abrdn Funds: Summary Prospectus
abrdn Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF (AGEM)
Principal U.S. Listing Exchange: The Nasdaq Stock Market® ("Nasdaq")
October 29, 2024
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund's Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund's Prospectus, Statement of Additional Information, shareholder reports and other information about the Fund online at https://www.abrdn.com/en-us/us/investor/fund-centre#literature. You can also get this information at no cost by e-mailing a request to Investor.Services.US@abrdn.com, calling (866) 667-9231 or asking your financial advisor. The Fund's Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, both dated October 29, 2024, and the independent registered public accounting firm's report and financial statements in the abrdn Emerging Markets Dividend Fund's (the "Predecessor Fund") annual report, dated October 31, 2023, as well as the unaudited financial statements contained in the Predecessor Fund's semi-annual report dated April 30, 2024, are incorporated by reference into this summary prospectus.
Objective
The abrdn Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF (the "Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF" or the "Fund") seeks total return consisting of income and long-term capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund ("Shares"). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
|
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) |
|||||||
|
Management Fees |
0.70 |
% |
|||||
|
Distribution Fees |
None |
||||||
|
Other Expenses(1) |
0.36 |
% |
|||||
|
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
1.06 |
% |
|||||
|
Less: Amount of Fee Limitations/Expense Reimbursements(2) |
0.36 |
% |
|||||
|
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
0.70 |
% |
|||||
(1) "Other Expenses" have been estimated to reflect expenses expected to be incurred by the Fund for the current fiscal year.
(2) The Trust and the Adviser have entered into a written contract limiting operating expenses to 0.70% for the Fund. This contractual limitation may not be terminated before February 28, 2027 without the approval of the Independent Trustees of the Board. This limit excludes certain expenses, including any taxes, interest, brokerage fees, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, and extraordinary expenses, if any. The Trust is authorized to reimburse the Adviser for management fees previously limited and/or for expenses previously paid by the Adviser, provided, however, that any reimbursements must be paid at a date not more than three years after the date when the Adviser limited the fees or reimbursed the expenses and the reimbursements do not cause the Fund to exceed the lesser of the applicable expense limitation in the contract at the time the fees were limited or expenses are paid or the applicable expense limitation in effect at the time the expenses are being recouped by the Adviser.
Example
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF with the cost of investing in other funds.
The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell 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 each year (taking into account the contractual fee limitation until its expiration, which impacts the 1- and 3-Year figures listed below). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
| 1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years |
||||||||||||
| $ |
72 |
$ |
264 |
$ |
513 |
$ |
1,227 |
||||||||
Portfolio Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund's performance. During the most recent fiscal year of abrdn Emerging Markets Dividend Fund's (the "Predecessor Fund"), the Predecessor Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 23.45% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Strategies
As a non-fundamental policy, under normal circumstances, the Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF invests at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of emerging market companies that pay dividend income. The Fund will invest primarily in common stocks but may also invest in other types of equity securities, including, but not limited to, preferred stock and depositary receipts. An emerging market country is any country determined by the Adviser or Sub-adviser (as defined below) to have an emerging market economy, considering factors such as the country's credit rating, its political and economic stability and the development of its financial and capital markets. Emerging market countries include every nation in the world except the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Hong Kong, Singapore and most countries located in Western Europe. A company is considered to be an emerging market company if Fund management determines that the company meets one or more of the following criteria:
• the company is organized under the laws of or has its principal office in an emerging market country;
• the company has its principal securities trading market in an emerging market country; and/or
• the company derives the majority of its annual revenue or earnings or assets from goods produced, sales made or services performed in an emerging market country.
Emerging market countries may include countries considered to be frontier markets. Frontier markets are those markets included in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. At times, the Fund may have a significant amount of its assets invested in a country or geographic region. The Fund currently anticipates that it will invest a significant amount of its assets in securities economically tied to India, Taiwan and in Mainland China, including through the Shanghai-Hong Kong and Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect program or by any other available means. The Fund may invest in securities denominated in U.S. Dollars and currencies of the foreign countries in which it is permitted to invest. The Fund typically has full currency exposure to those markets in which it invests.
The Fund may invest in securities of any market capitalization.
The Fund may invest in securities of any market sector and may hold a significant amount of securities of companies, from time to time, within a single sector. The Fund currently anticipates that it will have significant exposure to the healthcare, financials and information technology sectors.
In seeking to achieve the Fund's investment objective, the investment team narrows the investable universe by looking at the dividend potential of companies and focusing on fundamental factors. The Adviser's and Sub-adviser's primary focus is on stock selection using research techniques to select individual holdings. The investment team places particular emphasis on understanding business fundamentals and dynamics and the impact this has on cash flow generation and a
company's ability to allocate cash effectively. The investment team seeks to allocate the Fund's assets to high dividend paying companies and companies that the Adviser and Sub-adviser believe are growing their dividend over time.
The Adviser and Sub-adviser's consideration of fundamental factors includes, among other things, a quality assessment focused on five key factors: 1) the durability of the business model, 2) the attractiveness of the industry, 3) the strength of financials, 4) the capability of management, and 5) the most material environmental, social and governance ("ESG") factors impacting a company. As ESG information is just one investment consideration, ESG considerations generally are not solely determinative in any investment decision made by the Adviser and Sub-adviser.
Principal Risks
The Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF cannot guarantee that it will achieve its investment objective.
As with any fund, the value of the Fund's investments – and therefore, the value of Fund Shares – may fluctuate. The following is a list of the principal risks of investing in the Fund (in alphabetical order after the first nine risks).
Market Risk – Deteriorating market conditions might cause a general weakness in the market that reduces the prices, or yield, of securities in those markets in which the Fund invests.
Issuer Risk – The value of a security may decline for reasons directly related to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer's goods or services.
Equity Securities Risk – The stock or other security of a company may not perform as well as expected, and may decrease in value, because of factors related to the company (such as poorer than expected earnings or certain management decisions), to the industry in which the company is engaged (such as a reduction in the demand for products or services in a particular industry), or to the market as a whole (such as periods of market volatility or instability, or general and prolonged periods of economic decline).
Active Management Risk – The Fund is subject to the risk that the Adviser or Sub-adviser may make poor security selections. The Adviser or Sub-adviser and their portfolio managers apply their own investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund and there can be no guarantee that these decisions will achieve the desired results for the Fund. In addition, the Adviser or Sub-adviser may select securities that underperform the relevant market or other funds with similar investment objectives and strategies.
Emerging Markets Risk – Emerging markets are countries generally considered to be relatively less developed or industrialized, and investments in emerging markets countries are subject to a magnification of the risks that apply to foreign investments. These risks are greater for securities of companies in emerging market countries because the countries may have less stable governments, more volatile currencies and less established markets (see "Foreign Securities Risk" below).
China Risk. Investments in China and Hong Kong subject the Fund to additional risks, and may make it significantly more volatile than geographically diverse mutual funds. Additional risks associated with investments in China and Hong Kong include exposure to currency fluctuations, less liquidity, expropriation, confiscatory taxation, nationalization, exchange control regulations (including currency blockage), trading halts, imposition of tariffs, limitations on repatriation and differing legal standards. Any spread of an infectious illness, public health threat or similar issue could reduce consumer demand or economic output, result in market closures, travel restrictions or quarantines, and generally have a significant impact on the Chinese economy, which in turn could adversely affect the Fund's investments. The Fund may gain exposure to companies based or operated in China by investing through legal structures known as variable interest entities (VIEs). Instead of directly owning the equity securities of a Chinese company, a VIE enters into service and other contracts with the Chinese company. Although the VIE has no equity ownership of the Chinese company, the contractual arrangements permit the VIE to consolidate the Chinese company into its financial statements. The Chinese government could intervene with respect to VIEs, which could significantly affect the Chinese company's performance and the enforceability of the VIE's contractual arrangement with the Chinese company.
Shanghai-Hong Kong and Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect Risk. Investing in China A shares through Stock Connect involves various considerations and risks, including, but not limited to, illiquidity risk; currency risk; greater price volatility; legal and regulatory uncertainty risk; execution risk; operational risk; tax risk; credit risk; and economic, social and political instability of the stock market in the People's Republic of China.
India Risk. The value of the Fund's assets may be adversely affected by political, economic, social and religious factors, changes in Indian law or regulations and the status of India's relations with other countries. In addition, the economy of India may differ favorably or unfavorably from the U.S. economy in such respects as the rate of growth of gross domestic product, the rate of inflation, capital reinvestment, resource self-sufficiency and balance of payments position. The Indian government has exercised and continues to exercise significant influence over many aspects of the economy, and the number of public sector enterprises in India is substantial. Accordingly, Indian government actions in the future could have a significant effect on the Indian economy, which could affect private sector companies and the Fund, market conditions, and prices and yields of securities in the Fund's portfolio.
Taiwan Risk. Including risks associated with investing in emerging markets, a Fund's investment in or exposure to Taiwan is also subject to risks associated with, among other things, currency fluctuations, commodity shortages, less liquidity, expropriation, confiscatory taxation, nationalization and exchange control regulations (including currency blockage). Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation and interest rates have had, and may continue to have, negative effects on the economy and securities markets of Taiwan. In addition, investments in Taiwan could be adversely affected by political and economic relationship with China.
Dividend Strategy Risk – There is no guarantee that the issuers of the stocks held by the Fund will declare dividends in the future or that, if dividends are declared, they will remain at their current levels or increase over time. The Fund's emphasis on dividend paying stocks could cause the Fund to underperform similar funds that invest without consideration of a company's track record of paying dividends or ability to pay dividends in the future. Dividend-paying stocks may not participate in a broad market advance to the same degree as other stocks, and a sharp rise in interest rates or economic downturn could cause a company to unexpectedly reduce or eliminate its dividend.
Foreign Currency Exposure Risk – The value of foreign currencies relative to the U.S. Dollar fluctuates in response to market, economic, political, regulatory, geopolitical or other conditions. A decline in the value of a foreign currency versus the U.S. Dollar reduces the value in U.S. Dollars of investments denominated in that foreign currency. This risk may impact the Fund more greatly to the extent the Fund does not hedge its currency risk, or hedging techniques used by the Adviser are unsuccessful.
Foreign Securities Risk – Foreign countries in which the Fund may invest may have markets that are less liquid, less regulated and more volatile than U.S. markets. The value of the Fund's investments may decline because of factors such as unfavorable or unsuccessful government actions, reduction of government or central bank support and political or financial instability. To the extent the Fund focuses its investments in a single country or only a few countries in a particular geographic region, economic, political, regulatory or other conditions affecting such country or region may have a greater impact on Fund performance relative to a more geographically diversified fund.
Market Trading Risk – There can be no assurance as to the price at which, or volume in which, it may at any time be possible to buy or sell Shares in the public trading market. Although the Shares are listed for trading on Nasdaq, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for such Shares will develop or be maintained. Although it is expected that the market price of the Shares will approximate the Fund's NAV when purchased and sold in the secondary market, the Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Shares, disruptions in the securities markets in which the Fund invests, periods of high market volatility and disruptions in the creation/redemption process. Any of these may lead to times when the market price of the Shares is more than the NAV intra-day (premium) or less than the NAV intra-day (discount).
Authorized Participants Risk – The Fund has entered into Authorized Participant AP agreements with only a limited number of institutions. Should these APs cease to act as such or, for any reason, be unable to create or redeem Shares and new APs are not appointed in their place, Shares may trade at a discount to the Fund's NAV and possibly face delisting.
Cash Transactions Risk – Unlike certain exchange-traded funds ("ETFs"), the Fund expects to effect its redemptions partially for cash, rather than primarily for in-kind securities. As such, investments in Shares may be less tax-efficient than an investment in a conventional ETF which generally are able to make in-kind redemptions and avoid realizing gains in connection with transactions designed to raise cash to meet redemption requests.
Cybersecurity Risk – Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to Fund assets, customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or cause the Fund, the Adviser and/or its service providers (including, but not limited to, Fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality.
Depositary Receipts Risk – Investments in depositary receipts may entail the special risks of investing in foreign securities, including currency exchange fluctuations, government regulations, and the potential for political and economic instability.
ESG Integration Risk – To the extent ESG factors are used to evaluate investments, the consideration of such factors may adversely affect a Fund's performance. Not every ESG factor may be identified or evaluated for every investment. ESG characteristics are not the only factors considered and, as a result, the issuers in which a Fund invests may not be issuers with favorable ESG characteristics or high ESG ratings. The application of ESG factors may result in a Fund performing differently than its benchmark index and other funds in its peer group that do not consider ESG factors or consider different ESG factors.
Frontier Markets Risk – Frontier markets involve the same risks as emerging markets, but to a greater extent since they tend to be even smaller, less developed, and less accessible than other emerging markets.
Liquidity Risk – Generally, only APs may redeem Shares. Investors other than APs wishing to realize their Shares will generally need to rely on secondary trading in the public trading market. There can be no assurance as to the price at which, or volume in which, it may at any time be possible to realize Shares in the public trading market. Although the Shares are listed for trading on Nasdaq, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for such shares will develop or be maintained.
Mid-Cap Securities Risk – Securities of medium-sized companies tend to be more volatile and less liquid than securities of larger companies.
Preferred Shares Risk – Preferred shares in which the Fund may invest are sensitive to interest rate changes, and are also subject to equity risk, which is the risk that stock prices will fall over short or extended periods of time. The rights of preferred shares on the distribution of a company's assets in the event of a liquidation are generally subordinate to the rights associated with a company's debt securities.
Sector Risk – To the extent that the Fund has a significant portion of its assets invested in securities of companies conducting business in a broadly related group of industries within an economic sector, the Fund may be more vulnerable to unfavorable developments in that economic sector than funds that invest more broadly.
Financials Sector Risk. To the extent that the financials sector represents a significant portion of the Fund, the Fund will be sensitive to changes in, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, factors impacting this sector. Performance of companies in the financials sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, decreased liquidity in credit markets as well as cyber-attacks.
Information Technology Sector Risk. To the extent that the information technology sector represents a significant portion of the Fund, the Fund will be sensitive to changes in, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, factors impacting this sector. Information technology companies face intense competition, both domestically and internationally, which may have an adverse effect on their profit margins. Like other technology companies, information technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. The products of information technology companies may face obsolescence due to rapid technological developments, frequent new product introduction, unpredictable changes in growth rates and competition for the services of
qualified personnel. Companies in the information technology sector are heavily dependent on patent and intellectual property rights. The loss or impairment of these rights may adversely affect the profitability of these companies.
Healthcare Sector Risk. To the extent that the healthcare sector represents a significant portion of the Fund, the Fund will be sensitive to changes in, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, factors impacting this sector. Performance of companies in the healthcare sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulation. restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, changes to the costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, increased emphasis on outpatient services, a limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies, and other market developments.
Small-Cap Securities Risk – Securities of smaller companies are usually less stable in price and less liquid than those of larger, more established companies. Therefore, they generally involve greater risk. Small-cap companies may have limited product lines or markets, be less financially secure than larger companies, or depend on a small number of key personnel. If adverse developments occur, such as due to management changes or product failure, a Fund's investment in a small-cap company may lose substantial value.
Valuation Risk – The price that the Fund could receive upon the sale of any particular portfolio investment may differ from the Fund's valuation of the investment, particularly for securities that trade in thin or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair valuation methodology or a price provided by an independent pricing service. As a result, the price received upon the sale of an investment may be less than the value ascribed by the Fund, and the Fund could realize a greater than expected loss or lesser than expected gain upon the sale of the investment. The Fund's ability to value its investments may also be impacted by technological issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third-party service providers.
If the value of the Fund's investments decreases, you may lose money.
For additional information regarding the above identified risks, see "Additional Information about Investments, Investment Techniques and Risks" in the prospectus.
Performance
The bar chart and table below can help you evaluate potential risks of the Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF. It is currently contemplated that before the Fund commences operations, all of the assets of another investment company advised by abrdn Inc. and sub-advised by abrdn Investments Limited, the Predecessor Fund, will be transferred to the Fund in a tax-free reorganization.
It is currently contemplated that the reorganization, which does not require the approval of shareholders of the Fund or the Predecessor Fund, will occur on or around February 14, 2025. The Fund has the same investment objective and strategies as those of the Predecessor Fund.
The bar chart shows how the performance of the Fund's Shares (represented by the performance of the Predecessor Fund's Institutional Class Shares) has varied from year to year. The table compares the Fund's average annual total returns (represented by the performance of the Predecessor Fund's Institutional Class Shares) to the returns of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (Net Daily Total Return), a broad-based securities index, and the MSCI All Country World ex USA Index (Net Daily Total Return). Effective February 29, 2024, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (Net Daily Total Return) replaced the MSCI All Country World ex USA Index (Net Daily Total Return) as the Predecessor Fund's primary benchmark in connection with a change in name and strategy of the Predecessor Fund. Performance for the Fund's Shares has not been adjusted to reflect the Fund's Shares' lower expenses than those of the Predecessor Fund's Institutional Class Shares. Performance for the Predecessor Fund is based on the NAV per share of the Predecessor Fund shares rather than on market-determined prices. Remember, however, that past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. For updated performance information, please visit https://www.abrdn.com/us/literature or call 866-667-9231.
Annual Total Returns – Institutional Class Shares
(Years Ended Dec. 31)
Calendar Year-to-Date Total Return as of September 30, 2024: 15.17%
Highest Return: 18.71% – 2nd quarter 2020
Lowest Return: -23.57% – 1st quarter 2020
After-tax returns are shown in the following table for Institutional Class Shares. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates in effect and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax return depends on your personal tax situation and may differ from what is shown here. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors in tax-deferred arrangements, such as individual retirement accounts, 401(k) plans or certain other employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Average Annual Total Returns as of December 31, 2023
|
1 Year |
5 years |
10 years |
|||||||||||||
|
Institutional Class Shares – Before Taxes |
16.32 |
% |
5.69 |
% |
2.42 |
% |
|||||||||
|
Institutional Class Shares – After Taxes on Distributions |
16.32 |
% |
4.58 |
% |
1.22 |
% |
|||||||||
|
Institutional Class Shares – After Taxes on Distributions and Sales of Shares(1) |
9.66 |
% |
3.93 |
% |
1.28 |
% |
|||||||||
|
MSCI Emerging Markets Index (Net Daily Total Return) (reflects deductions for expenses and taxes) |
9.83 |
% |
3.68 |
% |
2.66 |
% |
|||||||||
|
MSCI All Country World ex USA Index (Net Daily Total Return) (reflects deductions for expenses and taxes) |
15.62 |
% |
7.08 |
% |
3.83 |
% |
|||||||||
(1) Under certain circumstances, the addition of the tax benefits from capital losses resulting from redemptions may cause the returns after taxes on distributions and sales of shares to be greater than the returns after taxes on distributions or the returns before taxes.
Investment Adviser
abrdn Inc. serves as the Emerging Markets Dividend Active ETF's investment adviser. abrdn Investments Limited serves as the Fund's sub-adviser.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed using a team-based approach, with the following team members being responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund, with Matt Williams serving as lead portfolio manager and Gabriel Sacks heading the portfolio construction group:
|
Name |
Title |
Served on the Fund Since |
|||||||||
|
Matt Williams, CFA® |
Senior Investment Director |
2024 |
|||||||||
|
Gabriel Sacks, CFA® |
Investment Director |
2024 |
|||||||||
|
Awais Khan, CFA® |
Head of ETF Portfolio Management and Capital Markets |
2024 |
|||||||||
Messrs. Williams and Sacks also were the Predecessor Fund's portfolio managers since 2024.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
The Fund is an ETF. Individual Shares may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through a broker-dealer. Shares are listed for trading on a national securities exchange, such as the Nasdaq. The price of Shares is based on market price, and because ETF Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount). An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the "bid-ask spread"). Recent information, including information about the Fund's NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads, is included on the Fund's website at www.abrdn.com/usa/etf.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an "Intermediary"), the Adviser or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary's website for more information.