TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUMMARY SECTION |
3 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS ALL-CAP VALUE FUND |
3 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS EMERGING MARKETS DYNAMIC EQUITY FUND |
9 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL EQUITY FUND |
19 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY FUND |
27 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT EQUITY FUND |
36 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS LONG/SHORT RESEARCH FUND |
43 | |
BOSTON PARTNERS SMALL CAP VALUE FUND II |
51 | |
WPG PARTNERS SELECT HEDGED FUND |
58 | |
WPG PARTNERS SELECT SMALL CAP VALUE FUND |
66 | |
WPG PARTNERS SMALL CAP VALUE DIVERSIFIED FUND |
73 | |
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS’ INVESTMENTS AND RISKS |
80 | |
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUNDS |
94 | |
SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION |
101 | |
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
115 | |
APPENDIX A |
116 | |
APPENDIX B |
118 | |
APPENDIX C |
120 | |
APPENDIX D |
122 | |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS |
124 | |
PRIVACY NOTICE |
140 | |
FOR MORE INFORMATION |
Back Cover |
A look at the investment objectives, strategies, risks, expenses and financial history of each of the Boston Partners Investment Funds offered in this Prospectus.
Details about the Boston Partners Investment Funds’ service providers offered in this Prospectus.
Policies and instructions for opening, maintaining and closing an account in any of the Boston Partners Investment Funds offered in this Prospectus. |
2 |
Institutional Class
Investor Class
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class |
Investor Class | |
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Management fees |
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Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
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Other expenses |
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Total annual Fund operating expenses |
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Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement (1)(2) |
- |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
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(1) |
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This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in Institutional Class shares or $10,000 in Investor Class shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
3 |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers across the capitalization spectrum and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return on equity and earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar-denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 10% of its net assets in securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain debt securities and preferred stock.
The Fund may hedge overall portfolio exposure up to 40% of its net assets through the purchase and sale of index and individual put and call options.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
4 |
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”). Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably |
5 |
will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs.
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Micro-Cap Companies Risk. Micro-cap stocks may be very sensitive to changing economic conditions and market downturns because the issuers often have narrow markets for their products or services, fewer product lines, and more limited managerial and financial resources than larger issuers. The stocks of micro-cap companies may therefore be more volatile and the ability to sell them at a desirable time or price may be more limited. |
● |
Mid-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of mid-sized companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. |
● |
Options Risk. An option is a type of derivative instrument that gives the holder the right (but not the obligation) to buy (a “call”) or sell (a “put”) an asset in the near future at an agreed upon price prior to the expiration date of the option. The Fund may “cover” a call option by owning the security underlying the option or through other means. The value of options can be highly volatile, and their use can result in loss if the Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of price fluctuations. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
6 |
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
Average Annual Total Returns
The table shows how the average annual returns of the Institutional Class and Investor Class shares for 1 year, 5 year, and 10 year periods compare to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
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1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund |
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Institutional Class |
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Returns Before Taxes |
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Returns After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
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Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
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Investor Class |
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Returns Before Taxes |
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Russell 3000® Total Return Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
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Russell 3000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
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(1) |
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*
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7 |
● |
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Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Manager
Duilio Ramallo, CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager since 2007.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Type of Account |
Minimum Initial Investment |
Minimum Additional |
Institutional Class |
$100,000 |
$5,000 |
Investor Class |
$2,500 |
$100 |
You can purchase and redeem the shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners All Cap Value Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
8 |
Institutional Class
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
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Other expenses |
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Short Sale Expenses: |
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Dividend expense on short sales |
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Interest expense on borrowings |
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Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(1) |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
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Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(2) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
9 |
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund will pursue its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity and equity-related securities. The Fund will invest in a diversified, multi-strategy long-short portfolio of equity securities and financial investments with equity like characteristics designed to provide exposure to emerging markets. Securities are selected by the Adviser using its “three circles” approach which combines a quantitative screening with a fundamental bottom up selection process. This investment strategy is grounded in the following principles: (1) low valuation stocks outperform high valuation stocks; (2) companies with strong fundamentals, e.g., high and sustainable returns on invested capital, outperform companies with weak fundamentals; and (3) stocks with positive business momentum, e.g., rising earnings estimates, outperform stocks with negative business momentum. With a long position, the Fund purchases a stock outright; with a short position, the Fund sells a security that it does not own and must borrow to meet its settlement obligations. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of issuers, including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals, such as return-on-equity and earnings growth and cash flow.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in the securities of emerging market issuers, related derivative instruments and other investments that are tied economically to emerging market countries. The Adviser considers an emerging market country to include any country that is: 1) generally recognized to be an emerging market country by the international financial community, including the World Bank; 2) classified by the United Nations as a developing country; or 3) included in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Due to the unique relationship between China and its separately administered regions, the Adviser includes Hong Kong and Macau as emerging markets, independent of above definitions 1 through 3. The Adviser determines that an investment is tied economically to an emerging market if such investment satisfies one or more of the following conditions: 1) the issuer’s primary trading market is in an emerging market; 2) the issuer is organized under the laws of, derives at least 50% of its revenue from, or has at least 50% of its assets in emerging markets; 3) the investment is included in an index representative of emerging markets; and 4) the investment is exposed to the economic risks and returns of emerging markets.
In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser will seek to identify mispriced publicly traded equity securities of emerging market companies including shorting securities that the Adviser believes will underperform and purchasing securities that the Adviser believes will outperform.
10 |
The long portion of the portfolio will emphasize low valuation, positive business momentum and high quality securities. The short portfolio will emphasize securities with high valuation risk, high balance sheet risk and signs of slowing sales and earnings momentum.
The Fund’s portfolio is rebalanced regularly to maintain the optimal risk/return trade-off. The Adviser assesses each stock’s changing characteristics relative to its contribution to portfolio risk. The Adviser will sell a stock held long or close out a short position in a stock that the Adviser believes no longer offers an appropriate return-to-risk tradeoff.
The equity securities in which the Fund will invest include equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small- or micro-cap companies, as well as exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”).
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations (e.g., trusts or limited liability companies). Such high yield debt obligations are not considered to be investment grade. Non-investment grade fixed income securities (commonly known as “junk bonds”) are rated BB or lower by S&P Global, or have a comparable rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization (or, if unrated are determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality at the time of investment). The Fund may invest in securities of the lowest rating category, including securities in default. The Adviser may, but is not required to, sell a bond or note held by the Fund in the event that its credit rating is downgraded. The Fund will primarily invest in fixed income instruments, including high yield fixed income obligations, when the Fund believes that such instruments offer a better risk/reward profile than comparable equity opportunities.
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 50% of the Fund’s net assets with a typical range of 30% to 70% net long.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of non-U.S. issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States.
In addition to the short sales discussed above, the Fund may make short sales “against the box,” a transaction in which the Fund enters into a short sale of a security which the Fund owns. The proceeds of the short sale will be held by a broker until the settlement date at which time the Fund delivers the security to close the short position. The Fund receives the net proceeds from the short sale. It is currently expected that the majority of the Fund’s short sales will not be against the box.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
In general, the Fund’s investments will be spread over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
11 |
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPOs”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Fund will invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, contracts for differences, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes. Contracts for differences offer exposure to price changes in an underlying security without ownership of such security, typically by providing investors the ability to trade on margin. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
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Currency Risk. Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. |
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Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
12 |
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Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments, which include futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps, may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
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Emerging Markets Risk. Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in securities of issuers in developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers. The information available about an emerging market issuer may be less reliable than for comparable issuers in more developed capital markets. In addition, investments in certain emerging markets are subject to an elevated risk of loss resulting from market manipulation and the imposition of exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions). The legal rights and remedies available for investors in emerging markets may be more limited than the rights and remedies available in the U.S., and the ability of U.S. authorities (e.g., SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors in emerging markets may be limited. |
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Exchange-Traded Fund Risk. ETFs are a type of investment company bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF typically represents a fixed portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities that they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in its being more volatile. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Fund may incur brokerage fees in connection with its purchase of ETF shares. The purchase of shares of ETFs may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses. Certain ETFs may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their net asset value (“NAV”). |
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Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
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Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests |
13 |
may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares.
● |
High Yield Debt Obligations Risk. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, issued by corporations and other business organizations. An issuer of debt obligations may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal. Also, changes in the financial strength of an issuer or changes in the credit rating of a security may affect its value. Such high yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Adviser may not be successful in its strategy of taking long positions in securities the Adviser believes to be undervalued and short positions in securities the Adviser believes to be overvalued. Further, since the Adviser will manage both a long and a short portfolio, there is the risk that the Adviser may make more poor investment decisions than an adviser of a typical mutual fund with only a long portfolio may make. Investments the Fund makes may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the long portfolio of the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Micro-Cap Companies Risk. Micro-cap stocks may be very sensitive to changing economic conditions and market downturns because the issuers often have narrow markets for their products or services, fewer product lines, and more limited managerial and financial resources than larger issuers. The stocks of micro-cap companies may therefore be more volatile and the ability to sell them at a desirable time or price may be more limited. |
14 |
● |
Mid-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of mid-sized companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. |
● |
Options Risk. An option is a type of derivative instrument that gives the holder the right (but not the obligation) to buy (a “call”) or sell (a “put”) an asset in the near future at an agreed upon price prior to the expiration date of the option. The Fund may “cover” a call option by owning the security underlying the option or through other means. The value of options can be highly volatile, and their use can result in loss if the Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of price fluctuations. Losses incurred by the Fund in writing options can be potentially unlimited. |
● |
Portfolio Turnover Risk. If the Fund frequently trades its portfolio securities, the Fund will incur higher brokerage commissions and transaction costs, which could lower the Fund’s performance. In addition to lower performance, high portfolio turnover could result in taxable capital gains. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% is considered to be high. The annual portfolio turnover rate for the Fund is not expected to exceed 400%; however, it may be higher if the Adviser believes it will improve the Fund’s performance. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act. |
● |
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker-dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. |
● |
Short Sales Risk. Short sales of securities may result in gains if a security’s price declines, but may result in losses if a security’s price rises. In a rising market, short positions may be more likely to result in losses because securities sold short may be more likely to increase in value. Short selling is speculative and also involves the risks of: increased leverage, and its accompanying potential for losses; the potential inability to reacquire a security in a timely manner, or at an acceptable price; the possibility of the lender terminating the loan at any time, forcing the Fund to close the transaction under unfavorable circumstances; and the additional costs that may be incurred. Short sales “against the box” may protect the Fund against the risk of losses in the value of a portfolio security because any decline in the value of the security should be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding gain in the short position. Any potential gains in the security, however, would be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding loss in the short position. Short sales that are not “against the box” involve a form of investment leverage, and the amount of the Fund’s loss on a short sale is potentially unlimited. The use of short sales may cause the Fund to have higher expenses than those of other equity mutual funds because of higher transaction costs, premiums, interest or dividends payable to the lender. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk. |
15 |
● |
Unseasoned Issuers Risk. Unseasoned issuers may not have an established financial history and may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources. Unseasoned issuers may depend on a few key personnel for management and may be susceptible to losses and risks of bankruptcy. As a result, such securities may be more volatile and difficult to sell. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund.
The Fund commenced operations as a series of The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) on December 15, 2015, when substantially all of the assets of Boston Partners Emerging Markets Long/Short Equity (the “Prior Account”) transferred to the Fund. The Fund is managed in all material respects in a manner equivalent to the management of the Prior Account. Accordingly, the performance information shown below for periods prior to December 15, 2015 is that of the Prior Account. The Fund’s objectives, policies, guidelines and restrictions are in all material respects equivalent to the Prior Account. The Fund is managed by Joseph F. Feeney, Jr., who also served as one of the Prior Account portfolio managers that managed the Prior Account since its inception in 2015. The Prior Account was not registered under 1940 Act, and thus was not subject to certain investment and operational restrictions that are imposed by the 1940 Act. If the Prior Account had been registered under the 1940 Act, its performance may have been adversely affected. Accordingly, future Fund performance may be different than the Prior Account’s restated past performance. The Prior Account’s performance has been restated to reflect estimated expenses of the Fund. After-tax performance returns are not included for the Prior Account. The Prior Account was not a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) and therefore did not distribute current or accumulated earnings and profits and was not subject to the diversification and source of income requirements applicable to regulated investment companies.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
16 |
Average Annual Total Returns
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class, including the Prior Account, both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods.
|
||||
1 Year |
5 Years |
Since
|
||
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund |
|
|
|
|
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions(2) |
|
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares(3) |
|
|
|
|
MSCI® Emerging Markets Index - Gross Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
|
MSCI® Emerging Markets Index - Net Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
(3) |
|
* |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
Joseph
Feeney, Jr., CFA, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Boston
Partners, Portfolio Manager since inception.
David Kim, Portfolio Manager
since 2021.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
17 |
You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through the Company by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
18 |
Institutional Class
The Boston Partners Global Equity Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to provide long-term capital growth.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
Other expenses |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
19 |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size. The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity- related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets, but may also invest in issuers located in emerging markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of issuers believed by the Adviser to be undervalued in the marketplace, focusing on issuers that combine attractive valuations with catalysts for change. The Adviser applies a bottom-up stock selection process (i.e., one that focuses primarily on issuer-specific factors) in managing the Fund, using a combination of fundamental and quantitative analysis. In selecting investments for the Fund, the Adviser considers various factors such as price-to-book value, price-to-sales and earnings ratios, dividend yields, strength of management, and cash flow to identify securities that are trading at a price that appears to be lower than the issuer’s inherent value.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
20 |
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Currency Risk. Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments, which include futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps, may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
21 |
● |
Emerging Markets Risk. Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in securities of issuers in developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers. The information available about an emerging market issuer may be less reliable than for comparable issuers in more developed capital markets. In addition, investments in certain emerging markets are subject to an elevated risk of loss resulting from market manipulation and the imposition of exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions). The legal rights and remedies available for investors in emerging markets may be more limited than the rights and remedies available in the U.S., and the ability of U.S. authorities (e.g., SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors in emerging markets may be limited. |
● |
Exchange-Traded Fund Risk. Exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) are a type of investment company bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF typically represents a fixed portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities that they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in its being more volatile. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Fund may incur brokerage fees in connection with its purchase of ETF shares. The purchase of shares of ETFs may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses. Certain ETFs may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their net asset value (“NAV”). |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers either directly or through depositary receipts. Depositary receipts may be available through “sponsored” or “unsponsored” facilities. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all of the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depository of an unsponsored facility is frequently under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through, to the holders of the receipts, voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. The depository of unsponsored depositary receipts may provide less information to receipt holders. Participatory notes (“P-notes”) are derivative instruments used by investors to take positions in certain foreign securities. P-notes present similar risks to investing directly in such securities and also expose investors to counterparty risk. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be |
22 |
listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares.
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Mid-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of mid-sized companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. |
● |
Options Risk. An option is a type of derivative instrument that gives the holder the right (but not the obligation) to buy (a “call”) or sell (a “put”) an asset in the near future at an agreed upon price prior to the expiration date of the option. The Fund may “cover” a call option by owning the security underlying the option or through other means. The value of options can be highly volatile, and their use can result in loss if the Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of price fluctuations. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company |
23 |
securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act.
● |
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker- dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
Returns |
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
24 |
Average Annual Total Returns
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class, including the Prior Account, both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and since inception periods to the average annual total returns of broad-based securities market indices for the same periods.
| |||
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund |
|||
Institutional Class |
|||
Return Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares |
|
|
|
MSCI World Index - Gross Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
MSCI World Index - Net Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
* |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
Christopher
Hart, CFA, a Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception.
Joshua Jones,
CFA, a Portfolio Manager of the Fund since 2013.
Soyoun Song, Portfolio
Manager of the Fund since 2023.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through the Company by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Global Equity Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
25 |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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 versus another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
26 |
The Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
Other expenses |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
Institutional Class
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
27 |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, in a diversified portfolio of equity and equity-related securities issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of any capitalization size. The Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including without limitation exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, options, rights, convertible securities, sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, participatory notes, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and equity participation. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula.
The Fund defines non-U.S. companies as companies (i) that are organized under the laws of a foreign country; (ii) whose principal trading market is in a foreign country; or (iii) that have a majority of their assets, or that derive a significant portion of their revenue or profits from businesses, investments or sales, outside of the United States. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests significantly (ordinarily at least 40% — unless market conditions are not deemed favorable by the Adviser, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) in non-U.S. companies. The Fund principally will be invested in issuers located in countries with developed securities markets. The Fund will allocate its assets among various regions and countries, including the United States (but in no less than three different countries).
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets, including borrowings for investment purposes, in companies that meet the Adviser’s sustainability criteria. Fund holdings must have received at least a “satisfactory” sustainability rating by the Adviser’s Sustainability and Engagement Team (the “Sustainability Team”) based on the Sustainability Team’s written research analysis. The Sustainability Team assesses each holding as either “excellent,” “good,” “satisfactory,” or “poor.” An issuer will be rated “excellent” if the issuer, in the opinion of the Sustainability Team, has a well-developed sustainability structure, well-designed goals for the future, demonstrated successful implementation of its sustainability program and shareholder friendly corporate governance. The Sustainability Team will rate an issuer as “good” if the issuer, in the opinion of the Sustainability Team, has attributes similar to those described in “excellent” but has some deficiencies that warrant improvement. The Sustainability Team will rate an issuer as “satisfactory” if the issuer, in the opinion of the Sustainability Team, has a sustainability program in place, has a sufficient level of sustainability disclosure for the Sustainability Team to assess the issuer’s sustainability program and has a commitment to improve its sustainability program and disclosure in the near term. All other holdings assessed by the Sustainability Team that are not rated either “excellent”, “good” or “satisfactory” are rated “poor”. These ratings are subjective and may vary if the issuer has products or services that inherently promote sustainability, particularly for other products or services, or has engaged in conduct that has or has the potential to lower the sustainability reputation of the issuer in the opinion of the Sustainability Team.
The Sustainability Team uses a positive screen to identify issuers it considers to have characteristics that meet the Adviser’s sustainability criteria. The Sustainability Team assesses the sustainability of the issuer’s products, services and operations through original research and focusing on key areas such as corporate governance, internal sustainability structure, workforce and management diversity, training and employee development opportunities, safety programs and injury metrics, environmental effects such as goals and metrics for greenhouse gas emissions, energy usage, renewable energy, waste and water, supplier oversight
28 |
and litigation and regulatory issues. The Sustainability Team uses primarily issuer published documents such as its sustainability report, website, publicly available financial reports such as the issuer’s 10-K and the issuer’s proxy statement to prepare the Sustainability Team’s research. The Sustainability Team also undertakes an internet search for any litigation, regulatory or reputational issues. The Sustainability Team may use third party research about industry trends for background information, but it does not rely on third party data about the issuer for its assessment of the issuer. The Sustainability Team provides a sustainability assessment for all issuers held in the Fund’s portfolio. The Sustainability Team’s ratings are subjective. No industries are automatically excluded from consideration. The Adviser will vote all securities for which it has voting authority in the best interests of its clients. The Adviser’s Governance Committee votes all proxies. The Governance Committee assesses the likely effect of the proxy proposal on the value of the issuer’s stock including the effect on the management of the issuer, the importance to shareholders of the proxy proposal and the cost of the proposal.
The Sustainability Team also engages with issuers regarding sustainability deficiencies and reviews any improvements by issuers annually.
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of issuers believed by the Adviser to be undervalued in the marketplace, focusing on issuers that combine attractive valuations with catalysts for change. The Adviser applies a bottom-up stock selection process (i.e., one that focuses primarily on issuer-specific factors) in managing the Fund, using a combination of fundamental and quantitative analysis. In selecting investments for the Fund, the Adviser considers various factors such as price-to-book value, price-to-sales and earnings ratios, dividend yields, strength of management, and cash flow to identify securities that are trading at a price that appears to be lower than the issuer’s inherent value.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals, business momentum, or sustainability practices of a specific investment or industry. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including put and call options, futures, forward contracts and swaps, in lieu of investing directly in a security, currency or instrument, for hedging and non-hedging purposes.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
29 |
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Currency Risk. Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments, which include futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps, may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
● |
Emerging Markets Risk. Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in securities of issuers in developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers. The information available of an emerging market issuer may be less reliable than for comparable issuers in more developed capital markets. In addition, investments in certain emerging markets are subject to an elevated risk of loss resulting from market manipulation and the imposition of exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions). The legal rights and remedies available for investors in emerging markets may be more limited than the rights and remedies available in the U.S., and the ability of U.S. authorities (e.g., SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors in emerging markets may be limited. |
● |
Exchange-Traded Fund Risk. ETFs are a type of investment company bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF typically represents a fixed portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities that they |
30 |
are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in its being more volatile. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Fund may incur brokerage fees in connection with its purchase of ETF shares. The purchase of shares of ETFs may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses. Certain ETFs may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their net asset value (“NAV”).
● |
Equity Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in, or have exposure to, equity securities. Equity securities tend to be more volatile than other investment choices, such as debt and money market instruments. The value of your investment may decrease in response to overall stock market movements or the value of individual securities. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers either directly or through depositary receipts. Depositary receipts may be available through “sponsored” or “unsponsored” facilities. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all of the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depository of an unsponsored facility is frequently under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through, to the holders of the receipts, voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. The depository of unsponsored depositary receipts may provide less information to receipt holders. Participatory notes (“P-notes”) are derivative instruments used by investors to take positions in certain foreign securities. P-notes present similar risks to investing directly in such securities and also expose investors to counterparty risk. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
31 |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
● |
Large-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of large capitalization companies as a group could fall out of favor with the market, causing the Fund to underperform investments that focus solely on small- or medium-capitalization stocks. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Mid-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of mid-sized companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. |
● |
Options Risk. An option is a type of derivative instrument that gives the holder the right (but not the obligation) to buy (a “call”) or sell (a “put”) an asset in the near future at an agreed upon price prior to the expiration date of the option. The Fund may “cover” a call option by owning the security underlying the option or through other means. The value of options can be highly volatile, and their use can result in loss if the Adviser is incorrect in its expectation of price fluctuations. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. |
● |
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker- dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced |
32 |
management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk.
● |
Sustainable Investment Risk. The sustainability criterion required for Fund investment may cause the Fund to not invest in certain industries or issuers. As a result, the Fund may be overweight or underweight in certain industries or issuers relative to its benchmark index, which may cause the Fund’s performance to be more or less sensitive to developments affecting those industries or issuers. Sustainability information provided by issuers, upon which the portfolio managers may rely, continues to develop, and may be incomplete, inaccurate, use different methodologies, or be applied differently across companies and industries. Further, the regulatory landscape for sustainable investing in the United States is still developing and future rules and regulations may require the Fund to modify or alter its investment process. Similarly, government policies incentivizing issuers to engage in sustainable practices may fall out of favor, which could potentially limit the Fund’s investment universe. There is also a risk that the companies identified through the investment process may fail to adhere to sustainable business practices, which may result in the Fund selling a security when it might otherwise be disadvantageous to do so. There is no guarantee that sustainable investments will outperform the broader market on either an absolute or relative basis. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
33 |
Average Annual Total Returns
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year and since-inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
Average
Annual Total Returns |
|||
1 Year |
Since
|
||
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund |
|
|
|
Return Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares |
|
|
|
MSCI World Index - Gross Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
MSCI World Index - Net Return (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
(1) |
|
* |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Manager
Soyoun Song, Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception in 2021.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Global Sustainability Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
34 |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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 versus another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
35 |
The Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund (the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation while reducing exposure to general equity market risk. The Fund seeks a total return greater than that of the S&P 500® Index over a full market cycle.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class Investor Class
Institutional Class |
Investor Class | |
|
||
Management fees |
|
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
|
Other Expenses |
|
|
Short Sales Expenses: |
||
Dividend expense on short sales |
|
|
Interest expense on borrowings |
|
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1) |
- |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
|
(1) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in Institutional Class shares or $10,000 in Investor Class shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that
36 |
the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage. The Fund invests, both long and short, in securities principally traded in the United States markets. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the United States equity market generally. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Fund intends, under normal circumstances, to invest at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities. Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 125% of the Fund’s net assets.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of foreign issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets directly in equity securities of foreign issuers.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
37 |
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, used by corporations and other business organizations. High yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade.
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”). Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
38 |
● |
High Yield Debt Obligations Risk. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations, such as bonds and debentures, issued by corporations and other business organizations. An issuer of debt obligations may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal. Also, changes in the financial strength of an issuer or changes in the credit rating of a security may affect its value. Such high yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the Adviser may not be successful in its strategy of taking long positions in stocks the manager believes to be undervalued and short positions in stocks the manager believes to be overvalued. Further, since the Adviser will manage both a long and a short portfolio, there is the risk that the Adviser may make more poor investment decisions than an adviser of a typical mutual fund with only a long portfolio may make. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the long portfolio of the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than |
39 |
the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act.
● |
Short Sales Risk. Short sales of securities may result in gains if a security’s price declines, but may result in losses if a security’s price rises. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The small capitalization equity securities in which the Fund may invest may be traded only in the over-the-counter market or on a regional securities exchange, may be listed only in the quotation service commonly known as the “pink sheets,” and may not be traded every day or in the volume typical of trading on a national securities exchange. These securities may also be subject to wide fluctuations in market value. The trading market for any given small capitalization equity security may be sufficiently small as to make it difficult for the Fund to dispose of a substantial block of such securities. The sale by the Fund of portfolio securities to meet redemptions may require the Fund to sell its small capitalization securities at a discount from market prices or during periods when, in the Adviser’s judgment, such sale is not desirable. Moreover, the lack of an efficient market for these securities may make them difficult to value. |
● |
Unseasoned Issuers Risk. Unseasoned issuers may not have an established financial history and may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources. Unseasoned issuers may depend on a few key personnel for management and may be susceptible to losses and risks of bankruptcy. As a result, such securities may be more volatile and difficult to sell. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
40 |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
Average Annual Total Returns
The table shows how the average annual returns of the Institutional Class and Investor Class shares for 1 year, 5 year, and 10 year periods compare to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods. Although the Fund compares its average total return to a broad-based securities market index, the Fund seeks returns that are not correlated to securities market returns. The Fund seeks to achieve a 12-15% return over a full market cycle; however, there can be no guarantee that such returns will be achieved.
| |||
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
|
|
|
Institutional Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares(2) |
|
|
|
Investor Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
Patrick Regan, CFA, Portfolio Manager since 2019.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Type of Account |
Minimum Initial Investment |
Minimum Additional |
Institutional Class |
$100,000 |
$5,000 |
Investor Class |
$2,500 |
$100 |
41 |
You can purchase and redeem the shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
42 |
The Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to provide long-term total return.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class |
Investor Class | |
|
||
Management fees |
|
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
|
Other expenses |
|
|
Short Sales Expenses: |
||
Dividend expense on short sales |
|
|
Interest expense on borrowings |
|
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in Institutional Class shares or $10,000 in Investor Class shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund uses a hedged strategy. The Fund actively invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales (i.e., sales of securities the Fund does not own) are invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage.
43 |
The Fund invests, both long and short, in equity securities issued by large-, mid- and small (or “micro”) cap companies, as well as other instruments that are convertible into equity securities. Selling securities short is a form of leverage. Equity securities in which the Fund may invest include exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, rights, convertible securities, depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies and real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), and equity participations. An equity participation is a type of loan that gives the lender a portion of equity ownership in a property, in addition to principal and interest payments. A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specified price or formula. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Fund may also invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies (denominated in either U.S. dollars or foreign currencies), put and call options, futures, indexed securities and fixed-income securities (including bonds, notes, asset-backed securities, convertible securities, Eurodollar and Yankee dollar instruments, preferred stocks and money market instruments) and high yield securities (commonly referred to as “junk bonds”). Fixed income securities in which the Fund invests include those rated between AAA and D by a nationally recognized statistical rating organization, or deemed of comparable quality by the Adviser. The Adviser may also temporarily invest uninvested cash in money market funds and similar collective investment vehicles. The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Adviser determines the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the U.S. equity market by investing less than 100% of its assets in net long positions. Selection of individual securities to be held long or sold short will be based on a mix of quantitative techniques and fundamental security analysis. The Adviser selects stocks on the basis of three criteria: value, fundamental business strength and momentum. The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price-to-book value ratios and price-to-earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
Although the Fund seeks to follow a hedged strategy, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s portfolio or investments will be insulated from market moves or effectively hedged against risk.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing less than 25% of its total assets in any one industry, except that the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”), and applicable SEC orders.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The principal derivative instruments in which the Fund invests are futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
44 |
While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
● |
Currency Risk. Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments, which include futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies, options on these futures, forward foreign currency contracts and interest rate or currency swaps, may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
● |
Exchange-Traded Fund Risk. Exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) are a type of investment company bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF typically represents a fixed portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities that they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in its being more volatile. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Fund may incur brokerage fees in connection with its purchase of ETF shares. The purchase of shares of ETFs may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses. |
45 |
Certain ETFs may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their net asset value (“NAV”).
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
High Yield Debt Obligations Risk. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in high yield debt obligations (of any rating, including defaulted securities and unrated securities), including bonds and debentures, issued by corporations and business organizations. An issuer of debt obligations may default on its obligation to pay interest and repay principal. Also, changes in the financial strength of an issuer or changes in the credit rating of a security may affect its value. Such high yield debt obligations are referred to as “junk bonds” and are not considered to be investment grade. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
46 |
● |
Indexed Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in indexed securities whose value is linked to securities indices. Most such securities have values that rise and fall according to the change in one or more specified indices and may have characteristics similar to direct investments in the underlying securities. Depending on the index, such securities may have greater volatility than the market as a whole. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Adviser may be incorrect in the stocks it buys and believes to be undervalued and in stocks it sells short and believes to be overvalued. Further, since the Adviser will manage both a long and a short portfolio, there is the risk that the Adviser may make more poor investment decisions than an adviser of a typical mutual fund with only a long portfolio. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the long portfolio of the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the price of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act. |
● |
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker-dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. |
● |
Short Sales Risk. Short sales of securities may result in gains if a security’s price declines, but may result in losses if a security’s price rises. In a rising market, short positions may be more likely to result in losses because securities sold short may be more likely to increase in value. Short selling also involves the risks of: increased leverage, and its accompanying potential for losses; the potential inability to reacquire a security in a timely manner, or at an acceptable price; the possibility of the lender terminating the loan at any time, forcing the Fund to close the transaction under unfavorable circumstances; and the additional costs that may be incurred. Short sales “against the box” may protect the Fund against the risk of losses in the value of a portfolio security because any decline in value of the security should be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding gain in the short position. Any potential gains in the security, however, would be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding loss in the short position. Short sales that are not “against the box” involve a form of investment leverage, and the amount of the Fund’s loss on a short sale is potentially unlimited. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The small capitalization equity securities in which the Fund may invest may be traded only in the over-the-counter market or on a regional securities exchange, may be listed only in the quotation service commonly known as the “pink sheets,” and may not be traded every day or in the volume typical of trading on a national securities exchange. These securities may also be subject to wide fluctuations in market value. The trading market for any given small capitalization equity security may be sufficiently small as to make it difficult for the Fund to dispose of a substantial block of such securities. The sale by the Fund of portfolio securities to meet redemptions may require the Fund |
47 |
to sell its small capitalization securities at a discount from market prices or during periods when, in the Adviser’s judgment, such sale is not desirable. Moreover, the lack of an efficient market for these securities may make them difficult to value.
● |
Unseasoned Issuers Risk. Unseasoned issuers may not have an established financial history and may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources. Unseasoned issuers may depend on a few key personnel for management and may be susceptible to losses and risks of bankruptcy. As a result, such securities may be more volatile and difficult to sell. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
48 |
Average Annual Total Returns
The table shows how the average annual returns of the Institutional Class and Investor Class shares for 1 year, 5 year, and 10 year periods compare to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
| |||
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
|
|
|
Institutional Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares(2) |
|
|
|
Investor Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
In certain cases, the figure representing “Return after Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares” may be higher than the other return figures for the same period, since a higher after-tax return results when a capital loss occurs upon redemption and provides an assumed tax deduction that benefits the investor. |
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
Joseph
Feeney, Jr., CFA, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Boston
Partners, Portfolio Manager since inception of the Fund.
Scott Burgess, CFA,
Portfolio Manager since December 2022.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Type of Account |
Minimum Initial Investment |
Minimum Additional |
Institutional Class |
$100,000 |
$5,000 |
Investor Class |
$2,500 |
$100 |
49 |
You can purchase and redeem the shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
50 |
The Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II (the “Fund”) seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. Current income is a secondary objective.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class Investor Class
Institutional Class |
Investor Class | |
|
||
Management fees |
|
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
|
Other expenses |
|
|
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(1) |
|
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(2) |
- |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in Institutional Class shares or $10,000 in Investor Class shares of the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares
51 |
at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
Investor Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of equity securities, such as common stocks of issuers with small market capitalizations and identified by the Adviser as having value characteristics. A small market capitalization issuer generally is considered to be one whose market capitalization is, at the time the Fund makes the investment, similar to the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. The Russell 2000® Value Index is an unmanaged index that contains stocks from the Russell 2000® Index with less than average growth orientation. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index was $836 million and the largest stock was $13.6 billion. Please note that this range is as of a particular point in time and is subject to change.
The Fund generally invests in the equity securities of small companies. The Adviser will seek to invest in companies it considers to be well managed and to have attractive fundamental financial characteristics. The Adviser believes greater potential for price appreciation exists among small companies since they tend to be less widely followed by other securities analysts and thus may be more likely to be undervalued by the market. The Fund may invest from time to time a portion of its assets, not to exceed 20% (under normal conditions) at the time of purchase, in companies with larger market capitalizations.
The Adviser examines various factors in determining the value characteristics of such issuers including price to book value ratios and price to earnings ratios. These value characteristics are examined in the context of the issuer’s operating and financial fundamentals such as return on equity, earnings growth and cash flow. The Adviser selects securities for the Fund based on a continuous study of trends in industries and companies, earnings power and growth and other investment criteria.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
The Fund may also invest up to 25% of its total assets in non U.S. dollar-denominated securities.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
In general, the Fund’s investments are broadly diversified over a number of industries and, as a matter of policy, the Fund is limited to investing a maximum of 25% of its total assets in any one industry.
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While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”). Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede |
53 |
such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities.
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. |
● |
Small Cap Companies Risk. The Fund will invest in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with a market capitalization greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. Small market capitalization issuers are not as diversified in their business activities as issuers with market capitalizations greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index and are more susceptible to changes in the business cycle. |
The small capitalization equity securities in which the Fund invests may be traded only in the over-the-counter market or on a regional securities exchange, may be listed only in the quotation service commonly known as the “pink sheets,” and may not be traded every day or in the volume typical of trading on a national securities exchange. These securities may also be subject to wide fluctuations in market value. The trading market for any given small capitalization equity security may be sufficiently small as to make it difficult for the Fund to dispose of a substantial block of such securities. The sale by the Fund of portfolio securities to meet redemptions may require the Fund to sell its small capitalization |
54 |
securities at a discount from market prices or during periods when, in the Adviser’s judgment, such sale is not desirable. Moreover, the lack of an efficient market for these securities may make them difficult to value.
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the long-term performance of the Fund’s
Institutional Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
|
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
- % (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
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Average Annual Total Returns
The table shows how the average annual returns of the Institutional Class and Investor Class shares for 1 year, 5 year, and 10 year periods compare to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
| |||
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
|
|
|
Institutional Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Returns After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
|
|
|
Investor Class |
|||
Returns Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Total Return Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
Russell 2000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
(1) |
|
* |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
George Gumpert, CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager since 2005.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Type of Account |
Minimum Initial Investment |
Minimum Additional |
Institutional Class |
$100,000 |
$5,000 |
Investor Class |
$2,500 |
$100 |
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You can purchase and redeem the shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: Boston
Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
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Institutional Class
The WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund (the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
Other Expenses(1) |
|
Short Sales Expenses: |
|
Dividend expense on short sales |
|
Interest expense on borrowings |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1)(2) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
(2) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your
58 |
investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. From the date the Fund commenced operations on May 3, 2024, to the
fiscal period ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio turnover rate for the Fund
was
The Fund uses a hedged strategy. The Fund invests in long positions in stocks identified by the Adviser as undervalued and takes short positions in stocks that the Adviser has identified as overvalued. The cash proceeds from short sales will be invested in short-term cash instruments to produce a return on such proceeds just below the federal funds rate. Short sales are considered speculative transactions and a form of leverage. The Fund invests, both long and short, in equity securities traded in the United States markets. The Fund may invest in securities of companies operating for three years or less (“unseasoned issuers”). The Adviser will determine the size of each long or short position by analyzing the tradeoff between the attractiveness of each position and its impact on the risk of the overall portfolio. The Fund seeks to construct a portfolio that has less volatility than the United States equity market generally by investing less than 100% of its assets in net long positions. Although the Fund seeks to follow a hedged strategy, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s portfolio or investments will be insulated from market moves or effectively hedged against risk. The Fund is non-diversified, and may invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund.
The Adviser uses a value approach to select the Fund’s long and short investments. Using this investment style, the Adviser seeks securities selling at substantial differences from their underlying values and then holds these securities until the market values reflect what the Adviser believes to be their intrinsic values. The Adviser employs a bottom-up strategy. The Adviser then uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to assess a security’s potential value. The Fund’s portfolio manager and research team meet with a multitude of companies annually to identify companies with increasing returns on capital in their core businesses which are selling at attractive valuations.
Factors the Adviser looks for in selecting long investments include (without limitation):
● |
Increasing returns on invested capital; |
● |
Companies who have demonstrated an ability to generate high return on invested capital; |
● |
Companies which provide solid cash flows with appropriate capital; |
● |
Potential catalysts such as new products, cyclical upturns and changes in management; and |
● |
Low market valuations relative to earnings forecast, book value, cash flow and sales. |
Factors the Adviser looks for in selecting short investments include (without limitation):
● |
Decreasing returns on invested capital; |
● |
Companies persistently generating low returns on investment, well below their cost of capital; |
● |
Companies with persistently negative cash flows; and |
59 |
● |
Potential catalysts such as declining growth rates, margin compression, and capital structure deterioration. |
The Fund pursues its objective by primarily investing, under normal circumstances, in equity securities traded in the United States markets that, at the time of purchase, have a market capitalization that is within the range of the market capitalization of issuers in the Russell 2000® Value Index. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index is $836 million and the largest stock is $13.6 billion. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies. Although the Fund invests primarily in common stocks (which include both exchange-listed and over-the-counter (“OTC”) securities), the Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including (without limitation):
● |
Securities convertible into common stocks. |
● |
Shares of real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). |
● |
Warrants and rights to purchase common stocks. |
● |
Preferred stocks. |
● |
Shares of other investment companies (including exchanged-traded funds (“ETFs”)). |
● |
Exchange-traded limited partnerships. |
Under normal circumstances, the Adviser expects that the Fund’s long positions will not exceed approximately 100% of the Fund’s net assets.
The Fund’s long and short positions may involve (without limit) equity securities of foreign issuers that are traded in the markets of the United States. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its total assets directly in equity securities of foreign issuers.
To meet margin requirements, redemptions or pending investments, the Fund may also temporarily hold a portion of its assets in full faith and credit obligations of the United States government and in short-term notes, commercial paper or other money market instruments.
The Fund may invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company.
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Fund may (but is not required to) invest in derivatives, including forward contracts and swaps. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested.
The Fund may invest from time to time a significant portion of its assets in smaller or unseasoned issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with larger market capitalizations.
The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments, including investments that are illiquid by virtue of the absence of a readily available market or legal or contractual restrictions on resale.
The Fund may also seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
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While the Adviser intends to fully invest the Fund’s assets at all times in accordance with the above-mentioned policies, the Fund reserves the right to hold up to 100% of its assets, as a temporary defensive measure, in cash and eligible U.S. dollar-denominated money market instruments and make investments inconsistent with its investment objective. The Adviser will determine when market conditions warrant temporary defensive measures.
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Currency Risk. Investment in foreign securities also involves currency risk associated with securities that trade or are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and which may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. An increase in the strength of the U.S. dollar relative to a foreign currency may cause the U.S. dollar value of an investment in that country to decline. Foreign currencies also are subject to risks caused by inflation, interest rates, budget deficits and low savings rates, political factors and government controls. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Derivatives Risk. The Fund’s investments in derivative instruments may be leveraged and result in losses exceeding the amounts invested. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with investments in more traditional securities and instruments. The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
● |
Equity Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in, or have exposure to, equity securities. Equity securities tend to be more volatile than other investment choices, such as debt and money market instruments. The value of your investment may decrease in response to overall stock market movements or the value of individual securities. |
61 |
● |
Exchange-Traded Fund Risk. ETFs are a type of investment company bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF typically represents a fixed portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities that they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in its being more volatile. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. The Fund may incur brokerage fees in connection with its purchase of ETF shares. The purchase of shares of ETFs may result in duplication of expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the Fund’s own expenses. Certain ETFs may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their net asset value (“NAV”). |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
Illiquid Investments Risk. Investing in illiquid investments is subject to certain risks, such as limitations on resale and uncertainty in determining valuation. Limitations on resale may adversely affect the marketability of portfolio securities and the Fund might be unable to dispose of restricted or other illiquid investments promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty satisfying redemptions within seven days. The Fund might, in order to dispose of restricted securities, have to register securities resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of such securities. Less liquid securities that the Fund may want to invest in may be difficult or impossible to purchase. Federal banking regulations may also cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of certain securities, which may further decrease the Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs. |
62 |
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the Adviser may not be successful in its strategy of taking long positions in stocks the manager believes to be undervalued and short positions in stocks the manager believes to be overvalued. Further, since the Adviser will manage both a long and a short portfolio, there is the risk that the Adviser may make more poor investment decisions than an adviser of a typical mutual fund with only a long portfolio may make. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the long portfolio of the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Micro-Cap Companies Risk. Micro-cap stocks may be very sensitive to changing economic conditions and market downturns because the issuers often have narrow markets for their products or services, fewer product lines, and more limited managerial and financial resources than larger issuers. The stocks of micro-cap companies may therefore be more volatile and the ability to sell them at a desirable time or price may be more limited. |
● |
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized, non-diversified management investment company with a limited operating history. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”) may determine to liquidate the Fund. |
● |
Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund is non-diversified. Compared to other funds, the Fund may invest more of its assets in a smaller number of companies. Gains or losses on a single stock may have greater impact on the Fund. |
● |
OTC Risk. Securities traded on OTC markets are not listed and traded on an organized exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). Generally, the volume of trading in an unlisted or OTC common stock is less than the volume of trading in an exchange-listed stock. As a result, the market liquidity of some stocks in which the Fund invests may not be as great as that of exchange-listed stocks and, if the Fund were to dispose of such stocks, the Fund may have to offer the shares at a discount from recent prices or sell the shares in small lots over an extended period of time. In addition, penny stocks and pink sheet stocks can be classified as OTC stocks. |
● |
Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may frequently trade its portfolio securities, resulting in higher brokerage commissions and transaction costs, which could lower the Fund’s performance. In addition to lower performance, high portfolio turnover could result in taxable capital gains. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% is considered to be high. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). |
63 |
● |
Rights and Warrants Risk. The purchase of rights or warrants involves the risk that the Fund could lose the purchase value of a right or warrant if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not executed prior to the right’s or warrant’s expiration. Also, the purchase of rights and/or warrants involves the risk that the effective price paid for the right and/or warrant added to the subscription price of the related security may exceed the value of the subscribed security’s market price such as when there is no movement in the level of the underlying security. |
● |
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker-dealers. The Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund. |
● |
Short Sales Risk. Short sales of securities may result in gains if a security’s price declines, but may result in losses if a security’s price rises. In a rising market, short positions may be more likely to result in losses because securities sold short may be more likely to increase in value. Short selling also involves the risks of: increased leverage, and its accompanying potential for losses; the potential inability to reacquire a security in a timely manner, or at an acceptable price; the possibility of the lender terminating the loan at any time, forcing the Fund to close the transaction under unfavorable circumstances; and the additional costs that may be incurred. Short sales “against the box” may protect the Fund against the risk of losses in the value of a portfolio security because any decline in value of the security should be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding gain in the short position. Any potential gains in the security, however, would be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding loss in the short position. Short sales that are not “against the box” involve a form of investment leverage, and the amount of the Fund’s loss on a short sale is potentially unlimited. |
● |
Small Cap Companies Risk. The Fund will invest in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with a market capitalization greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. Small market capitalization issuers are not as diversified in their business activities as issuers with market capitalizations greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index and are more susceptible to changes in the business cycle. |
Some small capitalization equity securities in which the Fund invests may be traded only in the over-the-counter market or on a regional securities exchange, may be listed only in the quotation service commonly known as the “pink sheets,” and may not be traded every day or in the volume typical of trading on a national securities exchange. These securities may also be subject to wide fluctuations in market value. The trading market for any given small capitalization equity security may be sufficiently small as to make it difficult for the Fund to dispose of a substantial block of such securities. The sale by the Fund of portfolio securities to meet redemptions may require the Fund to sell its small capitalization securities at a discount from market prices or during periods when, in the Adviser’s judgment, such sale is not desirable. Moreover, the lack of an efficient market for these securities may make them difficult to value.
● |
Special Situations Risk. The Fund will seek to benefit from “special situations,” such as mergers, reorganizations, or other unusual events expected to affect a particular issuer. There is a risk that the “special situation” might not occur or involve longer time frames than originally expected, which could have a negative impact on the price of the issuer’s securities and fail to produce gains or produce a loss for the Fund. |
● |
Unseasoned Issuers Risk. Unseasoned issuers may not have an established financial history and may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources. Unseasoned issuers may depend on a few key personnel for management and may be susceptible to losses and risks of bankruptcy. As a result, such securities may be more volatile and difficult to sell. |
64 |
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Manager
Eric Gandhi, CFA, Portfolio Manager since inception of the Fund in 2024.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the NYSE is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through the Company by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: WPG
Partners Select Hedged Fund c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund Services |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
65 |
The WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
Other expenses |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Years |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
66 |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of U.S. companies that, at the time of purchase, have a market capitalization that is within the range of the market capitalization of issuers in the Russell 2000® Value Index. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index is $836 million and the largest stock is $13.6 billion. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies. Although the Fund invests primarily in common stocks (which include both exchange-listed and over-the-counter (“OTC”) securities), the Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including (without limitation):
● |
Securities convertible into common stocks. |
● |
Shares of real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). |
● |
Warrants and rights to purchase common stocks. |
● |
Preferred stocks. |
● |
Exchange-traded limited partnerships. |
Special Situations: The Fund may invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company.
Strategies: The Adviser uses a value approach to select the Fund’s investments. Using this investment style, the Adviser seeks securities selling at substantial discounts to their underlying values and then holds these securities until the market values reflect what the Adviser believes to be their intrinsic values. The Adviser employs a bottom-up strategy, focusing on undervalued industries that the Adviser believes are experiencing positive change. The Adviser then uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to assess a security’s potential value. The portfolio manager managing the Fund and the analytical team meet with a multitude of companies annually to identify companies with increasing returns on capital in their core businesses which are selling at attractive valuations.
Factors the Adviser looks for in selecting investments include (without limitation):
● |
Increasing returns on invested capital. |
● |
Companies who have demonstrated an ability to generate high return on invested capital. |
● |
Companies which provide solid cash flows with appropriate capital. |
● |
Potential catalysts such as new products, cyclical upturns and changes in management. |
● |
Low market valuations relative to earnings forecast, book value, cash flow and sales. |
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
67 |
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Equity Securities Risk. The Fund may invest in, or have exposure to, equity securities. Equity securities tend to be more volatile than other investment choices, such as debt and money market instruments. The value of your investment may decrease in response to overall stock market movements or the value of individual securities. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”). Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high |
68 |
transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs.
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the prices of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may frequently trade its portfolio securities, resulting in higher brokerage commissions and transaction costs, which could lower the Fund’s performance. In addition to lower performance, high portfolio turnover could result in taxable capital gains. A portfolio turnover rate of 100% is considered to be high. The annual portfolio turnover rate for the Fund is not expected to exceed 400%; however, it may be higher if the Adviser believes it wil improve the Fund’s performance. |
● |
OTC Risk. Securities traded on OTC markets are not listed and traded on an organized exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). Generally, the volume of trading in an unlisted or OTC common stock is less than the volume of trading in an exchange-listed stock. As a result, the market liquidity of some stocks in which the Fund invests may not be as great as that of exchange-listed stocks and, if the Fund were to dispose of such stocks, the Fund may have to offer the shares at a discount from recent prices or sell the shares in small lots over an extended period of time. In addition, penny stocks and pink sheet stocks can be classified as OTC stocks. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. |
● |
Rights and Warrants Risk. The purchase of rights or warrants involves the risk that the Fund could lose the purchase value of a right or warrant if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not executed prior to the right’s or warrant’s expiration. Also, the purchase of rights and/or warrants involves the risk that the effective price paid for the right and/or warrant added to the subscription price of the related security may exceed the value of the subscribed security’s market price such as when there is no movement in the level of the underlying security. |
69 |
.
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk. |
● |
Special Situations Risk. The Fund will seek to benefit from “special situations,” such as mergers, reorganizations, or other unusual events expected to affect a particular issuer. There is a risk that the “special situation” might not occur or involve longer time frames than originally expected, which could have a negative impact on the price of the issuer’s securities and fail to produce gains or produce a loss for the Fund. |
The
bar chart and table below illustrate the performance of the Fund’s Institutional
Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
|
% (quarter ended ) |
|
% (quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
70 |
Average Annual Total Returns
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the one-year and since-inception periods to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
Institutional Class
|
|||
1 Year |
Since
|
||
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund |
|
|
|
Return Before Taxes |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
|
|
|
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares |
|
|
|
Russell 3000® Total Return Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
|
|
Russell 2000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
|
- |
Institutional Class
(1) |
|
* |
|
Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Manager
Eric Gandhi, CFA, Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception in 2021.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the NYSE is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: WPG
Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
71 |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other 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.
72 |
The WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund (the “Fund”) seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in common stocks, securities convertible into common stocks and in special situations.
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Institutional Class shares of the Fund. You may be required to pay commissions and/or other forms of compensation to a broker for transactions in Institutional Class shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the tables or the examples below.
Institutional Class
Institutional Class | |
|
|
Management fees |
|
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) fees |
|
Other expenses |
|
Total annual Fund operating expenses |
|
Fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement(1) |
- |
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement |
|
(1) |
|
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $100,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and that you hold or sell all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the operating expenses of the Fund remain the same (taking into account the contractual expense limitation until its expiration). Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
1 Year |
3 Year |
5 Year |
10 Year | |
Institutional Class |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
73 |
The
Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells
securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may
indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund
shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in
Total annual Fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s
performance. During the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the portfolio
turnover rate for the Fund was
The Fund pursues its objective by investing, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets (including borrowings for investment purposes) in equity securities of U.S. companies that, at the time of purchase, have a market capitalization that is within the range of the market capitalization of issuers in the Russell 2000® Value Index. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index is $836 million and the largest stock is $13.6 billion. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts and equity securities of foreign companies. Although the Fund invests primarily in common stocks, the Fund may invest in all types of equity and equity-related securities, including (without limitation):
● |
Securities convertible into common stocks. |
● |
Shares of real estate investment trusts (“REITs”). |
● |
Warrants and rights to purchase common stocks. |
● |
Preferred stocks. |
● |
Exchange-traded limited partnerships. |
Special Situations: The Fund may invest in companies that may experience unusual and possibly unique developments which may create a special opportunity for significant returns. Special situations include: significant technological improvements or important discoveries; reorganizations, recapitalizations or mergers; favorable resolutions of litigation; new management or material changes in company policies; and actual or potential changes in control of a company.
Strategies: The Adviser uses a value approach to select the Fund’s investments. Using this investment style, the Adviser seeks securities selling at substantial discounts to their underlying values and then holds these securities until the market values reflect what the Adviser believes to be their intrinsic values. The Adviser employs a bottom-up strategy, focusing on undervalued industries that the Adviser believes are experiencing positive change. The Adviser then uses both qualitative and quantitative methods to assess a security’s potential value. The portfolio managers managing the Fund meet with a multitude of companies annually to identify companies with increasing returns on capital in their core businesses which are selling at attractive valuations.
Factors the Adviser looks for in selecting investments include (without limitation):
● |
Increasing returns on invested capital. |
● |
Companies who have demonstrated an ability to generate high return on invested capital (ROIC). |
● |
Companies which provide solid cash flows with appropriate capital. |
● |
Potential catalysts such as new products, cyclical upturns and changes in management. |
● |
Low market valuations relative to earnings forecast, book value, cash flow and sales. |
The Fund may participate as a purchaser in initial public offerings of securities (“IPO”). An IPO is a company’s first offering of stock to the public.
The Adviser will sell a stock when it no longer meets one or more investment criteria, either through obtaining target value or due to an adverse change in fundamentals or business momentum. Each holding has a target valuation established at purchase, which the Adviser constantly monitors and adjusts as appropriate.
74 |
Summary of Principal Risks
Risk
is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well
as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate
significantly from day to day and over time.
● |
Convertible Securities Risk. Securities that can be converted into common stock, such as certain securities and preferred stock, are subject to the usual risks associated with fixed income investments, such as interest rate risk and credit risk. In addition, because they react to changes in the value of the equity securities into which they will convert, convertible securities are also subject to the risks associated with equity securities. |
● |
Cyber Security Risk. Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the Adviser, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and the Adviser have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Fund or the Adviser. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests are also subject to cyber security risks, and the value of these securities could decline if the issuers experience cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures. |
● |
Foreign Custody Risk. The Fund may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries. |
● |
Foreign Securities Risk. International investing may be subject to special risks, including, but not limited to, currency exchange rate volatility, political, social or economic instability, less publicly available information, less stringent investor protections, and differences in taxation, auditing and other financial practices. Foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its net asset value (“NAV”). Furthermore, certain foreign securities in which the Fund invests may be listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not calculate its NAV. As a result, the value of the Fund’s holdings may change on days when shareholders are not able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares. |
● |
IPO Risk. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the |
75 |
Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs.
● |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the individual investments of the Fund may not perform as well as expected, and/or the Fund’s portfolio management practices may not work to achieve their desired result. |
● |
Market Risk. The NAV of the Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. The value of investments held by the Fund may increase or decrease in response to economic, political, financial, public health crises (such as epidemics or pandemics) or other disruptive events (whether real, expected or perceived) in the U.S. and global markets. Investors may lose money. Although the Fund will invest in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued, there is no guarantee that the price of these stocks will not move even lower. |
● |
Micro-Cap Companies Risk. Micro-cap stocks may be very sensitive to changing economic conditions and market downturns because the issuers often have narrow markets for their products or services, fewer product lines, and more limited managerial and financial resources than larger issuers. The stocks of micro-cap companies may therefore be more volatile and the ability to sell them at a desirable time or price may be more limited. |
● |
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act. |
● |
Rights and Warrants Risk. The purchase of rights or warrants involves the risk that the Fund could lose the purchase value of a right or warrant if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not executed prior to the right’s or warrant’s expiration. Also, the purchase of rights and/or warrants involves the risk that the effective price paid for the right and/or warrant added to the subscription price of the related security may exceed the value of the subscribed security’s market price such as when there is no movement in the level of the underlying security. |
● |
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The stocks of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt, erratic market movements than stocks of larger, more established companies. Small companies may have limited product lines or financial resources, or may be dependent on a small or inexperienced management group, and their securities may trade less frequently and in lower volume than securities of larger companies, which could lead to higher transaction costs. Generally, the smaller the company size, the greater the risk. |
● |
Special Situations Risk. The Fund will seek to benefit from “special situations,” such as mergers, reorganizations, or other unusual events expected to affect a particular issuer. There is a risk that the “special situation” might not occur or involve longer time frames than originally expected, which could have a negative impact on the price of the issuer’s securities and fail to produce gains or produce a loss for the Fund. |
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The
bar chart and table below illustrate the performance of the Fund’s Institutional
Class.
Best and Worst Quarterly Performance (for the periods reflected in the chart above):
: |
% (quarter ended ) |
: |
(quarter ended ) |
The Fund’s Institutional Class
for the nine months ended was %.
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Average Annual Total Returns
The table below compares the average annual total returns for the Fund’s Institutional Class both before and after taxes for the past calendar year, past five calendar years and past ten calendar years to the average annual total returns of a broad-based securities market index for the same periods.
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1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years | |
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund |
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Return Before Taxes |
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Return After Taxes on Distributions(1) |
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Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Shares(2) |
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Russell 3000® Total Return Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
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Russell 2000® Value Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)* |
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(1) |
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(2) |
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* |
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Management of the Fund
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
One Beacon Street
Boston, MA 02108
Portfolio Managers
Richard
Shuster, CFA, Portfolio Manager since 1999.
Gregory Weiss, Portfolio Manager
since 1999.
Eric Gandhi, CFA, Portfolio Manager of the Fund since 2022.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Minimum
Initial Investment: $100,000
Minimum Additional Investment: $5,000
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You can purchase and redeem Institutional Class shares of the Fund only on days the New York Stock Exchange is open. Institutional Class shares of the Fund may be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased and redeemed directly through The RBB Fund, Inc. by the means described below.
Purchase and Redemption By Mail: WPG
Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund |
Purchase and Redemption By Wire: Request routing instructions by calling U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (the “Transfer Agent”) at 1-888-261-4073. |
Redemption By Telephone: If you select the option on your account application, you may call the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073.
Taxes
The Fund intends to make distributions that generally may be taxed at ordinary income or capital gains rates.
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 other related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS’ INVESTMENTS AND RISKS
Each of Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund, Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund, Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II, WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund, and WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund (collectively referred to as the “Boston Partners Investment Funds” or the “Funds”) is a series of the Company, a Maryland Corporation. This section provides some additional information about the Funds’ investments and certain portfolio management techniques that certain Funds may use. More information about the Funds’ investments and portfolio management techniques, some of which entail risks, is included in the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”).
Investment Objectives
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. Current income is a secondary objective.
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund seeks long-term growth of capital.
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund seeks to provide long-term capital growth.
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation while reducing exposure to general equity market risk. The Fund seeks a total return greater than that of the S&P 500® Index over a full market cycle.
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund seeks to provide long-term total return.
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II seeks to provide long-term growth of capital primarily through investment in equity securities. Current income is a secondary objective.
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund seeks to provide long-term capital appreciation.
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund seeks capital appreciation by investing primarily in common stocks, securities convertible into common stocks and in special situations.
The Funds’ investment objectives may be changed by the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of the Company without shareholder approval. Shareholders will, however, receive 60 days’ prior notice of any changes. Any such changes may result in the Funds having investment objectives different from the objectives that the shareholder considered appropriate at the time of investment in the Funds.
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Additional Information About the Funds’ Principal Investments and Risks
Contracts for Differences. The Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund may enter into contracts for differences (“CFDs”). CFDs are leveraged derivative instruments that allows the Fund to take a position on the change in the market price of an underlying asset, such as a stock, or the value of an index or currency exchange rate. With a long CFD, the Fund are seeking to profit from increases in the market price of a particular asset. With a short CFD the Funds are seeking to profit from falls in the market price of the asset. CFDs are subject to liquidity risk because the liquidity of CFDs is based on the liquidity of the underlying instrument, and are subject to counterparty risk, i.e., the risk that the counterparty to the CFD transaction may be unable or unwilling to make payments or to otherwise honor its financial obligations under the terms of the contract. It is also possible that the market price of the CFD will move between the time the order is placed by the Fund and when it is executed by the issuer, which can result in the trade being executed at a less favorable price. CFDs, like many other derivative instruments, involve the risk that, if the derivative security declines in value, additional margin would be required to maintain the margin level. The seller may require the Fund to deposit additional sums to cover this, and this may be at short notice. If additional margin is not provided in time, the seller may liquidate the positions at a loss for which a Fund is liable. Most CFDs are traded over-the-counter. CFDs are not registered with the SEC or any U.S. regulator, and are not subject to U.S. regulation.
Counterparty Risk. Some of the derivatives entered into by a Fund are not traded on an exchange but instead will be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market. This means that these instruments are traded between counterparties based on contractual relationships. The participants in the over-the-counter market are typically not subject to credit evaluation and regulatory oversight as are members of “exchange based” markets. Relying on a counterparty exposes a Fund to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing a Fund to suffer a loss. A counterparty defaulting on its payment obligations to a Fund will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. If a Fund deals with a limited number of counterparties, it will be more susceptible to the credit risks associated with those counterparties. The Fund is neither restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty nor from concentrating any or all of its transactions with one counterparty. The ability of a Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties and the absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement may increase the potential for losses by a Fund. When a Fund is required to post margin or other collateral with a counterparty, including with a futures commission merchant or a clearing organization for futures or other derivative contracts, the counterparty may fail to segregate the collateral or may commingle the collateral with the counterparty’s own assets. In the event of the counterparty’s bankruptcy or insolvency, a Fund’s collateral may be subject to the conflicting claims of the counterparty’s creditors and a Fund may be exposed to the risk of being treated as a general unsecured creditor of the counterparty, rather than as the owner of the collateral.
A Fund is subject to the risk that issuers of the instruments in which it invests and trades may default on their obligations, and that certain events may occur that have an immediate and significant adverse effect on the value of those instruments. There can be no assurance that an issuer will not default, or that an event that has an immediate and significant adverse effect on the value of an instrument will not occur, and that a Fund will not sustain a loss on a transaction as a result.
Transactions entered into by a Fund may be executed on various U.S. and non-U.S. exchanges, and may be cleared and settled through various clearing houses, custodians, depositories and prime brokers throughout the world. A failure by any such entity may lead to a loss to a Fund.
Credit Risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of the security will not be able to make principal and interest payments when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of a Fund’s investment in that issuer. There can be a lag between the time of developments relating to an issuer and the time a rating is assigned and updated. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation. Securities rated in the four highest categories (S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) (AAA, AA, A and BBB), Fitch Ratings
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(“Fitch”) (AAA, AA, A and BBB) or Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) (Aaa, Aa, A and Baa)) by the rating agencies are considered investment grade but they may also have some speculative characteristics, meaning that they carry more risk than higher-rated securities and may have problems making principal and interest payments in difficult economic climates. Investment grade ratings do not guarantee that bonds will not lose value or default.
A security issuer’s default on its payment obligations to a Fund will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. Lower credit quality may lead to greater volatility in the price of a security and in shares of a Fund. Lower credit quality also may affect liquidity and make it difficult to sell the security. Default, or the market’s perception that an issuer is likely to default, could reduce the value and liquidity of securities, thereby reducing the value of your investment in Fund shares. In addition, default may cause a Fund to incur expenses in seeking recovery of principal or interest on its portfolio holdings.
When a Fund invests in over-the-counter derivatives (including options), it assumes a credit risk of the party with which it trades and also bears the risk of settlement default. These risks may differ materially from risks associated with transactions effected on an exchange, which generally are backed by clearing organization guarantees, daily mark-to-market and settlement, segregation and minimum capital requirements applicable to intermediaries. Transactions entered into directly between two counterparties generally do not benefit from such protections. Relying on any counterparty exposes a Fund to the risk that such counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, causing the Fund to suffer a loss. A counterparty’s default on its payment obligations to a Fund will cause the value of an investment in the Fund to decrease. The Fund could also be delayed or hindered in its enforcement of rights against an issuer, guarantor, or counterparty.
If a Fund deals with a limited number of counterparties, it will be more susceptible to the credit risks associated with those counterparties. The Funds are neither restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty nor from concentrating any or all of its transactions with one counterparty. The ability of a Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties and the absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement may increase the potential for losses by the Fund.
U.S. Government Securities are generally considered to be among the safest type of investment in terms of credit risk, but they are not guaranteed against price movements due to changing interest rates. From time to time, uncertainty regarding the status of negotiations in the U.S. Government to increase the statutory debt ceiling could impact the creditworthiness of the U.S. and could impact the liquidity of the U.S. Government Securities markets and ultimately the Funds. Obligations issued by some U.S. Government agencies, authorities, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“GNMA”), are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury, while obligations by others, such as Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”) and Federal Home Loan Banks, are backed solely by the ability of the entity to borrow from the U.S. Treasury or by the entity’s own resources. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government would provide financial support to U.S. Government agencies, authorities, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obliged to do so by law.
Currency Risk. A Fund’s exposure to foreign currencies subjects the Fund to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. Dollar, or, in the case of short positions, that the U.S. Dollar will decline in value relative to the currency that the Fund is short. Currency rates in foreign countries may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time for a number of reasons, including changes in interest rates, rates of inflation, governmental surpluses or deficits, intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign governments, actions of central banks or supranational entities and the imposition of currency controls or other political developments in the U.S. or abroad. In addition, a Fund may incur transaction costs in connection with conversions between various currencies. Currency risk may be particularly high to the extent that a Fund invests in foreign currencies or engages in foreign currency transactions that are economically tied to emerging
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market countries. These currency transactions may present market, credit, currency, liquidity, legal, political and other risks different from, or greater than, the risks of investing in developed foreign currencies or engaging in foreign currency transactions that are economically tied to developed foreign countries.
Cyber Security Risk. With the increased use of technologies such as the internet to conduct business, the Fund is susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. In general, cyber incidents can result from deliberate attacks or unintentional events. Cyber-attacks include, but are not limited to, gaining unauthorized access to digital systems (e.g., through “hacking” or malicious software coding) for purposes of misappropriating assets or sensitive information (including private shareholder information), corrupting data, or causing operational disruption. Cyber-attacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users). Cyber security failures or breaches by the Fund’s Adviser and other service providers (including, but not limited to, Fund accountant, custodian, transfer agent and administrator), and the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses, interference with the Fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value (“NAV”), impediments to trading, the inability of Fund shareholders to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, or additional compliance costs. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred in order to prevent any cyber incidents in the future. While the Adviser has established business continuity plans in the event of, and risk management systems to prevent, such cyber-attacks, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified. Furthermore, the Fund cannot control the cyber security plans and systems put in place by service providers to the Fund and issuers in which the Fund invests. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.
Derivative Contracts. Each of the Funds, except for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II, may, but need not, use derivative contracts for any of the following purposes:
● |
To seek to hedge against the possible adverse impact of changes in stock market prices, currency exchange rates or interest rates in the market value of its securities or securities to be purchased; or |
● |
As a substitute for buying or selling currencies or securities. |
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To seek to enhance the Fund’s return in non-hedging situations. |
Derivative contracts in which the Funds (except for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II) may invest include: futures and options on securities, securities indices or currencies; options on these futures; forward foreign currency contracts; and interest rate, total return or currency swaps. The Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund, WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund, Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, and the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund may use derivative contracts involving foreign currencies. A derivative contract will obligate or entitle a Fund to deliver or receive an asset or cash payment that is based on the change in value of one or more securities, currencies or indices. Even a small investment in derivative contracts can have a big impact on a Fund’s stock market, currency and interest rate exposure. Therefore, using derivatives can disproportionately increase losses and reduce opportunities for gains when stock prices, currency rates or interest rates are changing. A Fund may not fully benefit from or may lose money on derivatives if changes in their value do not correspond accurately to changes in the value of the Fund’s holdings. The other parties to certain derivative contracts present the same types of default risk as issuers of fixed income securities in that the counterparty may default on its payment obligations or become insolvent. Derivatives can also make a Fund less liquid and harder to value, especially in declining markets.
Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act provides for the regulation of a registered investment company’s use of derivatives and certain related investments. Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act imposes limits on the amount of derivatives a fund can enter into, treats derivatives as senior securities so that a failure to comply with the limits would result in a
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statutory violation, and requires the Funds to establish and maintain a comprehensive derivatives risk management program and appoint a derivatives risk manager. The Funds are required to comply with Rule18f-4 and have adopted procedures for investing in derivatives and other transactions in compliance with Rule 18f-4.
The use of derivatives is also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risks generally refer to risks related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human error. Legal risks generally refer to risks of loss resulting from insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract.
Liquidity of Futures Contracts. Futures positions may be illiquid because certain commodity exchanges limit fluctuations in certain futures contract prices during a single day by regulations referred to as “daily price fluctuation limits” or “daily limits.” Under such daily limits, during a single trading day no trades may be executed at prices beyond the daily limits. Once the price of a particular futures contract has increased or decreased by an amount equal to the daily limit, positions in that contract can neither be entered into nor liquidated unless traders are willing to effect trades at or within the limit. Futures prices have occasionally moved beyond the daily limits for several consecutive days with little or no trading. OTC instruments generally are not as liquid as instruments traded on recognized exchanges. These constraints could prevent a Fund from promptly liquidating unfavorable positions, thereby subjecting the Fund to substantial losses. In addition, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) and various exchanges limit the number of positions that a Fund may indirectly hold or control in particular commodities.
Non-U.S. Futures Transactions. Foreign futures transactions involve the execution and clearing of trades on a foreign exchange. This is the case even if the foreign exchange is formally “linked” to a domestic exchange, whereby a trade executed on one exchange liquidates or establishes a position on the other exchange. No domestic organization regulates the activities of a foreign exchange, including the execution, delivery, and clearing of transactions on such an exchange, and no domestic regulator has the power to compel enforcement of the rules of the foreign exchange or the laws of the foreign country. Moreover, such laws or regulations will vary depending on the foreign country in which the transaction occurs. For these reasons, a Fund may not be afforded certain of the protections that apply to domestic transactions. In particular, funds received from a Fund to margin (collateralize) foreign futures transactions may not be provided the same protections as funds received to margin futures transactions on domestic exchanges. In addition, the price of any foreign futures or option contract and the resulting potential profit or loss, may be affected by any fluctuation in the foreign exchange rate between the time the order is placed and the foreign futures contract is liquidated or the foreign option contract is liquidated or exercised.
Forward Contracts. The Funds (except for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II) may utilize forward contracts that are not traded on exchanges and may not be regulated. There are no limitations on daily price movements of forward contracts. Banks and other dealers with which a Fund maintains accounts may require the Fund to deposit margin for such trading. A Fund’s counterparties are not required to continue making markets in such contracts. There have been periods during which certain counterparties have refused to continue to quote prices for forward contracts or have quoted prices with an unusually wide spread (the price at which the counterparty is prepared to buy and that at which it is prepared to sell). Arrangements to trade forward contracts may be made with only one or a few counterparties, and liquidity problems might be greater than if such arrangements were made with numerous counterparties. The imposition of credit controls by governmental authorities might limit such forward trading to less than the amount that a Fund’s investment adviser would otherwise recommend, to the possible detriment of the Fund.
Swap Agreements. Swap agreements can be individually structured to include exposure to a variety of different types of investments or market factors. Depending on their structure, swap agreements may increase or decrease the Fund’s exposure to interest rates, foreign currency values, corporate borrowing rates, or other factors such as security prices, baskets of securities, or inflation rates. Swap agreements can take many different forms and are known by a variety of names. The Funds are not limited to any particular form of swap agreement.
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Swap agreements will tend to shift a Fund’s investment exposure from one type of investment to another. For example, if a Fund agrees to exchange payments in dollars for payments in foreign currency, the swap agreement would tend to decrease the Fund’s exposure to U.S. interest rates and increase its exposure to foreign currency and interest rates. Depending on how they are used, swap agreements may increase or decrease the overall volatility of a Fund’s portfolio. The most significant factor in the performance of swap agreements is the change in the specific interest rate, currency, individual equity values or other factors that determine the amounts of payments due to and from a Fund. A Fund must be prepared to make swap payments when due. In addition, the value of a swap agreement is likely to decline if the counterparty’s creditworthiness declines. Such a decrease in value might cause a Fund to incur losses.
Interest Rate Swaps, Total Return Swaps, Credit Default Swaps and Options on Swaps. Interest rate swaps involve the exchange by a Fund with another party of their respective commitments to pay or receive interest, such as an exchange of fixed-rate payments for floating rate payments.
Total return swaps are contracts that obligate one party to pay the other party an amount equal to the total return on a defined underlying asset or a non-asset reference during a specified period of time. The underlying asset might be a security or basket of securities or a non-asset reference such as a securities index. In return, the other party would make periodic payments based on a fixed or variable interest rate or on the total return from a different underlying asset or non-asset reference.
Credit default swaps are contracts whereby one party makes periodic payments to a counterparty in exchange for the right to receive from the counterparty a payment equal to the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation in the event of a default by the issuer of the debt obligation.
Options on swaps (“swaptions”) are options to enter into a swap agreement. The Funds may also purchase and write (sell) swaptions. Like other types of options, the buyer of a swaption pays a non-refundable premium for the option and obtains the right, but not the obligation, to enter into an underlying swap on agreed-upon terms. The seller of a swaption, in exchange for the premium, becomes obligated (if the option is exercised) to enter into an underlying swap on agreed-upon terms.
The Funds, except for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II, may enter into the transactions described above to seek to increase total return (which is considered a speculative activity). The use of swaps and swaptions is a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. If the Adviser is incorrect in its forecasts of market values and interest rates, the investment performance of a Fund would be less favorable than it would have been if these investment techniques were not used.
Equity and Equity-Related Securities. Each of the Funds may invest in all types of equity securities. Equity securities include exchange-traded and over-the-counter common and preferred stocks, warrants, rights, convertible securities, depositary receipts and shares, trust certificates, limited partnership interests, shares of other investment companies and REITs, and equity participations. Investments in equity securities and equity derivatives in general are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time. The value of a convertible security may not increase or decrease as rapidly as the underlying common stock. Common stocks may decline over short or even extended periods of time. The purchase of rights or warrants involves the risk that the Fund could lose the purchase value of a right or warrant if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not executed prior to the right’s or warrant’s expiration. The value of such securities convertible into equity securities, such as warrants or convertible debt, is also affected by prevailing interest rates, the credit quality of the issuer and any call provision. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. State law governing partnerships is often less restrictive than state law governing corporations. Accordingly, there may be fewer protections afforded to investors in a limited partnership than investors in a corporation. Fluctuations in the value of equity securities in which a Fund invests will cause the Fund’s NAV to fluctuate. The number of issuers in the Funds’ portfolios will vary over time.
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Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). Each Fund may invest in ETFs to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act and applicable SEC orders. ETFs are registered investment companies whose shares are listed and traded on U.S. stock exchanges or otherwise traded in the over-the-counter market. ETFs may seek to track a specified securities index or a basket of securities that an “index provider,” such as S&P Global, selects as representative of a market, market segment or industry sector. The portfolio of such an ETF generally holds the same stocks or bonds as the index it tracks or it may hold a representative sample of such securities. Thus, the ETF typically is designed so that its performance will correspond closely with that of the index it tracks. In some cases, an ETF may be actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection, and the individual investments in an actively-managed ETF may not perform as well as its investment adviser and/or sub-advisers expected, and/or the actively-managed ETF’s portfolio management practices do not work to achieve their desired result. As a shareholder in an ETF, a Fund will bear its pro rata portion of an ETF’s expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to its own expenses.
The market for an ETF’s shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the ETF’s underlying portfolio holdings, which could lead to differences between the market price of the ETF’s shares and the underlying value of those shares. An ETF’s market price may deviate from the value of the ETF’s underlying portfolio holdings, particularly in times of market stress, with the result that investors may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the ETF shares bought or sold. An active trading market for shares of the ETF may not develop or be maintained. In times of market stress, market makers or authorized participants may step away from their respective roles in making a market in shares of the ETF and in executing purchase or redemption orders, which could also lead to variances between the market price of the ETF’s shares and the underlying value of those shares. Certain ETFs or closed-end funds traded on exchanges may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quotes by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. The existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for an ETF’s shares could result in such shares trading at a significant premium or discount to their NAV.
Fixed Income Investments. The Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund, WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund, WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund, Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, and Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund, and may each invest a portion of their assets in fixed income securities. Fixed income investments include bonds, notes (including structured notes), asset-backed securities, convertible securities, Eurodollar and Yankee dollar instruments, preferred stocks and money market instruments. Fixed income securities may be issued by corporate and governmental issuers and may have all types of interest rate payment and reset terms, including (without limitation) fixed rate, adjustable rate, zero coupon, contingent, deferred, payment-in-kind and auction rate features.
The credit quality of securities held in a Fund’s portfolio is determined at the time of investment. If a security is rated differently by multiple ratings organizations, a Fund treats the security as being rated in the higher rating category. A Fund may choose not to sell securities that are downgraded below the Fund’s minimum accepted credit rating after their purchase. Periods of rising interest rates may result in decreased liquidity and increased volatility in the fixed income markets.
Foreign Custody Risk. Each of the Funds may hold foreign securities and cash with foreign banks, agents, and securities depositories appointed by the Fund’s custodian (each a “Foreign Custodian”). Some Foreign Custodians may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In some countries, Foreign Custodians may be subject to little or no regulatory oversight over or independent evaluation of their operations. Further, the laws of certain countries may place limitations on the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a Foreign Custodian enters bankruptcy. Investments in emerging markets may be subject to even greater custody risks than investments in more developed markets. Custody services in emerging market countries are very often undeveloped and may be considerably less well-regulated than in more developed countries, and thus may not afford the same level of investor protection as would apply in developed countries.
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Foreign Securities. Each of the Funds may invest in securities of foreign issuers that are traded or denominated in U.S. dollars (including equity securities of foreign issuers trading in U.S. markets) directly or through American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) or International Depositary Receipts (“IDRs”). Depositary receipts may be available through “sponsored” or “unsponsored” facilities. A sponsored facility is established jointly by the issuer of the security underlying the receipt and the depository, whereas an unsponsored facility is established by the depository without participation by the issuer of the underlying security. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all of the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depository of an unsponsored facility is frequently under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through, to the holders of the receipts, voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. The depository of unsponsored depositary receipts may provide less information to receipt holders.
In addition, the Funds may also invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies and in multinational currencies such as the Euro. The Funds will value their securities and other assets in U.S. dollars. Investments in securities of foreign issuers and securities denominated in foreign currencies involve special risks which include more or less foreign government regulation; less public information; less stringent investor protections; less stringent accounting, corporate governance, financial reporting and disclosure standards; and less economic, political and social stability in the countries in which a Fund invests. Changes in foreign currency rates relative to the U.S. dollar will affect the U.S. dollar value of a Fund’s assets denominated or quoted in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Emerging market investments offer the potential for significant gains but also involve greater risks than investing in more developed countries. Political or economic instability, lack of market liquidity and government actions such as currency controls or seizure of private business or property may be more likely in emerging and frontier markets. Frontier markets are a sub-set of emerging markets. Frontier market countries generally have smaller economies or less developed capital markets than traditional emerging markets, and, as a result, the risks of investing in emerging market countries are magnified in frontier countries. The economies of frontier countries are less correlated to global economic cycles than those of their more developed counterparts and their markets have low trading volumes and the potential for extreme price volatility and illiquidity. These factors make investing in frontier countries significantly riskier than in other countries and any one of them could cause the price of a Fund’s Shares to decline. In addition, emerging markets and frontier countries may have more or less government regulation and generally do not impose as extensive and frequent accounting, auditing, financial and other reporting requirements as the securities markets of more developed countries. As a result, there could be less information available about issuers in emerging and frontier market countries, which could negatively affect the Adviser’s ability to evaluate local companies or their potential impact on a Fund’s performance. Further, investments in securities of issuers located in certain emerging countries involve the risk of loss resulting from problems in share registration, settlement or custody, substantial economic, political and social disruptions and the imposition of exchange controls (including repatriation restrictions). The legal remedies for investors in emerging and frontier markets may be more limited than the remedies available in the U.S., and the ability of U.S. authorities (e.g., SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice) to bring actions against bad actors may be limited.
The Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, and the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund will normally invest a significant portion of their assets in the equity securities and equity-related instruments issued by non-U.S. companies. The Funds may invest in securities denominated in the currencies of a variety of developed, emerging and frontier market countries. Unless hedged, currency fluctuations may have a material impact on the performance of a portfolio of non-U.S. dollar-denominated securities and such a portfolio may experience a decline or increase in value, in U.S. dollar terms, due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. The Adviser may, from time to time, but is not required to, hedge foreign currency exposure in the Funds’ portfolios. Further, the Funds may also from time to time enter into speculative currency positions independent of other positions in the Funds’ portfolios.
The Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, and the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund may also invest in participatory notes. Participatory notes (commonly known as “P-notes”) are equity access products structured as debt obligations and used by investors
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to take positions in certain foreign securities. P-notes are generally issued by the associates of foreign-based foreign brokerages and domestic institutional brokerages. P-notes represent interests in securities listed on certain foreign exchanges, and thus present similar risks to investing directly in such securities. P-notes also expose investors to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the entity issuing the note may not be able to honor its financial commitments.
In June 2016, the UK approved a referendum to leave the EU. The withdrawal, known colloquially as “Brexit”, was agreed to and ratified by the UK Parliament, and the UK left the EU on January 31, 2020. It began an 11-month transition period in which to negotiate a new trading relationship for goods and services that ended on December 31, 2020. The UK and the EU signed the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (“TCA”) on December 30, 2020, which was applied provisionally as of January 1, 2021 and entered into force on May 1, 2021. The TCA is an agreement on the terms governing certain aspects of the relationship between the EU and the UK following the end of the transition period. Further discussions are to be held between the UK and the EU in relation to matters not covered by the trade agreement, such as financial services. While the long-term effects of Brexit are currently unknown, Brexit has already resulted in volatility in European and global markets. Additionally, the risks related to Brexit could be more pronounced if one or more additional EU member states seek to leave the EU.
Recently, various countries have seen significant internal conflicts and in some cases, civil wars may have had an adverse impact on the securities markets of the countries concerned. In addition, the occurrence of new disturbances due to acts of war or terrorism or other political developments cannot be excluded. Nationalization, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, currency blockage, political changes, government regulation, political, regulatory or social instability or uncertainty or diplomatic developments, including the imposition of sanctions or other similar measures, could adversely affect the Funds’ investments.
Recent examples of the above include conflict, loss of life and disaster connected to ongoing armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and Israel, Hamas and other militant groups in the Middle East. The extent, duration and impact of these conflicts, related sanctions and retaliatory actions are difficult to ascertain, but could be significant and have severe adverse effects on the region, including significant adverse effects on the regional or global economies and the markets for certain securities and commodities. These impacts could negatively affect the Funds’ investments in securities and instruments that are economically tied to the applicable region, and include (but are not limited to) declines in value and reductions in liquidity. In addition, to the extent new sanctions are imposed or previously relaxed sanctions are reimposed (including with respect to countries undergoing transformation), complying with such restrictions may prevent the Funds from pursuing certain investments, cause delays or other impediments with respect to consummating such investments or divestments, require divestment or freezing of investments on unfavorable terms, render divestment of underperforming investments impracticable, negatively impact the Funds’ ability to achieve their investment objectives, prevent the Funds from receiving payments otherwise due, increase diligence and other similar costs to the Funds, render valuation of affected investments challenging, or require the Funds to consummate an investment on terms that are less advantageous than would be the case absent such restrictions. Any of these outcomes could adversely affect the Funds’ performance with respect to such investments, and thus the Funds’ performance as a whole.
IPO Risk. Each of the Funds may invest in IPOs. IPO risk is the risk that the market value of IPO shares will fluctuate considerably due to certain factors, such as the absence of a prior public market, unseasoned trading, the small number of shares available for trading and limited information about the issuer. The purchase of IPO shares may involve high transaction costs. IPO shares are subject to market risk and liquidity risk. When the Fund’s asset base is small, a significant portion of the Fund’s performance could be attributable to investments in IPOs, because such investments would have a magnified impact on the Fund. As the Fund’s assets grow, the effect of the Fund’s investments in IPOs on the Fund’s performance probably will decline, which could reduce the Fund’s performance. Because of the price volatility of IPO shares, the Fund may choose to hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of the Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to the Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. In addition, the Adviser cannot guarantee continued access to IPOs.
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Large Shareholder Transactions Risk. Each of the Funds may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders purchase or redeem large amounts of shares of a Fund. Such large shareholder redemptions may cause a Fund to sell its securities at times it would not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact its liquidity. In addition, large redemptions could lead to an increase in a Fund’s expense ratio due to a smaller asset base. However, this risk may be limited to the extent that the Adviser and a Fund have entered into a fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement arrangement. Large Fund share purchases may adversely affect a Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash and is required to maintain a larger cash position than it ordinarily would.
Liquidity Risk. A Fund may be subject to liquidity risk primarily due to investments in derivatives. Each Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments or instruments. Derivatives, such as swaps, options and warrants, may not be readily marketable and, therefore, may be deemed to be illiquid. An illiquid investment is an investment that a Fund reasonably expects can not be sold or disposed of in current market conditions within 7 calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. Investments in illiquid assets involve the risk that a Fund may be unable to sell the asset or sell it at a reasonable price. In addition, a Fund may be required to liquidate positions or close out derivatives on unfavorable terms at a time contrary to the interests of the Fund in order to raise cash to pay redemptions.
Pursuant to Rule 22e-4, under the 1940 Act (“Rule 22de-4” or the “Liquidity Rule”) the Company has implemented a liquidity risk management program and related procedures to identify illiquid investments pursuant to the rule. If the limitation on illiquid investments is exceeded, the condition will be reported to the Board and, when required by the Liquidity Rule, to the SEC.
The Adviser will monitor the liquidity of restricted securities in a Fund under the supervision of the Board. In reaching liquidity decisions, the Adviser may consider, among others, the following factors: (1) the frequency of trades and quotes for the security; (2) the number of dealers wishing to purchase or sell the security and the number of other potential purchasers; (3) dealer undertakings to make a market in the security; and (4) the nature of the security and the nature of the marketplace trades (e.g., the time needed to dispose of the security, the method of soliciting offers and the mechanics of the transfer).
An investment in derivatives is also subject to the risk that a Fund may not be able to terminate the derivatives effective on whatever date it chooses, or that the settlement of any early termination may depend on subsequent market movements. As a result, a Fund may be exposed to the risk of additional losses due to such delays.
Management Risk. Each Fund is subject to the risk of poor investment selection. In other words, the Adviser may not be successful in its strategy of taking long positions in stocks the Adviser believes to be undervalued and short positions in stocks the Adviser believes to be overvalued. Further, since the Adviser will manage both a long and a short portfolio, there is the risk that the Adviser may make more poor investment decisions than an adviser of a typical mutual fund with only a long portfolio may make.
Market Risk. A Fund’s NAV and investment return will fluctuate based upon changes in the value of its investments. The market value of a Fund’s holdings is based upon the market’s perception of value and is not necessarily an objective measure of an investment’s value. There is no assurance that a Fund will realize its investment objective, and an investment in a Fund is not, by itself, a complete or balanced investment program. You could lose money on your investment in a Fund, or a Fund could underperform other investments.
Periods of unusually high financial market volatility and restrictive credit conditions, at times limited to a particular sector or geographic area, have occurred in the past and may be expected to recur in the future. Some countries, including the United States, have adopted or have signaled protectionist trade measures, relaxation of the financial industry regulations that followed the financial crisis, and/or reductions to corporate taxes. The scope of these policy changes is still developing, but the equity and debt markets may react strongly to expectations of change, which could increase volatility, particularly if a resulting policy runs counter to the market’s expectations. The outcome of such changes cannot be foreseen at the present time. In addition, geopolitical and other risks, including environmental and public health risks, war, natural disasters, terrorism,
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conflicts and social unrest may add to instability in the world economy and markets generally. As a result of increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets, the value and liquidity of a Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by events impacting a country or region, regardless of whether the Fund invests in issuers located in or with significant exposure to such country or region.
The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the worldwide economy, as well as the economies of individual countries, the financial health of individual companies and the market in general in significant and unforeseen ways. On May 5, 2023, the World Health Organization declared the end of the global emergency status for COVID-19. The United States subsequently ended the federal COVID-19 public health emergency declaration effective May 11, 2023. Although vaccines for COVID-19 are widely available, it is unknown how long certain circumstances related to the pandemic will persist, whether they will reoccur in the future, and what additional implications may follow from the pandemic. The impact of these events and other epidemics or pandemics in the future could adversely affect the Fund’s performance.
Additionally, climate change poses long-term threats to physical and biological systems. Potential hazards and risks related to climate change for a State or municipality include, among other things, wildfires, rising sea levels, more severe coastal flooding and erosion hazards, and more intense storms. Storms in recent years have demonstrated vulnerabilities in a State’s or municipality’s infrastructure to extreme weather events. Climate change risks, if they materialize, can adversely impact a State’s or municipality’s financial plan in current or future years. In addition, economists and others have expressed increasing concern about the potential effects of global climate change on property and security values. A rise in sea levels, an increase in powerful windstorms and/or a climate-driven increase in sea levels or flooding could cause coastal properties to lose value or become unmarketable altogether. Economists warn that, unlike previous declines in the real estate market, properties in affected coastal zones may not ever recover their value. Large wildfires driven by high winds and prolonged drought may devastate businesses and entire communities and may be very costly to any business found to be responsible for the fire. Regulatory changes and divestment movements tied to concerns about climate change could adversely affect the value of certain land and the viability of industries whose activities or products are seen as accelerating climate change. The Fund cannot predict the effects of or likelihood of such events on the U.S. and world economies. The Fund could be materially impacted by such events which may, in turn, negatively affect the value and performance the Fund.
Advancements in technology may also adversely impact markets and the overall performance of the Fund. For instance, the economy may be significantly impacted by the advanced development and increased regulation of artificial intelligence. As the use of technology grows, liquidity and market movements may be affected. As artificial intelligence is used more widely, the profitability and growth of Fund holdings may be impacted, which could significantly impact the overall performance of the Fund.
Micro-Cap Companies Risk. Each of the Funds may invest in micro-cap companies. Micro-cap stocks may be very sensitive to changing economic conditions and market downturns because the issuers often have narrow markets for their products or services, fewer product lines, and more limited managerial and financial resources than larger issuers. The stocks of micro-cap companies may therefore be more volatile and the ability to sell them at a desirable time or price may be more limited. Thus, the Fund’s NAV may increase and decrease by a greater percentage than the share prices of mutual funds that invest in the stocks of large capitalization companies.
New Fund Risk. The WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund is a recently organized, non-diversified management investment company with no operating history. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of the Company may determine to liquidate the Fund. Liquidation can be initiated without shareholder approval by the Board if it determines it is in the best interest of shareholders. As a result, the timing of any liquidation may not be favorable to certain individual shareholders.
Non-Diversification Risk. The WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund is a non-diversified investment company, which means that more of the Fund’s assets may be invested in the securities of a single issuer than could be invested in the securities of a single issuer by a diversified investment company. This may make the value
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of the Fund’s shares more susceptible to certain risks than shares of a diversified investment company. As a non-diversified fund, the Fund may have a greater potential to realize losses upon the occurrence of adverse events affecting a particular issuer.
OTC Risk. Securities traded on OTC markets are not listed and traded on an organized exchange such as the NYSE. Generally, the volume of trading in an unlisted or OTC common stock is less than the volume of trading in an exchange-listed stock. As a result, the market liquidity of some stocks in which the Fund invests may not be as great as that of exchange-listed stocks and, if the Fund were to dispose of such stocks, the Fund may have to offer the shares at a discount from recent prices or sell the shares in small lots over an extended period of time. In addition, penny stocks and pink sheet stocks can be classified as OTC stocks. The Fund may hold these stocks, which have considerable risks. First, it may be difficult to obtain financial data on such stocks. This makes fundamental analysis very difficult. Second, these classes of stocks are notoriously difficult to sell, meaning there will be some liquidity risk associated with holding them. OTC investments are generally limited to equities with sufficient liquidity.
Other Investment Companies. Each of the Funds may invest up to 10% of its total assets in the securities of other investment companies not affiliated with the Adviser, but may not invest more than 5% of its total assets in the securities of any one investment company or acquire more than 3% of the voting securities of any other investment company. Among other things, the Funds may invest in money market mutual funds for cash management purposes by “sweeping” excess cash balances into such funds until the cash is invested or otherwise utilized. A Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management fees and other expenses paid by investment companies in which it invests in addition to the advisory and administration fees paid by the Fund. Investments in issues that would be investment companies but for sections 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the 1940 Act will be considered illiquid investments and would be subject to a Fund’s 15% limitation on investments in illiquid investments.
Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act permits funds to invest in other investment companies in excess of the limits described above. Rule 12d1-4 imposes conditions, including limits on control and voting of acquired funds’ shares, evaluations and findings by investment advisers, fund investment agreements, and limits on most three-tier fund structures.
Portfolio Concentration. Under normal market conditions, the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund portfolio will generally be diversified by country and geographic region.
Portfolio Turnover. Each of the Funds may engage in active and frequent trading, resulting in high portfolio turnover. This may lead to the realization and distribution to shareholders of higher capital gains, increasing their tax liability. Frequent trading may also increase transaction costs, which could detract from the Funds’ performance.
Private Investments in Public Equity. The WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund and WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund may purchase equity securities in private placements that are issued by issuers who have outstanding, publicly-traded equity securities of the same class (“private investments in public equity” or “PIPEs”). Shares in PIPEs generally are not registered with the SEC until after a certain time period from the date the private sale is completed. This restricted period can last many months. Until the public registration process is completed, PIPEs are restricted as to resale and the Funds cannot freely trade the securities. Generally, such restrictions cause the PIPEs to be illiquid during this time. PIPEs may contain provisions that the issuer will pay specified financial penalties to the holder if the issuer does not publicly register the restricted equity securities within a specified period of time, but there is no assurance that the restricted equity securities will be publicly registered, or that the registration will remain in effect. Please see the Funds’ SAI for more information regarding illiquid investments.
REITs Risk. REITs may be affected by economic forces and other factors related to the real estate industry. These risks include possible declines in the value of real estate, possible lack of availability of mortgage funds and unexpected vacancies of properties. REITs are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation, interest rate risks (especially mortgage REITs) and liquidity risk. REITs that invest in
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real estate mortgages are also subject to prepayment risk. Investing in REITs may involve risks similar to those associated with investing in small capitalization companies. REITs may have limited financial resources, may trade less frequently and in a limited volume, engage in dilutive offerings and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than larger company securities. Historically, small capitalization stocks, such as REITs, have been more volatile in price than the larger capitalization stocks included in the S&P 500® Index. In addition, REITs could possibly fail to (i) qualify for favorable tax treatment under applicable tax law or (ii) maintain their exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act.
Securities Lending. Each Fund may seek to increase its income by lending portfolio securities to institutions, such as certain broker-dealers. Portfolio security loans are secured continuously by collateral maintained on a current basis at an amount at least equal to the market value of the securities loaned. The value of the securities loaned by a Fund will not exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets. A Fund may experience a loss or delay in the recovery of its securities if the borrowing institution breaches its agreement with the Fund.
Small-Cap Companies Risk. The Funds may invest in smaller issuers which are more volatile and less liquid than investments in issuers with a market capitalization greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index. Small market capitalization issuers are not as diversified in their business activities as issuers with market capitalizations greater than the market capitalization of companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index and are more susceptible to changes in the business cycle.
Some small capitalization equity securities in which the Funds invest may be traded only in the over-the-counter market or on a regional securities exchange, may be listed only in the quotation service commonly known as the “pink sheets,” and may not be traded every day or in the volume typical of trading on a national securities exchange. These securities may also be subject to wide fluctuations in market value. The trading market for any given small capitalization equity security may be sufficiently small as to make it difficult for a Fund to dispose of a substantial block of such securities. The sale by a Fund of portfolio securities to meet redemptions may require the Fund to sell its small capitalization securities at a discount from market prices or during periods when, in the Adviser’s judgment, such sale is not desirable. Moreover, the lack of an efficient market for these securities may make them difficult to value.
Short Sales. The WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, and Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund will engage in short sales, and the Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund may engage in short sales — including those that are not “against the box,” which means that each Fund may make short sales where the Fund does not currently own or have the right to acquire, at no added cost, securities identical to those sold short — in accordance with the provisions of the 1940 Act. In a typical short sale, the Funds borrow from a broker a security in order to sell the security to a third party. The Funds are then obligated to return a security of the same issuer and quantity at some future date. The Funds realize a loss to the extent the security increases in value or a profit to the extent the security declines in value (after taking into account any associated costs). Short sales “against the box” may protect the Funds against the risk of losses in the value of a portfolio security because any decline in value of the security should be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding gain in the short position. Any potential gains in the security, however, would be wholly or partially offset by a corresponding loss in the short position. Short sales that are not “against the box” involve a form of investment leverage, and the amount of each Fund’s loss on a short sale is potentially unlimited.
Special Situations Risk. The WPG Funds may seek to benefit from “special situations,” such as mergers, reorganizations, or other unusual events expected to affect a particular issuer. There is a risk that the “special situation” might not occur or involve longer time frames than originally expected, which could have a negative impact on the price of the issuer’s securities and fail to produce gains or produce a loss for the Funds.
Sustainable Investment Risk. The sustainability criterion required for investment by the Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund may cause the Fund to not invest in certain industries or issuers. As a result, the Fund may be overweight or underweight in certain industries or issuers relative to its benchmark index, which may cause the Fund’s performance to be more or less sensitive to developments affecting those industries or
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issuers. Sustainability information provided by issuers, upon which the portfolio managers may rely, continues to develop, and may be incomplete, inaccurate, use different methodologies, or be applied differently across companies and industries. Further, the regulatory landscape for sustainable investing in the United States is still developing and future rules and regulations may require the Fund to modify or alter its investment process. Similarly, government policies incentivizing issuers to engage in sustainable practices may fall out of favor, which could potentially limit the Fund’s investment universe. There is also a risk that the companies identified through the investment process may fail to adhere to sustainable business practices, which may result in the Fund selling a security when it might otherwise be disadvantageous to do so. There is no guarantee that sustainable investments will outperform the broader market on either an absolute or relative basis.
Unseasoned Issuers Risk. The WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund may invest in unseasoned issuers’ securities. Unseasoned issuers may not have an established financial history and may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources. Unseasoned issuers may depend on a few key personnel for management and may be susceptible to losses and risks of bankruptcy. As a result, such securities may be more volatile and difficult to sell.
Temporary Investments. Each of the Funds may depart from its principal investment strategy in response to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions by taking a temporary defensive position (up to 100% of its assets) in all types of money market and short-term debt securities. If a Fund were to take a temporary defensive position, it may be unable for a time to achieve its investment objective.
Broad-Based Securities Market Indices
The MSCI EAFE Index (Europe, Australasia, Far East) is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets, excluding the US & Canada.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index - Net Return is a subset of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index that reflects the reinvestment of dividends after the deduction of withholding taxes, using (for international indices) a tax rate applicable to non-resident institutional investors who do no benefit from double taxation treaties. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets.
The MSCI World Index - Net Return is a subset of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index that reflects the reinvestment of dividends after the deduction of withholding taxes, using (for international indices) a tax rate applicable to non-resident institutional investors who do no benefit from double taxation treaties. The MSCI World Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets.
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization index that is designed to measure equity market performance of emerging markets. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index consists of the following emerging market country indexes: Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and United Arab Emirates.
The MSCI World Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets.
The Russell 2000® Value Index is an unmanaged index that contains stocks from the Russell 2000® Index with less than average growth orientation. Companies in this index generally have low price-to-book and price-to-earnings ratios, higher dividend yields and lower forecasted growth values. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 2000® Value Index was $836 million and the largest stock was $13.6 billion. Please note that this range is as of a particular point in time and is subject to change. The Russell 2000® Value Index is a registered trademark of the Frank Russell Corporation.
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The Russell 3000® Value Index is an unmanaged index that measures the performance of those Russell 3000® Index companies that typically display lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values. The stocks in this index are also members of either the Russell 1000® Value or the Russell 2000® Value indices. The Russell 3000® Index measures the performance of the 3,000 largest U.S. companies based on total market capitalization, which represents approximately 98% of the investable U.S. equity market. As of November 30, 2024, the median market capitalization of the companies in the Russell 3000® Value Index was $2.8 billion and the largest stock was $744 billion. The Russell 3000® Value Index is a registered trademark of the Frank Russell Corporation.
The S&P 500® Index is an unmanaged index composed of 500 common stocks, classified in eleven industry sectors, which represent approximately 80% of the U.S. equities market. The S&P 500® Index assigns relative values to the stocks included in the index, weighted according to each stock’s total market value relative to the total market value of the other stocks included in the index.
Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings
The complete portfolio holdings (or long positions only with respect to the Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund, WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund, and Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund) of each of the Funds are publicly available on the Adviser’s website at www.bostonpartners.com as of the end of each calendar month, 5 business days following the month end. Any postings will remain available on the website at least until the Funds file with the SEC their semi-annual or annual shareholder report or quarterly portfolio holdings report that includes such period. A further description of the Company’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Funds’ portfolio securities is available in the Funds’ SAI.
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUNDS
Investment Adviser
Boston Partners Global Investors, Inc. provides investment management and investment advisory services to investment companies and other institutional and proprietary accounts.
Subject to the general supervision of the Board, the Adviser manages the Funds’ portfolios and is responsible for the selection and management of all portfolio investments of the Funds in accordance with the Funds’ respective investment objectives and policies.
The Adviser, located at One Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02108, is a subsidiary of ORIX Corporation Europe N.V. (formerly Robeco Groep N.V.), a Dutch public limited liability company (“ORIX Europe”). Founded in 1929, ORIX Europe is one of the world’s oldest asset management organizations. ORIX Europe is owned by ORIX Corporation, an integrated financial services group based in Tokyo, Japan.
Investment Advisory Agreement
For its services to the Funds, the Adviser is entitled to receive a monthly advisory fee under the Advisory Agreement computed at an annual rate of a Fund’s average daily net assets as follows:
Fund |
Advisory
fee as a percentage of |
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund |
0.70% |
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund |
1.25% |
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund |
0.90% |
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund |
0.80% |
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
2.25% |
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
1.25% |
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Fund |
Advisory
fee as a percentage of |
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
0.85% |
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund |
1.25% |
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund |
0.90% |
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund |
0.80% of average daily net assets up to $500 million, and 0.75% of average daily net assets in excess of $500 million |
Until December 31, 2025, the Adviser has agreed to waive its fees to the extent necessary to maintain an annualized expense ratio for the Funds as shown below. (excluding certain items discussed below), respectively. There can be no assurance that the Adviser will continue such waivers after their termination date. In determining the Adviser’s obligation to waive advisory fees and/or reimburse expenses, the following expenses are not taken into account and could cause a Fund’s net annualized expense ratio to exceed the applicable expense limitation: short sale dividend expenses, brokerage commissions, extraordinary items, interest and taxes:
Fund |
Institutional Class |
Investor Class |
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund |
0.80% |
1.05% |
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund |
1.40% |
N/A |
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund |
0.95% |
N/A |
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund |
0.90% |
N/A |
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
1.96% |
2.21% |
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
1.50% |
1.75% |
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
0.99% |
1.24% |
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund |
1.50% |
N/A |
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund |
1.10% |
N/A |
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund |
1.10% |
N/A |
If at any time a Fund’s total annual Fund operating expenses for a year are less than the Fund’s respective expense limitation (as noted above), the Adviser is entitled to reimbursement by the Fund of the advisory fees waived and other payments remitted by the Adviser to the Fund within three years from the date on which such waiver or reimbursement was made, provided such reimbursement does not cause the Fund to exceed expense limitations that were in effect at the time of the waiver or reimbursement.
A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s renewal of the Funds’ Advisory Agreement (other than the WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund) with the Adviser is available in the Funds’ annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s initial approval of the WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund with the Adviser is available in the Fund’s annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024.
Portfolio Managers
The investment results for different strategies of the Adviser are not solely dependent on any one individual. There is a common philosophy and approach that is the backdrop for all of the investment strategies of the Adviser.
This philosophy is then executed through a very disciplined investment process managed by the designated portfolio manager for each of the strategies. This manager will be supported, not only by a secondary manager, but by the Adviser’s general research staff and, very often, by dedicated analysts to the particular strategy.
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The SAI provides additional information about the portfolio managers’ compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers and the portfolio managers’ ownership of shares in the Funds.
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund
Duilio Ramallo, CFA, is the primary portfolio manager for the Fund.
Mr. Ramallo is a senior portfolio manager of the Adviser. He is responsible for managing the Boston Partners Premium Equity portfolios. Prior to assuming this role, he was the assistant portfolio fund manager for Boston Partners Small Cap Value portfolios and a research analyst. Mr. Ramallo joined the firm in 1995. He joined the firm from Deloitte & Touche LLP, where he spent three years, most recently in the Los Angeles office. He holds a B.A. degree in economics/business from the University of California, Los Angeles and an M.B.A. degree from the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA. Mr. Ramallo holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 1995.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 0.65% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund
Joseph Feeney, Jr., CFA, and David Kim serve as portfolio managers for the Fund.
Mr. Feeney is Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer for Boston Partners. He is responsible for the firm’s strategic, financial and operating decisions, and all aspects of investment management including the firm’s fundamental and quantitative research groups. He was one of the original partners of Boston Partners Asset Management in 1995. Prior to assuming these roles, he was Director of Research. Mr. Feeney joined the firm upon its inception in 1995 from Putnam Investments where he managed mortgage-backed securities portfolios. He began his career at the Bank of Boston where he was a loan officer specializing on highly leveraged loan portfolios. Mr. Feeney holds a B.S. degree in finance (Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of New Hampshire and an M.B.A. with High Honors from the University of Chicago. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is past President of the Fixed Income Management Society of Boston. He began his career in the investment industry in 1985.
David Kim recently served as an emerging markets industry analyst with Boston Partners specializing in fundamental research of stocks held in its Emerging Markets Equity products. He was previously at Great Hill Partners, where he was a private equity associate focused on technology companies. Mr. Kim holds a B.A. degree in economics from Amherst College, as well as an M.B.A. degree from Harvard Business School. He began his career in the investment industry in 2011.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund paid 1.07% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund
Christopher Hart, CFA, Joshua Jones, CFA, and Soyoung Song serve as portfolio managers for the Fund.
Mr. Hart is an equity portfolio manager for the Fund. Prior thereto, he was an assistant portfolio manager for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value products for three years. Before that, he was a research analyst and specialized in conglomerates, engineering and construction, building, machinery, aerospace & defense, and REITs sectors of the equity market. He joined the firm from Fidelity Investments where he was a research analyst. Mr. Hart holds a B.S. degree in finance, with a concentration in corporate finance from Clemson University. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 1991.
Mr. Jones is a portfolio manager of the Fund and also has research responsibilities for the Adviser’s Boston Partners investment team, specializing in the energy, metals and mining sectors of the equity market and is a global generalist. Mr. Jones has been with Boston Partners since 2006. He joined the firm from Cambridge
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Associates where he was a consulting associate specializing in hedge fund clients. Mr. Jones holds a B.A. degree in economics from Bowdoin College. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 2004.
Mr. Song is a portfolio manager for the Fund and also serves as an equity analyst, specializing in non-U.S. industrials, materials and transportation sectors of the equity market. Before coming to Boston Partners in April of 2019, he was a managing director at ThornTree Capital with responsibility for its global industrials long/short portfolio. Prior to that, Mr. Song was a managing director at Bain Capital’s Brookside Fund where he co-managed its global industrials long/short portfolio. He began his investing career at Bain Capital in its North American private equity practice. Before transitioning to a career in investments, he was a consultant at McKinsey & Company. Mr. Song holds an M.B.A. degree from Harvard Business School, an M.Sc. in clinical medicine from Oxford University, and an A.B. in biochemical sciences from Harvard College. He began his career in the investment industry in 2005.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund paid 0.63% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund
Soyoun Song serves as portfolio manager for the Fund.
Mr. Song is the portfolio manager for the Fund and also serves as an equity analyst, specializing in non-U.S. industrials, materials and transportation sectors of the equity market. Before coming to Boston Partners in April of 2019, he was a managing director at ThornTree Capital with responsibility for its global industrials long/short portfolio. Prior to that, Mr. Song was a managing director at Bain Capital’s Brookside Fund where he co-managed its global industrials long/short portfolio. He began his investing career at Bain Capital in its North American private equity practice. Before transitioning to a career in investments, he was a consultant at McKinsey & Company. Mr. Song holds an M.B.A. degree from Harvard Business School, an M.Sc. in clinical medicine from Oxford University, and an A.B. in biochemical sciences from Harvard College. He began his career in the investment industry in 2005.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 0.18% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund
Patrick Regan, CFA, serves as the sole portfolio manager of the Fund.
Mr. Regan is a portfolio manager for the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund. Prior to this role, he was a long/short generalist with Boston Partners specializing in fundamental research of stocks held in Boston Partners’ Long/Short Equity products. He rejoined the firm after spending nearly six years with Westfield Capital, where he managed the financial sector sleeves of Westfield Capital’s small, small/mid, mid, large and all cap funds. He was also a voting member on the Westfield Investment Committee. Before that, Mr. Regan was a research analyst with Boston Partners Asset Management for ten years, where he covered numerous market sectors, including the financial, consumer, and software sectors. He began his post-graduate career at Broadview International, LLC, where he was an associate specializing in technology mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Regan holds a B.A. degree in economics from Colby College, and an M.B.A. degree from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 1995.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 1.57% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund
Joseph Feeney, Jr., CFA, and Scott Burgess, CFA, serve as portfolio managers for the Fund.
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Mr. Feeney is Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer for Boston Partners. He is responsible for the firm’s strategic, financial and operating decisions, and all aspects of investment management including the firm’s fundamental and quantitative research groups. He was one of the original partners of Boston Partners Asset Management in 1995. Prior to assuming these roles, he was Director of Research. Mr. Feeney joined the firm upon its inception in 1995 from Putnam Investments where he managed mortgage-backed securities portfolios. He began his career at the Bank of Boston where he was a loan officer specializing on highly leveraged loan portfolios. Mr. Feeney holds a B.S. degree in finance (Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa) from the University of New Hampshire and an M.B.A. with High Honors from the University of Chicago. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is past President of the Fixed Income Management Society of Boston. He began his career in the investment industry in 1985.
Mr. Burgess is an equity analyst with Boston Partners, specializing in the technology and electronics sectors of the equity market. He joined the firm after spending three years with Putnam Investments where he was a senior investment associate. Mr. Burgess holds a B.S. degree in economics and a B.S. degree in chemical engineering from The Wharton School and The School of Engineering and Applied Science, respectively, at the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds an M.B.A. degree from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 1999.
For the fiscal period ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 1.25% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II
George Gumpert, CFA, serves as the sole portfolio manager of the Fund.
Mr. Gumpert is a Senior Portfolio Manager for the Boston Partners Small Cap Value products. Previously, he was a research analyst and specialized in the small capitalization sectors of the equity market. He joined the firm in 2000 from AIG International Asset Management where he was a commodities analyst. Mr. Gumpert holds a B.A. degree in economics from Amherst College. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 1999.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 0.81% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund
Eric Gandhi, CFA, serves as the sole portfolio manager of the Fund.
Mr. Gandhi is the portfolio manager for the Fund since the Fund’s inception in 2024. He is also a portfolio manager for the WPG Partners Small and Micro Cap Value team. He joined WPG Partners in July 2012 as a research analyst with a concentration in technology, media, telecom and consumer. Prior to joining the firm, he was a member of the Applied Value Investing program at Columbia Business School (“Columbia”). Prior to Columbia, Mr. Gandhi was an Associate in the investment banking division at Needham & Company. He graduated with a B.S. degree from the University of Maryland and received an M.B.A. from Columbia. Mr. Gandhi holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 2007.
For the fiscal period ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 0.32% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets on an unannualized basis) to the Adviser for its services.
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund
Eric Gandhi, CFA, serves as portfolio manager for the Fund.
Mr. Gandhi is a portfolio manager for the WPG Partners Small and Micro Cap Value team. He joined WPG Partners in July 2012 as a research analyst with a concentration in technology, media, telecom and consumer. Prior to joining the firm, he was a member of the Applied Value Investing program at Columbia Business School.
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Prior to Columbia, Mr. Gandhi was an Associate in the investment banking division at Needham & Company. He graduated with a B.S. degree from the University of Maryland and received an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School. Mr. Gandhi holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 2007.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024 the Fund paid 0.87% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund
Richard Shuster, CFA, Gregory Weiss, and Eric Gandhi, CFA, serve as portfolio managers for the Fund.
Mr. Shuster is the portfolio manager for the WPG Partners Small and Micro Cap Equity Products. He has served as managing director of the Adviser since 1999 as well as head of the Adviser’s Small Cap Value Diversified Team. He holds a B.S. degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Shuster began his career in the investment industry in 1983. Much of that has been spent specializing in small cap equity investing.
Mr. Weiss joined WPG in mid-1999 to work on the firm’s Small Cap Value team. He joined the firm from Bear Stearns where he began his investment career in 1995 as an equity analyst, responsible for covering the building materials, nonferrous metals, steel and steel-related industries. Mr. Weiss holds a B.A. degree in psychology from Cornell University. He began his career in the investment industry in 1993.
Mr. Gandhi is a Portfolio Manager for the WPG Partners Small and Micro Cap Value team. He joined WPG Partners in July 2012 as a research analyst with a concentration in technology, media, telecom and consumer. Prior to joining the firm, he was a member of the Applied Value Investing program at Columbia Business School. Prior to Columbia, Mr. Gandhi was an Associate in the investment banking division at Needham & Company. He graduated with a B.S. degree from the University of Maryland and received an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School. Mr. Gandhi holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. He began his career in the investment industry in 2007.
For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024, the Fund paid 0.64% (expressed as a percentage of average net assets) to the Adviser for its services.
Marketing Arrangements
The Adviser or their affiliates may pay additional compensation, out of profits derived from the Adviser’s management fees and not as an additional charge to the Funds managed by the Adviser, to certain financial institutions (which may include banks, securities dealers and other industry professionals) for the sale and/or distribution of Fund shares or the retention and/or servicing of Fund investors and Fund shares (“revenue sharing”). These payments are in addition to any distribution or servicing fees payable under a 12b-1 distribution and/or service plan of the Funds, any record keeping or sub-transfer agency fees payable by the Funds, or other fees described in the fee table or elsewhere in this Prospectus or the SAI. Examples of “revenue sharing” payments include, but are not limited to, payment to financial institutions for “shelf space” or access to a third party platform or fund offering list or other marketing programs, including, but not limited to, inclusion of the Funds on preferred or recommended sales lists, mutual fund “supermarket” platforms and other formal sales programs; granting the Adviser access to the financial institution’s sales force, conferences and meetings; assistance in training and educating the financial institution’s personnel; and obtaining other forms of marketing support. The level of revenue sharing payments made to financial institutions may be a fixed fee or based upon one or more of the following factors: gross sales, current assets and/or number of accounts of the Funds attributable to the financial institution, or other factors as agreed to by the Adviser and the financial institution or any combination thereof. The amount of these revenue sharing payments is determined at the discretion of the Adviser from time to time, may be substantial, and may be different for different financial institutions depending upon the services provided by the financial institution. Such payments may provide an incentive for the financial institution to make shares of the Funds available to its customers and may allow the Funds greater access to the financial institution’s customers.
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Other Service Providers. The following chart shows the Funds’ service providers and includes their addresses and principal activities.
Shareholders |
||||||
Distribution |
Principal Underwriter
Quasar
Distributors, LLC
Facilitates the distribution of shares and provides administrative services to beneficial shareholders of each Fund. |
Transfer Agent and Dividend Disbursing Agent
U.S.
Bank Global Fund Services
Handles shareholder services, including recordkeeping and statements, distribution of dividends and processing of buy, sell and exchange requests.
*Do not use this address for purchase and redemptions. Please see “Purchase of Fund Shares” and “Redemption of Fund Shares” sections for further instructions. | ||||
Asset |
Investment Adviser
Boston
Partners Global Investors, Inc.
Manages the Funds’ investment activities. |
Custodian
U.S.
Bank, N.A.
Holds the Funds’ assets, settles all portfolio trades and collects income and maturity proceeds. | ||||
Fund |
Administrator and Fund Accounting Agent
U.S.
Bank Global Fund Services
Provides facilities, equipment and personnel to carry out administrative services related to the Funds and calculates each Fund’s net asset value, dividends and distributions. |
|||||
Board of Directors
Supervises the Funds’ activities. |
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SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION
Pricing of Fund Shares
Institutional Class shares and Investor Class Share of the Funds (“Shares”) are priced at their NAV. The NAV per share of each Fund is calculated as follows:
NAV = |
- |
Value
of Assets Attributable to the Class of Shares |
Number of Outstanding Shares of each Class of Shares |
Each Fund’s NAV is calculated once daily at the close of regular trading hours on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on each day the NYSE is open. The NYSE is generally open Monday through Friday, except national holidays. The NYSE also may be closed on national days of mourning or due to natural disaster or other extraordinary events or emergency. Each Fund will effect purchases and redemptions of Shares at the NAV next calculated after receipt by the Transfer Agent of your purchase order or redemption request in good order (as described below). If a Fund holds securities that are primarily held on non-U.S. exchanges, the NAV of the Fund’s Shares may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s Shares.
A Fund’s equity securities listed on any national or foreign exchange market system will be valued at the last sale price, except for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automatic Quotation System (“NASDAQ”). Equity securities listed on the NASDAQ will be valued at the official closing price. Equity securities traded in the over-the-counter market are valued at their closing prices. If there were no transactions on that day, equity securities will be valued at the mean of the last bid and ask prices prior to the market close. Fixed income securities are valued using an independent pricing service, which considers such factors as security prices, yields, maturities and ratings, and are deemed representative of market values at the close of the market. Foreign securities, currencies and other securities denominated in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars at the exchange rate of such currencies against the U.S. dollar provided by a pricing service. All assets denominated in foreign currencies will be converted into U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect at the time of valuation. If a Fund holds foreign equity securities, the calculation of the Fund’s NAV will not occur at the same time as the determination of the value of the foreign equities securities in the Fund’s portfolio, since these securities are traded on foreign exchanges.
Investments in other open-end investment companies are valued based on the NAV of those investment companies (which may use fair value pricing as discussed in their prospectuses). Investments in ETFs, REITs and closed-end investments companies will be valued at their market price.
If market quotations are unavailable or deemed unreliable by the Funds’ administrator, in consultation with the Adviser, securities will be valued by the Adviser, as the Fund’s valuation designee (the “Valuation Designee”). in accordance with procedures adopted by the Board and under the Board’s ultimate supervision. In addition, the prices of foreign securities may be affected by events that occur after the close of a foreign market but before a Fund prices its Shares. In such instances, a foreign security may be fair valued in accordance with procedures adopted by the Board. Relying on prices supplied by pricing services or dealers or using fair valuation involves the risk that the values used by a Fund to price its investments may be higher or lower than the values used by other investment companies and investors to price the same investments.
The Board has adopted a pricing and valuation policy for use by each Fund and its Valuation Designee in calculating the Fund’s NAV. Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act, each Fund has designated the Adviser as its “Valuation Designee” to perform all of the fair value determinations as well as to perform all of the responsibilities that may be performed by the Valuation Designee in accordance with Rule 2a-5. The Valuation Designee is authorized to make all necessary determinations of the fair values of portfolio securities and other assets for which market quotations are not readily available or if it is deemed that the prices obtained from brokers and dealers or independent pricing services are unreliable.
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Market Timing
In accordance with the policy adopted by its Board, the Company discourages and does not accommodate market timing and other excessive trading practices. Purchases should be made with a view to longer-term investment only. Excessive short-term (market timing) trading practices may disrupt portfolio management strategies, increase brokerage and administrative costs, harm Fund performance and result in dilution in the value of Shares held by long-term shareholders. The Company and the Adviser reserve the right to (i) reject a purchase or exchange order, (ii) delay payment of immediate cash redemption proceeds for up to seven calendar days, (iii) revoke a shareholder’s privilege to purchase Shares (including exchanges), or (iv) limit the amount of any exchange involving the purchase of Shares. An investor may receive notice that their purchase order or exchange has been rejected after the day the order is placed or after acceptance by a financial intermediary. It is currently expected that a shareholder would receive notice that its purchase order or exchange has been rejected within 48 hours after such purchase order or exchange has been received by the Company in good order. The Company and the Adviser will not be liable for any loss resulting from rejected purchase orders. To minimize harm to the Company and its shareholders (or the Adviser), the Company (or the Adviser) will exercise its right if, in the Company’s (or the Adviser’s) judgment, an investor has a history of excessive trading or if an investor’s trading, in the judgment of the Company (or the Adviser), has been or may be disruptive to a Fund. No waivers of the provisions of the policy established to detect and deter market timing and other excessive trading activity are permitted that would harm a Fund and its shareholders or would subordinate the interests of a Fund and its shareholders to those of the Adviser or any affiliated person or associated person of the Adviser.
The Funds generally limit the number of exchanges to six (6) exchanges per year and one exchange per calendar month. The Funds may waive such exchange limits in certain circumstances. For further information on exchanges, please see the section titled “Shareholder Information — Exchange Privilege.”
Pursuant to the policy adopted by the Board, the Adviser has developed criteria that they use to identify trading activity that may be excessive. If, in its judgment, the Adviser detects excessive, short-term trading, the Adviser may reject or restrict a purchase request and may further seek to close an investor’s account with the Fund.
If necessary, the Company may prohibit additional purchases of Shares by a financial intermediary or by certain customers of the financial intermediary. Financial intermediaries may also monitor their customers’ trading activities in the Funds. The criteria used by intermediaries to monitor for excessive trading may differ from the criteria used by the Company. If a financial intermediary fails to enforce the Company’s excessive trading policies, the Company may take certain actions, including terminating the relationship.
There is no assurance that a Fund will be able to identify market timers, particularly if they are investing through intermediaries.
Shareholder Service Fees
The Board has adopted a Shareholder Services Plan (the “Plan”) for the Institutional Class Shares of the WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund and the WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund authorizing these Funds to pay securities dealers, plan administrators or other service organizations (“Service Organizations”) who agree to provide certain shareholder and administrative services to plans or plan participants holding Institutional Class Shares of the Funds a service fee at an annual rate of up to 0.25% of the average daily net asset value of Institutional Class Shares beneficially owned by such plan participants. The services provided under the Plan include acting as a shareholder of record, processing purchase and redemption orders, maintaining participant account records and answering participant questions regarding the Fund. Please find more information on Service Organizations under the section entitled “Purchase of Fund Shares — Purchases through Intermediaries” in this Prospectus. As of the date of this Prospectus, the Board has determined not to implement the Plan for the WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund.
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Purchase of Fund Shares
Shares representing interests in the Funds are offered continuously for sale by Quasar Distributors, LLC (the “Distributor”). Institutional Class shares and the Investor Class shares of the Funds are available for purchase by investors who meet the investment minimums described below under “General.” An exchange between the Institutional Class shares and the Investor Class shares of any Fund is generally not permitted.
Purchases Through Intermediaries. Shares of the Funds may also be available through certain brokerage firms, financial institutions and other industry professionals (collectively, “Service Organizations”). Certain features of the Shares, such as the initial and subsequent investment minimums and certain trading restrictions, may be modified or waived by Service Organizations. Service Organizations may impose transaction or administrative charges or other direct fees, which charges and fees would not be imposed if Shares are purchased directly from the Company. Therefore, you should contact the Service Organization acting on your behalf concerning the fees (if any) charged in connection with a purchase or redemption of Shares and should read this Prospectus in light of the terms governing your accounts with the Service Organization. Service Organizations will be responsible for promptly transmitting client or customer purchase and redemption orders to the Company in accordance with their agreements with the Company or its agent and with clients or customers. Service Organizations or, if applicable, their designees that have entered into agreements with the Company or its agent may enter confirmed purchase orders on behalf of clients and customers, with payment to follow no later than the Company’s pricing on the following Business Day. If payment is not received by such time, the Service Organization could be held liable for resulting fees or losses. The Company will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when a Service Organization, or, if applicable, its authorized designee, accepts a purchase or redemption order in good order if the order is actually received by the Company in good order not later than the next business morning. If a purchase order is not received by a Fund in good order, the Transfer Agent will contact the financial intermediary to determine the status of the purchase order. Orders received by the Company in good order will be priced at the appropriate Fund’s NAV next computed after they are deemed to have been received by the Service Organization or its authorized designee.
For administration, subaccounting, transfer agency and/or other services, the Adviser or its affiliates may pay Service Organizations and certain recordkeeping organizations a fee (the “Service Fee”) relating to the average annual NAV of accounts with the Company maintained by such Service Organizations or recordkeepers. The Service Fee payable to any one Service Organization is determined based upon a number of factors, including the nature and quality of services provided, the operations processing requirements of the relationship and the standardized fee schedule of the Service Organization or recordkeeper.
The Funds may enter into agreements with Service Organizations pursuant to which a Fund will pay a Service Organization for networking, sub-transfer agency, sub-administration and/or sub-accounting services. These payments are generally based on either (1) a percentage of the average daily net assets of Fund shareholders serviced by the Service Organization or (2) a fixed dollar amount for each account serviced by the Service Organization. The aggregate amount of these payments may be substantial.
Institutional Class shares may also be available on brokerage platforms of firms that have agreements with the Company to offer such shares when acting solely on an agency basis for the purchase or sale of such shares. If you transact in Institutional Class shares through one of these programs, you may be required to pay a commission and/or other forms of compensation to the broker.
General. You may also purchase Shares of each Fund at the NAV per share next calculated after your order is received by the Transfer Agent in good order as described below. The Funds’ NAVs are calculated once daily at the close of regular trading hours on the NYSE (generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on each day the NYSE is open. After an initial purchase is made, the Transfer Agent will set up an account for you on the Company records. The minimum initial investment in any Fund for Institutional Class and Investor Class shares is $100,000 and $2,500, respectively, and the minimum additional investment for Institutional Class and Investor Class shares is $5,000 and $100, respectively. The minimum initial and subsequent investment requirements may be reduced or waived from time to time. For purposes of meeting the minimum initial purchase, purchases by clients which are part of endowments, foundations or other related groups may be
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combined. You can purchase Shares of each Fund only on days the NYSE is open and through the means described below. Shares may be purchased by principals and employees of the Adviser and its subsidiaries and by their spouses and children either directly or through any trust that has the principal, employee, spouse or child as the primary beneficiaries, their individual retirement accounts, or any pension and profit-sharing plan of the Adviser and its subsidiaries without being subject to the minimum investment limitations.
Initial Investment By Mail. Subject to acceptance by the Funds, an account may be opened by completing and signing an account application and mailing it to the Funds at the address noted below, together with a check payable to Boston Partners Investment Funds. All checks must be in U.S. Dollars drawn on a domestic bank. The Funds will not accept payment in cash or money orders. The Funds do not accept post-dated checks or any conditional order or payment. To prevent check fraud, the Funds will not accept third party checks, Treasury checks, credit card checks, traveler’s checks or starter checks for the purchase of shares.
Regular Mail: |
Overnight Mail: |
Boston
Partners Investments Funds |
Boston
Partners Investment Funds |
The Funds do not consider the U.S. Postal Service or other independent delivery services to be their agents. Therefore, deposit in the mail or with such services, or receipt at the Transfer Agent’s post office box, of purchase orders or redemption requests does not constitute receipt by the Transfer Agent of the Funds. Receipt of purchase orders or redemption requests is based on when the order is received at the Transfer Agent’s offices.
Shares will be purchased at the NAV next computed after the time the application and funds are received in proper order and accepted by the Funds. The Transfer Agent will charge a $25 fee against a shareholder’s account, in addition to any loss sustained by the Funds, for any payment that is returned. It is the policy of the Funds not to accept applications under certain circumstances or in amounts considered disadvantageous to shareholders. The Funds reserve the right to reject any application.
Initial Investment By Wire. If you are making your first investment in the Funds, before you wire funds, the Transfer Agent must have a completed account application. You may mail or overnight deliver your account application to the Transfer Agent. Upon receipt of your completed account application, the Transfer Agent will establish an account for you. The account number assigned will be required as part of the instruction that should be provided to your bank to send the wire. Your bank must include both the name of the Fund you are purchasing, the account number, and your name so that monies can be correctly applied. Your bank should transmit funds by wire to:
U.S.
Bank N.A.
777 East Wisconsin Ave
Milwaukee WI 53202
ABA
075000022
Credit:
U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC
Account
#112-952-137
For Further Credit to:
Boston Partners Investment
Funds
(shareholder registration)
(shareholder account number)
Wired funds must be received prior to 4:00 p.m. Eastern time to be eligible for same day pricing. The Funds and U.S. Bank, N.A. are not responsible for the consequences of delays resulting from the banking or Federal Reserve wire system, or from incomplete wiring instructions.
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For Subsequent Investments – By wire
Before sending your wire, please contact the Transfer Agent to advise them of your intent to wire funds. This will ensure prompt and accurate credit upon receipt of your wire.
Telephone Purchase. Investors may purchase additional shares of the Funds by calling 1-888-261-4073. If you did not decline this option on your account application, and your account has been open for at least 7 business days, telephone orders, in amounts of $100 or more, will be accepted via electronic funds transfer from your bank account through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network. You must have banking information established on your account prior to making a purchase. If you order is received prior to 4 p.m. Eastern time, your shares will be purchased at the NAV calculated on the day your order is placed.
Telephone trades must be received by or prior to market close. During periods of high market activity, shareholders may encounter higher than usual call waits. Please allow sufficient time to place your telephone transaction.
Additional Investments. Additional investments may be made at any time (minimum additional investment $5,000 and $100 for Institutional Class shares and Investor Class shares, respectively) by purchasing Shares of any Fund at the NAV per Share of the Fund by mailing a check to the Transfer Agent at the address noted under “Initial Investment by Mail” (payable to Boston Partners [name of Fund]), by electronic funds transfer through the ACH network as indicated under “Telephone Purchase”, or by wiring monies as outlined under “Initial Investment by Wire.” Initial and/or additional purchases made by check or electronic funds transfer through the ACH network cannot be redeemed until payment of the purchase has been collected. This may take up to 15 calendar days from the date of purchase. This delay will not apply if you purchased your shares via wire payment.
Automatic Investment Plan. Once your account has been opened with the initial minimum investment you may make additional purchases at regular intervals through an automatic investment plan (the “Automatic Investment Plan”). The Automatic Investment Plan provides a convenient method to have monies deducted from your bank account, for investment into the Fund, on a monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, or semi-annual basis. In order to participate in the Automatic Investment Plan, each purchase for Institutional Class shares must be in the amount of $5,000 or more ($50 or more for the WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund) and each purchase for Investor Class shares must be in the amount of $100 or more. Your financial institution must be a member of the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network. If your bank rejects your payment, the Fund’s transfer agent will charge a $25 fee to your account. To begin participating in the Automatic Investment Plan, please complete the Automatic Investment Plan section on the account application or call the Funds’ transfer agent at 1-888-261-4073 for instructions. Any request to change or terminate your Automatic Investment Plan should be submitted to the Transfer Agent five (5) days prior to effective date.
Retirement Plans. The Funds offer prototype documents for a variety of retirement accounts for individuals and small businesses. Please call 1-888-261-4073 for information on:
● |
Individual Retirement Plan, including Traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs |
● |
Small Business Retirement Plans, including Simple IRAs and SEP IRAs |
● |
Coverdell Education Savings Accounts |
There may be special distribution requirements for retirement accounts, such as required distributions or mandatory Federal income tax withholding. For more information, call the number listed above. You may be charged a $15 annual account maintenance fee for each retirement account up to a maximum of $30 annually and a $25 fee for transferring assets to another custodian or for closing a retirement account.
Purchases in Kind. In certain circumstances, Shares of the Funds may be purchased “in kind” (i.e., in exchange for securities, rather than cash). The securities rendered in connection with an in-kind purchase must be liquid securities that are not restricted as to transfer and have a value that is readily ascertainable in accordance with the Company’s valuation procedures. Securities accepted by the Funds will be valued, as set
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forth in this Prospectus, as of the time of the next determination of NAV after such acceptance. The Shares of the Funds that are issued to the investor in exchange for the securities will be determined as of the same time. All dividend, subscription, or other rights that are reflected in the market price of accepted securities at the time of valuation become the property of the Funds and must be delivered to the Funds by the investor upon receipt from the issuer. The Funds will not accept securities in exchange for its Shares unless such securities are, at the time of the exchange, eligible to be held by the Funds and satisfy such other conditions as may be imposed by the Adviser or the Company. Purchases in-kind may result in the recognition of gain or loss for federal income tax purposes on the securities transferred to the Funds.
Other Purchase Information. The Company reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to suspend the offering of Shares or to reject purchase orders when, in the judgment of management, such suspension or rejection is in the best interests of the Funds. Subject to the Board’s discretion, the Adviser will monitor each Fund’s total assets and may decide to close any of the Funds at any time to new investments or to new accounts due to concerns that a significant increase in the size of a Fund may adversely affect the implementation of the Fund’s strategy. Subject to the Board’s discretion, the Adviser may also choose to reopen a closed Fund to new investments at any time, and may subsequently close such Fund again should concerns regarding the Fund’s size recur. If a Fund closes to new investments, generally the closed Fund would be offered only to certain existing shareholders of the Fund and certain other persons, who are generally subject to cumulative, maximum purchase amounts, as follows:
a. |
Fee-based advisory model programs or financial advisors who manage fee-based wrap accounts that systematically trade in and out of the closed Fund based on model portfolio allocations; |
b. |
Persons who already hold Shares of the closed Fund directly or through accounts maintained by brokers by arrangement with the Company; |
c. |
Existing and future clients of registered investment advisers and planners whose clients already hold Shares of the closed Fund on transaction fee and non-transaction fee platforms; |
d. |
Existing and future clients of consultants whose clients already hold shares of the closed Fund; |
e. |
Certain financial intermediaries by arrangement with the Company; |
f. |
Employees of the Adviser and their spouses, parents and children; |
g. |
Directors of the Company; and |
h. |
Defined contribution retirement plans of private employers and governed by ERISA or of state and local governments. |
Other persons who are shareholders of other Boston Partners Investment Funds are not permitted to acquire Shares of the closed Fund by exchange. Distributions to all shareholders of the closed Fund will continue to be reinvested unless a shareholder elects otherwise. The Adviser, subject to the Board’s discretion, reserves the right to implement other purchase limitations at the time of closing, including limitations on current shareholders.
Purchases of the Shares will be made in full and fractional shares of the Fund calculated to three decimal places.
The Adviser is authorized to waive the minimum initial and subsequent investment requirements.
The Adviser reserves the right to close the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund to new investments from time to time at its discretion, should the assets of the Fund decline by more than 5% from the date of the last closing of the Fund. In addition, if the Adviser closes the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund, the Adviser has discretion to open the Fund thereafter should the assets of the Fund increase by more than 5% from the date of the last reopening of the Fund. Subject to the approval of the Board, the Adviser may also choose to close the Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund to new investments at any time, and may subsequently open the Fund again should concerns regarding the Fund’s size recur.
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Good Order. A purchase request is considered to be in good order when the purchase request includes the name of the Fund, the dollar amount of shares to be purchased, your account application or investment stub, and a check payable to the Fund. Purchase requests not in good order may rejected.
Customer Identification Program. Please note that the Transfer Agent must verify certain information on your account application as part of the Company’s Anti-Money Laundering Program. You must supply your full name, date of birth, social security number and permanent street address. If you are opening the account in the name of a legal entity (e.g., partnership, limited liability company, business trust, corporation, etc.), you must also supply the identity of the beneficial owners. Mailing addresses containing only a P. O. Box will not be accepted. Applications without the required information will not be accepted. After acceptance, to the extent permitted by applicable law or its customer identification program, the Company reserves the right (a) to place limits on transactions in any account until the identity of the investor is verified; or (b) to refuse an investment in a Company portfolio or to involuntarily redeem an investor’s Shares and close an account in the event that an investor’s identity is not verified. The Company and its agents will not be responsible for any loss in an investor’s account resulting from the investor’s delay in providing all required identifying information or from closing an account and redeeming an investor’s Shares when an investor’s identity cannot be verified.
Redemption of Fund Shares
Normally, your investment professional will send your request to redeem Shares to the Transfer Agent. Consult your investment professional for more information. You can redeem some or all of your Fund Shares directly through the Fund only if the account is registered in your name.
Investors may have a check sent to the address of record, proceeds may be wired to a shareholder’s bank account of record, or funds may be sent via electronic funds transfer through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network, also to the bank account of record. Wires are subject to a $15 fee paid by the investor, but the investor does not incur any charge when proceeds are sent via the ACH system.
IRA and Other Retirement Plan Redemptions
If you have an IRA, you must indicate on your written redemption request whether or not to withhold federal income tax. Redemption requests failing to indicate an election to have tax withheld will be subject to 10% withholding.
Shares held in IRA accounts may be redeemed by telephone at 1-888-261-4073. Investors will be asked whether or not to withhold taxes from any distribution.
Redemption By Mail. Your redemption request should be sent to:
Boston
Partners Investment Funds
c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund Services
P. O. Box
701
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0701
If
sent by overnight mail to:
Boston Partners Investment Funds
c/o U.S. Bank
Global Fund Services
615 East Michigan Street
Milwaukee, WI 53202
The Funds do not consider the U.S. Postal Service or other independent delivery services to be their agents. Therefore, deposit in the mail or with such services, or receipt at the Transfer Agent’s post office box, of purchase orders or redemption requests does not constitute receipt by the Transfer Agent of the Funds. Receipt of purchase orders or redemption requests is based on when the order is received at the Transfer Agent’s offices.
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A signature guarantee, from either a Medallion program member or a non-Medallion program member, is required in the following situations:
● |
If ownership is being changed on your account; |
● |
When redemption proceeds are payable or sent to any person, address or bank account not on record; |
● |
When a redemption is received by the Transfer Agent and the account address has changed within the last 15 calendar days. |
The Funds may waive any of the above requirements in certain instances. In addition to the situations described above, the Funds and /or the Transfer Agent reserve the right to require a signature guarantee in other instances based on the circumstances relative to the particular situation.
Non-financial transactions, including establishing or modifying certain services on an account, may require a signature guarantee, signature verification from a Signature Validation Program member, or other acceptable form of authentication from a financial institution source.
Signature guarantees will generally be accepted from domestic banks, brokers, dealers, credit unions, national securities exchanges, registered securities associations, clearing agencies and savings associations, as well as from participants in the New York Stock Exchange Medallion Signature Program and the Securities Transfer Agents Medallion Program (“STAMP”). A notary public is not an acceptable signature guarantor.
Redemption By Telephone. Unless you have declined telephone transaction privileges on your account application, you may redeem your shares by telephone by calling the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073. Adding telephone redemption to an existing account may require a signature guarantee or other acceptable form of authentication from a financial institution source.
Investors may have a check sent to the address of record, proceeds may be wired to a shareholder’s bank account of record, or funds may be sent via electronic funds transfer through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network, also to the bank account of record. Wires are subject to a $15 fee paid by the investor, but the investor does not incur any charge when proceeds are sent via the ACH system.
Once a telephone transaction has been placed, it cannot be canceled or modified after the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally, 4:00 p.m., Eastern time).
Telephone trades must be received by or prior to market close. During periods of high market activity, shareholders may encounter higher than usual call waits. Please allow sufficient time to place your telephone transaction.
Before executing an instruction received by telephone, the Transfer Agent will use reasonable procedures to confirm that the telephone instructions are genuine. The telephone call may be recorded and the caller may be asked to verify certain personal identification information. If the Funds or its agents follow these procedures, they cannot be held liable for any loss, expense or cost arising out of any telephone redemption request that is reasonably believed to be genuine. This includes fraudulent or unauthorized requests. If an account has more than one owner or authorized person, the Funds will accept telephone instructions from any one owner or authorized person.
Systematic Withdrawal Plan — WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund. As another convenience, you may redeem your WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund shares through a systematic withdrawal plan (the “Systematic Withdrawal Plan”). Under the Systematic Withdrawal Plan, you may choose to receive a specified dollar amount, generated from the redemption of shares in your account, on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis. In order to participate in the Systematic Withdrawal Plan, your account balance must be at least $10,000 and each payment should be a minimum of $50. If you elect this method of redemption, the WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund will send a check to your address of record, or will send the payment via electronic funds transfer through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network, directly to your bank account. For payment through the ACH network, your bank must be an ACH member and your bank account information must be maintained on your Fund account. The Systematic Withdrawal Plan may be
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terminated at any time by the WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund. You may also elect to terminate your participation in the Systematic Withdrawal Plan at any time by contacting the Transfer Agent in writing or by telephone at least five (5) days prior to the next withdrawal.
A withdrawal under the Systematic Withdrawal Plan involves a redemption of shares and may result in a gain or loss for federal income tax purposes. In addition, if the amount requested to be withdrawn exceeds the amount available in your account, which includes any dividends credited to your account, the account will ultimately be depleted.
Involuntary Redemption. The Funds reserve the right to redeem a shareholder’s account in any Fund at any time the value of the account in such Fund falls below $500 as the result of a redemption or an exchange request. Shareholders will be notified in writing that the value of their account in a Fund is less than $500 and will be allowed 30 days to make additional investments before the redemption is processed.
The Funds may assert the right to redeem your shares at current NAV at any time and without prior notice if, and to the extent that, such redemption is necessary to reimburse a Fund for any loss sustained by reason of your failure to make full payment for shares of a Fund you previously purchased or subscribed for.
Other Redemption Information. Redemption proceeds for Shares of the Funds recently purchased by check or electronic funds transfer through the ACH network may not be distributed until payment for the purchase has been collected, which may take up to fifteen calendar days from the purchase date. Shareholders can avoid this delay by utilizing the wire purchase option.
Other than as described above, payment of the redemption proceeds will be made within seven days after receipt of an order for a redemption. The Company may suspend the right of redemption or postpone the date at times when the NYSE is closed or under any emergency circumstances as determined by the SEC and the Company’s Policy and Procedures Related to the Processing of In-Kind Redemptions. The Funds typically expect to meet redemption requests by paying out proceeds from cash or cash equivalent portfolio holdings, or by selling portfolio securities. In stressed market conditions, redemption methods may include redeeming in kind.
If the Board determines that it would be detrimental to the best interests of the remaining shareholders of the Funds to make payment wholly or partly in cash, redemption proceeds may be paid in whole or in part by an in-kind distribution of readily marketable securities held by a Fund instead of cash in conformity with applicable rules of the SEC. Investors generally will incur brokerage charges on the sale of portfolio securities so received in payment of redemptions. If a shareholder receives redemption proceeds in-kind, the shareholder will bear the market risk of the securities received in the redemption until their disposition and should expect to incur transaction costs upon the disposition of the securities. The Company has elected, however, to be governed by Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act, so that a Fund is obligated to redeem its Shares solely in cash up to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of its NAV during any 90-day period for any one shareholder of a Fund.
Good Order. A redemption request is considered to be in good order when the redemption request includes the name of the Fund, the number of shares or dollar amount to be redeemed, the account number, and signatures by all of shareholders whose names appear on the account registration with a signature guarantee, if applicable. Redemption requests not in good order may be delayed.
Exchange Privilege
The exchange privilege is available to shareholders residing in any state in which the Shares being acquired may be legally sold. The Boston Partners Investment Funds reserve the right, at their sole discretion, to change or discontinue the exchange privilege, or temporarily suspend the privilege during unusual market conditions when, in the judgment of management, such change or discontinuance is in the best interests of the Funds. A shareholder may exchange Institutional Class or Investor Class shares of any Boston Partners Investment Fund for Institutional Class or Investor Class shares, respectively, in an identically registered account of another Boston Partners Investment Fund. Such an exchange will be effected at the NAV of the exchanged Institutional Class or Investor Class Shares and the NAV of the Institutional Class or Investor Class Shares to be acquired next determined after the Transfer Agent’s receipt of a request for an exchange. An exchange of Shares of one
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Boston Partners Investment Fund for Shares of another Boston Partners Investment Fund will be treated as a sale for federal income tax purposes. A shareholder may make an exchange by sending a written request to the Transfer Agent or, if authorized, by telephone (see “Redemption by Telephone” above). Defined contribution plans are not subject to the above exchange limitations.
Shares of each class of a Boston Partners Investment Fund represent equal pro rata interests in the Funds and accrue dividends and calculate NAV and performance quotations in the same manner. The performance of each class is quoted separately due to different actual expenses. The total return on Institutional Class Shares can be expected to differ from the total return on Investor Class Shares. Shareholders who exercise the exchange privilege will generally not recognize a taxable gain or loss for federal income tax purposes on an exchange of Investor Class Shares for Institutional Class Shares of the same Boston Partners Investment Fund. Under Internal Revenue Code section 1036, an exchange of shares of one class for shares of another class of the same Fund constitutes a nontaxable exchange for federal income tax purposes, and your basis and holding period for your existing shares will carry over to your new shares. The Funds intend to report any such exchange as an entirely nontaxable transaction.
If the exchanging shareholder does not currently own Institutional Class Shares of the Fund, a new account will be established with the same registration, dividend and capital gain options as the account from which Shares are exchanged, unless otherwise specified in writing by the shareholder with all signatures guaranteed. See “Redemption by Mail” for information on signature guarantees. The exchange privilege may be modified or terminated at any time, or from time to time, by the Funds, upon 60 days’ written notice to shareholders.
If a shareholder wants to exchange Shares into a new account in a Fund, the dollar value of the Shares acquired must equal or exceed the Fund’s minimum investment requirement for a new account. If a shareholder wants to exchange Shares into an existing account, the dollar value of the Shares must equal or exceed the Fund’s minimum investment requirement for additional investments. If an amount remains in the Fund from which the exchange is being made that is below the minimum account value required, the account will be subject to involuntary redemption.
In addition, beneficial holders with financial intermediary sponsored fee-based programs are eligible to exchange their shares in a particular share class of a Fund for Shares in a different share class of a Fund if the shareholder meets the eligibility requirement for that class of Shares or the shareholder is otherwise eligible to purchase that class of shares. Such an exchange will be affected at the NAV of the shares next calculated after the exchange request is received by the Transfer Agent in good order. Investors who hold Institutional Class Shares of any Boston Partners Investment Fund through a financial intermediary sponsored fee-based program, but who subsequently become ineligible to participate in the program or withdraw from the program, may be subject to conversion of their Institutional Class Shares by their program provider to another class of shares of the Fund having expenses (including Rule 12b-1 fees) that may be higher than the expenses of the Institutional Class Shares. Investors should contact their program provider to obtain information about their eligibility for the provider’s program and the class of shares they would receive upon such a conversion.
The Funds’ exchange privilege is not intended to afford shareholders a way to speculate on short-term movements in the market. Accordingly, in order to prevent excessive use of the exchange privilege, which may potentially disrupt the management of the Funds and increase transaction costs, the Funds have established a policy of limiting excessive exchange activity. Notwithstanding these limitations, the Funds reserve the right to reject any purchase request (including exchange purchases from other Boston Partners Investment Funds) that is deemed to be disruptive to efficient portfolio management.
Dividends and Distributions
Each Fund will distribute substantially all of its net investment income and net realized capital gains, if any, to its shareholders. All distributions are reinvested in the form of additional full and fractional Shares of the Fund unless a shareholder elects otherwise.
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The Funds will declare and pay dividends from net investment income annually. Net realized capital gains (including net short-term capital gains), if any, will be distributed by the Funds at least annually. The estimated amount of any annual distribution will be posted to the Adviser’s website at www.bostonpartners.com or a free copy may be obtained by calling 1-888-261-4073.
The Funds may pay additional distributions and dividends at other times if necessary for a Fund to avoid U.S. federal tax. The Funds’ distributions and dividends, whether received in cash or reinvested in additional Fund Shares, are subject to U.S. federal income tax.
All distributions will be reinvested in Fund shares unless you elect to receive cash. If you elect to receive distributions and/or capital gains paid in cash, and the U.S. Postal Service cannot deliver the check, or if a check remains outstanding for six months, the Funds reserve the right to reinvest the distribution check in your account, at the Funds’ current NAV, and to reinvest all subsequent distributions. You may change the distribution option on your account at any time. You should notify the Transfer Agent in writing or by telephone at least five (5) days prior to the next distribution.
Taxes
The following is a summary of certain United States tax considerations relevant under current law, which may be subject to change in the future. Except where otherwise indicated, the discussion relates to investors who are individual United States citizens or residents. You should consult your tax adviser for further information regarding federal, state, local and/or foreign tax consequences relevant to your specific situation.
Federal Taxes of Distributions. Each Fund contemplates distributing as dividends each year all or substantially all of its taxable income, including its net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss). Except as otherwise discussed below, you will be subject to federal income tax on Fund distributions regardless of whether they are paid in cash or reinvested in additional Shares. Fund distributions attributable to short-term capital gains and net investment income will generally be taxable to you as ordinary income, except as discussed below.
Distributions attributable to the net capital gain of a Fund will be taxable to you as long-term capital gain, no matter how long you have owned your Fund Shares. The maximum federal long-term capital gain rate applicable to individuals, estates, and trusts is currently 23.8% (which includes a 3.8% Medicare tax). You will be notified annually of the tax status of distributions to you.
Distributions of “qualifying dividends” will also generally be taxable to you at long-term capital gain rates, as long as certain requirements are met. In general, if 95% or more of the gross income of a Fund (other than net capital gain) consists of dividends received from domestic corporations or “qualified” foreign corporations (“qualifying dividends”), then all distributions paid by the Fund to individual shareholders will be taxed at long-term capital gains rates. But if less than 95% of the gross income of a Fund (other than net capital gain) consists of qualifying dividends, then distributions paid by the Fund to individual shareholders will be qualifying dividends only to the extent they are derived from qualifying dividends earned by the Fund. For the lower rates to apply, you must have owned your Fund Shares for at least 61 days during the 121-day period beginning on the date that is 60 days before the Fund’s ex-dividend date (and the Fund will need to have met a similar holding period requirement with respect to the Shares of the corporation paying the qualifying dividend).The amount of a Fund’s distributions that qualify for this favorable treatment may be reduced as a result of the Fund’s securities lending activities (if any), a high portfolio turnover rate or investments in debt securities or non-qualified foreign corporations.
Through 2025, a Fund may make distributions to you of “section 199A dividends” with respect to qualified dividends that it receives with respect to such Fund’s investments in REITs. A section 199A dividend is any dividend or part of such dividend that the Fund pays to you and reports as a section 199A dividend in written statements furnished to you. Distributions paid by a Fund that are eligible to be treated as section 199A dividends for a taxable year may not exceed the “qualified REIT dividends” received by the Fund from a REIT reduced by the Fund’s allocable expenses. Section 199A dividends may be taxed to individuals and other non-corporate shareholders at a reduced effective federal income tax rate, provided you have satisfied a holding
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period requirement for the Fund’s Shares and satisfied certain other conditions. For the lower rates to apply, you must have owned your Fund Shares for at least 46 days during the 91-day period beginning on the date that is 45 days before the Fund’s ex-dividend date, but only to the extent that you are not under an obligation (under a short-sale or otherwise) to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property. Section 199A is currently set to expire after 2025.
Distributions from a Fund will generally be taxable to you in the taxable year in which they are paid, with one exception. Distributions declared by a Fund in October, November or December and paid in January of the following year are taxed as though they were paid on December 31.
It is expected that the Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund, the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, the Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, and WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund will each be subject to foreign withholding or other foreign income taxes with respect to dividends or interest received from (and, in some cases, gains recognized on shares of stock of) non-U.S. companies. If more than 50% of these Funds’ assets are stock and securities of foreign corporations, they may make an election to treat a proportionate amount of those taxes as constituting a distribution to each shareholder, which would allow you either (1) to credit that proportionate amount of taxes against U.S. federal income tax liability as a foreign tax credit, subject to applicable limitations, or (2) to take that amount as an itemized deduction.
A portion of distributions paid by a Fund to shareholders that are corporations may also qualify for the dividends-received deduction for corporations, subject to certain holding period requirements and debt financing limitations. Only the portions of Fund dividends that are attributable to dividends a Fund receives from U.S. companies may qualify for this dividends-received deduction. The amount of the dividends qualifying for this deduction may, however, be reduced as a result of the Fund’s securities lending activities (if any), by a high portfolio turnover rate or by investments in debt securities or foreign corporations.
If you purchase Shares just before a distribution, the purchase price will reflect the amount of the upcoming distribution, but you will be taxed on the entire amount of the distribution received, even though, as an economic matter, the distribution simply constitutes a return of capital. This adverse tax result is known as “buying into a dividend.”
Sales and Exchanges. You will generally recognize taxable gain or loss for federal income tax purposes on a sale, exchange or redemption of your Shares, including an exchange for Shares of another Fund, based on the difference between your tax basis in the Shares and the amount you receive for them. Generally, you will recognize long-term capital gain or loss if you have held your Fund Shares for over twelve months at the time you dispose of them.
Any loss realized on Shares held for six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any capital gain dividends that were received on the Shares. Additionally, any loss realized on a disposition of Shares of a Fund may be disallowed under “wash sale” rules to the extent the Shares disposed of are replaced with other Shares of the same Fund within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the Shares are disposed of, such as pursuant to a dividend reinvestment in Shares of a Fund. If disallowed, the loss will be reflected in an upward adjustment to the basis of the Shares acquired.
For Shares acquired on or after January 1, 2012, each Fund (or relevant broker or financial adviser) is required to compute and report to the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and furnish to Fund shareholders cost basis information when such Shares are sold or exchanged. Each Fund intends to elect to use the average cost method, unless you instruct the Fund to use a different IRS-accepted cost basis method, or choose to specifically identify your Shares at the time of each sale or exchange. If your account is held by your broker or other financial adviser, they may select a different cost basis method. In these cases, please contact your broker or other financial adviser to obtain information with respect to the available methods and elections for your account. You should carefully review the cost basis information provided by the Fund and make any additional basis, holding period or other adjustments that are required when reporting these amounts on your
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federal and state income tax returns. Fund shareholders should consult with their tax advisers to determine the best IRS-accepted cost basis method for their tax situation and to obtain more information about how the cost basis reporting requirements apply to them.
IRAs and Other Tax-Qualified Plans. The one major exception to the preceding tax principles is that distributions on, and sales, exchanges and redemptions of, Shares held in an IRA (or other tax-qualified plan) will not be currently taxable unless such Shares were acquired with borrowed funds.
Backup Withholding. The Funds may be required in certain cases to withhold and remit to the IRS a percentage of taxable dividends or gross proceeds realized upon sale payable to shareholders who have failed to provide a correct tax identification number in the manner required, or who are subject to withholding by the IRS for failure to properly include on their return payments of taxable interest or dividends, or who have failed to certify to the Fund that they are not subject to backup withholding when required to do so or that they are “exempt recipients.” The current backup withholding rate is 24%.
U.S. Tax Treatment of Foreign Shareholders. Generally, nonresident aliens, foreign corporations and other foreign investors are subject to a 30% withholding tax on dividends paid by a U.S. corporation, although the rate may be reduced for an investor that is a qualified resident of a foreign country with an applicable tax treaty with the United States. In the case of regulated investment companies such as the Funds, however, certain categories of dividends are exempt from the 30% withholding tax. These generally include dividends attributable to the Funds’ net capital gains (the excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses), dividends attributable to the Funds’ interest income from U.S. obligors and dividends attributable to net short-term capital gains of the Funds.
Foreign shareholders will generally not be subject to U.S. tax on gains realized on the sale, exchange or redemption of Shares in the Funds, except that a nonresident alien individual who is present in the United States for 183 days or more in a calendar year will be taxable on such gains and on capital gain dividends from the Funds.
However, if a foreign investor conducts a trade or business in the United States and the investment in a Fund is effectively connected with that trade or business, then the foreign investor’s income from the Fund will generally be subject to U.S. federal income tax at graduated rates in a manner similar to the income of a U.S. citizen or resident.
The Funds will also generally be required to withhold 30% tax on certain payments to foreign entities that do not provide a Form W-8BEN-E that evidences their compliance with, or exemption from, specified information reporting requirements under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
All foreign investors should consult their own tax advisers regarding the tax consequences in their country of residence of an investment in a Fund.
Shares of the Funds have not been registered for sale outside of the United States and certain United States territories.
State and Local Taxes. You may also be subject to state and local taxes on income and gain from Fund Shares. State income taxes may not apply, however, to the portions of a Fund’s distributions, if any, that are attributable to interest on U.S. government securities. You should consult your tax adviser regarding the tax status of distributions in your state and locality.
More information about taxes is contained in the SAI.
Multi-Class Structure
Each Fund, except the Boston Partners Emerging Market Dynamic Equity Fund, Boston Partners Global Equity Fund, Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund, WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund, WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund, WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund, also offers Investor Class Shares, which are offered directly to individual investors. Shares of each class of a Fund represent equal pro rata interests in the Fund and accrue dividends and calculate NAV and performance quotations in the same
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manner. The performance of each class is quoted separately due to different actual expenses. The total return on Institutional Class Shares of a Fund can be expected to differ from the total return on Investor Class Shares of the same Fund.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Electronic Delivery
Consistent with the Funds’ commitment to environmental sustainability, you may sign up to receive quarterly statements, and tax forms statements electronically. You may also sign up to receive the Funds’ financial statements and Prospectuses electronically at www.bostonpartners.com. You may change your delivery preference and resume receiving these documents through the mail at any time by updating your electronic delivery preferences at www.bostonpartners.com or by contacting the Funds at 1-888-261-4073.
Householding
In an effort to decrease costs, the Funds intend to reduce the number of duplicate prospectuses and other shareholder documents you receive by sending only one copy of each to those addresses shared by two or more accounts and to shareholders we reasonably believe are from the same family or household. Once implemented, if you would like to discontinue householding for your accounts, please call toll-free at 1-888-261-4073 to request individual copies of these documents. Once the Funds receive notice to stop householding, we will begin sending individual copies thirty days after receiving your request. This policy does not apply to account statements.
Lost Shareholder, Inactive Accounts and Unclaimed Property
It is important that the Funds maintain a correct address for each shareholder. An incorrect address may cause a shareholder’s account statements and other mailings to be returned to the Fund. Based upon statutory requirements for returned mail, the Funds will attempt to locate the shareholder or rightful owner of the account. If the Funds are unable to locate the shareholder, then they will determine whether the shareholder’s account can legally be considered abandoned. Your mutual fund account may be transferred to the state government of your state of residence if no activity occurs within your account during the “inactivity period” specified in your state’s abandoned property laws. The Funds are legally obligated to escheat (or transfer) abandoned property to the appropriate state’s unclaimed property administrator in accordance with statutory requirements. The shareholder’s last known address of record determines which state has jurisdiction. Please proactively contact the Transfer Agent at 1-888-261-4073 (toll free) at least annually to ensure your account remains in active status.
If you are a resident of the state of Texas, you may designate a representative to receive notifications that, due to inactivity, your mutual fund account assets may be delivered to the Texas Comptroller. Please contact the Transfer Agent if you wish to complete a Texas Designation of Representative form.
NO PERSON HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED TO GIVE ANY INFORMATION OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS NOT CONTAINED IN THIS PROSPECTUS OR IN THE FUNDS’ SAI INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE, IN CONNECTION WITH THE OFFERING MADE BY THIS PROSPECTUS AND, IF GIVEN OR MADE, SUCH REPRESENTATIONS MUST NOT BE RELIED UPON AS HAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED BY THE COMPANY OR ITS DISTRIBUTOR. THIS PROSPECTUS DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFERING BY THE COMPANY OR BY THE DISTRIBUTOR IN ANY JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFERING MAY NOT LAWFULLY BE MADE.
115 |
APPENDIX A
Prior Performance of Similarly Advised Accounts of the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund
The Adviser has experience in managing other accounts with substantially similar investment objectives, policies and strategies as the Boston Partners Global Equity Fund. The table on the following pages is provided to illustrate the past performance of the Adviser in managing all such other accounts and does not represent the performance of the Fund. Investors should not consider this performance information as a substitute for the performance of the Fund, nor should investors consider this information as an indication of the future performance of the Fund or of the Adviser. The performance information has been adjusted to show the performance of the other accounts net of the Fund’s annual operating expenses for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2011 (after contractual waivers that were in place until September 30, 2013). The other accounts’ fees and expenses are lower than those of the Fund. The Fund’s results in the future also may be different because the other accounts are not subject to certain investment limitations, diversification requirements and other restrictions imposed on mutual funds under applicable U.S. securities and tax laws that, if applicable, could have adversely affected the performance of the other accounts. In addition, the securities held by the Fund will not be identical to the securities held by the other accounts.
The performance of the other accounts is also compared to the performance of an appropriate broad-based securities benchmark index. This index is unmanaged and is not subject to fees and expenses typically associated with managed funds, including the Fund. Investors cannot invest directly in the Index. The performance information is accompanied by additional disclosures, which are an integral part of the information.
Monthly Returns (since July 31, 2008)1,2,3,4,5
COMPOSITE — PRO FORMA NET OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2011 |
1.90% |
3.43% |
0.83% |
4.56% |
(1.85)% |
(1.16)% |
(1.11)% |
(7.73)% |
(8.67)% |
11.36% |
(2.36)% |
||
2010 |
(3.84)% |
0.42% |
5.94% |
0.28% |
(9.73)% |
(4.56)% |
7.66% |
(3.68)% |
10.10% |
4.62% |
(2.53)% |
8.79% |
11.93% |
2009 |
(8.69)% |
(9.47)% |
5.20% |
11.74% |
8.46% |
0.05% |
7.44% |
5.34% |
4.35% |
(1.10)% |
2.87% |
2.10% |
29.35% |
2008 |
(2.35)% |
(0.54)% |
(9.54)% |
(19.20)% |
(6.15)% |
3.18% |
COMPOSITE — GROSS OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2011 |
2.01% |
3.54% |
0.94% |
4.67% |
(1.74)% |
(1.05)% |
(1.00)% |
(7.62)% |
(8.56)% |
11.47% |
(2.25)% |
||
2010 |
(3.73)% |
0.52% |
6.05% |
0.39% |
(9.62)% |
(4.46)% |
7.77% |
(3.58)% |
10.21% |
4.73% |
(2.42)% |
8.90% |
13.38% |
2009 |
(8.59)% |
(9.36)% |
5.31% |
11.85% |
8.57% |
0.16% |
7.54% |
5.45% |
4.46% |
(1.00)% |
2.98% |
2.21% |
31.01% |
2008 |
(2.24)% |
(0.43)% |
(9.43)% |
(19.09)% |
(6.04)% |
3.29% |
MSCI® WORLD INDEX
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2011 |
2.28% |
3.55% |
(0.94)% |
4.31% |
(1.97)% |
(1.54)% |
(1.79)% |
(7.00)% |
(8.60)% |
10.37% |
(2.38)% |
||
2010 |
(4.11)% |
1.45% |
6.25% |
0.07% |
(9.48)% |
(3.39)% |
8.13% |
(3.69)% |
9.36% |
3.75% |
(2.11)% |
7.39% |
13.24% |
2009 |
(8.73)% |
(10.17)% |
7.60% |
11.32% |
9.19% |
(0.41)% |
8.50% |
4.17% |
4.02% |
(1.76)% |
4.14% |
1.83% |
30.79% |
2008 |
(2.42)% |
(1.36)% |
(11.85)% |
(18.93)% |
(6.40)% |
3.26% |
116 |
SUMMARY
STATISTICS (periods ended November 30, 2011)1,2,3,4,5
RETURN
YTD |
1 Year |
2 Years |
3 Years |
Since
| |
Pro Forma Net Of Fees |
(2.33)% |
6.26% |
5.65% |
13.42% |
(0.82)% |
Gross Of Fees |
(1.15)% |
7.64% |
7.03% |
14.89% |
0.48% |
MSCI® World Index |
(5.00)% |
2.02% |
4.25% |
12.96% |
(2.17)% |
1 |
Performance was calculated using Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”). This method of calculating performance differs from the SEC’s standardized methodology, which may produce different results. |
2 |
Performance is calculated using a net asset value to net asset value methodology which incorporates all trades, prices, accruals and updated security records on trade date basis. |
3 |
Performance is presented gross and net of the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses (after contractual waivers that were in place until September 30, 2013). |
4 |
The MSCI® World Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets. |
5 |
Although the other accounts commenced operations on January 1, 2007 or April 17, 1998, the other accounts only began investing in accordance with their current investment strategies on July 1, 2008. The performance shown represents performance since the other accounts began investing in accordance with their current investment strategies. |
117 |
APPENDIX B
Prior Performance of Similarly Advised Accounts of the Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund
The Adviser has experience in managing other accounts with substantially similar investment objectives, policies and strategies as the Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund. The tables on the following pages are provided to illustrate the past performance of the Adviser in managing all such other accounts and does not represent the performance of the Fund. Investors should not consider this performance information as a substitute for the performance of the Fund, nor should investors consider this information as an indication of the future performance of the Fund or of the Adviser. The performance information has been adjusted to show the performance of the other accounts net of the Fund’s annual operating expenses for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2021 (after contractual waivers that will be in place until December 31, 2023). The other accounts’ fees and expenses are lower than those of the Fund. The Fund’s results in the future also may be different because the other accounts are not subject to certain investment limitations, diversification requirements and other restrictions imposed on mutual funds under applicable U.S. securities and tax laws that, if applicable, could have adversely affected the performance of the other accounts. In addition, the securities held by the Fund will not be identical to the securities held by the other accounts.
The performance of the other accounts is also compared to the performance of an appropriate broad-based securities benchmark index. This index is unmanaged and is not subject to fees and expenses typically associated with managed funds, including the Fund. Investors cannot invest directly in the Index. The performance information is accompanied by additional disclosures, which are an integral part of the information.
Monthly Returns (since November 30, 2019)1,2,3,4,5
COMPOSITE — PRO FORMA NET OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
(1.08)% |
5.75% |
6.01% |
2.27% |
3.92% |
(1.60)% |
(0.26)% |
0.96% |
(2.62)% |
|
|
|
|
2020 |
(1.72)% |
(9.10)% |
(12.26)% |
9.25% |
3.50% |
0.77% |
4.34% |
4.12% |
(2.62)% |
(3.23)% |
10.57% |
3.39% |
4.24% |
2019 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.40% |
3.20% |
5.68% |
COMPOSITE — GROSS OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
(1.02)% |
5.81% |
6.07% |
2.34% |
3.98% |
(1.54)% |
(0.20)% |
1.03% |
(2.56)% |
|
|
|
|
2020 |
(2)% |
(9.05)% |
(12.20)% |
9.31% |
3.56% |
0.83% |
4.40% |
4.18% |
(2.83)% |
(3.17)% |
10.64% |
3.46% |
5.02% |
2019 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.46% |
3.27% |
5.81% |
MSCI® WORLD INDEX
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
(0.99)% |
2.56% |
3.33% |
4.65% |
1.44% |
1.49% |
1.79% |
2.49% |
(4.15)% |
|
|
|
|
2020 |
(0.61)% |
(8.45)% |
(13.23)% |
10.92% |
4.83% |
2.65% |
4.78% |
6.68% |
(3.45)% |
(3.07)% |
12.79% |
4.24% |
15.90% |
2019 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2.79% |
3.00% |
5.86% |
118 |
SUMMARY
STATISTICS (periods ended September 30, 2021)1,2,3,4
RETURN
YTD |
1 Year |
Since
| |
Pro Forma Net of Fees |
13.73% |
25.83% |
12.48% |
Gross of Fees |
14.37% |
26.77% |
13.33% |
MSCI® World Index |
13.04% |
28.82% |
18.61% |
1 |
Performance was calculated using Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”). This method of calculating performance differs from the SEC’s standardized methodology, which may produce different results. |
2 |
Performance is calculated using a net asset value to net asset value methodology which incorporates all trades, prices, accruals and updated security records on trade date basis. |
3 |
Performance is presented gross and net of the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses (after contractual waivers that will be in place until December 31, 2023). |
4 |
The MSCI® World Index captures large and mid cap representation across 23 Developed Markets (DM) countries*. With 1,561 constituents, the index covers approximately 85% of the free float-adjusted market capitalization in each country. |
119 |
APPENDIX C
Prior Performance of Similarly Advised Account of the Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund
The Adviser has experience in managing a private fund with substantially similar investment objectives, policies and strategies as the Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund. The table on the following page is provided to illustrate the past performance of the Adviser in managing the private fund and does not represent the performance of the Fund. Investors should not consider this performance information as a substitute for the performance of the Fund, nor should investors consider this information as an indication of the future performance of the Fund or of the Adviser. The performance information has been adjusted to show the performance of the private fund net of the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2011 (after contractual waivers that were in place through December 31, 2012).The fees and expenses of the Fund are higher than those of the private fund, in part, because the general partner of the private fund waived its right to receive an incentive allocation from each limited partner’s capital account, generally equal to 20% of any profits achieved in a fiscal year after recoupment of prior losses. The Fund’s results in the future also may be different because the private fund is not subject to certain investment limitations, diversification requirements and other restrictions imposed on mutual funds under applicable U.S. securities and tax laws that, if applicable, could have adversely affected the performance of the private fund. In addition, the securities held by the Fund will not be identical to the securities held by the private fund.
The performance of the private fund is also compared to the performance of an appropriate broad-based securities benchmark index. This index is unmanaged and is not subject to fees and expenses typically associated with managed funds, including the Fund. Investors cannot invest directly in the Index. The performance information is accompanied by additional disclosures, which are an integral part of the information.
Monthly Performance Table (since inception April 1, 2002)1,2,3,4
PRO FORMA NET OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2010 |
(1.02)% |
2.17% |
2.67% |
0.16% |
(3.71)% |
(3.46)% |
4.01% |
(3.71)% |
5.96% |
||||
2009 |
(0.46)% |
(5.5)% |
3.55% |
6.04% |
3.68% |
2.12% |
2.16% |
2.78% |
(0.28)% |
(0.75)% |
2.80% |
1.35% |
18.40% |
2008 |
1.25% |
0.69% |
(4.35)% |
2.02% |
2.78% |
(3.24)% |
0.99% |
1.89% |
(3.10)% |
(4.68)% |
(5.19)% |
2.79% |
(8.38)% |
2007 |
0.98% |
0.73% |
0.61% |
2.69% |
1.29% |
(0.69)% |
(2.31)% |
0.87% |
2.37% |
(0.74)% |
0.78% |
(0.62)% |
6.01% |
2006 |
1.82% |
(1.19)% |
0.17% |
0.67% |
(0.58)% |
0.23% |
0.60% |
0.15% |
0.19% |
(0.07)% |
0.30% |
1.22% |
3.54% |
2005 |
(0.68)% |
1.22% |
0.32% |
(0.63)% |
(0.50)% |
0.93% |
2.41% |
2.36% |
2.29% |
0.76% |
0.39% |
0.66% |
9.87% |
2004 |
0.45% |
1.29% |
2.39% |
(1.14)% |
(0.01)% |
3.25% |
0.98% |
0.19% |
1.42% |
0.62% |
5.48% |
2.09% |
18.21% |
2003 |
0.29% |
(3.55)% |
0.05% |
(1.71)% |
(1.55)% |
(0.05)% |
0.11% |
(1.35)% |
(0.98)% |
(0.11)% |
0.65% |
0.19% |
(7.79)% |
2002 |
0.10% |
3.62% |
(2.36)% |
(1.43)% |
1.97% |
(2.35)% |
0.15% |
1.38% |
1.83% |
2.76% |
GROSS OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2010 |
(0.82)% |
2.38% |
2.87% |
0.36% |
(3.51)% |
(3.26)% |
4.22% |
(3.50)% |
6.16% |
||||
2009 |
(0.26)% |
(5.29)% |
3.75% |
6.25% |
3.88% |
2.32% |
2.36% |
2.99% |
(0.08)% |
(0.54)% |
3.01% |
1.56% |
21.31% |
2008 |
1.45% |
0.90% |
(4.15)% |
2.22% |
2.98% |
(3.04)% |
1.19% |
2.09% |
(2.89)% |
(4.47)% |
(4.99)% |
2.99% |
(6.08)% |
2007 |
1.18% |
0.93% |
0.81% |
2.89% |
1.49% |
(0.48)% |
(2.10)% |
1.08% |
2.57% |
(0.54)% |
0.99% |
(0.41)% |
8.64% |
2006 |
2.03% |
(0.99)% |
0.38% |
0.87% |
(0.38)% |
0.44% |
0.80% |
0.36% |
0.39% |
0.14% |
0.51% |
1.43% |
6.11% |
2005 |
(0.48)% |
1.43% |
0.52% |
(0.43)% |
(0.29)% |
1.13% |
2.61% |
2.57% |
2.50% |
0.96% |
0.60% |
0.87% |
12.59% |
2004 |
0.66% |
1.50% |
2.60% |
(0.93)% |
0.19% |
3.45% |
1.19% |
0.40% |
1.62% |
0.82% |
5.69% |
2.29% |
21.11% |
2003 |
0.49% |
(3.34)% |
0.25% |
(1.51)% |
(1.34)% |
0.15% |
0.31% |
(1.14)% |
(0.77)% |
0.10% |
0.85% |
0.40% |
(5.48)% |
2002 |
0.31% |
3.83% |
(2.15)% |
(1.23)% |
2.17% |
(2.15)% |
0.36% |
1.58% |
2.03% |
4.67% |
120 |
S&P 500 INDEX
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2010 |
(3.60)% |
3.10% |
6.03% |
1.58% |
(7.98)% |
(5.24)% |
7.01% |
(4.51)% |
8.92% |
||||
2009 |
(8.43)% |
(10.65)% |
8.76% |
9.57% |
5.59% |
0.20% |
7.56% |
3.61% |
3.73% |
(1.86)% |
6.00% |
1.93% |
26.45% |
2008 |
(6.00)% |
(3.25)% |
(0.43)% |
4.87% |
1.29% |
(8.43)% |
(0.84)% |
1.45% |
(8.91)% |
(16.79)% |
(7.17)% |
1.06% |
(36.99)% |
2007 |
1.51% |
(1.96)% |
1.12% |
4.43% |
3.49% |
(1.66)% |
(3.10)% |
1.50% |
3.74% |
1.59% |
(4.18)% |
(0.69)% |
5.50% |
2006 |
2.65% |
0.27% |
1.24% |
1.34% |
(2.88)% |
0.14% |
0.62% |
2.38% |
2.58% |
3.26% |
1.90% |
1.40% |
15.79% |
2005 |
(2.44)% |
2.10% |
(1.77)% |
(1.90)% |
3.18% |
0.14% |
3.72% |
(0.91)% |
0.81% |
(1.67)% |
3.78% |
0.03% |
4.89% |
2004 |
1.84% |
1.39% |
(1.51)% |
(1.57)% |
1.37% |
1.94% |
(3.31)% |
0.40% |
1.08% |
1.53% |
4.05% |
3.40% |
10.87% |
2003 |
(2.62)% |
(1.50)% |
0.97% |
8.24% |
5.27% |
1.27% |
1.76% |
1.95% |
(1.06)% |
5.66% |
0.88% |
5.24% |
28.68% |
2002 |
(6.06)% |
(0.74)% |
(7.12)% |
(7.79)% |
0.66% |
(10.87)% |
8.80% |
5.89% |
(5.88)% |
(22.31)% |
CALENDAR YEAR RETURNS1,2,3,4
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 | |
Pro Forma Net Of Fees |
2.76% |
(7.79)% |
18.21% |
9.87% |
3.54% |
6.01% |
(8.38)% |
18.40% |
Gross Of Fees |
4.67% |
(5.48)% |
21.11% |
12.59% |
6.11% |
8.64% |
(6.08)% |
21.31% |
S&P 500 |
(22.31)% |
28.68% |
10.87% |
4.89% |
15.79% |
5.50% |
(36.99)% |
26.45% |
SUMMARY
STATISTICS (periods ended June 30, 2010)1,2,3,4
RETURN
YTD |
1 Year |
2 Year |
3 Year |
5 Year |
7 Year |
Since
| |
Pro Forma Net Of Fees |
2.57% |
6.07% |
6.22% |
3.42% |
4.46% |
6.93% |
4.91% |
Gross Of Fees |
4.48% |
8.70% |
8.85% |
5.99% |
7.05% |
9.57% |
7.51% |
S&P 500 |
3.89% |
10.16% |
1.26% |
(7.16)% |
0.63% |
4.03% |
1.92% |
1 |
Performance was calculated using Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”). This method of calculating performance differs from the SEC’s standardized methodology, which may produce different results. |
2 |
Performance is calculated using a net asset value to net asset value methodology which incorporates all trades, prices, accruals and updated security records on a trade date basis. |
3 |
Performance is presented gross and net of the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2011 (after contractual waivers). |
4 |
The S&P 500® Index is an unmanaged index composed of 500 common stocks, classified in eleven industry sectors, which represent approximately 75% of the U.S. equities market. The S&P 500® Index assigns relative values to the stocks included in the index, weighted according to each stock’s total market value relative to the total market value of the other stocks included in the index. |
121 |
APPENDIX D
Prior Performance of Similarly Advised Accounts of the WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund
The Adviser has experience in managing other accounts with substantially similar investment objectives, policies and strategies as the WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund. The tables on the following pages are provided to illustrate the past performance of the Adviser in managing all such other accounts and does not represent the performance of the Fund. Investors should not consider this performance information as a substitute for the performance of the Fund, nor should investors consider this information as an indication of the future performance of the Fund or of the Adviser. The performance information has been adjusted to show the performance of the other accounts net of the Fund’s annual operating expenses for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2021 (after contractual waivers that will be in place until December 31, 2023). The other accounts’ fees and expenses are lower than those of the Fund. The Fund’s results in the future also may be different because the other accounts are not subject to certain investment limitations, diversification requirements and other restrictions imposed on mutual funds under applicable U.S. securities and tax laws that, if applicable, could have adversely affected the performance of the other accounts. In addition, the securities held by the Fund will not be identical to the securities held by the other accounts.
The performance of the other accounts is also compared to the performance of an appropriate broad-based securities benchmark index. This index is unmanaged and is not subject to fees and expenses typically associated with managed funds, including the Fund. Investors cannot invest directly in the Index. The performance information is accompanied by additional disclosures, which are an integral part of the information.
Monthly Returns (since December 31, 2018)1,2,3,4
COMPOSITE — PRO FORMA NET OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
3.45% |
14.28% |
7.25% |
6.14% |
5.81% |
(1.84)% |
(5.06)% |
4.38% |
1.64% |
5.07% |
(3.30)% |
|
|
2020 |
(7.33)% |
(10.49)% |
(19.57)% |
13.85% |
4.94% |
3.58% |
2.06% |
9.11% |
(4.62) |
4.35% |
19.10% |
9.05% |
18.83% |
2019 |
15.01% |
5.69% |
(5.69)% |
5.89% |
(9.39)% |
6.31% |
0.46% |
(5.99)% |
4.69% |
1.57% |
5.15% |
3.10% |
27.30% |
2018 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(16.77)% |
|
COMPOSITE — GROSS OF FEES
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
3.48% |
14.31% |
7.28% |
6.17% |
5.84% |
(1.82)% |
(5.03)% |
4.41% |
1.67% |
5.10% |
(3.28)% |
|
|
2020 |
(7.30)% |
(10.46)% |
(19.55)% |
13.88% |
4.97% |
3.61% |
2.09% |
9.15% |
(4.59)% |
4.38% |
19.13% |
9.08% |
19.25% |
2019 |
15.04% |
5.72% |
(5.66)% |
5.92% |
(9.37)% |
6.34% |
0.49% |
(5.97)% |
4.72% |
1.60% |
5.18% |
3.13% |
27.75% |
2018 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(16.74)% |
|
RUSSELL® 2000 VALUE INDEX
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
FY
(ended | |
2021 |
5.26% |
9.39% |
5.23% |
2.02% |
3.11% |
(0.61)% |
(3.58)% |
2.68% |
(2.00)% |
3.81% |
(3.42)% |
|
|
2020 |
(5.39)% |
(9.72)% |
(24.67)% |
12.34% |
2.87% |
2.90% |
2.06% |
5.39% |
(4.65)% |
3.58% |
19.31% |
7.92% |
4.63% |
2019 |
10.94% |
3.89% |
(2.88)% |
3.78% |
(8.17)% |
6.37% |
0.16% |
(5.58)% |
5.13% |
2.42% |
2.34% |
3.50% |
22.39% |
2018 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(12.09)% |
|
122 |
SUMMARY
STATISTICS (periods ended September 30, 2021)1,2,3,4
RETURN
YTD |
1 Year |
Since
| |
Pro Forma Net Of Fees |
40.79% |
90.79% |
22.39% |
Gross Of Fees |
41.16% |
91.45% |
22.82% |
Russell® 2000 Value Index |
22.92% |
63.92% |
12.15% |
1 |
Performance was calculated using Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”). This method of calculating performance differs from the SEC’s standardized methodology, which may produce different results. |
2 |
Performance is calculated using a net asset value to net asset value methodology which incorporates all trades, prices, accruals and updated security records on trade date basis. |
3 |
Performance is presented gross and net of the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses (after contractual waivers that will be in place until December 31, 2023). |
4 |
The Russell 2000® Value Index measures the performance of small-cap value segment of the US equity universe. It includes those Russell 2000® companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecasted growth values. |
123 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS*
The tables in the Financial Highlights section below set forth certain financial information for the periods indicated, including per share information results for a single Fund share. The term “Total investment return” indicates how much your investment would have increased or decreased during this period of time and assumes that you have reinvested all dividends and distributions. The information has been derived from the Funds’ financial statements and has been audited by Ernst & Young LLP, the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm. This information should be read in conjunction with the Funds’ financial statements, which, together with the report of the independent registered public accounting firm, are included in the Funds’ annual report for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2024 and is available at no cost upon request (see back cover for ordering instructions).
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 31.76 | $ | 30.78 | $ | 33.77 | $ | 24.53 | $ | 24.97 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.30 | 0.41 | 0.33 | 0.26 | 0.36 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
5.29 | 3.16 | (1.51 | ) | 9.43 | (0.08 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
5.59 | 3.57 | (1.18 | ) | 9.69 | 0.28 | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.52 | ) | (0.31 | ) | (0.33 | ) | (0.21 | ) | (0.37 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(2.86 | ) | (2.28 | ) | (1.48 | ) | (0.24 | ) | (0.35 | ) | ||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(3.38 | ) | (2.59 | ) | (1.81 | ) | (0.45 | ) | (0.72 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 33.97 | $ | 31.76 | $ | 30.78 | $ | 33.77 | $ | 24.53 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
19.04 | % | 12.00 | % | (3.76 | )% | 39.91 | % | 0.84 | % | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 1,272,666 | $ | 1,164,397 | $ | 1,200,629 | $ | 1,653,698 | $ | 1,053,301 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
0.80 | % | 0.80 | % | 0.80 | % | 0.80 | % | 0.80 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
0.85 | % | 0.84 | % | 0.86 | % | 0.83 | % | 0.84 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.96 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.00 | % | 0.86 | % | 1.46 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
24 | % | 33 | % | 29 | % | 33 | % | 37 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding for the period. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
124 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners All-Cap Value Fund |
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Investor Class |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 31.53 | $ | 30.58 | $ | 33.56 | $ | 24.39 | $ | 24.82 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.22 | 0.33 | 0.25 | 0.18 | 0.30 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
5.26 | 3.13 | (1.51 | ) | 9.38 | (0.09 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
5.48 | 3.46 | (1.26 | ) | 9.56 | 0.21 | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.44 | ) | (0.23 | ) | (0.24 | ) | (0.15 | ) | (0.29 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(2.86 | ) | (2.28 | ) | (1.48 | ) | (0.24 | ) | (0.35 | ) | ||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(3.30 | ) | (2.51 | ) | (1.72 | ) | (0.39 | ) | (0.64 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 33.71 | $ | 31.53 | $ | 30.58 | $ | 33.56 | $ | 24.39 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
18.77 | % | 11.68 | % | (4.00 | )% | 39.57 | % | 0.59 | % | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 220,298 | $ | 228,631 | $ | 230,437 | $ | 279,306 | $ | 220,927 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | 1.05 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments, if any |
1.10 | % | 1.09 | % | 1.11 | % | 1.08 | % | 1.09 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.71 | % | 1.10 | % | 0.75 | % | 0.61 | % | 1.21 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
24 | % | 33 | % | 29 | % | 33 | % | 37 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding for the period. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
125 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Emerging Markets Dynamic Equity Fund |
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Institutional Class |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 8.62 | $ | 10.23 | $ | 11.44 | $ | 11.23 | $ | 10.45 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.16 | 0.13 | 0.07 | (0.02 | ) | 0.19 | ||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
(0.07 | ) | 0.27 | (1.27 | ) | 1.17 | 0.82 | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
0.09 | 0.40 | (1.20 | ) | 1.15 | 1.01 | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
— | (2.01 | ) | (0.01 | ) | (0.94 | ) | (0.23 | ) | |||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
— | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
— | (2.01 | ) | (0.01 | ) | (0.94 | ) | (0.23 | ) | |||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 8.71 | $ | 8.62 | $ | 10.23 | $ | 11.44 | $ | 11.23 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
1.04 | % | 4.98 | % | (10.52 | )% | 10.38 | % | 9.75 | % | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 59,968 | $ | 61,825 | $ | 60,616 | $ | 61,430 | $ | 60,176 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.45 | % | 1.42 | % | 1.42 | % | 1.75 | % | 1.66 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.49 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.63 | % | 1.67 | % | 1.73 | % | 2.00 | % | 2.19 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
1.74 | % | 1.52 | % | 0.63 | % | (0.14 | %) | 1.81 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
202 | % | 132 | % | 136 | % | 125 | % | 219 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding for the period. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
126 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Global Equity Fund |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 21.23 | $ | 18.69 | $ | 20.74 | $ | 15.15 | $ | 15.91 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.45 | 0.45 | 0.39 | 0.25 | 0.15 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
4.19 | 2.39 | (2.08 | ) | 5.69 | (0.67 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
4.64 | 2.84 | (1.69 | ) | 5.94 | (0.52 | ) | |||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.43 | ) | (0.30 | ) | (0.36 | ) | (0.35 | ) | (0.24 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
— | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(0.43 | ) | (0.30 | ) | (0.36 | ) | (0.35 | ) | (0.24 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 25.44 | $ | 21.23 | $ | 18.69 | $ | 20.74 | $ | 15.15 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
22.17 | % | 15.28 | % | (8.27 | )% | 39.66 | % | (3.40 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 244,647 | $ | 212,164 | $ | 171,407 | $ | 183,433 | $ | 177,470 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (2) |
0.95 | % | 0.95 | % | 0.95 | % | 0.95 | % | 0.95 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.11 | % | 1.11 | % | 1.13 | % | 1.04 | % | 1.22 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
1.98 | % | 2.20 | % | 1.94 | % | 1.38 | % | 0.96 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
48 | % | 51 | % | 59 | % | 88 | % | 118 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding for the period. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
127 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Global Sustainability Fund |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 10.00 | $ | 8.62 | $ | 10.00 | ||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.13 | 0.17 | 0.11 | |||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
1.98 | 1.35 | (1.49 | ) | ||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
2.11 | 1.52 | (1.38 | ) | ||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.16 | ) | (0.14 | ) | — | |||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
— | — | — | |||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(0.16 | ) | (0.14 | ) | — | |||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 11.95 | $ | 10.00 | $ | 8.62 | ||||||
Total investment return(1) |
21.34 | % | 17.71 | % | (13.80 | )% | ||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 11,397 | $ | 23,897 | $ | 22,640 | ||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
0.90 | % | 0.90 | % | 0.90 | %(3) | ||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.53 | % | 1.36 | % | 1.73 | %(3) | ||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
1.23 | % | 1.80 | % | 1.75 | %(3) | ||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
73 | % | 77 | % | 55 | %(4) |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding. |
** |
Commencement of operations. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
(3) |
Annualized. |
(4) |
Not Annualized. |
128 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
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Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 14.99 | $ | 14.73 | $ | 14.21 | $ | 15.15 | $ | 17.74 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.06 | 0.07 | (0.13 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.14 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.96 | 1.96 | 1.29 | 3.69 | (0.70 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
3.02 | 2.03 | 1.16 | 3.57 | (0.84 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.27 | ) | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(2.70 | ) | (1.77 | ) | (0.64 | ) | (4.51 | ) | (1.75 | ) | ||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(2.97 | ) | (1.77 | ) | (0.64 | ) | (4.51 | ) | (1.75 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 15.04 | $ | 14.99 | $ | 14.73 | $ | 14.21 | $ | 15.15 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
23.51 | % | 14.69 | % | 8.35 | % | 29.08 | % | (5.78 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 47,563 | $ | 56,303 | $ | 54,733 | $ | 49,551 | $ | 68,780 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
2.04 | % | 2.02 | % | 2.55 | % | 2.60 | % | 2.57 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
1.96 | % | 1.96 | % | 1.96 | % | 1.97 | % | 2.25 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
2.72 | % | 2.67 | % | 3.18 | % | 3.14 | % | 2.74 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.43 | % | 0.50 | % | (0.87 | )% | (0.91 | )% | (0.81 | )% | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
35 | % | 44 | % | 40 | % | 31 | % | 46 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
129 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Long/Short Equity Fund |
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For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Investor Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 12.45 | $ | 12.54 | $ | 12.22 | $ | 13.64 | $ | 16.17 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.02 | 0.03 | (0.14 | ) | (0.14 | ) | (0.16 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.38 | 1.65 | 1.10 | 3.23 | (0.62 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
2.40 | 1.68 | 0.96 | 3.09 | (0.78 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.25 | ) | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(2.70 | ) | (1.77 | ) | (0.64 | ) | (4.51 | ) | (1.75 | ) | ||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(2.95 | ) | (1.77 | ) | (0.64 | ) | (4.51 | ) | (1.75 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 11.90 | $ | 12.45 | $ | 12.54 | $ | 12.22 | $ | 13.64 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
23.26 | % | 14.44 | % | 8.07 | % | 28.71 | % | (5.99 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 15,331 | $ | 11,748 | $ | 11,720 | $ | 11,571 | $ | 14,484 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
2.29 | % | 2.27 | % | 2.80 | % | 2.85 | % | 2.82 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
2.21 | % | 2.21 | % | 2.21 | % | 2.22 | % | 2.50 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
2.97 | % | 2.92 | % | 3.43 | % | 3.39 | % | 2.99 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.18 | % | 0.25 | % | (1.12 | )% | (1.16 | )% | (1.06 | )% | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
35 | % | 44 | % | 40 | % | 31 | % | 46 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
130 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Institutional Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 14.15 | $ | 15.98 | $ | 16.82 | $ | 13.31 | $ | 15.15 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.12 | 0.16 | (0.02 | ) | (0.10 | ) | (0.00 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.32 | 0.95 | 1.18 | 3.61 | (1.48 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
2.44 | 1.11 | 1.16 | 3.51 | (1.48 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.34 | ) | (0.22 | ) | — | — | (0.21 | ) | ||||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(1.16 | ) | (2.72 | ) | (2.00 | ) | — | (0.15 | ) | |||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(1.50 | ) | (2.94 | ) | (2.00 | ) | — | (0.36 | ) | |||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 15.09 | $ | 14.15 | $ | 15.98 | $ | 16.82 | $ | 13.31 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
18.79 | % | 7.16 | % | 7.17 | % | 26.37 | % | (10.13 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 584,044 | $ | 688,944 | $ | 801,913 | $ | 808,565 | $ | 1,082,963 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.90 | % | 1.88 | % | 1.95 | % | 2.15 | % | 2.21 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.40 | % | 1.37 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.90 | % | 1.88 | % | 1.95 | % | 2.15 | % | 2.21 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.88 | % | 1.12 | % | (0.10 | )% | (0.66 | )% | (0.01 | )% | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
53 | % | 54 | % | 85 | % | 61 | % | 66 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
131 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Long/Short Research Fund |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Investor Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 13.62 | $ | 15.48 | $ | 16.39 | $ | 13.01 | $ | 14.81 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.09 | 0.12 | (0.05 | ) | (0.13 | ) | (0.04 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
2.21 | 0.92 | 1.14 | 3.51 | (1.44 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
2.30 | 1.04 | 1.09 | 3.38 | (1.48 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.31 | ) | (0.18 | ) | — | — | (0.17 | ) | ||||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(1.16 | ) | (2.72 | ) | (2.00 | ) | — | (0.15 | ) | |||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(1.47 | ) | (2.90 | ) | (2.00 | ) | — | (0.32 | ) | |||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 14.45 | $ | 13.62 | $ | 15.48 | $ | 16.39 | $ | 13.01 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
18.43 | % | 6.92 | % | 6.91 | % | 25.98 | % | (10.32 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 7,907 | $ | 7,483 | $ | 11,989 | $ | 10,220 | $ | 24,436 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
2.15 | % | 2.13 | % | 2.20 | % | 2.40 | % | 2.46 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
1.65 | % | 1.65 | % | 1.65 | % | 1.65 | % | 1.62 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
2.15 | % | 2.13 | % | 2.20 | % | 2.40 | % | 2.46 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.63 | % | 0.87 | % | (0.35 | )% | (0.91 | )% | (0.26 | )% | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
53 | % | 54 | % | 85 | % | 61 | % | 66 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
132 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
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|
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Institutional Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 27.43 | $ | 27.51 | $ | 32.34 | $ | 21.06 | $ | 23.42 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.22 | 0.24 | 0.18 | 0.15 | 0.20 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
4.57 | 1.60 | (2.86 | ) | 11.27 | (1.94 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
4.79 | 1.84 | (2.68 | ) | 11.42 | (1.74 | ) | |||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.25 | ) | (0.26 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.14 | ) | (0.28 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(3.06 | ) | (1.66 | ) | (2.03 | ) | — | (0.34 | ) | |||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(3.31 | ) | (1.92 | ) | (2.15 | ) | (0.14 | ) | (0.62 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 28.91 | $ | 27.43 | $ | 27.51 | $ | 32.34 | $ | 21.06 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
19.09 | % | 7.17 | % | (8.88 | )% | 54.40 | % | (7.88 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 542,807 | $ | 533,633 | $ | 688,375 | $ | 776,442 | $ | 503,349 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
0.99 | % | 0.99 | % | 0.99 | % | 0.99 | % | 1.07 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments, if any |
1.03 | % | 1.04 | % | 1.02 | % | 1.01 | % | 1.09 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.84 | % | 0.91 | % | 0.61 | % | 0.52 | % | 0.94 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
55 | % | 65 | % | 24 | % | 33 | % | 46 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
133 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Boston Partners Small Cap Value Fund II |
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|
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Investor Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 25.95 | $ | 26.12 | $ | 30.81 | $ | 20.07 | $ | 22.33 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.15 | 0.17 | 0.10 | 0.07 | 0.15 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
4.30 | 1.51 | (2.72 | ) | 10.75 | (1.85 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
4.45 | 1.68 | (2.62 | ) | 10.82 | (1.70 | ) | |||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.18 | ) | (0.19 | ) | (0.04 | ) | (0.08 | ) | (0.22 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(3.06 | ) | (1.66 | ) | (2.03 | ) | — | (0.34 | ) | |||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(3.24 | ) | (1.85 | ) | (2.07 | ) | (0.08 | ) | (0.56 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 27.16 | $ | 25.95 | $ | 26.12 | $ | 30.81 | $ | 20.07 | ||||||||||
Total investment return(1) |
18.80 | % | 6.90 | % | (9.11 | )% | 54.01 | % | (8.07 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 57,367 | $ | 61,041 | $ | 82,898 | $ | 104,282 | $ | 77,032 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.24 | % | 1.24 | % | 1.24 | % | 1.24 | % | 1.32 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.28 | % | 1.29 | % | 1.27 | % | 1.26 | % | 1.34 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.59 | % | 0.66 | % | 0.36 | % | 0.27 | % | 0.69 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
55 | % | 65 | % | 24 | % | 33 | % | 46 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
134 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
WPG Partners Select Hedged Fund | ||||
|
May
3, 2024** |
|||
Institutional Class | ||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 10.00 | ||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.08 | |||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
1.88 | |||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
1.96 | |||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.06 | ) | ||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(1.49 | ) | ||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(1.55 | ) | ||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 10.41 | ||
Total investment return(1) |
4.10 | % | ||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 53,925 | ||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
2.54 | %(3) | ||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
1.50 | % | ||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments, if any |
2.82 | %(3) | ||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
2.29 | %(3) | ||
Portfolio turnover rate |
36 | %(4) |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
** |
Commencement of operations. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
(3) |
Annualized. |
(4) |
Not Annualized. |
135 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
WPG Partners Select Small Cap Value Fund |
||||||||||||
|
For
the |
For
the |
December
29, |
|||||||||
Institutional Class |
||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 11.82 | $ | 9.40 | $ | 10.00 | ||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
— | 0.07 | (0.01 | ) | ||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
1.82 | 2.37 | (0.59 | ) | ||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
1.82 | 2.44 | (0.60 | ) | ||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.06 | ) | — | — | ||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(1.49 | ) | (0.02 | ) | — | |||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(1.55 | ) | (0.02 | ) | — | |||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 12.09 | $ | 11.82 | $ | 9.40 | ||||||
Total investment return(1) |
18.12 | % | 25.94 | % | (6.00 | )% | ||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 123,630 | $ | 107,329 | $ | 17,845 | ||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.10 | % | 1.10 | % | 1.10 | %(3) | ||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments, if any |
1.13 | % | 1.16 | % | 2.93 | %(3) | ||||||
Ratio of net investment income/ (loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.02 | % | 0.65 | % | (0.22 | )%(3) | ||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
160 | % | 118 | % | 70 | %(4) |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
** |
Commencement of operations. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
(3) |
Annualized. |
(4) |
Not Annualized. |
136 |
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
WPG Partners Small Cap Value Diversified Fund |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
For
the |
|||||||||||||||
Institutional Class |
||||||||||||||||||||
Per Share Operating Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||
Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 18.81 | $ | 19.92 | $ | 19.33 | $ | 11.96 | $ | 13.19 | ||||||||||
Net investment income/(loss)* |
0.16 | 0.20 | 0.09 | 0.07 | 0.09 | |||||||||||||||
Net realized and unrealized gain/(loss) on investments |
3.56 | 1.80 | 0.80 | 7.39 | (1.26 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in net assets resulting from operations |
3.72 | 2.00 | 0.89 | 7.46 | (1.17 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Dividends to shareholders from net investment income |
(0.21 | ) | (0.09 | ) | (0.07 | ) | (0.09 | ) | (0.06 | ) | ||||||||||
Distributions to shareholders from net realized gains |
(1.19 | ) | (3.02 | ) | (0.23 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||
Total dividend and distributions to shareholders |
(1.40 | ) | (3.11 | ) | (0.30 | ) | (0.09 | ) | (0.06 | ) | ||||||||||
Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 21.13 | $ | 18.81 | $ | 19.92 | $ | 19.33 | $ | 11.96 | ||||||||||
Total investment return (1) |
20.99 | % | 11.35 | % | 4.59 | % | 62.66 | % | (8.92 | )% | ||||||||||
Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 33,078 | $ | 29,263 | $ | 32,264 | $ | 27,602 | $ | 19,150 | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupment if any (2) |
1.10 | % | 1.10 | % | 1.10 | % | 1.10 | % | 1.10 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets with waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any (excluding dividend and interest expense) |
N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||
Ratio of expenses to average net assets without waivers, reimbursements and recoupments if any |
1.27 | % | 1.32 | % | 1.26 | % | 1.28 | % | 1.31 | % | ||||||||||
Ratio of net investment income/(loss) to average net assets with waivers and reimbursements |
0.84 | % | 1.06 | % | 0.44 | % | 0.40 | % | 0.74 | % | ||||||||||
Portfolio turnover rate |
74 | % | 90 | % | 92 | % | 114 | % | 123 | % |
* |
Calculated based on average shares outstanding, unless otherwise noted. |
(1) |
Total return is calculated by assuming a purchase of shares on the first day and a sale of shares on the last day of the period and is not annualized if period is less than one year. |
(2) |
Beginning on September 1, 2018, the expense limitation includes acquired fund fees and expenses (AFFE). AFFE are not reflected as expenses in these financial statements and therefore this may cause the net expense ratios after waivers/reimbursements to be lower than the expense limitation in place. |
137 |
PRIVACY NOTICE | |
FACTS |
WHAT DO THE BOSTON PARTNERS INVESTMENT FUNDS DO WITH YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION? |
Why? |
Financial companies choose how they share your personal information. Federal law gives consumers the right to limit some but not all sharing. Federal law also requires us to tell you how we collect, share, and protect your personal information. Please read this notice carefully to understand what we do. |
What? |
The types of personal information we collect and share depend on the product or service you have with us. This information can include:
● Social Security number ● account balances ● account transactions ● transaction history ● wire transfer instructions ● checking account information
When you are no longer our customer, we continue to share your information as described in this notice. |
How? |
All financial companies need to share customers’ personal information to run their everyday business. In the section below, we list the reasons financial companies can share their customers’ personal information; the reasons the Boston Partners Investment Funds chooses to share; and whether you can limit this sharing. |
Reasons we can share your personal information |
Do the Boston Partners Investment Funds share? |
Can you limit this sharing? |
For
our everyday business purposes – |
Yes |
No |
For
our marketing purposes – |
Yes |
No |
For joint marketing with other financial companies |
No |
We don’t share. |
For
our affiliates’ everyday business purposes – |
Yes |
No |
For
our affiliates’ everyday business purposes – |
No |
We don’t share. |
For our affiliates to market to you |
Yes |
Yes |
For nonaffiliates to market to you |
No |
We don’t share. |
Questions? |
Call (888) 261-4073 or go to www.bostonpartners.com |
138 |
What we do | |
How do the Boston Partners Investment Funds protect my personal information? |
To protect your personal information from unauthorized access and use, we use security measures that comply with federal law. These measures include computer safeguards and secured files and buildings. |
How do the Boston Partners Investment Funds collect my personal information? |
We collect your personal information, for example, when you
● open an account ● provide account information ● give us your contact information ● make a wire transfer ● tell us where to send the money
We also collect your information from others, such as credit bureaus, affiliates, or other companies. |
Why can’t I limit all sharing? |
Federal law gives you the right to limit only
● sharing for affiliates’ everyday business purposes-information about your creditworthiness ● affiliates from using your information to market to you ● sharing for nonaffiliates to market to you
State laws and individual companies may give you additional rights to limit sharing. |
European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation |
In addition to the above information, where applicable, you have the following rights under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) and U.S. Privacy Laws, as applicable and to the extent permitted by law, to
● Check whether we hold personal information about you and to access such data (in accordance with our policy) ● Request the correction of personal information about you that is ● inaccurate ● Have a copy of the personal information we hold about you provided to you or another “controller” where technically feasible ● Request the erasure of your personal information ● Request the restriction of processing concerning you
The legal grounds for processing of your personal information is for contractual necessity and compliance with law.
If you wish to exercise any of your rights above, please call: 1-888-261-4073.
You are required to ensure the personal information we hold about you is up-to-date and accurate and you must notify us of any changes to the personal data you provided to us. |
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European
Union’s General |
The Boston Partners Investment Funds shall retain your personal data for as long as you are an investor in the Funds and thereafter as long as necessary to comply with applicable laws that require the Funds to retain your personal data, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission’s data retention rules. Your personal data will be transferred to the United States so that the Funds may provide the agreed upon services for you. No adequacy decision has been rendered by the European Commission as to the data protection of your personal data when transferring it to the United States. However, the Funds do take the security of your personal data seriously. |
Definitions | |
Affiliates |
Companies related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and nonfinancial companies. Our affiliates include:
● ORIX Corporation.
● Boston Partners Securities, LLC |
Nonaffiliates |
Companies not related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and nonfinancial companies.
● The Boston Partners Investment Funds don’t share with nonaffiliates so they can market to you. The Boston Partners Investment Funds may share information with nonaffiliates that perform marketing services on our behalf. |
Joint marketing |
A formal agreement between nonaffiliated financial companies that together market financial products or services to you.
● The Boston Partners Investment Funds may share your information with other financial institutions with whom we have joint marketing arrangements who may suggest additional fund services or other investment products which may be of interest to you. |
Controller |
“Controller” means the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data; where the purposes and means of such processing are determined by European union or European Member state law, the controller or the specific criteria for its nomination may be provided for by European union or European Member state law. |
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BOSTON
PARTNERS INVESTMENT FUNDS
of
The RBB Fund, Inc.
1-888-261-4073
http://www.bostonpartners.com
For More Information:
This Prospectus contains important information you should know before you invest. Read it carefully and keep it for future reference. More information about the Boston Partners Investment Funds is available free of charge, upon request, including:
Annual/Semi-Annual Reports
These reports contain additional information about each Fund’s investments, describe each Fund’s performance, list portfolio holdings, and discuss recent market conditions and economic trends. The annual report includes fund strategies that significantly affected the Funds’ performance during their last fiscal year. The annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders may be obtained by visiting http://www.bostonpartners.com.
Statement of Additional Information
The Funds’ SAI, dated December 31, 2024, has been filed with the SEC. The SAI, which includes additional information about the Boston Partners Investment Funds, may be obtained free of charge, along with the annual and semi-annual reports, by calling 1-888-261-4073. The SAI, as supplemented from time to time, is incorporated by reference into this prospectus (and is legally part of the prospectus). The SAI is available on the Adviser’s website at http://www.bostonpartners.com.
Shareholder Inquiries
Representatives are available to discuss account balance information, mutual fund prospectuses, literature, programs and services available. Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (Eastern time) Monday-Friday. Call: 1-888-261-4073 or visit the website of the Adviser at http://www.bostonpartners.com.
Purchases and Redemptions
Call 1-888-261-4073.
Written Correspondence
Street Address:
Boston
Partners Investment Funds,
c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services,
615 East Michigan Street,
Milwaukee, WI 53202
P.O. Box Address:
Boston
Partners Investment Funds,
c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund
Services,
P.O. Box 701,
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0701
Securities and Exchange Commission
You may also view and copy information about the Company and the Funds, including the SAI, by visiting the SEC’s Internet site at www.sec.gov. You may also obtain copies of Fund documents by paying a duplicating fee and sending an electronic request to the following e-mail address: [email protected].
INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT FILE NO. 811-05518