497K 1 easterly-incomeopp_497k.htm 497K

 

 

Summary Prospectus

April 1, 2024

Easterly Income Opportunities Fund

Class A (JASVX) | Class C (JSVCX) | Class I (JSVIX) | Class R6 (JASSX)

 

Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. The Fund’s Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, both dated April 1, 2024, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus. You can obtain these documents and other information about the Fund online at https://www.EasterlyFunds.com/funds/. You can also obtain these documents at no cost by calling (toll free) (833) 999-2636, emailing info@EasterlyFunds.com or by asking any financial advisor, bank or broker-dealer that offers shares of the Fund.

 

Investment Objective: The Fund seeks to provide a high level of risk-adjusted current income and capital appreciation. Capital preservation is a secondary objective.

 

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, for transactions in Class I and Class R6 shares, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in the Easterly Funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in the Choosing a Share Class section on page 22 of the Fund’s Prospectus. In addition, Appendix A attached to this Prospectus contains information regarding financial intermediary-specific sales charge waivers and discounts.

 

Shareholder Fees Class
A
Class
C
Class
I
Class
R6
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases
as a % of offering price
2.00% NONE NONE NONE
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends
as a % of offering price
NONE NONE NONE NONE
Maximum Contingent Deferred Sales Charge (Load)
as a % of offering price
NONE1 1.00% NONE NONE
Redemption Fee NONE NONE NONE NONE
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
  Class
A
Class
C
Class
I
Class
R6
Management Fees 1.20% 1.20% 1.20% 1.20%
Distribution and/or Service Rule 12b-1 Fees 0.25% 1.00% NONE NONE
Other Expenses 0.37% 0.37% 0.37% 0.37%
Interest/Dividend Expense 0.11% 0.11% 0.11% 0.11%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses before
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reduction/Reimbursement
1.93% 2.68% 1.68% 1.68%
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reduction/ Reimbursement (0.09)% (0.09)% (0.09)% (0.68)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses after
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reduction/Reimbursement(2)
1.84% 2.59% 1.59% 1.00%
(1)A contingent deferred sales charge may apply in some cases. See “Choosing a Share Class - Class A Shares.”
(2)Pursuant to an operating expense limitation agreement between Easterly Investment Partners LLC, the Fund’s investment manager (“Easterly” or the “Adviser”), and the Fund, Easterly has contractually agreed to waive all or a portion of its advisory fee and/or pay expenses of the Fund so that total annual Fund operating expenses (excluding front-end and contingent deferred sales loads, leverage, interest and tax expenses, dividends and interest on short positions, brokerage commissions, expenses incurred in connection with any merger, reorganization or liquidation, extraordinary or non-routine expenses and Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses) for Class A, Class C, Class I and Class R6 do not exceed 1.73%, 2.48%, 1.48%, and 0.89%, respectively. The expense limitation agreement for Class A, Class C, Class I, and Class R6 shares will be in effect through March 31, 2025. This operating expense limitation agreement cannot be terminated during its term. Easterly is permitted to seek reimbursement from the Fund, subject to limitations, for management fees waived and Fund expenses paid within three (3) years from the date on which such management fees were waived or expenses paid, as long as the reimbursement does not cause the Fund’s operating expenses to exceed (i) the expense cap in place at the time the fees were waived or the expenses were incurred; or (ii) the current expense cap, whichever is less.
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Expense 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. It also shows costs if you sold your shares at the end of the period or continued to hold them. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. The Example reflects the contractual fee waiver/expense reimbursement arrangement for the first year only. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs, would be:

 

If the shares are redeemed at the end of each period:

 

  1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
Class A $383 $785 $1,213 $2,402
Class C $362 $824 $1,412 $3,006
Class I $162 $521 $904 $1,980
Class R6 $102 $463 $849 $1,930

 

If the shares are not redeemed:

 

  1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
Class A $383 $785 $1,213 $2,402
Class C $262 $824 $1,412 $3,006
Class I $162 $521 $904 $1,980
Class R6 $102 $463 $849 $1,930

 

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 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 year, the portfolio turnover rate of the Fund was 42% of the average value of its portfolio.

 

Principal Investment Strategies: The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objectives, under normal conditions, by investing in structured credit securities and other fixed income securities. Structured credit securities include, but are not limited to, mortgage-backed securities (“MBS”), including residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”), commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”); asset-backed securities (“ABS”); collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”); collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”); collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”); collateralized debt obligations (“CDOs”); mortgage derivatives such as stripped RMBS and inverse floaters; and other securitized assets. A stripped RMBS is created when a traditional RMBS is split into an interest-only and a principal-only strip. A stripped RMBS gives its holder the right to interest payments or principal payments, but not both. An inverse floater is a type of derivative instrument with a floating or variable interest rate that moves in the opposite direct of the interest rate on another security, usually a floating rate note. The use of inverse floaters by the Fund creates effective leverage.

 

The Fund’s investments in RMBS may include agency and nonagency RMBS, including to-be-announced MBS (“TBA”) and non-U.S. dollar denominated RMBS. The Fund’s investments in CMOs may include whole loan CMOs backed by prime, Alt-A and subprime collateral. The Sub-Adviser considers prime loans to represent borrowers with good to excellent credit; the Sub-Adviser considers subprime loans to represent borrowers with a higher risk of default than loans to prime borrowers and therefore carry higher interest rates; and the Sub-Adviser considers Alt-A loans to represent borrowers with a credit risk profile between that of prime and subprime loans. The Fund may invest without limit in securitizations backed by Alt-A or subprime loans, and expects that most Alt-A and subprime securitizations in which the Fund intends to invest will be composed entirely of such loans. The Fund’s investments in ABS include ABS backed by student loans, auto loans, or nontraditional collateral such as single family rentals and aircraft leases.

 

The Fund concentrates its investments (i.e., invests more than 25% of its net assets) in RMBS, CMBS and other mortgage-related securities (such as CMOs), and treats such investments as investments in a group of industries. The Fund may also invest in corporate bonds and other fixed income securities, such as U.S. government securities. The Fund seeks to outperform the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index with lower volatility than that index.

 

The Fund seeks to minimize interest rate risk by maintaining a short to intermediate average portfolio duration (i.e., within a zero to three (0 to 3) year range), as calculated by the Sub-Adviser, although the Fund’s average duration may be shorter or longer at any time or from time to time depending on market conditions and other factors. While the Fund seeks to maintain a short to intermediate average portfolio duration, there is no limit on the maturity or duration of any individual security in which the Fund may invest. In addition, the Sub-Adviser manages the liquidity of the Fund’s holdings at both the individual security level and the portfolio level, using a proprietary technique that attempts to optimize the tradeoff between the yield and liquidity of the portfolio.

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In pursuing its objectives, the Fund may sell securities short from time to time, predominately in conjunction with long positions with similar characteristics for the purposes of hedging or managing interest rate or credit spread risk, or occasionally for exploiting relative value differences between two securities, not for predicting the overall direction of the market. The Fund may also employ TBA for these short selling activities. TBA sales are forward-settling sales of agency MBS where the underlying pools of mortgage loans are not known at the time of the original transaction, but are announced just before settlement based on a “cheapest-to-deliver” algorithm.

 

The Fund may invest in options, futures and swaps (including interest rate swaps, credit default swaps, total return swaps and swaptions). The Fund may invest in such instruments, without limitation, for hedging purposes designed to manage interest rate, credit spread and other risks.

 

The Fund may invest without limit in debt securities that are rated below investment grade (also known as “junk bonds”). The Fund does not have a target allocation to investment grade or below investment grade securities, but may invest a significant portion of its assets in non-agency RMBS, which are below investment grade securities. The Sub-Adviser defines investment grade securities as those that are rated BBB or higher by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Baa or higher by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”), for example, or are rated investment grade by any other Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (“NRSRO”), or if unrated, determined by the Sub-Adviser to be of comparable quality.

 

The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in Rule 144A securities, as a significant portion of current issuance in the ABS and MBS markets are Rule 144A securities. Rule 144A securities are not registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), and can be traded only among large institutional buyers and sellers, including the Fund, that meet the requirements of Rule 144A.

 

The Fund employs a value style investing approach that seeks to invest in securities providing undervalued cash flows within markets the Sub-Adviser deems inefficient. When investing Fund assets in all types of securities, the Sub-Adviser analyzes their expected future cash flows based on collateral composition and expected performance, deal structure including credit enhancement, state variables such as interest shortfalls and servicer advances and other factors in order to project expected return parameters such as yield and average life. The Sub-Adviser employs a comprehensive risk management process tailored to the securities held in the Fund that considers systematic risk, cash flow risk and liquidity risk of the securities.

 

The Sub-Adviser, using a proprietary quantitative analysis model, projects security cash flows and values such cash flows at what it deems to be the appropriate discount rate based on price discovery resulting from relatively active trading and publicly available pricing information.

 

The Sub-Adviser’s proprietary quantitative analysis model to evaluate RMBS securities considers borrower and servicer behavior in projecting, at the loan-level, prepayment and default probability, default severity, and other factors affecting the cash flows of the security, which are then analyzed not only to identify undervalued securities, but also to stress test the credit risk of those securities.

 

The Sub-Adviser considers selling securities when such securities have reached their price/valuation targets. The Sub-Adviser may also consider selling securities when the Sub-Adviser believes securities have become overvalued, and replacing them with securities the Sub-Adviser believes to be undervalued to seek to offer the Fund better relative value and performance expectations. The Sub-Adviser may also sell and replace securities as necessary to rebalance and align the portfolio with its overall risk parameter targets.

 

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Principal Risks: There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objectives. The Fund share price will fluctuate with changes in the market value of its portfolio investments. When you sell your Fund shares, they may be worth less than what you paid for them and, accordingly, you can lose money investing in this Fund.

 

Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risk - MBS and ABS have different risk characteristics than traditional debt securities because principal is paid back over the life of the security rather than at maturity. Although the value of fixed-income securities generally increases during periods of falling interest rates and decreases during periods of rising interest rates, MBS and ABS may be more sensitive to changes in interest rates. This is partly due to the fact that the borrower’s payments may be prepaid at any time as well as other factors. Generally, prepayments will increase during a period of falling interest rates and decrease during a period of rising interest rates. The rate of prepayments also may be influenced by economic and other factors. Prepayment risk includes the possibility that securities with stated interest rates may have the principal prepaid earlier than expected, which may occur when interest rates decline.

 

Prepayment may expose the Fund to a lower rate of return upon reinvestment of principal. Investments in MBS and ABS are made based upon, among other things, expectations regarding the rate of prepayments on the underlying loans. Rates of prepayment faster or slower than expected by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser could reduce the Fund’s yield, increase the volatility of the Fund and/or cause a decline in NAV.

 

MBS and ABS are also subject to extension risk, which is the risk that the expected maturity of an obligation will lengthen in duration due to a decrease in prepayments, which may occur when interest rates rise. This may have an adverse effect on returns, as the value of the security decreases when principal payments are made later than expected. As a result, in certain interest rate environments, the Fund may exhibit additional volatility. In addition, the Fund may be prevented from investing proceeds it would otherwise have received at a given time at the higher prevailing interest rates. Additionally, MBS and ABS are subject to risks associated with their structure and the nature of the assets underlying the securities and the servicing of those assets. Certain MBS and ABS may face valuation difficulties and may be more volatile and less liquid than other types of MBS, ABS, mortgage-related securities and debt securities. In addition, an unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may adversely affect the value of a MBS and could result in losses to the Fund. The risk of such defaults is generally higher in the case of mortgage pools that include subprime mortgages. The risks associated with mortgage-backed securities typically become elevated during periods of distressed economic, market, health and labor conditions. In particular, increased levels of unemployment, delays and delinquencies in payments of mortgage and rent obligations, and uncertainty regarding the effects and extent of government intervention with respect to mortgage payments and other economic matters may adversely affect the Fund’s investments in mortgage-backed securities. Regulatory authorities in the United States or other countries may restrict the ability of the Fund to fully implement its strategy, either generally, or with respect to certain securities, industries, or countries. In addition, possible legislation in the area of residential mortgages, credit cards and other consumer loans that may collateralize the securities in which the Fund may invest could negatively impact the value of the Fund’s investments.

 

Sub-Prime and Alt-A Mortgage Risk - Subprime loans refer to loans made to borrowers with weakened credit histories or with a lower capacity to make timely payments on their loans. Alt-A loans refer to loans extended to borrowers who have incomplete documentation of income, assets, or other variables that are important to the credit underwriting process. The loan collateral backing some MBS may be considered “subprime” or “Alt-A” at the time of loan origination based on the lower credit quality or other risk factors of the borrower, making it more likely to default than loans considered “prime.” The overall credit risk of MBS is a function of a number of factors, primarily the seniority of the bond in the capital structure, the amount and type of credit enhancement, and the type and performance of the loan collateral. Therefore, all else equal with respect to seniority and credit enhancement, MBS backed by subprime or Alt-A collateral pose more credit risk to the Fund than those backed by prime loan collateral. In addition, the Fund may experience difficulty in the management and reinvestment of its investments subprime or Alt-A mortgage loans due to fluctuating interest rates and market volatility and the Fund may incur losses on such investments.

 

CLO, CBO, and CDO Risk - A CLO is a trust typically collateralized by a pool of loans. A CBO is a trust which is often backed by a diversified pool of high risk, below investment grade fixed income securities. A CDO is a trust backed by other types of assets representing obligations of various parties. For CLOs, CBOs and other CDOs, the cash flows from the trust are split into two or more portions, called tranches. Each tranche has an inverse risk-return relationship and varies in risk and yield. The investment grade tranches have first priority on the cash flows of the underlying loan pool, but at lower rates of return than the subordinated or below investment grade tranches, whose collateral bears the first losses of the pool but have higher rates of return. The “equity” tranche, for example, bears the initial risk of loss resulting from defaults and offers some protection from defaults to the other more senior tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Despite the protection from the equity tranche, more senior tranches of CLOs, CBOs and other CDOs are still exposed to substantial credit risk. CLOs, CBOs and other CDOs are generally unregistered private placements governed by Rule 144A, and thus, have additional liquidity risk. CLOs, CBOs and other CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) risks related to CLO, CBO or other CDO managers; (iv) the risk associated with the Fund investing in CLOs, CBOs or other CDOs that are subordinate to other classes; and (v) the complexity of the structure of the security may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results. To the extent that the Fund invests in other types of derivatives issued in tranches, some or all of these risks may apply.

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Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk - Stripped mortgage-backed securities are a type of mortgage-backed security that receive differing proportions of the interest and principal payments from the underlying assets. Generally, there are two classes of stripped mortgage-backed securities: Interest Only (“IO”) and Principal Only (“PO”). The cash flows and yields on IOs and POs are extremely sensitive to the rate of principal payments (including prepayments) on the underlying mortgage loans or mortgage-backed securities. A rapid rate of principal payments may adversely affect the yield to maturity of IOs. A slow rate of principal payments may adversely affect the yield to maturity of POs. If prepayments of principal are greater than anticipated, an investor in IOs may incur substantial losses. If prepayments of principal are slower than anticipated, the yield on a PO will be affected more severely than would be the case with a traditional mortgage-backed security.

 

Credit Spread Risk - Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of the Fund’s debt securities. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities.

 

Credit Risk - The issuer of fixed income instruments in which the Fund invests may experience financial difficulty and be unable to meet interest and/or principal payments, thereby causing its instruments to decrease in value and lowering the issuer’s credit rating. Credit ratings may not be an accurate assessment of liquidity or credit risk. Although credit quality may not accurately reflect the true credit risk of an instrument, a change in the credit quality rating of an instrument or an issuer can have a rapid, adverse effect on the instrument’s liquidity and make it more difficult for the Fund to sell at an advantageous price or time.

 

Real Estate Risk - MBS investments are subject to real estate risk, as the underlying loans securitizing the MBS are themselves collateralized by residential or commercial real estate. In the event real estate prices fall, the credit risk of MBS increases in at least two ways. First, a homeowner or landlord may be more likely to default on a mortgage if the real estate being financed is worth less that the loan balance (i.e., a negative equity position). Second, in the event of a default for whatever reason, the value of the real estate securing the loan would be lower, potentially resulting in a lower recovery.

 

Investment Focus Risk - To the extent the Fund invests a greater amount in any one sector or industry, such as real estate mortgage-related securities, the Fund’s performance will depend to a greater extent on the overall condition of that sector or industry and there is increased risk to the Fund if conditions adversely affect that sector or industry.

 

Interest Rate Risk - Interest rate risk refers to the risk that bond prices generally fall as interest rates rise; conversely, bond prices generally rise as interest rates fall. The Fund may face a heightened level of interest rate risk due to certain changes in general economic conditions, inflation, and monetary policy, such as interest rate changes by the Federal Reserve. Securities with longer maturities or durations or lower coupons or that make little (or no) interest payments before maturity tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes.

 

High Yield Bond (Junk Bond) Risk - High yield, below investment grade and unrated high risk debt securities (which also may be known as “junk bonds”) may present additional risks because these securities may be less liquid, and therefore more difficult to value accurately and sell at an advantageous price or time, may present more credit risk than investment grade bonds and may be subject to greater risk of default. The values of junk bonds fluctuate more than those of high-quality bonds in response to company, political, regulatory or economic developments.

 

Liquidity Risk - The Fund may hold illiquid securities that it is unable to sell at the preferred time or price and could lose its entire investment in such securities. Investments with an active trading market or that the Sub-Adviser otherwise deems liquid could become illiquid before the Fund can exit its positions. The liquidity of the Fund’s assets may change over time. Because Rule 144A securities are subject to certain restrictions on secondary market trading, they may be less liquid than registered, publicly traded securities. Therefore, Rule 144A securities carry the risk that the liquidity of these securities may become impaired, making it more difficult for the Fund to sell these securities.

 

Investment and Market Risk - An investment in the Fund’s common shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. An investment in the Fund’s common shares represents an indirect investment in the securities owned by the Fund, which are generally traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter (“OTC”) markets. The value of these securities, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably due to changes in general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or other asset, or factors that affect a particular issuer or issuers, exchange, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. Social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as war, natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) will occur that have significant impacts on issuers, industries, governments and other systems, including the financial markets. As global systems, economies and financial markets are increasingly interconnected, events that once had only local impact are now more likely to have regional or even global effects. Events that occur in one country,

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region or financial market will, more frequently, adversely impact issuers in other countries, regions or markets. These impacts can be exacerbated by failures of governments and societies to adequately respond to an emerging event or threat. Investors will be negatively impacted if the value of their portfolio holdings decreases as a result of such events, if these events adversely impact the operations and effectiveness of the Adviser, Sub-Adviser or key service providers or if these events disrupt systems and processes necessary or beneficial to the management of accounts.

 

These events may negatively impact broad segments of businesses and populations and have a significant and rapid negative impact on the performance of the Fund’s investments, increase the Fund’s volatility and exacerbate pre-existing risks to the Fund. The Fund’s common shares at any point in time may be worth less than the original investment, even after taking into account any reinvestment of dividends and distributions.

 

Quantitative Strategy Risk - The Fund may use quantitative mathematical models that rely on patterns inferred from historical prices and other financial data in evaluating prospective investments. However, most quantitative models cannot fully match the complexity of the financial markets and therefore sudden unanticipated changes in underlying market conditions can significantly impact the performance of the Fund. Further, as market dynamics shift over time, a previously highly successful model may become outdated - perhaps without the Sub-Adviser recognizing that fact before substantial losses are incurred. Moreover, there are an increasing number of market participants who rely on quantitative mathematical models. These models may be similar to those used by the Fund, which may result in a substantial number of market participants taking the same action with respect to an investment and some of these market participants may be substantially larger than the Fund.

 

Government Securities Risk - The Fund may invest in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies and instrumentalities (such as securities issued by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac)). U.S. government securities are subject to investment and market risk, interest rate risk and credit risk. Securities, such as those issued or guaranteed by Ginnie Mae or the U.S. Treasury, that are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and principal when held to maturity and the market prices for such securities will fluctuate. Notwithstanding that these securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, circumstances could arise that would prevent the payment of interest or principal. This would result in losses to the Fund. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government-related organizations, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government and no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support. Therefore, U.S. government-related organizations may not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future.

 

Management Risk - There is no guarantee that the investment techniques and risk analysis used by the portfolio managers will produce the desired results. The Fund’s successful pursuit of its investment objectives depends upon the Sub-Adviser’s proprietary quantitative analysis model and the Sub-Adviser’s ability to manage the Fund in accordance with such model. The Sub-Adviser’s assessment of the relative value of securities, their attractiveness and potential appreciation of particular investments in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect.

 

Derivatives Risk - A derivative is an investment whose value depends on (or is derived from) the value of an underlying asset (including an underlying security), reference rate or index. Derivatives may be volatile and some derivatives have the potential for loss that is greater than the Fund’s initial investment. OTC derivatives, which are those not cleared and settled through a central exchange, may be more difficult to purchase, sell or value than more traditional investments, such as stocks or bonds, because there may be fewer purchasers or sellers of the derivative instrument or the derivative instrument may require participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. The Fund may also lose money on a derivative if the counterparty (issuer) fails to pay the amount due. If a counterparty were to default on its obligations, the Fund’s contractual remedies against such counterparty may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could affect the Fund’s rights as a creditor (e.g., the Fund may not receive the amount of payments that it is contractually entitled to receive). The Fund may also lose money on a derivative if the underlying asset on which the derivative is based, or the derivative itself, does not perform as the Adviser or Sub-Adviser anticipated.

 

Changes in the value of a derivative may not correlate perfectly with, and may be more sensitive to market events than, the underlying asset. Changes in regulation relating to a mutual fund’s use of derivatives and related instruments could potentially limit or impact the Fund’s ability to invest in derivatives, limit the Fund’s ability to employ certain strategies that use derivatives and/or adversely affect the value of derivatives and the Fund’s performance. Compared to other types of investments, derivatives may be less tax efficient. The use of certain derivatives may cause the Fund to realize higher amounts of ordinary income or short-term capital gains, distributions from which are taxable to individual shareholders at ordinary income tax rates rather than at the more favorable tax rates for long-term capital gain. In addition, changes in government regulation of derivative instruments could affect the character, timing and amount of the Fund’s taxable income or gains, and may limit or prevent the Fund from using certain types of derivative instruments as a part of its investment strategy, which could make the investment strategy more costly to implement or require the Fund to change its investment strategy. The Fund’s use of derivatives also may be limited by the requirements for taxation of the Fund as a regulated investment company.

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Special Risks of Swaps - Swap transactions are structured as OTC two-party contracts and are often less liquid than other types of investments, and the Fund may be unable to sell or terminate its swap positions at a desired time or price. Certain swaps, such as total return swaps where two parties agree to “swap” payments on defined underlying assets or interest rates, can have the potential for unlimited losses. Swaps are also subject to the risk that the swap counterparty will not fulfill its contractual obligations.

 

The swaps market is subject to extensive regulation under the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”) and certain SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) rules promulgated thereunder. It is possible that developments in the swaps market, including new and additional government regulation, could result in higher Fund costs and expenses and could adversely affect the Fund’s ability, among other things, to terminate existing swap agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.

 

Credit default swaps (“CDS”) are typically two-party financial contracts that transfer credit exposure between the two parties. Under a typical CDS, one party (the “seller” or “seller of protection”) receives pre-determined periodic payments from the other party (the “buyer” or “buyer of protection”). The seller agrees to make compensating specific payments to the buyer if a negative credit event occurs, such as the bankruptcy or default by the issuer of the underlying debt instrument. The use of CDS involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio security transactions, such as potentially heightened credit and counterparty risks. The Fund will not act as a seller of protection.

 

A swaption is an options contract on a swap agreement. These transactions give a party the right (but not the obligation) to enter into new swap agreements or to shorten, extend, cancel or otherwise modify an existing swap agreement at some designated future time on specified terms, in return for payment of the purchase price (the “premium”) of the option. The Fund may write (sell) and purchase put and call swaptions to the same extent it may make use of standard options on securities or other instruments. The writer of the contract receives the premium and bears the risk of unfavorable changes in the market value on the underlying swap agreement. Swaptions can be bundled and sold as a package. These are commonly called interest rate caps, floors and collars.

 

Special Risks of Options - If the Fund sells (writes) a put option, there is risk that the Fund may be required to buy the underlying investment at a disadvantageous price. The Fund intends to only sell put options on securities that it owns (referred to as “covered” put options). If the Fund sells (writes) a call option, there is risk that the Fund may be required to sell the underlying investment at a disadvantageous price. If the Fund purchases a put option or call option, there is risk that the price of the underlying investment will move in a direction that causes the option to expire worthless.

 

Special Risks of Futures - Futures contracts are exchange-traded contracts that call for the future delivery of an asset at a certain price and date, or cash settlement of the terms of the contract. Risks of futures contracts may be caused by an imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the instruments and the price of the underlying assets. The liquidity of the futures market generally depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent that participants decide to make or take delivery of the underlying investments, liquidity in this market could be reduced. Futures contracts can be purchased with relatively small amounts of initial margin compared to the cash value of the contracts. This economic leverage can increase the volatility of the Fund. Further, exchanges can limit the number of positions that can be held or controlled by the Fund or the Adviser, thus limiting the ability to implement the Fund’s strategies. Even a well-conceived futures transaction may be unsuccessful due to market events.

 

Special Risks of Inverse Floaters - Inverse variable or floating rate obligations, sometimes referred to as inverse floaters, are a type of OTC derivative debt instrument with a variable or floating coupon rate that moves in the opposite direction of an underlying reference, typically short-term interest rates. While inverse floaters tend to provide more income than similar term and credit quality fixed-rate bonds, they also exhibit greater volatility in price movement, which could result in significant losses for the Fund. An inverse floater may have the effect of investment leverage to the extent that its coupon rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index or reference rate of interest, which could result in increased losses for the Fund. Inverse floaters can increase the Fund’s risk exposure to underlying references and their attendant risks, such as credit risk, market risk, currency/exchange rate risk and interest rate risk, while also exposing the Fund to counterparty risk, hedging risk, leverage risk, liquidity risk, pricing risk and volatility risk.

 

Hedging Strategy Risk - The Fund’s hedging strategy is designed to reduce, but not eliminate, losses resulting from volatility and market declines. Even where the hedging strategy is used successfully, the Fund is likely to experience loss in value during periods of volatility and/or market declines. It is important to know that the hedging strategy is not intended to hedge all risk in the Fund and may not be successful in reducing volatility or offsetting market declines, and may result in losses. Also, the hedging strategy may prevent the Fund from achieving higher investment returns than may be available by investing in an unhedged portfolio or a comparable mutual fund without a similar hedging strategy and the Fund’s use of derivatives will increase the Fund’s expenses. It is possible that the hedging strategy could result in losses and/or expenses that are greater than if the Fund did not include the hedging strategy.

 

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Short Sales Risk - Short sales involve selling a security the Fund does not own in anticipation that the security’s price will decline. Short sales may cause the Fund to repurchase a security at a higher price, thereby causing the Fund to incur a loss. A short position in a security poses more risk than holding a long position in the same security. As there is no limit on how much the price of the security can increase, the Fund’s exposure is theoretically unlimited. By contrast, a loss on a long position arises from decreases in the value of the security and is limited by the fact that a security’s value cannot decrease below zero. In order to establish a short position in a security, the Fund must borrow the security from a broker. The Fund may not always be able to borrow a security the Fund seeks to sell short at a particular time or at an acceptable price. The Fund also may not always be able to close out the short position by replacing the borrowed securities at a particular time or at an acceptable price. The Fund will incur increased transaction costs when selling securities short. In addition, taking short positions in securities results in a form of leverage which may increase the volatility of the Fund.

 

Counterparty Risk - Certain derivative and OTC instruments in which the Fund may invest, such as OTC swaps and options, are subject to the risk that the other party to a contract will not fulfill its contractual obligations. The Sub-Adviser attempts to mitigate this risk by not entering into transactions with any counterparty that the Sub-Adviser believes does not have the financial resources to honor its obligations under the transaction and by monitoring the financial stability of counterparties.

 

Currency/Exchange Rate Risk - The dollar value of the Fund’s foreign investments will be affected by changes in the exchange rates between the dollar and the currencies in which those investments are traded. Investing in foreign currencies for purposes of gaining from projected changes in exchange rates further increases the Fund’s exposure to foreign investment losses. Currency markets generally are not as regulated as securities markets.

 

When-Issued Securities Risk - The price or yield obtained in a when-issued transaction may be less favorable than the price or yield available in the market when the securities delivery takes place. Also, a when-issued security transaction has potentially more counterparty risk than a regularly settling trade because of the potentially extended settlement period, which increases the risk that the other party to the when-issued transaction fails to consummate the trade, resulting in a loss to the Fund or missed opportunity to profit from the trade.

 

TBA Securities Risk - The Fund may buy or sell TBA securities, particularly in the case of agency MBS, for which there is an extremely active, liquid market. TBA are forward-settling trades where the underlying pools of mortgage loans are not known at the time of the original transaction but that meet specified terms and are announced just before settlement based on a “cheapest-to-deliver” algorithm. These transactions are essentially futures transactions, involve when-issued securities, and can be short sales. Therefore, they involve all the risks associated with those instruments and transactions, described herein.

 

Basis Risk - Basis risk refers to, among other things, the lack of the desired or expected correlation between a hedging instrument or strategy and the underlying assets being hedged. This results in reduced effectiveness of the hedging instrument or strategy, which adversely effects the Fund in terms of increased hedging costs or reduced risk mitigation.

 

Value Style Investing Risk - Value investing strategies involve obtaining exposure to individual investments or market sectors that are out of favor and/or undervalued in comparison to their peers or their prospects for growth. Because different types of investments go out of favor with investors depending on market and economic conditions, the Fund’s return may be adversely affected during market downturns and when value investment strategies are out of favor.

 

Portfolio Turnover Risk - The frequency of the Fund’s transactions will vary from year to year. Increased portfolio turnover may result in higher brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs and may result in higher taxes. Higher costs associated with increased portfolio turnover may offset gains in the Fund’s performance.

 

Shares of the Fund are not bank deposits and are not guaranteed or insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

 

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Performance: The Fund has adopted the performance of the James Alpha Structured Credit Value Portfolio, a series of The Saratoga Advantage Trust (the “Predecessor Portfolio”) as the result of a reorganization of the Predecessor Portfolio into the Fund, which was consummated after the close of business on March 19, 2021 (the “Reorganization”). Prior to the Reorganization, the Fund had not yet commenced operations. The bar chart and table that follow provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the performance of the Class I shares from year-to-year and by showing how the average annual returns for 1 year, 5 years, and since inception of the Predecessor Portfolio compare with those of the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index. The past performance of the Fund and Predecessor Portfolio (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.

 

The returns shown for periods ending on or prior to March 19, 2021 are those of the Class A, Class C, Class I, and Class S shares of the Predecessor Portfolio. Class A, Class C, Class I, and Class S shares of the Predecessor Portfolio were reorganized into Class A, Class C, Class I, and Class R6 shares of the Fund, respectively, after the close of business on March 19, 2021. Class A, Class C, Class I, and Class R6 shares’ returns of the Fund will be different from the returns of the Predecessor Portfolio as they have different expenses.

 

You may obtain the Fund’s updated performance information by calling toll free (833) 999-2636 or by visiting www.EasterlyFunds.com/funds/.

 

CLASS I ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS – CALENDAR YEARS

 

Best Quarter: Q2 2020 11.78%
Worst Quarter: Q1 2020 -4.40%

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS

(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)

 

  1 Year 5 Years Life of Fund(1)
Class I Shares      
Return Before Taxes 5.91% 4.95% 4.93%
Return After Taxes on Distributions 3.64% 2.55% 2.62%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares 3.47% 2.80% 2.83%
Class A Shares      
Return Before Taxes 3.48% 3.82% 3.88%
Class C Shares      
Return Before Taxes 3.85% 3.95% 4.02%
Class R6 Shares      
Return Before Taxes 6.33% 5.35% 5.33%
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
5.53% 1.10% 1.21%
(1)The Predecessor Portfolio commenced operations on August 21, 2018.

 

After-tax returns are 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 their Fund shares through tax-advantaged arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns are shown for Class I shares only and after-tax returns for other classes will vary.

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Management

 

Investment Adviser: Easterly Investment Partners LLC

 

Sub-Adviser: Orange Investment Advisors, LLC

 

Portfolio Managers:

 

The following individuals serve as the Fund’s day-to-day portfolio managers:

 

Jay Menozzi Portfolio Manager of the Fund since its inception in 2021 (and of the Predecessor Portfolio since its inception in 2018).
Boris Peresechensky Portfolio Manager of the Fund since its inception in 2021 (and of the Predecessor Portfolio since its inception in 2018).

 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares: In general, you may purchase, exchange, or redeem shares of the Fund on any day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business. Redemption requests may be made in writing, by telephone, or through a financial intermediary and will be paid by check or wire transfer.

 

Generally, the minimum initial purchase for Class A and Class C shares is $2,500 and the minimum initial purchase for Class I shares is $1 million. Class R6 shares are only available to certain qualified investors and the minimum initial investment will vary depending on the type of qualified investor, as described under Choosing a Share Class in the Fund’s prospectus. The minimum subsequent investment in the Trust is $100, except for employee benefit plans, mutual fund platform programs, supermarket programs, associations and individual retirement accounts, which have no minimum subsequent investment requirements. There is no minimum subsequent investment for the Fund.

 

Tax Information: Distributions you receive from the Fund, whether you reinvest your distributions in additional Fund shares or receive them in cash, are taxable to you as ordinary income, capital gains, or some combination of both, unless you are investing through a tax-free plan, in which case your distributions may be taxed when withdrawn from the tax advantaged account. The Fund’s investment techniques may cause more of the Fund’s income dividends and capital gains distributions to be taxable at ordinary income tax rates than it would if it did not engage in such techniques.

 

Financial Intermediary Compensation: If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and/or its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

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