2022-07-11USEquityFundsFYE531-Retail
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Prospectus
October
1, 2022 |
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Fund |
Class
R6 |
Allspring
C&B Large Cap Value Fund |
CBEJX |
Allspring
Emerging Growth Fund |
WEGRX |
Allspring
Small Company Growth Fund |
WSCRX |
Allspring
Small Company Value Fund |
SCVJX |
The U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has not approved or disapproved these
securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Anyone
who tells you
otherwise is committing a crime.
C&B
Large Cap Value Fund Summary
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks maximum long-term total return (current income and capital appreciation),
consistent with minimizing risk to
principal.
Fees
and Expenses
These
tables are intended to help you understand the various costs and expenses you
will pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of
the Fund.
|
|
Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
|
|
Maximum
sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
Maximum
deferred sales charge (load) (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
|
|
|
Management
Fees2
|
% |
Distribution
(12b-1) Fees |
0.00% |
Other
Expenses |
0.06% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses3
|
% |
Fee
Waivers |
(0.11)% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers4
|
% |
1. |
Expenses
have been adjusted as necessary from amounts incurred during the Fund’s
most recent fiscal year to reflect current fees and
expenses.
|
2. |
Includes
the fees charged by the Manager for providing advisory services to the
master portfolio in which the Fund invests substantially
all of its assets. |
3. |
Includes
other expenses allocated from the master portfolio in which the Fund
invests. |
4. |
The
Manager has contractually committed through September
30, 2023, to
waive fees and/or reimburse expenses to the extent necessary
to cap Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers at
0.65%
for Class
R6. Brokerage commissions, stamp duty
fees, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses (if any) from funds
in which the underlying affiliated master portfolios and
funds invest and from money market funds, and extraordinary expenses are
excluded from the expense cap. All other acquired fund
fees and expenses from the affiliated master portfolios and funds are
included in the expense cap. Prior to or after the commitment
expiration date, the cap may be increased or the commitment to maintain
the cap may be terminated only with the approval
of the Board of Trustees. |
Example
of Expenses
The example
below is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with
the costs of investing in other
funds. The example assumes a $10,000 initial investment, 5% annual total return,
and that fees and expenses remain the
same as in the tables above. To the extent that the Manager is waiving fees or
reimbursing expenses, the example
assumes that such waiver or reimbursement will only be in place through the date
noted above. Although your actual
costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would
be:
|
|
After:
|
|
1
Year |
$66 |
3
Years |
$232 |
5
Years |
$412 |
10
Years |
$932 |
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 Fund’s
portfolio turnover rate was 32% of the
average value of its portfolio.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
large-capitalization
companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the C&B Large
Cap Value Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of large-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 1000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
1000® Index was approximately $335 million
to $2.53
trillion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently. We manage a relatively focused portfolio of 30 to 50 companies that
enables us to provide adequate
diversification while allowing the composition and performance of the portfolio
to behave differently than the
market.
We select
securities for the portfolio based on an analysis of a company’s financial
characteristics and an assessment of the
quality of a company’s management. In selecting a company, we consider criteria
such as return on equity, balance
sheet strength, industry leadership position and cash flow projections. We
further narrow the universe of acceptable
investments by undertaking intensive research including interviews with a
company’s top management, customers
and suppliers. We believe our assessment of business quality and emphasis on
valuation will protect the portfolio’s
assets in down markets, while our insistence on strength in leadership,
financial condition and cash flow position
will produce competitive results in all but the most speculative markets. We
regularly review the investments of the
portfolio and may sell a portfolio holding when it has achieved its valuation
target, there is deterioration in the underlying
fundamentals of the business, or we have identified a more attractive investment
opportunity.
Principal
Investment Risks
Because the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets in a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective
and substantially similar investment strategies, the following principal risks
include those risks that result from the
Fund’s investment in the master portfolio. In this section, references to the
Fund should be read to include the Fund and
the master portfolio, as appropriate.
The Fund’s
performance will not correlate perfectly with that of the master portfolio due
to the impact of the Fund’s fees and
expenses and to the timing and magnitude of cash flows into and out of the Fund,
which will create cash balances
that cause the Fund’s performance to deviate from the performance of the master
portfolio.
An
investment in the Fund may lose money, is
not a deposit of a bank or its affiliates, is not insured or guaranteed by
the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental
agency, and is
primarily subject to the risks briefly
summarized below.
Market
Risk. The values
of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by the Fund may decline due
to general market
conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of
such securities. Securities markets are
volatile and may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer,
regulatory, political, or economic developments.
Different sectors of the market and different security types may react
differently to such developments.
Equity
Securities Risk. The values
of equity securities may experience periods of substantial price volatility and
may decline
significantly over short time periods. In general, the values of equity
securities are more volatile than those of debt
securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value and price in response to
factors specific to the issuer of the security, such as
management performance, financial condition, and market demand for the issuer’s
products or services, as well as
factors unrelated to the fundamental condition of the issuer, including general
market, economic and political conditions.
Different parts of a market, industry and sector may react differently to
adverse issuer, market, regulatory, political,
and economic developments.
Focused
Portfolio Risk. Changes in
the value of a small number of issuers are likely to have a larger impact on a
Fund’s net asset
value than if the Fund held a greater number of
issuers.
Growth/Value
Investing Risk. Securities
that exhibit growth or value characteristics tend to perform differently and
shift into
and out of favor with investors depending on changes in market and economic
sentiment and conditions.
Management
Risk. Investment
decisions, techniques, analyses or models implemented by a Fund’s
manager or sub-adviser
in seeking to achieve the Fund’s investment objective may not produce expected
returns, may cause the Fund’s
shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with
similar investment objectives.
Performance
The
following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the
Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s
performance from year to year. The Fund’s
average annual total returns are compared to the performance of one or more
indices. Past
performance before and after taxes is no guarantee of future
results. Current
month-end performance
is available on the Fund’s website at allspringglobal.com.
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Calendar
Year Total Returns for Class R6 as of 12/31/ each year1
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|
Highest
Quarter: December
31, 2020 |
|
Lowest
Quarter: March
31,
2020 |
|
Year-to-date
total return
as of June
30,
2022 is
-10.77% |
|
|
|
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|
|
|
Inception
Date
of Share
Class |
1
Year |
5
Year |
10
Year |
Class
R6 |
10/31/2016
|
22.60% |
12.95% |
13.28% |
Russell
1000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees,
expenses, or taxes) |
|
25.16% |
11.16% |
12.97% |
1. |
Historical
performance shown for the Class R6 shares prior to their inception
reflects the performance of the Institutional Class shares,
and includes the higher expenses applicable to the Institutional Class
shares. If these expenses had not been included, returns
for the Class R6 shares would be
higher. |
Fund
Management
|
|
|
Manager |
Sub-Adviser1
|
Portfolio
Manager, Title/Managed Since1
|
Allspring
Funds Management, LLC
|
Cooke
& Bieler, L.P. |
Andrew
B. Armstrong, CFA,
Portfolio Manager
/ 2015 Wesley
Lim, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2019 Steve
Lyons, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2009 Michael
M. Meyer, CFA,
Portfolio Manager
/ 1993 Edward
W. O’Connor, CFA,
Portfolio Manager
/ 2002 R.
James O’Neil, CFA,
Portfolio Manager /
1990 Mehul
Trivedi, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 1998 William
Weber, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2011 |
1. |
The
sub-adviser and portfolio managers listed above are the sub-adviser and
portfolio managers of the master portfolio in which the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets. The Fund itself does not
have a sub-adviser or portfolio managers. |
Purchase
and Sale of Fund Shares
Class R6
shares generally are available only to certain retirement plans, including:
401(k) plans, 457 plans, profit sharing and
money purchase pension plans, defined benefit plans, target benefit plans, and
non-qualified deferred compensation
plans. Class R6 shares also are generally available only to retirement plans
where plan level or omnibus accounts
are held on the books of the Fund. Class R6 shares also are available to funds
of funds including those managed by
Allspring
Funds Management. Class R6 shares generally are not available to retail accounts
but may be offered
through intermediaries for the accounts of their customers to certain
institutional and fee-based investors, and in each
case, only if a dealer agreement is in place with Allspring
Funds Distributor, LLC to offer Class R6 shares.
|
Institutions
Purchasing Fund Shares |
Minimum
Initial Investment Class
R6: Eligible investors are not subject to a minimum initial investment
(intermediaries may require different minimum
investment amounts)
Minimum
Additional Investment Class
R6: None (intermediaries may require different minimum additional
investment amounts) |
Tax
Information
By
investing in a Fund through a tax-deferred retirement account, you will not be
subject to tax on dividends and capital
gains distributions from the Fund or the sale of Fund shares if those amounts
remain in the tax-deferred account.
Distributions
taken from retirement plan accounts generally are taxable as ordinary income.
For special rules concerning
tax-deferred retirement accounts, including applications, restrictions, tax
advantages, and potential sales charge
waivers, contact your investment professional. To determine if a retirement plan
may be appropriate for you and to
obtain further information, consult your tax adviser.
Emerging
Growth Fund Summary
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees
and Expenses
These
tables are intended to help you understand the various costs and expenses you
will pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of
the Fund.
|
|
Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
|
|
Maximum
sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
Maximum
deferred sales charge (load) (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
|
|
|
Management
Fees2
|
% |
Distribution
(12b-1) Fees |
0.00% |
Other
Expenses |
0.09% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses3
|
% |
Fee
Waivers |
(0.08)% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers4
|
% |
1. |
Expenses
have been adjusted as necessary from amounts incurred during the Fund’s
most recent fiscal year to reflect current fees and
expenses.
|
2. |
Includes
the fees charged by the Manager for providing advisory services to the
master portfolio in which the Fund invests substantially
all of its assets. |
3. |
Includes
other expenses allocated from the master portfolio in which the Fund
invests. |
4. |
The
Manager has contractually committed through September
30, 2023, to
waive fees and/or reimburse expenses to the extent necessary
to cap Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers at
0.85%
for Class
R6. Brokerage commissions, stamp duty
fees, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses (if any) from funds
in which the underlying affiliated master portfolios and
funds invest and from money market funds, and extraordinary expenses are
excluded from the expense cap. All other acquired fund
fees and expenses from the affiliated master portfolios and funds are
included in the expense cap. Prior to or after the commitment
expiration date, the cap may be increased or the commitment to maintain
the cap may be terminated only with the approval
of the Board of Trustees. |
Example
of Expenses
The example
below is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with
the costs of investing in other
funds. The example assumes a $10,000 initial investment, 5% annual total return,
and that fees and expenses remain the
same as in the tables above. To the extent that the Manager is waiving fees or
reimbursing expenses, the example
assumes that such waiver or reimbursement will only be in place through the date
noted above. Although your actual
costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would
be:
|
|
After:
|
|
1
Year |
$87 |
3
Years |
$288 |
5
Years |
$507 |
10
Years |
$1,136 |
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 Fund’s
portfolio turnover rate was 51% of the
average value of its portfolio.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s total assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization companies;
and |
■ |
up to
25% of the Fund’s total assets in equity securities of foreign issuers
through American Depository Receipts (ADRs)
and similar
investments. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Emerging
Growth Portfolio, a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in additional
master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a portfolio of
securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently. Small-capitalization companies may include both domestic and foreign
small-capitalization companies.
We seek
small-capitalization companies that are in the emerging phase of their life
cycle. We believe earnings and revenue
growth relative to consensus expectations are critical factors in determining
stock price movements. Thus, our investment
process focuses on identifying companies with robust and sustainable growth in
revenue and earnings that are
underappreciated by the market. To find that growth, we use bottom-up research,
emphasizing companies whose management
teams have a history of successfully executing their strategy and whose business
model have sufficient profit
potential. We forecast revenue and earnings growth along with other
key financial metrics to assess investment potential.
We then combine that company-specific analysis with our assessment of what the
market is discounting for growth to
form a buy/sell decision about a particular stock. We seek to capitalize on
investment opportunities where a sizable gap
exists between market consensus and our expectation for a company’s growth
prospects. We may invest in any sector
and, at times, we may emphasize one or more particular sectors. In addition, our
investment process is built on a
foundation of continuous risk management and a strict sell discipline. We sell a
company’s securities when we see signs that
can cause a company’s growth prospects to deteriorate, as this often leads to
lower valuation potential. We may also
sell or trim a position when we need to raise money to fund the purchase of a
better investment opportunity or
when valuation has extended beyond our
expectations.
Principal
Investment Risks
Because the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets in a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective
and substantially similar investment strategies, the following principal risks
include those risks that result from the
Fund’s investment in the master portfolio. In this section, references to the
Fund should be read to include the Fund and
the master portfolio, as appropriate.
The Fund’s
performance will not correlate perfectly with that of the master portfolio due
to the impact of the Fund’s fees and
expenses and to the timing and magnitude of cash flows into and out of the Fund,
which will create cash balances
that cause the Fund’s performance to deviate from the performance of the master
portfolio.
An
investment in the Fund may lose money, is
not a deposit of a bank or its affiliates, is not insured or guaranteed by
the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental
agency, and is
primarily subject to the risks briefly
summarized below.
Market
Risk. The values
of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by the Fund may decline due
to general market
conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of
such securities. Securities markets are
volatile and may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer,
regulatory, political, or economic developments.
Different sectors of the market and different security types may react
differently to such developments.
Equity
Securities Risk. The values
of equity securities may experience periods of substantial price volatility and
may decline
significantly over short time periods. In general, the values of equity
securities are more volatile than those of debt
securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value and price in response to
factors specific to the issuer of the security, such as
management performance, financial condition, and market demand for the issuer’s
products or services, as well as
factors unrelated to the fundamental condition of the issuer, including general
market, economic and political conditions.
Different parts of a market, industry and sector may react differently to
adverse issuer, market, regulatory, political,
and economic developments.
Smaller
Company Securities Risk. Securities
of companies with smaller market capitalizations tend to be more volatile
and less
liquid than those of larger
companies.
Foreign
Investment Risk. Foreign
investments may be subject to lower liquidity, greater price volatility and
risks related to adverse
political, regulatory, market or economic developments. Foreign investments may
involve exposure to changes in
foreign currency exchange rates and may be subject to higher withholding and
other taxes.
Growth/Value
Investing Risk. Securities
that exhibit growth or value characteristics tend to perform differently and
shift into
and out of favor with investors depending on changes in market and economic
sentiment and conditions.
Management
Risk. Investment
decisions, techniques, analyses or models implemented by a Fund’s
manager or sub-adviser
in seeking to achieve the Fund’s investment objective may not produce expected
returns, may cause the Fund’s
shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with
similar investment objectives.
Performance
The
following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the
Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s
performance from year to year. The Fund’s
average annual total returns are compared to the performance of one or more
indices. Past
performance before and after taxes is no guarantee of future
results. Current
month-end performance
is available on the Fund’s website at allspringglobal.com.
|
|
|
Calendar
Year Total Returns for Class R6 as of 12/31 each year1
|
|
Highest
Quarter: June
30,
2020 |
|
Lowest
Quarter: March
31,
2020 |
|
Year-to-date
total return
as of June
30,
2022 is
-36.19% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inception
Date
of Share
Class |
1
Year |
5
Year |
10
Year |
Class
R6 |
7/31/2018
|
7.87% |
22.50% |
16.52% |
Russell
2000® Growth Index (reflects no deduction for
fees, expenses, or taxes) |
|
2.83% |
14.53% |
14.14% |
1. |
Historical
performance shown for the Class R6 shares prior to their inception
reflects the performance of the Institutional Class shares,
and includes the higher expenses applicable to the Institutional Class
shares. If these expenses had not been included, returns
for the Class R6 shares would be
higher. |
Fund
Management
|
|
|
Manager
|
Sub-Adviser1
|
Portfolio
Manager, Title / Managed Since1
|
Allspring
Funds Management,
LLC |
Allspring
Global Investments,
LLC |
Robert
Gruendyke, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2020 David
Nazaret, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2020 Thomas
C. Ognar, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2007 |
1. |
The
sub-adviser and portfolio managers listed above are the sub-adviser and
portfolio managers of the master portfolio in which the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets. The Fund itself does not
have a sub-adviser or portfolio managers. |
Purchase
and Sale of Fund Shares
Class R6
shares generally are available only to certain retirement plans, including:
401(k) plans, 457 plans, profit sharing and
money purchase pension plans, defined benefit plans, target benefit plans, and
non-qualified deferred compensation
plans. Class R6 shares also are generally available only to retirement plans
where plan level or omnibus accounts
are held on the books of the Fund. Class R6 shares also are available to funds
of funds including those managed by
Allspring
Funds Management. Class R6 shares generally are not available to retail accounts
but may be offered
through intermediaries for the accounts of their customers to certain
institutional and fee-based investors, and in each
case, only if a dealer agreement is in place with Allspring
Funds Distributor, LLC to offer Class R6 shares.
|
Institutions
Purchasing Fund Shares |
Minimum
Initial Investment Class
R6: Eligible investors are not subject to a minimum initial investment
(intermediaries may require different minimum
investment amounts)
Minimum
Additional Investment Class
R6: None (intermediaries may require different minimum additional
investment amounts) |
Tax
Information
By
investing in a Fund through a tax-deferred retirement account, you will not be
subject to tax on dividends and capital
gains distributions from the Fund or the sale of Fund shares if those amounts
remain in the tax-deferred account.
Distributions
taken from retirement plan accounts generally are taxable as ordinary income.
For special rules concerning
tax-deferred retirement accounts, including applications, restrictions, tax
advantages, and potential sales charge
waivers, contact your investment professional. To determine if a retirement plan
may be appropriate for you and to
obtain further information, consult your tax adviser.
Small
Company Growth Fund Summary
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees
and Expenses
These
tables are intended to help you understand the various costs and expenses you
will pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of
the Fund.
|
|
Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
|
|
Maximum
sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
Maximum
deferred sales charge (load) (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
|
|
|
Management
Fees2
|
% |
Distribution
(12b-1) Fees |
0.00% |
Other
Expenses |
0.08% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses3
|
% |
Fee
Waivers |
(0.05)% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers4
|
% |
1. |
Expenses
have been adjusted as necessary from amounts incurred during the Fund’s
most recent fiscal year to reflect current fees and
expenses.
|
2. |
Includes
the fees charged by the Manager for providing advisory services to the
master portfolio in which the Fund invests substantially
all of its assets. |
3. |
Includes
other expenses allocated from the master portfolio in which the Fund
invests. |
4. |
The
Manager has contractually committed through September
30, 2023, to
waive fees and/or reimburse expenses to the extent necessary
to cap Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers at
0.86%
for Class
R6. Brokerage commissions, stamp duty
fees, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses (if any) from funds
in which the underlying affiliated master portfolios and
funds invest and from money market funds, and extraordinary expenses are
excluded from the expense cap. All other acquired fund
fees and expenses from the affiliated master portfolios and funds are
included in the expense cap. Prior to or after the commitment
expiration date, the cap may be increased or the commitment to maintain
the cap may be terminated only with the approval
of the Board of Trustees. |
Example
of Expenses
The example
below is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with
the costs of investing in other
funds. The example assumes a $10,000 initial investment, 5% annual total return,
and that fees and expenses remain the
same as in the tables above. To the extent that the Manager is waiving fees or
reimbursing expenses, the example
assumes that such waiver or reimbursement will only be in place through the date
noted above. Although your actual
costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would
be:
|
|
After:
|
|
1
Year |
$88 |
3
Years |
$285 |
5
Years |
$499 |
10
Years |
$1,115 |
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 Fund’s
portfolio turnover rate was 61% of the
average value of its portfolio.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization
companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Small Company
Growth Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently.
We may also
invest in equity securities of foreign issuers through American Depository
Receipts (ADRs) and similar investments.
In
selecting securities for the Fund, we conduct rigorous research to identify
companies where the prospects for rapid earnings
growth (Discovery phase) or significant change (Rediscovery phase) have yet to
be well understood, and are therefore
not reflected in the current stock price. This research includes meeting with
the management of several hundred
companies each year and conducting independent external research. Companies that
fit into the Discovery phase are
those with rapid long-term (3-5 year) earnings growth prospects. Companies that
fit into the Rediscovery phase are
those that have the prospect for sharply accelerating near-term earnings (next
12-18 months), or companies selling at
a meaningful discount to their underlying asset value. We may decrease certain
stock holdings when their positions
rise relative to the overall portfolio. We may sell a stock in its entirety when
it reaches our sell target price, which is
set at the time of purchase. We may also sell stocks that experience adverse
fundamental news, have significant
short-term price declines, or in order to provide funds for new stock
purchases.
Principal
Investment Risks
Because the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets in a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective
and substantially similar investment strategies, the following principal risks
include those risks that result from the
Fund’s investment in the master portfolio. In this section, references to the
Fund should be read to include the Fund and
the master portfolio, as appropriate.
The Fund’s
performance will not correlate perfectly with that of the master portfolio due
to the impact of the Fund’s fees and
expenses and to the timing and magnitude of cash flows into and out of the Fund,
which will create cash balances
that cause the Fund’s performance to deviate from the performance of the master
portfolio.
An
investment in the Fund may lose money, is
not a deposit of a bank or its affiliates, is not insured or guaranteed by
the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental
agency, and is
primarily subject to the risks briefly
summarized below.
Market
Risk. The values
of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by the Fund may decline due
to general market
conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of
such securities. Securities markets are
volatile and may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer,
regulatory, political, or economic developments.
Different sectors of the market and different security types may react
differently to such developments.
Equity
Securities Risk. The values
of equity securities may experience periods of substantial price volatility and
may decline
significantly over short time periods. In general, the values of equity
securities are more volatile than those of debt
securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value and price in response to
factors specific to the issuer of the security, such as
management performance, financial condition, and market demand for the issuer’s
products or services, as well as
factors unrelated to the fundamental condition of the issuer, including general
market, economic and political conditions.
Different parts of a market, industry and sector may react differently to
adverse issuer, market, regulatory, political,
and economic developments.
Smaller
Company Securities Risk. Securities
of companies with smaller market capitalizations tend to be more volatile
and less
liquid than those of larger companies.
Foreign
Investment Risk. Foreign
investments may be subject to lower liquidity, greater price volatility and
risks related to adverse
political, regulatory, market or economic developments. Foreign investments may
involve exposure to changes in
foreign currency exchange rates and may be subject to higher withholding and
other taxes.
Growth/Value
Investing Risk. Securities
that exhibit growth or value characteristics tend to perform differently and
shift into
and out of favor with investors depending on changes in market and economic
sentiment and conditions.
Management
Risk. Investment
decisions, techniques, analyses or models implemented by a Fund’s
manager or sub-adviser
in seeking to achieve the Fund’s investment objective may not produce expected
returns, may cause the Fund’s
shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with
similar investment objectives.
Performance
The
following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the
Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s
performance from year to year. The Fund’s
average annual total returns are compared to the performance of one or more
indices. Past
performance before and after taxes is no guarantee of future
results. Current
month-end performance
is available on the Fund’s website at allspringglobal.com.
|
|
|
Calendar
Year Total Returns for Class R6 as of 12/31 each year1
|
|
Highest
Quarter: June
30,
2020 |
|
Lowest
Quarter: March
31,
2020 |
|
Year-to-date
total return
as of June
30,
2022 is
-24.94% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inception
Date
of Share
Class |
1
Year |
5
Year |
10
Year |
Class
R6 |
10/31/2014
|
15.68% |
17.03% |
15.43% |
Russell
2000® Growth Index (reflects no deduction for
fees, expenses, or taxes) |
|
2.83% |
14.53% |
14.14% |
1. |
Historical
performance shown for the Class R6 shares prior to their inception
reflects the performance of the Institutional Class shares,
and includes the higher expenses applicable to the Institutional Class
shares. If these expenses had not been included, returns
for the Class R6 shares would be
higher. |
Fund
Management
|
|
|
Manager
|
Sub-Adviser1
|
Portfolio
Manager, Title / Managed Since1
|
Allspring
Funds Management, LLC |
Peregrine
Capital Management, LLC |
William
A. Grierson, CFA,
Portfolio Manager
/ 2005 Daniel
J. Hagen, CFA,
Portfolio Manager /
2003 Paul
E. von Kuster, CFA,
Portfolio Manager
/ 1984 Ryan
H. Smith, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2021 Samuel
D. Smith, CFA,
Portfolio Manager /
2021 |
1. |
The
sub-adviser and portfolio managers listed above are the sub-adviser and
portfolio managers of the master portfolio in which the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets. The Fund itself does not
have a sub-adviser or portfolio managers. |
Purchase
and Sale of Fund Shares
Class R6
shares generally are available only to certain retirement plans, including:
401(k) plans, 457 plans, profit sharing and
money purchase pension plans, defined benefit plans, target benefit plans, and
non-qualified deferred compensation
plans. Class R6 shares also are generally available only to retirement plans
where plan level or omnibus accounts
are held on the books of the Fund. Class R6 shares also are available to funds
of funds including those managed by
Allspring
Funds Management. Class R6 shares generally are not available to retail accounts
but may be offered
through intermediaries for the accounts of their customers to certain
institutional and fee-based investors, and in each
case, only if a dealer agreement is in place with Allspring
Funds Distributor, LLC to offer Class R6 shares.
|
Institutions
Purchasing Fund Shares |
Minimum
Initial Investment Class
R6: Eligible investors are not subject to a minimum initial investment
(intermediaries may require different minimum
investment amounts)
Minimum
Additional Investment Class
R6: None (intermediaries may require different minimum additional
investment amounts) |
Tax
Information
By
investing in a Fund through a tax-deferred retirement account, you will not be
subject to tax on dividends and capital
gains distributions from the Fund or the sale of Fund shares if those amounts
remain in the tax-deferred account.
Distributions
taken from retirement plan accounts generally are taxable as ordinary income.
For special rules concerning
tax-deferred retirement accounts, including applications, restrictions, tax
advantages, and potential sales charge
waivers, contact your investment professional. To determine if a retirement plan
may be appropriate for you and to
obtain further information, consult your tax adviser.
Small
Company Value Fund Summary
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees
and Expenses
These
tables are intended to help you understand the various costs and expenses you
will pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of
the Fund.
|
|
Shareholder
Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
|
|
Maximum
sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
Maximum
deferred sales charge (load) (as a percentage of offering
price) |
None |
|
|
|
Management
Fees2
|
% |
Distribution
(12b-1) Fees |
0.00% |
Other
Expenses |
0.05% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses3
|
% |
Fee
Waivers |
(0.14)% |
Total
Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers4
|
% |
1. |
Expenses
have been adjusted as necessary from amounts incurred during the Fund’s
most recent fiscal year to reflect current fees and
expenses.
|
2. |
Includes
the fees charged by the Manager for providing advisory services to the
master portfolio in which the Fund invests substantially
all of its assets. |
3. |
Includes
other expenses allocated from the master portfolio in which the Fund
invests. |
4. |
The
Manager has contractually committed through September
30, 2023, to
waive fees and/or reimburse expenses to the extent necessary
to cap Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers at
0.75%
for Class
R6. Brokerage commissions, stamp duty
fees, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses (if any) from funds
in which the underlying affiliated master portfolios and
funds invest and from money market funds, and extraordinary expenses are
excluded from the expense cap. All other acquired fund
fees and expenses from the affiliated master portfolios and funds are
included in the expense cap. Prior to or after the commitment
expiration date, the cap may be increased or the commitment to maintain
the cap may be terminated only with the approval
of the Board of Trustees. |
Example
of Expenses
The example
below is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with
the costs of investing in other
funds. The example assumes a $10,000 initial investment, 5% annual total return,
and that fees and expenses remain the
same as in the tables above. To the extent that the Manager is waiving fees or
reimbursing expenses, the example
assumes that such waiver or reimbursement will only be in place through the date
noted above. Although your actual
costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would
be:
|
|
After:
|
|
1
Year |
$77 |
3
Years |
$270 |
5
Years |
$479 |
10
Years |
$1,083 |
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 Fund’s
portfolio turnover rate was 70% of the
average value of its portfolio.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization
companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Small Company
Value Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently.
Our team’s
strategy is designed to provide exposure to small public companies with current
stock prices that we believe do
not accurately reflect their intrinsic values. We use bottom-up fundamental
analysis (i.e., focusing on company-specific
factors rather than broader market factors) to execute our investment philosophy
which focuses on identifying
three core alpha (i.e., excess returns relative to an index) drivers: value,
quality partner, and contrarian. First and
foremost, we believe a prospective company should possess attractive value
characteristics such as being priced at a
discount relative to peers and the company’s own historic valuation metrics. We
also seek companies that are shareholder-friendly
quality partner firms demonstrating favorable cash flow generating capabilities
and that have the management,
business model, products and resources to drive organic growth.
Lastly, the investment should exhibit what we
believe are contrarian characteristics and be in a unique position for value
creation, yet, overlooked by the investment
community. We may sell a stock when it becomes fairly
valued or when signs of fundamental deterioration surface.
Principal
Investment Risks
Because the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets in a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective
and substantially similar investment strategies, the following principal risks
include those risks that result from the
Fund’s investment in the master portfolio. In this section, references to the
Fund should be read to include the Fund and
the master portfolio, as appropriate.
The Fund’s
performance will not correlate perfectly with that of the master portfolio due
to the impact of the Fund’s fees and
expenses and to the timing and magnitude of cash flows into and out of the Fund,
which will create cash balances
that cause the Fund’s performance to deviate from the performance of the master
portfolio.
An
investment in the Fund may lose money, is
not a deposit of a bank or its affiliates, is not insured or guaranteed by
the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental
agency, and is
primarily subject to the risks briefly
summarized below.
Market
Risk. The values
of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by the Fund may decline due
to general market
conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of
such securities. Securities markets are
volatile and may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer,
regulatory, political, or economic developments.
Different sectors of the market and different security types may react
differently to such developments.
Equity
Securities Risk. The values
of equity securities may experience periods of substantial price volatility and
may decline
significantly over short time periods. In general, the values of equity
securities are more volatile than those of debt
securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value and price in response to
factors specific to the issuer of the security, such as
management performance, financial condition, and market demand for the issuer’s
products or services, as well as
factors unrelated to the fundamental condition of the issuer, including general
market, economic and political conditions.
Different parts of a market, industry and sector may react differently to
adverse issuer, market, regulatory, political,
and economic developments.
Smaller
Company Securities Risk. Securities
of companies with smaller market capitalizations tend to be more volatile
and less
liquid than those of larger companies.
Growth/Value
Investing Risk. Securities
that exhibit growth or value characteristics tend to perform differently and
shift into
and out of favor with investors depending on changes in market and economic
sentiment and conditions.
Management
Risk. Investment
decisions, techniques, analyses or models implemented by a Fund’s
manager or sub-adviser
in seeking to achieve the Fund’s investment objective may not produce expected
returns, may cause the Fund’s
shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with
similar investment objectives.
Performance
The
following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the
Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s
performance from year to year. The Fund’s
average annual total returns are compared to the performance of one or more
indices. Past
performance before and after taxes is no guarantee of future
results. Current
month-end performance
is available on the Fund’s website at allspringglobal.com.
|
|
|
Calendar
Year Total Returns for Class R6 as of 12/31 each year1
|
|
Highest
Quarter: December
31, 2020 |
|
Lowest
Quarter: March
31,
2020 |
|
Year-to-date
total return
as of June
30,
2022 is
-15.37% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Inception
Date
of Share
Class |
1
Year |
5
Year |
10
Year |
Class
R6 |
10/31/2016
|
37.34% |
10.76% |
12.75% |
Russell
2000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees,
expenses, or taxes) |
|
28.27% |
9.07% |
12.03% |
1. |
Historical
performance shown for the Class R6 shares prior to their inception
reflects the performance of the Institutional Class shares
and includes the higher expenses applicable to the Institutional Class
shares. If these expenses had not been included, returns
for the Class R6 shares would be
higher. |
Fund
Management
|
|
|
Manager
|
Sub-Adviser1
|
Portfolio
Manager, Title/Managed Since1
|
Allspring
Funds Management,
LLC |
Allspring
Global Investments,
LLC |
Jeff
Goverman,
Portfolio Manager / 2018 Gustaf
Little,
Portfolio Manager / 2022 Garth
R. Nisbet, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2018 Craig
Pieringer, CFA,
Portfolio Manager / 2018 |
1. |
The
sub-adviser and portfolio managers listed above are the sub-adviser and
portfolio managers of the master portfolio in which the
Fund invests substantially all of its assets. The Fund itself does not
have a sub-adviser or portfolio managers. |
Purchase
and Sale of Fund Shares
Class R6
shares generally are available only to certain retirement plans, including:
401(k) plans, 457 plans, profit sharing and
money purchase pension plans, defined benefit plans, target benefit plans, and
non-qualified deferred compensation
plans. Class R6 shares also are generally available only to retirement plans
where plan level or omnibus accounts
are held on the books of the Fund. Class R6 shares also are available to funds
of funds including those managed by
Allspring
Funds Management. Class R6 shares generally are not available to retail accounts
but may be offered
through intermediaries for the accounts of their customers to certain
institutional and fee-based investors, and in each
case, only if a dealer agreement is in place with Allspring
Funds Distributor, LLC to offer Class R6 shares.
|
Institutions
Purchasing Fund Shares |
Minimum
Initial Investment Class
R6: Eligible investors are not subject to a minimum initial investment
(intermediaries may require different minimum
investment amounts)
Minimum
Additional Investment Class
R6: None (intermediaries may require different minimum additional
investment amounts) |
Tax
Information
By
investing in a Fund through a tax-deferred retirement account, you will not be
subject to tax on dividends and capital
gains distributions from the Fund or the sale of Fund shares if those amounts
remain in the tax-deferred account.
Distributions
taken from retirement plan accounts generally are taxable as ordinary income.
For special rules concerning
tax-deferred retirement accounts, including applications, restrictions, tax
advantages, and potential sales charge
waivers, contact your investment professional. To determine if a retirement plan
may be appropriate for you and to
obtain further information, consult your tax adviser.
Details
About the Fund
C&B
Large Cap Value Fund
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks maximum long-term total return (current income and capital appreciation),
consistent with minimizing risk to
principal.
The Fund’s
Board of Trustees can change this investment objective without a shareholder
vote.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
large-capitalization companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the C&B Large
Cap Value Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of large-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 1000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
1000® Index was approximately $335 million
to $2.53
trillion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently. We manage a relatively focused portfolio of 30 to 50 companies that
enables us to provide adequate
diversification while allowing the composition and performance of the portfolio
to behave differently than the
market.
We select
securities for the portfolio based on an analysis of a company’s financial
characteristics and an assessment of the
quality of a company’s management. In selecting a company, we consider criteria
such as return on equity, balance
sheet strength, industry leadership position and cash flow projections. We
further narrow the universe of acceptable
investments by undertaking intensive research including interviews with a
company’s top management, customers
and suppliers. We believe our assessment of business quality and emphasis on
valuation will protect the portfolio’s
assets in down markets, while our insistence on strength in leadership,
financial condition and cash flow position
will produce competitive results in all but the most speculative markets. We
regularly review the investments of the
portfolio and may sell a portfolio holding when it has achieved its valuation
target, there is deterioration in the underlying
fundamentals of the business, or we have identified a more attractive investment
opportunity.
We may
actively trade portfolio securities, which may lead to higher transaction costs
that may affect the Fund’s performance.
In addition, active trading of portfolio securities may lead to higher taxes if
your shares are held in a taxable
account.
The Fund
may hold some of its assets in cash or in money market instruments, including
U.S. Government obligations, shares of
other funds and repurchase agreements, or make other short-term investments for
purposes of maintaining liquidity
or for short-term defensive purposes when we believe it is in the best interests
of the shareholders to do so. During such
periods, the Fund may not achieve its objective.
Principal
Investment Risks
The Fund is
primarily subject to the risks mentioned below.
These and
other risks could cause you to lose money in your investment in the Fund and
could adversely affect the Fund’s net
asset value and total return. These risks are described in the “Description of
Principal Investment Risks” section.
Emerging Growth Fund
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
The Fund’s
Board of Trustees can change this investment objective without a shareholder
vote.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s total assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization companies; and |
■ |
up to
25% of the Fund’s total assets in equity securities of foreign issuers
through American Depository Receipts (ADRs)
and similar investments. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Emerging
Growth Portfolio, a master portfolio with a
substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in additional
master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a portfolio of
securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently. Small-capitalization companies may include both domestic and foreign
small-capitalization companies.
We seek
small-capitalization companies that are in the emerging phase of their life
cycle. We believe earnings and revenue
growth relative to consensus expectations are critical factors in determining
stock price movements. Thus, our investment
process focuses on identifying companies with robust and sustainable growth in
revenue and earnings that are
underappreciated by the market. To find that growth, we use bottom-up research,
emphasizing companies whose management
teams have a history of successfully executing their strategy and whose business
model have sufficient profit
potential. We forecast revenue and earnings growth along with other
key financial metrics to assess investment potential.
We then combine that company-specific analysis with our assessment of what the
market is discounting for growth to
form a buy/sell decision about a particular stock. We seek to capitalize on
investment opportunities where a sizable gap
exists between market consensus and our expectation for a company’s growth
prospects. We may invest in any sector
and, at times, we may emphasize one or more particular sectors. In addition, our
investment process is built on a
foundation of continuous risk management and a strict sell discipline. We sell a
company’s securities when we see signs that
can cause a company’s growth prospects to deteriorate, as this often leads to
lower valuation potential. We may also
sell or trim a position when we need to raise money to fund the purchase of a
better investment opportunity or
when valuation has extended beyond our expectations.
We may
actively trade portfolio securities, which may lead to higher transaction costs
that may affect the Fund’s performance.
In addition, active trading of portfolio securities may lead to higher taxes if
your shares are held in a taxable
account.
The Fund
may hold some of its assets in cash or in money market instruments, including
U.S. Government obligations, shares of
other funds and repurchase agreements, or make other short-term investments for
purposes of maintaining liquidity
or for short-term defensive purposes when we believe it is in the best interests
of the shareholders to do so. During such
periods, the Fund may not achieve its objective.
Principal
Investment Risks
The Fund is
primarily subject to the risks mentioned below.
These and
other risks could cause you to lose money in your investment in the Fund and
could adversely affect the Fund’s net
asset value and total return. These risks are described in the “Description of
Principal Investment Risks” section.
Small
Company Growth Fund
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
The Fund’s
Board of Trustees can change this investment objective without a shareholder
vote.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Small Company
Growth Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently.
We may also
invest in equity securities of foreign issuers through American Depository
Receipts (ADRs) and similar investments.
In
selecting securities for the Fund, we conduct rigorous research to identify
companies where the prospects for rapid earnings
growth (Discovery phase) or significant change (Rediscovery phase) have yet to
be well understood, and are therefore
not reflected in the current stock price. This research includes meeting with
the management of several hundred
companies each year and conducting independent external research. Companies that
fit into the Discovery phase are
those with rapid long-term (3-5 year) earnings growth prospects. Companies that
fit into the Rediscovery phase are
those that have the prospect for sharply accelerating near-term earnings (next
12-18 months), or companies selling at
a meaningful discount to their underlying asset value. We may decrease certain
stock holdings when their positions
rise relative to the overall portfolio. We may sell a stock in its entirety when
it reaches our sell target price, which is
set at the time of purchase. We may also sell stocks that experience adverse
fundamental news, have significant
short-term price declines, or in order to provide funds for new stock
purchases.
We may
actively trade portfolio securities, which may lead to higher transaction costs
that may affect the Fund’s performance.
In addition, active trading of portfolio securities may lead to higher taxes if
your shares are held in a taxable
account.
The Fund
may hold some of its assets in cash or in money market instruments, including
U.S. Government obligations, shares of
other funds and repurchase agreements, or make other short-term investments for
purposes of maintaining liquidity
or for short-term defensive purposes when we believe it is in the best interests
of the shareholders to do so. During such
periods, the Fund may not achieve its objective.
Principal
Investment Risks
The Fund is
primarily subject to the risks mentioned below.
These and
other risks could cause you to lose money in your investment in the Fund and
could adversely affect the Fund’s net
asset value and total return. These risks are described in the “Description of
Principal Investment Risks” section.
Small
Company Value Fund
Investment
Objective
The Fund
seeks long-term capital appreciation.
The Fund’s
Board of Trustees can change this investment objective without a shareholder
vote.
Principal
Investment Strategies
Under
normal circumstances, we invest:
■ |
at
least 80% of the Fund’s net assets in equity securities of
small-capitalization companies. |
The Fund is
a feeder fund that invests substantially all of its assets in the Small Company
Value Portfolio, a master portfolio
with a substantially identical investment objective and substantially similar
investment strategies. We may invest in
additional master portfolios, in other Allspring Funds, or directly in a
portfolio of securities.
We invest
principally in equity securities of small-capitalization companies, which we
define as companies with market capitalizations
within the range of the Russell 2000® Index at the time of purchase. The market
capitalization range of the Russell
2000® Index was approximately $17 million
to $10.66
billion, as of August 31,
2022, and is expected to change
frequently.
Our team’s
strategy is designed to provide exposure to small public companies with current
stock prices that we believe do
not accurately reflect their intrinsic values. We use bottom-up fundamental
analysis (i.e., focusing on company-specific
factors rather than broader market factors) to execute our investment philosophy
which focuses on identifying
three core alpha (i.e., excess returns relative to an index) drivers: value,
quality partner, and contrarian. First and
foremost, we believe a prospective company should possess attractive value
characteristics such as being priced at a
discount relative to peers and the company’s own historic valuation metrics. We
also seek companies that are shareholder-friendly
quality partner firms demonstrating favorable cash flow generating capabilities
and that have the management,
business model, products and resources to drive organic growth.
Lastly, the investment should exhibit what we
believe are contrarian characteristics and be in a unique position for value
creation, yet, overlooked by the investment
community. We may sell a stock when it becomes fairly
valued or when signs of fundamental deterioration surface.
We may
actively trade portfolio securities, which may lead to higher transaction costs
that may affect the Fund’s performance.
In addition, active trading of portfolio securities may lead to higher taxes if
your shares are held in a taxable
account.
The Fund
may hold some of its assets in cash or in money market instruments, including
U.S. Government obligations, shares of
other funds and repurchase agreements, or make other short-term investments for
purposes of maintaining liquidity
or for short-term defensive purposes when we believe it is in the best interests
of the shareholders to do so. During such
periods, the Fund may not achieve its objective.
Principal
Investment Risks
The Fund is
primarily subject to the risks mentioned below.
These and
other risks could cause you to lose money in your investment in the Fund and
could adversely affect the Fund’s net
asset value and total return. These risks are described in the “Description of
Principal Investment Risks” section.
Master/Feeder
Structure
Each Fund
is a feeder fund in a master/feeder structure. In this structure, a feeder fund
invests substantially all of its assets in a
master portfolio of Allspring Master Trust whose investment objective and
strategies are consistent with the feeder
fund’s investment objective and strategies. Through this structure, a feeder
fund can enhance its investment opportunities
and reduce its expenses by sharing the costs and benefits of a larger pool of
assets. Master portfolios offer their
shares to feeder funds, funds-of-funds and other master portfolios rather than
directly to the public. Certain administrative
and other fees and expenses are charged to both the feeder fund and the master
portfolio. The services provided
and fees charged to a feeder fund are in addition to and not duplicative of the
services provided and fees charged to
the master portfolio.
Description
of Principal Investment Risks
Understanding
the risks involved in fund investing will help you make an informed decision
that takes into account your risk
tolerance and preferences. The risks that are most likely to have a material
effect on a particular Fund as a whole are called
“principal risks.” The principal risks for each Fund
and indirectly, the principal risk factors for the master portfolio(s)
in which the Fund invests, have been previously identified and are described
below (in alphabetical order). Additional
information about the principal risks is included in the Statement of Additional
Information.
Equity
Securities Risk. The values
of equity securities may experience periods of substantial price volatility and
may decline
significantly over short time periods. In general, the values of equity
securities are more volatile than those of debt
securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value and price in response to
factors specific to the issuer of the security, such as
management performance, financial condition, and market demand for the issuer’s
products or services, as well as
factors unrelated to the fundamental condition of the issuer, including general
market, economic and political conditions.
Investing in equity securities poses risks specific to an issuer, as well as to
the particular type of company issuing the
equity securities. For example, investing in the equity securities of small- or
mid-capitalization companies can involve
greater risk than is customarily associated with investing in stocks of larger,
more-established companies. Different
parts of a market, industry and sector may react differently to adverse issuer,
market, regulatory, political, and economic
developments. Negative news or a poor outlook for a particular industry or
sector can cause the share prices of
securities of companies in that industry or sector to decline. This risk may be
heightened for a Fund that invests a substantial
portion of its assets in a particular industry or sector.
Focused
Portfolio Risk. Changes in
the value of a small number of issuers are likely to have a larger impact on a
Fund’s net asset
value than if the Fund held a greater number of issuers.
Foreign
Investment Risk. Foreign
investments may be subject to lower liquidity, greater price volatility and
risks related to adverse
political, regulatory, market or economic developments. Foreign companies may be
subject to significantly higher
levels of taxation than U.S. companies, including potentially confiscatory
levels of taxation, thereby reducing the earnings
potential of such foreign companies. Foreign investments may involve exposure to
changes in foreign currency
exchange rates. Such changes may reduce the U.S. dollar value of the
investments. Foreign investments may be subject
to additional risks, such as potentially higher withholding and other taxes, and
may also be subject to greater
trade settlement, custodial, and other operational risks than domestic
investments. Certain foreign markets may also be
characterized by less stringent investor protection and disclosure
standards.
Growth/Value
Investing Risk. Securities
that exhibit certain characteristics, such as growth characteristics or value
characteristics,
tend to perform differently and shift into and out of favor with investors
depending on changes in market and
economic sentiment and conditions. As a result, a Fund’s performance may at
times be worse than the performance
of other mutual funds that invest more broadly or in securities that exhibit
different characteristics.
Management
Risk. Investment
decisions, techniques, analyses or models implemented by a Fund’s manager or
sub-adviser
in seeking to achieve the Fund’s investment objective may not produce the
returns expected, may cause the Fund’s
shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with
similar investment objectives.
Market
Risk. The values
of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by a Fund may decline due to
general market
conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of
such securities. Securities markets are
volatile and may decline significantly in response to adverse issuer,
regulatory, political, or economic developments.
Different sectors of the market and different security types may react
differently to such developments. Political,
geopolitical, natural and other events, including war, terrorism, trade
disputes, government shutdowns, market
closures, natural and environmental disasters, epidemics, pandemics and other
public health crises and related events have
led, and in the future may lead, to economic uncertainty, decreased economic
activity, increased market volatility
and other disruptive effects on U.S. and global economies and markets. Such
events may have significant adverse
direct or indirect effects on a Fund and its investments. In addition, economies
and financial markets throughout
the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the
likelihood that events or conditions
in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other
countries or regions.
Smaller
Company Securities Risk. Securities
of companies with smaller market capitalizations tend to be more volatile
and less
liquid than those of larger companies. Smaller companies may have no or
relatively short operating histories, limited
financial resources or may have recently become public companies. Some of these
companies have aggressive capital
structures, including high debt levels, or are involved in rapidly growing or
changing industries and/or new technologies.
Portfolio
Holdings Information
A
description of the Allspring
Funds’ policies and procedures with respect to disclosure of the Allspring
Funds’ portfolio
holdings is available in the Funds’
Statement of Additional Information.
Pricing Fund
Shares
A Fund’s
NAV is the value of a single share. The NAV is calculated as of the close of
regular trading on the New York Stock
Exchange (“NYSE”) (generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on each day that the NYSE
is open, although a Fund may deviate
from this calculation time under unusual or unexpected circumstances. The NAV is
calculated separately for each class
of shares of a multiple-class Fund. The most recent NAV for each class of a Fund
is available at allspringglobal.com.
To calculate the NAV of a Fund’s shares, the Fund’s assets are valued and
totaled, liabilities are subtracted,
and the balance, called net assets, is divided by the number of shares
outstanding. The price at which a purchase or
redemption request is processed is based on the next NAV calculated after the
request is received in good order.
Generally, NAV is not calculated, and purchase and redemption requests are not
processed, on days that the NYSE is
closed for trading; however under unusual or unexpected circumstances a Fund may
elect to remain open even on
days that the NYSE is closed or closes early. To the extent that a Fund’s assets
are traded in various markets on days when
the Fund is closed, the value of the Fund’s assets may be affected on days when
you are unable to buy or sell Fund
shares. Conversely, trading in some of a Fund’s assets may not occur on days
when the Fund is open.
If a Fund
invests substantially all of its investable assets in one or more master
portfolios, the value of the Fund’s shares is based on
the valuation of the Fund’s interests in such master portfolios. The following
describes the pricing policies of the
master portfolios, as well as the policies that a Fund will use with respect to
any portion of the Fund’s assets invested
directly in securities. References in this section to a Fund should also be
considered references to the master portfolios.
A Fund’s investments are generally valued at current market prices. Equity
securities, options and futures are generally
valued at the official closing price or, if none, the last reported sales price
on the primary exchange or market on which
they are listed (closing price). Equity securities that are not traded primarily
on an exchange are generally valued at
the quoted bid price obtained from a broker-dealer.
Debt
securities are valued at the evaluated bid price provided by an independent
pricing service or if a reliable price is not
available, the quoted bid price from an independent broker-dealer.
We are
required to depart from these general valuation methods and use fair value
pricing methods to determine the values of
certain investments if we believe that the closing price or the quoted bid price
of a security, including a security
that trades primarily on a foreign exchange, does not accurately reflect its
current market value at the time as of which a
Fund calculates the value of its holdings. The closing price or the quoted bid
price of a security may not reflect its
current market value if, among other things, a significant event occurs after
the closing price or quoted bid price but
before the time as of which a Fund calculates the value of its
holdings that materially affects the value of the security.
We use various criteria, including a systemic evaluation of U.S. market moves
after the close of foreign markets, in
deciding whether a foreign security’s market price is still reliable and, if
not, what fair market value to assign to the
security. In addition, we use fair value pricing to determine the value of
investments in securities and other assets,
including illiquid securities, for which current market quotations or evaluated
prices from a pricing service or broker-dealer
are not readily available.
The fair
value of a Fund’s securities and other assets is determined in good faith
pursuant to policies and procedures adopted by
the Fund’s Board of Trustees. In light of the judgment involved in making fair
value decisions, there can be no
assurance that a fair value assigned to a particular security is accurate or
that it reflects the price that the Fund could
obtain for such security if it were to sell the security at the time as of which
fair value pricing is determined. Such fair value
pricing may result in valuations that are higher or lower than valuations based
on the closing price or quoted bid price.
See the Statement of Additional Information for additional details regarding the
determination of NAVs.
Management
of the Funds
The
Manager
Allspring
Funds Management, LLC (“Allspring
Funds Management”), headquartered at 525 Market Street, San Francisco,
CA 94105, provides advisory
and Fund level administrative services to the Funds
pursuant to an investment
management
agreement (the “Management Agreement”). Allspring
Funds Management is a wholly owned subsidiary of
Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC, a holding company indirectly owned
by certain private funds of GTCR LLC and
Reverence Capital Partners, L.P. Allspring Funds Management is a registered
investment adviser that provides advisory
services for registered mutual funds, closed-end funds and other funds and
accounts.
Allspring
Funds Management is responsible for implementing the investment objectives and
strategies of the Funds.
Allspring
Funds Management’s investment professionals review and analyze the Funds’
performance, including relative to peer
funds, and monitor the Funds’
compliance with their
investment objectives and strategies. Allspring
Funds Management
is responsible for reporting to the Board on investment performance and other
matters affecting the Funds. When
appropriate, Allspring
Funds Management recommends to the Board enhancements to Fund features,
including
changes to Fund investment objectives, strategies and policies. Allspring
Funds Management also communicates
with shareholders
and intermediaries about Fund performance and features.
Allspring
Funds Management is also responsible for providing Fund-level
administrative services to the Funds,
which include,
among others, providing such services in connection with the Funds’
operations; developing and implementing
procedures for monitoring compliance with regulatory requirements and compliance
with the Funds’
investment
objectives, policies and restrictions; and providing any
other Fund-level
administrative services reasonably necessary
for the operation of the Funds,
other than those services that are provided by the Funds’ transfer
and dividend
disbursing agent, custodian and fund accountant.
To assist
Allspring
Funds Management in implementing the investment objectives and strategies of the
Funds,
Allspring
Funds
Management may contract with one or more sub-advisers to provide day-to-day
portfolio management services to the
Funds.
Allspring
Funds Management employs a team of investment professionals who identify and
recommend the initial
hiring of any sub-adviser and oversee and monitor the activities of any
sub-adviser on an ongoing basis. Allspring
Funds Management retains overall responsibility for the investment activities of
the Funds.
A
discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of
the Management
Agreement and any applicable sub-advisory
agreements for each Fund is
available in the Fund’s Annual
report for the period ended May
31st.
For each Fund’s most
recent fiscal year end, the management
fee paid to Allspring
Funds Management pursuant to the Management
Agreement, net of any applicable waivers and reimbursements, was as
follows:
|
|
Management
Fees Paid |
|
As
a % of average daily net assets |
C&B
Large Cap Value Fund1
|
0.60% |
Emerging
Growth Fund1
|
0.79% |
Small
Company Growth Fund1
|
0.83% |
Small
Company Value Fund1
|
0.71% |
1. |
Reflects
the fees charged by Allspring Funds Management for providing investment
advisory services to the master portfolio in which
the Fund invests substantially all of its
assets. |
For C&B
Large Cap Value Fund, Emerging Growth Fund, Small Company Growth Fund and Small
Company Value Fund, as long as
the Fund continues to invest, as it does today, substantially all of its assets
in a single master portfolio, the Fund pays
Allspring Funds Management an investment management fee only for Fund-level
administrative services. Allspring
Funds Management receives a fee for advisory services from the master portfolio
in which the Fund invests. If a Fund were
to change its investment structure so that it begins to invest substantially all
of its assets in two or more master
portfolios, Allspring Funds Management would be entitled to receive an increased
investment management fee covering
both asset allocation services and Fund-level administrative
services.
The
Sub-Advisers and Portfolio Managers
The
following sub-advisers
and portfolio
managers provide day-to-day portfolio management services to the
master portfolios
in which the Funds
invests substantially all of their assets. These services include making
purchases and sales of
securities and other investment assets for the master portfolios, selecting
broker-dealers, negotiating brokerage
commission rates and maintaining portfolio transaction records. The sub-advisers are
compensated for their
services by
Allspring
Funds Management from the fees Allspring
Funds Management receives for its services as investment
adviser to the master portfolio. The Statement of Additional Information
provides additional information about the
portfolio
managers’ compensation, other accounts managed by
the portfolio
managers and the portfolio
managers
ownership of securities in the Funds.
Cooke
& Bieler, L.P. (“Cooke
& Bieler”), is a registered investment adviser located at Two Commerce
Square, 2001 Market
Street, Suite 4000, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Cooke & Bieler provides
investment management services to registered
investment companies, corporations, foundations, endowments, pension and profit
sharing plans, trusts, estates and
other institutions and individuals.
|
|
Andrew
B. Armstrong, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Armstrong rejoined Cooke & Bieler in 2014, where he currently
serves as a Partner,
Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst. |
Wesley
Lim, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Lim joined Cooke & Bieler in 2018, where he currently serves as
Principal, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
Steve
Lyons, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Lyons joined Cooke & Bieler in 2006, where he currently serves as a
Partner, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
Michael
M. Meyer, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Meyer joined Cooke & Bieler in 1993, and currently serves as a
Partner, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
Edward
W. O’Connor, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
O’Connor joined Cooke & Bieler in 2002, where he currently serves as a
Partner,
Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst. |
R.
James O’Neil, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
O’Neil joined Cooke & Bieler in 1988, and currently serves as a
Partner, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
Mehul
Trivedi, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Trivedi joined Cooke & Bieler in 1998, and currently serves as a
Partner, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
William
Weber, CFA C&B
Large Cap Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Weber rejoined Cooke & Bieler in 2010, where he currently serves as a
Partner, Portfolio
Manager and Research Analyst. |
Peregrine
Capital Management, LLC
(“Peregrine”), is an employee-owned registered investment adviser located at 800
LaSalle
Avenue, Suite 1750, Minneapolis, MN 55402. Peregrine provides
investment advisory services to registered investment
companies, corporate and public pension plans, profit sharing plans, savings
investment plans, 401(k) Plans,
foundations and endowments.
|
|
William
A. Grierson, CFA Small
Company Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Grierson joined Peregrine in 2000, where he currently serves as a
Principal and
Portfolio Manager for the Peregrine Small Cap Growth
team. |
Daniel
J. Hagen, CFA Small
Company Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Hagen joined Peregrine in 1996, where he currently serves as a Principal
and Portfolio
Manager for the Peregrine Small Cap Growth team. |
Paul
E. von Kuster, CFA Small
Company Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
von Kuster joined Peregrine in 1984, where he currently serves as a
Principal and
Portfolio Manager for the Peregrine Small Cap Growth
team. |
Ryan
H. Smith, CFA Small
Company Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Smith joined Peregrine in 2018, where he currently serves as a Principal
and Portfolio
Manager for the Peregrine Small Cap Growth team. Prior to 2018, Mr.
Smith
was a portfolio manager and an analyst on the small, SMID and mid cap
growth
strategies at RBC Global Asset Management (U.S.). |
Samuel
D. Smith, CFA Small
Company Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Smith joined Peregrine in 2006, where he currently serves as a Principal
and Portfolio
Manager for the Peregrine Small Cap Growth
team. |
Allspring
Global Investments, LLC
(“Allspring Investments”) is a registered investment adviser located at 525
Market Street, San
Francisco, CA 94105. Allspring Investments, an affiliate of Allspring Funds
Management and wholly owned subsidiary
of Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC, is a multi-boutique asset
management firm committed to delivering
superior investment services to institutional clients, including mutual
funds.
|
|
Jeff
Goverman Small
Company Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Goverman joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
2006,
where he currently serves as a Portfolio Manager for the Stageline Value
Equity
team. |
Robert
Gruendyke, CFA Emerging
Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Gruendyke joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
2008,
where he currently serves as a portfolio manager for the Dynamic Growth
Equity
team. |
Gustaf
Little Small
Company Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Little joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
2006, where
he currently serves as a Portfolio Manager. Prior to this, he served as an
Associate
Portfolio Manager for the Essential Value Equity team. |
David
Nazaret, CFA Emerging
Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Nazaret joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
2007, where
he currently serves as a portfolio manager for the Dynamic Growth Equity
team. |
Garth
R. Nisbet, CFA Small
Company Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Nisbet joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
2011, where
he currently serves as a Senior Portfolio Manager for the Stageline Value
Equity
team. |
Thomas
C. Ognar, CFA Emerging
Growth Portfolio |
Mr.
Ognar joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
1998, where
he currently serves as a Portfolio Manager for the Dynamic Growth Equity
team. |
Craig
Pieringer, CFA Small
Company Value Portfolio |
Mr.
Pieringer joined Allspring Investments or one of its predecessor firms in
1997,
where he currently serves as a Portfolio Manager for the Stageline Value
Equity
team. |
Multi-Manager
Arrangement
The Funds and
Allspring
Funds Management have obtained an exemptive order from the SEC that
permits Allspring
Funds
Management, subject to Board approval, to select certain sub-advisers and enter
into or amend sub-advisory agreements
with them, without obtaining shareholder approval. The SEC order extends to
sub-advisers that are not otherwise
affiliated with Allspring
Funds Management or the Funds, as
well as sub-advisers that are wholly-owned subsidiaries
of Allspring
Funds Management or of a company that wholly owns Allspring
Funds Management. In addition,
the SEC staff, pursuant to no-action relief, has extended multi-manager relief
to any affiliated sub-adviser, such as
affiliated sub-advisers that are not wholly-owned subsidiaries of Allspring
Funds Management or of a company that wholly
owns Allspring
Funds Management, provided certain conditions are satisfied (all such
sub-advisers covered by the
order or relief, “Multi-Manager Sub-Advisers”).
As such,
Allspring
Funds Management, with Board approval, may hire or replace Multi-Manager
Sub-Advisers for each Fund that
is eligible to rely on the order or relief. Allspring
Funds Management, subject to Board oversight, has the responsibility
to oversee Multi-Manager Sub-Advisers and to recommend their hiring, termination
and replacement. If a new
sub-adviser is hired for a Fund pursuant to the order or relief, the Fund is
required to notify shareholders within 90 days.
The Funds is not
required to disclose the individual fees that Allspring
Funds Management pays to a Multi-Manager
Sub-Adviser.
Account
Information
Share
Class Eligibility
Class R6
shares are generally available for employer sponsored retirement and benefit
plans and through intermediaries
for the accounts of their customers to certain institutional and fee-based
investors, and in each case, only if a
dealer agreement is in place with Allspring
Funds Distributor, LLC to offer Class R6 shares. The following investors
may purchase Class R6 shares:
■ |
Employer
sponsored retirement plans held in plan level or omnibus accounts,
including but not limited to: 401(k) plans,
457 plans, profit sharing and money purchase pension plans, defined
benefit plans, target benefit plans and non-qualified
deferred compensation plans; |
■ |
Employee
benefit plan programs; |
■ |
Broker-dealer
managed account or wrap programs that charge an asset-based fee where
omnibus accounts are held on
the books of the Fund; |
■ |
Registered
investment adviser mutual fund wrap programs or other accounts that charge
a fee for advisory, investment,
consulting or similar services where omnibus accounts are held on the
books of the Fund; |
■ |
Private
bank and trust company managed accounts or wrap programs that charge an
asset-based fee; |
■ |
Funds
of funds, including those managed by Allspring
Funds Management; |
■ |
Institutional
investors purchasing shares through an intermediary where omnibus accounts
are held on the books of the
Fund including trust departments, insurance companies, foundations, local,
city, and state governmental institutions,
private banks, endowments, non-profits, and charitable
organizations; |
■ |
Investors
purchasing shares through an intermediary, acting solely as a broker on
behalf of its customers, that holds such
shares in an omnibus account and charges investors a transaction based
commission outside of the Fund. In order
to offer Fund shares, an intermediary must have an agreement with the
Fund’s distributor authorizing the use of
the share class within this type of
platform. |
The
information in this Prospectus is not intended for distribution to, or use by,
any person or entity in any non-U.S. jurisdiction
or country where such distribution or use would be contrary to any law or
regulation, or which would subject
Fund shares to any registration requirement within such jurisdiction or
country.
Share
Class Features
The table
below summarizes the key features of the share class offered through this
Prospectus. Please note that if you purchase
shares through an intermediary that acts as a broker on your behalf, you may be
required to pay a commission
to your intermediary in an amount determined and separately disclosed to you by
the intermediary. Consult
your financial professional for further details.
|
|
|
|
Class
R6 |
Initial
Sales Charge |
|
None |
Contingent
Deferred Sales Charge (“CDSC”) |
|
None |
Ongoing
Distribution (“12b-1”) Fees |
|
None |
Compensation
to Financial Professionals and Intermediaries
No
compensation is paid to intermediaries from Fund assets on sales of Class R6
shares or for related services. Class R6 shares
do not carry sales commissions or pay Rule 12b-1 fees, or make payments to
intermediaries to assist in, or in connection
with, the sale of Fund shares. Neither the manager, the distributor nor their
affiliates make any type of administrative
or service payments to intermediaries in connection with investments in Class R6
shares.
Buying
and Selling Fund Shares
Eligible
retirement plans may make Class
R6 shares available to plan participants by contacting certain
intermediaries that have
dealer agreements with the distributor. These entities may impose transaction
charges. Plan participants may purchase
shares through their retirement plan’s administrator or record-keeper by
following the process outlined in the terms of
their plan.
Redemption
requests received by a retirement plan’s administrator or record-keeper from the
plan’s participants will be processed
according to the terms of the plan’s account with its intermediary. Plan
participants should follow the process for
selling fund shares outlined in the terms of their plan.
Requests
in “Good Order”. All
purchase and redemption requests must be received in “good order.” This means
that a request
generally must include:
■ |
The
Fund name(s), share class(es) and account
number(s); |
■ |
The
amount (in dollars or shares) and type (purchase or redemption) of the
request; |
■ |
For
purchase requests, payment of the full amount of the purchase request;
and |
■ |
Any
supporting legal documentation that may be
required. |
Purchase
and redemption requests in good order will be processed at the next NAV
calculated after the Fund’s transfer agent or an
authorized intermediary1 receives
your request. If your request is not received in good order, additional
documentation
may be required to process your transaction. We reserve the right to waive any
of the above requirements.
1. |
The
Fund’s shares may be purchased through an intermediary that has entered
into a dealer agreement with the Fund’s distributor. The
Fund has approved the acceptance of a purchase or redemption request
effective as of the time of its receipt by such an authorized
intermediary or its designee, as long as the request is received by one of
those entities prior to the Fund’s closing time. These
intermediaries may charge transaction fees. We reserve the right to adjust
the closing time in certain circumstances. |
Timing
of Redemption Proceeds. We
normally will send out redemption proceeds within one business day after we
accept your
request to redeem. We reserve the right to delay payment for up to seven days.
Payment of redemption proceeds
may be delayed for longer than seven days under extraordinary circumstances or
as permitted by the SEC in order to
protect remaining shareholders. Such extraordinary circumstances are discussed
further in the Statement of Additional
Information.
Exchanging
Fund Shares
Exchanges
between two funds involve two transactions: (1) the redemption of shares of one
fund; and (2) the purchase of shares
of another. In general, the same rules and procedures described under “Buying
and Selling Fund Shares” apply to
exchanges. There are, however, additional policies and considerations you should
keep in mind while making or
considering an exchange:
■ |
In
general, exchanges may be made between like share classes of any fund in
the Allspring
Funds complex offered to
the general public for investment (i.e., a fund not closed to new
accounts), with the following exceptions: (1) Class A
shares of non-money market funds may also be exchanged for Service Class
shares of any retail or government money
market fund; (2) Service Class shares may be exchanged for Class A shares
of any non-money market fund; and
(3) no exchanges are allowed into institutional money market
funds. |
■ |
If
you make an exchange between Class A shares of a money market fund or
Class A2 or Class A shares of a non-money
market fund, you will buy the shares at the public offering price of the
new fund, unless you are otherwise
eligible to buy shares at NAV. |
■ |
Same-fund
exchanges between share classes are permitted subject to the following
conditions: (1) the shareholder must
meet the eligibility guidelines of the class being purchased in the
exchange; (2) exchanges out of Class A and Class
C shares would not be allowed if shares are subject to a CDSC; and (3) for
non-money market funds, in order to exchange
into Class A shares, the shareholder must be able to qualify to purchase
Class A shares at NAV based on current
Prospectus guidelines. |
■ |
An
exchange request will be processed on the same business day, provided that
both funds are open at the time the request
is received. If one or both funds are closed, the exchange will be
processed on the following business day. |
■ |
You
should carefully read the Prospectus for the Fund into which you wish to
exchange. |
■ |
Every
exchange involves redeeming fund shares, which may produce a capital gain
or loss for tax purposes. |
■ |
If
you are making an initial investment into a fund through an exchange, you
must exchange at least the minimum initial
investment amount for the new fund, unless your balance has fallen below
that amount due to investment performance. |
■ |
If
you are making an additional investment into a fund that you already own
through an exchange, you must exchange
at least the minimum subsequent investment amount for the fund you are
exchanging into. |
■ |
Class
A and Class C share exchanges will not trigger a CDSC. The new shares
received in the exchange will continue to
age according to the original shares’ CDSC schedule and will be charged
the CDSC applicable to the original shares
upon redemption. |
Generally,
we will notify you at least 60 days in advance of any changes in the above
exchange policies.
Frequent
Purchases and Redemptions of Fund Shares
Allspring
Funds reserves the right to reject any purchase or exchange order for any
reason. If a shareholder redeems $20,000 or
more (including redemptions that are part of an exchange transaction) from a
Covered Fund (as defined below),
that shareholder is “blocked” from purchasing shares of that Covered Fund
(including purchases that are part of an
exchange transaction) for 30 calendar days after the redemption.
Excessive
trading by Fund shareholders can negatively impact a Fund and its long-term
shareholders in several ways, including
disrupting Fund investment strategies, increasing transaction costs, decreasing
tax efficiency, and diluting the value
of shares held by long-term shareholders. Excessive trading in Fund shares can
negatively impact a Fund’s long-term
performance by requiring it to maintain more assets in cash or to liquidate
portfolio holdings at a disadvantageous
time. Certain Funds may be more susceptible than others to these negative
effects. For example, Funds that
have a greater percentage of their investments in non-U.S. securities may be
more susceptible than other Funds to
arbitrage opportunities resulting from pricing variations due to time zone
differences across international financial
markets. Similarly, Funds that have a greater percentage of their investments in
small company securities may be more
susceptible than other Funds to arbitrage opportunities due to the less liquid
nature of small company securities.
Both types of Funds also may incur higher transaction costs in liquidating
portfolio holdings to meet excessive
redemption levels. Fair value pricing may reduce these arbitrage opportunities,
thereby reducing some of the
negative effects of excessive trading.
Allspring
Funds, other than the Adjustable Rate Government Fund, Conservative Income Fund,
Ultra Short-Term Income
Fund and Ultra Short-Term Municipal Income Fund (“Ultra-Short Funds”) and the
money market funds, (the “Covered
Funds”). The
Covered Funds are not designed to serve as vehicles for frequent trading. The
Covered Funds actively
discourage and take steps to prevent the portfolio disruption and negative
effects on long-term shareholders that can
result from excessive trading activity by Covered Fund shareholders. The Board
has approved the Covered Funds’
policies and procedures, which provide, among other things, that Allspring
Funds Management may deem trading
activity to be excessive if it determines that such trading activity would
likely be disruptive to a Covered Fund by
increasing expenses or lowering returns. In this regard, the Covered Funds take
steps to avoid accommodating frequent
purchases and redemptions of shares by Covered Fund shareholders. Allspring
Funds Management monitors available
shareholder trading information across all Covered Funds on a daily basis. If a
shareholder redeems $20,000 or more
(including redemptions that are part of an exchange transaction) from a Covered
Fund, that shareholder is “blocked”
from purchasing shares of that Covered Fund (including purchases that are part
of an exchange transaction) for 30
calendar days after the redemption. This policy does not apply to:
■ |
Dividend
reinvestments; |
■ |
Systematic
investments or exchanges where the financial intermediary
maintaining the shareholder account identifies
the transaction as a systematic redemption or purchase at the time of the
transaction; |
■ |
Rebalancing
transactions within certain asset allocation or “wrap” programs where the
financial intermediary maintaining
a shareholder account is able to identify the transaction as part of an
asset allocation program approved by
Allspring
Funds Management; |
■ |
Rebalancing
transactions by an institutional client of Allspring
Funds Management or its affiliate following a model
portfolio
offered by Allspring
Funds Management or its
affiliate; |
■ |
Transactions
initiated by a “fund of funds” or Section 529 Plan into an underlying fund
investment; |
■ |
Permitted
exchanges between share classes of the same
Fund; |
■ |
Certain
transactions involving participants in employer-sponsored retirement
plans, including: participant withdrawals
due to mandatory distributions, rollovers and hardships, withdrawals of
shares acquired by participants through
payroll deductions, and shares acquired or sold by a participant in
connection with plan loans; and |
■ |
Purchases
below $20,000 (including purchases that are part of an exchange
transaction). |
The
money market funds and the Ultra-Short Funds. Because
the money market funds and Ultra-Short Funds are often used for
short-term investments, they are designed to accommodate more frequent purchases
and redemptions than the Covered
Funds. As a result, the money market funds and Ultra-Short Funds do not
anticipate that frequent purchases
and redemptions, under normal circumstances, will have significant adverse
consequences to the money market
funds or Ultra-Short Funds or their shareholders. Although the money market
funds and Ultra-Short Funds do not
prohibit frequent trading, Allspring
Funds Management will seek to prevent an investor from utilizing the
money market
funds and Ultra-Short Funds to facilitate frequent purchases and redemptions of
shares in the Covered Funds in contravention
of the policies and procedures adopted by the Covered Funds.
All
Allspring
Funds. In
addition, Allspring
Funds Management reserves the right to accept purchases, redemptions
and exchanges
made in excess of applicable trading restrictions in designated accounts held by
Allspring
Funds Management or
its affiliate that are used at all times exclusively for addressing operational
matters related to shareholder
accounts, such as testing of account functions, and are maintained at low
balances that do not exceed specified
dollar amount limitations.
In the
event that an asset allocation or “wrap” program is unable to implement the
policy outlined above, Allspring
Funds
Management may grant a program-level exception to this policy. A
financial intermediary relying on the exception
is required to provide Allspring
Funds Management with specific information regarding its program and
ongoing
information about its program upon request.
A financial
intermediary through whom you may purchase shares of the Fund may independently
attempt to identify excessive
trading and take steps to deter such activity. As a result, a financial
intermediary may on its own limit or permit
trading activity of its customers who invest in Fund shares using standards
different from the standards used by Allspring
Funds Management and discussed in this Prospectus. Allspring
Funds Management may permit a financial intermediary
to enforce its own internal policies and procedures concerning frequent trading
rather than the policies set forth
above in instances where Allspring
Funds Management reasonably believes that the intermediary’s policies
and
procedures effectively discourage disruptive trading activity. If you purchase
Fund shares through a financial intermediary,
you should contact the intermediary for more information about whether and how
restrictions or limitations
on trading activity will be applied to your account.
Account
Policies
Advance
Notice of Large Transactions. We
strongly urge you to make all purchases and redemptions of Fund shares
as early in
the day as possible and to notify us or your intermediary at least one day in
advance of transactions in Fund shares in
excess of $1 million. This will help us to manage the Funds most effectively.
When you give this advance notice,
please provide your name and account number.
Householding. To help
keep Fund expenses low, a single copy of a Prospectus or shareholder report may
be sent to shareholders
of the same household. If your household currently receives a single copy of a
Prospectus or shareholder report and
you would prefer to receive multiple copies, please call Investor Services at
1-800-222-8222 or contact your intermediary.
Transaction
Authorizations. We may
accept telephone, electronic, and clearing agency transaction instructions from
anyone who
represents that he or she is a shareholder and provides reasonable confirmation
of his or her identity. Neither we
nor Allspring
Funds will be liable for any losses incurred if we follow such instructions we
reasonably believe to be
genuine. For transactions through our website, we may assign personal
identification numbers (PINs) and you will need to
create a login ID and password for account access. To safeguard your account,
please keep these credentials confidential.
Contact us immediately if you believe there is a discrepancy on your
confirmation statement or if you believe
someone has obtained unauthorized access to your online access
credentials.
Identity
Verification. We are
required by law to obtain from you certain personal information that will be
used to verify your
identity. If you do not provide the information, we will not be able to open
your account. In the rare event that we are unable
to verify your identity as required by law, we reserve the right to redeem your
account at the current NAV of the Fund’s
shares. You will be responsible for any losses, taxes, expenses, fees, or other
results of such a redemption.
Right to
Freeze Accounts, Suspend Account Services or Reject or Terminate an
Investment. We reserve
the right, to the extent
permitted by law and/or regulations, to freeze any account or suspend account
services when we have received
reasonable notice (written or otherwise) of a dispute between registered or
beneficial account owners or when we
believe a fraudulent transaction may occur or has occurred. Additionally, we
reserve the right to reject any purchase or
exchange request and to terminate a shareholder’s investment, including closing
the shareholder’s account.
Distributions
The Funds
generally make distributions of any net investment income and any realized net
capital gains at least annually.
Please contact your institution for distribution options. Please note,
distributions have the effect of reducing the NAV per
share by the amount distributed.
Other
Information
Taxes
By
investing in the Fund through a tax-deferred retirement account, you will not be
subject to tax on dividends and capital
gains distributions from the Fund or the sale of Fund shares if those amounts
remain in the tax-deferred account.
Distributions taken from retirement plan accounts generally are taxable as
ordinary income. For special rules concerning
tax-deferred retirement accounts, including applications, restrictions, tax
advantages, and potential sales charge
waivers, contact your investment professional. To determine if a retirement plan
may be appropriate for you and to
obtain further information, consult your tax advisor. Please see the Statement
of Additional Information for additional
federal income tax information.
Financial
Highlights
The
following tables are intended
to help you understand a Fund’s financial performance for the past five years
(or since inception,
if shorter). Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund
share. Total returns represent the rate you
would have earned (or lost) on an investment in each Fund
(assuming reinvestment of all distributions). The information
in the following tables has
been derived from the Funds’
financial statements
which have been
audited by KPMG LLP,
the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along
with each Fund’s
financial statements,
is also included in each Fund’s
annual report, a copy of which is available upon request.
C&B
Large Cap Value Fund
For a share
outstanding throughout each period
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year
ended May 31 |
Class
R6 |
|
2022 |
|
2021 |
|
2020 |
|
2019 |
|
2018 |
Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
from investment operations |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Distributions
to shareholders from |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized gains |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
distributions to shareholders |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
asset value, end of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Total
return |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ratios
to average net assets (annualized)* |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gross
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Supplemental
data |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Portfolio
turnover rate3
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
assets, end of period (000s omitted) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
* |
Ratios
include net expenses allocated from the affiliated Master Portfolio which
were as follows: Year
ended May 31,
2022 0.64% Year
ended May 31,
2021 0.64% Year
ended May 31,
2020 0.64% Year
ended May 31,
2019 0.65% Year
ended May 31,
2018 0.65% |
1 |
Calculated
based upon average shares outstanding |
2 |
Amount
is less than $0.005. |
3 |
Portfolio
turnover rate is calculated by multiplying the affiliated Master
Portfolio’s percentage of the Fund’s total investment in securities at the
end of the period
by the affiliated Master Portfolio’s portfolio turnover
rate. |
Emerging Growth Fund
For a share
outstanding throughout each period
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year
ended May 31 |
Class
R6 |
|
2022 |
|
2021 |
|
2020 |
|
20191
|
Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Net
investment loss |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
from investment operations |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Distributions
to shareholders from |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized gains |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
asset value, end of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Total
return3
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ratios
to average net assets (annualized)* |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gross
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment loss |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Supplemental
data |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Portfolio
turnover rate4
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
assets, end of period (000s omitted) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
* |
Ratios
include net expenses allocated from the affiliated Master Portfolio which
were as follows: Year
ended May 31,
2022 0.83% Year
ended May 31,
2021 0.81% Year
ended May 31,
2020 0.81% Year
ended May 31, 20191 0.81% |
1 |
For
the period from July 31, 2018 (commencement of class operations) to May
31, 2019 |
2 |
Calculated
based upon average shares outstanding |
3 |
Returns
for periods of less than one year are not
annualized. |
4 |
Portfolio
turnover rate is calculated by multiplying the affiliated Master
Portfolio’s percentage of the Fund’s total investment in securities at the
end of the period
by the affiliated Master Portfolio’s portfolio turnover
rate. |
Small
Company Growth Fund
For a share
outstanding throughout each period
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year
ended May 31 |
Class
R6 |
|
2022 |
|
2021 |
|
2020 |
|
2019 |
|
2018 |
Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Net
investment loss |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
from investment operations |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Distributions
to shareholders from |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized gains |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
asset value, end of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Total
return |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ratios
to average net assets (annualized)* |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gross
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment loss |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Supplemental
data |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Portfolio
turnover rate2
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
assets, end of period (000s omitted) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
* |
Ratios
include net expenses allocated from the affiliated Master Portfolio which
were as follows: Year
ended May 31,
2022 0.81% Year
ended May 31,
2021 0.79% Year
ended May 31,
2020 0.78% Year
ended May 31,
2019 0.78% Year
ended May 31,
2018 0.78% |
1 |
Calculated
based upon average shares outstanding |
2 |
Portfolio
turnover rate is calculated by multiplying the affiliated Master
Portfolio’s percentage of the Fund’s total investment in securities at the
end of the period
by the affiliated Master Portfolio’s portfolio turnover
rate. |
Small
Company Value Fund
For a share
outstanding throughout each period
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Year
ended May 31 |
Class
R6 |
|
2022 |
|
2021 |
|
2020 |
|
2019 |
|
2018 |
Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized and unrealized gains (losses) on investments
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
from investment operations |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Distributions
to shareholders from |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
realized gains |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total
distributions to shareholders |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
asset value, end of period |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
Total
return |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ratios
to average net assets (annualized)* |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Gross
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
investment income |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Supplemental
data |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Portfolio
turnover rate2
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net
assets, end of period (000s omitted) |
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
$ |
|
* |
Ratios
include net expenses allocated from the affiliated Master Portfolio which
were as follows: Year
ended May 31,
2022 0.74% Year
ended May 31,
2021 0.74% Year
ended May 31,
2020 0.74% Year
ended May 31,
2019 0.75% Year
ended May 31,
2018 0.84% |
1 |
Calculated
based upon average shares outstanding |
2 |
Portfolio
turnover rate is calculated by multiplying the affiliated Master
Portfolio’s percentage of the Fund’s total investment in securities at the
end of the period
by the affiliated Master Portfolio’s portfolio turnover
rate. |
|
|
FOR
MORE INFORMATION
More
information on a Fund is available free upon request, including
the following documents:
Statement
of Additional Information (“SAI”) Supplements
the disclosures made by this Prospectus. The
SAI, which has been filed with the SEC, is incorporated
by reference into this Prospectus and therefore
is legally part of this Prospectus.
Annual/Semi-Annual
Reports Provide
financial and other important information, including
a discussion of the market conditions and
investment strategies that significantly affected Fund
performance over the reporting period.
To
obtain copies of the above documents or for more information
about Allspring
Funds, contact us:
By
telephone: Individual
Investors: 1-800-222-8222 Retail
Investment Professionals: 1-888-877-9275 Institutional
Investment Professionals: 1-800-260-5969 |
By
mail: Allspring
Funds P.O.
Box 219967 Kansas
City, MO 64121-9967
Online: allspringglobal.com
From
the SEC: Visit
the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, DC
(phone 1-202-551-8090 for operational information
for the SEC’s Public Reference Room) or the
SEC’s website at sec.gov.
To
obtain information for a fee, write or email:SEC’s
Public Reference Section100
“F” Street, NEWashington,
DC 20549-0102[email protected]The
Allspring
Funds are distributed byAllspring
Funds Distributor, LLC, a member of
FINRA. |
|
|
©
2022
Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC. All rights
reserved. |
102EG6R/P907R6 www.allspringglobal.com |