risk, which is the risk that the derivative
counterparty will not fulfill its contractual obligations (and includes credit risk associated
with the counterparty). Certain derivatives are synthetic instruments that attempt to replicate the performance of certain reference assets. With regard to such derivatives, the Fund does not have a claim on the reference
assets and is subject to enhanced counterparty risk. Derivatives may not perform as expected, so
the Fund may not realize the intended benefits. When used for hedging, the change in value of a
derivative may not correlate as expected with the security or other risk being hedged. In
addition, given their complexity, derivatives expose the Fund to risks of mispricing or improper
valuation. Derivatives also can expose the Fund to derivative liquidity risk, which includes
risks involving the liquidity demands that derivatives can create to make payments of margin,
collateral, or settlement payments to counterparties, legal risk, which includes the risk of loss resulting from insufficient or unenforceable contractual documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of the Fund’s
counterparty and operational risk, which includes documentation or settlement issues, system
failures, inadequate controls and human error.
Industry Concentration Risk. The Fund will not invest more than 25% of the value of its total assets in the securities of companies conducting their principal business
activities in the same industry, except that, to the extent that an industry represents 20% or
more of the Fund’s benchmark at the time of investment, the Fund may invest up to 35% of its assets in that industry. Concentrating Fund investments in companies conducting business in the same industry will subject
the Fund to a greater risk of loss as a result of adverse economic, business or other
developments affecting that industry than if its investments were not so concentrated.
ETF Shares Trading Risk. Shares are listed for trading on
The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (the Exchange) and are bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of Shares are expected to fluctuate, in some cases materially,
in response to changes in the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below or at their NAV. Disruptions to
creations and redemptions, the existence of significant market volatility or potential lack of an
active trading market for the Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in the Shares trading significantly above (at a premium) or below (at a discount) to NAV or to the intraday
value of the Fund’s holdings. During such periods, you may incur significant losses if you
sell your Shares.
Real Estate Securities
Risk. The Fund’s investments in real estate securities, including REITs, are subject to the
same risks as direct investments in real estate and mortgages, and their value will depend on the
value of the underlying real estate interests. These risks include default, prepayments, changes in value resulting from changes in interest rates and demand for real and rental property, and the management skill and
creditworthiness of REIT issuers. The Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of
expenses, including management fees, paid by each REIT in which it invests in addition to the expenses of the Fund.
Industry and Sector Focus Risk. At times, the Fund may increase the relative emphasis of its investments in a particular industry or sector. The prices of securities of
issuers in a particular
industry or sector may be more susceptible to fluctuations due to changes in economic or business conditions,
government regulations, availability of basic resources or supplies, contagion risk within a
particular industry or sector or to other industries or sectors, or other events that affect that industry or sector more than securities of issuers in other industries and sectors. To the extent that the Fund increases the
relative emphasis of its investments in a particular industry or sector, the value of the
Fund’s Shares may fluctuate in response to events affecting that industry or sector.
Industrials Sector Risk. The industrials sector may be
adversely affected by changes in the supply of and demand for products and services, product
obsolescence, claims for environmental damage or product liability and general economic conditions,
among other factors.
Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the consumer discretionary
sector. Companies engaged in the consumer discretionary sector may be affected by changes in
domestic and international economies, exchange rates, interest rates, competition,
consumers’ disposable income and consumer preferences, social trends and marketing
campaigns.
Financials Sector Risk. Financial services companies are subject to extensive governmental regulation which may limit both the
amounts and types of loans and other financial commitments they can make, the interest rates and
fees they can charge, the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge and the amount of
capital they must maintain. Profitability is largely dependent on the availability and cost of capital funds and can fluctuate significantly when interest rates change or due to increased competition. In addition, deterioration
of the credit markets generally may cause an adverse impact in a broad range of markets,
including U.S. and international credit and interbank money markets generally, thereby affecting a wide range of financial institutions and markets. Certain events in the financials sector may cause an unusually
high degree of volatility in the financial markets, both domestic and foreign, and cause certain
financial services companies to incur large losses. Securities of financial services companies may experience a dramatic decline in value when such companies experience substantial declines in the valuations of their
assets, take action to raise capital (such as the issuance of debt or equity securities), or
cease operations. Credit losses resulting from financial difficulties of borrowers and financial losses associated with investment activities can negatively impact the sector. Insurance companies may be subject to severe price
competition. Adverse economic, business or political developments could adversely affect
financial institutions engaged in mortgage finance or other lending or investing activities directly or indirectly connected to the value of real estate.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an authorized participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited
number of intermediaries that act as authorized participants and none of these authorized
participants is or will be obligated to engage in creation or redemption transactions. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as authorized participants on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other
market participants). To the extent that these intermediaries exit the business or are unable to
or choose not to proceed with creation and/or