497 1 nlftprinceton_497.htm 497

 

 

Princeton Premium Fund

 

PROSPECTUS

January 28, 2025

 

  Class A Shares: PPFAX
  Class I Shares: PPFIX

 

 

 

 

Adviser:

Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC

1580 Lincoln Street, Suite 680

Denver, CO 80203

 

 

 

 

 

 

www.PrincetonPremiumFund.com 1-888-868-9501

 

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.

 

 
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

FUND SUMMARY 1
Investment Objective 1
Fees and Expenses of the Fund 1
Principal Investment Strategies 2
Principal Investment Risks 2
Performance 4
Investment Adviser 5
Portfolio Managers 5
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares 5
Tax Information 5
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries 5
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS 6
Investment Objective 6
Principal Investment Strategies 6
Principal Investment Risks 7
Temporary Defensive Positions 9
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure 9
Cybersecurity 9
MANAGEMENT 10
Investment Adviser and Portfolio Managers 10
HOW SHARES ARE PRICED 11
HOW TO PURCHASE SHARES 12
HOW TO REDEEM SHARES 15
FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES 17
TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS 18
DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES 19
Distributor 19
Distribution (12b-1) and Shareholder Servicing Fees 19
Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries 19
Householding 19
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS 20

 

 
 

FUND SUMMARY

 

Investment Objective: The Fund seeks capital appreciation and income.

 

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. You may qualify for sales charge discounts on purchases of Class A shares if you and/or your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $25,000 in the Fund. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary and in How to Purchase Shares on page 12 of this Prospectus and in Purchase, Redemption and Pricing of Shares on page 42 of the Statement of Additional Information.

 


Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
Class A Class I
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases
(as a % of offering price)
5.75% None
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) None None
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and other Distributions None None
Redemption Fee None None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
   
Management Fees 1.75% 1.75%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees 0.25% None
Other Expenses 0.82% 0.80%
Interest Expense(1) 0.55% 0.53%
Remaining Other Expenses 0.27% 0.27%
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(2) 0.01% 0.01%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 2.83% 2.56%
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement(3) (0.07)% (0.07)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expenses Reimbursement 2.76% 2.49%
(1)Interest Expense reflects interest charged to the Fund in connection with its option transactions and certain margin/collateral requirements of the options counterparty. This expense does not reflect the interest received by the Fund for the Fund’s collateral pledged for such transactions.
(2)Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are the estimated average indirect costs of investing in other investment companies. The operating expenses in this fee table will not correlate to the expense ratio in the Fund’s financial highlights because the financial statements include only the direct operating expenses incurred by the Fund.

(3)     Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC has contractually agreed to waive management fees and to make payments to limit Fund expenses, until at least January 31, 2026 so that the total annual operating expenses (exclusive of any (i) front-end or contingent deferred loads; (ii) brokerage fees and commission;, (iii) acquired fund fees and expenses; (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments including investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (for example options fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; (vii) expenses incurred in the connection with any merger or reorganization; and (viii) extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the adviser))) do not exceed 2.20% and 1.95% of average daily net assets attributable to Class A and Class I shares, respectively. 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 fees were waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the foregoing expense limits or the then-current expense limits. This agreement may be terminated only by the Board of Trustees on 60 days written notice to Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC.

 

Example: This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.

 

The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based upon these assumptions your costs would be:

 

Class 1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
Class A $838 $1,395 $1,977 $3,546
Class  I $252 $790 $1,354 $2,890

 

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 Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal period, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 0% of the average value of its portfolio.

 1
 

Principal Investment Strategies:

 

The Fund utilizes two principal investment strategies: 1) a premium collection strategy involving sale or purchase of put options on the S&P 500 Index and 2) investing in fixed income securities. The Fund’s adviser will determine the allocation between these strategies. The adviser intends to allocate between 30% to 100% of the Fund’s net assets to the premium collection strategy at any given time.

 

The Fund may purchase and sell put options on the S&P 500 Index utilizing a premium collection strategy. The adviser utilizes quantitative models that allow it to determine what it believes is the probability of certain put options expiring worthless; the sale of a put option is done at a price that the adviser believes has a 99.5% or greater probability of the puts sold expiring worthless. These models utilize a formula to calculate probabilities by utilizing verifiable market data such as real volatility or implied volatility as measured by the CBOE Volatility Index (“VIX”), time to expiration for the option contracts and current S&P 500 Index level to determine the probability an option will expire worthless. Within this strategy, because the trades are put spreads where an offsetting position is taken for each option contract, the potential risk is well defined. The adviser will seek to further mitigate risk and maximize Fund profits by continuing its quantitative analysis and monitoring the trade during the term of the contracts; and may close a trade early if it determines 1) the probability of the put or call option expiring worthless declines below a defined probability level (typically 85% or higher) 2) it can close the trade for minimum cost or 3) it can close the trade early and achieve the target profit objective for such trade.

 

The Fund is required to pledge collateral for the option trades and will hold cash, treasury bills, money market instruments or other fixed-income securities as collateral for all such options trades. The Fund’s custodian will segregate such collateral for the benefit of the counterparty. Therefore, the Fund must typically maintain a large percentage of cash and cash equivalents within the Fund. The amount collected by the Fund when opening a trade represents the maximum profit (or premium) for the position.

 

The Fund may also allocate a portion of its assets to a fixed income strategy. The Fund may invest directly or indirectly in fixed income securities of any maturity. Such fixed income investments will be rated investment grade at the time the investment is made. The Fund may invest directly in U.S. Treasury bonds. The Fund may also invest in exchange traded funds (“ETFs”), money market funds or open-end mutual funds, including affiliated mutual funds (collectively, “Underlying Funds”) whose principal investment strategy is to invest primarily in investment grade fixed income securities of U.S. issuers of any size, including smaller issuers.

 

The adviser considers a variety of factors in determining whether to sell a fixed income investment: changes in market condition, changes in credit quality, changes in prospects for alternative investment possibilities or return opportunities for other fixed income instruments, current return expectation of such security, any changes in interest rates, liquidity of the security, and cash needs of the Fund. If a fixed income investment is downgraded after purchase the adviser may, but is not obligated to, dispose of such investment.

 

The adviser’s investment process attempts to combine risk management, experienced portfolio construction and portfolio monitoring.

 

The Fund may also invest a substantial portion of its assets in U.S. Treasury bonds, high-quality short-term debt securities and money market instruments, to maintain liquidity for shareholder redemptions or pending selection of other investments.

 

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 Fund’s net asset value and performance.

 

The following risks may apply to the Fund’s investments:

·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 securities held by the Fund may be lowered if an issuer’s financial condition changes.
·Derivatives Risk: The Fund will use an options strategy. Options involve risks possibly greater than the risks associated with investing directly in securities including leverage risk, tracking risk (the derivatives may not track the underlying securities) and certain options involve counterparty default risk.
·Distribution Policy Risk: The Fund pays quarterly distributions on Fund shares at a target rate that represents an annualized payout of approximately 4.0% on the Fund’s per-share net asset value on the date of a distribution’s declaration. Shareholders receiving periodic payments from the Fund may be under the impression that they are receiving net profits. However, all or a portion of a distribution may consist of a return of capital. Return of capital is the portion of distribution that is a return of your original investment dollars in the Fund. Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net profit. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares. The Fund will provide disclosures, with each quarterly 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) capital gains and (3) return of capital for tax purposes.
 2
 
·Fixed Income Risk: The Fund may invest directly in fixed income securities, or indirectly through ETFs, money market funds, or mutual funds which invest primarily in fixed income securities. The value of the Fund’s investments in fixed income securities, whether via direct investment or through Underlying Funds, will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Typically, a rise in interest rates causes a decline in the value of fixed income securities. Other risk factors include credit risk (the debtor may default), extension risk (an issuer may exercise its right to repay principal on a fixed rate obligation held by the Fund later than expected), and prepayment risk (the debtor may pay its obligation early, reducing the amount of interest payments). These risks could affect the value of a particular investment by the Fund, possibly causing the Fund’s share price and total return to be reduced and fluctuate more than other types of investments.
·Hedging Risk: Because the Fund hedges certain investments, the Fund may not benefit from upswings in the market to the same extent it would if it utilized a different investment strategy. The Fund does not expect to participate fully in positive markets because its premium collection options strategy is not designed to track the market.
·Leverage Risk: Using options to increase the Fund’s combined long and short exposure creates leverage, which can magnify the Fund’s potential for gain or loss and, therefore, amplify the effects of market volatility on the Fund’s share price.
·Liquidity Risk: Liquidity risk is the risk that you might not be able to buy or sell investments quickly for a price that is close to the true underlying value of the asset. When a bond is said to be liquid, there’s generally an active market of investors buying and selling that type of bond. Treasury bonds and larger issues by well known corporations are generally very liquid. But not all bonds are liquid; some trade very infrequently, which can present a problem if you try to sell before maturity—the fewer people that are interested in buying the bond you want to sell, the more likely it is you’ll have to sell for a lower price, possibly incurring a loss on your investment. Liquidity risk exists when particular investments of the Fund would be difficult to purchase or sell, possibly preventing the Fund from selling such illiquid securities at an advantageous time or price, or possibly requiring the Fund to dispose of other investments at unfavorable times or prices in order to satisfy its obligations. Liquidity risk can be greater for bonds that have lower credit ratings (or were recently downgraded), or bonds that were part of a small issue or sold by an infrequent issuer.
·Management Risk: The adviser’s judgments about the long-term returns the Fund may generate through its principal investment strategies may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results. Additionally, the adviser’s judgments about the allocation of Fund’s assets between the principal investment strategies and potential performance of each may also prove incorrect and may not produce the desired results. The Fund is not designed to participate in or be correlated to overall movements of the markets; therefore the Fund may not benefit from positive equity markets, or experience the same type of positive returns as some other funds in a positive equity market environment. The Fund may also experience losses in a negative equity market, and such losses may be amplified if the options strategy is not successful. The Fund’s principal investment strategies may not achieve their intended results and each strategy could negatively impact the Fund.
·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’s portfolio may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics, climate changes or climate change related events, terrorism, international conflict, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years such as a worldwide pandemic, terrorist attacks, 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. The COVID-19 global pandemic had negative impacts, and in many cases severe negative impacts, on markets worldwide. It is not known how long such impacts, or any future impacts of other significant events described above, will or would last, but there could be a prolonged period of global economic slowdown, which may impact your Fund 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.
·Market Volatility Risk: Overall equity, fixed income, and derivatives market risks may affect the value of the Fund. While the Fund is not designed to be correlated with the markets in general, dramatic or abrupt volatility within the market would negatively impact the Fund’s premium collection options strategy significantly, which may result in material losses for the Fund. Factors such as domestic and foreign economic growth and market conditions, interest rate levels, and political events affect the securities and derivatives markets. When the value of the Fund goes down, your investment in the Fund decreases in value and you could lose money.
 3
 
·Non-Correlation Risk: Although the Fund will invest in options on the S&P 500 Index, the Fund is not designed to track the returns of such index. The Fund’s return will not match the return of the S&P 500 Index because it is not investing in the equity securities that comprise such index. Also, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and incurs costs in buying and selling securities.
·Options Risk: Options are subject to changes in the underlying securities or index of securities on which such instruments are based. There is no guarantee that the adviser’s options strategy will be effective or that suitable transactions will be available. The Fund’s option strategy’s profit potential is limited to the net premium received when entering the trades. The potential for loss is an amount equal to the 1) difference between the strike price of the long put and the strike price of the short put, plus 2) any commissions paid. Maximum loss under the option strategy occurs from the put trade, when the underlying price is less than or equal to the strike price of the short put. A portion of any option premiums may be treated as short-term capital gains and when distributed to shareholders are usually taxable as ordinary income, which may have a higher tax rate than long-term capital gains for shareholders holding Fund shares in a taxable account. Because the Adviser purchases short-term options in executing the Fund’s strategy, the Fund may incur a higher level of transactional costs than other funds.
·Underlying Funds Risk: The Fund may invest in ETFs, money market funds, or mutual funds that invest primarily in fixed income securities. Underlying Funds are subject to investment advisory 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 an Underlying Fund and may be higher than other mutual funds that only invest directly in stocks and bonds. ETFs 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. The market value of the ETF shares may differ from their net asset value. Underlying Funds in which the Fund may invest may be subject to different risks, investment strategies and policies than those of the Fund.

 

Performance: The bar chart and performance table below show the variability of the Fund’s returns, which is some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows performance of the Class I shares of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund's inception. Returns for Class A shares, which are not presented in the bar chart, would vary from the returns for Class I shares. The performance table compares the performance of the shares of the Fund over time to the performance of a broad-based securities market index. You should be aware that the Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) may not be an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information will be available at no cost by visiting www.PrincetonPremiumFund.com or by calling 1-888-868-9501.

 

Class I Annual Total Return for Calendar Years Ended December 31

P206#yIS1

 

Best Quarter: 1st Quarter 2021 6.54%
Worst Quarter: 1st  Quarter 2020 (9.12)%

 

 4
 

Performance Table

Average Annual Total Returns

(For periods ended December 31, 2024)

  One
Year
Five
Years
Life of Fund
(inception 11-16-16)
Class I shares      
Return before taxes 2.66% 5.95% 5.17%
Return after taxes on distributions 1.26% 4.63% 4.23%
Return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares 1.66% 4.25% 3.80%
Class A shares      
Return before taxes with sales charge* (3.54)% 4.40% 4.14%
Return before taxes without sales charge 2.34% 5.65% 4.90%
S&P 500 Total Return Index 25.02% 14.53% 15.00%
*Returns for Class A shares include the maximum sales charge of 5.75%.

 

The S&P 500 Total Return Index is a widely accepted, unmanaged index of U.S. stock market performance which does not take into account charges, fees, taxes and other expenses. Investors may not invest in the index directly.

 

After-tax returns were calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). After tax returns are not shown for Class A and would differ from those of Class I shares.

 

Investment Adviser: Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC

 

Portfolio Managers: Greg Anderson, Manager and President of the adviser, and John L. Sabre, Manager and Chief Executive Officer of the adviser, have each served as a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in November 2016. Zachary R. Slater, Senior Vice President of the adviser, has served as a portfolio manager of the Fund since April 2020.

 

Each portfolio manager is jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.

 

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 A and Class I shares is $2,500 and $100,000, respectively. There is a minimum amount of $100 for subsequent investment in any share class. These minimums may be waived at the discretion of the Fund.

 

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, the adviser or their 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 intermediary’s website for more information.

 5
 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS

 

Investment Objective:

 

The Fund seeks capital appreciation and income. The Fund’s investment objective may be changed by the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) upon 60 days written notice to shareholders.

 

Principal Investment Strategies:

 

The adviser has been managing mutual funds since 2011 and currently manages other open-end mutual funds within the Trust, closed-end funds, a private fund and separately managed accounts. The adviser has overall responsibilities for the management and investment of the Fund’s securities portfolio.

 

The adviser utilizes a premium collection strategy, in which the Fund may sell and purchase put option spreads on the S&P 500 Index. For example, each put spread utilizes the same type of contract, same maturity date, same number of contracts, but the put options are purchased/sold at different strike prices. When the expiration date arrives, if all options are out-of-the-money, they expire worthless and the Fund will retain the cash (premium) collected when opening the position, net of any cash (premium) paid to purchase the put positions. The adviser intends to allocate between 30% to 100% of the Fund’s net assets to this premium collection strategy at any given time, such allocation to be determined by the adviser.

 

The Fund may purchase and sell put options on the S&P 500 Index utilizing a premium collection strategy. The adviser utilizes quantitative models that allow it to determine what it believes is the probability of certain put options expiring worthless; the sale of a put option is done at a price that the adviser believes has a 99.5% or greater probability of the puts sold expiring worthless. These models utilize a formula to calculate probabilities by utilizing verifiable market data such as real volatility or implied volatility as measured by the CBOE Volatility Index (“VIX”), time to expiration for the option contracts and current S&P 500 Index level to determine the probability an option will expire worthless. Within this strategy, because the trades are put spreads where an offsetting position is taken for each option contract, the potential risk is well defined. The adviser will seek to further mitigate risk and maximize Fund profits by continuing its quantitative analysis and monitoring the trade during the term of the contracts; and may close a trade early if it determines 1) the probability of the put or call option expiring worthless declines below a defined probability level (typically 85% or higher) 2) it can close the trade for minimum cost or 3) it can close the trade early and achieve the target profit objective for such trade.

 

The adviser manages the fixed income strategy directly and in doing so invests the Fund’s assets in U.S. Treasury bonds of any maturity, or in Underlying Funds whose investment strategy is to invest primarily in investment grade fixed income securities of any maturity, of U.S. issuers of any size, including smaller issuers. Credit quality of the issuer will be considered at the time of investment, and for Underlying Funds the adviser will invest in Underlying Funds whose principal investment strategy is to invest primarily in investment grade fixed income securities. The adviser considers a variety of factors in determining whether to sell a fixed income investment, including changes in market condition, changes in credit quality, changes in prospects for alternative investment possibilities or return opportunities for other fixed income instruments, current return expectation of such security, any changes in interest rates, liquidity of the security, and cash needs of the Fund. If a fixed income investment is downgraded after purchase, the adviser may, but is not obligated to, dispose of such investment.

 

The Fund intends to collect premium from the sale and purchase of put options on the S&P 500 Index. The capital gains generated by the Fund’s option strategy are expected to be 60% long term capital gains and 40% short term capital gains as we believe the options are Section 1256 contracts under the Internal Revenue Code. The Fund also seeks to generate cash flow or income using a fixed income strategy. The Fund’s adviser will determine the allocation among principal investment strategies.

 

Fund risk is monitored and mitigated in several ways. The premium collection strategy trades have defined risk: risk is controlled by the number of option contracts purchased and the time frame during which they are open, and the adviser’s defined risk trade protocol (purchasing offsetting put contracts for the same contracts but at a different price). The adviser further manages overall risk of the Fund by monitoring the performance within each strategy and controlling the amount of Fund’s assets that are allocated to either strategy at any given time.

 

The adviser believes this Fund is suitable to include in the risk portion of an investor’s investment portfolio that includes equities and non-investment grade fixed income securities (commonly known as “junk bonds”). However, if you are seeking only investment grade fixed income investments, then the Fund is not appropriate for your investment goals.

 

 6
 

Principal Investment Risks:

 

The following risks may apply to the Fund’s investments.

·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 securities held by the Fund may be lowered if an issuer’s 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 market’s 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. Credit risk may also exist whenever the Fund enters into certain derivative contracts, because the counterparty may not be able or may choose not to perform under the contract. Relying on a counterparty exposes the Fund to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing the Fund to suffer a loss. If a counterparty defaults on its payment obligations to the Fund, this default will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. In addition, to the extent the Fund deals with a limited number of counterparties, it will be more susceptible to the credit risks associated with those counterparties. The Fund is neither restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty nor from concentrating any or all of its transactions with one counterparty. The Fund expects the options it trades to be exchange traded, but the ability of the Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties or the absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement would increase the potential for losses by the Fund.
·Derivatives Risk: The Fund will use options as part of its principal investment strategies. The Fund’s use of such derivative instruments 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. Derivative prices are highly volatile and may fluctuate substantially during a short period of time. Such prices are influenced by numerous factors that affect the markets, including, but not limited to: changing supply and demand relationships; government programs and policies; national and international political and economic events; changes in interest rates; inflation and deflation; and changes in supply and demand relationships. Derivative contracts ordinarily have leverage inherent in their terms. The low margin deposits normally required in trading derivatives, permit a high degree of leverage. Accordingly, a relatively small price movement could result in an immediate and substantial loss to the Fund. The use of leverage in the fixed income strategy may also cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio fixed income positions when it would not be advantageous to do so in order to satisfy its obligations or to meet collateral segregation requirements. The use of leveraged derivatives can magnify the Fund’s potential for gain or loss and, therefore, amplify the effects of market volatility on the Fund’s share price. Because option premiums paid or received are small in relation to the market value of the investments underlying the options, buying and selling put and call options can be more speculative than investing directly in securities.
·Distribution Policy Risk: The Fund pays quarterly distributions on Fund shares at a target rate that represents an annualized payout of approximately 4.0% on the Fund’s per-share net asset value on the date of a distribution’s declaration. Shareholders receiving periodic payments from the Fund may be under the impression that they are receiving net profits. However, all or a portion of a distribution may consist of a return of capital. Return of capital is the portion of distribution that is a return of your original investment dollars in the Fund. Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net profit. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares. The Fund will provide disclosures, with each quarterly 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) capital gains and (3) return of capital for tax purposes.
·Fixed Income Risk: The Fund may invest directly in fixed income securities, or indirectly through Underlying Funds whose principal investment strategy is to invest primarily in fixed income securities. When the Fund invests in fixed income securities, the value of your investment in the Fund will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Typically, a rise in interest rates causes a decline in the value of fixed income securities owned by the Fund. In general, the market price of debt securities with longer maturities will increase or decrease more in response to changes in interest rates than shorter-term securities. Other risk factors include credit risk (the debtor may default) and prepayment risk (the debtor may pay its obligation early, reducing the amount of interest payments; or the debtor may pay its obligation later than expected, reducing the returns earned by an investment). These risks could affect the value of a particular investment by the Fund possibly causing the Fund’s share price and returns to be reduced and fluctuate more than other types of investments.
 7
 
·Hedging Risk: The Fund’s options strategy utilizes hedging. Because the Fund hedges certain investments, the Fund may not benefit from upswings in the market to the same extent it would if it utilized a different investment strategy. The Fund does not expect to participate fully in positive markets because its premium collection options strategy is not designed to track the market. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging strategy will reduce risk or that hedging transactions will be either available or cost effective. The Fund is not required to use certain hedging techniques described in this prospectus and may choose not to do so.
·Leverage Risk: Using derivatives to increase the Fund’s combined long and short position exposure creates leverage, which can amplify the effects of market volatility on the Fund’s share price and make the Fund’s 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. The Fund will utilize leverage to the extent leverage is implicit in the options strategy. The amount of leverage utilized will be within the limits established for RICs.
·Liquidity Risk: The Fund may be subject to liquidity risk. Liquidity risk is the risk that you might not be able to buy or sell investments quickly for a price that is close to the true underlying value of the asset. When a bond is said to be liquid, there is generally an active market of investors buying and selling that type of bond. Treasury bonds and larger issues by well known corporations are generally very liquid. But not all bonds are liquid; some trade very infrequently, which can present a problem if you try to sell before maturity—the fewer people there are interested in buying the bond you want to sell, the more likely it is you’ll have to sell for a lower price, possibly incurring a loss on your investment. Liquidity risk can be greater for fixed income securities that were recently downgraded, or fixed income securities that were part of a small issue or sold by an infrequent issuer.
·Management Risk: The net asset value of the Fund changes daily based on the performance of the securities and derivatives in which it invests. The adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value and premium to be generated by or potential appreciation of particular investment strategy or securities in which the Fund invests (long or short) may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results. The Fund is not designed to participate in or be correlated to overall movements of the markets; therefore the Fund may not benefit from positive equity markets, or experience the same type of positive returns as some other funds in a positive equity market environment. The Fund may also experience losses in a negative equity market, and such losses may be amplified if the options strategy is not successful.
·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’s portfolio may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics, climate changes or climate change related events, terrorism, international conflict, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years such as a worldwide pandemic, terrorist attacks, 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. The COVID-19 global pandemic had negative impacts, and in many cases severe negative impacts, on markets worldwide. It is not known how long such impacts, or any future impacts of other significant events described above will or would last, but there could be a prolonged period of global economic slowdown, which may impact your Fund 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.
·Market Volatility Risk: The net asset value of the Fund will fluctuate based on changes in the value of the equity and fixed income securities and options in which the Fund invests. While the Fund is not designed to be correlated to the markets in general, dramatic or abrupt volatility within the market would negatively impact the Fund’s premium collection options strategy significantly, which may result in material losses for the Fund. The Fund also invests in securities and derivatives which may be more volatile and carry more risk than some other forms of investment. The price of securities and derivatives may rise or fall because of economic or political changes. Security and derivative prices in general may decline over short or even extended periods of time. Market prices of securities and derivatives in broad market segments may be adversely affected by price trends in commodities, interest rates, exchange rates or other factors wholly unrelated to the value or condition of an issuer.
·Non-Correlation Risk: Although the Fund will invest in options on the S&P 500 Index, the Fund is not designed to track the returns of such index. The Fund’s return will not match the return of the S&P 500 Index because it is not investing in equity securities that comprise such index. Also, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Index, and incurs costs in buying and selling securities.
 8
 
·Options Risk: There are risks associated with the sale and purchase of call and put options. Typically the seller (writer) of a covered put option assumes the risk of a decline in the market price of the underlying security below the strike price of the underlying security less the premium received, and gives up the opportunity for gain on the underlying security above the exercise price of the option and the buyer of a put or call option, risks losing the entire premium invested in the option if it does not exercise the option. However, the Fund’s options strategy utilizes option spreads. The Fund’s option strategy’s profit potential is limited to the net premium received when entering the trades. The potential for loss is an amount equal to 1) the difference between the strike price of the long put and the strike price of the short put, plus 2) any commissions paid. Maximum loss under the option strategy occurs from the put trade, when the underlying price is less than or equal to the strike price of the short put. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s option strategy will generate the types of premium / positive returns which are expected. The Fund’s option strategy seeks to retain premiums collected on option contracts, but benefits from the options themselves expiring worthless. In doing so, there is a risk the options may result in a significant loss if the market price moves in a way that was not anticipated, or the adviser closes out an options spread by paying more premium than it collected on the spread. Because the Adviser purchases short-term options in executing the Fund’s strategy, the Fund may incur a higher level of transactional costs than other funds.
   
  Also, a portion of the option premiums may be treated as short-term capital gains. It is anticipated that a portion of short-term gains, when distributed to shareholders, are usually taxable as ordinary income, which may have a higher tax rate than long-term capital gains for shareholders holding Fund shares in a taxable account.

·Underlying Funds Risk: The Fund invests in Underlying Funds. As a result, your cost of investing in the Fund may be higher than the cost of investing directly in Underlying Funds and may be higher than other mutual funds that invest directly in stocks and bonds. You will indirectly bear fees and expenses charged by the Underlying Funds in addition to the Fund’s direct fees and expenses. In addition, certain prohibitions on the acquisition of mutual fund shares by the Fund may prevent the Fund from allocating investments in the manner the adviser considers optimal. ETFs 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. The market value of the ETF shares may differ from their net asset value. Underlying Funds in which the Fund may invest may be subject to different risks, investment strategies and policies than those of the Fund.

 

Temporary Defensive Positions: To respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may invest 100% of its total assets, without limitation, in U.S. Treasury bonds, high-quality short-term debt securities and money market instruments, which may be inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies. These short-term debt securities and 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 Fund may not achieve its investment objective. 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.

 

Portfolio Holdings Disclosure: A description of the Fund’s policies regarding the release of portfolio holdings information is available in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information. The Fund may, from time to time, make available month-end portfolio holdings information on the website www.PrincetonPremiumFund.com. If month-end portfolio holdings are posted to the website, they are expected to be at least 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 1-888-868-9501.

 

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 Fund’s business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses; interference with the Fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value; impediments to trading; the inability of the Fund, the adviser, 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.

 

Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity breaches affecting issuers of securities in which the Fund invests; counterparties with which the Fund engages in transactions; governmental and other regulatory authorities; exchange and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, and other financial institutions (including financial intermediaries and service providers for the Fund’s shareholders); and other parties. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred by these entities in order to prevent any cybersecurity breaches in the future.

 9
 

MANAGEMENT

 

Investment Adviser and Portfolio Managers

 

Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC, 1580 Lincoln Street, Suite 680 Denver, CO 80203, serves as investment adviser to the Fund. Subject to the oversight of the Board, the adviser is responsible for management of the Fund’s investment portfolio. The adviser is responsible for selecting appropriate investment strategies and assuring that investments are made according to the Fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions. The adviser was established in 2011 for the purpose of advising individuals and institutions. As of September 30, 2024, the adviser had approximately $907.3 million in assets under management. Greg D. Anderson, John L. Sabre, and Zachary R. Slater of Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC are responsible for the adviser’s management oversight role with respect to the Fund.

 

Greg D. Anderson

Manager and President

 

Prior to founding Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC in 2011 and certain affiliates, including Mount Yale Capital Group, LLC in 2003 and Mount Yale Asset Management in 1999, Mr. Anderson was a Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Investment Manager Search, Evaluation, and Due Diligence at Portfolio Management Consultants, Inc. Mr. Anderson was previously employed with Deloitte & Touche where he specialized in the areas of estate planning, health care and non-profit organizations, and tax and personal financial planning for high net worth individuals. Mr. Anderson holds a B.A. degree from Hamline University in Minnesota and a J.D. from the University of Minnesota School of Law. Mr. Anderson is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive).

 

John L. Sabre

Manager and Chief Executive Officer

 

Prior to founding Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC in 2011 and certain affiliates, including Mount Yale Capital Group, LLC in 2003, Mr. Sabre was a Senior Managing Director at Bear Stearns & Co. and Head of the Mezzanine Capital Group. Mr. Sabre previously served as President of First Dominion Capital, which managed $3.0 billion of assets and is now owned by Credit Suisse First Boston. Prior to his position at First Dominion Capital, Mr. Sabre was a Managing Director and founding partner of Indosuez Capital, the merchant banking division of Credit Agricole Indosuez. Mr. Sabre holds a B.S. degree from the Carlson School at the University of Minnesota and an M.B.A. degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Zachary R. Slater

Senior Vice President

 

Mr. Slater joined Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC and its affiliates in 2011 to conduct and oversee research on new investment opportunities. His experience includes evaluating and monitoring traditional, alternative and private investment strategies as well as managing option trading strategies. Additionally, he has experience transitioning strategies into different investment vehicles. Mr. Slater is responsible for sourcing new managers, conducting due diligence on potential managers and ongoing monitoring of current managers and investments. He holds a B.S. from the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver.

 

Pursuant to an advisory agreement between the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, and the adviser, the adviser is entitled to receive, on a monthly basis, an annual advisory fee from each class of shares equal to 1.75% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to the relevant share. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Adviser received an annual advisory fee equal to 1.68% of the Fund’s average daily net assets. The Fund’s adviser has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least January 31, 2026, to ensure that Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Reimbursement (excluding any front-end or contingent deferred loads, brokerage fees and commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, fees and expenses associated with investments including investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (for example options fees and expenses), borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short), taxes, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization and extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees and contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the adviser))) do not exceed 2.20% and 1.95% for Class A and Class I shares, respectively; subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years (within the three years after the fees were waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the foregoing expense limits or the then-current expense limits. Fee waiver and reimbursement arrangements can decrease the Fund’s expenses and boost its performance. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s renewal of the advisory agreement is available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders for the period ended September 30, 2024.

 10
 

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 as of the close of the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) on each day the 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 Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, 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 distribution fees (if any), 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 Fund’s securities are valued each day at the last quoted sales price on each security’s 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 the 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 (“NOCP”). 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, such securities will be valued at fair 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 is 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. The Board designated the Adviser as its “Valuation Designee” to execute these procedures. The Adviser 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 assure the process produces reliable results.

 

The Fund may use independent pricing services to assist in calculating the value of the Fund’s securities. In addition, market prices for foreign securities are not determined at the same time of day as the NAV for the Fund. 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 Fund’s 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 Fund may need to price the security using the Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s assets that are invested in one or more open-end management investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) the Fund’s NAV set value is calculated based upon the NAVs 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.

 

 11
 

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 the minimum investment, ongoing fees and sales charges. Class A pay an annual fee of 0.25% for distribution expenses pursuant to a plan under Rule 12b-1. Class I shares do not pay such fees. For information on ongoing distribution fees, see Distribution (12b-1) and Shareholder Servicing Fees on page 19 of this Prospectus. 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. All share classes may not be available for purchase in all states.

 

Class A Shares

 

Class A shares are offered at their public offering price, which is NAV plus the applicable sales charge and is subject to 12b-1 distribution fees of up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets of Class A shares. Over time, these fees paid under the 12b-1 Plan will increase the cost of a Class A shareholder’s investment and may cost more than the applicable sales charges. The minimum initial investment in Class A shares of the Fund is $2,500 for retirement plan accounts and $2,500 for all other accounts. The minimum subsequent investment in Class A shares of the Fund is $100 for retirement plan accounts and $100 for all other accounts. However, the Fund and adviser reserve to right to waive investment minimums for certain types of investors, including current and retired directors and officers of the Fund, the adviser, or any of its subsidiaries, their families (e.g., spouse, children, mother or father) and any purchases referred through the adviser; employees of the adviser, or any full-time employee or registered representative of the distributor or of broker-dealers having dealer agreements with the distributor (a “Selling Broker”) and their immediate families (or any trust, pension, profit sharing or other benefit plan for the benefit of such persons); or clients of financial intermediaries that have entered into arrangements with the distributor providing for the shares to be used in particular investment products made available to such clients. Currently, there are no such arrangements with any financial intermediaries. The sales charge varies, depending on how much you invest. There are no sales charges on reinvested distributions. The following sales charges, which may be waived at the adviser’s discretion, apply to your purchases of Class A shares of the Fund:

 

Amount Invested Sales Charge as a % of Offering Price(1) Sales Charge as a % of Amount Invested Dealer
Reallowance(2)
Under $25,000 5.75% 6.10% 5.00%
$25,000 to $49,999 5.00% 5.26% 4.25%
$50,000 to $99,999 4.75% 4.99% 4.00%
$100,000 to $249,999 3.75% 3.83% 3.25%
$250,000 to $499,999 2.50% 2.56% 2.00%
$500,000 to $999,999 2.00% 2.04% 1.75%
$1,000,000 and above 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%.
(1)Offering price includes the front-end sales load. The sales charge you pay may differ slightly form the amount set forth above because of rounding that occurs in the calculation used to determine your sales charge.
(2)Dealer reallowance is the amount of the sales charge paid to authorized broker-dealers for the sale of Fund shares.

 

How to Reduce Your Sales Charge

 

Depending on the amount you invest in Class A shares of the Fund, you may be eligible to purchase Class A shares at a reduced sales charge. To qualify for these reductions, you must notify the Fund’s distributor, Northern Lights Distributors, LLC (the “Distributor”), in writing and supply your account number at the time of purchase. You may combine your purchase with those of your “immediate family” (your spouse and your children under the age of 21) for purposes of determining eligibility. If applicable, you will need to provide the account numbers of your spouse and your minor children as well as the ages of your minor children.

 

Rights of Accumulation: To qualify for the lower sales charge rates that apply to larger purchases of Class A shares, you may combine your new purchases of Class A shares with Class A shares of the Fund that you already own. The applicable initial sales charge for the new purchase is based on the total of your current purchase and the current value of all other Class A shares that you own. The reduced sales charge will apply only to current purchases and must be requested in writing when you buy your shares.

 

Shares of the Fund held as follows cannot be combined with your current purchase for purposes of reduced sales charges:

·Shares held indirectly through financial intermediaries other than your current purchase broker-dealer (for example, a different broker-dealer, a bank, a separate insurance company account or an investment adviser);
·Shares held through an administrator or trustee/custodian of an Employer Sponsored Retirement Plan (for example, a 401(k) plan) other than employer-sponsored IRAs;
·Shares held directly in the Fund account on which the broker-dealer (financial adviser) of record is different than your current purchase broker-dealer.
 12
 

Letters of Intent: Under a Letter of Intent (“LOI”), you commit to purchase a specified dollar amount of Class A shares of the Fund, with a minimum of $25,000, during a 13-month period. At your written request, Class A shares purchases made during the previous 90 days may be included. The amount you agree to purchase determines the initial sales charge you pay. If the full-face amount of the LOI is not invested by the end of the 13-month period, your account will be adjusted to the higher initial sales charge level for the amount actually invested. You are not legally bound by the terms of your LOI to purchase the amount of your shares stated in the LOI. The LOI does, however, authorize the Fund to hold in escrow 5% of the total amount you intend to purchase. If you do not complete the total intended purchase at the end of the 13 month period, the Fund’s transfer agent will redeem the necessary portion of the escrowed shares to make up the difference between the reduced rate sales charge (based on the amount you intended to purchase) and the sales charge that would normally apply (based on the actual amount you purchased).

 

Repurchase of Class A Shares: If you have redeemed Class A shares of the Fund within the past 120 days, you may repurchase an equivalent amount of Class A shares of the Fund at NAV, without the normal front-end sales charge. In effect, this allows you to reacquire shares that you may have had to redeem, without repaying the front-end sales charge. You may exercise this privilege only once and must notify the Fund that you intend to do so in writing. The Fund must receive your purchase order within 120 days of your redemption. Note that if you reacquire shares through separate installments (e.g., through monthly or quarterly repurchases), the sales charge waiver will only apply to those portions of your repurchase order received within 120 days of your redemption.

 

Sales Charge Waivers

 

The sales charge on purchases of Class A shares is waived for certain types of investors, including:

·Current and retired directors and officers of the Fund, the adviser, or any of their subsidiaries, their families (e.g., spouse, children, mother or father) and any purchases referred through the adviser.
·Employees of the adviser, or any full-time employee or registered representative of the Distributor or of broker-dealers having dealer agreements with the Distributor (a “Selling Broker”) and their immediate families (or any trust, pension, profit sharing or other benefit plan for the benefit of such persons).
·Any full-time employee of a bank, savings and loan, credit union or other financial institution that utilizes a Selling Broker to clear purchases of the Fund’s shares and their immediate families.
·Participants in certain “wrap-fee” or asset allocation programs or other fee-based arrangements sponsored by broker-dealers and other financial institutions that have entered into agreements with the Distributor.
·Clients of financial intermediaries that have entered into arrangements with the Distributor providing for the shares to be used in particular investment products made available to such clients and for which such registered investment advisers may charge a separate fee.
·Institutional investors (which may include bank trust departments and registered investment advisers).
·Any accounts established on behalf of registered investment advisers or their clients by broker-dealers that charge a transaction fee and that have entered into agreements with the Distributor (there are currently no such arrangements).
·Separate accounts used to fund certain unregistered variable annuity contracts or Section 403(b) or 401(a) or (k) accounts.
·Employer-sponsored retirement or benefit plans with total plan assets in excess of $5 million where the plan’s investments in the Fund are part of an omnibus account. A minimum initial investment of $1 million in the Fund is required. The Distributor in its sole discretion may waive these minimum dollar requirements.

 

The Fund does not waive sales charges for the reinvestment of proceeds from the sale of shares of a different fund where those shares were subject to a front-end sales charge (sometimes called an “NAV transfer”).

 

Whether a sales charge waiver is available for your retirement plan or charitable account depends upon the policies and procedures of your intermediary. Please consult your financial adviser for further information.

 

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 A 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. However, the adviser may waive investment minimums on behalf of the Fund.

 

Purchasing Shares: You may purchase shares of the Fund by sending a completed application form to the following address:

 

Via Regular Mail

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 46707

Cincinnati, OH 45246

Via Overnight Mail

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450,

Cincinnati, OH 45246

 13
 

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 shareholder’s 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.

 

Purchase through Brokers: You may invest in the Fund through brokers or agents who have entered into selling agreements with the 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 Fund’s 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 brokers or 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 broker or agent.

 

Purchase by Wire: If you wish to wire money to make an investment in the Fund, please call the Fund at 1-888-868-9501 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 Fund’s designated bank before the close of regular trading on the NYSE. Your bank may charge you a fee for wiring same-day funds.

 

Automated Clearing House 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 Fund’s 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 1-888-868-9501 for more information about the Fund’s 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 wire transfer or 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 “Princeton Premium Fund.” The Fund will not accept payment in cash, cashier’s checks or money order. Also, to prevent check fraud, the Fund will not accept third party checks, U.S. Treasury checks, credit card checks, traveler’s checks, starter checks or checks drawn on non-U.S. financial institutions for the purchase of shares. Cashier’s 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 Fund’s transfer agent, will charge a $25 fee against a shareholder’s account, in addition to any loss sustained by the Fund, for any check or electronic payment returned to the transfer agent for insufficient funds.

 

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) on a day the NYSE is open (each a “business day”) 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

·       check payable to the “Princeton Premium Fund”

 14
 

Retirement Plans: You may purchase shares of the Fund for your individual retirement plans. Please call the Fund at 1-888-868-9501 for the most current listing and appropriate disclosure documentation on how to open a retirement account.

 

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.

 

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. 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.

 

 

HOW TO REDEEM SHARES

 

Redeeming Shares: The Fund typically expects that it will take up to 7 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 line of credit, and then from the sale of portfolio securities. These redemption payment methods will be used in regular and stressed market conditions.

 

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

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 46707

Cincinnati, OH 45246

Via Overnight Mail

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450,

Cincinnati, OH 45246

 

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(s) 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 1-888-868-9501. If you own an IRA account and wish to redeem by telephone, you will be asked whether or not the Fund should withhold federal income tax.

 

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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 1-888-868-9501 for more information about the Fund’s Systematic Withdrawal Plan.

 15
 

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 Fund’s assets. To the extent feasible, the Fund expects that a redemption in kind would be a pro rata allocation of the Fund’s portfolio. The securities will be chosen by the Fund and valued under the Fund’s net asset value procedures. A shareholder will be exposed to market risk until these securities are converted to cash and may incur transaction expenses such as brokerage fees or taxes in converting these securities to cash.

 

When Redemptions are Sent: Once the Fund receives your redemption request in “good order” as described below, it will issue a check based on the next determined NAV following your redemption request. However, under the 1940 Act, a shareholder’s 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; (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 by it is not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund fairly to determine the value of its 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 (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 NAV next determined after the termination of the suspension. 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 (usually within 10 days of the purchase date).

 

Good Order: Your redemption request will be processed if it is in “good order.”
To be in good order, the following conditions must be satisfied:

·       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.

 

Exchanges Between Share Classes of this Fund: Class A may be exchanged for Class I of the Fund, provided a shareholder has accumulated a sufficient amount of Class A to meet the investment minimum for Class I. An exchange between share classes within the Fund is not treated as a redemption or sale for federal income tax purposes and therefore is not a taxable event.

 

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 the share class minimum, the Fund may notify you that, unless the account is brought up to at least the minimum 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 the share class minimum due to a decline in NAV.

 16
 

FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES

 

The Fund discourages and does not accommodate market timing. Frequent trading into and out of the Fund can harm all Fund shareholders by disrupting the Fund’s 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 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 currently uses several methods to reduce the risk of market timing, including committing staff to review, on a continuing basis, recent trading activity in order to identify trading activity that may be contrary to the Fund’s “Market Timing Trading Policy”, including rejecting or limiting specific purchase requests; rejecting purchase requests from certain investors; and charging a redemption fee.

 

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 Fund’s shareholders. Due to the subjective nature of these methods, it is possible that the Fund may not be able to identify or limit all market timing activities. Generally exchange activity is considered excessive if shares of the Fund are exchanged or redeemed within seven calendar days of purchase or exchange activity exceeds 1% of the NAV of the Fund.

 

Based on the frequency of redemptions in your account, the adviser or transfer agent may in its sole discretion determine that your trading activity is detrimental to the Fund as described in the Fund’s 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 shareholder’s trading activity suggests that the shareholder may be engaged in market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Neither the Fund nor the adviser will be liable for any losses resulting from rejected purchase orders. The Fund may also bar an investor who has violated these policies (and the investor’s 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. The risk also exists that because such methods are inherently subjective, the discretionary application of the Fund’s response to potential market timing actions may not be uniformly applied. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of the Fund. While the Fund encourages financial intermediaries to apply the Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy. Brokers maintaining omnibus accounts with the Fund have agreed to provide shareholder transaction information to the extent known to the broker to the Fund upon request. If the Fund or its transfer agent or shareholder servicing agent suspects there is market timing activity in the account, the Fund will seek full cooperation from the service provider maintaining the account to identify the underlying participant. At the request of the adviser, the service providers may take immediate action to stop any further short-term trading by such participants.

 17
 

TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS

 

Any sale or exchange of the Fund’s 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 distribute substantially all of its net investment income and net capital gains at least annually. Certain distributions may be deemed a return of capital. All 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. 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.

 

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 Fund’s 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.

 

Distribution Policy and Goals

 

The Fund generally distributes to shareholders substantially all of its net income (which includes, for example, interest and dividends) as well as substantially all of its net capital gains (that is, long-term capital gains from the sale of portfolio securities and short-term capital gains from both the sale of portfolio securities). In addition, pursuant to its distribution policy, the Fund may make distributions that are treated as a return of capital. 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 shareholder’s tax basis in the shares.

 

Returns of capital reduce a shareholder’s tax cost (or “tax basis”). Once a shareholder’s tax basis is reduced to zero, any further return of capital would be taxable. Shareholders receiving periodic payments from the Fund may be under the impression that they are receiving net profits. However, all or a portion of a distribution may consist of a return of capital (i.e. from your original investment). Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net profit. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares. As required under the 1940 Act, the Fund will provide a notice to shareholders at the time of distribution when such distribution does not consist solely of net income. Additionally, each distribution payment will be accompanied by a written statement which discloses the source or sources of each distribution. The IRS requires you to report these amounts, excluding returns of capital, on your income tax return for the year declared. 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) qualified dividends, (3) capital gains and (4) 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) capital gains and (3) return of capital for tax purposes. An additional distribution may be made in December, and other additional distributions may be made with respect to a particular fiscal year in order to comply with applicable law. Distributions declared in December, if paid to shareholders by the end of January, are treated for federal income tax purposes as if received in December.

 

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.

 

 18
 

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.

 

The Fund has adopted a policy (which may be modified at any time by its Board of Trustees) to pay quarterly distributions on Fund shares at a target rate that represents an annualized payout of approximately 4.0% on the Fund’s per-share net asset value on the date of a distribution’s declaration. Shareholders receiving periodic payments from the Fund may be under the impression that they are receiving net profits. However, all or a portion of a distribution may consist of a return of capital (i.e. from your original investment). Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net profit. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares.

 

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 Fund’s shares.

 

 

DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES

 

Distributor: Northern Lights Distributors, LLC, located at 4221 North 203rd Street, Elkhorn, Suite 100, NE 68022, is the distributor for the shares of the Fund. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer and member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”). 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 Trust’s Master Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Plans (“12b-1 Plans” or “Plans”) for Class A shares, pursuant to which the Fund may pay the Distributor an annual fee for distribution and shareholder servicing expenses of 0.25% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to Class A shares.

 

The Distributor and other entities are paid under the Plans for services 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 Fund’s 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 Plans 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.

 

You should be aware that if you hold your shares for a substantial period of time, you may indirectly pay more than the economic equivalent of the maximum front-end sales charge allowed by the FINRA due to the recurring nature of distribution (12b-1) fees.

 

Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries: The Distributor, the adviser and each of its affiliates, or other Fund affiliates may each, at its own expense and out of its own assets including its legitimate profits from Fund-related activities, provide additional cash payments, travel or other expense reimbursements to financial intermediaries who sell shares of the Fund or assist in the marketing of the Fund, including placement agents and marketing specialists. 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, conference sponsorships, costs or expenses of attending adviser-sponsored due diligence conferences, 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 Distributor’s 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 accounts that have elected to receive paper copies of these documents. If you wish to receive individual copies of these documents, please call the Fund at 1-888-868-9501 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.

 19
 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

The financial highlights table is intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance for the period of the Fund’s operations. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all consolidated dividends and distributions). The information for the Fund has been derived from the financial statements audited by RSM US LLP, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, are included in the Fund’s September 30, 2024 annual report, which 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 A   September 30, 2024     September 30, 2023     September 30, 2022     September 30, 2021     September 30, 2020  
Net asset value, beginning of year   $ 12.04     $ 11.82     $ 12.44     $ 10.65     $ 10.66  
Activity from investment operations:                                        
Net investment income (loss)(1)     0.29       0.16       (0.18 )     (0.28 )     (0.15 )
Net realized and unrealized gain on
investments and options written
    0.15       0.64       0.42       2.12       0.17  
Total from investment operations     0.44       0.80       0.24       1.84       0.02  
Less distributions from:                                        
Net investment income     (0.41 )     (0.35 )                  
Net realized gains     (0.38 )     (0.23 )     (0.86 )     (0.05 )     (0.03 )
Return of capital                             (0.00 )(9)
Total distributions     (0.79 )     (0.58 )     (0.86 )     (0.05 )     (0.03 )
Net asset value, end of year   $ 11.69     $ 12.04     $ 11.82     $ 12.44     $ 10.65  
Total return(2)     3.76 %(10)     6.90 %(10)     1.92 %     17.34 %     0.14 %
Net assets, at end of year (000s)   $ 22,816     $ 19,682     $ 18,742     $ 3,606     $ 3,724  
Ratio of gross expenses to average net assets(3)     2.82 %(8)     3.09 %(7)     2.55 %(6)     2.83 %(5)     2.95 %(4)
Ratio of net expenses to average net assets     2.75 %(8)     3.00 %(7)     2.45 %(6)     2.44 %(5)     2.52 %(4)
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to
average net assets
    2.39 %(8)     1.32 %(7)     (1.50 )%(6)     (2.42 )%(5)     (1.56 )%(4)
Portfolio Turnover Rate     0 %     0 %     0 %     0 %     0 %

 

(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 assume changes in share price and reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions. Had the Advisor not waived a portion of its fees, total returns would have been lower.
(3)Represents the ratio of expenses to average net assets absent fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the Advisor.
(4)Includes 0.32% for the year ended September 30, 2020 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(5)Includes 0.24% for the year ended September 30, 2021 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(6)Includes 0.25% for the year ended September 30, 2022 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(7)Includes 0.80% for the year ended September 30, 2023 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(8)Includes 0.55% for the year ended September 30, 2024 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(9)Less than $0.005.
(10)Includes adjustments in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America and, consequently, the net asset value for financial reporting purposes and the returns based upon those net asset values may differ from the net asset values and returns for shareholder transactions. 

 

 

 20
 

 


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   September 30, 2024     September 30, 2023     September 30, 2022     September 30, 2021     September 30, 2020  
Net asset value, beginning of year   $ 12.26     $ 12.02     $ 12.59     $ 10.75     $ 10.74  
Activity from investment operations:                                        
Net investment income (loss)(1)     0.32       0.19       (0.15 )     (0.26 )     (0.14 )
Net realized and unrealized gain on
investments and options written
    0.16       0.65       0.44       2.15       0.18  
Total from investment operations     0.48       0.84       0.29       1.89       0.04  
Less distributions from:                                        
Net investment income     (0.44 )     (0.37 )                  
Net realized gains     (0.38 )     (0.23 )     (0.86 )     (0.05 )     (0.03 )
Return of capital                             (0.00 (9)
Total distributions     (0.82 )     (0.60 )     (0.86 )     (0.05 )     (0.03 )
Net asset value, end of year   $ 11.92     $ 12.26     $ 12.02     $ 12.59     $ 10.75  
Total return(2)     4.03 %     7.14 %     2.31 %     17.64 %     0.33 %
Net assets, at end of year (000s)   $ 353,027     $ 285,595     $ 294,691     $ 68,434     $ 30,181  
Ratio of gross expenses to average net assets(3)     2.55 %(8)     2.81 %(7)     2.29 %(6)     2.58 %(5)     2.70 %(4)
Ratio of net expenses to average net assets     2.48 %(8)     2.72 %(7)     2.19 %(6)     2.19 %(5)     2.27 %(4)
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to
average net assets
    2.66 %(8)     1.56 %(7)     (1.27 )%(6)     (2.17 )%(5)     (1.31 )%(4)
Portfolio Turnover Rate     0 %     0 %     0 %     0 %     0 %

 

(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 assume changes in share price and reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions. Had the Advisor not waived a portion of its fees, total returns would have been lower.
(3)Represents the ratio of expenses to average net assets absent fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the Advisor.
(4)Includes 0.32% for the year ended September 30, 2020 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(5)Includes 0.24% for the year ended September 30, 2021 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(6)Includes 0.24% for the year ended September 30, 2022 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(7)Includes 0.77% for the year ended September 30, 2023 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(8)Includes 0.53% for the year ended September 30, 2024 attributed to margin expense on short sales, which are not subject to waiver by the Advisor.
(9)Less than $0.005.

 

 21
 

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

 

Adviser

Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC

1580 Lincoln Street, Suite 680

Denver, CO 80203

Distributor

Northern Lights Distributors, LLC

4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100

Elkhorn, NE 68022

Legal

Counsel

Thompson Hine LLP

41 S. High Street, Suite 1700

Columbus, OH 43215

Independent
Registered Public
Accounting Firm

RSM US LLP

555 Seventeenth Street, Suite 1200

Denver, CO 80202

Transfer

Agent

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC
4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100

Elkhorn, NE 68022-3474

Custodian

U.S. Bank, N.A.

60 Livingston Avenue

St. Paul, MN 55107-14

 

Additional information about the Fund is included in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) dated January 28, 2025. 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 Fund’s policies and management. Additional information about the Fund’s investments will also be available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders. In the Fund’s Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during its last fiscal year or fiscal period.

 

To obtain a free copy of the SAI, and when available, the Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders, or other information about the Fund, or to make shareholder inquiries, please call 1-888-868-9501 or visit www.PrincetonPremiumFund.com. You may also write to:

 

PRINCETON PREMIUM FUND

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 46707

Cincinnati, OH 45246

or over night

225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450,

Cincinnati, OH 45246

 

Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s 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.

 

 

Investment Company Act File # 811-21720

 

 22
 

 

 

Princeton Premium Fund

A Series of Northern Lights Fund Trust

Class A shares: PPFAX

Class C shares: PPFCX

Class I shares: PPFIX

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

 

January 28, 2025

 

This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus and should be read in conjunction with the prospectus of the Princeton Premium Fund (the “Fund”) dated January 28, 2025. The Fund’s Prospectus is hereby incorporated by reference, which means it is legally part of this SAI. You can obtain copies of the Fund’s prospectus, annual or semi-annual report without charge by contacting the Fund’s Transfer Agent, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474 or by calling 1-888-868-9501. You may also obtain a prospectus by visiting the website at www.PrincetonPremiumFund.com.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

THE FUND 1
TYPES OF INVESTMENTS 2
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS 18
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS 20
MANAGEMENT 22
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS 29
INVESTMENT ADVISER 30
DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES 32
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS 36
ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE 38
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER 39
OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS 39
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES 41
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM 42
PURCHASE, REDEMPTION AND PRICING OF SHARES 42
TAX STATUS 47
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM 53
LEGAL COUNSEL 53
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 53

 

 

 

 

 
 

THE FUND

 

The Princeton Premium Fund (the “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”).

 

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 on a class-specific basis (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 currently offers three classes of shares: Class A, Class C and Class I shares. As of the date of this SAI only Class A and Class I shares are 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 distribution fees, (iii) 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 incurred 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 incurred 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 (iv) 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.

 

Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC (the “Adviser”) is the Fund’s investment adviser. The Fund’s investment objective, restrictions and policies are more fully described here and in the Prospectus. The Board may start other series and offer shares of a new fund under the Trust at any time. The Board may classify and reclassify the shares of the Fund into additional classes at a future date.

 

Under the Trust’s 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 Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (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.

 

 

 

 

1 
 

TYPES OF INVESTMENTS

 

The investment objective of the Fund and a description of its principal investment strategies are set forth under “Principal Investment Strategies” and “Principal Investment Risks” and “Additional Information About Principal Investment Strategies and Related Risks” in the Prospectus. The following disclosures include non-principal investment strategies for the Fund, and where indicated supplements information set forth in the Prospectus regarding the Fund’s principal investment strategies. The Fund’s investment objective is not “fundamental” and may be changed without the approval of a majority of its outstanding voting securities.

 

The following information describes securities in which the Fund may invest.

 

Equity Securities

 

Equity securities 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.

 

The Fund may also invest in long/short equity strategies which seek returns by investing in equities that are undervalued and short selling equities that are considered overvalued. This strategy also may attempt to neutralize exposure to general market risk by investing in equities that are undervalued and taking a short position in an equity market index.

 

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 company’s stock price.

 

Preferred Stock

 

The Fund may also invest in preferred stock of any 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

2 
 

market investments. The market value of all securities, including common and preferred stocks, is based upon the market’s perception of value and not necessarily the book value of an issuer or other objective measures of a company’s worth.

 

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 (“UITs”). 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 net asset value (“NAV”) is calculated. ETFs share many similar risks with open-end and closed-end funds.

 

Convertible Securities

 

The Fund may invest in convertible securities and non-investment grade convertible securities. Convertible securities include fixed income securities that may be exchanged or converted into a predetermined number of shares of the issuer’s 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 issuer’s 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 security’s 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 warrant’s 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.

 

Fixed Income Securities

 

The Fund may invest in fixed income securities. Fixed income investments described in the Fund’s prospectus may be utilized as part of its principal investment strategies. Additional fixed income strategies

3 
 

described in this SAI are not principal investment strategies of the Fund. Yields on fixed income securities are dependent on a variety of factors, including the general conditions of the money market and other fixed income securities markets, the size of a particular offering, the maturity of the obligation and the rating of the issue. An investment in the Fund is subjected to risk even if all fixed income securities in the Fund’s portfolio are paid in full at maturity. All fixed income securities, including U.S. government securities, can change in value when there is a change in interest rates or the issuer’s actual or perceived creditworthiness or ability to meet its obligations.

 

There is normally an inverse relationship between the market value of securities sensitive to prevailing interest rates and actual changes in interest rates. In other words, an increase in interest rates produces a decrease in market value. The longer the remaining maturity (and duration) of a security, the greater will be the effect of interest rate changes on the market value of that security. Changes in the ability of an issuer to make payments of interest and principal and in the markets’ perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness will also affect the market value of the debt securities of that issuer. Obligations of issuers of fixed income securities (including municipal securities) are subject to the provisions of bankruptcy, insolvency, and other laws affecting the rights and remedies of creditors, such as the Federal Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978. In addition, the obligations of municipal issuers may become subject to laws enacted in the future by Congress, state legislatures, or referenda extending the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or imposing other constraints upon enforcement of such obligations or upon the ability of municipalities to levy taxes. Changes in the ability of an issuer to make payments of interest and principal and in the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness will also affect the market value of the debt securities of that issuer. The possibility exists, therefore, that, the ability of any issuer to pay, when due, the principal of and interest on its debt securities may become impaired.

 

The corporate debt securities in which the Fund may invest include corporate bonds and notes and short-term investments such as commercial paper and variable rate demand notes. Commercial paper (short-term promissory notes) is issued by companies to finance their or their affiliate’s current obligations and is frequently unsecured. Variable and floating rate demand notes are unsecured obligations redeemable upon not more than 30 days’ notice. These obligations include master demand notes that permit investment of fluctuating amounts at varying rates of interest pursuant to a direct arrangement with the issuer of the instrument. The issuer of these obligations often has the right, after a given period, to prepay the outstanding principal amount of the obligations upon a specified number of days’ notice. These obligations generally are not traded, nor generally is there an established secondary market for these obligations. To the extent a demand note does not have a 7-day or shorter demand feature and there is no readily available market for the obligation, it is treated as an illiquid security.

 

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

4 
 

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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 of the Fund’s assets (and possibly a corresponding decrease in the amount of securities to be liquidated).

 

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 above regarding foreign securities apply to investments in ADRs.

 

Debt Securities

 

The Fund may invest in other debt securities, including below investment grade debt securities as part of its non-principal investment strategy. The following describes some of the risks associated with certain fixed income debt securities:

 

Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities have varying levels of sensitivity to changes in interest rates. In general, the price of a debt security can fall when interest rates rise and can rise when interest rates fall. Securities with longer maturities and mortgage securities can be more sensitive to interest rate changes although they usually offer higher yields to compensate investors for the greater risks. The longer the maturity of the security, the greater the impact a change in interest rates could have on the security’s price. In addition, short-term and long-term interest rates do not necessarily move in the same amount or the same direction. Short-term securities tend to react to changes in short-term interest rates and long-term securities tend to react to changes in long-term interest rates.

 

Credit Risk. Fixed income securities have speculative characteristics and changes in economic conditions or other circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of those issuers to make principal or interest payments, as compared to issuers of more highly rated securities.

 

5 
 

Extension Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk that an issuer will exercise its right to pay principal on an obligation held by the Fund later than expected. This may happen when there is a rise in interest rates. These events may lengthen the duration (i.e. interest rate sensitivity) and potentially reduce the value of these securities.

 

Prepayment Risk. Certain types of debt securities have yield and maturity characteristics corresponding to underlying assets. Unlike traditional debt securities, which may pay a fixed rate of interest until maturity when the entire principal amount comes due, payments on certain debt securities may include both interest and a partial payment of principal. Besides the scheduled repayment of principal, payments of principal may result from the voluntary prepayment, refinancing, or foreclosure of the underlying assets.

 

Securities subject to prepayment are less effective than other types of securities as a means of “locking in” attractive long-term interest rates. One reason is the need to reinvest prepayments of principal; another is the possibility of significant unscheduled prepayments resulting from declines in interest rates. These prepayments would have to be reinvested at lower rates. As a result, these securities may have less potential for capital appreciation during periods of declining interest rates than other securities of comparable maturities, although they may have a similar risk of decline in market value during periods of rising interest rates. Prepayments may also significantly shorten the effective maturities of these securities, especially during periods of declining interest rates. Conversely, during periods of rising interest rates, a reduction in prepayments may increase the effective maturities of these securities, subjecting them to a greater risk of decline in market value in response to rising interest rates than traditional debt securities, and, therefore, potentially increasing the volatility of the Fund.

 

At times, certain fixed income securities in which the Fund may invest will have higher than market interest rates and therefore will be purchased at a premium above their par value. Prepayments may cause losses in securities purchased at a premium, as unscheduled prepayments, which are made at par, will cause the Fund to experience a loss equal to any unamortized premium.

 

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.

6 
 

       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.

 

Time Deposits and Variable Rate Notes

 

The Fund may invest in fixed time deposits, whether or not subject to withdrawal penalties.

 

Time deposits are issued by a depository institution in exchange for the deposit of funds. The issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the depositor on the date specified with respect to the deposit. Time deposits do not trade in the secondary market prior to maturity. However, some time deposits may be redeemable prior to maturity and may be 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 Fund 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 Fund’s 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 that are fully insured as to

7 
 

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.

 

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.

 

The Fund may also invest in Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (“TIPS”) as a non-principal investment strategy. TIPS are special types of treasury bonds that were created in order to offer bond investors protection from inflation. The values of the TIPS are automatically adjusted to the inflation rate as measured by the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”). If the CPI goes up by half a percent, the value of the bond (the TIPS) would also go up by half a percent. If the CPI falls, the value of the bond does not fall because the government guarantees that the original investment will stay the same. TIPS decline in value when real interest rates rise. However, in certain interest rate environments, such as when real interest rates are rising faster than nominal interest rates, TIPS may experience greater losses than other fixed income securities with similar duration.

 

High Yield Securities

 

The Fund may invest in high yield securities as a non-principal investment strategy. High yield, high risk bonds are securities that are generally rated below investment grade. Other terms used to describe such securities include “lower rated bonds,” “non-investment grade bonds,” “below investment grade bonds,” and “junk bonds.” These securities are considered to be high-risk investments. The risks include the following:

 

Greater Risk of Loss. These securities are regarded as predominately speculative. There is a greater risk that issuers of lower rated securities will default than issuers of higher rated securities. Issuers of lower rated securities generally are less creditworthy and may be highly indebted, financially distressed, or bankrupt. These issuers are more vulnerable to real or perceived economic changes, political changes or adverse industry developments. In addition, high yield securities are frequently subordinated to the prior payment of senior indebtedness. If an issuer fails to pay principal or interest, the Fund would experience a decrease in income and a decline in the market value of its investments.

 

Sensitivity to Interest Rate and Economic Changes. The income and market value of lower-rated securities may fluctuate more than higher rated securities. Although non-investment grade securities tend to be less sensitive to interest rate changes than investment grade securities, non-investment grade securities are more sensitive to short-term corporate, economic and market developments. During periods of economic uncertainty and change, the market price of the investments in lower-rated securities may be volatile. The default rate for high yield bonds tends to be cyclical, with defaults rising in periods of economic downturn.

Valuation Difficulties. It is often more difficult to value lower rated securities than higher rated securities. If an issuer’s financial condition deteriorates, accurate financial and business information may be limited or unavailable. In addition, the lower rated investments may be thinly traded and there may be no

8 
 

established secondary market. Because of the lack of market pricing and current information for investments in lower rated securities, valuation of such investments is much more dependent on judgment than is the case with higher rated securities.

Liquidity. There may be no established secondary or public market for investments in lower rated securities. Such securities are frequently traded in markets that may be relatively less liquid than the market for higher rated securities. In addition, relatively few institutional purchasers may hold a major portion of an issue of lower-rated securities at times. As a result, the Fund may be required to sell investments at substantial losses or retain them indefinitely when an issuer’s financial condition is deteriorating.

Credit Quality. Credit quality of non-investment grade securities can change suddenly and unexpectedly, and even recently-issued credit ratings may not fully reflect the actual risks posed by a particular high-yield security.

New Legislation. Future legislation may have a possible negative impact on the market for high yield, high risk bonds. New legislation, if enacted, could have a material negative effect on the Fund’s investments in lower rated securities.

High yield, high risk investments may include the following:

Straight fixed-income debt securities. These include bonds and other debt obligations that bear a fixed or variable rate of interest payable at regular intervals and have a fixed or resettable maturity date. The particular terms of such securities vary and may include features such as call provisions and sinking funds.

Zero-coupon debt securities. These bear no interest obligation but are issued at a discount from their value at maturity. When held to maturity, their entire return equals the difference between their issue price and their maturity value.

Zero-fixed-coupon debt securities. These are zero-coupon debt securities that convert on a specified date to interest-bearing debt securities.

Pay-in-kind bonds. These are bonds which allow the issuer, at its option, to make current interest payments on the bonds either in cash or in additional bonds. These are bonds sold without registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), usually to a relatively small number of institutional investors.

Convertible Securities. These are bonds or preferred stock that may be converted to common stock.

Preferred Stock. These are stocks that generally pay a dividend at a specified rate and have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and in liquidation.

Loan Participations and Assignments. These are participations in, or assignments of all or a portion of loans to corporations or to governments, including governments of less developed countries (“LDCs”).

Securities Issued in Connection with Reorganizations and Corporate Restructurings. In connection with reorganizing or restructuring of an issuer, an issuer may issue common stock or other securities to

9 
 

holders of its debt securities. The Fund may hold such common stock and other securities even if it does not invest in such securities.

Investment Companies

The Fund may invest in securities issued by other investment companies. The Fund intends to limit its investments in accordance with applicable law or as permitted by Rule 12d-1-4. Among other things, such law would limit these investments so that, as determined immediately after a securities purchase is made by the Fund: (a) not more than 5% of the value of its total assets will be invested in the securities of any one investment company (the "5% Limitation"); (b) not more than 10% of the value of its total assets will be invested in the aggregate in securities of investment companies as a group (the "10% Limitation"); (c) not more than 3% of the outstanding voting stock of any one investment company will be owned by the Fund (the "3% Limitation"); and (d) not more than 10% of the outstanding voting stock of any one closed-end investment company will be owned by the Fund together with all other investment companies that have the same advisor. Under certain sets of conditions, different sets of restrictions may be applicable. As a shareholder of another investment company, the Fund would bear, along with other shareholders, its proportionate share of that investment company’s expenses, including advisory fees. These expenses would be in addition to the advisory and other expenses that the Fund bears directly in connection with its own operations. Investment companies in which the Fund may invest may also impose a sales or distribution charge in connection with the purchase or redemption of their shares and other types of commissions or charges. Such charges will be payable by the Fund and, therefore, will be borne directly by the Fund’s shareholders.

 

To the extent applicable, the Fund intends to rely on Section 12(d)(1)(F) and Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act which in conjunction with one another allow registered investment companies (such as the Fund) to exceed the 3%, 5% and 10% Limitation and the 10% Limitations, provided the aggregate sales loads any investor pays (i.e., the combined distribution expenses of both the acquiring fund and the acquired funds) do not exceed the limits on sales loads established by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for funds of funds, and the registered investment company “mirror votes” any securities purchased pursuant to Section 12(d)(1)(F).

Securities Options

 

As part of its principal investment strategy, the Fund will purchase and write (i.e., sell) put and call options on the Standards & Poor’s 500® (“S&P 500”) Index. The Fund may also purchase and write (i.e., sell) other types of options as part of its non-principal strategy. 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

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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, the Fund will invest in stock index options based on the S&P 500 Index as part of its principal investment strategies. However, indices may also be based on an industry or market segment. Options on stock indices are currently traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ OMX PHLX.

The Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 incurred 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, 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

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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 Adviser to correctly predict movements in the directions of the stock market. This requires different skills and techniques than predicting changes in the prices of individual securities. In addition, the Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 was 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. Selling options exposes 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.

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Dealer Options

 

The Fund may engage in transactions involving dealer options (as a non-principal investment strategy) 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 purchased only by exercising or reselling the option to the dealer who issued it. Similarly, when the Fund writes a dealer option, the Fund 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.

 

The Staff of the SEC has taken the position that purchased dealer options are illiquid securities. 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 Fund’s limitation on illiquid securities. If the SEC changes its position on the liquidity of dealer options, an 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 Adviser. 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

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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) 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.

 

Reverse Repurchase Agreements

 

The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements as a non-principal investment strategy. In a reverse repurchase agreement, a Fund sells portfolio securities to another party and agrees to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price and date. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the other party will fail to return the securities in a timely manner, or at all, which may result in losses to the Fund. The Fund could lose money if it is unable to recover the securities and the value of the collateral held by the Fund is less than the value of the securities. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences to the Fund. Reverse repurchase agreements also involve the risk that the market value of the securities sold will decline below the price at which a Fund is obligated to repurchase them. Reverse repurchase agreements may increase fluctuations in the Fund’s Net Asset Value (“NAV”) and will be viewed as a form of borrowing by a 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. 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

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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.

 

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), 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. A 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 Underlying 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, the Adviser 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, the Adviser 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 Adviser 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 nationally recognized statistical rating organization (“NRSRO”) or, if only one NRSRO rates the security, by that NRSRO, or, if the security is unrated, the Adviser determines that it is of equivalent quality.

 

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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 Adviser 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) commercial paper could have the effect of increasing the amount of a Fund's assets invested in illiquid securities if institutional buyers are unwilling to purchase such securities.

 

Lending Portfolio Securities

 

For the purpose of achieving income and as a non-principal investment strategy, 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 a non-principal investment strategy. 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 .

 

Swap Agreements

 

The Fund may enter into individual bond, interest rate, or index swap agreements as a non-principal investment strategy in an attempt to obtain a particular desired return at a lower cost to the Fund than if it had invested directly in an instrument that yielded that desired return. These may include total return swaps or credit default swaps. Swap agreements are two-party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for periods ranging from a few weeks to more than one year. In a standard “swap” transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns (or differentials in rates of returns) earned or realized on particular predetermined bonds, investments or instruments. The gross returns to be exchanged or “swapped” between the parties are calculated with respect to a “notional amount,” i.e., the return on or increase in value of a

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particular dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate, in a particular foreign currency, or in a “basket” of securities representing a particular index. The “notional amount” of the swap agreement is only a fictitious basis on which to calculate the obligations the parties to a swap agreement have agreed to exchange. The Fund’s obligations (or rights) under a swap agreement will generally be equal only to the amount to be paid or received under the agreement based on the relative values of the positions held by each party to the agreement (the “net amount”).

 

The net amount of the excess, if any, of the Fund’s obligations over its entitlements with respect to a swap agreement entered into on a net basis will be accrued daily and an amount of cash or liquid asset having an aggregate NAV at least equal to the accrued excess will be maintained in an account with the Fund’s custodian that satisfies the 1940 Act. The Fund also will establish and maintain such accounts with respect to its total obligations under any swaps that are not entered into on a net basis.

 

Whether the Fund’s use of swap agreements enhance the Fund’s total return or properly hedge the risk of loss of its fixed income portfolio will depend on the Adviser’s ability correctly to predict whether certain types of investments are likely to produce greater returns than other investments. Because they are two-party contracts and may have terms of greater than seven days, swap agreements may be considered to be illiquid. Moreover, the Fund bears the risk of loss of the amount expected to be received under a swap agreement in the event of the default or bankruptcy of a swap agreement counterparty. The Fund will enter into swap agreements only with counterparties that would be eligible for consideration as repurchase agreement counterparties under the Fund’s repurchase agreement guidelines. It is possible that developments in the swaps market, including potential government regulation, could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to terminate existing swap agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.

 

Certain swap agreements are exempt from most provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and, therefore, are not regulated as futures or commodity option transactions under the CEA, pursuant to regulations of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”). To qualify for this exemption, a swap agreement must be entered into by “eligible participants,” which include the following, provided the participants’ total assets exceed established levels: a bank or trust company, savings association or credit union, insurance company, investment company subject to regulation under the 1940 Act, commodity pool, corporation, partnership, proprietorship, organization, trust or other entity, employee benefit plan, governmental entity, broker-dealer, futures commission merchant, natural person, or regulated foreign person. To be eligible, natural persons and most other entities must have total assets exceeding $10 million; commodity pools and employees benefit plans must have assets exceeding $5 million. In addition, an eligible swap transaction must meet three conditions. First, the swap agreement may not be part of a fungible class of agreements that are standardized as to their material economic terms. Second, the creditworthiness of parties with actual or potential obligations under the swap agreement must be a material consideration in entering into or determining the terms of the swap agreement, including pricing, cost or credit enhancement terms. Third, swap agreements may not be entered into and traded on or through a multilateral transaction execution facility.

 

Certain Investment Techniques and Derivatives Risk

 

When the Fund uses investment techniques such as margin, leverage and short sales, and forms of financial derivatives, such as options, futures, repurchase agreements, or swap agreements, an investment in the Fund may be more volatile than investments in other mutual funds. Although the intention is to use such

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investment techniques and derivatives to minimize risk to the Fund, as well as for speculative purposes, there is the possibility that improper implementation of such techniques and derivative strategies or unusual market conditions could result in significant losses to the Fund. Derivatives are used to limit risk in the Fund or to enhance investment return and have a return tied to a formula based upon an interest rate, index, price of a security, or other measurement. Derivatives involve special risks, including: (1) the risk that interest rates, securities prices and currency markets will not move in the direction that a portfolio manager anticipates; (2) imperfect correlation between the price of derivative instruments and movements in the prices of the securities, interest rates or currencies being hedged; (3) the fact that skills needed to use these strategies are different than those needed to select portfolio securities; (4) the possible absence of a liquid secondary market for any particular instrument and possible exchange imposed price fluctuation limits, either of which may make it difficult or impossible to close out a position when desired; (5) the risk that adverse price movements in an instrument can result in a loss substantially greater than the Fund’s initial investment in that instrument (in some cases, the potential loss in unlimited); (6) particularly in the case of privately-negotiated instruments, the risk that the counterparty will not perform its obligations, or that penalties could be incurred for positions held less than the required minimum holding period, which could leave the Fund worse off than if it had not entered into the position; and (7) the inability to close out certain hedged positions to avoid adverse tax consequences. In addition, the use of derivatives for non-hedging purposes (that is, to seek to increase total return) is considered a speculative practice and may present an even greater risk of loss than when used for hedging purposes.

 

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.

 

1. Borrowing Money. The Fund will not 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 Fund’s 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.

 

2. Senior Securities. The Fund will not 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 Fund’s engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by the 1940 Act, as amended, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or interpretations of the SEC or its staff.

 

3. Underwriting. The Fund will not act as underwriter of securities issued by other persons. This limitation is not applicable to the extent that, in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities (including restricted securities), the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under certain federal securities laws.

 

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4. Real Estate. The Fund will not purchase or sell 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).

 

5. Commodities. The Fund will not purchase or sell commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or futures contracts to the full extent permissible under the 1940 Act, selling foreign currency contracts in accordance with any rules of the CFTC, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by commodities or from investing in companies which are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.

 

6. Loans. The Fund will not make loans to others, except (a) where each loan is represented by a note executed by the borrower, (b) through the purchase of debt securities or other debt instruments, including but not limited to loan participations and sub-participations, assignments, and structured securities, in accordance with its investment objectives and policies, (c) engaging in repurchase agreements, and (d) by loaning its portfolio securities. For purposes of this limitation, the term “loans” shall not include the purchase of a portion of an issue of publicly distributed bonds, debentures or other securities.

 

7. Concentration. The Fund will not invest 25% or more of its total assets in the securities of companies engaged in any one industry or group of industries. This limitation is not applicable to investments in obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies and instrumentalities or repurchase agreements with respect thereto.

 

THE FOLLOWING ARE ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS OF THE FUND. THE FOLLOWING RESTRICTIONS ARE DESIGNATED AS NON-FUNDAMENTAL AND MAY BE CHANGED BY THE BOARD WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF SHAREHOLDERS.

 

1. Pledging. The Fund will not 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 borrowing money described in fundamental limitation (1) 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.

 

2. Borrowing. The Fund will not purchase any security while borrowings representing more than one third of its total assets are outstanding.

 

3. Margin Purchases. The Fund will not purchase securities or evidences of interest thereon on “margin.” This limitation is not applicable to short-term credit obtained by a Fund for the clearance of purchases and sales or redemption of securities, or to arrangements with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted investment techniques.

 

4. Illiquid Investments. The Fund will not hold 15% or more of its net assets in securities for which there are legal or contractual restrictions on resale and other illiquid securities.

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If a restriction on the Fund’s 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 Fund’s investment portfolio, resulting from changes in the value of the Fund’s 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.

 

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

 

The Trust has adopted policies and procedures that govern the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. These policies and procedures are designed to ensure that such disclosure is in the best interests of Fund shareholders.

 

It is the Trust’s 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 Trust’s shareholders and those of the Trust’s 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-PORT two months after the end of each quarter/semi-annual period.

 

The Fund may choose to make portfolio holdings information available to rating agencies such as Lipper, Morningstar or Bloomberg earlier or more frequently, on a confidential basis.

 

Under limited circumstances, as described below, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may be disclosed to, or known by, certain third parties in advance of their filing with the SEC on Form N-CSR or Form N-PORT. In each case, a determination has been made that such advance disclosure is supported by a legitimate business purpose and that the recipient, and personnel of each approved recipient, are subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and not trade on such information.

 

The Adviser. Personnel of the Adviser, including personnel responsible for managing the Fund’s portfolio, may have full daily access to Fund portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for the Adviser 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, the Adviser 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 the Fund’s portfolio holdings because that information is necessary in order for them to provide the agreed-upon services for the Trust.

 

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U.S. Bank, N.A. U.S. Bank, N.A. is custodian for the Fund; therefore, its personnel have full daily access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings because 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 Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm; therefore, its personnel have access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings in connection with auditing of the Fund’s annual financial statements and provides 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 Fund’s portfolio holdings in connection with review of the Fund’s 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 Fund's portfolio holdings in connection with the Board’s review of the Fund's 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 Adviser regarding the effectiveness of  derivatives risk management. The Consultant therefore may have access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings in order to provide such services to the Trust.

StatPro Group. StatPro Group (”StatPro”) and its personnel provide portfolio analytics and data management services with respect to the Fund’s portfolio holdings; therefore, StatPro and its personnel have access to portfolio holdings in order to provide such services with respect to the Fund.

 

Additions to List of Approved Recipients. The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer is the person responsible, and whose prior approval is required, for any disclosure of the Fund’s 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 the recipient and its personnel must be subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and to not trade on any material non-public information. In no event shall the Fund, the Adviser, or any other party receive any direct or indirect compensation in connection with the disclosure of information about the Fund’s portfolio holdings.

 

Compliance with Portfolio Holdings Disclosure Procedures. The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer will report periodically to the Board with respect to compliance with the Fund’s 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 Trust’s 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.

 

21 
 

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 Trust's By-laws (the "Governing Documents"), which have been filed with the SEC and are available upon request. The Board consists of six (6) individuals, of whom are not "interested persons" (as defined under the 1940 Act) of the Trust, the Adviser ("Independent Trustees"). Pursuant to the Governing Documents, 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 Trust's 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 Trust’s 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.

 

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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, 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 Master’s 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 Trust’s 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) commencing 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 AICPA’s 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.

 

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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 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 Trustee's 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 46707, Cincinnati, Ohio 45246.

 

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).

4

 

 

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).

4

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.

 

4 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).
           
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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).

4

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). 4

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).

 

25 
 

 

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).

 

4 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).



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
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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 December 31, 2024, the Trust was comprised of 69 active portfolios managed by unaffiliated investment advisers. The term “Fund Complex” applies only to the Funds in the Trust advised by the Fund’s Adviser. The Funds do not hold themselves out as related to any other series within the Trust that is not advised by the Fund’s Adviser.

 

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 Committee's responsibilities include: (i) recommending to the Board the selection, retention or termination of the Trust's 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 Trust's 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 Trust's independent auditors and recommending that the Board take appropriate action in response thereto to satisfy itself of the auditor's independence; and (v) considering the comments of the independent auditors and management's responses thereto with respect to the quality and adequacy of the Trust's 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 Fund’s fiscal year, the Audit Committee held eleven meetings.

 

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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, 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 was 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.

 

The table below details the amount of compensation the Trustees received from the Trust for the calendar year ended September 30, 2024. The Trust does not have a bonus, profit sharing, pension or retirement plan.

Name and Position Princeton Premium Fund Deer Park Total Return Credit Fund Eagle MLP Strategy Fund Princeton Adaptive Premium Fund Pension or Retirement Benefits Accrued as Part of Funds Expenses Estimated Annual Benefits Upon Retirement Total Compensation from Fund Complex* Paid to Trustees
Anthony J. Hertl $3,029 $3,029 $3,029 $3,029 None None $12,116
Gary Lanzen $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 None None $10,204
Mark H. Taylor $2,711 $2,711 $2,711 $2,711 None None $10,844
John V. Palancia $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 None None $10,204
Mark D. Gersten $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 None None $10,204
Mark Garbin $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 $2,551 None None $10,204

 

* The term “Fund Complex” includes series of the Northern Lights Fund Trust (“NLFT”), Northern Lights Variable Trust (“NLVT”) that are advised by the adviser.

 

Trustee Ownership

 

The following table indicates the dollar range of equity securities that each Trustee beneficially owned in the Trust as of December 31, 2024.

 

 

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
John V. Palancia None None
Mark Taylor None None
Mark D. Gersten None $10,001-$50,000
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Mark Garbin None None

 

Management Ownership

 

As of January 3, 2025, the Trustees and officers, as a group, owned less than 1.00% of the Fund’s outstanding shares and the Fund Complex’s outstanding shares.

 

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 a 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. A shareholder who owns of record or beneficially more than 25% of the outstanding shares of a Fund or who is otherwise deemed to “control” a Fund may be able to determine or significantly influence the outcome of matters submitted to a vote of the Fund’s shareholders.

 

As of January 3, 2025, the following shareholders of record owned 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund.

 

Name & Address Shares Percentage of Fund
Class A Shares    

CHARLES SCHWAB & CO

INC/SPECIAL CUSTODY A/C

FBO CUSTOMERS

211 MAIN ST

SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105

369,507.2400 52.98%

PERSHING LLC

PO BOX 2052

JERSEY CITY, NJ 07303

271,662.9740 39.95%

 

Name & Address Shares Percentage of Fund
Class I Shares    

CHARLES SCHWAB & CO

INC/SPECIAL CUSTODY A/C

FBO CUSTOMERS

ATTN MUTUAL FUNDS

211 MAIN ST

SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105

1,594,550.0580 5.84%

LPL FINANCIAL/A/C 1000-0005

4707 EXECUTIVE DRIVE

SAN DIEGO CA 92121-3091

5,394,194.0890 19.74%

CHARLES SCHWAB & CO

INC/SPECIAL CUSTODY A/C

FBO CUSTOMERS

211 MAIN ST

SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105

6,528,344.5320 23.89%

PERSHING LLC

PO BOX 2052

JERSEY CITY, NJ 07303

9,292,869.4150

 

34.01%

 

 

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INVESTMENT ADVISERS

 

Investment Adviser and Advisory Agreement

 

Princeton Fund Advisors, LLC. 1580 Lincoln Street, Suite 680 Denver, CO 80203, serves as investment adviser to the Fund.  The Adviser is deemed to be controlled by Greg D. Anderson and John L. Sabre, each of whom is a Manager.  Mr. Sabre’s wife owns an entity which owns 70% of the voting interests in the Adviser, and Mr. Anderson owns approximately 30% of voting interests in the Adviser.  Subject to the oversight of the Board of Trustees, the Adviser is responsible for management of the Fund’s investment portfolio. The Adviser is responsible for selecting any sub-advisers and assuring that investments are made according to the Fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions. The Adviser was established in 2011 for the purpose of advising individuals and institutions. As of September 30, 2024, the Adviser had approximately $907.3 million in assets under management.

 

Pursuant to an advisory agreement between the Trust and the Adviser, the Adviser is entitled to receive, on a monthly basis, an annual advisory fee from each class of shares equal to 1.75% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to the relevant share class. The Adviser contractually agreed to waive management fees and to make payments to limit Fund expenses, until at least January 31, 2026 so that the total annual operating expenses (excluding any front-end or contingent deferred loads, brokerage fees and commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, fees and expenses associated with instruments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example options and swap fees and expenses), borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short), taxes expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization and extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees and contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Adviser)), do not exceed 2.20%, 2.95% and 1.95% of average daily net assets attributable to Class A, Class C and I shares, respectively. 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 fees have been waived or reimbursed) if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the foregoing expense limits or the then-current expense limits. Fee waiver and reimbursement arrangements can decrease the Fund’s expenses and boost its performance.

 

Expenses not expressly assumed by the Adviser under the advisory agreement are paid by the Fund. 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 Adviser, (b) the fees and expenses of Trustees who are not affiliated persons of the Adviser, any sub-adviser, or the 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 Fund’s shares, (d) the charges and expenses of legal counsel and independent accountants for the Fund, (e) brokerage commissions or other trading costs such as fees associated with swaps or other derivatives 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

30 
 

shares under state securities laws, including the preparation and printing of the Fund’s 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 who are directors, officers or employees of the Adviser or any sub-adviser) 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 Fund’s business.

 

The advisory agreement continued in effect for two (2) years initially and shall continue 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 no more than 60 days written notice by a vote of a majority of the Trustees, by the Adviser, or by holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding shares. The advisory agreement shall terminate automatically in the event of its assignment. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s renewal of the advisory agreement is available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders dated September 30, 2024.

 

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022, the Adviser earned advisory fees of $3,262,883 of which $179,995 were waived pursuant to the expense limitation agreement. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Adviser earned advisory fees of $5,444,267 of which $279,504 were waived pursuant to the expense limitation agreement. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Adviser earned advisory fees of $5,959,959 of which $236,053 were waived pursuant to the expense limitation agreement.

 

Codes of Ethics

 

The Trust, the Adviser, and the Distributor each have adopted a code of ethics under Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act that govern the personal securities transactions of their board members, officers and employees who may have access to current trading information of the Trust. Under these codes of ethics, 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”) that applies only to the Trust’s 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 the Trust 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 that 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 Adviser or its designee, subject to the Board’s continuing oversight. The Policies require that the Adviser or its designee vote proxies received in a manner consistent with the best interests of the Fund and shareholders. The Policies also require the Adviser or its

31 
 

designee to present to the Board, at least annually, its proxy policies, and a record of each proxy voted by the Adviser or its designee on behalf of the Fund, including a report on the resolution of all proxies identified by the Adviser or its designee as involving a conflict of interest. It is anticipated that the Adviser will vote any proxies related to the portfolio that are received on the Fund's behalf.

 

Where a proxy proposal raises a material conflict between the adviser, or its designee’s interests and the Fund’s interests, the voting entity will resolve the conflict by voting in accordance with the policy guidelines or at the client’s directive using the recommendation of an independent third party. If the third party’s recommendations are not received in a timely fashion, the voting entity will abstain from voting the securities held by the Fund.

 

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 30th will be available (1) without charge, upon request, by calling the Fund at 1-888-868-9501 or sending an email to Fulfillment@ultimusfundsolutions.com; (2) on or through the Fund’s website at https://princetonpremiumfund.com/; and (3) on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the Fund’s proxy voting policies and procedures are also available by calling 1-888-868-9501 and will be sent within three business days of receipt of a request.

 

DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES

 

Northern Lights Distributors, LLC, located at 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, NE 68022 (the “Distributor”) serves as the principal underwriter and national distributor for the shares of the Fund 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 state’s securities laws and is a member of FINRA. The offering of the Fund’s shares is 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 Fund’s 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 of the Trust 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 designed 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 September 30, 2022:

Fund Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions Compensation on Redemptions and Repurchases Brokerage Commissions Other Compensation
Princeton Premium Fund - Class A $2,764 $0 $0 $0
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from the Funds as described under the following section entitled “Rule 12b-1 Plan”.

 

The following table sets forth the total compensation received by the Distributor from the Fund during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023:

Fund Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions Compensation on Redemptions and Repurchases Brokerage Commissions Other Compensation
Princeton Premium Fund - Class A $2,384 $0 $0 $0
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from the Funds as described under the following section entitled “Rule 12b-1 Plan”.

 

The following table sets forth the total compensation received by the Distributor from the Fund during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024:

 

Fund Net Underwriting Discounts and Commissions Compensation on Redemptions and Repurchases Brokerage Commissions Other Compensation
Princeton Premium Fund - Class A $4,669 $0 $0 $0
The Distributor also receives 12b-1 fees from the Funds as described under the following section entitled “Rule 12b-1 Plan”.

 

 

Rule 12b-1 Plans

 

The Trust, with respect to the Fund, has adopted the Trust’s Master Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Plans pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act for the Fund’s Class A and Class C shares (each a “Plan” and collectively the “Plans) pursuant to which the Fund is authorized to pay the Distributor, as compensation for Distributor’s account maintenance services under the Plans, a distribution and shareholder servicing fee at the rate of up to 0.25% for Class A shares and 1.00% for Class C shares of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to the relevant class. Such fees are to be paid by the funds monthly, or at such other intervals as the Board shall determine. There is no Plan for the Class I shares. Such fees shall be based upon the Fund's 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 of the Trust and the Distributor. The Plans authorize payments to the Distributor as compensation for providing account maintenance services to the Class A and Class C 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 Distributor or other entities also receive the proceeds and contingent

33 
 

deferred sales charges imposed on certain redemptions of shares, which are separate and apart from payments made pursuant to the Plans.

 

The services to be provided under the Plan by Recipients may include, but are not limited to, the following: assistance in the offering and sale of the Class A and Class C 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 Fund's 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 Distributor is required to provide a written report, at least quarterly to the Board, specifying in reasonable detail the amounts expended pursuant to each of 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 Plans may not be amended to increase materially the amount of the Distributor's compensation to be paid by the 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 Trustees by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on a Plan. During the term of each Plan, the selection and nomination of non-interested Trustees will be committed to the discretion of current non-interested Trustees. The Distributor will preserve copies of the Plans, 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 the Plans 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 Trustees, or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust or the 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 September 30, 2022, the Fund paid $25,323 in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plans. For the fiscal period indicated below, distribution fees were allocated as follows:

Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by
Princeton Premium Fund Shares
During the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2022
  Princeton Premium Fund - Class A
Advertising/Marketing None
Printing/Postage None
Payment to distributor $4,695
Payment to dealers $16,982
Compensation to sales personnel None
Other $3,646
Total $25,323

 

 

During the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Fund paid $48,882 in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plans. For the fiscal period indicated below, distribution fees were allocated as follows:

Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by
Princeton Premium Fund Shares
During the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2023
  Princeton Premium Fund - Class A
Advertising/Marketing None
Printing/Postage None
Payment to distributor $9,210
Payment to dealers $32,504
Compensation to sales personnel None
Other $7,168
Total $48,882

 

 

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During the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund paid $57,009 in distribution related fees pursuant to the Plans. For the fiscal period indicated below, distribution fees were allocated as follows:

Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by
Princeton Premium Fund Shares
During the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2024
  Princeton Premium Fund - Class A
Advertising/Marketing None
Printing/Postage None
Payment to distributor $17,954
Payment to dealers $1,426
Compensation to sales personnel None
Other $37,629
Total $57,009

 

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

 

The following table lists the number and types of accounts managed by the Adviser’s portfolio managers in addition to those of the Fund and assets under management in those accounts as of September 30, 2024:

 

Adviser Portfolio Managers

 

Greg D. Anderson

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 5 $535 million N/A N/A
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles none none N/A N/A
Other Accounts 2.615 $2.466 million N/A N/A

 

 

John L. Sabre

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 5 $535 million N/A N/A
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles none none N/A N/A
Other Accounts 2.615 $2.466 million N/A N/A

 

 

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Zachary Slater

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 1 $2.6 million N/A N/A
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles none none N/A N/A
Other Accounts none none N/A 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 Adviser 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 Adviser 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 Adviser 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 Adviser and its associates attempt to avoid conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of the management of multiple client accounts. From time to time, the Adviser may recommend or cause a client to invest in a security in which another client of the Adviser has an ownership position. The Adviser has adopted certain procedures intended to treat all client accounts in a fair and equitable manner. To the extent that the Adviser seeks to purchase or sell the same security for multiple client accounts, the Adviser 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.

 

Compensation

 

For their services as portfolio managers to the Fund, Greg D. Anderson and John L. Sabre receive a fixed salary and also share in the profits of the Adviser, if any.  Zachary Slater receives a fixed salary and discretionary bonus for his services as a portfolio manager.

 

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Ownership of Securities

 

The following table shows the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the portfolio managers in the Fund as of September 30, 2024.

 

Name of Portfolio Manger Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund

 

Greg D. Anderson

 

$100,000-$250,000

 

John L. Sabre

 

None

 

Zachary Slater

 

$1-$50,000

 

ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE

 

Specific decisions to purchase or sell securities for the Fund are made by the co-portfolio managers, who are employees of the Adviser. Each 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 Adviser for the Fund’s use. Such allocation is to be in such amounts and proportions as the respective Adviser may determine.

 

In selecting a broker or dealer to execute each particular transaction, the Adviser will take some or all of the following 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 Adviser determines in good faith that such commission is reasonable in relation to the value of brokerage, research and other services provided to the Fund. In allocating portfolio brokerage, the Adviser may select brokers or dealers who also provide brokerage, research and other services to other accounts over which the Adviser exercises investment discretion. Some of the services received as the result of Fund transactions may primarily benefit accounts other than the Fund’s, 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 September 30, 2022, the Fund paid $1,446,854 in brokerage commissions. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Fund paid $1,775,457 in brokerage commissions. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund paid $1,239,518 in brokerage commissions.

 

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PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

 

The Fund’s 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 Fund’s portfolio securities were replaced once within a one-year period. For the fiscal years ended September 30, 2023 and September 30, 2024, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 0% and 0%.

 

OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS

 

Fund Administration, Fund Accounting and Transfer Agent Services

 

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (“UFS”), which has its principal office at 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022, serves as administrator, fund accountant and transfer agent for the Fund pursuant to a Fund Services Agreement (the “Agreement”) with the Fund and subject to the supervision 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 Fund. 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 sub-advisers of Funds in the Trust. UFS may receive a referral or revenue sharing fee from such service providers in connection with such engagements. Any agreement between the Trust and such service providers is subject to the approval of the Trustees.

 

Effective February 1, 2019, NorthStar Financial Services Group, LLC, the parent company of Gemini Fund Services, LLC and its affiliated companies including Northern Lights Distributors, LLC and Northern Lights Compliance Services, LLC (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 with the Trust became effective on June 22, 2011 and remains in effect for two years from the applicable effective date for the Fund, and will continue 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 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 others service providers; (2) monitoring Fund holdings and operations for post-trade compliance with the Fund’s registration statement and

39 
 

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 Trust's federal, state, and local tax returns as prepared and signed by the Trust's independent public accountants; (8) preparing and maintaining the Trust's operating expense budget to determine proper expense accruals to be charged to each Fund to calculate its daily net asset value; (9) assisting in and monitoring the preparation, filing, printing and where applicable, dissemination to shareholders of amendments to the Trust’s 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 Trust's audits and examinations by assisting each Fund’s 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 causing 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 family of funds managed by the Adviser, the Adviser’s family of funds pays UFS 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 September 30, 2022 the Fund paid $138,447 in administration fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023 the Fund paid $247,923 in administration fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024 the Fund paid $261,419 in administration fees.

 

UFS also provides the Fund with accounting services, including: (i) daily computation of net asset value; (ii) maintenance of security ledgers and books and records as required by the 1940 Act; (iii) production of the Fund’s 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 account information and balances among the Custodian and Adviser; 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 under the Agreement to the family of funds managed by the Adviser, the Adviser’s family of funds pays UFS an asset based fee which scaled downward based upon net assets, The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022, the Fund paid $56,954 in fund accounting fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Fund paid $73,400 in fund accounting fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund paid $75,128 in fund accounting fees.

 

40 
 

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 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 September 30, 2022, the Fund paid $31,907 in transfer agency fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Fund paid $55,873 in transfer agency fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund paid $57,047 in transfer agency fees.

 

Custodian

 

U.S. Bank, N.A., (the “Custodian”), 60 Livingston Ave., St. Paul, MN 55107-1419 serves as the custodian of the Fund’s assets pursuant to a custody agreement (the “Custody Agreement”) by and between the Custodian and the Trust on behalf of the Fund. The Custodian’s responsibilities include safeguarding and controlling the Fund’s cash and securities, handling the receipt and delivery of securities, and collecting interest and dividends on the Fund’s 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 adviser. 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”), 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-34740, 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. NLCS’s 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, the Fund pays NLCS an annual fixed fee and an asset based fee, which scales downward based upon the Fund’s net assets. The Fund also pays NLCS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022, the Fund paid $16,262 in compliance service fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2023, the Fund paid $25,997 in compliance service fees. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024, the Fund paid $28,998 in compliance service fees.

 

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. Matters such as ratification of the

41 
 

independent public accountants and 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 Section 352 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 Program is written and has been approved by the Board. The Program provides for the development of policies, procedures and internal controls reasonably designed to prevent money laundering, the designation of an anti-money laundering compliance officer who is responsible for implementing and monitoring the Program, ongoing anti-money laundering training program for appropriate persons 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 Fund’s Distributor, and Transfer Agent have established reasonable anti-money laundering procedures, have reported suspicious and/or fraudulent activity and have completed thorough reviews 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 “How Shares are Priced,” the NAV of the Fund’s shares is determined by dividing the total value of the Fund’s portfolio investments and other assets, less any liabilities, by the total number of shares outstanding of the Fund.

 

Generally, the Fund’s 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 security’s primary exchange. Securities traded or dealt in upon one or more 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 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. If market quotations are not readily available, securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined

42 
 

in good faith by the Adviser 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 valued at amortized cost, when it is approximate to 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 security’s 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 Fund’s calculation of NAV), the security will be valued at its fair market value as determined in good faith by the Adviser 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 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 Fund’s 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

43 
 

on a day that the New York Stock Exchange (“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 use pricing data for domestic equity securities received shortly after the NYSE Close and does 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.

 

When market quotations are insufficient or not readily available the Fund may value securities at fair value or estimate their value as determined in good faith by the Board or its designees, pursuant to procedures approved by the Board. Fair valuation may also be used by the Board if extraordinary events occur after the close of the relevant market but prior to the NYSE Close.

 

A Fund may hold 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 designated the Adviser as its “Valuation Designee” to execute these procedures. The Adviser 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.

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 Adviser, the prices or values available do not represent the fair value of the instrument. Factors which may cause the 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 a Fund’s 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 are valued via inputs from the 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 Adviser is unable to obtain a current bid from such independent dealers or other independent parties, the Adviser 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 Fund's holdings; (iv) the discount from market value of unrestricted securities of the same class at the time of purchase and

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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 entity's 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 each Fund's 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 Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).

The Adviser 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 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.

Board’s Determination. The Board meets at least quarterly to consider the valuations provided by the Adviser and to ratify the valuations made for the applicable securities. The Board considers the reports

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provided by the Adviser, 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 holidays upon which the NYSE will be closed on the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, 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 NAV per share or offering price (NAV plus a sales charge, if applicable) 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 NAV or offering price per share.

 

Notice to Texas Shareholders

 

Under section 72.1021(a) of the Texas Property Code, initial investors in a 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 Trust’s Transfer Agent by writing to the address below to obtain a form for providing written notice to the Trust:

 

Princeton Premium Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 46707

Cincinnati, OH 45246

or overnight to

225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450,

Cincinnati, OH 45246

Redemption of Shares

 

The Fund will redeem all or any portion of a shareholder’s shares in the Fund when requested in accordance with the procedures set forth in the “How to Redeem Shares” section of the Prospectus. Under the 1940 Act, a shareholder’s 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 by it is not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund fairly to determine the value of its 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

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 NAV next determined after the termination of the suspension.

 

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The Fund may purchase shares of Underlying Funds which charge a redemption fee to shareholders (such as the Fund) that redeem shares of the Underlying Fund within a certain period of time (such as one year). The fee is payable to the Underlying Fund. Accordingly, if the Fund were to invest in an Underlying Fund and incur a redemption fee as a result of redeeming shares in such Underlying Fund, the Fund would bear such redemption fee. The Fund will not, however, invest in shares of an Underlying Fund that is sold with a contingent deferred sales load.

 

Supporting documents in addition to those listed under “How to Redeem Shares” 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.

 

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 continue qualifying as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Tax 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 investment company taxable income or net capital gain, which are distributed to shareholders in accordance with the applicable timing requirements. Investment company taxable income and net capital gain of the Fund will be computed in accordance with Section 852 of the Tax Code.

 

Investment company taxable income generally includes dividends and other income, less certain allowable expenses, and it also includes any excess of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses. Net capital gain (that is, any excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) for a fiscal year is computed by taking into account any capital loss carryforward of the Fund. Capital losses may be carried forward indefinitely and retain the character of the original loss. Capital loss carry forwards are available to offset future realized capital gains. To the extent that these carry forwards are used to offset future capital gains it is probable that the amount offset will not be distributed to shareholders.

 

At September 30, 2024, the Fund does not have capital loss carry forwards for federal income tax purposes available to offset future capital gains.

 

Short-Term Long-Term Total CLCF Ultilized
$   --- $   ---- $   ---- $   ----

 

The Fund intends to distribute all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain in accordance with the timing requirements imposed by the Tax Code and therefore should not be required to pay any federal income or excise taxes. Distributions of investment company taxable income and net capital

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gain will be made at least annually, no later than December 31 of each year. Both types of distributions will be in shares of the Fund unless a shareholder elects to receive cash.

 

The Fund’s net realized capital gains from securities transactions will be distributed only after reducing any such gains by the amount of any available capital loss carry forwards.

 

To be treated as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Tax 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 holding so that, at the end of each fiscal quarter, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 income at the rates generally applicable to corporations, and distributions to shareholders, would be treated as taxable dividends to the extent of current or accumulated earnings and profits of the Fund.

 

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 Tax Code. The formula requires payment to shareholders during a calendar year of distributions representing at least 98% of the Fund’s 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 generally are exempt from income taxation under the Tax Code, but should consult their own tax advisers about the tax consequences of investing in the Fund, including potential taxation of unrelated business taxable income.

 

Distributions of investment company taxable income generally are taxable to shareholders as ordinary income or “qualified dividend income” (as described below). In most cases the Fund will hold shares in Underlying Funds for less than 12 months, such that its sales of such shares from time to time will not qualify as long-term capital gains for those investors who hold shares of the Fund in taxable accounts.

 

Dividends paid by the Fund to an individual shareholder, to the extent such dividends are attributable to “qualified dividend income” received by the Fund from U.S. corporations (and certain foreign

48 
 

corporations), may qualify for taxation at the long-term capital gains rate available to individuals on qualified dividend income. Furthermore, dividends paid by the Fund to a corporate shareholder, to the extent such dividends are attributable to dividends received by the Fund from U.S. corporations, may qualify for a dividends received deduction.

 

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.

 

An additional 3.8% Medicare tax will be imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends, qualified dividend income distributions and capital gain dividends, as well as gains from redemption of Fund shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts, to the extent that the shareholder’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds certain threshold amounts. 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.

 

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 shareholder’s 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 investment company taxable income and net capital gain will be taxable as described above, whether received in additional cash or shares. Shareholders electing to reinvest 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.

 

Under the Tax Code, the Fund will be required to report to the Internal Revenue Service all distributions of investment company 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 Tax Code, distributions of investment company taxable 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

49 
 

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.

The Fund has adopted a policy (which may be modified at any time by its Board) to pay quarterly distributions on Fund shares at a target rate that represents an annualized payout of approximately 4.0% on the Fund’s per-share net asset value on the date of a distribution’s declaration. Shareholders receiving periodic payments from the Fund may be under the impression that they are receiving net profits. However, all or a portion of a distribution may consist of a return of capital (i.e. from your original investment). Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net profit. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares.

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 a 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 Fund’s 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 recipient’s basis in the shares, and (iii) thereafter, as gain from the sale or exchange of a capital asset. If the Fund’s book income is less than taxable income, the Fund could be required to make distributions exceeding book income to qualify as a regulated investment company that is accorded special tax treatment.

 

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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 originally issued, even though the holder receives no interest payment in cash on the security during the year. In addition, other debt instruments, such as pay-in-kind securities may give rise to income under the original issue discount rules, which income 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 a 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.

 

If the Fund holds the foregoing kinds of securities, it may be required to pay out as an income distribution each year an amount that 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.

 

Shareholders of the Fund may be subject to state and local taxes on distributions received from the Fund and on redemptions of the Fund’s shares.

 

The foregoing discussion relates only to U.S. federal income tax law as applicable to U.S. persons (that is, U.S. citizens and residents, and domestic corporations, partnerships, trusts and estates). Shareholders

51 
 

who are not U.S. persons should consult their tax advisers regarding the U.S. and foreign tax consequences of an investment in the Fund.

 

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

 

RSM US LLP, located at 555 Seventeenth Street, Suite 1200, Denver, CO 80202, has been selected as an independent registered public accounting firm for the Fund. RSM US LLP will perform an annual audit of the Fund’s financial statements and provides other audit, tax, and related services for the Fund.

 

 

LEGAL COUNSEL

 

Thompson Hine LLP, 41 South High Street, Suite 1700, Columbus, Ohio 43215 serves as the Trust’s 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 September 30, 2024. You can obtain a copy of the Annual Report without charge by calling the Funds at 1-888-868-9501.

 

 

 

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