ATHENA BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND
Class I shares | ATVIX |
Class C shares | ATVCX* |
Prospectus
August 28, 2024
Investment Advisor | |
AthenaInvest Advisors LLC | |
5340 S. Quebec St. | |
Suite 320-S | |
Greenwood Village, CO 80111 |
www.atvfund.com | 1-833-653-0575 |
This Prospectus provides important information about the Fund that you should know before investing. Please read it carefully and keep it for future reference.
These securities have not been approved or disapproved by the Securities and Exchange Commission nor has the Securities and Exchange Commission passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
* | Class C shares are not currently offered. |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FUND SUMMARY | 1 |
Investment Objective | 1 |
Fees and Expenses of the Fund | 1 |
Principal Investment Strategies | 2 |
Principal Investment Risks | 3 |
Performance | 5 |
Investment Advisor | 6 |
Portfolio Managers | 6 |
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares | 6 |
Tax Information | 6 |
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries | 6 |
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS | 7 |
Investment Objective | 7 |
Principal Investment Strategies | 7 |
Principal Investment Risks | 8 |
Temporary Investments | 11 |
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure | 11 |
Cybersecurity | 11 |
MANAGEMENT | 12 |
Investment Advisor | 12 |
Portfolio Managers | 12 |
HOW SHARES ARE PRICED | 14 |
HOW TO PURCHASE SHARES | 15 |
HOW TO REDEEM SHARES | 17 |
FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES | 19 |
TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS | 20 |
DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES | 21 |
Distributor | 21 |
Distribution (12b-1) and Shareholder Servicing Fees | 21 |
Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries | 21 |
Householding | 21 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS | 22 |
PRIVACY NOTICE | 23 |
FUND SUMMARY
Investment Objective
The Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund (the Fund) seeks capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary and in Share Classes on page 15 of the Funds prospectus and in Purchase, Redemption and Pricing of Shares on page 42 of the Funds statement of additional information.
Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) |
Class I |
Maximum
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a % of offering price) |
None |
Maximum
Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as a % of the of the original purchase price) |
None |
Maximum
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and other Distributions |
None |
Redemption Fee (as a % of amount redeemed) | None |
Annual
Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
|
Management Fees | 1.00% |
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | None |
Other Expenses | 1.31% |
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses (1) | 0.28% |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | 2.59% |
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement (2) | (1.06)% |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver | 1.53% |
(1) | Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are the indirect costs of investing in other investment companies. The operating expenses in this fee table will not correlate to the expense ratio in the Funds financial highlights because the financial statements include only the direct operating expenses incurred by the Fund. |
(2) | AthenaInvest Advisors, LLC (the Advisor) has contractually agreed to waive management fees and to make payments to limit Fund expenses, through at least August 31, 2025, so that the total annual operating expenses (exclusive of any (i) front-end or contingent deferred loads, (ii) brokerage fees and commissions, (iii) acquired fund fees and expenses, (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example options and swap fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; and (vii) extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Advisor)) do not exceed 2.25% and 1.25% of average daily net assets attributable to Class C and Class I shares, respectively. While the Adviser has agreed to limit expenses to 2.25% for Class C, such shares are not currently being offered. These fee waivers and expense reimbursements are subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three-year basis (within the three years after the fiscal year end in which the fees have been waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the foregoing expense limits and the expense limit at the time of recoupment. This agreement may be terminated only by the Funds Board of Trustees, on 60 days written notice to the Advisor. |
Example: This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Funds operating expenses remain the same, and that the Advisors fee waiver is only in effect for the term of the waiver. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based upon these assumptions your costs would be:
Class | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years |
Class I | $156 | $705 | $1,280 | $2,846 |
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Portfolio Turnover: The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or turns over its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Funds performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Funds portfolio turnover rate was 45% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
To achieve its investment objective, the Fund seeks investment exposure to domestic, foreign and emerging market equity markets. To do so, the Fund invests primarily in the following security and derivative types that either themselves invest in or provide investment exposure to domestic, foreign and emerging market equities:
● | exchange traded funds (ETFs) |
● | exchange traded notes (ETNs) |
● | other mutual funds |
● | groups of equity securities related by index or markets (such as stock baskets and other index-or market-based groups of related equity securities) |
● | total return swaps on broad-based equity indices and options on equities or equity indices |
The Fund is designed to invest in global markets which the portfolio managers believe have the most attractive expected returns on an unconstrained basis. The Advisors portfolio managers use patented research related to behavioral finance to determine what they believe are the most attractive equity markets, levels of exposure and capitalization ranges in which to invest. If no equity markets are deemed attractive, the Fund may invest in cash equivalents until the portfolio managers believe more attractive opportunities are available. Unlike tactical strategies that may be used by other funds, the Advisors tactical strategy does not seek to avoid market downturns but instead focuses on what market the Advisor believes to be the most attractive investment opportunity.
Depending on the portfolio managers determinations regarding the attractiveness of equity markets, the Fund will invest all of its assets in:
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to U.S. large cap equities; |
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to U.S. small cap equities; |
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to international equities; or |
● | cash and cash equivalents |
If the portfolio managers believe that the potential return in a particular equity market segment is high enough, the Fund will use leveraged ETFs, swaps, or options in order to provide additional investment exposure to that segment.
The strategy relies on what the portfolio managers believe to be unique market behavioral indicators that measure macro-level investor preferences for specific investment strategies and return factors. These market indicators are used to estimate expected returns across global equity markets and capitalization levels. These expected returns are used to determine what are believed to be the most attractive equity markets, levels of exposure and capitalization ranges. The portfolio managers then select specific investments they believe exhibit attractive characteristics to expose the portfolio to targeted domestic and foreign equity markets or segments of markets, including high correlation with the targeted market, level of exposure, liquidity, simplicity of implementation, and expense. If the expected return is high enough, the Fund can take opportunistic positions up to two times market exposure. The Fund may invest in options positions when the portfolio managers determines that options provide a more efficient way to increase or reduce the Funds overall market exposure.
The Fund may, for significant periods of time, hold all or a portion of its assets in cash and short-term, highly-liquid investments, such as money market instruments, U.S. government obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and other cash or cash equivalent positions either due to pending investments or when expected equity returns are very low or negative.
The Advisor may engage in frequent trading of the Funds portfolio, resulting in a higher portfolio turnover rate.
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Principal Investment Risks
As with all mutual funds, there is the risk that you could lose money through your investment in the Fund. The Fund is not intended to be a complete investment program. Many factors affect the Funds net asset value and performance.
● | Credit Risk: There is a risk that issuers and counterparties will not make payments on securities and other investments held by the Fund, resulting in losses to the Fund. In addition, the credit quality of fixed income securities held by the Fund may be lowered if an issuers financial condition changes. High yield or junk bonds are more susceptible to these risks than debt of higher quality issuers. In determining the credit quality of fixed income securities, the Fund relies in part upon rating agencies which assign ratings based on their analysis of the issuers financial condition, economic and debt characteristics, and specific revenue sources securing the bond. There is additional risk that the national credit rating agencies may be wrong in their determination of an issuers financial condition, or the risks associated with a particular security. A change in either the issuers credit rating or the markets perception of the issuers business prospects will affect the value of its outstanding securities. Ratings are not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold and may be subject to review, revision, suspension or reduction, or may be withdrawn at any time. |
● | Emerging Markets Risk: Investing in emerging markets involves not only the risks described below with respect to investing in foreign securities, but also other risks, including exposure to economic structures that are generally less diverse and mature, and to political systems that can be expected to have less stability, than those of developed countries. The typically small size of the markets of securities of issuers located in emerging markets and the possibility of a low or nonexistent volume of trading in those securities may also result in a lack of liquidity and in price volatility of those securities. |
● | Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) Risk: ETFs are subject to investment advisory fees and other expenses, which will be indirectly paid by the Fund. As a result, your cost of investing in the Fund will be higher than the cost of investing directly in ETFs and may be higher than other Funds that invest directly in equity and fixed income securities. Each ETF is subject to specific risks, depending on the nature of the fund. ETF shares may trade at a discount to or a premium above net asset value if there is a limited market in such shares. Index-tracking ETFs in which the Fund invests will not be able to replicate exactly the performance of the indices they seek to track because the total return generated by the securities will be reduced by transaction costs incurred in adjusting the actual balance of the securities or index. ETFs are also subject to brokerage and other trading costs, which could result in greater expenses to the Fund. |
● | Exchange-Traded Notes (ETNs) Risk: ETNs are obligations of the issuer of the ETN, are subject to credit risk, and the value of the ETN may drop due to a downgrade in the issuers credit rating, despite the underlying market benchmark or strategy remaining unchanged. The value of an ETN may also be influenced by time to maturity, level of supply and demand for the ETN, volatility and lack of liquidity in underlying assets, changes in the applicable interest rates, changes in the issuers credit rating, and economic, legal, political, or geographic events that affect the referenced underlying asset. When the Fund invests in ETNs it will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses borne by the ETN. ETNs are also subject to tax risk. No assurance can be given that the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS) will accept, or a court will uphold, how the Fund characterizes and treats ETNs for tax purposes. |
● | Foreign Investment Risk: Foreign investing in equity securities or notes of foreign issuers involves risks not typically associated with U.S. investments, including adverse political, social and economic developments, less liquidity, greater volatility, less developed or less efficient trading markets, political instability and differing auditing and legal standards. |
● | Interest Rate Risk: Interest rate risk is the risk that fixed income security prices overall, including the prices of securities held by the Fund or an ETF in which the Fund invests, will decline over short or even long periods of time due to rising interest rates. Bonds with longer maturities tend to be more sensitive to interest rates than bonds with shorter maturities. |
● | Issuer-Specific Risk: The value of a specific security can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than those of larger issuers. The value of certain types of securities can be more volatile due to increased sensitivity to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments. |
● | Leverage Risk: The use of leverage by the Fund, such as borrowing money to purchase securities or the use of options, will cause the Fund to incur additional expenses and magnify the Funds gains or losses. |
● | Management Risk: The net asset value of the Fund changes daily based on the performance of the securities in which it invests. The portfolio managers judgments regarding market behavioral indicators and the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular asset classes and securities in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results. Additionally, the judgments about the potential performance of the Funds investment portfolio, within the Funds investment policies and risk parameters, may prove incorrect and may not produce the desired results. |
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● | Market Risk: The net asset value of the Fund will fluctuate based on changes in the value of the securities in which the Fund invests. The Fund invests in securities which may be more volatile and carry more risk than some other forms of investment. The price of securities may rise or fall because of economic or political changes. Security prices in general may decline over short or even extended periods of time. Market prices of securities in broad market segments may be adversely affected by price trends in energy commodities, interest rates, exchange rates or other factors wholly unrelated to the value or condition of an issuer. |
● | Market and Geopolitical Risk: The increasing interconnectivity between global economies and financial markets increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one region or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Securities in the Fund may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, climate change and climate-related events, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, international conflicts, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years, such as territorial disputes, terrorist attacks around the world, natural disasters, social and political discord or debt crises and downgrades, among others, may result in market volatility and may have long term effects on both the U.S. and global financial markets. It is difficult to predict when similar events affecting the U.S. or global financial markets may occur, the effects that such events may have and the duration of those effects. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund. It is not known how long any future impacts of the significant events described above, will or would last, but there could be a prolonged period of global economic slowdown, which may impact your investment. Therefore, the Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. During a general market downturn, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Changes in market conditions and interest rates can have the same impact on all types of securities and instruments. In times of severe market disruptions you could lose your entire investment. |
● | Mutual Fund Risk: Mutual funds in which the Fund invests are subject to investment advisory fees and other expenses, which will be indirectly paid by the Fund. As a result, the cost of investing in the Fund will be higher than the cost of investing directly in other mutual funds and may be higher than other mutual funds that invest directly in stocks and bonds. Each of the underlying mutual funds is subject to its own specific risks, but the Advisor expects the principal investments risks of such mutual funds will be similar to the risks of investing in the Fund. |
● | Options Risk: Because option premiums paid by the Fund are small in relation to the market value of the investments underlying the options, buying put and call options can be more speculative than investing directly in securities. The prices of all derivative instruments, including options, are highly volatile. Price movements of options contracts are influenced by, among other things, interest rates, changing supply and demand relationships, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange control programs and policies of governments, and national and international political and economic events and policies. The value of options also depends upon the price of the reference assets underlying them. There are risks associated with the purchase of call and put options. As the buyer of a put or call option, the Fund risks losing the entire premium invested in the option if the Fund does not exercise the option. |
● | Portfolio Turnover Risk: A higher portfolio turnover will result in higher transactional and brokerage costs. |
● | Small and Medium Capitalization Company Risk: The value of small or medium capitalization company securities may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than those of larger, more established companies or the market in general. |
● | Swaps Risk: The Funds use of swaps involves risks different from, or possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other traditional investments. These risks include (i) the risk that the counterparty to a derivative transaction may not fulfill its contractual obligations; (ii) risk of mispricing or improper valuation; and (iii) the risk that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index. The value of a swap may be highly volatile and may fluctuate substantially during a short period of time. |
● | U.S. Government Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in obligations issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government may choose not to provide financial support to U.S. Government sponsored agencies or instrumentalities if it is not legally obligated to do so, in which case, if the issuer defaulted, the Fund might not be able to recover its investment. |
● | Value Investing Risk: The Advisors assessment of a securitys intrinsic value may never be fully recognized or realized by the market. |
● | Volatility Risk: The Fund invests in securities which may be more volatile and carry more risk than other investments. |
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Performance
The bar chart and performance table below show the variability of the Funds returns, which is some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Funds performance from year to year and by showing the Funds one-year and since inception performance compared with those of a broad measure of market performance. The bar chart shows performance of the Funds Class I shares for each calendar year since the Funds inception. The performance table compares the performance of the Fund over time to the performance of a broad-based securities market index. Although Class C shares would have similar annual returns to Class I shares because the classes are invested in the same portfolio of securities, the returns for Class C shares would be different from Class I shares because Class C shares have different expenses than Class I shares. You should be aware that the Funds past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. The Fund changed its principal investment strategies on March 12, 2019. Performance prior to that date reflects the Funds prior principal investment strategies. Updated performance information is available at no cost by calling 1-833-653-0575.
Class I Performance Bar Chart for Calendar Years Ended December 31
Best Quarter: | 12/31/2020 | 38.21% |
Worst Quarter: | 3/31/2020 | (20.28)% |
The Funds Class I year-to-date return as of June 30, 2024 was 1.38%.
Performance Table
Average Annual Total Returns
(For periods ended December 31, 2023)
One Year |
Five
Years |
Since Inception (5/15/15) | |
Return before taxes – Class I Shares | 7.26% | 11.62% | 5.97% |
Return after taxes on distributions – Class I Shares | 6.13% | 9.08% | 4.07% |
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares – Class I Shares | 4.40% | 8.29% | 4.08% |
MSCI ACWI Index* | 22.20% | 11.72% | 7.88% |
S&P 500 Total Return Index** | 26.29% | 15.69% | 11.89% |
* | The MSCI ACWI Index is an index representing the equity returns in 23 developed and 27 emerging markets. Investor may not invest in the index directly and the index does not take into account charges, fees and other expenses. Given the Funds principal investment strategies, the MSCI ACWI Index is a more appropriate benchmark index for the Fund. Investors cannot invest directly in an index. |
** | The S&P 500 Total Return Index is a capitalization-weighted index of 500 stocks. The index is designed to measure performance of the broad domestic economy through changes in the aggregate market value of 500 stocks representing all major industries. The Total Return version of the index is shown. Investors cannot invest directly in an index. |
After-tax returns are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rate and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investors tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (IRA); after-tax returns are shown for Class I shares and after-tax returns for other classes will vary.
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Investment Advisor: AthenaInvest Advisors, LLC(AlthenaInvest or the Advisor)
Portfolio Managers: C.Thomas Howard, PhD, CEO and Chief Investment Officer at AthenaInvest LLC Andrew C. Howard, Vice President at AthenaInvest LLC
Messrs. Howard (the Portfolio Managers) each served as a portfolio manager of the Fund from inception in May 2015 until May 2016 and then resumed as Portfolio Managers in August 2016. The Portfolio Managers are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Funds portfolio,
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
You may purchase and redeem shares of the Fund on any day that the New York Stock Exchange is open for trading. The minimum initial investment in Class I and Class C shares is $100,000, and $2,500, respectively. There is a minimum amount of $100 for subsequent investment in any share class.
Tax Information
Dividends and capital gain distributions you receive from the Fund, whether you reinvest your distributions in additional Fund shares or receive them in cash, are taxable to you at either ordinary income or capital gains tax rates unless you are investing through a tax-deferred plan such as an IRA or 401(k) plan. However, these dividend and capital gain distributions may be taxable upon their eventual withdrawal from tax-deferred plans.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediarys website for more information.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT |
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS |
Investment Objective
The Fund seeks capital appreciation. The Funds investment objective may be changed by the Funds Board of Trustees (the Board) without shareholder approval upon 60 days written notice to shareholders.
Principal Investment Strategies
To achieve its investment objective, the Fund seeks investment exposure to domestic, foreign and emerging market equity markets. To do so, the Fund invests primarily in the following security and derivative types that either themselves invest in or provide investment exposure to domestic, foreign and emerging market equities:
● | exchange traded funds (ETFs) |
● | exchange traded notes (ETNs) |
● | other mutual funds |
● | groups of equity securities related by index or markets (such as stock baskets and other index-or market-based groups of related equity securities) |
● | total return swaps on broad-based equity indices and options on equities or equity indices |
The Fund is designed to invest in global markets which the portfolio managers believe have the most attractive expected returns on an unconstrained basis. The Advisors portfolio managers use patented research related to behavioral finance to determine what they believe are the most attractive equity markets, levels of exposure and capitalization ranges in which to invest. If no equity markets are deemed attractive, the Fund may invest in cash equivalents until the portfolio managers believe more attractive opportunities are available. Unlike tactical strategies that may be used by other funds, the Advisors tactical strategy does not seek to avoid market downturns but instead focuses on what market the Advisor believes to be the most attractive investment opportunity.
Depending on the portfolio managers determinations regarding the attractiveness of equity markets, the Fund will invest all of its assets in:
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to U.S. large cap equities; |
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to U.S. small cap equities; |
● | securities, swaps or options providing exposure to international equities; or |
● | cash and cash equivalents |
If the portfolio managers believe that the potential return in a particular equity market segment is high enough, the Fund will use leveraged ETFs, swaps, or options in order to provide additional investment exposure to that segment.
The strategy relies on what the portfolio managers believe to be unique market behavioral indicators that measure macro-level investor preferences for specific investment strategies and return factors. These market indicators are used to estimate expected returns across global equity markets and capitalization levels. These expected returns are used to determine what are believed to be the most attractive equity markets, levels of exposure and capitalization ranges. The portfolio managers then select specific investments they believe exhibit attractive characteristics to expose the portfolio to targeted domestic and foreign equity markets or segments of markets, including high correlation with the targeted market, level of exposure, liquidity, simplicity of implementation, and expense. If the expected return is high enough, the Fund can take opportunistic positions up to two times market exposure. The Fund may invest in options positions when the portfolio managers determines that options provide a more efficient way to increase or reduce the Funds overall market exposure.
The Fund may at times hold all or a portion of its assets in cash and short-term, highly-liquid investments, such as money market instruments, U.S. government obligations, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, and other cash or cash equivalent positions either due to pending investments or when expected equity returns are very low or negative.
The Advisor may engage in frequent trading of the Funds portfolio, resulting in a higher portfolio turnover rate.
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AthenaInvests Investment Process
Through the use of proprietary and patented algorithms, AthenaInvest estimates expected returns in various global equity markets by measuring deep behavioral patterns. The Athena Global Tactical strategy uses the strength of expected market return estimates to allocate among U.S. large-cap equities, U.S. small-cap equities, international developed equities, and cash. In high expected return environments, the portfolio can leverage its equity exposure to 200% but can also go to 100% cash when expected returns are low. This unique combination takes advantage of both market rotation and beta exposure opportunities.
AthenaInvests strategy seeks to generate attractive long-term returns rather than managing short-term volatility or drawdown. Its investment process is based on unique behavioral signals and is implemented differently than traditional tactical management approaches because it focuses on a long-term investment horizon (5-10 years) and utilizes behavioral factors rather than momentum or valuation trends.
The Advisors investment process is driven by its proprietary historical research database which contains extensive fund and stock data dating back as far as 1980. This survivor-bias free database of managers, holdings, and securities combined with patented algorithms allows AthenaInvest, to conduct a wide range of investment research on unique behavioral factors using large datasets over long time horizons.
The Advisor may engage in frequent trading of the Funds portfolio, resulting in a higher portfolio turnover rate.
Principal Investment Risks
As with all mutual funds, there is the risk that you could lose money through your investment in the Fund. The Fund is not intended to be a complete investment program. Many factors affect the Funds net asset value and performance.
● | Credit Risk: There is a risk that issuers will not make payments on securities held by the Fund, resulting in losses to the Fund. In determining the credit quality of fixed income securities, the Fund relies in part upon rating agencies which assign ratings based on their analysis of the issuers financial condition, economic and debt characteristics, and specific revenue sources securing the bond. There is a risk that the national credit rating agencies may be wrong in their determination of an issuers financial condition, or the risks associated with a particular security. A change in either the issuers credit rating or the markets perception of the issuers business prospects will affect the value of its outstanding securities. Ratings are not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold and may be subject to review, revision, suspension or reduction, or may be withdrawn at any time. In addition, the credit quality of securities held by the Fund may be lowered if an issuers financial condition changes. Lower credit quality may lead to greater volatility in the price of a security and in shares of the Fund. Lower credit quality also may affect liquidity and make it difficult for the Fund to sell the security. Default, or the markets perception that an issuer is likely to default, could reduce the value and liquidity of securities held by the Fund, thereby reducing the value of your investment in Fund shares. In addition, default may cause the Fund to incur expenses in seeking recovery of principal or interest on its portfolio holdings. If a counterparty defaults on its payment obligations to the Fund, this default will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. In addition, to the extent the Fund deals with a limited number of counterparties, it will be more susceptible to the credit risks associated with those counterparties. The Fund is neither restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty nor from concentrating any or all of its transactions with one counterparty. The ability of the Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties may increase the potential for losses by the Fund. |
● | Emerging Markets Risk: The Fund may invest a portion of its assets in countries with newly organized or less developed securities markets. There are typically greater risks involved in investing in emerging markets securities. Generally, economic structures in these countries are less diverse and mature than those in developed countries and their political systems tend to be less stable. Emerging market economies may be based on only a few industries, therefore, security issuers, including governments, may be more susceptible to economic weakness and more likely to default. Emerging market countries also may have relatively unstable governments, weaker economies, and less-developed legal systems with fewer security holder rights. Investments in emerging markets countries may be affected by government policies that restrict foreign investment in certain issuers or industries. The potentially smaller size of their securities markets and lower trading volumes can make investments relatively illiquid and potentially more volatile than investments in developed countries, and such securities may be subject to abrupt and severe price declines. Due to this relative lack of liquidity, the Fund may have to accept a lower price or may not be able to sell a portfolio security at all. An inability to sell a portfolio position can adversely affect the Funds value or prevent the Fund from being able to meet cash obligations or take advantage of other investment opportunities. |
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● | Exchange Traded Funds Risk: ETFs are subject to investment advisory fees and other expenses, which will be indirectly paid by the Fund. As a result, your cost of investing in the Fund will be higher than the cost of investing directly in other ETFs and may be higher than other mutual funds that invest directly in securities. ETFs are listed on national stock exchanges and are traded like stocks listed on an exchange. ETF shares may trade at a discount or a premium in market price if there is a limited market in such shares. ETFs are also subject to brokerage and other trading costs, which could result in greater expenses to the Fund. Because the value of ETF shares depends on the demand in the market, the Advisor may not be able to liquidate the Funds holdings at the most optimal time, adversely affecting performance. ETFs and index-tracking mutual funds in which the Fund invests will not be able to replicate exactly the performance of the indices they track. |
○ | Strategy Risk: Each ETF is subject to specific risks, depending on the nature of the fund. These risks could include small and medium capitalization risk, foreign investment risk and emerging market risk. |
○ | Tracking Risk: ETFs and index-tracking mutual funds in which the Fund invests will not be able to replicate exactly the performance of the indices they track because the total return generated by the securities will be reduced by transaction costs incurred in adjusting the actual balance of the securities or index. In addition, the funds will incur expenses not incurred by their applicable indices. Certain securities comprising the indices tracked by the funds may, from time to time, temporarily be unavailable, which may further impede the ETFs and mutual funds ability to track their applicable indices. |
● | Exchange Traded Notes Risk: ETNs are senior, unsecured, unsubordinated debt securities whose returns are linked to the performance of a particular market benchmark or strategy minus applicable fees. ETNs are traded on an exchange during normal trading hours. However, investors can also hold the ETN until maturity. At maturity, the issuer pays to the investor a cash amount equal to the principal amount, subject to the days market benchmark or strategy factor. ETNs do not make periodic coupon payments or provide principal protection. ETNs are subject to credit risk and the value of the ETN may drop due to a downgrade in the issuers credit rating, despite the underlying market benchmark or strategy remaining unchanged. The value of an ETN may also be influenced by time to maturity, level of supply and demand for the ETN, volatility and lack of liquidity in underlying assets, changes in the applicable interest rates, changes in the issuers credit rating, and economic, legal, political, or geographic events that affect the referenced underlying asset. When a Fund invests in ETNs it will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses borne by the ETN. Although an ETN may be listed on an exchange, the issuer may not be required to maintain the listing and there can be no assurance that a secondary market will exist for an ETN. ETNs are also subject to tax risk. No assurance can be given that the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS) will accept, or a court will uphold, how the Fund characterizes and treats ETNs for tax purposes. Further, the IRS and Congress are considering proposals that would change the timing and character of income and gains from ETNs. An ETN that is tied to a specific market benchmark or strategy may not be able to replicate and maintain exactly the composition and relative weighting of securities, commodities or other components in the applicable market benchmark or strategy. Some ETNs that use leverage can, at times, be relatively illiquid and, thus, they may be difficult to purchase or sell at a fair price. Leveraged ETNs are subject to the same risk as other instruments that use leverage in any form. |
● | Foreign Investment Risk: The Fund could be subject to greater risks because the Funds performance may depend on factors other than the performance of securities of U.S. issuers. Changes in foreign economies and political climates are more likely to affect the Fund than a mutual fund that invests exclusively in U.S. dollars and U.S. Issuers. The value of foreign currency denominated securities or foreign currency contracts is also affected by the value of the local currency relative to the U.S. dollar. There may also be less government supervision of foreign markets, resulting in non-uniform accounting practices and less publicly available information about issuers of foreign currency denominated securities. The value of foreign investments, including foreign currency denominated investments, may be affected by changes in exchange control regulations, application of foreign tax laws (including withholding tax), changes in governmental administration or economic or monetary policy (in this country or abroad) or changed circumstances in dealings between nations. Investments in foreign issues, whether denominated in U.S. dollars or foreign currencies, could be affected by other factors not present in the United States, including expropriation, armed conflict, confiscatory taxation, and potential difficulties in enforcing contractual obligations. |
● | Interest Rate Risk: The value of the Fund may fluctuate based on changes in interest rates and market conditions. As interest rates rise, the value of income producing instruments may decrease. This risk increases as the term of the note increases. Income earned on floating- or variable-rate securities will vary as interest rates decrease or increase. However, the interest rates on variable-rate securities, as well as certain floating-rate securities whose interest rates are reset only periodically, can fluctuate in value as a result of interest rate changes when there is an imperfect correlation between the interest rates on the securities and prevailing market interest rates. |
● | Issuer-Specific Risk: The value of a specific security can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than those of larger issuers. The value of certain types of securities can be more volatile due to increased sensitivity to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments. |
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● | Leverage Risk: Using derivatives can create leverage, which can amplify the effects of market volatility on the Funds share price and make the Funds returns more volatile. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it would not be advantageous to do so in order to satisfy its obligations. The use of leverage may also cause the Fund to have higher expenses than those of mutual funds that do not use such techniques. |
● | Management Risk: The net asset value of the Fund changes daily based on the performance of the securities in which it invests. The portfolio managers judgments regarding market behavioral indicators and the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular asset classes and securities in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results. Additionally, the judgments about the potential performance of the Funds investment portfolio, within the Funds investment policies and risk parameters, may prove incorrect and may not produce the desired results. |
● | Market Risk: The net asset value of the Fund will fluctuate based on changes in the value of the securities in which the Fund invests. The Fund invests in securities which may be more volatile and carry more risk than some other forms of investment. The price of securities may rise or fall because of economic or political changes. Security prices in general may decline over short or even extended periods of time. Market prices of securities in broad market segments may be adversely affected by price trends in energy commodities, interest rates, exchange rates or other factors wholly unrelated to the value or condition of an issuer. |
● | Market
and Geopolitical Risk: The increasing interconnectivity between global economies and
financial markets increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one region or financial
market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Securities
in the Fund may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, climate change or climate-related events, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, international conflicts, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years, such as armed conflicts, terrorist attacks around the world, natural disasters, social and political discord or debt crises and downgrades, among others, may result in market volatility and may have long term effects on both the U.S. and global financial markets. It is difficult to predict when similar events affecting the U.S. or global financial markets may occur, the effects that such events may have and the duration of those effects. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund. It is not known how long any future impacts of the significant events described above, will or would last, but there could be a prolonged period of global economic slowdown, which may impact your investment. Therefore, the Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. During a general market downturn, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Changes in market conditions and interest rates can have the same impact on all types of securities and instruments. In times of severe market disruptions you could lose your entire investment. |
● | Mutual Fund Risk: Mutual funds in which the Fund invests are subject to investment advisory fees and other expenses, which will be indirectly paid by the Fund. As a result, the cost of investing in the Fund will be higher than the cost of investing directly in other mutual funds and may be higher than other mutual funds that invest directly in stocks and bonds. Each of the underlying mutual funds is subject to its own specific risks, but the Advisor expects the principal investments risks of such mutual funds will be similar to the risks of investing in the Fund. |
● | Options Risk: Because option premiums paid by the Fund are small in relation to the market value of the investments underlying the options, buying put and call options can be more speculative than investing directly in securities. The prices of all derivative instruments, including options, are highly volatile. Price movements of options contracts are influenced by, among other things, interest rates, changing supply and demand relationships, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange control programs and policies of governments, and national and international political and economic events and policies. The value of options also depends upon the price of the reference assets underlying them. There are risks associated with the purchase of call and put options. As the buyer of a put or call option, the Fund risks losing the entire premium invested in the option if the Fund does not exercise the option. |
● | Portfolio Turnover Risk: A higher portfolio turnover may result in higher transactional and brokerage costs associated with the turnover which may reduce the Funds return, unless the securities traded can be bought and sold without corresponding commission costs. Active trading of securities may also increase the Funds realized capital gains or losses, which may affect the taxes you pay as a Fund shareholder. |
● | Small and Medium Capitalization Company Risk: The value of small or medium capitalization company securities may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than those of larger, more established companies or the market in general. These companies may have narrower markets, limited product lines, fewer financial resources, and they may be dependent on a limited management group. Investing in lesser-known, small and medium capitalization companies involves greater risk of volatility of the Funds net asset value than is customarily associated with larger, more established companies. |
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● | Swaps Risk: The Funds use of swaps involves risks different from, or possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other traditional investments. These risks include (i) the risk that the counterparty to a derivative transaction may not fulfill its contractual obligations; (ii) risk of mispricing or improper valuation; and (iii) the risk that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index. The value of a swap may be highly volatile and may fluctuate substantially during a short period of time, and payments made pursuant to swap agreements also may be highly volatile. Payments pursuant to swap agreements are influenced by, among other things, interest rates, changing supply and demand relationships, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange control programs and policies of governments, and national and international political and economic events and policies. The value of swap agreements also depends upon the price of the reference assets underlying them. |
● | U.S. Government Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in obligations issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. Government. These obligations vary in the level of support they receive from the U.S. Government. They may be: (i) supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury, such as those of the Government National Mortgage Association; (ii) supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, such as those of the Federal National Mortgage Association; or (iii) supported only by the credit of the issuer, such as those of the Federal Farm Credit Bureau. The U.S. Government may choose not to provide financial support to U.S. Government sponsored agencies or instrumentalities if it is not legally obligated to do so, in which case, if the issuer defaulted, the Fund might not be able to recover its investment. |
● | Value Investing Risk: The Advisors assessment of a securitys intrinsic value may never be fully recognized or realized by the market, and a security judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced or its price may move in the wrong direction. |
● | Volatility Risk: The Fund invests in securities which may be more volatile and carry more risk than other investments. |
Temporary Investments
To respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may invest 100% of its total assets, without limitation, in high-quality short-term debt securities and unaffiliated money market instruments. These short-term debt securities and unaffiliated money market instruments include: shares of money market mutual funds, commercial paper, certificates of deposit, bankers acceptances, U.S. Government securities and repurchase agreements. While the Fund is in a defensive position, the opportunity to achieve its investment objective will be limited. Furthermore, to the extent that the Fund invests in money market mutual funds for cash positions, there will be some duplication of expenses because the Fund pays its pro-rata portion of such money market funds advisory fees and operational fees. The Fund may also invest a substantial portion of its assets in such instruments at any time to maintain liquidity or pending selection of investments in accordance with its policies.
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure
A description of the Funds policies regarding the release of portfolio holdings information is available in the Funds Statement of Additional Information. The Fund may, from time to time, make available month-end portfolio holdings information on the website www.atvfund.com. If month-end portfolio holdings are posted to the website, they are expected to be approximately 60 days old and remain available until new information for the next month is posted. Shareholders may request portfolio holdings schedules at no charge by calling 833-653-0575.
Cybersecurity
The computer systems, networks and devices used by the Fund and its service providers to carry out routine business operations employ a variety of protections designed to prevent damage or interruption from computer viruses, network failures, computer and telecommunication failures, infiltration by unauthorized persons and security breaches. Despite the various protections utilized by the Fund and its service providers, systems, networks, or devices potentially can be breached. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result of a cybersecurity breach.
Cybersecurity breaches can include unauthorized access to systems, networks, or devices; infection from computer viruses or other malicious software code; and attacks that shut down, disable, slow, or otherwise disrupt operations, business processes, or website access or functionality. Cybersecurity breaches may cause disruptions and impact the Funds business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses; interference with the Funds ability to calculate its net asset value (NAV); impediments to trading; the inability of the Fund, the Advisor, and other service providers to transact business; violations of applicable privacy and other laws; regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, or additional compliance costs; as well as the inadvertent release of confidential information.
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MANAGEMENT |
Investment Advisor
AthenaInvest Advisors, LLC, located at 5340 South Quebec Suite 320-S, Greenwood Village, CO 80111 (the Advisor or AthenaInvest), serves as investment advisor to the Fund. Subject to the oversight of the Board, the Advisor is responsible for management of the Funds investment portfolio. The Advisor was established in 2005 for the purpose of advising individuals and institutions. As of April 30, 2024, the Advisor had approximately $80 million in assets under management and $249 million of assets under advisement for a combined $329 million.
Pursuant to an advisory agreement between the Fund and the Advisor, the Advisor is entitled to receive, on a monthly basis, an annual advisory fee equal to 1.00% of the Funds average daily net assets. The Advisor has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least August 31, 2025, to ensure that Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Reimbursement (exclusive of any (i) front-end or contingent deferred loads; (ii) brokerage fees and commissions; (iii) acquired fund fees and expenses; (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example options and swap fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; and (vii) extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Advisor) do not exceed 2.25% and 1.25% of average daily net assets attributable to Class C and Class I shares, respectively; subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three year basis (within the three years after the fees have been waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the foregoing expense limits and the expense limit at the time of recoupment. Fee waiver and reimbursement arrangements can decrease the Funds expenses and boost its performance. For the fiscal period ended April 30, 2024, the Fund paid an investment advisory fee to the Advisor at an annual rate of 0% of the average daily net assets of the Fund after waivers and reimbursements. A discussion regarding the basis for the Boards approval of the advisory agreement is available in the Funds annual report to shareholders dated April 30, 2024.
Portfolio Managers
C. Thomas Howard, PhD
CEO and Chief Investment Officer
Dr. Howard founded AthenaInvest Inc. in 2005 and its wholly owned subsidiary AthenaInvest Advisors LLC in 2008 and currently serves as Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Investment Officer. Dr. Howards responsibilities include conducting the basic research underlying the Advisors investment processes; structuring and monitoring investment portfolios; and making all buy and sell decisions. Dr. Howard is a Professor Emeritus at the Reiman School of Finance, Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, where for over 30 years he taught courses and published articles in the areas of investment management and international finance. Dr. Howard received a BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Idaho. Dr. Howard then entered Oregon State University, where he received an MS in Management Science after which he received a Ph.D. in Finance from the University of Washington.
Andrew C. Howard
Vice President: Portfolio Manager
Mr. Howard joined AthenaInvest Inc. in October 2006. Mr. Howard designed, developed and implemented the companys patented stock and mutual fund research database. Mr. Howard is co-portfolio manager and research analyst on all AthenaInvest Inc. portfolios with his father professor C. Thomas Howard, PhD. Mr. Howard also trades all AthenaInvest Inc. portfolios across multiple models and platforms. Prior to joining AthenaInvest Inc., Mr. Howard was a software development consultant to Fortune 500 firms. Mr. Howard spent the first years of his career as a corporate financial analyst with Sony Online Entertainment, Leica Geosystems, and StorageTek. Mr. Howard earned his BS in Finance in 1999 from the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver, where he was a Chancellors Scholar.
Dr. Howard and Mr. Howard are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.
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Prior Performance of AthenaInvest Advisors LLC
The Advisor manages separately managed accounts with substantially similar objectives and strategies as it will use to manage the Fund.
The following tables set forth performance data relating to the historical performance of the Advisors behavioral tactical strategy, which represents all of the accounts and funds managed by the Advisor for the periods indicated that have investment objectives, policies, strategies and risks substantially similar to those employed by the Advisor in the management of the Fund (the Composite). The data, which has been provided by the Advisor, is provided to illustrate the past performance of the Advisor in managing accounts with substantially similar investment strategies, as measured against the MSCI ACWI Index and Morningstar Global Markets Index, and does not represent the performance of the Fund.
The accounts in the Composite are not subject to the diversification requirements, specific tax restrictions and investment limitations imposed on the Fund by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the 1940 Act), or Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code. Consequently, the performance results for the Composite could have been adversely affected if the strategy had been operated as a registered investment company. The Composite was valued on a monthly basis, which differs from the Securities and Exchange Commissions standardized method of calculating performance that employs daily valuation and may produce different results. Composite returns are shown net of the expenses of the Funds Class I shares (currently 1.35%). Returns for the Funds Class C shares would be lower because the share class has higher expense ratios than Class I shares. You should not consider the past performance of the Advisors behavioral tactical strategy as indicative of the future performance of the Fund.
Name | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024* |
Composite | 5.08% | 15.34% | 54.08% | 19.73% | 0.26% | 6.29% | 25.60% | -2.15% | 24.72% | 24.67% | 22.46% | -15.72% | 6.66% | -2.57% |
MSCI
ACWI Index(1) |
-7.35% | 16.12% | 22.84% | 4.15% | -2.36% | 7.86% | 23.96% | -9.41% | 26.60% | 16.27% | 18.48% | -18.36% | 22.20% | 4.63% |
Morningstar
Global Markets Index(2) |
-7.64% | 16.49% | 23.33% | 4.01% | -2.06% | 8.21% | 23.85% | -9.83% | 26.26% | 16.08% | 17.81% | -18.31% | 21.53% | 4.24% |
* | As of April 30, 2024 |
(1) | The MSCI ACWI Index represents performance of the full opportunity set of large and mid-cap stocks across 23 developed and 24 emerging markets. As of April 30, 2024, it covers more than 2,837 constituents across 11 sectors and covers approximately 85% of the global investable equity opportunity set. |
(2) | The Morningstar Global Markets Index The index measures the performance of performance of the stocks located in the developed and emerging countries across the world. Stocks in the index are weighted by their float capital, which removes corporate cross ownership, government holdings and other locked-in shares. |
The chart below shows the average annual historical performance of the Composite
For the Periods Ended 04/30/2024 | Composite | MSCI ACWI Index | Morningstar
Global Markets Index |
1 Year | 2.97% | 17.46% | 16.97% |
5 Years | 7.95% | 9.44% | 9.06% |
10 Years | 10.05% | 8.19% | 7.99% |
Since Inception* | 14.17% | 9.67% | 9.61% |
* | The inception date for the Composite was September 1, 2010. |
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HOW SHARES ARE PRICED
The net asset value (NAV) and offering price (NAV plus any applicable sales charges) of each class of shares is determined at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is open for business. NAV is computed by determining, on a per class basis, the aggregate market value of all assets of the Fund, less its liabilities, divided by the total number of shares outstanding ((assets-liabilities)/number of shares = NAV). The NYSE is closed on weekends and New Years Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, National Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The NAV takes into account, on a per class basis, the expenses and fees of the Fund, including management, administration, and applicable distribution fees, which are accrued daily. The determination of NAV for a share class for a particular day is applicable to all applications for the purchase of shares, as well as all requests for the redemption of shares, received by the Fund (or an authorized broker or agent, or its authorized designee) before the close of trading on the NYSE on that day.
Generally, the Funds securities are valued each day at the last quoted sales price on each securitys primary exchange. Securities traded or dealt in upon one or more securities exchanges (whether domestic or foreign) for which market quotations are readily available and not subject to restrictions against resale shall be valued at the last quoted sales price on the primary exchange or, in the absence of a sale on the primary exchange, at mean between the current bid and ask prices on such exchange. Securities primarily traded in the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System (NASDAQ) National Market System for which market quotations are readily available shall be valued using the NASDAQ Official Closing Price. Securities that are not traded or dealt in any securities exchange (whether domestic or foreign) and for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available generally shall be valued at the last sale price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask price on such over-the-counter market. Debt securities not traded on an exchange may be valued at prices supplied by a pricing agent(s) based on broker or dealer supplied valuations or matrix pricing, a method of valuing securities by reference to the value of other securities with similar characteristics, such as rating, interest rate and maturity.
If market quotations are not readily available, securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined using the fair value procedures approved by the Board. Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that the fair value determined for a security may be materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of that security. The fair value prices can differ from market prices when they become available or when a price becomes available. The Board has delegated the Advisor as its Valuation Designee to execute of these procedures. The Advisor may also enlist third party consultants such as an audit firm or financial officer of a security issuer on an as-needed basis to assist in determining a security-specific fair value. The Board reviews and ratifies the execution of this process and the resultant fair value prices at least quarterly to assure the process produces reliable results.
The Fund may use independent pricing services to assist in calculating the value of the Funds securities. In addition, market prices for foreign securities are not determined at the same time of day as the NAV for the Fund. Because the Fund may invest in Underlying Funds which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign exchanges, and these exchanges may trade on weekends or other days when the Underlying Funds do not price their shares, the value of some of the Funds portfolio securities may change on days when you may not be able to buy or sell Fund shares. In computing the NAV, the Fund values foreign securities held by the Fund at the latest closing price on the exchange in which they are traded immediately prior to closing of the NYSE. Prices of foreign securities quoted in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars at current rates. If events materially affecting the value of a security in the Funds portfolio, particularly foreign securities, occur after the close of trading on a foreign market but before the Fund prices its shares, the security will be valued at fair value. For example, if trading in a portfolio security is halted and does not resume before the Fund calculates its NAV, the Advisor may need to price the security using the Funds fair value pricing guidelines. Without a fair value price, short-term traders could take advantage of the arbitrage opportunity and dilute the NAV of long-term investors. Fair valuation of the Funds portfolio securities can serve to reduce arbitrage opportunities available to short-term traders, but there is no assurance that fair value pricing policies will prevent dilution of the Funds NAV by short term traders. The determination of fair value involves subjective judgments. As a result, using fair value to price a security may result in a price materially different from the prices used by other mutual funds to determine net asset value, or from the price that may be realized upon the actual sale of the security.
With respect to any portion of the Funds assets that are invested in one or more open-end management investment companies registered under the 1940 Act, the Funds NAV is calculated based upon the NAV of those open-end management investment companies, and the prospectuses for these companies explain the circumstances under which those companies will use fair value pricing and the effects of using fair value pricing.
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HOW TO PURCHASE SHARES
Share Classes
This Prospectus describes two classes of shares offered by the Fund. The main differences between the share classes are ongoing fees, minimum investments and sales charges. Class C shares pay an annual fee up to 1.00% for distribution expenses pursuant to a plan under Rule 12b-1, and Class I shares do not pay such fees. Class C and Class I shares do not have a maximum sales charge; and minimum investment amounts also vary. In choosing which class of shares to purchase, you should consider which will be most beneficial to you, given the amount of your purchase. All classes of shares in the Fund represent interest in the same portfolio of investments in the Fund. Not all shares classes may be available for purchase in all states.
Class C Shares: Class C shares of the Fund are offered at their NAV without an initial sales charge. This means that 100% of your initial investment is placed into shares of the Fund. Class C shares pay up to 1.00% on an annualized basis of the average daily net assets as reimbursement or compensation for service and distribution-related activities with respect to the Fund and/or shareholder services. Over time, fees paid under this distribution and service plan will increase the cost of a Class C shareholders investment and may cost more than other types of sales charges. The minimum initial investment in Class C shares of the Fund is $2,500 for retirement plan accounts and $2,500 for all other accounts. The minimum subsequent investment in Class C shares of the Fund is $100 for retirement plan accounts and $100 for all other accounts. These investment minimums may be waived by the Advisor. Class C shares are not currently offered.
Class I Shares: Class I shares of the Fund are sold at NAV without an initial sales charge and are not subject to 12b-1 distribution fees, but have a higher minimum initial investment than Class C shares. This means that 100% of your initial investment is placed into shares of the Fund. Class I shares require a minimum initial investment of $100,000 and minimum subsequent investment of $100. These investment minimums may be waived by the Advisor.
Purchasing
Shares: You may purchase shares of the Fund by sending a completed application form to the
following address:
via Regular Mail: | or Overnight Mail: |
ATHENA
BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC P.O. Box 541150 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 |
ATHENA
BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100 Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474 |
The USA PATRIOT Act requires financial institutions, including the Fund, to adopt certain policies and programs to prevent money-laundering activities, including procedures to verify the identity of customers opening new accounts. As requested on the Application, you should supply your full name, date of birth, social security number and permanent street address. Mailing addresses containing a P.O. Box will not be accepted. This information will assist the Fund in verifying your identity. Until such verification is made, the Fund may temporarily limit additional share purchases. In addition, the Fund may limit additional share purchases or close an account if it is unable to verify a shareholders identity. As required by law, the Fund may employ various procedures, such as comparing the information to fraud databases or requesting additional information or documentation from you, to ensure that the information supplied by you is correct. Shares of the Fund, or certain classes, may not be available for purchase in every state.
Purchase through Brokers: You may invest in the Fund through brokers or agents who have entered into selling agreements with the Funds distributor. The brokers and agents are authorized to receive purchase and redemption orders on behalf of the Fund. Such brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to receive purchase and redemption orders on the Funds behalf. The Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized broker or its designee receives the order. The broker or agent may set their own initial and subsequent investment minimums. You may be charged a fee if you use a broker or agent to buy or redeem shares of the Fund. Finally, various servicing agents use procedures and impose restrictions that may be in addition to, or different from those applicable to investors purchasing shares directly from the Fund. You should carefully read the program materials provided to you by your servicing agent.
Purchase by Wire: If you wish to wire money to make an investment in the Fund, please call the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 for wiring instructions and to notify the Fund that a wire transfer is coming. Any commercial bank can transfer same-day funds via wire. The Fund will normally accept wired funds for investment on the day received if they are received by the Funds designated bank before the close of regular trading on the NYSE. Your bank may charge you a fee for wiring same-day funds.
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Automated Clearing House (ACH) Purchase
Current shareholders may purchase additional shares via Automated Clearing House (ACH). To have this option added to your account, please send a letter to the Fund requesting this option and supply a voided check for the bank account. Only bank accounts held at domestic institutions that are ACH members may be used for these transactions.
You may not use ACH transactions for your initial purchase of Fund shares. ACH purchases will be effective at the closing price per share on the business day after the order is placed. The Fund may alter, modify or terminate this purchase option at any time.
Shares purchased by ACH will not be available for redemption until the transactions have cleared. Shares purchased via ACH transfer may take up to 15 days to clear.
Automatic Investment Plan: You may participate in the Funds Automatic Investment Plan, an investment plan that automatically moves money from your bank account and invests it in the Fund through the use of electronic funds transfers or automatic bank drafts. You may elect to make subsequent investments by transfers of a minimum of $100 on specified days of each month into your established Fund account. Please contact the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 for more information about the Funds Automatic Investment Plan.
The Fund, however, reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject any application to purchase shares. Applications will not be accepted unless they are accompanied by a check drawn on a U.S. bank, thrift institutions, or credit union in U.S. funds for the full amount of the shares to be purchased. After you open an account, you may purchase additional shares by sending a check together with written instructions stating the name(s) on the account and the account number, to the above address. Make all checks payable to Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund. The Fund will not accept payment in cash, including cashiers checks or money orders. Also, the Fund will not accept third party checks, U.S. Treasury checks, credit card checks, starter checks for the purchase of shares, counter checks, travelers checks, and checks drawn on non-U.S. financial institutions. Cashiers checks bank official checks, and bank money orders are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and may be accepted under certain circumstances. Redemptions of Shares of the Fund purchased by check may be subject to a hold period until the check has been cleared by the issuing bank. To avoid such holding periods, Shares may be purchased through a broker or by wire, as described in this section.
Note: Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, the Funds transfer agent, will charge a $25 fee against a shareholders account, in addition to any loss sustained by the Fund, for any check returned to the transfer agent for insufficient funds. If your check or electronic payment does not clear, you will be you will be responsible for any loss incurred by the funds and charged a $25 fee to defray bank charges.
When Order is Processed: All shares will be purchased at the NAV per share (plus applicable sales charges, if any) next determined after the Fund receives your application or request in good order. All requests received in good order by the Fund before 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) will be processed on that same day. Requests received after 4:00 p.m. will be processed on the next business day.
Good Order: When making a purchase request, make sure your request is in good order. Good order means your purchase request includes:
● the name of the Fund and share class,
● the dollar amount of shares to be purchased,
● a completed purchase application or investment stub, and
● check payable to the Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund. |
Retirement Plans: You may purchase shares of the Fund for your individual retirement plans. Please call the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 for the most current listing and appropriate disclosure documentation on how to open a retirement account.
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HOW TO REDEEM SHARES
Redeeming Shares: You may redeem all or any portion of the shares credited to your account by submitting a written request for redemption to:
via Regular Mail: | or Overnight Mail: |
ATHENA
BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC P.O. Box 541150 Omaha, Nebraska 68154 |
ATHENA
BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100 Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474 |
The Fund typically expects that it will take up to three business days following the receipt of your redemption request to pay out redemption proceeds by check or electronic transfer. The Fund typically expects to pay redemptions from cash, cash equivalents, proceeds from the sale of Fund shares, and then from the sale of portfolio securities. These redemption payment methods will be used in regular and stressed market conditions
Redemptions by Telephone: The telephone redemption privilege is automatically available to all new accounts. If you do not want the telephone redemption privilege, you must indicate this in the appropriate area on your account application or you must write to the Fund and instruct it to remove this privilege from your account. If you own an IRA, you will be asked whether or not the Fund should withhold federal income tax.
The
proceeds will be sent by mail to the address designated on your account or wired directly to your existing account in a bank or brokerage
firm in the United States as designated on your application. To redeem by telephone, call
1-833-653-0575.
During periods of high market activity, you may encounter higher than usual wait times. Please allow sufficient time to ensure that you will be able to complete your telephone transaction prior to market close. Neither the Fund nor its transfer agent will be held liable if you are unable to place your trade due to high call volume.
The Fund reserves the right to suspend the telephone redemption privileges with respect to your account if the name(s) or the address on the account has been changed within the previous 30 days. Neither the Fund, the transfer agent, nor their respective affiliates will be liable for complying with telephone instructions they reasonably believe to be genuine or for any loss, damage, cost or expenses in acting on such telephone instructions and you will be required to bear the risk of any such loss. The Fund or the transfer agent, or both, will employ reasonable procedures to determine that telephone instructions are genuine. If the Fund and/or the transfer agent do not employ these procedures, they may be liable to you for losses due to unauthorized or fraudulent instructions. These procedures may include, among others, requiring forms of personal identification prior to acting upon telephone instructions, providing written confirmation of the transactions recording telephone instructions.
Redemptions through Broker: If shares of the Fund are held by a broker-dealer, financial institution or other servicing agent, you must contact that servicing agent to redeem shares of the Fund. The servicing agent may charge a fee for this service.
Redemptions by Wire: You may request that your redemption proceeds be wired directly to your bank account. The Funds transfer agent imposes a $15 fee for each wire redemption and deducts the fee directly from your account. Your bank may also impose a fee for the incoming wire.
Systematic Withdrawal Plan: If your individual accounts, IRA or other qualified plan account have a current account value of at least $10,000, you may participate in the Funds Systematic Withdrawal Plan, an investment plan that automatically moves money to your bank account from the Fund through the use of electronic funds transfers. You may elect to make subsequent withdrawals by transfers of a minimum of $100 on specified days of each month into your established bank account. Please contact the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 for more information about the Funds Systematic Withdrawal Plan.
Redemptions in Kind: The Fund reserves the right to honor requests for redemption or repurchase orders by making payment in whole or in part in readily marketable securities (redemption in kind) if the amount is greater than the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the Funds assets. The securities will be chosen by the Fund and valued under the Funds NAV procedures. To the extent feasible and if in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders, redemptions in kind will be paid with a pro rata allocation of the Funds portfolio. A shareholder will be exposed to market risk until these securities are converted to cash and may incur transaction expenses in converting these securities to cash.
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When Redemptions are Sent: Once the Fund receives your redemption request in good order as described below, it will issue redemption proceeds based on the next determined NAV following your redemption request. The Fund typically expects that it will take up to three business days following the receipt of your redemption request to pay out redemption proceeds by check or electronic transfer. The Fund typically expects to pay redemptions from cash, cash equivalents, proceeds from the sale of Fund shares, any lines of credit and then from the sale of portfolio securities. These redemption payment methods will be used in regular and stressed market conditions. If you purchase shares using a check and soon after request a redemption, your redemption proceeds, which are payable at the next determined NAV following the receipt your redemption request in good order, as described below, will not be sent until the check used for your purchase has cleared your bank.
Good
Order: Your redemption request will be processed if it is in good order.
● the request should be in writing, unless redeeming by telephone, indicating the number of shares or dollar amount to be redeemed;
● the request must identify your account number;
● the request should be signed by you and any other person listed on the account, exactly as the shares are registered; and
● if you request that the redemption proceeds be sent to a person, bank or an address other than that of record or paid to someone other than the record owner(s), or if the address was changed within the last 30 days, or if the proceeds of a requested redemption exceed $50,000, the signature(s) on the request must be medallion signature guaranteed by an eligible signature guarantor. |
When You Need Medallion Signature Guarantees: If you wish to change the bank or brokerage account that you have designated on your account, you may do so at any time by writing to the Fund with your signature guaranteed.
A medallion signature guarantee assures that a signature is genuine and protects you from unauthorized account transfers. You will need your signature guaranteed if:
● | you request a redemption to be made payable to a person not on record with the Fund; |
● | you request that a redemption be mailed to an address other than that on record with the Fund; |
● | the proceeds of a requested redemption exceed $50,000; |
● | any redemption is transmitted to a bank other than the bank of record; or |
● | your address was changed within 30 days of your redemption request. |
Signatures may be guaranteed by any eligible guarantor institution (including banks, brokers and dealers, credit unions, national securities exchanges, registered securities associations, clearing agencies and savings associations). Further documentation will be required to change the designated account if shares are held by a corporation, fiduciary or other organization. A notary public cannot guarantee signatures.
Retirement Plans: If you own an IRA or other retirement plan, you must indicate on your redemption request whether the Fund should withhold federal income tax. Unless you elect in your redemption request that you do not want to have federal tax withheld, the redemption will be subject to withholding.
Low Balances: If at any time your account balance in the Fund falls below $2,500, the Fund may notify you that, unless the account is brought up to at least $2,500 within 60 days of the notice; your account could be closed. After the notice period, the Fund may redeem all of your shares and close your account by sending you a check to the address of record. Your account will not be closed if the account balance drops below $2,500 due to a decline in NAV.
Inactive Accounts: If shareholder-initiated contact does not occur on your account within the timeframe specified by the law in your state of record, or if Fund mailings are returned as undeliverable during that timeframe, the assets of your account (shares and/or any uncashed checks) may be transferred to your last known recorded state of residence as unclaimed property, in accordance with specific state law.
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NOTE: If you fail to initiate such contact, your property will be escheated to your last known state of residency after which you will need to claim the property from that state.
An account may be turned over as unclaimed property to the investors last known state of tax residence if the account is deemed inactive or lost during the time frame specified within the applicable states unclaimed property laws. Investors who are residents of the state of Texas may designate a representative to receive legislatively required unclaimed property due diligence notifications. A Texas Designation of Representative Form is available for making such an election.
FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES |
The Fund discourages and does not accommodate market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Frequent trading into and out of the Fund can harm all Fund shareholders by disrupting the Funds investment strategies, increasing Fund expenses, decreasing tax efficiency and diluting the value of shares held by long-term shareholders. The Fund is designed for long-term investors and is not intended for market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Accordingly, the Funds Board has approved policies that seek to curb these disruptive activities while recognizing that shareholders may have a legitimate need to adjust their Fund investments as their financial needs or circumstances change. The Fund uses various methods to reduce the risk of market timing.
These methods include committing staff to review, on a continuing basis, recent trading activity in order to identify trading activity that may be contrary to the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy. Though these methods involve judgments that are inherently subjective and involve some selectivity in their application, the Fund seeks to make judgments and applications that are consistent with the interests of the Funds shareholders.
Based on the frequency of redemptions in your account, the Advisor or transfer agent may in its sole discretion determine that your trading activity is detrimental to the Fund as described in the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy and elect to reject or limit the amount, number, frequency or method for requesting future purchases or exchanges into the Fund.
The Fund reserves the right to reject or restrict purchase requests for any reason, particularly when the shareholders trading activity suggests that the shareholder may be engaged in market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor will be liable for any losses resulting from rejected purchase orders. The Advisor may also bar an investor who has violated these policies (and the investors financial adviser) from opening new accounts with the Fund.
Although the Fund attempts to limit disruptive trading activities, some investors use a variety of strategies to hide their identities and their trading practices. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will be able to identify or limit these activities. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of the Fund. While the Fund will encourage financial intermediaries to apply the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy to their customers who invest indirectly in the Fund, the Fund is limited in its ability to monitor the trading activity or enforce the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy with respect to customers of financial intermediaries. For example, should it occur, the Fund may not be able to detect market timing that may be facilitated by financial intermediaries or made difficult to identify in the omnibus accounts used by those intermediaries for aggregated purchases, exchanges and redemptions on behalf of all their customers. More specifically, unless the financial intermediaries have the ability to apply the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy to their customers through such methods as implementing short-term trading limitations or restrictions and monitoring trading activity for what might be market timing, the Fund may not be able to determine whether trading by customers of financial intermediaries is contrary to the Funds Market Timing Trading Policy. However, the Fund will ensure that financial intermediaries maintaining omnibus accounts on behalf of the Fund enter into an agreement with the Fund to provide shareholder transaction information, to the extent known to the financial intermediary, to the Fund upon request.
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TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS |
Any sale or exchange of the Funds shares may generate tax liability (unless you are a tax-exempt investor or your investment is in a qualified retirement account). When you redeem your shares you may realize a taxable gain or loss. This is measured by the difference between the proceeds of the sale and the tax basis for the shares you sold. (To aid in computing your tax basis, you generally should retain your account statements for the period that you hold shares in the Fund.)
The Fund intends to make at least annual distributions, which would include substantially all of its net investment income and may also include a portion which may be a return of capital. The Fund intends to make net capital gains distributions annually in December. Distributions will be reinvested in shares of the Fund unless you elect to receive cash. Dividends from net investment income (including any excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss) are taxable to investors as ordinary income, while distributions of net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss) are generally taxable as long-term capital gain, regardless of your holding period for the shares. Any dividends or capital gain distributions you receive from the Fund will normally be taxable to you when made, regardless of whether you reinvest dividends or capital gain distributions or receive them in cash. Certain dividends or distributions declared in October, November or December will be taxed to shareholders as if received in December if they are paid during the following January.
However, pursuant to its distribution policy, the Fund may make distributions that are treated as a return of capital, in part, because a portion of an MLPs distributions to the Fund may represent a return of capital and are therefore not included in the distributions of net investment income and net capital gains described above. Return of capital is the portion of a distribution that is the return of your original investment dollars in the Fund. A return of capital is not taxable to a shareholder unless it exceeds a shareholders tax basis in the shares. Returns of capital reduce a shareholders tax cost (or tax basis). Once a shareholders tax basis is reduced to zero, any further return of capital would be taxable. The Fund will provide disclosures, with each distribution, that estimate the percentages of the current and year-to-date distributions that represent (1) net investment income, (2) capital gains and (3) return of capital. At the end of the year, the Fund may be required under applicable law to re-characterize distributions made previously during that year among (1) ordinary income, (2) qualifying dividends, (3) capital gains and (4) return of capital for tax purposes. Each year the Fund will inform you of the amount and type of your distributions. IRAs and other qualified retirement plans are exempt from federal income taxation until retirement proceeds are paid out to the participant.
Your redemptions, including exchanges, may result in a capital gain or loss for federal tax purposes. A capital gain or loss on your investment is the difference between the cost of your shares, including any sales charges, and the amount you receive when you sell them.
The Fund must report to the IRS and furnish to shareholders the cost basis information for shares purchased and sold. The Fund has chosen average cost as its standing (default) tax lot identification method for all shareholders, which means this is the method the Fund will use to determine which specific shares are deemed to be sold when there are multiple purchases on different dates at differing NAVs, and the entire position is not sold at one time. Shareholders may, however, choose a method other than the Funds standing method at the time of their purchase or upon sale of covered shares. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors to determine the best IRS-accepted cost basis method for their tax situation and to obtain more information about how cost basis reporting applies to them. Shareholders also should carefully review the cost basis information provided to them by the Fund and make any additional basis, holding period or other adjustments that are required when reporting these amounts on their federal income tax returns.
On the account application, you will be asked to certify that your social security number or taxpayer identification number is correct and that you are not subject to backup withholding for failing to report income to the IRS. If you are subject to backup withholding or you did not certify your taxpayer identification number, the IRS requires the Fund to withhold a percentage of any dividend, redemption or exchange proceeds. The Fund reserves the right to reject any application that does not include a certified social security or taxpayer identification number. If you do not have a social security number, you should indicate on the purchase form that your application to obtain a number is pending. The Fund is required to withhold taxes if a number is not delivered to the Fund within seven days.
This summary is not intended to be and should not be construed to be legal or tax advice. You should consult your own tax advisers to determine the tax consequences of owning the Funds shares.
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DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES |
Distributor: Northern Lights Distributors, LLC, 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100 Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474, is the distributor for the shares of the Fund. Northern Lights Distributors, LLC is a registered broker-dealer and member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. Shares of the Fund are offered on a continuous basis.
Distribution (12b-1) and Shareholder Servicing Fees: The Trust, with respect to the Fund, has adopted the Trusts Master Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Plans for Class C shares (the Plans), pursuant to Rule 12b-1 of the 1940 Act, which allow the Fund to pay the Funds distributor an annual fee for distribution and shareholder servicing expenses of up to 1.00% of the Funds average daily net assets attributable to Class C shares. Because these fees are paid out of the Funds assets on an on-going basis, over time these fees will increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than paying other types of sales charges.
The Funds distributor and other entities are paid pursuant to the Plans for distribution and shareholder servicing provided and the expenses borne by the distributor and others in the distribution of Fund shares, including the payment of commissions for sales of the shares and incentive compensation to and expenses of dealers and others who engage in or support distribution of shares or who service shareholder accounts, including overhead and telephone expenses; printing and distribution of prospectuses and reports used in connection with the offering of the Funds shares to other than current shareholders; and preparation, printing and distribution of sales literature and advertising materials. In addition, the distributor or other entities may utilize fees paid pursuant to the Plan to compensate dealers or other entities for their opportunity costs in advancing such amounts, which compensation would be in the form of a carrying charge on any un-reimbursed expenses.
Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries: The distributor, the Funds affiliates, and the Advisor and their affiliates may each, at their own expense and out of their own assets, including their legitimate profits from Fund-related activities, provide additional cash payments or reimbursement for travel or other expenses, to financial intermediaries who sell shares of the Fund or assist in the marketing of the Fund. Financial intermediaries include brokers, financial planners, banks, insurance companies, retirement or 401(k) plan administrators and others. These payments may be in addition to the Rule 12b-1 fees and any sales charges that are disclosed elsewhere in this Prospectus. These payments are generally made to financial intermediaries that provide shareholder or administrative services, or marketing support. Marketing support may include access to sales meetings, due diligence conferences (including the costs of attending adviser-sponsored due diligence conferences), conference sponsorships, sales representatives and financial intermediary management representatives, inclusion of the Fund on a sales list, including a preferred or select sales list, or other sales programs. These payments also may be made as an expense reimbursement in cases where the financial intermediary provides shareholder services to Fund shareholders. The distributor may, from time to time, provide promotional incentives to certain investment firms. Such incentives may, at the distributors discretion, be limited to investment firms who allow their individual selling representatives to participate in such additional compensation.
Householding: To reduce expenses, the Fund mails only one copy of a prospectus and each annual and semi-annual report to those addresses shared by two or more accounts. If you wish to receive individual copies of these documents, please call the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 on days the Fund is open for business or contact your financial institution. The Fund will begin sending you individual copies thirty days after receiving your request.
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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS |
The financial highlights tables are intended to help you understand the Funds financial performance for the period of the Funds operations. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the tables represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). This information for the Fund has been derived from the Funds financial statements. The information for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024 has been audited by RSM US LLP, whose report, along with the Funds financial statements, are included in the Funds April 30, 2024 annual report. The annual report for April 30, 2024 is available upon request.
Per Share Data and Ratios for a Share of Beneficial Interest Outstanding Throughout Each Year
Year Ended | Year Ended | Year Ended | Year Ended | Year Ended | ||||||||||||||||
Class I | April 30, 2024 | April 30, 2023 | April 30, 2022 | April 30, 2021 | April 30, 2020 | |||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of year | $ | 9.82 | $ | 10.02 | $ | 15.73 | $ | 8.72 | $ | 9.34 | ||||||||||
Activity from investment operations: | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income (loss)(1) | 0.12 | 0.17 | (0.06 | ) | (0.11 | ) | 0.07 | |||||||||||||
Net
realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments |
0.22 | (0.35 | ) | (2.15 | ) | 7.17 | (0.54 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from investment operations | 0.34 | (0.18 | ) | (2.21 | ) | 7.06 | (0.47 | ) | ||||||||||||
Less distributions from: | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income | (0.29 | ) | (0.02 | ) | — | (0.05 | ) | (0.15 | ) | |||||||||||
Net realized gains | — | — | (3.50 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Total distributions | (0.29 | ) | (0.02 | ) | (3.50 | ) | (0.05 | ) | (0.15 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of year | $ | 9.87 | $ | 9.82 | $ | 10.02 | $ | 15.73 | $ | 8.72 | ||||||||||
Total return(2) | 3.44 | % | (1.83 | )% | (16.87 | )% | 81.15 | % | (5.20 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, at end of year (000s) | $ | 20,907 | $ | 33,836 | $ | 37,529 | $ | 35,257 | $ | 13,644 | ||||||||||
Ratio of gross expenses to average net assets(3) | 2.31 | % | 1.94 | % | 1.79 | % | 2.25 | % | 2.65 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 1.25 | % | 1.25 | % | 1.25 | % | 1.25 | % | 1.25 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio
of net investment income (loss) to average net assets(4) |
1.18 | % | 1.70 | % | (0.43 | )% | (0.98 | )% | 0.73 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio Turnover Rate | 45 | % | 0 | % | 230 | % | 129 | % | 96 | % | ||||||||||
(1) | Per share amounts calculated using the average shares method, which more appropriately presents the per share data for the year. |
(2) | Total returns shown are historical in nature and assume changes in share price, reinvestment of dividends and distributions, if any, and exclude the effect of applicable sales charges and redemption fees. Total returns would have been lower had the Advisor not waived fees and reimbursed expenses. |
(3) | Represents the ratio of expenses to average net assets absent fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the Advisor. Ratio herein does not include the Funds share of the expenses of the underlying investment companies in which the Fund invests. |
(4) | Recognition of investment income (loss) by the Fund is affected by the timing and declaration of dividends by underlying investment companies in which the Fund invests. |
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PRIVACY NOTICE
Rev. April 2021
FACTS | WHAT DOES NORTHERN LIGHTS FUND TRUST DO WITH YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION? |
Why? | Financial companies choose how they share your personal information. Federal law gives consumers the right to limit some, but not all sharing. Federal law also requires us to tell you how we collect, share, and protect your personal information. Please read this notice carefully to understand what we do. |
What? | The types of personal information we collect and share depends on the product or service that you have with us. This information can include:
● Social Security number and wire transfer instructions
● account transactions and transaction history
● investment experience and purchase history
When you are no longer our customer, we continue to share your information as described in this notice. |
How? | All financial companies need to share customers personal information to run their everyday business. In the section below, we list the reasons financial companies can share their customers personal information; the reasons Northern Lights Fund Trust chooses to share; and whether you can limit this sharing. |
Reasons
we can share your personal information: |
Does
Northern Lights Fund Trust share information? |
Can you limit this sharing? |
For our everyday business purposes - such as to process your transactions, maintain your account(s), respond to court orders and legal investigations, or report to credit bureaus. | YES | NO |
For our marketing purposes - to offer our products and services to you. | NO | We dont share |
For joint marketing with other financial companies. | NO | We dont share |
For our affiliates everyday business purposes - information about your transactions and records. | NO | We dont share |
For
our affiliates everyday business purposes - information about your credit worthiness. |
NO | We dont share |
For nonaffiliates to market to you | NO | We dont share |
QUESTIONS? | Call 1-631-490-4300 |
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What we do: | |
How
does Northern Lights Fund Trust protect my |
To protect your personal information from unauthorized access and use, we use security measures that comply with federal law. These measures include computer safeguards and secured files and buildings.
Our service providers are held accountable for adhering to strict policies and procedures to prevent any misuse of your nonpublic personal information. |
How
does Northern Lights Fund Trust collect my |
We collect your personal information, for example, when you
● open an account or deposit money
● direct us to buy securities or direct us to sell your securities
● seek advice about your investments
We also collect your personal information from others, such as credit bureaus, affiliates, or other companies. |
Why cant I limit all sharing? |
Federal law gives you the right to limit only:
● sharing
for affiliates everyday business purposes – information about
● affiliates from using your information to market to you.
● sharing for nonaffiliates to market to you.
State laws and individual companies may give you additional rights to limit sharing. |
Definitions | |
Affiliates | Companies
related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and
● Northern Lights Fund Trust does not share with our affiliates. |
Nonaffiliates | Companies not related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and nonfinancial companies.
● Northern Lights Fund Trust does not share with nonaffiliates so they can market to you. |
Joint marketing | A formal agreement between nonaffiliated financial companies that together market financial products or services to you.
● Northern Lights Fund Trust doesnt jointly market. |
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ATHENA BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND
Advisor | AthenaInvest
Advisors LLC 5340 S. Quebec St., Suite 320-S Greenwood Village, CO 80111 |
Distributor | Northern
Lights Distributors, LLC Elkhorn, NE 68022-3474 |
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm |
RSM
US LLP 555 Seventeenth Street, Suite 1200 Denver, CO 80202 |
Legal
Counsel |
Thompson
Hine LLP 41 South High Street, Suite 1700 Columbus, OH 43215 |
Custodian | U.S. Bank, N.A. 60 Livingston Ave. St Paul, MN 55107-1419 |
Transfer Agent |
Ultimus
Fund Solutions, LLC Elkhorn, NE 68022-3474 |
Additional information about the Fund is included in the Funds Statement of Additional Information dated August 28, 2024. The SAI is incorporated into this Prospectus by reference (i.e., legally made a part of this Prospectus). The SAI provides more details about the Funds policies and management. Additional information about the Funds investments is available in the Funds Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders. In the Funds Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Funds performance during its last fiscal year.
To obtain a free copy of the SAI and the Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders, or other information about the Fund, or to make shareholder inquiries about the Fund, please call 1-833-653-0575 or visit www.atvfund.com. You may also write to:
ATHENA BEHAVIORAL TACTICAL FUND
c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC
P.O. Box 541150
Omaha, Nebraska 68154
or over night
4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100
Elkhorn,
Nebraska 68022-3474
Please call 1-202-551-8090 for information relating to the operation of the Public Reference Room. Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SECs Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following E-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov or by writing the Public Reference Section, Securities and Exchange Commission, Washington, D.C. 20549-1520.
Investment Company Act File # 811-21720
ATHENA
BEHAVIORAL
TACTICAL FUND
a Series of Northern Lights Fund Trust
Class I shares | ATVIX |
Class C shares | ATVCX* |
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
August 28, 2024
This Statement of Additional Information (SAI) is not a prospectus and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of the Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund (the Fund) dated August 28, 2024, the Annual Report of the Fund dated April 30, 2024, and the Semi-Annual Report of the Fund dated October 31, 2023. Copies of these documents may be obtained without charge by contacting the Funds transfer agent, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474 or by calling 1-833-653-0575. You may also obtain a Prospectus by visiting the Funds website at www.atvfund.com.
* | Class C shares are not currently offered. |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE FUND | 1 |
TYPES OF INVESTMENTS | 2 |
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS | 19 |
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS | 21 |
MANAGEMENT | 23 |
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS | 29 |
INVESTMENT ADVISORS | 29 |
THE DISTRIBUTOR | 32 |
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS | 36 |
ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE | 37 |
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER | 38 |
OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS | 38 |
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES | 41 |
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM | 41 |
PURCHASE, REDEMPTION AND PRICING OF SHARES | 41 |
TAX STATUS | 46 |
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM | 52 |
LEGAL COUNSEL | 52 |
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS | 52 |
APPENDIX A – PROXY VOTING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES | A-1 |
THE FUND
The Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund is a series of Northern Lights Fund Trust, a Delaware statutory trust organized on January 19, 2005 (the Trust). The Trust is registered as an open-end management investment company. The Trust is governed by its Board of Trustees (the Board or Trustees). The Fund may issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest. All shares of the Fund have equal rights and privileges. Each share of the Fund is entitled to one vote on all matters as to which shares are entitled to vote. In addition, each share of the Fund is entitled to participate equally with other shares (i) in dividends and distributions declared by the Fund and (ii) on liquidation to its proportionate share of the assets remaining after satisfaction of outstanding liabilities. Shares of the Fund are fully paid, non-assessable and fully transferable when issued and have no pre-emptive, conversion or exchange rights. Fractional shares have proportionately the same rights, including voting rights, as are provided for a full share.
The Fund is a diversified series of the Trust, meaning that the Fund is subject to the diversification requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the 1940 Act), which generally limit investments, as to 75% of a funds total assets, to no more than 5% in securities in a single issuer and 10% of an issuers voting securities.
The Funds investment objective, restrictions and policies are more fully described here and in the Prospectus. The Board may add classes to the Fund, start other series and offer shares of a new fund under the Trust at any time.
The Fund has two classes of shares: Class C, and Class I shares. Class C shares are currently not available for purchase. Each share class represents an interest in the same assets of the Fund, has the same rights and is identical in all material respects except that (i) each class of shares may be subject to different (or no) sales loads, (ii) each class of shares may bear different (or no) distribution fees; (iii) each class of shares may have different shareholder features, such as minimum investment amounts; (iv) certain other class-specific expenses will be borne solely by the class to which such expenses are attributable, including transfer agent fees attributable to a specific class of shares, printing and postage expenses related to preparing and distributing materials to current shareholders of a specific class, registration fees paid by a specific class of shares, the expenses of administrative personnel and services required to support the shareholders of a specific class, litigation or other legal expenses relating to a class of shares, Trustees fees or expenses paid as a result of issues relating to a specific class of shares and accounting fees and expenses relating to a specific class of shares and (v) each class has exclusive voting rights with respect to matters relating to its own distribution arrangements. The Board may classify and reclassify the shares of the Fund into additional classes of shares at a future date.
Under the Trusts Agreement and Declaration of Trust, each Trustee will continue in office until the termination of the Trust or his/her earlier death, incapacity, resignation or removal. Shareholders can remove a Trustee to the extent provided by the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. Vacancies may be filled by a majority of the remaining Trustees, except insofar as the 1940 Act may require the election by shareholders. As a result, normally no annual or regular meetings of shareholders will be held unless matters arise requiring a vote of shareholders under the Agreement and Declaration of Trust or the 1940 Act.
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TYPES OF INVESTMENTS
The investment objective of the Fund and the descriptions of the Funds principal investment strategies are set forth under Investment Objective, Principal Investment Strategies, Principal investment Related Risks in the Prospectus. The Funds investment objective is not fundamental and may be changed without the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust.
The following pages contain more detailed information about the types of instruments in which the Fund may invest, AthenaInvest Advisors LLC (the Advisor), may employ in pursuit of the Funds investment objective and a summary of related risks.
Equity Securities
Equity securities in which the Fund invests include common stocks, preferred stocks and securities convertible into common stocks, such as convertible bonds, warrants, rights and options. The value of equity securities varies in response to many factors, including the activities and financial condition of individual companies, the business market in which individual companies compete and general market and economic conditions. Equity securities fluctuate in value, often based on factors unrelated to the value of the issuer of the securities, and such fluctuations can be significant.
Common Stock
Common stock represents an equity (ownership) interest in a company, and usually possesses voting rights and earns dividends. Dividends on common stock are not fixed but are declared at the discretion of the issuer. Common stock generally represents the riskiest investment in a company. In addition, common stock generally has the greatest appreciation and depreciation potential because increases and decreases in earnings are usually reflected in a companys stock price.
Preferred Stock
The Fund may invest in preferred stock with no minimum credit rating. Preferred stock is a class of stock having a preference over common stock as to the payment of dividends and the recovery of investment should a company be liquidated, although preferred stock is usually junior to the debt securities of the issuer. Preferred stock typically does not possess voting rights and its market value may change based on changes in interest rates.
The fundamental risk of investing in common and preferred stock is the risk that the value of the stock might decrease. Stock values fluctuate in response to the activities of an individual company or in response to general market and/or economic conditions. Historically, common stocks have provided greater long-term returns and have entailed greater short-term risks than preferred stocks, fixed-income securities and money market investments. The market value of all securities, including common and preferred stocks, is based upon the markets perception of value and not necessarily the book value of an issuer or other objective measures of a companys worth.
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Convertible Securities
The Fund may invest in convertible securities with no minimum credit rating. Convertible securities include fixed income securities that may be exchanged or converted into a predetermined number of shares of the issuers underlying common stock at the option of the holder during a specified period. Convertible securities may take the form of convertible preferred stock, convertible bonds or debentures, units consisting of usable bonds and warrants or a combination of the features of several of these securities. Convertible securities are senior to common stocks in an issuers capital structure, but are usually subordinated to similar non-convertible securities. While providing a fixed-income stream (generally higher in yield than the income derivable from common stock but lower than that afforded by a similar nonconvertible security), a convertible security also gives an investor the opportunity, through its conversion feature, to participate in the capital appreciation of the issuing company depending upon a market price advance in the convertible securitys underlying common stock.
Warrants
The Fund may invest in warrants. Warrants are options to purchase common stock at a specific price (usually at a premium above the market value of the optioned common stock at issuance) valid for a specific period of time. Warrants may have a life ranging from less than one year to twenty years, or they may be perpetual. However, most warrants have expiration dates after which they are worthless. In addition, a warrant is worthless if the market price of the common stock does not exceed the warrants exercise price during the life of the warrant. Warrants have no voting rights, pay no dividends, and have no rights with respect to the assets of the corporation issuing them. The percentage increase or decrease in the market price of the warrant may tend to be greater than the percentage increase or decrease in the market price of the optioned common stock.
Publicly Traded Partnerships / Master Limited Partnerships
The Fund may invest in publicly traded partnerships, including Master Limited Partnerships. These are limited partnerships the interests in which (known as units) are traded on public exchanges, just like corporate stock. Such limited partnerships that provide an investor with a direct interest in a group of assets (generally, oil and gas properties). Publicly traded partnership units typically trade publicly, like stock, and thus may provide the investor more liquidity than ordinary limited partnerships. Publicly traded partnerships are also called master limited partnerships and public limited partnerships. A limited partnership has one or more general partners (they may be individuals, corporations, partnerships or another entity) which manage the partnership, and limited partners, which provide capital to the partnership but have no role in its management. When an investor buys units in a publicly traded partnership, he or she becomes a limited partner. Publicly traded partnerships are formed in several ways. A non-traded partnership may decide to go public. Several non-traded partnerships may roll up into a single publicly traded partnership. A corporation may spin off a group of assets or part of its business into a partnership of which it is the general partner, either to realize what it believes to be the assets full value or as an alternative to issuing debt. A corporation may fully convert to a partnership, although since 1986 the tax consequences have made this an unappealing; or, a newly formed company may operate as a publicly traded partnership from its inception.
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There are different types of risks to investing in publicly traded partnerships including regulatory risks and interest rate risks. Currently most partnerships enjoy pass through taxation of their income to partners, which avoids double taxation of earnings. If the government were to change publicly traded partnerships business tax structure, unitholders would not be able to enjoy the relatively high yields in the sector for long. In addition, publicly traded partnerships which charge government-regulated fees for transportation of oil and gas products through their pipelines are subject to unfavorable changes in government-approved rates and fees, which would affect a publicly traded partnerships revenue stream negatively. Publicly traded partnerships also carry some interest rate risks. During increases in interest rates, publicly traded partnerships may not produce decent returns to shareholders.
Depositary Receipts
The Fund may invest in sponsored and unsponsored American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which are receipts issued by an American bank or trust company evidencing ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign issuer. ADRs, in registered form, are designed for use in U.S. securities markets. Unsponsored ADRs may be created without the participation of the foreign issuer. Holders of these ADRs generally bear all the costs of the ADR facility, whereas foreign issuers typically bear certain costs in a sponsored ADR. The bank or trust company depositary of an unsponsored ADR may be under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the foreign issuer or to pass through voting rights. Many of the risks described below regarding foreign securities apply to investments in ADRs.
Foreign Securities
General. The Fund may invest in foreign securities and exchange traded funds (ETFs) and other investment companies that hold a portfolio of foreign securities. Investing in securities of foreign companies and countries involves certain considerations and risks that are not typically associated with investing in U.S. government securities and securities of domestic companies. There may be less publicly available information about a foreign issuer than a domestic one, and foreign companies are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial standards and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies. There may also be less government supervision and regulation of foreign securities exchanges, brokers and listed companies than exists in the United States. Interest and dividends paid by foreign issuers may be subject to withholding and other foreign taxes, which may decrease the net return on such investments as compared to dividends and interest paid to the Fund by domestic companies or the U.S. government. There may be the possibility of expropriations, seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits, confiscatory taxation, political, economic or social instability or diplomatic developments that could affect assets of the Fund held in foreign countries. Finally, the establishment of exchange controls or other foreign governmental laws or restrictions could adversely affect the payment of obligations.
To the extent the Funds currency exchange transactions do not fully protect the Fund against adverse changes in currency exchange rates, decreases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund will invest relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding decrease in the U.S. dollar value of the Funds assets denominated in those currencies (and possibly a corresponding increase in the amount of securities required to be liquidated to meet distribution requirements). Conversely, increases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund invests relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding increase in the U.S. dollar value
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of the Funds assets (and possibly a corresponding decrease in the amount of securities to be liquidated).
Emerging Markets Securities
The Fund may purchase securities of emerging market issuers and ETFs and closed end funds that invest in emerging market securities. Investing in emerging market securities imposes risks different from, or greater than, risks of investing in foreign developed countries. These risks include: smaller market capitalization of securities markets, which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital. In addition, foreign investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales; future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization, or creation of government monopolies. The currencies of emerging market countries may experience significant declines against the U.S. dollar, and devaluation may occur subsequent to investments in these currencies by the Fund. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had, and may continue to have, negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.
Additional risks of emerging markets securities may include: greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability; more substantial governmental involvement in the economy; less governmental supervision and regulation; unavailability of currency hedging techniques; companies that are newly organized and small; differences in auditing and financial reporting standards, which may result in unavailability of material information about issuers; and less developed legal systems. In addition, emerging securities markets may have different clearance and settlement procedures, which may be unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions or otherwise make it difficult to engage in such transactions. Settlement problems may cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities, hold a portion of its assets in cash pending investment, or be delayed in disposing of a portfolio security. Such a delay could result in possible liability to a purchaser of the security.
Certificates of Deposit and Bankers Acceptances
The Fund may invest in certificates of deposit and bankers acceptances, which are considered to be short-term money market instruments.
Certificates of deposit are receipts issued by a depository institution in exchange for the deposit of funds. The issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the bearer of the receipt on the date specified on the certificate. The certificate usually can be traded in the secondary market prior to maturity. Bankers acceptances typically arise from short-term credit arrangements designed to enable businesses to obtain funds to finance commercial transactions. Generally, an acceptance is a time draft drawn on a bank by an exporter or an importer to obtain a stated amount of funds to pay for specific merchandise. The draft is then accepted by a bank that, in effect, unconditionally guarantees to pay the face value of the instrument on its maturity date. The acceptance may then be held by the accepting bank as an earning asset or it may be sold in the secondary market at the going rate of discount for a specific maturity. Although maturities for acceptances can be as long as 270 days, most acceptances have maturities of six months or less.
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Commercial Paper
The Fund may purchase commercial paper. Commercial paper consists of short-term (usually from 1 to 270 days) unsecured promissory notes issued by corporations in order to finance their current operations. It may be secured by letters of credit, a surety bond or other forms of collateral. Commercial paper is usually repaid at maturity by the issuer from the proceeds of the issuance of new commercial paper. As a result, investment in commercial paper is subject to the risk the issuer cannot issue enough new commercial paper to satisfy its outstanding commercial paper, also known as rollover risk. Commercial paper may become illiquid or may suffer from reduced liquidity in certain circumstances. Like all fixed income securities, commercial paper prices are susceptible to fluctuations in interest rates. If interest rates rise, commercial paper prices will decline. The short-term nature of a commercial paper investment makes it less susceptible to interest rate risk than many other fixed income securities because interest rate risk typically increases as maturity lengths increase. Commercial paper tends to yield smaller returns than longer-term corporate debt because securities with shorter maturities typically have lower effective yields than those with longer maturities. As with all fixed income securities, there is a chance that the issuer will default on its commercial paper obligation.
Information on Time Deposits and Variable Rate Notes
The Fund may invest in fixed time deposits, whether or not subject to withdrawal penalties.
The commercial paper obligations which the Fund may buy are unsecured and may include variable rate notes. The nature and terms of a variable rate note (i.e., a Master Note) permit the Fund to invest fluctuating amounts at varying rates of interest pursuant to a direct arrangement between the Fund as Lender, and the issuer, as borrower. It permits daily changes in the amounts borrowed. The Fund has the right at any time to increase, up to the full amount stated in the note agreement, or to decrease the amount outstanding under the note. The issuer may prepay at any time and without penalty any part of or the full amount of the note. The note may or may not be backed by one or more bank letters of credit. Because these notes are direct lending arrangements between the Fund and the issuer, it is not generally contemplated that they will be traded; moreover, there is currently no secondary market for them. Except as specifically provided in the Prospectus, there is no limitation on the type of issuer from whom these notes may be purchased; however, in connection with such purchase and on an ongoing basis, the Advisor will consider the earning power, cash flow and other liquidity ratios of the issuer, and its ability to pay principal and interest on demand, including a situation in which all holders of such notes made demand simultaneously. Variable rate notes are subject to the Funds investment restriction on illiquid securities unless such notes can be put back to the issuer on demand within seven days.
Insured Bank Obligations
The Fund may invest in insured bank obligations. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insures the deposits of federally insured banks and savings and loan associations (collectively referred to as banks) up to $250,000. The Fund may purchase bank obligations which are fully insured as to principal by the FDIC. Currently, to remain fully insured as to principal, these investments must be limited to $250,000 per bank; if the principal amount and accrued interest together exceed $250,000, the excess principal and accrued interest will not be insured. Insured bank obligations may have limited marketability.
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Securities of Other Investment Companies
The Funds investments in ETFs, mutual funds and closed-end funds involve certain additional expenses and certain tax results, which would not be present in a direct investment in the underlying fund. Due to legal limitations, the Fund will be prevented from: 1) purchasing more than 3% of an investment companys (including ETFs) outstanding shares; 2) investing more than 5% of the Funds assets in any single such investment company, and 3) investing more than 10% of the Funds assets in investment companies overall; unless: (i) the underlying investment company and/or the Fund has received an order for exemptive relief from such limitations from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); and (ii) the underlying investment company and the Fund take appropriate steps to comply with any conditions in such order. In the alternative, the Fund may rely on Rule 12d1-3, which allows unaffiliated mutual funds to exceed the 5% limitation and the 10% limitation, provided the aggregate sales loads any investor pays (i.e., the combined distribution expenses of both the acquiring fund and the acquired fund) does not exceed the limits on sales loads established by FINRA for funds of funds. In addition to ETFs, the Fund may invest in other investment companies such as open-end mutual funds or exchange-traded closed-end funds, within the limitations described above.
Closed-End Investment Companies
The Fund may invest its assets in closed-end investment companies (or closed-end funds), subject to the investment restrictions set forth above. Shares of closed-end funds are typically offered to the public in a one-time initial public offering by a group of underwriters who retain a spread or underwriting commission of between 4% or 6% of the initial public offering price. Such securities are then listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange, the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System (commonly known as NASDAQ) and, in some cases, may be traded in other over-the-counter markets. Because the shares of closed-end funds cannot be redeemed upon demand to the issuer like the shares of an open-end investment company (such as the Fund), investors seek to buy and sell shares of closed-end funds in the secondary market.
The Fund generally will purchase shares of closed-end funds only in the secondary market. The Fund will incur normal brokerage costs on such purchases similar to the expenses the Fund would incur for the purchase of securities of any other type of issuer in the secondary market. The Fund may, however, also purchase securities of a closed-end fund in an initial public offering when, in the opinion of Advisor, based on a consideration of the nature of the closed-end funds proposed investments, the prevailing market conditions and the level of demand for such securities, they represent an attractive opportunity for growth of capital. The initial offering price typically will include a dealer spread, which may be higher than the applicable brokerage cost if the Fund purchased such securities in the secondary market.
The shares of many closed-end funds, after their initial public offering, frequently trade at a price per share, which is less than the net asset value per share, the difference representing the market discount of such shares. This market discount may be due in part to the investment objective of long-term appreciation, which is sought by many closed-end funds, as well as to the fact that the shares of closed-end funds are not redeemable by the holder upon demand to the issuer at the next determined net asset value but rather are subject to the principles of supply and demand in the secondary market. A relative lack of secondary market purchasers of closed-end fund shares also may contribute to such shares trading at a discount to their net asset value (NAV).
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The Fund may invest in shares of closed-end funds that are trading at a discount to net asset value or at a premium to net asset value. There can be no assurance that the market discount on shares of any closed-end fund purchased by the Fund will ever decrease. In fact, it is possible that this market discount may increase and the Fund may suffer realized or unrealized capital losses due to further decline in the market price of the securities of such closed-end funds, thereby adversely affecting the net asset value of the Funds shares. Similarly, there can be no assurance that any shares of a closed-end fund purchased by the Fund at a premium will continue to trade at a premium or that the premium will not decrease subsequent to a purchase of such shares by the Fund.
Closed-end funds may issue senior securities (including preferred stock and debt obligations) for the purpose of leveraging the closed-end funds common shares in an attempt to enhance the current return to such closed-end funds common shareholders. The Funds investment in the common shares of closed-end funds that are financially leveraged may create an opportunity for greater total return on its investment, but at the same time may be expected to exhibit more volatility in market price and net asset value than an investment in shares of investment companies without a leveraged capital structure.
Some closed-end funds are business development companies (BDCs). BDCs may carry risks similar to those of a private equity or venture capital fund. BDCs are not redeemable at the option of the shareholder and they may trade in the market at a discount to their net asset value. A BDC is a form of Investment Company that is required to invest at least 70% of its total assets in securities (typically debt) of private companies, thinly traded U.S. public companies, or short-term high quality debt securities. BDCs usually trade at a discount to their NAV because they invest in unlisted securities and have limited access to capital markets. BDCs may leverage their portfolios through borrowings or the issuance of preferred stock. While leverage often serves to increase the yield of a BDC, this leverage also subjects a BDC to increased risks, including the likelihood of increased volatility and the possibility that a BDCs common share income will fall if the dividend rate of the preferred shares or the interest rate on any borrowings rises.
Open-end Investment Companies
The Fund and any affiliated persons, as defined by the 1940 Act, may purchase in the aggregate only up to 3% of the total outstanding securities of any underlying fund. Accordingly, when affiliated persons hold shares of any of the underlying fund, the Funds ability to invest fully in shares of those funds is restricted, and the Advisor must then, in some instances, select alternative investments that would not have been its first preference. The 1940 Act also provides that an underlying fund whose shares are purchased by the Fund will be obligated to redeem shares held by the Fund only in an amount up to 1% of the underlying funds outstanding securities during any period of less than 30 days. Shares held by the Fund in excess of 1% of an underlying funds outstanding securities therefore, will be considered not readily marketable securities, which, together with other such securities, may not exceed 15% of the Funds total assets.
Under certain circumstances an underlying fund may determine to make payment of a redemption by the Fund wholly or partly by a distribution in kind of securities from its portfolio, in lieu of cash, in conformity with the rules of the SEC. In such cases, the Fund may hold securities distributed by an underlying fund until the Advisor determines that it is appropriate to dispose of such securities.
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Investment decisions by the investment advisers of the underlying fund(s) are made independently of the Fund or the Advisor. Therefore, the investment Advisor of one underlying fund may be purchasing shares of the same issuer whose shares are being sold by the investment adviser of another such fund. The result would be an indirect expense to the Fund without accomplishing any investment purpose.
Exchange Traded Funds
ETFs are generally passive funds that track their related index and have the flexibility of trading like a security. They are managed by professionals and provide the investor with diversification, cost and tax efficiency, liquidity, marginability, are useful for hedging, have the ability to go long and short, and some provide quarterly dividends. Additionally, some ETFs are unit investment trusts. ETFs typically have two markets. The primary market is where institutions swap creation units in block-multiples of, for example, 50,000 shares for in-kind securities and cash in the form of dividends. The secondary market is where individual investors can trade as little as a single share during trading hours on the exchange. This is different from open-ended mutual funds that are traded after hours once the NAV is calculated. ETFs share many similar risks with open-end and closed-end funds.
United States Government Obligations
These consist of various types of marketable securities issued by the United States Treasury, i.e., bills, notes and bonds. Such securities are direct obligations of the United States government and differ mainly in the length of their maturity. Treasury bills, the most frequently issued marketable government security, have a maturity of up to one year and are issued on a discount basis.
United States Government Agencies
These consist of debt securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the United States government, including the various types of instruments currently outstanding or which may be offered in the future. Agencies include, among others, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), Farmers Home Administration, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Maritime Administration, and General Services Administration. Instrumentalities include, for example, each of the Federal Home Loan Banks, the National Bank for Cooperatives, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), the Farm Credit Banks, the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), and the United States Postal Service. These securities are either: (i) backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government (e.g., United States Treasury Bills); (ii) guaranteed by the United States Treasury (e.g., Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities); (iii) supported by the issuing agencys or instrumentalitys right to borrow from the United States Treasury (e.g., Fannie Mae Discount Notes); or (iv) supported only by the issuing agencys or instrumentalitys own credit (e.g., Tennessee Valley Association).
Government-related guarantors (i.e., not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government) include Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored corporation owned entirely by private stockholders. It is subject to general regulation by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Fannie Mae purchases conventional (i.e., not insured or guaranteed by any government agency) residential mortgages from a list of approved seller/servicers which include state and federally chartered savings and loan associations, mutual savings banks, commercial banks and credit unions and mortgage bankers. Pass-through securities issued by
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Fannie Mae are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by Fannie Mae but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government.
Freddie Mac was created by Congress in 1970 for the purpose of increasing the availability of mortgage credit for residential housing. It is a government-sponsored corporation formerly owned by the twelve Federal Home Loan Banks and now owned entirely by private stockholders. Freddie Mac issues Participation Certificates (PCs), which represent interests in conventional mortgages from Freddie Macs national portfolio. Freddie Mac guarantees the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal, but PCs are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. Commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers also create pass-through pools of conventional residential mortgage loans. Such issuers may, in addition, be the originators and/or servicers of the underlying mortgage loans as well as the guarantors of the mortgage-related securities. Pools created by such nongovernmental issuers generally offer a higher rate of interest than government and government-related pools because there are no direct or indirect government or agency guarantees of payments in the former pools. However, timely payment of interest and principal of these pools may be supported by various forms of insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title, pool and hazard insurance and letters of credit. The insurance and guarantees are issued by governmental entities, private insurers and the mortgage poolers.
Securities Options
The Fund may purchase and write (i.e., sell) put and call options. Such options may relate to particular securities or stock indices, and may or may not be listed on a domestic or foreign securities exchange and may or may not be issued by the Options Clearing Corporation. Options trading is a highly specialized activity that entails greater than ordinary investment risk. Options may be more volatile than the underlying instruments, and therefore, on a percentage basis, an investment in options may be subject to greater fluctuation than an investment in the underlying instruments themselves.
A call option for a particular security gives the purchaser of the option the right to buy, and the writer (seller) the obligation to sell, the underlying security at the stated exercise price at any time prior to the expiration of the option, regardless of the market price of the security. The premium paid to the writer is in consideration for undertaking the obligation under the option contract. A put option for a particular security gives the purchaser the right to sell the security at the stated exercise price at any time prior to the expiration date of the option, regardless of the market price of the security.
Stock index options are put options and call options on various stock indices. In most respects, they are identical to listed options on common stocks. The primary difference between stock options and index options occurs when index options are exercised. In the case of stock options, the underlying security, common stock, is delivered. However, upon the exercise of an index option, settlement does not occur by delivery of the securities comprising the index. The option holder who exercises the index option receives an amount of cash if the closing level of the stock index upon which the option is based is greater than, in the case of a call, or less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price of the option. This amount of cash is equal to the difference between the closing price of the stock index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple. A stock index fluctuates with changes in the market value of the stocks included in the index. For example, some stock index options are based on a broad market index, such as the Standard & Poors 500® Index or the Value Line Composite Index or a narrower market index, such as the
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Standard & Poors 100®. Indices may also be based on an industry or market segment, such as the NYSE Area Oil and Gas Index or the Computer and Business Equipment Index. Options on stock indices are currently traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the NASDAQ PHLX.
The Funds obligation to sell an instrument subject to a call option written by it, or to purchase an instrument subject to a put option written by it, may be terminated prior to the expiration date of the option by the Funds execution of a closing purchase transaction, which is effected by purchasing on an exchange an option of the same series (i.e., same underlying instrument, exercise price and expiration date) as the option previously written. A closing purchase transaction will ordinarily be effected to realize a profit on an outstanding option, to prevent an underlying instrument from being called, to permit the sale of the underlying instrument or to permit the writing of a new option containing different terms on such underlying instrument. The cost of such a liquidation purchase plus transactions costs may be greater than the premium received upon the original option, in which event the Fund will have paid a loss in the transaction. There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for any particular option. An option writer unable to effect a closing purchase transaction will not be able to sell the underlying instrument or liquidate the assets held in a segregated account, as described below, until the option expires or the optioned instrument is delivered upon exercise. In such circumstances, the writer will be subject to the risk of market decline or appreciation in the instrument during such period.
If an option purchased by the Fund expires unexercised, the Fund realizes a loss equal to the premium paid. If the Fund enters into a closing sale transaction on an option purchased by it, the Fund will realize a gain if the premium received by the Fund on the closing transaction is more than the premium paid to purchase the option, or a loss if it is less. If an option written by the Fund expires on the stipulated expiration date or if the Fund enters into a closing purchase transaction, it will realize a gain (or loss if the cost of a closing purchase transaction exceeds the net premium received when the option is sold). If an option written by the Fund is exercised, the proceeds of the sale will be increased by the net premium originally received and the Fund will realize a gain or loss.
Certain Risks Regarding Options. There are several risks associated with transactions in options. For example, there are significant differences between the securities and options markets that could result in an imperfect correlation between these markets, causing a given transaction not to achieve its objectives. In addition, a liquid secondary market for particular options, whether traded over-the-counter or on an exchange, may be absent for reasons which include the following: there may be insufficient trading interest in certain options; restrictions may be imposed by an exchange on opening transactions or closing transactions or both; trading halts, suspensions or other restrictions may be imposed with respect to particular classes or series of options or underlying securities or currencies; unusual or unforeseen circumstances may interrupt normal operations on an exchange; the facilities of an exchange or the Options Clearing Corporation may not at all times be adequate to handle current trading value; or one or more exchanges could, for economic or other reasons, decide or be compelled at some future date to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series of options), in which event the secondary market on that exchange (or in that class or series of options) would cease to exist, although outstanding options that had been issued by the Options Clearing Corporation as a result of trades on that exchange would continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms.
Successful use by the Fund of options on stock indices will be subject to the ability of the Advisor to correctly predict movements in the directions of the stock market. This requires different
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skills and techniques than predicting changes in the prices of individual securities. In addition, a funds ability to effectively hedge all or a portion of the securities in its portfolio, in anticipation of or during a market decline, through transactions in put options on stock indices, depends on the degree to which price movements in the underlying index correlate with the price movements of the securities held by the Fund. Inasmuch as the Funds securities will not duplicate the components of an index, the correlation will not be perfect. Consequently, the Fund bears the risk that the prices of its securities being hedged will not move in the same amount as the prices of its put options on the stock indices. It is also possible that there may be a negative correlation between the index and the Funds securities that would result in a loss on both such securities and the options on stock indices acquired by the Fund.
The hours of trading for options may not conform to the hours during which the underlying securities are traded. To the extent that the options markets close before the markets for the underlying securities, significant price and rate movements can take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected in the options markets. The purchase of options is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The purchase of stock index options involves the risk that the premium and transaction costs paid by the Fund in purchasing an option will be lost as a result of unanticipated movements in prices of the securities comprising the stock index on which the option is based.
There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market on an options exchange will exist for any particular option, or at any particular time, and for some options no secondary market on an exchange or elsewhere may exist. If the Fund is unable to close out a call option on securities that it has written before the option is exercised, the Fund may be required to purchase the optioned securities in order to satisfy its obligation under the option to deliver such securities. If the Fund is unable to effect a closing sale transaction with respect to options on securities that it has purchased, it would have to exercise the option in order to realize any profit and would incur transaction costs upon the purchase and sale of the underlying securities.
Cover for Options Positions. Transactions using options (other than options that the Fund has purchased) expose the Fund to an obligation to another party. The Fund will not enter into any such transactions unless it owns either (i) an offsetting (covered) position in securities or other options or (ii) cash or liquid securities with a value sufficient at all times to cover its potential obligations not covered as provided in (i) above.
Options on Futures Contracts
The Fund may purchase and sell options on the same types of futures in which it may invest. Options on futures are similar to options on underlying instruments except that options on futures give the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a position in a futures contract (a long position if the option is a call and a short position if the option is a put), rather than to purchase or sell the futures contract, at a specified exercise price at any time during the period of the option. Upon exercise of the option, the delivery of the futures position by the writer of the option to the holder of the option will be accompanied by the delivery of the accumulated balance in the writers futures margin account which represents the amount by which the market price of the futures contract, at exercise, exceeds (in the case of a call) or is less than (in the case of a put) the exercise price of the option on the futures contract. Purchasers of options who fail to exercise their options prior to the exercise date suffer a loss of the premium paid.
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Real Estate Investment Trusts
The Fund may invest in securities of real estate investment trusts (REITs). REITs are publicly traded corporations or trusts that specialize in acquiring, holding and managing residential, commercial or industrial real estate. A REIT is not taxed at the entity level on income distributed to its shareholders or unitholders if it distributes to shareholders or unitholders at least 95% of its taxable income for each taxable year and complies with regulatory requirements relating to its organization, ownership, assets and income.
REITs generally can be classified as Equity REITs Mortgage REITs and Hybrid REITs. An Equity REIT invests the majority of its assets directly in real property and derives its income primarily from rents and from capital gains on real estate appreciation which are realized through property sales. A Mortgage REIT invests the majority of its assets in real estate mortgage loans and services its income primarily from interest payments. A Hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of an Equity REIT and a Mortgage REIT. The Fund can invest in all three kinds of REITs.
Investments in the real estate industry involve particular risks. The real estate industry has been subject to substantial fluctuations and declines on a local, regional and national basis in the past and may continue to be in the future. Real property values and income from real property may decline due to general and local economic conditions, overbuilding and increased competition, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, casualty or condemnation losses, regulatory limitations on rents, changes in neighborhoods and in demographics, increases in market interest rates, or other factors. Factors such as these may adversely affect companies that own and operate real estate directly, companies that lend to such companies, and companies that service the real estate industry.
Direct investments in REITs also involve risks. Equity REITs will be affected by changes in the values of and income from the properties they own, while Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. In addition, REITs are dependent on specialized management skills and on their ability to generate cash flow for operating purposes and to make distributions to shareholders or unitholders. REITs may have limited diversification and are subject to risks associated with obtaining financing for real property, as well as to the risk of self-liquidation. REITs also can be adversely affected by their failure to qualify for tax-free pass-through treatment of their income under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or their failure to maintain an exemption from registration under the 1940 Act. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Fund, a shareholder bears not only a proportionate share of the expenses of the Fund, but also may indirectly bear similar expenses of some of the REITs in which it invests.
Dealer Options
The Fund may engage in transactions involving dealer options as well as exchange-traded options. Certain additional risks are specific to dealer options. While the Fund might look to a clearing corporation to exercise exchange-traded options, if the Fund were to purchase a dealer option it would need to rely on the dealer from which it purchased the option to perform if the option were exercised. Failure by the dealer to do so would result in the loss of the premium paid by the Fund as well as loss of the expected benefit of the transaction.
Exchange-traded options generally have a continuous liquid market while dealer options may not. Consequently, the Fund may generally be able to realize the value of a dealer option it has
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purchased only by exercising or reselling the option to the dealer who issued it. Similarly, when the Fund writes a dealer option, it may generally be able to close out the option prior to its expiration only by entering into a closing purchase transaction with the dealer to whom the Fund originally wrote the option. While the Fund will seek to enter into dealer options only with dealers who will agree to and which are expected to be capable of entering into closing transactions with the Fund, there can be no assurance that the Fund will at any time be able to liquidate a dealer option at a favorable price at any time prior to expiration. Unless the Fund, as a covered dealer call option writer, is able to effect a closing purchase transaction, it will not be able to liquidate securities (or other assets) used as cover until the option expires or is exercised. In the event of insolvency of the other party, the Fund may be unable to liquidate a dealer option. With respect to options written by the Fund, the inability to enter into a closing transaction may result in material losses to the Fund. For example, because the Fund must maintain a secured position with respect to any call option on a security it writes, the Fund may not sell the assets, which it has segregated to secure the position while it is obligated under the option. This requirement may impair the Funds ability to sell portfolio securities at a time when such sale might be advantageous.
The Staff of the SEC has taken the position that purchased dealer options are illiquid securities. The Fund may treat the cover used for written dealer options as liquid if the dealer agrees that the Fund may repurchase the dealer option it has written for a maximum price to be calculated by a predetermined formula. In such cases, the dealer option would be considered illiquid only to the extent the maximum purchase price under the formula exceeds the intrinsic value of the option. Accordingly, the Fund will treat dealer options as subject to the Funds limitation on illiquid securities. If the SEC changes its position on the liquidity of dealer options, the Fund will change its treatment of such instruments accordingly.
Spread Transactions
The Fund may purchase covered spread options from securities dealers. These covered spread options are not presently exchange-listed or exchange-traded. The purchase of a spread option gives the Fund the right to put securities that it owns at a fixed dollar spread or fixed yield spread in relationship to another security that the Fund does not own, but which is used as a benchmark. The risk to the Fund, in addition to the risks of dealer options described above, is the cost of the premium paid as well as any transaction costs. The purchase of spread options will be used to protect the Fund against adverse changes in prevailing credit quality spreads, i.e., the yield spread between high quality and lower quality securities. This protection is provided only during the life of the spread options.
Repurchase Agreements
The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements. In a repurchase agreement, an investor (such as the Fund) purchases a security (known as the underlying security) from a securities dealer or bank. Any such dealer or bank must be deemed creditworthy by the Advisor. At that time, the bank or securities dealer agrees to repurchase the underlying security at a mutually agreed upon price on a designated future date. The repurchase price may be higher than the purchase price, the difference being income to the Fund, or the purchase and repurchase prices may be the same, with interest at an agreed upon rate due to the Fund on repurchase. In either case, the income to the Fund generally will be unrelated to the interest rate on the underlying securities. Repurchase agreements must be fully collateralized, in that the market value of the underlying securities (including accrued interest)
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must at all times be equal to or greater than the repurchase price. Therefore, a repurchase agreement can be considered a loan collateralized by the underlying securities.
Repurchase agreements are generally for a short period of time, often less than a week, and will generally be used by the Fund to invest excess cash or as part of a temporary defensive strategy. Repurchase agreements that do not provide for payment within seven days will be treated as illiquid securities. In the event of a bankruptcy or other default by the seller of a repurchase agreement, the Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying security and losses. These losses could result from: (a) possible decline in the value of the underlying security while the Fund is seeking to enforce its rights under the repurchase agreement; (b) possible reduced levels of income or lack of access to income during this period; and (c) expenses of enforcing its rights.
Futures Contracts
A futures contract provides for the future sale by one party and purchase by another party of a specified amount of a specific financial instrument (e.g., units of a stock index) for a specified price, date, time and place designated at the time the contract is made. Brokerage fees are paid when a futures contract is bought or sold and margin deposits must be maintained. Entering into a contract to buy is commonly referred to as buying or purchasing a contract or holding a long position. Entering into a contract to sell is commonly referred to as selling a contract or holding a short position.
Unlike when the Fund purchases or sells a security, no price would be paid or received by the Fund upon the purchase or sale of a futures contract. Upon entering into a futures contract, and to maintain the Funds open positions in futures contracts, the Fund would be required to deposit with its custodian or futures broker in a segregated account in the name of the futures broker an amount of cash, U.S. government securities, suitable money market instruments, or other liquid securities, known as initial margin. The margin required for a particular futures contract is set by the exchange on which the contract is traded, and may be significantly modified from time to time by the exchange during the term of the contract. Futures contracts are customarily purchased and sold on margins that may range upward from less than 5% of the value of the contract being traded.
If the price of an open futures contract changes (by increase in underlying instrument or index in the case of a sale or by decrease in the case of a purchase) so that the loss on the futures contract reaches a point at which the margin on deposit does not satisfy margin requirements, the broker will require an increase in the margin. However, if the value of a position increases because of favorable price changes in the futures contract so that the margin deposit exceeds the required margin, the broker will pay the excess to the Fund.
These subsequent payments, called variation margin, to and from the futures broker, are made on a daily basis as the price of the underlying assets fluctuate making the long and short positions in the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as marking to the market. The Fund expects to earn interest income on its margin deposits.
Although certain futures contracts, by their terms, require actual future delivery of and payment for the underlying instruments, in practice most futures contracts are usually closed out before the delivery date. Closing out an open futures contract purchase or sale is effected by entering into an offsetting futures contract sale or purchase, respectively, for the same aggregate amount of the identical underlying instrument or index and the same delivery date. If the offsetting purchase price is less than the original sale price, the Fund realizes a gain; if it is more, the Fund realizes a loss. Conversely, if the offsetting sale price is more than the original purchase price, the Fund realizes a
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gain; if it is less, the Fund realizes a loss. The transaction costs must also be included in these calculations. There can be no assurance, however, that the Fund will be able to enter into an offsetting transaction with respect to a particular futures contract at a particular time. If the Fund is not able to enter into an offsetting transaction, the Fund will continue to be required to maintain the margin deposits on the futures contract.
For example, one contract in the Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index future is a contract to buy 25 pounds sterling multiplied by the level of the UK Financial Times 100 Share Index on a given future date. Settlement of a stock index futures contract may or may not be in the underlying instrument or index. If not in the underlying instrument or index, then settlement will be made in cash, equivalent over time to the difference between the contract price and the actual price of the underlying asset at the time the stock index futures contract expires.
Regulation as a Commodity Pool Operator
The Advisor, on behalf of the Fund, has filed with the National Futures Association, a notice claiming an exclusion from the definition of the term commodity pool operator under the Commodity Exchange Act, as amended, and the rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission promulgated thereunder, with respect to the Funds operation. Accordingly, the Advisor is not subject to registration or regulation as a commodity pool operator with respect to the Fund.
When-Issued, Forward Commitments and Delayed Settlements
The Fund may purchase and sell securities on a when-issued, forward commitment or delayed settlement basis. In this event, the Custodian (as defined under the section entitled Custodian) will segregate liquid assets equal to the amount of the commitment in a separate account. Normally, the Custodian will set aside portfolio securities to satisfy a purchase commitment. In such a case, the Fund may be required subsequently to segregate additional assets in order to assure that the value of the account remains equal to the amount of the Funds commitment. It may be expected that the Funds net assets will fluctuate to a greater degree when it sets aside portfolio securities to cover such purchase commitments than when it sets aside cash.
The Fund does not intend to engage in these transactions for speculative purposes but only in furtherance of its investment objectives.
The Fund will purchase securities on a when-issued, forward commitment or delayed settlement basis only with the intention of completing the transaction. If deemed advisable as a matter of investment strategy, however, the Fund may dispose of or renegotiate a commitment after it is entered into, and may sell securities it has committed to purchase before those securities are delivered to the Fund on the settlement date. In these cases, the Fund may realize a taxable capital gain or loss. When the Fund engages in when-issued, forward commitment and delayed settlement transactions, it relies on the other party to consummate the trade. Failure of such party to do so may result in the Fund incurring a loss or missing an opportunity to obtain a price credited to be advantageous.
The market value of the securities underlying a when-issued purchase, forward commitment to purchase securities, or a delayed settlement and any subsequent fluctuations in their market value is taken into account when determining the market value of the Fund starting on the day the Fund agrees to purchase the securities. The Fund does not earn interest on the securities it has committed to purchase until it has paid for and delivered on the settlement date.
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Illiquid and Restricted Securities
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. Illiquid securities include securities subject to contractual or legal restrictions on resale (e.g., because they have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act)) and securities that are otherwise not readily marketable (e.g., because trading in the security is suspended or because market makers do not exist or will not entertain bids or offers). Securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act are referred to as private placements or restricted securities and are purchased directly from the issuer or in the secondary market. Foreign securities that are freely tradable in their principal markets are not considered to be illiquid.
Restricted and other illiquid securities may be subject to the potential for delays on resale and uncertainty in valuation. The Fund might be unable to dispose of illiquid securities promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty in satisfying redemption requests from shareholders. The Fund might have to register restricted securities in order to dispose of them, resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of securities.
A large institutional market exists for certain securities that are not registered under the Securities Act, including foreign securities. The fact that there are contractual or legal restrictions on resale to the general public or to certain institutions may not be indicative of the liquidity of such investments. Rule 144A under the Securities Act allows such a broader institutional trading market for securities otherwise subject to restrictions on resale to the general public. Rule 144A establishes a safe harbor from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for resale of certain securities to qualified institutional buyers. Rule 144A has produced enhanced liquidity for many restricted securities, and market liquidity for such securities may continue to expand as a result of this regulation and the consequent existence of the PORTAL system, which is an automated system for the trading, clearance and settlement of unregistered securities of domestic and foreign issuers sponsored by NASDAQ.
Under guidelines adopted by the Board, a Advisor may determine that particular Rule 144A securities, and commercial paper issued in reliance on the private placement exemption from registration afforded by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act, are liquid even though they are not registered. A determination of whether such a security is liquid or not is a question of fact. In making this determination, an Advisor will consider, as it deems appropriate under the circumstances and among other factors: (1) the frequency of trades and quotes for the security; (2) the number of dealers willing to purchase or sell the security; (3) the number of other potential purchasers of the security; (4) dealer undertakings to make a market in the security; (5) the nature of the security (e.g., debt or equity, date of maturity, terms of dividend or interest payments, and other material terms) and the nature of the marketplace trades (e.g., the time needed to dispose of the security, the method of soliciting offers, and the mechanics of transfer); and (6) the rating of the security and the financial condition and prospects of the issuer. In the case of commercial paper, the Advisor will also determine that the paper (1) is not traded flat or in default as to principal and interest, and (2) is rated in one of the two highest rating categories by at least two National Statistical Rating Organizations (NRSROs) or, if only one NRSRO rates the security, by that NRSRO, or, if the security is unrated, the Advisor determines that it is of equivalent quality.
Rule 144A securities and Section 4(a)(2) commercial paper that have been deemed liquid as described above will continue to be monitored by the Advisor to determine if the security is no longer liquid as the result of changed conditions. Investing in Rule 144A securities or Section 4(a)(2)
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commercial paper could have the effect of increasing the amount of the Funds assets invested in illiquid securities if institutional buyers are unwilling to purchase such securities.
Lending Portfolio Securities
For the purpose of achieving income, the Fund may lend its portfolio securities, provided (1) the loan is secured continuously by collateral consisting of U.S. Government securities or cash or cash equivalents (cash, U.S. Government securities, negotiable certificates of deposit, bankers acceptances or letters of credit) maintained on a daily mark-to-market basis in an amount at least equal to the current market value of the securities loaned, (2) the Fund may at any time call the loan and obtain the return of securities loaned, (3) the Fund will receive any interest or dividends received on the loaned securities, and (4) the aggregate value of the securities loaned will not at any time exceed one-third of the total assets of the Fund.
Short Sales
The Fund may sell securities short as an outright investment strategy and to offset potential declines in long positions in similar securities. A short sale is a transaction in which the Fund sells a security it does not own or have the right to acquire (or that it owns but does not wish to deliver) in anticipation that the market price of that security will decline.
When the Fund makes a short sale, the broker-dealer through which the short sale is made must borrow the security sold short and deliver it to the party purchasing the security. The Fund is required to make a margin deposit in connection with such short sales; the Fund may have to pay a fee to borrow particular securities and will often be obligated to pay over any dividends and accrued interest on borrowed securities.
If the price of the security sold short increases between the time of the short sale and the time the Fund covers its short position, the Fund will incur a loss; conversely, if the price declines, the Fund will realize a capital gain. Any gain will be decreased, and any loss increased, by the transaction costs described above. The successful use of short selling may be adversely affected by imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the security sold short and the securities being hedged.
To the extent the Fund sells securities short, it will provide collateral to the broker-dealer and (except in the case of short sales against the box) will maintain additional asset coverage in the form of cash, U.S. government securities or other liquid securities with its custodian in an amount at least equal to the difference between the current market value of the securities sold short and any amounts required to be deposited as collateral with the selling broker (not including the proceeds of the short sale). The Fund does not intend to enter into short sales (other than short sales against the box) if immediately after such sales the aggregate of the value of all collateral exceeds 50% of the value of the Funds net assets. This percentage may be varied by action of the Board. A short sale is against the box to the extent the Fund contemporaneously owns or has the right to obtain at no added cost, securities identical to those sold short.
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INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS
The Fund has adopted the following investment restrictions that may not be changed without approval by a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund which, as used in this SAI, means the vote of the lesser of (a) 67% or more of the shares of the Fund represented at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund are present or represented by proxy, or (b) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. The Fund may not:
1. Issue senior securities. This limitation is not applicable to activities that may be deemed to involve the issuance or sale of a senior security by the Fund, provided that the Funds engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by the 1940 Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or interpretations of the SEC or its staff;
2. Borrow money, except (a) from a bank, provided that immediately after such borrowing there is an asset coverage of 300% for all borrowings of the Fund; or (b) from a bank or other persons for temporary purposes only, provided that such temporary borrowings are in an amount not exceeding 5% of the Funds total assets at the time when the borrowing is made. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from entering into reverse repurchase transactions, provided that the Fund has an asset coverage of 300% for all borrowings and repurchase commitments of the Fund pursuant to reverse repurchase transactions;
3. Purchase securities on margin, participate on a joint or joint and several basis in any securities trading account, or underwrite securities. (Does not preclude the Fund from obtaining such short-term credit as may be necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of its portfolio securities or arrangements with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, or short sales; and except to the extent that the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933, by virtue of disposing of portfolio securities);
4. Purchase or sell real estate or interests in real estate. This limitation is not applicable to investments in marketable securities that are secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from investing in mortgage-related securities or investing in companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion of their assets in real estate (including real estate investment trusts (REITS));
5. Invest 25% or more of the market value of its total assets in the securities of companies engaged in any one industry. (Does not apply to investment in the securities of the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities.);
6. Purchase or sell commodities (unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments or through commodity futures contracts), except that the Fund may purchase and sell futures contracts and options to the full extent permitted under the 1940 Act, sell foreign currency contracts in accordance with any rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, invest in securities or other instruments backed by commodities, and invest in companies that are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities; or
7. Make loans to others, except (a) through the purchase of debt securities in accordance with its investment objectives and policies, (b) to the extent the entry into a repurchase agreement is deemed to be a loan, and (c) by loaning portfolio securities.
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With respect to interpretations of the SEC or its staff described in fundamental restriction number 2 above, the SEC and its staff have identified various securities trading practices and derivative instruments used by mutual funds that give rise to potential senior security issues under Section 18(f) of the 1940 Act, which prohibits mutual funds from issuing senior securities. Under the 1940 Act, a mutual fund may borrow from a bank, provided that immediately after any such borrowing there is an asset coverage of at least 300 percent for all borrowings; or from a bank or other persons for temporary purposes only, provided that such temporary borrowings are in an amount not exceeding 5% of the Funds total assets at the time when the borrowing is made. However, rather than rigidly deeming all such practices outside of bank borrowing as impermissible forms of issuing a senior security under Section 18(f), the SEC and its staff through interpretive releases, including Investment Company Act Release No. 10666 (April 18, 1979), and no-action letters has developed an evolving series of methods by which a fund may address senior security issues. In particular, the common theme in this line of guidance has been to use methods of covering fund obligations that might otherwise create a senior security-type obligation by holding sufficient liquid assets that permit a fund to meet potential trading and derivative-related obligations. Thus, a potential Section 18(f) senior security limitation is not applicable to activities that might be deemed to involve a form of the issuance or sale of a senior security by the Fund, provided that the Funds engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by Section 18 of the 1940 Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or interpretations of the SEC or its staff.
The Fund observes the following policies, which are not deemed fundamental and which may be changed without shareholder vote. The Fund may not:
1. Invest in any issuer for purposes of exercising control or management;
2. Invest in securities of other investment companies except as permitted under the 1940 Act;
3. Invest, in the aggregate, more than 15% of its net assets in securities with legal or contractual restrictions on resale, securities, which are not readily marketable and repurchase agreements with more than seven days to maturity. However, if more than 15% of Fund assets (defined as net assets plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes) are illiquid, the Funds investment adviser(s) will reduce illiquid assets such that they do not represent more than 15% of Fund assets, subject to timing and other considerations which are in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders; or
4. Mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or in any manner transfer, as security for indebtedness, any assets of the Fund except as may be necessary in connection with borrowings described in limitation (2) above. Margin deposits, security interests, liens and collateral arrangements with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted investments and techniques are not deemed to be a mortgage, pledge or hypothecation of assets for purposes of this limitation.
If a restriction on the Funds investments is adhered to at the time an investment is made, a subsequent change in the percentage of Fund assets invested in certain securities or other instruments, or change in average duration of the Funds investment portfolio, resulting from changes in the value of the Funds total assets, will not be considered a violation of the restriction; provided, however, that the asset coverage requirement applicable to borrowings shall be maintained in the manner contemplated by applicable law.
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Notwithstanding any of the foregoing limitations, any investment company, whether organized as a trust, association or corporation, or a personal holding company, may be merged or consolidated with or acquired by the Trust, provided that if such merger, consolidation or acquisition results in an investment in the securities of any issuer prohibited by said paragraphs, the Trust shall, within ninety days after the consummation of such merger, consolidation or acquisition, dispose of all of the securities of such issuer so acquired or such portion thereof as shall bring the total investment therein within the limitations imposed by said paragraphs above as of the date of consummation.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS
The Trust has adopted policies and procedures that govern the disclosure of the Funds portfolio holdings. These policies and procedures are designed to ensure that such disclosure is in the best interests of Fund shareholders.
It is the Trusts policy to: (1) ensure that any disclosure of portfolio holdings information is in the best interest of Trust shareholders; (2) protect the confidentiality of portfolio holdings information; (3) have procedures in place to guard against personal trading based on the information; and (4) ensure that the disclosure of portfolio holdings information does not create conflicts between the interests of the Trusts shareholders and those of the Trusts affiliates.
The Fund discloses its portfolio holdings by mailing the annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders approximately two months after the end of the fiscal year and semi-annual period. In addition, the Fund discloses its portfolio holdings reports on Forms N-CSR and Form N-Q two months after the end of each quarter/semi-annual period. The Fund may, from time to time, make available month-end portfolio holdings information on the website www.atvfund.com. If month-end portfolio holdings are posted to the Funds website, they are expected to be approximately 60 days and remain available until the new information for the next month is posted.
The Fund may choose to make portfolio holdings information available to rating agencies such as Lipper, Morningstar or Bloomberg earlier and more frequently on a confidential basis.
Under limited circumstances, as described below, the Funds portfolio holdings may be disclosed to, or known by, certain third parties in advance of their filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Form N-CSR or Form N-Q. In each case, a determination has been made that such advance disclosure is supported by a legitimate business purpose and that the recipient is subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and to not trade on any material non-public information.
The Advisor. Personnel of the Advisor, including personnel responsible for managing the Funds portfolio, may have full daily access to Fund portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for the Advisor to provide their management, administrative, and investment services to the Fund. As required for purposes of analyzing the impact of existing and future market changes on the prices, availability, demand and liquidity of such securities, as well as for the assistance of portfolio managers in the trading of such securities, Advisor personnel may also release and discuss certain portfolio holdings with various broker-dealers.
Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC. Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC is the transfer agent, fund accountant, administrator and custody administrator for the Fund; therefore, its personnel have full daily access to
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the Funds portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for them to provide the agreed-upon services for the Trust.
U.S. Bank, National Association. U.S. Bank, National Association is custodian for the Fund; therefore, its personnel have full daily access to the Funds portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for them to provide the agreed-upon services for the Trust.
RSM US LLP. RSM US LLP is the Funds independent registered public accounting firm; therefore, its personnel have access to the Funds portfolio holdings in connection with auditing of the Funds annual financial statements and providing other audit, tax and related services to the Fund.
Thompson Hine LLP. Thompson Hine LLP is counsel to the Fund; therefore, its personnel have access to the Funds portfolio holdings in connection with review of the Funds annual and semi-annual shareholder reports and SEC filings.
Counsel to the Independent Trustees. Counsel to the Independent Trustees and its personnel have access to the Funds portfolio holdings in connection with the Boards review of the Funds annual and semi-annual shareholder reports and SEC filings.
Derivatives Risk Consultant: The Trust has engaged a derivatives risk consultant (Consultant) to consult with the Board, and the Advisor, regarding the effectiveness of derivatives risk management. The Consultant therefore may have access to the Funds portfolio holdings in order to provide such services to the Trust.
Additions to List of Approved Recipients
The Trusts Chief Compliance Officer is the person responsible, and whose prior approval is required, for any disclosure of the Funds portfolio securities at any time or to any persons other than those described above. In such cases, the recipient must have a legitimate business need for the information and must be subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and to not trade on any material non-public information. There are no ongoing arrangements in place with respect to the disclosure of portfolio holdings. In no event shall the Fund, the Advisor, or any other party receive any direct or indirect compensation in connection with the disclosure of information about the Funds portfolio holdings.
Compliance with Portfolio Holdings Disclosure Procedures
The Trusts Chief Compliance Officer will report periodically to the Board with respect to compliance with the Funds portfolio holdings disclosure procedures, and from time to time will provide the Board any updates to the portfolio holdings disclosure policies and procedures.
There is no assurance that the Trusts policies on disclosure of portfolio holdings will protect the Fund from the potential misuse of holdings information by individuals or firms in possession of that information.
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MANAGEMENT
The business of the Trust is managed under the direction of the Board in accordance with the Agreement and Declaration of Trust and the Trusts By-laws (the Governing Documents), which have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are available upon request. The Board consists of six (6) individuals, all of whom are not interested persons (as defined under the 1940 Act) of the Trust and the Advisor (Independent Trustees). Pursuant to the Governing Documents of the Trust, the Trustees shall elect officers including a President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, a Principal Executive Officer and a Principal Accounting Officer. The Board retains the power to conduct, operate and carry on the business of the Trust and has the power to incur and pay any expenses, which, in the opinion of the Board, are necessary or incidental to carry out any of the Trusts purposes. The Trustees, officers, employees and agents of the Trust, when acting in such capacities, shall not be subject to any personal liability except for his or her own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his or her duties.
Board Leadership Structure
The Trust is led by Anthony Hertl, an Independent Trustee, who has served as the Chairman of the Board since July 2013. The Board of Trustees is comprised of Mr. Hertl and five (5) additional Independent Trustees. Additionally, under certain 1940 Act governance guidelines that apply to the Trust, the Independent Trustees will meet in executive session, at least quarterly. Under the Trusts Agreement and Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, the Chairman of the Board is responsible for (a) presiding at Board meetings, (b) calling special meetings on an as-needed basis, (c) execution and administration of Trust policies including (i) setting the agendas for Board meetings and (ii) providing information to Board members in advance of each Board meeting and between Board meetings. Generally, the Trust believes it best to have a non-executive Chairman of the Board, who together with the President (principal executive officer), are seen by its shareholders, business partners and other stakeholders as providing strong leadership. The Trust believes that its Chairman, the independent chair of the Audit Committee, and, as an entity, the full Board of Trustees, provide effective leadership that is in the best interests of the Trust, its Funds and each shareholder.
Board Risk Oversight
The Board of Trustees has a standing independent Audit Committee with a separate chair, Mark H. Taylor. The Board is responsible for overseeing risk management, and the full Board regularly engages in discussions of risk management and receives compliance reports that inform its oversight of risk management from its Chief Compliance Officer at quarterly meetings and on an ad hoc basis, when and if necessary. The Audit Committee considers financial and reporting risk within its area of responsibilities. Generally, the Board believes that its oversight of material risks is adequately maintained through the compliance-reporting chain where the Chief Compliance Officer is the primary recipient and communicator of such risk-related information.
Trustee Qualifications
Generally, the Trust believes that each Trustee is competent to serve because of their individual overall merits including: (i) experience, (ii) qualifications, (iii) attributes and (iv) skills.
Anthony J. Hertl has over 20 years of business experience in the financial services industry and related fields including serving as chair of the finance committee for the Borough of Interlaken,
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New Jersey and Vice President-Finance and Administration of Marymount College, holds a Certified Public Accountant designation, serves or has served as a member of other mutual fund boards outside of the group of Funds managed by the Adviser (the Fund Complex) and possesses a strong understanding of the regulatory framework under which investment companies must operate based on his years of service to this Board and other fund boards.
Gary W. Lanzen has over 20 years of business experience in the financial services industry, holds a Masters degree in Education Administration, is a Certified Financial Planner, serves as a member of two other mutual fund boards outside of the Fund Complex and possesses a strong understanding of the regulatory framework under which investment companies must operate based on his years of service to this Board and other mutual fund boards.
Mark H. Taylor holds PhD, Masters and Bachelors degrees in Accountancy, is a licensed Certified Public Accountant and has over 30 years of academic and professional experience in the accounting and auditing fields, all of which make him particularly qualified to chair the Trusts Audit Committee. Dr. Taylor is the Director of the Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy at the Muma College of Business at the University of South Florida and is serving a three-year term as President of the American Accounting Association (AAA) since August 2022 (President-Elect 2022-2023, President 2023-2024; Past President 2024-2025). Dr. Taylor previously served as AAA Vice President-Finance, and as President of the Auditing Section of the AAA. Dr. Taylor serves as a member of three other mutual fund boards within the Northern Lights Fund Complex. He served a three-year term on the AICPAs Auditing Standards Board (2010-2012) and previously completed a fellowship in the Professional Practice Group of the Office of the Chief Accountant at the headquarters of the United States Securities Exchange Commission. Dr. Taylor is a member of two research teams that have received grants from the Center for Audit Quality to study how accounting firms tone-at-the top messaging impacts audit performance and how auditors manage the process of auditing fair value measurements and other complex estimates in financial statements. Dr. Taylor has published extensively in leading academic accounting journals, has teaching interests in corporate governance and accounting policy as well as auditing and assurance services at the graduate and undergraduate levels, and possesses a strong understanding of the regulatory framework under which investment companies operate.
John V. Palancia has over 30 years of business experience in financial services industry including serving as the Director of Futures Operations for Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. (Merrill Lynch). Mr. Palancia holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics. He also possesses a strong understanding of risk management, balance sheet analysis and the regulatory framework under which regulated financial entities must operate based on service to Merrill Lynch. Additionally, he is well versed in the regulatory framework under which investment companies must operate and serves as a member of three other fund boards.
Mark D. Gersten has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, having served in executive roles at AllianceBernstein LP and holding key industry positions at Prudential-Bache Securities and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. He also serves as a member of two other mutual fund boards outside of the Fund Complex. Mr. Gersten is a certified public accountant and holds an MBA in accounting. Like other Trustees, his experience has given him a strong understanding of the regulatory framework under which investment companies operate.
Mark S. Garbin has more than 30 years of experience in corporate balance sheet and income statement risk management for large asset managers, serving as Managing Principal of Coherent
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Capital Management LLC since 2007. Mr. Garbin has extensive derivatives experience and has provided consulting services to alternative asset managers. He is both a Chartered Financial Analyst and Professional Risk Manager charterholder and holds advanced degrees in international business. The Trust does not believe any one factor is determinative in assessing a Trustees qualifications, but that the collective experience of each Trustee makes them each highly qualified.
The Trustees and the executive officers of the Trust are listed below with their present positions with the Trust and principal occupations over at least the last five years. The business address of each Trustee and Officer is 225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450, Cincinnati, OH 45246. All correspondence to the Trustees and Officers should be directed to c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, P.O. Box 541150, Omaha, Nebraska 68154.
Independent Trustees
Name,
Address and Year of Birth |
Position/Term of Office* |
Principal
Occupation During the Past Five Years |
Number
of Portfolios in Fund Complex** Overseen by Trustee |
Other
Directorships held by Trustee During the Past Five Years |
Mark
Garbin Born in 1951 |
Trustee Since 2013 |
Managing Principal, Coherent Capital Management LLC (since 2007). | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2013); Two Roads Shared Trust (since 2012); Forethought Variable Insurance Trust (since 2013); Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2013); iDirect Private Markets Fund (since 2014); Carlyle Tactical Private Credit Fund (since March 2018); Independent Director OHA CLO Enhanced Equity II Genpar LLP (since June 2021); and Caryle Credit Income Fund (since July 2023) |
Mark
D. Gersten Born in 1950 |
Trustee Since 2013 |
Independent Consultant (since 2012). | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2013); Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2013); Two Roads Shared Trust (since 2012); Altegris KKR Commitments Master Fund (since 2014); previously, Ramius Archview Credit and Distressed Fund (2015-2017); and Schroder Global Series Trust (2012 to 2017). |
Anthony
J. Hertl Born in 1950 |
Trustee Since 2005; Chairman of the Board since 2013 |
Retired, previously held several positions in a major Wall Street firm including Capital Markets Controller, Director of Global Taxation, and CFO of the Specialty Finance Group. | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2005); Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2006); Alternative Strategies Fund (since 2010); Satuit Capital Management Trust (2007-2019). |
Gary
W. Lanzen Born in 1954 |
Trustee Since 2005 |
Retired (since 2012). Formerly, Founder, President, and Chief Investment Officer, Orizon Investment Counsel, Inc. (2000-2012). | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2005) Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2006); AdvisorOne Funds (since 2003); Alternative Strategies Fund (since 2010); and previously, CLA Strategic Allocation Fund (2014-2015). |
John
V. Palancia Born in 1954 |
Trustee Since 2011 |
Retired (since 2011). Formerly, Director of Futures Operations, Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. (1975-2011). | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2011); Northern Lights Fund Trust III (since February 2012); Alternative Strategies Fund (since 2012) and Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2011). |
Mark
H. Taylor Born in 1964 |
Trustee Since 2007; Chairman of the Audit Committee since 2013 |
PhD (Accounting), CPA; Professor and Director, Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy, Muma College of Business, University of South Florida (2019 – present); Professor and Department of Accountancy Chair, Case Western Reserve University (2009-2019); President, American Accounting Association (AAA) since August 2022 (President-Elect 2022-2023, President 2023-2024; Past President 2024-2025). AAA Vice President-Finance (2017-2020); President, Auditing Section of the AAA; Member, AICPA Auditing Standards Board (2009-2012); Academic Fellow, Office of the Chief Accountant, United States Securities Exchange Commission (2005-2006); Center for Audit Quality research grants (2014, 2012). | 1 | Northern Lights Fund Trust (for series not affiliated with the Funds since 2007); Alternative Strategies Fund (since 2010); Northern Lights Fund Trust III (since 2012); and Northern Lights Variable Trust (since 2007). |
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Officers
Name,
Address and Year of Birth |
Position/Term
of Office* |
Principal
Occupation During the Past Five Years |
Number
of Portfolios in Fund Complex** Overseen by Trustee |
Other
Directorships held by Trustee During the Past Five Years |
Kevin
E. Wolf Born in 1969 |
President, Principal Executive Officer Since June 2017 | Executive Vice President, Head of Fund Administration, and Product; Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2020); Vice President of The Ultimus Group, LLC (since 2019); Executive Vice President, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2019-2020); President, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2012-2019); Treasurer of the Trust (2006-June 2017). | N/A | N/A |
Timothy
Burdick Born in 1986 |
Vice President Since November 2023 | Vice President and Senior Managing Counsel, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2023); Vice President and Managing Counsel, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (2022-2023); Assistant Vice President and Counsel, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (2019-2022). | N/A | N/A |
James
Colantino Born in 1969 |
Treasurer, Principal Accounting Officer Since June 2017 | Senior Vice President Fund Administration, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2020); Senior Vice President Fund Administration, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2012-2020); Assistant Treasurer of the Trust (2006-June 2017). | N/A | N/A |
Stephanie
Shearer Born in 1979 |
Secretary Since February 2017 |
Assistant Secretary of the Trust (2012-February 2017); Director, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2022); Manager of Legal Administration, Ultimus Fund Solutions (2020-2022); Manager of Legal Administration, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2018-2020); Senior Paralegal, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2013 - 2018). | N/A | N/A |
Michael
J. Nanosky Born in 1966 |
Chief Compliance Officer Since January 2021 | Chief Compliance Officer, of the Trust (since January 2021); Vice President-Senior Compliance Officer, NLCS (since 2020); Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer for Williamsburg Investment Trust (2020-current); Senior Vice President- Chief Compliance Officer, PNC Funds (2014-2019). | N/A | N/A |
* | The term of office for each Trustee and officer listed above will continue indefinitely until the individual resigns or is removed. |
** | As of July 30,2024, the Trust was comprised of 69 active funds managed by unaffiliated investment advisers. The term Fund Complex applies only to the Funds in the Trust advised by the Funds Advisor. The Funds do not hold themselves out as related to any other series within the Trust that is not advised by the Funds Advisor. |
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Board Committees
Audit Committee
The Board has an Audit Committee that consists of all the Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust within the meaning of the 1940 Act. The Audit Committees responsibilities include: (i) recommending to the Board the selection, retention or termination of the Trusts independent auditors; (ii) reviewing with the independent auditors the scope, performance and anticipated cost of their audit; (iii) discussing with the independent auditors certain matters relating to the Trusts financial statements, including any adjustment to such financial statements recommended by such independent auditors, or any other results of any audit; (iv) reviewing on a periodic basis a formal written statement from the independent auditors with respect to their independence, discussing with the independent auditors any relationships or services disclosed in the statement that may impact the objectivity and independence of the Trusts independent auditors and recommending that the Board take appropriate action in response thereto to satisfy itself of the auditors independence; and (v) considering the comments of the independent auditors and managements responses thereto with respect to the quality and adequacy of the Trusts accounting and financial reporting policies and practices and internal controls. The Audit Committee operates pursuant to an Audit Committee Charter. The Audit Committee is responsible for seeking and reviewing nominee candidates for consideration as Independent Trustees as is from time to time considered necessary or appropriate. The Audit Committee generally will not consider shareholder nominees. The Audit Committee is also responsible for reviewing and setting Independent Trustee compensation from time to time when considered necessary or appropriate. During the past fiscal year, the Audit Committee held eleven meetings.
Compensation
Effective January 1, 2024, each Trustee who is not affiliated with the Trust or an investment adviser to any series of the Trust will receive a quarterly fee of $50,000, allocated among each of the various portfolios comprising the Trust and Northern Lights Variable Trust (together, the Trusts), a separate registrant that shares a common board with the Trust (the Board), for his attendance at the regularly scheduled meetings of the Board, to be paid in advance of each calendar quarter, as well as reimbursement for any reasonable expenses incurred. In addition to which, the Chairman of the Board receives a quarterly fee of $13,750 and the Audit Committee Chairman receives a quarterly fee of $10,000.
Prior to January 1, 2024, each Trustee who is not affiliated with the Trusts or an investment adviser to any series of the Trusts received a quarterly fee of $48,750, allocated among each of the various portfolios comprising the Trusts. In addition to the quarterly fees and reimbursements, the Chairman of the Board previously received a quarterly fee of $13,750 and the Audit Committee Chairman receives a quarterly fee of $10,000.
Additionally, in the event a meeting of the Board of Trustees other than its regularly scheduled meetings (a Special Meeting) is required, each Independent Trustee will receive a fee of $2,500 per Special Meeting, as well as reimbursement for any reasonable expenses incurred, to be paid by the relevant series of the applicable Trust or its investment adviser depending on the circumstances necessitating the Special Meeting.
None of the executive officers receive compensation from the Trusts.
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The table below details the amount of compensation the Trustees received from the Trust during the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024. Each Independent Trustee attended all quarterly meetings during the period. The Trust does not have a bonus, profit sharing, pension or retirement.
Name and Position | Athena
Behavioral Tactical Fund |
Pension
or Retirement Benefits Accrued as Part of Fund Expenses |
Estimated
Annual Benefits Upon Retirement |
Total
Compensation from the Fund Complex* Paid to Directors |
Anthony J. Hertl | $3,006 | None | None | $3,006 |
Gary Lanzen | $2,532 | None | None | $2,532 |
Mark H. Taylor | $2,690 | None | None | $2,690 |
John V. Palancia | $2,532 | None | None | $2,532 |
Mark D. Gersten | $2,532 | None | None | $2,532 |
Mark Garbin | $2,532 | None | None | $2,532 |
* | The term Fund Complex includes series of the Northern Lights Fund Trust (NLFT) that are advised by the Advisor. There are currently multiple series comprising the Trust. Trustees fees are allocated equitable among the series in the Trust. |
Trustee Ownership
The following table indicates the dollar range of equity securities that each Trustee beneficially owned in the Trust as of December 31, 2023.
Name of Trustee | Dollar
Range of Equity Securities in the Fund |
Aggregate
Dollar Range of Equity Securities in All Registered Investment Companies Overseen by Trustee in Family of Investment Companies |
Anthony J. Hertl | None | $50,001-$100,000 |
Gary Lanzen | None | None |
Mark H. Taylor | None | None |
John V. Palancia | None | None |
Mark D. Gersten | None | $10,001-$50,000 |
Mark Garbin | None | $50,001-$100,000 |
Management Ownership
As of August 2, 2024, the Trustees and officers, as a group, owned less than 1.00% of the Funds outstanding shares and less than 1.00% of the Fund Complexs outstanding shares.
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CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS
A principal shareholder is any person who owns of record or beneficially 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund. A control person is one who owns beneficially or through controlled companies more than 25% of the voting securities of a company or acknowledged the existence of control and may be able to determine or significantly influence the outcome of matters submitted to a vote of the Funds shareholders.
As of August 2, 2024, the following shareholders of record owned 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund:
Class I | ||
Name & Address | Shares | Percentage of Shares |
Charles
Schwab & Co Inc/Special Custody A/C FBO Customers 211 Main St. San Francisco, CA 94105 |
610,577 | 34.91% |
Pershing
LLC PO Box 2052 Jersey City, NJ 07303 |
292,216 | 16.71% |
INVESTMENT ADVISORS
Investment Advisor and Advisory Agreement
AthenaInvest Advisors LLC, located at 5340 South Quebec Suite 320-S, Greenwood Village, CO 80111, serves as investment advisor to the Fund. The Advisor is a wholly owned subsidiary of AthenaInvest, Inc., a Colorado Corporation at the same location. AthenaInvest, Inc. is deemed to be controlled by C. Thomas Howard and other employees of AthenaInvest, Inc. because they collectively own in excess of 50% of the voting interests in AthenaInvest, Inc.
Subject to the authority of the Board, the Advisor is responsible for the overall management of the Funds business affairs. Pursuant to an investment advisory agreement (the Advisory Agreement) with the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, the Advisor, subject to the supervision of the Board of the Trust, and in conformity with the stated policies of the Fund, manage the operations of the Fund.
Pursuant to the Advisory Agreement between the Fund and the Advisor, the Advisor is entitled to receive, on a monthly basis, an annual advisory fee equal to 1.00% of the Funds average daily net assets. The Advisor has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least August 31, 2025, to ensure that Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Reimbursement (exclusive of any (i) front-end or contingent deferred loads, (ii) brokerage fees and commissions, (iii) acquired fund fees and expenses, (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example options and swap fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; and (vii) extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Advisor)) will not exceed 2.25% and 1.25%, respectively of average
29
daily net assets attributable to Class C and Class I shares, respectively; subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three year basis (within the three years after the fees have been waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the foregoing expense limits. Fee waiver and reimbursement arrangements can decrease the Funds expenses and boost its performance.
All previously waived expenses available for recapture by the Previous Advisor were forfeited and not available for recapture by the Advisor. The following amount is subject to recapture by the Advisor by the following dates:
April 30, 2025 | April 30, 2026 | April 30, 2027 |
$226,406 | $249,883 | $285,777 |
Under the Advisory Agreement, the Advisor, under the oversight of the Board, agrees to invest the assets of the Fund in accordance with applicable law and the investment objective, policies and restrictions set forth in the Funds current Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, and subject to such further limitations as the Trust may from time to time impose by written notice to the Advisor. Subject to obtaining the initial and periodic approvals required under Section 15 of the 1940 Act, the Advisor may retain one or more sub-advisers, at the Advisors own cost and expense for the purpose of managing the investment of the Funds assets. The Advisor shall act as the investment adviser to the Fund and, as such shall, perform each of the following, or delegate such to a properly approved sub-adviser: (i) obtain and evaluate such information relating to the economy, industries, business, securities markets and securities as it may deem necessary or useful in discharging its responsibilities here under, (ii) formulate a continuing program for the investment of the assets of the Fund in a manner consistent with its investment objective, policies and restrictions, and (iii) determine from time to time securities to be purchased, sold, retained or lent by the Fund, and implement those decisions, including the selection of entities with or through which such purchases, sales or loans are to be effected; provided, that the Advisor (or its designee), will place orders pursuant to its investment determinations either directly with the issuer or with a broker or dealer, and if with a broker or dealer, (a) will attempt to obtain the best price and execution of its orders, and (b) may nevertheless in its discretion purchase and sell portfolio securities from and to brokers who provide the Advisor with research, analysis, advice and similar services and pay such brokers in return a higher commission or spread than may be charged by other brokers. The Advisory Agreement was approved by the Board, including by a majority of the Independent Trustees, at a meeting held on December 13-14, 2023.
Expenses not expressly assumed by the Advisor under the Advisory Agreement are paid by the Fund. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022, the Fund incurred $421,427 in advisory fees of which the Advisor waived fees and reimbursed expenses of $226,406. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Fund incurred $359,739 in advisory fees of which the Advisor waived fees and reimbursed expenses of $249,883. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Fund incurred $269,176 in advisory fees of which the Advisor waived fees and reimbursed expenses of $285,777. Under the terms of the Advisory Agreement, the Fund is responsible for the payment of the following expenses among others: (a) the fees payable to the Advisor, (b) the fees and expenses of Trustees who are not affiliated persons of the Advisor or Distributor (as defined under the section entitled (The Distributor) (c) the fees and certain expenses of the Custodian (as defined under the section entitled Custodian), transfer and dividend disbursing agent, fund accountant, fund administrator and fund independent registered public accounting firm (auditor), including the cost of maintaining certain required records of the Fund and of pricing the Funds shares, (d) the charges and expenses of legal
30
counsel and independent accountants for the Fund, (e) brokerage commissions and any issue or transfer taxes chargeable to the Fund in connection with its securities transactions, (f) all taxes and corporate fees payable by the Fund to governmental agencies, (g) the fees of any trade association of which the Fund may be a member, (h) the cost of share certificates representing shares of the Fund, (i) the cost of fidelity and liability insurance, (j) the fees and expenses involved in registering and maintaining registration of the Fund and of shares with the SEC, qualifying its shares under state securities laws, including the preparation and printing of the Funds registration statements and prospectuses for such purposes, (k) all expenses of shareholders and Trustees meetings (including travel expenses of trustees and officers of the Trust) and of preparing, printing and mailing reports, proxy statements and prospectuses to shareholders in the amount necessary for distribution to the shareholders and (l) litigation and indemnification expenses and other extraordinary expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of the Funds business.
The Advisory Agreement continued in effect for two (2) years initially and continues from year to year provided such continuance is approved at least annually by (a) a vote of the majority of the Independent Trustees, cast in person at a meeting specifically called for the purpose of voting on such approval and by (b) the majority vote of either all of the Trustees or the vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund. The Advisory Agreement may be terminated without penalty on 60 days written notice by a vote of a majority of the Trustees or by the Advisor, or by holders of a majority of that Trusts outstanding shares. The Advisory Agreement shall terminate automatically in the event of its assignment.
Codes of Ethics
The Trust, the Advisor and the Distributor each have adopted codes of ethics pursuant Rule 17j-1 of the 1940 Act that governs the personal securities transactions of their board members, officers and employees who may have access to current trading information of the Trust. Under each code, the Trustees are permitted to invest in securities that may also be purchased by the Fund.
In addition, the Trust has adopted a separate Code of Ethics (the Code), which applies only to the Trusts executive officers to ensure that these officers promote professional conduct in the practice of corporate governance and management. The purpose behind these guidelines is to promote i) honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships; ii) full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that a registrant files with, or submits to, the SEC and in other public communications made by the Fund; iii) compliance with applicable governmental laws, rule and regulations; iv) the prompt internal reporting of violations of the Code to an appropriate person or persons identified in the Code; and v) accountability for adherence to the Code.
Proxy Voting Policies
The Board has adopted Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures (Policies) on behalf of the Trust, which delegate the responsibility for voting proxies to the Advisor or its designee, subject to the Boards continuing oversight. The Policies require that the Advisor or its designee vote proxies received in a manner consistent with the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders. The Policies also require the Advisor or its designee to present to the Board, at least annually, the Advisors Proxy Policies, or the proxy policies of its designee, and a record of each proxy voted by the Advisor or its designee on behalf of the Fund, including a report on the resolution of all proxies identified by the Advisor as involving a conflict of interest.
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Where a proxy proposal raises a material conflict between the Advisors interests and the Funds interests, the Advisor will resolve the conflict by voting in accordance with the policy guidelines or at the clients directive using the recommendation of an independent third party. If the third partys recommendations are not received in a timely fashion, the Advisor will abstain from voting the securities held by that clients account. A copy of the Advisors proxy voting policies are attached hereto as Appendix A.
More information. Information regarding how the Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities held by the Fund during the most recent 12-month period ending June 30 will be available (1) without charge, upon request, by calling the Fund at 1-833-653-0575 or sending an email to Fulfillment@ultimusfundsolutions.com; (2) on or through the Funds website at www.atvfund.com; and (3) on the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the Funds proxy voting policies and procedures are also available by calling 1-833-653-0575 and will be sent within three business days of receipt of a request.
THE DISTRIBUTOR
Northern Lights Distributors, LLC, located at 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474 (the Distributor) serves as the principal underwriter and national distributor for the shares of the Trust pursuant to an underwriting agreement with the Trust (the Underwriting Agreement). The Distributor is registered as a broker-dealer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and each states securities laws and is a member of the FINRA. The offering of the Funds shares are continuous. The Underwriting Agreement provides that the Distributor, as agent in connection with the distribution of Fund shares, will use reasonable efforts to facilitate the sale of the Funds shares.
The Underwriting Agreement provides that, unless sooner terminated, it will continue in effect for two years initially and thereafter shall continue from year to year, subject to annual approval by (a) the Board or a vote of a majority of the outstanding shares, and (b) by a majority of the Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust or of the Distributor by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval.
The Underwriting Agreement may be terminated by the Fund at any time, without the payment of any penalty, by vote of a majority of the entire Board or by vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund on 60 days written notice to the Distributor, or by the Distributor at any time, without the payment of any penalty, on 60 days written notice to the Fund. The Underwriting Agreement will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment.
The Distributor may enter into selling agreements with broker-dealers that solicit orders for the sale of shares of the Fund and may allow concessions to dealers that sell shares of the Fund. The Distributor receives the portion of the sales charge on all direct initial investments in the Fund and on all investments in accounts with no designated dealer of record.
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The following table sets forth the total compensation received by the Distributor from the Fund during the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022:
Fund |
Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions |
Compensation
on Redemptions and Repurchases |
Brokerage Commissions |
Other Compensation |
Athena
Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I |
$0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
* | The Distributor received $12,733 from the Advisor as compensation for its distribution services to the Funds. |
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from Fund as described under the following section entitled Rule 12b-1 Plans. |
The following table sets forth the total compensation received by the Distributor from the Fund during the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023:
Fund |
Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions |
Compensation
on Redemptions and Repurchases |
Brokerage Commissions |
Other Compensation |
Athena
Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I |
$0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
* | The Distributor received $13,448 from the Advisor as compensation for its distribution services to the Funds. |
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from Fund as described under the following section entitled Rule 12b-1 Plans. |
The following table sets forth the total compensation received by the Distributor from the Fund during the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024:
Fund |
Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions |
Compensation
on Redemptions and Repurchases |
Brokerage Commissions |
Other Compensation |
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
* | The Distributor received $13,109 from the Advisor as compensation for its distribution services to the Funds. |
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from the Fund as described under the following section entitled Rule 12b-1 Plans. |
Rule 12b-1 Plans
The Trust has adopted the Trusts Master Distribution Shareholder Servicing Plans pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act for the Funds Class C shares (the Plans) pursuant to which the Fund pays fees to the Distributor for providing distribution and/or shareholder services to the Fund. Under the Plans, Class C shares of the Fund may pay an account maintenance fee for account maintenance services and/or distribution fee at an annual rate of up to 1.00% on Class C shares average net assets, as compensation for the Distributor providing account maintenance and distribution services to shareholders. Such fees are to be paid by the Fund monthly, or at such other intervals, as the Board shall determine. Such fees shall be based upon the classs average daily net assets during the preceding month, and shall be calculated and accrued daily. The Fund may pay fees to the Distributor at a lesser rate, as agreed upon by the Board and the Distributor. The Plans authorize payments to the Distributor as compensation for providing account maintenance services to
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Fund shareholders, including arranging for certain securities dealers or brokers, administrators and others (Recipients) to provide these services and paying compensation for these services.
The services to be provided by Recipients may include, but are not limited to, the following: assistance in the offering and sale of Fund shares and in other aspects of the marketing of the shares to clients or prospective clients of the respective recipients; answering routine inquiries concerning the Fund; assisting in the establishment and maintenance of accounts or sub-accounts in the Fund and in processing purchase and redemption transactions; making the Funds investment plan and shareholder services available; and providing such other information and services to investors in shares of the Fund as the Distributor or the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, may reasonably request. The distribution services shall also include any advertising and marketing services provided by or arranged by the Distributor with respect to the Fund. The Advisor may be compensated by the Distributor for its distribution and marketing efforts.
The Distributor is required to provide a written report, at least quarterly to the Board, specifying in reasonable detail the amounts expended pursuant to the Plans and the purposes for which such expenditures were made. Further, the Distributor will inform the Board of any Rule 12b-1 fees to be paid by the Distributor to Recipients.
The initial term of the Plans continued for one year and continues in effect from year to year thereafter, provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a majority of the Board and a majority of the Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust and do not have a direct or indirect financial interest in the Plan (Rule 12b-1 Trustees) by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Plan. Either Plan may be terminated at any time by the Trust or a Fund by vote of a majority of the Rule 12b-1 Trustees or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting shares of the Fund.
The Plans may not be amended to increase materially the amount of the Distributors compensation to be paid by a Fund, unless such amendment is approved by the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the affected class of a Fund (as defined in the 1940 Act). All material amendments must be approved by a majority of the Board and a majority of the Rule 12b-1 Trustees by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on a Plan. During the term of a Plan, the selection and nomination of non-interested Trustees of the Trust will be committed to the discretion of current non-interested Trustees. The Distributor will preserve copies of the Plan, any related agreements, and all reports, for a period of not less than six years from the date of such document and for at least the first two years in an easily accessible place.
Any agreement related to a Plan will be in writing and provide that: (a) it may be terminated by the Trust or the applicable Fund at any time upon sixty days written notice, without the payment of any penalty, by vote of a majority of the respective Rule 12b-1 Trustees, or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust or Fund; (b) it will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act); and (c) it will continue in effect for a period of more than one year from the date of its execution or adoption only so long as such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a majority of the Board and a majority of the Rule 12b-1 Trustees by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such agreement.
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During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022, the Funds Class I shares paid $0, in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plan. These distribution fees were allocated as follows:
Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by | |
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Shares | |
During the Fiscal Year Ended April 30, 2022 | |
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I | |
Advertising/Marketing | None |
Printing/Postage | None |
Payment to distributor | $0 |
Payment to dealers | $0 |
Compensation to sales personnel | None |
Other | $0 |
Total | $0 |
During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Funds Class I shares paid $0 in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plan. These distribution fees were allocated as follows:
Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by | |
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Shares | |
During the Fiscal Year Ended April 30, 2023 | |
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I | |
Advertising/Marketing | None |
Printing/Postage | None |
Payment to distributor | $0 |
Payment to dealers | $0 |
Compensation to sales personnel | None |
Other | $0 |
Total | $0 |
During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Funds I shares paid $0 in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plan. These distribution fees were allocated as follows:
Athena Behavioral Tactical Fund Class I | |
Advertising/Marketing | None |
Printing/Postage | None |
Payment to distributor | $0 |
Payment to dealers | $0 |
Compensation to sales personnel | None |
Other | $0 |
Total | $0 |
35
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
C. Thomas Howard and Andrew C. Howard of the Advisor are the portfolio managers of the Fund. As of April 30, 2024, they were responsible for the management of the following types of accounts in addition to the Fund:
C.
Thomas Howard, PhD Other Accounts by Type |
Total
Number of Accounts by Account Type |
Total
Assets by Account Type |
Number
of Accounts by Type Subject to a Performance Fee |
Total
Assets by Account Type Subject to a Performance Fee |
Registered Investment Companies | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Other Accounts | 4,006 | $307 Million | 0 | N/A |
Andrew
C. Howard Other Accounts by Type |
Total
Number of Accounts by Account Type |
Total
Assets by Account Type |
Number
of Accounts by Type Subject to a Performance Fee |
Total
Assets by Account Type Subject to a Performance Fee |
Registered Investment Companies | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Other Accounts | 4,006 | $307 Million | 0 | N/A |
Conflicts of Interest
In general, when a Portfolio Manager has responsibility for managing more than one account, potential conflicts of interest may arise. Those conflicts could include preferential treatment of one account over others in terms of allocation of resources or of investment opportunities. For instance, the Advisor may receive fees from certain accounts that are higher than the fee it receives from the Fund, or it may receive a performance-based fee on certain accounts. The procedures to address conflicts of interest, if any, are described below for each Portfolio Manager.
The Advisor has responsibility for managing multiple client accounts and, as such, potential conflicts of interest may arise. Those conflicts could include preferential treatment of one account over others in terms of allocation of resources or of investment opportunities. For instance, The Advisor may receive fees from certain client accounts that are higher than the fee it receives from the Fund, or it may receive a performance-based fee on certain accounts.
The Advisor and its portfolio managers attempt to avoid conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of the management of multiple client accounts. From time to time, the Advisor may recommend or cause a client to invest in a security in which another client of the Advisor has an ownership position. The Advisor has adopted certain procedures intended to treat all client accounts in a fair and equitable manner. To the extent that the Advisor seeks to purchase or sell the same security for multiple client accounts, the Advisor may aggregate, or bunch, these orders where it deems this to be appropriate and consistent with applicable regulatory requirements. When a bunched order is filled in its entirety, each participating client account will participate at the average share prices for the bunched order. When a bunched order is only partially filled, the securities purchased will be allocated on a pro-rata basis to each account participating in the bunched order based upon the initial amount requested for the account, subject to certain exceptions. Each participating account will receive the average share price for the bunched order on the same business day.
36
Compensation
For their services as portfolio managers to the Fund, C. Thomas Howard, PhD and Andrew C. Howard receive a salary and bonus from the Advisor and also share in its profits, if any.
Ownership of Securities
The following table shows the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the Portfolio Managers in the Fund as of April 30, 2024:
Name of Portfolio Manager | Dollar
Range of Equity Securities in the Fund |
C. Thomas Howard, PhD | None |
Andrew C. Howard | None |
ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE
Specific decisions to purchase or sell securities for the Fund are made by the Advisors portfolio managers who are employees of the Advisor (as of the date of this SAI). Generally, the Advisor is authorized by the Trustees to allocate the orders placed by them on behalf of the Fund to brokers or dealers who may, but need not, provide research or statistical material or other services to the Fund or the Advisor for the Funds use. Such allocation is to be in such amounts and proportions as a Advisor may determine.
In selecting a broker or dealer to execute each particular transaction, the Advisor will take the following into consideration:
● | the best net price available; |
● | the reliability, integrity and financial condition of the broker or dealer; |
● | the size of and difficulty in executing the order; and |
● | the value of the expected contribution of the broker or dealer to the investment performance of the Fund on a continuing basis. |
Brokers or dealers executing a portfolio transaction on behalf of the Fund may receive a commission in excess of the amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged for executing the transaction if the Advisor determines in good faith that such commission is reasonable in relation to the value of brokerage and research services provided to the Fund. In allocating portfolio brokerage, a Advisor may select brokers or dealers who also provide brokerage, research and other services to other accounts over which the Advisor exercises investment discretion. Some of the services received as the result of Fund transactions may primarily benefit accounts other than the Fund, while services received as the result of portfolio transactions effected on behalf of those other accounts may primarily benefit the Fund. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022, the Fund paid brokerage commissions of $20,633. With the increase in assets under management for the fiscal year ended April 2022, there was an increase with subscriptions and redemptions into the Fund which resulted in an increase in the number of trades and thus brokerage commissions. The brokerage commission rate was unchanged at $0.01 per share traded during two periods. For the fiscal year
37
ended April 30, 2023, the Fund paid brokerage commissions of $5,555. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Fund paid brokerage commissions of $1,998.
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Funds portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities for the fiscal year by the monthly average of the value of the portfolio securities owned by the Fund during the fiscal year. The calculation excludes from both the numerator and the denominator securities with maturities at the time of acquisition of one year or less. High portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater brokerage commissions and other transaction costs, which will be borne directly by the Fund. A 100% turnover rate would occur if all of the Funds portfolio securities were replaced once within a one-year period. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Funds portfolio turnover rate was 0%. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Funds portfolio turnover rate was 45%
OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS
Fund Administration, Fund Accounting and Transfer Agent Services
Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, (UFS or the Administrator), which has its principal office at 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, NE 68022, serves as administrator, fund accountant and transfer agent for the Fund pursuant to a Fund Services Agreement (the Agreement) with the Trust and subject to the oversight of the Board. UFS is primarily in the business of providing administrative, fund accounting and transfer agent services to retail and institutional mutual funds. UFS is an affiliate of the Distributor. UFS may also provide persons to serve as officers of the Trust. Such officers may be directors, officers or employees of UFS or its affiliates.
UFS may recommend the engagement of certain service providers, such as trading subadvisors, securities lending agents and other service providers, to the Trust and advisers and subadvisors of Funds in the Trust. UFS may receive a referral or revenue sharing fee from such service providers in connection with such engagements. Any agreements between the Trust and such service providers are subject to the approval of the Trustees.
Effective February 1, 2019, NorthStar Financial Services Group, LLC, the parent company of Gemini Fund Solutions, LLC (GFS) and its affiliated companies including Northern Lights Distributors, LLC and Northern Lights Compliance Services, LLC (NLCS)(collectively, the Gemini Companies), sold its interest in the Gemini Companies to a third party private equity firm that contemporaneously acquired Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (an independent mutual fund administration firm) and its affiliates (collectively, the Ultimus Companies). As a result of these separate transactions, the Gemini Companies and the Ultimus Companies are now indirectly owned through a common parent entity, The Ultimus Group, LLC.
The Agreement became effective on June 22, 2011, and remained in effect for two years from the applicable effective date for the Fund, and continues in effect for successive twelve-month periods provided that such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a majority of the Board. The Agreement is terminable by the Board or UFS on 90 days written notice and may be assigned by either party, provided that the Trust may not assign this agreement without the prior
38
written consent of UFS. The Agreement provides that UFS shall be without liability for any action reasonably taken or omitted pursuant to the Agreement.
Under the Agreement, UFS performs administrative services, including: (1) monitoring the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to the Trust by other service providers; (2) monitoring Fund holdings and operations for post-trade compliance with the Funds registration statement and applicable laws and rules; (3) preparing and coordinating the printing of semi-annual and annual financial statements; (4) preparing selected management reports for performance and compliance analyses; (5) preparing and disseminating materials for and attending and participating in meetings of the Board; (6) determining income and capital gains available for distribution and calculating distributions required to meet regulatory, income, and excise tax requirements; (7) reviewing the Trusts federal, state, and local tax returns as prepared and signed by the Trusts independent public accountants; (8) preparing and maintaining the Trusts operating expense budget to determine proper expense accruals to be charged to each Fund to calculate its daily NAV; (9) assisting in and monitoring the preparation, filing, printing and where applicable, dissemination to shareholders of amendments to the Trusts Registration Statement on Form N-1A, periodic reports to the Trustees, shareholders and the SEC, notices pursuant to Rule 24f-2, proxy materials and reports to the SEC on Forms N-CEN, N-CSR, N-PORT and N-PX; (10) coordinating the Trusts audits and examinations by assisting each Funds independent public accountants; (11) determining, in consultation with others, the jurisdictions in which shares of the Trust shall be registered or qualified for sale and facilitating such registration or qualification; (12) monitoring sales of shares and ensure that the shares are properly and duly registered with the SEC; (13) monitoring the calculation of performance data for the Fund; (14) preparing, or cause to be prepared, expense and financial reports; (15) preparing authorizations for the payment of Trust expenses and pay, from Trust assets, all bills of the Trust; (16) providing information typically supplied in the investment company industry to companies that track or report price, performance or other information with respect to investment companies; (17) upon request, assisting each Fund in the evaluation and selection of other service providers, such as independent public accountants, printers, EDGAR providers and proxy solicitors (such parties may be affiliates of UFS) and (18) performing other services, recordkeeping and assistance relating to the affairs of the Trust as the Trust may, from time to time, reasonably request.
For the administrative services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays UFS the greater of an annual minimum fee or an asset based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022, the Fund incurred $46,231 for administrative fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Fund incurred $48,485 for administrative fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Fund incurred $58,860 for administrative fees.
UFS, also provides the Fund with accounting services, including: (i) daily computation of NAV; (ii) maintenance of security ledgers and books and records as required by the 1940 Act; (iii) production of the Funds listing of portfolio securities and general ledger reports; (iv) reconciliation of accounting records; (v) calculation of yield and total return for the Fund; (vi) maintenance of certain books and records described in Rule 31a-1 under the 1940 Act, and reconciliation of account information and balances among the Funds custodian and Advisor; and (vii) monitoring and evaluation of daily income and expense accruals, and sales and redemptions of shares of the Fund.
For the fund accounting services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays UFS the greater of an annual minimum fee or an asset-based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended
39
April 30, 2022, the Fund incurred $36,686 for fund accounting fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Fund incurred $33,899 for fund accounting fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Fund incurred $35,253 for fund accounting fees.
UFS also acts as transfer, dividend disbursing, and shareholder servicing agent for the Fund pursuant to the Agreement. Under the Agreement, UFS is responsible for administering and performing transfer agent functions, dividend distribution, shareholder administration, and maintaining necessary records in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.
For such services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays UFS a per-account transfer agency fee. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022, the Fund incurred $54,857 for transfer agency fees. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023, the Fund incurred $63,827 for transfer agency fees. During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Fund incurred $63,750 for transfer agency fees.
Custodian
U.S. Bank, N.A., (the Custodian), located at 60 Livingston Ave., St. Paul, MN 55107-1419 serves as the custodian of the Funds assets pursuant to a custody agreement (the Custody Agreement) by and between the Custodian and the Trust on behalf of the Fund. The Custodians responsibilities include safeguarding and controlling the Funds cash and securities, handling the receipt and delivery of securities, and collecting interest and dividends on the Funds investments. Pursuant to the Custody Agreement, the Custodian also maintains original entry documents and books of record and general ledgers; posts cash receipts and disbursements; and records purchases and sales based upon communications from the Advisor. The Fund may employ foreign sub-custodians that are approved by the Board to hold foreign assets.
Compliance Officer
Northern Lights Compliance Services, LLC (NLCS), located at 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, NE 68022-3474, an affiliate of UFS and the Distributor, provides a Chief Compliance Officer to the Trust as well as related compliance services pursuant to a consulting agreement between NLCS and the Trust. NLCSs compliance services consist primarily of reviewing and assessing the policies and procedures of the Trust and its service providers pertaining to compliance with applicable federal securities laws, including Rule 38a-1 under the 1940 Act. For the compliance services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays NLCS an annual fixed fee and an asset-based fee, which scales downward based upon the Funds net assets. The Fund also pays NLCS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022 the Fund incurred $22,031 in compliance officer fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2023 the Fund incurred $24, 200 in compliance officer fees. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024 the Fund incurred $25,934 in compliance officer fees.
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DESCRIPTION OF SHARES
Each share of beneficial interest of the Trust has one vote in the election of Trustees. Cumulative voting is not authorized for the Trust. This means that the holders of more than 50% of the shares voting for the election of Trustees can elect 100% of the Trustees if they choose to do so, and, in that event, the holders of the remaining shares will be unable to elect any Trustees.
Shareholders of the Trust and any other future series of the Trust will vote in the aggregate and not by series except as otherwise required by law or when the Board determines that the matter to be voted upon affects only the interest of the shareholders of a particular series or classes. Matters such as election of Trustees are not subject to separate voting requirements and may be acted upon by shareholders of the Trust voting without regard to series.
The Trust is authorized to issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest. Each share has equal dividend, distribution and liquidation rights. There are no conversion or preemptive rights applicable to any shares of the Fund. All shares issued are fully paid and non-assessable.
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM
The Trust has established an Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Program (the Program) as required by the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA PATRIOT Act). To ensure compliance with this law, the Trusts Program provides for the development of internal practices, procedures and controls, designation of anti-money laundering compliance officers, an ongoing training program and an independent audit function to determine the effectiveness of the Program.
Procedures to implement the Program include, but are not limited to, determining that the Funds Distributor and Transfer Agent have established proper anti-money laundering procedures, reporting suspicious and/or fraudulent activity and a providing a complete and thorough review of all new opening account applications. The Trust will not transact business with any person or entity whose identity cannot be adequately verified under the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act.
As a result of the Program, the Trust may be required to freeze the account of a shareholder if the shareholder appears to be involved in suspicious activity or if certain account information matches information on government lists of known terrorists or other suspicious persons, or the Trust may be required to transfer the account or proceeds of the account to a governmental agency.
PURCHASE, REDEMPTION AND PRICING OF SHARES
Calculation of Share Price
As indicated in the Prospectus under the heading Net Asset Value, the net asset value of the Funds shares is determined by dividing the total value of the Funds portfolio investments and other assets, less any liabilities, by the total number of shares outstanding of the Fund.
Generally, the Funds domestic securities (including underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign (non-U.S.) exchanges) are valued each day at the last quoted sales price on each securitys primary exchange. Securities traded or dealt in upon one or more
41
securities exchanges for which market quotations are readily available and not subject to restrictions against resale shall be valued at the last quoted sales price on the primary exchange or, in the absence of a sale on the primary exchange, at the mean between the current bid and ask prices on such exchange. Securities primarily traded in the NASDAQ National Market System for which market quotations are readily available shall be valued using the NASDAQ Official Closing Price. If market quotations are not readily available, securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined in good faith by the Funds Advisor in accordance with procedures approved by the Board and as further described below. Securities that are not traded or dealt in any securities exchange (whether domestic or foreign) and for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available generally shall be valued at the last sale price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask price on such over-the-counter market.
Certain securities or investments for which daily market quotes are not readily available may be valued, pursuant to guidelines established by the Board, with reference to other securities or indices. Debt securities not traded on an exchange may be valued at prices supplied by a pricing agent(s) based on broker or dealer supplied valuations or matrix pricing, a method of valuing securities by reference to the value of other securities with similar characteristics, such as rating, interest rate and maturity. Short-term investments having a maturity of 60 days or less may be generally valued at amortized cost when it approximated fair value.
Exchange traded options are valued at the last quoted sales price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask prices on the exchange on which such options are traded. Futures and options on futures are valued at the settlement price determined by the exchange. Other securities for which market quotes are not readily available are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by the Board or persons acting at their direction. Swap agreements and other derivatives are generally valued daily based upon quotations from market makers or by a pricing service in accordance with the valuation procedures approved by the Board.
Under certain circumstances, the Fund may use an independent pricing service to calculate the fair market value of foreign equity securities on a daily basis by applying valuation factors to the last sale price or the mean price as noted above. The fair market values supplied by the independent pricing service will generally reflect market trading that occurs after the close of the applicable foreign markets of comparable securities or the value of other instruments that have a strong correlation to the fair-valued securities. The independent pricing service will also take into account the current relevant currency exchange rate. A security that is fair valued may be valued at a price higher or lower than actual market quotations or the value determined by other funds using their own fair valuation procedures. Because foreign securities may trade on days when Fund shares are not priced, the value of securities held by the Fund can change on days when Fund shares cannot be redeemed or purchased. In the event that a foreign securitys market quotations are not readily available or are deemed unreliable (for reasons other than because the foreign exchange on which it trades closed before the Funds calculation of NAV), the security will be valued at its fair market value as determined in good faith by the Funds Advisor in accordance with procedures approved by the Board as discussed below. Without fair valuation, it is possible that short-term traders could take advantage of the arbitrage opportunity and dilute the NAV of long-term investors. Fair valuation of the Funds portfolio securities can serve to reduce arbitrage opportunities available to short-term traders, but there is no assurance that it will prevent dilution of the Funds NAV by short-term traders. In addition, because the Fund may invest in underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign (non-U.S.) exchanges, and these exchanges may trade on weekends or other days
42
when the underlying ETFs do not price their shares, the value of these portfolio securities may change on days when you may not be able to buy or sell Fund shares.
Investments initially valued in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted to U.S. dollars using exchange rates obtained from pricing services. As a result, the NAV of the Funds shares may be affected by changes in the value of currencies in relation to the U.S. dollar. The value of securities traded in markets outside the United States or denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar may be affected significantly on a day that the NYSE is closed and an investor is not able to purchase, redeem or exchange shares.
Fund shares are valued at the close of regular trading on the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) (the NYSE Close) on each day that the NYSE is open. For purposes of calculating the NAV, the Fund normally uses pricing data for domestic equity securities received shortly after the NYSE Close and do not normally take into account trading, clearances or settlements that take place after the NYSE Close. Domestic fixed income and foreign securities are normally priced using data reflecting the earlier closing of the principal markets for those securities. Information that becomes known to the Fund or its agents after the NAV has been calculated on a particular day will not generally be used to retroactively adjust the price of the security or the NAV determined earlier that day.
The Fund may hold securities, such as private placements, interests in commodity pools, other non-traded securities or temporarily illiquid securities, for which market quotations are not readily available or are determined to be unreliable. These securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined using the fair value procedures approved by the Board. The Board has delegated the Advisor as its Valuation Designee to execute these procedures. The Advisor may also enlist third party consultants such as an audit firm or financial officer of a security issuer on an as-needed basis to assist in determining a security-specific fair value. The Board reviews the execution of this process and the resultant fair value prices at least quarterly to ensure the process produces reliable results.
Valuation Process. Fair value determinations are required for the following securities: (i) securities for which market quotations are insufficient or not readily available on a particular business day (including securities for which there is a short and temporary lapse in the provision of a price by the regular pricing source), (ii) securities for which, in the judgment of the Advisor or sub-adviser, the prices or values available do not represent the fair value of the instrument. Factors which may cause the Advisor or sub-adviser to make such a judgment include, but are not limited to, the following: only a bid price or an asked price is available; the spread between bid and asked prices is substantial; the frequency of sales; the thinness of the market; the size of reported trades; and actions of the securities markets, such as the suspension or limitation of trading; (iii) securities determined to be illiquid; (iv) securities with respect to which an event that will affect the value thereof has occurred (a significant event) since the closing prices were established on the principal exchange on which they are traded, but prior to the Funds calculation of its net asset value. Specifically, interests in commodity pools or managed futures pools are valued on a daily basis by reference to the closing market prices of each futures contract or other asset held by a pool, as adjusted for pool expenses. Restricted or illiquid securities, such as private placements or non-traded securities are valued via inputs from the Advisor or sub-adviser valuation based upon the current bid for the security from two or more independent dealers or other parties reasonably familiar with the facts and circumstances of the security (who should take into consideration all relevant factors as may be appropriate under the circumstances). If the Advisor or sub-adviser is unable to obtain a current bid from such independent
43
dealers or other independent parties, the Advisor shall determine the fair value of such security using the following factors: (i) the type of security; (ii) the cost at date of purchase; (iii) the size and nature of the Funds holdings; (iv) the discount from market value of unrestricted securities of the same class at the time of purchase and subsequent thereto; (v) information as to any transactions or offers with respect to the security; (vi) the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition of the security and the existence of any registration rights; (vii) how the yield of the security compares to similar securities of companies of similar or equal creditworthiness; (viii) the level of recent trades of similar or comparable securities; (ix) the liquidity characteristics of the security; (x) current market conditions; and (xi) the market value of any securities into which the security is convertible or exchangeable.
Standards for Fair Value Determinations. As a general principle, the fair value of a security is the amount that a Fund might reasonably expect to realize upon its current sale. The Trust has adopted Financial Accounting Standards Board Statement of Financial Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures (ASC 820). In accordance with ASC 820, fair value is defined as the price that the Fund would receive upon selling an investment in a timely transaction to an independent buyer in the principal or most advantageous market of the investment. ASC 820 establishes a three-tier hierarchy to maximize the use of observable market data and minimize the use of unobservable inputs and to establish classification of fair value measurements for disclosure purposes. Inputs refer broadly to the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, including assumptions about risk, for example, the risk inherent in a particular valuation technique used to measure fair value including such a pricing model and/or the risk inherent in the inputs to the valuation technique. Inputs may be observable or unobservable. Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the reporting entity. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the reporting entitys own assumptions about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.
Various inputs are used in determining the value of a funds investments relating to ASC 820. 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.)
Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including a Funds own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).
The Advisor takes into account the relevant factors and surrounding circumstances, which may include: (i) the nature and pricing history (if any) of the security; (ii) whether any dealer quotations for the security are available; (iii) possible valuation methodologies that could be used to determine the fair value of the security; (iv) the recommendation of a portfolio manager of the fund with respect to the valuation of the security; (v) whether the same or similar securities are held by other funds managed by the advisor (or sub-adviser) or other funds and the method used to price the security in those funds; (vi) the extent to which the fair value to be determined for the security will result from the use of data or formulae produced by independent third parties and (vii) the liquidity or illiquidity of the market for the security.
44
Board Determination. The Board meets at least quarterly to consider the valuations provided by the Advisor and to ratify the valuations made for the applicable securities. The Board considers the reports provided by the Advisor, including follow up studies of subsequent market-provided prices when available, in reviewing and determining in good faith the fair value of the applicable portfolio securities.
The Trust expects that the NYSE will be closed on the following holidays: New Years Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, National Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
Purchase of Shares
Orders for shares received by the Fund in good order prior to the close of business on the NYSE on each day during such periods that the NYSE is open for trading are priced at the public offering price, which is NAV plus any sales charge, or at net asset value per share (if no sales charges apply) computed as of the close of the regular session of trading on the NYSE. Orders received in good order after the close of the NYSE, or on a day it is not open for trading, are priced at the close of such NYSE on the next day on which it is open for trading at the next determined net asset value per share plus sales charges, if any.
Notice to Texas Shareholders
Under section 72.1021(a) of the Texas Property Code, initial investors in the Fund who are Texas residents may designate a representative to receive notices of abandoned property in connection with Fund shares. Texas shareholders who wish to appoint a representative should notify the Trusts Transfer Agent by writing to the address below to obtain a form for providing written notice to the Trust:
Athena
Behavioral Tactical Fund
c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC
P.O. Box 541150
Omaha, Nebraska 68154
or overnight to
4221
North 203rd Street, Suite 100
Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474
Redemption of Shares
The Fund will redeem all or any portion of a shareholders shares of the Fund when requested in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Redemptions section of the Prospectus. Under the 1940 Act, a shareholders right to redeem shares and to receive payment therefore may be suspended at times:
(a) when the NYSE is closed, other than customary weekend and holiday closings;
(b) when trading on that exchange is restricted for any reason;
(c) when an emergency exists as a result of which disposal by the Fund of securities owned is not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund to fairly to determine the value of net assets, provided that applicable rules and regulations of the SEC (or any succeeding governmental authority) will govern as to whether the conditions prescribed in (b) or (c) exist; or
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(d) when the SEC by order permits a suspension of the right to redemption or a postponement of the date of payment on redemption.
In case of suspension of the right of redemption, payment of a redemption request will be made based on the net asset value next determined after the termination of the suspension.
Supporting documents in addition to those listed under Redemptions in the Prospectus will be required from executors, administrators, trustees, or if redemption is requested by someone other than the shareholder of record. Such documents include, but are not restricted to, stock powers, trust instruments, certificates of death, appointments as executor, certificates of corporate authority and waiver of tax required in some states when settling estates.
Redemption Fees
Waivers of Redemption Fees: The Fund has elected not to impose a redemption fee for:
● | redemptions and exchanges of Fund shares acquired through the reinvestment of dividends and distributions; |
● | certain types of redemptions and exchanges of Fund shares owned through participant-directed retirement plans; |
● | redemptions or exchanges in discretionary asset allocation, fee based or wrap programs (wrap programs) that are initiated by the sponsor/financial advisor as part of a periodic rebalancing; |
● | redemptions or exchanges in a fee based or wrap program that are made as a result of a full withdrawal from the wrap program or as part of a systematic withdrawal plan including the Funds systematic withdrawal plan; |
● | involuntary redemptions, such as those resulting from a shareholders failure to maintain a minimum investment in the Fund, or to pay shareholder fees; or |
● | other types of redemptions as the Advisor or the Trust may determine in special situations and approved by the Funds or the Advisors Chief Compliance Officer. |
TAX STATUS
The following discussion is general in nature and should not be regarded as an exhaustive presentation of all possible tax ramifications. All shareholders should consult a qualified tax adviser regarding their investment in the Fund.
The Fund intends to qualify as regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code), which requires compliance with certain requirements concerning the sources of its income, diversification of its assets, and the amount and timing of its distributions to shareholders. Such qualification does not involve supervision of management or investment practices or policies by any government agency or bureau. By so qualifying, the Fund should not be subject to federal income or excise tax on its net investment income or net capital gain, which are distributed to shareholders in accordance with the applicable timing requirements. Net investment income and net capital gain of the Fund will be computed in accordance with Section 852 of the Code.
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Net investment income is made up of dividends and interest less expenses. Net capital gain for a fiscal year is computed by taking into account any capital loss carryforward of the Fund. Capital losses incurred in tax years beginning after December 22, 2010 may now be carried forward indefinitely and retain the character of the original loss. Under previously enacted laws, capital losses could be carried forward to offset any capital gains for only eight years, and carried forward as short-term capital losses, irrespective of the character of the original loss. Capital loss carryforwards are available to offset future realized capital gains. To the extent that these carryforwards are used to offset future capital gains it is probable that the amount offset will not be distributed to shareholders.
The Funds net realized capital gains from securities transactions will be distributed only after reducing the gains by the amount of any available capital loss carry forwards.
As of April 30, 2024, the Fund had capital loss carry forwards for federal income tax purposes available to offset capital gains, as follows.
Short-Term | Long-Term | Total | CLCF Utilized |
$ 7,689,754 | — | $ 7,689,754 | — |
The Fund intends to distribute all of its net investment income, any excess of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, and any excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses in accordance with the timing requirements imposed by the Code and therefore should not be required to pay any federal income or excise taxes. Distributions of net investment income and net capital gain will be made at least annually after the end of each fiscal year, and no later than December 31 of each year. All types of distributions will be in shares of the Fund unless a shareholder elects to receive cash.
To be treated as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code, the Fund must also (a) derive at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, net income from certain publicly traded partnerships and gains from the sale or other disposition of securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including, but not limited to, gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to the business of investing in such securities or currencies, and (b) diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each fiscal quarter, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the Funds assets is represented by cash, U.S. government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies, and other securities (for purposes of this calculation, generally limited in respect of any one issuer, to an amount not greater than 5% of the market value of the Funds assets and 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer) and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its assets is invested in the securities of (other than U.S. government securities or the securities of other regulated investment companies) any one issuer, two or more issuers which the Fund controls and which are determined to be engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or the securities of certain publicly traded partnerships.
If the Fund fails to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M in any fiscal year, it will be treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes. As such, the Fund would be required to pay income taxes on its net investment income and net realized capital gains, if any, at the rates generally applicable to corporations. Shareholders of the Fund generally would not be liable for income tax on the Funds net investment income or net realized capital gains in their individual capacities. Distributions to shareholders, whether from the Funds net investment income or net realized capital gains, would be treated as taxable dividends to the extent of current or accumulated earnings and profits of the Fund.
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The Fund is subject to a 4% nondeductible excise tax on certain undistributed amounts of ordinary income and capital gain under a prescribed formula contained in Section 4982 of the Code. The formula requires payment to shareholders during a calendar year of distributions representing at least 98% of the Funds ordinary income for the calendar year and at least 98.2% of its capital gain net income (i.e., the excess of its capital gains over capital losses) realized during the one-year period ending October 31 during such year plus 100% of any income that was neither distributed nor taxed to the Fund during the preceding calendar year. Under ordinary circumstances, the Fund expects to time its distributions so as to avoid liability for this tax.
The following discussion of tax consequences is for the general information of shareholders that are subject to tax. Shareholders that are IRAs or other qualified retirement plans are exempt from income taxation under the Code.
Distributions of taxable net investment income and the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss are taxable to shareholders as ordinary income.
Distributions of net capital gain (capital gain dividends) generally are taxable to shareholders as long-term capital gain, regardless of the length of time the shares of the Fund have been held by such shareholders.
For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012, certain U.S. shareholders, including individuals and estates and trusts, will be subject to an additional 3.8% Medicare tax on all or a portion of their net investment income, which should include dividends from the Fund and net gains from the disposition of shares of the Fund. U.S. Shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisers regarding the implications of the additional Medicare tax resulting from an investment in the Fund.
A redemption of Fund shares by a shareholder will result in the recognition of taxable gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and the shareholders tax basis in his or her Fund shares. Such gain or loss is treated as a capital gain or loss if the shares are held as capital assets. However, any loss realized upon the redemption of shares within six months from the date of their purchase will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any amounts treated as capital gain dividends during such six-month period. All or a portion of any loss realized upon the redemption of shares may be disallowed to the extent shares are purchased (including shares acquired by means of reinvested dividends) within 30 days before or after such redemption.
Distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain will be taxable as described above, whether received in additional cash or shares. Shareholders electing to receive distributions in the form of additional shares will have a cost basis for federal income tax purposes in each share so received equal to the net asset value of a share on the reinvestment date.
All distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain, whether received in shares or in cash, must be reported by each taxable shareholder on his or her federal income tax return. Dividends or distributions declared in October, November or December as of a record date in such a month, if any, will be deemed to have been received by shareholders on December 31, if paid during January of the following year. Redemptions of shares may result in tax consequences (gain or loss) to the shareholder and are also subject to these reporting requirements.
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Under the Code, the Fund will be required to report to the Internal Revenue Service all distributions of taxable income and capital gains as well as gross proceeds from the redemption or exchange of Fund shares, except in the case of certain exempt shareholders. Under the backup withholding provisions of Section 3406 of the Code, distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain and proceeds from the redemption or exchange of the shares of a regulated investment company may be subject to withholding of federal income tax in the case of non-exempt shareholders who fail to furnish the investment company with their taxpayer identification numbers and with required certifications regarding their status under the federal income tax law, or if the Fund is notified by the IRS or a broker that withholding is required due to an incorrect TIN or a previous failure to report taxable interest or dividends. If the withholding provisions are applicable, any such distributions and proceeds, whether taken in cash or reinvested in additional shares, will be reduced by the amounts required to be withheld.
Other Reporting and Withholding Requirements
Payments to a shareholder that is either a foreign financial institution (FFI) or a non-financial foreign entity (NFFE) within the meaning of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) may be subject to a generally nonrefundable 30% withholding tax on: (a) income dividends paid by the Fund after June 30, 2014 and (b) certain capital gain distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Fund shares paid by the Fund after December 31, 2016. FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided: (a) by an FFI, subject to any applicable intergovernmental agreement or other exemption, if it enters into a valid agreement with the IRS to, among other requirements, report required information about certain direct and indirect ownership of foreign financial accounts held by U.S. persons with the FFI and (b) by an NFFE, if it: (i) certifies that it has no substantial U.S. persons as owners or (ii) if it does have such owners, reports information relating to them. The Fund may disclose the information that it receives from its shareholders to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties as necessary to comply with FATCA. Withholding also may be required if a foreign entity that is a shareholder of the Fund fails to provide the Fund with appropriate certifications or other documentation concerning its status under FATCA.
Options, Futures, Forward Contracts and Swap Agreements
To the extent such investments are permissible for the Fund, the Funds transactions in options, futures contracts, hedging transactions, forward contracts, straddles and foreign currencies will be subject to special tax rules (including mark-to-market, constructive sale, straddle, wash sale and short sale rules), the effect of which may be to accelerate income to the Fund, defer losses to the Fund, cause adjustments in the holding periods of the Funds securities, convert long-term capital gains into short-term capital gains and convert short-term capital losses into long-term capital losses. These rules could therefore affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders.
To the extent such investments are permissible, certain of the Funds hedging activities (including its transactions, if any, in foreign currencies or foreign currency-denominated instruments) are likely to produce a difference between its book income and its taxable income. If the Funds book income exceeds its taxable income, the distribution (if any) of such excess book income will be treated as (i) a dividend to the extent of the Funds remaining earnings and profits (including earnings and profits arising from tax-exempt income), (ii) thereafter, as a return of capital to the extent of the recipients basis in the shares, and (iii) thereafter, as gain from the sale or exchange of a capital asset. If the Funds book income is less than taxable income, the Fund could be required to make distributions exceeding book income to qualify as a regular investment company that is accorded special tax treatment.
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Passive Foreign Investment Companies
Investment by the Fund in certain passive foreign investment companies (PFICs) could subject the Fund to a U.S. federal income tax (including interest charges) on distributions received from the company or on proceeds received from the disposition of shares in the company, which tax cannot be eliminated by making distributions to Fund shareholders. However, the Fund may elect to treat a PFIC as a qualified electing fund (QEF election), in which case the Fund will be required to include its share of the companys income and net capital gains annually, regardless of whether the Fund receives any distribution from the company.
The Fund also may make an election to mark the gains (and to a limited extent losses) in such holdings to the market as though it had sold and repurchased its holdings in those PFICs on the last day of the Funds taxable year. Such gains and losses are treated as ordinary income and loss. The QEF and mark-to-market elections may accelerate the recognition of income (without the receipt of cash) and increase the amount required to be distributed for the Fund to avoid taxation. Making either of these elections therefore may require the Fund to liquidate other investments (including when it is not advantageous to do so) to meet its distribution requirement, which also may accelerate the recognition of gain and affect the Funds total return.
Foreign Currency Transactions
The Funds transactions in foreign currencies, foreign currency-denominated debt securities and certain foreign currency options, futures contracts and forward contracts (and similar instruments) may give rise to ordinary income or loss to the extent such income or loss results from fluctuations in the value of the foreign currency concerned.
Foreign Taxation
Income received by the Fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to withholding and other taxes imposed by such countries. Tax treaties and conventions between certain countries and the U.S. may reduce or eliminate such taxes. If more than 50% of the value of the Funds total assets at the close of its taxable year consists of securities of foreign corporations, the Fund may be able to elect to pass through to the Funds shareholders the amount of eligible foreign income and similar taxes paid by the Fund. If this election is made, a shareholder generally subject to tax will be required to include in gross income (in addition to taxable dividends actually received) his or her pro rata share of the foreign taxes paid by the Fund, and may be entitled either to deduct (as an itemized deduction) his or her pro rata share of foreign taxes in computing his or her taxable income or to use it as a foreign tax credit against his or her U.S. federal income tax liability, subject to certain limitations. In particular, a shareholder must hold his or her shares (without protection from risk of loss) on the ex-dividend date and for at least 15 more days during the 30-day period surrounding the ex-dividend date to be eligible to claim a foreign tax credit with respect to a gain dividend. No deduction for foreign taxes may be claimed by a shareholder who does not itemize deductions. Each shareholder will be notified within 60 days after the close of the Funds taxable year whether the foreign taxes paid by the Fund will pass through for that year.
Generally, a credit for foreign taxes is subject to the limitation that it may not exceed the shareholders U.S. tax attributable to his or her total foreign source taxable income. For this purpose, if the pass-through election is made, the source of the Funds income will flow through to shareholders of the Fund. With respect to the Fund, gains from the sale of securities will be treated as derived from U.S. sources and certain currency fluctuation gains, including fluctuation gains from
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foreign currency-denominated debt securities, receivables and payables will be treated as ordinary income derived from U.S. sources. The limitation on the foreign tax credit is applied separately to foreign source passive income, and to certain other types of income. A shareholder may be unable to claim a credit for the full amount of his or her proportionate share of the foreign taxes paid by the Fund. The foreign tax credit can be used to offset only 90% of the revised alternative minimum tax imposed on corporations and individuals and foreign taxes generally are not deductible in computing alternative minimum taxable income.
Original Issue Discount and Pay-In-Kind Securities
Current federal tax law requires the holder of a U.S. Treasury or other fixed income zero coupon security to accrue as income each year a portion of the discount at which the security was purchased, even though the holder receives no interest payment in cash on the security during the year. In addition, pay-in-kind securities will give rise to income which is required to be distributed and is taxable even though the Fund holding the security receives no interest payment in cash on the security during the year.
Some of the debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of more than one year from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund may be treated as debt securities that are issued originally at a discount. Generally, the amount of the original issue discount (OID) is treated as interest income and is included in income over the term of the debt security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, usually when the debt security matures. A portion of the OID includable in income with respect to certain high-yield corporate debt securities (including certain pay-in-kind securities) may be treated as a dividend for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Some of the debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of more than one year from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund in the secondary market may be treated as having market discount. Generally, any gain recognized on the disposition of, and any partial payment of principal on, a debt security having market discount is treated as ordinary income to the extent the gain, or principal payment, does not exceed the accrued market discount on such debt security. Market discount generally accrues in equal daily installments. The Fund may make one or more of the elections applicable to debt securities having market discount, which could affect the character and timing of recognition of income.
Some debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of one year or less from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund may be treated as having acquisition discount, or OID in the case of certain types of debt securities. Generally, the Fund will be required to include the acquisition discount, or OID, in income over the term of the debt security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, usually when the debt security matures. The Fund may make one or more of the elections applicable to debt securities having acquisition discount, or OID, which could affect the character and timing of recognition of income.
A fund that holds the foregoing kinds of securities may be required to pay out as an income distribution each year an amount, which is greater than the total amount of cash interest the Fund actually received. Such distributions may be made from the cash assets of the Fund or by liquidation of portfolio securities, if necessary (including when it is not advantageous to do so). The Fund may realize gains or losses from such liquidations. In the event the Fund realizes net capital gains from such transactions, its shareholders may receive a larger capital gain distribution, if any, than they would in the absence of such transactions.
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Shareholders of the Fund may be subject to state and local taxes on distributions received from the Fund and on redemptions of the Funds shares.
A brief explanation of the form and character of the distribution accompany each distribution. In January of each year the Fund issues to each shareholder a statement of the federal income tax status of all distributions.
Shareholders should consult their tax advisers about the application of federal, state and local and foreign tax law in light of their particular situation.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
The Board has selected RSM US LLP, located at 555 Seventeenth Street, Suite 1200, Denver, CO 80202, as the Funds independent registered public accounting firm for the current fiscal year. RSM US LLP performs annual audits of the Funds financial statements and provides other audit, tax, and related services to the Fund.
LEGAL COUNSEL
Thompson Hine LLP, located at 41 South High Street, Suite 1700 Columbus, OH 43215 serves as the Trusts legal counsel.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The financial statements and report of the independent registered public accounting firm required to be included in this SAI are hereby incorporated by reference to the Annual Report for the Fund for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024. The Annual Report and the unaudited financial statements, financial highlights and notes thereto for the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2023 are incorporated by reference herein. You can obtain a copy of the financial statements contained in the Funds Annual or Semi-Annual Report without charge by calling the Fund at 1-833-653-0575.
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APPENDIX A
Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures
AthenaInvest
Proxy Voting Policy
February 2015
For its SMA business, AthenaInvest does not take any action or render any advice to customers with respect to the voting of proxies solicited by, or with respect to the issues of any securities held in customers accounts.
For pooled investments, including mutual funds, ETFs, private funds, or other pooled client funds that contractually require AthenaInvest to vote proxies, the following policies and procedures apply.
1.1 Objective
Our objective in voting proxy is to vote in the best interest of the client/shareholders to maximize the value of securities while still maintaining the portfolios investment objective.
1.2 General Guidelines
To achieve and support AthenaInvests proxy voting objective, AthenaInvest adopts the following proxy voting guidelines:
1.2.1 Routine Business Decisions and Director Related Proposals
The Firm votes for:
a) | Name changes |
b) | Directors in uncontested elections |
c) | Elimination/limitation of directors liability |
d) | Indemnification of directors |
e) | Reincorporation that is not a takeover defense |
The Firm considers on a case-by-case basis:
a) | Directors in contested elections |
b) | Approval of auditors |
1.2.2 Corporate Governance
The Firm votes for:
a) | Majority independent board |
b) | Audit, compensation & nominating committees that are comprised exclusively of independent directors Minimum director share ownership |
c) | Separate offices of chairperson and CEO |
d) | Limitation on number of other board seats |
e) | Confidential voting |
f) | Shareholders ability to remove directors |
g) | Shareholder right to call special meetings |
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The Firm votes against:
a) | Supermajority vote requirements |
b) | Limiting directors tenure |
c) | Restrictions on shareholders to act by written consent |
The Firm considers on a case-by-case basis:
a) | Shareholder proposals |
b) | Dissident proxy battle |
1.2.3 Director and Executive Compensation
The Firm votes for:
a) Disclosure of executive compensation
The Firm votes against:
a) Golden and tin parachutes
The Firm considers on a case-by-case basis:
a) | Restricting executive compensation |
b) | Executive compensation plans |
c) | Establish/Increase share option plans for directors and executives |
1.2.4 Take-Over Defense
The Firm votes against:
a) | Reincorporation to prevent takeover |
b) | Issue new class of common stock with unequal voting rights |
c) | Adoption of fair price amendments |
d) | Establish a classified (or staggered) board of directors |
e) | Eliminating cumulative voting |
f) | Poison pills |
g) | Blank check preferred stock |
1.2.5 Capital Structure
The Firm votes for:
a) | Increase authorized common stock (unless additional stock is a takeover defense, i.e., poison pill). |
b) | Share repurchase programs (when all shareholders may participate on equal terms) |
The Firm votes against:
a) | Unequal voting rights, such as dual class of stock |
b) | Pre-emptive rights |
The
Firm considers on a case-by-case basis:
a) | Increase preferred stock |
b) | Blank check preferred stock (not for takeover defense) |
c) | Restructuring plans |
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1.2.6 Other Shareholder Value Issues
The Firm votes for:
a) | Employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) |
b) | Employee stock purchase plans |
c) | 401(k) plans |
The
Firm votes against:
a) | Greenmail |
The Firm considers on a case-by-case basis:
a) | Mergers and acquisitions |
b) | Spin-offs and asset sales |
1.2.7 Corporate, Social and Environmental Policy Proposals
AthenaInvests fiduciary responsibility is the maintenance and growth of our clients assets. Accordingly, the firm will typically vote in accordance with managements recommendations or abstain from voting on proposals concerning corporate policy and social and environmental issues. When such proposals impact shareholder value, Advisor may vote on a case-by-case basis.
1.3 Procedures
Our CCO votes our proxies. The CCO is responsible for performing the following functions:
● | Reviewing and analyzing proxy proposals based on our proxy voting objective; |
● | Determining and addressing potential or actual conflicts of interest that may be presented by a particular proxy proposal; |
● | Seeking third party recommendations, if needed; and |
● | Voting proxies. |
The CCO is responsible for maintaining all materials and reports reviewed and evaluated during the voting for each proposal.
1.4 Proxy Voting Oversight
The Board of Directors is responsible for overseeing our proxy voting practice. In addition, the Board of Directors reviews and approves our proxy voting procedures and guidelines.
1.5 Disclose to Customers
At the time of opening an account and annually thereafter, AthenaInvest provides an ADV Part 2A that explains how proxy voting information can be obtained from AthenaInvest.
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In addition, AthenaInvest provides AthenaInvests proxy voting policies and procedures to customers upon request.
Our CCO is responsible for:
● | Making certain that AthenaInvests Form ADV Part 2A contains information on how to obtain information on how customers securities were voted; |
● | Providing information, at least annually, on how to obtain information on how customers were voted either by directly proving such information to customers and intermediaries; and |
● | Supplying a copy of AthenaInvests proxy voting policies and procedures to customers and intermediaries, upon request, in a timely manner. |
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