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates, Ser 2005-9, Class 2A4, 5.500%, 11/25/35   67,604 
     Total Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations  $25,232,876 
           
     U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations — 5.9%     
 133,390   FHLMC, Pool #1Q0339, (12M LIBOR +1.917%), 3.883%, 4/1/37(A)   141,531 
 11,517   FHLMC, Pool #A12886, 5.000%, 8/1/33   13,247 
 52,970   FHLMC, Pool #A13842, 6.000%, 9/1/33   59,209 
 9,098   FHLMC, Pool #A21415, 5.000%, 5/1/34   10,447 
 15,228   FHLMC, Pool #A35682, 5.000%, 7/1/35   17,480 
 9,638   FHLMC, Pool #A36523, 5.000%, 8/1/35   11,082 
 32,555   FHLMC, Pool #A46590, 5.000%, 8/1/35   35,670 
 4,602   FHLMC, Pool #A64971, 5.500%, 8/1/37   5,242 
 2,637,676   FHLMC, Pool #A89148, 4.000%, 10/1/39   2,915,578 
 91,540   FHLMC, Pool #A96485, 4.500%, 1/1/41   103,049 
 489,451   FHLMC, Pool #A97897, 4.500%, 4/1/41   560,825 
 16,846   FHLMC, Pool #C62740, 7.000%, 1/1/32   19,408 
 16,436   FHLMC, Pool #C72254, 6.500%, 7/1/32   19,065 
 40,425   FHLMC, Pool #C90986, 7.000%, 6/1/26   43,827 
 14,510   FHLMC, Pool #G02184, 5.000%, 4/1/36   16,687 
 2,531,155   FHLMC, Pool #G05624, 4.500%, 9/1/39   2,846,679 
 240,560   FHLMC, Pool #G05733, 5.000%, 11/1/39   277,266 
 95,285   FHLMC, Pool #J13584, 3.500%, 11/1/25   100,945 
 1,258,612   FHLMC REMICS, Pool #RA2970, 2.500%, 7/1/50   1,324,350 
 38,056   FNMA, Pool #255628, 5.500%, 2/1/25   42,198 
 10,137   FNMA, Pool #426830, 8.000%, 11/1/24   10,249 
 6,941   FNMA, Pool #540040, 7.500%, 6/1/28   6,968 
 12,130   FNMA, Pool #561741, 7.500%, 1/1/31   14,040 
 25,027   FNMA, Pool #640291, 7.000%, 8/1/32   25,466 
 28,171   FNMA, Pool #653301, 6.500%, 7/1/32   31,507 
 15,333   FNMA, Pool #653502, 6.500%, 7/1/32   17,148 
 24,684   FNMA, Pool #670402, 6.500%, 6/1/32   27,941 
 127,561   FNMA, Pool #745257, 6.000%, 1/1/36   150,615 
 61,393   FNMA, Pool #748895, 6.000%, 12/1/33   65,810 
 45,323   FNMA, Pool #758564, 6.000%, 9/1/24   50,527 
 58,854   FNMA, Pool #810049, 5.500%, 3/1/35   65,716 
 90,385   FNMA, Pool #819297, 6.000%, 9/1/35   106,806 
 699,218   FNMA, Pool #881279, 5.000%, 11/1/36   804,185 
 26,624   FNMA, Pool #889060, 6.000%, 1/1/38   31,281 
 65,930   FNMA, Pool #889061, 6.000%, 1/1/38   77,784 
 5,877   FNMA, Pool #895657, 6.500%, 8/1/36   6,693 
 107,284   FNMA, Pool #905049, 5.500%, 11/1/36   119,017 
 436,592   FNMA, Pool #928553, 5.500%, 8/1/37   510,121 
 681,333   FNMA, Pool #931535, 5.500%, 7/1/39   757,849 
 171,426   FNMA, Pool #AA3467, 4.500%, 4/1/39   192,587 
 269,346   FNMA, Pool #AA4584, 4.500%, 4/1/39   302,487 
 66,627   FNMA, Pool #AB1800, 4.000%, 11/1/40   74,034 
 139,646   FNMA, Pool #AB2452, 4.000%, 3/1/26   148,185 
 47,998   FNMA, Pool #AD3775, 4.500%, 3/1/25   51,031 
 75,641   FNMA, Pool #AD6193, 5.000%, 6/1/40   86,933 
 114,798   FNMA, Pool #AE1568, 4.000%, 9/1/40   125,921 
 446,102   FNMA, Pool #AE2497, 4.500%, 9/1/40   509,212 
 55,592   FNMA, Pool #AE5441, 5.000%, 10/1/40   64,048 
 204,373   FNMA, Pool #AH1135, 5.000%, 1/1/41   235,464 
 77,725   FNMA, Pool #AH3671, 4.000%, 2/1/26   82,436 
 406,706   FNMA, Pool #AH6622, 4.000%, 3/1/41   463,849 
 451,646   FNMA, Pool #AL0150, 4.000%, 2/1/41   501,948 
 89,088   FNMA, Pool #AL0211, 5.000%, 4/1/41   102,637 

  

48

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations — 5.9% (Continued)     
$2,855,070   FNMA, Pool #AL5718, 3.500%, 9/1/44  $3,147,633 
 540,503   FNMA, Pool #AS0779, 4.000%, 10/1/43   611,710 
 44,848   FNMA, Pool #AS7813, 4.000%, 8/1/46   48,661 
 1,395,095   FNMA, Pool #MA4128, 2.000%, 9/1/40   1,443,216 
 1,193,785   GNMA, Pool #4424, 5.000%, 4/20/39   1,363,253 
     Total U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations  $20,998,753 
           
     Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities — 4.4%     
 2,500,000   Austin Fairmont Hotel Trust, Ser 2019-FAIR, Class C, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.450%), 1.602%, 9/15/32(A)   2,340,600 
 500,000   BANK, Ser 2018-BN14, Class A3, 3.966%, 9/15/60   583,123 
 1,492,655   COMM Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-CR14, Class A2, 3.147%, 2/10/47   1,505,550 
 580,000   DBUBS Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-BRBK, Class B, 144a, 3.648%, 10/10/34(A)(B)   615,507 
 550,000   Eleven Madison Trust Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-11MD, Class C, 144a, 3.673%, 9/10/35(A)(B)   570,091 
 1,189,000   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2012-K23, Class C, 144a, 3.782%, 10/25/45(A)(B)   1,233,665 
 595,000   GS Mortgage Securities Corp. II, Ser 2017-SLP, Class B, 144a, 3.772%, 10/10/32   603,311 
 1,750,000   GS Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2017-FARM, Class B, 144a, 3.659%, 1/10/43(A)(B)   1,869,125 
 3,000,000   Hudson Yards Mortgage Trust, Ser 2016-10HY, Class A, 144a, 2.835%, 8/10/38   3,221,824 
 528,000   JP Morgan Chase Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2016-NINE, Class B, 144a, 2.949%, 9/6/38(A)(B)   555,567 
 1,200,000   JP Morgan Chase Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2018-MINN, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.020%), 2.020%, 11/15/35(A)   1,151,375 
 575,000   Morgan Stanley Bank of America Merrill Lynch Trust, Ser 2012-C5, Class B, 4.443%, 8/15/45(A)(B)   599,428 
 860,831   Wells Fargo Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2018-BXI, Class C, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.156%), 1.309%, 12/15/36(A)   854,255 
     Total Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities  $15,703,421 
           
     Sovereign Government Obligations — 3.7%     
 200,000   Abu Dhabi Government International Bond, 144a, 3.875%, 4/16/50   244,000 
 200,000   Angolan Government International Bond, 9.375%, 5/8/48   155,944 
 200,000   Angolan Government International Bond, 144a, 8.000%, 11/26/29   157,894 
 275,000   Angolan Government International Bond, 144a, 8.250%, 5/9/28   218,488 
 242,500   Argentine Republic Government International Bond, 0.125%, 7/9/35(A)(B)   91,180 
 12,043   Argentine Republic Government International Bond, 1.000%, 7/9/29   5,492 
 521,000   Colombia Government International Bond, 5.000%, 6/15/45   606,965 
 250,000   Colombia Government International Bond, 6.125%, 1/18/41   320,625 
 200,000   Costa Rica Government International Bond, 144a, 4.375%, 4/30/25   187,100 
 200,000   Costa Rica Government International Bond, 144a, 5.625%, 4/30/43   164,800 
 200,000   Dominican Republic International Bond, 144a, 4.875%, 9/23/32   198,900 
 200,000   Dominican Republic International Bond, 144a, 5.875%, 4/18/24   211,600 
 150,000   Dominican Republic International Bond, 144a, 5.950%, 1/25/27   160,950 
 100,000   Dominican Republic International Bond, 144a, 6.850%, 1/27/45   105,300 
 85,050   Ecuador Government International Bond, 144a, 0.500%, 7/31/30(A)(B)   57,410 
 222,885   Ecuador Government International Bond, 144a, 0.500%, 7/31/35(A)(B)   123,146 
 102,150   Ecuador Government International Bond, 144a, 0.500%, 7/31/40(A)(B)   50,947 
 26,958   Ecuador Government International Bond, 144a, 6.610%, 7/31/30#   12,503 
 400,000   Egypt Government International Bond, 144a, 5.750%, 5/29/24   408,842 
 200,000   Egypt Government International Bond, 144a, 7.500%, 1/31/27   209,706 
 200,000   Egypt Government International Bond, 144a, 8.150%, 11/20/59   186,000 
 400,000   Egypt Government International Bond, 144a, 8.500%, 1/31/47   386,425 
 100,000   El Salvador Government International Bond, 144a, 5.875%, 1/30/25   87,200 
 200,000   El Salvador Government International Bond, 144a, 6.375%, 1/18/27   171,700 
 200,000   Ghana Government International Bond, 144a, 8.950%, 3/26/51   172,693 
 200,000   Government of Sharjah Finance Department, 144a, 4.000%, 7/28/50   204,564 
 200,000   Guatemala Government Bond, 144a, 6.125%, 6/1/50   238,500 
 200,000   Israel Government International Bond, 4.500%, 4/3/20   274,000 
 200,000   Ivory Coast Government International Bond, 144a, 6.375%, 3/3/28   199,654 
 150,000   Jamaica Government International Bond, 8.000%, 3/15/39   194,325 
 200,000   Kenya Government International Bond, 144a, 7.250%, 2/28/28   196,774 
 200,000   Lebanese Republic Government International Bond MTN, 6.650%, 2/26/30   30,688 
 200,000   Mexico Government International Bond, 4.125%, 1/21/26   222,502 
 490,000   Mexico Government International Bond, 4.500%, 1/31/50   518,175 
 200,000   Mexico Government International Bond, 4.750%, 4/27/32   225,700 
 200,000   Mongolia Government International Bond, 144a, 5.625%, 5/1/23   205,254 
 200,000   Nigeria Government International Bond, 5.625%, 6/27/22   201,200 
 400,000   Nigeria Government International Bond, 144a, 7.875%, 2/16/32   381,128 
 250,000   Oman Government International Bond, 144a, 4.125%, 1/17/23   245,000 

  

49

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Sovereign Government Obligations — 3.7% (Continued)     
$200,000   Oman Government International Bond, 144a, 5.375%, 3/8/27  $183,787 
 300,000   Pakistan Government International Bond, 144a, 7.875%, 3/31/36   298,056 
 200,000   Panama Government International Bond, 4.500%, 4/1/56   250,500 
 200,000   Paraguay Government International Bond, 144a, 4.625%, 1/25/23   211,502 
 200,000   Paraguay Government International Bond, 144a, 5.400%, 3/30/50   242,500 
 300,000   Perusahaan Penerbit SBSN Indonesia III, 144a, 4.350%, 9/10/24   335,088 
 300,000   Province of Santa Fe (Argentina), 144a, 7.000%, 3/23/23   236,250 
 500,000   Republic of Azerbaijan International Bond, 144a, 4.750%, 3/18/24   523,720 
 200,000   Republic of Belarus International Bond, 144a, 6.875%, 2/28/23   193,524 
 300,000   Republic of South Africa Government International Bond, 4.850%, 9/27/27   295,668 
 200,000   Republic of South Africa Government International Bond, 5.750%, 9/30/49   169,336 
 375,000   Sri Lanka Government International Bond, 144a, 6.125%, 6/3/25   260,625 
 200,000   Sri Lanka Government International Bond, 144a, 7.550%, 3/28/30   135,000 
 350,000   Turkey Government International Bond, 4.875%, 4/16/43   260,306 
 400,000   Turkey Government International Bond, 5.750%, 5/11/47   316,280 
 200,000   Ukraine Government International Bond, 7.750%, 9/1/26   198,750 
 400,000   Ukraine Government International Bond, 144a, 7.375%, 9/25/32   375,080 
 375,000   Ukraine Government International Bond, 144a, 7.750%, 9/1/21   383,932 
 200,000   Uruguay Government International Bond, 4.375%, 1/23/31   237,752 
     Total Sovereign Government Obligations  $13,140,930 
           
     Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 2.7%     
 3,780,967   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 3331, Class PE, 6.000%, 6/15/37   4,455,687 
 1,016,056   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 3859, Class JB, 5.000%, 5/15/41   1,145,709 
 175,090   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2003-32, Class BZ, 6.000%, 11/25/32   205,254 
 520,279   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2012-47, Class AI, 3.000%, 5/25/22(C)   9,392 
 52,448   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2015-51, Class KC, 3.000%, 6/25/45   55,853 
 656,859   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2017-90, Class KA, 3.000%, 11/25/47   706,470 
 76,224   FNMA Trust, Ser 2004-W15, Class 2AF, (1M LIBOR +0.250%), 0.398%, 8/25/44(A)   75,794 
 1,575,363   GNMA, Ser 2010-169, Class AW, 4.500%, 12/20/40   1,754,064 
 7,622,308   GNMA, Ser 2012-147, Class IO, 0.558%, 4/16/54(A)(B)(C)   224,749 
 3,233,822   GNMA, Ser 2016-113, Class IO, 1.157%, 2/16/58(A)(B)(C)   240,447 
 15,585,224   GNMA, Ser 2016-140, Class IO, 0.895%, 5/16/58(A)(B)(C)   897,883 
     Total Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations  $9,771,302 

 

       Market 
Shares      Value 
     Short-Term Investment Fund — 4.0%     
 14,459,317   Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω  $14,459,317 
     Total Investment Securities — 100.3%     
     (Cost $342,185,720)  $359,561,632 
           
     Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (0.3)%   (962,858)
     Net Assets — 100.0%  $358,598,774 

 

(A)Variable rate security - Rate reflected is the rate in effect as of September 30, 2020.
(B)Certain variable rate securities are not based on a published reference rate and spread but are determined by the issuer or agent and are based on current market conditions. These securities do not indicate a reference rate and spread in their description.

(C)Interest only security - This type of security represents the right to receive the monthly interest payments on an underlying pool of mortgages. Payments of principal on the pool reduce the value of the “interest only” holding.
#Zero coupon bond - Rate shown reflects effective yield to maturity at time of purchase.
Open-End Fund.
Represents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

CLO - Collateralized Loan Obligation

FHLMC - Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation

FNMA - Federal National Mortgage Association

GNMA - Government National Mortgage Association

LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate

LLC - Limited Liability Company

LP - Limited Partnership

MTN - Medium Term Note

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

REMIC - Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $147,501,293 or 41.0% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

50

  

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Assets:                    
Corporate Bonds  $   $167,648,107   $   $167,648,107 
U.S. Treasury Obligations       49,162,948        49,162,948 
Asset-Backed Securities       43,443,978        43,443,978 
Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations       25,232,876        25,232,876 
U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations       20,998,753        20,998,753 
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities       15,703,421        15,703,421 
Sovereign Government Obligations       13,140,930        13,140,930 
Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations       9,771,302        9,771,302 
Short-Term Investment Fund   14,459,317            14,459,317 
Total Assets  $14,459,317   $345,102,315   $   $359,561,632 
                     
Liabilities:                    
Other Financial Instruments*                    
Futures Interest Rate Contracts  $(7,671)  $   $   $(7,671)
Total  $14,451,646   $345,102,315   $   $359,553,961 

 

*Other Financial Instruments are derivative instruments not reflected in total investments. Amounts shown represent unrealized depreciation on futures contracts and is included in Payable for variation margin for futures contracts on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

 

Futures Contracts

 

The Fund had the following futures contracts, brokered by Wells Fargo, open at September 30, 2020:

 

      Number of       Unrealized 
Description  Expiration Date  Contracts   Notional Value   Depreciation 
Long Futures:                  
Ultra Long U.S. Treasury Bond Futures  12/21/2020   27   $5,996,609   $(7,671)

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

51

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
         
Common Stocks — 99.7%          
           
Japan — 30.3%          
           
Communication Services — 7.2%          
Capcom Co. Ltd.   3,500   $195,330 
CyberAgent, Inc.   5,000    308,758 
KDDI Corp.   10,900    274,152 
Nexon Co. Ltd.   18,500    461,460 
Nippon Telegraph &Telephone Corp.   17,900    365,459 
NTT DOCOMO, Inc.   20,200    742,272 
Z Holdings Corp.   48,400    323,284 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 8.3%          
ABC-Mart, Inc.   3,100    161,405 
Asics Corp.   7,800    109,056 
Goldwin, Inc.   4,800    381,559 
K’s Holdings Corp.   39,700    537,458 
Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp.   23,400    544,946 
Shimamura Co. Ltd.   4,200    408,003 
Skylark Holdings Co. Ltd.†   25,400    362,907 
Sushiro Global Holdings Ltd.   6,300    160,236 
Yamada Holdings Co. Ltd.   47,300    235,882 
ZOZO, Inc.   6,200    173,009 
           
Consumer Staples — 8.7%          
Ain Holdings, Inc.   8,300    581,490 
Ezaki Glico Co. Ltd.   6,600    295,131 
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.   3,600    347,853 
Lawson, Inc.   9,500    452,985 
Lion Corp.   9,800    201,185 
Sundrug Co. Ltd.   4,300    162,088 
Tsuruha Holdings, Inc.   600    85,060 
Welcia Holdings Co. Ltd.   12,000    526,241 
Yamazaki Baking Co. Ltd.   32,300    563,021 
           
Financials — 0.1%          
Japan Post Insurance Co. Ltd.   3,100    48,810 
           
Health Care — 1.8%          
Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.   9,000    403,879 
Nihon Kohden Corp.   8,100    266,421 
           
Industrials — 1.9%          
Hoshizaki Corp.   2,300    183,532 
MonotaRO Co. Ltd.   8,000    397,368 
SG Holdings Co. Ltd.   2,500    130,084 
           
Information Technology —1.0%          
Anritsu Corp.†   7,200    164,075 
NET One Systems Co. Ltd.   4,300    195,370 
           
Utilities — 1.3%          
Toho Gas Co. Ltd.   9,700    479,964 
Total Japan        11,229,733 
           
United Kingdom — 8.4%          
Communication Services — 0.5%          
Pearson PLC   24,861    176,354 
           
Consumer Discretionary —1.9%          
Games Workshop Group PLC   1,250    164,001 
Ocado Group PLC*   15,459    546,774 
           
Consumer Staples — 1.1%          
J Sainsbury PLC   92,118    226,807 
Unilever NV   3,258    197,850 
           
Financials — 2.1%          
Hiscox Ltd.*   40,715    469,809 
IG Group Holdings PLC   28,949    295,660 
           
Health Care — 1.1%          
ConvaTec Group PLC, 144a   181,507    418,138 
           
Industrials — 1.3%        
International Consolidated Airlines Group SAY†   275,705    336,725 
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA*   114,325    139,628 
           
Utilities — 0.4%          
Centrica PLC   254,822    131,852 
Total United Kingdom        3,103,598 
           
Hong Kong — 7.4%          
Communication Services — 1.2%          
PCCW Ltd.   735,000    439,694 
           
Consumer Staples — 1.2%          
Vitasoy International Holdings Ltd.†   114,000    444,541 
           
Financials — 0.1%          
Hang Seng Bank Ltd.   3,000    44,444 
           
Industrials — 2.5%          
Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.   13,800    548,572 
Jardine Strategic Holdings Ltd.   19,100    378,692 
           
Information Technology — 1.0%          
ASM Pacific Technology Ltd.   34,500    353,182 
           
Real Estate — 1.4%          
Link REIT   62,200    509,691 
Pacific Century Premium Developments Ltd.*   79,380    20,932 
Total Hong Kong        2,739,748 
           
Denmark — 6.5%          
Consumer Discretionary — 0.9%          
Pandora A/S   4,686    338,038 
           
Consumer Staples — 0.7%          
Royal Unibrew A/S   2,614    269,428 
           
Health Care — 4.2%          
Ambu A/S - Class B   12,177    342,897 
Ascendis Pharma A/S ADR*   2,451    378,238 
Coloplast A/S - Class B   3,389    537,119 
Novo Nordisk A/S - Class B   4,367    302,566 
           
Industrials — 0.7%          
ISS A/S*   19,126    251,731 
Total Denmark        2,420,017 
           
Australia — 6.4%          
Consumer Discretionary — 1.4%          
Domino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd.   8,090    462,563 
IDP Education Ltd.   4,327    59,567 
           
Consumer Staples — 0.5%          
Treasury Wine Estates Ltd.   26,838    172,441 
           
Health Care — 1.6%          
Cochlear Ltd.   2,075    296,452 
CSL Ltd.   1,444    298,282 
           
Materials — 2.9%          
Evolution Mining Ltd.   95,083    397,203 
Newcrest Mining Ltd.   7,215    163,607 
Northern Star Resources Ltd.   32,296    320,023 
Saracen Mineral Holdings Ltd.*   58,082    218,346 
Total Australia        2,388,484 
           
Netherlands — 4.5%          
Consumer Discretionary — 0.5%          
Just Eat Takeaway, 144a*   1,529    171,143 
           
Consumer Staples — 1.2%          
Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV   15,461    456,995 
           
Energy —1.8%          
Koninklijke Vopak NV   9,563    538,856 

 

52

 

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund (Continued)

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
Common Stocks — 99.7% (Continued)          
           
Netherlands — (Continued)          
           
Energy — (Continued)          
SBM Offshore NV   8,451   $134,807 
           
Industrials —1.0%          
Signify NV, 144a*   10,284    380,775 
Total Netherlands        1,682,576 
           
Finland — 3.9%          
Communication Services —1.4%          
Elisa Oyj   8,764    515,246 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 0.7%          
Nokian Renkaat Oyj   8,790    248,476 
           
Energy — 0.4%          
Neste Oyj   3,009    158,453 
           
Health Care — 1.4%          
Orion Oyj - Class B   11,888    538,605 
Total Finland        1,460,780 
           
France — 3.6%          
Communication Services — 0.6%          
Publicis Groupe SA   6,683    215,393 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 0.4%          
SEB SA   891    144,940 
           
Consumer Staples — 0.7%          
Carrefour SA †   16,700    266,851 
           
Health Care — 1.4%          
BioMerieux   3,342    523,124 
           
Real Estate — 0.5%          
Covivio REIT   2,499    175,477 
Total France        1,325,785 
           
Germany — 3.2%          
Consumer Discretionary —1.4%          
Delivery Hero SE, 144a*   690    79,170 
HelloFresh SE*   7,864    438,695 
           
Real Estate —1.8%          
Deutsche Wohnen SE   10,035    501,542 
Vonovia SE   2,686    184,133 
Total Germany        1,203,540 
           
Belgium — 3.0%          
Communication Services — 0.6%          
Proximus SADP   12,723    232,334 
           
Consumer Staples — 1.5%          
Colruyt SA   8,499    551,643 
           
Materials — 0.9%          
Umicore SA   7,442    309,546 
Total Belgium        1,093,523 
           
Israel — 2.9%          
Financials — 1.0%          
Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM   81,628    359,356 
           
Health Care — 0.5%          
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.*   21,784    197,038 
           
Information Technology —1.4%          
Nice Ltd.*   2,340    530,536 
Total Israel        1,086,930 
           
Italy —2.3%          
Communication Services — 0.9%          
Telecom Italia SpA/Milano   614,735    246,388 
Telecom Italia SpA/Milano   198,949    80,330 
           
Health Care —1.4%          
DiaSorin SpA   2,653    533,762 
Total Italy        860,480 
           
Luxembourg — 2.2%          
Communication Services — 1.0%          
SES SA   50,822    359,789 
           
Health Care — 1.2%          
Eurofins Scientific SE*   592    468,963 
Total Luxembourg        828,752 
           
Sweden — 2.2%          
Consumer Discretionary — 0.6%          
Evolution Gaming Group AB, 144a   3,274    216,324 
           
Consumer Staples — 1.4%          
ICA Gruppen AB†   10,672    542,157 
           
Health Care — 0.2%          
Elekta AB - Class B   4,800    60,319 
Total Sweden        818,800 
           
Switzerland — 2.2%          
Consumer Staples —1.1%          
Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Spruengli AG   49    413,608 
           
Real Estate — 1.1%          
PSP Swiss Property AG   3,183    384,509 
Total Switzerland        798,117 
           
United States — 2.1%          
Health Care — 1.4%          
QIAGEN NV*   10,135    526,407 
           
Materials — 0.7%          
James Hardie Industries PLC   10,220    244,992 
Total United States        771,399 
           
China — 2.0%          
Consumer Staples — 1.3%          
Sun Art Retail Group Ltd.   422,000    468,528 
           
Health Care — 0.7%          
Microport Scientific Corp.   69,000    275,918 
Total China        744,446 
           
Norway —1.7%          
Consumer Staples — 1.7%          
Mowi ASA   27,241    484,669 
Orkla ASA   15,060    151,993 
Total Norway        636,662 
           
New Zealand —1.7%          
Communication Services — 0.8%          
Spark New Zealand Ltd.   86,949    271,307 
           
Health Care — 0.9%          
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp. Ltd.   15,482    341,696 
Total New Zealand        613,003 
           
Ireland — 1.6%          
Consumer Staples — 1.2%          
Kerry Group PLC - Class A   3,515    451,267 
           
Health Care — 0.4%          
Amarin Corp. PLC ADR*   35,600    149,876 
Total Ireland        601,143 

 

53

 

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund (Continued)

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
         
Common Stocks — 99.7% (Continued)          
           
Spain — 1.3%          
           
Consumer Staples — 0.4%          
Viscofan SA   1,978   $131,957 
           
Utilities — 0.9%          
Red Electrica Corp. SA   18,160    340,597 
Total Spain        472,554 
           
Egypt — 0.2%          
Materials — 0.2%          
Centamin PLC   25,032    65,351 
           
Jordan — 0.1%          
Health Care — 0.1%          
Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC   1,368    45,789 
           
Armenia — 0.0%          
Health Care — 0.0%          
NMC Health PLC(A)*   15,156    1,975 
Total Common Stocks       $36,993,185 
           
Short-Term Investment Funds — 4.4%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional
Shares, 0.02%∞Ω
   18,463    18,463 
Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional
Class, 0.02%**∞Ω
   1,614,322    1,614,322 
Total Short-Term Investment Funds       $1,632,785 
           
Total Investment Securities—104.1%          
(Cost $35,229,619)       $38,625,970 
           
Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (4.1%)        (1,507,077)
           
Net Assets —100.0%       $37,118,893 

 

(A)Level 3 - For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

*Non-income producing security.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan as of September 30, 2020 was $1,553,294.
Open-End Fund.
Represents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

ADR - American Depositary Receipt

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $1,265,550 or 3.4% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:

 

Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
                 
Common Stocks                    
Japan  $526,241   $10,703,492   $   $11,229,733 
United Kingdom   295,660    2,807,938        3,103,598 
Hong Kong       2,739,748        2,739,748 
Denmark   378,238    2,041,779        2,420,017 
Australia       2,388,484        2,388,484 
Netherlands   919,631    762,945        1,682,576 
Finland       1,460,780        1,460,780 
France       1,325,785        1,325,785 
Germany   438,695    764,845        1,203,540 
Belgium   783,977    309,546        1,093,523 
Israel       1,086,930        1,086,930 
Italy       860,480        860,480 
Luxembourg       828,752        828,752 
Sweden       818,800        818,800 
Switzerland       798,117        798,117 
United States   526,407    244,992        771,399 
China       744,446        744,446 
Norway       636,662        636,662 
New Zealand       613,003        613,003 
Ireland   601,143            601,143 
Spain   131,957    340,597        472,554 
Egypt       65,351        65,351 
Jordan   45,789            45,789 
Armenia           1,975    1,975 
Short-Term Investment Funds   1,632,785            1,632,785 
Total  $6,280,523   $32,343,472   $1,975   $38,625,970 

 

Measurements Using Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)

 

   Common 
Assets  Stocks 
Beginning balance, September 30, 2019  $ 
Transfer into Level 3   3,193 
Purchases & Sales    
Net realized gain (loss)    
Change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)   (1,218)
Ending balance, September 30, 2020  $1,975 
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation for Investments in Securities still held at September 30, 2020  $(1,218)

 

       Valuation  Unobservable 
Common Stocks  Fair value   Technique  Input 
        Discounted   50% 
NMC Health PLC  $1,975   Market Value   Discount Rate 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

54

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
         
Common Stocks — 98.8%          
           
Consumer Staples — 21.6%          
Boston Beer Co., Inc.(The) - Class A*   100   $88,336 
Campbell Soup Co.   18,289    884,639 
Church & Dwight Co., Inc.   1,743    163,337 
Clorox Co. (The)   3,314    696,503 
Conagra Brands, Inc.   19,909    710,950 
General Mills, Inc.   10,552    650,847 
Hormel Foods Corp.   1,743    85,215 
JM Smucker Co. (The)   7,791    900,016 
Kellogg Co.   4,766    307,836 
Keurig Dr Pepper, Inc.   14,588    402,629 
Kraft Heinz Co. (The)   16,629    498,039 
Kroger Co. (The)   25,409    861,619 
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.   5,705    378,070 
         6,628,036 
           
Health Care —19.3%          
ABIOMED, Inc.*   2,715    752,218 
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*   1,284    186,950 
Biogen, Inc.*   2,391    678,279 
DENTSPLY SIRONA, Inc.   2,677    117,065 
DexCom, Inc.*   1,210    498,798 
Gilead Sciences, Inc.   7,731    488,522 
Immunomedics, Inc.*   4,300    365,629 
Insulet Corp.*   969    229,256 
Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC*   3,294    469,691 
Moderna, Inc.*   7,415    524,611 
Mylan N.V.*   14,255    211,402 
Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc.*   1,973    189,724 
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.*   266    148,902 
Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc.*   1,922    269,906 
Seattle Genetics, Inc.*   630    123,285 
Teladoc Health, Inc.*   3,055    669,778 
         5,924,016 
           
Consumer Discretionary —15.0%          
Aramark   4,767    126,087 
AutoZone, Inc.*   188    221,396 
Carnival Corp.   4,906    74,473 
Chegg, Inc.*   7,442    531,657 
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.*   485    603,199 
Dollar Tree, Inc.*   5,193    474,329 
Domino’s Pizza, Inc.   2,254    958,581 
Expedia Group, Inc.   1,122    102,876 
Las Vegas Sands Corp.   855    39,894 
Marriott International, Inc. - Class A   3,218    297,922 
NVR, Inc.*   31    126,577 
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.   963    62,335 
Target Corp.   862    135,696 
Ulta Beauty, Inc.*   369    82,649 
Yum China Holdings, Inc. (China)   14,933    790,702 
         4,628,373 
           
Information Technology — 10.2%          
Atlassian Corp. PLC - Class A*   410    74,534 
Citrix Systems, Inc.   989    136,195 
DocuSign, Inc.*   3,395    730,740 
Fastly, Inc. - Class A*   1,582    148,202 
NortonLifeLock, Inc.   31,018    646,415 
RingCentral, Inc. - Class A*   378    103,803 
Slack Technologies, Inc. - Class A*   5,385    144,641 
Twilio, Inc. - Class A*   218    53,866 
Zoom Video Communications, Inc. - Class A*   1,287    605,032 
Zscaler, Inc.*   3,492    491,289 
         3,134,717 
           
Communication Services — 8.3%          
Activision Blizzard, Inc.   1,142    92,445 
Discovery, Inc. - Class C*   5,400    105,840 
Fox Corp. - Class A   4,940    137,480 
Match Group, Inc.*   1,403    155,242 
Netflix, Inc.*   213    106,506 
Roku, Inc.*   3,242    612,090 
Snap, Inc. - Class A*   20,627    538,571 
Spotify Technology SA*   2,115    513,036 
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.*   206    34,035 
Verizon Communications, Inc.   4,314    256,640 
         2,551,885 
           
Real Estate — 7.4%          
AGNC Investment Corp. REIT   28,203    392,304 
Annaly Capital Management, Inc. REIT   68,892    490,511 
Extra Space Storage, Inc. REIT   7,214    771,826 
Public Storage REIT   2,583    575,286 
Simon Property Group, Inc. REIT   636    41,136 
         2,271,063 
           
Materials — 5.2%          
Newmont Corp.   13,348    846,931 
Royal Gold, Inc.   6,010    722,222 
Vulcan Materials Co.   312    42,288 
         1,611,441 
           
Utilities — 4.2%          
Consolidated Edison, Inc.   8,603    669,313 
Eversource Energy   2,860    238,953 
PG&E Corp.*   39,838    374,079 
         1,282,345 
           
Financials — 2.9%          
Cboe Global Markets, Inc.   4,344    381,143 
MarketAxess Holdings, Inc.   1,080    520,117 
         901,260 
           
Industrials — 2.5%          
CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc.   2,028    207,241 
General Electric Co.   12,879    80,236 
IAA, Inc.*   5,354    278,783 
Nikola Corp.*   8,298    169,943 
Watsco, Inc.   164    38,194 
         774,397 
           
Energy — 2.2%          
Cabot Oil & Gas Corp.   25,303    439,260 
Diamondback Energy, Inc.   7,814    235,358 
         674,618 
Total Common Stocks       $30,382,151 
           
Short-Term Investment Fund — 1.3%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   387,751   $387,751 
           
Total Investment Securities —100.1%          
(Cost $26,551,506)       $30,769,902 
           
Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (0.1%)        (25,358)
           
Net Assets —100.0%       $30,744,544 

 

55

 

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund (Continued)

 

*Non-income producing security.
Open-End Fund.
Represents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:

 

Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Assets:                    
                     
Common Stocks  $30,382,151   $   $   $30,382,151 
Short-Term Investment Fund   387,751            387,751 
Total Assets  $30,769,902   $   $   $30,769,902 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

56

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund – September 30, 2020

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 81.7%     
           
     Communication Services —15.6%     
$335,000   Altice Financing SA (Luxembourg), 144a, 5.000%, 1/15/28  $325,369 
 650,000   Altice France SA (France), 144a, 7.375%, 5/1/26   681,135 
 222,000   ANGI Group LLC, 144a, 3.875%, 8/15/28   219,780 
 351,000   Avaya, Inc., 144a, 6.125%, 9/15/28   357,880 
 246,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 4.250%, 2/1/31   254,970 
 634,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 4.500%, 8/15/30   665,729 
 460,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp., 144a, 5.125%, 5/1/27   484,021 
 214,000   CenturyLink, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 2/15/27   217,405 
 565,000   CenturyLink, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 12/15/26   580,475 
 195,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 3/1/24   200,376 
 310,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 6.000%, 3/1/26(A)   323,175 
 236,000   Consolidated Communications, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 10/1/28   240,720 
 430,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 4.625%, 12/1/30   433,225 
 575,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a,5.750%, 1/15/30   610,937 
 744,000   Cumulus Media New Holdings, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 7/1/26   688,200 
 133,000   Digicel Group Ltd. (Jamaica), 144a, 8.250%, 9/30/20   1 
 250,000   DKT Finance ApS (Denmark), 7.000%, 6/17/23   295,286 
 372,000   Frontier Communications Corp., 144a, 8.500%, 4/1/26   374,976 
 266,000   Hughes Satellite Systems Corp., 5.250%, 8/1/26   282,801 
 650,000   Level 3 Financing, Inc., 5.375%, 1/15/24   653,416 
 128,000   Netflix, Inc., 4.875%, 4/15/28   143,040 
 116,000   Netflix, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 6/15/30   132,240 
 428,000   Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 11/1/28   435,939 
 105,000   Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 7/15/27   110,290 
 165,000   QualityTech LP /QTS Finance Corp., 144a, 3.875%, 10/1/28   166,089 
 400,000   Sinclair Television Group, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 2/15/27   373,000 
 574,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 4.125%, 7/1/30   584,762 
 20,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 8/1/27   20,850 
 240,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 7/1/29   257,400 
 703,000   Sprint Corp., 7.625%, 2/15/25   822,510 
 491,000   TEGNA, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 3/15/28   480,100 
 200,000   Telenet Finance Luxembourg Notes Sarl (Belgium), 144a, 5.500%, 3/1/28   210,000 
 313,000   Telesat Canada /Telesat LLC (Canada), 144a, 6.500%, 10/15/27   315,254 
 9,000   T-Mobile USA, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 4/15/40   10,550 
 430,000   Townsquare Media, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 4/1/23(A)   393,987 
 366,000   ViaSat, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 9/15/25   358,680 
 170,000   ViaSat, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 7/15/28   170,247 
 132,000   Virgin Media Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 5.000%, 7/15/30   131,340 
 131,000   Virgin Media Secured Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 4.500%, 8/15/30   134,595 
 130,000   Virgin Media Vendor Financing Notes IV DAC (Ireland), 144a, 5.000%, 7/15/28   129,675 
 425,000   Zayo Group LLC / Zayo Capital, Inc., 6.375%, 5/15/25   363,800 
         13,634,225 
           
     Energy — 13.7%     
 401,000   Antero Resources Corp., 5.125%, 12/1/22   326,815 
 147,000   Apache Corp., 4.875%, 11/15/27   138,915 
 402,000   Apache Corp., 5.100%, 9/1/40   360,041 
 619,000   Archrock Partners LP / Archrock Partners Finance Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 4/1/28   583,407 
 355,000   Ascent Resources Utica Holdings LLC / ARU Finance Corp., 144a, 7.000%, 11/1/26   271,575 
 483,000   Blue Racer Midstream LLC / Blue Racer Finance Corp., 144a, 6.125%, 11/15/22(A)   471,191 
 385,000   Cheniere Energy Partners LP, 4.500%, 10/1/29   394,921 
 481,000   Cheniere Energy Partners LP, 5.625%, 10/1/26   500,240 
 23,000   Cheniere Energy, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 10/15/28   23,604 
 346,000   Citgo Holding, Inc., 144a, 9.250%, 8/1/24   329,565 
 760,000   CITGO Petroleum Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 8/15/22   753,681 
 314,000   CrownRock LP / CrownRock Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 10/15/25   295,945 
 185,000   eG Global Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 6.750%, 2/7/25   189,394 
 135,455   eG Global Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, 8.500%, 10/30/25   142,566 
 355,000   Enviva Partners LP / Enviva Partners Finance Corp., 144a, 6.500%, 1/15/26   374,081 
 44,000   EQM Midstream Partners LP, 144a, 6.000%, 7/1/25   45,375 
 153,000   EQM Midstream Partners LP, 144a, 6.500%, 7/1/27   162,183 
 252,000   EQT Corp., 7.875%, 2/1/25   279,329 
 18,000   EQT Corp., 8.750%, 2/1/30   21,240 
 796,000   Exterran Energy Solutions LP / EES Finance Corp., 8.125%, 5/1/25(A)   679,585 
 1,119,000   Extraction Oil &Gas, Inc., 144a, 7.375%, 5/15/24#   279,750 
 946,000   FTS International, Inc., 6.250%, 5/1/22   321,640 
 744,000   Great Western Petroleum LLC / Great Western Finance Corp., 144a, 9.000%, 9/30/21   433,380 
 400,000   Hess Midstream Operations LP, 144a, 5.625%, 2/15/26   407,492 
 101,000   Hilcorp Energy I LP / Hilcorp Finance Co., 144a, 5.750%, 10/1/25   91,405 
 370,000   Hilcorp Energy I LP / Hilcorp Finance Co., 144a, 6.250%, 11/1/28   336,700 
 526,000   Laredo Petroleum, Inc., 9.500%, 1/15/25   313,454 
 621,000   NGL Energy Partners LP / NGL Energy Finance Corp., 6.125%, 3/1/25   369,495 
 117,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 2.700%, 2/15/23   107,055 
 69,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 2.900%, 8/15/24   58,542 
 217,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 3.125%, 2/15/22   205,100 
 738,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 3.200%, 8/15/26   585,326 
 58,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 3.400%, 4/15/26   46,255 
 58,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 3.500%, 8/15/29   44,440 
 80,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 4.500%, 7/15/44   57,250 
 235,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 6.450%, 9/15/36   200,338 
 216,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 6.625%, 9/1/30   199,260 
 85,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 8.000%, 7/15/25   85,530 
 622,000   Summit Midstream Holdings LLC / Summit Midstream Finance Corp., 5.500%, 8/15/22   435,400 
 50,000   TerraForm Power Operating LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 1/15/30   52,875 
 653,000   Vine Oil &Gas LP / Vine Oil &Gas Finance Corp., 144a, 9.750%, 4/15/23   444,040 
 65,000   Western Gas Partners LP, 3.950%, 6/1/25   61,087 
 115,000   Western Midstream Operating LP, (3M LIBOR +1.850%), 2.116%, 1/13/23(B)   106,950 
 364,000   Western Midstream Operating LP, 4.100%, 2/1/25   346,710 
         11,933,127 

 

57

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 81.7% (Continued)     
           
     Industrials —12.8%     
$211,000   Ardagh Packaging Finance PLC / Ardagh Holdings USA, Inc., 144a, 4.125%, 8/15/26  $213,901 
 343,000   Ardagh Packaging Finance PLC / Ardagh Holdings USA, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 4/30/25   358,435 
 200,000   Berry Global, Inc., 144a, 4.500%, 2/15/26   202,000 
 379,000   Berry Global, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 7/15/26(A)   397,950 
 171,000   Boise Cascade Co., 144a, 4.875%, 7/1/30   183,825 
 355,000   Bombardier, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 6.000%, 10/15/22   329,262 
 464,000   Bombardier, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.500%, 12/1/24   356,118 
 125,000   BWX Technologies, Inc., 144a, 4.125%, 6/30/28   127,813 
 175,000   BWX Technologies, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 7/15/26   181,781 
 470,000   Cargo Aircraft Management, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 2/1/28   474,629 
 223,000   Clark Equipment Co. (Korea), 144a, 5.875%, 6/1/25   231,084 
 368,000   Clean Harbors, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 7/15/27   381,800 
 439,000   Crown Americas LLC / Crown Americas Capital Corp. V, 4.250%, 9/30/26   454,365 
 31,000   Crown Americas LLC / Crown Americas Capital Corp. VI, 4.750%, 2/1/26   32,163 
 57,000   Ford Motor Co., 8.500%, 4/21/23   62,130 
 75,000   Ford Motor Co., 9.000%, 4/22/25   85,988 
 90,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, (3M LIBOR +0.880%), 1.146%, 10/12/21(B)   86,465 
 185,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 2.979%, 8/3/22   182,225 
 9,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 3.087%, 1/9/23   8,819 
 57,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 3.096%, 5/4/23   55,660 
 240,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 3.470%, 4/5/21   239,400 
 11,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 3.810%, 1/9/24   10,890 
 307,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 3.813%, 10/12/21   307,768 
 227,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.063%, 11/1/24   226,716 
 97,000   GFL Environmental, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.125%, 12/15/26   100,162 
 272,000   GFL Environmental, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 6/1/26   286,742 
 18,000   GFL Environmental, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 8.500%, 5/1/27   19,530 
 794,000   Hillman Group, Inc. (The), 144a, 6.375%, 7/15/22   772,165 
 446,000   Masonite International Corp., 144a, 5.375%, 2/1/28   475,630 
 240,000   Mauser Packaging Solutions Holding Co., 144a, 7.250%, 4/15/25   225,900 
 67,000   Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 5/13/27   72,569 
 208,000   PowerTeam Services LLC, 144a, 9.033%, 12/4/25   219,180 
 77,000   Sensata Technologies, Inc., 144a, 3.750%, 2/15/31   76,519 
 604,000   Sensata Technologies, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 2/15/30   634,200 
 773,000   Signature Aviation US Holdings, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 3/1/28(A)   718,890 
 346,000   Summit Materials LLC / Summit Materials Finance Corp., 144a, 5.250%, 1/15/29   360,272 
 714,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 3/15/26   745,627 
 129,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 8.000%, 12/15/25   140,288 
 295,000   Trident TPI Holdings, Inc., 144a, 9.250%, 8/1/24   313,157 
 633,000   Tutor Perini Corp., 144a, 6.875%, 5/1/25†   582,360 
 94,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 5/1/25   100,450 
 107,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 8/15/24   113,334 
         11,148,162 
           
     Consumer Discretionary — 11.2%     
 444,000   Allison Transmission, Inc., 144a,4.750%, 10/1/27   456,765 
 382,000   American Airlines Group, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 6/1/22   259,760 
 457,000   Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., 144a, 4.500%, 3/1/28   459,856 
 298,000   Ashton Woods USA LLC / Ashton Woods Finance Co., 144a, 6.625%, 1/15/28   299,490 
 329,000   Cedar Fair LP / Canada’s Wonderland Co. / Magnum Management Corp., 5.375%, 6/1/24   314,813 
 389,000   Century Communities, Inc., 5.875%, 7/15/25   404,365 
 179,000   Century Communities, Inc., 6.750%, 6/1/27   188,845 
 139,000   Clarios Global LP, 144a, 6.750%, 5/15/25   146,297 
 404,000   Clarios Global LP / Clarios US Finance Co., 144a, 6.250%, 5/15/26   423,614 
 147,000   Dana, Inc., 5.375%, 11/15/27   150,675 
 126,000   Dana, Inc., 5.625%, 6/15/28   130,174 
 403,000   Enterprise Development Authority (The), 144a, 12.000%, 7/15/24   449,345 
 256,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.125%, 8/17/27   248,960 
 55,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 5.125%, 6/16/25   56,719 
 329,000   Hanesbrands, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 5/15/24   342,091 
 470,000   IRB Holding Corp., 144a, 6.750%, 2/15/26   470,000 
 76,000   IRB Holding Corp., 144a, 7.000%, 6/15/25   81,035 
 250,000   Jaguar Land Rover Automotive PLC (United Kingdom), 3.875%, 3/1/23   290,845 
 335,000   Kronos Acquisition Holdings, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 9.000%, 8/15/23   339,606 
 300,000   L Brands, Inc., 6.750%, 7/1/36   294,000 
 208,000   L Brands, Inc., 6.875%, 11/1/35   204,943 
 92,000   L Brands, Inc., 7.500%, 6/15/29   96,140 
 17,000   L Brands, Inc., 144a, 6.875%, 7/1/25   18,360 
 4,000   L Brands, Inc., 144a, 9.375%, 7/1/25   4,590 
 124,000   Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 10/15/27   116,133 
 217,000   Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 11/1/24   209,948 
 204,000   Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 3/15/26   196,860 
 45,000   Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 5/15/27   48,566 
 300,000   PetSmart, Inc., 144a, 5.875%, 6/1/25   307,080 
 165,000   PetSmart, Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 3/15/23   166,444 
 35,000   PetSmart, Inc., 144a, 8.875%, 6/1/25   36,311 
 362,000   Sabre GLBL, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 11/15/23   353,855 
 66,000   Sabre GLBL, Inc., 144a, 7.375%, 9/1/25   66,660 
 67,000   Sabre GLBL, Inc., 144a, 9.250%, 4/15/25   73,738 
 277,000   Scientific Games International, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 10/15/25   278,385 
 541,000   Six Flags Entertainment Corp., 144a, 4.875%, 7/31/24   508,902 
 115,000   Six Flags Theme Parks, Inc., 144a, 7.000%, 7/1/25   122,331 
 270,000   Specialty Building Products Holdings LLC / SBP Finance Corp., 144a, 6.375%, 9/30/26   274,725 
 288,895   Spirit Loyalty Cayman Ltd. / Spirit IP Cayman Ltd., 144a, 8.000%, 9/20/25   306,090 
 352,000   SRS Distribution, Inc., 144a, 8.250%, 7/1/26   375,760 
 280,000   Station Casinos LLC, 144a, 4.500%, 2/15/28   257,600 
         9,830,676 
           
     Health Care — 6.5%     
 408,000   Acadia Healthcare Co., Inc., 5.625%, 2/15/23   410,550 
 862,000   Air Methods Corp., 144a, 8.000%, 5/15/25   676,670 
 100,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 1/30/28   97,125 
 100,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 1/30/30   98,500 
 50,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 6.125%, 4/15/25   51,188 
 370,000   Centene Corp., 3.000%, 10/15/30   377,474 
 180,000   Centene Corp., 4.750%, 5/15/22   182,250 

 

58

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 81.7% (Continued)     
           
     Health Care — (Continued)     
$131,000   Centene Corp., 4.750%, 1/15/25  $134,642 
 174,000   Emergent BioSolutions, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 8/15/28   174,684 
 330,000   Global Medical Response, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 10/1/25   327,558 
 245,000   HCA, Inc., 3.500%, 9/1/30   249,626 
 244,000   HCA, Inc., 5.625%, 9/1/28   279,124 
 325,000   HCA, Inc., 7.690%, 6/15/25   381,875 
 110,000   Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 9/15/27   113,845 
 222,000   Hill-Rom Holdings, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 2/15/25   228,105 
 200,000   Molina Healthcare, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 6/15/28   204,100 
 445,000   Molina Healthcare, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 6/15/25   453,900 
 119,000   Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. / Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics SA, 144a, 7.250%, 2/1/28   123,760 
 140,000   Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. / Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics SA, 144a, 7.375%, 6/1/25   142,100 
 494,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 4.625%, 6/15/28   501,114 
 448,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 6.125%, 10/1/28   435,680 
         5,643,870 
           
     Materials — 5.0%     
 422,100   Boart Longyear Management Pty Ltd. (14.500% PIK), 10.000%, 12/31/22(C)   350,343 
 127,000   Constellium SE, 144a, 5.625%, 6/15/28   129,629 
 213,000   Constellium SE, 144a, 5.750%, 5/15/24   216,728 
 10,000   Constellium SE, 144a, 6.625%, 3/1/25   10,231 
 459,000   First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (Zambia), 144a, 6.500%, 3/1/24   440,066 
 129,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 4.375%, 8/1/28   133,380 
 138,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 4.625%, 8/1/30   145,100 
 642,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 5.400%, 11/14/34(A)   710,212 
 63,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 5.450%, 3/15/43(A)   69,853 
 533,000   Kraton Polymers LLC / Kraton Polymers Capital Corp., 144a, 7.000%, 4/15/25   543,660 
 246,000   Novelis Corp., 144a, 4.750%, 1/30/30   241,626 
 200,000   Novelis Corp., 144a, 5.875%, 9/30/26   205,500 
 80,000   OCI NV (Netherlands), 144a, 5.250%, 11/1/24   82,536 
 240,000   OCI NV (Netherlands), 144a, 6.625%, 4/15/23   248,160 
 349,000   Tronox Finance PLC, 144a, 5.750%, 10/1/25   343,765 
 132,000   Tronox, Inc., 144a, 6.500%, 5/1/25   137,610 
 267,000   Venator Finance Sarl /Venator Materials LLC, 144a, 5.750%, 7/15/25   229,620 
 167,000   Venator Finance Sarl /Venator Materials LLC, 144a, 9.500%, 7/1/25   177,020 
         4,415,039 
           
     Real Estate — 4.7%     
 703,000   Brookfield Property REIT, Inc. / BPR Cumulus LLC / BPR Nimbus LLC /GGSI Sellco LL, 144a, 5.750%, 5/15/26   554,013 
 74,000   ESH Hospitality, Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.625%, 10/1/27   72,614 
 365,000   HAT Holdings I LLC / HAT Holdings II LLC REIT, 144a, 3.750%, 9/15/30   365,912 
 541,000   HAT Holdings I LLC / HAT Holdings II LLC REIT, 144a, 6.000%, 4/15/25   576,327 
 390,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.875%, 9/15/29   396,825 
 531,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 5.250%, 3/15/28   552,904 
 105,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 5.250%, 7/15/30   109,463 
 594,000   Ladder Capital Finance Holdings LLLP / Ladder Capital Finance Corp. REIT, 144a, 4.250%, 2/1/27   513,810 
 427,000   MGM Growth Properties Operating Partnership LP / MGP Finance Co.-Issuer, Inc., 4.500%, 9/1/26   433,198 
 144,000   New Residential Investment Corp., REIT, 144a, 6.250%, 10/15/25   141,909 
 110,000   VICI Properties LP / VICI Note Co., Inc. REIT, 144a, 3.750%, 2/15/27   108,161 
 201,000   VICI Properties LP / VICI Note Co., Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.125%, 8/15/30   197,734 
 46,000   VICI Properties LP / VICI Note Co., Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.625%, 12/1/29   46,805 
         4,069,675 
           
     Consumer Staples — 4.6%     
 323,000   American Builders & Contractors Supply Co., Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 1/15/28   328,249 
 226,000   Chobani LLC / Chobani Finance Corp., Inc., 144a, 7.500%, 4/15/25   233,632 
 392,000   Clearwater Seafoods, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 6.875%, 5/1/25   401,937 
 484,000   Core & Main LP, 144a, 6.125%, 8/15/25   490,256 
 443,000   Cott Holdings, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.500%, 4/1/25   454,075 
 292,000   Dole Food Co., Inc., 144a, 7.250%, 6/15/25   290,540 
 374,000   GEMS MENASA Cayman Ltd. / GEMS Education Delaware LLC (United Arab Emirates), 144a, 7.125%, 7/31/26   370,260 
 325,000   H&E Equipment Services, Inc., 5.625%, 9/1/25   338,812 
 21,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 6/15/25   21,647 
 363,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Food Co. / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a,5.500%, 1/15/30   395,115 
 604,000   Korn Ferry, 144a, 4.625%, 12/15/27   610,040 
 164,000   Team Health Holdings, Inc., 144a, 6.375%, 2/1/25   112,340 
         4,046,903 
           
     Information Technology — 2.7%     
 215,000   BY Crown Parent LLC / BY Bond Finance, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 1/31/26   218,897 
 225,000   Change Healthcare Holdings LLC / Change Healthcare Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 3/1/25   228,218 
 266,000   Diebold Nixdorf, Inc., 144a, 9.375%, 7/15/25   280,630 
 105,000   Entegris, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 4/15/28   107,888 
 346,000   Nuance Communications, Inc., 5.625%, 12/15/26(A)   365,030 
 476,000   Open Text Holdings, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 4.125%, 2/15/30   489,537 
 490,000   Science Applications International Corp., 144a, 4.875%, 4/1/28   497,492 
 132,000   Tempo Acquisition LLC / Tempo Acquisition Finance Corp., 144a, 5.750%, 6/1/25   138,270 
         2,325,962 
           
     Financials — 2.5%     
 541,000   Acrisure LLC / Acrisure Finance, Inc., 144a, 8.125%, 2/15/24   566,697 
 173,000   Alliance Data Systems Corp., 144a, 4.750%, 12/15/24   162,153 
 360,000   Alliance Data Systems Corp., 144a, 7.000%, 1/15/26   358,236 
 183,000   HUB International Ltd., 144a, 7.000%, 5/1/26   189,634 
 379,000   LPL Holdings, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 11/15/27   382,790 
 172,000   Nationstar Mortgage Holdings, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 8/15/28   171,785 
 326,000   NFP Corp., 144a, 6.875%, 8/15/28   330,034 
         2,161,329 
           
     Utilities — 2.4%     
 789,000   Calpine Corp., 144a, 4.500%, 2/15/28   808,046 
 63,000   Calpine Corp., 144a, 5.000%, 2/1/31   64,216 
 292,000   NRG Energy, Inc., 6.625%, 1/15/27   308,790 

 

59

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 81.7% (Continued)     
           
     Utilities — (Continued)     
$180,000   Pacific Gas and Electric Co., 3.950%, 12/1/47  $166,829 
 106,000   Pacific Gas and Electric Co., 4.300%, 3/15/45   104,007 
 91,000   Pacific Gas and Electric Co., 4.750%, 2/15/44   93,751 
 543,000   Vistra Operations Co. LLC, 144a, 4.300%, 7/15/29(A)   592,696 
         2,138,335 
     Total Corporate Bonds  $71,347,303 
           
     Asset-Backed Securities — 9.9%     
 250,000   AMMC CLO 22 Ltd., Ser 2018-22X, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 4/25/31   158,585 
 340,000   Atrium XV, Ser 15A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 1/23/48(B)(D)   228,176 
 250,000   Bain Capital Credit CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-4A, Class D, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +4.250%), 4.506%, 1/23/33(B)   243,878 
 134,615   CBAM Ltd., Ser 2017-3A, Class E1, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +6.500%), 6.773%, 10/17/29(B)   119,401 
 250,000   Dryden 45 Senior Loan Fund, Ser 2016-45A, Class ER, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +5.850%), 6.125%, 10/15/30(B)   219,669 
 250,000   Dryden 57 Clo Ltd., Ser 2018-57A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +5.200%), 5.480%, 5/15/31(B)   214,125 
 500,000   Dryden 80 CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-80A, Class D1, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +4.100%), 4.373%, 1/17/33(B)   501,396 
 300,000   Eaton Vance CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-1A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 10/15/30(B)(D)   214,843 
 250,000   Fillmore Park CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-1A, Class D, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +2.900%), 3.175%, 7/15/30(B)   236,850 
 500,000   Fillmore Park CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-1A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +5.400%), 5.675%, 7/15/30(B)   443,774 
 250,000   Gilbert Park CLO Ltd., Ser 2017-1A, Class D, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +2.950%), 3.225%, 10/15/30(B)   241,250 
 300,000   Madison Park Funding XII Ltd., Ser 2014-12A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 7/20/26(B)(D)   34,073 
 500,000   Madison Park Funding XXVIII Ltd., Ser 2018-28A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 7/15/30(B)(D)   367,114 
 250,000   Madison Park Funding XXXI Ltd., Ser 2018-31A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 1/23/48(B)(D)   197,317 
 540,000   Madison Park Funding XXXVII Ltd., Ser 2019-37A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 7/15/49(B)(D)   517,433 
 250,000   Mariner CLO 7 Ltd., Ser 2019-1A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +6.890%), 7.158%, 4/30/32(B)   241,078 
 500,000   Oaktree CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-1A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 10/20/30(B)(D)   305,693 
 250,000   Oaktree CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-2A, Class D, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +6.770%), 7.045%, 4/15/31(B)   191,499 
 500,000   Oaktree CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-3A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +6.770%), 7.042%, 7/20/31(B)   414,275 
 350,000   Oaktree CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-4A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +7.230%), 7.502%, 10/20/32(B)   333,689 
 250,000   Octagon Loan Funding Ltd., Ser 2014-1A, Class DRR, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +2.900%), 3.170%, 11/18/31(B)   226,600 
 500,000   OHA Credit Funding 3 Ltd., Ser 2019-3A, Class E2, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +5.500%), 5.772%, 7/20/32(B)   462,627 
 350,000   OHA Loan Funding Ltd., Ser 2016-1A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 1/20/33(B)(D)   254,797 
 500,000   OZLM XXI, Ser 2017-21A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 1/20/31(B)(D)   281,051 
 500,000   Steele Creek CLO Ltd., Ser 2019-2A, Class E, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +7.700%), 7.975%, 7/15/32(B)   456,552 
 924,999   Stewart Park CLO Ltd., Ser 2015-1X, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 1/15/30(B)(D)   210,487 
 250,000   TCI-Flatiron CLO Ltd., Ser 2017-1A, Class D, (Cayman Islands), 144a, (3M LIBOR +2.750%), 3.030%, 11/18/30(B)   228,893 
 500,000   THL Credit Wind River CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-2A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 7/15/30(B)(D)   343,718 
 250,000   Venture XVIII CLO Ltd., Ser 2014-18A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 10/15/29(B)(D)   41,603 
 500,000   Voya CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-1A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 4/19/31(B)(D)   331,430 
 250,000   Wellfleet CLO Ltd., Ser 2018-3A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a, 1/20/32(B)(D)   170,228 
 280,000   Wellfleet CLO Ltd., Ser 2020-1A, Class SUB, (Cayman Islands), 144a,4/15/33(B)(D)   226,564 
     Total Asset-Backed Securities  $8,658,668 
           
     Bank Loans(E) — 5.8%     
           
     Consumer Discretionary — 2.6%     
 383,750   BWay Holding Co., Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 3.250%), 3.523%, 4/3/24   359,528 
 253,211   Caesars Resort Collection LLC,Term Loan (LIBOR + 4.500%), 4.772%, 7/21/25   244,700 
 392,183   eResearch Technology Inc., First Lien Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 4.500%), 5.500%, 2/4/27   390,140 
 298,013   IRB Holding Corp.,Term B Loan (LIBOR + 2.750%), 3.750%, 2/5/25(F)   284,063 
 327,339   Merrill Communications LLC, First Lien Term Loan B (LIBOR + 5.000%), 6.195%, 10/5/26   318,953 
 209,059   MI Windows and Doors LLC, Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 5.500%), 6.500%, 11/6/26(F)   209,059 
 254,157   Mileage Plus Holdings LLC, Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 5.250%), 6.250%, 6/20/27   258,112 
 198,000   Panther BF Aggregator 2 LP, First Lien Initial Dollar Term Loan (LIBOR + 3.500%), 3.647%, 4/30/26   192,616 
         2,257,171 
           
     Energy — 1.1%     
 347,059   Medallion Midland Acquisition LLC, Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 3.250%), 4.250%, 10/30/24(F)   326,062 
 309,406   Traverse Midstream Partners LLC, Advance (LIBOR + 4.000%), 5.000%, 9/27/24(F)   283,494 
 536,844   Woodford Express LLC, Initial Term Loan (LIBOR + 5.000%), 6.000%, 1/27/25(F)   355,122 
         964,678 
           
     Health Care — 0.9%     
 188,626   Jaguar Holding Company II, 2018 Term Loan (LIBOR + 2.500%), 3.500%, 8/18/22(F)   187,768 

 

60

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
     Bank Loans(E) — 5.8% (Continued)     
     Health Care — (Continued)     
$333,295   Sotera Health Holdings LLC, First Lien Initial Term Loan (LIBOR +4.500%), 5.500%, 12/11/26(F)  $331,629 
 346,975   Team Health Holdings, Inc., Initial Term Loan (LIBOR +2.750%), 3.750%, 2/6/24(F)   290,109 
         809,506 
     Information Technology — 0.6%     
 575,348   AI Aqua Merger Sub, Inc., 2018 Tranche B-1 Term Loan (LIBOR +3.250%), 4.250%, 12/13/23(F)   560,964 
     Communication Services — 0.3%     
 349,715   Hoya Midco LLC, First Lien Initial Term Loan (LIBOR +3.500%), 4.500%, 6/30/24(F)   299,006 
     Financials — 0.3%     
 214,131   Asurion LLC, Second Lien Replacement B-2 Term Loan (LIBOR +6.500%), 6.647%, 8/4/25   214,176 
     Total Bank Loans  $5,105,501 
           
 Shares         
     Common Stocks — 0.5%     
     Utilities — 0.2%     
 6,000   FirstEnergy Corp.   172,260 
     Information Technology — 0.0%     
 8,386   Aquity Holdings, Inc. New Escrow*   16,772 
     Industrials — 0.3%     
 19,996   Tutor Perini Corp.*   222,555 
     Health Care — 0.0%     
 3,069   Envigo RMS Holding Corp. Class B(G)(H)*    
     Total Common Stocks  $411,587 

 

   Number         
   of   Notional     
   Contracts   Amount     
Purchased Options — 0.0%               
Purchased Call Options — 0.0%               
Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, Strike @35.00, Exp 10/20(A)   64   $168,768    10,432 
                
Purchased Put Options — 0.0%               
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Strike @270.00, Exp 12/20(A)   100    3,348,900    29,700 
Total Purchased Put Options             29,700 
Total Purchased Options            $40,132 

 

Shares        
    Short-Term Investment Funds — 3.0%     
2,075,507   Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞&Ω  $2,075,507 
554,625   Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional Class, 0.02%**∞&Ω   554,625 
    Total Short-Term Investment Funds  $2,630,132 
Total Long Positions — 100.9%     
(Cost $89,171,427)  $88,193,323 

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Securities Sold Short — (1.0%)     
     Corporate Bonds — (1.0%)     
     Consumer Discretionary — (0.9%)     
$(300,000)  Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (The),     
     4.875%, 3/15/27  $(284,250)
 (500,000)  Sally Holdings LLC / Sally Capital, Inc.,      
     5.625%, 12/1/25   (506,685)
         (790,935)
           
     Energy — (0.1%)     
 (125,000)  Crestwood Midstream Partners LP / Crestwood      
     Midstream Finance Corp., 6.250%, 4/1/23   (122,201)
     Total Corporate Bonds  $(913,136)
           
Total Securities Sold Short     
(Proceeds $892,626)  $(913,136)

 

   Number         
   of   Notional     
   Contracts   Amount     
                
Written Options — (0.0%)               
Written Call Options — (0.0%)               
Chicago Board Options Exchange               
Volatility Index, Strike @45.00, Exp               
10/20   (64)  $(168,768)   (4,480)
                
Written Put Options — (0.0%)               
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, Strike @250.00,               
Exp 12/20   (100)   (3,348,900)   (15,100)
                
Total Written Options               
(Premiums received $33,010)            $(19,580)
                
Total —99.9%            $87,260,607 
                
Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities — 0.1%             122,680 
Net Assets — 100.0%            $87,383,287 

 

(A)All or a portion of these securities are pledged as collateral for securities sold short. The total value of the securities pledged as collateral as of September 30, 2020 was $3,915,985.
(B)Variable rate security - Rate reflected is the rate in effect as of September 30, 2020.
(C)Represents a payment-in-kind (“PIK”) security, which may pay interest in additional principal amounts.
(D)Security has no stated coupon and is considered an equity position in the collateralized loan obligation (“CLO”). CLO equity investments are entitled to recurring distributions which are generally equal to the excess cash flow generated from the underlying investments after payment of the contractual payments to debt holders and fund expenses.
(E)Bank loans pay interest at rates which adjust periodically unless otherwise indicated. The interest rates shown are the current interest rates as of September 30, 2020.
(F)All or a portion of this position has not settled. Full contract rates do not take effect until settlement date.
(G)Level 3 - For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.
(H)Security is subject to restrictions on resale. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $372 or 0.0% of net assets.
#The issuer is in default of certain debt covenants. Income is not being accrued.
*Non-income producing security.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan as of September 30, 2020 was $525,504.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

61

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

CLO - Collateralized Loan Obligation

ETF - Exchange-Traded Fund

EUR - Euro

GBP - Great Britain Pound

ICE - Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.

LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate

LLC - Limited Liability Company

LP - Limited Partnership

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

SPDR - Standard & Poor’s Depositary Receipt

USD - United States Dollar

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $61,463,213 or 70.3% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Assets:                    
Corporate Bonds  $   $71,347,303   $   $71,347,303 
Asset-Backed Securities       8,658,668        8,658,668 
Bank Loans       5,105,501        5,105,501 
Common Stocks   394,815    16,772        411,587 
Purchased Call Options Equity                    
Contracts   10,432            10,432 
Purchased Put Options Equity                     
Contracts   29,700            29,700 
Short-Term Investment Funds   2,630,132            2,630,132 
Other Financial Instruments***                    
Swap Agreements Credit Contracts       4,860        4,860 
Forward Foreign Currency Contracts       4,780        4,780 
Total Assets  $3,065,079   $85,137,884   $   $88,202,963 
Liabilities:                    
Securities Sold Short                    
Corporate Bonds  $   $(913,136)  $   $(913,136)
Written Call Options Equity Contracts   (4,480)           (4,480)
Written Put Options Equity Contracts   (15,100)           (15,100)
Other Financial Instruments***                    
Swap Agreements Credit Contracts       (38,748)       (38,748)
Total Liabilities  $(19,580)  $(951,884)  $   $(971,464)
Total  $3,045,499   $84,186,000   $   $87,231,499 

 

*** Other Financial Instruments are derivative instruments not reflected in total investments. Amounts shown represent unrealized depreciation of swap agreements.

 

Measurements Using Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)    
   Common 
Assets  Stocks 
Beginning balance, September 30, 2019  $23,397 
Transfer out of Level 3   (23,397)
Purchases & Sales    
Net realized gain (loss)    
Change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation)    
Ending balance, June 30, 2020  $ 
Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation/Depreciation for Investments in Securities still held at June 30, 2020  $ 

 

62

 

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Continued)

 

Centrally Cleared Credit Default Swaps on Credit Indices - Buy Protection(1)            
                          Upfront   Unrealized 
   Termination   Notional   Pay Fixed       Underlying      Premium Paid   Appreciation/ 
Counterparty  Date   Amount(2)   Rate   Clearinghouse   Bond  Value(3)   (Received)   Depreciation 
Wells Fargo   12/20/24   $333,750    5.000%   ICE   Markit CDX North America High Yield Series 33 5Y Index  $(17,290)  $20,496   $(37,786)
Wells Fargo   6/20/25   $500,000    5.000%   ICE   American Axle & Manufacturing Inc. USD SR 5Y D14  $908   $(3,952)  $4,860 
Wells Fargo   6/20/25   $161,000    5.000%   ICE   Markit CDX North America High Yield Series 33 5Y Index  $(8,040)  $(7,078)  $(962)
                                    $33,888 

 

(1)If the Fund is a buyer of protection and a credit event occurs, as defined under the terms of that particular swap agreement, the Fund will either (i) receive from the seller of protection an amount equal to the notional amount of the swap and deliver the referenced obligation or underlying investments comprising the referenced index or (ii) receive a net settlement amount in the form of cash or investments equal to the notional amount of the swap less the recovery value of the referenced obligation or underlying investments comprising the referenced index.
(2)The maximum potential amount the Fund could be required to pay as a seller of credit protection or receive as a buyer of credit protection if a credit event occurs as defined under the terms of that particular swap agreement.
(3)The quoted market prices and resulting values for credit default swap agreements on the underlying bond serve as an indicator of the current status of the payment/performance risk and represent the likelihood of an expected liability (or profit) for the credit derivative had the notional amount of the swap agreement been closed/sold as of the period end. Decreasing market values (sell protection) or increasing market values (buy protection) when compared to the notional amount of the swap, represent a deterioration of the referenced entity’s credit soundness and a greater likelihood or risk of default or other credit event occurring as defined under the terms of the agreement.

 

Forward Foreign Currency Contracts

 

       Contract to    
                      Unrealized 
Counterparty   Expiration Date  Receive  Deliver   Appreciation 
Bank of America   10/21/2020  USD   303,489    EUR    256,000   $3,211 
Bank of America   10/21/2020  USD   297,091    GBP    229,000    1,569 
                         $4,780 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

63

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone High Yield Fund – September 30, 2020

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 99.4%     
     Communication Services — 18.5%     
$483,000   Altice Financing SA (Luxembourg), 144a,      
     5.000%, 1/15/28  $469,114 
 1,068,000   Altice Financing SA (Luxembourg), 144a,      
     7.500%, 5/15/26   1,130,510 
 634,000   Altice France SA (France), 144a, 7.375%, 5/1/26   664,369 
 635,000   Altice France SA (France), 144a, 8.125%, 2/1/27   692,150 
 735,000   Belo Corp., 7.250%, 9/15/27   812,175 
 337,000   C&W Senior Financing DAC (Ireland), 144a,      
     6.875%, 9/15/27   350,059 
 565,000   C&W Senior Financing DAC (Ireland), 144a,      
     7.500%, 10/15/26   591,837 
 588,000   Cablevision Lightpath LLC, 144a, 3.875%, 9/15/27   588,000 
 296,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp.,     
     144a, 4.250%, 2/1/31   306,793 
 211,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp.,      
     144a, 4.500%, 5/1/32   220,231 
 1,333,000   CCO Holdings LLC / CCO Holdings Capital Corp.,      
     144a, 4.750%, 3/1/30   1,411,314 
 25,000   CenturyLink, Inc., 6.750%, 12/1/23   27,406 
 567,000   CenturyLink, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 2/15/27   576,021 
 741,000   CommScope Technologies LLC, 144a,     
     5.000%, 3/15/27   711,360 
 150,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 3/1/24   154,136 
 467,000   CommScope, Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 7/1/28   479,842 
 1,022,000   Connect Finco SARL / Connect US Finco LLC (United     
     Kingdom), 144a, 6.750%, 10/1/26   1,025,219 
 682,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 3.375%, 2/15/31   660,346 
 1,854,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 4.625%, 12/1/30   1,867,905 
 1,267,000   CSC Holdings LLC, 144a, 5.750%, 1/15/30   1,346,187 
 485,000   Diamond Sports Group LLC / Diamond Sports      
     Finance Co., 144a, 5.375%, 8/15/26   343,137 
 1,191,000   Diamond Sports Group LLC / Diamond Sports      
     Finance Co., 144a, 6.625%, 8/15/27   620,064 
 502,000   EW Scripps Co. (The), 144a, 5.125%, 5/15/25   490,705 
 515,000   Front Range BidCo, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 3/1/27   506,876 
 425,000   GCI LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 10/15/28   429,250 
 500,000   Lamar Media Corp., 144a, 4.875%, 1/15/29   520,000 
 444,000   LCPR Senior Secured Financing DAC (Ireland), 144a,      
     6.750%, 10/15/27   463,980 
 906,000   Level 3 Financing, Inc., 144a, 3.625%, 1/15/29   894,675 
 957,000   MDC Partners, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 6.500%, 5/1/24   873,262 
 1,078,000   Meredith Corp., 144a, 6.500%, 7/1/25   1,110,340 
 652,000   Netflix, Inc., 4.875%, 4/15/28   728,610 
 205,000   Netflix, Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 6/15/30   233,700 
 1,013,000   Outfront Media Capital LLC / Outfront Media Capital     
     Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 6/15/25   1,043,390 
 2,894,000   Photo Holdings Merger Sub, Inc., 144a,      
     8.500%, 10/1/26   2,648,010 
 765,000   Sable International Finance Ltd. (Chile), 144a,      
     5.750%, 9/7/27   797,803 
 205,000   Sinclair Television Group, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 2/15/27   191,163 
 356,000   Sinclair Television Group, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 8/1/24   354,220 
 265,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 8/1/27   276,263 
 399,000   Sirius XM Radio, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 7/1/29   427,927 
 2,512,000   Sprint Capital Corp., 6.875%, 11/15/28   3,140,000 
 293,000   Sprint Corp., 7.625%, 3/1/26   354,057 
 721,000   TEGNA, Inc., 5 000% 9/15/29   711,987 
 326,000   TEGNA, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 3/15/28   318,763 
 353,000   Telecom Italia Capital SA (Italy), 6.000%, 9/30/34   409,480 
 865,000   Telecom Italia Capital SA (Italy), 6.375%, 11/15/33   1,029,350 
 263,000   Univision Communications, Inc., 144a,     
     5.125%, 2/15/25   249,193 
 294,000   Virgin Media Finance PLC (United Kingdom), 144a,      
     5.000%, 7/15/30   292,530 
 200,000   Virgin Media Secured Finance PLC (United      
     Kingdom), 144a, 5.500%, 5/15/29   214,690 
 480,000   Ziggo Bond Co. BV (Netherlands), 144a,      
     5.125%, 2/28/30   485,904 
         34,244,303 
           
     Consumer Discretionary — 14.6%     
 122,000   1011778 BC ULC / New Red Finance, Inc. (Canada),      
     144a, 4.375%, 1/15/28   124,416 
 350,000   1011778 BC ULC / New Red Finance, Inc. (Canada),      
     144a, 5.000%, 10/15/25   358,876 
 774,000   Adient US LLC, 144a, 7.000%, 5/15/26   828,942 
 535,000   Ahern Rentals, Inc., 144a, 7.375%, 5/15/23   283,550 
 491,000   American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc., 6.250%, 4/1/25   484,862 
 517,000   AMN Healthcare, Inc., 144a, 5.125%, 10/1/24   529,279 
 505,000   Avis Budget Car Rental LLC / Avis Budget Finance,     
     Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 7/15/27   455,480 
 193,000   Brinker International, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 10/1/24   196,580 
 249,000   Brookfield Residential Properties, Inc. (Canada), 144a,      
     6.375%, 5/15/25   249,000 
 428,000   Brookfield Residential Properties, Inc. /      
     Brookfield Residential US Corp. (Canada), 144a,     
     6.250%, 9/15/27   431,606 
 874,000   Carnival Corp., 144a, 11.500%, 4/1/23   979,444 
 925,000   Churchill Downs, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 1/15/28   929,625 
 254,000   Colt Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 7/1/25   261,938 
 430,000   Colt Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 7/1/25   449,455 
 289,000   Dana, Inc., 5.625%, 6/15/28   298,575 
 317,000   Delta Air Lines, Inc., 3.750%, 10/28/29   270,342 
 325,000   Delta Air Lines, Inc. / SkyMiles IP Ltd., 144a,      
     4.750%, 10/20/28   337,441 
 1,087,000   FirstCash, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 9/1/28   1,107,381 
 109,000   Ford Motor Co., 9.625%, 4/22/30   140,746 
 997,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.125%, 8/17/27   969,582 
 1,298,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.271%, 1/9/27   1,273,468 
 474,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.542%, 8/1/26   472,877 
 672,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 5.125%, 6/16/25   693,000 
 1,589,000   Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC MTN, 4.389%, 1/8/26   1,570,870 
 2,151,000   Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (The), 5.125%, 11/15/23   2,151,000 
 772,000   Group 1 Automotive, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 8/15/28   758,490 
 481,000   Hanesbrands, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 5/15/24   500,139 
 503,000   Herc Holdings, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 7/15/27   520,429 
 477,000   Hilton Domestic Operating Co., Inc., 5.125%, 5/1/26   490,962 
 445,000   International Game Technology PLC (United      
     Kingdom), 144a, 6.250%, 1/15/27   477,262 
 426,000   Lithia Motors, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 1/15/31   426,000 
 477,000   Marriott International, Inc., 4.625%, 6/15/30   510,842 
 510,000   MDC Holdings, Inc., 3.850%, 1/15/30   534,304 
 192,000   Meritor, Inc., 6.250%, 2/15/24   195,840 
 510,000   Meritor, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 6/1/25   532,950 
 705,000   Quad/Graphics, Inc., 7.000%, 5/1/22   620,400 
 1,081,000   Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., 144a, 11.500%, 6/1/25   1,254,020 
 212,000   Sonic Automotive, Inc., 6.125%, 3/15/27   218,890 
 874,000   Speedway Motorsports LLC / Speedway Funding II,      
     Inc., 144a, 4.875%, 11/1/27   838,778 
 1,083,000   Taylor Morrison Communities, Inc. / Taylor Morrison      
     Holdings II, Inc., 144a, 5.625%, 3/1/24   1,153,395 
 228,000   TRI Pointe Group, Inc., 5.700%, 6/15/28   249,660 

 

64

 

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 99.4% (Continued)     
     Consumer Discretionary — (Continued)     
$485,000   Twin River Worldwide Holdings, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 6/1/27  $482,514 
 538,000   United Rentals North America, Inc., 4.000%, 7/15/30   551,450 
 273,000   Vail Resorts, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 5/15/25   289,721 
 317,000   WMG Acquisition Corp., 144a, 3.000%, 2/15/31   308,203 
 404,000   Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc., 144a, 4.375%, 8/15/28   391,880 
         27,154,464 
           
     Energy — 12.4%     
 1,383,000   Apache Corp., 4.875%, 11/15/27   1,306,935 
 1,281,000   Ascent Resources Utica Holdings LLC / ARU Finance Corp., 144a, 7.000%, 11/1/26   979,965 
 1,176,000   Blue Racer Midstream LLC / Blue Racer Finance Corp., 144a, 6.625%, 7/15/26   1,034,880 
 780,000   Cenovus Energy, Inc. (Canada), 5.375%, 7/15/25   750,701 
 438,000   Cheniere Energy Partners LP, 5.250%, 10/1/25   448,512 
 295,000   Continental Resources, Inc., 4.900%, 6/1/44   222,185 
 719,000   CVR Energy, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 2/15/25   625,530 
 725,000   Delek Logistics Partners LP / Delek Logistics Finance Corp., 6.750%, 5/15/25   657,937 
 95,000   Endeavor Energy Resources LP / EER Finance, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 7/15/25   97,613 
 797,000   Genesis Energy LP / Genesis Energy Finance Corp., 5.625%, 6/15/24   679,307 
 717,000   Genesis Energy LP / Genesis Energy Finance Corp., 6.000%, 5/15/23   650,677 
 506,000   Genesis Energy LP / Genesis Energy Finance Corp., 6.250%, 5/15/26   421,351 
 225,000   Global Partners LP / GLP Finance Corp., 7.000%, 8/1/27   229,304 
 298,000   Global Partners LP / GLP Finance Corp., 144a, 6.875%, 1/15/29   300,980 
 417,000   Hilcorp Energy I LP / Hilcorp Finance Co., 144a, 5.000%, 12/1/24   378,427 
 345,000   Hilcorp Energy I LP / Hilcorp Finance Co., 144a, 5.750%, 10/1/25   312,225 
 435,000   Hilcorp Energy I LP / Hilcorp Finance Co., 144a, 6.250%, 11/1/28   395,850 
 491,000   MEG Energy Corp. (Canada), 144a, 6.500%, 1/15/25   481,632 
 735,000   MEG Energy Corp. (Canada), 144a, 7.125%, 2/1/27   659,170 
 1,161,000   Montage Resources Corp., 8.875%, 7/15/23   1,179,866 
 1,193,000   Murphy Oil Corp., 6.375%, 12/1/42   936,505 
 869,000   NGL Energy Partners LP / NGL Energy Finance Corp., 7.500%, 11/1/23   578,971 
 1,072,000   NuStar Logistics LP, 5.625%, 4/28/27   1,058,798 
 531,000   NuStar Logistics LP, 6.000%, 6/1/26   532,498 
 90,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 4.100%, 2/15/47   60,759 
 1,011,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 4.200%, 3/15/48   695,062 
 1,357,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 6.625%, 9/1/30   1,251,832 
 772,000   Occidental Petroleum Corp., 8.500%, 7/15/27   777,952 
 1,053,000   Peabody Energy Corp., 144a, 6.375%, 3/31/25   421,200 
 897,000   Precision Drilling Corp. (Canada), 7.750%, 12/15/23   681,720 
 362,000   Range Resources Corp., 144a, 9.250%, 2/1/26   371,955 
 1,379,000   Shelf Drilling Holdings Ltd. (United Arab Emirates), 144a, 8.250%, 2/15/25   544,705 
 204,000   Southwestern Energy Co., 8.375%, 9/15/28   200,453 
 879,000   Sunoco LP / Sunoco Finance Corp., 6.000%, 4/15/27   903,172 
 1,636,000   Tallgrass Energy Partners LP /Tallgrass Energy Finance Corp., 144a, 5.500%, 9/15/24   1,537,840 
 253,000   Tallgrass Energy Partners LP /Tallgrass Energy Finance Corp., 144a, 5.500%, 1/15/28   227,700 
 2,401,000   Unit Corp., 6.625%, 5/15/21   336,140 
         22,930,309 
           
     Health Care — 10.1%     
 1,246,000   Avon International Operations, Inc. (United Kingdom), 144a, 7.875%, 8/15/22   1,260,684 
 714,000   Bausch Health Americas, Inc., 144a, 8.500%, 1/31/27   784,507 
 878,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 1/30/28   852,757 
 1,449,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 6.125%, 4/15/25   1,483,414 
 1,004,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 2/15/29   1,032,674 
 44,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.875%, 5/15/23   43,780 
 287,000   Bausch Health Cos, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 1/15/28   304,220 
 679,000   DaVita, Inc., 144a, 3.750%, 2/15/31   654,251 
 1,358,000   DaVita, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 6/1/30   1,391,000 
 500,000   Encompass Health Corp., 4.500%, 2/1/28   502,500 
 426,000   Encompass Health Corp., 4.625%, 4/1/31   426,000 
 113,000   Encompass Health Corp., 4.750%, 2/1/30   114,643 
 74,000   Encompass Health Corp., 5.750%, 11/1/24   74,111 
 1,097,000   HCA, Inc., 3.500%, 9/1/30   1,117,711 
 325,000   HCA, Inc., 5.375%, 9/1/26   359,125 
 395,000   HCA, Inc., 5.875%, 2/15/26   442,400 
 228,000   HCA, Inc., 5.875%, 2/1/29   265,620 
 286,000   Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. / HLF Financing, Inc., 144a, 7.875%, 9/1/25   307,093 
 1,059,000   HLF Financing Sarl LLC / Herbalife International, Inc., 144a, 7.250%, 8/15/26   1,088,122 
 683,000   Horizon Therapeutics USA, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 8/1/27   724,834 
 1,174,000   MEDNAX, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 12/1/23   1,188,675 
 948,000   MEDNAX, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 1/15/27   983,512 
 1,179,000   Select Medical Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 8/15/26   1,226,160 
 958,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 6.125%, 10/1/28   931,655 
 238,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 6.250%, 2/1/27   245,666 
 641,000   Tenet Healthcare Corp., 144a, 7.500%, 4/1/25   689,075 
 198,000   Teva Pharmaceutical Finance Netherlands III BV (Israel), 6.750%, 3/1/28   206,910 
         18,701,099 
           
     Consumer Staples — 9.2%     
 216,000   Albertsons Cos, Inc. / Safeway, Inc. / New Albertsons LP / Albertsons LLC, 144a, 3.500%, 2/15/23   219,618 
 1,359,000   Albertsons Cos, Inc. / Safeway, Inc. / New Albertsons LP / Albertsons LLC, 144a, 4.625%, 1/15/27   1,390,515 
 370,000   Albertsons Cos. LLC / Safeway, Inc. / New Albertsons LP / Albertsons LLC, 144a, 7.500%, 3/15/26   405,905 
 98,000   American Builders & Contractors Supply Co., Inc., 144a, 5.875%, 5/15/26   101,675 
 2,155,000   Cardtronics, Inc. / Cardtronics USA, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 5/1/25†   2,155,000 
 1,273,000   Carriage Services, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 6/1/26   1,330,285 
 2,335,000   Cimpress PLC (Ireland), 144a, 7.000%, 6/15/26   2,218,250 
 7,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.875%, 7/15/24   7,141 
 257,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 2/15/28   279,467 
 586,000   JBS USA LUX SA / JBS USA Food Co. / JBS USA Finance, Inc., 144a,5.500%, 1/15/30   637,844 
 943,000   Michaels Stores, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 10/1/27   934,749 
 1,433,000   Performance Food Group, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 6/1/24   1,433,000 
 124,000   Performance Food Group, Inc., 144a, 6.875%, 5/1/25   132,060 

 

65

 

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 99.4% (Continued)     
     Consumer Staples — (Continued)     
$483,000   Post Holdings, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 4/15/30  $496,886 
 1,325,000   QVC, Inc., 4.375%, 9/1/28   1,351,500 
 1,146,000   QVC, Inc., 4.750%, 2/15/27   1,177,171 
 2,018,000   Staples, Inc., 144a, 7.500%, 4/15/26   1,864,955 
 649,000   US Foods, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 4/15/25   687,129 
 309,000   Yum! Brands, Inc., 144a, 4.750%, 1/15/30   333,720 
         17,156,870 
           
     Financials — 9.0%     
 317,000   Ally Financial, Inc., 5.750%, 11/20/25   355,416 
 645,000   Ally Financial, Inc., 8.000%, 11/1/31   858,941 
 175,000   Ally Financial, Inc., 8.000%, 11/1/31   239,597 
 2,012,000   Cooke Omega Investments, Inc. / Alpha VesselCo Holdings Inc. (Canada), 144a, 8.500%, 12/15/22   2,077,390 
 528,000   Credit Acceptance Corp., 6.625%, 3/15/26   545,160 
 1,008,000   Credit Acceptance Corp., 144a, 5.125%, 12/31/24   1,000,974 
 455,000   Fairstone Financial, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.875%, 7/15/24   466,375 
 328,000   goeasy Ltd. (Canada), 144a, 5.375%, 12/1/24   332,100 
 391,000   Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (The)., Ser P, (3M LIBOR +2.874%), 5.000%(A)(B)   373,405 
 615,000   MGIC Investment Corp., 5.250%, 8/15/28   634,326 
 730,000   Navient Corp., 5.500%, 1/25/23   734,639 
 1,462,000   Navient Corp., 5.875%, 10/25/24   1,453,784 
 419,000   PennyMac Financial Services, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 10/15/25   424,237 
 960,000   PRA Group, Inc., 144a, 7.375%, 9/1/25   1,001,165 
 317,000   Prime Security Services Borrower LLC / Prime Finance, Inc., 144a, 3.375%, 8/31/27   304,081 
 1,826,000   Prime Security Services Borrower LLC / Prime Finance, Inc., 144a, 5.750%, 4/15/26   1,952,688 
 525,000   Prime Security Services Borrower LLC / Prime Finance, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 1/15/28   531,562 
 1,017,000   Quicken Loans LLC / Quicken Loans Co.-Issuer, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 3/1/31   1,004,287 
 441,000   Quicken Loans, Inc., 144a, 5.250%, 1/15/28   464,664 
 430,000   Radian Group, Inc.,4.500%, 10/1/24   426,861 
 293,000   Springleaf Finance Corp., 6.125%, 3/15/24   306,918 
 614,000   Springleaf Finance Corp., 6.625%, 1/15/28   681,417 
 172,000   Springleaf Finance Corp., 7.125%, 3/15/26   192,159 
 391,000   Springleaf Finance Corp., 8.875%, 6/1/25   433,032 
         16,795,178 
           
     Industrials — 7.5%     
 416,000   Amsted Industries, Inc., 144a, 4.625%, 5/15/30   429,520 
 591,000   Bombardier, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 6.000%, 10/15/22   548,152 
 953,000   BWX Technologies, Inc., 144a, 4.125%, 6/30/28   974,442 
 483,000   Cascades, Inc./Cascades USA, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.375%, 1/15/28   507,754 
 254,705   Delta Air Lines 2002-1 Class G-1 Pass Through Trust, 6.718%, 1/2/23   245,376 
 537,000   Fortress Transportation & Infrastructure Investors LLC, 144a, 6.750%, 3/15/22   528,945 
 189,000   Howmet Aerospace, Inc., 6.750%, 1/15/28   208,373 
 612,000   JB Poindexter & Co., Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 4/15/26   648,953 
 749,000   Moog, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 12/15/27   765,890 
 307,000   Norbord, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 5.750%, 7/15/27   324,284 
 682,000   Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 144a, 5.875%, 8/15/23   716,100 
 747,000   Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 144a, 6.625%, 5/13/27   809,094 
 808,000   Plastipak Holdings, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 10/15/25   808,000 
 335,000   Reynolds Group Issuer, Inc. / Reynolds Group Issuer LLC / Reynolds Group Issuer Lu, 144a, 4.000%, 10/15/27   337,512 
 634,000   Standard Industries, Inc., 144a, 3.375%, 1/15/31   625,755 
 203,000   Standard Industries, Inc., 144a, 5.000%, 2/15/27   211,120 
 665,000   Summit Materials LLC / Summit Materials Finance Corp., 144a, 5.250%, 1/15/29   692,431 
 768,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 3/15/26   802,019 
 144,000   TransDigm, Inc., 144a, 8.000%, 12/15/25   156,600 
 217,000   Triumph Group, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 9/15/24   184,676 
 1,036,000   Trivium Packaging Finance BV (Netherlands), 144a, 5.500%, 8/15/26   1,072,752 
 700,000   WESCO Distribution, Inc., 144a, 7.250%, 6/15/28   766,972 
 492,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.250%, 5/1/25   525,759 
 982,000   XPO Logistics, Inc., 144a, 6.750%, 8/15/24   1,040,135 
         13,930,614 
           
     Real Estate — 5.4%     
 196,000   Brookfield Property REIT, Inc. / BPR Cumulus LLC / BPR Nimbus LLC /GGSI Sellco LL, 144a, 5.750%, 5/15/26   154,462 
 1,087,000   CoreCivic, Inc. REIT, 4.625%, 5/1/23   1,032,650 
 1,218,000   CoreCivic, Inc. REIT, 5.000%, 10/15/22   1,197,873 
 663,000   Diversified Healthcare Trust REIT, 9.750%, 6/15/25   737,442 
 1,835,000   GEO Group, Inc. (The) REIT, 5.875%, 1/15/22   1,776,610 
 1,027,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.500%, 2/15/31   1,036,654 
 463,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.875%, 9/15/29   471,102 
 968,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 5.250%, 3/15/28   1,007,930 
 1,016,000   Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT, 144a, 5.250%, 7/15/30   1,059,180 
 811,000   Sabra Health Care LP REIT, 5.125%, 8/15/26   876,960 
 168,000   VICI Properties LP / VICI Note Co., Inc. REIT, 144a, 3.750%, 2/15/27   165,191 
 519,000   VICI Properties LP / VICI Note Co., Inc. REIT, 144a, 4.250%, 12/1/26   521,413 
         10,037,467 
           
     Information Technology — 4.8%     
 667,000   Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., 144a, 3.875%, 9/1/28   684,709 
 368,000   Boxer Parent Co., Inc., 144a, 7.125%, 10/2/25   393,046 
 364,000   Camelot Finance SA, 144a, 4.500%, 11/1/26   371,280 
 671,000   CDK Global, Inc., 4.875%, 6/1/27   706,227 
 211,000   j2 Cloud Services LLC / j2 Global Co.-Obligor, Inc., 144a, 6.000%, 7/15/25   219,440 
 693,000   Logan Merger Sub, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 9/1/27   701,004 
 493,000   Microchip Technology, Inc., 144a, 4.250%, 9/1/25   511,517 
 235,000   MTS Systems Corp., 144a, 5.750%, 8/15/27   231,405 
 460,000   NCR Corp., 144a, 5.750%, 9/1/27   480,926 
 92,000   NCR Corp., 144a, 8.125%, 4/15/25   101,683 
 862,000   Open Text Corp. (Canada), 144a, 3.875%, 2/15/28   871,965 
 277,000   Pitney Bowes, Inc., 5.375%, 5/15/22   274,230 
 286,000   PTC, Inc., 144a, 4.000%, 2/15/28   293,958 
 1,016,000   SS&C Technologies, Inc., 144a, 5.500%, 9/30/27   1,079,724 
 1,047,000   Xerox Corp., 4.800%, 3/1/35   999,885 
 955,000   Xerox Holdings Corp., 144a, 5.000%, 8/15/25   943,798 
         8,864,797 
           
     Materials — 4.0%     
 503,000   Alcoa Nederland Holding BV (Netherlands), 144a, 6.125%, 5/15/28   530,036 
 187,000   Arconic Corp., 144a, 6.000%, 5/15/25   199,702 
 273,000   Arconic Corp., 144a, 6.125%, 2/15/28   280,337 
 93,000   Clearwater Paper Corp., 144a, 4.750%, 8/15/28   93,233 
 336,000   Clearwater Paper Corp., 144a, 5.375%, 2/1/25   352,163 

 

66

 

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 99.4% (Continued)     
     Materials — (Continued)     
$770,000   Commercial Metals Co., 5.750%, 4/15/26  $800,800 
 761,000   CVR Partners LP / CVR Nitrogen Finance Corp., 144a, 9.250%, 6/15/23   703,925 
 680,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 5.000%, 9/1/27   710,294 
 895,000   Freeport-McMoRan, Inc., 5.400%, 11/14/34   990,094 
 75,000   Hudbay Minerals, Inc. (Peru), 144a, 6.125%, 4/1/29   74,250 
 544,000   Hudbay Minerals, Inc. (Peru), 144a, 7.625%, 1/15/25   553,520 
 1,073,000   Novelis Corp., 144a, 5.875%, 9/30/26   1,102,507 
 889,000   Nufarm Australia Ltd. / Nufarm Americas, Inc. (Australia), 144a, 5.750%, 4/30/26   906,869 
 145,000   WR Grace & Co., 144a, 4.875%, 6/15/27   149,742 
         7,447,472 
           
     Utilities — 3.9%     
 653,000   Calpine Corp., 144a, 4.500%, 2/15/28   668,764 
 363,000   Calpine Corp., 144a, 5.000%, 2/1/31   370,006 
 389,000   Clearway Energy Operating LLC, 5.000%, 9/15/26   399,697 
 212,000   Clearway Energy Operating LLC, 144a, 4.750%, 3/15/28   218,890 
 2,066,000   PG&E Corp., 5.000%, 7/1/28   2,004,020 
 193,000   PG&E Corp., 5.250%, 7/1/30   186,728 
 1,269,000   Rockpoint Gas Storage Canada Ltd. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 3/31/23   1,176,997 
 409,000   Superior Plus LP / Superior General Partner, Inc. (Canada), 144a, 7.000%, 7/15/26   436,607 
 1,710,000   Talen Energy Supply LLC, 144a, 7.625%, 6/1/28   1,710,000 
         7,171,709 
     Total Corporate Bonds  $184,434,282 
           
 Shares         
           
     Short-Term Investment Funds — 1.9%     
 1,210,612   Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   1,210,612 
 2,229,455   Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional Class, 0.02%**∞Ω   2,229,455 
     Total Short-Term Investment Funds  $3,440,067 
           
     Total Investment Securities — 101.3%     
     (Cost $189,670,103)  $187,874,349 
           
     Liabilities in Excess of     
     Other Assets — (1.3%)   (2,378,284)
     Net Assets — 100.0%  $185,496,065 

 

(A)Variable rate security - Rate reflected is the rate in effect as of September 30, 2020.
(B)Perpetual Bond - A bond or preferred stock with no definite maturity date.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan as of September 30, 2020 was $2,133,450.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

DAC - Designated Activity Company

LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate

LLC - Limited Liability Company

LP - Limited Partnership

MTN - Medium Term Note

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $124,542,305 or 67.1% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Corporate Bonds  $   $184,434,282   $   $184,434,282 
Short-Term Investment Funds   3,440,067            3,440,067 
Total  $3,440,067   $184,434,282   $   $187,874,349 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

67

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund – September 30, 2020

 

Principal         Market  
Amount         Value  
             
        Corporate Bonds — 29.9%        
                 
        Financials — 8.5%        
$ 2,444,000     Aflac, Inc., 3.250%, 3/17/25   $ 2,709,900  
  2,600,000     American Express Co., 2.650%, 12/2/22     2,723,756  
  850,000     American Tower Trust, 144a, 3.070%, 3/15/23     867,461  
  1,592,038     Fishers Lane Associates LLC, 144a, 3.666%, 8/5/30     1,779,140  
  545,000     Fishers Lane Associates LLC, 144a, 5.477%, 8/5/40     701,403  
  691,000     Globe Life, Inc., 4.550%, 9/15/28     825,069  
  1,000,000     KeyBank NA/Cleveland OH, 2.300%, 9/14/22     1,037,371  
  1,950,000     KeyBank NA/Cleveland OH, 3.350%, 6/15/21     1,991,729  
  2,000,000     MassMutual Global Funding II, 144a, 0.850%, 6/9/23     2,021,158  
  2,386,000     National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corp., 3.400%, 11/15/23     2,582,399  
  1,480,000     Nationwide Financial Services, Inc., 144a, 5.375%, 3/25/21     1,512,801  
  708,000     Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., 144a, 9.375%, 8/15/39     1,195,440  
  1,541,000     PNC Bank NA, 2.500%, 1/22/21     1,548,675  
  1,300,000     PNC Bank NA, 2.700%, 10/22/29     1,404,024  
  1,500,000     Progressive Corp.(The), 4.200%, 3/15/48     1,942,534  
  2,040,000     Reliance Standard Life Global Funding II, 144a, 2.750%, 1/21/27     2,130,679  
  1,398,000     Torchmark Corp., 3.800%, 9/15/22     1,484,239  
  792,000     Unum Group, 7.250%, 3/15/28     1,017,217  
  2,000,000     USB Capital IX, (3M LIBOR +1.020%), 3.500%(A)(B)     1,873,020  
  2,000,000     Wachovia Capital Trust III, (3M LIBOR +0.930%), 5.570%(A)(B)     1,998,920  
              33,346,935  
                 
        Industrials — 8.5%        
  2,620,907     American Airlines 2016-3 Class AA Pass Through Trust, 3.000%, 10/15/28     2,448,756  
  5,403     Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co. 2004-1 Pass Through Trust, 4.575%, 1/15/21     5,455  
  81,255     Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co. 2005-3 Pass Through Trust, 4.830%, 1/15/23     82,774  
  554,657     Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co. 2005-4 Pass Through Trust, 4.967%, 4/1/23     578,964  
  221,386     Continental Airlines 2000-2 Class A-1 Pass Through Trust, 7.707%, 4/2/21     219,296  
  1,432,847     Continental Airlines 2007-1 Class A Pass Through Trust, 5.983%, 4/19/22     1,405,231  
  682,603     Continental Airlines 2012-2 Class A Pass Through Trust, 4.000%, 10/29/24     655,205  
  1,559,067     CSX Transportation, Inc., 6.251%, 1/15/23     1,728,162  
  396,156     Delta Air Lines 2007-1 Class B Pass Through Trust, 8.021%, 8/10/22     372,681  
  2,400,000     Delta Air Lines 2019-1 Class AA Pass Through Trust, 3.204%, 4/25/24     2,391,873  
  363,346     Federal Express Corp. 1999 Pass Through Trust, 7.650%, 1/15/23     403,846  
  2,135,000     FedEx Corp., 4.000%, 1/15/24     2,365,511  
  985,000     FedEx Corp. 2020-1 Class AA Pass Through Trust, 1.875%, 2/20/34     999,429  
  2,823,000     GATX Corp., 3.250%, 3/30/25     3,005,955  
  2,000,000     John Deere Capital Corp. MTN, 2.800%, 9/8/27     2,221,643  
  1,180,000     Kansas City Southern, 3.000%, 5/15/23     1,213,518  
  1,475,000     Kansas City Southern, 3.125%, 6/1/26     1,546,676  
  1,941,000     Norfolk Southern Corp., 2.903%, 2/15/23     2,041,286  
  1,855,000     SBA Tower Trust, 144a, 3.168%, 4/11/22     1,877,529  
  698,954     Southwest Airlines Co. 2007-1 Pass Through Trust, 6.150%, 8/1/22     699,941  
  1,325,000     Union Pacific Corp., 3.950%, 9/10/28     1,562,824  
  213,771     Union Pacific Railroad Co. 2003 Pass Through Trust, 4.698%, 1/2/24     221,041  
  623,926     Union Pacific Railroad Co. 2006 Pass Through Trust, 5.866%, 7/2/30     737,904  
  793,603     Union Pacific Railroad Co. 2014-1 Pass Through Trust, 3.227%, 5/14/26     880,440  
  1,600,000     United Rentals North America, Inc., 4.875%, 1/15/28     1,680,000  
  1,631,000     Waste Management, Inc., 2.400%, 5/15/23     1,704,162  
              33,050,102  
                 
        Utilities — 5.9%        
  2,104,000     American Water Capital Corp., 2.950%, 9/1/27     2,327,351  
  1,623,000     California Water Service Co., 5.500%, 12/1/40     2,207,451  
  2,008,000     Commonwealth Edison Co., 5.900%, 3/15/36     2,895,872  
  2,163,000     Dominion Energy South Carolina, Inc., 4.600%, 6/15/43     2,817,868  
  2,080,000     Duke Energy Progress LLC, 6.300%, 4/1/38     3,130,350  
  2,382,000     Entergy Louisiana LLC,4.440%, 1/15/26     2,749,573  
  1,642,000     Georgia Power Co., 4.750%, 9/1/40     2,021,420  
  102,591     Kiowa Power Partners LLC, 144a, 5.737%, 3/30/21     103,179  
  2,000,000     NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, Inc., (3M LIBOR +2.068%), 2.293%, 10/1/66(A)     1,639,500  
  2,926,000     PacifiCorp., 8.050%, 9/1/22     3,291,770  
              23,184,334  
                 
        Health Care — 1.5%        
  2,587,456     CVS Pass-Through Trust, 6.036%, 12/10/28     2,941,731  
  2,605,000     HCA, Inc., 5.250%, 4/15/25     3,007,861  
              5,949,592  
                 
        Consumer Discretionary — 1.3%        
  2,347,000     Ford Motor Credit Co. LLC, 4.375%, 8/6/23     2,382,909  
  990,000     PulteGroup, Inc., 7.875%, 6/15/32     1,361,250  
  1,300,000     Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., 5.250%, 11/15/22     1,161,550  
              4,905,709  
                 
        Energy — 1.2%        
  592,000     Spectra Energy Partners LP, 3.500%, 3/15/25     645,833  
  2,482,000     Tennessee Valley Authority, 4.650%, 6/15/35     3,465,812  
  500,000     Texas Eastern Transmission LP, 7.000%, 7/15/32     676,232  
              4,787,877  
                 
        Real Estate — 1.0%        
  1,800,000     American Tower Corp. REIT, 3.125%, 1/15/27     1,965,519  
  1,750,000     Crown Castle International Corp. REIT, 4.300%, 2/15/29     2,042,688  
              4,008,207  
                 
        Communication Services — 0.8%        
  2,000,000     Verizon Communications, Inc., 5.012%, 4/15/49     2,878,727  
                 
        Consumer Staples — 0.7%        
  1,500,000     Kroger Co. (The), 3.850%, 8/1/23     1,625,690  
  1,000,000     Kroger Co. (The), 4.500%, 1/15/29     1,227,746  
              2,853,436  
                 
        Information Technology — 0.5%        
  1,900,000     Lam Research Corp., 1.900%, 6/15/30     1,971,445  
        Total Corporate Bonds   $ 116,936,364  
                 
        U.S. Government Agency Obligations — 26.4%        
  1,214,000     Canal Barge Co., Inc., 4.500%, 11/12/34     1,410,652  
  2,831,732     Helios Leasing I LLC, 1.734%, 7/24/24     2,897,264  
  1,045,000     Matson Navigation Co., Inc., 5.337%, 9/4/28     1,196,934  
  766,500     Petroleos Mexicanos (Mexico), 2.290%, 2/15/24     791,047  
  2,754,053     Reliance Industries Ltd. (India), 1.870%, 1/15/26     2,847,961  

 

68

 

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal         Market  
Amount         Value  
             
        U.S. Government Agency Obligations — 26.4% (Continued)  
$ 26,980     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2002-20H, Class 1, 5.310%, 8/1/22   $ 27,833  
  12,107     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2003-20D, Class 1, 4.760%, 4/1/23     12,495  
  46,429     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2004-20D, Class 1, 4.770%, 4/1/24     48,433  
  98,868     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2004-20K, Class 1, 4.880%, 11/1/24     104,447  
  90,920     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2005-20H, Class 1, 5.110%, 8/1/25     97,009  
  154,258     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2006-20H, Class 1, 5.700%, 8/1/26     167,480  
  190,301     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2006-20K, Class 1, 5.360%, 11/1/26     205,285  
  340,158     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2006-20L, Class 1, 5.120%, 12/1/26     365,835  
  282,327     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2007-20A, Class 1, 5.320%, 1/1/27     304,036  
  491,391     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2007-20E, Class 1, 5.310%, 5/1/27     533,338  
  243,476     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2007-20F, Class 1, 5.710%, 6/1/27     264,936  
  723,219     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2007-20L, Class 1, 5.290%, 12/1/27     780,353  
  330,639     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2008-20A, Class 1, 5.170%, 1/1/28     361,598  
  384,833     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2008-20K, Class 1, 6.770%, 11/1/28     430,468  
  726,617     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2009-20C, Class 1, 4.660%, 3/1/29     785,990  
  423,292     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2009-20D, Class 1, 4.310%, 4/1/29     459,565  
  517,946     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2009-20E, Class 1, 4.430%, 5/1/29     562,790  
  271,942     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2009-20F, Class 1, 4.950%, 6/1/29     293,007  
  874,400     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2009-20J, Class 1, 3.920%, 10/1/29     929,200  
  1,536,437     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2010-20F, Class 1, 3.880%, 6/1/30     1,669,907  
  2,961,981     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2010-20I, Class 1, 3.210%, 9/1/30     3,116,553  
  265,172     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2012-10C, Class 1, 1.240%, 5/1/22     267,113  
  5,332,927     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2013-20C, Class 1, 2.220%, 3/1/33     5,555,145  
  4,803,497     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2013-20E, Class 1, 2.070%, 5/1/33     4,970,472  
  2,709,245     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2013-20G, Class 1, 3.150%, 7/1/33     2,911,714  
  2,724,956     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2014-20H, Class 1, 2.880%, 8/1/34     2,900,385  
  4,209,432     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2014-20K, Class 1, 2.800%, 11/1/34     4,497,269  
  2,151,544     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2015-20I, Class 1, 2.820%, 9/1/35     2,334,916  
  3,060,246     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2016-20A, Class 1, 2.780%, 1/1/36     3,249,443  
  2,587,934     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-10A, Class 1, 2.845%, 3/10/27     2,759,934  
  2,792,319     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-10B, Class 1, 2.518%, 9/10/27     2,947,346  
  4,204,129     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-20E, Class 1, 2.880%, 5/1/37     4,502,886  
  4,298,493     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-20F, Class 1, 2.810%, 6/1/37     4,604,200  
  4,905,054     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-20K, Class 1, 2.790%, 11/1/37     5,350,959  
  2,792,841     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2017-20L, Class 1, 2.780%, 12/1/37     2,987,518  
  3,683,290     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2018-20C, Class 1, 3.200%, 3/1/38     4,032,580  
  2,230,311     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2018-25D, Class 1, 3.890%, 10/1/43     2,518,484  
  2,476,476     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2019-20A, Class 1, 3.370%, 1/1/39     2,709,743  
  2,604,199     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2019-25B, Class 1, 3.450%, 2/1/44     2,924,483  
  2,987,134     Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2019-25E, Class 1, 3.070%, 5/1/44     3,243,566  
  1,002,309     Tagua Leasing LLC, 1.581%, 11/16/24     1,025,038  
  742,000     Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc., 6.365%, 4/15/28     877,263  
  4,368,554     United States Small Business Administration, Ser 2016-20B, Class 1, 2.270%, 2/1/36     4,657,992  
  5,416,913     United States Small Business Administration, Ser 2016-20F, Class 1, 2.180%, 6/1/36     5,678,269  
  3,860,000     United States Small Business Administration, Ser 2020-25I, Class 1, 1.150%, 9/1/45     3,868,392  
  1,132,000     Vessel Management Services, Inc., 5.125%, 4/16/35     1,358,823  
        Total U.S. Government Agency Obligations   $ 103,398,349  
                 
        Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 17.2%        
  2,100,000     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser K-1511, Class A3, 3.542%, 3/25/34     2,538,297  
  2,500,000     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser K-1513, Class A3, 2.797%, 8/25/34     2,891,902  
  3,447,146     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser KG01, Class A7, 2.875%, 4/25/26     3,790,116  
  3,570,000     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser KG02, Class A2, 2.412%, 8/25/29     3,900,799  
  3,000,000     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser KG03, Class A1, 0.704%, 4/25/29(A)(C)     2,981,911  
  3,324,009     FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser KW03 Class A1, 2.617%, 12/25/26     3,535,572  
  3,105,100     FNMA REMIC, Ser 2019-M6, Class A1, 3.300%, 8/1/28     3,436,138  
  1,500,000     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-K16, Class B, 144a, 4.765%, 11/25/46(A)(C)     1,551,060  
  1,020,037     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2012-K19, Class B, 144a, 4.162%, 5/25/45(A)(C)     1,061,504  
  3,000,000     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2012-K23, Class B, 144a, 3.782%, 10/25/45(A)(C)     3,129,862  
  1,300,000     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-K30, Class B, 144a, 3.667%, 6/25/45(A)(C)     1,375,478  
  1,715,000     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-K40, Class B, 144a, 4.207%, 11/25/47(A)(C)     1,896,369  
  1,578,000     FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-K716, Class B, 144a, 4.081%, 8/25/47(A)(C)     1,603,336  
  1,313,628     FRESB Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-SB9, Class A5, (1M LIBOR +0.700%), 2.502%, 11/25/35(A)     1,313,370  
  902,271     FRESB Mortgage Trust, Ser 2016-SB17, Class A5H, 2.160%, 5/25/36(A)(C)     905,348  
  1,509,757     FRESB Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-SB27, Class A10F, 3.090%, 1/25/27(A)(C)     1,604,565  
  2,741,817     FRESB Mortgage Trust, Ser 2018-SB46, Class A10F, 3.300%, 12/25/27(A)(C)     2,972,267  
  2,024,933     GNMA, Ser 2011-142, Class B, 3.471%, 2/16/44(A)(C)     2,069,666  
  802,882     GNMA, Ser 2012-1, Class C, 3.310%, 11/16/49     818,002  
  2,975,000     GNMA, Ser 2012-46, Class C, 3.176%, 5/16/50(A)(C)     3,127,788  
  777,667     GNMA, Ser 2012-53, Class AC, 2.381%, 12/16/43     795,474  
  1,788,009     GNMA, Ser 2013-121, Class AB, 2.484%, 8/16/44(A)(C)     1,860,873  
  695,107     GNMA, Ser 2013-40, Class AC, 1.584%, 1/16/46     698,889  

 

69

 

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund (Continued)

 

Principal         Market  
Amount         Value  
             
        Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 17.2% (Continued)        
$ 2,540,000     GNMA, Ser 2015-32, Class HG, 3.000%, 9/16/49(A)(C)   $ 2,726,974  
  2,591,056     GNMA, Ser 2015-37, Class AD, 2.600%, 11/16/55     2,703,621  
  3,512,000     GNMA, Ser 2015-73, Class B, 2.700%, 10/16/55(A)(C)     3,742,685  
  2,050,377     GNMA, Ser 2017-46, Class AB, 2.600%, 1/16/52     2,161,539  
  1,553,090     GNMA, Ser 2017-H11, Class FV, (1M LIBOR +0.500%), 0.655%, 5/20/67(A)     1,557,023  
  4,505,640     GNMA, Ser 2020-113, Class AF, 2.000%, 10/16/62     4,467,112  
        Total Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations   $ 67,217,540  
                 
        U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations — 9.7%        
  1,250,496     FHLMC, Pool #W30008, 7.645%, 5/1/25     1,429,456  
  186,024     FNMA, Pool #465711, 4.680%, 8/1/28     219,044  
  99,167     FNMA, Pool #874210, 5.260%, 1/1/25     103,903  
  604,573     FNMA, Pool #888829, 5.888%, 6/1/37(A)     635,390  
  1,210,206     FNMA, Pool #AH8854, 4.500%, 4/1/41     1,362,146  
  1,637,452     FNMA, Pool #AM0157, 2.680%, 2/1/22     1,666,713  
  3,359,000     FNMA, Pool #AN3613, 2.680%, 12/1/26     3,610,513  
  2,886,578     FNMA, Pool #AN5183, 3.250%, 4/1/27     3,265,240  
  3,245,235     FNMA, Pool #AS8650, 3.000%, 1/1/47     3,409,095  
  571,909     FNMA, Pool #AT0924, 2.000%, 3/1/28     592,532  
  1,220,637     FNMA, Pool #BC0153, 4.000%, 1/1/46     1,327,173  
  2,527,141     FNMA, Pool #BE3695, 3.500%, 6/1/47     2,674,446  
  3,105,399     FNMA REMICS, Pool #BP1932, 3.000%, 4/1/50     3,252,229  
  3,245,589     FNMA REMICS, Pool #FM3442, 3.000%, 6/1/50     3,398,438  
  3,625,379     FNMA REMICS, Pool #MA3992, 3.500%, 4/1/50     3,821,694  
  3,095,579     FNMA REMICS, Pool #MA4019, 2.500%, 5/1/50     3,249,665  
  3,923,415     FNMA REMICS, Pool #MA4078, 2.500%, 7/1/50     4,118,707  
        Total U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations   $ 38,136,384  
                 
        Municipal Bonds — 7.7%        
        California — 2.4%        
  1,000,000     California Health Facilities Financing Authority Revenue, Txbl Senior No Place Like Home, 2.704%, 6/1/30     1,070,350  
  1,465,000     City of San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Water Revenue, Build America Bonds, 6.950%, 11/1/50     2,565,933  
  1,710,000     East Bay Municipal Utility District Water System Revenue, Build America Bonds Sub, 5.874%, 6/1/40     2,666,899  
  2,040,000     Los Angeles Unified School District, Build America Bonds Ser RY, UTGO, 6.758%, 7/1/34     3,015,385  
              9,318,567  
                 
        Indiana — 0.4%        
  1,200,000     Indianapolis Local Public Improvement Bond Bank, Build America Bonds, Ser B, 6.116%, 1/15/40     1,750,824  
                 
        Louisiana — 0.3%        
  1,245,435     Louisiana State Housing Corp., Revenue, 2.875%, 11/1/38     1,287,792  
                 
        Missouri — 0.1%        
  555,000     Missouri State Housing Development Commission, Special Homeownership Loan Program, Ser C, 2.650%, 11/1/40     556,005  
                 
        Nevada — 0.9%        
  3,488,905     Nevada Housing Division, Revenue, Txbl Ref Senior Ser A, 1.900%, 11/1/44     3,541,029  
                 
        New York — 0.9%        
1,400,000     Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Cons One Hundred Sixty-Eight, 4.926%, 10/1/51     1,887,158  
  1,135,000     Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Txbl Cons Ser 181, 4.960%, 8/1/46     1,515,532  
              3,402,690  
                 
        Ohio — 0.3%        
  1,290,000     Ohio State HFA, Revenue, Ser 1, 2.650%, 11/1/41     1,339,755  
                 
        Texas — 1.6%        
  1,770,000     Dallas Area Rapid Transit, Revenue, Build America Bonds, Ser B, 5.999%, 12/1/44     2,727,570  
  2,640,000     Texas State Transportation Commission Highway Authority, Build America Bonds, Ser B, 5.178%, 4/1/30     3,387,569  
              6,115,139  
                 
        Virginia — 0.2%        
  723,265     Virginia State Housing Development Authority, Pass Thru Ser B, 2.750%, 4/25/42     743,154  
                 
        Washington — 0.6%        
  1,515,000     State of Washington, Build America Bonds, Ser D, UTGO, 5.481%, 8/1/39     2,222,187  
        Total Municipal Bonds   $ 30,277,142  
                 
        U.S. Treasury Obligations — 3.7%        
  10,429,000     U.S. Treasury Strip, Principal, 0.000%, 5/15/43(D)     7,630,438  
  5,379,000     U.S. Treasury Strip, Principal, 0.000%, 5/15/45(D)     3,758,076  
  4,862,000     U.S. Treasury Strip, Principal, 0.000%, 5/15/48(D)     3,215,554  
        Total U.S. Treasury Obligations   $ 14,604,068  
                 
        Asset-Backed Securities — 1.1%        
  1,098,559     321 Henderson Receivables I LLC, Ser 2012-1A, Class A, 144a, 4.210%, 2/16/65     1,272,654  
  1,015,925     321 Henderson Receivables I LLC, Ser 2012-2A, Class A, 144a, 3.840%, 10/15/59     1,152,484  
  1,320,902     321 Henderson Receivables I LLC, Ser 2015-2A, Class A, 144a, 3.870%, 3/15/58     1,521,161  
  506,902     JCP&L Transition Funding II LLC, Ser 2006-A, Class A4, 5.610%, 6/5/23     514,363  
        Total Asset-Backed Securities   $ 4,460,662  
                 
        Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligation — 0.6%        
  2,209,848     Virginia Housing Development Authority, Ser 2019-A, Class A, 2.950%, 10/25/49   $ 2,276,144  
                 
        Commercial Mortgage-Backed Security — 0.1%        
  334,947     CD Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2006-CD3, Class AJ, 5.688%, 10/15/48   $ 188,337  

 

70

 

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund (Continued)

 

            Market  
  Shares         Value  
               
        Short-Term Investment Fund — 3.5%        
  13,870,213     Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   $ 13,870,213  
                 
        Total Investment Securities — 99.9%        
        (Cost $368,402,313)   $ 391,365,203  
                 
        Other Assets in Excess of        
        Liabilities — 0.1%     435,296  
                 
        Net Assets —100.0%   $ 391,800,499  

 

(A)Variable rate security - Rate reflected is the rate in effect as of September 30, 2020.
(B)Perpetual Bond - A bond or preferred stock with no definite maturity date.
(C)Certain variable rate securities are not based on a published reference rate and spread but are determined by the issuer or agent and are based on current market conditions. These securities do not indicate a reference rate and spread in their description.
(D)Strip Security - Separate trading of Registered Interest and Principal. Holders of a principal strip security are entitled to the portion of the payment representing principal only.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

FHLMC - Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation

FNMA - Federal National Mortgage Association

FREMF - Freddie Mac Multifamily Securitization

FRESB - Freddie Mac Multifamily Securitization Small Balance Loan

GNMA - Government National Mortgage Association

HFA - Housing Finance Authority/Agency

LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate

LLC - Limited Liability Company

LP - Limited Partnership

MTN - Medium Term Note

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

REMIC - Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit

UTGO - Unlimited Tax General Obligation

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30, 2020, these securities were valued at $26,752,698 or 6.8% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:

 

Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Corporate Bonds  $   $116,936,364   $   $116,936,364 
                     
U.S. Government Agency Obligations       103,398,349        103,398,349 
                     
Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations       67,217,540        67,217,540 
                     
U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations       38,136,384        38,136,384 
                     
Municipal Bonds       30,277,142        30,277,142 
                     
U.S. Treasury Obligations       14,604,068        14,604,068 
                     
Asset-Backed Securities       4,460,662        4,460,662 
                     
Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligation       2,276,144        2,276,144 
                     
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Security       188,337        188,337 
                     
Short-Term Investment Fund   13,870,213            13,870,213 
                     
Total  $13,870,213   $377,494,990   $   $391,365,203 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

71

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
           
Common Stocks — 99.0%          
Japan —16.0%          
Communication Services — 5.2%          
KDDI Corp.   26,800   $674,062 
Nintendo Co. Ltd.   1,300    736,699 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 4.6%          
Panasonic Corp.   35,400    301,540 
Sony Corp.   12,600    965,690 
           
Health Care — 1.1%          
Eisai Co. Ltd.   3,100    283,130 
           
Industrials — 2.2%          
Kubota Corp.   19,400    347,594 
Mitsubishi Electric Corp.   19,300    261,886 
           
Information Technology — 2.9%          
Kyocera Corp.   10,700    612,645 
Tokyo Electron Ltd.   700    182,878 
Total Japan        4,366,124 
           
Germany — 14.4%          
Consumer Discretionary — 2.5%          
Continental AG   6,287    681,312 
           
Industrials — 5.2%          
Deutsche Post AG   23,466    1,064,783 
KION Group AG   4,238    361,879 
           
Materials — 2.4%          
HeidelbergCement AG   10,728    655,544 
           
Real Estate — 4.3%          
Vonovia SE   17,048    1,168,691 
Total Germany        3,932,209 
           
France —11.8%          
Communication Services — 0.7%          
Ubisoft Entertainment SA*   2,008    180,977 
           
Financials — 2.3%          
SCOR SE*   23,184    645,488 
           
Industrials — 6.9%          
Cie de Saint-Gobain*   19,531    818,098 
Schneider Electric SE   8,573    1,065,615 
           
Materials — 1.9%          
Air Liquide SA   3,327    527,362 
Total France        3,237,540 
           
Sweden — 9.0%          
Communication Services — 2.3%          
Tele2 AB-Class B†   45,055    635,228 
           
Financials — 4.4%          
Svenska Handelsbanken AB - Class A*   70,092    586,444 
Swedbank AB - Class A*   39,729    621,982 
           
Industrials — 2.3%          
Epiroc AB-Class A   42,480    615,376 
Total Sweden        2,459,030 
           
Switzerland — 8.6%          
Health Care — 6.0%          
Alcon, Inc.*   12,698    719,922 
Roche Holding AG   2,651    908,075 
           
Industrials — 2.6%          
ABB Ltd. ADR   27,912    710,360 
Total Switzerland        2,338,357 
           
United Kingdom — 8.2%          
Consumer Staples — 2.0%          
Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC   5,470    533,354 
         
Financials — 1.7%        
Lloyds Banking Group PLC*   1,398,464    474,753 
           
Health Care — 3.6%          
GlaxoSmithKline PLC ADR   25,964    977,285 
           
Utilities — 0.9%          
Pennon Group PLC   18,603    247,503 
Total United Kingdom        2,232,895 
           
Canada — 6.7%          
Financials — 2.7%          
Intact Financial Corp.   6,884    737,126 
           
Materials — 4.0%          
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.   13,785    1,097,424 
Total Canada        1,834,550 
           
Taiwan — 5.0%          
Information Technology — 5.0%          
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. ADR   16,940    1,373,326 
           
China — 4.7%          
Communication Services — 3.5%          
Tencent Holdings Ltd.   14,300    965,870 
Consumer Discretionary — 1.2%          
Shenzhou International Group Holdings Ltd.   19,200    326,955 
Total China        1,292,825 
           
Italy — 3.8%          
Utilities — 3.8%          
Enel SpA   120,734    1,047,478 
           
South Korea — 3.2%          
Communication Services — 1.8%          
KT Corp.   9,506    186,002 
KT Corp. ADR   32,156    309,019 
           
Information Technology — 1.4%          
Samsung SDI Co. Ltd.   999    369,049 
Total South Korea        864,070 
           
Denmark — 3.0%          
Industrials —0.9%          
Vestas Wind Systems A/S   1,525    246,450 
           
Materials — 2.1%          
Novozymes A/S - Class B   9,155    575,414 
Total Denmark        821,864 
           
Singapore — 1.8%          
Real Estate — 1.8%          
CapitaLand Mall Trust REIT   342,500    487,464 
           
India — 1.6%          
Financials — 1.6%          
ICICI Bank Ltd. ADR*   44,383    436,285 
           
United States — 0.6%          
Information Technology — 0.6%          
SolarEdge Technologies, Inc.*   747    178,047 
           
Belgium — 0.6%          
Materials — 0.6%          
Umicore SA   3,779    157,186 
Total Common Stocks       $27,059,250 

 

72

 

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund (Continued)

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
           
Short-Term Investment Funds — 3.3%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   243,830   $243,830 
Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional Class, 0.02%**∞Ω   662,369    662,369 
Total Short-Term Investment Funds       $906,199 
           
Total Investment Securities — 102.3%          
(Cost $23,570,199)       $27,965,449 
           
Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (2.3%)        (627,622)
           
Net Assets — 100.0%       $27,337,827 

 

*Non-income producing security.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan as of September 30, 2020 was $628,869.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

ADR - American Depositary Receipt

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date: 
  
Description   Level 1    Level 2    Level 3    Total 
Common Stocks                    
Japan  $   $4,366,124   $   $4,366,124 
Germany       3,932,209        3,932,209 
France       3,237,540        3,237,540 
Sweden       2,459,030        2,459,030 
Switzerland   710,360    1,627,997        2,338,357 
United Kingdom   977,285    1,255,610        2,232,895 
Canada   1,834,550            1,834,550 
Taiwan   1,373,326            1,373,326 
China       1,292,825        1,292,825 
Italy       1,047,478        1,047,478 
South Korea   309,019    555,051        864,070 
Denmark       821,864        821,864 
Singapore       487,464        487,464 
India   436,285            436,285 
United States   178,047            178,047 
Belgium       157,186        157,186 
Short-Term Investment Funds   906,199            906,199 
Total  $6,725,071   $21,240,378   $   $27,965,449 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

73

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
           
Common Stocks — 97.0%          
Information Technology — 24.3%          
Amphenol Corp. - Class A   1,463,057   $158,405,181 
Black Knight, Inc.*   1,862,196    162,104,162 
CDK Global, Inc.   1,419,065    61,857,043 
Citrix Systems, Inc.   1,153,904    158,904,120 
Entegris, Inc.   2,621,975    194,917,622 
Skyworks Solutions, Inc.   1,355,662    197,248,821 
         933,436,949 
           
Industrials — 23.4%          
Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc.   2,517,501    88,464,985 
Armstrong World Industries, Inc.   1,773,599    122,041,347 
Cintas Corp.   415,116    138,163,058 
Copart, Inc.*   1,730,786    182,009,456 
HD Supply Holdings, Inc.*   3,834,716    158,143,688 
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.   738,281    133,569,799 
Sensata Technologies Holding PLC*   1,758,846    75,876,616 
         898,268,949 
           
Financials — 10.9%          
Alleghany Corp.   206,485    107,465,118 
Cincinnati Financial Corp.   1,650,873    128,718,568 
M&T Bank Corp.   956,951    88,125,618 
Moelis &Co. - Class A   2,732,337    96,014,322 
         420,323,626 
           
Materials — 9.9%          
Axalta Coating Systems Ltd.*   2,954,553    65,502,440 
Ball Corp.   898,098    74,649,906 
NewMarket Corp.   266,185    91,120,449 
Vulcan Materials Co.   1,113,241    150,888,685 
         382,161,480 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 9.0%          
CarMax, Inc.*   1,563,271    143,680,238 
Dollar Tree, Inc.*   1,311,314    119,775,421 
Hasbro, Inc.   1,010,825    83,615,444 
         347,071,103 
           
Consumer Staples — 8.7%          
Brown-Forman Corp. - Class B   1,415,849    106,641,747 
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.   1,703,470    112,888,957 
Post Holdings, Inc.*   1,361,777    117,112,822 
         336,643,526 
           
Health Care — 6.0%          
Perrigo Co. PLC   2,357,740    108,243,843 
STERIS PLC   697,676    122,923,534 
         231,167,377 
           
Real Estate — 2.6%          
STORE Capital Corp. REIT   3,618,346    99,251,231 
           
Communication Services — 2.2%          
Fox Corp. - Class A   2,975,658    82,812,562 
Total Common Stocks       $3,731,136,803 
           
Short-Term Investment Fund — 2.6%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   97,745,631   $97,745,631 
           
Total Investment Securities — 99.6%          
(Cost $3,381,235,955)      $3,828,882,434 
           
Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities — 0.4%        17,133,400 
Net Assets — 100.0%       $3,846,015,834 

 

*Non-income producing security.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date: 
  
Description   Level 1    Level 2    Level 3    Total 
Common Stocks  $3,731,136,803   $   $   $3,731,136,803 
Short-Term Investment Fund   97,745,631            97,745,631 
Total  $3,828,882,434   $   $   $3,828,882,434 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

74

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
           
Common Stocks — 96.0%          
Consumer Staples — 13.2%          
Constellation Brands, Inc. - Class A   46,698   $8,849,738 
Darling Ingredients, Inc.*   558,926    20,138,104 
Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (The)*   333,267    11,431,058 
Ingredion, Inc.   71,062    5,377,972 
Kroger Co. (The)   221,018    7,494,720 
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.   140,964    9,341,684 
TreeHouse Foods, Inc.*   391,857    15,881,964 
Tyson Foods, Inc. - Class A   192,303    11,438,182 
         89,953,422 
           
Utilities — 12.1%          
CenterPoint Energy, Inc.   768,342    14,867,418 
DTE Energy Co.   111,959    12,879,763 
Entergy Corp.   149,666    14,746,591 
Evergy, Inc.   239,291    12,160,769 
NiSource, Inc.   619,837    13,636,414 
Pinnacle West Capital Corp.   97,167    7,243,800 
Spire, Inc.   138,934    7,391,289 
         82,926,044 
           
Financials — 12.1%          
Allstate Corp. (The)   120,951    11,386,327 
Ameriprise Financial, Inc.   89,625    13,812,109 
Arch Capital Group Ltd.*   232,910    6,812,617 
Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (The)   204,485    7,537,317 
M&T Bank Corp.   42,057    3,873,029 
PacWest Bancorp   215,797    3,685,813 
Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc.   180,991    6,441,470 
Reinsurance Group of America, Inc.   152,276    14,495,152 
Signature Bank   107,028    8,882,254 
Sterling Bancorp.   561,247    5,904,318 
         82,830,406 
           
Health Care — 12.1%          
AmerisourceBergen Corp.   58,010    5,622,329 
Centene Corp.*   242,482    14,143,975 
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.*   38,867    8,801,432 
DENTSPLY SIRONA, Inc.   220,148    9,627,072 
Encompass Health Corp.   193,463    12,571,226 
Envista Holdings Corp.*   473,361    11,682,550 
Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings*   54,819    10,320,773 
Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.   71,352    9,713,861 
         82,483,218 
           
Industrials — 10.4%          
Aercap Holdings N.V. (Ireland)*   205,935    5,187,503 
Clean Harbors, Inc.*   176,640    9,897,139 
Dover Corp.   72,512    7,855,950 
Hexcel Corp.   144,445    4,846,130 
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.   29,585    4,164,089 
Parker-Hannifin Corp.   37,997    7,688,313 
Regal-Beloit Corp.   142,124    13,341,180 
Snap-on, Inc.   60,620    8,919,021 
Stericycle, Inc.*   144,735    9,126,989 
         71,026,314 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 9.7%          
BorgWarner, Inc.   193,463    7,494,757 
Carter’s, Inc.   91,946    7,960,685 
Columbia Sportswear Co.   104,418    9,082,278 
Dollar General Corp.   36,546    7,660,773 
Dollar Tree, Inc.*   102,388    9,352,120 
Hasbro, Inc.   101,227    8,373,497 
LKQ Corp.*   596,923    16,552,675 
         66,476,785 
           
Real Estate — 9.6%          
AGNC Investment Corp., REIT   774,143    10,768,329 
Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., REIT   95,426    15,268,160 
American Campus Communities, Inc., REIT   252,053    8,801,691 
Boston Properties, Inc., REIT   84,114    6,754,354 
Digital Realty Trust, Inc., REIT   60,620    8,896,591 
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc., REIT   444,647    4,797,741 
Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc., REIT   85,855    9,954,887 
         65,241,753 
           
Materials — 7.5%          
Berry Global Group, Inc.*   264,235    12,767,835 
FMC Corp.   110,799    11,734,722 
Livent Corp.*   695,830    6,241,595 
Olin Corp.   312,964    3,874,494 
RPM International, Inc.   102,098    8,457,798 
Valvoline, Inc.   429,274    8,173,377 
         51,249,821 
           
Information Technology — 7.5%          
Leidos Holdings, Inc.   122,981    10,963,756 
MACOM Technology Solutions Holdings, Inc.*   199,554    6,786,832 
PTC, Inc.*   134,583    11,132,706 
Qorvo, Inc.*   100,357    12,947,057 
Synopsys, Inc.*   42,927    9,185,519 
         51,015,870 
           
Energy — 1.8%          
Cimarex Energy Co.   132,263    3,217,959 
Diamondback Energy, Inc.   131,683    3,966,292 
Pioneer Natural Resources Co.   57,720    4,963,343 
         12,147,594 
Total Common Stocks       $655,351,227 
           
Exchange-Traded Fund — 0.5%          
iShares Russell Mid-Cap Value ETF   42,637   $3,446,775 
           
Short-Term Investment Fund — 0.9%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   6,173,920   $6,173,920 
           
Total Investment Securities — 97.4%          
(Cost $607,464,242)       $664,971,922 
Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities — 2.6%        18,030,097 
           
Net Assets — 100.0%       $683,002,019 

 

*Non-income producing security.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviation:

 

ETF - Exchange-Traded Fund

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

75

 

 

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund (Continued)

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Common Stocks  $655,351,227   $   $          —   $655,351,227 
Exchange-Traded Fund   3,446,775             —        3,446,775 
Short-Term Investment Fund   6,173,920            6,173,920 
Total  $664,971,922   $   $   $664,971,922 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

76

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
           
Common Stocks — 96.4%          
Information Technology — 35.3%          
Adobe, Inc.*   206,071   $101,063,401 
Atlassian Corp. PLC - Class A*   200,001    36,358,182 
Coupa Software, Inc.*   96,218    26,386,824 
Intuit, Inc.   212,186    69,217,195 
Microsoft Corp.   371,661    78,171,458 
ServiceNow, Inc.*   282,535    137,029,475 
Snowflake, Inc. - Class A*†   91,404    22,942,404 
Square, Inc. - Class A*   817,587    132,898,767 
Twilio, Inc. - Class A*   274,223    67,757,761 
Visa, Inc. - Class A   622,981    124,577,511 
         796,402,978 
           
Communication Services — 31.2%          
Alphabet, Inc. - Class A*   28,372    41,582,003 
Charter Communications, Inc. - Class A*   79,216    49,457,718 
Facebook, Inc. - Class A*   287,142    75,202,490 
Match Group, Inc.*   979,491    108,380,679 
Netflix, Inc.*   338,553    169,286,657 
Sea Ltd. (Taiwan) ADR*   1,135,006    174,836,324 
Warner Music Group Corp. - Class A   1,202,351    34,555,568 
Zillow Group, Inc. - Class C*   509,956    51,806,430 
         705,107,869 
           
Health Care — 13.0%          
Align Technology, Inc.*   161,290    52,799,894 
DexCom, Inc.*   76,688    31,613,094 
Edwards Lifesciences Corp.*   489,776    39,093,920 
Illumina, Inc.*   144,060    44,526,065 
Mirati Therapeutics, Inc.*   132,090    21,933,544 
Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc.*   189,160    26,563,739 
Zoetis, Inc.   459,903    76,054,159 
         292,584,415 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 10.1%          
Amazon.com, Inc.*   56,337    177,390,002 
Floor & Decor Holdings, Inc. - Class A*   672,685    50,316,838 
         227,706,840 
           
Industrials — 4.4%          
CoStar Group, Inc.*   81,775    69,386,905 
Uber Technologies, Inc.*   843,249    30,761,724 
         100,148,629 
           
Consumer Staples — 2.4%          
Grocery Outlet Holding Corp.*   795,053    31,261,484 
Monster Beverage Corp.*   282,737    22,675,507 
         53,936,991 
Total Common Stocks       $2,175,887,722 
           
Short-Term Investment Funds — 4.8%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   86,332,505    86,332,505 
Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional Class, 0.02%**∞Ω   22,355,022    22,355,022 
Total Short-Term Investment Funds       $108,687,527 
           
Total Investment Securities — 101.2%
(Cost $1,055,367,864)
       $2,284,575,249 
           
Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (1.2%)        (27,734,844)
           
Net Assets — 100.0%       $2,256,840,405 

 

*Non-income producing security.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan ^ as of September 30, 2020 was $21,226,066.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

ADR - American Depositary Receipt

PLC - Public Limited Company

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Common Stocks  $2,175,887,722   $        —   $        —   $2,175,887,722 
Short-Term Investment Funds   108,687,527            108,687,527 
Total  $2,284,575,249   $   $   $2,284,575,249 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

77

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Small Cap Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
Common Stocks — 96.0%          
Industrials — 24.8%          
Armstrong World Industries, Inc.   34,774   $2,392,799 
GATX Corp.   20,842    1,328,678 
Kaman Corp.   49,488    1,928,547 
Landstar System, Inc.   39,381    4,941,922 
Masonite International Corp.*   34,148    3,360,163 
Matson, Inc.   47,003    1,884,350 
UniFirst Corp.   12,344    2,337,583 
         18,174,042 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 18.7%          
Churchill Downs, Inc.   28,854    4,726,862 
Graham Holdings Co. - Class B   3,741    1,511,776 
Penske Automotive Group, Inc.   62,456    2,976,653 
Tempur Sealy International, Inc.*   50,599    4,512,925 
         13,728,216 
           
Financials — 15.1%          
Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp.   70,982    1,516,885 
Cannae Holdings, Inc.*   51,313    1,911,922 
Eaton Vance Corp.   45,202    1,724,456 
Moelis &Co. - Class A   83,330    2,928,216 
White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd.   3,805    2,964,095 
         11,045,574 
           
Materials — 12.1%          
GCP Applied Technologies, Inc.*   99,570    2,085,992 
Ingevity Corp.*   54,240    2,681,626 
NewMarket Corp.   10,129    3,467,359 
Tredegar Corp.   42,301    629,016 
         8,863,993 
           
Real Estate — 10.0%          
Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. REIT   123,028    1,379,144 
First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. REIT   95,916    3,817,457 
STORE Capital Corp. REIT   62,491    1,714,128 
Tejon Ranch Co.*   32,514    460,073 
         7,370,802 
           
Information Technology — 5.2%          
ACI Worldwide, Inc.*   79,109    2,067,118 
Entegris, Inc.   23,561    1,751,525 
         3,818,643 
           
Consumer Staples — 4.5%          
Energizer Holdings, Inc.   34,346    1,344,302 
PriceSmart, Inc.   29,362    1,951,105 
         3,295,407 
           
Health Care — 4.1%          
Bruker Corp.   38,392    1,526,082 
LivaNova PLC*   33,475    1,513,405 
         3,039,487 
           
Energy — 1.5%          
Dril-Quip, Inc.*   43,414    1,074,931 
Total Common Stocks       $70,411,095 
           
Short-Term Investment Fund — 4.0%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   2,961,276   $2,961,276 
           
Total Investment Securities — 100.0%
(Cost $60,546,485)
       $73,372,371 
           
Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities — 0.0%        9,730 
           
Net Assets — 100.0%       $73,382,101 

 

*Non-income producing security.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviation:

 

PLC - Public Limited Company

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Common Stocks  $70,411,095   $   $   $70,411,095 
Short-Term Investment Fund   2,961,276            2,961,276 
Total  $73,372,371   $   $   $73,372,371 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

78

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund – September 30, 2020

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
Common Stocks — 96.5%          
Industrials — 18.7%          
Altra Industrial Motion Corp.   17,584   $650,080 
BWX Technologies, Inc.   16,355    920,950 
CIRCOR International, Inc.*   15,030    411,070 
Clean Harbors, Inc.*   12,510    700,935 
EMCOR Group, Inc.   5,265    356,493 
Enerpac Tool Group Corp.   22,013    414,065 
EnPro Industries, Inc.   9,797    552,649 
Harsco Corp.*   34,426    478,866 
Hexcel Corp.   8,081    271,118 
Hillenbrand, Inc.   9,540    270,554 
Huron Consulting Group, Inc.*   15,708    617,796 
ITT, Inc.   16,290    961,924 
Kelly Services, Inc. - Class A   17,651    300,773 
Korn/Ferry International   17,325    502,425 
Masonite International Corp.*   6,884    677,386 
Regal Beloit Corp.   7,657    718,763 
SPX FLOW, Inc.*   7,350    314,727 
Standex International Corp.   9,677    572,878 
Team, Inc.*   52,238    287,309 
         9,980,761 
           
Financials — 15.8%          
Bank of NT Butterfield & Son Ltd. (The) (Bermuda)   36,482    812,819 
BankUnited, Inc.   33,006    723,161 
First Horizon National Corp.   126,260    1,190,632 
FNB Corp.   114,336    775,198 
Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (The)   8,707    811,318 
Kemper Corp.   9,066    605,881 
MGIC Investment Corp.   92,076    815,793 
Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc.   13,365    475,660 
Sterling Bancorp.   75,219    791,304 
Umpqua Holdings Corp.   49,145    521,920 
Univest Financial Corp.   29,688    426,617 
Western Alliance Bancorp   14,683    464,276 
         8,414,579 
           
Consumer Staples — 12.9%          
BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc.*   13,879    576,672 
Cal-Maine Foods, Inc.*   12,541    481,198 
Darling Ingredients, Inc.*   42,178    1,519,673 
Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (The)*   16,808    576,514 
Hostess Brands, Inc.*   60,731    748,813 
MGP Ingredients, Inc.   10,748    427,126 
Sanderson Farms, Inc.   6,493    765,979 
Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc.   8,520    487,003 
TreeHouse Foods, Inc.*   31,360    1,271,021 
         6,853,999 
           
Materials — 9.0%          
Cabot Corp.   7,791    280,710 
Ingevity Corp.*   8,944    442,191 
Innospec, Inc.   6,357    402,525 
Livent Corp.*   58,627    525,884 
O-I Glass, Inc.   54,567    577,865 
Olin Corp.   30,028    371,747 
Sensient Technologies Corp.   5,481    316,473 
Silgan Holdings, Inc.   13,749    505,551 
Valvoline, Inc.   37,465    713,334 
WR Grace & Co.   16,930    682,110 
         4,818,390 
           
Information Technology — 9.0%          
Belden, Inc.   6,598    205,330 
CACI International, Inc. - Class A*   3,714    791,676 
ExlService Holdings, Inc.*   11,008    726,198 
MACOM Technology Solutions Holdings, Inc.*   15,958    542,732 
ManTech International Corp. - Class A   9,182    632,456 
Rogers Corp.*   4,713    462,157 
Viavi Solutions, Inc.*   67,260    788,960 
Virtusa Corp.*   13,595    668,330 
         4,817,839 
           
Consumer Discretionary — 8.1%          
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.†   38,596    571,607 
Callaway Golf Co.   18,510    354,281 
Carter’s, Inc.   4,548    393,766 
Murphy USA, Inc.*   11,811    1,514,997 
Oxford Industries, Inc.   6,626    267,425 
Steven Madden Ltd.   11,069    215,846 
Texas Roadhouse, Inc.   5,374    326,685 
Vista Outdoor, Inc.*   32,714    660,169 
         4,304,776 
           
Utilities — 7.4%          
Black Hills Corp.   9,622    514,681 
Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc.   9,165    304,645 
IDACORP, Inc.   10,026    801,077 
Portland General Electric Co.   49,000    1,739,500 
Spire, Inc.   10,933    581,636 
         3,941,539 
           
Health Care — 5.9%          
Envista Holdings Corp.*   43,046    1,062,375 
Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corp.*   15,496    731,721 
NuVasive, Inc.*   10,376    503,962 
Prestige Consumer Healthcare, Inc.*   23,041    839,153 
         3,137,211 
           
Real Estate — 5.6%          
Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. - Class A REIT   33,806    742,718 
Columbia Property Trust, Inc. REIT   45,695    498,532 
Corporate Office Properties Trust REIT   24,074    571,035 
Dynex Capital, Inc. REIT   26,704    406,168 
Lexington Realty Trust REIT   44,519    465,224 
Newmark Group, Inc. - Class A   64,490    278,597 
         2,962,274 
           
Communication Services — 2.2%          
Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc.   7,428    446,051 
TEGNA, Inc.   62,001    728,512 
         1,174,563 
           
Energy — 1.9%          
DMC Global, Inc.   9,438    310,888 
Parsley Energy, Inc. - Class A   36,543    342,042 
PDC Energy, Inc.*   20,257    251,086 
Select Energy Services, Inc. - Class A*   26,282    100,923 
         1,004,939 
Total Common Stocks       $51,410,870 
           
Exchange-Traded Fund — 2.7%          
iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF†   14,355   $1,425,882 

 

79

 

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund (Continued)

 

       Market 
   Shares   Value 
Short-Term Investment Funds — 2.5%          
Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω   182,217   $182,217 
Invesco Government & Agency Portfolio, Institutional Class, 0.02%**∞Ω   1,160,251    1,160,251 
Total Short-Term Investment Funds       $1,342,468 
           
Total Investment Securities — 101.7%
(Cost $56,245,605)
       $54,179,220 
           
Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets — (1.7%)        (913,849)
           
Net Assets —100.0%       $53,265,371 

 

*Non-income producing security.
**Represents collateral for securities loaned.
All or a portion of the security is on loan. The total market value of the securities on loan as of September 30, 2020 was $1,159,163.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

ETF - Exchange-Traded Fund

REIT - Real Estate Investment Trust

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date:
 
Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Common Stocks  $51,410,870   $   $   $51,410,870 
Exchange-Traded Fund   1,425,882            1,425,882 
Short-Term Investment Funds   1,342,468            1,342,468 
Total  $54,179,220   $   $   $54,179,220 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

80

 

 

Portfolio of Investments

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund – September 30, 2020

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Asset-Backed Securities — 41.2%     
$1,402,765   Accredited Mortgage Loan Trust, Ser 2005-1, Class M1, (1M LIBOR +0.705%), 0.853% 4/25/35(A)  $1,399,960 
 4,327,715   ALM XVI Ltd./ALM XVI LLC (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-16A, Class AAR2, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.900%), 1.175% 7/15/27(A)   4,306,531 
 2,868,953   American Credit Acceptance Receivables Trust, Ser 2016-4, Class D, 144a, 4.110% 4/12/23   2,874,463 
 1,995,596   American Credit Acceptance Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-1, Class D, 144a, 3.540% 3/13/23   2,008,740 
 162,732   American Credit Acceptance Receivables Trust, Ser 2018-2, Class C, 144a, 3.700% 7/10/24   164,046 
 2,409,200   AmeriCredit Automobile Receivables, Ser 2016-1, Class D, 3.590% 2/8/22   2,410,970 
 877,620   AmeriCredit Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2016-2, Class D, 3.650% 5/9/22   878,101 
 3,466,000   AmeriCredit Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-4, Class B, 2.360% 12/19/22   3,491,465 
 1,692,940   Avid Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2019-1, Class A, 144a, 2.620% 2/15/24   1,710,555 
 750,000   Avis Budget Rental Car Funding AESOP LLC, Ser 2015-2A, Class C, 144a, 3.930% 12/20/21   750,847 
 6,048,000   BDS Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2020-FL5, Class B, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.800%), 1.950% 2/16/37(A)   5,888,335 
 626,419   Bear Stearns Asset Backed Securities Trust, Ser 2005-SD2, Class 1M1, (1M LIBOR +0.650%), 0.798% 3/25/35(A)   625,659 
 10,900,000   BSPRT Issuer Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2018-FL4, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.050%), 1.202% 9/15/35(A)   10,821,207 
 1,004,522   Carvana Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2019-3A, Class A2, 144a, 2.420% 4/15/22   1,005,987 
 7,590,000   Cedar Funding II CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2013-1A, Class AFR, 144a, 3.020% 6/9/30   7,609,749 
 4,524,244   CIFC Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2012-2RA, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.800%), 1.072% 1/20/28(A)   4,479,445 
 101,178   Conn’s Receivables Funding, Ser 2018-A, Class A, 144a, 3.250% 1/15/23   101,203 
 758,264   Conn’s Receivables Funding, Ser 2019-B, Class A, 144a, 2.660% 6/17/24   758,037 
 3,297,114   CPS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2015-A, Class D, 144a, 5.600% 2/16/21   3,303,288 
 2,500,000   CPS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2019-C, Class B, 144a, 2.630% 8/15/23   2,529,320 
 11,500,000   CPS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2020-C, Class A, 144a, 0.630% 3/15/24   11,502,014 
 12,564,700   Domino’s Pizza Master Issuer LLC, Ser 2017-1A, Class A2I, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.250%), 1.495% 7/25/47(A)   12,568,972 
 2,938,139   Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2016-BA, Class D, 144a, 4.530% 8/15/23   2,953,220 
 6,312,939   Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-3, Class D, 144a, 3.530% 12/15/23   6,415,417 
 12,868,000   Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-BA, Class E, 144a, 5.300% 7/15/24   13,213,041 
 25,670   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2016-4A, Class D, 144a, 3.770% 10/17/22   25,706 
 5,800,000   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2016-4A, Class E, 144a, 6.490% 9/15/23   5,813,494 
 1,802,982   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2017-2A, Class D, 144a, 3.890% 1/15/23   1,815,575 
5,685,000   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2017-2A, Class E, 144a, 6.030% 1/15/24  5,868,515 
 2,443,392   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2017-3A, Class D, 144a, 3.580% 5/15/23   2,460,662 
 8,700,000   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2018-1A, Class D, 144a, 3.810% 12/15/23   8,858,752 
 2,071,494   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2018-2A, Class C, 144a, 3.670% 3/15/24   2,085,242 
 1,054,108   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2019-3A, Class A, 144a, 2.550% 8/15/22   1,058,623 
 4,184,801   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2020-2A, Class A, 144a, 1.140% 1/16/24   4,200,078 
 8,325,000   DT Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2020-3A, Class A, 144a, 0.540% 4/15/24   8,323,298 
 186,123   Elara HGV Timeshare Issuer LLC, Ser 2014-A, Class A, 144a, 2.530% 2/25/27   186,435 
 3,662,189   Elara HGV Timeshare Issuer LLC, Ser 2016-A, Class A, 144a, 2.730% 4/25/28   3,712,726 
 5,862,109   Exeter Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2020-2A, Class A, 144a, 1.130% 8/15/23   5,880,374 
 12,375,000   Exeter Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2020-3A, Class A2, 0.460% 10/17/22   12,377,001 
 1,731,208   First Investors Auto Owner Trust, Ser 2016-1A, Class D, 144a, 4.700% 4/18/22   1,734,162 
 742,707   Flagship Credit Auto Trust, Ser 2016-3, Class C, 144a, 2.720% 7/15/22   744,224 
 1,359,000   Flagship Credit Auto Trust, Ser 2018-2, Class B, 144a, 3.560% 5/15/23   1,383,584 
 992,386   Flagship Credit Auto Trust, Ser 2018-4, Class A, 144a, 3.410% 5/15/23   1,004,122 
 2,949,132   Flatiron CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-1A, Class AR, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.890%), 1.165% 4/15/27(A)   2,936,174 
 853,511   GLS Auto Receivables Issuer Trust, Ser 2019-1A, Class A, 144a, 3.370% 1/17/23   859,335 
 2,020,063   GLS Auto Receivables Issuer Trust, Ser 2019-2A, Class A, 144a, 3.060% 4/17/23   2,039,293 
 3,560,333   GLS Auto Receivables Issuer Trust, Ser 2019-3A, Class A, 144a, 2.580% 7/17/23   3,595,317 
 4,401,998   GLS Auto Receivables Issuer Trust, Ser 2019-4A, Class A, 144a, 2.470% 11/15/23   4,455,284 
 3,888,272   GLS Auto Receivables Issuer Trust, Ser 2020-1A, Class A, 144a, 2.170% 2/15/24   3,933,447 
 181,330   GLS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2016-1A, Class C, 144a, 6.900% 10/15/21   181,862 
 687,052   GLS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2018-1A, Class A, 144a, 2.820% 7/15/22   688,625 
 573,379   GLS Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2018-3A, Class A, 144a, 3.350% 8/15/22   574,651 
 4,790,000   Grand Avenue CRE (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-FL1, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.120%), 1.272% 6/15/37(A)   4,754,180 
 10,009,720   Hardee’s Funding LLC, Ser 2018-1A, Class A2I, 144a, 4.250% 6/20/48   10,059,068 
 2,068,350   Home Equity Asset Trust, Ser 2005-3, Class M4, (1M LIBOR +0.640%), 0.788% 8/25/35(A)   2,067,951 
 1,112,509   Home Equity Asset Trust, Ser 2005-8, Class M1, (1M LIBOR +0.430%), 0.578% 2/25/36(A)   1,109,031 
 8,165,460   Jimmy Johns Funding LLC, Ser 2017-1A, Class A2I, 144a, 3.610% 7/30/47   8,268,508 

 

81

 

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Asset-Backed Securities — 41.2% (Continued)     
$462,387   Kabbage Funding LLC, Ser 2019-1, Class A, 144a, 3.825% 3/15/24  $458,442 
 3,217,633   Magnetite XVI Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-16A, Class AR, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.800%), 1.072% 1/18/28(A)   3,192,481 
 3,243,805   Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust, Ser 2006-FF1, Class M4, (1M LIBOR +0.370%), 0.518% 8/25/36(A)   3,239,785 
 685,457   Mid-State Capital Trust, Ser 2010-1, Class M, 144a, 5.250% 12/15/45   709,989 
 1,451,683   New Century Home Equity Loan Trust, Ser 2005-B, Class A2D, (1M LIBOR +0.400%), 0.548% 10/25/35(A)   1,446,488 
 7,513,523   OCP CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2015-8A, Class A1R, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.850%), 1.123% 4/17/27(A)   7,490,261 
 9,630,000   OneMain Direct Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-2A, Class E, 144a, 4.740% 11/14/25   9,643,614 
 2,794,543   Palmer Square Loan Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2018-4A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.900%), 1.180% 11/15/26(A)   2,782,700 
 4,976,945   Palmer Square Loan Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-1A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +1.050%), 1.322% 4/20/27(A)   4,957,151 
 7,635,920   Palmer Square Loan Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2019-3A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.850%), 1.103% 8/20/27(A)   7,598,038 
 5,205,139   Palmer Square Loan Funding Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2020-1A, Class A1, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.800%), 1.053% 2/20/28(A)   5,179,342 
 14,105,131   Progress Residential Trust, Ser 2017-SFR1, Class A, 144a, 2.768% 8/17/34   14,365,459 
 6,157,539   Progress Residential Trust, Ser 2017-SFR2, Class A, 144a, 2.897% 12/17/34   6,178,189 
 1,200,000   Progress Residential Trust, Ser 2018-SFR1, Class B, 144a, 3.484% 3/17/35   1,211,291 
 911,023   RAAC Trust, Ser 2006-SP4, Class M1, (1M LIBOR +0.340%), 0.488% 11/25/36(A)   909,110 
 12,100,000   Santander Consumer Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2020-BA, Class A2, 144a, 0.380% 2/15/23   12,102,321 
 9,440,000   Santander Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2016-2, Class E, 4.380% 9/15/23   9,517,019 
 9,300,000   Santander Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-1, Class E, 144a, 5.050% 7/15/24   9,560,056 
 4,900,000   Santander Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-3, Class E, 4.970% 1/15/25   5,087,603 
 8,545,000   Santander Drive Auto Receivables Trust, Ser 2020-3, Class A2, 0.460% 9/15/23   8,550,623 
 1,657,457   Sierra Timeshare Receivables Funding LLC, Ser 2016-3A, Class B, 144a, 2.630% 10/20/33   1,661,694 
 883,249   Sierra Timeshare Receivables Funding LLC, Ser 2019-1A, Class B, 144a, 3.420% 1/20/36   907,429 
 2,002,703   Structured Asset Investment Loan Trust, Ser 2005-1, Class M2, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.720%), 0.868% 2/25/35(A)   2,009,775 
 7,364,367   Symphony CLO XIV Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2014-14A, Class AR, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.950%), 1.218% 7/14/26(A)   7,327,030 
 1,161,410   TLF National Tax Lien Trust, Ser 2017-1A, Class A, 144a, 3.090% 12/15/29   1,169,069 
 2,967,979   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-3, Class A1B, 144a, 3.000% 3/25/54(A)(B)   2,987,765 
 579,490   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-4, Class A1B, 144a, 2.750% 4/25/55(A)(B)   582,945 
 3,895,846   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2017-5, Class A1, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.600%), 0.748% 2/25/57(A)   3,888,636 
 3,937,055   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2018-SJ1, Class A1, 144a, 4.000% 10/25/58(A)(B)   3,976,060 
 5,793,615   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-HY1, Class A1, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.000%), 1.148% 10/25/48(A)   5,801,855 
 3,939,774   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-MH1, Class A1, 144a, 3.000% 11/25/58(A)(B)   4,038,725 
 1,971,339   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-SJ1, Class A1, 144a, 3.750% 11/25/58(A)(B)   1,993,617 
 9,920,561   Towd Point Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-SJ3, Class A1, 144a, 3.000% 11/25/59(A)(B)   10,089,652 
 33,948   United Auto Credit Securitization Trust, Ser 2018-1, Class D, 144a, 3.520% 11/10/22   33,976 
 6,161,501   United Auto Credit Securitization Trust, Ser 2020-1, Class A, 144a, 0.850% 5/10/22   6,165,542 
 7,647,372   Venture XII CLO Ltd. (Cayman Islands), Ser 2012-12A, Class ARR, 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.800%), 1.056% 2/28/26(A)   7,566,914 
 587,553   Welk Resorts LLC, Ser 2013-AA, Class A, 144a, 3.100% 3/15/29   593,431 
 3,406,968   Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2017-2A, Class D, 144a, 3.280% 12/15/22   3,428,990 
 11,320,000   Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust, Ser 2019-1A, Class C, 144a, 3.450% 3/15/24   11,561,823 
     Total Asset-Backed Securities  $406,790,761 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 30.6%     
     Financials — 10.0%     
 7,788,000   Capital One Financial Corp., 3.450%, 4/30/21   7,912,825 
 2,933,000   Citibank NA, (3M LIBOR +0.350%), 0.607%, 2/12/21(A)   2,935,678 
 4,367,000   Comerica, Inc., 3.700%, 7/31/23   4,730,004 
 10,000,000   Credit Suisse AG/New York NY (Switzerland), (SOFR +0.450%), 0.538%, 2/4/22(A)   10,020,375 
 2,100,000   Credit Suisse Group Funding Guernsey Ltd. (Switzerland), 3.125%, 12/10/20   2,110,920 
 300,000   Credit Suisse Group Funding Guernsey Ltd. (Switzerland), 144a, 3.125%, 12/10/20   301,560 
 4,000,000   FNB Corp., 2.200%, 2/24/23   4,035,678 
 8,199,000   Huntington Bancshares, Inc., 7.000%, 12/15/20   8,307,445 
 2,000,000   Intercontinental Exchange, Inc., 0.700%, 6/15/23   2,005,141 
 5,910,000   Intercontinental Exchange, Inc., (3M LIBOR +0.650%), 0.903%, 6/15/23(A)   5,923,297 
 3,800,000   Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (Japan), (1 Year CMT Rate +0.680%), 0.848%, 9/15/24   3,802,372 
 5,000,000   Morgan Stanley, (SOFR +0.830%), 0.919%, 6/10/22(A)   5,012,103 
 7,000,000   National Bank of Canada (Canada), (1 Year CMT Rate +0.770%), 0.900%, 8/15/23   7,028,043 
 4,310,000   Sparta Agency, Inc., 0.430%, 12/1/23(A)(B)   4,310,000 
 2,800,000   Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank Ltd. (Japan), 144a, 0.800%, 9/12/23   2,804,155 
 10,000,000   Toronto-Dominion Bank (The) (Canada) MTN, (3M LIBOR +0.300%), 0.568%, 7/30/21(A)   10,023,165 
 7,000,000   Truist Financial Corp. MTN, 2.150%, 2/1/21   7,032,842 
 4,000,000   UBS Group AG (Switzerland), 144a, (1 Year CMT Rate +0.830%), 1.008%, 7/30/24   4,009,042 
 1,700,000   Wells Fargo & Co., (3M LIBOR +1.025%), 1.270%, 7/26/21(A)   1,712,410 
 4,550,000   Zions Bancorp NA, 3.500%, 8/27/21   4,644,610 
         98,661,665 

 

82

 

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Corporate Bonds — 30.6% (Continued)     
     Consumer Discretionary — 4.4%     
$10,700,000   American Honda Finance Corp. MTN, (3M LIBOR +0.350%), 0.600%, 6/11/21(A)  $10,710,827 
 4,350,000   American Honda Finance Corp. MTN, 0.650%, 9/8/23   4,351,461 
 3,500,000   American Honda Finance Corp. MTN, 0.875%, 7/7/23   3,528,795 
 2,500,000   Hyundai Capital America, 144a, 2.375%, 2/10/23   2,566,602 
 5,360,000   Hyundai Capital America, 144a, 3.000%, 10/30/20   5,369,797 
 9,500,000   Toyota Motor Credit Corp. MTN, 0.500%, 8/14/23   9,520,490 
 6,800,000   Volkswagen Group of America Finance LLC (Germany), 144a, 3.875%, 11/13/20   6,826,211 
         42,874,183 
           
     Utilities — 3.9%     
 7,225,000   Dominion Energy, Inc., (3M LIBOR +0.530%), 0.774%, 9/15/23(A)   7,236,567 
 6,000,000   Florida Power & Light Co., (3M LIBOR +0.380%), 0.641%, 7/28/23(A)   6,004,374 
 1,192,000   NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, Inc., (3M LIBOR +0.550%), 0.806%, 8/28/21(A)   1,192,453 
 2,500,000   NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, Inc., 2.403%, 9/1/21   2,547,534 
 7,500,000   Pacific Gas and Electric Co., 1.750%, 6/16/22   7,509,012 
 2,700,000   Public Service Co. of New Hampshire, 4.050%, 6/1/21   2,721,488 
 8,207,000   Sempra Energy, (3M LIBOR +0.500%), 0.775%, 1/15/21(A)   8,207,742 
 3,000,000   Southern California Gas Co., (3M LIBOR +0.350%), 0.570%, 9/14/23(A)   2,998,802 
         38,417,972 
           
     Industrials —3.1%     
 9,700,000   Eaton Electric Holdings LLC, 3.875%, 12/15/20   9,727,245 
 12,500,000   Otis Worldwide Corp., (3M LIBOR +0.450%), 0.234%, 4/5/23(A)   12,503,750 
 8,156,000   Vulcan Materials Co., (3M LIBOR +0.650%), 0.896%, 3/1/21(A)   8,159,085 
         30,390,080 
           
     Energy — 2.5%     
 2,460,000   Phillips 66, (3M LIBOR +0.600%), 0.834%, 2/26/21(A)   2,460,264 
 8,450,000   Shell International Finance BV (Netherlands), 0.375%, 9/15/23   8,419,073 
 13,300,000   Valero Energy Corp., 1.200%, 3/15/24   13,243,656 
         24,122,993 
           
     Information Technology — 1.8%     
 7,800,000   Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co., 1.450%, 4/1/24   7,889,388 
 9,500,000   International Business Machines Corp., (3M LIBOR +0.400%), 0.654%, 5/13/21(A)   9,523,512 
         17,412,900 
           
     Health Care — 1.5%     
 2,720,000   Cigna Corp., (3M LIBOR +0.650%), 0.896%, 9/17/21(A)   2,720,535 
 7,225,000   Dignity Health, 3.125%, 11/1/22   7,468,284 
 2,500,000   Upjohn, Inc., 144a, 1.125%, 6/22/22   2,519,218 
 2,475,000   Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc., (3M LIBOR +0.750%), 0.977%, 3/19/21(A)   2,475,435 
         15,183,472 
           
     Consumer Staples — 1.4%     
 3,925,000   General Mills, Inc., (3M LIBOR +0.540%), 0.811%, 4/16/21(A)   3,932,097 
 2,800,000   Mondelez International, Inc., 0.625%, 7/1/22   2,809,843 
 5,500,000   Nestle Holdings, Inc., 144a, 0.375%, 1/15/24   5,478,274 
 1,570,000   Reckitt Benckiser Treasury Services PLC (United Kingdom), 144a, (3M LIBOR +0.560%), 0.783%, 6/24/22(A)   1,575,832 
         13,796,046 
           
     Real Estate — 0.8%     
 8,300,000   SL Green Operating Partnership LP, (3M LIBOR +0.980%), 1.260%, 8/16/21(A)   8,241,106 
           
     Communication Services — 0.7%     
 4,040,000   Crown Castle Towers LLC, 144sa, 3.222%, 5/15/22   4,098,970 
 3,000,000   Interpublic Group of Cos., Inc. (The), 3.500%, 10/1/20   3,000,000 
         7,098,970 
           
     Materials — 0.5%     
 5,000,000   Nutrien Ltd. (Canada), 1.900%, 5/13/23   5,161,400 
     Total Corporate Bonds  $301,360,787 
           
     Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities — 16.1%     
 4,800,000   Austin Fairmont Hotel Trust, Ser 2019-FAIR, Class C, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.450%), 1.602%, 9/15/32(A)   4,493,952 
 8,145,000   BHMS, Ser 2018-ATLS, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.250%), 1.402%, 7/15/35(A)   7,810,294 
 7,124,480   BX Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-XL, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.920%), 1.072%, 10/15/36(A)   7,122,341 
 7,200,000   BXP Trust,Ser 2017-CQHP, Class A,144a, (1MLIBOR +0.850%), 1.002%, 11/15/34(A)   6,985,624 
 4,440,000   CCRESG Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2016-HEAT, Class A, 144a, 3.357%, 4/10/29   4,437,333 
 1,430,000   CCRESG Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2016-HEAT, Class B, 144a, 4.114%, 4/10/29   1,421,130 
 2,373,006   CD Mortgage Trust, Ser 2006-CD3, Class AM, 5.648%, 10/15/48   2,425,897 
 3,588,388   Citigroup Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-GC11, Class AAB, 2.690%, 4/10/46   3,658,976 
 5,951,196   Citigroup Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-GC35, Class A2, 3.063%, 11/10/48   5,998,165 
 68,780,000   Citigroup Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2019-SST2, Class XCP, 144a, 1.783%, 12/15/36(A)(B)(C)   449,732 
 66,166   COMM Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-LC17, Class A2, 3.164%, 10/10/47   66,130 
 35,502,826   COMM Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-UBS3, Class XA, 1.233%, 6/10/47(A)(B)(C)   1,172,836 
 5,668,202   COMM Mortgage Trust, Ser 2015-PC1, Class A2, 3.148%, 7/10/50   5,704,162 
 2,680,000   CSMC Trust, Ser 2017-CHOP, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.750%), 0.902%, 7/15/32(A)   2,594,142 
 6,080,000   CSMC Trust, Ser 2017-PFHP, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.950%), 1.102%, 12/15/30(A)   5,914,022 
 8,807,856   DBRR Trust, Ser 2011-LC2, Class A4A, 144a, 4.537%, 7/12/44(A)(B)   8,869,897 
 1,257,404   DBUBS Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-LC1A, Class A3, 144a, 5.002%, 11/10/46   1,260,468 
 147,134   DBUBS Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-LC2A, Class A1FL, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.350%), 1.501%, 7/12/44(A)   147,129 
 118,906,000   GS Mortgage Securities Corp. II, Ser 2017-SLP, Class XA, 144a, 1.325%, 10/10/32(A)(B)(C)   2,369,892 
 1,558,375   GS Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2011-GC3, Class A4, 144a, 4.753%, 3/10/44   1,563,020 
 7,520,160   J.P. Morgan Chase Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2017-FL11, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.850%), 1.002%, 10/15/32(A)   7,208,641 

 

83

 

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
           
     Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities — 16.1% (Continued)     
$4,013,241   JPMBB Commercial Mortgage Securities Trust, Ser 2014-C24, Class A2, 2.940%, 11/15/47  $4,011,241 
 4,790,000   Morgan Stanley Bank of America Merrill Lynch Trust, Ser 2012-C5, Class E, 144a, 4.831%, 8/15/45(A)(B)   4,649,864 
 471,779   Morgan Stanley Capital I Trust, Ser 2007-IQ15, Class B, 144a, 6.345%, 6/11/49(A)(B)   468,629 
 643,012   Morgan Stanley Capital I Trust, Ser 2011-C1, Class A4, 144a, 5.033%, 9/15/47(A)(B)   646,096 
 7,977,228   Morgan Stanley Capital I Trust, Ser 2018-BOP, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.850%), 1.002%, 8/15/33(A)   7,799,201 
 6,301,000   Ready Captial Mortgage Financing, Ser 2019-FL3, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.000%), 1.148%, 3/25/34(A)   6,207,920 
 1,399,584   ReadyCap Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2018-4, Class A, 144a, 3.390%, 2/27/51   1,452,006 
 2,132,356   ReadyCap Mortgage Trust, Ser 2016-3, Class B, 144a, 3.752%, 11/20/38   2,132,448 
 3,442,841   Tharaldson Hotel Portfolio Trust, Ser 2018-THL, Class A, 144a, (1M LIBOR +0.750%), 0.909%, 11/11/34(A)   3,300,425 
 9,616,463   Tharaldson Hotel Portfolio Trust, Ser 2018-THL, Class B, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.100%), 1.259%, 11/11/34(A)   9,085,543 
 6,450,000   UBS-Barclays Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2012-C3, Class D, 144a, 5.198%, 8/10/49(A)(B)   6,052,833 
 12,117,139   UBS-Citigroup Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-C1, Class XA, 144a, 2.342%, 1/10/45(A)(B)(C)   146,499 
 1,945,000   VNDO Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-PENN, Class A, 144a, 3.808%, 12/13/29   1,943,718 
 1,780,000   VNDO Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-PENN, Class C, 144a, 4.079%, 12/13/29(A)(B)   1,772,063 
 1,199,000   VNDO Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-PENN, Class D, 144a, 4.079%, 12/13/29(A)(B)   1,189,217 
 3,077,568   WFRBS Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-C4, Class AFL, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.450%), 1.601%, 6/15/44(A)   3,079,362 
 13,205,000   WFRBS Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2012-C7, Class AFL, 144a, (1M LIBOR +1.200%), 1.351%, 6/15/45(A)   13,092,644 
 10,450,000   WFRBS Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2013-C12, Class D, 144a, 4.536%, 3/15/48(A)(B)   9,659,532 
 404,153   WFRBS Commercial Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-C19, Class A3, 3.660%, 3/15/47   406,129 
     Total Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities  $158,769,153 
           
     Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 2.8%     
 120,673,544   FHLMC Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, Ser KAIV Class X1, 1.217%, 6/25/21(A)(B)(C)   290,546 
 625   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 2510 Class TA, 4.000%, 6/15/32   625 
 220,507   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 2770 Class FH, (1M LIBOR +0.400%), 0.552%, 3/15/34(A)   221,644 
 97,022   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 3874 Class BD, 3.000%, 6/15/21   97,422 
 1,622,581   FHLMC REMIC, Ser 4238 Class TL, 1.250%, 8/15/27   1,611,602 
 85,925   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2003-119, Class PU, 4.000%, 11/25/33   89,085 
 44,978   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2003-33, Class AM, 4.250%, 5/25/33   49,596 
 33,978   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2003-42, Class CA, 4.000%, 5/25/33   36,562 
 169,613   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2003-81, Class FE, (1M LIBOR +0.500%), 0.648%, 9/25/33(A)   171,125 
 345,545   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2009-32, Class BH, 5.250%, 5/25/39   375,431 
 411   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2010-13, Class WD, 4.250%, 3/25/25   416 
 36,690   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2010-64, Class AD, 3.000%, 12/25/20   36,685 
 82,895   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2011-15, Class HC, 2.500%, 3/25/26   83,105 
 117,258   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2012-102, Class NA, 1.500%, 9/25/27   118,889 
 550,883   FNMA REMIC, Ser 2012-47, Class AI, 3.000%, 5/25/22(C)   9,945 
 142,031   FNMA REMIC Trust, Ser 2001-W4, Class AF5, 6.114%, 2/25/32(A)(B)   173,808 
 1,560,000   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-K10, Class B, 144a, 4.685%, 11/25/49(A)(B)   1,558,909 
 9,675,906   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-K11, Class B, 144a, 4.613%, 12/25/48(A)(B)   9,705,370 
 1,080,000   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2011-K12, Class B, 144a, 4.499%, 1/25/46(A)(B)   1,085,050 
 6,208,000   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-K714, Class B, 144a, 4.404%, 1/25/47(A)(B)   6,202,342 
 2,246,285   FREMF Mortgage Trust, Ser 2014-K714, Class C, 144a, 4.404%, 1/25/47(A)(B)   2,244,782 
 71,258   GNMA, Ser 2002-72, Class AB, 4.500%, 10/20/32   71,729 
 41,989   GNMA, Ser 2011-57, Class BA, 3.000%, 5/20/40   43,742 
 145,623   GNMA, Ser 2012-27, Class A, 1.614%, 7/16/39   146,696 
 3,087,090   GNMA, Ser 2016-95, Class F, (1M LIBOR +0.450%), 0.602%, 1/16/58(A)   3,014,395 
     Total Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations  $27,439,501 
           
     Municipal Bonds — 2.6%     
     California — 0.1%     
 1,430,000   CA St Enterprise Dev Authority, Txbl Variable J Harris Indl Wt, (LOC: City National Bank), 144a, 0.510%, 9/1/41(A)(B)   1,430,000 
           
     New Jersey — 0.6%     
 5,500,000   Taxable Municipal Funding Trust, Txbl Muni Fltrs Ser 2019-014, (LOC: Barclays Bank PLC), 144a, 0.500%, 9/1/27(A)(B)   5,500,000 
           
     Other Territory — 1.5%     
 200,000   Rib Floater Trust, Txbl Muni Floaters Trust Ser 201, (LOC: Barclays Bank PLC), 144a, 0.500%, 7/1/22(A)(B)   200,000 
 13,000,000   Taxable Municipal Funding Trust, Txbl Floaters Ser 2020 11, (LOC: BARCLAYS BANK PLC), 144a, 0.500%, 9/1/30(A)(B)   13,000,000 
 1,200,000   Taxable Municipal Funding Trust, Txbl Muni Fltrs Btmft 2020-003, (LOC: Barclays Bank PLC), 144a, 0.500%, 1/16/25(A)(B)   1,200,000 
         14,400,000 
           
     Wisconsin — 0.4%     
 4,000,000   Public Finance Authority, Txbl Affinity Living Group 5 A, (LOC: Citizens Bank of MA), 3.750%, 2/1/22   4,000,840 
     Total Municipal Bonds  $25,330,840 
           
     Commercial Paper — 2.4%     
 2,000,000   American Honda Finance Corp., 0.300%, 11/19/20(D)   1,999,286 
 8,991,000   Catholic Health Initiatives, 0.601%, 12/09/20(D)   8,985,930 
 1,550,000   Crane Co., 0.401%, 12/01/20(D)   1,549,018 
 7,000,000   EI Du Pont De Nemours, 0.602%, 12/02/2020(D)   6,997,623 
 1,000,000   Siemens Capital Co. LLC, 0.120%, 01/05/21(D)   999,925 
 3,500,000   Simon Property Group, LP, 0.120%, 10/01/20(D)   3,499,991 
     Total Commercial Paper  $24,031,773 

 

84

 

 

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
         
     U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations — 1.1%     
$167,530   FHLMC, Pool #1B7189, (12M LIBOR +2.470%), 3.950%, 3/1/36(A)  $178,834 
 280,674   FHLMC, Pool #1H1354, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.250%), 3.310%, 11/1/36(A)   296,827 
 112,204   FHLMC, Pool #1J1813, (12M LIBOR +1.925%), 2.632%, 8/1/37(A)   118,486 
 95,296   FHLMC, Pool #1L0147, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.290%), 2.665%, 7/1/35(A)   95,132 
 85,481   FHLMC, Pool #1Q0080, (12M LIBOR +1.647%), 2.750%, 1/1/36(A)   89,585 
 201,209   FHLMC, Pool #1Q0119, (12M LIBOR +1.849%), 2.722%, 9/1/36(A)   212,350 
 206,343   FHLMC, Pool #1Q0187, (12M LIBOR +1.812%), 2.729%, 12/1/36(A)   216,847 
 119,685   FHLMC, Pool #1Q0339, (12M LIBOR +1.921%), 3.883%, 4/1/37(A)   126,990 
 193,646   FHLMC, Pool #1Q1303, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.250%), 3.263%, 11/1/36(A)   204,751 
 251,760   FHLMC, Pool #781515, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.250%), 3.750%, 4/1/34(A)   266,294 
 119,345   FHLMC, Pool #782760, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.250%), 2.611%, 11/1/36(A)   126,158 
 105,384   FHLMC, Pool #847795, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.285%), 3.426%, 4/1/35(A)   105,932 
 273,664   FHLMC, Pool #848539, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.285%), 3.631%, 4/1/37(A)   289,439 
 579,528   FHLMC, Pool #848583, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.311%), 3.658%, 1/1/36(A)   613,332 
 9,505   FHLMC, Pool #A92646, 5.500%, 6/1/40   11,130 
 9,614   FHLMC, Pool #C03505, 5.500%, 6/1/40   11,101 
 663   FHLMC, Pool #G00100, 8.000%, 2/1/23   700 
 28,172   FHLMC, Pool #G01840, 5.000%, 7/1/35   32,414 
 14,452   FNMA, Pool #175123, 7.450%, 8/1/22   14,524 
 1,317   FNMA, Pool #207530, 8.250%, 4/1/22   1,322 
 87,121   FNMA, Pool #254868, 5.000%, 9/1/33   100,127 
 36,612   FNMA, Pool #256272, 5.500%, 6/1/26   40,596 
 62,118   FNMA, Pool #256852, 6.000%, 8/1/27   69,326 
 15,467   FNMA, Pool #323832, 7.500%, 7/1/29   18,094 
 841   FNMA, Pool #334593, 7.000%, 5/1/24   886 
 24,970   FNMA, Pool #665773, 7.500%, 6/1/31   25,068 
 88,514   FNMA, Pool #679742, (1 Year CMT Rate +2.582%), 4.284%, 1/1/40(A)   88,856 
 100,821   FNMA, Pool #725424, 5.500%, 4/1/34   116,477 
 365,965   FNMA, Pool #725490, (12M LIBOR +1.604%), 3.299%, 4/1/34(A)   378,988 
 17,232   FNMA, Pool #735484, 5.000%, 5/1/35   19,806 
 97,610   FNMA, Pool #791978, (6M LIBOR +1.518%), 2.311%, 9/1/34(A)   98,164 
 122,034   FNMA, Pool #813170, (12M LIBOR +1.575%), 3.575%, 1/1/35(A)   127,272 
 364,663   FNMA, Pool #815323, (6M LIBOR +1.533%), 2.272%, 1/1/35(A)   377,121 
 111,800   FNMA, Pool #820364, (12M LIBOR +0.827%), 2.577%, 4/1/35(A)   113,238 
 157,082   FNMA, Pool #827787, (6M LIBOR +1.550%), 2.783%, 5/1/35(A)   162,670 
 53,248   FNMA, Pool #889060, 6.000%, 1/1/38   62,562 
 58,494   FNMA, Pool #889061, 6.000%, 1/1/38   69,012 
 3,831   FNMA, Pool #889382, 5.500%, 4/1/38   4,455 
 154,344   FNMA, Pool #922674, (12M LIBOR +1.905%), 3.770%, 4/1/36(A)   163,081 
 30,642   FNMA, Pool #960376, 5.500%, 12/1/37   35,427 
 37,172   FNMA, Pool #985670, 6.500%, 10/1/21   37,609 
 728,094   FNMA, Pool #995405, 5.500%, 10/1/23   761,941 
 48,673   FNMA, Pool #AA1150, 4.000%, 4/1/23   51,565 
 6,321   FNMA, Pool #AD0941, 5.500%, 4/1/40   7,456 
 45,672   FNMA, Pool #AE0363, 5.000%, 7/1/37   52,499 
 3   FNMA, Pool #AE0727, 4.000%, 10/1/20   3 
 55,592   FNMA, Pool #AE5441, 5.000%, 10/1/40   64,048 
 84,220   FNMA, Pool #AI6588, 4.000%, 7/1/26   89,554 
 88,656   FNMA, Pool #AI8506, 4.000%, 8/1/26   94,239 
 89,088   FNMA, Pool #AL0211, 5.000%, 4/1/41   102,637 
 7,872   FNMA, Pool #AL0302, 5.000%, 4/1/24   8,290 
 441,301   FNMA, Pool #AL0478, (12M LIBOR +1.769%), 3.190%, 4/1/36(A)   463,881 
 164,787   FNMA, Pool #AL0543, 5.000%, 7/1/41   189,859 
 83,413   FNMA, Pool #AL1105, 4.500%, 12/1/40   93,167 
 18,819   FNMA, Pool #AL2591, 5.500%, 5/1/38   20,639 
 318,069   FNMA, Pool #AL5275, (6M LIBOR +1.512%), 2.582%, 9/1/37(A)   329,299 
 1,245,946   FNMA, Pool #AL7396, (6M LIBOR +1.535%), 2.499%, 2/1/37(A)   1,289,091 
 3,470   GNMA, Pool #344233, 8.000%, 2/15/23   3,572 
 11,064   GNMA, Pool #345123, 8.000%, 12/15/23   11,234 
 880   GNMA, Pool #569337, 6.500%, 4/15/22   889 
 1,519   GNMA, Pool #780322, 8.000%, 11/15/22   1,525 
 281,228   GNMA, Pool #80826, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 3.000%, 2/20/34(A)   294,148 
 119,129   GNMA, Pool #80889, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 2.875%, 4/20/34(A)   124,672 
 203,755   GNMA, Pool #81016, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 3.250%, 8/20/34(A)   212,782 
 300,397   GNMA, Pool #82760, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 3.000%, 3/20/41(A)   313,293 
 140,716   GNMA, Pool #MA2392, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 3.125%, 11/20/44(A)   146,072 
 596,917   GNMA, Pool #MA2466, (1 Year CMT Rate +1.500%), 3.125%, 12/20/44(A)   619,745 
     Total U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations  $10,467,083 
           
     U.S. Government Agency Obligations — 0.6%     
 4,322   Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2002-20A, Class 1, 6.140%, 1/1/22   4,418 
 9,607   Small Business Administration Participation Certificates, Ser 2003-20E, Class 1, 4.640%, 5/1/23   9,978 
 75,956   Small Business Administration Pools, (Prime Rate -2.500%), 0.750%, 4/25/28(A)   75,814 
 6,000,000   United States International Development Finance Corp., 0.140%, 4/20/35(A)   6,000,000 
     Total U.S. Government Agency Obligations  $6,090,210 
           
     Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations — 0.6%     
 1,208,573   Bear Stearns ARM Trust, Ser 2003-1, Class 5A1, 2.926%, 4/25/33(A)(B)††   1,215,866 
 203,493   Bear Stearns ARM Trust, Ser 2004-1, Class 13A3, 3.930%, 4/25/34(A)(B)††   196,655 
 150,927   Bear Stearns Asset Backed Securities Trust, Ser 2003-AC7, Class A2, 5.750%, 1/25/34(A)(B)††   155,376 

 

85

 

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Continued)

 

Principal      Market 
Amount      Value 
         
     Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (Continued) — 0.6%     
$21,935   Community Program Loan Trust, Ser 1987-A, Class A5, 4.500%, 4/1/29  $22,004 
 18,027   FDIC Sale Guaranteed Notes Trust, Ser 2010-S3, Class A, 144a, 2.740%, 12/3/20   18,076 
 2,266,617   GSR Mortgage Loan Trust, Ser 2003-13, Class 1A1, 2.936%, 10/25/33(A)(B)   2,309,055 
 86,881   JP Morgan Mortgage Trust, Ser 2006-A4, Class 2A2, 3.443%, 6/25/36(A)(B)   73,621 
 81,712   Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust, Ser 2004-1, Class 1A, 2.932%, 12/25/34(A)(B)   80,427 
 18,376   Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust, Ser 2003-A1, Class 2A, (12M LIBOR +1.625%), 2.070%, 12/25/32(A)   17,556 
 1,453,089   Morgan Stanley Mortgage Loan Trust, Ser 2005-6AR, Class 1M1, (1M LIBOR +0.460%), 0.608%, 11/25/35(A)   1,449,843 
 556,706   RFMSI Trust, Ser 2007-SA1, Class 1A1, 3.491%, 2/25/37(A)(B)   471,170 
     Total Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations  $6,009,649 
           
 Shares         
     Short-Term Investment Fund — 1.6%     
 16,118,077   Dreyfus Government Cash Management, Institutional Shares, 0.02%∞Ω  $16,118,077 
           
     Total Investment Securities —99.6%
(Cost $986,134,065)
  $982,407,834 
           
     Other Assets in Excess of Liabilities — 0.4%   4,302,822 
           
     Net Assets — 100.0%  $986,710,656 

 

(A)Variable rate security - Rate reflected is the rate in effect as of September 30, 2020.
(B)Certain variable rate securities are not based on a published reference rate and spread but are determined by the issuer or agent and are based on current market conditions. These securities do not indicate a reference rate and spread in their description.
(C)Interest only security - This type of security represents the right to receive the monthly interest payments on an underlying pool of mortgages. Payments of principal on the pool reduce the value of the “interest only” holding.
(D)Rate reflects yield at the time of purchase.
††The issuers and/or sponsors of certain mortgage-backed securities may no longer exist; however, the securities held by the Fund are separate legal entities organized as trusts and publicly traded. The Fund receives principal and interest payments directly from these trusts.
Open-End Fund.
ΩRepresents the 7-day SEC yield as of September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Abbreviations:

 

ARM - Adjustable Rate Mortgage

CLO - Collateralized Loan Obligation

CMT - Constant Maturity Treasury

FDIC - Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

FHLMC - Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation

FNMA - Federal National Mortgage Association

FREMF - Freddie Mac Multifamily Securitization

GNMA - Government National Mortgage Association

LIBOR - London Interbank Offered Rate

LLC - Limited Liability Company

LOC - Letter of Credit

LP - Limited Partnership

MTN - Medium Term Note

PLC - Public Limited Company

REMIC - Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit

SOFR - Secured Overnight Financing Rate

144a - This is a restricted security that was sold in a transaction qualifying for the exemption under Rule 144a of the Securities Act of 1933. This security may be sold in transactions exempt from registration, normally to qualified institutional buyers. At September 30,2020, these securities were valued at $566,699,802 or 57.4% of net assets. These securities were deemed liquid pursuant to procedures approved by the Board of Trustees.

 

Other Information:

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities may not be an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities. For more information on valuation inputs, and their aggregation into the levels used in the table below, please refer to the security valuation section in the accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

Valuation inputs at Reporting Date: 

 

Description  Level 1   Level 2   Level 3   Total 
Asset-Backed Securities  $   $406,790,761   $   $406,790,761 
Corporate Bonds       301,360,787        301,360,787 
Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities       158,769,153        158,769,153 
Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations       27,439,501        27,439,501 
Municipal Bonds       25,330,840        25,330,840 
Commercial Paper       24,031,773        24,031,773 
U.S. Government Mortgage-Backed Obligations       10,467,083        10,467,083 
U.S. Government Agency Obligations       6,090,210        6,090,210 
Non-Agency Collateralized Mortgage Obligations       6,009,649        6,009,649 
Short-Term Investment Fund   16,118,077            16,118,077 
Total  $16,118,077   $966,289,757   $   $982,407,834 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

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Statements of Assets and Liabilities

September 30, 2020

 

          Touchstone                          
          Anti-     Touchstone                    
          Benchmark®     Anti-     Touchstone              
    Touchstone     International     Benchmark® US     Credit     Touchstone     Touchstone  
    Active Bond     Core Equity     Core Equity     Opportunities II     High Yield     Impact Bond  
    Fund     Fund     Fund     Fund     Fund     Fund  
Assets                                                
Investments, at cost   $ 342,185,720     $ 35,229,619     $ 26,551,506     $ 89,171,427     $ 189,670,103     $ 368,402,313  
Investments, at market value (A)   $ 359,561,632     $ 38,625,970     $ 30,769,902     $ 88,193,323     $ 187,874,349     $ 391,365,203  
Cash     257,974                   186,291       47,013       38,014  
Foreign currency (B)           38,922             63              
Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts                       4,780              
Dividends and interest receivable     2,484,493       97,281       20,357       1,119,832       2,751,696       2,198,851  
Receivable for capital shares sold     284,003                   133,011       62,883       731,863  
Receivable for investments sold     6,169,941                   2,059,897       1,246,353        
Receivable for variation margin on swap agreements                       104,200              
Receivable for securities lending income           2,652       6       249       306        
Tax reclaim receivable           31,670             350              
Other assets     25,641       5,833       6,332       19,599       18,205       34,663  
Total Assets     368,783,684       38,802,328       30,796,597       91,821,595       192,000,805       394,368,594  
Liabilities                                                
Bank overdrafts                 334                    
Due to prime broker                       108,380              
Written options, at market value(C)                       19,580              
Securities sold short(D)                       913,136              
Dividend and interest payable on securities sold short                       14,333              
Dividends payable                                    
Payable for return of collateral for securities on loan           1,614,322             554,625       2,229,455        
Payable for capital shares redeemed     553,618                   35,301       568,051       241,642  
Payable for variation margin for futures contracts     7,671                                
Payable for investments purchased     9,249,784                   2,588,960       3,509,216       2,027,016  
Payable to Investment Advisor     107,911       724       5,018       46,626       77,926       84,253  
Payable to other affiliates     73,071       5,042       4,293       11,163       24,377       48,823  
Payable to Trustees     10,375       10,375       10,375       10,375       10,375       10,375  
Payable for professional services     29,842       29,151       23,896       30,421       29,489       31,062  
Payable for transfer agent services     127,403       168       133       18,689       37,790       106,377  
Payable for reports to shareholders     12,550       4,620       4,622       11,457       10,228       11,545  
Other accrued expenses and liabilities     12,685       19,033       3,382       75,262       7,833       7,002  
Total Liabilities     10,184,910       1,683,435       52,053       4,438,308       6,504,740       2,568,095  
Net Assets   $ 358,598,774     $ 37,118,893     $ 30,744,544     $ 87,383,287     $ 185,496,065     $ 391,800,499  
Net assets consist of:                                                
Par value   $ 319,973     $ 34,124     $ 26,434     $ 91,186     $ 229,849     $ 362,141  
Paid-in capital     423,081,752       34,234,515       26,544,633       107,931,001       207,448,668       373,854,946  
Distributable earnings (deficit)     (64,802,951 )     2,850,254       4,173,477       (20,638,900 )     (22,182,452 )     17,583,412  
Net Assets   $ 358,598,774     $ 37,118,893     $ 30,744,544     $ 87,383,287     $ 185,496,065     $ 391,800,499  
(A) Includes market value of securities on loan of:   $     $ 1,553,294     $     $ 525,504     $ 2,133,450     $  
(B) Cost of foreign currency:   $     $ 38,695     $     $ 64     $     $  
(C) Premiums received from written options:   $     $     $     $ 33,010     $     $  
(D)Proceeds received for securities sold short:   $     $     $     $ 892,626     $     $  

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

87

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (Continued)

 

Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone           Touchstone 
International   Mid   Mid Cap   Sands Capital   Touchstone   Touchstone   Ultra Short 
ESG Equity   Cap   Value   Select Growth   Small Cap   Small Cap Value   Duration Fixed 
Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Income Fund 
                                 
$23,570,199   $3,381,235,955   $607,464,242   $1,055,367,864   $60,546,485   $56,245,605   $986,134,065 
$27,965,449   $3,828,882,434   $664,971,922   $2,284,575,249   $73,372,371   $54,179,220   $982,407,834 
     3        4        58,727    9 
 8,868                         
                                 
                          
 51,853    4,156,760    900,358        80,698    95,636    2,738,581 
 50,189    12,805,426    754,807    3,815,510    36,850    204,111    3,987,165 
     24,379,536    18,926,506    20,086,358        314,826    19,676 
                          
 396            1,386        407     
 33,907                         
 20,399    127,069    29,667    60,640    18,612    22,126    51,425 
 28,131,061    3,870,351,228    685,583,260    2,308,539,147    73,508,531    54,875,053    989,204,690 
                                 
                          
                          
                          
                          
                                 
                          
                         127,834 
 662,369            22,355,022        1,160,251     
 46,398    19,812,023    1,417,840    18,833,604    7,885    178,894    1,628,418 
                          
             7,565,728        133,189     
 10,707    2,030,199    329,575    1,198,741    34,784    28,000    159,375 
 3,953    580,391    83,219    817,828    9,519    21,490    226,812 
 10,375    10,375    10,375    10,375    10,375    10,375    10,375 
 22,456    66,212    30,162    47,119    23,010    25,540    36,766 
 18,126    1,711,045    649,016    760,386    24,396    35,207    264,423 
 10,501    106,672    53,278    51,777    11,564    10,894    23,034 
 8,349    18,477    7,776    58,162    4,897    5,842    16,997 
 793,234    24,335,394    2,581,241    51,698,742    126,430    1,609,682    2,494,034 
$27,337,827   $3,846,015,834   $683,002,019   $2,256,840,405   $73,382,101   $53,265,371   $986,710,656 
                                 
$36,792   $974,178   $405,886   $1,233,674   $69,979   $25,795   $1,069,338 
 24,064,198    3,331,494,344    653,702,584    824,916,772    60,622,564    75,851,917    1,088,988,345 
 3,236,837    513,547,312    28,893,549    1,430,689,959    12,689,558    (22,612,341)   (103,347,027)
$27,337,827   $3,846,015,834   $683,002,019   $2,256,840,405   $73,382,101   $53,265,371   $986,710,656 
$628,869   $   $   $21,226,066   $   $1,159,163   $ 
$8,818   $   $   $   $   $   $ 
$   $   $   $   $   $   $ 
$   $   $   $   $   $   $ 

 

88

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (Continued)

 

       Touchstone   Touchstone             
       Anti-Benchmark®   Anti-Benchmark®   Touchstone         
   Touchstone   International   US   Credit   Touchstone   Touchstone 
   Active Bond   Core Equity   Core Equity   Opportunities II   High Yield   Impact Bond 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund 
Pricing of Class A Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class A shares  $128,086,444   $   $   $5,597,018   $14,578,486   $16,508,603 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)   11,407,910            592,239    1,854,533    1,527,900 
Net asset value price per share*  $11.23   $   $   $9.45   $7.86   $10.80 
Maximum sales charge - Class A shares   3.25%           3.25%   3.25%   3.25%
Maximum offering price per share (100%/(100%-maximum sales charge) of net asset value adjusted to the nearest cent) - Class A shares  $11.61   $   $   $9.77   $8.12   $11.16 
Pricing of Class C Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class C shares  $5,618,214   $   $   $2,245,915   $1,250,154   $1,736,842 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)   545,332            244,775    159,447    160,919 
Net asset value and offering price per share**  $10.30   $   $   $9.18   $7.84   $10.79 
Pricing of Class S Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class S shares  $   $   $   $   $   $ 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)                        
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per share  $   $   $   $   $   $ 
Pricing of Class Y Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class Y shares  $90,234,818   $242,950   $159,394   $36,558,075   $33,693,718   $145,821,198 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)   8,042,645    22,374    13,702    3,819,258    4,163,642    13,476,259 
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per share  $11.22   $10.86   $11.63   $9.57   $8.09   $10.82 
Pricing of Class Z Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class Z shares  $   $   $   $   $   $ 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)                        
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per share  $   $   $   $   $   $ 
Pricing of Institutional Class Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Institutional Class shares  $134,659,298   $36,875,943   $30,585,150   $42,982,279   $135,973,707   $227,733,856 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)   12,001,420    3,390,048    2,629,700    4,462,327    16,807,270    21,049,039 
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per share  $11.22   $10.88   $11.63   $9.63   $8.09   $10.82 
Pricing of Class R6 Shares                              
Net assets applicable to Class R6 Shares  $   $   $   $   $   $ 
Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited number of shares authorized, $0.01 par value)                        
Net asset value, offering price and redemption price per share  $   $   $   $   $   $ 

 

* There is no sales load on subscriptions of $1 million or more for all funds except for Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities II Fund, High Yield Fund, Impact Bond Fund and Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund. There is no sales load on subscriptions of $500,000 or more for Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities Fund II Fund, High Yield Fund, Impact Bond Fund and Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund. Redemptions that were part of a $500,000 or $ 1 million or more subscription, as applicable, may be subject to a contingent deferred sales load if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase.

**Redemption price per share varies by length of time shares are held due to the terms of the contingent deferred sales charge. See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

89

 

 

Statements of Assets and Liabilities (Continued)

 

Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone           Touchstone 
International   Mid   Mid Cap   Sands Capital   Touchstone   Touchstone   Ultra Short 
ESG Equity   Cap   Value   Select Growth   Small Cap   Small Cap Value   Duration Fixed 
Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Income Fund 
                                 
$11,718,952   $103,963,869   $9,863,825   $163,696,588   $4,312,974   $16,552,370   $124,233,195 
 1,575,363    2,663,259    590,418    9,505,530    419,113    802,380    13,463,306 
$7.44   $39.04   $16.71   $17.22   $10.29   $20.63   $9.23 
 5.00%   5.00%   5.00%   5.00%   5.00%   5.00%   2.00%
$7.83   $41.09   $17.59   $18.13   $10.83   $21.72   $9.42 
                                 
$4,066,207   $78,959,353   $3,295,545   $36,065,382   $295,232   $452,927   $5,276,195 
 549,612    2,170,429    203,785    2,476,008    31,460    22,828    571,247 
$7.40   $36.38   $16.17   $14.57   $9.38   $19.84   $9.24 
                                 
$   $   $   $   $   $   $61,463,829 
                         6,658,224 
$   $   $   $   $   $   $9.23 
                                 
$11,549,813   $2,443,232,308   $299,595,502   $1,565,332,642   $35,572,818   $28,434,786   $292,708,172 
 1,553,861    61,769,544    17,852,256    82,883,083    3,381,148    1,375,884    31,705,817 
$7.43   $39.55   $16.78   $18.89   $10.52   $20.67   $9.23 
                                 
$   $77,183,677   $   $491,741,027   $   $   $86,017,877 
     1,991,642        28,502,681            9,319,303 
$   $38.75   $   $17.25   $   $   $9.23 
                                 
$2,855   $1,142,676,627   $370,247,147   $2,383   $33,201,077   $7,825,288   $417,011,388 
 384    28,822,895    21,942,119    126    3,166,145    378,401    45,215,866 
$7.43   $39.64   $16.87   $18.89   $10.49   $20.68   $9.22 
                                 
$   $   $   $2,383   $   $   $ 
             126             
$   $   $   $18.89   $   $   $ 

 

90

 

 

Statements of Operations

For the Year Ended September 30, 2020

 

       Touchstone             
       Anti-   Touchstone         
       Benchmark®   Anti-   Touchstone     
   Touchstone   International   Bnchmark® US   Credit   Touchstone 
   Active Bond   Core Equity   Core Equity   Opportunities II   High Yield 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund 
Investment Income                         
Dividends (A)  $   $750,804   $688,713   $   $ 
Interest   11,485,933            6,613,243    11,765,769 
Income from securities loaned   298    13,366    411    1,561    14,070 
Total Investment Income   11,486,231    764,170    689,124    6,614,804    11,779,839 
Expenses                         
Investment advisory fees   1,320,119    162,288    98,351    560,597    1,049,952 
Administration fees   484,764    52,293    40,746    135,477    289,986 
Compliance fees and expenses   2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497 
Custody fees   51,478    33,379    3,635    86,505    16,200 
Professional fees   36,624    29,802    25,793    28,182    33,087 
Transfer Agent fees, Class A   101,263            5,298    19,599 
Transfer Agent fees, Class C   9,328            4,417    3,371 
Transfer Agent fees, Class S                    
Transfer Agent fees, Class Y   87,290    214    273    40,135    42,932 
Transfer Agent fees, Class Z                    
Transfer Agent fees, Institutional Class   7,987    140    116    1,154    7,417 
Transfer Agent fees, Class R6                    
Pricing expense   24,325    21,773    822    8,572    20,197 
Registration Fees, Class A   16,520            8,034    12,476 
Registration Fees, Class C   14,181            10,190    9,938 
Registration Fees, Class S                    
Registration Fees, Class Y   15,880    3,053    4,887    14,299    14,864 
Registration Fees, Class Z                    
Registration Fees, Institutional Class   14,310    3,057    3,064    5,724    12,787 
Dividend expense on securities sold short               6,524     
Interest expense on securities sold short               85,616     
Reports to Shareholders, Class A   11,524            6,103    6,420 
Reports to Shareholders, Class C   6,559            5,896    5,417 
Reports to Shareholders, Class S                    
Reports to Shareholders, Class Y   9,474    5,108    5,117    13,496    6,252 
Reports to Shareholders, Class Z                    
Reports to Shareholders, Institutional Class   6,766    5,092    5,106    5,350    5,604 
Reports to Shareholders, Class R6                    
Shareholder servicing fees, Class Z                    
Distribution expenses, Class A   315,045            14,863    36,131 
Distribution and shareholder servicing expenses, Class C   92,375            35,493    30,147 
Distribution expenses, Class S                    
Trustee fees   21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452 
Other expenses   70,995    14,527    14,267    26,544    33,617 
Total Expenses   2,720,756    354,675    226,126    1,132,418    1,680,343 
Fees waived and/or reimbursed by the Advisor and/or Affiliates(B)   (228,474)   (141,795)   (102,369)   (258,099)   (128,065)
Fees recouped by the Advisor(B)                    
Net Expenses   2,492,282    212,880    123,757    874,319    1,552,278 
Net Investment Income (Loss)   8,993,949    551,290    565,367    5,740,485    10,227,561 
Realized and Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Investments                         
Net realized gains (losses) on investments(C)   8,804,714    (438,346)   1,127,307    (4,626,420)   (4,173,531)
Net realized gains on forward foreign currency contracts               9,931     
Net realized losses on foreign currency transactions       (1,819)       (16,373)    
Net realized losses on futures contracts   (267,203)                
Net realized gains on written options               237,407     
Net realized gains on securities sold short               211,251     
Net realized losses on swap agreements               (8,465)    
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments   7,929,369    2,887,802    2,259,173    (1,940,456)   (3,498,537)
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on forward foreign currency contracts               4,780     
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on foreign currency transactions       3,646        12,768     
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on written options               13,430     
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures contracts   (7,671)                
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on swap agreements               (65,816)    
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on securities sold short               (40,061)    
Net Realized and Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Investments   16,459,209    2,451,283    3,386,480    (6,208,024)   (7,672,068)
Change in Net Assets Resulting from Operations  $25,453,158   $3,002,573   $3,951,847   $(467,539)  $2,555,493 
(A) Net of foreign tax withholding of:  $   $74,180   $   $   $ 
(B) See Note 4 in Notes to Financial Statements.                     
(C) For the year ended September 30, 2020, Sands Capital Select Growth Fund and Small Cap Fund had redemptions-in-kind of securities in the amount of $275,404,967, and $7,391,692, respectively. Net realized gains (losses) on investments includes the realized gain on the transactions of $157,336,691, and $2,439,613, respectively, which will not be recognized by the Fund for tax purposes. 

 

91

 

 

Statements of Operations (Continued)

 

    Touchstone       Touchstone   Touchstone           Ultra Short 
Touchstone   International   Touchstone   Mid Cap   Sands Capital   Touchstone   Touchstone   Duration 
Impact Bond   ESG Equity   Mid Cap   Value   Select Growth   Small Cap   Small Cap   Fixed Income 
Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Value Fund   Fund 
                                      
$   $548,618   $33,911,804   $12,846,948   $3,820,527   $971,272   $1,168,826   $ 
 9,209,650        11,219        3,483            24,761,933 
 2,312    3,548        10,794    3,807,238    307    3,447     
 9,211,962    552,166    33,923,023    12,857,742    7,631,248    971,579    1,172,273    24,761,933 
                                      
 1,204,851    194,200    18,294,071    5,598,077    13,159,970    615,913    663,208    2,451,585 
 499,153    43,322    3,816,901    1,082,295    2,638,304    105,068    113,136    1,421,920 
 2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497    2,497 
 14,052    23,108    39,596    20,560    30,509    8,350    19,568    53,608 
 37,435    48,366    103,574    44,877    82,255    24,782    27,444    54,879 
 10,616    12,974    117,105    16,071    55,258    5,735    17,029    81,180 
 1,585    5,459    69,552    4,089    32,536    3,583    1,408    2,848 
                             51,660 
 97,997    11,681    2,210,711    768,236    905,861    34,888    26,449    233,316 
         138,631        613,825            86,253 
 98,063    7    176,542    215,806    1    6,760    5,459    119,885 
                 1             
 13,990    6,823    331    762    310    343    1,008    30,003 
 16,176    16,547    19,947    16,108    19,972    14,623    15,849    18,403 
 9,625    12,439    22,159    13,675    15,372    9,989    8,544    13,567 
                             15,563 
 28,028    17,754    127,975    24,259    56,796    18,189    15,237    26,354 
         31,267        23,256            24,508 
 21,324    3,413    33,592    26,801    172    15,034    7,102    17,034 
                              
                              
 5,849    6,372    17,758    10,683    12,245    5,411    6,483    7,589 
 5,353    5,506    18,638    10,130    9,642    5,419    5,240    5,225 
                             11,074 
 11,639    4,293    216,904    82,279    76,373    9,730    6,731    16,178 
         20,832        39,334            7,388 
 6,248    4,912    27,898    43,982    2,308    5,150    5,649    5,804 
                 1,948             
         241,599        1,058,789            254,079 
 33,369    25,981    203,007    25,439    262,023    9,076    49,628    211,968 
 16,309    69,248    743,692    42,680    465,057    19,696    6,404    37,630 
                             547,798 
 21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452    21,452 
 33,936    24,448    138,611    53,068    693,994    38,086    34,392    78,814 
 2,189,547    560,802    26,854,842    8,123,826    20,280,060    979,774    1,059,917    5,910,062 
 (282,557)   (191,139)   (857,351)   (1,389,112)   (298,889)   (241,490)   (166,801)   (738,782)
         9,822        26,052             
 1,906,990    369,663    26,007,313    6,734,714    20,007,223    738,284    893,116    5,171,280 
 7,304,972    182,503    7,915,710    6,123,028    (12,375,975)   233,295    279,157    19,590,653 
                                      
 982,426    (1,204,605)   69,219,023    (7,775,023)   447,921,221    3,900,793    (6,726,045)   (176,658)
                              
     (7,004)                        
                              
                              
                              
                              
 11,461,934    3,021,935    127,121,216    (33,577,191)   430,967,787    (9,602,979)   (6,605,039)   (5,825,465)
                                      
                              
                                      
     787                         
                              
                              
                                      
                              
                                      
                              
 12,444,360    1,811,113    196,340,239    (41,352,214)   878,889,008    (5,702,186)   (13,331,084)   (6,002,123)
$19,749,332   $1,993,616   $204,255,949   $(35,229,186)  $866,513,033   $(5,468,891)  $(13,051,927)  $13,588,530 
$   $84,665   $   $   $   $   $   $ 

 

92

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets

 

           Touchstone         
           Anti-Benchmark®   Touchstone 
   Touchstone   International   Anti-Benchmark® 
   Active Bond   Core Equity   US Core Equity 
   Fund   Fund   Fund 
   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Period Ended   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019(A)   2020   2019(A) 
From Operations                              
Net investment income  $8,993,949   $9,339,620   $551,290   $769,261   $565,367   $484,961 
Net realized gains (losses) on investments, forward foreign currency contracts, foreign currency transactions, futures contracts, written options, securities sold short, and swap agreements   8,537,511    4,415,782    (440,165)   (565,791)   1,127,307    (798,930)
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments, forward foreign currency contracts, foreign currency transactions, futures contracts, written options, swap agreements, and securities sold short   7,921,698    17,045,254    2,891,448    506,545    2,259,173    1,959,223 
Change in Net Assets from Operations   25,453,158    30,800,656    3,002,573    710,015    3,951,847    1,645,254 
                               
Distributions to Shareholders:                              
Distributed earnings, Class A   (3,252,024)   (3,499,808)                
Distributed earnings, Class C   (193,793)   (409,591)                
Distributed earnings, Class Y   (2,520,642)   (3,505,627)   (102)   (3)   (4,992)   (14)
Distributed earnings, Institutional Class   (3,258,096)   (2,199,194)   (830,890)   (32,746)   (1,274,135)   (145,890)
Return of capital, Class Y                   (98)    
Return of capital, Institutional Class                   (28,806)    
Total Distributions   (9,224,555)   (9,614,220)   (830,992)   (32,749)   (1,308,031)   (145,904)
                               
Change in Net Assets from Share Transactions(B)   16,312,594    (56,670,856)   (1,765,217)   36,035,263    1,401,151    25,200,227 
                               
Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets   32,541,197    (35,484,420)   406,364    36,712,529    4,044,967    26,699,577 
                               
Net Assets                              
Beginning of period   326,057,577    361,541,997    36,712,529        26,699,577     
End of period  $358,598,774   $326,057,577   $37,118,893   $36,712,529   $30,744,544   $26,699,577 

 

(A) Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 19, 2018) through September 30, 2019.

(B) For details on share transactions by class, see Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity in pages 98-100.

(C) The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

93

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Continued)

 

Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone 
Credit Opportunities II   High Yield   Impact Bond 
Fund   Fund   Fund 
For the   For the Three   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the 
Year Ended   Months Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
September 30,   September 30,   June 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
2020   2019(C)   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019 
                                 
$5,740,485   $1,044,350   $3,098,043   $10,227,561   $9,939,041   $7,304,972   $7,165,326 
 (4,192,669)   116,310    263,609    (4,173,531)   (1,383,831)   982,426    96,667 
 (2,015,355)   (162,574)   542,184    (3,498,537)   4,822,346    11,461,934    19,267,369 
 (467,539)   998,086    3,903,836    2,555,493    13,377,556    19,749,332    26,529,362 
                                 
                                 
 (333,642)   (4,253)   (9,474)   (704,158)   (741,320)   (256,523)   (178,385)
 (174,362)   (1,918)   (5,380)   (121,251)   (281,592)   (19,463)   (19,278)
 (2,325,230)   (208,081)   (291,730)   (2,028,121)   (2,491,635)   (2,625,750)   (2,037,305)
 (2,579,658)   (805,916)   (3,272,520)   (7,471,813)   (6,487,408)   (4,723,502)   (5,556,679)
                          
                          
 (5,412,892)   (1,020,168)   (3,579,104)   (10,325,343)   (10,001,955)   (7,625,238)   (7,791,647)
                                 
 (14,154,737)   48,200,441    6,580,821    (5,315,953)   (2,381,934)   65,438,330    42,598,181 
                                 
 (20,035,168)   48,178,359    6,905,553    (13,085,803)   993,667    77,562,424    61,335,896 
                                 
                                 
 107,418,455    59,240,096    52,334,543    198,581,868    197,588,201    314,238,075    252,902,179 
$87,383,287   $107,418,455   $59,240,096   $185,496,065   $198,581,868   $391,800,499   $314,238,075 

 

94

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Continued)

 

   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone 
   International   Mid   Mid Cap 
   ESG Equity   Cap   Value 
   Fund   Fund   Fund 
   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019 
From Operations                              
Net investment income (loss)  $182,503   $1,247,628   $7,915,710   $4,462,595   $6,123,028   $6,617,807 
Net realized gains (losses) on investments and foreign currency transactions   (1,211,609)   8,032,786    69,219,023    51,721,554    (7,775,023)   (9,967,857)
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments and foreign currency transactions   3,022,722    (11,209,391)   127,121,216    137,680,803    (33,577,191)   8,396,808 
Change in Net Assets from Operations   1,993,616    (1,928,977)   204,255,949    193,864,952    (35,229,186)   5,046,758 
                               
Distributions to Shareholders:                              
Distributed earnings, Class A   (1,975,668)   (1,148,127)   (2,136,246)   (1,161,949)   (51,424)   (677,036)
Distributed earnings, Class C   (1,710,548)   (1,711,118)   (1,766,346)   (1,924,706)       (290,312)
Distributed earnings, Class S                        
Distributed earnings, Class Y   (2,959,640)   (5,288,924)   (40,650,826)   (25,404,765)   (2,283,383)   (15,618,865)
Distributed earnings, Class Z           (3,135,026)   (686,312)        
Distributed earnings, Institutional Class   (537)   (4)   (9,162,448)   (4,388,852)   (3,844,764)   (22,128,826)
Return of capital, Class A                        
Return of capital, Class C                        
Return of capital, Class Y                        
Return of capital, Institutional Class                        
Total Distributions   (6,646,393)   (8,148,173)   (56,850,892)   (33,566,584)   (6,179,571)   (38,715,039)
                               
Change in Net Assets from Share Transactions(A)   (5,589,850)   (39,966,666)   2,068,906,633    513,980,291    (31,438,355)   (4,113,450)
                               
Total Increase (Decrease) in Net Assets   (10,242,627)   (50,043,816)   2,216,311,690    674,278,659    (72,847,112)   (37,781,731)
                               
Net Assets                              
Beginning of period   37,580,454    87,624,270    1,629,704,144    955,425,485    755,849,131    793,630,862 
End of period  $27,337,827   $37,580,454   $3,846,015,834   $1,629,704,144   $683,002,019   $755,849,131 

 

(A) For details on share transactions by class, see Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity on pages 101-104.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

95

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets (Continued)

 

Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone 
Sands Capital   Small   Small   Ultra Short 
Select Growth   Cap   Cap Value   Duration Fixed 
Fund   Fund   Fund   Income Fund 
For the   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the   For the 
Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
2020   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019 
                                      
$(12,375,975)  $(19,878,672)  $233,295   $238,680   $279,157   $410,097   $19,590,653   $24,702,944 
 447,921,221    563,874,003    3,900,793    23,464,145    (6,726,045)   (13,330,857)   (176,658)   (258,992)
 430,967,787    (636,787,029)   (9,602,979)   (30,663,731)   (6,605,039)   (3,290,945)   (5,825,465)   4,685,231 
 866,513,033    (92,791,698)   (5,468,891)   (6,960,906)   (13,051,927)   (16,211,705)   13,588,530    29,129,183 
                                      
                                      
 (15,437,081)   (21,290,699)   (330,913)   (1,165,908)   (45,317)   (5,072,643)   (1,582,978)   (1,822,159)
 (9,285,021)   (17,571,431)   (285,467)   (1,317,244)   (436)   (85,491)   (71,150)   (93,157)
                         (1,992,326)   (3,244,399)
 (175,614,541)   (260,948,268)   (3,029,450)   (8,692,472)   (115,630)   (2,377,087)   (6,466,843)   (7,334,957)
 (75,190,327)   (122,462,519)                   (2,053,174)   (4,027,821)
         (3,206,418)   (12,411,469)   (174,530)   (2,239,906)   (8,755,799)   (8,648,582)
                 (15,039)            
                 (145)            
                 (38,374)            
                 (57,921)            
 (275,526,970)   (422,272,917)   (6,852,248)   (23,587,093)   (447,392)   (9,775,127)   (20,922,270)   (25,171,075)
                                      
 (22,498,987)   (142,003,990)   7,197,740    (50,241,132)   (23,437,257)   (39,026,770)   (14,545,502)   79,576,816 
                                      
 568,487,076    (657,068,605)   (5,123,399)   (80,789,131)   (36,936,576)   (65,013,602)   (21,879,242)   83,534,924 
                                      
                                      
 1,688,353,329    2,345,421,934    78,505,500    159,294,631    90,201,947    155,215,549    1,008,589,898    925,054,974 
$2,256,840,405   $1,688,353,329   $73,382,101   $78,505,500   $53,265,371   $90,201,947   $986,710,656   $1,008,589,898 

 

96

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity

 

   Touchstone   Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® 
   Active Bond Fund   International Core Equity Fund 
                           For the Period 
   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year   Ended 
   Ended   Ended   Ended   September 30, 
   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019   September 30, 2020   2019(A) 
   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
Class A                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   1,411,092   $15,404,439    1,422,056   $14,626,760       $       $ 
Proceeds from Shares issued in connection with merger                                
Reinvestment of distributions   248,638    2,701,033    278,425    2,850,526                 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (2,188,720)   (23,737,062)   (3,059,275)   (31,179,556)                
Change from Class A Share Transactions   (528,990)   (5,631,590)   (1,358,794)   (13,702,270)                
Class C                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   99,527    995,343    73,331    672,601                 
Proceeds from Shares issued in connection with merger                                
Reinvestment of distributions   16,906    167,960    37,388    350,078                 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (766,459)   (7,725,499)   (1,493,575)   (14,106,292)                
Change from Class C Share Transactions   (650,026)   (6,562,196)   (1,382,856)   (13,083,613)                
Class Y                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   1,985,411    21,559,070    3,486,649    35,461,232    22,114    211,530    250    2,500 
Proceeds from Shares issued in connection with merger                                
Reinvestment of distributions   199,030    2,158,789    302,711    3,080,375    10    102        3 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (2,605,694)   (28,030,100)   (11,913,916)   (120,959,495)                
Change from Class Y Share Transactions   (421,253)   (4,312,241)   (8,124,556)   (82,417,888)   22,124    211,632    250    2,503 
Institutional Class                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   3,875,251    42,480,044    8,994,600    91,572,024    149,702    1,449,479    3,689,304    36,945,243 
Proceeds from Shares issued in connection with merger                                
Reinvestment of distributions   272,356    2,961,164    186,387    1,928,015    77,436    830,890    3,480    32,746 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (1,184,461)   (12,622,587)   (4,013,015)   (40,967,124)   (435,859)   (4,257,218)   (94,015)   (945,229)
Change from Institutional Class Share Transactions   2,963,146    32,818,621    5,167,972    52,532,915    (208,721)   (1,976,849)   3,598,769    36,032,760 
                                         
Change from Share Transactions   1,362,877   $16,312,594    (5,698,234)  $(56,670,856)   (186,597)  $(1,765,217)   3,599,019   $36,035,263 

 

(A) Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 19, 2018) through September 30, 2019.

(B) The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

97

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

  Touchstone Anti-Benchmark®       Touchstone Credit
  US Core Equity Fund       Opportunities II Fund
              For the Three    
  For the Year   For the Period   For the Year   Months Ended   For the Year
  Ended   Ended   Ended   September 30,   Ended
  September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019(A)   September 30, 2020   2019(B)   June 30, 2019
  Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars
                                                
      $       $    226,710   $2,132,358    13,949   $139,772    16,091 $ 158,403
                           698,322    6,996,031      
                   34,744    328,518    388    3,835    806   7,849
                   (390,740)   (3,737,180)   (13,832)   (138,793)   (9,561)  (94,507)
                   (129,286)   (1,276,304)   698,827    7,000,845    7,336   71,745
                                                
                   23,706    229,266    8,188    79,994    12,217   121,216
                           473,084    4,605,015      
                   18,697    172,058    193    1,918    554   5,381
                   (262,895)   (2,398,136)   (28,936)   (282,404)   (2,267)  (22,317)
                   (220,492)   (1,996,812)   452,529    4,404,523    10,504   104,280
                                                
   8,687    96,718    4,904    51,823    3,275,451    30,620,647    299,398    2,999,589    1,205,335   11,677,641
                           3,543,051    36,187,744      
   440    5,090    1    14    241,071    2,316,256    21,061    208,081    29,642   291,729
   (330)   (3,598)           (4,372,888)   (41,115,601)   (328,931)   (3,317,098)   (138,508)  (1,372,382)
   8,797    98,210    4,905    51,837    (856,366)   (8,178,698)   3,534,579    36,078,316    1,096,469   10,596,988
                                                
           2,500,250    25,002,500    224,585    2,072,740    28,432    284,408    451,288   4,456,115
                           (44,528)   911,375      
   113,294    1,302,941    16,156    145,890    269,092    2,576,499    81,570    805,916    337,575   3,272,520
                   (744,891)   (7,352,162)   (127,763)   (1,284,942)   (1,206,092)  (11,920,827)
   113,294    1,302,941    2,516,406    25,148,390    (251,214)   (2,702,923)   (62,289)   716,757    (417,229)  (4,192,192)
                                                
   122,091   $1,401,151    2,521,311   $25,200,227    (1,457,358)  $(14,154,737)   4,623,646   $48,200,441    697,080 $ 6,580,821

 

98

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

   Touchstone   Touchstone 
   High Yield Fund   Impact Bond Fund 
   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year 
   Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended 
   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019 
   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
Class A                                
Proceeds from Shares issued   1,582,680   $12,453,477    1,662,137   $13,446,109    1,008,475   $10,659,616    555,411   $5,610,755 
Reinvestment of distributions   78,704    619,319    79,556    645,518    19,409    205,746    13,537    136,250 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (1,576,405)   (12,482,226)   (1,506,488)   (12,307,465)   (465,803)   (4,930,537)   (186,508)   (1,853,711)
Change from Class A Share Transactions   84,979    590,570    235,205    1,784,162    562,081    5,934,825    382,440    3,893,294 
Class C                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   30,970    248,433    123,518    996,259    74,586    788,876    74,026    748,774 
Reinvestment of distributions   13,764    108,318    29,572    237,691    1,371    14,475    1,500    15,058 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (440,580)   (3,410,363)   (764,130)   (6,155,763)   (56,479)   (598,156)   (45,500)   (448,699)
Change from Class C Share Transactions   (395,846)   (3,053,612)   (611,040)   (4,921,813)   19,478    205,195    30,026    315,133 
Class Y                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   920,919    7,440,564    1,023,469    8,554,837    8,069,654    85,797,631    5,604,926    56,349,675 
Reinvestment of distributions   243,031    1,968,082    287,205    2,388,747    217,721    2,309,981    188,739    1,901,861 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (2,171,157)   (17,475,571)   (3,800,172)   (31,284,845)   (3,919,622)   (41,832,598)   (2,299,908)   (23,117,754)
Change from Class Y Share Transactions   (1,007,207)   (8,066,925)   (2,489,498)   (20,341,261)   4,367,753    46,275,014    3,493,757    35,133,782 
Class Z                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued                                
Reinvestment of distributions                                
Cost of Shares redeemed                                
Change from Class Z Share Transactions                                
Institutional Class                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   6,758,203    51,917,150    3,302,732    27,657,744    7,608,874    80,810,462    8,802,855    88,365,326 
Reinvestment of distributions   921,462    7,439,080    775,859    6,475,123    382,249    4,049,865    444,828    4,472,905 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (6,772,227)   (54,142,216)   (1,560,919)   (13,035,889)   (6,790,781)   (71,837,031)   (8,961,385)   (89,582,259)
Change from Institutional Class Share Transactions   907,438    5,214,014    2,517,672    21,096,978    1,200,342    13,023,296    286,298    3,255,972 
                                         
Change from Share Transactions   (410,636)  $(5,315,953)   (347,661)  $(2,381,934)   6,149,654   $65,438,330    4,192,521   $42,598,181 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

99

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

Touchstone International   Touchstone 
ESG Equity Fund   Mid Cap Fund 
For the Year   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year 
Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended 
September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019 
Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
                              
 923,955   $6,486,887    406,511   $3,371,271    1,722,762   $64,866,031    1,001,545   $35,758,307 
 254,450    1,876,151    134,546    1,090,024    47,647    1,878,215    34,482    1,060,010 
 (819,208)   (5,759,257)   (575,998)   (4,853,121)   (696,341)   (25,168,926)   (499,397)   (16,769,979)
 359,197    2,603,781    (34,941)   (391,826)   1,074,068    41,575,320    536,630    20,048,338 
                                      
 15,446    112,534    44,386    367,915    1,009,530    35,646,237    509,902    16,808,427 
 215,820    1,584,118    195,625    1,576,867    39,569    1,450,587    56,462    1,632,881 
 (942,454)   (7,064,283)   (1,013,055)   (8,342,686)   (718,343)   (24,800,454)   (431,317)   (13,750,573)
 (711,188)   (5,367,631)   (773,044)   (6,397,904)   330,756    12,296,370    135,047    4,690,735 
                                      
 406,292    2,937,856    1,535,494    12,744,601    45,964,555    1,678,307,060    15,735,498    553,641,720 
 374,707    2,755,636    615,371    4,964,614    895,607    35,746,662    728,248    22,612,002 
 (1,180,936)   (8,520,029)   (6,077,399)   (50,888,655)   (15,448,861)   (559,596,378)   (6,276,827)   (218,223,100)
 (399,937)   (2,826,537)   (3,926,534)   (33,179,440)   31,411,301    1,154,457,344    10,186,919    358,030,622 
                                      
                 2,904,292    111,061,392    1,481,414    53,759,389 
                 79,863    3,127,421    22,445    685,676 
                 (2,588,966)   (92,893,080)   (495,884)   (18,061,299)
                 395,189    21,295,733    1,007,975    36,383,766 
                                      
         310    2,500    26,747,272    993,416,727    3,017,918    110,621,171 
 73    537    1    4    187,288    7,491,088    107,708    3,349,524 
                 (4,339,171)   (161,625,949)   (552,634)   (19,143,865)
 73    537    311    2,504    22,595,389    839,281,866    2,572,992    94,826,830 
                                      
 (751,855)  $(5,589,850)   (4,734,208)  $(39,966,666)   55,806,703   $2,068,906,633    14,439,563   $513,980,291 

 

100 

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

   Touchstone Mid Cap   Touchstone Sands Capital 
   Value Fund   Select Growth Fund 
   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year 
   Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended 
   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019 
   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
Class A                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   167,271   $2,835,572    149,145   $2,505,536    3,858,599   $57,182,170    2,882,491   $37,466,635 
Reinvestment of distributions   2,680    43,450    35,492    573,460    937,160    10,739,861    1,241,615    14,489,643 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (186,294)   (3,170,552)   (498,273)   (8,493,315)   (2,097,033)   (27,903,644)   (2,820,138)   (36,415,606)
Change from Class A Share Transactions   (16,343)   (291,530)   (313,636)   (5,414,319)   2,698,726    40,018,387    1,303,968    15,540,672 
Class C                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   17,375    282,392    63,277    969,925    973,913    11,016,497    800,446    8,970,545 
Reinvestment of distributions           17,876    279,049    829,669    8,089,277    1,491,943    15,381,930 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (123,216)   (1,940,563)   (197,621)   (3,252,689)   (3,676,450)   (44,858,208)   (2,910,652)   (33,616,304)
Change from Class C Share Transactions   (105,841)   (1,658,171)   (116,468)   (2,003,715)   (1,872,868)   (25,752,434)   (618,263)   (9,263,829)
Class Y                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   6,084,202    91,902,451    4,148,451    71,207,884    46,697,761    670,397,782    47,984,180    671,020,656 
Reinvestment of distributions   139,585    2,250,156    936,465    15,250,844    12,162,722    152,642,157    17,298,614    216,916,626 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (4,289,355)   (71,611,364)   (7,111,343)   (120,504,725)   (53,076,537)   (768,001,131)   (71,274,284)   (1,025,920,882)
Change from Class Y Share Transactions   1,934,432    22,541,243    (2,026,427)   (34,045,997)   5,783,946    55,038,808    (5,991,490)   (137,983,600)
Class Z                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued                   3,308,441    45,581,481    3,582,260    47,836,860 
Reinvestment of distributions                   6,518,393    74,831,156    10,414,025    121,739,953 
Cost of Shares redeemed                   (16,261,699)   (212,023,027)   (13,484,486)   (179,874,046)
Change from Class Z Share Transactions                   (6,434,865)   (91,610,390)   511,799    (10,297,233)
Institutional Class                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued   10,230,169    172,561,478    10,425,351    178,428,195    126    2,500         
Reinvestment of distributions   218,352    3,569,822    1,113,293    18,280,984                 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (13,557,431)   (228,161,197)   (9,324,209)   (159,358,598)                
Change from Institutional Class Share Transactions   (3,108,910)   (52,029,897)   2,214,435    37,350,581    126    2,500         
Class R6                                        
Proceeds from Shares issued                   831,692    15,504,377         
Cost of Shares redeemed                   (831,566)   (15,700,235)        
Change from Class R6 Share Transactions                   126    (195,858)        
                                         
Change from Share Transactions   (1,296,662)  $(31,438,355)   (242,096)  $(4,113,450)   175,191   $(22,498,987)   (4,793,986)  $(142,003,990)

 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

101 

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

Touchstone   Touchstone 
Small Cap Fund   Small Cap Value Fund 
For the Year   For the Year   For the Year   For the Year 
Ended   Ended   Ended   Ended 
September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019 
Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
                              
 188,126   $1,921,153    38,055   $472,167    39,242   $798,786    195,449   $4,249,270 
 26,489    310,982    101,878    1,089,083    2,244    58,275    209,490    4,705,373 
 (99,225)   (1,060,102)   (337,532)   (4,407,142)   (255,442)   (5,496,226)   (2,367,137)   (51,823,595)
 115,390    1,172,033    (197,599)   (2,845,892)   (213,956)   (4,639,165)   (1,962,198)   (42,868,952)
                                      
 12,153    125,116    20,731    207,669    6,352    126,520    8,034    177,715 
 23,637    254,101    114,175    1,134,906    16    399    3,012    65,850 
 (298,437)   (2,857,698)   (249,806)   (2,631,113)   (17,500)   (355,218)   (29,729)   (680,560)
 (262,647)   (2,478,481)   (114,900)   (1,288,538)   (11,132)   (228,299)   (18,683)   (436,995)
                                      
 1,054,148    10,187,062    810,114    9,668,277    556,684    12,751,490    328,553    7,538,534 
 244,189    2,930,498    750,085    8,160,920    6,617    151,370    102,758    2,312,572 
 (673,533)   (7,321,242)   (1,917,077)   (24,260,072)   (223,585)   (4,827,025)   (874,577)   (20,250,772)
 624,804    5,796,318    (356,878)   (6,430,875)   339,716    8,075,835    (443,266)   (10,399,666)
                                      
                              
                              
                              
                              
                                      
 1,434,694    14,908,352    2,076,783    25,606,948    317,668    7,027,284    904,996    21,393,137 
 265,143    3,174,041    934,025    10,124,830    2,383    54,914    29,736    668,672 
 (1,456,134)   (15,374,523)   (5,797,319)   (75,407,605)   (1,610,102)   (33,727,826)   (314,310)   (7,382,966)
 243,703    2,707,870    (2,786,511)   (39,675,827)   (1,290,051)   (26,645,628)   620,422    14,678,843 
                                      
                              
                              
                              
                                      
 721,250   $7,197,740    (3,455,888)  $(50,241,132)   (1,175,423)  $(23,437,257)   (1,803,725)  $(39,026,770)

 

102 

 

 

Statements of Changes in Net Assets - Capital Stock Activity (Continued)

 

   Touchstone Ultra Short 
   Duration Fixed Income Fund 
   For the Year   For the Year 
   Ended   Ended 
   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2019 
   Shares   Dollars   Shares   Dollars 
Class A                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   8,960,406   $82,215,390    1,561,834   $14,461,350 
Reinvestment of distributions   158,190    1,456,627    178,237    1,651,342 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (3,374,696)   (31,039,396)   (2,308,007)   (21,370,670)
Change from Class A Share Transactions   5,743,900    52,632,621    (567,936)   (5,257,978)
Class C                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   702,000    6,480,454    469,828    4,349,002 
Reinvestment of distributions   4,460    41,073    7,701    71,373 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (589,856)   (5,434,947)   (508,717)   (4,714,076)
Change from Class C Share Transactions   116,604    1,086,580    (31,188)   (293,701)
Class S                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   2,653,440    24,519,195    6,326,264    58,524,099 
Reinvestment of distributions   209,016    1,924,465    326,447    3,023,746 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (10,805,304)   (99,176,330)   (7,401,049)   (68,520,143)
Change from Class S Share Transactions   (7,942,848)   (72,732,670)   (748,338)   (6,972,298)
Class Y                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   14,667,523    135,130,770    19,911,778    184,399,781 
Reinvestment of distributions   555,625    5,116,254    616,968    5,717,131 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (16,470,996)   (151,437,130)   (15,973,962)   (147,823,922)
Change from Class Y Share Transactions   (1,247,848)   (11,190,106)   4,554,784    42,292,990 
Class Z                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   2,327,500    21,447,601    8,443,969    78,135,460 
Reinvestment of distributions   219,442    2,022,381    416,624    3,860,213 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (7,033,838)   (64,723,235)   (12,781,112)   (118,395,872)
Change from Class Z Share Transactions   (4,486,896)   (41,253,253)   (3,920,519)   (36,400,199)
Institutional Class                    
Proceeds from Shares issued   21,283,017    196,198,659    27,100,680    250,714,052 
Reinvestment of distributions   910,377    8,372,252    873,331    8,086,264 
Cost of Shares redeemed   (16,097,325)   (147,659,585)   (18,658,124)   (172,592,314)
Change from Institutional Class Share Transactions   6,096,069    56,911,326    9,315,887    86,208,002 
                     
Change from Share Transactions   (1,721,019)  $(14,545,502)   8,602,690   $79,576,816 

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

103 

 

 

Financial Highlights

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund—Class A         
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period     
   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.68   $10.01   $10.47   $10.59   $10.20 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.28(A)   0.27    0.23    0.24    0.26 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.55    0.68    (0.43)   (0.11)   0.43 
Total from investment operations   0.83    0.95    (0.20)   0.13    0.69 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.28)   (0.28)   (0.26)   (0.25)   (0.30)
Realized capital gains           (B)        
Total distributions   (0.28)   (0.28)   (0.26)   (0.25)   (0.30)
Net asset value at end of period  $11.23   $10.68   $10.01   $10.47   $10.59 
Total return(C)   7.91%   9.68%   (1.87)%   1.26%   6.90%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $128,086   $127,502   $133,083   $22,117   $25,324 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.90%   0.90%   0.90%   0.90%   0.90%
Gross expenses   0.95%   1.00%   0.97%   1.18%   1.19%
Net investment income   2.54%   2.68%   2.34%   2.33%   2.52%
Portfolio turnover rate   261%   235%   448%(D)   496%   590%

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund—Class C         
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period     
   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.82   $9.23   $9.68   $9.82   $9.48 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.18(A)   0.12    0.20    0.14    0.16 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.51    0.68    (0.46)   (0.10)   0.41 
Total from investment operations   0.69    0.80    (0.26)   0.04    0.57 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.21)   (0.21)   (0.19)   (0.18)   (0.23)
Realized capital gains           (B)        
Total distributions   (0.21)   (0.21)   (0.19)   (0.18)   (0.23)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.30   $9.82   $9.23   $9.68   $9.82 
Total return(C)   7.11%   8.83%   (2.64)%   0.52%   6.03%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $5,618   $11,743   $23,807   $4,642   $6,513 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.65%   1.65%   1.65%   1.65%   1.65%
Gross expenses   1.93%   1.85%   1.79%   2.18%   2.09%
Net investment income   1.79%   1.93%   1.59%   1.58%   1.77%
Portfolio turnover rate   261%   235%   448%(D)   496%   590%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share.
(C)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(D)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities by the Sentinel Government Securities Fund and Sentinel Total Return Bond Fund acquired on October 27, 2017. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

104 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund—Class Y                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

  Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.67   $10.00   $10.46   $10.59   $10.20 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.30(A)   0.31    0.26    0.27    0.29 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.56    0.67    (0.43)   (0.12)   0.43 
Total from investment operations   0.86    0.98    (0.17)   0.15    0.72 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.31)   (0.31)   (0.29)   (0.28)   (0.33)
Realized capital gains           (B)        
Total distributions   (0.31)   (0.31)   (0.29)   (0.28)   (0.33)
Net asset value at end of period  $11.22   $10.67   $10.00   $10.46   $10.59 
Total return   8.18%   9.96%   (1.62)%   1.43%   7.18%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $90,235   $90,336   $165,937   $79,648   $76,544 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.65%   0.65%   0.65%   0.65%   0.65%
Gross expenses   0.73%   0.73%   0.70%   0.86%   0.90%
Net investment income   2.79%   2.93%   2.59%   2.58%   2.77%
Portfolio turnover rate   261%   235%   448%(C)   496%   590%

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund—Institutional Class                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

  Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.67   $10.00   $10.46   $10.58   $10.19 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.31(A)   0.30    0.27    0.25    0.33 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.56    0.69    (0.43)   (0.09)   0.40 
Total from investment operations   0.87    0.99    (0.16)   0.16    0.73 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.32)   (0.32)   (0.30)   (0.28)   (0.34)
Realized capital gains           (B)        
Total distributions   (0.32)   (0.32)   (0.30)   (0.28)   (0.34)
Net asset value at end of period  $11.22   $10.67   $10.00   $10.46   $10.58 
Total return   8.23%   10.06%   (1.54)%   1.61%   7.27%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $134,659   $96,477   $38,715   $20,800   $6,841 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.57%   0.57%   0.57%   0.57%   0.57%
Gross expenses   0.63%   0.66%   0.66%   0.87%   1.00%
Net investment income   2.87%   3.01%   2.67%   2.66%   2.85%
Portfolio turnover rate   261%   235%   448%(C)   496%   590%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share.
(C)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities by the Sentinel Government Securities Fund and Sentinel Total Return Bond Fund acquired on October 27, 2017. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

105 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund—Class Y
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30, 
    2020    2019(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.20   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:          
Net investment income   0.08    0.24 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.81    (0.03)
Total from investment operations   0.89    0.21 
Distributions from:          
Net investment income   (0.23)   (0.01)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.86   $10.20 
Total return   8.74%   2.13%(B)
Ratios and supplemental data:          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $243   $3 
Ratio to average net assets:          
Net expenses   0.69%   0.69%(C)
Gross expenses   9.11%   373.97%(C)
Net investment income   1.43%   2.74%(C)
Portfolio turnover rate   79%   117%(B)(D)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund—Institutional Class
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30, 
    2020    2019(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.20   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:          
Net investment income   0.17    0.21 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.75     
Total from investment operations   0.92    0.21 
Distributions from:          
Net investment income   (0.24)   (0.01)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.88   $10.20 
Total return   9.00%   2.14%(B)
Ratios and supplemental data:          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $36,876   $36,710 
Ratio to average net assets:          
Net expenses   0.59%   0.59%(C)
Gross expenses   0.96%   1.13%(C)
Net investment income   1.53%   2.84%(C)
Portfolio turnover rate   79%   117%(B)(D)

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 19, 2018) through September 30, 2019.
(B)Not annualized.
(C)Annualized.
(D)Portfolio turnover excludes securities received from processing a subscription-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

106 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund—Class Y
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30, 
    2020    2019(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.59   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:          
Net investment income   0.26    0.09 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   1.28    0.56 
Total from investment operations   1.54    0.65 
Distributions from:          
Net investment income   (0.34)   (0.06)
Realized capital gains   (0.15)    
Return of capital   (0.01)    
Total distributions   (0.50)   (0.06)
Net asset value at end of period  $11.63   $10.59 
Total return   14.63%   6.57%(B)
Ratios and supplemental data:          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $159   $52 
Ratio to average net assets:          
Net expenses   0.54%   0.54%(C)
Gross expenses   9.63%   110.89%(C)
Net investment income   1.91%   2.10%(C)
Portfolio turnover rate   73%   137%(B)(D)

 

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund—Institutional Class
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30, 
    2020    2019(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.59   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:          
Net investment income   0.22    0.19 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   1.34    0.46 
Total from investment operations   1.56    0.65 
Distributions from:          
Net investment income   (0.36)   (0.06)
Realized capital gains   (0.15)    
Return of capital   (0.01)    
Total distributions   (0.52)   (0.06)
Net asset value at end of period  $11.63   $10.59 
Total return   14.77%   6.59%(B)
Ratios and supplemental data:          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $30,585   $26,648 
Ratio to average net assets:          
Net expenses   0.44%   0.44%(C)
Gross expenses   0.77%   0.85%(C)
Net investment income   2.01%   2.21%(C)
Portfolio turnover rate   73%   137%(B)(D)

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 19, 2018) through September 30, 2019.
(B)Not annualized.
(C)Annualized.
(D)Portfolio turnover excludes securities received from processing a subscription-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

107 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period          

 

       Three Months                 
   Year Ended   Ended               Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   Year Ended June 30,   June 30, 
   2020   2019(A)   2019   2018   2017   2016(B) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.03   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.05   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                              
Net investment income   0.57    0.20    0.52    0.49    0.45    0.22 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.61)   0.04    0.12    (0.13)   0.45    0.07 
Total from investment operations   (0.04)   0.24    0.64    0.36    0.90    0.29 
Distributions from:                              
Net investment income   (0.54)   (0.12)   (0.54)   (0.53)   (0.47)   (0.23)
Realized capital gains       (0.04)   (0.11)   (0.28)   (0.07)   (0.01)
Total distributions   (0.54)   (0.16)   (0.65)   (0.81)   (0.54)   (0.24)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.45   $10.03   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.05 
Total return(C)   (0.29)%   1.40%(D)   6.69%   3.50%   9.08%   2.95%(D)
Ratios and supplemental data:                              
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $5,597   $7,239   $226   $153   $45   $43 
Ratio to average net assets:                              
Net expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(E)   1.18%   1.18%(F)  1.55%   1.76%   1.87%   1.73%(F)
Gross expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(G)   1.61%   2.55%(F)  7.56%   10.00%   16.01%   38.32%(F)
Net investment income   5.90%   5.43%(F)  5.46%   5.00%   4.44%   3.53%(F)
Portfolio turnover rate   115%   28%(D)(H)  94%   70%   84%   91%(D)

 

(A)The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.
(B)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2015) through June 30, 2016.
(C)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(D)Not annualized.
(E)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 1.08%, 1.08%, 1.45%, 1.69%, 1.69%and 1.69% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(F)Annualized.
(G)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 1.51%, 2.45%, 7.46%, 9.93%, 15.83% and 38.28% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(H)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Credit Opportunities Fund acquired on September 6, 2019. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

108 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period          

 

       Three Months                 
   Year Ended   Ended               Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   Year Ended June 30,   June 30, 
   2020   2019(A)   2019   2018   2017   2016(B) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.75   $9.98   $10.00   $10.44   $10.08   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                              
Net investment income   0.52    0.19    0.43    0.44    0.34    0.17 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.62)   (0.27)   0.14    (0.15)   0.48    0.08 
Total from investment operations   (0.10)   (0.08)   0.57    0.29    0.82    0.25 
Distributions from:                              
Net investment income   (0.47)   (0.11)   (0.48)   (0.45)   (0.39)   (0.16)
Realized capital gains       (0.04)   (0.11)   (0.28)   (0.07)   (0.01)
Total distributions   (0.47)   (0.15)   (0.59)   (0.73)   (0.46)   (0.17)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.18   $9.75   $9.98   $10.00   $10.44   $10.08 
Total return(C)   (0.98)%   1.15%(D)   5.97%   2.69%   8.31%   2.59%(D)
Ratios and supplemental data:                              
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $2,246   $4,538   $127   $22   $22   $6 
Ratio to average net assets:                              
Net expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(E)   1.93%   1.93%(F)   2.26%   2.51%   2.62%   2.48%(F)
Gross expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(G)   2.61%   3.62%(F)   11.81%   34.60%   73.30%   276.34%(F)
Net investment income   5.15%   4.68%(F)   4.75%   4.25%   3.69%   2.79%(F)
Portfolio turnover rate   115%   28%(D)(H)   94%   70%   84%   91%(D)

 

(A)The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.
(B)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2015) through June 30, 2016.
(C)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(D)Not annualized.
(E)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 1.83%, 1.83%, 2.16%, 2.44%, 2.44% and 2.44% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(F)Annualized.
(G)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 2.51%, 3.52%, 11.71%, 34.53%, 73.12% and 276.30% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(H)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Credit Opportunities Fund acquired on September 6, 2019. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

109 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund—Class Y
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

       Three Months                 
   Year Ended   Ended               Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   Year Ended June 30,   June 30, 
    2020    2019(A)   2019    2018    2017    2016(B)
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.16   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.04   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                              
Net investment income   0.59    0.17    0.60    0.50    0.39    0.31 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.62)   0.21    0.06    (0.12)   0.54    (0.02)
Total from investment operations   (0.03)   0.38    0.66    0.38    0.93    0.29 
Distributions from:                              
Net investment income   (0.56)   (0.13)   (0.56)   (0.55)   (0.49)   (0.24)
Realized capital gains       (0.04)   (0.11)   (0.28)   (0.07)   (0.01)
Total distributions   (0.56)   (0.17)   (0.67)   (0.83)   (0.56)   (0.25)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.57   $10.16   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.04 
Total return   (0.13)%   1.54%(C)   7.05%   3.73%   9.39%   3.04%(C)
Ratios and supplemental data:                              
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $36,558   $47,483   $11,356   $444   $315   $3 
Ratio to average net assets:                              
Net expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(D)   0.93%   0.93%(E)   1.09%   1.51%   1.62%   1.48%(E)
Gross expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(F)   1.20%   1.60%(E)   1.71%   4.29%   8.25%   355.77%(E)
Net investment income   6.15%   5.68%(E)   5.93%   5.25%   4.69%   3.79%(E)
Portfolio turnover rate   115%   28%(C)(G)   94%   70%   84%   91%(C)

 

(A)The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.
(B)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2015) through June 30, 2016.
(C)Not annualized.
(D)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 0.83%, 0.83%, 0.99%, 1.44%, 1.44% and 1.44% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(E)Annualized.
(F)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 1.10%, 1.50%, 1.61%, 4.22%, 8.07% and 355.73% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(G)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Credit Opportunities Fund acquired on September 6, 2019. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

110 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund—Institutional Class
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

       Three Months                 
   Year Ended   Ended               Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   Year Ended June 30,   June 30, 
    2020    2019(A)   2019    2018    2017    2016(B)
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.22   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.05   $10.00 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                              
Net investment income   0.61    0.15    0.58    0.55    0.50    0.28 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.63)   0.29    0.09    (0.16)   0.43    0.03 
Total from investment operations   (0.02)   0.44    0.67    0.39    0.93    0.31 
Distributions from:                              
Net investment income   (0.57)   (0.13)   (0.57)   (0.56)   (0.50)   (0.25)
Realized capital gains       (0.04)   (0.11)   (0.28)   (0.07)   (0.01)
Total distributions   (0.57)   (0.17)   (0.68)   (0.84)   (0.57)   (0.26)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.63   $10.22   $9.95   $9.96   $10.41   $10.05 
Total return   (0.02)%   1.57%(C)   7.04%   3.85%   9.47%   3.22%(C)
Ratios and supplemental data:                              
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $42,982   $48,158   $47,531   $51,715   $53,150   $54,411 
Ratio to average net assets:                              
Net expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(D)   0.83%   0.83%(E)   1.24%   1.41%   1.52%   1.38%(E)
Gross expenses (including dividend and interest expense on securities sold short)(F)   1.06%   1.36%(E)   1.50%   1.59%   1.69%   1.65%(E)
Net investment income   6.25%   5.78%(E)   5.78%   5.35%   4.79%   3.88%(E)
Portfolio turnover rate   115%   28% (C)(G)   94%   70%   84%   91%(C)

  

(A)The Fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.
(B)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2015) through June 30, 2016.
(C)Not annualized.
(D)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 0.73%, 0.73%, 1.14%, 1.34%, 1.34% and 1.34% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(E)Annualized.
(F)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding dividend and interest expense on securities sold short was 0.96%, 1.26%, 1.40%, 1.52%, 1.51%and 1.61% for the year ended September 30, 2020, for the period ended September 30, 2019, years ended June 30, 2019, 2018, 2017 and for the period ended June 30, 2016, respectively.
(G)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Credit Opportunities Fund acquired on September 6, 2019. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

111 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund—Class A
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30,
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.27   $8.12   $8.43   $8.21   $7.95 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.39    0.40    0.41    0.39    0.41 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.41)   0.16    (0.31)   0.21    0.26 
Total from investment operations   (0.02)   0.56    0.10    0.60    0.67 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.39)   (0.41)   (0.41)   (0.38)   (0.41)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.86   $8.27   $8.12   $8.43   $8.21 
Total return(A)   (0.13)%   7.08%   1.24%   7.45%   8.78%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $14,578   $14,642   $12,457   $16,925   $20,995 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.05%   1.05%   1.05%   1.05%   1.05%
Gross expenses   1.25%   1.28%   1.29%   1.24%   1.23%
Net investment income   4.84%   4.95%   4.76%   4.63%   5.19%
Portfolio turnover rate   89%   63%   59%   69%   56%

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund—Class C
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30,
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.25   $8.10   $8.41   $8.19   $7.93 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.29    0.34    0.34    0.33    0.35 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.37)   0.16    (0.30)   0.21    0.26 
Total from investment operations   (0.08)   0.50    0.04    0.54    0.61 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.33)   (0.35)   (0.35)   (0.32)   (0.35)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.84   $8.25   $8.10   $8.41   $8.19 
Total return(A)   (0.89)%   6.31%   0.50%   6.68%   7.99%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $1,250   $4,582   $9,444   $13,025   $16,372 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.80%   1.80%   1.80%   1.80%   1.80%
Gross expenses   2.35%   2.10%   2.00%   1.97%   1.94%
Net investment income   4.09%   4.20%   4.01%   3.88%   4.44%
Portfolio turnover rate   89%   63%   59%   69%   56%

 

(A)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

112 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund—Class Y
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

 

   Year Ended September 30,
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.52   $8.35   $8.67   $8.44   $8.16 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.44    0.47    0.44    0.43    0.46 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.45)   0.14    (0.32)   0.21    0.25 
Total from investment operations   (0.01)   0.61    0.12    0.64    0.71 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.42)   (0.44)   (0.44)   (0.41)   (0.43)
Net asset value at end of period  $8.09   $8.52   $8.35   $8.67   $8.44 
Total return   0.02%   7.52%   1.44%   7.74%   9.11%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $33,694   $44,030   $63,983   $75,435   $85,739 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.80%   0.80%   0.80%   0.80%   0.80%
Gross expenses   0.89%   0.91%   0.88%   0.90%   0.91%
Net investment income   5.09%   5.20%   5.01%   4.88%   5.44%
Portfolio turnover rate   89%   63%   59%   69%   56%

 

Touchstone High Yield Fund—Institutional Class
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.51   $8.35   $8.66   $8.43   $8.16 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.43    0.44    0.44    0.42    0.44 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.42)   0.16    (0.30)   0.22    0.27 
Total from investment operations   0.01    0.60    0.14    0.64    0.71 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.43)   (0.44)   (0.45)   (0.41)   (0.44)
Net asset value at end of period  $8.09   $8.51   $8.35   $8.66   $8.43 
Total return   0.21%   7.47%   1.63%   7.70%   9.19%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $135,974   $135,328   $111,705   $112,503   $93,267 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.72%   0.72%   0.72%   0.72%   0.72%
Gross expenses   0.75%   0.77%   0.76%   0.75%   0.77%
Net investment income   5.17%   5.28%   5.09%   4.96%   5.52%
Portfolio turnover rate   89%   63%   59%   69%   56%

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

113 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund—Class A
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30,
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.44   $9.77   $10.13   $10.38   $10.19 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.19    0.23    0.22    0.18    0.24 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.37    0.69    (0.33)   (0.17)   0.22 
Total from investment operations   0.56    0.92    (0.11)   0.01    0.46 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.20)   (0.25)   (0.25)   (0.26)   (0.27)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.80   $10.44   $9.77   $10.13   $10.38 
Total return(A)   5.46%   9.59%   (1.07)%   0.15%   4.57%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $16,509   $10,083   $5,697   $5,137   $8,639 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.85%   0.85%   0.85%   0.85%   0.87%
Gross expenses   1.03%   1.19%   1.30%   1.22%   1.25%
Net investment income   1.83%   2.28%   2.25%   1.98%   2.26%
Portfolio turnover rate   21%   22%   40%   18%   12%

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund—Class C
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30,
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.43   $9.75   $10.12   $10.36   $10.18 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.12    0.16    0.16    0.11    0.15 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.37    0.70    (0.35)   (0.17)   0.22 
Total from investment operations   0.49    0.86    (0.19)   (0.06)   0.37 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.13)   (0.18)   (0.18)   (0.18)   (0.19)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.79   $10.43   $9.75   $10.12   $10.36 
Total return(A)   4.69%   8.89%   (1.94)%   (0.51)%   3.70%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $1,737   $1,475   $1,087   $1,876   $2,813 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.60%   1.60%   1.60%   1.60%   1.62%
Gross expenses   2.55%   2.94%   2.78%   2.30%   2.19%
Net investment income   1.08%   1.53%   1.50%   1.23%   1.51%
Portfolio turnover rate   21%   22%   40%   18%   12%

 

(A)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

114 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.45   $9.78   $10.15   $10.39   $10.20 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.22    0.26    0.24    0.24    0.26 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.38    0.69    (0.33)   (0.19)   0.23 
Total from investment operations   0.60    0.95    (0.09)   0.05    0.49 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.23)   (0.28)   (0.28)   (0.29)   (0.30)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.82   $10.45   $9.78   $10.15   $10.39 
Total return   5.81%   9.84%   (0.92)%   0.50%   4.82%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $145,821   $95,218   $54,895   $37,233   $49,484 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.60%   0.60%   0.60%   0.60%   0.62%
Gross expenses   0.64%   0.68%   0.67%   0.73%   0.71%
Net investment income   2.08%   2.53%   2.50%   2.23%   2.51%
Portfolio turnover rate   21%   22%   40%   18%   12%

 

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $10.45   $9.78   $10.14   $10.39   $10.20 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.23    0.27    0.26    0.25    0.28 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.38    0.69    (0.33)   (0.20)   0.22 
Total from investment operations   0.61    0.96    (0.07)   0.05    0.50 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.24)   (0.29)   (0.29)   (0.30)   (0.31)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.82   $10.45   $9.78   $10.14   $10.39 
Total return   5.92%   9.95%   (0.72)%   0.51%   4.94%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $227,734   $207,462   $191,224   $222,013   $166,008 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.50%   0.50%   0.50%   0.50%   0.50%
Gross expenses   0.59%   0.60%   0.60%   0.60%   0.60%
Net investment income   2.18%   2.63%   2.60%   2.33%   2.63%
Portfolio turnover rate   21%   22%   40%   18%   12%

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

115 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.50   $9.58   $9.40   $8.77   $8.27 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.03    0.15    0.24    0.25    0.22 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.62    (0.29)   0.35    0.62    1.04 
Total from investment operations   0.65    (0.14)   0.59    0.87    1.26 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.02)   (0.17)   (0.23)   (0.24)   (0.21)
Realized capital gains   (1.69)   (0.77)   (0.18)       (0.55)
Total distributions   (1.71)   (0.94)   (0.41)   (0.24)   (0.76)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.44   $8.50   $9.58   $9.40   $8.77 
Total return(A)   7.93%   (0.81)%   6.41%   10.10%   16.80%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $11,719   $10,333   $11,984   $22,725   $26,907 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.17%   1.20%   1.20%   1.20%   1.20%
Gross expenses   1.81%   1.52%   1.41%   1.36%   1.34%
Net investment income   0.68%   1.71%   2.16%   2.69%   2.57%
Portfolio turnover rate   80%   123%   68%   39%   38%

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.48   $9.57   $9.39   $8.75   $8.26 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   (0.03)   0.09    0.14    0.17    0.15 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.64    (0.30)   0.38    0.64    1.04 
Total from investment operations   0.61    (0.21)   0.52    0.81    1.19 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (—)(B)   (0.11)   (0.16)   (0.17)   (0.15)
Realized capital gains   (1.69)   (0.77)   (0.18)       (0.55)
Total distributions   (1.69)   (0.88)   (0.34)   (0.17)   (0.70)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.40   $8.48   $9.57   $9.39   $8.75 
Total return(A)   7.35%   (1.61)%   5.62%   9.42%   15.81%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $4,066   $10,691   $19,455   $22,324   $25,781 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.95%   1.95%   1.95%   1.95%   1.95%
Gross expenses   2.56%   2.16%   2.07%   2.05%   2.05%
Net investment income (loss)   (0.10)%   1.05%   1.41%   1.94%   1.82%
Portfolio turnover rate   80%   123%   68%   39%   38%

 

(A)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

116 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.47   $9.55   $9.38   $8.75   $8.25 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.07    0.18    0.23    0.26    0.23 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   0.61    (0.30)   0.37    0.63    1.05 
Total from investment operations   0.68    (0.12)   0.60    0.89    1.28 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.03)   (0.19)   (0.25)   (0.26)   (0.23)
Realized capital gains   (1.69)   (0.77)   (0.18)       (0.55)
Total distributions   (1.72)   (0.96)   (0.43)   (0.26)   (0.78)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.43   $8.47   $9.55   $9.38   $8.75 
Total return   8.32%   (0.57)%   6.59%   10.41%   17.13%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $11,550   $16,554   $56,185   $75,763   $99,953 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.90%   0.95%   0.95%   0.95%   0.95%
Gross expenses   1.49%   1.09%   0.99%   1.00%   1.03%
Net investment income   0.95%   2.17%   2.41%   2.94%   2.82%
Portfolio turnover rate   80%   123%   68%   39%   38%

 

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $8.48   $8.05(B)
Income (loss) from investment operations:          
Net investment income (loss)   0.07    (0.01)
Net realized and unrealized gains on investments   0.60    0.45 
Total from investment operations   0.67    0.44 
Distributions from:          
Net investment income   (0.03)   (0.01)
Realized capital gains   (1.69)    
Total distributions   (1.72)   (0.01)
Net asset value at end of period  $7.43   $8.48 
Total return   8.30%   5.46%(C)
Ratios and supplemental data:          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $3   $3 
Ratio to average net assets:          
Net expenses   0.89%   0.89%(D)
Gross expenses   314.41%   2,643.52%(D)
Net investment income (loss)   0.96%   (0.97)%(D)
Portfolio turnover rate   80%   123%(C)

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 16, 2018) through September 30, 2019.
(B)Net asset value at the beginning of period is based on the net asset value of Class Y shares on August 23, 2019.
(C)Not annualized.
(D)Annualized.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

117 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $38.87   $34.99   $30.50   $25.91   $23.22 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   0.03(A)   0.05    0.01(A)   (0.02)(A)   0.12 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   1.27    5.00    4.79    4.69    2.57 
Total from investment operations   1.30    5.05    4.80    4.67    2.69 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.24)   (0.02)       (0.08)    
Realized capital gains   (0.89)   (1.15)   (0.31)        
Total distributions   (1.13)   (1.17)   (0.31)   (0.08)    
Net asset value at end of period  $39.04   $38.87   $34.99   $30.50   $25.91 
Total return(B)   3.32%   15.34%   15.83%   18.08%   11.58%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $103,964   $61,772   $36,824   $34,761   $53,044 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.21%   1.23%   1.24%   1.24%   1.24%
Gross expenses   1.29%   1.36%   1.35%   1.36%   1.35%
Net investment income (loss)   0.08%   0.19%   0.04%   (0.09)%   0.43%
Portfolio turnover rate   18%   25%   46%   19%   19%

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $36.34   $33.01   $29.02   $24.76   $22.35 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.23)(A)   (0.17)   (0.22)(A)   (0.22)(A)   (0.12)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   1.16    4.65    4.52    4.48    2.53 
Total from investment operations   0.93    4.48    4.30    4.26    2.41 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains   (0.89)   (1.15)   (0.31)        
Net asset value at end of period  $36.38   $36.34   $33.01   $29.02   $24.76 
Total return(B)   2.54%   14.48%   14.91%   17.21%   10.78%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $78,959   $66,855   $56,274   $57,224   $59,431 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.96%   1.98%   1.99%   1.99%   1.99%
Gross expenses   2.00%   2.07%   2.08%   2.11%   2.13%
Net investment loss   (0.67)%   (0.56)%   (0.71)%   (0.84)%   (0.32)%
Portfolio turnover rate   18%   25%   46%   19%   19%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

118 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 
   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $39.33   $35.33   $30.77   $26.14   $23.38 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.12(A)   0.14    0.10(A)   0.05(A)   0.18 
Net realized and unrealized gains on investments   1.28    5.05    4.82    4.74    2.59 
Total from investment operations   1.40    5.19    4.92    4.79    2.77 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.29)   (0.04)   (0.05)   (0.16)   (0.01)
Realized capital gains   (0.89)   (1.15)   (0.31)        
Total distributions   (1.18)   (1.19)   (0.36)   (0.16)   (0.01)
Net asset value at end of period  $39.55   $39.33   $35.33   $30.77   $26.14 
Total return   3.57%   15.62%   16.09%   18.40%   11.87%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $2,443,232   $1,194,001   $712,578   $551,794   $476,831 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.96%   0.98%   0.99%   0.99%   0.99%
Gross expenses   1.00%   1.07%   1.05%   1.08%   1.07%
Net investment income   0.33%   0.44%   0.29%   0.16%   0.68%
Portfolio turnover rate   18%   25%   46%   19%   19%

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund—Class Z

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $38.62   $34.78   $30.32   $25.75   $23.08 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   0.03(A)   0.05    0.01(A)   (0.02)(A)   0.12 
Net realized and unrealized gains on investments   1.25    4.96    4.76    4.67    2.55 
Total from investment operations   1.28    5.01    4.77    4.65    2.67 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.26)   (0.02)       (0.08)   (—)(B) 
Realized capital gains   (0.89)   (1.15)   (0.31)        
Total distributions   (1.15)   (1.17)   (0.31)   (0.08)   (—)(B) 
Net asset value at end of period  $38.75   $38.62   $34.78   $30.32   $25.75 
Total return   3.30%   15.32%   15.83%   18.08%   11.58%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $77,184   $61,657   $20,464   $19,312   $18,934 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.21%   1.22%   1.24%   1.24%   1.24%
Gross expenses   1.30%   1.37%   1.40%   1.44%   1.46%
Net investment income (loss)   0.08%   0.19%   0.04%   (0.09)%   0.43%
Portfolio turnover rate   18%   25%   46%   19%   19%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

119 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period  

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $39.41   $35.38   $30.81   $26.18   $23.40 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.15(A)   0.15    0.12(A)   0.07(A)   0.19 
Net realized and unrealized gains on investments   1.29    5.08    4.83    4.74    2.61 
Total from investment operations   1.44    5.23    4.95    4.81    2.80 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.32)   (0.05)   (0.07)   (0.18)   (0.02)
Realized capital gains   (0.89)   (1.15)   (0.31)        
Total distributions   (1.21)   (1.20)   (0.38)   (0.18)   (0.02)
Net asset value at end of period  $39.64   $39.41   $35.38   $30.81   $26.18 
Total return   3.64%   15.71%   16.18%   18.50%   11.92%
Ratios and supplemental data:                          
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $1,142,677   $245,418   $129,284   $113,867   $77,775 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.89%(B)   0.91%   0.92%   0.92%   0.92%
Gross expenses   0.89%   0.97%   0.97%   0.98%   0.99%
Net investment income   0.40%   0.51%   0.36%   0.23%   0.75%
Portfolio turnover rate   18%   25%   46%   19%   19%

 

(A) The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.

(B) Net expenses include amounts recouped by the Advisor.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

120 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period 

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $17.91   $18.71   $19.36   $17.49   $15.70 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.09    0.12    0.07    0.04    0.09(A)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (1.20)   (0.06)   0.48    2.47    2.76 
Total from investment operations   (1.11)   0.06    0.55    2.51    2.85 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.09)   (0.10)   (0.06)   (0.03)   (0.10)
Realized capital gains       (0.76)   (1.14)   (0.61)   (0.96)
Total distributions   (0.09)   (0.86)   (1.20)   (0.64)   (1.06)
Net asset value at end of period  $16.71   $17.91   $18.71   $19.36   $17.49 
Total return(B)   (6.20)%   0.81%   2.80%   14.62%   19.20%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $9,864   $10,866   $17,217   $21,001   $21,867 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.22%   1.22%   1.25%   1.27%   1.27%
Gross expenses   1.59%   1.53%   1.48%   1.47%   1.59%
Net investment income   0.50%   0.59%   0.32%   0.19%   0.56%
Portfolio turnover rate   37%   34%   31%   43%   45%

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period  

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $17.37   $18.20   $18.94   $17.23   $15.49 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.24)   (0.12)   (0.13)   (0.06)   (0.03)(A)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.96)   0.05    0.53    2.38    2.73 
Total from investment operations   (1.20)   (0.07)   0.40    2.32    2.70 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains       (0.76)   (1.14)   (0.61)   (0.96)
Total distributions       (0.76)   (1.14)   (0.61)   (0.96)
Net asset value at end of period  $16.17   $17.37   $18.20   $18.94   $17.23 
Total return(B)   (6.91)%   0.06%   2.04%   13.78%   18.32%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $3,296   $5,378   $7,755   $10,758   $4,088 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.97%   1.97%   2.01%   2.02%   2.02%
Gross expenses   2.57%   2.40%   2.31%   2.33%   2.75%
Net investment loss   (0.25)%   (0.17)%   (0.43)%   (0.56)%   (0.19)%
Portfolio turnover rate   37%   34%   31%   43%   45%

 

(A) The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.

(B) Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

121 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period 

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $17.99   $18.79   $19.45   $17.57   $15.76 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.12    0.14    0.11    0.08    0.13(A)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (1.20)   (0.04)   0.48    2.49    2.78 
Total from investment operations   (1.08)   0.10    0.59    2.57    2.91 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.13)   (0.14)   (0.11)   (0.08)   (0.14)
Realized capital gains       (0.76)   (1.14)   (0.61)   (0.96)
Total distributions   (0.13)   (0.90)   (1.25)   (0.69)   (1.10)
Net asset value at end of period  $16.78   $17.99   $18.79   $19.45   $17.57 
Total return   (5.97)%   1.08%   3.00%   14.91%   19.51%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $299,596   $286,407   $337,247   $322,979   $292,978 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.97%   0.97%   1.00%   1.02%   1.03%
Gross expenses   1.22%   1.19%   1.05%   1.10%   1.13%
Net investment income   0.75%   0.84%   0.57%   0.43%   0.81%
Portfolio turnover rate   37%   34%   31%   43%   45%

 

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period 

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $18.09   $18.89   $19.54   $17.64   $15.82 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.15    0.17    0.12    0.09    0.16(A)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (1.22)   (0.04)   0.50    2.52    2.78 
Total from investment operations   (1.07)   0.13    0.62    2.61    2.94 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.15)   (0.17)   (0.13)   (0.10)   (0.16)
Realized capital gains       (0.76)   (1.14)   (0.61)   (0.96)
Total distributions   (0.15)   (0.93)   (1.27)   (0.71)   (1.12)
Net asset value at end of period  $16.87   $18.09   $18.89   $19.54   $17.64 
Total return   (5.86)%   1.20%   3.17%   15.04%   19.71%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $370,247   $453,198   $431,412   $334,083   $185,989 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.84%   0.84%   0.87%   0.89%   0.89%
Gross expenses   0.98%   0.97%   0.99%   1.01%   1.03%
Net investment income   0.88%   0.97%   0.70%   0.57%   0.94%
Portfolio turnover rate   37%   34%   31%   43%   45%

 

(A) The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

122 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period  

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $13.12   $17.73   $16.58   $16.14   $16.48 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.11)(A)   (0.06)   (0.21)   (0.34)   (0.28)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   6.58    (0.72)   4.72    2.94    1.47 
Total from investment operations   6.47    (0.78)   4.51    2.60    1.19 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains   (2.37)   (3.83)   (3.36)   (2.16)   (1.53)
Net asset value at end of period  $17.22   $13.12   $17.73   $16.58   $16.14 
Total return(B)   58.43%   (1.75)%   33.03%   19.63%   7.17%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $163,697   $89,299   $97,583   $89,860   $138,315 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(C)   1.25%(D)   1.44%   1.43%   1.23%   1.07%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   1.24%   1.44%   1.43%   1.25%   1.09%
Net investment loss   (0.85)%   (1.23)%   (1.28)%   (0.95)%   (0.81)%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(F)   25%(F)   21%(F)   22%   46%

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $11.52   $16.20   $15.51   $15.36   $15.86 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.18)(A)   (0.51)   (0.24)   (0.79)   (0.52)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   5.60    (0.34)   4.29    3.10    1.55 
Total from investment operations   5.42    (0.85)   4.05    2.31    1.03 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains   (2.37)   (3.83)   (3.36)   (2.16)   (1.53)
Net asset value at end of period  $14.57   $11.52   $16.20   $15.51   $15.36 
Total return(B)   57.27%   (2.44)%   32.11%   18.77%   6.32%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $36,065   $50,079   $80,444   $73,516   $111,951 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(C)   2.01%   2.19%   2.18%   1.98%   1.82%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   2.04%   2.21%   2.19%   2.01%   1.84%
Net investment loss   (1.56)%   (1.98)%   (2.03)%   (1.70)%   (1.56)%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(F)   25%(F)   21%(F)   22%   46%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(C)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Class A were 1.22%, 1.40% and 1.42% and for Class C were 1.98%, 2.15% and 2.17% for years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.
(D)Net expenses include amounts recouped by the Advisor.
(E)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Class A were 1.21%, 1.40% and 1.42% and for Class C were 2.01%, 2.17% and 2.18% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(F)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

123 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period 

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $14.14   $18.73   $17.29   $16.70   $16.96 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.09)(A)   (0.14)   (0.18)   (0.10)   (0.11)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   7.21    (0.62)   4.98    2.85    1.38 
Total from investment operations   7.12    (0.76)   4.80    2.75    1.27 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains   (2.37)   (3.83)   (3.36)   (2.16)   (1.53)
Net asset value at end of period  $18.89   $14.14   $18.73   $17.29   $16.70 
Total return   58.86%   (1.45)%   33.36%   19.89%   7.46%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $1,565,333   $1,089,979   $1,556,324   $1,775,755   $2,209,841 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(B)   1.00%(C)   1.19%(C)   1.18%(C)   0.98%   0.82%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(D)   0.99%   1.18%   1.17%   0.99%   0.82%
Net investment loss   (0.58)%   (0.98)%   (1.03)%   (0.70)%   (0.56)%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(E)   25%(E)   21%(E)   22%   46%

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Class Z

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period 

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $13.14   $17.75   $16.58   $16.15   $16.49 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment loss   (0.11)(A)   (0.17)   (0.20)   (0.32)   (0.29)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   6.59    (0.61)   4.73    2.91    1.48 
Total from investment operations   6.48    (0.78)   4.53    2.59    1.19 
Distributions from:                         
Realized capital gains   (2.37)   (3.83)   (3.36)   (2.16)   (1.53)
Net asset value at end of period  $17.25   $13.14   $17.75   $16.58   $16.15 
Total return   58.42%   (1.69)%   33.10%   19.62%   7.24%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $491,741   $458,996   $611,071   $556,651   $777,930 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(B)   1.24%   1.43%   1.42%   1.22%   1.04%
Gross expenses (including liquidityprovider expenses)(D)   1.31%   1.49%   1.47%   1.28%   1.11%
Net investment loss   (0.82)%   (1.22)%   (1.27)%   (0.94)%   (0.79)%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(E)   25%(E)   21%(E)   22%   46%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Class Y were 0.97%, 1.15% and 1.17% and for Class Z were 1.21%, 1.39% and 1.41% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.
(C)Net expenses include amounts recouped by the Advisor.
(D)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Class Y were 0.96%, 1.14% and 1.16% and for Class Z were 1.28%, 1.45% and 1.46% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.
(E)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

124 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Institutional Class      
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout The Period      

 

   Period Ended 
   September 30, 
   2020(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $19.81(B)
Income (loss) from investment operations:     
Net investment loss   (0.01)(C)
Net realized and unrealized losses on investments   (0.91)
Total from investment operations   (0.92)
Net asset value at end of period  $18.89 
Total return   (4.64)%(D)
Ratios and supplemental data:     
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $2 
Ratio to average net assets:     
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   0.81%(F)
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(G)   1344.66%(F)
Net investment loss   (0.81)%(F)
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(H)

 

       
Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund—Class R6      
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout The Period      

 

   Period Ended 
   September 30, 
   2020(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $19.81(B)
Income (loss) from investment operations:     
Net investment loss   (0.01)(C)
Net realized and unrealized losses on investments   (0.91)
Total from investment operations   (0.92)
Net asset value at end of period  $18.89 
Total return   (4.64)%(D)
Ratios and supplemental data:     
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $2 
Ratio to average net assets:     
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   0.75%(F)
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(G)   3.55%(F)
Net investment loss   (0.73)%(F)
Portfolio turnover rate   41%(H)

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2020) through September 30, 2020.
(B)Net asset value at the beginning of period is based on the net asset value of Class Y shares on September 1, 2020.
(C)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(D)Not annualized.
(E)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Institutional Class was 0.78% and for Class R6 was 0.72% for the period ended September 30, 2020.
(F)Annualized.
(G)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses for Institutional Class was 1344.63% and for Class R6 was 3.52% for the period ended September 30, 2020.
(H)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

125 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund—Class A                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $12.35   $16.24   $17.73   $16.24   $17.73 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.01(A)   (B)    0.32 (A)(C)    0.02    (B)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.98)   (0.49)   1.52    1.47    0.59 
Total from investment operations   (0.97)   (0.49)   1.84    1.49    0.59 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income           (0.34)       (0.13)
Realized capital gains   (1.09)   (3.40)   (2.99)       (1.95)
Total distributions   (1.09)   (3.40)   (3.33)       (2.08)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.29   $12.35   $16.24   $17.73   $16.24 
Total return(D)   (8.92)%   0.22%   12.14%   9.17%   3.74%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $4,313   $3,750   $8,142   $12,461   $37,942 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   1.27%   1.39%   1.39%   1.38%   1.38%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(F)   2.09%   2.01%   1.65%   1.52%   1.45%
Net investment income   0.08%   0.02%   1.99%(C)   0.00%(B)   0.00%(B)
Portfolio turnover rate   22%(G)   17%(G)   29%(G)   18%   17%

 

(A)The net investment income (loss) per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share or 0.005%.
(C)Includes impact of special dividend from Alexander & Baldwin Inc. in January, 2018 as part of the companys conversion to a real estate investment trust. This special dividend enhanced the net investment income per share and ratio of net investment income for Class A by $0.34 and 2.10%, respectively.
(D)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

(E)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 1.24%, 1.34% and 1.38% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(F)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 2.06%, 1.96% and 1.64% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(G)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

126 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund—Class C                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $11.41   $15.40   $16.94   $15.63   $17.16 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   (0.07)(A)   (0.10)   0.19(A)(B)    (0.31)   (0.16)
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.87)   (0.49)   1.45    1.62    0.60 
Total from investment operations   (0.94)   (0.59)   1.64    1.31    0.44 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income           (0.19)       (0.02)
Realized capital gains   (1.09)   (3.40)   (2.99)       (1.95)
Total distributions   (1.09)   (3.40)   (3.18)       (1.97)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.38   $11.41   $15.40   $16.94   $15.63 
Total return(C)   (9.43)%   (0.58)%   11.33%   8.38%   2.92%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $295   $3,356   $6,299   $9,266   $14,957 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(D)   2.02%   2.14%   2.14%   2.13%   2.13%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(E)   3.10%   2.64%   2.40%   2.28%   2.23%
Net investment income (loss)   (0.68)%   (0.73)%   1.24%(B)   (0.75)%   (0.75)%
Portfolio turnover rate   22%(F)   17%(F)   29%(F)   18%   17%

 

(A)The net investment income (loss) per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Includes impact of special dividend from Alexander & Baldwin Inc. in January, 2018 as part of the companys conversion to a real estate investment trust. This special dividend enhanced the net investment income per share and ratio of net investment income for Class C by $0.32 and 2.10%, respectively.
(C)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.

(D)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 1.99%, 2.09% and 2.13% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(E)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 3.07%, 2.59% and 2.39% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(F)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

127 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund—Class Y                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $12.59   $16.45   $17.94   $16.44   $17.93 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.04(A)   0.04    0.37(A)(B)    0.05    0.05 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (1.00)   (0.50)   1.53    1.50    0.58 
Total from investment operations   (0.96)   (0.46)   1.90    1.55    0.63 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.02)       (0.40)   (0.05)   (0.17)
Realized capital gains   (1.09)   (3.40)   (2.99)       (1.95)
Total distributions   (1.11)   (3.40)   (3.39)   (0.05)   (2.12)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.52   $12.59   $16.45   $17.94   $16.44 
Total return   (8.65)%   0.44%   12.44%   9.46%   3.97%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $35,573   $34,709   $51,218   $84,954   $295,198 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(C)   1.02%   1.14%   1.14%   1.13%   1.13%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(D)   1.32%   1.31%   1.17%   1.15%   1.14%
Net investment income   0.33%   0.27%   2.24%(B)   0.25%   0.25%
Portfolio turnover rate   22%(E)   17%(E)   29%(E)   18%   17%

 

(A)The net investment income (loss) per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Includes impact of special dividend from Alexander & Baldwin Inc. in January, 2018 as part of the companys conversion to a real estate investment trust. This special dividend enhanced the net investment income per share and ratio of net investment income for Class Y by $0.34 and 2.10%, respectively.

(C)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 0.99%, 1.09% and 1.13% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(D)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 1.29%, 1.26% and 1.16% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(E)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

128 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Fund—Institutional Class                    
Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period                

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $12.55   $16.40   $17.93   $16.43   $17.92 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.04(A)   0.06    0.38(A)(B)    0.16    0.07 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.97)   (0.51)   1.53    1.41    0.57 
Total from investment operations   (0.93)   (0.45)   1.91    1.57    0.64 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.04)       (0.45)   (0.07)   (0.18)
Realized capital gains   (1.09)   (3.40)   (2.99)       (1.95)
Total distributions   (1.13)   (3.40)   (3.44)   (0.07)   (2.13)
Net asset value at end of period  $10.49   $12.55   $16.40   $17.93   $16.43 
Total return   (8.57)%   0.54%   12.52%   9.57%   4.05%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $33,201   $36,691   $93,636   $122,876   $255,422 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(C)   0.94%   1.06%   1.06%   1.05%   1.04%
Gross expenses (including liquidity provider expenses)(D)   1.21%   1.20%   1.10%   1.05%   1.04%
Net investment income   0.41%   0.35%   2.32%(B)   0.34%   0.34%
Portfolio turnover rate   22%(E)   17%(E)   29%(E)   18%   17%

 

(A)The net investment income (loss) per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Includes impact of special dividend from Alexander & Baldwin Inc. in January, 2018 as part of the companys conversion to a real estate investment trust. This special dividend enhanced the net investment income per share and ratio of net investment income for Institutional Class by $0.34 and 2.10%, respectively.

(C)The ratio of net expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 0.91%, 1.01% and 1.05% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(D)The ratio of gross expenses to average net assets excluding liquidity provider expenses was 1.18%, 1.15% and 1.09% for the years ended September 30, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. There were no liquidity provider expenses prior to 2018.

(E)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

129 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $24.00   $27.91   $26.06   $22.20   $20.17 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.03(A)   0.11    0.02    0.03    0.23 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (3.34)   (2.29)   1.83    3.85    2.80 
Total from investment operations   (3.31)   (2.18)   1.85    3.88    3.03 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.04)   (0.03)   (B)   (0.02)   (0.27)
Realized capital gains       (1.70)           (0.73)
Return of capital   (0.02)                
Total distributions   (0.06)   (1.73)   (B)   (0.02)   (1.00)
Net asset value at end of period  $20.63   $24.00   $27.91   $26.06   $22.20 
Total return(C)   (13.83)%   (7.37)%   7.12%   17.46%   15.63%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $16,552   $24,389   $83,139   $76,884   $150,081 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.38%   1.38%   1.38%   1.38%   1.38%
Gross expenses   1.58%   1.68%   1.75%   1.83%   1.67%
Net investment income   0.12%   0.19%   0.09%   0.07%   1.05%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%   28%   49%(D)(E)   63%(E)   155%

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $23.21   $27.22   $25.60   $21.95   $19.98 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   (0.13)(A)   (0.41)   (0.11)   (0.22)   0.06 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (3.22)   (1.90)   1.73    3.87    2.77 
Total from investment operations   (3.35)   (2.31)   1.62    3.65    2.83 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.02)               (0.13)
Realized capital gains       (1.70)           (0.73)
Return of capital   (B)                
Total distributions   (0.02)   (1.70)           (0.86)
Net asset value at end of period  $19.84   $23.21   $27.22   $25.60   $21.95 
Total return(C)   (14.46)%   (8.07)%   6.29%   16.63%   14.72%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $453   $788   $1,433   $1,223   $1,376 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   2.13%   2.13%   2.13%   2.13%   2.13%
Gross expenses   4.50%   3.57%   3.66%   3.69%   3.39%
Net investment income (loss)   (0.63)%   (0.56)%   (0.66)%   (0.68)%   0.30%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%   28%   49%(D)(E)   63%(E)   155%

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Less than $0.005 per share.
(C)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(D)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Small Cap Value Opportunities Fund acquired on September 21, 2018. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.
(E)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

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Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $24.05   $27.96   $26.14   $22.24   $20.20 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.08(A)   0.10    0.15    0.06    0.24 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (3.34)   (2.23)   1.78    3.88    2.84 
Total from investment operations   (3.26)   (2.13)   1.93    3.94    3.08 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.09)   (0.08)   (0.11)   (0.04)   (0.31)
Realized capital gains       (1.70)           (0.73)
Return of capital   (0.03)                
Total distributions   (0.12)   (1.78)   (0.11)   (0.04)   (1.04)
Net asset value at end of period  $20.67   $24.05   $27.96   $26.14   $22.24 
Total return   (13.60)%   (7.16)%   7.41%   17.80%   15.86%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $28,435   $24,921   $41,365   $2,829   $3,080 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.13%   1.13%   1.13%   1.13%   1.13%
Gross expenses   1.31%   1.30%   1.71%   1.95%   1.70%
Net investment income   0.37%   0.44%   0.34%   0.32%   1.30%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%   28%   49%(B)(C)   63%(C)   155%

 

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $24.04   $27.94   $26.14   $22.22   $20.19 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income (loss)   0.12(A)   0.18    0.28    (0.06)   0.30 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (3.33)   (2.27)   1.69    4.04    2.80 
Total from investment operations   (3.21)   (2.09)   1.97    3.98    3.10 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.11)   (0.11)   (0.17)   (0.06)   (0.34)
Realized capital gains       (1.70)           (0.73)
Return of capital   (0.04)                
Total distributions   (0.15)   (1.81)   (0.17)   (0.06)   (1.07)
Net asset value at end of period  $20.68   $24.04   $27.94   $26.14   $22.22 
Total return   (13.42)%   (6.98)%   7.53%   17.93%   16.05%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $7,825   $40,104   $29,279   $7,699   $23,740 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.98%   0.98%   0.98%   0.98%   0.98%
Gross expenses   1.19%   1.17%   1.27%   1.52%   1.22%
Net investment income   0.52%   0.59%   0.49%   0.47%   1.45%
Portfolio turnover rate   41%   28%   49%(B)(C)   63%(C)   155%
                          

 

(A)The net investment income per share was based on average shares outstanding for the period.
(B)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Touchstone Small Cap Value Opportunities Fund acquired on September 21, 2018. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.
(C)Portfolio turnover excludes securities delivered from processing redemptions-in-kind.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

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Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Class A

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32   $9.32 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.18    0.23    0.16    0.13    0.10 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.06)   0.04    (0.01)   (0.02)   0.02 
Total from investment operations   0.12    0.27    0.15    0.11    0.12 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.18)   (0.23)   (0.19)   (0.14)   (0.12)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.23   $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32 
Total return(A)   1.32%   2.95%   1.50%   1.29%   1.35%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $124,233   $71,684   $76,623   $14,080   $16,946 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%
Gross expenses   0.80%   0.80%   0.81%   0.90%   0.97%
Net investment income   1.84%   2.43%   1.88%   1.40%   1.09%
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(B)   136%   169%

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Class C

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32   $9.32 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.12    0.18    0.13    0.08    0.06 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.04)   0.04    (0.03)   (0.02)   0.02 
Total from investment operations   0.08    0.22    0.10    0.06    0.08 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.13)   (0.18)   (0.14)   (0.09)   (0.08)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.24   $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32 
Total return(A)   0.93%   2.45%   1.00%   0.77%   0.84%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $5,276   $4,225   $4,492   $5,704   $7,961 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   1.19%   1.19%   1.19%   1.19%   1.19%
Gross expenses   1.60%   1.71%   1.67%   1.56%   1.54%
Net investment income   1.33%   1.93%   1.38%   0.90%   0.59%
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(B)   136%   169%

 

(A)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads and fees. If these charges were included, the returns would be lower.
(B)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Sentinel Low Duration Bond Fund acquired on October 27, 2017. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

132 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Class S

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

           Period Ended 
   Year Ended September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018(A) 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.28   $9.25   $9.29 
Income (loss) from investment operations:               
Net investment income   0.12    0.21    0.13 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.01)   0.03    (0.02)
Total from investment operations   0.11    0.24    0.11 
Distributions from:               
Net investment income   (0.16)   (0.21)   (0.15)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.23   $9.28   $9.25 
Total return   1.18%   2.59%   1.24%(B)
Ratios and supplemental data:               
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $61,464   $135,565   $141,918 
Ratio to average net assets:               
Net expenses   0.94%   0.94%   0.94%(C)
Gross expenses   0.99%   0.99%   0.99%(C)
Net investment income   1.58%   2.18%   1.63%(C)
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(D)

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Class Y

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32   $9.32 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.19    0.25    0.20    0.15    0.13 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.05)   0.04    (0.03)   (0.02)   0.02 
Total from investment operations   0.14    0.29    0.17    0.13    0.15 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.20)   (0.25)   (0.21)   (0.16)   (0.15)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.23   $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32 
Total return   1.57%   3.21%   1.75%   1.55%   1.60%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $292,708   $305,997   $262,571   $260,830   $206,313 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.44%   0.44%   0.44%   0.44%   0.44%
Gross expenses   0.51%   0.51%   0.50%   0.51%   0.53%
Net investment income   2.09%   2.68%   2.13%   1.65%   1.34%
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(D)   136%   169%

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (October 27, 2017) through September 30, 2018.
(B)Not annualized.
(C)Annualized.
(D)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Sentinel Low Duration Bond Fund acquired on October 27, 2017. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

133 

 

 

Financial Highlights (Continued)

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Class Z

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32   $9.32 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.17    0.23    0.18    0.13    0.10 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.05)   0.04    (0.03)   (0.02)   0.02 
Total from investment operations   0.12    0.27    0.15    0.11    0.12 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.18)   (0.23)   (0.19)   (0.14)   (0.12)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.23   $9.29   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32 
Total return   1.32%   2.95%   1.50%   1.29%   1.35%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $86,018   $128,199   $163,898   $211,797   $245,252 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%   0.69%
Gross expenses   0.79%   0.77%   0.78%   0.78%   0.79%
Net investment income   1.83%   2.43%   1.88%   1.40%   1.09%
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(A)   136%   169%

 

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund—Institutional Class

Selected Data for a Share Outstanding Throughout Each Period

 

   Year Ended September 30, 
   2020   2019   2018   2017   2016 
Net asset value at beginning of period  $9.28   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32   $9.32 
Income (loss) from investment operations:                         
Net investment income   0.20    0.26    0.21    0.16    0.13 
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments   (0.05)   0.03    (0.03)   (0.02)   0.02 
Total from investment operations   0.15    0.29    0.18    0.14    0.15 
Distributions from:                         
Net investment income   (0.21)   (0.26)   (0.22)   (0.17)   (0.15)
Net asset value at end of period  $9.22   $9.28   $9.25   $9.29   $9.32 
Total return   1.63%   3.17%   1.80%   1.60%   1.54%
Ratios and supplemental data:                         
Net assets at end of period (000’s)  $417,011   $362,921   $275,561   $257,777   $142,913 
Ratio to average net assets:                         
Net expenses   0.39%   0.39%   0.39%   0.39%   0.39%
Gross expenses   0.46%   0.46%   0.46%   0.45%   0.46%
Net investment income   2.13%   2.73%   2.18%   1.70%   1.39%
Portfolio turnover rate   72%   91%   143%(A)   136%   169%

 

(A)Portfolio turnover excludes the purchases and sales of securities of the Sentinel Low Duration Bond Fund acquired on October 27, 2017. If these transactions were included, portfolio turnover would have been higher.

 

See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements.

 

134 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements

September 30, 2020

 

1. Organization

 

The Touchstone Funds Group Trust (the Trust) is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), as an open-end management investment company. The Trust was established as a Delaware statutory trust pursuant to an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated October 25, 1993. The Trust consists of the following thirteen funds (individually, a Fund,and collectively, the Funds):

 

Touchstone Active Bond Fund (Active Bond Fund)

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund (Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund)

Touchstone Anti-Benchmark ® US Core Equity Fund (Anti-Benchmark ® US Core Equity Fund)

Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund (Credit Opportunities II Fund)

Touchstone High Yield Fund (High Yield Fund)

Touchstone Impact Bond Fund (Impact Bond Fund)

Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund (International ESG Equity Fund)

Touchstone Mid Cap Fund (Mid Cap Fund)

Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund (Mid Cap Value Fund)

Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund (Sands Capital Select Growth Fund)

Touchstone Small Cap Fund (Small Cap Fund)

Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund (Small Cap Value Fund)

Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund)

 

Each Fund is diversified, with the exception of the Credit Opportunities II Fund, the Sands Capital Select Growth Fund and the Small Cap Fund, which are non-diversified.

 

The Agreement and Declaration of Trust permits the Trust to issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest of each Fund. The table below indicates the classes of shares that each Fund is registered to offer:

 

                  Institutional   
   Class A  Class C  Class S  Class Y  Class Z  Class  Class R6
Active Bond Fund  X  X    X    X 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund           X     X   
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund           X     X   
Credit Opportunities II Fund  X  X     X     X   
High Yield Fund  X  X     X     X   
Impact Bond Fund  X  X     X     X   
International ESG Equity Fund  X  X     X     X   
Mid Cap Fund  X  X     X  X  X   
Mid Cap Value Fund  X  X     X     X   
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  X  X     X  X  X  X
Small Cap Fund  X  X     X     X   
Small Cap Value Fund  X  X     X     X   
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund  X  X  X  X  X  X   

 

The assets of each Fund are segregated, and a shareholders interest is limited to the Fund in which shares are held. The Fundsprospectus provides a description of each Funds investment goal, policies, and strategies along with information on the classes of shares currently being offered.

 

2. Significant Accounting Policies

 

The following is a summary of the Fundssignificant accounting policies:

 

Each Fund is an investment company that follows the accounting and reporting guidance of Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946 applicable to investment companies.

 

Security valuation and fair value measurements — U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) defines fair value as the price the Funds would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. All investments in securities are recorded at their fair value. The Funds define the term market value, as used throughout this report, as the estimated fair value. The Funds use various methods to measure fair value of their portfolio securities on a recurring basis. U.S. GAAP fair value measurement standards require disclosure of a hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation methods. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below:

 

·Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical securities
·Level 2 – other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)

 

135 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

·Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including a Funds own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments)

 

The inputs or methodology used for valuing securities are not necessarily an indication of the risk associated with investing in those securities.

 

The aggregate value by input level, as of September 30, 2020, for each Funds investments, is included in each Funds Portfolio of Investments, which also includes a breakdown of the Funds investments by geographic, portfolio or sector allocation. The Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund and the Credit Opportunities II Fund held Level 3 categorized securities during the year ended September 30, 2020. Refer to the Portfolio of Investments for a reconciliation of Level 3 holdings.

 

Changes in valuation techniques may result in transfers into or out of an investments assigned level within the hierarchy.

 

The Fundsportfolio securities are valued as of the close of the regular session of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) (currently 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time or at the times as of which the NYSE establishes official closing prices).Portfolio securities traded on stock exchanges are valued at the last reported sale price, official close price, or last bid price if no sales are reported. Portfolio securities quoted by NASDAQ are valued at the NASDAQ Official Closing Price (NOCP) or from the primary exchange on which the security trades. To the extent these securities are actively traded, they are categorized in Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy. Options and futures are valued at the last quoted sales price. If there is no such reported sale on the valuation date, long option positions are valued at the most recent bid price, and short option positions are valued at the most recent ask price on the valuation date and are categorized in Level 1. Shares of mutual funds in which the Funds invest are valued at their respective net asset value (NAV) as reported by the underlying funds (the Underlying Funds) and are categorized in Level 1.

 

Debt securities held by the Funds are valued at their evaluated bid by an independent pricing service or at their last broker-quoted bid prices as obtained from one or more of the major market makers for such securities. Independent pricing services use information provided by market makers or estimates of market values through accepted market modeling conventions. Observable inputs to the models may include prepayment speeds, pricing spread, yield, trade information, dealer quotes, market color, cash flow models, the securitiesterms and conditions, among others, and are generally categorized in Level 2. Investments in bank loans are normally valued at the bid quotation obtained from dealers in loans by an independent pricing service in accordance with the Fundsvaluation policies and procedures approved by the FundsBoard of Trustees (the Board), and are generally categorized in Level 2. Investments in asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities are valued by independent pricing services using models that consider estimated cash flows of each tranche of the security, establish a benchmark yield and develop an estimated tranche specific spread to the benchmark yield based on the unique attributes of the tranche, and are generally categorized in Level 2. Debt securities with remaining maturities of 60 days or less may be valued at amortized cost, provided such amount approximates market value and are categorized in Level 2. While this method provides consistency in valuation (and may only be used if it approximates market value), it may result in periods during which fair value, as determined by amortized cost, is higher or lower than the price that would be received if the Fund sold the investment.

 

Foreign currency exchange contracts are valued at the mean between the bid and ask prices and are determined as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE. Interpolated values are derived when the settlement date of the contract is an interim date for which quotations are not available and are categorized in Level 2.

 

Securities mainly traded on a non-U.S. exchange or denominated in foreign currencies are generally valued according to the preceding closing values on that exchange, translated to U.S. dollars using currency exchange rates as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE, and are generally categorized in Level 1. However, if an event that may change the value of a security occurs after the time that the closing value on the non-U.S. exchange was determined, but before the close of regular trading on the NYSE, the security may be priced based on fair value and is generally categorized in Level 2. This may cause the value of the security, if held on the books of a Fund, to be different from the closing value on the non-U.S. exchange and may affect the calculation of that Funds NAV. The Funds may use fair value pricing under the following circumstances, among others:

 

·If the value of a security has been materially affected by events occurring before the Funds pricing time but after the close of the primary markets on which the security is traded.
·If the exchange on which a portfolio security is principally traded closes early or if trading in a particular portfolio security was halted during the day and did not resume prior to the Funds NAV calculation.
·If a security is so thinly traded that reliable market quotations are unavailable due to infrequent trading.
·If the validity of market quotations is not reliable.

 

Securities held by the Funds that do not have readily available market quotations, significant observable inputs, or securities for which the available market quotations are not reliable, are priced at their estimated fair value using procedures approved by the Board and are generally categorized in Level 3.

 

136 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Bank Loans — The Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities II Fund and Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund may invest in bank loans, which usually take the form of loan participations and assignments. Loan participations and assignments are agreements to make money available to U.S. or foreign corporations, partnerships or other business entities (the Borrower) in a specified amount, at a specified rate and within a specified time. A loan is typically originated, negotiated and structured by a U.S. or foreign bank, insurance company or other financial institution (the Agent) for a group of loan investors (Loan Investors). The Agent typically administers and enforces the loan on behalf of the other Loan Investors in the syndicate and may hold any collateral on behalf of the Loan Investors. Such loan participations and assignments are typically senior, secured and collateralized in nature. The Fund records an investment when the Borrower withdraws money and records interest as earned. These loans pay interest at rates which are periodically reset by reference to a base lending rate plus a spread. These base lending rates are generally the prime rate offered by a designated U.S. bank or London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR).

 

The loans in which the Fund invests may be subject to some restrictions on resale. For example, the Fund may be contractually obligated to receive approval from the Agent and/or Borrower prior to the sale of these investments. The Fund generally has no right to enforce compliance with the terms of the loan agreement with the Borrower. As a result, the Fund assumes the credit risk of the Borrower, the selling participant and any other persons interpositioned between the Fund and the Borrower (Intermediate Participants). In the event that the Borrower, selling participant or Intermediate Participants become insolvent or enter into bankruptcy, the Fund may incur certain costs and delays in realizing payment or may suffer a loss of principal and/or interest.

 

Unfunded commitments represent the remaining obligation of the Fund to the Borrower. At any point in time, up to the maturity date of the issue, the Borrower may demand the unfunded portion. Until demanded by the Borrower, unfunded commitments are not recognized as an asset on the Statements of Assets and Liabilities. Unrealized appreciation/depreciation on unfunded commitments presented on the Statements of Assets and Liabilities represents fair value of the unfunded portion of the Funds bank loans.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Funds did not hold any unfunded loan commitments.

 

Collateralized Loan Obligations — The Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities II Fund and Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund may invest in collateralized loan obligations (CLOs). CLOs are types of asset-backed securities. A CLO is an entity that is backed by syndicated bank loans. The cash flows of the CLO can be split into multiple segments, called tranches,which will vary in risk profile and yield. The riskiest segment is the subordinated or equitytranche. This tranche bears the greatest risk of defaults from the underlying assets in the CLO and serves to protect the other, more senior, tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Since it is shielded from defaults by the more junior tranches, a seniortranche will typically have higher credit ratings and lower yields than their underlying securities, and often receive higher ratings from one or more of the nationally recognized rating agencies. Despite the protection from the more junior tranches, senior tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to future defaults and the disappearance of one or more protecting tranches as a result of changes in the credit profile of the underlying pool of assets.

 

Investment companies — The Funds may invest in securities of other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs), open-end funds and closed-end funds. Open-end funds are investment companies that issue new shares continuously and redeem shares daily. Closed-end funds are investment companies that typically issue a fixed number of shares that trade on a securities exchange or over-the-counter (OTC). An ETF is an investment company that typically seeks to track the performance of an index by holding in its portfolio shares of all the companies, or a representative sample of the companies, that are components of a particular index. ETF shares are traded on a securities exchange based on their market value. The risks of investment in other investment companies typically reflect the risks of the types of securities in which the other investment companies invest. Investments in ETFs and closed-end funds are subject to the additional risk that their shares may trade at a premium or discount to their NAV. When a Fund invests in another investment company, shareholders of the Fund indirectly bear their proportionate share of the other investment companys fees and expenses, including operating, registration, trustee, licensing, and marketing, as well as their share of the Funds fees and expenses.

 

Securities sold short — The Funds may engage in selling securities short, which obligates the Fund to replace a security borrowed by purchasing the same security at the current market value. The Fund would incur a loss if the price of the security increases between the date of the short sale and the date on which the Fund replaces the borrowed security. The Fund would realize a gain if the price of the security declines between those dates. As of September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund had securities sold short with a fair value of $(913,136), and pledged securities with a fair value of $3,915,985 as collateral for both securities sold short and written options held.

 

137 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Options — The Funds may write or purchase financial option contracts primarily to hedge against changes in the value of equity securities (or securities that the Funds intend to purchase), against fluctuations in fair value caused by changes in prevailing market interest rates or foreign currency exchange rates and against changes in overall equity market volatility. In addition, the Funds may utilize options in an attempt to generate gains from option premiums or to reduce overall portfolio risk. The Fundsoption strategy primarily focuses on the use of writing and/or purchasing call or put options on equity indexes. When the Funds write or purchase an option, an amount equal to the premium received or paid by the Funds is recorded as a liability or an asset and is subsequently adjusted to the current market value of the option written or purchased. Premiums received or paid from writing or purchasing options which expire unexercised are treated by the Funds on the expiration date as realized gains or losses. The difference between the premium and the amount paid or received on effecting a closing purchase or sale transaction, including brokerage commissions, is also treated as a realized gain or loss. If an option is exercised, the premium paid or received is added to the cost of the purchase or proceeds from the sale in determining whether the Funds have realized a gain or loss on investment transactions. The Funds, as writer of an option, may have no control over whether the underlying securities may be sold (call) or purchased (put) and as a result bear the market risk of an unfavorable change in the price of the security underlying the written option. The Funds, as purchaser of an option, bear the risk that the counterparties to the option may not have the ability to meet the terms of the option contracts. There is minimal counterparty credit risk involved in entering into option contracts since they are exchange-traded instruments and the exchanges clearinghouse, as counterparty to all exchange-traded options, guarantees the options against default. The maximum risk of loss associated with writing put options is the notional amount as presented in the Portfolio of Investments. In certain circumstances, the maximum risk of loss amounts may be partially offset by recovery values of the respective referenced assets and upfront premium received upon entering into the contract. The maximum risk of loss associated with writing call options is potentially unlimited. As of September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund had written options with a fair value of $(19,580) and pledged securities with a fair value of $3,915,985 as collateral for both securities sold short and written options.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund held purchased options with a fair value of $40,132.

 

Futures Contracts — The Active Bond Fund and Credit Opportunities II Fund each may buy and sell futures contracts and related options to manage its exposure to changing interest rates and securities prices. Some strategies reduce the Funds exposure to price fluctuations, while others tend to increase its market exposure. Futures and options on futures can be volatile instruments and involve certain risks that could negatively impact the Funds return. In order to avoid leveraging and related risks, when the Fund purchases futures contracts, it will collateralize its position by depositing an amount of cash or liquid securities, equal to the market value of the futures positions held, less margin deposits, in a segregated account with its custodian or otherwise coverits position in a manner consistent with the 1940 Act or the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) or interpretations thereunder. Collateral equal to the current fair value of the futures position will be determined on a daily basis.

 

When the contract is closed, the Fund records a realized gain or loss equal to the difference between the proceeds from (or cost of) the closing transactions and the Funds basis in the contract. Risks of entering into futures contracts include the possibility that a change in the value of the contract may not correlate with the changes in the value of the underlying instruments. Second, it is possible that a lack of liquidity for futures contracts could exist in the secondary market resulting in an inability to close a futures position prior to its maturity date. Third, the purchase of a futures contract involves the risk that the Fund could lose more than the original margin deposit required to initiate the futures transaction. Finally, the risk exists that losses could exceed amounts disclosed on the Statements of Assets and Liabilities. There is minimal counterparty credit risk involved in entering into futures contracts since they are exchange-traded instruments and the exchanges clearinghouse, as counterparty to all exchange-traded futures, guarantees the futures against default.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Active Bond Fund held futures contracts as shown on the Portfolio of Investments.

 

Swap Contracts — The Credit Opportunities II Fund may enter into swap transactions to help enhance the value of its portfolio or manage its exposure to different types of investments. Swaps are financial instruments that typically involve the exchange of cash flows between two parties on specified dates (settlement dates), where the cash flows are based on agreed-upon prices, rates, indexes, etc. The nominal amount on which the cash flows are calculated is called the notional amount. Swaps are individually negotiated and structured to include exposure to a variety of different types of investments or market factors, such as interest rates, foreign currency rates, mortgage securities, corporate borrowing rates, security prices, indexes or inflation rates.

 

Swap agreements may increase or decrease the overall volatility of the investments of a Fund and its share price. The performance of swap agreements may be affected by a change in the specific interest rate, currency, or other factors that determine the amounts of payments due to and from a Fund. If a swap agreement calls for payments by a Fund, the Fund must be prepared to make such payments when due. In addition, if the counterpartys creditworthiness declines, the value of a swap agreement would be likely to decline, potentially resulting in losses.

 

Generally, bilateral swap agreements, OTC swaps have a fixed maturity date that will be agreed upon by the parties. The agreement can be terminated before the maturity date only under limited circumstances, such as default by one of the parties or insolvency, among others, and can be transferred by a party only with the prior written consent of the other party. The Fund may be able to eliminate its exposure under a swap agreement either by assignment or by other disposition, or by entering into an offsetting swap agreement with the same party or a similarly creditworthy party. If the counterparty is unable to meet its obligations under the contract, declares bankruptcy, defaults or becomes insolvent, a Fund may not be able to recover the money it expected to receive under the contract.

 

Cleared swaps are transacted through futures commission merchants that are members of central clearinghouses with the clearinghouses serving as a central counterparty. Pursuant to rules promulgated under the Dodd-Frank Act, central clearing of swap agreements is currently required for certain market participants trading certain instruments, and central clearing for additional instruments is expected to be implemented by regulators until the majority of the swaps market is ultimately subject to central clearing.

 

138 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Swaps are marked-to-market daily based upon values received from third party vendors or quotations from market makers. For OTC swaps, any upfront premiums paid or received are recorded as assets or liabilities, respectively, and are shown as premium paid on swap agreements or premium received on swap agreements in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities. For swaps that are centrally cleared, initial margins, determined by each relevant clearing agency, are posted and are segregated at a broker account registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or the applicable regulator. The change in value of swaps, including accruals of periodic amounts of interest to be paid or received on swaps, is recorded as unrealized appreciation or depreciation. Daily changes in the value of centrally cleared swaps are recorded in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities as receivable or payable for variation margin on swap agreements and settled daily. Upfront premiums and liquidation payments received or paid are recorded as realized gains or losses at the termination or maturity of the swap. Net periodic payments received or paid by the Fund are recorded as realized gain or loss.

 

A swap agreement can be a form of leverage, which can magnify the Funds gains or losses. In order to reduce the risk associated with leveraging, the Fund may cover its current obligations under swap agreements according to guidelines established by the SEC. If the Fund enters into a swap agreement on a net basis, it will segregate assets with a daily value at least equal to the excess, if any, of the Funds accrued obligations under the swap agreement over the accrued amount the Fund is entitled to receive under the agreement. If the Fund enters into a swap agreement on other than a net basis, it will segregate assets with a value equal to the full amount of the Funds accrued obligations under the agreement.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund held swap agreements as shown on the Portfolio of Investments.

 

Foreign currency translation — The books and records of the Funds are maintained in U.S. dollars and translated into U.S. dollars on the following basis:

 

(1) market value of investment securities, assets and liabilities at the current rate of exchange on the valuation date; and

 

(2) purchases and sales of investment securities, income, and expenses at the relevant rates of exchange prevailing on the respective dates of such transactions.

 

The Funds do not isolate that portion of gains and losses on investments in equity securities that is due to changes in the foreign exchange rates from that which is due to changes in market prices of equity securities.

 

Forward foreign currency contracts — A forward foreign currency contract is an agreement between two parties to buy and sell a specific currency at a price that is set on the date of the contract. The forward contract calls for delivery of the currency on a future date that is specified in the contract. Risks related to the use of forwards include the possible failure of counterparties to meet the terms of the forward agreement, the failure of the counterparties to timely post collateral, the risk that currency movements will not occur thereby reducing a Funds total return, and the potential for losses in excess of a Funds initial investment.

 

The market value of a forward foreign currency contract fluctuates with changes in foreign currency exchange rates. Forward foreign currency contracts are marked to market daily and the change in value is recorded by a Fund as an unrealized gain or loss. Realized gains or losses, equal to the difference between the value of the contract at the time it was opened and the value at the time it was closed, are recorded upon delivery or receipt of the currency.

 

For the year ended September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund used forward foreign currency contracts to enhance potential gains, hedge against anticipated currency exchange rates, maintain diversity and liquidity of the portfolio and/or adjust exposure to foreign currencies.

 

Real Estate Investment Trusts — The Funds may invest in real estate investment trusts (REITs) that involve risks not associated with investing in stocks. Risks associated with investments in REITs include declines in the value of real estate, general and economic conditions, changes in the value of the underlying property and defaults by borrowers. The value of assets in the real estate industry may go through cycles of relative underperformance and outperformance in comparison to equity securities markets in general. Dividend income is recorded using managements estimate of the income included in distributions received from REIT investments. The actual amounts of income, return of capital and capital gains are only determined by each REIT after its fiscal year-end and may differ from the estimated amount. Estimates of income are adjusted in the Funds to the actual amounts when the amounts are determined.

 

Master Limited Partnership — The Funds may invest in Master Limited Partnership (MLP) common units that represent limited partnership interests in the MLP. Common units are generally listed and traded on U.S. securities exchanges or OTC with their value fluctuating predominantly based on the success of the MLP. Unlike owners of common stock of a corporation, owners of MLP common units have limited voting rights and have no ability to annually elect directors. MLPs generally distribute all available cash flow (cash flow from operations less maintenance capital expenditures) in the form of quarterly distributions. Common unit holders have first priority to receive quarterly cash distributions up to the minimum quarterly distribution and have arrearage rights. Distributions received from MLPs generally are comprised of income and return of capital. Investment income and return of capital are recorded based on estimates made at the time distributions are received. The actual amounts of income and return of capital are only determined by each MLP after its fiscal year-end and may differ from the estimated amount. Estimates of income are adjusted in the Funds to the actual amounts when the amounts are determined. In the event of liquidation, common unit holders have preference over subordinated units, but not debt holders or preferred unit holders, to the remaining assets of the MLP.

 

139 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Pay-In-Kind (“PIK”) Bonds — PIK bonds are securities that, at the issuer’s option, pay interest in either cash or additional securities for a specified period. PIK bonds, like zero coupon bonds, are designed to give an issuer flexibility in managing cash flow. PIK bonds are expected to reflect the market value of the underlying debt plus an amount representing accrued interest since the last payment. PIK bonds are usually less volatile than zero coupon bonds, but more volatile than cash pay securities.

 

Derivative instruments and hedging activities — The Active Bond Fund and the Credit Opportunities II Fund may enter into an International Swaps and Derivatives Associations, Inc. Master Agreement (“ISDA Master Agreement” or “MNA”) or similar agreement with certain counterparties. An ISDA Master Agreement is a bilateral agreement between a Fund and a counterparty that governs OTC derivatives and foreign exchange contracts, and typically contains, among other things, collateral posting terms and master netting provisions in the event of a default or termination. Under an ISDA Master Agreement, a party may, under certain circumstances, offset with the counterparty certain derivative financial instruments’ payables or receivables with collateral held or posted and create one single net payment. The provisions of the ISDA Master Agreement typically permit a single net payment in the event of default (close-out netting). These default events include bankruptcy or insolvency of the counterparty. Note, however, that bankruptcy or insolvency laws of a particular jurisdiction may impose restrictions on or prohibitions against the right of offset.

 

When entering into a derivative transaction, a Fund may be required to post and maintain collateral or margin (including both initial and maintenance margin). Collateral and margin requirements differ by type of derivative. Margin requirements are established by the broker or clearing house for exchange-traded and centrally cleared derivatives (financial futures contracts, options, and centrally cleared swaps). Brokers can ask for margining in excess of the clearing house’s minimum in certain circumstances. Collateral terms are contract specific for OTC derivatives (forward foreign currency contracts, options, and swaps). For derivatives traded under an ISDA Master Agreement, the collateral requirements are typically calculated by netting the marked-to-market amount for each transaction under such agreement and comparing that amount to the value of any collateral currently pledged by the Fund and the counterparty. For financial reporting purposes, cash collateral that has been pledged to cover obligations of the Fund and cash collateral received from the counterparty, if any, are reported separately on the Statements of Assets and Liabilities as cash deposits held at prime broker and due to prime broker, respectively. Non-cash collateral pledged by the Fund, if any, is noted in the Portfolio of Investments. To the extent amounts due to the Fund from its counterparties are not fully collateralized, contractually or otherwise, the Fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance.

 

Certain ISDA Master Agreements allow counterparties to OTC derivatives transactions to terminate derivative contracts prior to maturity in the event a Fund’s net assets decline by a stated percentage or the Fund fails to meet the terms of its ISDA Master Agreement, which would cause the Fund (counterparty) to accelerate payment of any net liability owed to the counterparty (Fund). For financial reporting purposes, the Credit Opportunities II Fund does not offset derivative assets and derivative liabilities that are subject to netting arrangements in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Credit Opportunities II Fund’s assets and liabilities that were subject to a MNA on a gross basis were as follows:

 

   Assets   Liabilities 
Derivative Financial Instruments:          
Forward-Foreign Currency Contracts  $4,780   $ 

 

The following table presents the Credit Opportunities II Fund’s assets and liabilities net of amounts available for offset under MNA and net of the related collateral pledged by the Fund as of September 30, 2020:

 

        

Gross Amount

Available

           
   Derivative 

Gross Amount of

Recognized

  

for Offset in

Statement of Assets

  

Non-Cash

Collateral

  

Cash

Collateral

     
Counterparty  Type  Assets   and Liabilities   Received   Received   Net Amount(A) 
Bank of America  Forward-Foreign Currency Contracts  $4,780   $   $   $   $4,780 

 

(A)Net amount represents the net amount receivable from the counterparty in the event of default.

 

140 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

The following table sets forth the fair value of the Funds’ derivative financial instruments by primary risk exposure as of September 30, 2020:

 

   Derivatives not accounted for as hedging  Asset   Liability 
Fund  instruments under ASC 815  Derivatives   Derivatives 
Active Bond Fund  Futures Contracts-Interest Rate Contracts*  $   $7,671 
Credit Opportunities II Fund  Purchased Options-Equity Contracts**   40,132     
   Written Options-Equity Contracts***       19,580 
   Forward-Foreign Currency Contracts****   4,780     
   Swap Agreements - Credit Contracts*****   908    25,330 

 

* Statements of Assets and Liabilities Location: Receivable and Payable for variation margin on futures contracts. Only current day’s variation margin is reported within the payable/receivable on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Includes cumulative appreciation/(depreciation) on futures contracts as reported on the Portfolio of Investments and within the components of net assets section of the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

** Statements of Assets and Liabilities Location: Investments, at market value.

*** Statements of Assets and Liabilities Location: Written options, at market value.

**** Statements of Assets and Liabilities Location: Unrealized appreciation on forward foreign currency contracts.

***** Statements of Assets and Liabilities Location: Receivable for variation margin on swap agreements. Variation margin reported in the Portfolio of Investments and other tables in the Notes to the Financial Statements is the cumulative unrealized appreciation (depreciation).

 

The following table sets forth the effect of the Funds’ derivative financial instruments by primary risk exposure on the Statements of Operations for the year ended September 30, 2020:

 

          Change in 
          Unrealized 
          Appreciation 
   Derivatives not accounted for as hedging  Realized Gain (Loss)   (Depreciation) 
Fund  instruments under ASC 815  on Derivatives   on Derivatives 
Active Bond Fund  Futures Contracts-Interest Rate Contracts*  $(267,203)  $(7,671)
Credit Opportunities II Fund  Purchased Options-Equity Contracts**   (679,773)   6,323 
   Written Options-Equity Contracts***   237,407    13,430 
   Forward - Foreign Currency Exchange          
   Contracts****   9,931    4,780 
   Swap Agreements - Credit Contracts*****   (8,465)   (65,816)

 

* Statements of Operations Location: Net realized losses on futures contracts and net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on futures contracts, respectively.

** Statements of Operations Location: Net realized gains (losses) on investments and net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments, respectively.

*** Statements of Operations Location: Net realized gains on written options and net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on written options, respectively.

**** Statements of Operations Location: Net realized gains on forward foreign currency contracts and net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on forward foreign currency contracts, respectively.

***** Statements of Operations Location: Net realized losses on swap agreements and net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on swap agreements, respectively.

 

For the year ended September 30, 2020, the average quarterly balances of outstanding derivative financial instruments were as follows:

 

   Active   Credit 
   Bond   Opportunities II 
   Fund   Fund 
Equity contracts:          
Purchased Options - Cost  $   $130,462 
Written Options - Premiums received       25,985 
Credit contracts:          
Credit Default Swaps - Notional value       322,950 
Forward currency exchange contracts:          
U.S. dollar amount received       120,116 
Interest rate contracts:          
Futures Contracts - Notional value   10,936,758     

 

Portfolio securities loaned — The Funds may lend their portfolio securities. Lending portfolio securities exposes the Funds to the risk that the borrower may fail to return the loaned securities or may not be able to provide additional collateral or that the Funds may experience delays in recovery of the loaned securities or loss of rights in the collateral if the borrower fails financially. To minimize these risks, the borrower must agree to maintain cash collateral with the Funds’ custodian. The loaned securities are secured by collateral valued at least equal, at all times, to the market value of the loaned securities plus accrued interest, if any. When the collateral falls below specified amounts, the lending agent will use its best effort to obtain additional collateral on the next business day to meet required amounts under the security lending agreement. The cash collateral is reinvested by the Funds’ custodian into an approved short-term investment vehicle. The approved short-term investment vehicle is subject to market risk.

 

141 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

As of September 30, 2020, the following Funds loaned securities and received collateral as follows:

 

      Market   Market     
      Value of   Value of     
      Securities   Collateral   Net 
Fund  Security Type  Loaned*   Received**   Amount*** 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund  Common Stocks  $1,553,294   $1,614,322   $61,028 
Credit Opportunities II Fund  Corporate Bonds   525,504    554,625    29,121 
High Yield Fund  Corporate Bonds   2,133,450    2,229,455    96,005 
International ESG Equity Fund  Common Stocks   628,869    662,369    33,500 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  Common Stocks   21,226,066    22,355,022    1,128,956 
Small Cap Value Fund  Exchange-Traded Fund   784,707    798,690    13,983 
Small Cap Value Fund  Common Stocks   374,456    361,561    (12,895)
Total Small Cap Value Fund      1,159,163    1,160,251    1,088 

 

* The remaining contractual maturity is overnight for all securities.

** Gross amount of recognized liabilities for securities lending included in the Statements of Assets and Liabilities.

*** Net amount represents the net amount payable due to (receive from) the borrower in the event of default.

 

All cash collateral is received, held, and administered by the Funds’ custodian for the benefit of the lending Fund in its custody account or other account established for the purpose of holding collateral in cash equivalents.

 

Funds participating in securities lending receive compensation in the form of fees. Securities lending income is derived from lending long securities from the Funds to creditworthy approved borrowers at rates that are determined based on daily trading volumes, float, short-term interest rates and market liquidity and is shown net of fees on the Statements of Operations. When a Fund lends securities, it retains the interest or dividends on the investment of any cash received as collateral, and the Fund continues to receive interest or dividends on the loaned securities.

 

Unrealized gain or loss on the market value of the loaned securities that may occur during the term of the loan is recognized by the Fund. The Fund has the right under the lending agreement to recover any loaned securities from the borrower on demand.

 

When-issued or delayed delivery transactions — Each Fund may purchase or sell securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis. These transactions involve a commitment by the Fund to purchase or sell securities for a predetermined price or yield, with payment and delivery taking place beyond the customary settlement period. When delayed delivery purchases are outstanding, the Fund will set aside liquid assets in an amount sufficient to meet the purchase price. When purchasing a security on a delayed delivery basis, the Fund assumes the rights and risks of ownership of the security, including the risk of price and yield fluctuations, and takes such fluctuations into account when determining NAV. The Fund may dispose of or renegotiate a delayed delivery transaction after it is entered into, and may sell when-issued securities before they are delivered, which may result in a capital gain or loss. When the Fund has sold a security on a delayed delivery basis, the Fund does not participate in future gains and losses with respect to the security.

 

Share valuation — The NAV per share of each class of shares of each Fund is calculated daily by dividing the total value of a Fund’s assets attributable to that class, less liabilities attributable to that class, by the number of outstanding shares of that class.

 

The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares of the equity funds (all of the Funds except the Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities II Fund, High Yield Fund, Impact Bond Fund and Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund) is equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares of the Active Bond Fund, Credit Opportunities II Fund, High Yield Fund and Impact Bond Fund is equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 3.36% of the NAV (or 3.25% of the offering price). The maximum offering price per share of Class A shares of the Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund is equal to the NAV per share plus sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares of the Credit Opportunities II Fund was equal to the NAV per share plus sales load equal to 5.26% of the NAV (or 5.00% of the offering price). Prior to June 30, 2020, the maximum offering price per share of Class A shares of the Active Bond Fund, High Yield Fund and Impact Bond Fund was equal to the NAV per share plus a sales load equal to 2.04% of the NAV (or 2.00% of the offering price). There is no sales load on equity or fixed income fund purchases when aggregate purchases in all Touchstone funds equal at least $1 million or $500,000, respectively. The maximum offering price per share of Classes C, S, Y, Z, Institutional Class and R6 shares of the Funds is equal to the NAV per share.

 

The redemption price per share of each class of shares of the Funds is generally equal to the NAV per share. However, Class A redemptions that were part of a no-load purchase due to the aggregate purchase amount in all Touchstone Funds equaling at least $1 million for equity funds or $500,000 for fixed income funds where a Finder’s Fee was paid may be subject to a contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of up to 1.00% or 0.50%, respectively, if redeemed within a one-year period from the date of purchase. Additionally, purchases of Class C shares of the Funds are subject to a CDSC of 1.00%. The CDSC will be assessed on an amount equal to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the shares being redeemed or (2) the NAV of such shares being redeemed.

 

142 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Investment income — Dividend income from securities is recognized on the ex-dividend date, net of foreign withholding taxes, if any, which are reduced by any amounts reclaimable by the Funds, where applicable. Interest income from securities is recorded on the basis of interest accrued, premium amortized and discount accreted. Realized gains and losses resulting from principal paydowns on mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities are included in interest income. Market discounts, original issue discounts and market premiums on debt securities are accreted/amortized to interest income over the life of the security or to the appropriate call date, as applicable, with a corresponding adjustment in the cost basis of that security. In addition, it is the Funds’ policy to accrue for foreign capital gains taxes, if applicable, on certain foreign securities held by the Funds. An estimated foreign capital gains tax is recorded daily on net unrealized gains on these securities and is payable upon the sale of such securities when a gain is realized.

 

Distributions to shareholders — Each Fund intends to distribute to its shareholders substantially all of its income and capital gains. The Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund, Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, International ESG Equity Fund, Mid Cap Fund, Sands Capital Select Growth Fund, and Small Cap Fund distribute their income, if any, annually, as a dividend to shareholders. The Credit Opportunities II Fund, Mid Cap Value Fund, and Small Cap Value Fund declare and distribute their income, if any, quarterly, as a dividend to shareholders. The Active Bond Fund, High Yield Fund and Impact Bond Fund declare and distribute their income, if any, monthly, as a dividend to shareholders. The Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund declares its income, if any, daily, and distributes such income monthly, as a dividend to shareholders. Each Fund makes distributions of capital gains, if any, at least annually, net of applicable capital loss carryforwards. Income distributions and capital gain distributions are determined in accordance with income tax regulations. Recognition of the Funds’ net investment income from investments in Underlying Funds is affected by the timing of dividend declarations by the Underlying Funds.

 

Allocations — Investment income earned, realized capital gains and losses, and unrealized appreciation and depreciation for a Fund are allocated daily to each class of shares based upon its proportionate share of total net assets of the Fund. Class-specific expenses are charged directly to the class incurring the expense. Common expenses, which are not attributable to a specific class, are allocated daily to each class of shares based upon their proportionate share of total net assets of the Fund. Expenses not directly billed to a Fund are allocated proportionally among all Funds in the Trust, and, if applicable, Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, Touchstone Strategic Trust and Touchstone Variable Series Trust (collectively with the Trust, “Touchstone Fund Complex”), daily in relation to net assets of each Fund or another reasonable measure.

 

Security transactions — Security transactions are reflected for financial reporting purposes as of the trade date. Realized gains and losses on sales of portfolio securities are calculated using the identified cost basis.

 

Estimates — The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

 

LIBOR Transition — Many debt securities, derivatives and other financial instruments in which the Funds may invest, as well as any borrowings made by the Funds from banks or from other lenders, utilize the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) as the reference or benchmark index for interest rate calculations. LIBOR is a measure of the average interest rate at which major global banks can borrow from one another. Plans are underway to phase out the use of LIBOR by the end of 2021. Before then, it is expected that market participants will transition to the use of different reference or benchmark indices. However, there is currently no definitive information regarding the future utilization of LIBOR or of any particular replacement index. As such, the potential effect of a transition away from LIBOR on the Funds’ investments cannot yet be determined.

 

3. Investment Transactions

 

Investment transactions (excluding short-term investments and U.S. Government securities) were as follows for the year ended September 30, 2020:

 

       Anti-             
       Benchmark®   Anti-   Credit     
   Active   International   Benchmark®   Opportunities     
   Bond   Core Equity   US Core Equity   II   High Yield 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund 
Purchases of investment securities  $156,194,863   $28,110,267   $20,852,915   $104,847,326   $172,710,510 
Proceeds from sales and maturities  $94,464,517   $29,834,288   $20,274,479   $118,834,060   $175,724,137 

 

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Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

   Impact   International       Mid Cap   Sands Capital 
   Bond   ESG Equity   Mid Cap   Value   Select Growth 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund* 
Purchases of investment securities  $49,540,178   $23,759,067   $2,417,262,100   $268,827,327   $738,157,197 
Proceeds from sales and maturities  $16,450,412   $35,341,581   $470,605,930   $305,167,966   $786,964,330 

 

       Small Cap   Ultra Short 
   Small Cap   Value   Duration Fixed 
   Fund*   Fund   Income Fund 
Purchases of investment securities  $22,676,754   $31,614,291   $639,162,412 
Proceeds from sales and maturities  $15,215,611   $53,380,311   $595,004,673 

 

*Sands Capital Select Growth Fund and Small Cap Fund had redemptions-in-kind out of the Fund of $312,333,220 and $9,668,909, respectively. The redemptions were comprised of securities of $275,404,967 and $7,391,692, which are excluded from the proceeds from sales and maturities and cash in the amount of $36,928,253 and $2,277,217, for the Sands Capital Select Growth Fund and Small Cap Fund, respectively.

 

For the year ended September 30, 2020, purchases and proceeds from sales and maturities in U.S. Government Securities were $685,750,708 and $741,660,026, respectively, for the Active Bond Fund, $88,850,411 and $53,488,346, respectively, for the Impact Bond Fund and $37,935,864 and $45,004,179, respectively, for the Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund. There were no purchases or proceeds from sales and maturities of U.S. Government Securities by the remaining Funds for the year ended September 30, 2020.

 

4. Transactions with Affiliates and Other Related Parties

 

Certain officers of the Trust are also officers of Touchstone Advisors, Inc. (the “Advisor”), Touchstone Securities, Inc. (the “Underwriter”), or The Bank of New York Mellon (“BNY Mellon”), the Sub-Administrator to the Funds. Such officers receive no compensation from the Trust. The Advisor and the Underwriter are each wholly-owned subsidiaries of Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. (“Western & Southern”).

 

On behalf of the Funds, the Advisor pays each Independent Trustee a quarterly retainer plus additional retainers to the Lead Independent Trustee and the chairs of each standing committee. Interested Trustees do not receive compensation from the Funds. Each Independent Trustee also receives compensation for each Board meeting and committee meeting attended. Each standing committee chair receives additional compensation for each committee meeting that he or she oversees. The Advisor is reimbursed by the Funds for the Independent Trustees’ compensation and out-of-pocket expenses relating to their services. The Funds accrued Trustee-related expenses of $278,876 for the year ended September 30, 2020.

 

MANAGEMENT & EXPENSE LIMITATION AGREEMENTS

 

The Advisor provides general investment supervisory services for the Funds, under the terms of an advisory agreement (the “Advisory Agreement”). Under the Advisory Agreement, each Fund pays the Advisor a fee, which is computed and accrued daily and paid monthly, at an annual rate based on average daily net assets of each Fund as shown in the table below.

 

Active Bond Fund 0.40% on the first $300 million
  0.35% on such assets over $300 million
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund 0.45% on the first $1 billion
  0.40% on such assets over $1 billion
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund 0.35% on the first $1 billion
  0.30% on such assets over $1 billion
Credit Opportunities II Fund 0.60%
High Yield Fund 0.60% on the first $50 million
  0.50% on the next $250 million
  0.45% on such assets over $300 million
Impact Bond Fund 0.35%
International ESG Equity Fund 0.65% on the first $1 billion
  0.60% on such assets over $1 billion
Mid Cap Fund 0.80% on the first $1 billion
  0.70% on the next $500 million
  0.60% on such assets over $1.5 billion
Mid Cap Value Fund 0.75%

 

144 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Sands Capital Select Growth Fund* 0.70% on the first $1 billion
  0.65% on the next $500 million
  0.60% on the next $500 million
  0.55% on such assets over $2 billion
Small Cap Fund 0.85% on the first $250 million
  0.80% on the next $250 million
  0.70% on such assets over $500 million
Small Cap Value Fund 0.85%
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund 0.25%

 

*Prior to June 1, 2020, the Fund paid 0.85% on the first $1 billion, 0.80% on the next $500 million, 0.75% on the next $500 million, and 0.70% on such assets over $2 billion.

 

Prior to June 1, 2020, in addition to the base advisory fee shown above for the Sands Capital Select Growth Fund, a performance fee adjustment was added to or subtracted from the base advisory fee if the Fund outperformed or underperformed its benchmark index by more than 2.50% (the “Hurdle Rate”), for the preceding twelve month period, as follows:

 

   Benchmark  Required  Performance
   Index  Hurdle Rate  Adjustment Rate
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  Russell1000® Growth Index  +/-2.50%  +/-0.15%

 

For the year ended September 30, 2020, the Advisor’s base fee was decreased by $661,709 as a result of the performance fee adjustment. Effective June 1, 2020, the performance fee adjustment was removed.

 

The Advisor has entered into investment sub-advisory agreements with the following parties (each, a “Sub-Advisor”):

 

Ares Capital Management II LLC
Credit Opportunities II Fund
 
EARNEST Partners LLC
Impact Bond Fund
 
Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.*
Active Bond Fund
High Yield Fund
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund
 
LMCG Investments, LLC
Mid Cap Value Fund
Small Cap Value Fund

The London Company
Mid Cap Fund
Small Cap Fund
 
Rockefeller & Co.LLC
International ESG Equity Fund
 
Sands Capital Management, LLC
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund
 
TOBAM S.A.S.
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund

 

 

*Affiliate of the Advisor and wholly-owned subsidiary of Western & Southern.

 

The Advisor pays sub-advisory fees to each Sub-Advisor from its advisory fee.

 

The Advisor entered into an expense limitation agreement (the “Expense Limitation Agreement”) to contractually limit the annual operating expenses of the Funds, excluding: dividend and interest expenses relating to short sales; interest; taxes; brokerage commissions and other transaction costs; portfolio transaction and investment related expenses, including expenses associated with the Funds’ liquidity providers; other expenditures which are capitalized in accordance with U.S. GAAP; the cost of “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses”, if any; and other extraordinary expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of business. The maximum annual operating expense limit in any year with respect to the Funds is based on a percentage of the average daily net assets of the Funds. The Advisor has agreed to waive a portion of its fees, and to reimburse certain fund expenses in order to maintain the following expense limitations for the Funds:

 

                       Institutional     
   Class A   Class C   Class S   Class Y   Class Z   Class   Class R6 
Active Bond Fund   0.90%   1.65%       0.65%       0.57%    
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund               0.69%       0.59%    
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund               0.54%       0.44%    
Credit Opportunities II Fund   1.08%   1.83%       0.83%       0.73%    
High Yield Fund   1.05%   1.80%       0.80%       0.72%    
Impact Bond Fund   0.85%   1.60%       0.60%       0.50%    
International ESG Equity Fund   1.17%   1.95%       0.90%       0.89%    
Mid Cap Fund   1.21%   1.96%       0.96%   1.21%   0.89%    
Mid Cap Value Fund   1.22%   1.97%       0.97%       0.84%    
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund*   1.15%   1.90%       0.90%   1.14%   0.78%   0.72%

 

145 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

                       Institutional     
   Class A   Class C   Class S   Class Y   Class Z   Class   Class R6 
Small Cap Fund   1.24%   1.99%       0.99%       0.91%    
Small Cap Value Fund   1.38%   2.13%       1.13%       0.98%    
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund   0.69%   1.19%   0.94%   0.44%   0.69%   0.39%    

 

*Prior to June 1, 2020, the Expense Limitation Agreement for Sands Capital Select Growth Fund limited other operating expenses to 0.25% for all classes of the Fund. Other operating expenses include all operating expenses of the Fund except for investment advisory fees, administration fees, performance fees, distribution fees (12b-1), shareholder service fees and any expenses excluded in the Expense Limitation Agreement.

 

These expense limitations will remain in effect for all Funds, except for Sands Capital Select Growth Fund, through at least January 30, 2021. The expense limitation for the Sands Capital Select Growth Fund will remain in effect through at least November 30, 2021. The Expense Limitation Agreement can be terminated by a vote of the Funds’ Board if it deems the termination to be beneficial to the Funds’ shareholders.

 

During the year ended September 30, 2020, the Advisor or its affiliates waived investment advisory fees, administration fees and waived or reimbursed other operating expenses, including distribution fees of the Funds, as follows:

 

           Other Operating     
   Investment       Expenses     
   Advisory   Administration   Reimbursed/     
   Fees Waived   Fees Waived   Waived   Total 
Active Bond Fund  $   $90,563   $137,911   $228,474 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund   53,435    39,047    49,313    141,795 
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund   33,889    29,746    38,734    102,369 
Credit Opportunities II Fund   63,541    103,456    91,102    258,099 
High Yield Fund       20,579    107,486    128,065 
Impact Bond Fund       77,047    205,510    282,557 
International ESG Equity Fund   42,761    33,382    114,996    191,139 
Mid Cap Fund           857,351    857,351 
Mid Cap Value Fund       419,483    969,629    1,389,112 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund           298,889    298,889 
Small Cap Fund   27,637    77,965    135,888    241,490 
Small Cap Value Fund       85,636    81,165    166,801 
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund       219,050    519,732    738,782 

 

Under the terms of the Expense Limitation Agreement, the Advisor is entitled to recover, subject to approval by the Funds’ Board, such amounts waived or reimbursed for a period of up to three years from the date on which the Advisor reduced its compensation or assumed expenses for the Funds. A Fund will make repayments to the Advisor only if such repayment does not cause the Fund’s operating expenses (after the repayment is taken into account) to exceed the Fund’s expense limit in place when such amounts were waived or reimbursed by the Advisor and the Fund’s current expense limitation.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Advisor may seek recoupment of previously waived fees and reimbursed expenses as follows:

 

       Expires on or       Expires on or   Expires on or     
   Expires on or   before   Expires on or   before   before     
   before   September   before   September   September     
Fund  June 30, 2021   30, 2021   June 30, 2022   30, 2022   30, 2023   Total 
Active Bond Fund  $   $150,083   $   $232,470   $170,804   $553,357 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund               155,348    141,795    297,143 
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund               99,022    102,369    201,391 
Credit Opportunities II Fund   112,035        172,127    107,785    229,289    621,236 
High Yield Fund       103,212        123,791    85,080    312,083 
Impact Bond Fund       278,009        270,814    247,247    796,070 
International ESG Equity Fund       26,244        77,175    141,782    245,201 
Mid Cap Fund       468,850        1,014,098    760,791    2,243,739 
Mid Cap Value Fund       692,241        1,211,849    1,340,628    3,244,718 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund       341,425        337,459    293,425    972,309 

 

146 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

       Expires on or       Expires on or   Expires on or     
   Expires on or   before   Expires on or   before   before     
   before   September   before   September   September     
Fund  June 30, 2021   30, 2021   June 30, 2022   30, 2022   30, 2023   Total 
Small Cap Fund  $   $63,116   $   $147,751   $218,366   $429,233 
Small Cap Value Fund       231,612        174,347    142,724    548,683 
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund       570,299        610,602    615,640    1,796,541 

 

For the year ended September 30, 2020, the Advisor recouped previously waived fees or reimbursed expenses from the Mid Cap Fund and Sands Capital Select Growth Fund of $9,822 and $26,052, respectively.

 

ADMINISTRATIONAGREEMENT

 

The Advisor entered into an Administration Agreement with the Trust, whereby the Advisor is responsible for: supplying executive and regulatory compliance services; supervising the preparation of tax returns; coordinating the preparation of reports to shareholders and reports to, and filings with the SEC and state securities authorities, as well as materials for meetings of the Board; calculating the daily NAV per share; and maintaining the financial books and records of each Fund.

 

For its services, the Advisor’s annual administrative fee is:

 

0.145% on the first $20 billion of the aggregate average daily net assets;

0.11% on the next $10 billion of aggregate average daily net assets;

0.09% on the next $10 billion of aggregate average daily net assets; and

0.07% on the aggregate average daily net assets over $40 billion.

 

The fee is computed and allocated among the Touchstone Fund Complex (excluding Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust) on the basis of relative daily net assets.

 

The Advisor has engaged BNY Mellon as the Sub-Administrator to the Trust. BNY Mellon provides administrative and accounting services to the Trust and is compensated directly by the Advisor, not the Trust.

 

TRANSFER AGENT AGREEMENT

 

Under the terms of the Transfer Agent Agreement between the Trust and BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (U.S.) Inc. (“Transfer Agent”), the Transfer Agent to the Funds, the Transfer Agent maintains the records of each shareholder’s account, answers shareholders’ inquiries concerning their accounts, processes purchases and redemptions of each Fund’s shares, acts as dividend and distribution disbursing agent, and performs other shareholder service functions. For these services, the Transfer Agent receives a monthly fee from each Fund. In addition, each Fund pays out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Transfer Agent, including, but not limited to, postage and supplies.

 

The Funds may reimburse the Advisor for fees paid to intermediaries such as banks, broker-dealers, financial advisors or other financial institutions for sub-transfer agency, sub-administration and other services provided to investors whose shares of record are held in omnibus, other group accounts, retirement plans or accounts traded through registered securities clearing agents. These fees may vary based on, for example, the nature of services provided, but generally range up to 0.15% of the assets of the class serviced or maintained by the intermediary or up to $22 per sub-account maintained by the intermediary.

 

PLANS OF DISTRIBUTION AND SHAREHOLDER SERVICING FEE ARRANGEMENTS

 

The Trust has adopted distribution plans pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act for each class of shares it offers that is subject to 12b-1 distribution fees. The plans allow each Fund to pay distribution and other fees for the sale and distribution of its shares and for services provided to shareholders. The fees charged to the Funds are limited to the actual expenses incurred. Under the Class A plan, each Fund offering Class A shares, excluding the Active Bond Fund and High Yield Fund, pays an annual fee not to exceed 0.25% of average daily net assets that are attributable to Class A shares. The Active Bond Fund and High Yield Fund pay an annual fee not to exceed 0.35% of average daily net assets that are attributable to Class A shares. The Active Bond Fund and High Yield Fund currently limit the 12b-1 fees for Class A shares to 0.25% of average daily net assets attributable to such shares. Under the Class C plan, each Fund offering Class C shares (except the Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund) pays an annual fee not to exceed 1.00% of average daily net assets that are attributable to Class C shares (of which up to 0.75% is a distribution fee and up to 0.25% is a shareholder servicing fee). The Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund has limited the amount of the 12b-1 fees for Class C shares to 0.75% of average daily net assets through January 29, 2021. Under the Class S plan, the Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund pays an annual shareholder servicing fee not to exceed 0.50% of average daily net assets that are attributable to Class S shares (of which up to 0.25% is a distribution fee and up to 0.25% is a shareholder servicing fee). Under the Class Z plan, each Fund offering Class Z shares pays an annual shareholder servicing fee not to exceed 0.25% of average daily net assets that are attributable to Class Z shares.

 

147 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

 

The Underwriter is the Funds’ principal underwriter and, as such, acts as exclusive agent for distribution of the Funds’ shares. Under the terms of the Underwriting Agreement between the Trust and the Underwriter, the Underwriter earned underwriting and broker commissions on the sale of Class A shares of the Funds. W&S Brokerage Services, Inc., an affiliate of the Underwriter and the Advisor, also earned broker commissions on the sale of Class A shares of the Funds. Listed below are the total underwriting and broker commissions earned by the Underwriter and its affiliate during the year ended September 30, 2020:

 

Fund  Amount 
Active Bond Fund  $3,728 
Credit Opportunities II Fund   799 
High Yield Fund   959 
Impact Bond Fund   1,838 
International ESG Equity Fund   706 
Mid Cap Fund   35,170 
Mid Cap Value Fund   1,740 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund   12,981 
Small Cap Fund   489 
Small Cap Value Fund   386 
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund   1,292 

 

In addition, the Underwriter collected CDSC on the redemption of Class A and Class C shares of the Funds listed below during the year ended September 30, 2020:

 

Fund  Class A   Class C 
Active Bond Fund  $10   $66 
Credit Opportunities II Fund       200 
International ESG Equity Fund       13 
Mid Cap Fund       1,896 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund   5,000    57,873 
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund   22    2,845 

 

INTERFUND TRANSACTIONS

 

Pursuant to Rule 17a-7 under the 1940 Act, the Funds may engage in purchase and sale transactions with funds that have a common investment advisor (or affiliated investment advisors), common Trustees and/or common officers. During the year ended September 30, 2020, the Funds did not engage in any Rule 17a-7 transactions.

 

5. Liquidity

 

ReFlow Fund LLC — The Funds may participate in the ReFlow Fund LLC liquidity program (“ReFlow”), which is designed to provide an alternative liquidity source for funds experiencing redemptions. In order to pay cash to shareholders who redeem their shares on a given day, a fund typically must hold cash in its portfolio, liquidate portfolio securities, or borrow money. ReFlow provides participating funds with another source of cash by standing ready to purchase shares from a fund up to the amount of the fund’s net redemptions on a given day, cumulatively limited to 3% of the outstanding voting shares of a Fund. ReFlow then generally redeems those shares (in cash or in-kind) when the Fund experiences net sales, at the end of a maximum holding period determined by ReFlow, or at other times at ReFlow’s discretion. In return for this service, the Fund will pay a fee to ReFlow at a rate determined by a daily auction with other participating mutual funds.

 

During the year ended September 30, 2020, the following Funds utilized ReFlow. The shares ReFlow subscribed to and redemptions-in-kind were as follows:

 

   Shares ReFlow     
Fund  Subscribed to   Redemptions-in-kind 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund   21,264,415   $275,404,967 
Small Cap Fund   868,457    7,391,692 

 

148 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Interfund lending — Pursuant to an Exemptive Order issued by the SEC on March 28, 2017, the Funds, along with certain other funds in the Touchstone Fund Complex, may participate in an interfund lending program. The interfund lending program provides an alternate credit facility that allows the Funds to lend to or borrow from other participating funds in the Touchstone Fund Complex, subject to the conditions of the Exemptive Order. The Funds may not borrow under the facility for leverage purposes and the loans’ duration may be no more than 7 days.

 

During the year ended September 30, 2020, the following Funds participated as lenders in the interfund lending program. The daily average amount loaned, weighted average interest rate and interest income were as follows:

 

   Daily Average   Weighted Average   Interest 
Fund  Amount Loaned   Interest Rate   Income* 
Mid Cap Fund  $946,816    1.07%  $11,219 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  $151,465    2.09%  $3,483 

 

*Included in Interest in the Statements of Operations.

 

During the year ended September 30, 2020, the following Funds participated as borrowers in the interfund lending program. The daily average amount borrowed, weighted average interest rate and interest expense were as follows:

 

   Daily Average   Weighted Average   Interest 
Fund  Amount Borrowed   Interest Rate   Expense* 
Credit Opportunities II Fund  $54,976    0.86%  $484 
High Yield Fund  $50,881    0.69%  $356 
Small Cap Value Fund  $100,686    0.71%  $730 

 

*Included in Other expenses in the Statements of Operations.

 

6. Federal Tax Information

 

Federal Income Tax — It is each Fund’s policy to continue to comply with the special provisions of the Internal Revenue Code applicable to regulated investment companies. As provided therein, in any fiscal year in which a Fund so qualifies and distributes at least 90% of its investment company taxable income, the Fund (but not the shareholders) will be relieved of federal income tax on the income distributed. It is each Fund’s policy to distribute all of its taxable income and accordingly, no provision for income taxes has been made.

 

In order to avoid imposition of the excise tax applicable to regulated investment companies, it is also each Fund’s intention to declare and pay as dividends in each calendar year at least 98% of its investment company taxable income (earned during the calendar year) and 98.2% of its net realized capital gains (earned during the twelve months ending October 31) plus undistributed amounts from prior years.

 

The tax character of distributions paid for the years or periods ended September 30, 2020 and 2019 for all funds except for the Credit Opportunities II Fund, which is for the three months ended September 30, 2019 and the year ended June 30, 2019, are as follows:

 

   Active Bond Fund   Anti-Benchmark® International
Core Equity
Fund
   Anti-Benchmark® US
Core Equity Fund
 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Period Ended   Year Ended   Period Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019(A)   2020   2019(A) 
From ordinary income  $9,224,555   $9,614,220   $830,992   $32,749   $905,831   $145,904 
From long-term capital gains                   373,296     
From return of capital                   28,904     
Total distributions  $9,224,555   $9,614,220   $830,992   $32,749   $1,308,031   $145,904 

 

   Credit Opportunities II Fund   High Yield Fund 
   Year Ended   Three Months
Ended
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   June 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019(B)   2019   2020   2019 
From ordinary income  $5,412,892   $3,206,036   $3,271,569   $10,325,343   $10,001,955 
From long-term capital gains           307,535         
Total distributions  $5,412,892   $3,206,036   $3,579,104   $10,325,343   $10,001,955 

 

149 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

   Impact Bond Fund   International ESG Equity Fund   Mid Cap Fund 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019 
From ordinary income  $7,625,238   $7,791,647   $92,070   $1,316,207   $16,227,598   $9,903,400 
From long-term capital gains           6,554,323    6,831,966    40,623,294    23,663,184 
Total distributions  $7,625,238   $7,791,647   $6,646,393   $8,148,173   $56,850,892   $33,566,584 

 

   Mid Cap Value Fund   Sands Capital Select Growth Fund   Small Cap Fund 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019   2020   2019 
From ordinary income  $6,179,571   $15,017,130   $   $   $183,932   $125,425 
From long-term capital gains       23,697,909    275,526,970    422,272,917    6,668,316    23,461,668 
Total distributions  $6,179,571   $38,715,039   $275,526,970   $422,272,917   $6,852,248   $23,587,093 

 

   Small Cap Value Fund   Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund 
   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended   Year Ended 
   September 30,   September 30,   September 30,   September 30, 
   2020   2019   2020   2019 
From ordinary income  $335,913   $1,637,755   $21,013,925   $25,162,001 
From long-term capital gains       8,137,372         
From return of capital   111,479             
Total distributions  $447,392   $9,775,127   $21,013,925   $25,162,001 

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (November 19, 2018) through September 30, 2019.
(B)The fund changed its fiscal year end from June 30 to September 30.

 

The following information is computed on a tax basis for each item as of September 30, 2020:

 

       Anti-Benchmark®         
   Active Bond   International Core
Equity
   Anti-Benchmark ®
US Core Equity
   Credit
Opportunities II
 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund 
Tax cost of portfolio investments  $342,583,216   $35,730,563   $26,596,425   $89,772,973 
Gross unrealized appreciation on investments   20,190,404    5,913,691    5,051,449    2,650,624 
Gross unrealized depreciation on investments   (3,211,988)   (3,018,284)   (877,972)   (4,230,274)
Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments   16,978,416    2,895,407    4,173,477    (1,579,650)
Gross unrealized appreciation on short sales, derivatives and foreign currency transactions       1,680        26,372 
Gross unrealized depreciation on short sales, derivatives and foreign currency transactions       (38)       (67,376)
Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on short sales, derivatives and foreign currency transactions       1,642        (41,004)
Capital loss carryforwards   (81,129,634)   (696,512)       (19,706,374)
Undistributed ordinary income   296,022    649,717        654,240 
Other temporary differences   (947,755)           33,888 
Accumulated earnings (deficit)  $(64,802,951)  $2,850,254   $4,173,477   $(20,638,900)

 

150 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

   High Yield   Impact Bond   International ESG Equity   Mid Cap 
   Fund   Fund   Fund   Fund 
Tax cost of portfolio investments  $189,855,960   $368,488,430   $23,618,043   $3,387,025,545 
Gross unrealized appreciation on investments   5,739,922    24,427,006    5,689,150    623,308,001 
Gross unrealized depreciation on investments   (7,721,533)   (1,550,233)   (1,341,744)   (181,451,112)
Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments   (1,981,611)   22,876,773    4,347,406    441,856,889 
Gross unrealized appreciation on foreign currency transactions           923     
Gross unrealized depreciation on foreign currency transactions           (51)    
Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on foreign currency transactions           872     
Capital loss carryforwards   (20,301,512)   (5,951,300)   (1,240,415)    
Undistributed ordinary income   100,671    657,939    128,974    35,949,859 
Undistributed capital gains               35,740,564 
Accumulated earnings (deficit)  $(22,182,452)  $17,583,412   $3,236,837   $513,547,312 

 

   Mid Cap Value   Sands Capital Select   Small Cap   Small Cap Value   Ultra Short Duration 
   Fund   Growth Fund   Fund   Fund   Fixed Income Fund 
Tax cost of portfolio investments  $624,092,678   $1,058,583,812   $61,271,712   $57,609,732   $986,165,972 
Gross unrealized appreciation on investments   129,360,637    1,235,399,297    19,400,660    6,376,970    2,811,565 
Gross unrealized depreciation on investments   (88,481,393)   (9,407,860)   (7,300,001)   (9,807,482)   (6,569,703)
Net unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments   40,879,244    1,225,991,437    12,100,659    (3,430,512)   (3,758,138)
Capital loss carryforwards   (12,022,197)           (19,181,829)   (100,008,268)
Late year ordinary losses deferrals       (8,709,129)            
Undistributed ordinary income   36,502        91,526        547,213 
Undistributed capital gains       213,407,651    497,373         
Other temporary differences                    (127,834)
Accumulated earnings (deficit)  $28,893,549   $1,430,689,959   $12,689,558   $(22,612,341)  $(103,347,027)

 

The difference between the tax cost of portfolio investments and the financial statement cost is primarily due to wash sale loss deferrals, investments in passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”) adjustments, regulated investment company adjustments, amortization adjustments on bonds, REIT adjustments and certain timing differences in the recognition of capital losses under income tax regulations and U.S. GAAP.

 

As of September 30, 2020, the Funds had the following capital loss carryforwards for federal income tax purposes:

 

   No Expiration   No Expiration     
   Short Term   Long Term   Total 
Active Bond Fund*  $44,563,739   $36,565,895   $81,129,634 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund   663,798    32,714    696,512 
Credit Opportunities II Fund*   5,864,649    13,841,725    19,706,374 
High Yield Fund   1,615,499    18,686,013    20,301,512 
Impact Bond Fund   143,792    5,807,508    5,951,300 
International ESG Equity Fund   1,151,631    88,784    1,240,415 
Mid Cap Value Fund   3,426,293    8,595,904    12,022,197 
Small Cap Value Fund   8,579,136    10,602,693    19,181,829 
Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund*   29,238,184    70,770,084    100,008,268 

 

* Future utilization may be limited under current tax rules

 

The capital loss carryforwards may be utilized in future years to offset net realized capital gains, if any, prior to distributing such gains to shareholders. Future utilization is subject to limitations under current tax law.

 

During the year ended September 30, 2020, the following Funds utilized capital loss carryforwards:

 

Fund  Amount 
Active Bond Fund  $8,697,254 
Anti-Benchmark®U.S Core Equity Fund   762,089 

 

151 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Fund  Amount 
Impact Bond Fund  $(439,817)

 

Under current laws, certain capital losses realized after October 31 and ordinary losses realized after December 31 may be deferred (and certain ordinary losses after October and/or December 31 may be deferred) and treated as occurring on the first day of the following fiscal year. For the year ended September 30, 2020, the following Funds elected to defer the following losses:

 

   Ordinary 
Fund  Losses 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  $8,709,129 

 

The Funds have analyzed their tax positions taken on federal income tax returns for all open tax years (tax years ended September 30, 2017 through 2020) and have concluded that no provision for income tax is required in their financial statements.

 

Certain reclassifications, the result of permanent differences between financial statement and income tax reporting requirements, have been made to the components of capital. These reclassifications have no impact on the net assets or NAV per share of the Fund. The following reclassifications, which are primarily attributed to the tax treatment of, deemed distributions on shareholder redemptions, reclassification of net operating losses, and in-kind distributions on shareholder redemptions have been made to the following Funds for the year ended September 30, 2020:

 

   Paid-In   Distributable 
Fund  Capital   Earnings 
Credit Opportunities II Fund  $13,196   $(13,196)
International ESG Equity Fund   68,397    (68,397)
Mid Cap Value Fund   30,477    (30,477)
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund   186,636,406    (186,636,406)
Small Cap Fund   2,772,382    (2,772,382)
Small Cap Value Fund   (73,223)   73,223 

 

7. Commitments and Contingencies

 

The Funds indemnify the Trust’s officers and Trustees for certain liabilities that might arise from their performance of their duties to the Funds. Additionally, in the normal course of business, the Funds enter into contracts that contain a variety of representations and warranties and which provide general indemnifications. The Funds’ maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown, as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Funds.

 

8. Principal Risks

 

Risks Associated with Foreign Investments — Some of the Funds may invest in the securities of foreign issuers. Investing in securities issued by companies whose principal business activities are outside the U.S. may involve significant risks not present in domestic investments. For example, there is generally less publicly available information about foreign companies, particularly those not subject to the disclosure and reporting requirements of the U.S. securities laws. Foreign issuers are generally not bound by uniform accounting, auditing, and financial reporting requirements and standards of practice comparable to those applicable to domestic issuers. Investments in foreign securities also involve the risk of possible adverse changes in investment or exchange control regulations, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, limitations on the removal of funds or other assets of a Fund, political or financial instability or diplomatic and other developments which could affect such investments. Foreign stock markets, while growing in volume and sophistication, are generally not as developed as those in the U.S., and securities of some foreign issuers (particularly those located in developing countries) may be less liquid and more volatile than securities of comparable U.S. companies. In general, there is less overall governmental supervision and regulation of foreign securities markets, broker-dealers, and issuers than in the U.S.

 

Risks Associated with Sector Concentration — Certain Funds may invest a high percentage of their assets in specific sectors of the market in order to achieve a potentially greater investment return. As a result, these Funds may be more susceptible to economic, political, and regulatory developments in a particular sector of the market, positive or negative, and may experience increased volatility on the Funds’ NAVs and magnified effect on the total return.

 

Risks Associated with Credit — An issuer may be unable to make timely payments of either principal or interest. This may cause the issuer’s securities to decline in value. Credit risk is particularly relevant to those Funds that invest a significant amount of their assets in junk bonds or lower-rated securities.

 

152 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

Risks Associated with Interest Rate Changes — The price of debt securities is generally linked to the prevailing market interest rates. In general, when interest rates rise, the price of debt securities falls, and when interest rates fall, the price of debt securities rises. The price volatility of a debt security also depends on its maturity. Longer-term securities are generally more volatile, so the longer the average maturity or duration of these securities, the greater their price risk. Duration is a measure of the expected life, taking into account any prepayment or call features of the security, that is used to determine the price sensitivity of the security for a given change in interest rates. Specifically, duration is the change in the value of a fixed-income security that will result from a 1% change in interest rates, and generally is stated in years. For example, as a general rule a 1% rise in interest rates means a 1% fall in value for every year of duration. Maturity, on the other hand, is the date on which a fixed-income security becomes due for payment of principal. The negative impact on fixed income securities if interest rates increase as a result could negatively impact a Fund’s NAV.

 

Risks Associated with Liquidity — Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are difficult to purchase or sell. This can reduce the Fund’s returns because the Fund may be unable to transact at advantageous times or prices, or at all.

 

Risks Associated with Health Crises — An outbreak of respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus was first detected in China in December 2019 and subsequently spread internationally. As of the date of issuance of these financial statements, this coronavirus has resulted in closing borders, enhanced health screenings, healthcare service preparation and delivery, quarantines, cancellations, disruptions to supply chains and customer activity, as well as general concern and uncertainty. The impact of this coronavirus may be short term or may last for an extended period of time and result in a substantial economic downturn. The impact of this outbreak, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future, could negatively affect the worldwide economy, as well as the economies of individual countries, individual companies and the market in general in significant and unforeseen ways. Any such impact could adversely affect a Fund’s performance, the performance of the securities in which a Fund invests and may lead to losses on your investment in a Fund.

 

Please see the Funds’ prospectus for a complete discussion of these and other risks.

 

9. Fund Reorganizations

 

Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund:

 

The Trustees of the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, a series of the Touchstone Funds Group Trust (“TFGT”), approved an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization providing for the transfer of all assets and liabilities of the TFGT Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, to the Touchstone Dynamic Equity Fund, a series of the Touchstone Strategic Trust (“TST”), which was renamed the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund. The performance and accounting history of the TFGT Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund was assumed by TST Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund. The tax-free reorganization took place on October 2, 2020.

 

The following is a summary of shares outstanding, net assets, net asset value per share and unrealized appreciation immediately before and after the reorganization.

 

           After 
   Before Reorganization   Reorganization 
   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone 
   Anti-Benchmark®   Dynamic   Anti-Benchmark® 
   US Core   Equity   US Core 
   Equity Fund   Fund   Equity Fund 
Class A               
Shares       452,453    452,453 
Net Assets  $   $5,867,005   $5,867,005 
Net Asset Value  $   $12.97   $12.97 
Class C               
Shares       171,625    171,625 
Net Assets  $   $1,985,084   $1,985,084 
Net Asset Value  $   $11.57   $11.57 
Class Y               
Shares   12,210    1,297,709    1,309,919 
Net Assets  $160,365   $17,043,427   $17,203,792 
Net Asset Value  $13.13(A)  $13.13   $13.13 
Institutional Class               
Shares   2,313,972    9,204    2,323,176 
Net Assets  $30,771,483   $122,393   $30,893,876 

 

153 

 

 

Notes to Financial Statements (Continued)

 

           After 
   Before Reorganization   Reorganization 
   Touchstone   Touchstone   Touchstone 
   Anti-Benchmark®   Dynamic   Anti-Benchmark® 
   US Core   Equity   US Core 
   Equity Fund   Fund   Equity Fund 
Net Asset Value  $13.30(B)  $13.30   $13.30 
Fund Total               
Shares Outstanding   2,326,182    1,930,991    4,257,173 
Net Assets  $30,931,848   $25,017,909   $55,949,757 
Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation)  $3,297,182   $4,379,593   $7,676,775 

 

(A)Reflects a 0.8911:1 stock split which occurred on the date of reorganization, October 2, 2020.
(B)Reflects a 0.8799:1 stock split which occurred on the date of reorganization, October 2, 2020.

 

10. Litigation

 

On June 18, 2020, Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund f/k/a Touchstone Arbitrage Fund, and Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund f/k/a Touchstone Merger Arbitrage Fund (the “Fund”) were served with a summons and complaint in litigation brought by Marc S. Kirschner, as Trustee for the NWHI Litigation Trust (the “Trustee”) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (the “Court”), captioned Kirschner v. Kimmel, et al., No. 20-04287 (the “Action”). In the Action, the Trustee alleged that the payments made to former shareholders in the April 2014 leveraged buyout of The Jones Group Inc. (“Jones Group”) constituted intentional and constructive fraudulent transfers, and sought to recover those payments. The Trustee sought to recoup from the Fund the amount the Fund received in the leveraged buyout, together with interest and costs. The Fund has not made an accrual with respect to these amounts as Fund management deems the possibility of payment to be remote. The Action was consolidated into a multi-district litigation proceeding in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, captioned In re: Nine West LBO Securities Litigation, 20-md-02941 (the “MDL”). The Fund, along with hundreds of other shareholder defendants in the MDL, moved to dismiss the Action, and the Court heard oral argument on the motion to dismiss in August 2020. On August 27, 2020, the Court dismissed the fraudulent transfer claims in the MDL with prejudice. On September 25, 2020, the Trustee filed notices of appeal to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals for certain of the cases in the MDL where a direct appeal could be taken, captioned In re: Nine West LBO Securities Litigation, 20-3257. The Second Circuit set January 22, 2021 as the deadline for the Trustee to file the appellate brief. Once the Trustee’s brief is filed, the shareholder defendants will have a period of time to request a briefing deadline from the Clerk, which will then be set by the Court.

 

11. Subsequent Events

 

Subsequent events occurring after the date of this report have been evaluated for potential impact to this report through the date the financial statements were issued.

 

At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Trust held on May 21, 2020, the Board approved the reorganization (“Reorganization”) of the Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, a series of the Trust, into the Touchstone Dynamic Equity Fund (which was renamed the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund), a series of the Touchstone Strategic Trust, as described in Note 9. The Reorganization was completed on October 2, 2020.

 

At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Trust held on May 21, 2020, the Board approved the reorganization of the Touchstone Sands Institutional Select Growth Fund, a series of the Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, into the Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund, a series of the Trust (“Sands Reorganization”). The Sands Reorganization is expected to be completed on or about December 11, 2020.

 

At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Trust held on November 19, 2020, the Board approved the name change of the Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund to Touchstone Credit Opportunities Fund. The name change is expected to be completed on or about January 1, 2021.

 

There were no other subsequent events that necessitated recognition or disclosure in the Funds’ financial statements.

 

154 

 

 

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

 

To the Shareholders and the Board of Trustees of Touchstone Funds Group Trust

 

Opinion on the Financial Statements

 

We have audited the accompanying statements of assets and liabilities of Touchstone Funds Group Trust (the “Trust”) (comprising Touchstone Active Bond Fund, Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund, Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund, Touchstone High Yield Fund, Touchstone Impact Bond Fund, Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund, Touchstone Mid Cap Fund, Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund, Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund, Touchstone Small Cap Fund, Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund, and Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund (collectively referred to as the “Funds”)), including the portfolios of investments, as of September 30, 2020, and the related statements of operations and changes in net assets, and the financial highlights for each of the periods indicated in the table below and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of each of the Funds comprising Touchstone Funds Group Trust at September 30, 2020, the results of their operations, changes in net assets and financial highlights for each of the periods indicated in the table below, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

 

Funds      
comprising the      
Touchstone Funds Group Statement of Statements of  
Trust operations changes in net assets Financial highlights
Touchstone Active Bond Fund For the year ended For each of the two years in the period ended For each of the five years in the period ended
Touchstone High Yield Fund September 30, 2020 September 30, 2020 September 30, 2020
Touchstone Impact Bond      
Fund      
Touchstone International ESG      
Equity Fund      
Touchstone Mid Cap Fund      
Touchstone Mid Cap Value      
Fund      
Touchstone Sands Capital      
Select Growth Fund      
Touchstone Small Cap Fund      
Touchstone Small Cap Value      
Fund      
Touchstone Ultra Short      
Duration Fixed Income Fund      
Touchstone Credit For the year ended For the year ended September 30, 2020, the For the year ended September 30, 2020, the
Opportunities II Fund September 30, 2020 period from July 1, 2019 through September period from July 1, 2019 through September
    30, 2019, and the year ended June 30, 2019 30, 2019, each of the three years in the period
      ended June 30, 2019, and the period from
      September 1, 2015 (commencement of
      operations) through June 30, 2016
Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® For the year ended For the year ended September 30, 2020 and the period from November 19, 2018
International Core Equity September 30, 2020 (commencement of operations) through September 30, 2019
Fund      
Touchstone Anti-Benchmark®      
US Core Equity Fund      

 

Basis for Opinion

 

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Trust’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on each of the Funds’ financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Trust in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

 

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Trust is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Trust’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

 

155 

 

 

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (Continued)

 

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of September 30, 2020, by correspondence with the custodian, transfer agent, agent banks, and brokers or by other appropriate auditing procedures where replies from agent banks and brokers were not received. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

 

 

We have served as the auditor of one or more Touchstone Investments’ investment companies since 1999.

 

Cincinnati, Ohio

November 20, 2020

 

156 

 

 

Other Items (Unaudited)

 

Qualified Dividend Income

 

Under the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (the “Act”), the following percentages of ordinary dividends paid during the fiscal year or period ended September 30, 2020 are designated as “qualified dividend income,” as defined in the Act, and are subject to reduced tax rates. The Funds intend to pass through the maximum allowable percentage for Form 1099 Div.

 

Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund   95.35%
Anti-Benchmark® U.S Core Equity Fund   80.03%
International ESG Equity Fund   100.00%
Mid Cap Fund   74.10%
Mid Cap Value Fund   100.00%
Small Cap Fund   100.00%
Small Cap Value Fund   100.00%

 

Dividend Received Deduction

 

For corporate shareholders, the following ordinary distributions paid during the current fiscal year or period ended September 30, 2020 qualify for the corporate dividends received deduction. The Funds intend to pass through the maximum allowable percentage.

 

Anti-Benchmark® U.S Core Equity Fund   74.77%
International ESG Equity Fund   40.63%
Mid Cap Fund   69.94%
Mid Cap Value Fund   100.00%
Small Cap Fund   100.00%
Small Cap Value Fund   100.00%

 

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2020, the Funds designated long-term capital gains as follows:

 

Anti-Benchmark® U.S Core Equity Fund  $373,296 
International ESG Equity Fund  $6,554,323 
Mid Cap Fund  $40,623,294 
Sands Capital Select Growth Fund  $314,167,036 
Small Cap Fund  $7,115,903 

 

Foreign Tax Income and Foreign Tax Credit

 

The Anti-Benchmark®International Core Equity Fund and the International ESG Equity Fund intend to pass through a foreign tax credit to the shareholders. For the fiscal year or period ended September 30, 2020, the total amount of foreign source income is $822,507 or $0.24 per share and 619,010 or $0.17 per share, respectively. The total amount of foreign taxes to be paid is $59,568 or $0.02 per share and $61,144 or $0.02, respectively. Shareholder’s allocable share of the foreign tax credit will be reported on Form 1099 Div.

 

Proxy Voting Guidelines and Proxy Voting Records

 

The Sub-Advisors are responsible for exercising the voting rights associated with the securities purchased and held by the Funds. A description of the policies and procedures that the Sub-Advisors use in fulfilling this responsibility is available as an appendix to the most recent Statement of Additional Information, which can be obtained without charge by calling toll free 1.800.543.0407 or by visiting the Touchstone website at TouchstoneInvestments.com or on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “Commission”) website sec.gov. Information regarding how those proxies were voted during the most recent twelve-month period ended June 30, which will be filed by August 31 of that year, is also available without charge by calling toll free 1.800.543.0407 or on the Commission’s website at sec.gov.

 

Quarterly Portfolio Disclosure

 

Each Fund’s holdings as of the end of the third month of every fiscal quarter will be disclosed on Form N-PORT within 60 days of the end of the fiscal quarter. The complete listing of each Fund’s portfolio holdings is available on the Commission’s website and will be made available to shareholders upon request by calling 1.800.543.0407.

 

157 

 

 

Other Items (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Schedule of Shareholder Expenses

 

As a shareholder of the Funds, you incur two types of costs: (1) transaction costs, including sales charges (loads) and (2) ongoing costs, including investment advisory fees; shareholder servicing fees; and other Fund expenses. This example is intended to help you understand your ongoing costs (in dollars) of investing in the Funds and to compare these costs with the ongoing costs of investing in other mutual funds. The example is based on an investment of $1,000 invested at the beginning of the period and held for the entire period (April 1, 2020 through September 30, 2020).

 

Actual Expenses

 

The first line for each share class of a Fund in the table below provides information about actual account values and actual expenses. You may use the information in this line, together with the amount you invested, to estimate the expenses that you paid over the period. Simply divide your account value by $1,000 (for example, an $8,600 account value divided by $1,000 = 8.6), then multiply the result by the number in the first line under the heading entitled “Expenses Paid During the Six Months Ended September 30, 2020” to estimate the expenses you paid on your account during this period.

 

Hypothetical Example for Comparison Purposes

 

The second line for each share class of a Fund in the table below provides information about hypothetical account values and hypothetical expenses based on the Funds’ actual expense ratio and an assumed rate of return of 5% per year before expenses, which is not the Funds’ actual return. The hypothetical account values and expenses may not be used to estimate the actual ending account balance or expenses you paid for the period. You may use this information to compare the ongoing costs of investing in the Funds and other funds. To do so, compare this 5% hypothetical example with the 5% hypothetical examples that appear in the shareholder reports of the other funds.

 

Please note that the expenses shown in the table below are meant to highlight your ongoing costs only and do not reflect any transactional costs, such as sales charges (loads). Therefore, the second line of the table below is useful in comparing ongoing costs only, and will not help you determine the relative total costs of owning different funds.

 

                  Expenses 
      Net Expense   Beginning   Ending   Paid During 
      Ratio   Account   Account   the Six Months 
      Annualized   Value   Value   Ended 
      September 30, 2020   April 1,2020   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2020* 
Touchstone Active Bond Fund                       
Class A  Actual   0.90%  $1,000.00   $1,099.70   $4.72 
Class A  Hypothetical   0.90%  $1,000.00   $1,020.50   $4.55 
Class C  Actual   1.65%  $1,000.00   $1,095.00   $8.64 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.65%  $1,000.00   $1,016.75   $8.32 
Class Y  Actual   0.65%  $1,000.00   $1,101.20   $3.41 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.65%  $1,000.00   $1,021.75   $3.29 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.57%  $1,000.00   $1,101.70   $2.99 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.57%  $1,000.00   $1,022.15   $2.88 
Anti-Benchmark® International Core Equity Fund                       
Class Y  Actual   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,221.60   $3.83 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,021.55   $3.49 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.59%  $1,000.00   $1,223.90   $3.28 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.59%  $1,000.00   $1,022.05   $2.98 
Anti-Benchmark ® US Core Equity Fund                       
Class Y  Actual   0.54%  $1,000.00   $1,304.70   $3.11 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.54%  $1,000.00   $1,022.30   $2.73 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.44%  $1,000.00   $1,305.70   $2.54 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.44%  $1,000.00   $1,022.80   $2.23 
Touchstone Credit Opportunities II Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.18%  $1,000.00   $1,162.00   $6.38**
Class A  Hypothetical   1.18%  $1,000.00   $1,019.10   $5.96**
Class C  Actual   1.93%  $1,000.00   $1,157.20   $10.41**
Class C  Hypothetical   1.93%  $1,000.00   $1,015.35   $9.72**
Class Y  Actual   0.93%  $1,000.00   $1,162.50   $5.03**
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.93%  $1,000.00   $1,020.35   $4.70**
Institutional Class  Actual   0.83%  $1,000.00   $1,163.30   $4.49**
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.83%  $1,000.00   $1,020.85   $4.19**
Touchstone High Yield Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.05%  $1,000.00   $1,135.30   $5.61 
Class A  Hypothetical   1.05%  $1,000.00   $1,019.75   $5.30 

 

158 

 

 

Other Items (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

                  Expenses 
      Net Expense   Beginning   Ending   Paid During 
      Ratio   Account   Account   the Six Months 
      Annualized   Value   Value   Ended 
      September 30, 2020   April 1,2020   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2020* 
Class C  Actual   1.80%  $1,000.00   $1,131.30   $9.59 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.80%  $1,000.00   $1,016.00   $9.07 
Class Y  Actual   0.80%  $1,000.00   $1,136.40   $4.27 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.80%  $1,000.00   $1,021.00   $4.04 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.72%  $1,000.00   $1,138.40   $3.85 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.72%  $1,000.00   $1,021.40   $3.64 
Touchstone Impact Bond Fund                       
Class A  Actual   0.85%  $1,000.00   $1,045.40   $4.35 
Class A  Hypothetical   0.85%  $1,000.00   $1,020.75   $4.29 
Class C  Actual   1.60%  $1,000.00   $1,041.50   $8.17 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.60%  $1,000.00   $1,017.00   $8.07 
Class Y  Actual   0.60%  $1,000.00   $1,046.60   $3.07 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.60%  $1,000.00   $1,022.00   $3.03 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.50%  $1,000.00   $1,047.10   $2.56 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.50%  $1,000.00   $1,022.50   $2.53 
Touchstone International ESG Equity Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.17%  $1,000.00   $1,287.20   $6.69 
Class A  Hypothetical   1.17%  $1,000.00   $1,019.15   $5.91 
Class C  Actual   1.95%  $1,000.00   $1,284.70   $11.14 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.95%  $1,000.00   $1,015.25   $9.82 
Class Y  Actual   0.90%  $1,000.00   $1,289.90   $5.15 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.90%  $1,000.00   $1,020.50   $4.55 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.89%  $1,000.00   $1,287.70   $0.81 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.89%  $1,000.00   $1,020.55   $0.71 
Touchstone Mid Cap Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,268.80   $6.86 
Class A  Hypothetical   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,018.95   $6.11 
Class C  Actual   1.96%  $1,000.00   $1,264.10   $11.09 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.96%  $1,000.00   $1,015.20   $9.87 
Class Y  Actual   0.96%  $1,000.00   $1,270.10   $5.45 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.96%  $1,000.00   $1,020.20   $4.85 
Class Z  Actual   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,268.40   $6.86 
Class Z  Hypothetical   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,018.95   $6.11 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.89%  $1,000.00   $1,270.50   $5.05 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.89%  $1,000.00   $1,020.55   $4.50 
Touchstone Mid Cap Value Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.22%  $1,000.00   $1,216.50   $6.76 
Class A  Hypothetical   1.22%  $1,000.00   $1,018.90   $6.16 
Class C  Actual   1.97%  $1,000.00   $1,212.20   $10.90 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.97%  $1,000.00   $1,015.15   $9.92 
Class Y  Actual   0.97%  $1,000.00   $1,218.60   $5.38 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.97%  $1,000.00   $1,020.15   $4.90 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.84%  $1,000.00   $1,218.90   $4.66 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.84%  $1,000.00   $1,020.80   $4.24 
Touchstone Sands Capital Select Growth Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,587.10   $7.83***
Class A  Hypothetical   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,018.95   $6.11***
Class C  Actual   1.98%  $1,000.00   $1,580.30   $12.77***
Class C  Hypothetical   1.98%  $1,000.00   $1,015.10   $9.97***
Class Y  Actual   0.96%  $1,000.00   $1,588.70   $6.21***
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.96%  $1,000.00   $1,020.20   $4.85***
Class Z  Actual   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,586.90   $7.83***
Class Z  Hypothetical   1.21%  $1,000.00   $1,018.95   $6.11***
Institutional Class (A)  Actual   0.81%  $1,000.00   $953.60   $0.63***
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.81%  $1,000.00   $1,020.95   $0.65***
Class R6 (A)  Actual   0.75%  $1,000.00   $953.60   $0.58***
Class R6  Hypothetical   0.75%  $1,000.00   $1,021.25   $0.60***
Touchstone Small Cap Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.26%  $1,000.00   $1,213.50   $6.97****
Class A  Hypothetical   1.26%  $1,000.00   $1,018.70   $6.36****

 

159 

 

 

Other Items (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

                  Expenses 
      Net Expense   Beginning   Ending   Paid During 
      Ratio   Account   Account   the Six Months 
      Annualized   Value   Value   Ended 
      September 30, 2020   April 1,2020   September 30, 2020   September 30, 2020* 
Class C  Actual   2.01%  $1,000.00   $1,210.30   $11.11****
Class C  Hypothetical   2.01%  $1,000.00   $1,014.95   $10.13****
Class Y  Actual   1.01%  $1,000.00   $1,214.80   $5.59****
Class Y  Hypothetical   1.01%  $1,000.00   $1,019.95   $5.10****
Institutional Class  Actual   0.93%  $1,000.00   $1,215.50   $5.15****
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.93%  $1,000.00   $1,020.35   $4.70****
Touchstone Small Cap Value Fund                       
Class A  Actual   1.38%  $1,000.00   $1,199.40   $7.59 
Class A  Hypothetical   1.38%  $1,000.00   $1,018.10   $6.96 
Class C  Actual   2.13%  $1,000.00   $1,195.20   $11.69 
Class C  Hypothetical   2.13%  $1,000.00   $1,014.35   $10.73 
Class Y  Actual   1.13%  $1,000.00   $1,200.90   $6.22 
Class Y  Hypothetical   1.13%  $1,000.00   $1,019.35   $5.70 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.98%  $1,000.00   $1,203.30   $5.40 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.98%  $1,000.00   $1,020.10   $4.95 
Touchstone Ultra Short Duration Fixed Income Fund                       
Class A  Actual   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,034.00   $3.51 
Class A  Hypothetical   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,021.55   $3.49 
Class C  Actual   1.19%  $1,000.00   $1,032.50   $6.05 
Class C  Hypothetical   1.19%  $1,000.00   $1,019.05   $6.01 
Class S  Actual   0.94%  $1,000.00   $1,032.70   $4.78 
Class S  Hypothetical   0.94%  $1,000.00   $1,020.30   $4.75 
Class Y  Actual   0.44%  $1,000.00   $1,035.30   $2.24 
Class Y  Hypothetical   0.44%  $1,000.00   $1,022.80   $2.23 
Class Z  Actual   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,034.00   $3.51 
Class Z  Hypothetical   0.69%  $1,000.00   $1,021.55   $3.49 
Institutional Class  Actual   0.39%  $1,000.00   $1,035.60   $1.98 
Institutional Class  Hypothetical   0.39%  $1,000.00   $1,023.05   $1.97 

 

(A)Represents the period from commencement of operations (September 1, 2020) through September 30, 2020. Expenses are equal to the Fund’s annualized expense ratio, multiplied by the average account value over the period, multiplied by 30/366.
*Expenses are equal to the Fund’s annualized expense ratio, multiplied by the average account value over the period, multiplied by 183/366 (to reflect one-half year period).
**Excluding interest and dividend expenses on securities sold short, your actual cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y and Institutional Class would be $5.84, $9.87, $4.49 and $3.95, respectively, and your hypothetical cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y and Institutional Class would be $5.45, $9.22, $4.19 and $3.69, respectively.
***Excluding liquidity provider expenses, your actual cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y, Class Z, Institutional Class and Class R6 would be $7.70, $12.64, $6.08, $7.70, $5.05 and $4.66, respectively, and your hypothetical cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y, Class Z Institutional Class and Class R6 would be $6.01, $9.87, $4.75, $6.01, $3.94 and $3.64, respectively.
****Excluding liquidity provider expenses, your actual cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y and Institutional Class would be $6.86, $11.00, $5.48 and $5.04, respectively, and your hypothetical cost of investment in Class A, Class C, Class Y and Institutional Class would be $6.26, $10.02, $5.00 and $4.60, respectively.

 

Liquidity Risk Management

 

The Funds have adopted and implemented a written liquidity risk management program (the “LRM Program”) as required by Rule 22e-4 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Rule 22e-4 requires that each Fund adopt a program that is reasonably designed to assess and manage the Funds’ liquidity risk, which is the risk that a Fund could not meet redemption requests without significant dilution of remaining investors’ interests in a Fund.

 

Assessment and management of a Fund’s liquidity risk under the LRM Program takes into consideration certain factors, such as a Fund’s investment strategy and the liquidity of its portfolio investments during normal and reasonably foreseeable stressed conditions, its short- and long-term cash-flow projections during both normal and reasonably foreseeable stressed conditions, and its cash and cash-equivalent holdings and access to other funding sources. As required by the rule, the LRM Program includes policies and procedures for classification of Fund portfolio holdings in four liquidity categories, maintaining certain levels of highly liquid investments, and limiting holdings of illiquid investments.

 

160 

 

 

Other Items (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

The Board of Trustees of the Trust approved the appointment of a LRM Program administrator responsible for administering the LRM Program and for carrying out the specific responsibilities set forth in the LRM Program, including reporting to the Board on at least an annual basis regarding the LRM Program’s operation, its adequacy, and the effectiveness of its implementation for the past year (the “Program Administrator Report”). The Board has reviewed the Program Administrator Report covering the period from May 17, 2019 through May 14, 2020 (the “Review Period”). The Program Administrator Report stated that during the Review Period the Program operated and was implemented effectively to manage the Funds’ liquidity risk.

 

161 

 

 

Management of the Trust (Unaudited)

 

Listed below is required information regarding the Trustees and Principal Officers of the Trust. The Trust’s Statement of Additional Information includes additional information about the Trustees and is available, without charge, upon request by calling 1.800.543.0407 or by visiting the Touchstone website at TouchstoneInvestments.com.

 

Interested Trustee1:                    
                Number    
                of Funds    
                Overseen    
        Term of       in the    
Name   Position(s)   Office And       Touchstone   Other
Address   Held with   Length of   Principal Occupation(s)   Fund   Directorships
Year of Birth   Trust   Time Served   During Past 5 Years   Complex2   Held During the Past 5 Years3
Jill T. McGruder Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1955   Trustee and President   Until retirement at age 75 or until she resigns or is removed Trustee since 1999   President, Director and CEO of IFS Financial Services, Inc. (a holding company) since 1999; and Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. (a financial services company) since 2016.   39   Director, Integrity Life Insurance Co. and National Integrity Life Insurance Co. since 2005; Director, Touchstone Securities (the Distributor) since 1999; Director, Touchstone Advisors (the Advisor) since 1999; Director, W&S Brokerage Services, Inc. since 1999; Director, W&S Financial Group Distributors, Inc. since 1999; Director, Insurance Profillment Solutions LLC since 2014; Director, Columbus Life Insurance Co. since 2016; Director, The Lafayette Life Insurance Co. since 2016; Director, Gerber Life Insurance Company since 2019; Director, Western & Southern Agency, Inc. since 2018; and Director, LL Global, Inc. (not-for-profit trade organization with operating divisions LIMRA and LOMA) since 2016.
Independent Trustees:                    

Karen Carnahan

c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1954

  Trustee   Until retirement at age 75 or until she resigns or is removed Trustee since 2019   Retired; formerly Chief Operating Officer of Shred-it (a business services company) from 2014 to 2015; formerly President & Chief Operating Officer of the document management division of Cintas Corporation (a business services company) from 2008 to 2014.   39   Director, Cintas Corporation since 2019; Director, Boys & Girls Club of West Chester/Liberty since 2016; and Board of Advisors, Best Upon Request since 2020.

William C. Gale

c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1952

  Trustee   Until retirement at age 75 or until he resigns or is removed Trustee since 2013   Retired; formerly Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Cintas Corporation (a business services company) from 1995 to 2015.   39   None.
Susan J. Hickenlooper, CFA c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1946   Trustee   Until retirement at age 75 or until she resigns or is removed Trustee since 2009   Retired from investment management.   39   Trustee, Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio from 2014 to 2018.

Kevin A. Robie

c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1956

  Trustee   Until retirement at age 75 or until he resigns or is removed Trustee since 2013   Retired; formerly Vice President of Portfolio Management at Soin LLC (private multinational holding company and family office) from 2004 to 2020.   39   Director, SaverSystems, Inc. since 2015; Director, Buckeye EcoCare, Inc. from 2013 to 2018; Director, Turner Property Services Group, Inc. since 2017; Trustee, Dayton Region New Market Fund, LLC (private fund) since 2010; and Trustee, Entrepreneurs Center, Inc. (business incubator) since 2006.

 

162 

 

 

Management of the Trust (Unaudited) (Continued)

 

Interested Trustees (Continued):                
                Number    
                of Funds    
                Overseen    
        Term of       in the    
Name   Position(s)   Office And       Touchstone   Other
Address   Held with   Length of   Principal Occupation(s)   Fund   Directorships
Year of Birth   Trust   Time Served   During Past 5 Years   Complex2   Held During the Past 5 Years3

William H. Zimmer III

c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc. 303 Broadway, Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Year of Birth: 1953

  Trustee   Until retirement at age 75 or until he resigns or is removed Trustee since 2019   Independent Treasury Consultant since 2014.   39   Director, Deaconess Associations, Inc. (healthcare) since 2001; Trustee, Huntington Funds (mutual funds) from 2006 to 2015; and Director, National Association of Corporate Treasurers from 2011 to 2015.

 

1Ms. McGruder, as a director of the Advisor and the Distributor, and an officer of affiliates of the Advisor and the Distributor, is an “interested person” of the Trust within the meaning of Section 2(a) (19) of the 1940 Act.
2As of September 30, 2020, the Touchstone Fund Complex consisted of 13 series of the Trust, 1 series of Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, 18 series of the Touchstone Strategic Trust, and 7 variable annuity series of Touchstone Variable Series Trust.
3Each Trustee is also a Trustee of Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, Touchstone Strategic Trust, and Touchstone Variable Series Trust.

 

Principal Officers:            
Name   Position(s)        
Address   Held with   Term of Office and   Principal Occupation(s)
Year of Birth   Trust1   Length of Time Served   During Past 5 Years
Jill T. McGruder
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1955
  President and Trustee   Until resignation, removal or disqualification President since 2006   See biography above.
Steven M. Graziano
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1954
  Vice President   Until resignation, removal or disqualification Vice President since 2009   President of Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
Timothy D. Paulin
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1963
  Vice President   Until resignation, removal or disqualification Vice President since 2010   Senior Vice President of Investment Research and Product Management of Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
Timothy S. Stearns
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1963
  Chief Compliance Officer   Until resignation, removal or disqualification Chief Compliance Officer since 2013   Chief Compliance Officer of Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
Terrie A. Wiedenheft
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway, Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1962
  Controller and Treasurer   Until resignation, removal or disqualification Controller and Treasurer since 2006   Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer of IFS Financial Services, Inc. (a holding company).
Meredyth A. Whitford
Western & Southern
Financial Group
400 Broadway
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1981
  Secretary   Until resignation, removal or disqualification Secretary since 2018   Counsel - Securities/Mutual Funds of Western & Southern Financial Group (since 2015); Associate at Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP (law firm) (2014 to 2015); Associate at Bingham McCutchen LLP (law firm) (2008 to 2014).

 

1Each officer also holds the same office with Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, Touchstone Strategic Trust, and Touchstone Variable Series Trust.

 

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PRIVACY PROTECTION POLICY

 

We Respect Your Privacy

 

Thank you for your decision to invest with us. Touchstone and its affiliates have always placed a high value on the trust and confidence our clients place in us. We believe that confidence must be earned and validated through time. In today’s world, when technology allows the sharing of information at light speeds, trust must be reinforced by our sincere pledge to take the steps necessary to ensure that the information you share with us is treated with respect and confidentiality.

 

Our Pledge to Our Clients

 

·We collect only the information we need to service your account and administer our business.

 

·We are committed to keeping your information confidential and we place strict limits and controls on the use and sharing of your information.

 

·We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of your information.

 

We Collect the Following Nonpublic Personal Information About You:

 

·Information we receive from you on or in applications or other forms, correspondence, or conversations, including, but not limited to, your name, address, phone number, social security number, assets, income and date of birth; and

 

·Information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others, including, but not limited to, your account number and balance, payment history, parties to transactions, cost basis information, and other financial information.

 

Categories of Information We Disclose and Parties to Whom We Disclose

 

We do not disclose any nonpublic personal information about our current or former clients to nonaffiliated third parties, except as required or permitted by law.

 

We Place Strict Limits and Controls on the Use and Sharing of Your Information

 

·We restrict access to nonpublic personal information about you to authorized employees who need the information to administer your business.

 

·We maintain physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that comply with federal standards to protect this information.

 

·We do not disclose any nonpublic personal information about our current or former clients to anyone, except as required or permitted by law or as described in this document.

 

·We will not sell your personal information to anyone.

 

We May Provide Information to Service Your Account

 

Sometimes it is necessary to provide information about you to various companies such as transfer agents, custodians, broker-dealers and marketing service firms to facilitate the servicing of your account. These organizations have a legitimate business need to see some of your personal information in order for us to provide service to you. We may disclose to these various companies the information that we collect as described above. We require that these companies, including our own subsidiaries and affiliates, strictly maintain the confidentiality of this information and abide by all applicable laws. Companies within our corporate family that may receive this information are financial service providers and insurance companies. We do not permit these associated companies to sell the information for their own purposes, and we never sell our customer information.

 

This policy is applicable to the following affiliated companies: Touchstone Funds Group Trust, Touchstone Strategic Trust, Touchstone Variable Series Trust, Touchstone Institutional Funds Trust, Touchstone Securities, Inc.,* and W&S Brokerage Services, Inc.

 

*Touchstone Securities, Inc. serves as the underwriter to the Touchstone Funds.

 

A Member of Western & Southern Financial Group®

 

The Privacy Protection Policy is not part of the Annual Report.

 

166 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Touchstone Investments

 

Distributor

Touchstone Securities, Inc.*

303 Broadway

Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-4203

800.638.8194

www.touchstoneinvestments.com

 

Investment Advisor

Touchstone Advisors, Inc.*

303 Broadway

Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-4203

 

Transfer Agent

BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc.

4400 Computer Drive

Westborough, Massachusetts 01581

 

Shareholder Service

800.543.0407

 

* A Member of Western & Southern Financial Group

 

TSF-56-TFGT-AR-2010

 

 

 

Item 2. Code of Ethics.

 

(a)The registrant, as of the end of the period covered by this report, has adopted a code of ethics that applies to the registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions, regardless of whether these individuals are employed by the registrant or a third party.

 

(c)There have been no amendments, during the period covered by this report, to a provision of the code of ethics that applies to the registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions, regardless of whether these individuals are employed by the registrant or a third party, and that relates to any element of the code of ethics description.

 

(d)The registrant has not granted any waivers, including an implicit waiver, from a provision of the code of ethics that applies to the registrant’s principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions, regardless of whether these individuals are employed by the registrant or a third party, that relates to one or more of the items set forth in paragraph (b) of this item’s instructions.

 

(e)Not applicable.

 

(f)A copy of the code of ethics is attached hereto as Exhibit 13(a)(1).

 

Item 3. Audit Committee Financial Expert.

 

The registrant’s Board of Trustees has determined that the registrant has at least one audit committee financial expert serving on its audit committee. Ms. Karen Carnahan is the registrant’s audit committee financial expert and is an independent trustee within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”).

 

Item 4. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.

 

Audit Fees

 

 (a)Audit fees for Touchstone Funds Group Trust totaled $259,000 and $252,000 for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively, including fees associated with the annual audits and filings of Form N-1A and Form N-SAR.

 

Audit-Related Fees

 

(b)The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for assurance and related services by the principal accountant that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit of the registrant's financial statements and are not reported under paragraph (a) of this Item are $16,000 and $22,000 for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively. The fees for 2020 and 2019 relate to review of N-1A and N-14 filings.

 

 

 

Tax Fees

 

(c)The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for professional services rendered by the principal accountant for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning were $82,705 and $108,990 for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively. The fees relate to the preparation of federal income and excise tax returns, review of capital gains distribution calculations, tax agent services and out of scope tax services.

 

All Other Fees

 

(d)The aggregate fees billed in each of the last two fiscal years for products and services provided by the principal accountant, other than the services reported in paragraphs (a) through (c) of this Item are $11,660 and $17,134 for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and September 2019, respectively. The fees relate to the PFIC analyzer and Global Withholding Tax Reporter subscriptions.

 

(e)(1)Disclose the audit committee's pre-approval policies and procedures described in paragraph (c)(7) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X.

 

The Audit Committee’s pre-approval policies describe the types of audit, audit-related, tax and other services that have the general pre-approval of the Audit Committee.  The pre-approval policies provide that annual audit service fees, tax services not specifically granted pre-approval, services exceeding pre-approved cost levels and other services that have not received general pre-approval will be subject to specific pre-approval by the Audit Committee.  The pre-approval policies further provide that the Committee may grant general pre-approval to other audit services (statutory audits and services associated with SEC registration statements, periodic reports and other documents filed with the SEC or other documents issued in connection with securities offerings), audit-related services (accounting consultations related to accounting, financial reporting or disclosure matters not classified as “audit services,” assistance with understanding and implementing new accounting and financial reporting guidance from rulemaking authorities, agreed-upon or expanded audit procedures related to accounting and/or billing records required to respond to or comply with financial, accounting or regulatory reporting matters and assistance with internal control reporting requirements under Form N-CSR), tax services that have historically been provided by the auditor that the Committee believes would not impair the independence of the auditor and are consistent with the SEC’s rules on auditor independence and permissible non-audit services classified as “all other services” that are routine and recurring services.

 

(e)(2)All of the services described in paragraphs (b) through (d) of Item 4 were approved by the Audit Committee.

 

(f)The percentage of hours expended on the principal accountant's engagement to audit the registrant's financial statements for the most recent fiscal year that were attributed to work performed by persons other than the principal accountant's full-time, permanent employees was less than fifty percent.

 

 

 

(g)The aggregate non-audit fees for Touchstone Funds Group Trust and certain entities*, totaled approximately $913,405 and $731,244 for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively.

 

*These include the advisors (excluding non-affiliated sub-advisors) and any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with the advisors that provides ongoing services to the registrant (Funds).

 

(h)The registrant's audit committee of the board of trustees has considered whether the provision of non-audit services that were rendered to the registrant's investment adviser (not including any sub-adviser whose role is primarily portfolio management and is subcontracted with or overseen by another investment adviser), and any entity controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the investment adviser that provides ongoing services to the registrant that were not pre-approved pursuant to paragraph (c)(7)(ii) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X is compatible with maintaining the principal accountant's independence.

 

Item 5. Audit Committee of Listed Registrants.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 6. Investments.

 

(a)Schedule of Investments in securities of unaffiliated issuers as of the close of the reporting period is included as part of the report to shareholders filed under Item 1 of this form.

 

(b)Not applicable.

 

Item 7. Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 8. Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 9. Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 10. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.

 

There have been no material changes to the procedures by which the shareholders may recommend nominees to the registrant’s board of trustees, where those changes were implemented after the registrant last provided disclosure in response to the requirements of Item 407(c)(2)(iv) of Regulation S-K (17 CFR 229.407) (as required by Item 22(b)(15) of Schedule 14A (17 CFR 240.14a-101)), or this Item.

 

 

 

Item 11. Controls and Procedures.

 

(a)The registrant’s principal executive and principal financial officers, or persons performing similar functions, have concluded that the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) (17 CFR 270.30a-3(c))) are effective, as of a date within 90 days of the filing date of the report that includes the disclosure required by this paragraph, based on their evaluation of these controls and procedures required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the 1940 Act (17 CFR 270.30a-3(b)) and Rules 13a-15(b) or 15d-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (17 CFR 240.13a-15(b) or 240.15d-15(b)).

 

(b)There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the 1940 Act (17 CFR 270.30a-3(d))) that occurred during the period covered by this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Item 12. Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies.

 

Not applicable.

 

Item 13. Exhibits.

 

(a)(1)Code of ethics, and any amendment thereto, that is the subject of disclosure required by Item 2 is attached hereto.

 

(a)(2)Certifications pursuant to Rule 30a-2(a) under the 1940 Act and Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached hereto.

 

(a)(3)Not applicable.

 

(a)(4)Not applicable.

 

(b)Certifications pursuant to Rule 30a-2(b) under the 1940 Act and Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 are attached hereto.

 

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

 

(Registrant) Touchstone Funds Group Trust

 

By (Signature and Title)* /s/ Jill T. McGruder  
  Jill T. McGruder, President  
  (principal executive officer)  

 

Date  December 1, 2020  

  

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

By (Signature and Title)* /s/ Jill T. McGruder  
  Jill T. McGruder, President  
  (principal executive officer)  

 

Date  December 1, 2020  

 

By (Signature and Title)* /s/ Terrie A. Wiedenheft  
  Terrie A. Wiedenheft, Controller and Treasurer  
  (principal financial officer)  

 

Date  December 1, 2020  

 

* Print the name and title of each signing officer under his or her signature.