ABSOLUTE SELECT VALUE ETF (ABEQ)

(formerly, Absolute Core Strategy ETF)

 

Primary Listing Exchange for the Fund: NYSE Arca, Inc.

 

 

Prospectus

 

July 29, 2022

 

Absolute Investment Advisers LLC

4 North Street, Suite 2

Hingham, MA 02043

 

https://absoluteadvisers.com/   1-833- 267-3383

 

Neither the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

SUMMARY SECTION   1
Investment Objective   1
Fees and Expenses of the Fund   1
Principal Investment Strategies   2
Principal Risks   3
Performance   6
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares   7
Tax Information   7
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries   7
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S PRINCIPAL STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS   8
Investment Objective   8
Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund   8
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund   8
Changes in Investment Objective or Policies   12
Temporary Defensive Positions   13
Portfolio Holdings   13
Cybersecurity   13
HISTORICAL PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBADVISER’S PRIVATE ACCOUNTS   14
ACCOUNT INFORMATION   16
How to Buy and Sell Shares   16
Determination of Net Asset Value   17
Premium/Discount Information   18
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes   18
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND   20
Adviser   20
Subadviser   20
Portfolio Manager   21
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS   22
DISCLAIMERS   23

FOR MORE INFORMATION

   Back Cover

 

 

 

 

SUMMARY SECTION

 

Investment Objective

 

The Absolute Select Value ETF (the “Fund”) seeks positive absolute returns.

 

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

 

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you own shares of the Fund. Investors may pay brokerage commissions and incur other charges on their purchases and sales of exchange-traded fund shares, which are not reflected in the Example.

 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

 

         
Management Fees     0.85 %
Other Expenses     0.39 %
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses1     0.00 %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses     1.24 %
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement2     (0.39 )%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses (After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement)     0.85 %

 

1 -Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are fees and expenses incurred by the Fund in connection with its investments in other investment companies.

 

2 -The Fund’s adviser contractually has agreed to waive its management fee and/or reimburse expenses so that total annual Fund operating expenses, excluding portfolio transaction and other investment-related costs (including brokerage fees and commissions); taxes; borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expenses on securities sold short); acquired fund fees and expenses; fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example option and swap fees and expenses); any amounts payable pursuant to a distribution or service plan adopted in accordance with Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940; any administrative and/or shareholder servicing fees payable pursuant to a plan adopted by the Board of Trustees; expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization; extraordinary expenses (such as litigation expenses, indemnification of Trust officers and Trustees and contractual indemnification of Fund service providers); and other expenses that the Trustees agree have not been incurred in the ordinary course of the Fund’s business, do not exceed 0.85% through July 31, 2024. This expense cap may not be terminated prior to this date except by the Board of Trustees. Each waiver/expense payment by the adviser is subject to recoupment by the adviser from the Fund in the three years following the date the particular waiver/expense payment occurred, but only if such recoupment can be achieved without exceeding the annual expense limitation in effect at the time of the waiver/expense payment and any expense limitation in effect at the time of the recoupment.

 

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Expense Example:

 

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year, the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same, and the expense reduction/reimbursement described above remains in place for the contractual period only. 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
$87   $314   $604   $1,429

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 operating expenses or in the Example above, affect the Fund’s performance. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 23% of the average value of its portfolio. (This portfolio turnover rate excludes securities received or delivered from in-kind processing of creations or redemptions.)

 

Principal Investment Strategies

 

St. James Investment Company, LLC, the Fund’s investment sub-adviser (the “Subadviser”), seeks to achieve the Fund’s objective by investing primarily in equity securities of U.S. companies that the Subadviser believes are priced at a substantial discount to the Subadviser’s estimate of fair value. However, the Fund may invest in companies of any market capitalization and in any economic sector, including equity securities of foreign companies that trade on U.S. exchanges, either directly or through American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). The Subadviser, which actively manages the Fund, uses a five-stage process to identify, purchase, and sell companies that it believes are fundamentally attractive and will yield positive absolute returns, meaning it seeks positive returns in all market conditions, over complete market cycles, net of fees and expenses, and not returns that outperform a specific benchmark.

 

The Subadviser expects that, because of its “bottom up” approach to company analysis, from time to time, the Fund could be overweight in certain market sectors. The Subadviser’s strategy is based on company by company analysis, not market sector analysis. The Fund is non-diversified, which means that it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in fewer issuers than a diversified fund.

 

The Fund may also invest all or substantially all of its assets in cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds and other short-term fixed income investments, in seeking to protect principal, or when, in the Subadviser’s opinion, there are not sufficient companies at valuations appropriate for investment. As an alternative to holding cash or cash equivalents, the Subadviser may invest the Fund’s assets in shares of other investment companies, including open-end and closed-end funds and exchange traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “Underlying Funds”) in order for the Fund to be more fully invested.

 

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Principal Risks

 

All investments involve risks, and the Fund cannot guarantee that it will achieve its investment objective. An investment in the Fund is not insured or guaranteed by any government agency. As with any mutual fund investment, the Fund’s returns and share price will fluctuate, and you may lose money by investing in the Fund.

 

● Market and Geopolitical Risk. Market risk includes the possibility that the Fund’s investments will decline in value because of a downturn in the stock market, reducing the value of individual companies’ stocks regardless of the success or failure of an individual company’s operations. The prices of securities held by the Fund may decline sharply in response to certain events taking place around the world, including those directly involving the companies whose securities are owned by the Fund; conditions affecting the general economy; overall market changes; local, regional or global political, social or economic instability; and currency, interest rate and commodity price fluctuations. The value of your investment in the Fund is based on the market prices of the securities the Fund holds. These prices change daily due to economic and other events that affect markets generally, as well as those that affect particular regions, countries, industries, companies or governments. The increasing interconnectivity between global economies and financial markets increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one region or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, climate and climate related events, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years, such as terrorist attacks around the world, natural disasters, social and political discord or debt crises and downgrades, among others, may result in market volatility and may have long term effects on both the U.S. and global financial markets. There is a risk that you may lose money by investing in the Fund.

 

● COVID-19 Risk. An outbreak of infectious respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 was first detected in China in December 2019 before spreading worldwide and being declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. COVID-19 resulted in travel restrictions, closed international borders, enhanced health screenings, disruption and delays in healthcare services, prolonged quarantines, cancellations, temporary store closures, social distancing, government ordered curfews and business closures, disruptions to supply chains and consumer activity, shortages, highly volatile financial markets, and general concern and uncertainty that may continue as restrictions are lifted.

 
● Value Style Risk. Investing in “value” stocks presents the risk that the stocks may never reach what the Subadviser believes are their full market values, either because the market fails to recognize what the Subadviser considers to be the companies’ true business values or because the Subadviser misjudged those values. In addition, value stocks may fall out of favor with investors and underperform growth stocks during given periods.

 

● Active Management Risk. The Fund is actively-managed and is thus subject to management risk. The Subadviser will apply its investment techniques and strategies in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there is no guarantee that its techniques will produce the intended results.

 

● Fluctuation of Net Asset Value Risk. The net asset value (“NAV”) of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The market prices of the shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in NAV as well as the relative supply of and demand for the shares on the Exchange (as defined in the “Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares” section of this prospectus).

 

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● Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, and periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. Any of these factors, among others, may lead to the Fund’s shares trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

 

● Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in the “How to Buy and Sell Shares” section of this prospectus) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that act as Authorized Participants. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units (as defined in the “Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares” section of this prospectus), Fund shares may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

 

● Company Risk. The value of the Fund may decrease in response to the activities and financial prospects of an individual company in the Fund’s portfolio. The value of an individual company can be more volatile than the market as a whole.

 

● Sector Concentration Risk. The Fund may focus its investments in securities of a particular sector. Economic, legislative or regulatory developments may occur that significantly affect the sector. This may cause the Fund’s NAV to fluctuate more than that of a fund that does not focus in a particular sector.

 

● Large Cap Company Risk. Larger, more established companies may be unable to attain the high growth rates of successful, smaller companies during periods of economic expansion.

 

● Small and Medium Cap Company Risk. Securities of companies with small and medium market capitalizations are often more volatile and less liquid than investments in larger companies. Small and medium cap companies may face a greater risk of business failure, which could increase the volatility of the Fund’s portfolio.

 

● Underlying Funds Risk. When the Fund invests in an Underlying Fund, the Fund indirectly will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the Underlying Fund. Therefore, the Fund will incur higher expenses, many of which may be duplicative. In addition, the Fund may be affected by losses of the Underlying Funds and the level of risk arising from the investment practices of the Underlying Funds (such as the use of leverage). ETFs and closed-end funds are subject to additional risks, such as the fact that their shares may trade at a market price above or below their net asset value or that an active market may not develop.

 

● Money Market Fund Risks. When the Fund invests in an underlying fund, including a money market fund, the Fund indirectly will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the underlying fund. Therefore, the Fund will incur higher expenses, many of which may be duplicative. Although each underlying money market fund in which the Fund may invest seeks to maintain the value of the investments at $1.00 per share, there is no assurance that the underlying fund will be able to do so.

 
● Equity Securities Risk. The net asset value of the Fund will fluctuate based on changes in the value of the U.S. equity securities held by the Fund. Equity prices can fall rapidly in response to developments affecting a specific company or industry, or to changing economic, political or market conditions.

 

● Foreign Company Risk. Investing in foreign companies may involve risks not associated with equity investments in U.S. companies, including currency fluctuation, inflation, local withholding and other taxes, different financial reporting practices and regulatory standards, changes in political conditions, nationalization, expropriation, and investment and repatriation restrictions. The Fund may lose money due to political, security, economic and geographic events affecting issuers of non-U.S. companies.

 

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● Depositary Receipt Risk. ADRs are receipts, issued by depository banks in the United States, for shares of a foreign-based company that entitle the holder to dividends and capital gains on the underlying security. ADRs may be sponsored or unsponsored. In addition to the risks of investing in foreign securities, there is no guarantee that an ADR issuer will continue to offer a particular ADR. As a result, the Fund may have difficulty selling the ADR or selling them quickly and efficiently at the prices at which they have been valued. The issuers of unsponsored ADRs are not obligated to disclose information that is considered material in the U.S. and voting rights with respect to the deposited securities are not passed through. ADRs may not track the prices of the underlying foreign securities on which they are based, and their values may change materially at times when U.S. markets are not open for trading.

 

● Risk of Investing in Developed Countries. The Fund’s investment in developed country issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security, economic and other risks associated with developed countries. Developed countries tend to represent a significant portion of the global economy and have generally experienced slower economic growth than some less developed countries. Certain developed countries have experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving a country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in its markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments. In addition, developed countries may be adversely impacted by changes to the economic conditions of certain key trading partners, regulatory burdens, debt burdens and the price or availability of certain commodities.

 

● Inflation Risk. At any time, the Fund may have significant investments in cash or cash equivalents. When a substantial portion of a portfolio is held in cash or cash equivalents, there is the risk that the value of the cash account, including interest, will not keep pace with inflation, thus reducing purchasing power over time.

 

● Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is non-diversified, it will hold larger positions in a smaller number of securities than funds that are “diversified.” This means that an increase or decrease in the value of a single security held by the Fund likely will have a greater impact on the Fund’s net asset value and total return than a diversified fund.

 

● Issuer Cybersecurity Risk. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, counterparties with which the Fund engages in transactions, exchange and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions may experience cybersecurity breaches. These breaches may result in harmful disruptions to operations and may negatively impact the financial condition of an issuer or market participant. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result. 

 

● Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund and its agents seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address significant operational risks.

 

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Performance

 

The bar chart below shows how the Fund’s investment results have varied from year to year. The table below shows how the Fund’s average annual total returns compare over time to those of two broad-based securities market indices. This information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Past performance of the Fund is no guarantee of how it will perform in the future.

 

Annual Total Return (year ended December 31st)

 

 

Highest/Lowest quarterly results during this time period were:

 

Best Quarter: Fourth Quarter 2021 6.52%
  Worst Quarter: Third Quarter 2021 (1.51)%

 

The Fund’s year to date return as of June 30, 2022 was (5.09)%.

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS

(for the periods ended December 31, 2021)

 
Absolute Select Value ETF 1 Year Since Inception
(January 21, 2020)
Return Before Taxes 12.48% 7.54%
Return After Taxes on Distributions 12.31% 7.32%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares 7.50% 5.72%

Russell 1000® Value Index1

(reflects no deductions for fees, expenses and taxes)

 25.16% 13.01%

S&P 500 Total Return Index1

(reflects no deductions for fees, expenses and taxes)

 28.71% 22.39%

 

1 - The Russell 1000 Value Index and the S&P 500 Total Return Index are widely recognized unmanaged indices of equity securities and are representative of a broader domestic equity market and range of securities than is found in the Fund’s portfolio. Individuals cannot invest directly in an index; however, an individual can invest in exchange-traded funds or other investment vehicles that attempt to track the performance of a benchmark index.

 

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After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. After-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or IRAs. The indices’ returns presented above assume reinvestment of all distributions and exclude the effect of taxes and fees (if expenses and taxes were deducted, the actual returns of the indices would be lower).

 

Current performance of the Fund may be lower or higher than the performance quoted above. Performance data current to the most recent month end may be obtained by calling 1-833- 267-3383.

 

Portfolio Management

 

Investment Adviser – Absolute Investment Advisers LLC

 

Investment Subadviser – St. James Investment Company, LLC

 

Portfolio Manager

 

- Robert J. Mark, Managing Member of the Subadviser, has been the portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in January 2020.

 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

 

The Fund will issue and redeem shares at NAV only in large blocks of shares (each block of shares is called a “Creation Unit”) and only to Authorized Participants that have entered into agreements with the Fund’s distributor (the “Distributor”). Creation Units are issued and redeemed for cash and/or in-kind for securities. Except when aggregated in Creation Units, the shares are not redeemable securities of the Fund.

 

Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca” or the “Exchange”) and trade at market prices rather than NAV. An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market. Shares of the Fund may trade at a price that is greater than, at, or less than NAV. Individual shares may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through brokers.

 

Tax Information

 

The Fund’s distributions are taxable and will be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred account, such as a 401(k) plan, individual retirement account (IRA) or 529 college savings plan. Tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of monies from those accounts.

 

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

 

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

 

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S PRINCIPAL STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS

 

Investment Objective

 

The Fund seeks positive absolute returns.

 

Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund

 

St. James Investment Company, LLC, the Fund’s investment sub-adviser (the “Subadviser”), seeks to achieve the Fund’s objective by investing primarily in equity securities of U.S. companies that the Subadviser believes are priced at a substantial discount to the Subadviser’s estimate of fair value. However, the Fund may invest in companies of any market capitalization and in any economic sector, including equity securities of foreign companies that trade on U.S. exchanges, either directly or through American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”). The Subadviser, which actively manages the Fund, uses a five-stage process to identify, purchase, and sell companies that it believes are fundamentally attractive and will yield positive absolute returns, meaning it seeks positive returns in all market conditions, over complete market cycles, net of fees and expenses, and not returns that outperform a specific benchmark.

 

The first stage of the Subadviser’s process is Qualification. The Subadviser begins with a universe of approximately 1700 companies and identifies candidates that the Subadviser believes are strong financially and have near-term operating challenges that depress its price, which the Subadviser believes is a combination that offers the potential for long-term value. The second stage is Quantitative Valuation, in which the Subadviser analyzes the initial set of candidates to estimate the fair value of the company. In the third stage, Fundamental Qualitative Research, the Subadviser conducts research to assess whether a company is likely to move toward the Subadviser’s estimate of fair value. In the fourth stage, Portfolio Construction, the Subadviser selects a relatively small number of companies, typically between 20 and 25, with, at the time of purchase, no more than 8% in any given position and no more than 20% in a particular industry. The Subadviser expects that, because of its “bottom up” approach to company analysis, from time to time, the Fund could be overweight in certain market sectors. The Subadviser’s strategy is based on company by company analysis, not market sector analysis. In the fifth stage, Sell Discipline, the Subadviser employs a process that triggers a sale when a company hits a sell target determined at the time of purchase, or when the Subadviser believes that there has been a significant change in the long-term prospects for the company.

 

The Fund is non-diversified, which means that it may invest a greater percentage of its assets in fewer issuers than a diversified fund.

 

The Fund may also invest all or substantially all of its assets in cash and cash equivalents, including money market funds and other short-term fixed income investments, in seeking to protect principal, or when, in the Subadviser’s opinion, there are not sufficient companies at valuations appropriate for investment. As an alternative to holding cash or cash equivalents, the Subadviser may invest the Fund’s assets in shares of other investment companies, including open-end and closed-end funds and exchange traded funds (“ETFs”) (collectively, “Underlying Funds”) in order for the Fund to be more fully invested.

 

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

 

All investments involve risks, and the Fund cannot guarantee that it will achieve its investment objective. An investment in the Fund is not insured or guaranteed by any government agency. As with any mutual fund investment, the Fund’s returns and share price will fluctuate, and you may lose money by investing in the Fund.

 

8

 

 

● Market and Geopolitical Risk. The prices of securities held by the Fund may decline in response to certain events taking place around the world, including those directly involving the companies whose securities are owned by the Fund; conditions affecting the general economy; overall market changes; local, regional or global political, social or economic instability; and currency, interest rate and commodity price fluctuations. The securities purchased by the Fund may involve large price swings and potential for loss. Investors in the Fund should have a long- term perspective and be able to tolerate potentially sharp declines in value. The market’s daily movements, sometimes called volatility, may be greater or less depending on the types of securities the Fund owns and the markets in which the securities trade. The increasing interconnectivity between global economies and financial markets increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one region or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform due to inflation (or expectations for inflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, natural disasters, climate and climate relate events, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years, such as terrorist attacks around the world, natural disasters, social and political discord or debt crises and downgrades, among others, may result in market volatility and may have long term effects on both the U.S. and global financial markets. The value and growth-oriented equity securities purchased by the Fund may experience large price swings and potential for loss.

 

● COVID-19 Risk. An outbreak of infectious respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 was first detected in China in December 2019 before spreading worldwide and being declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020. COVID-19 has resulted in travel restrictions, closed international borders, enhanced health screenings, disruption and delays in healthcare services, prolonged quarantines, cancellations, temporary store closures, social distancing, government ordered curfews and business closures, disruptions to supply chains and consumer activity, shortages, highly volatile financial markets, and general concern and uncertainty. The impact of COVID-19, and other infectious illness outbreaks that may arise in the future, could adversely affect the economies and capital markets of many nations or the entire global economy, as well as individual companies, entire sectors, and securities and commodities markets (including liquidity), in ways that may not necessarily be foreseen at the present time. COVID-19 and other health crises in the future may exacerbate other pre-existing political, social and economic risks, and its impact in developing or emerging market countries may be greater due to less established health care systems. The duration and ultimate impact of the current outbreak is still not known. There is a risk that you may lose money by investing in the Fund.

 

● Value Style Risk. Value stocks involve the risk that they may never reach what the Subadviser believes is their true value, either because the market does not similarly recognize what the Subadviser believes to be the stock’s true value or because the Subadviser’s assessment of the stock’s prospects is wrong. Value stocks may be trading at relatively low valuations as a result of experiencing adverse business developments or may be subject to special risks. While the Subadviser seeks to acquire stocks for the Fund’s portfolio that are undervalued by the market, the stocks held by the Fund may decrease in value. Different types of stocks tend to fall in and out of favor depending on market conditions, and the market may not favor value style investing.

 

● Active Management Risk. The Subadviser’s skill in choosing appropriate investments will play a large part in determining whether the Fund is able to achieve its investment objective. If the Subadviser’s assessment of the prospects for individual securities is incorrect, it could result in significant losses to the Fund and the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.

 

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● Fluctuation of Net Asset Value Risk. The NAV of the Fund’s shares will generally fluctuate with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The market prices of the shares will generally fluctuate in accordance with changes in NAV as well as the relative supply of and demand for the shares on the Exchange. The Subadviser cannot predict whether the shares will trade below, at or above their NAV. Price differences may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand forces at work in the secondary trading market for the shares will be closely related to, but not identical to, the same forces influencing the prices of the Fund’s holdings trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. In addition, unlike conventional ETFs, the Fund is not an index fund. The Fund is actively managed and does not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index. Index based ETFs have generally traded at prices which closely correspond to NAV per share. Actively managed ETFs have a limited trading history and, therefore, there can be no assurance as to whether and/or the extent to which the shares will trade at premiums or discounts to NAV.

 

● Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including disruptions to the creation and redemption processes of the Fund, losses from trading in secondary markets, the existence of extreme market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for shares. The NAV of shares will fluctuate with changes in the market value of the Fund’s securities holdings. The market prices of shares will fluctuate in accordance with changes in NAV and supply and demand on the Exchange. The Fund cannot predict whether shares will trade below, at or above their NAV. If a shareholder purchases shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may sustain losses. Any of these factors, discussed above and further below, may lead to shares trading at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV. However, because shares can be created and redeemed in Creation Units at NAV, the Adviser believes that large discounts or premiums to the NAV of the Fund are not likely to be sustained over the long term. While the creation-redemption feature is designed to make it more likely that the Fund’s shares normally will trade on the Exchange at prices close to the Fund’s next calculated NAV, exchange prices are not expected to correlate exactly with the Fund’s NAV due to timing reasons, supply and demand imbalances and other factors. In addition, disruptions to creations and redemptions, including disruptions at market makers, Authorized Participants, or other market participants, and during periods of significant market volatility, may result in trading prices for shares of the Fund that differ significantly from its NAV. Authorized Participants may be less willing to create or redeem Fund shares if there is a lack of an active market for such shares or its underlying investments, which may contribute to the Fund’s shares trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

 

Absence of Prior Active Market. While the Fund’s shares are listed on an exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for shares will develop or be maintained. The Distributor does not maintain a secondary market in shares.

 

Trading Issues. Trading in shares on an exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the exchange, make trading in shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in shares on an exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to an exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of an exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged. Shares of the Fund, similar to shares of other issuers listed on a stock exchange, may be sold short and are therefore subject to the risk of increased volatility and price decreases associated with being sold short.

 

● Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in the “How to Buy and Sell Shares” section of this prospectus) may engage in creation and redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that act as Authorized Participants. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units, Fund shares may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

 

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● Company Risk. The value of the Fund may decrease in response to the activities and financial prospects of an individual company in the Fund’s portfolio. The value of an individual company can be more volatile than the market as a whole.

 

● Sector Concentration Risk. The Fund may focus its investments in securities of a particular sector. Economic, legislative or regulatory developments may occur that significantly affect the sector. This may cause the Fund’s net asset value to fluctuate more than that of a fund that does not focus in a particular sector. For example, to the extent the Fund focuses its investments in the financial services sector, it will be exposed to additional risk related to changes in government regulations that affect the scope of activities of sector companies, the prices they can charge, and the amount of capital they must maintain. Companies in the financial services sector may also be significantly affected by general economic conditions, including changes in interest rates.

 

● Large Cap Company Risk. Larger, more established companies may be unable to attain the high growth rates of successful, smaller companies during periods of economic expansion.

 

● Small and Medium Cap Company Risk. Securities issued by small- and mid-cap companies involve greater risk of loss and price fluctuation than larger companies. Their securities may be less liquid and more volatile. Securities of small- and mid-cap companies may trade in the over-the-counter market or on a regional exchange, or may otherwise have limited liquidity. As a result, the Fund could have greater difficulty buying or selling a security of small- or mid-cap issuer at an acceptable price, especially in periods of market volatility.

 

● Underlying Funds Risk. When the Fund invests in an Underlying Fund, the Fund indirectly will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the Underlying Fund. Therefore, the Fund will incur higher expenses, many of which may be duplicative. In addition, the Fund may be affected by losses of the Underlying Funds and the level of risk arising from the investment practices of the Underlying Funds (such as the use of leverage). ETFs and closed-end funds are subject to additional risks, such as the fact that their shares may trade at a market price above or below their net asset value or that an active market may not develop.

 

● Money Market Fund Risks. When the Fund invests in an underlying fund, including a money market fund, the Fund indirectly will bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the underlying fund. Therefore, the Fund will incur higher expenses, many of which may be duplicative. Although each underlying money market fund in which the Fund may invest seeks to maintain the value of the investments at $1.00 per share, there is no assurance that the underlying fund will be able to do so.

 

● Equity Securities Risk. Equity securities are susceptible to general stock market fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value. The equity securities held by the Fund may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors affecting securities markets generally, the equity securities of a particular sector, or a particular company.

 

● Foreign Company Risk. Investing in foreign companies may involve risks not associated with equity investments in U.S. companies, including currency fluctuation, inflation, local withholding and other taxes, different financial reporting practices and regulatory standards, changes in political conditions, nationalization, expropriation, and investment and repatriation restrictions. The Fund may lose money due to political, security, economic and geographic events affecting issuers of non-U.S. companies.

 

● Depositary Receipt Risk. ADRs are receipts, issued by depository banks in the United States, for shares of a foreign-based company that entitle the holder to dividends and capital gains on the underlying security. ADRs may be sponsored or unsponsored. In addition to the risks of investing in foreign securities, there is no guarantee that an ADR issuer will continue to offer a particular ADR. As a result, the Fund may have difficulty selling the ADR or selling them quickly and efficiently at the prices at which they have been valued. The issuers of unsponsored ADRs are not obligated to disclose information that is considered material in the U.S. and voting rights with respect to the deposited securities are not passed through. ADRs may not track the prices of the underlying foreign securities on which they are based, and their values may change materially at times when U.S. markets are not open for trading.

 

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● Risk of Investing in Developed Countries. The Fund’s investment in developed country issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security, economic and other risks associated with developed countries. Developed countries tend to represent a significant portion of the global economy and have generally experienced slower economic growth than some less developed countries. Certain developed countries have experienced security concerns, such as terrorism and strained international relations. Incidents involving a country’s or region’s security may cause uncertainty in its markets and may adversely affect its economy and the Fund’s investments. In addition, developed countries may be adversely impacted by changes to the economic conditions of certain key trading partners, regulatory burdens, debt burdens and the price or availability of certain commodities.

 

● Inflation Risk. At any time, the Fund may have significant investments in cash or cash equivalents. When a substantial portion of a portfolio is held in cash or cash equivalents, there is the risk that the value of the cash account, including interest, will not keep pace with inflation, thus reducing purchasing power over time.

 

● Non-Diversification Risk. Because the Fund is non-diversified, it will hold larger positions in a smaller number of securities than funds that are “diversified.” This means that an increase or decrease in the value of a single security likely will have a greater impact on the Fund’s net asset value and total return than a diversified fund. In particular, the Fund typically seeks to hold between 15 and 25 companies and therefore may be more susceptible to adverse developments affecting any single company held in its portfolio, and may be more susceptible to greater losses because of these developments, than a diversified fund that holds a greater number of investments.

 

● Issuer Cybersecurity Risk. Issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, counterparties with which the Fund engages in transactions, exchange and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers and other financial institutions may experience cybersecurity breaches. Cybersecurity breaches can include unauthorized access to systems, networks, or devices; infection from computer viruses or other malicious software code; ransomware; and attacks that shut down, disable, slow, or otherwise disrupt operations, business processes, or website access or functionality. These breaches may result in harmful disruptions to their operations and may negatively impact the financial condition for the municipal issuer, counterparty or other market participant. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

 

● Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund and its agents seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address significant operational risks.

 

Changes in Investment Objective or Policies

 

The Fund’s Board of Trustees (the “Board”) may change the Fund’s investment objective without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ written notice to shareholders. The Fund’s other investment policies and strategies may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval unless otherwise provided in this prospectus or in the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”).

 

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Temporary Defensive Positions

 

In response to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategies, such as investing some or all of the Fund’s assets in cash or cash equivalents. The Fund may also choose not to use these temporary defensive strategies for a variety of reasons, even in volatile market conditions. Engaging in these temporary defensive measures may cause the Fund to miss out on investment opportunities and may prevent the Fund from achieving its investment objective. While temporary defensive positions are designed to limit losses, these strategies may not work as intended.

 

Portfolio Holdings

 

A description of the policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio securities is available in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information. As an actively managed transparent ETF, the Fund discloses on its website on each day the Exchange is open for regular trading, before commencement of trading in the Fund’s shares on the Exchange, the identities and quantities of all the portfolio instruments held by the Fund that will form the basis for the Fund’s calculation of NAV at the end of the business day. However, the Fund reserves the right to adopt a semi-transparency policy which would allow the Fund to disclose information to facilitate efficient trading of shares through substantial portfolio transparency and publication of informative metrics, while shielding the identity of the full portfolio contents of the Fund to protect the Fund’s investment strategy. The Fund may adopt such a policy with approval of the Board and without shareholder approval, subject to obtaining any required exemptive relief.

 

Cybersecurity

 

The computer systems, networks and devices used by the Fund and its service providers to carry out routine business operations employ a variety of protections designed to prevent damage or interruption from computer viruses, network failures, computer and telecommunication failures, infiltration by unauthorized persons and security breaches. Despite the various protections utilized by the Fund and its service providers, systems, networks, or devices potentially can be breached. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result of a cybersecurity breach. Cybersecurity breaches can include unauthorized access to systems, networks, or devices; infection from computer viruses or other malicious software code; and attacks that shut down, disable, slow, or otherwise disrupt operations, business processes, or website access or functionality. Cybersecurity breaches may cause disruptions and impact the Fund’s business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses; interference with the Fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value; impediments to trading; the inability of a Fund, the Adviser, the Subadviser and other service providers to transact business; violations of applicable privacy and other laws; regulatory fines; penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, or additional compliance costs; as well as the inadvertent release of confidential information.

 

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HISTORICAL PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBADVISER’S PRIVATE ACCOUNTS

 

The Subadviser began managing accounts using its “Select Value” (prior to January 1, 2021, “Core Equity”) strategy on June 1, 1999. The performance table below provides a summary of the performance of all accounts (the “Accounts”) managed by the Subadviser, with substantially similar investment objectives, policies, strategies and risks to those of the Fund for periods ended December 31, 2021, and compares the Accounts’ performance during those periods against two appropriate broad-based securities market indices, the Russell 1000® Value Index and the S&P 500 Total Return Index. As of December 31, 2021, the Accounts held approximately $772.9 million in total assets. Robert J. Mark, Cofounder, Managing Member and Portfolio Manager of the Subadviser, who is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio, has been primarily responsible for the day-to-day oversight of the Accounts throughout the entire period presented.

 

The performance of the Accounts does not represent the historical performance of the Fund and should not be considered a substitute for the Absolute Select Value ETF’s performance or indicative of past or future performance of the Fund. Results may differ because of, among other things, differences in brokerage commissions, account expenses (including management fees), the size of positions taken in relation to account size and diversification of securities, timing of purchases and sales, and availability of cash for new investments. In addition, the Accounts are not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“1940 Act”) and therefore are not subject to certain investment limitations, diversification requirements, and other restrictions imposed by the 1940 Act and the Internal Revenue Code which, if applicable, may have adversely affected the performance results of the Accounts. The results for different periods may vary.

 

The return of the Accounts is a composite that represents the return information of all of the Accounts, calculated by asset weighting individual account returns, using beginning of month values. The Accounts’ returns for the periods presented below are calculated by geometrically linking the monthly returns. The returns are calculated on a total return basis and include all dividends and interest, accrued income, and realized and unrealized gains and losses. The returns are calculated differently than the standard methodology prescribed for mutual funds by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Results reflect the reinvestment of dividends and capital gains.

 

The Accounts’ returns reflect the deduction of the standard advisory fee applicable to the Subadviser’s accounts, and are net of actual expenses incurred by the Accounts, including trading commissions. The standard advisory fee for the Accounts has ranged from 1.25% through December 31, 2012, lowered to approximately 1.00% thereafter. However, the Accounts do not incur certain charges and expenses that are incurred by the Fund. If actual fees and expenses of the Fund were reflected in the performance of the Accounts, the performance of the Accounts may be lower than the performance shown.

 

AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS

(for periods ended December 31, 2021)

 

  1 Year 5 Year(1) 10 Year(1) 20 Year(1)

Since Inception

(June 1, 1999)

Accounts (Net) 12.8% 7.9% 7.6% 8.0% 8.7%
Russell 1000 Value Index(2) 25.1% 11.2% 13.0% 8.3% 7.3%
S&P 500 Total Return Index(2) 28.7% 18.5% 16.5% 9.5% 7.9%

 

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ANNUAL RETURNS

(December 31, 2021)

 

  Accounts (Net) Russell 1000® Value Index S&P 500 Total Return Index(2)
1999 30.89% -2.13% 13.68%
2000 7.59% 7.02% -9.10%
2001 0.23% -5.59% -11.89%
2002 -0.13% -15.52% -22.10%
2003 23.84% 30.03% 28.68%
2004 19.43% 16.49% 10.88%
2005 8.91% 7.04% 4.91%
2006 8.84% 22.22% 15.79%
2007 7.25% -0.17% 5.49%
2008 -12.07% -36.85% -37.00%
2009 18.37% 19.69% 26.46%
2010 8.20% 15.51% 15.06%
2011 6.36% 0.39% 2.11%
2012 3.30% 17.50% 16.00%
2013 15.74% 32.54% 32.39%
2014 9.75% 13.46% 13.69%
2015 -1.87% -3.84% 1.38%
2016 10.61% 17.31% 11.96%
2017 12.40% 13.65% 21.83%
2018 -5.06% -8.26% -4.38%
2019 18.21% 26.56% 31.49%
2020 2.97% 2.79% 18.39%
2021 12.83% 25.14% 28.68%

 

Past performance is not indicative of future results.

 

(1) Annualized.
     
(2) The benchmark for the Accounts was changed from the S&P 500® Total Return Index (“S&P 500 Index”) to the Russell 1000® Value Index, for all periods, as of December 31, 2020. The Russell 1000 Value Index and the S&P 500 Index are widely recognized unmanaged indices of equity prices and are representative of a broader market and range of securities than are found in the Fund’s portfolio. Index returns to not reflect the deduction of expenses, which have been deducted from the Fund’s returns. Index returns assume reinvestment of all distributions and do not reflect the deduction of taxes and fees. Individuals cannot invest directly in an index; however, an individual may invest in exchange-traded funds or other investment vehicles that attempt to track the performance of a benchmark index.

 

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ACCOUNT INFORMATION

 

How to Buy and Sell Shares

 

Only certain financial institutions such as registered broker-dealers and banks that have entered into agreements with the Fund’s Distributor (“Authorized Participants” or “APs”) may acquire shares directly from the Fund and tender their shares for redemption directly to the Fund. Such purchases and redemptions are made at NAV per share and only in large blocks, or Creation Units, of shares. Purchases and redemptions directly with the Fund must follow the Fund’s procedures, which are described in the SAI.

 

A creation transaction, which is subject to acceptance by the Fund’s Distributor and the Fund, generally takes place when an AP deposits into the Fund a designated portfolio of securities (“Deposit Securities”) (including any portion of such securities for which cash may be substituted) and a specified amount of cash approximating the holdings of the Fund in exchange for a specified number of Creation Units. The composition of such portfolio generally corresponds pro rata to the holdings of the Fund. However, the Fund may, in certain circumstances, offer Creation Units partially or solely for cash. Similarly, shares can be redeemed only in Creation Units, generally for a designated portfolio of securities (including any portion of such securities for which cash may be substituted) held by the Fund and a specified amount of cash. Except when aggregated in Creation Units, shares are not redeemable. The prices at which creations and redemptions occur are based on the next calculation of NAV after a creation or redemption order is received in an acceptable form under the AP agreement.

 

The Fund charges APs standard creation and redemption transaction fees to offset transfer and other transaction costs associated with the issuance and redemption of Creation Units. The standard creation and redemption transaction fees are set forth in the table below. The standard creation transaction fee is charged to the AP on the day such AP creates a Creation Unit, and is the same regardless of the number of Creation Units purchased by the AP on the applicable business day. Similarly, the standard redemption transaction fee is charged to the AP on the day such AP redeems a Creation Unit, and is the same regardless of the number of Creation Units redeemed by the AP on the applicable business day. Creations and redemptions for cash (when cash creations and redemptions (in whole or in part) are available or specified) are also subject to an additional charge (up to the maximum amounts shown in the table below). This charge is intended to compensate for brokerage, tax, foreign exchange, execution, price movement and other costs and expenses related to cash transactions (which may, in certain instances, be based on a good faith estimate of transaction costs).

 

The Transaction Fees for the Fund are listed in the table below.

 

Fee for In-Kind and Cash Purchases Maximum Additional Variable Charge for Cash Purchases*
$250 200 basis points (2.00)%

 

* As a percentage of the amount invested.

 

The Fund reserves the right to make redemptions of shares for cash.

 

Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on NYSE Arca under the symbol ABEQ. Share prices are reported in dollars and cents per share. Shares can be bought and sold on the secondary market throughout the trading day like other publicly traded shares, and shares typically trade in blocks of less than a Creation Unit. Shares may only be purchased and sold on the secondary market when the Exchange is open for trading. The Exchange is open for trading Monday through Friday and is closed on weekends and the following holidays, as observed: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

 

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When buying or selling shares through a broker, you will incur customary brokerage commissions and charges, and you may pay some or all of the spread between the bid and the offered price in the secondary market on each leg of a round trip (purchase and sale) transaction.

 

The Fund may liquidate and terminate at any time without shareholder approval.

 

Book Entry

 

Shares are held in book entry form, which means that no stock certificates are issued. The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee is the record owner of all outstanding shares of the Fund and is recognized as the owner of all shares for all purposes.

 

Investors owning shares are beneficial owners as shown on the records of DTC or its participants. DTC serves as the securities depository for all shares. Participants in DTC include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and other institutions that directly or indirectly maintain a custodial relationship with DTC. As a beneficial owner of shares, you are not entitled to receive physical delivery of stock certificates or to have shares registered in your name, and you are not considered a registered owner of shares. Therefore, to exercise any right as an owner of shares, you must rely upon the procedures of DTC and its participants. These procedures are the same as those that apply to any other securities that you hold in book entry or “street name” form.

 

Frequent Purchases And Redemptions Of Fund Shares

 

The Fund’s shares can only be purchased and redeemed directly from the Fund in Creation Units by APs, and the vast majority of trading in the Fund’s shares occurs on the secondary market. Because the secondary market trades do not directly involve the Fund, it is unlikely those trades would cause the harmful effects of market timing, including dilution, disruption of portfolio management, increases in the Fund’s trading costs and the realization of capital gains. With regard to the purchase or redemption of Creation Units directly with the Fund, to the extent effected in-kind (i.e., for securities), those trades do not cause the harmful effects that may result from frequent cash trades. To the extent trades are effected in whole or in part in cash, those trades could result in dilution to the Fund and increased transaction costs, which could negatively impact the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. However, direct trading by APs is critical to ensuring that the Fund’s shares trade at or close to NAV. The Fund also employs fair valuation pricing to minimize potential dilution from market timing. In addition, the Fund imposes transaction fees on purchases and redemptions of Fund shares to cover the custodial and other costs incurred by the Fund in effecting trades. These fees increase if an investor substitutes cash in part or in whole for securities, reflecting the fact that the Fund’s trading costs increase in those circumstances. Given this structure, the Trust has determined that it is not necessary to adopt policies and procedures to detect and deter market timing of the Fund’s shares.

 

Determination of Net Asset Value

 

The NAV is calculated at the close of trading (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business. The NAV is calculated by dividing the value of its total assets (including interest and dividends accrued but not received) minus liabilities (including accrued expenses) by the total number of shares outstanding. Requests to purchase and sell shares are processed at the applicable NAV next calculated after the Fund receives your order in proper form.

 

The Fund’s assets generally are valued at their market value. Securities that are traded on any exchange or on the NASDAQ over-the-counter market are valued at the closing price reported by the exchange on which the securities are traded. If market quotations are not available or do not reflect a fair value, or if an event occurs after the close of the trading market but before the calculation of the NAV that materially affects the value, then the assets may be valued by the Subadviser at a fair value as determined in good faith by the Subadviser pursuant to guidelines established by the Board. When pricing securities using the fair value guidelines established by the Board, the Subadviser seeks to assign a value that represents the amount that the Fund might reasonably expect to receive upon a current sale of the securities.

 

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Without fair value pricing, short-term traders could take advantage of the arbitrage opportunity and dilute the NAV of long-term investors. Fair valuation of the Fund’s portfolio securities can serve to reduce arbitrage opportunities available to short-term traders. However, there is no assurance that fair value pricing policies will prevent dilution of the Fund’s NAV by short-term traders, or that the Fund will realize fair valuation upon the sale of a security. The Fund may invest in portfolio securities that are listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not price its shares and, as a result, the NAV of the Fund’s shares may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or redeem the Fund’s shares.

 

Given the subjectivity inherent in fair valuation and the fact that events could occur after NAV calculation, the actual market prices for a security may differ from the fair value of that security as determined by the Subadviser at the time of NAV calculation. Thus, discrepancies between fair values and actual market prices may occur on a regular and recurring basis. These discrepancies do not necessarily indicate that the Subadviser’s fair value methodology is inappropriate. The Subadviser will adjust the fair values assigned to securities in the Fund’s portfolio, to the extent necessary, as soon as market prices become available.

 

Premium/Discount Information

 

Most investors will buy and sell shares of the Fund in secondary market transactions through brokers at market prices and the Fund’s shares will trade at market prices. The market price of shares of the Fund may be greater than, equal to, or less than NAV. Market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors may affect the trading prices of shares of the Fund.

 

Information regarding how often the shares of the Fund traded at a price above (at a premium to) or below (at a discount to) the NAV of the Fund during the past four calendar quarters, when available, can be found at https://absoluteadvisers.com.

 

Dividends, Distributions and Taxes

 

Ordinarily, dividends from net investment income, if any, are declared and paid semi-annually by the Fund. The Fund distributes its net realized capital gains, if any, to shareholders annually.

 

Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional whole shares only if the broker through whom you purchased shares makes such option available.

 

Taxes

 

As with any investment, you should consider how your investment in shares will be taxed. The tax information in this prospectus is provided as general information. You should consult your own tax professional about the tax consequences of an investment in shares.

 

Unless your investment in shares is made through a tax-exempt entity or tax-deferred retirement account, such as an individual retirement account, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when:

 

● the Fund makes distributions,

 

● you sell your shares listed on the Exchange, and

 

● you purchase or redeem Creation Units.

 

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Taxes on Distributions

 

As stated above, dividends from net investment income, if any, ordinarily are declared and paid semi-annually by the Fund. The Fund may also pay a special distribution at the end of a calendar year to comply with federal tax requirements. Distributions from the Fund’s net investment income, including net short-term capital gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income, except that the Fund’s dividends attributable to its “qualified dividend income” (i.e., dividends received on stock of most domestic and certain foreign corporations with respect to which the Fund satisfies certain holding period and other restrictions), if any, generally are subject to federal income tax for non-corporate shareholders who satisfy those restrictions with respect to their Fund shares at the rate for net capital gain. A part of the Fund’s dividends also may be eligible for the dividends-received deduction allowed to corporations -- the eligible portion may not exceed the aggregate dividends the Fund receives from domestic corporations subject to federal income tax (excluding REITs) and excludes dividends from foreign corporations -- subject to similar restrictions. However, dividends a corporate shareholder deducts pursuant to that deduction are subject indirectly to the federal alternative minimum tax.

 

In general, your distributions are subject to federal income tax when they are paid, whether you take them in cash or reinvest them in the Fund (if that option is available). Distributions reinvested in additional shares of the Fund through the means of a dividend reinvestment service, if available, will be taxable to shareholders acquiring the additional shares to the same extent as if such distributions had been received in cash. Distributions of net long-term capital gains, if any, in excess of net short-term capital losses are taxable as long-term capital gains, regardless of how long you have held the shares.

 

Distributions in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits are treated as a tax-free return of capital to the extent of your basis in the shares and as capital gain thereafter. A distribution will reduce the Fund’s NAV per share and may be taxable to you as ordinary income or capital gain (as described above) even though, from an investment standpoint, the distribution may constitute a return of capital.

 

By law, the Fund is required to withhold 28% of your distributions and redemption proceeds if you have not provided the Fund with a correct social security number or other taxpayer identification number and in certain other situations.

 

Taxes on Exchange-Listed Share Sales

 

Any capital gain or loss realized upon a sale of shares is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for one year or less. The ability to deduct capital losses from sales of shares may be limited.

 

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units

 

An AP who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally will recognize a gain or a loss equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of the exchange and the sum of the exchanger’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus any Cash Component it pays. An AP who exchanges Creation Units for securities will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the exchanger’s basis in the Creation Units and the sum of the aggregate market value of the securities received plus any cash equal to the difference between the NAV of the shares being redeemed and the value of the securities. The Internal Revenue Service (“Service”), however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for Creation Units cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales” or for other reasons. Persons exchanging securities should consult their own tax advisor with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss might be deductible.

 

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Any capital gain or loss realized upon redemption of Creation Units is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for one year or less.

 

If you purchase or redeem Creation Units, you will be sent a confirmation statement showing how many shares you purchased or sold and at what price. See “Tax Status” in the SAI for a description of the newly effective requirement regarding basis determination methods applicable to share redemptions and the Fund’s obligation to report basis information to the Service.

 

The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the possible consequences under current federal tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. Consult your personal tax advisor about the potential tax consequences of an investment in the shares under all applicable tax laws. See “Tax Status” in the SAI for more information.

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND

 

Adviser

 

Absolute Investment Advisers LLC (the “Adviser”), located at 4 North Street, Suite 2, Hingham, MA 02043, serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. The Adviser is a registered investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and provides investment advisory services to the Fund. As of March 31, 2022, the Adviser had approximately $950 million of assets under management.

 

For its advisory services, the Adviser is paid a fee at the annual rate of 0.85% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. The Adviser has contractually agreed to waive its management fee and/or to reimburse certain operating expenses, but only to the extent necessary so that the Fund’s total annual operating expenses, excluding portfolio transaction and other investment-related costs (including brokerage fees and commissions); taxes; borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expenses on securities sold short); acquired fund fees and expenses; fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example option and swap fees and expenses); any amounts payable pursuant to a distribution or service plan adopted in accordance with Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act; any administrative and/or shareholder servicing fees payable pursuant to a plan adopted by the Board; expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization; extraordinary expenses (such as litigation expenses, indemnification of Trust officers and Trustees and contractual indemnification of Fund service providers); and other expenses that the Trustees agree have not been incurred in the ordinary course of the Fund’s business, do not exceed 0.85% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. The contractual agreement is in place through July 31, 2024. Each waiver/expense payment by the Adviser is subject to recoupment by the Adviser from the Fund in the three years following the date the particular waiver/expense payment occurred, but only if such recoupment can be achieved without exceeding the annual expense limitation in effect at the time of the waiver/expense payment and any expense limitation in effect at the time of the recoupment. During the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, the Adviser received fees equal to 0.46% of the average daily net assets of the Fund after fee waivers and expense reimbursements.

 

A discussion of the factors that the Board considered in approving the management agreement for the Fund is included in the Fund’s semi-annual report to shareholders for the fiscal period ended September 30, 2020.

 

Subadviser

 

The Adviser entered into a sub-advisory agreement with St. James Investment Company, LLC, located at 3838 Oak Lawn Avenue, Suite 1414, Dallas, TX 75219, pursuant to which the Subadviser manages the Fund’s portfolio and makes investment decisions. The Subadviser was formed in 1999 and manages assets for institutional clients, high-net worth individuals and mutual funds.

 

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For its sub-advisory investment services to the Fund, the Subadviser receives a fee from the Adviser, at the annual rate of 0.30% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.

 

The Adviser oversees the Subadviser’s compliance with the Fund’s investment objective, policies, strategies and restrictions, and monitors the Subadviser’s adherence to its investment style. Notwithstanding the delegation to the Subadviser, the Adviser retains primary responsibility with respect to all matters relating to the Fund. The Adviser (not the Fund) pays the Subadviser out of the investment management fee that it receives from the Fund.

 

A discussion of the factors that the Board considered in approving the subadvisory agreement for the Fund is included in the Fund’s semi-annual report to shareholders for the fiscal period ended September 30, 2020.

 

Portfolio Manager

 

The investment decisions for the Fund are made by Robert J. Mark, co-founder and Managing Member of the Subadviser. Mr. Mark serves as portfolio manager for the firm’s Select Value strategy. Mr. Mark formerly worked in the Private Client Group at Goldman Sachs in Houston after graduating from the University of Texas at Austin where he received his MBA in Finance. He graduated in 1989 from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in Engineering.

 

The Fund’s Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the Fund’s Portfolio Manager, including his compensation, other accounts that he manages, and ownership of Fund shares.

 

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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

The financial highlights table is intended to help you understand the financial performance of the Fund for the periods shown. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the tables represent the rate that an investor would have earned or lost on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). The information has been audited by Cohen & Company, Ltd., Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, is included in the Fund’s Annual Report to Shareholders, which is available upon request without charge.

 

ABSOLUTE SELECT VALUE ETF
(formerly, Absolute Core Strategy ETF)

 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

(For a share outstanding during each period)

 

   

For the
Year Ended
March 31,
2022

    

For the
Year Ended
March 31,
2021

    

For the
Period Ended
March 31,

2020(a)

  

Selected Per Share Data:

                        
Net asset value, beginning of period   $ 26.22     $ 20.14     $ 25.00  
                         
Investment operations:                        
Net investment income     0.22       0.13       0.03  
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments     3.61       6.10       (4.89 )
Total from investment operations     3.83       6.23       (4.86 )
                         
Less distributions to shareholders from:                        
Net investment income     (0.17 )     (0.15 )     —  
Total distributions     (0.17 )     (0.15 )     —  
                         
Net asset value, end of period   $ 29.88     $ 26.22     $ 20.14  
Market price, end of period   $ 29.92     $ 26.23     $ 20.21  
                         
Total Return(b)     14.66 %     31.02 %     (19.44 )%(c) 
                         
Ratios and Supplemental Data:                        
Net assets, end of period (000 omitted)   $ 64,243     $ 45,887     $ 22,151  
Ratio of net expenses to average net assets     0.85 %     0.85 %     0.85 %(d)
Ratio of expenses to average net assets before waiver and reimbursement     1.24 %     1.51 %     3.88 %(d)
Ratio of net investment income to average net assets     0.85 %     0.58 %     1.40 %(d)
Portfolio turnover rate(e)     23 %     36 %     30 %(c)

 

(a) For the period January 21, 2020 (commencement of operations) to March 31, 2020.
   
(b)

Total return is calculated assuming a purchase of shares at net asset value on the first day and a sale at net asset value on the last day of the period. Distributions are assumed, for the purpose of this calculation, to be reinvested at the ex-dividend date net asset value per share on their respective payment dates.

   
(c) Not annualized.
   
(d) Annualized.
   
(e)

Portfolio turnover rate excludes securities received or delivered from in-kind processing of creations or redemptions.

 

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DISCLAIMERS

 

Shares of the Fund are not sponsored, endorsed, or promoted by the NYSE Arca, Inc. The NYSE Arca, Inc. makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the shares of the Fund. The NYSE Arca, Inc. is not responsible for, nor has it participated in, the determination of the timing of, prices of, or quantities of the shares of the Fund to be issued, or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the shares are redeemable. The NYSE Arca, Inc. has no obligation or liability to owners of the shares of the Fund in connection with the administration, marketing, or trading of the shares of the Fund. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall the NYSE Arca, Inc. have any liability for any lost profits or indirect, punitive, special, or consequential damages even if notified of the possibility thereof.

 

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FOR MORE INFORMATION

 

You can find additional information about the Fund in the following documents:

 

Annual and Semi-Annual Reports: While the prospectus describes the Fund’s potential investments, the Annual and Semi-Annual Reports detail the Fund’s actual investments as of their report dates. The Fund’s Annual Report includes a discussion by Fund management of market conditions, economic trends, and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during the reporting period.

 

Statement of Additional Information (SAI): The SAI supplements the prospectus and contains additional information about the Fund and its investment restrictions, risks, policies and operations, including the Fund’s policies and procedures relating to the disclosure of portfolio holdings by the Fund’s affiliates. A current SAI for the Fund is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is incorporated into this prospectus by reference, which means it is considered part of this prospectus.

 

How to Obtain Copies of Other Fund Documents

 

You can obtain free copies of the Fund’s current SAI and Annual and Semi-Annual Reports, and request other information about the Fund or make shareholder inquiries, in any of the following ways:

 

On the Internet: Download these documents from the Fund’s Internet site at https://absoluteadvisers.com.

 

By Telephone: Call the Adviser at 1-833- 267-3383.

 

By Mail: Send a written request to:

 

Absolute Select Value ETF

Absolute Investment Advisers LLC

4 North Street

Hingham, MA 02043

 

Information about the Fund (including the SAI and other reports) is available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: [email protected].

 

Investment Company Act #811-21237