|
Prospectus |
THE U.S. SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION (“SEC”) HAS NOT APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THESE
SECURITIES OR PASSED UPON THE ADEQUACY OF THIS PROSPECTUS. ANY
REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE. |
August 1,
2023 |

WisdomTree Trust
|
WisdomTree U.S. Equity ETFs* |
Value
U.S.
Total Dividend Fund (DTD)
U.S.
High Dividend Fund (DHS)
U.S.
AI Enhanced Value Fund (AIVL)
U.S.
LargeCap Dividend Fund (DLN)
U.S.
MidCap Dividend Fund (DON)
U.S.
SmallCap Dividend Fund (DES)
U.S.
Value Fund (WTV)
Growth
U.S.
Growth & Momentum Fund (WGRO)
U.S.
Quality Growth Fund (QGRW)
Core
U.S.
Quality Dividend Growth Fund (DGRW)
U.S.
SmallCap Quality Dividend Growth Fund (DGRS)
U.S.
LargeCap Fund (EPS)
U.S.
MidCap Fund (EZM)
U.S.
SmallCap Fund (EES)
U.S.
Multifactor Fund (USMF)
ESG
U.S.
ESG Fund (RESP)
|
*
Principal U.S. Listing Exchange: NYSE Arca, Inc. (except DGRW, DGRS and
WGRO are listed on NASDAQ and USMF is listed on Cboe BZX Exchange,
Inc).
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|
WisdomTree Trust
WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. Total Dividend
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees
and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.28% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.28% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 29 |
$ 90 |
$ 157 |
$ 356 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 19% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that is comprised of U.S. companies listed on a U.S. stock market
that pay regular cash dividends. To be eligible for inclusion in the Index, a
company must meet the following criteria as of the annual Index screening date:
(i) payment of regular cash dividends on shares of common stock during the
preceding 12 months; (ii) market capitalization of at least $100 million; and
(iii) median daily dollar trading volume of at least $100,000 for the preceding
three months.
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily
weighted.
2 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
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|
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 5%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the information technology and financials sectors comprised a
significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total
weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from
time to time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
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■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
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■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
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|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 3 |
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its
Index. |
4 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
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■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the Russell 3000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. In addition, performance also is shown for the Russell 3000 Index,
another comparative index that represents the asset class in which the Fund
invests. Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes.
All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
28.03% |
2014 |
14.07% |
2015 |
-1.32% |
2016 |
16.59% |
2017 |
17.25% |
2018 |
-6.35% |
2019 |
28.28% |
2020 |
2.57% |
2021 |
26.14% |
2022 |
-3.81% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
3.66%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
16.01% |
2Q/2020 June 30,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(25.20)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. Total
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(3.81)% |
8.38% |
11.41% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(4.40)% |
7.69% |
10.69% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(1.84)% |
6.50% |
9.29% |
WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(3.47)% |
8.71% |
11.74% |
Russell 3000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(7.98)% |
6.50% |
10.16% |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 5 |
WisdomTree U.S. Total
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Russell 3000 Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(19.21)% |
8.79% |
12.13% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
6 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend Fund
(the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees and
expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.38% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.38% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 39 |
$ 122 |
$ 213 |
$ 480 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 47% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that is comprised of companies with the highest dividend yields
selected from the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index, which defines the
dividend-paying universe of companies in the U.S. stock market. To be eligible
for inclusion in the Index, a company must meet the following criteria as of the
annual Index screening date: (i) payment of regular cash dividends on shares of
common stock during the preceding 12 months; (ii) market capitalization of at
least $200 million; and (iii) median daily dollar trading volume of at least
$200,000 for the preceding three months. Securities eligible for inclusion in
the Index are ranked by dividend yield. Securities ranking in the highest 30% by
dividend yield are selected for inclusion. If a company currently in the Index
is no longer ranked in the top 30% by dividend yield at the time of the annual
Index screening date but remains ranked in the top 35% by dividend yield, the
company will remain in the Index.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 7 |
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted. At the time
of the Index’s annual screening date, the maximum weight of any security in the
Index is capped at 5%.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 5%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the energy and financials sectors comprised a significant portion
(i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total weighting) of the Index;
however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from time to time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio
holdings. |
8 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Energy Sector Risk. The
Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the energy
sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be negatively impacted
by events affecting this sector. The energy sector includes, for example,
companies engaged in exploration, production, refining, marketing,
storage, and transportation of oil, gas, coal, and consumable fuels as
well as related equipment and services. This sector can be significantly
affected by, among other things, worldwide economic growth, worldwide
demand, political instability in the Middle East, eastern Europe or other
oil or gas producing regions, and volatile oil
prices. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its
Index. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 9 |
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the Russell 1000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All
returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
24.44% |
2014 |
15.12% |
2015 |
-0.61% |
2016 |
17.85% |
2017 |
11.68% |
2018 |
-7.25% |
2019 |
22.58% |
2020 |
-5.68% |
2021 |
23.11% |
2022 |
7.88% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
(5.54)%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
14.68% |
4Q/2022 December 31,
2022 |
Lowest
Return |
(25.98)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. High
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
7.88% |
7.33% |
10.31% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
7.00% |
6.37% |
9.37% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
5.26% |
5.59% |
8.26% |
WisdomTree U.S. High Dividend
Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
8.38% |
7.74% |
10.73% |
Russell 1000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(7.54)% |
6.67% |
10.29% |
10 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 11 |
WisdomTree U.S. AI Enhanced Value
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. AI Enhanced Value
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks income and capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.38% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.38% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 39 |
$ 122 |
$ 213 |
$ 480 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 150% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund is actively managed and seeks
to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in equity securities
selected from a universe of U.S. equities that exhibit value characteristics
(the “Parent Universe”) based on the selection results of a proprietary,
quantitative artificial intelligence (“AI”) model developed by Voya Investment
Management Co., LLC (“Voya IM” or the “Sub-Adviser”). AI refers to the
simulation of human intelligence by machines. Machine learning is a subset of AI
that refers to a machine’s ability to learn and improve from experience
automatically without being explicitly programmed.
To be eligible for inclusion in the
Parent Universe, a company must (i) be listed on a U.S.-based stock exchange,
(ii) have a market capitalization of at least $100 million, (iii) have an
average daily volume of at least $100,000, and (iv) have an average six months
aggregate daily trading volume of 250,000 shares.
The AI model enhances the Fund’s
value investing strategy by analyzing a variety of inputs, including company
fundamentals and market sentiments, to select equity securities within the
Parent Universe that exhibit value characteristics. The AI model seeks to
self-identify persistent patterns in company data to identify those it expects
to outperform, based on current and historical data spanning more than 20 years,
including structured (e.g., financials) and unstructured (e.g.,
press releases, news articles) data.
12 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
The equity securities selected by
the AI model typically have a lower price-to-book ratio, a lower
price-to-earnings ratio, and greater free cash flow. The AI model is generally
updated monthly and typically selects between 60 and 190 equity securities that
exhibit strong value characteristics, such as those noted above, and have the
greatest potential to achieve income and capital appreciation for inclusion in
the Fund. The AI model weights the selected equities based on their overall
model scores; however, the AI model limits the weight of any individual company
to 6%. The Sub-Adviser oversees the AI model and generally intervenes in limited
circumstances to address factors that the Sub-Adviser believes are not
incorporated in the AI model, such as responding to corporate actions
(e.g., mergers and acquisitions). The Sub-Adviser generally buys and
sells equity securities for the Fund on a monthly basis based on the
recommendations of the AI model, while also ensuring that the Fund remains in
compliance with the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)
and its rules and regulations.
The Fund will normally invest at
least 80% of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment
purposes, in securities of companies that are organized in the U.S., maintain a
principal place of business in the U.S., or are traded principally on a U.S.
exchange. As of June 30, 2023, companies in the
financials, industrials and health care sectors comprised a significant portion
(i.e., in excess of 15%) of the Fund’s assets; however, the Fund’s sector
exposure may change from time to
time.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
AI Model Risk. The Fund
is actively managed using the AI model, the output of which is heavily
dependent on multiple inputs, including current and historical data
(collectively, “Data”). To the extent the AI model does not perform as
designed or as intended, the Fund may not be able to achieve its
investment objective and may lose value. If either or both the AI model
and the Data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in
reliance thereon may lead to the inclusion or exclusion of securities that
would have been excluded or included had the AI model and Data been
correct and complete. Errors in the Data, calculations and/or the
construction of the AI model may occur from time to time and may not be
identified and/or corrected by the Sub-Adviser or the Adviser for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. |
|
|
■ |
Value Investing Risk.
Value stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform growth stocks or the overall equity market. Value investing
focuses on companies whose stocks appear undervalued, but value stocks may
not realize their perceived intrinsic value for extended periods of time
or may never realize their perceived intrinsic
value. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Active Management Risk.
The Fund is actively managed using the AI model. There can be no guarantee
that the Fund’s strategies or the AI model will be successful or that the
Fund will achieve its investment
objective. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 13 |
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Health Care Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the health care sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The health care
sector includes, for example, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, health care
facilities, and health care equipment and supply companies. This sector
can be significantly affected by, among other things, lapsing patent
protection, technological developments that make drugs obsolete,
government regulation, price controls, and approvals for
drugs. |
|
|
■ |
Industrials Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the industrials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The industrials
sector includes, for example, aerospace and defense, non-residential
construction, engineering, machinery, transportation, and commercial and
professional services companies. This sector can be significantly affected
by, among other things, business cycle fluctuations, worldwide economy
growth, international political and economic developments, exchange rates,
commodity prices, environmental issues, government and corporate spending,
supply and demand for specific products and manufacturing, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The returns from the types of securities in which the Fund invests may
underperform returns from the various general securities markets or
different asset classes. This may cause the Fund to underperform other
investment vehicles that invest in different asset
classes. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
|
|
■ |
Portfolio Turnover
Risk. The Fund’s investment strategy may result in a high portfolio
turnover rate. Higher portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying
higher transaction costs and the distribution of additional capital gains,
which may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders who hold the
shares in taxable accounts. Increased transaction costs and distributions
of capital gains may negatively affect the Fund’s
performance. |
14 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Russell 1000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities index. Index
returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All returns
assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund’s name, investment
objective and strategies changed effective January 18, 2022. Fund performance
prior to January 18, 2022 reflects the Fund’s investment objective and
strategies when it sought to provide returns that corresponded to the
performance of the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend ex-Financials Index.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
27.64% |
2014 |
15.07% |
2015 |
-5.24% |
2016 |
18.10% |
2017 |
13.79% |
2018 |
-9.40% |
2019 |
24.41% |
2020 |
-5.81% |
2021 |
24.13% |
2022 |
-7.23% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
2.90%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
15.23% |
2Q/2020 June 30,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(29.59)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. Al Enhanced
Value Fund* |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(7.23)% |
4.10% |
8.62% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(7.70)% |
3.30% |
7.78% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(3.97)% |
3.10% |
6.88% |
Russell 1000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(7.54)% |
6.67% |
10.29% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Voya Investment Management Co., LLC (“Voya IM”) serves as sub-adviser
to the Fund.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 15 |
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by Voya IM's
Quantitative Equities Team. The individual members of the team jointly and
primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio are
described below.
Vincent Costa, CFA, Chief
Investment Officer, Equities, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since
January 2022.
Peg DiOrio, CFA, Head of
Quantitative Equity Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since January 2022.
Russell Shtern, CFA, Portfolio
Manager, Machine Intelligence, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since
August 2023.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
16 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Dividend
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Dividend
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees
and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Dividend Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.28% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.28% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 29 |
$ 90 |
$ 157 |
$ 356 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 20% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that is comprised of the large-capitalization segment of the U.S.
dividend-paying market. The Index is comprised of the 300 largest companies
ranked by market capitalization from the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index, which
defines the dividend-paying universe of companies in the U.S. stock market. As
of June 30, 2023, the Index had a market capitalization range from $8.7 billion
to $3 trillion, with an average market capitalization of $92 billion. To be
eligible for inclusion in the Index, a company must meet the following criteria
as of the annual Index screening date: (i) payment of regular cash dividends on
shares of common stock during the preceding 12 months; (ii) market
capitalization of at least $100 million; and (iii) median daily dollar trading
volume of at least $100,000 for the preceding three months.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 17 |
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 10%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the information technology and health care sectors comprised a
significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total
weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from
time to time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of
time. |
18 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Health Care Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the health care sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The health care
sector includes, for example, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, health care
facilities, and health care equipment and supply companies. This sector
can be significantly affected by, among other things, lapsing patent
protection, technological developments that make drugs obsolete,
government regulation, price controls, and approvals for
drugs. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its
Index. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 19 |
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the Russell 1000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. In addition, performance also is shown for the S&P 500 Index, another
comparative index that represents the asset class in which the Fund invests.
Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All returns
assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
27.35% |
2014 |
14.07% |
2015 |
-1.26% |
2016 |
15.37% |
2017 |
18.21% |
2018 |
-5.77% |
2019 |
29.03% |
2020 |
4.55% |
2021 |
25.60% |
2022 |
-3.79% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
3.91%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
15.78% |
2Q/2020 June 30,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(23.04)% |
1Q/2020 March
31,2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(3.79)% |
8.96% |
11.63% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(4.37)% |
8.28% |
10.93% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(1.84)% |
6.98% |
9.49% |
WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap
Dividend Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes) |
(3.52)% |
9.28% |
11.96% |
Russell 1000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(7.54)% |
6.67% |
10.29% |
20 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
S&P 500 Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(18.11)% |
9.42% |
12.56% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 21 |
WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees
and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. MidCap Dividend Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.38% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.38% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 39 |
$ 122 |
$ 213 |
$ 480 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 40% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that is comprised of the mid-capitalization segment of the U.S.
dividend-paying market. The Index is comprised of the companies that compose the
top 75% of the market capitalization of the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index,
which defines the dividend-paying universe of companies in the U.S. stock
market, after the 300 largest companies have been removed. As of June 30, 2023,
the Index had a market capitalization range from $1.9 billion to $20.2 billion,
with an average market capitalization of $7.5 billion. To be eligible for
inclusion in the Index, a company must meet the following criteria as of the
annual Index screening date: (i) payment of regular cash dividends on shares of
common stock during the preceding 12 months; (ii) market capitalization of at
least $100 million; and (iii) median daily dollar trading volume of at least
$100,000 for the preceding three months.
22 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 10%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the financials and industrials sectors comprised a significant
portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total weighting) of the
Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from time to
time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Mid-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of
mid-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of other capitalization ranges or the market as a whole.
Securities of mid-capitalization companies are often less stable and more
vulnerable to market volatility and adverse economic developments than
securities of larger companies, but mid-capitalization companies may also
underperform the securities of small-capitalization companies because
medium capitalization companies are more mature and are subject to slower
growth during economic expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 23 |
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Industrials Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the industrials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The industrials
sector includes, for example, aerospace and defense, non-residential
construction, engineering, machinery, transportation, and commercial and
professional services companies. This sector can be significantly affected
by, among other things, business cycle fluctuations, worldwide economy
growth, international political and economic developments, exchange rates,
commodity prices, environmental issues, government and corporate spending,
supply and demand for specific products and manufacturing, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
24 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the Russell Midcap Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. In addition, performance also is shown for the S&P MidCap 400 Index,
another comparative index that represents the asset class in which the Fund
invests. Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes.
All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
32.96% |
2014 |
15.27% |
2015 |
-0.98% |
2016 |
20.30% |
2017 |
14.86% |
2018 |
-8.27% |
2019 |
23.42% |
2020 |
-5.40% |
2021 |
30.19% |
2022 |
-4.76% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
3.53%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
21.55% |
4Q/2020 December 31,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(35.90)% |
1Q/2020 March
31,2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. MidCap
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(4.76)% |
5.84% |
10.79% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(5.36)% |
5.17% |
10.03% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(2.39)% |
4.46% |
8.71% |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 25 |
WisdomTree U.S. MidCap
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
WisdomTree U.S. MidCap
Dividend Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes) |
(4.42)% |
6.19% |
11.16% |
Russell Midcap Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(12.03)% |
5.72% |
10.11% |
S&P MidCap 400 Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(13.06)% |
6.71% |
10.78% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
26 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Dividend
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Dividend
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees
and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Dividend Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.38% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.38% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 39 |
$ 122 |
$ 213 |
$ 480 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 38% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index measuring the performance of the small-capitalization segment of
the U.S. dividend-paying market. The Index is comprised of the companies that
compose the bottom 25% of the market capitalization of the WisdomTree U.S.
Dividend Index, which defines the dividend-paying universe of companies in the
U.S. stock market, after the 300 largest companies have been removed. As of June
30, 2023, the Index had a market capitalization range from $88.6 million to
$12.5 billion, with an average market capitalization of $1.3 billion. To be
eligible for inclusion in the Index, a company must meet the following criteria
as of the annual Index screening date: (i) payment of regular cash dividends on
shares of common stock during the preceding 12 months; (ii) market
capitalization of at least $100 million; and (iii) median daily dollar trading
volume of at least $100,000 for the preceding three months.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 27 |
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 10%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the financials, industrials and consumer discretionary sectors
comprised a significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s
total weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change
from time to time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Small-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of
small-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund may be more volatile
than funds that invest in larger, more established companies. The
securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower
volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes
than larger capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole.
Small-capitalization companies may be particularly sensitive to adverse
economic developments as well as changes in interest rates, government
regulation, borrowing costs and earnings. |
|
|
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of
time. |
28 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
■ |
Consumer Discretionary
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the consumer discretionary sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The consumer discretionary sector includes, for example, automobile,
textile and retail companies, as well as hotels, restaurants and other
leisure facilities. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange
and interest rates, economic growth, worldwide demand, supply chain
constraints, social trends, consumers’ disposable income levels, and
propensity to spend. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Industrials Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the industrials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The industrials
sector includes, for example, aerospace and defense, non-residential
construction, engineering, machinery, transportation, and commercial and
professional services companies. This sector can be significantly affected
by, among other things, business cycle fluctuations, worldwide economy
growth, international political and economic developments, exchange rates,
commodity prices, environmental issues, government and corporate spending,
supply and demand for specific products and manufacturing, and government
regulation. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 29 |
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the Russell 2000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. In addition, performance also is shown for the Russell 2000 Index,
another comparative index that represents the asset class in which the Fund
invests. Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes.
All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2013 |
36.86% |
2014 |
7.54% |
2015 |
-5.54% |
2016 |
31.06% |
2017 |
8.66% |
2018 |
-12.74% |
2019 |
20.30% |
2020 |
-4.41% |
2021 |
26.71% |
2022 |
-10.94% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
2.47%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
27.55% |
4Q/2020 December 31,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(36.67)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
30 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap
Dividend Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(10.94)% |
2.52% |
8.41% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(11.53)% |
1.80% |
7.58% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(6.04)% |
1.87% |
6.67% |
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap
Dividend Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes) |
(10.61)% |
2.88% |
8.64% |
Russell 2000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(14.48)% |
4.13% |
8.48% |
Russell 2000 Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(20.44)% |
4.13% |
9.01% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 31 |
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
32 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. Value Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. Value Fund (the
“Fund”) seeks income and capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.12% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.12% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 12 |
$ 39 |
$ 68 |
$ 154 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 66% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund, an exchange-traded fund, is
actively managed using a model-based approach.
The Fund seeks to achieve its
investment objective by investing primarily in U.S. equity securities that
provide a high “total shareholder yield” and exhibit favorable quality
characteristics that demonstrate a company's profitability, such as strong
returns on equity (ROE) and/or returns on assets (ROA). The Fund’s investment
adviser, WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc. (“WisdomTree Asset Management”),
using a disciplined model-based process focused on a long-term approach to
investing, seeks to identify approximately 100-200 companies with a high total
shareholder yield, comprising return of capital to shareholders through either
dividend distributions or the repurchase of shares (“buybacks”), while also
displaying favorable quality characteristics. WisdomTree Asset Management
believes screening equity securities by quality measures such as ROE and ROA can
improve the Fund returns relative to traditional value oriented investment
strategies that focus exclusively on total shareholder yield, while also
continuing to provide a source for potential income. At a minimum, the Fund’s
portfolio will be reconstituted and rebalanced annually, although a more active
approach may be taken depending on such factors as market conditions and
investment opportunities, and the number of holdings in the Fund may vary.
The Fund invests primarily in
equity securities of companies domiciled in the U.S. or listed on a U.S.
exchange. The Fund generally expects to invest in large- and mid-capitalization
companies and may invest in any sector. As of June 30, 2023, companies in the
consumer discretionary sector comprised a significant portion (i.e., in
excess of 15%) of the Fund’s assets; however, the Fund’s sector exposure may
change from time to time.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 33 |
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Value Investing Risk.
Value stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform growth stocks or the overall equity market. Value investing
focuses on companies whose stocks appear undervalued, but value stocks may
not realize their perceived intrinsic value for extended periods of time
or may never realize their perceived intrinsic
value. |
|
|
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Active Management Risk.
The Fund is actively managed using proprietary investment strategies
and processes. There can be no guarantee that these strategies and
processes will be successful or that the Fund will achieve its investment
objective. |
|
|
■ |
Consumer Discretionary
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the consumer discretionary sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The consumer discretionary sector includes, for example, automobile,
textile and retail companies, as well as hotels, restaurants and other
leisure facilities. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange
and interest rates, economic growth, worldwide demand, supply chain
constraints, social trends, consumers’ disposable income levels, and
propensity to spend. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity
breaches. |
34 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Mid-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
mid-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of other capitalization ranges or the market as a whole.
Securities of mid-capitalization companies are often less stable and more
vulnerable to market volatility and adverse economic developments than
securities of larger companies, but mid-capitalization companies may also
underperform the securities of small-capitalization companies because
medium capitalization companies are more mature and are subject to slower
growth during economic expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Models and Data Risk.
While the Fund is actively managed, the Fund’s investment process is
expected to be heavily dependent on quantitative models and the models may
not perform as intended. Errors in data used in the models may occur from
time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected, which may have an
adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Russell 1000 Value Index, a relevant broad-based securities index. Index
returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All returns
assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund’s objective changed
effective December 18, 2017. Prior to December 18, 2017, Fund performance
reflects the investment objective of the Fund when it was the WisdomTree U.S.
LargeCap Value Fund and tracked the performance, before fees and expenses, of
the WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Value Index.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 35 |

Year |
Return |
2013 |
30.73% |
2014 |
13.62% |
2015 |
-0.79% |
2016 |
8.39% |
2017 |
23.33% |
2018 |
-8.04% |
2019 |
29.75% |
2020 |
6.14% |
2021 |
30.19% |
2022 |
-7.94% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
10.50%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
21.53% |
2Q/2020 June 30,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(31.17)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. Value
Fund* |
1 Year |
5 Years |
10 Years |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(7.94)% |
8.71% |
11.58% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(8.40)% |
8.24% |
11.14% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(4.39)% |
6.81% |
9.54% |
Russell 1000 Value Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(7.54)% |
6.67% |
10.29% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
36 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 37 |
WisdomTree U.S. Growth & Momentum
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. Growth &
Momentum Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance,
before fees and expenses, of the O’Neil Growth Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.55% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.55% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 56 |
$ 176 |
$ 307 |
$ 689 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 520% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Index is provided by O’Neil Global Advisors, Inc.
and is comprised of mid- and large-capitalization companies that provide
exposure to a portfolio of high growth and momentum U.S. exchange-listed
companies. Momentum style investing emphasizes investing in securities that have
had higher recent price performance compared to other securities, with the
expectation that this will continue to produce short-term excess returns in the
future. The Index seeks to identify stocks that exhibit momentum characteristics
in anticipation of the price trend continuing higher. The Index seeks to achieve
its objective by focusing on a combination of technical and fundamental factors
such as: (1) pullback - measurement of a stock’s long-term momentum and
short-term mean reversion characteristics; (2) volatility - measurement
of the standard deviation of returns over a one-year period; (3) data
graph - composite rating of growth characteristics based on a formula; and
(4) hotness - measurement of a stock’s recent change in volume compared
to historical averages. The Index then selects the top 50-100 stocks as
determined by each company’s score received across the above-referenced
factors.
To be eligible for inclusion in the
Index, a company must also meet the following criteria as of the Index screening
date: (i) market capitalization of at least $250 million; and (ii) have an
average daily volume of at least $1 million for each of the preceding three
months.
38 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
The Index is reconstituted and
rebalanced monthly. As a result, the Fund will engage in frequent trading of
portfolio securities.
As of June 30, 2023, companies in
the consumer discretionary, information technology and financials sectors
comprised a significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s
total weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change
from time to time.
To the extent the Index concentrates
(i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a
particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate its
investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Growth Investing Risk.
Growth stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform value stocks or the overall equity market. Growth stocks are
generally more sensitive to market movements than other types of stocks
primarily because their prices are based heavily on the future
expectations of the economy and the stock’s issuing
company. |
|
|
■ |
Momentum Investing
Risk. Securities that exhibit momentum characteristics may be more
volatile than the market as a whole. In addition, the returns of
securities that previously have exhibited price momentum may be less than
the returns of other styles of investing. Momentum can turn quickly, and
stocks that previously have exhibited high momentum may not experience
continued positive momentum, and they may also experience rapid and
substantial declines in value. In addition, there may be periods when the
momentum style of investing is out of favor, and the investment
performance of the Fund may be negatively affected compared to the returns
from other styles of investing. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Consumer Discretionary
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the consumer discretionary sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The consumer discretionary sector includes, for example, automobile,
textile and retail companies, as well as hotels, restaurants and other
leisure facilities. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange
and interest rates, economic growth, worldwide demand, supply chain
constraints, social trends, consumers’ disposable income levels, and
propensity to
spend. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 39 |
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s
operational capacity, loss of proprietary information, theft or corruption
of data, denial-of-service attacks on websites or network resources, and
the unauthorized release of confidential information. Cyber-attacks
affecting the Fund’s third-party service providers, market makers,
institutional investors authorized to purchase and redeem shares directly
from the Fund (i.e., Authorized Participants), or the issuers of
securities in which the Fund invests may subject the Fund to many of the
same risks associated with direct cybersecurity
breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Mid-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
mid-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of other capitalization ranges or the market as a whole.
Securities of mid-capitalization companies are often less stable and more
vulnerable to market volatility and adverse economic developments than
securities of larger companies, but mid-capitalization companies may also
underperform the securities of small-capitalization companies because
medium capitalization companies are more mature and are subject to slower
growth during economic
expansion. |
40 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
|
|
■ |
Portfolio Turnover
Risk. The Fund’s investment strategy may result in a high portfolio
turnover rate. Higher portfolio turnover may result in the Fund paying
higher transaction costs and the distribution of additional capital gains,
which may generate greater tax liabilities for shareholders who hold the
shares in taxable accounts. Increased transaction costs and distributions
of capital gains may negatively affect the Fund’s
performance. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the MSCI USA Momentum Index, a relevant broad-based securities
index. In addition, performance also is shown for the Russell 1000 Growth Index,
another comparative index that represents the asset class in which the Fund
invests. Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes.
All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
10.73%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
8.75% |
4Q/2022 December 31,
2022 |
Lowest
Return |
(20.92)% |
2Q/2022 June 30,
2022 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 41 |
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. Growth
& Momentum Fund |
1 Year |
Since Inception June 24,
2021 |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(26.94)% |
(15.18)% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(26.96)% |
(15.19)% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(15.94)% |
(11.45)% |
O'Neil Growth Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(26.49)% |
(14.66)% |
MSCI USA Momentum Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(17.39)% |
(7.55)% |
Russell 1000 Growth Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(29.14)% |
(12.68)% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since its inception in June 2021.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since its inception in June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NASDAQ, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through a
broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
42 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 43 |
WisdomTree U.S. Quality Growth
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. Quality Growth
Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees
and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Growth Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.28% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.28% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on
these assumptions, your costs would be:
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
period, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 1% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund's capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole.
The Index is a modified
market-capitalization weighted index that is comprised of 100 U.S.
large-capitalization and mid-capitalization companies with the highest composite
scores based on two fundamental factors: growth and quality, which are equally
weighted. The growth factor is determined by a company’s ranking based on a 50%
weight in its earnings growth forecast, a 25% weight in its trailing five-year
EBITDA (i.e., earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization) growth, and a 25% weight in its trailing five-year sales growth.
The quality factor is determined by a company’s ranking based on a 50% weight to
each of its trailing three-year average return on equity and trailing three-year
return on assets. The Index constituents are determined by an Index committee
that looks at companies focusing on the above-referenced factors.
The Index is reconstituted and
rebalanced semi-annually. To be eligible for inclusion in the Index, a company
must meet the following criteria as of the Index screening date: (i) list shares
on a U.S. stock exchange, (ii) be incorporated and headquartered in the United
States, and (iii) have a median daily dollar trading volume of at least $1
million for each of the preceding three months. At the time of each semi-annual
reconstitution and rebalance, the weight of any individual security is capped at
15%.
44 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the information technology and consumer discretionary sectors
comprised a significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s
total weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change
from time to time.
To the extent the Index concentrates
(i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a
particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate its
investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Growth Investing Risk.
Growth stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform value stocks or the overall equity market. Growth stocks are
generally more sensitive to market movements than other types of stocks
primarily because their prices are based heavily on the future
expectations of the economy and the stock’s issuing
company. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Consumer Discretionary
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the consumer discretionary sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The consumer discretionary sector includes, for example, automobile,
textile and retail companies, as well as hotels, restaurants and other
leisure facilities. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange
and interest rates, economic growth, worldwide demand, supply chain
constraints, social trends, consumers’ disposable income levels, and
propensity to spend. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity
breaches. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 45 |
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Mid-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
mid-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of other capitalization ranges or the market as a whole.
Securities of mid-capitalization companies are often less stable and more
vulnerable to market volatility and adverse economic developments than
securities of larger companies, but mid-capitalization companies may also
underperform the securities of small-capitalization companies because
medium capitalization companies are more mature and are subject to slower
growth during economic expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its
Index. |
46 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
The Fund commenced operations on December 15,
2022, and therefore does not have performance history for a full calendar
year. Once the Fund
has completed a full calendar year of operations, a bar chart and table will be
included that will provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund
by showing the variability of the Fund’s return based on net assets and
comparing the Fund’s performance to a broad measure of market
performance. Updated performance information for the Fund
is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, Head of
Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund
since its inception in December 2022.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in December 2022.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in December 2022.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since its inception in December 2022.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since its inception in December 2022.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NYSE Arca, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through
a broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 47 |
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
48 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend
Growth Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before
fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. Quality Dividend Growth Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.28% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.28% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 29 |
$ 90 |
$ 157 |
$ 356 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 28% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that consists of dividend-paying U.S. common stocks with growth
characteristics. The Index is comprised of the 300 companies in the WisdomTree
U.S. Dividend Index, which defines the dividend-paying universe of companies in
the U.S. stock market, with the best combined rank of growth and quality
factors, specifically: medium-term earnings growth expectations, return on
equity, and return on assets. To be eligible for inclusion in the Index, a
company must meet the following criteria as of the annual Index screening date:
(i) payment of regular cash dividends on shares of common stock during the
preceding 12 months; (ii) market capitalization of at least $2 billion; (iii)
median daily dollar trading volume of at least $100,000 for the preceding three
months; and (iv) an earnings yield greater than the dividend
yield.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 49 |
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the maximum weight of any security in the Index is capped at 7% and the
Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except for the
information technology and real estate sectors) at 20%. The weight of components
exposed to each of the information technology and real estate sectors is capped
at 25% and 10%, respectively. The Index also may adjust the weight of individual
components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative thresholds
or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its market
capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an individual
component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata among the
other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s weight, the
weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis to contribute
the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or individual
component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps and
thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the information technology and consumer staples sectors comprised a
significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total
weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from
time to time.
To the extent the Index concentrates
(i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a
particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate its
investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Growth Investing Risk.
Growth stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform value stocks or the overall equity market. Growth stocks are
generally more sensitive to market movements than other types of stocks
primarily because their prices are based heavily on the future
expectations of the economy and the stock’s issuing
company. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of
time. |
50 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
■ |
Consumer Staples Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the consumer staples sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance
could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The consumer
staples sector includes, for example, food and drug retail and companies
whose primary lines of business are food, beverage and other household
items, including agricultural products. This sector can be significantly
affected by, among other things, changes in price and availability of
underlying commodities, rising energy prices and global and economic
conditions. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
|
|
■ |
Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 51 |
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund may invest in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform securities of smaller
capitalization companies or the market as a whole. Large-capitalization
companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive challenges and be
subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the Index and the S&P 500 Index, a relevant broad-based securities index. In
addition, performance also is shown for the NASDAQ U.S. Dividend Achievers
Select Index and the Russell 3000 Index, other comparative indexes that
represent the asset class in which the Fund invests. Index returns do not
reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All returns assume reinvestment
of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.

Year |
Return |
2014 |
13.54% |
2015 |
0.00% |
2016 |
11.97% |
2017 |
26.94% |
2018 |
-5.22% |
2019 |
29.55% |
2020 |
13.83% |
2021 |
24.44% |
2022 |
-6.36% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
11.49%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
17.87% |
2Q/2020 June 30,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(19.41)% |
1Q/2020 March 31,
2020 |
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
52 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. Quality
Dividend Growth Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
Since Inception May 22,
2013 |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(6.36)% |
10.24% |
12.01% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(6.84)% |
9.67% |
11.44% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(3.43)% |
8.04% |
9.83% |
WisdomTree U.S. Quality
Dividend Growth Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes) |
(6.14)% |
10.56% |
12.33% |
S&P 500 Index (Reflects no
deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(18.11)% |
9.42% |
11.26% |
NASDAQ U.S. Dividend Achievers
Select Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(9.52)% |
10.45% |
10.89% |
Russell 3000 Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(19.21)% |
8.79% |
10.82% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NASDAQ, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through a
broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 53 |
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
54 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Dividend Growth
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality
Dividend Growth Fund (the “Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality
Dividend Growth Index (the “Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.38% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.38% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 39 |
$ 122 |
$ 213 |
$ 480 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 51% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that consists of the small-capitalization segment of
dividend-paying U.S. common stocks with growth characteristics. The starting
screening universe for the Index is the constituents of the WisdomTree U.S.
SmallCap Dividend Index, which consists of the bottom 25% of the market
capitalization of the WisdomTree U.S. Dividend Index, which defines the
dividend-paying universe of companies in the U.S. stock market, after the 300
largest companies have been removed. As of June 30, 2023, the Index had a market
capitalization range from $22.3 million to $12.5 billion, with an average market
capitalization of $1.5 billion. To be eligible for inclusion in the Index, a
company must meet the following criteria as of the annual Index screening date:
(i) payment of regular cash dividends on shares of common stock during the
preceding 12 months; (ii) market capitalization of at least $100 million; (iii)
median daily dollar trading volume of at least $100,000 for the preceding three
months; and (iv) an earnings yield greater than the dividend yield. From this
starting universe, the Index is comprised of the top 50% of companies with the
best combined rank of certain growth and quality factors, specifically:
medium-term earnings growth expectations, return on equity, and return on
assets.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 55 |
The Index is dividend weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate cash dividends each
component company is projected to pay in the coming year, based on the most
recently declared dividend per share, a measure of fundamental value. Generally,
companies projected to pay more dividends are more heavily weighted.
On the Index’s annual screening
date, the maximum weight of any security in the Index is capped at 2% and the
Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except for the
real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real estate
sector is capped at 10%. The Index also may adjust the weight of individual
components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative thresholds
or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its market
capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an individual
component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata among the
other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s weight, the
weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis to contribute
the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or individual
component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps and
thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the financials, consumer discretionary and industrials sectors
comprised a significant portion (i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s
total weighting) of the Index; however, the Index’s sector exposure may change
from time to time.
To the extent the Index concentrates
(i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the securities of a
particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will concentrate its
investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Small-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of
small-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund may be more volatile
than funds that invest in larger, more established companies. The
securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower
volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes
than larger capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole.
Small-capitalization companies may be particularly sensitive to adverse
economic developments as well as changes in interest rates, government
regulation, borrowing costs and earnings. |
|
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■ |
Dividend Paying Securities
Risk. Securities that pay dividends, as a group, may be out of favor
with the market and underperform the overall equity market or stocks of
companies that do not pay dividends. In addition, changes in the dividend
policies of the companies held by the Fund or the capital resources
available for such company’s dividend payments may adversely affect the
Fund. |
|
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■ |
Growth Investing Risk.
Growth stocks, as a group, may be out of favor with the market and
underperform value stocks or the overall equity market. Growth stocks are
generally more sensitive to market movements than other types of stocks
primarily because their prices are based heavily on the future
expectations of the economy and the stock’s issuing
company. |
56 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
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■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Consumer Discretionary
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the consumer discretionary sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The consumer discretionary sector includes, for example, automobile,
textile and retail companies, as well as hotels, restaurants and other
leisure facilities. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in domestic and international economies, exchange
and interest rates, economic growth, worldwide demand, supply chain
constraints, social trends, consumers’ disposable income levels, and
propensity to spend. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s operational capacity, loss of
proprietary information, theft or corruption of data, denial-of-service
attacks on websites or network resources, and the unauthorized release of
confidential information. Cyber-attacks affecting the Fund’s third-party
service providers, market makers, institutional investors authorized to
purchase and redeem shares directly from the Fund (i.e., Authorized
Participants), or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests may
subject the Fund to many of the same risks associated with direct
cybersecurity breaches. |
|
|
■ |
Financials Sector Risk.
The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets in the
financials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The financials sector
includes, for example, companies engaged in banking, financial services,
consumer finance, capital markets and insurance activities as well as
financial exchanges, financial data providers and mortgage real estate
investment trusts. This sector can be significantly affected by, among
other things, changes in interest rates, government regulation, the rate
of defaults on corporate, consumer and government debt, and the
availability and cost of capital. |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or
managers. |
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 57 |
■ |
Industrials Sector
Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its assets
in the industrials sector, and therefore, the Fund’s performance could be
negatively impacted by events affecting this sector. The industrials
sector includes, for example, aerospace and defense, non-residential
construction, engineering, machinery, transportation, and commercial and
professional services companies. This sector can be significantly affected
by, among other things, business cycle fluctuations, worldwide economy
growth, international political and economic developments, exchange rates,
commodity prices, environmental issues, government and corporate spending,
supply and demand for specific products and manufacturing, and government
regulation. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
|
|
■ |
Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
|
|
■ |
Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
Index and the Russell 2000 Index, a relevant broad-based securities index. Index
returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes. All returns
assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
(before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will
perform in the future. Updated performance information
for the Fund is available online on the Fund’s website at www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
Year |
Return |
2014 |
4.38% |
2015 |
-7.04% |
2016 |
30.60% |
2017 |
7.08% |
2018 |
-10.28% |
2019 |
24.36% |
2020 |
7.43% |
2021 |
23.22% |
2022 |
-13.02% |
The Fund’s year-to-date total return
as of June 30, 2023 was
6.92%.
Best and Worst Quarter Returns
(for the periods reflected in the bar chart above)
|
Return |
Quarter/Year |
Highest
Return |
29.33% |
4Q/2020 December 31,
2020 |
Lowest
Return |
(33.47)% |
1Q/2020 March
31,2020 |
58 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
After-tax returns are
calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax
rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local
taxes. Actual after-tax returns
depend on your tax situation and may differ from those shown and are not
relevant if you hold your shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as
401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. In some cases, the return
after taxes may exceed the return before taxes due to an assumed tax benefit
from any losses on a sale of Fund shares at the end of the measurement
period.
Average Annual Total Returns for the periods
ending December 31, 2022
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap
Quality Dividend Growth Fund |
1 Year |
5 Years |
Since
Inception July 25,
2013 |
Return Before Taxes Based on
NAV |
(13.02)% |
5.14% |
7.64% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions |
(13.59)% |
4.49% |
7.01% |
Return After Taxes on
Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares |
(7.28)% |
3.94% |
6.06% |
WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap
Quality Dividend Growth Index (Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes) |
(12.73)% |
5.48% |
7.94% |
Russell 2000 Index (Reflects
no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) |
(20.44)% |
4.13% |
7.01% |
Management
Investment Adviser and
Sub-Adviser
WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc.
(“WisdomTree Asset Management” or the “Adviser”) serves as investment adviser to
the Fund. Mellon Investments Corporation (the “Sub-Adviser”) serves as
sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
The Fund is managed by the
Sub-Adviser’s Equity Index Strategies Portfolio Management team. The individual
members of the team jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day
management of the Fund’s portfolio are identified below.
Marlene Walker-Smith, a Director,
Head of Equity Index Portfolio Management, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since October 2020.
David France, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Todd Frysinger, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Vlasta Sheremeta, CFA, a Vice
President, Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio
manager of the Fund since June 2021.
Michael Stoll, a Vice President,
Senior Portfolio Manager and Team Manager, has been a portfolio manager of the
Fund since June 2021.
Buying and Selling Fund
Shares
The Fund is an ETF. This means that
individual shares of the Fund are listed on a national securities exchange, such
as NASDAQ, and may only be purchased and sold in the secondary market through a
broker-dealer at market prices. Because Fund shares trade at market prices
rather than NAV, shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less
than NAV (discount). In addition, an investor may incur costs attributable to
the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase
shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares (ask)
when buying and selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information regarding the Fund, including its NAV, market price, premiums
and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is available on the Fund’s website at
www.wisdomtree.com/investments.
The Fund issues and redeems shares
at NAV only in large blocks of shares (“Creation Units”), which only certain
institutions or large investors (typically market makers or other
broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund issues and redeems Creation
Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities and/or U.S. cash.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 59 |
Tax Information
The Fund intends to make
distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income,
or capital gains.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund
through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an
“Intermediary”), WisdomTree Asset Management or its affiliates may pay
Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including
participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more
knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including the Fund, or for other
activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related
to the sale or promotion of Fund shares. These payments may create a conflict of
interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the
Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased
Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more
information.
60 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap
Fund
Investment
Objective
The WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Fund (the
“Fund”) seeks to track the price and yield performance, before fees and
expenses, of the WisdomTree U.S. LargeCap Index (the
“Index”).
Fees and Expenses of the
Fund
The following table describes the fees
and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You
may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial
intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below. The
fees are expressed as a percentage of the Fund’s average net
assets.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid
directly from your investment) |
None |
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your
investment) |
|
Management Fees |
0.08% |
Distribution and/or Service
(12b-1) Fees |
None |
Other Expenses |
0.00% |
Total Annual Fund Operating
Expenses |
0.08% |
Example
The following example is intended to
help retail investors compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of
investing in other funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that such
investors would incur over various periods if they were to invest $10,000 in the
Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of their shares at the
end of those periods. This example assumes that the Fund provides a return of 5%
a year and that operating expenses remain the same. This example does not
include the brokerage commissions that retail investors may pay to buy and sell
shares of the Fund. 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 |
|
$ 8 |
$ 26 |
$ 45 |
$ 103 |
Portfolio
Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such
as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its
portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction
costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable
account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses
or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal
year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 22% of the average value of its portfolio,
excluding the value of portfolio securities received or delivered as a result of
in-kind creations or redemptions of the Fund’s capital
shares.
Principal Investment Strategies of the
Fund
The Fund employs a “passive
management” – or indexing – investment approach designed to track the
performance of the Index. The Fund generally uses a representative sampling
strategy to achieve its investment objective, meaning it generally will invest
in a sample of the securities in the Index whose risk, return and other
characteristics resemble the risk, return and other characteristics of the Index
as a whole. Under normal circumstances, at least 95% of the Fund’s total assets
(exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) will be invested in
component securities of the Index and investments that have economic
characteristics that are substantially identical to the economic characteristics
of such component securities.
The Index is a fundamentally
weighted index that consists of the 500 largest companies ranked by market
capitalization in the WisdomTree U.S. Total Market Index, which is comprised of
earnings-generating companies within the large-capitalization segment of the
U.S. stock market. Companies in the Index are incorporated, domiciled and listed
in the U.S. and have generated positive cumulative earnings over their most
recent four fiscal quarters prior to the annual Index screening date. To be
eligible for inclusion in the Index, a company must meet the following criteria
as of the annual Index screening date: (i) market capitalization of at least
$100 million; (ii) median daily dollar trading volume of at least $200,000 for
each of the preceding six months; and (iii) a price to earnings ratio of at
least 2.
|
|
WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 61 |
The Index is earnings weighted
annually to reflect the proportionate share of the aggregate earnings each
component company has generated. Generally, companies with greater earnings
typically have larger weights in the Index. On the Index’s annual screening
date, the Index caps the weight of components exposed to a single sector (except
for the real estate sector) at 25%. The weight of components exposed to the real
estate sector is capped at 15%. The Index also may adjust the weight of
individual components on the annual screening date based on certain quantitative
thresholds or limits tied to key metrics of a component security, such as its
market capitalization and trading volume. To the extent the Index reduces an
individual component’s weight, the excess weight will be reallocated pro rata
among the other components. Similarly, if the Index increases a component’s
weight, the weight of the other components will be reduced on a pro rata basis
to contribute the weight needed for such increase. The weight of a sector or
individual component in the Index may fluctuate above or below specified caps
and thresholds, respectively, between screening dates in response to market
conditions.
WisdomTree, Inc. (“WisdomTree”), as Index provider,
currently uses the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®), a
widely recognized industry classification methodology developed by MSCI, Inc.
and Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, to define companies within a
given sector. The following sectors are included in the Index: communication
services, consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financials, health
care, industrials, information technology, materials, real estate, and
utilities. A sector is comprised of multiple industries. For example, the energy
sector is comprised of companies in the energy equipment and services industry
as well as the oil, gas and consumable fuels industry. As of June 30, 2023,
companies in the information technology sector comprised a significant portion
(i.e., in excess of 15% of the Index’s total weighting) of the Index;
however, the Index’s sector exposure may change from time to time.
To the extent that the Index
concentrates (i.e., holds 25% or more of its total assets) in the
securities of a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will
concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent as the
Index.
Principal Risks of Investing in the
Fund
You can lose money on your investment in
the Fund. While certain of the risks are prioritized in
terms of their relevance to the Fund’s investment strategies, most risks are
presented in alphabetical order. This ordering approach is designed to both
facilitate an investor’s understanding of the Fund’s risks and enable an
investor to easily locate and compare risks among funds. Each risk summarized
below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of
the order in which it appears. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect
the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return
and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of
investing in the Fund, see the sections in the Fund’s Prospectus titled
“Additional Principal Risk Information About the Funds” and “Additional
Non-Principal Risk Information.”
■ |
Large-Capitalization
Investing Risk. The Fund invests primarily in the securities of
large-capitalization companies. As a result, the Fund’s performance may be
adversely affected if securities of these companies underperform
securities of smaller capitalization companies or the market as a whole.
Large-capitalization companies may adapt more slowly to new competitive
challenges and be subject to slower growth during times of economic
expansion. |
|
|
■ |
Investment Risk. As
with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to loss,
including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an
investment, over short or long periods of
time. |
|
|
■ |
Market Risk. The
trading prices of equity securities and other instruments fluctuate in
response to a variety of factors, such as economic, financial or political
events that impact the entire market, market segments, or specific
issuers. The Fund’s NAV and market price may fluctuate significantly in
response to these and other factors. As a result, an investor could lose
money over short or long periods of time. |
|
|
■ |
Shares of the Fund May
Trade at Prices Other Than NAV. As with all exchange-traded funds
(“ETFs”), Fund shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at
market prices. The market prices of the Fund’s shares in the secondary
market generally differ from the Fund’s daily NAV, and there may be times
when the market price of the shares is more than the NAV (premium) or less
than the NAV (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market
volatility or periods of steep market declines. Additionally, in stressed
market conditions, the market for the Fund’s shares may become less liquid
in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s
underlying portfolio holdings. |
|
|
■ |
Cybersecurity Risk. The
Fund and its service providers may be susceptible to operational and
information security risks resulting from a breach in cybersecurity,
including cyber-attacks. A breach in cybersecurity, intentional or
unintentional, may adversely impact the Fund in many ways, including, but
not limited to, disruption of the Fund’s
operational capacity, loss of proprietary information, theft or corruption
of data, denial-of-service attacks on websites or network resources, and
the unauthorized release of confidential information. Cyber-attacks
affecting the Fund’s third-party service providers, market makers,
institutional investors authorized to purchase and redeem shares directly
from the Fund (i.e., Authorized Participants), or the issuers of
securities in which the Fund invests may subject the Fund to many of the
same risks associated with direct cybersecurity
breaches. |
62 WisdomTree
Trust Prospectus |
|
|
■ |
Geopolitical Risk. The
United States has experienced security concerns, war, threats of war,
aggression and/or conflict, terrorism, economic uncertainty, sanctions or
the threat of sanctions, natural and environmental disasters, the spread
of infectious illness, widespread disease or other public health issues
and/or systemic market dislocations (including due to events outside of
the United States) that have led, and in the future may lead, to increased
short-term market volatility and may have adverse long-term effects on the
U.S. and world economies and markets generally, each of which may
negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
|
|
■ |
Index and Data Risk.
The Fund is not “actively” managed and seeks to track the price and yield
performance, before fees and expenses, of the Index. The Index may not
perform as intended. The Index provider has the right to make adjustments
to the Index or to cease making the Index available without regard to the
particular interests of the Fund or its shareholders. If the computers or
other facilities of the Index provider, Index calculation agent, data
providers and/or relevant stock exchange malfunction for any reason,
calculation and dissemination of Index values may be delayed and trading
in Fund shares may be suspended for a period of time. Errors in Index
data, Index calculations and/or the construction of the Index may occur
from time to time and may not be identified and/or corrected by the Index
provider, Index calculation agent or other applicable party for a period
of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its
shareholders. The potential risk of continuing error may be particularly
heightened in the case of the Index, which is generally not used as a
benchmark by other funds or managers. |
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Information Technology
Sector Risk. The Fund currently invests a significant portion of its
assets in the information technology sector, and therefore, the Fund’s
performance could be negatively impacted by events affecting this sector.
The information technology sector includes, for example, companies that
offer software and information technology services, manufacturers and
distributors of technology hardware and equipment such as communications
equipment, cellular phones, computers and peripherals, electronic
equipment and related instruments, and semiconductors and related
equipment and materials. This sector can be significantly affected by,
among other things, the supply and demand for specific products and
services, the pace of technological development, and government
regulation. |
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Investment Style Risk.
The Fund invests in the securities included in, or representative of, the
Index regardless of their investment merit. The Fund does not attempt to
outperform the Index or take defensive positions in declining markets. As
a result, the Fund’s performance may be adversely affected by a general
decline in the market segments relating to the
Index. |
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Issuer-Specific Risk.
Issuer-specific events, including changes in the actual or perceived
financial condition of an issuer, can have a negative impact on the value
of the Fund. |
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Non-Correlation Risk.
As with all index funds, the performance of the Fund and that of its Index
may differ from each other for a variety of reasons. For example, the Fund
incurs operating expenses and portfolio transaction costs, while also
managing cash flows and potential operational inefficiencies, not incurred
by its Index. In addition, when markets are volatile, the ability to sell
securities at fair market prices may be adversely affected and may result
in additional trading costs and/or increase the non-correlation risk. The
Fund’s use of sampling techniques also may affect its ability to achieve
close correlation with its Index. |
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Non-Diversification
Risk. The Fund is considered to be non-diversified, which means that
it may invest more of its assets in the securities of a single issuer or a
smaller number of issuers than if it were a diversified fund. To the
extent the Fund invests a significant percentage of its assets in a
limited number of issuers, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing
in those few issuers, and may be more susceptible to a single adverse
economic or regulatory occurrence. As a result, changes in the market
value of a single security could cause greater fluctuations in the value
of Fund shares than would occur in a diversified
fund. |
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WisdomTree Trust Prospectus 63 |
Fund
Performance
Historical Fund
performance, which varies over time, can provide an indication of the risks of
investing in the Fund. The bar chart that follows shows the annual total returns
of the Fund for each full calendar year since the Fund commenced operations, or
the past 10 calendar years, as applicable. The table that
follows the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns, both before
and after taxes. This table also shows how the Fund’s performance compares to
the