TABLE OF CONTENTS
| |
Summary Sections |
2 |
Investment Objective and Principal Strategies |
15 |
More on each Fund’s Investments and Related Risks |
16 |
Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings |
25 |
Management |
25 |
The Portfolio Managers |
26 |
Administrator, Distributor and Transfer Agent of the Funds |
27 |
Buying, Exchanging and Redeeming Shares |
27 |
Share Transactions |
33 |
Dividends and Distributions |
35 |
Federal Income Taxes |
35 |
Financial Highlights |
37 |
Appendix A – Intermediary Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts |
50 |
Additional Information About the Funds |
Back Cover |
Class A
Class C
Institutional Class
Investor Class
Russell 2000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
Russell 2000 Financial Services (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
This
table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and
sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage
commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected
in the tables and examples below.
|
Class A |
Class C |
Institutional
|
Investor
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maximum sales charge (load) on purchases (as a percentage of offering price) |
|
|
|
|
Maximum deferred sales charge (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or redemption proceeds) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Management Fees |
|
|
|
|
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Other Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Other Fund Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Shareholder Services Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(1) |
|
|
|
|
(1) |
|
This example is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same.
|
1 YEAR |
3 YEARS |
5 YEARS |
10 YEARS |
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
|
|
|
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The Example does not reflect sales charges (loads) on dividends reinvested and other distributions. If these sales charges (loads) were included, your costs would be higher.
2
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. These costs, which are not reflected in
annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance.
A higher portfolio turnover rate may also result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. During the most recent fiscal year, the
Fund’s portfolio turnover was
The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund has adopted an investment policy that it will, under normal conditions, invest at least 80% of the value of its assets (net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in stocks (both common and preferred) of companies principally engaged in banking or financial services, and collective investment vehicles such as mutual funds and exchange-traded funds that invest in companies that are principally engaged in banking and financial services as denoted by being classified as within the Banks, Financial Services, Insurance or within the Transaction Processing Services SubSector (as determined by the Russell Industry Classification Benchmark). This requirement is applied at the time the Fund invests its assets. The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund’s policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in such a manner is non-fundamental, which means that it may be changed without shareholder approval.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. The Fund will invest primarily in mid and small-size companies, at the time of purchase. The Adviser typically defines mid and small-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2500 Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2500 Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $21.3 billion. Micro-cap stocks are not a principal investment strategy of the Fund. While the non-fundamental policy described above allows for the Fund to invest in companies that are principally engaged in either banking or financial services, the Fund has adopted a fundamental policy that it will invest not less than 25% of its net assets in securities of companies principally engaged in the banking industry and not less than 25% of its net assets in securities of companies principally engaged in the financial services industry. For purposes of this fundamental policy, a company is defined as being in the banking or financial services industries if such company is classified as within the Banks, Financial Services, Insurance or within the Transaction Processing Services SubSector (as determined by the Russell Industry Classification Benchmark).
Companies in the banking industry are defined to include U.S. and foreign commercial and industrial banking and savings institutions and their parent holding companies. Companies in the financial services industry are defined to include commercial and industrial finance companies, diversified financial services companies, investment banking, securities brokerage and investment advisory companies, mortgage real estate investment trusts, insurance and insurance holding companies, leasing companies, and companies engaged in financial technology-related activities including decentralized finance and distributed ledger technology.
Financial technology is the application of new technological advancements to products and services in the financial industry, seeking to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services. Financial technology helps companies and consumers better manage their financial operations by utilizing specialized software. Financial technology companies compete with traditional financial methods in the delivery of financial services. Mobile banking, peer-to-peer lending, decentralized ledger technology and cryptocurrency are examples of financial technology.
The Fund may invest in stocks of special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”). The Fund does not target a particular form of SPAC, with the exception that the SPAC must have identified an acquisition target at or prior to the time of the Fund’s investment, and such target must be consistent with the ICB SuperSectors or SubSector outlined above.
Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust (“Emerald” or the “Adviser”) applies the theme of innovation to these investment guidelines by pursuing companies that the Adviser believes are reinventing/redesigning existing products/services thereby generating value for their customers, creating a competitive advantage and driving business growth.
The Adviser utilizes a growth approach to choosing securities based upon fundamental research which attempts to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group, exhibit a competitive advantage in niche markets, or do not receive significant coverage from other institutional investors.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
There are no limitations with respect to the type of REITs in which the Fund may invest.
At this time, the Fund will not invest directly in cryptocurrencies or initial coin offerings.
Market Risk: Securities markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues. Such events include the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus and its variants (COVID-19), which has resulted in, and may continue to result in, significant global economic and societal disruption and market volatility. Such events also include Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine, which could have a negative impact on the economy and business activity
3
globally. Historically, markets have moved in cycles, and the value of the Fund’s securities may fluctuate drastically from day to day. The Fund’s portfolio securities can be affected by events that affect the securities markets generally or particular segments of the market in which the Fund has invested. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments. The prices of securities issued by such companies may suffer a decline in response. These factors contribute to price volatility, which is a principal risk of investing in the Fund.
Equity Securities Risk: The risks associated with investing in equity securities of companies include the financial risk of selecting individual companies that do not perform as anticipated, the risk that the stock markets in which the Fund invests may experience periods of turbulence and instability, and the general risk that domestic and global economies may go through periods of decline and cyclical change. The price of equity securities can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues.
Managed Portfolio Risk: The Adviser’s investment strategies or choice of specific securities may be unsuccessful and may cause the Fund to incur losses.
Sector Risk: Sector risk is the possibility that all stocks within the same group of industries will decline in price due to sector-specific market or economic developments. The Fund may be overweight in certain sectors at various times.
Banking- and Financial Services-Related Investments Risk: The banking and financial services industries represent only a portion of the overall economy. Entities in these industries may be subject to additional risks such as increased competition within the sector or changes in legislation or government regulations. In addition, entities in these industries are particularly vulnerable to certain factors affecting the industries as a whole, such as the availability and cost of capital funds, changes in interest rates, the rate of corporate and consumer debt defaults, and price competition. There is a risk that those issuers (or the sector) will perform poorly and negatively impact the Fund.
Growth Stocks Risk: Growth-oriented stocks may be more sensitive to changes in current or expected earnings than other stocks. The market prices of companies believed to have good prospects for revenues and earnings growth tend to reflect those expectations. When it appears those expectations will not be met, the prices of these securities typically fall. In addition, if the market does not come to share the Adviser’s assessment of an investment’s long-term growth, the Fund may underperform other mutual funds or stock indexes.
Small and Medium Capitalization Stocks Risk: Investment in securities of small or medium-sized companies presents greater investment risks than investing in the securities of larger companies. These risks include greater price volatility, greater sensitivity to changing economic conditions, and less liquidity than the securities of larger, more mature companies.
Concentration Risk: The Fund concentrates its investments in such issuers to the extent permitted by applicable regulatory guidance. Concentration risk results from maintaining exposure (long or short) to issuers conducting business in a specific industry. The risk of concentrating investments in a limited number of issuers in a particular industry is that the Fund will be more susceptible to the risks associated with that industry than a fund that does not concentrate its investments.
Distributed Ledger Technology (“DLT”) and Blockchain Investments Risk. The Fund may invest in companies listed on U.S. and Canadian exchanges that are engaged in the use of, or have exposure to, DLT and blockchain. The mechanics of using DLT, including blockchain, to transact in assets such as securities or derivatives, is relatively new and untested and there is no assurance that widespread adoption will occur. DLT and blockchain are subject to a rapidly-evolving regulatory landscape in the United States and in other countries, which might include security, privacy or other regulatory concerns that could negatively impact the companies in which the Fund invests. Companies in which the Fund invests may also be subject to the risk of fraud and cybersecurity threats and intellectual property claims. A significant disruption of Internet connectivity could impede the functionality of these technologies and could adversely affect the Fund.
Financial Technology Risk. Companies that are developing financial technologies that seek to disrupt or displace established financial institutions generally face competition from much larger and more established firms. Financial technology companies may not be able to capitalize on their disruptive technologies if they face political and/or legal attacks from competitors, industry groups or local and national governments. Laws generally vary by country, creating some challenges to achieving scale. These financial technology companies may not currently derive any revenue, and there is no assurance that such company will derive any revenue from innovative technologies in the future. Additionally, financial technology companies may be adversely impacted by potential rapid product obsolescence, cybersecurity attacks, increased regulatory oversight and disruptions in the technology they depend on.
Foreign Securities Risk: To the extent the Fund invests in securities of foreign (non-U.S.) companies, the Fund may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than a fund that invests exclusively in securities of U.S. companies, due to less liquid markets and adverse economic, political, diplomatic, financial, and regulatory factors. Foreign governments also may impose limits on investment and repatriation and impose taxes. Any of these events could cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline.
Canadian Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in the securities of companies listed for trading in Canada. Investments in Canadian issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to Canada. Among other things, the Canadian economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States and China. The Canadian economy is sensitive to fluctuations in certain commodity markets.
Liquidity Risk: Liquidity risk is financial risk due to uncertain liquidity. An institution might lose liquidity if its credit rating falls, it experiences sudden unexpected cash outflows, or some other event causes counterparties to avoid trading with or lending to the institution. A firm is also exposed to liquidity risk if markets on which it depends are subject to loss of liquidity. Derivative based
4
securities and privately issued mortgage-related securities and other asset-backed securities, which do not have a government or government-sponsored guarantee that are subject to substantial market and credit risk may have greater liquidity risk. Less liquid securities may trade infrequently, trade at a smaller volume, and be quite volatile. This means that they may be harder to purchase or sell at a fair price or quickly enough to prevent or minimize loss.
Real Estate Securities and REITs Risk: Real estate investment trusts or “REITs” are issuers that invest in interests in real estate, including mortgages. Investing in REITs may subject the Fund to risks similar to those associated with the direct ownership of real estate, including fluctuations in the value of underlying properties and defaults by borrowers or tenants. REITs may not be diversified and are subject to heavy cash flow dependency and self-liquidation. REITs are also subject to the possibilities of failing to qualify for tax-free pass through of income under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") and failing to maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). REITs may have limited financial resources, trade less frequently and in a limited volume, and be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than more widely held securities.
Securities Issued By Other Investment Companies Risk: The Fund may invest in shares of other investment companies, including other mutual funds, money market funds, ETFs, HOLDRs, unit investment trusts, and closed-end funds, to gain exposure to a particular portion of the market rather than purchase securities directly. Investing in another investment company exposes the Fund to all the risks of that investment company, and, in general, subjects it to a pro rata portion of the other investment company’s fees and expenses.
Special Purpose Acquisition Company Risk. The Fund may invest in stock, rights, warrants, and other securities of special purpose acquisition companies or similar special purpose entities (collectively, “SPACs”). SPACs are often subject to extreme price volatility and speculative trading. SPACs may have little to no liquidity, and may trade at a discount to NAV. SPACs are “blank check” companies with no operating history. Accordingly, there is a limited basis, if any, on which to evaluate the SPAC’s ability to achieve its business objective, and the value of its securities is particularly dependent on the ability of the entity’s management to complete a profitable acquisition. The value of a SPAC’s securities can by highly volatile and may depreciate over time. A SPAC will not generate any revenues until, at the earliest, after the consummation of a transaction. Among other conflicts of interest, an investment in a SPAC may include the potential for misalignment of incentives in the structure of the SPAC.
The following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing how the Fund’s performance has varied over time.
Year |
Return |
2014 |
|
2015 |
|
2016 |
|
2017 |
|
2018 |
- |
2019 |
|
2020 |
|
2021 |
|
2022 |
- |
2023 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
The Fund’s Class A share
as of was .
5
(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)
Emerald Finance & Banking Innovation Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
|
Class A (Inception Date of 2/18/97) |
|
|
|
|
Returns Before Taxes |
|
- |
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions* |
|
- |
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
|
- |
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)*** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Financial Services (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **** |
|
|
|
|
Class C (Inception Date of 07/01/00)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
- |
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******* |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Financial Services (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
|
Institutional Class (Inception Date of 3/19/2012)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
- |
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)*****, *** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses, or taxes) ******, **** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Financial Services (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) ******, **** |
|
|
|
|
Investor Class (Inception Date of 3/16/10)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
- |
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Financial Services (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
* |
|
** |
|
*** |
|
**** |
|
INVESTMENT ADVISER
Emerald is the investment adviser to the Fund.
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
Kenneth G. Mertz II, CFA, and Steven E. Russell, Esq. are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio and make the final investment decisions for the Fund. Mr. Mertz is President and Chief Investment Officer of Emerald and President and Chief Investment Officer of Emerald Advisers, LLC. Mr. Russell is a Portfolio Manager of the Fund. Mr. Mertz and Mr. Russell have both managed the Fund from its inception in March 2012. Mr. Mertz had served as a portfolio manager of the Forward Banking and Finance Fund, the predecessor to the Fund, since its inception.
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
The minimum initial investment in Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares is $2,000 for non-qualified accounts and $1,000 for qualified accounts. The minimum initial investment in Institutional Class shares is $1,000,000. The minimum subsequent investment is $100 for Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares. There is no minimum subsequent investment for Institutional Class shares. Investors may meet the minimum investment amount by aggregating multiple accounts within the Fund.
Purchases, exchanges and redemptions may be made directly or through institutional channels, such as financial intermediaries and retirement platforms. You should contact your financial intermediary or refer to your plan documents for information on how to invest in the Fund. Investor Class shareholders should call 1-855-828-9909 for more information on how to invest.
TAX INFORMATION
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Fund’s distributions may be taxed as ordinary income, capital gains, qualified dividend income or Section 199A dividends, except when your investment is in an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-qualified investment plan. Withdrawals from a tax-qualified investment plan are subject to special tax rules.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
6
Class A
Class C
Institutional Class
Investor Class
Russell 2000 Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
The Fund seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation.
This
table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and
sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage
commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected
in the tables and examples below.
|
Class A |
Class C |
Institutional
|
Investor
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maximum sales charge (load) on purchases (as a percentage of offering price) |
|
|
|
|
Maximum deferred sales charge (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or redemption proceeds) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Management Fees |
|
|
|
|
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Other Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Other Fund Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Shareholder Services Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
|
|
|
|
This example is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same.
|
1 YEAR |
3 YEARS |
5 YEARS |
10 YEARS |
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
|
|
|
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The Example does not reflect sales charges (loads) on dividends reinvested and other distributions. If these sales charges (loads) were included, your costs would be higher.
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). For U.S. federal income tax
purposes, a higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or
in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. A higher portfolio turnover rate
may also result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account.
During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was
7
Under normal conditions, the Fund typically invests in equity securities of U.S. and foreign companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, and securities convertible into common or preferred stocks.
The Fund utilizes a fundamental approach to choosing securities: the research staff of Emerald conducts company-specific research analysis to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group. Companies with perceived leadership positions and competitive advantages in niche markets that do not receive significant coverage from other institutional investors are favored.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. This includes smaller companies, which are defined by the Adviser as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2000 Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2000 Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $10.7 billion.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
Market Risk: Securities markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues. Such events include the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus and its variants (COVID-19), which has resulted in, and may continue to result in, significant global economic and societal disruption and market volatility. Such events also include Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine, which could have a negative impact on the economy and business activity globally. Economic and/or geopolitical developments in China may affect the global economy. These conditions may trigger a significant reduction in international trade and damage to China’s economy. Events such as these and their consequences are difficult to predict and could have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Historically, markets have moved in cycles, and the value of the Fund’s securities may fluctuate drastically from day to day. The Fund’s portfolio securities can be affected by events that affect the securities markets generally or particular segments of the market in which the Fund has invested. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments. The prices of securities issued by such companies may suffer a decline in response. These factors contribute to price volatility, which is a principal risk of investing in the Fund.
Equity Securities Risk: The risks associated with investing in equity securities of companies include the financial risk of selecting individual companies that do not perform as anticipated, the risk that the stock markets in which the Fund invests may experience periods of turbulence and instability, and the general risk that domestic and global economies may go through periods of decline and cyclical change. The price of equity securities can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues.
Managed Portfolio Risk: The Adviser’s investment strategies or choice of specific securities may be unsuccessful and may cause the Fund to incur losses.
Growth Stocks Risk: Growth-oriented stocks may be more sensitive to changes in current or expected earnings than other stocks. The market prices of companies believed to have good prospects for revenues and earnings growth tend to reflect those expectations. When it appears those expectations will not be met, the prices of these securities typically fall. In addition, if the market does not come to share the Adviser’s assessment of an investment’s long-term growth, the Fund may underperform other mutual funds or stock indexes.
Small and Medium Capitalization Stocks Risk: Investment in securities of medium- and smaller-sized companies presents greater investment risks than investing in the securities of larger companies. These risks include greater price volatility, greater sensitivity to changing economic conditions, and less liquidity than the securities of larger, more mature companies.
Foreign Securities Risk: To the extent the Fund invests in securities of foreign (non-U.S.) companies, the Fund may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than a fund that invests exclusively in securities of U.S. companies, due to less liquid markets and adverse economic, political, diplomatic, financial, and regulatory factors. Foreign governments also may impose limits on investment and repatriation and impose taxes. Any of these events could cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline.
Canadian Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in the securities of companies listed for trading in Canada. Investments in Canadian issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to Canada. Among other things, the Canadian economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States and China. The Canadian economy is sensitive to fluctuations in certain commodity markets.
Health Care Sector Risk. Factors such as extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products, services and facilities, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, costs associated with obtaining and protecting patents, product liability and other claims, changes in technologies and other market developments can affect companies in the health care sector.
8
Liquidity Risk: Liquidity risk is financial risk due to uncertain liquidity. An institution might lose liquidity if its credit rating falls, it experiences sudden unexpected cash outflows, or some other event causes counterparties to avoid trading with or lending to the institution. A firm is also exposed to liquidity risk if markets on which it depends are subject to loss of liquidity. Derivative based securities and privately issued mortgage-related securities and other asset-backed securities, which do not have a government or government-sponsored guarantee, that are subject to substantial market and credit risk may have greater liquidity risk. Less liquid securities may trade infrequently, trade at a smaller volume, and be quite volatile. This means that they may be harder to purchase or sell at a fair price or quickly enough to prevent or minimize loss.
Real Estate Securities and REITs Risk: Real estate investment trusts or “REITs” are issuers that invest in interests in real estate, including mortgages. Investing in REITs may subject the Fund to risks similar to those associated with the direct ownership of real estate, including fluctuations in the value of underlying properties and defaults by borrowers or tenants. REITs may not be diversified and are subject to heavy cash flow dependency and self-liquidation. REITs are also subject to the possibilities of failing to qualify for tax-free pass through of income under the Code and failing to maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). REITs may have limited financial resources, trade less frequently and in a limited volume, and be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than more widely held securities.
Securities Issued By Other Investment Companies Risk: The Fund may invest in shares of other investment companies, including other mutual funds, money market funds, ETFs, HOLDRs, unit investment trusts, and closed-end funds, to gain exposure to a particular portion of the market rather than purchase securities directly. Investing in another investment company exposes the Fund to all the risks of that investment company, and, in general, subjects it to a pro rata portion of the other investment company’s fees and expenses.
The following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing how the Fund’s performance has varied over time.
Year |
Return |
2014 |
|
2015 |
|
2016 |
|
2017 |
|
2018 |
- |
2019 |
|
2020 |
|
2021 |
|
2022 |
- |
2023 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
The Fund’s Class A share
as of was .
9
(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)
Emerald Growth |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
|
Class A (Inception Date of 10/01/92) |
|
|
|
|
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions* |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)*** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **** |
|
|
|
|
Class C (Inception Date of 07/01/00)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
|
Institutional Class (Inception Date of 10/21/08)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
|
Investor Class (Inception Date of 5/2/2011)** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000 Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 2000 Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
* |
|
** |
|
*** |
|
**** |
|
INVESTMENT ADVISER
Emerald is the investment adviser to the Fund.
EMERALD’S PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
The members of the team are: Kenneth G. Mertz II, CFA, President, Stacey L. Sears, Portfolio Manager, and Joseph W. Garner, Portfolio Manager and Director of Research for Emerald and its affiliates. Mr. Mertz, Ms. Sears and Mr. Garner are jointly and primarily responsible for the management of the Fund’s portfolio, and each has served as a portfolio manager of the Fund since inception in March 2012. Mr. Mertz had served as a portfolio manager of the Forward Growth Fund, the predecessor to the Fund, since its inception, Ms. Sears since 2002 and Mr. Garner since 2006.
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
The minimum initial investment in Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares is $2,000 for non-qualified accounts and $1,000 for qualified accounts. The minimum initial investment in Institutional Class shares is $1,000,000. The minimum subsequent investment is $100 for Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares. There is no minimum subsequent investment for Institutional Class shares. Investors may meet the minimum investment amount by aggregating multiple accounts within the Fund.
Purchases, exchanges and redemptions may be made directly or through institutional channels, such as financial intermediaries and retirement platforms. You should contact your financial intermediary or refer to your plan documents for information on how to invest in the Fund. Investor Class shareholders should call 1-855-828-9909 for more information on how to invest.
TAX INFORMATION
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Fund’s distributions may be taxed as ordinary income, capital gains, qualified dividend income or Section 199A dividends, except when your investment is in an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-qualified investment plan. Withdrawals from a tax-qualified investment plan are subject to special tax rules.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s Web site for more information.
10
Class A
Class C
Institutional Class
Investor Class
Russell 3000® Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
The Fund seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation.
This
table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and
sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage
commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected
in the tables and examples below.
|
Class A |
Class C |
Institutional
|
Investor
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maximum sales charge (load) on purchases (as a percentage of offering price) |
|
|
|
|
Maximum deferred sales charge (as a percentage of the lower of original purchase price or redemption proceeds) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Management Fees |
|
|
|
|
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Other Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Other Fund Expenses |
|
|
|
|
Shareholder Services Fees |
|
|
|
|
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(1) |
|
|
|
|
Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement(2) |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement(3) |
|
|
|
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
(3) |
|
This example is intended to help you compare the costs of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. This example reflects the net operating expenses with expense waivers through the current term of the Expense Agreement, which ends on August 31, 2025. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same.
|
1 YEAR |
3 YEARS |
5 YEARS |
10 YEARS |
You would pay the following expenses if you redeemed your Shares: |
|
|
|
|
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
|
|
|
Class A Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Class C Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Institutional Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class Shares |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The Example does not reflect sales charges (loads) on dividends reinvested and other distributions. If these sales charges (loads) were included, your costs would be higher.
11
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. These costs, which are not reflected in
annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance.
A higher portfolio turnover rate may also result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. During the most recent fiscal year, the
Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was
Under normal conditions, the Fund typically invests in equity securities of U.S. and foreign companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, and securities convertible into common or preferred stocks.
The Fund utilizes a fundamental approach to choosing securities: the Adviser’s research staff conducts company-specific research analysis to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group, generally considered to be, growth companies. The Adviser favors companies with perceived leadership positions and competitive advantages in niche markets that do not receive significant attention from published analysts or other institutional investors.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. The Fund will invest primarily in mid and small-size companies. The Adviser typically defines mid-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 3000® Growth Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 3000® Growth Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $3.4 trillion. The Adviser typically defines small-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2000 Growth Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2000 Growth Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $10.7 billion.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
Market Risk: Securities markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues. Such events include the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus and its variants (COVID-19), which has resulted in, and may continue to result in, significant global economic and societal disruption and market volatility. Such events also include Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine, which could have a negative impact on the economy and business activity globally. Economic and/or geopolitical developments in China may affect the global economy. These conditions may trigger a significant reduction in international trade and damage to China’s economy. Events such as these and their consequences are difficult to predict and could have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Historically, markets have moved in cycles, and the value of the Fund’s securities may fluctuate drastically from day to day. The Fund’s portfolio securities can be affected by events that affect the securities markets generally or particular segments of the market in which the Fund has invested. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments. The prices of securities issued by such companies may suffer a decline in response. These factors contribute to price volatility, which is a principal risk of investing in the Fund.
Equity Securities Risk: The risks associated with investing in equity securities of companies include the financial risk of selecting individual companies that do not perform as anticipated, the risk that the stock markets in which the Fund invests may experience periods of turbulence and instability, and the general risk that domestic and global economies may go through periods of decline and cyclical change. The price of equity securities can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues.
Managed Portfolio Risk: The Adviser’s investment strategies or choice of specific securities may be unsuccessful and may cause the Fund to incur losses.
Growth Stocks Risk: Growth-oriented stocks may be more sensitive to changes in current or expected earnings than other stocks. The market prices of companies believed to have good prospects for revenues and earnings growth tend to reflect those expectations. When it appears those expectations will not be met, the prices of these securities typically fall. In addition, if the market does not come to share the Adviser’s assessment of an investment’s long-term growth, the Fund may underperform other mutual funds or stock indexes.
Small and Medium Capitalization Stocks Risk: Investment in securities of small or medium-sized companies presents greater investment risks than investing in the securities of larger companies. These risks include greater price volatility, greater sensitivity to changing economic conditions, and less liquidity than the securities of larger, more mature companies.
Technology Sector Risk: To the extent the Fund invests in technology companies, the Fund is particularly vulnerable to factors affecting the technology sector, such as dependency on consumer and business acceptance as new technology evolves, large and rapid price movements resulting from competition, rapid obsolescence of products and services and short product cycles. Many technology companies are small and at an earlier stage of development and, therefore, may be subject to risks such as those arising out of limited product lines, markets and financial and managerial resources.
12
Foreign Securities Risk: To the extent the Fund invests in securities of foreign (non-U.S.) companies, the Fund may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than a fund that invests exclusively in securities of U.S. companies, due to less liquid markets and adverse economic, political, diplomatic, financial, and regulatory factors. Foreign governments also may impose limits on investment and repatriation and impose taxes. Any of these events could cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline.
Canadian Securities Risk: The Fund may invest in the securities of companies listed for trading in Canada. Investments in Canadian issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to Canada. Among other things, the Canadian economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States and China. The Canadian economy is sensitive to fluctuations in certain commodity markets.
The following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing how the Fund’s performance has varied over time.
Year |
Return |
2015 |
- |
2016 |
|
2017 |
|
2018 |
- |
2019 |
|
2020 |
|
2021 |
|
2022 |
- |
2023 |
|
— |
|
— |
|
The Fund’s Class A share
as of was .
13
(for the periods ended December 31, 2023)
Emerald Insights |
1 Year |
5 Years |
Since
|
|
Class A |
|
|
|
|
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions* |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)*** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**** |
|
|
|
|
Class C** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,****** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,******** |
|
|
|
|
Institutional Class** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,*** *** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,*** **** |
|
|
|
|
Investor Class** |
||||
Returns Before Taxes** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)**,*** *** |
|
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Growth Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) **,**** **** |
|
|
|
* |
|
** |
|
*** |
|
**** |
|
INVESTMENT ADVISER
Emerald is the investment adviser to the Fund.
EMERALD’S PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
David A. Volpe, CFA®, and Steve Amsterdam are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund's portfolio and make the final investment decisions for the Fund. Mr. Volpe, Managing Director of Emerald, has served as a portfolio manager since the Fund’s inception in July 2014. Mr. Amsterdam, Senior Research Analyst of Emerald, has served as an associate portfolio manager from 2014-2022 and a portfolio manager since 2023. Messrs. Volpe and Amsterdam are jointly and primarily responsible for the management of the Fund's portfolio.
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
The minimum initial investment in Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares is $2,000 for non-qualified accounts and $1,000 for qualified accounts. The minimum initial investment in Institutional Class shares is $1,000,000. The minimum subsequent investment is $100 for Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares. There is no minimum subsequent investment for Institutional Class shares. Investors may meet the minimum investment amount by aggregating multiple accounts within the Fund.
Purchases, exchanges and redemptions may be made directly or through institutional channels, such as financial intermediaries and retirement platforms. You should contact your financial intermediary or refer to your plan documents for information on how to invest in the Fund. Investor Class shareholders should call 1-855-828-9909 for more information on how to invest.
TAX INFORMATION
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Fund’s distributions may be taxed as ordinary income, capital gains, qualified dividend income or Section 199A dividends, except when your investment is in an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-qualified investment plan. Withdrawals from a tax-qualified investment plan are subject to special tax rules.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
14
EMERALD
FINANCE AND BANKING INNOVATION FUND
EMERALD GROWTH FUND
EMERALD INSIGHTS
FUND
(EACH A “FUND,” AND COLLECTIVELY, THE “FUNDS” OR THE “EMERALD FUNDS”)
Investment Objective and Principal Strategies
This section describes each Fund’s investment objective and principal investment strategies. See “More on Each Fund’s Investments and Related Risks” in this Prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information for more information about each Fund’s investments and the risks of investing.
What are the Funds’ Investment Objectives?
● |
The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation. Income is a secondary objective. |
● |
The Emerald Growth Fund seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation. |
● |
The Emerald Insights Fund seeks long-term growth through capital appreciation. |
While there is no assurance that any Fund will achieve its investment objective, each Fund endeavors to do so by following the strategies and policies described in this Prospectus.
Each Fund’s Board of Trustees (the “Board”) may change this investment objective or the Fund’s principal investment strategies without a shareholder vote. The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund will notify shareholders at least sixty (60) days prior to any change by the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund of its 80% investment policy.
If there is a material change to a Fund’s investment objective or principal investment strategies, you should consider whether the Fund remains an appropriate investment for you.
What are each Fund’s Principal Investment Strategies?
The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund
The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund has adopted an investment policy that it will, under normal conditions, invest at least 80% of the value of its assets (net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes) in stocks (both common and preferred) of companies principally engaged in banking or financial services, and collective investment vehicles such as mutual funds and exchange-traded funds that invest in companies that are principally engaged in banking and financial services as denoted by being classified as within the Banks, Financial Services, Insurance, or within the Transaction Processing Services SubSector (as determined by the Russell Industry Classification Benchmark). This requirement is applied at the time the Fund invests its assets. The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund’s policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in such a manner is non-fundamental, which means that it may be changed without shareholder approval. The 80% investment policy may be changed at any time by the Board of Trustees. Shareholders will be given written notice at least sixty (60) days prior to any change by the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund of its 80% investment policy.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. The Fund will invest primarily in mid and small-size companies, at the time of purchase. The Adviser typically defines mid and small-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2500 Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2500 Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $21.3 billion. Micro-cap stocks are not a principal investment strategy of the Fund. While the non-fundamental policy described above allows for the Fund to invest in companies that are principally engaged in either banking or financial services, the Fund has adopted a fundamental policy that it will invest not less than 25% of its net assets in securities of companies principally engaged in the banking industry and not less than 25% of its net assets in securities of companies principally engaged in the financial services industry. For purposes of this fundamental policy, a company is defined as being in the banking or financial services industries if such company is classified as within the Banks, Financial Services, Insurance, or within the Transaction Processing Services SubSector (as determined by the Russell Industry Classification Benchmark).
Companies in the banking industry are defined to include U.S. and foreign commercial and industrial banking and savings institutions and their parent holding companies. Companies in the financial services industry are defined to include commercial and industrial finance companies, diversified financial services companies, investment banking, securities brokerage and investment advisory companies, mortgage real estate investment trusts, insurance and insurance holding companies, leasing companies, and companies engaged in financial technology-related activities including decentralized finance and distributed ledger technology.
Financial technology is the application of new technological advancements to products and services in the financial industry, seeking to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services. Financial technology helps companies and consumers better manage their financial operations by utilizing specialized software. Financial technology companies compete with traditional financial methods in the delivery of financial services. Mobile banking, peer-to-peer lending, decentralized ledger technology and cryptocurrency are examples of financial technology.
The Fund may invest in stocks of special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”). The Fund does not target a particular form of SPAC, with the exception that the SPAC must have identified an acquisition target at or prior to the time of the Fund’s investment, and such target must be consistent with the ICB SuperSectors or SubSector outlined above.
Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust (“Emerald” or the “Adviser”) applies the theme of innovation to these investment guidelines by pursuing companies that the Adviser believes are reinventing/redesigning existing products/services thereby generating value for their customers, creating a competitive advantage and driving business growth.
15
The Adviser utilizes a growth approach to choosing securities based upon fundamental research which attempts to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group, exhibit a competitive advantage in niche markets, or do not receive significant coverage from other institutional investors.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
There are no limitations with respect to the type of REITs in which the Fund may invest.
At this time, the Fund will not invest directly in cryptocurrencies or initial coin offerings.
The Emerald Growth Fund
Under normal conditions, the Fund typically invests in equity securities of U.S. and foreign companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, and securities convertible into common or preferred stocks.
The Fund utilizes a fundamental approach to choosing securities: the research staff of Emerald conducts company-specific research analysis to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group. Companies with perceived leadership positions and competitive advantages in niche markets that do not receive significant coverage from other institutional investors are favored.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. This includes smaller companies, which are defined by the Adviser as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2000 Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2000 Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $10.7 billion.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
The Emerald Insights Fund
Under normal conditions, the Fund typically invests in equity securities of U.S. and foreign companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, and securities convertible into common or preferred stocks.
The Fund utilizes a fundamental approach to choosing securities: the Adviser’s research staff conducts company-specific research analysis to identify companies whose earnings growth rate exceeds that of their peer group, generally considered to be, growth companies. The Adviser favors companies with perceived leadership positions and competitive advantages in niche markets that do not receive significant attention from published analysts or other institutional investors.
The Fund can invest in companies from a wide range of industries and of various sizes. The Fund will invest primarily in mid and small-size companies. The Adviser typically defines mid-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 3000® Growth Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 3000® Growth Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $3.4 trillion. The Adviser typically defines small-size companies as those having a market capitalization equal to or less than that of the largest companies in the Russell 2000 Growth Index. As of July 1, 2024, the Russell 2000 Growth Index included securities issued by companies that ranged in size between $18 million and $10.7 billion.
The Fund generally sells investments when the Adviser concludes that better investment opportunities exist in other securities, the security is fully valued, or the issuer’s circumstances or the political or economic outlook have changed.
More on each Fund’s Investments and Related Risks
Each Fund’s investment objective and its principal investment strategies are described above under “Investment Objective and Principal Investment Strategies.” This section provides additional information about each Fund’s investment strategies and certain portfolio management techniques each Fund may use, as well as the principal and other risks that may affect each Fund’s portfolio. Additional information about some of these investments and portfolio management techniques and their associated risks is included in the Funds’ Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”), which is available without charge upon request (see back cover).
OTHER INVESTMENT POLICIES
Investment Limitations
Except with respect to the illiquid investment restrictions set forth below and as otherwise required by the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder, all limitations on each Fund’s investments listed in this Prospectus will apply at the time of investment. Each Fund would not violate these limitations unless an excess or deficiency occurs or exists immediately after and as a result of an investment. Unless otherwise indicated, references to assets in the percentage limitations on the Fund’s investments refer to total assets.
Cash Position
Each Fund may not always stay fully invested. For example, when the portfolio manager believes that market conditions are unfavorable for profitable investing, or when he is otherwise unable to locate attractive investment opportunities, the Fund’s cash or similar investments may increase. In other words, cash or similar investments generally are a residual – they represent the assets that remain after the Fund has committed available assets to desirable investment opportunities. When the Fund’s investments in cash or similar investments increase, it may not participate in market advance or declines to the same extent that it would if the Fund remained more fully invested.
16
Changes of Investment Policies
Certain of the Funds’ investment policies are non-fundamental investment policies, including the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund’s policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in stocks (both common and preferred) of companies principally engaged in the banking or financial services industries. Such non-fundamental investment policies may be changed at any time without shareholder approval by the Board of Trustees. The Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund will provide at least sixty (60) days prior to any change by the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund of its 80% investment policy. Unless expressly stated otherwise in the Prospectus or the Statement of Additional Information, any other investment policies or restrictions contained in the Prospectus or Statement of Additional Information are non-fundamental.
Temporary Defensive Positions
Each Fund may depart from its principal investment strategies in response to adverse market, economic or political conditions by taking temporary defensive positions in short-term debt securities, cash and cash equivalents. Under such circumstances, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
Illiquid Securities
A Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities (i.e., securities that do not have a readily available market or that are subject to resale restrictions). Generally, a security is considered illiquid if it cannot be disposed of in the ordinary course of business within seven days at approximately the price at which a Fund has valued the investment.
Additional Information Regarding Investment Strategies
With respect to any percentage restriction on investment or use of assets discussed in the relevant “Fund Summary” sections above, if such a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time a transaction is effected, a later increase or decrease in such percentage resulting from changes in values of securities or loans or amounts of net assets or security characteristics will not be considered a violation of the restriction. Any such changes in percentages do not require the sale of a security, but rather the Adviser will consider which action is in the best interest of a Fund and its shareholders, including the sale of the security.
What are the Principal and Non-Principal Risks of Investing in Each Fund?
There are inherent risks associated with each Fund’s principal investment strategies. The factors that are most likely to have a material effect on a particular Fund’s investment portfolio as a whole are called “principal risks.” The principal risks of each Fund are summarized in each Fund’s “Fund Summary” section above and further described following the table. This table identifies the principal risks of each Fund. For those principal risks, this table also identifies whether such each such risk is principal, non-principal, or not applicable for the other Funds covered by this Prospectus. For additional information regarding risks of investing in a Fund, please see the SAI.
Risks |
Emerald
|
Emerald
|
Emerald
|
Banking and Financial Services Industry Risk |
P |
N/A |
N/A |
Concentration Risk |
P |
N/A |
N/A |
Cryptocurrency Exposure Risk |
P |
N/A |
N/A |
Distributed Ledger Technology and Blockchain Investments Risk |
P |
N/A |
N/A |
Equity Securities Risk |
P |
P |
P |
Financial Technology Risk |
P |
N/A |
P |
Foreign Securities Risk |
P |
P |
P |
Growth Stocks Risk |
P |
P |
P |
Health Care Sector Risk |
N/A | P | NP |
Liquidity Risk |
P |
P |
NP |
Managed Portfolio Risk |
P |
P |
P |
Market Risk |
NP |
NP |
P |
Real Estate Securities and REITs |
P |
P |
NP |
Sector Risk |
P |
N/A |
N/A |
Securities Issued By Other Investment Companies Risk |
P |
P |
NP |
Small and Medium Capitalization Stocks Risk |
P |
P |
P |
Special Purpose Acquisition Company Risk |
P |
N/A |
P |
Technology Sector Risk |
N/A |
N/A |
P |
P = Principal Risk |
NP = Non-Principal Risk |
N/A = Not Applicable |
17
Banking- and Financial Services-Related Investments Risk
The banking and financial services industries represent only a portion of the overall economy and, therefore, a Fund that concentrates its investments in these industries may experience greater volatility than funds investing in a broader range of industries.
In addition, companies in these industries may be subject to additional risks such as increased competition within the sector or changes in legislation or government regulations affecting the banking and financial services industries. The value of a Fund’s shares is particularly vulnerable to factors affecting the banking and financial services industries, such as the availability and cost of capital funds, changes in interest rates, the rate of corporate and consumer debt defaults, extensive government regulation, and price competition.
There is a risk that those issuers (or the sector) will perform poorly and negatively impact the Fund.
Concentration Risk
A Fund that concentrates in the banking and financial services industries, such as the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund, may be subject to greater risks than a portfolio without such a concentration. Such a Fund will be particularly subject to the risks associated with regulatory developments in, or related to, the banking and financial services industries. Concentration risk results from maintaining exposure (long or short) to issuers conducting business in a specific industry. The risk of concentrating investments in a limited number of issuers in a particular industry is that the Fund will be more susceptible to the risks associated with that industry than a fund that does not concentrate its investments.
Cryptocurrency Exposure Risk
Cryptocurrency, often referred to as “virtual currency” or “digital currency,” operates as a decentralized, peer-to-peer financial exchange and value storage that is used like money. The Fund may have exposure to cryptocurrency, indirectly through an investment in an investment vehicle. Cryptocurrencies operate without central authority or banks and is not back by any government. Cryptocurrencies may experience very high volatility and related investment vehicles may be affected by such volatility. Cryptocurrency is not legal tender. Federal, state or foreign governments may restrict the use and exchange of cryptocurrency, and regulation in the U.S. is still developing. Cryptocurrency exchanges may stop operating or permanently shut down due to fraud, technical glitches, hackers or malware. Cryptocurrency markets are also potentially subject to market manipulation. As the Fund will not invest directly in cryptocurrencies and indirect cryptocurrency exposure will only be one component of the Fund’s investments, the Fund is not expected to track the price movements of cryptocurrencies.
18
Depositary Receipts Risk
Depositary receipts are securities issued by banks and other financial institutions that represent interests in the stocks of foreign companies. They include, but are not limited to, American Depositary Receipts, European Depositary Receipts, Global Depositary Receipts, Russian Depositary Certificates, Philippine Depositary Receipts, and Brazilian Depositary Receipts. Depositary receipts may be sponsored or unsponsored. Unsponsored depositary receipts are organized independently, without the cooperation of the issuer of the underlying securities. As a result, there may be less information available about the underlying issuer than there is about an issuer of sponsored depositary receipts and the prices may be more volatile than if such instruments were sponsored by the issuer. Investments in depositary receipts involve risks similar to those accompanying direct investments in foreign securities.
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Distributed Ledger Technology (“DLT”) and Blockchain Investments Risk
The Fund may invest in companies that are engaged in the use of, or have exposure to, DLT and blockchain. Distributed ledger technology (“DLT”) is similar to a database that is consensually shared, replicated, and synchronized. When an individual deposits a sum of money into a banking institution, the individual expects that the sum will be there until they decide to exchange it for goods or services. The individual expects the bank will have an accurate record of the transaction, such as the amount, depositor, date, and time of the deposit. More broadly, society relies on central repositories, such as banks or governments, to collect, maintain, and protect the recorded actions of individuals or institutions. DLT differs from centralized repositories in that it decentralizes the source of such expectations. An individual deposits funds into a digital wallet and the value is captured on the DLT. If this individual purchases a digital song, the transaction is captured in the DLT along with the change in fund level in the individual’s digital account. The bank is not required as a third party. Instead, the record is recorded in the DLT and shared by all the parties with access on the network.
Blockchain is a type of DLT and contains three core parts, the block, the chain, and the network.
The “Block” is a list of recorded transactions that remain on the chain forever. Transactions can represent virtually any type of activity from registering a land deed to a single purchase. Any rules relating to the block itself are established when the network is first created. For example, the maximum number of transactions in a block or the size of each block can be limited.
The “Chain” is created when the block reaches its maximum size of transactions; it is chained or linked to the preceding block through a “hash.” A hash is an algorithm that takes a variable string of data and generates a fixed length value. The hash value of one block is inserted into the next block. This makes a link between the new block and the previous block. Repeating a hash function on an unaltered block of data will always generate the same fixed-length value. If a block of data is altered, the resulting hash output will be different. A user can then see the hashes are different and will know the original block has been altered and may no longer be trustworthy.
The “Network” is a cluster of servers or “nodes” running a blockchain. Each node contains the complete record of all transactions on a blockchain. No centralized “official” copy exists and no node is “trusted” more than another. The data integrity is maintained by the blockchain’s replication on all of the nodes. Each blockchain has its own rules or algorithms governing how nodes validate transactions intended for entry into the blockchain. These rules are called a consensus mechanism and are established when the blockchain is created. Each blockchain has its own consensus mechanism depending on the type of transaction it is capturing. Some consensus mechanisms are known as “proof of work”, “proof of space” or “proof of stake.” These mechanisms facilitate authenticity, or the immutability of transaction records.
DLT companies are those committing material resources to developing, researching, supporting, innovating or utilizing DLT technology for their proprietary use or for use by others (“DLT Companies”). These DLT Companies are committing material resources to further the use and deployment of DLT, including blockchain, to seek to, for example, streamline the distribution and verification of cross-border payments; more efficiently store and secure cloud-based digital data; facilitate trusted transactions based on data security and privacy; and mitigate risk in supply chain management, among other uses.
Blockchain technology is an emerging technology that is capable of redefining how a record of value is transacted. Blockchain technology seeks to solve transactional challenges of counterparty trust and the need for a central repository or ledger by providing a transparent and secure process to transfer and digitally record information on a shared transaction database through a secure, decentralized, peer-to-peer distributed ledger. In this regard, it is designed to seek to facilitate the transfer of information or property between users such that the transfer is secure and known to all participants and shared across a distributed network where, once verified, the legitimacy of the transfer is established. Blockchain technology may be used to support a vast array of business applications in many different industries and markets, and the extent of its versatility has not yet been fully explored.
An investment in these companies may be subject to the following risks:
● |
The technology is new and many of its uses may be untested. The mechanics of using DLT to transact in other types of assets, such as securities or derivatives, is relatively new and untested. There is no assurance that widespread adoption will occur. A lack of expansion in the usage of DLT and/or blockchain technology could adversely affect an investment in Fund. A breach to one blockchain could cause investors, and the public generally, to lose trust in blockchain technology and increase reluctance to issue and invest in assets recorded on blockchains. Furthermore, DLT and blockchain technology is subject to a rapidly-evolving regulatory landscape in the United States and in other countries, which might include security, privacy or other regulatory concerns that could require changes to blockchain networks. |
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● |
Theft, loss or destruction. Transacting on a blockchain depends in part specifically on the use of cryptographic keys that are required to access a user’s account (or “wallet”). The theft, loss or destruction of these keys impairs the value of ownership claims users have over the relevant assets being represented by the ledger (whether “smart contracts,” securities, currency or other digital assets). The theft, loss or destruction of private or public keys needed to transact on a blockchain could also adversely affect a company’s business or operations if it were dependent on the ledger. |
● |
Cyber security incidents. Cyber security incidents may compromise an issuer, its operations or its business. Cyber security incidents may also specifically target a user’s transaction history, digital assets, or identity, thereby leading to privacy concerns. In addition, certain features of blockchain technology, such as decentralization, open source protocol, and reliance on peer-to-peer connectivity, may increase the risk of fraud or cyber-attack by potentially reducing the likelihood of a coordinated response. |
● |
Developmental risk. DLT and/or Blockchain technology may never develop optimized transactional processes that lead to realized economic returns for any company in which the Fund invests. Companies that are developing applications of blockchain technology applications may not in fact do so or may not be able to capitalize on those blockchain technologies. The development of new or competing platforms may cause consumers and investors to use alternatives to blockchains. |
● |
Intellectual property claims. A proliferation of recent startups attempting to apply DLT or blockchain technology in different contexts means the possibility of conflicting intellectual property claims could be a risk to an issuer, its operations or its business. This could also pose a risk to DLT or blockchain platforms that permit transactions in digital securities. Regardless of the merit of any intellectual property or other legal action, any threatened action that reduces confidence in the viability of DLT or blockchain may adversely affect an investment in the Fund. |
● |
Lack of liquid markets, and possible manipulation of blockchain-based assets. Digital assets that are represented and trade on a blockchain may not necessarily benefit from viable trading markets. Stock exchanges have listing requirements and vet issuers, and perhaps users. These conditions may not necessarily be replicated on a blockchain, depending on the platform’s controls and other policies. The more lenient a blockchain is about vetting issuers of digital assets or users that transact on the platform, the higher the potential risk for fraud or the manipulation of digital assets. These factors may decrease liquidity or volume, or increase volatility of digital securities or other assets trading on a blockchain. |
● |
Lack of regulation. Digital commodities and their associated platforms are largely unregulated, and the regulatory environment is rapidly evolving. Because blockchain works by having every transaction build on every other transaction, participants can self-police any corruption, which can mitigate the need to depend on the current level of legal or government safeguards to monitor and control the flow of business transactions. As a result, companies engaged in such blockchain activities may be exposed to adverse regulatory action, fraudulent activity or even failure. |
● |
Third party product defects or vulnerabilities. Where blockchain systems are built using third party products, those products may contain technical defects or vulnerabilities beyond a company’s control. Open-source technologies that are used to build a blockchain application may also introduce defects and vulnerabilities. |
● |
Reliance on the Internet. Blockchain functionality relies on the Internet. A significant disruption of Internet connectivity affecting large numbers of users or geographic areas could impede the functionality of blockchain technologies and adversely affect the Fund. |
● |
Line of business risk. Some of the companies in which the Fund may invest are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to DLT or blockchain and these lines of business could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in activities linked to its use of DLT or blockchain, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition. |
Equity Securities Risk
A Fund may invest in equity securities, which include common, preferred, and convertible preferred stocks and securities with values that are tied to the price of stocks, such as rights, warrants, and convertible debt securities. Common and preferred stocks represent equity ownership in a company. The price of equity securities can fluctuate, at times dramatically, based on changes in a company’s financial condition and overall market and economic conditions. The value of equity securities purchased by a Fund could decline if the financial condition of the companies decline or if overall market and economic conditions deteriorate. The price of equity securities can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues.
Many factors affect an individual company’s performance, such as the strength of its management or the demand for its product or services, and a company’s performance may also be impacted by developments affecting the particular issuer or its industry or geographic sector. As a result, individual companies may not perform as anticipated. Furthermore, stock markets in which a Fund invests may experience periods of turbulence and instability and domestic and global economies may go through periods of decline and change, which may negatively impact the price of equity securities.
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A Fund may invest in securities of varying market capitalizations. Investments in high quality or “blue chip” equity securities or securities of established companies with large market capitalizations, like those with small market capitalizations, can be negatively impacted by poor overall market and economic conditions. Companies with large market capitalizations may also have less growth potential than smaller companies and may be able to react less quickly to changes in the marketplace. Convertible securities, like fixed-income securities, tend to increase in value when interest rates decline and decrease in value when interest rates increase and may also be affected by changes in the value of the underlying common stock into which the securities may be converted. Convertible securities with longer maturities tend to be more sensitive to changes in interest rates and more volatile than convertible securities with shorter maturities. In addition, issuers of convertible securities that pay fixed interest and dividends may default on interest or principal payments, and an issuer may have the right to buy back certain convertible securities at a time and a price that is unfavorable to a Fund.
Financial Technology Risk
Companies that are developing financial technologies that seek to disrupt or displace established financial institutions generally face competition from much larger and more established firms. Financial technology companies may not be able to capitalize on their disruptive technologies if they face political and/or legal attacks from competitors, industry groups or local and national governments. Laws generally vary by country, creating some challenges to achieving scale. These financial technology companies may not currently derive any revenue, and there is no assurance that such company will derive any revenue from innovative technologies in the future. Additionally, financial technology companies may be adversely impacted by potential rapid product obsolescence, cybersecurity attacks, increased regulatory oversight and disruptions in the technology they depend on.
Foreign Securities Risk
To the extent the Fund invests in securities of foreign (non-U.S.) companies, the Fund may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than a fund that invests exclusively in securities of U.S. companies, due to less liquid markets and adverse economic, political, diplomatic, financial, and regulatory factors. Foreign investments can involve significant risks in addition to the risks inherent in U.S. investments. Such risks include adverse political and economic developments or social instability; the imposition of foreign withholding taxes or exchange controls; expropriation or nationalization; currency blockage (which could prevent cash from being brought back to the United States); the impact of exchange rate and foreign currency fluctuations on the market value of foreign securities; more limited availability of public information regarding security issuers; the degree of governmental supervision regarding securities markets; different accounting, auditing and financial standards; and difficulties in enforcing legal rights (particularly with regard to depository receipts in which the holders may not have the same rights as shareholders).Foreign governments also may impose limits on investment and repatriation and impose taxes. Any of these events could cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline.
The Fund may invest in American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). ADRs are certificates evidencing ownership of shares of a foreign-based issuer held in trust by a bank or similar financial institution. They are alternatives to the direct purchase of the underlying securities in their national markets and currencies. ADRs are subject to risks similar to those associated with direct investment in foreign securities.
Furthermore, non-U.S. taxes also could detract from performance. Companies based in non-U.S. countries may not be subject to accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards and practices as stringent as those in the United States. Therefore, their financial reports may present an incomplete, untimely or misleading picture of a non-U.S. company, as compared to the financial reports of U.S. companies. To the extent the Fund invests in foreign debt securities, such investments are sensitive to changes in interest rates. Additionally, investments in securities of foreign governments involve the risk that a foreign government may not be willing or able to pay interest or repay principal when due.
Canadian Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of companies listed for trading in Canada. Investments in Canadian issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risk specific to Canada. Among other things, the Canadian economy is heavily dependent on relationships with certain key trading partners, including the United States and China. The Canadian economy is sensitive to fluctuations in certain commodity markets.
Growth Stocks Risk
Growth oriented stocks may be more sensitive to changes in current or expected earnings than other stocks. The market prices of companies believed to have good prospects for revenues and earnings growth tend to reflect those expectations. When it appears those expectations will not be met, the prices of these securities typically fall. In addition, if the market does not come to share the Adviser’s assessment of an investment’s long term growth, a Fund may underperform other mutual funds or stock indexes.
Health Care Sector Risk
Factors that may affect the profitability of companies in the health care sector include extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products, services and facilities, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products and product obsolescence due to industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. A major source of revenue for the health care sector is payments from Medicare and Medicaid programs. As a result, the sector is sensitive to legislative changes and reductions in governmental spending for such programs, as well as state or local health care reform measures. Companies in the health care sector depend heavily on patent protection. The process of obtaining patent approval can be long and costly, and the expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of companies in this sector. Health care companies also are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may make raising prices difficult and, at times, may result in price discounting. In addition, companies in the health care sector may be thinly capitalized and therefore may be susceptible to product obsolescence.
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Liquidity Risk
Liquidity risk is financial risk due to uncertain liquidity. An institution might lose liquidity if its credit rating falls, it experiences sudden unexpected cash outflows, or some other event causes counterparties to avoid trading with or lending to the institution. A firm is also exposed to liquidity risk if markets on which it depends are subject to loss of liquidity. Derivative based securities and privately issued mortgage related securities and other asset backed securities, which do not have a government or government sponsored guarantee, that are subject to substantial market and credit risk may have greater liquidity risk. Less liquid securities may trade infrequently, trade at a smaller volume, and be quite volatile. This means that they may be harder to purchase or sell at a fair price or quickly enough to prevent or minimize loss.
Managed Portfolio Risk
The Adviser’s investment strategies or choice of specific securities may be unsuccessful and may cause the Fund to incur losses.
Market Risk
Securities markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to issuer, political, market, and economic developments including interest rate levels, political events, natural disasters and the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues. Such events include the pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus and its variants (COVID-19), which has resulted in, and may continue to result in, significant global economic and societal disruption and market volatility. Such events also include Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine, which could have a negative impact on the economy and business activity globally. Economic and/or geopolitical developments in China may affect the global economy. These conditions may trigger a significant reduction in international trade and damage to China’s economy. Events such as these and their consequences are difficult to predict and could have a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. Historically, markets have moved in cycles, and the value of a Fund’s securities may fluctuate drastically from day to day. A Fund’s portfolio securities can be affected by events that affect the securities markets generally or particular segments of the market in which the Fund has invested. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments. The prices of securities issued by such companies may suffer a decline in response. These factors contribute to price volatility, which is a principal risk of investing in a Fund.
Real Estate Securities and REITs Risk
The Funds do not concentrate investments in opportunities in the real estate industry but may otherwise invest in real estate related securities, which may pose certain risks associated with investments in entities focused on real estate activities. Real estate investment trusts or “REITs” are issuers that invest in interests in real estate, including mortgages. Investing in REITs may subject a Fund to risks similar to those associated with the direct ownership of real estate, including fluctuations in the value of underlying properties and defaults by borrowers or tenants. REITs may not be diversified and are subject to heavy cash flow dependency and self-liquidation. REITs are also subject to the possibilities of failing to qualify for tax free pass through of income under the Code and failing to maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act. REITs may have limited financial resources, trade less frequently and in a limited volume, and be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than more widely held securities. In addition, the organizational documents of a REIT may give the trust’s sponsors the ability to control the operation of the REIT even though another person or entity could own a majority of the interests of the trust. These trusts may also contain provisions which would delay or make a change in control of the REIT difficult.
A Fund is also subject to the risks associated with direct ownership of real estate. Real estate values can fluctuate as a result of general and local economic conditions, overbuilding and increased competition, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, casualty or condemnation losses, regulatory limitations on rents, changes in neighborhood values, changes in the appeal of properties to tenants, increases in interest rates, and defaults by borrowers or tenants. The value of equities that service the real estate business sector may also be affected by such risks.
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Securities Issued By Other Investment Companies Risk
A Fund may invest in shares of other investment companies, including other mutual funds, money market funds, ETFs, HOLDRs, unit investment trusts, and closed-end funds, to gain exposure to a particular portion of the market rather than purchase securities directly. Investing in another investment company exposes a Fund to all the risks of that investment company, and, in general, subjects it to a pro rata portion of the other investment company’s fees and expenses.
Sector Risk
Sector risk is the possibility that all stocks within the same group of industries will decline in price due to sector-specific market or economic developments. The Fund may be overweight in certain sectors at various times.
Small or Medium Capitalization Stocks Risk
Investment in securities of medium-or small-sized companies presents greater investment risks than investing in the securities of larger companies. These risks include greater price volatility, greater sensitivity to changing economic conditions, and less liquidity than the securities of larger, more mature companies. The trading volume of securities of medium-sized or smaller companies is normally less than that of larger companies and, therefore, may disproportionately affect their market price, tending to make prices fall more in response to selling pressure than is the case with larger companies. Medium-sized or smaller companies may also have limited markets, product lines, or financial resources, and may lack management experience.
Special Purpose Acquisition Company Risk
The Fund may invest in stock, rights, warrants, and other securities of special purpose acquisition companies or similar special purpose entities (collectively, “SPACs”). A SPAC is a publicly traded company that raises investment capital in the form of a blind pool via an initial public offering (“IPO”) for the purpose of acquiring an existing company. The typical SPAC IPO involves the sale of units consisting of one share of common stock combined with one or more warrants or fractions of warrants to purchase common stock at a fixed price upon or after consummation of the acquisition. Shortly after the SPAC’s IPO, such units typically are split into publicly listed common stock and warrants (and rights, if applicable) which are each listed and traded separately. The proceeds from the IPO are placed in trust until such time that the SPAC identifies and consummates the acquisition. A SPAC generally invests the proceeds of its IPO (less a portion retained to cover expenses), which are held in trust, in U.S. government securities, money market securities and cash. If the SPAC does not complete the acquisition within a specified period of time after going public, the SPAC is dissolved, at which point the invested funds are returned to the entity’s shareholders (less certain permitted expenses) and any rights or warrants issued by the SPAC expire worthless. SPACs are often subject to extreme price volatility and speculative trading. Some SPACs may pursue acquisitions only within certain industries or regions, which may increase the volatility of their prices. In addition, SPACs may have little to no liquidity, and may trade at a discount to NAV.
SPACs are “blank check” companies with no operating history and, at the time that the Fund invests in a SPAC, the SPAC typically has not conducted any discussions or made any plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective transaction candidates. Accordingly, there is a limited basis, if any, on which to evaluate the SPAC’s ability to achieve its business objective, and the value of its securities is particularly dependent on the ability of the entity’s management to identify and complete a profitable acquisition. The SPACs in which the Fund may invest may have less publicly available information than that which is available in connection with traditional IPOs, and early investors in a SPAC may invest solely on the reputation of the SPAC’s sponsor. Additionally, the value of a SPAC’s securities can by highly volatile and may depreciate over time. While certain SPACs are formed to make transactions in specified market sectors, others are complete “blank check” companies, and the management of the SPAC may have limited experience or knowledge of the market sector in which the transaction is made. Accordingly, at the time that the Fund invests in a SPAC, there may be little or no basis for the Fund to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the particular industry in which the SPAC may ultimately operate or the target business which the SPAC may ultimately acquire, and the Fund may invest in a SPAC at a higher price, which would reduce the return to shareholders. A SPAC will not generate any revenues until, at the earliest, after the consummation of a transaction. There can be no assurance that a market will develop.
The proceeds of a SPAC IPO that are placed in trust are subject to risks, including the risk of insolvency of the custodian of the funds, fraud by the trustee, interest rate risk and credit and liquidity risk relating to the securities and money market funds in which the proceeds are invested. Among other conflicts of interest, an investment in a SPAC may include the potential for misalignment of incentives in the structure of the SPAC. In addition, the economic interests of the management, directors, officers and related parties of a SPAC can differ from the economic interests of public shareholders, which may lead to conflicts as they evaluate, negotiate and recommend business combination transactions to shareholders. This risk may become more acute as the deadline for the completion of a business combination nears or in the event that attractive acquisition or merger targets become scarce.
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Technology Sector Risk
To the extent the Fund invests in technology companies, the Fund is particularly vulnerable to factors affecting the technology sector, such as dependency on consumer and business acceptance as new technology evolves, large and rapid price movements resulting from competition, rapid obsolescence of products and services and short product cycles. Many technology companies are small and at an earlier stage of development and, therefore, may be subject to risks such as those arising out of limited product lines, markets and financial and managerial resources.
Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings
The Trust’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Funds’ portfolio securities are described in the Funds’ SAI.
Management
Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust (“Emerald” or the “Adviser”), subject to the authority of the Board of Trustees, is responsible for the overall management and administration of each Fund’s business affairs. The Adviser commenced business operations in 2005 and is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser. Emerald is located at 3175 Oregon Pike, Leola, Pennsylvania 17540. Emerald is a wholly owned subsidiary of Emerald Advisers, LLC, the former investment advisor to these Funds, and is located at the same address as that of Emerald. As of June 30, 2024, Emerald Advisers, LLC and its affiliates had approximately $4.5 billion in assets under management.
Pursuant to the Investment Advisory and Management Agreement (the “Advisory Agreement”), the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund pays the Adviser an annual management fee of 1% based on the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund’s average daily net assets, the Emerald Growth Fund pays the adviser an annual management fee of 0.75% based on the Emerald Growth Fund’s average daily net assets, and the Emerald Insights Fund pays the Adviser an annual management fee of 0.75% based on the Emerald Insights Fund’s average daily net assets. The management fee is paid on a monthly basis. The current term of the Advisory Agreement is one year. The Board may extend the Advisory Agreement for additional one-year terms. The Board, shareholders of the Fund, or the Adviser may terminate the Advisory Agreement upon sixty (60) days’ notice. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the renewal of the Advisory Agreement with respect to each Fund was provided in the Funds’ annual report to shareholders for the period ended April 30, 2024. Fees are subject to the following breakpoints:
Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund |
1.00% up to and including $100,000,000 0.90% in excess of $100,000,000 |
Emerald Growth Fund |
0.75% up to and including $250 million 0.65% over $250 million up to and including $500 million 0.55% over $500 million up to and including $750 million 0.45% over $750 million |
Emerald Insights Fund |
0.75% up to and including $250 million 0.65% over $250 million up to and including $500 million 0.55% over $500 million up to and including $750 million 0.45% over $750 million |
Emerald has contractually agreed to waive a portion of its fees and reimburse other expenses in amounts necessary to limit the Fund’s operating expenses (exclusive of acquired fund fees and expenses, brokerage expenses, interest expense, taxes and extraordinary expense) for each of its Funds. For the Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund for Class A, Class C, Institutional Class, and Investor Class shares to an annual rate (as percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets) of 1.84%, 2.49%, 1.54% and 1.89% respectively; for the Emerald Growth Fund for Class A, Class C, Institutional Class, and Investor Class shares to an annual rate (as percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets) of 1.29%, 1.94%, 0.99% and 1.34% respectively; and for the Emerald Insights Fund for Class A, Class C, Institutional Class, and Investor Class shares to an annual rate (as percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets) of 1.35%, 2.00%, 1.05% and 1.40%, respectively. This agreement (the “Expense Agreement”) shall continue at least through August 31, 2025. The Adviser will be permitted to recapture, on a class-by-class basis, expenses it has borne through the Expense Agreement to the extent that the Fund’s expenses in later periods fall below the annual rates set forth in the Expense Agreement; provided, however, that such recapture payments do not cause the Fund’s expense ratio (after recapture) to exceed the lesser of (i) the expense cap in effect at the time of the waiver and (ii) the expense cap in effect at the time of the recapture. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Fund will not pay any such deferred fees and expenses more than three years after the date on which the fees and expenses were deferred. The Adviser may not discontinue this waiver, prior to August 31, 2025, without the approval by the Fund’s Board of Trustees.
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During the most recent fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, each Fund paid the following annual advisory fee as a percentage of daily net assets (net of waivers) to the Fund’s investment advisor. Daily investment decisions are made by the portfolio managers, whose investment experience is described below under the heading “Portfolio Managers.”
Fund Name |
Total
Annual |
Annual
advisory fee to |
Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund |
1.00% |
1.00% |
Emerald Growth Fund |
0.61% |
0.61% |
Emerald Insights Fund |
0.75% |
0.08% |
The Portfolio Managers
More information about each manager’s compensation, other accounts managed by each manager and each manager’s ownership of securities in the Funds is included in the SAI.
The portfolio managers are primarily responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Fund. To the extent there is more than one portfolio manager of a Fund, the portfolio managers are jointly and primarily responsible for the management of the applicable Fund. Each of the persons listed below has served as the Fund’s portfolio manager from the Fund’s inception. Where more than one portfolio manager is identified, the Fund’s portfolio managers collectively arrive at investment decisions.
FUND |
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS |
PAST 5 YEARS’ BUSINESS EXPERIENCE |
Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund |
Kenneth G. Mertz II, CFA®* |
Mr. Mertz has been the Chief Investment Officer & President of Emerald since 2005 and of Emerald Advisers, LLC since October 1992. Before joining Emerald, Mr. Mertz was the Chief Investment Officer to the Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System. |
Emerald Finance and Banking Innovation Fund |
Steven E. Russell, Esq. |
Mr. Russell is a Portfolio Manager & Senior Research Analyst of Emerald Advisers, LLC. Prior to rejoining Emerald Advisers in 2005, Mr. Russell founded a registered investment adviser and served as Managing Director of a private equity firm. Mr. Russell served as a portfolio manager and officer of Emerald Advisers from 1998 to 2004. He has also served as a portfolio manager for the Pennsylvania Public School Employee’s Retirement System. |
Emerald Growth Fund |
Kenneth G. Mertz II, CFA® |
Mr. Mertz’s biographical information appears above. |
Emerald Growth Fund |
Stacey L. Sears |
Ms. Sears is Vice President of Emerald Advisers, LLC and of Emerald. Ms. Sears was employed by Emerald’s parent company from 1992 to 2001, and from 1995 to 2000, served as a Research Analyst. She became an assistant portfolio manager to Mr. Mertz in 2001. In 2002, Ms. Sears became a Portfolio Manager. |
Emerald Growth Fund |
Joseph W. Garner |
Mr. Garner is the Director of Research for Emerald Advisers, a position he has held since January 1995. Mr. Garner has been employed by Emerald Advisers, since April 1994 as an analyst, focusing on small to mid-size firms. He holds an M.B.A. |
Emerald Insights Fund |
David A. Volpe, CFA®*, Portfolio Manager |
Mr. Volpe is Deputy Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director of Emerald Advisers and President of Emerald Asset Management PA, LLC with 30 years of investment experience. He is Portfolio Manager of the Emerald MidCap Growth product and the Emerald Growth Opportunities (multi-cap) product. Mr. Volpe joined Emerald in 2000. Mr. Volpe maintains research coverage of the Energy industry. Prior to joining Emerald, he served as First Deputy City Controller of the City of Philadelphia, and also Chief Investment Officer of the Philadelphia Gas Works Pension System. Prior to working for the City of Philadelphia, Mr. Volpe was a senior budget analyst for the Pennsylvania State Senate Appropriations Committee, and served as an alternate member on both the Pennsylvania State Employees’ and Pennsylvania School Employees’ Retirement Systems. Mr. Volpe is a board member and Finance Committee Chair of Merakey, Inc., and a member of the CFA Institute. Mr. Volpe earned a BA in Political Science from Potsdam College and a Masters in Public Administration from Penn State University. |
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FUND |
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS |
PAST 5 YEARS’ BUSINESS EXPERIENCE |
Emerald Insights Fund |
Stephen L. Amsterdam, Portfolio Manager |
Mr. Amsterdam is a Portfolio Manager of the Emerald Mid Cap Growth and the Emerald Growth Opportunities (multi-cap) product. He is also a Senior Research Analyst and a member of the Emerald Advisers Technology Research Team. He has been with Emerald since 2001 and currently focuses his efforts on network infrastructure, optical technologies, embedded electronics, and unified communications. Prior to joining Emerald Asset Management, Mr. Amsterdam spent a decade investing in, and advising, early stage technology companies as a founding managing director of PA Early Stage Partners, a $50M early stage venture capital fund and senior associate of TLVentures, an $800M venture capital fund associated with Safeguard Scientifics, Inc. He is a graduate of Lehigh University. |
Emerald Insights Fund |
* |
CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are trademarks owned by CFA Institute. |
Administrator, Distributor and Transfer Agent of the Funds
ALPS Fund Services, Inc. (the “Transfer Agent”) serves as the Funds’ administrator, fund accounting agent and transfer agent. ALPS Distributors, Inc. (“ADI” or the “Distributor”) serves as the Funds’ distributor.
Buying, Exchanging and Redeeming Shares
Each Fund currently offers Class A, Class C, Institutional Class, and Investor Class shares. Each share class of a Fund represents an investment in the same portfolio of securities, but each share class has its own sales charge and expense structure, allowing you to choose the class that best meets your situation. When you purchase shares of a Fund, you must choose a share class.
Factors you should consider in choosing a class of shares include:
● |
how long you expect to own the shares; |
● |
how much you intend to invest; |
● |
total expenses associated with owning shares of each class; and |
● |
whether you qualify for any reduction or waiver of sales charges (for example, Class A shares may be a less expensive option over time if you qualify for a sales charge reduction or waiver). |
Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares are generally available directly or in connection with investments through retirement plans, broker-dealers, bank trust departments, financial advisors and other financial intermediaries.
Institutional Class shares are sold primarily to investors purchasing through a fee-based program with their investment adviser or broker dealer, through a 401(k) plan in which they participate, or, for certain institutional investors through direct purchases from a Fund in quantities of $1 million or more. Institutional investors may include, but are not limited to: corporations, retirement plans, public plans and foundations/endowments.
Not all financial intermediaries offer all classes of shares. Each investor’s financial considerations are different. You should speak with your financial advisor to help you decide which share class is best for you. If your financial intermediary offers more than one class of shares, you should carefully consider which class of shares to purchase. Certain classes have higher expenses than other classes, which may lower the return on your investment.
Distribution and Services (12b-1) Plan for Class A and Investor Class Shares
Each Fund has adopted a separate plan of distribution for its Class A and Investor Class shares, pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act (each, a “Plan” and collectively, the “Plans”).
Under the terms of the Plans, the Funds are authorized to make payments to the Distributor for remittance to financial intermediaries, as a pay compensation for distribution and/or shareholder on-going services to be performed by such financial intermediaries for beneficial shareholders of the Funds. The Plans permit payment for services and related expenses in connection with a financial intermediary’s administration of mutual fund distribution platforms that offer Class A and/or Investor Class shares of the Funds.
The Plans permit each Fund to make payments at an annual rate of up to 0.35% of a Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to its Class A shares and 0.25% of a Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to its Investor Class shares. Because these fees are paid out of a Fund’s Class A and Investor Class Shares’ assets on an ongoing basis, over time they will increase the cost of an investment in Class A and Investor Class shares, and Plan fees may cost an investor more than other types of sales charges.
The Distributor may retain some or all compensation payable pursuant to the Plans under certain circumstances, including but not limited to, such as if a financial intermediary resigns as the broker/dealer of record, or such financial intermediary fails to meet certain eligibility standards to be able to continue to be the broker/dealer of record.
Distribution and Services (12b-1) Plan and Shareholder Services Plan for Class C Shares
Each Fund has adopted a plan of distribution for its Class C shares, pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act (each, a “Class C Distribution Plan” and collectively, the “Class C Distribution Plans”).
The Class C Distribution Plans allow each Fund, as applicable, to use Class C shares’ assets to pay compensation in connection with the distribution and marketing of Class C shares. Each Class Distribution Plan permits payment for services in connection with the administration of programs that use Class C shares of a Fund as their funding medium and for related expenses.
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The Class C Distribution Plans permit each Fund to make payments at an annual rate of up to 0.75% of a Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to its Class C shares. Because these fees are paid out of a Fund’s Class C shares’ assets on an ongoing basis, over time they will increase the cost of an investment in Class C shares, and Class C Distribution Plan fees may cost an investor more than other types of sales charges.
Furthermore, each Fund’s Class C shares has also adopted a shareholder servicing plan on behalf of Class C shares (each, a “Class C Services Plan” and collectively, the “Class C Service Plans”). Each Fund’s Class C shares is, under the terms of its Class C Services Plan, authorized to make payments to ADI as compensation to financial intermediaries for providing on-going shareholder liaison services performed by such financial intermediaries on behalf of a Fund’s Class C shareholders.
The Class C Services Plans permit each Fund, as applicable, to make payments at an annual rate of up to 0.25% of a Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to its Class C shares. Because these service fees are paid out of a Fund’s Class C shares’ assets on an ongoing basis, over time they will increase the cost of an investment in Class C shares, and Class C Services Plan fees may cost an investor more than other types of sales charges.
Under the Class C Distribution Plans and Class C Service Plans, the Distributor is entitled to retain all fees paid under the Class C Distribution Plans and Class C Services Plans for the first 12 months on any investment in Class C shares to recoup expenses with respect to the payment of commissions on sales of Class C shares. Financial intermediaries will become eligible to receive such compensation beginning in the 13th month following the purchase of Class C shares. However, the Distributor may, pursuant to a written agreement between the Distributor and a particular financial intermediary, pay such financial intermediary compensation prior to the 13th month following the purchase of Class C shares. The Distributor may retain some or all compensation payable in certain circumstances, including but not limited to, when certain qualification standards have not been met by a financial intermediary.
Shareholder Services Plan for Institutional Class and Investor Class Shares
Each Fund has adopted a non-Rule 12b-1 shareholder services plan with respect to the Funds’ Institutional Class shares, and each Fund has adopted a non-Rule 12b-1 shareholder services plan with respect to the Funds Investor Class shares (each a “Services Plan” and collectively the “Services Plans”). Under the Services Plans, a Fund is authorized to pay select financial intermediaries and/or Fund affiliates (“Participating Organizations”), for non-distribution related services provided to shareholders of each respective class.
Payments under the Services Plans are calculated daily and paid monthly, and the aggregate fees on an annual basis are not to exceed 0.05% for Institutional Class shares of the average daily net asset value of the Institutional Class shares of a Fund and 0.15% for Investor Class shares of the average daily net asset value of the Investor Class shares of a Fund on assets held in the name of a Participating Organization. The foregoing fees are paid as compensation to the Participating Organization for providing some are all of the following on-going services: (i) establishing and maintaining Fund shareholder accounts, (ii) aggregating, processing and transmitting Fund shareholder orders and instructions regarding accounts, (ii) processing dividend and other distribution payments from each Fund on behalf of shareholders, (iv) preparing reports or forms on behalf of shareholders, (v) forwarding communications from each Fund to shareholders, and (vi) providing such other similar services as applicable statutes, rules or regulations permit. None of the aforementioned services includes distribution related services or activities. Any amount of such payment not paid during the Fund’s fiscal year for such service activities shall be reimbursed to such Fund. Any amount of such payment not paid during a Fund’s fiscal year for such service activities shall be reimbursed to such Fund as soon as practicable after the end of the fiscal year.
Because these services fees are paid out of assets attributable to each Fund’s Institutional Class and Investor Class shares on an ongoing basis, over time these fees will increase the cost of an investment in such shares and may cost more than other types of sales charges.
Networking, Sub-Accounting and Administrative Fees
Select financial intermediaries may enter into arrangements with each Fund, or its designees, to perform certain networking, recordkeeping, sub-accounting and/or administrative services for shareholders each Fund. These activities are routinely processed through the National Securities Clearing Corporation’s Fund/SERV and Trust Networking systems or similar systems. In consideration for providing these services in an automated environment, such financial intermediaries may receive compensation from each Fund. Any such compensation by each Fund to these select financial intermediaries for the aforementioned services are in addition to any distribution related services provided to applicable Fund shareholders.
Payments to Select Financial Intermediaries and Other Arrangements
The Adviser and/or its affiliates may enter into arrangements to make payments for additional activities to select financial intermediaries intended to result in the sale of Fund shares and/or other shareholder servicing activities out of the Adviser’s own resources (which may include profits from providing advisory services to each Fund). These payments are often referred to as “revenue sharing payments” and the revenue sharing payment amount generally vary by financial intermediary. The aggregate amount of the revenue sharing payments are determined by the Adviser and may be substantial. Revenue sharing payments create no additional cost to each Fund or its applicable shareholders.
Revenue sharing payments may create an incentive for a financial intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend or sell shares of each Fund to you, rather than shares of another mutual fund. Please contact your financial intermediary’s investment professional for details about revenue sharing payments it may be receiving.
Tax Information
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Fund’s distributions will be taxed as ordinary income, capital gains, qualified dividend income or Section 199A dividends, except when your investment is in an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-qualified investment plan. Subsequent withdrawals from a tax-qualified investment plan will be subject to special tax rules.
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Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase a Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Funds over another investment.
Certain broker-dealers may regard Institutional Class shares as being “clean” shares, since they do not contain any front-end load, deferred sales charge, or other asset-based fees for sales or distribution. Certain brokers may charge investors commissions or other charges on brokerage transactions in “clean” shares. Shares of the Funds are available in other share classes that have different fees and expenses.
Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s Web site for more information.
Investment Minimums
You can open an account and make an initial purchase of any class shares of the Funds directly from the Funds or through a financial intermediary that has established an agreement with the Funds’ distributor. Certain classes thereof may not be available for purchase in your state of residence. Please check with your financial intermediary to ensure your eligibility to purchase a Fund or a class of a Fund.
Purchases, exchanges and redemptions can generally be made directly or through institutional channels, such as financial intermediaries and retirement platforms. You should contact your financial intermediary or refer to your plan documents for information on how to invest in the Fund. Requests must be received in good order by the Fund or its agent (financial intermediary or plan sponsor, if applicable) prior to the close of the regular trading session of the New York Stock Exchange (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) in order to receive that day’s net asset value.
The minimum initial investment in Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares is $2,000 for non-qualified accounts and $1,000 for qualified accounts. The minimum initial investment in Institutional Class shares is $1,000,000. The minimum subsequent investment is $100 for Class A, Class C and Investor Class shares. There is no minimum subsequent investment for Institutional Class shares. Investors generally may meet the minimum investment amount by aggregating multiple accounts within the Fund.
Each Fund reserves the right to waive or change investment minimums. For accounts sold through financial intermediaries, it is the primary responsibility of the financial intermediary to ensure compliance with investment minimums.
Buying Shares
Shares may be purchased, exchanged or redeemed directly or through retirement plans, broker-dealers, bank trust departments, financial advisers or other financial intermediaries. Shares made available through full service broker-dealers may be available through wrap accounts under which such broker-dealers impose additional fees for services connected to the wrap account. Contact your financial intermediary or refer to your plan documents for instructions on how to purchase, exchange or redeem shares.
In order to buy, redeem or exchange shares at that day’s price, you must place your order with the Fund or its agent before the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) closes (normally, 4 p.m. Eastern time). If the NYSE closes early, you must place your order prior to the actual closing time. Orders received by financial intermediaries prior to the close of trading on the NYSE will be confirmed at the offering price computed as of the close of the trading on the NYSE. It is the responsibility of the financial intermediary to ensure that all orders are transmitted in a timely manner to the Fund. Otherwise, you will receive the next business day’s price.
Investors may be charged a fee if they effect transactions through broker or agent. The Funds have authorized one or more brokers to receive on their behalf purchase and redemption orders. Such brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to receive purchase and redemption orders on a Fund’s behalf. A Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized broker or, if applicable, a broker’s authorized designee, receives the order. Customer orders will be priced at a Fund’s net asset value next computed after they are received by an authorized broker or the broker’s authorized designee.
With certain limited exceptions, each Fund is available only to U.S. citizens or residents.
The Funds will generally accept purchases only in US dollars drawn from US financial institutions. Cashier’s checks, third party checks, money orders, credit card convenience checks, cash or equivalents or payments in foreign currencies are not acceptable forms of payment. You may also contact the Funds to request a purchase of Funds shares using securities you own. The Funds reserves the right to refuse or accept such requests in whole or in part.
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Sales Charge When You Purchase Shares
Below is a summary of certain features of Class A and Class C shares:
|
Class A |
Class C |
Initial Sales Charge |
Up to 4.75%(1) |
None |
Contingent
Deferred Sales Charge (“CDSC”) |
None, except on certain redemptions of Share purchased without an initial sales charge(2) |
1.00%
on Shares redeemed within twelve months of purchase(3) |
Distribution
and |
0.35% |
1.00% |
Dividends |
Generally higher than Class C due to lower annual expenses |
Generally lower than Class A due to higher annual expenses |
Typical
Shareholder |
Generally more appropriate for long-term investors |
Generally more appropriate for short-term investors |
(1) |
Based on the amount you invest in a Fund. |
(2) |
See Contingent Deferred Sales Charge-Class A shares below. |
(3) |
See Contingent Deferred Sales Charge-C Shares below |
Class A Shares
The following table lists the sales charges that will be applied to your purchase of Class A shares, subject to the breakpoint discounts indicated in the tables and described below. The offering price is the net asset value (“NAV”) per share plus the front-end sales load. Sales charges are not applicable to reinvestments of dividends or other distributions.
Purchase Amount |
Sales Charge as a Percentage of: |
Dealer
Concession | |
|
Offering Price* |
NAV |
|
Less than $50,000 |
4.75% |
4.99% |
4.25% |
$50,000 to $249,999.99 |
3.75% |
3.90% |
3.25% |
$250,000 to $499,999.99 |
2.75% |
2.83% |
2.50% |
$500,000 to $999,999.99 |
2.00% |
2.04% |
1.75% |
$1 million or greater |
0.00% |
0.00% |
Up to 0.50% |
* |
“Offering Price” includes the front-end sales load. |
CDSC for Class A Shares
If your account value, including the amount of your current investment, totals $1 million or more, you will not pay a front-end sales charge on the current investment amount. The Distributor may pay the selling financial intermediary up to 0.50% of the offering price. However, if you sell these shares (for which you did not pay a front-end sales charge) within twelve months of purchase, you will pay a contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of 0.50%. The amount of CDSC is determined as a percentage of the lesser of the current market value or the cost of the shares being redeemed. The Funds will use the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method to determine the twelve-month holding period for the CDSC. The date of the redemption will be compared to the earliest purchase date of Class A shares not subject to a sales charge held in the redeeming shareholder’s account. The CDSC will be charged if the holding period is less than twelve months, using the anniversary date of a transaction to determine the “twelve-month” mark. The CDSC primarily goes to the Distributor as reimbursement for the portion of the dealer concession paid to financial intermediaries.
Class A shares acquired by reinvestment of dividends are not subject to the CDSC. CDSC waivers are available in certain circumstances. For information regarding waivers, please see “Waiver of CDSC” below.
Class C Shares
There is no sales load on the purchase of Class C shares. The offering price is the NAV per share. A contingent deferred sales charge or “CDSC” of 1.00% may apply to Class C shares redeemed within the first 12 months. See Section titled “Contingent Deferred Sales Charge” below. The maximum purchase amount for Class C shares is $999,999.99. Purchases of $1 million or more are invested in Class A shares because Class A shares’ annual expenses are lower.
Institutional Class and Investor Class Shares
Institutional Class and Investor Class shares do not charge an initial sales load.
Qualifying For A Reduction Or Waiver Of Class A Shares Sales Charge
You may be able to lower your Class A shares initial sales charge under certain circumstances. You can combine Class A shares you already own with your current purchase of Class A shares of a Fund to take advantage of the breakpoints in the sales charge schedule as set forth above. Certain circumstances under which you may combine such ownership of shares and purchases are described below. Contact your financial intermediary for more information.
In order to obtain a sales charge discount, you should inform your financial intermediary of other accounts in which there are Fund holdings eligible to be aggregated to meet a sales charge breakpoint. These other accounts may include the accounts described below in “Aggregating Accounts.” You may need to provide documents such as account statements or confirmation statements to prove that the accounts are eligible for aggregation. The Letter of Intent described below requires historical cost information in certain circumstances. You should retain records necessary to show the price you paid to purchase Fund shares, as a Fund, its agents, or your financial intermediary may not retain this information.
A Fund may waive Class A sales charges on investor purchases including shares purchased by:
● |
Officers, directors, trustees and employees of the adviser and its affiliates; |
● |
Registered representatives and employees of financial intermediaries with a current selling agreement with the Distributor or the adviser; |
● |
Immediate family members of all such persons as described above; |
● |
Financial intermediaries who have entered into an agreement with the distributor to offer shares to self-directed investment brokerage accounts that may or may not charge a transaction fee to its customers; and |
● |
Financial intermediary supermarkets and fee-based platforms. |
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Whether a sales charge waiver is available for your retirement plan or charitable account depends upon the policies and procedures of your intermediary. Please consult your financial adviser for further information.
Descriptions of sales charge waivers and/or discounts for Class A Shares with respect to certain financial intermediaries are reproduced in “Appendix A – Intermediary-Specific Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts” to this prospectus based on information provided by the financial intermediary.
Right of Accumulation
You may purchase Class A shares at a reduced initial sales charge determined by aggregating the dollar amount of the new purchase (measured by the offering price) and the total prior days net asset value (net amount invested) of all Class A shares of a Fund and of certain other classes then held by you, or held in accounts identified under “Aggregating Accounts,” and applying the sales charge applicable to such aggregate amount. In order to obtain such discount, you must provide sufficient information to your financial intermediary at the time of purchase to permit verification that the purchase qualifies for the reduced sales charge. The right of accumulation is subject to modification or discontinuance at any time with respect to all shares purchased thereafter.
Letter of Intent
You may obtain a reduced initial sales charge on Class A shares by signing a Letter of Intent indicating your intention to purchase an additional number of Class A shares over a 13-month period that would entitle you to a discount. The term of the Letter of Intent will commence upon the date you sign the Letter of Intent. You must refer to such Letter of Intent when placing orders. With regard to a Letter of Intent, the amount of investment for purposes of applying the sales load schedule includes (i) the historical cost (what you actually paid for the shares at the time of purchase, including any sales charges) of all Class A shares acquired during the term of the Letter of Intent, minus (ii) the value of any redemptions of Class A shares made during the term of the Letter of Intent. Each investment made during the period receives the reduced sales charge applicable to the total amount of the investment goal. A portion of shares purchased may be held in escrow to pay for any sales charge that may be applicable. If the goal is not achieved within the period, you must pay the difference between the sales charges applicable to the purchases made and the charges previously paid, or an appropriate number of escrowed shares will be redeemed. Please contact your financial intermediary to obtain a Letter of Intent application.
Aggregating Accounts
To take advantage of lower Class A shares initial sales charges on large purchases or through the exercise of a Letter of Intent or right of accumulation, investments made by you, your spouse and your children under age 21 may be aggregated if made for your own account(s) and/or certain other accounts such as:
● |
trust accounts established by the above individuals (or the accounts of the primary beneficiary of the trust if the person who established the trust is deceased); |
● |
solely controlled business accounts; and |
● |
single participant retirement plans. |
To receive a reduced sales charge under rights of accumulation or a Letter of Intent, you must notify your financial intermediary of any eligible accounts that you, your spouse and your children under age 21 have at the time of your purchase.
Contingent Deferred Sales Charge
Class C Shares
There is a 1% CDSC on any Class C shares you sell within 12 months of purchase. The CDSC will be based on the lower of the current market value or the cost of the shares being redeemed.
Waiver of CDSC
Each Fund may waive the imposition of a CDSC on redemption of Fund shares under certain circumstances and conditions, including without limitation, the following:
● |
redemptions following the death or permanent disability (as defined by Section 72(m)(7) of the lnternal Revenue Code) of a shareholder if made within one year of death or the initial determination of permanent disability. The waiver is available only for shares held at the time of death or initial determination of permanent disability; and |
● |
required minimum distributions from a tax-qualified retirement plan or an individual retirement account (IRA) as required under the Internal Revenue Code. The waiver of the CDSC for required distributions will be as a percentage of assets held in the Fund. |
If you think you may be eligible for a CDSC waiver, contact your financial intermediary. You must notify the Fund prior to the redemption request to ensure your receipt of the waiver.
Exchanging Shares
If you have held all or part of your shares in a Fund for at least seven days, you may exchange those shares for shares of the same class of another Fund, so long as such Fund is available for sale in your state and meets your investment criteria.
Any new account established through an exchange will be subject to all minimum requirements applicable to the shares acquired. The exchange privilege may only be exercised in those states where the class of shares being acquired legally may be sold. If you are an existing shareholder of a Fund, you may exchange into a new account copying your existing account registration and options. Exchanges between accounts will be accepted only if registrations are identical.
Before effecting an exchange, you should read the prospectus for the Fund into which you are exchanging.
Class A and Class C shareholders may also transfer their Class A or Class C shares into Institutional Class shares of the same Fund if you meet the eligibility requirements for the Institutional class into which you would like to transfer.
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An exchange of shares of different Funds represents the sale of shares from one Fund and the purchase of shares of another Fund. Under U.S. federal income tax law, this may produce a taxable gain or loss in non-tax-qualified accounts. Transfers between classes of a single Fund are generally not considered a taxable transaction although significant holders may have related reporting obligations as discussed in the SAI under “FEDERAL INCOME TAXES – Transfers Between Classes of Funds.”
The exchange privilege may be modified or terminated upon sixty (60) days’ written notice to shareholders. Although initially there will be no limit on the number of times you may exercise the exchange privilege, each Fund reserves the right to impose such a limitation. Call or write each Fund for further details.
Redeeming Shares
It is anticipated that a Fund will meet redemption requests through the sale of portfolio assets or from its holdings in cash or cash equivalents. A Fund may use the proceeds from the sale of portfolio assets to meet redemption requests if consistent with the management of the Fund. These redemption methods will be used regularly and may also be used in stressed or abnormal market conditions, including circumstances adversely affecting the liquidity of a Fund’s investments, in which case a Fund may be more likely to be forced to sell its holdings to meet redemptions than under normal market conditions. Each Fund reserves the right to redeem in kind. Redemptions in kind typically are used to meet redemption requests that represent a large percentage of a Fund’s net assets in order to limit the impact of a large redemption on the Fund and its remaining shareholders. Redemptions in kind may be used in normal as well as in stressed market conditions. A Fund may also borrow, or draw on lines of credit that may be available to the Fund individually or to the Trust, in order to meet redemption requests during stressed market conditions. Under the 1940 Act, a Fund is limited as to the amount that it may borrow and accordingly, borrowings (including those made under a line of credit) might be insufficient to meet redemption requests.
Redemptions, like purchases, may generally be effected directly or through retirement plans, broker-dealers and financial intermediaries. Please contact your financial intermediary or refer to the appropriate plan documents for details. Your financial intermediary may charge a processing or service fee in connection with the redemption of shares.
Investor Class shareholders may also redeem shares online via www.emeraldmutualfunds.com.
Redemption Payments
In all cases, your redemption price is the net asset value per share next determined after your request is received in good order. Redemption proceeds normally will be sent within seven days. However, if you recently purchased your shares by check, your redemption proceeds will not be sent to you until your original check clears, which may take up to 10 days. Your redemption proceeds can be sent by check to your address of record or by wire transfer to a bank account designated on your application. Your bank may charge you a fee for wire transfers. Any request that your redemption proceeds be sent to a destination other than your bank account or address of record must be in writing and must include a signature guarantee.
The Fund is not responsible for losses or fees resulting from posting delays or non-receipt of redemption payments when shareholder payment instructions are followed
Redemptions In-Kind
Each Fund reserves the right to make payment in securities rather than cash. If a Fund deems it advisable for the benefit of all shareholders that a redemption payment wholly or partly in-kind would be in the best interests of the Fund’s remaining shareholders, the Fund may pay redemption proceeds to you in whole or in part with securities held by the Fund. A redemption in-kind could occur under extraordinary circumstances, such as a very large redemption that could affect a Fund’s operations (for example, more than 1% of the Fund’s net assets). However, each Fund is required to redeem shares solely for cash up to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the NAV of the Fund during any 90-calendar day period for any one shareholder. Should redemptions by any shareholder exceed such limitation, each Fund will have the option of redeeming the excess in cash or in-kind. Securities used to redeem Fund shares will be valued as described in “How Fund Shares are Priced” below. A shareholder may pay brokerage charges on the sale of any securities received as a result of a redemption in-kind.
Note: Each Fund has the right to suspend or postpone redemptions of shares for any period (i) during which the NYSE is closed, other than customary weekend and holiday closings; (ii) during which trading on the NYSE is restricted; or (iii) during which (as determined by the SEC by rule or regulation) an emergency exists as a result of which disposal or valuation of portfolio securities is not reasonably practicable, or as otherwise permitted by the SEC.
Intermediaries may have different policies and procedures regarding the availability of front-end sales load waivers or contingent deferred (back-end) sales load (“CDSC”) waivers. In all instances, it is the shareholder’s responsibility to notify the Fund, or the shareholder’s financial intermediary at the time of purchase, of any relationship or other facts qualifying the shareholder for sales charge waivers or discounts. Certain sales charge waivers and/or discounts are described in Appendix A – Intermediary Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts. These sales charge waivers and/or discounts are available only if you purchase your shares through the designated intermediaries. For waivers and discounts not available through a particular intermediary, shareholders will have to purchase Fund shares through another intermediary to receive these waivers or discounts.
Automatic Conversion of Class C Shares to Class A Shares After 8-Year Holding Period
Effective May 1, 2019 (the “Effective Date”), each Fund has adopted an automatic conversion feature for Class C Shares. Beginning on the Effective Date, each Class C Share of each Fund will automatically convert to Class A Shares of the same Fund with equivalent aggregate value, approximately eight (8) years after the date of purchase of such Class C Share (“Auto Conversion”).
Certain Financial Intermediaries, including group retirement recordkeeping platforms, may not have been tracking such holding periods for Class C Shares and therefore may not be able to process such conversion for Class C Shares held prior to the Effective Date. In these instances, each Class C Share held as of the Effective
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Date will automatically convert to Class A Shares with equivalent aggregate value approximately eight (8) years after the Effective Date. If you have any questions regarding your Financial Intermediary’s ability to implement the Auto Conversion feature please contact an authorized agent of your Financial Intermediary for additional information.
Share Transactions
Small Account Balances/Mandatory Redemptions
None of the Funds currently imposes an account minimum. A Fund may adopt other policies from time to time requiring mandatory redemption of shares in certain circumstances, such as to comply with new regulatory requirements. Each Fund reserves the right to waive or change account balance minimums.
Share Certificates
None of the Funds issues share certificates.
IRA and Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
An annual IRA and Coverdell Education Savings Account maintenance fee of $10.00 for accounts held directly with the Fund is charged by the custodian on a per account basis.
Verification of Shareholder Transaction Statements
You must contact the Fund in writing regarding any errors or discrepancies within 60 days after the date of the statement confirming a transaction. The Fund may deny your ability to refute a transaction if it does not hear from you within 60 days after the confirmation statement date.
Non-receipt of Purchase Wire/Insufficient Funds Policy
The Funds reserve the right to cancel a purchase if payment if the check or electronic funds transfer does not clear your bank, or if a wire is not received by settlement date. A Fund may charge a fee for insufficient funds and you may be responsible for any fees imposed by your bank and any losses that the Fund may incur as a result of the canceled purchase.
Frequent Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares
The Funds do not permit market timing or other abusive trading practices. The Funds do not accommodate short-term or excessive trading that interferes with the efficient management of a Fund, significantly increases transaction costs or taxes, or may harm a Fund’s performance. The Funds attempt to discover and discourage frequent trading in several ways. The Board has adopted policies and procedures designed to deter frequent purchases, exchanges and redemptions and to seek to prevent market timing. To minimize harm to a Fund and its shareholders, the Fund reserves the right to reject, in its sole discretion, any purchase order from any investor it believes has a history of abusive trading or whose trading, in its judgment, has been or may be disruptive to the Fund. Each Fund may also refuse purchase and exchange transactions from Fund intermediaries it believes may be facilitating or have facilitated abusive trading practices. In making this judgment, each Fund may consider trading done in multiple accounts under common ownership or control.
The Funds monitors trade activity monitoring (which may take into account transaction size), and fair value pricing (“Monitoring Methods”). Although these Monitoring Methods are designed to discourage frequent trading, there can be no guarantee that the Funds will be able to identify and restrict investors that engage in such activities. These Monitoring Methods are inherently subjective, and involve a significant degree of judgment in their application. The Funds and their service providers seek to make these judgments and apply these methods uniformly and in a manner that they believe is consistent with the interests of the Funds’ long-term shareholders. These frequent trading policies may be amended in the future to enhance the effectiveness of the program or in response to changes in regulatory requirements.
On a periodic basis, the Transfer Agent will review transaction history reports and will identify redemptions that are within a specific time period from a previous purchase or exchange in the same account(s) in a Fund, or in multiple accounts that are known to be under common control. Redemptions meeting the criteria will be investigated for possible inappropriate trading. Trading activity is evaluated to determine whether such activity is indicative of market timing activity or is otherwise detrimental to a Fund. If the Funds believe that a shareholder of a Fund has engaged in short-term or excessive trading activity to the detriment of the Fund and its long-term shareholders, the Funds may, in their sole discretion, request the shareholder to stop such trading activities or refuse to process purchases or exchanges in the shareholders’ account. The Funds specifically reserve the right to reject any purchase or exchange order by any investor or group of investors indefinitely for any reason.
The Funds currently are unable to directly monitor the trading activity of beneficial owners of the Funds’ shares who hold those shares through third-party 401(k) and other group retirement plans and other omnibus arrangements maintained by other intermediaries. Omnibus accounts allow intermediaries to aggregate their customers’ investments in one account and to purchase, redeem and exchange Fund shares without the identity of a particular customer being known to a Fund. A number of these financial intermediaries may not have the capability or may not be willing to apply the Funds’ frequent trading policies. Although they attempt to do so, the Funds cannot assure that these policies will be enforced with regard to Fund shares held through such omnibus arrangements. The Funds have adopted procedures to fair value each Fund’s securities in certain circumstances when market prices are not readily available, including when trading in a security is halted or suspended; when a security’s primary pricing source is unable or unwilling to provide a price; when a security’s primary trading market is closed during regular market hours; or when a security’s value is materially affected by events occurring after the close of the security’s primary trading market. By fair valuing securities, the Funds seek to establish prices that investors might expect to realize upon the current sales of these securities. For non-U.S. securities, fair valuation is intended to deter market timers who may take advantage of time zone differences between the close of the foreign markets on which a Fund’s portfolio securities trade and the U.S. markets that determine the time as of which the Fund’s NAV is calculated. The Funds make fair value determinations in good faith in accordance with the Funds’ valuation procedures. Because of the
33
subjective and variable nature of fair value pricing, there can be no assurance that a Fund could obtain the fair value assigned to the security upon the sale of such security.
Shares held longest will be treated as being redeemed first and shares held shortest as being redeemed last. The fees are paid to the respective Fund and are designed to help offset the brokerage commissions, market impact and other costs associated with short-term shareholder trading.
Due to the complexity and subjectivity involved in identifying market timing and other abusive trading practices, there can be no assurance that a Fund’s efforts will identify all market timing or abusive trading activities. Therefore, investors should not assume that a Fund will be able to detect or prevent all practices that may disadvantage the Fund.
How Fund Shares are Priced
The Board has approved procedures to be used to value each Fund’s securities for the purposes of determining the Fund’s NAV. The valuation of the securities of each Fund is determined in good faith by or under the direction of the Board. The Board has delegated certain valuation functions for each Fund to the Administrator.
Each Fund generally values its securities based on market prices determined at the close of regular trading on the NYSE (normally, 4 p.m. Eastern time) on each business day (Monday through Friday). None of the Funds will value its securities on any day that the NYSE is closed, including the following observed holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Each Fund’s currency valuations, if any, are done as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE (normally, 4 p.m. Eastern time). For equity securities that are traded on an exchange, the market price is usually the closing sale or official closing price on that exchange. In the case of securities not traded on an exchange, or if such closing prices are not otherwise available, the market price is typically determined by independent third party pricing vendors approved by the Funds’ Board using a variety of pricing techniques and methodologies. The market price for debt obligations (including short-term debt obligations that will mature in 60 days or less) is generally the price supplied by an independent third-party pricing service approved by the Fund’s Board, which may use a matrix, formula or other objective method that takes into consideration market indices, yield curves and other specific adjustments. In certain circumstances, bid and ask prices may be obtained from (i) a broker/dealer specified and deemed reliable by the Adviser, (ii) pink sheets, yellow sheets or the blue list, or (iii) a pricing agent that obtains quotations from broker/dealers or evaluates the value of the respective bid and ask prices. If vendors are unable to supply a price, or if the price supplied is deemed to be unreliable, the market price may be determined using quotations received from one or more brokers/dealers that make a market in the security.
When such prices or quotations are not available, or when the Fund’s Adviser believes that they are unreliable, securities will be priced using fair value procedures approved by the Board. Because each Fund invests in securities that may be thinly traded or for which market quotations may not be readily available or may be unreliable (such as securities of small capitalization companies), each Fund may use fair valuation procedures more frequently than funds that invest primarily in securities that are more liquid (such as equity securities of large capitalization domestic issuers). Each Fund may also use fair value procedures if its Adviser determines that a significant event has occurred between the time at which a market price is determined and the time at which the Fund’s net asset value is calculated. In particular, the value of non-U.S. securities may be materially affected by events occurring after the close of the market on which they are traded, but before the Fund prices its shares.
Each Fund may determine the fair value of investments based on information provided by pricing services and other third-party vendors, which may recommend fair value prices or adjustments with reference to other securities, indices or assets. In considering whether fair value pricing is required and in determining fair values, each Fund may, among other things, consider significant events (which may be considered to include changes in the value of U.S. securities or securities indices) that occur after the close of the relevant market and before the Fund values its securities. In addition, each Fund may utilize modeling tools provided by third-party vendors to determine fair values of non-U.S. securities. Each Fund’s use of fair value pricing may help deter “stale price arbitrage.”
Valuing securities at fair value involves greater reliance on judgment than valuation of securities based on readily available market quotations. A fund that uses fair value to price securities may value those securities higher or lower than another fund using market quotations or its own fair value methodologies to price the same securities. There can be no assurance that a Fund could obtain the fair value assigned to a security if it were to sell the security at approximately the time at which the Fund determines its net asset value.
Each Fund invests, or may invest, in securities that are traded on foreign exchanges or markets, which may be open when the NYSE is closed. As a result, the value of your investment in a Fund may change on days when you are unable to purchase or redeem shares.
Customer Identification Program
To help the government fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering activities, federal law requires each Fund’s Transfer Agent to obtain certain personal information from you (or persons acting on your behalf) in order to verify your (or such person’s) identity when you open an account, including name, address, date of birth and other information (which may include certain documents) that will allow the Transfer Agent to verify your identity. If this information is not provided, the Transfer Agent may not be able to open your account. If the Transfer Agent is unable to verify your identity (or that of another person authorized to act on your behalf) shortly after your account is opened, or believes it has identified potentially criminal activity, each Fund, the Distributor and the Transfer Agent each reserve the right to reject further purchase orders from you or to take such other action as they deem reasonable or required by law, including closing your account and redeeming your shares at their NAV at the time of redemption.
34
Dividends and Distributions
Each Fund normally pays dividends and capital gains, if any, on an annual basis, with certain other distributions from time to time as permitted by the 1940 Act and the Code.
Income dividend distributions are derived from interest and other income each Fund receives from its investments and include distributions of short-term capital gains. Capital gain distributions are derived from gains realized when the Fund sells a security it has owned for more than a year.
Each Fund may make additional distributions and dividends at other times if the manager believes doing so may be necessary for a Fund to avoid or reduce taxes. Distributions and dividends are reinvested in additional Fund shares unless you instruct the Transfer Agent to have your distributions and/or dividends paid by check mailed to the address of record or transferred through an Automated Clearing House to the bank of your choice. You can change your choice at any time to be effective as of the next distribution or dividend, except that any change given to the Transfer Agent less than five days before the payment date will not be effective until the next distribution or dividend is made. Distribution checks will only be issued for payments greater than $25.00. Distributions will automatically be reinvested in shares of the fund(s) generating the distribution if under $25.00. Un-cashed distribution checks will be canceled and proceeds reinvested at the then current net asset value, for any shareholder who chooses to receive distributions in cash, if distribution checks: (1) are returned and marked as “undeliverable” or (2) remain un-cashed for six months after the date of issuance. If distribution checks are canceled and reinvested, your account election may also be changed so that all future distributions are reinvested rather than paid in cash. Interest will not accrue on uncashed distribution checks.
Federal Income Taxes
The discussion below only addresses the U.S. federal income tax consequences of an investment in the Funds for U.S. persons and does not address any foreign, state, or local tax consequences. For purposes of this discussion, U.S. persons are:
(i) |
U.S. citizens or residents; |
(ii) |
U.S. corporations; |
(iii) |
an estate whose income is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source; or |
(iv) |
a trust, if a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over its administration and one or more U.S. persons have the authority to control all of its substantial decisions, or if the trust has a valid election in effect under applicable Treasury regulations to be treated as a U.S. person. |
Except where expressly noted, this discussion does not address issues of significance to U.S. persons in special situations such as: (i) certain types of tax-exempt organizations, (ii) shareholders holding shares through tax-qualified accounts (such as 401(k) plan accounts or individual retirement accounts), (iii) shareholders holding investments through foreign institutions (financial and non-financial), (iv) financial institutions, (v) broker-dealers, (vi) entities not organized under the laws of the United States or a political subdivision thereof, (vii) shareholders holding shares as part of a hedge, straddle or conversion transaction, (viii) shareholders who are subject to the U.S. federal alternative minimum tax or the U.S. federal corporate alternative minimum tax, (ix) insurance companies, and (x) shareholders that are pass-through entities (including for this purpose any entity treated as a partnership or S corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) or a U.S. person who owns shares through a pass-through entity. All investors should consult with their tax advisers regarding the U.S. federal, foreign, state and local tax consequences of the purchase, ownership and disposition of shares in the Funds.
For further information regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of an investment in the Funds, investors should see the SAI under “FEDERAL INCOME TAXES.”
The Funds intend to meet all requirements under Subchapter M of the Code necessary to qualify for treatment as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) and thus do not expect to pay any U.S. federal income tax on income and capital gains distributed to shareholders. The Funds also intend to meet certain distribution requirements such that the Funds are not subject to U.S. federal income tax in general. If a Fund does not meet the distribution requirements, that Fund may be subject to significant excise taxes. This discussion assumes that the Funds will qualify under Subchapter M of the Code as RICs and will satisfy these distribution requirements. There can be no guarantee that this assumption will be correct.
Taxation of Fund Distributions
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, shareholders of RICs are generally subject to taxation based on the underlying character of the income and gain recognized by the RIC and distributed to shareholders.
Distributions of net capital gains that are properly reported by a Fund as capital gain dividends (“capital gain dividends”) will be taxable to Fund shareholders as long-term capital gains regardless of how long the shares of the Fund are held. A Fund may realize long-term capital gains when it sells or redeems a security that it has owned for more than one year, from investments in section 1256 contracts (discussed below), and when it receives capital gain distributions from exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) in which the Fund owns investments. Generally, distributions of earnings derived from ordinary income and short-term capital gains will be taxable to shareholders as ordinary income. The Funds do not expect a significant portion of their distributions to derive from “qualified dividend income,” which is taxed to non-corporate shareholders at favorable rates so long as certain requirements are met. Corporate shareholders may be able to take a dividends-received deduction for a portion of the dividends received by a Fund, to the extent such dividends are received by the Fund from a domestic corporation and to the extent a portion of interest paid or accrued on certain high yield discount obligations owned by the Fund are treated as dividends subject, in each case, to certain holding period requirements and debt-financing limitations.
Some of the Funds’ investments, such as certain option transactions and certain futures transactions, may be “section 1256 contracts.” Section 1256 contracts are taxed annually on a “marked to market” basis as if sold for their fair market
35
values at the end of the tax year. Gains and losses on section 1256 contracts are generally treated as 60% long-term capital and 40% short-term capital (with certain exceptions).
Each Fund may realize short-term capital gains from the sale of investments that such Fund owned for one year or less and from investments in section 1256 contracts. Each Fund may realize ordinary income from distributions from ETFs, from foreign currency gains that are not from section 1256 contracts, from interest on indebtedness owned by a Fund and from other sources.
The maximum long-term capital gain rate applicable to individuals is 20%, which is in addition to the 3.8% surtax on net investment income described below.
Distributions of earnings are taxable whether or not a shareholder receives them in cash or reinvests them in additional shares. If a distribution of earnings is made shortly after a shareholder purchases shares of a Fund, while in effect a return of capital, the dividend or distribution is still taxable. Shareholders can avoid this, if they choose, by investing soon after such Fund has paid a dividend.
Sale or Redemption of Fund Shares
A shareholder’s sale or redemption of Fund shares will generally result in taxable gain (if positive) or loss (if negative) in an amount equal to (i) the amount realized, reduced by (ii) the shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the Fund shares sold or surrendered (in the case of a redemption). A shareholder who receives securities in redemption of shares of a Fund will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between (i) the aggregate fair market value of the securities received plus the amount of any cash received (net of any applicable fees), and (ii) the shareholder’s adjusted basis in the shares redeemed.
Any capital gain or loss realized upon the sale of redemption of shares of a Fund is generally treated as long term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for more than one year and as a short-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for one year or less. In certain situations, a loss on the sale of shares held for six months or less will be a long-term loss. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to significant limitations.
All or a portion of any loss realized upon a taxable disposition of a Fund’s shares will be disallowed under “wash sale” rules if other substantially identical shares of the same Fund are purchased within 30 days before or after the disposition. When that happens, the basis of the newly purchased shares will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss.
Taxation of Certain Investments
A Fund’s investments in foreign securities may be subject to foreign withholding and other taxes which reduce the Fund’s yield on such securities. Shareholders generally will not be entitled to claim a foreign tax credit or deduction with respect to foreign taxes. In addition, each Fund’s investments in foreign securities or foreign currencies may increase or accelerate such Fund’s recognition of ordinary income and may affect the timing or amount of such Fund’s distributions.
Each Fund may acquire debt obligations that have “original issue discount,” which is the excess of a debt obligation’s stated redemption price at maturity over the obligation’s issue price. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, any original issue discount inherent in such investments will be included in a Fund’s ordinary income when and as the original issue discount accrues as required by applicable law. Even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, and will be subject to the risk of nonpayment, related distributions will be taxed to shareholders as ordinary income.
Each Fund may also buy debt obligations in the secondary market which are treated as having "market discount," which is generally the excess of a debt obligation’s stated redemption price at maturity over the basis of the obligation immediately after acquisition by the taxpayer. Generally, gain recognized on the disposition of such an investment is treated as ordinary income for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent of the accrued market discount, but each Fund may elect instead to currently include the amount of market discount as ordinary income over the term of the instrument even though such Fund does not receive payment of such amount at that time. Each Fund’s investments in certain debt obligations, mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities and derivatives may also cause such Fund to recognize taxable income in excess of the cash generated by such obligations. Thus, the Funds could be required at times to liquidate other investments in order to satisfy their distribution requirements, potentially increasing the amount of capital gain dividends made to shareholders.
If a Fund invests in stock of a real-estate investment trust (a “REIT”), it may be eligible to pay “section 199A dividends” to its shareholders with respect to certain dividends received by it from its investment in REITs. For taxable years beginning before 2026, section 199A dividends are taxable to individual and other noncorporate shareholders at a reduced effective federal income tax rate, provided that certain holding period requirements and other conditions are satisfied.
Medicare Surtax on Net Investment Income
A surtax of 3.8% applies to net investment income of a taxpayer that is an individual taxpayer, and to the undistributed net investment income of a trust or estate, in each case to the extent that the taxpayer recognizes gross income (as adjusted) in excess of a threshold amount for a year. Net investment income includes, among other types of income, ordinary income, dividend income and capital gain derived from an investment in a Fund, in each case net of deductions properly allocable to such income.
Cost Basis Reporting
The Funds (or their administrative agent) must report to the IRS and furnish to Fund shareholders (other than shareholders who hold their shares through a tax-qualified arrangements such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account) the cost basis and holding period information for Fund shares that are sold and that were purchased on or after January 1, 2012. If a shareholder does not make a timely election among the available IRS-accepted cost basis methods, the Funds will use a default cost basis
36
method for the shareholder. Fund shareholders should consult with their tax advisers concerning the most desirable IRS-accepted cost basis method for their tax situations.
Backup Withholding
The Funds are also required in certain circumstances to apply backup withholding on taxable dividends, redemption proceeds and certain other payments that are paid to any shareholder who does not furnish to certain information and certifications the Funds or who is otherwise subject to backup withholding. The backup withholding tax rate is currently 24% for tax years beginning before 2026.
Investment Through Foreign Accounts
Shareholders that invest in a Fund through foreign accounts may be subject to a 30% withholding tax on: (1) income dividends paid by the Fund, and (2) certain capital gain distributions and the proceeds of a sale of Fund shares. This withholding tax generally may be avoided if the financial institution that maintains the account satisfies certain registration, certification and reporting requirements.
Financial Highlights
The financial highlights tables are intended to help you understand the Funds’ financial performance for each fiscal period shown. Please note that the financial highlights information in the following table represents financial highlights of each Fund for each fiscal period shown below. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Funds’ (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). The information presented for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024 has been audited by Cohen & Company, Ltd., the Funds' Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, whose reports, along with the Funds' financial statements, are included in the Funds' annual report, which is available by calling 1-855-828-9909. The information for the fiscal years ended April 30, 2023 through April 30, 2020 was audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm.
37
EMERALD FINANCE AND BANKING INNOVATION FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS A
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 18.75 | $ | 31.99 | $ | 51.56 | $ | 22.89 | $ | 32.71 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)(a) |
0.35 | 0.13 | 0.84 | 0.06 | (0.03 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.15 | (13.37 | ) | (14.81 | ) | 28.61 | (9.79 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.50 | (13.24 | ) | (13.97 | ) | 28.67 | (9.82 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From investment income |
— | — | (3.37 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | — | (1.37 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Tax return of capital |
— | — | (0.86 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | — | (5.60 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.50 | (13.24 | ) | (19.57 | ) | 28.67 | (9.82 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 22.25 | $ | 18.75 | $ | 31.99 | $ | 51.56 | $ | 22.89 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(b) |
18.67 | % | (41.40 | )% | (30.58 | )% | 125.21 | % | (30.02 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 19,312 | $ | 19,949 | $ | 43,448 | $ | 68,778 | $ | 37,933 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment income/(loss) |
1.65 | % | 0.52 | % | 1.70 | % | 0.18 | % | (0.10 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.77 | % | 1.82 | % | 1.78 | % | 1.53 | % | 1.48 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.77 | % | 1.82 | % | 1.48 | % | 1.53 | % | 1.48 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
56 | % | 88 | % | 94 | % | 171 | % | 46 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
38
EMERALD FINANCE AND BANKING INNOVATION FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS C
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 15.27 | $ | 26.23 | $ | 43.35 | $ | 19.38 | $ | 27.87 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)(a) |
0.21 | (0.05 | ) | 0.40 | (0.11 | ) | (0.20 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.53 | (10.91 | ) | (12.11 | ) | 24.08 | (8.29 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
2.74 | (10.96 | ) | (11.71 | ) | 23.97 | (8.49 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From investment income |
— | — | (3.27 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | — | (1.37 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Tax return of capital |
— | — | (0.77 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | — | (5.41 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
2.74 | (10.96 | ) | (17.12 | ) | 23.97 | (8.49 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 18.01 | $ | 15.27 | $ | 26.23 | $ | 43.35 | $ | 19.38 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(b) |
17.94 | % | (41.77 | )% | (31.05 | )% | 123.68 | % | (30.46 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 2,511 | $ | 4,521 | $ | 12,600 | $ | 22,447 | $ | 16,804 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment income/(loss) |
1.25 | % | (0.27 | )% | 0.98 | % | (0.40 | )% | (0.73 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
2.43 | % | 2.46 | % | 2.43 | % | 2.18 | % | 2.13 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
2.43 | % | 2.46 | % | 2.13 | % | 2.18 | % | 2.13 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
56 | % | 88 | % | 94 | % | 171 | % | 46 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
39
EMERALD FINANCE AND BANKING INNOVATION FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INSTITUTIONAL CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 19.62 | $ | 33.38 | $ | 53.48 | $ | 23.67 | $ | 33.70 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income(a) |
0.47 | 0.17 | 1.00 | 0.14 | 0.09 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.29 | (13.93 | ) | (15.39 | ) | 29.67 | (10.12 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.76 | (13.76 | ) | (14.39 | ) | 29.81 | (10.03 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From investment income |
— | — | (3.53 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | — | (1.37 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Tax return of capital |
— | — | (0.81 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | — | (5.71 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.76 | (13.76 | ) | (20.10 | ) | 29.81 | (10.03 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 23.38 | $ | 19.62 | $ | 33.38 | $ | 53.48 | $ | 23.67 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
19.16 | % | (41.21 | )% | (30.32 | )% | 125.94 | % | (29.76 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 17,781 | $ | 30,063 | $ | 86,196 | $ | 134,767 | $ | 67,358 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment income |
2.09 | % | 0.68 | % | 1.95 | % | 0.39 | % | 0.28 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.43 | % | 1.48 | % | 1.44 | % | 1.18 | % | 1.13 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.43 | % | 1.48 | % | 1.13 | % | 1.18 | % | 1.13 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
56 | % | 88 | % | 94 | % | 171 | % | 46 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
40
EMERALD FINANCE & BANKING INNOVATION FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INVESTOR CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 17.59 | $ | 30.03 | $ | 48.76 | $ | 21.66 | $ | 30.96 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)(a) |
0.34 | 0.10 | 0.73 | 0.03 | (0.04 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.94 | (12.54 | ) | (13.85 | ) | 27.07 | (9.26 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.28 | (12.44 | ) | (13.12 | ) | 27.10 | (9.30 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From investment income |
— | — | (3.10 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | — | (1.37 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Tax return of capital |
— | — | (1.14 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | — | (5.61 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.28 | (12.44 | ) | (18.73 | ) | 27.10 | (9.30 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 20.87 | $ | 17.59 | $ | 30.03 | $ | 48.76 | $ | 21.66 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
18.65 | % | (41.43 | )% | (30.60 | )% | 125.07 | % | (30.04 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 6,099 | $ | 8,129 | $ | 18,881 | $ | 31,147 | $ | 15,472 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment income/(loss) |
1.71 | % | 0.47 | % | 1.53 | % | 0.11 | % | (0.12 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.80 | % | 1.86 | % | 1.81 | % | 1.56 | % | 1.51 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.80 | % | 1.86 | % | 1.51 | % | 1.56 | % | 1.51 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
56 | % | 88 | % | 94 | % | 171 | % | 46 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
41
EMERALD GROWTH FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS A
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 21.00 | $ | 23.23 | $ | 36.29 | $ | 23.06 | $ | 26.00 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.11 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.22 | ) | (0.16 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.22 | (0.33 | ) | (7.38 | ) | 16.30 | (2.40 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.11 | (0.45 | ) | (7.50 | ) | 16.08 | (2.56 | ) | ||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
Total Distributions |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
1.66 | (2.23 | ) | (13.06 | ) | 13.23 | (2.94 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 22.66 | $ | 21.00 | $ | 23.23 | $ | 36.29 | $ | 23.06 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(b) |
15.07 | % | (2.39 | )% | (23.19 | )% | 70.77 | % | (10.00 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 79,554 | $ | 82,009 | $ | 118,082 | $ | 168,322 | $ | 134,755 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(0.53 | )% | (0.55 | )% | (0.39 | )% | (0.72 | )% | (0.64 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.10 | % | 1.13 | % | 1.03 | % | 1.01 | % | 1.02 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.10 | % | 1.13 | % | 1.03 | % | 1.01 | % | 1.02 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
51 | % | 62 | % | 38 | % | 66 | % | 48 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
42
EMERALD GROWTH FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS C
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 15.37 | $ | 17.56 | $ | 29.09 | $ | 18.97 | $ | 21.59 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.18 | ) | (0.19 | ) | (0.26 | ) | (0.35 | ) | (0.27 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.32 | (0.22 | ) | (5.71 | ) | 13.32 | (1.97 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
2.14 | (0.41 | ) | (5.97 | ) | 12.97 | (2.24 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
Total Distributions |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
0.69 | (2.19 | ) | (11.53 | ) | 10.12 | (2.62 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 16.06 | $ | 15.37 | $ | 17.56 | $ | 29.09 | $ | 18.97 | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(b) |
14.23 | % | (3.00 | )% | (23.71 | )% | 69.60 | % | (10.57 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 1,127 | $ | 7,255 | $ | 11,668 | $ | 22,447 | $ | 17,434 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(1.14 | )% | (1.19 | )% | (1.02 | )% | (1.37 | )% | (1.29 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.76 | % | 1.78 | % | 1.68 | % | 1.66 | % | 1.68 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.76 | % | 1.78 | % | 1.68 | % | 1.66 | % | 1.68 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
51 | % | 62 | % | 38 | % | 66 | % | 48 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
43
EMERALD GROWTH FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INSTITUTIONAL CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 22.68 | $ | 24.88 | $ | 38.32 | $ | 24.18 | $ | 27.16 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.05 | ) | (0.06 | ) | (0.02 | ) | (0.13 | ) | (0.08 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.49 | (0.36 | ) | (7.86 | ) | 17.12 | (2.52 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.44 | (0.42 | ) | (7.88 | ) | 16.99 | (2.60 | ) | ||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
Total Distributions |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
1.99 | (2.20 | ) | (13.44 | ) | 14.14 | (2.98 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 24.67 | $ | 22.68 | $ | 24.88 | $ | 38.32 | $ | 24.18 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
15.42 | % | (2.10 | )% | (22.94 | )% | 71.27 | % | (9.72 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 773,394 | $ | 728,115 | $ | 732,429 | $ | 1,375,765 | $ | 863,360 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment income/(loss) |
(0.22 | )% | (0.24 | )% | 0.06 | % | (0.41 | )% | (0.32 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
0.79 | % | 0.82 | % | 0.72 | % | 0.70 | % | 0.70 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
0.79 | % | 0.82 | % | 0.72 | % | 0.70 | % | 0.70 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
51 | % | 62 | % | 38 | % | 66 | % | 48 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
44
EMERALD GROWTH FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INVESTOR CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 20.81 | $ | 23.05 | $ | 36.07 | $ | 22.94 | $ | 25.88 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.12 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.14 | ) | (0.23 | ) | (0.17 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.19 | (0.34 | ) | (7.32 | ) | 16.21 | (2.39 | ) | ||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.07 | (0.46 | ) | (7.46 | ) | 15.98 | (2.56 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
Total Distributions |
(1.45 | ) | (1.78 | ) | (5.56 | ) | (2.85 | ) | (0.38 | ) | ||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
1.62 | (2.24 | ) | (13.02 | ) | 13.13 | (2.94 | ) | ||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 22.43 | $ | 20.81 | $ | 23.05 | $ | 36.07 | $ | 22.94 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
15.01 | % | (2.44 | )% | (23.22 | )% | 70.71 | % | (10.05 | )% | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 77,806 | $ | 73,777 | $ | 77,823 | $ | 103,326 | $ | 80,740 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(0.57 | )% | (0.59 | )% | (0.44 | )% | (0.75 | )% | (0.68 | )% | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.14 | % | 1.17 | % | 1.07 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.06 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.14 | % | 1.17 | % | 1.07 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.06 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
51 | % | 62 | % | 38 | % | 66 | % | 48 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
45
EMERALD INSIGHTS FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS A
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 13.98 | $ | 15.16 | $ | 20.18 | $ | 12.13 | $ | 11.51 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.14 | ) | (0.11 | ) | (0.18 | ) | (0.14 | ) | (0.10 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.75 | (0.42 | ) | (1.98 | ) | 9.80 | 0.72 | |||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.61 | (0.53 | ) | (2.16 | ) | 9.66 | 0.62 | |||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | 0.00 | (b) | |||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | — | ||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.61 | (1.18 | ) | (5.02 | ) | 8.05 | 0.62 | |||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 17.59 | $ | 13.98 | $ | 15.16 | $ | 20.18 | $ | 12.13 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(c) |
25.82 | % | (3.68 | %) | (12.78 | %) | 82.17 | % | 5.43 | % | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 15,136 | $ | 9,950 | $ | 15,516 | $ | 17,618 | $ | 10,174 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(0.84 | %) | (0.80 | %) | (0.92 | %) | (0.86 | %) | (0.83 | %) | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
2.03 | % | 1.94 | % | 1.73 | % | 1.92 | % | 2.25 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
61 | % | 64 | % | 70 | % | 89 | % | 94 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Less than $(0.005) per share. |
(c) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
46
EMERALD INSIGHTS FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
CLASS C
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 12.82 | $ | 14.05 | $ | 19.02 | $ | 11.57 | $ | 11.04 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.22 | ) | (0.18 | ) | (0.28 | ) | (0.24 | ) | (0.16 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.43 | (0.40 | ) | (1.83 | ) | 9.30 | 0.69 | |||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.21 | (0.58 | ) | (2.11 | ) | 9.06 | 0.53 | |||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | 0.00 | (b) | |||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | — | ||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.21 | (1.23 | ) | (4.97 | ) | 7.45 | 0.53 | |||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 16.03 | $ | 12.82 | $ | 14.05 | $ | 19.02 | $ | 11.57 | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN(c) |
25.04 | % | (4.33 | %) | (13.32 | %) | 80.92 | % | 4.84 | % | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 25 | $ | 38 | $ | 186 | $ | 246 | $ | 138 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(1.51 | %) | (1.42 | %) | (1.58 | %) | (1.51 | %) | (1.48 | %) | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
2.72 | % | 2.55 | % | 2.38 | % | 2.57 | % | 2.90 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
2.00 | % | 2.00 | % | 2.00 | % | 2.00 | % | 2.00 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
61 | % | 64 | % | 70 | % | 89 | % | 94 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Less than $(0.005) per share. |
(c) |
Total return does not reflect the effect of sales charges. |
47
EMERALD INSIGHTS FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INSTITUTIONAL CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 14.49 | $ | 15.64 | $ | 20.67 | $ | 12.37 | $ | 11.69 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.09 | ) | (0.07 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.10 | ) | (0.06 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.88 | (0.43 | ) | (2.05 | ) | 10.01 | 0.74 | |||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.79 | (0.50 | ) | (2.17 | ) | 9.91 | 0.68 | |||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | 0.00 | (b) | |||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | — | ||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.79 | (1.15 | ) | (5.03 | ) | 8.30 | 0.68 | |||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 18.28 | $ | 14.49 | $ | 15.64 | $ | 20.67 | $ | 12.37 | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
26.16 | % | (3.40 | %) | (12.51 | %) | 82.62 | % | 5.85 | % | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 4,400 | $ | 3,657 | $ | 4,340 | $ | 3,658 | $ | 1,462 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(0.53 | %) | (0.51 | %) | (0.62 | %) | (0.57 | %) | (0.53 | %) | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.71 | % | 1.65 | % | 1.42 | % | 1.60 | % | 1.93 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
61 | % | 64 | % | 70 | % | 89 | % | 94 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Less than $(0.005) per share. |
48
EMERALD INSIGHTS FUND |
For a share outstanding throughout the years presented |
INVESTOR CLASS
|
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
Year
Ended |
|||||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, BEGINNING OF PERIOD |
$ | 13.87 | $ | 15.05 | $ | 20.06 | $ | 12.07 | $ | 11.45 | ||||||||||
INCOME/(LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net investment loss(a) |
(0.14 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.18 | ) | (0.15 | ) | (0.09 | ) | ||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.70 | (0.41 | ) | (1.97 | ) | 9.75 | 0.71 | |||||||||||||
Total from Investment Operations |
3.56 | (0.53 | ) | (2.15 | ) | 9.60 | 0.62 | |||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
LESS DISTRIBUTIONS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
From capital gains |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | 0.00 | (b) | |||||||||||
Total Distributions |
— | (0.65 | ) | (2.86 | ) | (1.61 | ) | — | ||||||||||||
NET INCREASE/(DECREASE) IN NET ASSET VALUE |
3.56 | (1.18 | ) | (5.01 | ) | 7.99 | 0.62 | |||||||||||||
NET ASSET VALUE, END OF PERIOD |
$ | 17.43 | $ | 13.87 | $ | 15.05 | $ | 20.06 | $ | 12.07 | ||||||||||
TOTAL RETURN |
25.67 | % | (3.75 | %) | (12.80 | %) | 82.08 | % | 5.45 | % | ||||||||||
RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Assets, End of Period (000s) |
$ | 795 | $ | 824 | $ | 689 | $ | 638 | $ | 274 | ||||||||||
RATIOS TO AVERAGE NET ASSETS: |
||||||||||||||||||||
Net Investment loss |
(0.89 | %) | (0.87 | %) | (0.97 | %) | (0.91 | %) | (0.82 | %) | ||||||||||
Operating expenses excluding reimbursement/waiver |
1.95 | % | 1.97 | % | 1.71 | % | 1.86 | % | 2.17 | % | ||||||||||
Operating expenses including reimbursement/waiver |
1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | ||||||||||
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER RATE |
61 | % | 64 | % | 70 | % | 89 | % | 94 | % |
(a) |
Per share amounts are based upon average shares outstanding. |
(b) |
Less than $(0.005) per share. |
49
Appendix A – Intermediary Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts
The following information is provided by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (“Merrill Lynch”):
Purchases or sales of front-end (i.e. Class A) or level-load (i.e., Class C) mutual fund shares through a Merrill platform or account will be eligible only for the following sales load waivers (front-end, contingent deferred, or back-end waivers) and discounts, which differ from those disclosed elsewhere in this Fund’s prospectus. Purchasers will have to buy mutual fund shares directly from the mutual fund company or through another intermediary to be eligible for waivers or discounts not listed below.
It is the client’s responsibility to notify Merrill at the time of purchase or sale of any relationship or other facts that qualify the transaction for a waiver or discount. A Merrill representative may ask for reasonable documentation of such facts and Merrill may condition the granting of a waiver or discount on the timely receipt of such documentation.
Additional information on waivers and discounts is available in the Merrill Sales Load Waiver and Discounts Supplement (the “Merrill SLWD Supplement”) and in the Mutual Fund Investing at Merrill pamphlet at ml.com/funds. Clients are encouraged to review these documents and speak with their financial advisor to determine whether a transaction is eligible for a waiver or discount.
Front-end Load Waivers Available at Merrill |
Shares of mutual funds available for purchase by employer-sponsored retirement, deferred compensation, and employee benefit plans (including health savings accounts) and trusts used to fund those plans provided the shares are not held in a commission-based brokerage account and shares are held for the benefit of the plan. For purposes of this provision, employer-sponsored retirement plans do not include SEP IRAs, Simple IRAs, SAR-SEPs or Keogh plans |
Shares purchased through a Merrill investment advisory program |
Brokerage class shares exchanged from advisory class shares due to the holdings moving from a Merrill investment advisory program to a Merrill brokerage account |
Shares purchased through the Merrill Edge Self-Directed platform |
Shares purchased through the systematic reinvestment of capital gains distributions and dividend reinvestment when purchasing shares of the same mutual fund in the same account |
Shares exchanged from level-load shares to front-end load shares of the same mutual fund in accordance with the description in the Merrill SLWD Supplement |
Shares purchased by eligible employees of Merrill or its affiliates and their family members who purchase shares in accounts within the employee’s Merrill Household (as defined in the Merrill SLWD Supplement) |
Shares purchased by eligible persons associated with the fund as defined in this prospectus (e.g. the fund’s officers or trustees) |
Shares purchased from the proceeds of a mutual fund redemption in front-end load shares provided (1) the repurchase is in a mutual fund within the same fund family; (2) the repurchase occurs within 90 calendar days from the redemption trade date, and (3) the redemption and purchase occur in the same account (known as Rights of Reinstatement). Automated transactions (i.e. systematic purchases and withdrawals) and purchases made after shares are automatically sold to pay Merrill’s account maintenance fees are not eligible for Rights of Reinstatement |
Contingent Deferred Sales Charge (“CDSC”) Waivers on Front-end, Back-end, and Level Load Shares Available at Merrill |
Shares sold due to the client’s death or disability (as defined by Internal Revenue Code Section 22e(3)) |
Shares sold pursuant to a systematic withdrawal program subject to Merrill’s maximum systematic withdrawal limits as described in the Merrill SLWD Supplement |
Shares sold due to return of excess contributions from an IRA account |
Shares sold as part of a required minimum distribution for IRA and retirement accounts due to the investor reaching the qualified age based on applicable IRS regulation |
Front-end or level-load shares held in commission-based, non-taxable retirement brokerage accounts (e.g. traditional, Roth, rollover, SEP IRAs, Simple IRAs, SAR-SEPs or Keogh plans) that are transferred to fee-based accounts or platforms and exchanged for a lower cost share class of the same mutual fund |
Front-end Load Discounts Available at Merrill: Breakpoints, Rights of Accumulation & Letters of Intent |
Breakpoint discounts, as described in this prospectus, where the sales load is at or below the maximum sales load that Merrill permits to be assessed to a front-end load purchase, as described in the Merrill SLWD Supplement |
Rights of Accumulation (ROA), as described in the Merrill SLWD Supplement, which entitle clients to breakpoint discounts based on the aggregated holdings of mutual fund family assets held in accounts in their Merrill Household |
Letters of Intent (LOI), which allow for breakpoint discounts on eligible new purchases based on anticipated future eligible purchases within a fund family at Merrill, in accounts within your Merrill Household, as further described in the Merrill SLWD Supplement |
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Additional Information About the Funds
Shareholder Reports
Annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders provide additional information about the Funds’ investments. These reports discuss the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Funds’ performance during its last fiscal year.
Statement of Additional Information
The statement of additional information provides more detailed information about the Funds. It is incorporated by reference into (is legally a part of) this Prospectus.
The Funds send only one report to a household if more than one account has the same address. Contact the Transfer Agent if you do not want this policy to apply to you.
How to Obtain Additional Information
You can obtain shareholder reports or the statement of additional information (without charge), make inquiries or request other information about a Fund by contacting the Transfer Agent at 1-855-828-9909, by writing the Fund at 430 W 7th Street Suite 219102, Kansas City, MO 64105-1407, or by calling your financial consultant. This information is also available free of charge on the Funds’ website at www.emeraldmutualfunds.com.
You can also obtain copies of the Funds’ shareholder reports, prospectus and statement of additional information after paying a fee by electronic request at the following e-mail address: [email protected]. You can get the same reports and information free from the EDGAR Database on the Commission’s Internet web site at http://www.sec.gov.
If someone makes a statement about the Funds that is not in this Prospectus, you should not rely upon that information. Neither any Fund nor the Distributor is offering to sell shares of the Funds to any person to whom that Fund may not lawfully sell its shares.
(Investment Company Act file no. 811-8194)