Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

 

Institutional Class - MOWIX

Class N - MOWNX

 

a Series of Northern Lights Fund Trust IV

PROSPECTUS

March 28, 2024

Advised by:

Moerus Capital Management LLC

307 West 38th Street, Suite 2003

New York, NY 10018

 

 

www.moeruscap.com                                                                                     1-844-MOERUS1 (toll free)

 

This Prospectus provides important information about the Fund that you should know before investing. Please read it carefully and keep it for future reference.

 

These securities have not been approved or disapproved by the Securities and Exchange Commission nor has the Securities and Exchange Commission passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

 
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

FUND SUMMARY - MOERUS WORLDWIDE VALUE FUND 1
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS 6
Investment Objective 6
Principal Investment Strategies 6
Principal Investment Risks 7
Temporary Investments 9
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure 9
Operational and Cybersecurity Risk 9
MANAGEMENT 9
Investment Adviser 9
Portfolio Manager 10
HOW SHARES ARE PRICED 10
HOW TO PURCHASE SHARES 11
HOW TO REDEEM SHARES 13
FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES 15
TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS 16
DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES 17
Distributor 17
Distribution Fees 17
Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries 17
Householding 17
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS 18
PRIVACY NOTICE 20

 

 
 

FUND SUMMARY - MOERUS WORLDWIDE VALUE FUND

 

Investment Objective: The Fund’s objective is long-term capital appreciation.

 

Fees and Expenses of the Fund: This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.

 


Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
Class
N
Institutional
Class
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases
(as a percentage of offering price)
None None
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load)
(as a percentage of offering price)
None None
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on
Reinvested Dividends and other Distributions
(as a percentage of offering price)
None None
Redemption Fee None None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year
as a percentage of the value of your investment)
   
Management Fees 0.95% 0.95%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees 0.25% 0.00%
Other Expenses 0.76% 0.76%
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(1) 0.01% 0.01%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 1.97% 1.72%
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement(2) (0.46)% (0.46)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses
After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement
1.51% 1.26%
(1)Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are the indirect costs of investing in other investment companies. The operating expenses in this fee table will not correlate to the expense ratio in the Fund’s financial highlights because the financial statements include only the direct operating expenses incurred by the Fund, not the indirect costs of investing in other investment companies.
(2)Moerus Capital Management LLC (the “Adviser”) has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least March 31, 2025, to ensure that total annual fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or reimbursement excluding (i) any front-end or contingent deferred loads; (ii) brokerage fees and commissions; (iii) acquired fees and expenses; (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example option and swap fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; or
(vii) extraordinary expenses such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, and contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Adviser)) will not exceed 1.50% and 1.25% of the average daily net assets for Class N and Institutional Class Shares, respectively. The fee waiver and expense reimbursements are subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three-year basis, if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the foregoing expense limits or those in place at the time of recapture (after the repayment is taken into account). This agreement may be terminated by the Board of Trustees only on 60 days’ written notice to the Adviser.

 

Example: This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.

 

The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based upon these assumptions your costs would be:

 

  1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
Class N $154 $574 $1,020 $2,259
Institutional Class $128 $497 $890 $1,992

 

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 fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 34% of the average value of its portfolio.

1 
 

Principal Investment Strategies:

 

The Adviser pursues the Fund’s investment objective by investing primarily in foreign (including frontier and emerging markets) and domestic common stocks that it believes are undervalued. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests in securities from at least three different countries and invests at least 80% of its total assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) in securities of issuers organized or having their principal place of business outside the U.S. or doing a substantial amount (more than 50%) of business outside the U.S. In determining if a common stock is a U.S. or non-U.S. security, the Adviser may consider its country of risk, which is determined by various factors including the issuer’s country of domicile, the primary stock exchange on which it trades, and its reporting currency. For avoidance of doubt, common stocks designated as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are considered non-U.S. securities. Under normal market conditions, the Fund’s portfolio consists of the common stock of 15 to 50 issuers, including ADRs, allowing the Adviser to focus the Fund’s assets on the opportunities that, in the Adviser’s opinion, have the highest potential for capital appreciation. Emerging markets are economies in nations that are progressing toward becoming more advanced, usually by means of rapid growth and industrialization. Frontier markets are those markets which are not as developed as emerging markets.

 

The Adviser implements the Fund’s investment program by applying its opportunistic, bottom-up value analysis and preference for focus on well-capitalized companies that are facing near term challenges. The Adviser uses a fundamental approach to purchase securities that are trading at substantial discounts to the Adviser’s estimates of their intrinsic values. The Adviser builds the Fund’s portfolio from the bottom up, based on its assessment of value, focusing on businesses it believes have solid balance sheets, high quality business models and shareholder-friendly management teams.

 

The Fund’s portfolio is primarily comprised of companies with sufficient capital to service their debt, and can survive market downturns and other financial events. The Adviser believes that these companies have an enhanced ability to survive difficult periods and thrive over the long term, providing the Fund with the opportunity to achieve higher long term returns.

 

The Adviser has significant flexibility in terms of where and how it can invest – including by geography, industry, sector or currency. Because of this flexibility, while the Fund does not concentrate its investments in any one specific industry, the Fund’s portfolio may have significant exposure to a small number of sectors or industries from time to time. The Fund tends to invest in deep value, lesser-known securities of any capitalization, including small to mid-cap, and those
less-followed or covered by traditional investment research. The Adviser will sell a security to invest in other securities that it believes are more undervalued, or if it believes that the security is materially overvalued. In addition, the Adviser may allocate a portion of the Fund’s assets to cash and cash equivalents to allow it to service redemptions and react quickly to fluctuations in the market and benefit from extreme and short-term market disruptions, which may provide opportunities to purchase securities that, in the Adviser’s opinion, are attractively valued, from sellers eager to exit the market.

 

Principal Investment Risks: As with all mutual funds, there is a risk that you could lose money through your investment in the Fund. The Fund is not intended to be a complete investment program. Many factors affect the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”) and performance. As with any mutual fund, there is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its goal.

 

ADRs Risk. ADRs, which are typically issued by a bank, are certificates that evidence ownership of shares of a foreign company and are alternatives to purchasing foreign securities directly in their national markets and currencies. ADRs are subject to many of the same risks as direct investment in foreign companies and may involve risks that are not found in investments in U.S. companies.

 

Cash or Cash Equivalents Risk. 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.

 

Common Stock Risk. Common stocks are susceptible to general stock market fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence in and perceptions of their issuers change. Investor perceptions are based on various and unpredictable factors, including expectations regarding government, economic, monetary and fiscal policies; inflation and interest rates; economic expansion or contraction and global or regional political, economic and banking crises.

 

Currency Risk. If the Fund invests in securities that trade in, and receive revenues in, foreign currencies, it will be subject to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. dollar, or, in the case of hedging positions, that the U.S. dollar will decline in value relative to the currency being hedged. As a result, the Fund’s investments in foreign currency-denominated securities may reduce the Fund’s returns.

2 
 

 

Emerging Markets Risk. Investing in emerging markets, including frontier markets, involves not only the risks described below with respect to investing in foreign securities, but also other risks, including exposure to economic structures that are generally less diverse and mature, limited availability and reliability of information material to an investment decision, and to political systems that can be expected to have less stability, than those of developed countries. The typically small size of the markets of securities of issuers located in emerging markets and the possibility of a low or nonexistent volume of trading in those securities may also result in a lack of liquidity and in price volatility of those securities.

 

Foreign Securities Risk. Since the Fund’s investments may include foreign securities, the Fund is subject to risks beyond those associated with investing in domestic securities. Foreign companies are generally not subject to the same regulatory requirements of U.S. companies thereby resulting in less publicly available information about these companies. In addition, foreign accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards generally differ from those applicable to U.S. companies. Because the Fund may invest in underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign exchanges, and these exchanges may trade on weekends or other days when the underlying ETFs do not price their shares, the value of some of the Fund’s portfolio securities may change on days when you may not be able to buy or sell Fund shares.

 

Frontier Markets Risk. Frontier market countries tend to have economic structures that are less diverse and mature, and political systems that are less stable, than those of emerging market or developed market countries. In addition to the risks of investing in international emerging markets, frontier markets tend to have less efficient trading markets with lower overall liquidity and are more susceptible to governmental interference, local taxes being imposed on international investments, and restrictions on gaining access to sales proceeds. Frontier markets generally have smaller economies or less mature capital markets than emerging markets and, as a result, the risks typically associated with investing in emerging market countries are magnified in frontier countries.

 

Geographic Risk. If the Fund focuses its investments in issuers located in a particular country or geographic region, the Fund may be subjected, to a greater extent than if its investments were less focused, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular to that country or region, such as: adverse securities markets; adverse exchange rates; adverse social, political, regulatory, economic, business, environmental or other developments; or natural disasters.

 

Management Risk. The Adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of a particular security in which the Fund invests or sells may prove to be incorrect and may not achieve the Fund’s investment objective.

 

Market and Geopolitical Risk. 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-change and climate related events, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, international conflicts, regulatory events and governmental or quasi-governmental actions. The occurrence of global events similar to those in recent years may result in market volatility and may have long term effects on both the U.S. and global financial markets.

 

Sector Risk. If the Fund’s portfolio is overweighted in a certain sector, any negative development affecting that sector will have a greater impact on the Fund than it would have on a fund that is not overweighted in that sector. The Fund may from time to time have a greater focus in certain sectors, and weakness in those sectors could result in significant losses to the Fund.

 

Small and Medium Capitalization Stock Risk. The earnings and prospects of small and medium sized companies are more volatile than larger companies and may experience higher failure rates than larger companies. Small and medium sized companies normally have a lower trading volume than larger companies, which may tend to make their market price fall more disproportionately than larger companies in response to selling pressures and may have limited markets, product lines, or financial resources and lack management experience.

 

Value Investing Risk. The Adviser’s assessment of a stock’s intrinsic value may never be fully recognized or realized by the market, and a stock judged to be undervalued or overvalued may actually be appropriately priced or its price may decline.

3 
 

 

Performance: The bar chart and performance table below show the variability of the Fund’s returns, which is some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class shares for each full calendar year since the Fund’s inception. Returns for Class N shares, which are not presented, will vary from the returns of Institutional Class shares. The performance table compares the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class shares over time to the performance of a broad-based securities market index and a supplemental index. You should be aware that the Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) may not be an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. The Fund changed its principal investment strategies on November 6, 2023. Performance prior to that date reflects the Fund’s prior principal investment strategies. Updated performance information is available at no cost by visiting www.moeruscap.com or by calling 1-844-MOERUS1.

 

 

Performance Bar Chart

Calendar Year Ended December 31

 

Best Quarter: 4th Quarter 2020 27.34%
Worst Quarter: 1st Quarter 2020 (39.98)%

 

The Fund’s Institutional Class year-to-date return as of the most recent fiscal quarter, which ended February 29, 2024 was (1.84)%.

 

Performance Table

Average Annualized Total Returns

(For periods ended December 31, 2023)

  One Year Five Years Since
Inception
of the Fund
(05-31-16)
Institutional Class Return before taxes 24.80% 10.25% 7.47%
Institutional Class Return after taxes on distributions 22.67% 10.22% 7.32%
Institutional Class Return after taxes on distributions
and sale of Fund shares
14.99%

 

8.67%

6.27%
Index – MSCI AC World Index ex USA (USD) 15.62% 7.08% 6.37%
Index – MSCI AC World Index (USD) 22.20% 11.27% 10.06%

 

Effective November 6, 2023, in order to align with the Fund’s modified investment strategies and in order to provide a more suitable long-term comparison, the Fund’s primary index changed to from the MSCI AC World Index (USD) to the MSCI AC World Index ex USA (USD). The MSCI AC World Index ex USA captures large and mid-cap representation across 22 of 23 Developed Market countries and 24 Emerging Market countries—excluding the United States. With 2,307 constituents, the index covers approximately 85% of the global equity opportunity set outside the US. You cannot invest directly in an index.

 

The MSCI AC World Index (USD) captures large and mid-cap representation across 23 Developed Market and 24 Emerging Market countries. With 2,885 constituents, the index covers approximately 85% of the global investable equity opportunity set. You cannot invest directly in an index.

4 
 

 

After-tax returns are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rate and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on a shareholder’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns are not relevant if you hold your Fund shares in tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (“IRA”).

 

Investment Adviser: Moerus Capital Management LLC.

 

Portfolio Manager: Amit Wadhwaney, Chief Investment Officer of the Adviser, has served the Fund as its portfolio manager since it commenced operations in 2016.

 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares: The minimum initial investment in the Fund is $2,500 in Class N shares and $100,000 for Institutional Class shares for all account types and the minimum subsequent investment is $1,000. You may purchase and redeem shares of the Fund on any day that the New York Stock Exchange is open. Redemption requests may be made in writing, by telephone, or through a financial intermediary and will be paid by Automated Clearing House (“ACH”), check or wire transfer. The Fund and the Adviser each reserve the right to waive any investment minimum requirements.

 

Tax Information: Dividends and capital gain distributions you receive from the Fund, whether you reinvest your distributions in additional Fund shares or receive them in cash, are taxable to you at either ordinary income or capital gains tax rates unless you are investing through a tax-deferred plan such as an IRA or 401(k) plan. However, these dividend and capital gain distributions may be taxable upon their eventual withdrawal from tax-deferred plans.

 

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

5 
 

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RELATED RISKS

 

Investment Objective: The Fund’s objective is long-term capital appreciation.

 

The Fund’s investment objective may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ written notice to shareholders. The Fund’s investment policies may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund without shareholder approval unless otherwise noted in this Prospectus or the Statement of Additional Information.

 

Principal Investment Strategies:

 

The Adviser pursues the Fund’s investment objective by investing primarily in foreign (including frontier and emerging markets) and domestic common stocks that it believes are undervalued. Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests in securities from at least three different countries and invests at least 80% of its total assets (excluding cash and cash equivalents) in securities of issuers organized or having their principal place of business outside the U.S. or doing a substantial amount (more than 50%) of business outside the U.S. In determining if a common stock is a U.S. or non-U.S. security, the Adviser may consider its country of risk, which is determined by various factors including the issuer’s country of domicile, the primary stock exchange on which it trades, and its reporting currency. For avoidance of doubt, common stocks designated as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) are considered non-U.S. securities. Investments, including ADRs, that are made on US exchanges, including ADRS, will be transacted in U.S. dollars. Investments made on foreign exchanges will typically be transacted in the local currency. Under certain circumstances, foreign investments may trade in U.S. dollars on foreign exchanges. In these scenarios, these investments will also be transacted in U.S. dollars.

 

Under normal market conditions, the Fund’s portfolio consists of the common stock of 15 to 50 issuers, including ADRs, allowing the Adviser to focus the Fund’s assets on the opportunities that, in the Adviser’s opinion, have the highest potential for capital appreciation. Emerging markets are economies in nations that are progressing toward becoming more advanced, usually by means of rapid growth and industrialization. Frontier markets are those markets which are not as developed as emerging markets. The Fund does not limit its investments in emerging or frontier markets. Fund investments are made subject to the Adviser’s valuation and risk considerations of the relevant country.

 

The Adviser implements the Fund’s investment program by applying its opportunistic, bottom-up value analysis and preference for well-capitalized companies that are facing near term challenges. The Adviser uses a fundamental approach to purchase securities that are trading at substantial discounts to the Adviser’s estimates of their intrinsic values. The Adviser builds the Fund’s portfolio from the bottom up, based on its assessment of value, focusing on businesses it believes have solid balance sheets, high quality business models and shareholder-friendly management teams. The Adviser’s assessment of the value of individual securities and its investment strategy is not tied to an index, nor are returns intended to be index-tracking.

 

The Fund’s portfolio is primarily comprised of companies with sufficient capital to service their debt, and can survive market downturns and other financial events. The Adviser believes that these companies have an enhanced ability to survive difficult periods and thrive over the long-term, providing the Fund with the opportunity to achieve higher long term returns.

 

The Adviser selects undervalued securities by applying its proprietary investing methodology to identify and purchase securities of well-capitalized companies (i.e., those with ample means to service their debts and that can survive market downturns and other adverse financial events) that are trading at substantial discounts to the Adviser’s assessment of their intrinsic value. The Adviser believes that companies with well-capitalized balance sheets have an enhanced ability to survive difficult periods and thrive over the long-term, providing the Fund with the opportunity to achieve higher returns over the long-term. The Adviser seeks to take advantage of significant stock price declines due to poor near-term business results and focuses on the long-term intrinsic value of the business and its underlying assets. The Adviser, generally, does not allocate Fund assets in an attempt to take advantage of short-term trading fluctuations, but rather focuses on investing in situations where, based on the Adviser’s research, there are significant value mismatches. By having a preference for well-capitalized companies, the Adviser seeks to avoid companies that are at a heightened risk of experiencing permanent impairments of capital.

 

The Adviser has significant flexibility in terms of where and how it can invest – including by geography, sector, industry or currency. Because of this flexibility, while the Fund does not concentrate its investments in any one specific industry, the Fund’s portfolio may have significant exposure to a small number of sectors or industries from time to time.
The Fund tends to invest in deep value, lesser-known securities of any capitalization, including small- to mid-cap, and those less-followed or less well-covered by traditional investment research. The Adviser will sell a security to invest in other securities that it believes are more undervalued, or if it believes a security is materially overvalued. The Adviser may allocate a portion of the Fund’s assets to cash and cash equivalents to allow it to react quickly to fluctuations in the market and benefit from extreme and short-term market disruptions which may provide opportunities to purchase securities that, in the Adviser’s opinion, are attractively valued, from sellers eager to exit the market.

6 
 

Principal Investment Risks:

 

The following describes the risks the Fund bears.

 

ADRs Risk. ADRs, which are typically issued by a bank, are certificates that evidence ownership of shares of a foreign company and are alternatives to purchasing foreign securities directly in their national markets and currencies. ADRs are subject to many of the same risks as direct investment in foreign companies and may involve risks that are not found in investments in U.S. companies.

 

Cash or Cash Equivalents Risk. 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.

 

Common Stock Risk. Common stocks are susceptible to general stock market fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence in and perceptions of their issuers change. Investor perceptions are based on various and unpredictable factors, including expectations regarding government, economic, monetary and fiscal policies; inflation and interest rates; economic expansion or contraction and global or regional political, economic and banking crises. The common stock of a company that experiences financial distress may lose significant value or become worthless. The rights of common stockholders are subordinate to all other claims on a company’s assets including debt holders and preferred stockholders; therefore, the Fund could lose money if a company in which it invests becomes financially distressed.

 

Currency Risk. Currency trading involves significant risks, including market risk, interest rate risk, country risk, counterparty credit risk and short sale risk. Market risk results from the price movement of foreign currency values in response to shifting market supply and demand. Since exchange rate changes can readily move in one direction, a currency position carried overnight or over a number of days may involve greater risk than one carried a few minutes or hours. Interest rate risk arises whenever a country changes its stated interest rate target associated with its currency. Country risk arises because virtually every country has interfered with international transactions in its currency. Interference has taken the form of regulation of the local exchange market, restrictions on foreign investment by residents or limits on inflows of investment funds from abroad. Restrictions on the exchange market or on international transactions are intended to affect the level or movement of the exchange rate. This risk could include the country issuing a new currency, effectively making the “old” currency worthless. The Fund may also take short positions, through derivatives, if the Adviser believes the value of a currency is likely to depreciate in value. A “short” position is, in effect, similar to a sale in which the Fund sells a currency it does not own but, has borrowed in anticipation that the market price of the currency will decline. The Fund must replace a short currency position by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement, which may be more or less than the price at which the Fund took a short position in the currency.

 

Emerging Markets Risk. The Fund may invest in countries with newly organized or less developed securities markets. There are typically greater risks involved in investing in emerging markets securities. Generally, economic structures in these countries are less diverse and mature than those in developed countries and their political systems tend to be less stable. Emerging market countries may have different regulatory, accounting, auditing, and financial reporting and record keeping standards and may have material limitations on PCAOB (the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board) inspection, investigation, and enforcement. Therefore, the availability and reliability of information material to an investment decision, particularly financial information, in emerging market companies may be limited in the scope and reliability as compared to information provided by U.S. companies. Emerging market economies may be based on only a few industries, therefore security issuers, including governments, may be more susceptible to economic weakness and more likely to default. Emerging market countries also may have relatively unstable governments, weaker economies, and less-developed legal systems with fewer security holder rights. Investments in emerging markets countries may be affected by government policies that restrict foreign investment in certain issuers or industries. The potentially smaller size of their securities markets and lower trading volumes can make investments relatively illiquid and potentially more volatile than investments in developed countries, and such securities may be subject to abrupt and severe price declines. Due to this relative lack of liquidity, the Fund may have to accept a lower price. An inability to sell a portfolio position can adversely affect the Fund’s value or prevent the Fund from being able to meet cash obligations or take advantage of other investment opportunities.

 

Foreign Securities Risk. To the extent the Fund invests in foreign securities, it could be subject to greater risks because the Fund’s performance may depend on issues other than the performance of a particular company or U.S. market sector. Changes in foreign economies and political climates are more likely to affect the Fund than a mutual fund that invests exclusively in U.S. companies. The value of foreign securities is also affected by the value of the local currency relative to the U.S. dollar. There may also be less government supervision of foreign markets, resulting in non-uniform accounting practices and less publicly available information. The values of foreign investments may be affected by changes in exchange control regulations, application of foreign tax laws (including withholding tax), changes in governmental administration or economic or monetary policy (in this country or abroad) or changed circumstances in dealings between nations. In addition, foreign brokerage commissions, custody fees and other costs of investing in foreign securities are generally higher than in the United States. Investments in foreign issues could be affected by other factors not present in the United States, including expropriation, armed conflict, confiscatory taxation, and potential difficulties in enforcing contractual obligations. As a result, the Fund may be exposed to greater risk and will be more dependent on the Adviser’s ability to assess such risk than if the Fund invested solely in more developed countries.

7 
 

Frontier Markets Risk. Frontier market countries tend to have economic structures that are less diverse and mature, and political systems that are less stable, than those of emerging market or developed market countries. In addition to the risks of investing in international emerging markets, frontier markets tend to have less efficient trading markets with lower overall liquidity and are more susceptible to governmental interference, local taxes being imposed on international investments, and restrictions on gaining access to sales proceeds. Frontier markets generally have smaller economies or less mature capital markets than emerging markets and, as a result, the risks typically associated with investing in emerging market countries are magnified in frontier countries. Adverse changes in currency values of frontier market countries may be severe and settlement procedures and custody services may prove inadequate in certain markets. The markets of frontier countries typically have low trading volumes and the potential for extreme price volatility and illiquidity. This volatility may be further increased by the actions of a few major investors. For example, a substantial increase or decrease in cash flows of mutual funds investing in these markets could significantly affect local stock prices and, therefore, the net asset value of the Fund.

 

Geographic Risk. If the Fund focuses its investments in issuers located in a particular country or geographic region, the Fund may be subjected, to a greater extent than if its investments were less focused, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular to that country or region, such as: adverse securities markets; adverse exchange rates; adverse social, political, regulatory, economic, business, environmental or other developments; or natural disasters.

 

Management Risk. The Adviser’s reliance on its strategy and its judgments about the value and potential appreciation securities in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect, including the Adviser’s tactical allocation of the Fund’s portfolio among its investments. The ability of the Fund to meet its investment objective is directly related to the Adviser’s proprietary investment process. The Adviser’s assessment of the relative value of securities, their attractiveness and potential appreciation of particular investments in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect and there is no guarantee that the Adviser’s investment strategy achieve the Fund’s investment objective.

 

Market and Geopolitical Risk. 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, pandemics, epidemics, terrorism, international conflicts, 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, climate-change and climate-related events, 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. It is difficult to predict when similar events affecting the U.S. or global financial markets may occur, the effects that such events may have and the duration of those effects. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund’s portfolio. It is not known how long such impacts would last, but there could be a prolonged period of global economic slowdown, which may impact your Fund investment. Therefore, the Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. During a general market downturn, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Changes in market conditions and interest rates can have the same impact on all types of securities and instruments. In times of severe market disruptions, you could lose your entire investment.

 

Sector Risk. If the Fund’s portfolio is overweighted in a certain sector, any negative development affecting that sector will have a greater impact on the Fund than it would have on a fund that is not overweighted in that sector. The Fund may from time to time have a greater focus in certain sectors, and weakness in those sectors could result in significant losses to the Fund.

 

Small and Medium Capitalization Stock Risk. The stocks of small and medium capitalization companies involve substantial risk. These companies may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources, and they may be dependent on a limited management group. Stocks of these companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than those of larger, more established companies or the market averages in general.

 

Value Investing Risk. The stocks in which the Fund invests may not be undervalued as expected. The Adviser’s assessment of an equity security’s intrinsic value may never be fully recognized or realized by the market, and an equity security judged to be undervalued or overvalued may actually be appropriately priced or its price may move in the wrong direction. Because different types of stocks tend to shift in and out of favor depending on market and economic conditions, value-oriented funds may underperform when growth investing is in favor.

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Temporary Investments: To respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may invest 100% of its total assets, without limitation, in high-quality short-term debt securities and money market instruments. These short-term debt securities and money market instruments include: shares of money market mutual funds, commercial paper, certificates of deposit, bankers’ acceptances, U.S. government securities and repurchase agreements. While the Fund is in a defensive position, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Furthermore, to the extent that the Fund invests in money market mutual funds for cash positions, there will be some duplication of expenses because the Fund pays its pro-rata portion of such money market funds’ advisory fees and operational fees. The Fund may also invest a substantial portion of its assets in such instruments at any time to maintain liquidity or pending selection of investments in accordance with its policies.

 

Portfolio Holdings Disclosure: A description of the Fund’s policies and procedures regarding the release of portfolio holdings information is available in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”).

 

Operational and Cybersecurity Risk: Fund operations, including business, financial, accounting, data processing systems or other operating systems and facilities may be disrupted, disabled or damaged as a result of a number of factors, including events that are wholly or partially beyond our control. For example, there could be electrical or telecommunications outages; degradation or loss of internet or web services; natural disasters, such as earthquakes, tornados and hurricanes; disease pandemics; or events arising from local or larger scale political or social events, as well as terrorist acts.

 

The Fund is also subject to the risk of potential cyber incidents, which may include, but are not limited to, the harming of or unauthorized access to digital systems (for example, through “hacking” or infection by computer viruses or other malicious software code), denial-of-service attacks on websites, and the inadvertent or intentional release of confidential or proprietary information. Cyber incidents may, among other things, harm Fund operations, result in financial losses to the Fund and its shareholders, cause the release of confidential or highly restricted information, and result in regulatory penalties, reputational damage, and/or increased compliance, reimbursement or other compensation costs. Fund operations that may be disrupted or halted due to a cyber incident include trading, the processing of shareholder transactions, and the calculation of the Fund’s net asset value.

 

Issues affecting operating systems and facilities through cyber incidents, any of the scenarios described above, or other factors, may harm the Fund by affecting the Adviser, or other service providers, or issuers of securities in which the Fund invests. Although the Fund has business continuity plans and other safeguards in place, including what the Fund believes to be robust information security procedures and controls, there is no guarantee that these measures will prevent cyber incidents or prevent or ameliorate the effects of significant and widespread disruption to our physical infrastructure or operating systems. Furthermore, the Fund cannot directly control the security or other measures taken by unaffiliated service providers or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests. Such risks at issuers of securities in which the Fund invests could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers and may cause the Fund’s investment in such securities to lose value.

 

 

MANAGEMENT

 

Investment Adviser: Moerus Capital Management LLC, located at 307 West 38th Street, Suite 2003, New York, NY 10018, serves as the Fund’s investment adviser. The Adviser is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. The Adviser is a Delaware limited liability company formed in February 2015 and provides investment advice to the Fund and a private fund. As of February 29, 2024, the Adviser had approximately $758 million in assets under management.

 

Subject to the oversight of the Board of Trustees, the Adviser is responsible for managing the Fund’s investments, placing trade orders and providing related administrative services and facilities under an Investment Advisory Agreement between the Fund and the Adviser.

 

The management fee set forth in the Fund’s Investment Advisory Agreement is 0.95% of the Fund’s average daily net assets, annually, to be paid on a monthly basis. For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Adviser earned a fee equal to 0.53% of the Fund’s average daily net assets. In addition to investment advisory fees, the Fund pays other expenses including costs incurred in connection with the maintenance of securities law registration, printing and mailing prospectuses and statements of additional information to shareholders, certain financial accounting services, taxes or governmental fees, custodial, transfer and shareholder servicing agent costs, expenses of outside counsel and independent accountants, preparation of shareholder reports and expenses of trustee and shareholders meetings.

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The Adviser has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least March 31, 2025, to ensure that total annual fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or reimbursement excluding (i) any front-end or contingent deferred loads; (ii) brokerage fees and commissions, (iii) acquired fund fees and expenses; (iv) fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example option and swap fees and expenses); (v) borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short); (vi) taxes; and (vii) extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and Trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Adviser)) will not exceed 1.50% and 1.25% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to Institutional Class and Class N shares, respectively; subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three year basis if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the expense limitation in place at the time of waiver and the expense limitation in place at the time of recapture (after the repayment is taken into account). The expense limit arrangement may not be terminated during this time period without prior approval of the Board of Trustees on 60 days’ written notice to the Adviser. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board of Trustees’ most recent renewal of the advisory agreement is available in the Fund’s Semi-Annual Report to shareholders dated May 31, 2023.

 

Portfolio Manager: Amit Wadhwaney, Chief Investment Officer of the Adviser has served the Fund as its portfolio manager since it commenced operations in 2016.

 

Mr. Wadhwaney is the Chief Investment Officer, portfolio manager and founding partner of the Adviser. He is also the founding manager of the Moerus Global Value Fund Master (Cayman) Ltd., a private fund managed using a strategy substantially similar to that of the Fund. Mr. Wadhwaney has over 30 years of experience researching and analyzing investment opportunities in developed, emerging, and frontier markets worldwide, and has managed global investment portfolios since 1996. Prior to founding Moerus, Mr. Wadhwaney was a Portfolio Manager and Partner at Third Avenue Management LLC (“Third Avenue”) where he founded the international business at the firm and was the portfolio manager for several Third Avenue products. Mr. Wadhwaney also served as portfolio manager and/or research analyst to several other mutual funds managed by various advisers.

 

Mr. Wadhwaney holds an M.B.A. in Finance from The University of Chicago (1982 through 1983). He also holds a B.A. with honors and an M.A. in Economics from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada (1977 through 1980). At Concordia, he was awarded the Sun Life Prize and the Concordia University Fellow in Economics, and he subsequently taught economics classes there. He also holds B.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering and Mathematics from the University of Minnesota (1970 through 1974).

 

The SAI provides additional information about the portfolio manager’s compensation, other accounts managed and ownership of Fund shares.

 

 

HOW SHARES ARE PRICED

 

Shares of the Fund are sold at net asset value (“NAV”). The NAV of the Fund is determined at close of regular trading (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open for business. NAV is computed by determining, on a per class basis, the aggregate market value of all assets of the applicable Fund, less its liabilities, divided by the total number of shares outstanding ((assets-liabilities)/number of shares = NAV). The NYSE is closed on weekends and New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day (“NYSE Close”). The NAV takes into account, on a per class basis, the expenses and fees of the Fund, including management, administration, and distribution fees, which are accrued daily. The determination of NAV for the Fund for a particular day is applicable to all applications for the purchase of shares, as well as all requests for the redemption of shares, received by the Fund (or an authorized broker or agent, or its authorized designee) before the close of trading on the NYSE on that day.

 

Generally, the Fund’s securities, including securities issued by ETFs, are valued each day at the last quoted sales price on each security’s primary exchange. Securities traded or dealt in upon one or more securities exchanges (whether domestic or foreign) for which market quotations are readily available and not subject to restrictions against resale shall be valued at the last quoted sales price on the primary exchange or, in the absence of a sale on the primary exchange, at the mean between the current bid and ask prices on such exchange. Securities primarily traded in the National Association of Securities Dealers’ Automated Quotation System (“NASDAQ”) National Market System for which market quotations are readily available shall be valued using the NASDAQ Official Closing Price. Securities that are not traded or dealt in any securities exchange (whether domestic or foreign) and for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available generally shall be valued at the last sale price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask price on such over-the-counter market. Debt securities not traded on an exchange may be valued at prices supplied by a pricing agent(s) based on broker or dealer supplied valuations or matrix pricing, a method of valuing securities by reference to the value of other securities with similar characteristics, such as rating, interest rate and maturity.

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If market quotations are not readily available, securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined using the “fair value” procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that the fair value determined for a security may be materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of that security. The fair value prices can differ from market prices when they become available or when a price becomes available. The Board of Trustees has designated the Adviser as its Valuation Designee for execution of these procedures. The Valuation Designee may also enlist third-party consultants such as an audit firm or financial officer of a security issuer on an as-needed basis to assist in determining a security-specific fair value. The Board of Trustees reviews and ratifies the execution of this process and the resultant fair value prices at least quarterly to assure the process produces reliable results.

 

The Fund may use independent pricing services to assist in calculating the value of the Fund’s securities. In addition, market prices for foreign securities are not determined at the same time of day as the NAV for the Fund. Because the Fund may invest in underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign exchanges, and these exchanges may trade on weekends or other days when the underlying ETFs do not price their shares, the value of some of the Fund’s portfolio securities may change on days when you may not be able to buy or sell Fund shares.

 

In computing the NAV, the Fund values foreign securities held by the Fund at the latest closing price on the exchange in which they are traded immediately prior to closing of the NYSE. Prices of foreign securities quoted in foreign currencies are translated into U.S. dollars at current rates. If events materially affecting the value of a security in the Fund’s portfolio, particularly foreign securities, occur after the close of trading on a foreign market but before the Fund prices its shares, the security will be valued at fair value. For example, if trading in a portfolio security is halted and does not resume before the Fund calculates its NAV, the Adviser may need to price the security using the Fund’s fair value pricing guidelines. Without a fair value price, 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, but there is no assurance that fair value pricing policies will prevent dilution of the Fund’s NAV by short term traders. The determination of fair value involves subjective judgments. As a result, using fair value to price a security may result in a price materially different from the prices used by other mutual funds to determine NAV, or from the price that may be realized upon the actual sale of the security.

 

With respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets that are invested in one or more open-end management investment companies registered under the 1940 Act, the Fund’s NAV is calculated based upon the NAVs of those open-end management investment companies, and the prospectuses for these companies explain the circumstances under which those companies will use fair value pricing and the effects of using fair value pricing.

 

 

HOW TO PURCHASE SHARES

 

Share Classes: This Prospectus describes two classes of shares offered by the Fund: Class N and Institutional Class shares. The Fund offers these two classes of shares so that you can choose the class that best suits your investment needs. The main differences between the share classes are ongoing fees. Class N shares pay an annual fee of up to 0.25% for distribution and shareholder services expenses pursuant to a plan under Rule 12b-1. In choosing which class of shares to purchase, you should consider which will be most beneficial to you, given the amount of your purchase and the length of time you expect to hold the shares. Each class of shares in the Fund represents interest in the same portfolio of investments within the Fund. The Fund reserves the right to waive sales charges. All share classes may not be available for purchase in all states.

 

Class N Shares: Class N shares are offered at their public offering price and are subject to 12b-1 distribution fees of up to 0.25% of the average daily net assets of Class N shares. The minimum initial investment in the Class N shares is $2,500 for all types of accounts and the minimum subsequent investment is $1,000.

 

Institutional Class Shares: Institutional Class shares of the Fund are offered at their NAV without an initial sales charge. This means that 100% of your initial investment is placed into shares of the Fund. The minimum initial investment in the Institutional Class shares is $100,000 for all types of accounts, and the minimum subsequent investment is $1,000. There is no restriction as to the type of investor that may purchase Institutional Class shares.

 

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Share Class: When deciding which class of shares of the Fund to purchase, you should consider your investment goals, present and future amounts you may invest in the Fund, and the length of time you intend to hold your shares. To help you make a determination as to which class of shares to buy, please refer back to the examples of the Fund’s expenses over time in the Fees and Expenses of the Fund section in this Prospectus. You also may wish to consult with your financial adviser for advice with regard to which share class would be most appropriate for you.

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Purchasing Shares: You may purchase shares of the Fund by sending a completed application form to the following address:

 

via Regular Mail

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 541150

Omaha, Nebraska 68154

or Overnight Mail

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions LLC

4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100

Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474

 

The USA PATRIOT Act requires financial institutions, including the Fund, to adopt certain policies and programs to prevent money-laundering activities, including procedures to verify the identity of customers opening new accounts. As requested on the application, you should supply your full name, date of birth, social security number and permanent street address. Mailing addresses containing a P.O. Box will not be accepted. This information will assist the Fund in verifying your identity. Until such verification is made, the Fund may temporarily limit additional share purchases. In addition, the Fund may limit additional share purchases or close an account if it is unable to verify a shareholder’s identity. As required by law, the Fund may employ various procedures, such as comparing the information to fraud databases or requesting additional information or documentation from you, to ensure that the information supplied by you is correct.

 

The Fund, however, reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject any application to purchase shares. Applications will not be accepted unless they are accompanied by a check drawn on a U.S. bank, thrift institutions, or credit union in U.S. funds for the full amount of the shares to be purchased. After you open an account, you may purchase additional shares by sending a check together with written instructions stating the name(s) on the account and the account number, to the above address. Make all checks payable to the Fund. The Fund will not accept payment in cash, including cashier’s checks or money orders. Also, to prevent check fraud, the Fund will not accept credit cards or third-party checks, U.S. Treasury checks, credit card checks or starter checks for the purchase of shares. Redemptions of shares of the Fund purchased by check may be subject to a hold period until the check has been cleared by the issuing bank. To avoid such holding periods, shares may be purchased through a broker or by wire, as described in this section.

 

Note: Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, the Fund’s transfer agent, will charge a $25 fee against a shareholder’s account, in addition to any loss sustained by the Fund, for any check or electronic payments returned to the transfer agent for insufficient funds.

 

Purchase through Brokers: You may invest in the Fund through brokers or agents who have entered into selling agreements with the Fund’s distributor. The brokers and agents are authorized to receive purchase and redemption orders on behalf of the Fund. Such brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to receive purchase and redemption orders on the Fund’s behalf. The Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized broker or its designee receives the order. The broker or agent may set their own initial and subsequent investment minimums. You may be charged a fee if you use a broker or agent to buy or redeem shares of the Fund. Finally, various servicing agents use procedures and impose restrictions that may be in addition to, or different from those applicable to investors purchasing shares directly from the Fund. You should carefully read the program materials provided to you by your servicing agent.

 

Purchase by Wire: If you wish to wire money to make an investment in the Fund, please call the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 for wiring instructions and to notify the Fund that a wire transfer is coming. Any commercial bank can transfer same-day funds via wire. The Fund will normally accept wired funds for investment on the day received if they are received by the Fund’s designated bank before the close of regular trading on the NYSE. Your bank may charge you a fee for wiring same-day funds.

 

Transactions through www.moeruscap.com: You may open a new account, purchase and redeem the Fund’s shares through the website www.moeruscap.com/mutual-fund/invest. To establish Internet transaction privileges you must enroll through the website. You automatically have the ability to establish Internet transaction privileges unless you decline the privileges on your New Account Application or IRA Application. You will be required to enter into a user’s agreement through the website in order to enroll in these privileges. In order to conduct Internet transactions, you must have telephone transaction privileges. To purchase shares through the website you must also have ACH instructions on your account. Redemption proceeds may be sent to you by check to the address or record, or if your account has existing bank information, by wire or ACH. Only bank accounts held at domestic financial institutions that are ACH members can be used for transactions through the Fund’s website. Transactions through the website are subject to the same minimums and maximums as other transaction methods. You should be aware that the internet is an unsecured, unstable, unregulated and unpredictable environment. Your ability to use the website for transactions is dependent upon the internet and equipment, software, systems, data and services provided by various vendors and third parties. While the Fund and its service providers have established certain security procedures, the Fund, its distributor and its transfer agent cannot assure you that trading information will be completely secure.

 

Automated Clearing House (ACH) Purchase: Current shareholders may purchase additional shares via Automated Clearing House (“ACH”). To have this option added to your account, please send a letter to the Fund requesting this option and supply a voided check for the bank account. Only bank accounts held at domestic institutions that are ACH members may be used for these transactions.

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You may not use ACH transactions for your initial purchase of Fund shares. ACH purchases will be effective at the closing price per share on the business day after the order is placed. The Fund may alter, modify or terminate this purchase option at any time.

 

Shares purchased by ACH will not be available for redemption until the transactions have cleared. Shares purchased via ACH transfer may take up to 15 days to clear.

 

Automatic Investment Plan: You may participate in the Fund’s Automatic Investment Plan, an investment plan that automatically moves money from your bank account and invests it in the Fund through the use of electronic funds transfers or automatic bank drafts. You may elect to make subsequent investments by transfers of a minimum of $200 on specified days of each month into your established Fund account. Please contact the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 for more information about the Fund’s Automatic Investment Plan.

 

When Order is Processed: All shares will be purchased at the NAV per share (plus applicable sales charges, if any) next determined after the Fund receives your application or request in good order. All requests received in good order by the Fund before the close of the NYSE, generally 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time), will be processed on that same day. Requests received after 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time), or the close of the NYSE if earlier, will be processed on the next business day.

 

Good Order: When making a purchase request, make sure your request is in good order.

 

“Good order” means your purchase request includes:

·the name of the Fund;
·the dollar amount of shares to be purchased;
·a completed purchase application or investment stub;
·check payable to the “Moerus Worldwide Value Fund.”

 

Retirement Plans: You may purchase shares of the Fund for your individual retirement plans. Please call the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 for the most current listing and appropriate disclosure documentation on how to open a retirement account.

 

 

HOW TO REDEEM SHARES

 

Redeeming Shares: The Fund typically expects that it will take up to three business days following the receipt of your redemption request to pay out redemption proceeds by check or electronic transfer. The Fund typically expects to pay redemptions from cash, cash equivalent, proceeds from the sale of Fund shares, any lines of portfolio securities. These redemption payment methods will be used in regular and stressed market conditions. You may redeem all or any portion of the shares credited to your account by submitting a written request for redemption to:

 

via Regular Mail

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

P.O. Box 541150

Omaha, Nebraska 68154

or Overnight Mail

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100

Elkhorn, Nebraska 68022-3474

 

Redemptions by Telephone: The telephone redemption privilege is automatically available to all new accounts. If you do not want the telephone redemption privilege, you must indicate this in the appropriate area on your account application or you must write to the Fund and instruct it to remove this privilege from your account. The proceeds, which are equal to number of shares times NAV less any applicable deferred sales charges, will be sent by mail to the address designated on your account or sent electronically, via ACH or wire, directly to your existing account in a bank or brokerage firm in the United States as designated on our application. To redeem by telephone, call 1-844-MOERUS1. If you own an IRA, you will be asked whether or not the Fund(s) should withhold federal income tax.

 

During periods of high market activity, you may encounter higher than usual wait times. Please allow sufficient time to ensure that you will be able to complete your telephone transaction prior to market close. Neither the Fund nor its transfer agent will be held liable if you are unable to place your trade due to high call volume.

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The Fund reserves the right to suspend the telephone redemption privileges with respect to your account if the name(s) or the address on the account has been changed within the previous 30 days. Neither the Fund, the transfer agent, nor their respective affiliates will be liable for complying with telephone instructions they reasonably believe to be genuine or for any loss, damage, cost or expenses in acting on such telephone instructions and you will be required to bear the risk of any such loss. The Fund or the transfer agent, or both, will employ reasonable procedures to determine that telephone instructions are genuine. If the Fund and/or the transfer agent do not employ these procedures, they may be liable to you for losses due to unauthorized or fraudulent instructions. These procedures may include, among others, requiring forms of personal identification prior to acting upon telephone instructions, providing written confirmation of the transactions and/or tape recording telephone instructions.

 

Redemptions through Broker: If shares of the Fund are held by a broker-dealer, financial institution or other servicing agent, you must contact that servicing agent to redeem shares of the Fund. The servicing agent may charge a fee for this service.

 

Redemptions by Wire: You may request that your redemption proceeds be wired directly to your bank account.
The Fund’s transfer agent imposes a $15 fee for each wire redemption and deducts the fee directly from your account. Your bank may also impose a fee for the incoming wire.

 

Systematic Withdrawal Plan: If your individual account, IRA or other qualified plan account has a current account value of at least $50,000, you may participate in the Fund’s Systematic Withdrawal Plan, an investment plan that automatically moves money to your bank account from the Fund through the use of electronic funds transfers. You may elect to make subsequent withdrawals by transfers of a minimum of $200 on specified days of each month into your established bank account. Please contact the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 for more information about the Fund’s Systematic Withdrawal Plan.

 

Redemptions in Kind: The Fund reserves the right to honor requests for redemption or repurchase orders by making payment in whole or in part in readily marketable securities (“redemption in kind”) if the amount is greater than $250,000 or 1% of the Fund’s assets. The securities will be chosen by the Fund and valued using the Fund’s NAV pricing procedures. A shareholder will be exposed to market risk until these securities are converted to cash and may incur transaction expenses in converting these securities to cash.

 

When Redemptions are Sent: Once the Fund receives your redemption request in “good order” as described below, it will issue a check based on the next determined NAV following your redemption request. The redemption proceeds normally will be sent by mail or by wire within three business days after receipt of a request in “good order.” If you purchase shares using a check and soon after request a redemption, your redemption proceeds, which are payable at the next determined NAV following the receipt of your redemption request in “good order,” as described below, will not be sent until the check used for your purchase has cleared your bank.

 

Good Order: Your redemption request will be processed if it is in “good order.” To be in good order, the following conditions must be satisfied:

·the request should be in writing, unless redeeming by telephone, indicating the number of shares or dollar amount to be redeemed;
·the request must identify your account number;
·the request should be signed by you and any other person listed on the account, exactly as the shares are registered; and
·if you request that the redemption proceeds be sent to a person, bank or an address other than that of record or paid to someone other than the record owner(s), or if the address was changed within the last 30 days, or if the proceeds of a requested redemption exceed $50,000, the signature(s) on the request must be medallion signature guaranteed by an eligible signature guarantor.

 

When You Need Medallion Signature Guarantees: If you wish to change the bank or brokerage account that you have designated on your account, you may do so at any time by writing to the Fund with your signature guaranteed. A medallion signature guarantee assures that a signature is genuine and protects you from unauthorized account transfers. You will need your signature guaranteed if:

·you request a redemption to be made payable to a person not on record with the Fund;
·you request that a redemption be mailed to an address other than that on record with the Fund;
·the proceeds of a requested redemption exceed $50,000;
·any redemption is transmitted to a bank other than the bank of record; or
·your address was changed within 30 days of your redemption request.
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Signatures may be guaranteed by any eligible guarantor institution (including banks, brokers and dealers, credit unions, national securities exchanges, registered securities associations, clearing agencies and savings associations). Further documentation will be required to change the designated account if shares are held by a corporation, fiduciary or other organization. A notary public cannot guarantee signatures.

 

Retirement Plans: If you own an IRA or other retirement plan, you must indicate on your redemption request whether the Fund should withhold federal income tax. Unless you elect in your redemption request that you do not want to have federal tax withheld, the redemption will be subject to withholding.

 

Low Balances: If at any time your account balance falls below $2,500, the Fund may notify you that, unless the account is brought up to at least $2,500 within 30 days of the notice, your account could be closed. After the notice period, the Fund may redeem all of your shares and close your account by sending you a check to the address of record. Your account will not be closed if the account balance drops below $2,500 due to a decline in NAV.

 

 

FREQUENT PURCHASES AND REDEMPTIONS OF FUND SHARES

 

The Fund discourages and does not accommodate market timing. Frequent trading into and out of the Fund can harm all Fund shareholders by disrupting the Fund’s investment strategies, increasing Fund expenses, decreasing tax efficiency and diluting the value of shares held by long-term shareholders. The Fund is designed for long-term investors and is not intended for market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Accordingly, the Board of Trustees has approved policies that seek to curb these disruptive activities while recognizing that shareholders may have a legitimate need to adjust their Fund investments as their financial needs or circumstances change. The Fund currently uses several methods to reduce the risk of market timing. These methods include:

 

Though these methods involve judgments that are inherently subjective and involve some selectivity in their application, the Fund seeks to make judgments and applications that are consistent with the interests of Fund shareholders.

 

Based on the frequency of redemptions in your account, the Adviser or transfer agent may in its sole discretion determine that your trading activity is detrimental to the Fund as described in the Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy and elect to reject or limit the amount, number, frequency or method for requesting future purchases or redemptions into the Fund.

 

The Fund reserves the right to reject or restrict purchase requests for any reason, particularly when the shareholder’s trading activity suggests that the shareholder may be engaged in market timing or other disruptive trading activities. Neither the Fund nor the Adviser will be liable for any losses resulting from rejected purchase orders. The Adviser may also bar an investor who has violated these policies (and the investor’s financial advisor) from opening new accounts with the Fund.

 

Although the Fund attempts to limit disruptive trading activities, some investors use a variety of strategies to hide their identities and their trading practices. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will be able to identify or limit these activities. Omnibus account arrangements are common forms of holding shares of the Fund. While the Fund will encourage financial intermediaries to apply the Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy to their customers who invest indirectly in the Fund, the Fund is limited in its ability to monitor the trading activity or enforce the Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy with respect to customers of financial intermediaries. For example, should it occur, the Fund may not be able to detect market timing that may be facilitated by financial intermediaries or made difficult to identify in the omnibus accounts used by those intermediaries for aggregated purchases, exchanges and redemptions on behalf of all their customers. More specifically, unless the financial intermediaries have the ability to apply the Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy to their customers through such methods as implementing short-term trading limitations or restrictions and monitoring trading activity for what might be market timing, the Fund may not be able to determine whether trading by customers of financial intermediaries is contrary to the Fund’s Market Timing Trading Policy. Brokers maintaining omnibus accounts with the Fund have agreed to provide shareholder transaction information to the extent known to the broker to the Fund upon request. If the Fund or its transfer agent or shareholder servicing agent suspects there is market timing activity in the account, the Fund will seek full cooperation from the service provider maintaining the account to identify the underlying participant. At the request of the Adviser, the service providers may take immediate action to stop any further short-term trading by such participants.

15 
 

 

TAX STATUS, DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS

 

Any sale or exchange of the Fund’s shares may generate tax liability (unless you are a tax-exempt investor or your investment is in a qualified retirement account). When you redeem your shares, you may realize a taxable gain or loss. This is measured by the difference between the proceeds of the sale and the tax basis for the shares you sold.
(To aid in computing your tax basis, you generally should retain your account statements for the period that you hold shares in the Fund.)

 

The Fund intends to distribute substantially all of its net investment income and net capital gains at least annually. Both types of distributions will be reinvested in shares of the Fund unless you elect to receive cash. Dividends from net investment income (including any excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss) are taxable to investors as ordinary income, while distributions of net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss) are generally taxable as long-term capital gain, regardless of your holding period for the shares. Any dividends or capital gain distributions you receive from the Fund will normally be taxable to you when made, regardless of whether you reinvest dividends or capital gain distributions or receive them in cash. Certain dividends or distributions declared in October, November or December will be taxed to shareholders as if received in December if they are paid during the following January. Each year the Fund will inform you of the amount and type of your distributions. IRAs and other qualified retirement plans are exempt from federal income taxation until retirement proceeds are paid out to the participant.

 

Your redemptions, including exchanges, may result in a capital gain or loss for federal tax purposes. A capital gain or loss on your investment is the difference between the cost of your shares, including any sales charges, and the amount you receive when you sell them. The Fund must report to the IRS and furnish to shareholders the cost basis information for shares purchased and sold. The Fund has chosen average cost as its standing (default) tax lot identification method for all shareholders, which means this is the method the Fund will use to determine which specific shares are deemed to be sold when there are multiple purchases on different dates at differing NAVs, and the entire position is not sold at one time. Shareholders may, however, choose a method other than the Fund’s standing method at the time of their purchase or upon sale of covered shares. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors to determine the best IRS-accepted cost basis method for their tax situation and to obtain more information about how cost basis reporting applies to them. Shareholders also should carefully review the cost basis information provided to them by the Fund and make any additional basis, holding period or other adjustments that are required when reporting these amounts on their federal income tax returns.

 

On the account application, you will be asked to certify that your social security number or taxpayer identification number is correct and that you are not subject to backup withholding for failing to report income to the IRS. If you are subject to backup withholding or you did not certify your taxpayer identification number, the IRS requires the Fund to withhold a percentage of any dividend, redemption or exchange proceeds. The Fund reserves the right to reject any application that does not include a certified social security or taxpayer identification number. If you do not have a social security number, you should indicate on the purchase form that your application to obtain a number is pending. The Fund is required to withhold taxes if a number is not delivered to the Fund within seven days.

 

This summary is not intended to be and should not be construed to be legal or tax advice. You should consult your own tax advisers to determine the tax consequences of owning the Fund’s shares.

 

16 
 

 

DISTRIBUTION OF SHARES

 

Distributor: Foreside Fund Services, LLC, (the “Distributor”) located at Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland, ME 04101, is the distributor for the shares of the Fund. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer and member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”). Shares of the Fund are offered on a continuous basis.

 

Distribution Fees: The Trust, with respect to the Fund, has adopted the Trust’s Master Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Plan for Class N shares (the “Plan”), pursuant to Rule 12b-1 of the 1940 Act, which allows the Fund to pay the Fund’s distributor an annual fee for distribution and shareholder servicing expenses of 0.25% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to Class N shares.

 

The Distributor and other entities are paid under the Plan for services provided and the expenses borne by the Distributor and others in the distribution of Fund shares, including the payment of commissions for sales of the shares and incentive compensation to and expenses of dealers and others who engage in or support distribution of shares or who service shareholder accounts, including overhead and telephone expenses; printing and distribution of prospectuses and reports used in connection with the offering of the Fund’s shares to other than current shareholders; and preparation, printing and distribution of sales literature and advertising materials. In addition, the Distributor or other entities may utilize fees paid pursuant to the Plan to compensate dealers or other entities for their opportunity costs in advancing such amounts, which compensation would be in the form of a carrying charge on any un-reimbursed expenses.

 

You should be aware that if you hold your shares for a substantial period of time, you may indirectly pay more than the economic equivalent of the maximum front-end sales charge allowed by FINRA due to the recurring nature of distribution (12b-1) fees.

 

Additional Compensation to Financial Intermediaries: The Distributor and its affiliates, and the Adviser and its affiliates may, at their own expense and out of their own assets including legitimate profits, provide cash payments to financial intermediaries who sell shares of the Fund. Financial intermediaries include brokers, financial planners, banks, insurance companies, retirement or 401(k) plan administrators and others. These payments are generally made to financial intermediaries that provide shareholder or administrative services, or marketing support. Marketing support may include access to sales meetings, sales representatives and financial intermediary management representatives, inclusion of the Fund on a sales list, including a preferred or select sales list, or other sales programs. These payments also may be made as an expense reimbursement in cases where the financial intermediary provides shareholder services to Fund shareholders.

 

Householding: To reduce expenses, the Fund mails only one copy of the prospectus and each annual and semi-annual report to those addresses shared by accounts that have elected to receive paper copies of these documents. If you wish to receive individual copies of these documents, please call the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 on days the Fund is open for business or contact your financial institution. The Fund will begin sending you individual copies thirty days after receiving your request.

17 
 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

The following table is intended to help you better understand the Fund’s financial performance for the past five years. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. Total return represents the rate you would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund, assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions. Except for the information for the period ended May 31, 2023, this information has been audited by Cohen & Company, Ltd, an independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, is included in the annual report, which is available upon request.

 

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

Per Share Data and Ratios for a Share of Beneficial Interest Outstanding Throughout Each Year Presented

 

    Class N  
    For the     For the     For the     For the     For the  
    Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended  
    November 30,     November 30,     November 30,     November 30,     November 30,  
    2023     2022     2021     2020     2019  
Net asset value, beginning of year   $ 12.37     $ 11.49     $ 9.81     $ 11.22     $ 11.01  
Activity from investment operations:                                        
Net investment income (loss)(1)     0.82       0.09       (0.01 )     0.05       0.08  
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments     1.22       1.38       1.74       (1.33 )     0.29  
Total from investment operations     2.04       1.47       1.73       (1.28 )     0.37  
Paid-in-capital from redemption fees                             0.00 (2)
Less distributions from:                                        
Net investment income     (0.04 )     (0.59 )     (0.05 )     (0.13 )     (0.16 )
Net realized gain                              
Total distributions     (0.04 )     (0.59 )     (0.05 )     (0.13 )     (0.16 )
Net asset value, end of year   $ 14.37     $ 12.37     $ 11.49     $ 9.81     $ 11.22  
Total return(3)     16.54 %     13.32 %     17.72 %     (11.59 )%     3.49 %
Net assets, end of year (000s)   $ 1,540     $ 955     $ 835     $ 898     $ 1,007  
Ratio of gross expenses to
average net assets(4)
    1.96 %     1.99 %     1.92 %     2.20 %     1.92 %
Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets
    1.55 % (5)     1.65 %     1.65 %     1.65 %     1.65 %
Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net assets     6.12 %     0.77 %     (0.10 )%     0.52 %     0.69 %
Portfolio Turnover Rate     34 %     34 %     28 %     29 %     21 %
                                         
(1)Per share amounts calculated using the average shares method, which more appropriately presents the per share data for the year.
(2)Less than $0.005 per share.
(3)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads/redemption fees. Total returns are historical in nature and assume changes in share price, reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions, if any. Had the Adviser not absorbed a portion of the Fund expenses, total returns would have been lower. Total return represents aggregate total return based on net asset value.
(4)Represents the ratio of expenses to average net assets absent fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the Adviser.
(5)Effective March 31, 2023, the operating expenses limitation was reduced to 1.50% from 1.65%.
18 
 

 

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

 

Per Share Data and Ratios for a Share of Beneficial Interest Outstanding Throughout Each Year Presented

 

    Institutional Class  
    For the     For the     For the     For the     For the  
    Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended     Year Ended  
    November 30,     November 30,     November 30,     November 30,     November 30,  
    2023     2022     2021     2020     2019  
Net asset value, beginning of year   $ 12.41     $ 11.54     $ 9.84     $ 11.25     $ 11.05  
Activity from investment operations:                                        
Net investment income(1)     0.83       0.12       0.02       0.07       0.11  
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)
on investments
    1.24       1.37       1.75       (1.33 )     0.28  
Total from investment operations     2.07       1.49       1.77       (1.26 )     0.39  
Paid-in-capital from redemption fees                             0.00 (2)
Less distributions from:                                        
Net investment income     (0.07 )     (0.62 )     (0.07 )     (0.15 )     (0.19 )
Total distributions     (0.07 )     (0.62 )     (0.07 )     (0.15 )     (0.19 )
Net asset value, end of year   $ 14.41     $ 12.41     $ 11.54     $ 9.84     $ 11.25  
Total return(3)     16.76 %     13.53 %     18.12 %     (11.35 )%     3.68 %
Net assets, end of year (000s)   $ 59,689     $ 48,214     $ 38,446     $ 33,333     $ 45,191  
Ratio of gross expenses to
average net assets(4)
    1.71 %     1.74 %     1.67 %     1.95 %     1.67 %
Ratio of net expenses to
average net assets
    1.30 %(5)     1.40 %     1.40 %     1.40 %     1.40 %
Ratio of net investment income to
average net assets
    6.18 %     1.04 %     0.14 %     0.75 %     0.95 %
Portfolio Turnover Rate     34 %     34 %     28 %     29 %     21 %
                                         
(1)Per share amounts calculated using the average shares method, which more appropriately presents the per share data for the year.
(2)Less than $0.005 per share.
(3)Total returns shown exclude the effect of applicable sales loads/redemption fees. Total returns are historical in nature and assume changes in share price, reinvestment of dividends and capital gain distributions, if any. Had the Adviser not absorbed a portion of the Fund expenses, total returns would have been lower. Total return represents aggregate total return based on net asset value.
(4)Represents the ratio of expenses to average net assets absent fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements by the Adviser.
(5)Effective March 31, 2023, the operating expense limitation was reduced to 1.25% from 1.40%.

 

19 
 

 

PRIVACY NOTICE

 

Northern Lights Fund Trust IV

Rev. August 2021

 

FACTS WHAT DOES NORTHERN LIGHTS FUND TRUST IV DO WITH YOUR
PERSONAL INFORMATION?

 

Why? Financial companies choose how they share your personal information.  Federal law gives consumers the right to limit some, but not all sharing.  Federal law also requires us to tell you how we collect, share, and protect your personal information.  Please read this notice carefully to understand what we do.

 

What?

The types of personal information we collect and share depends on the product or service that you have with us. This information can include:

·         Social Security number and wire transfer instructions

·         account transactions and transaction history

·         investment experience and purchase history

When you are no longer our customer, we continue to share your information as described in this notice.

 

How? All financial companies need to share customers’ personal information to run their everyday business.  In the section below, we list the reasons financial companies can share their customers’ personal information; the reasons Northern Lights Fund Trust IV chooses to share; and whether you can limit this sharing.

 

Reasons we can share
your personal information:
Does Northern Lights
Fund Trust IV
share information?
Can you limit this sharing?
For our everyday business purposes - such as to process your transactions, maintain your account(s), respond to court orders and legal investigations, or report to credit bureaus. YES NO
For our marketing purposes - to offer our products and services to you. NO We don’t share
For joint marketing with other financial companies. NO We don’t share
For our affiliates’ everyday business purposes - information about your transactions and records. NO We don’t share
For our affiliates’ everyday business purposes - information about your credit worthiness. NO We don’t share
For nonaffiliates to market to you NO We don’t share

 

QUESTIONS?   Call 1-631-490-4300
20 
 

PRIVACY NOTICE

 

Northern Lights Fund Trust IV

Page 2  

 

What we do:

 

How does Northern Lights Fund Trust IV protect my
personal information?

To protect your personal information from unauthorized access and use, we use security measures that comply with federal law. These measures include computer safeguards and secured files and buildings.

 

Our service providers are held accountable for adhering to strict policies and procedures to prevent any misuse of your nonpublic personal information.

 

How does Northern Lights Fund Trust IV collect my
personal information?

We collect your personal information, for example, when you

·   open an account or deposit money

·   direct us to buy securities or direct us to sell your securities

·   seek advice about your investments

We also collect your personal information from others, such as credit bureaus, affiliates, or other companies.

 

Why can’t I limit
all sharing?

Federal law gives you the right to limit only:

·   sharing for affiliates’ everyday business purposes – information about
your creditworthiness.

·   affiliates from using your information to market to you.

·   sharing for nonaffiliates to market to you.

State laws and individual companies may give you additional rights to limit sharing.

Definitions  
Affiliates

Companies related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and nonfinancial companies.

·   Northern Lights Fund Trust IV has no affiliates.

Nonaffiliates

Companies not related by common ownership or control. They can be financial and nonfinancial companies.

·   Northern Lights Fund Trust IV does not share with nonaffiliates so they can market
to you.

Joint marketing

A formal agreement between nonaffiliated financial companies that together market financial products or services to you.

·   Northern Lights Fund Trust IV does not jointly market.

     
21 
 

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

 

Adviser Moerus Capital Management LLC
307 West 38th Street, Suite 2003
New York, NY 10018
Distributor Foreside Fund Services, LLC
Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100
Portland, ME 04101
Custodian The Bank of New York Mellon
240 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10286
Legal
Counsel
Thompson Hine LLP
41 South High Street, Suite 1700
Columbus, OH 43215
Transfer
Agent

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC
225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450

Cincinnati, OH 45246

Independent
Registered Public Accounting Firm

Cohen & Company, Ltd.

1835 Market St., Suite 310, Philadelphia, PA 19103

 

Additional information about the Fund is included in the Fund’s SAI dated March 28, 2024. The SAI is incorporated into this Prospectus by reference (i.e., legally made a part of this Prospectus). The SAI provides more details about the Fund’s policies and management. Additional information about the Fund’s investments will also be available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders. In the Fund’s Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during its last fiscal year.

 

To obtain a free copy of the SAI and the Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders, or other information about the Fund, or to make shareholder inquiries about the Fund, please call toll free 1-844-MOERUS1.
Information relating to the Fund can be found on the Fund website at www.moeruscap.com/regulatory-resources/. You may also write to:

 

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC

225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450

Cincinnati, OH 45246

 

Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at www.sec.gov. Copies of the information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following E-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.

 

 

Investment Company Act File # 811-23066

 

 

 
 

Moerus Worldwide Value Fund

 

a Series of Northern Lights Fund Trust IV

 

 

Class N Shares - MOWNX

Institutional Class Shares - MOWIX

 

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

March 28, 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This Statement of Additional Information ("SAI") is not a prospectus and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of the Moerus Worldwide Value Fund (the "Fund") dated March 28, 2024. The Fund’s Prospectus is hereby incorporated by reference, which means it is legally part of this document. You can obtain copies of the Fund’s Prospectus, annual or semi-annual reports without charge by contacting the Fund’s transfer agent, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, 225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450, Cincinnati, OH 45246 or by calling 1-844-MOERUS1 (toll free). You may also obtain a Prospectus by visiting the Fund’s website at www.moeruscap.com.

 
 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

THE FUND 1
TYPES OF INVESTMENTS 2
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS 22
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS 25
MANAGEMENT 27
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS 33
INVESTMENT ADVISER 33
THE DISTRIBUTOR 37
PORTFOLIO MANAGER 40
ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE 41
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER 41
OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS 42
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES 44
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM 45
PURCHASE, REDEMPTION AND PRICING OF SHARES 45
TAX STATUS 50
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM 57
LEGAL COUNSEL 57
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 57
APPENDIX A – PROXY VOTING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES A-1

 

 
 

THE FUND

The Moerus Worldwide Value Fund is a diversified series of Northern Lights Fund Trust IV, meaning that the Fund is subject to the diversification requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), which generally limit investments, as to 75% of a fund’s total assets, to no more than 5% in securities in a single issuer and 10% of an issuer’s voting securities, Northern Lights Fund Trust IV is a Delaware statutory trust organized on June 2, 2015 (the "Trust"). The Trust is registered as an open-end management investment company. The Trust is governed by its Board of Trustees (the "Board").

 

The Fund may issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest. All shares have equal rights and privileges. Each share of the Fund is entitled to one vote on all matters as to which shares are entitled to vote. In addition, each share of the Fund is entitled to participate equally with other shares (i) in dividends and distributions declared by the Fund and (ii) on liquidation to its proportionate share of the assets remaining after satisfaction of outstanding liabilities. Shares of the Fund are fully paid, non-assessable and fully transferable when issued and have no pre-emptive, conversion or exchange rights. Fractional shares have proportionately the same rights, including voting rights, as are provided for a full share.

 

The Fund’s investment objective, restrictions and policies are more fully described here and in the Prospectus. The Board may add classes to and reclassify the shares of the Fund, start other series and offer shares of a new fund under the Trust at any time.

 

The Fund offers two classes of shares: Class N and Institutional Class shares. Each share class represents an interest in the same assets of the Fund, has the same rights and is identical in all material respects except that (i) each class of shares may be subject to different (or no) sales loads; (ii) each class of shares may bear different (or no) distribution fees; (iii) each class of shares may have different shareholder features, such as minimum investment amounts; (iv) certain other class-specific expenses will be borne solely by the class to which such expenses are attributable, including transfer agent fees attributable to a specific class of shares, printing and postage expenses related to preparing and distributing materials to current shareholders of a specific class, registration fees paid by a specific class of shares, the expenses of administrative personnel and services required to support the shareholders of a specific class, litigation or other legal expenses relating to a class of shares, Trustees’ fees or expenses paid as a result of issues relating to a specific class of shares and accounting fees and expenses relating to a specific class of shares and (v) each class has exclusive voting rights with respect to matters relating to its own distribution arrangements. The Board may classify and reclassify the shares of the Fund into additional classes of shares at a future date.

 

Under the Trust's Agreement and Declaration of Trust, each Trustee will continue in office until the termination of the Trust or his earlier death, incapacity, resignation or removal. Shareholders can remove a Trustee to the extent provided by the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. Vacancies may be filled by a majority of the

1 
 

remaining Trustees, except insofar as the 1940 Act or the Delaware Statutory Trust Act may require the election by shareholders. The Delaware Statutory Trust Act does not require annual shareholders’ meetings. As a result, normally no annual or regular meetings of shareholders will be held unless matters arise requiring a vote of shareholders under the Agreement and Declaration of Trust or the 1940 Act.

 

TYPES OF INVESTMENTS

The investment objective of the Fund and the descriptions of the Fund’s principal investment strategies and risks are set forth under "Investment Objective,” “Principal Investment Strategies,” and “Principal Investment Risks" in the Prospectus. The Fund’s investment objective is not fundamental and may be changed by the Board without the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.

 

The following pages contain more detailed information about the types of instruments in which the Fund may invest and strategies Moerus Capital Management LLC (the “Adviser”) employs in pursuit of the Fund’s investment objective and a summary of related risks.

 

PRINCIPAL STRATEGIES

 

Common Stock

 

Common stock represents an equity (ownership) interest in a company, and usually possesses voting rights and earns dividends. Dividends on common stock are not fixed but are declared at the discretion of the issuer. Common stock generally represents the riskiest investment in a company. In addition, common stock generally has the greatest appreciation and depreciation potential because increases and decreases in earnings are usually reflected in a company's stock price.

 

Emerging Markets Securities

 

Investing in emerging market securities imposes risks different from, or greater than, risks of investing in foreign developed countries. These risks include: smaller market capitalization of securities markets, which may suffer periods of relative illiquidity; significant price volatility; restrictions on foreign investment; possible repatriation of investment income and capital. In addition, foreign investors may be required to register the proceeds of sales; future economic or political crises could lead to price controls, forced mergers, expropriation or confiscatory taxation, seizure, nationalization, or creation of government monopolies. The currencies of emerging market countries may experience significant declines against the U.S. dollar, and devaluation may occur subsequent to investments in these currencies by the Fund. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had, and may continue to have, negative effects on the economies and securities markets of certain emerging market countries.

 

2 
 

Additional risks of emerging markets securities may include: greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability; more substantial governmental involvement in the economy; less governmental supervision and regulation; unavailability of currency hedging techniques; companies that are newly organized and small; differences in auditing and financial reporting standards, which may result in unavailability of material information about issuers; and less developed legal systems. In addition, emerging securities markets may have different clearance and settlement procedures, which may be unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions or otherwise make it difficult to engage in such transactions. Settlement problems may cause the Fund to miss attractive investment opportunities, hold a portion of its assets in cash pending investment, or be delayed in disposing of a portfolio security. Such a delay could result in possible liability to a purchaser of the security.

 

China-Related Investment Risks. The Adviser may make significant investments in or related to China, and therefore the Adviser may be susceptible to adverse market, political, regulatory, and geographic events affecting China. The Chinese economy is generally considered an emerging market and can be significantly affected by economic and political conditions and policy in China and surrounding Asian countries. In addition, the Chinese economy is export-driven and highly reliant on trade.  A downturn in the economies of China’s primary trading partners could slow or eliminate the growth of the Chinese economy and adversely impact the Fund’s investments. The Chinese government strictly regulates the payment of foreign currency denominated obligations and sets monetary policy and may introduce new laws and regulations that have an adverse effect on an investor’s portfolio. Although China has begun the process of privatizing certain sectors of its economy, privatized entities may lose money and/or be re-nationalized. Accordingly, these investments involve a risk of total loss. In the Chinese securities markets, a small number of issuers may represent a large portion of the entire market. The Chinese securities markets are characterized by relatively frequent trading halts and low trading volume, resulting in substantially less liquidity and greater price volatility. Additionally, the US-China relationship continues to be volatile and uncertain.  Tariffs, public market listing restrictions and restrictions on investability of Chinese companies by US-domiciled investors, including those Chinese companies designated by the U.S. Department of Defense as owned or controlled by the Chinese military, can materially impact the value of the underlying investments.  

 

India-Related Investment Risks. The Adviser intends to evaluate opportunities in India and in certain Indian companies. There can be no assurance that the Indian companies will achieve profitable operations. The performance of the Indian companies and the value of interests in the Indian companies may be adversely affected by numerous factors, including, for example, (i) business, economic, and political conditions throughout India and the world; (ii) the supply of and demand for the goods and services produced, provided, or sold by Indian companies; (iii) changes and advances in technology that may, among other things, render goods and services sold by the Indian companies obsolete; and (iv) actual and potential competition from other companies. Certain Indian companies may need substantial additional capital to support growth or to achieve or maintain a competitive position. Such capital may not be available on attractive terms or at all.

3 
 

Accounting, financial and other reporting standards in India are not equivalent to those in more developed countries. Differences may arise in areas such as valuation of properties and other assets, accounting for depreciation, deferred taxation, inventory obsolescence, contingent liabilities and foreign exchange transactions. Accordingly, less information may be available to investors. SEBI, the principal regulator of the Indian securities market, received statutory authority in 1992 to oversee and supervise the Indian securities markets. Accordingly, the securities laws and regulations in India are continuously evolving, and the ability of SEBI to promulgate and enforce rules regulating market practices is uncertain.

 

India’s political, social and economic stability is commensurate with its developing status. Certain developments beyond the control of the Adviser, such as the possibility of political changes, government regulation, social instability, diplomatic disputes, or other similar developments, could adversely affect these investments.

 

India is a country comprised of diverse religious and ethnic groups. It is the world’s most populous democracy and it has a well-developed and stable political system. Ethnic issues and border disputes have, however, given rise to ongoing tension in the relations between India and Pakistan, particularly over the region of Kashmir.  In addition, cross-border terrorism could weaken regional stability in South Asia, thereby hurting investor sentiment.

 

India derives a meaningful portion of its GDP from agriculture. As a result, severe monsoons or drought conditions could hurt India’s agricultural production and dampen momentum in some sectors of the Indian economy, which could adversely affect performance.

 

Frontier Markets Risk

 

Frontier market countries tend to have economic structures that are less diverse and mature, and political systems that are less stable, than those of emerging market or developed market countries. In addition to the risks of investing in international emerging markets, frontier markets tend to have less efficient trading markets with lower overall liquidity and are more susceptible to governmental interference, local taxes being imposed on international investments, and restrictions on gaining access to sales proceeds. Frontier markets generally have smaller economies or less mature capital markets than emerging markets and, as a result, the risks typically associated with investing in emerging market countries are magnified in frontier countries. Adverse changes in currency values of frontier market countries may be severe and settlement procedures and custody services may prove inadequate in certain markets. The markets of frontier countries typically have low trading volumes and the potential for extreme price volatility and illiquidity. This volatility may be further increased by the actions of a few major investors. For example, a substantial increase or decrease in cash flows of mutual funds investing in these markets could significantly affect local stock prices and, therefore, the net asset value (“NAV”) of the Fund.

 

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Geographic Risk

 

If the Fund focuses its investments in issuers located in a particular country or geographic region, the Fund may be subjected, to a greater extent than if its investments were less focused, to the risks of volatile economic cycles and/or conditions and developments that may be particular to that country or region, such as: adverse securities markets; adverse exchange rates; adverse social, political, regulatory, economic, business, environmental or other developments; or natural disasters.

 

Foreign Securities

 

Investing in securities of foreign companies and countries involves certain considerations and risks that are not typically associated with investing in U.S. government securities and securities of domestic companies. There may be less publicly available information about a foreign issuer than a domestic one, and foreign companies are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial standards and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies. There may also be less government supervision and regulation of foreign securities exchanges, brokers and listed companies than exists in the United States. Interest and dividends paid by foreign issuers may be subject to withholding and other foreign taxes, which may decrease the net return on such investments as compared to dividends and interest paid to the Fund by domestic companies or the U.S. government. There may be the possibility of expropriations, seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits, confiscatory taxation, political, economic or social instability or diplomatic developments that could affect assets of the Fund held in foreign countries. Finally, the establishment of exchange controls or other foreign governmental laws or restrictions could adversely affect the payment of obligations.

 

To the extent currency exchange transactions do not fully protect the Fund against adverse changes in currency exchange rates, decreases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund will invest relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding decrease in the U.S. dollar value of the Fund’s assets denominated in those currencies (and possibly a corresponding increase in the amount of securities required to be liquidated to meet distribution requirements). Conversely, increases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund invests relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding increase in the U.S. dollar value of the Fund’s assets (and possibly a corresponding decrease in the amount of securities to be liquidated).

 

Corporate Bonds

 

The Fund may purchase fixed income securities issued by corporations. These investments are subject to interest rate risk and credit risk. Interest rate risk refers to the risk that changes in interest rates may affect the value of the Fund’s bond investments. If interest rates rise, the value of these investments tends to fall. On the other hand, if interest rates fall, the value of fixed income investments usually increases. Credit risk is the risk that the value of a debt security falls because the likelihood of an issuer failing to make scheduled interest and / or maturity payments increases owing to a deterioration in its financial position.

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High Yield Securities

 

The Fund may purchase high yield bonds or unrated fixed income securities. Lower-quality bonds, known as "high yield" or "junk" bonds, present greater risk than bonds of higher quality, including an increased risk of default. An economic downturn or period of rising interest rates could adversely affect the market for these bonds and reduce the Fund’s ability to sell its bonds. The lack of a liquid market for these bonds could decrease the Fund’s share price.

 

High yield securities have ratings below BBB- by S&P and/or below Baa3 by Moody’s. These securities are subject to greater credit and liquidity risk. Issuers of high yield securities usually have weaker financial positions than those who can issue investment grade securities. The Fund may purchase securities issued by these companies when they are trading below par and considered distressed. These investments are subject to bankruptcy risk in which the issuer does not make scheduled interest and principal payments while it pursues a reorganization plan. There is a potential risk of loss by the Fund of its entire investment in these securities. These securities are highly speculative.

 

Depositary Receipts

 

Sponsored and unsponsored American Depositary Receipts ("ADRs") are receipts issued by an American bank or trust company evidencing ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign issuer. ADRs, in registered form, are designed for use in U.S. securities markets. Unsponsored ADRs may be created without the participation of the foreign issuer. Holders of these ADRs generally bear all the costs of the ADR facility, whereas foreign issuers typically bear certain costs in a sponsored ADR. The bank or trust company depositary of an unsponsored ADR may be under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the foreign issuer or to pass through voting rights. Many of the risks described regarding foreign securities apply to investments in ADRs.

 

Securities of Other Investment Companies

 

The Fund may invest in securities issued by other investment companies. The Fund intends to limit its investments in accordance with applicable law or as permitted by Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act. Among other things, such law would limit these investments so that, as determined immediately after a securities purchase is made by the Fund: (a) not more than 5% of the value of its total assets will be invested in the securities of any one investment company; (b) not more than 10% of the value of its total assets will be invested in the aggregate in securities of investment companies as a group; (c) not more than 3% of the outstanding voting stock of any one investment company will be owned by the Fund; and (d) not more than 10% of the outstanding voting stock of any one closed-end investment company will be owned by the Fund together with all other investment companies that have the same advisor. Under certain sets of conditions, different sets of restrictions may be applicable. As a shareholder of another investment company, the Fund would bear, along with other shareholders, its proportionate share of that investment

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company’s expenses, including advisory fees. These expenses would be in addition to the advisory and other expenses that the Fund bears directly in connection with its own operations. Investment companies in which the Fund may invest may also impose a sales or distribution charge in connection with the purchase or redemption of their shares and other types of commissions or charges. Such charges will be payable by the Fund and, therefore, will be borne directly by the Fund’s shareholders.

 

To the extent applicable, the Fund intends to rely on Section 12(d)(1)(F) and Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act which in conjunction with one another allow registered investment companies (such as the Fund) to exceed the limitations described above, provided the aggregate sales loads any investor pays (i.e., the combined distribution expenses of both the acquiring fund and the acquired funds) do not exceed the limits on sales loads established by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for funds of funds, and the registered investment company “mirror votes” any securities purchased pursuant to Section 12(d)(1)(F). Each investment company is subject to specific risks, depending on the nature of the fund. ETFs and mutual funds may employ leverage, which magnifies the changes in the underlying stock or other index upon which they are based.

 

Closed-End Investment Companies

 

The Fund may invest its assets in “closed-end” investment companies (or “closed-end funds”), subject to the investment restrictions set forth above. Shares of closed-end fund are typically offered to the public in a one-time initial public offering by a group of underwriters who retain a spread or underwriting commission of between 4% or 6% of the initial public offering price. Such securities are then listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System (commonly known as “NASDAQ”) or, in some cases, may be traded in other over-the-counter markets. Because the shares of closed-end funds cannot be redeemed upon demand to the issuer like the shares of an open-end investment company (such as the Fund), investors seek to buy and sell shares of closed-end funds in the secondary market.

 

The Fund generally will purchase shares of closed-end funds only in the secondary market. The Fund will incur normal brokerage costs on such purchases similar to the expenses the Fund would incur for the purchase securities of any other type of issuer in the secondary market. The Fund may, however, also purchase of securities of a closed-end fund in an initial public offering when, in the opinion of the Adviser, based on a consideration of the nature of the closed-end Fund’s proposed investments, the prevailing market conditions and the level of demand for such securities, they represent an attractive opportunity for growth of capital. The initial offering price typically will include a dealer spread, which may be higher than applicable brokerage cost if the Fund purchased such securities in the secondary market.

 

The shares of many closed-end funds, after their initial public offering, frequently trade at a price per share, which is less than the NAV per share, the difference representing the “market discount” of such shares. This market discount may be due in part to the investment objective of long-term appreciation, which is sought by many closed-end

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funds, as well as to the fact that the shares of closed-end funds are not redeemable by the holder upon demand to the issuer at the next determined NAV but rather are subject to the principles of supply and demand in the secondary market. A relative lack of secondary market purchasers of closed-end fund shares also my contribute to such shares trading at a discount to their NAV.

 

The Fund may invest in shares of closed-end funds that are trading at a discount to NAV or at a premium to NAV. There can be no assurance that the market discount on shares of any closed-end fund purchased by the Fund will ever decrease. In fact, it is possible that this market discount may increase and the Fund may suffer realized or unrealized capital losses due to further decline in the market price of the securities of such closed-end funds, thereby adversely affecting the NAV of the Fund’s shares. Similarly, there can be no assurance that any shares of a closed-end fund purchased by the Fund at a premium will continue to trade at a premium or that the premium will not decrease subsequent to a purchase of such shares by the Fund.

 

Closed-end funds may issue senior securities (including preferred stock and debt obligations) for the purposed of leveraging the closed-end Fund’s common shares in an attempt to enhance the current return to such closed-end Fund’s common shareholders. The Fund’s investment on common shares of closed-end funds that are financially leveraged may create an opportunity for greater total return on its investment, but at the same time may be expected to exhibit more volatility in market price and NAV than an investment in shares of an investment companies without a leveraged capital structure.

 

Exchange Traded Funds

 

The Fund may invest in ETFs. An ETF is a type of open-end fund, however, unlike a mutual fund, its shares are bought and sold on a securities exchange at market price and only certain financial institutions called authorized participants may buy and redeem shares of the ETF at net asset value. ETF shares can trade at either a premium or discount to net asset value. Each ETF like a mutual fund is subject to specific risks depending on the type of strategy (actively managed or passively tracking an index) and the composition of its underlying holdings. Investing in an ETF involves substantially the same risks as investing directly in the ETF’s underlying holdings. ETFs pay fees and incur operating expenses, which reduce the total return earned by the ETFs from their underlying holdings. An ETF may not achieve its investment objective or execute its investment strategy effectively, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

 

Securities Options

 

The Fund may purchase and write (i.e., sell) put and call options. Such options may relate to particular securities or stock indices, and may or may not be listed on a domestic or foreign securities exchange and may or may not be issued by the Options Clearing Corporation. Options trading is a highly specialized activity that entails greater than ordinary investment risk. Options may be more volatile than the underlying instruments, and therefore, on a percentage basis, an investment in options may be subject to greater fluctuation than an investment in the underlying instruments themselves.

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A call option for a particular security gives the purchaser of the option the right to buy, and the writer (seller) the obligation to sell, the underlying security at the stated exercise price at any time prior to the expiration of the option, regardless of the market price of the security. The premium paid to the writer is in consideration for undertaking the obligation under the option contract. A put option for a particular security gives the purchaser the right to sell the security at the stated exercise price at any time prior to the expiration date of the option, regardless of the market price of the security.

 

Stock index options are put options and call options on various stock indices. In most respects, they are identical to listed options on common stocks. The primary difference between stock options and index options occurs when index options are exercised. In the case of stock options, the underlying security, common stock, is delivered. However, upon the exercise of an index option, settlement does not occur by delivery of the securities comprising the index. The option holder who exercises the index option receives an amount of cash if the closing level of the stock index upon which the option is based is greater than, in the case of a call, or less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price of the option. This amount of cash is equal to the difference between the closing price of the stock index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple. A stock index fluctuates with changes in the market value of the stocks included in the index. For example, some stock index options are based on a broad market index, such as the Standard & Poor's 500® Index or the Value Line Composite Index or a narrower market index, such as the Standard & Poor's 100®. Indices may also be based on an industry or market segment, such as the NYSE Arca Oil Index. Options on stock indices are currently traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the NYSE and the NASDAQ OMX PHLX.

 

The Fund’s obligation to sell an instrument subject to a call option written by it, or to purchase an instrument subject to a put option written by it, may be terminated prior to the expiration date of the option by the Fund’s execution of a closing purchase transaction, which is effected by purchasing on an exchange an option of the same series (i.e., same underlying instrument, exercise price and expiration date) as the option previously written. A closing purchase transaction will ordinarily be effected to realize a profit on an outstanding option, to prevent an underlying instrument from being called, to permit the sale of the underlying instrument or to permit the writing of a new option containing different terms on such underlying instrument. The cost of such a liquidation purchase plus transactions costs may be greater than the premium received upon the original option, in which event the Fund will have paid a loss in the transaction. There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for any particular option. An option writer unable to effect a closing purchase transaction will not be able to sell the underlying instrument or liquidate the assets held in a segregated account, as described below, until the option expires or the optioned instrument is delivered upon exercise. In such circumstances, the writer will be subject to the risk of market decline or appreciation in the instrument during such period.

 

 

 

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If an option purchased by the Fund expires unexercised, the Fund realizes a loss equal to the premium paid. If the Fund enters into a closing sale transaction on an option purchased by it, the Fund realizes a gain if the premium received by the Fund on the closing transaction is more than the premium paid to purchase the option, or a loss if it is less. If an option written by the Fund expires on the stipulated expiration date or if the Fund enters into a closing purchase transaction, it realizes a gain (or loss if the cost of a closing purchase transaction exceeds the net premium received when the option is sold). If an option written by the Fund is exercised, the proceeds of the sale will be increased by the net premium originally received and the Fund realizes a gain or loss.

 

Certain Risks Regarding Options

 

There are several risks associated with transactions in options. For example, there are significant differences between the securities and options markets that could result in an imperfect correlation between these markets, causing a given transaction not to achieve its objectives. In addition, a liquid secondary market for particular options, whether traded over-the-counter or on an exchange, may be absent for reasons which include the following: there may be insufficient trading interest in certain options; restrictions may be imposed by an exchange on opening transactions or closing transactions or both; trading halts, suspensions or other restrictions may be imposed with respect to particular classes or series of options or underlying securities or currencies; unusual or unforeseen circumstances may interrupt normal operations on an exchange; the facilities of an exchange or the Options Clearing Corporation may not at all times be adequate to handle current trading value; or one or more exchanges could, for economic or other reasons, decide or be compelled at some future date to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series of options), in which event the secondary market on that exchange (or in that class or series of options) would cease to exist, although outstanding options that had been issued by the Options Clearing Corporation as a result of trades on that exchange would continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms.

 

Successful use by the Fund of options on stock indices will be subject to the ability of the Adviser to correctly predict movements in the directions of the stock market. This requires different skills and techniques than predicting changes in the prices of individual securities. In addition, the Fund’s ability to effectively hedge all or a portion of the securities in its portfolio, in anticipation of or during a market decline, through transactions in put options on stock indices, depends on the degree to which price movements in the underlying index correlate with the price movements of the securities held by the Fund. Inasmuch as the Fund’s securities will not duplicate the components of an index, the correlation will not be perfect. Consequently, the Fund bears the risk that the prices of its securities being hedged will not move in the same amount as the prices of its put options on the stock indices. It is also possible that there may be a negative correlation between the index and the Fund’s securities that would result in a loss on both such securities and the options on stock indices acquired by the Fund.

 

 

 

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The hours of trading for options may not conform to the hours during which the underlying securities are traded. To the extent that the options markets close before the markets for the underlying securities, significant price and rate movements can take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected in the options markets. The purchase of options is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. The purchase of stock index options involves the risk that the premium and transaction costs paid by the Fund in purchasing an option will be lost as a result of unanticipated movements in prices of the securities comprising the stock index on which the option is based.

 

There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market on an options exchange will exist for any particular option, or at any particular time, and for some options no secondary market on an exchange or elsewhere may exist. If the Fund is unable to close out a call option on securities that it has written before the option is exercised, the Fund may be required to purchase the optioned securities in order to satisfy its obligation under the option to deliver such securities. If the Fund is unable to effect a closing sale transaction with respect to options on securities that it has purchased, it would have to exercise the option in order to realize any profit and would incur transaction costs upon the purchase and sale of the underlying securities.

 

Options on Futures Contracts

 

The Fund may purchase and sell options on the same types of futures in which it may invest. Options on futures are similar to options on underlying instruments except that options on futures give the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a position in a futures contract (a long position if the option is a call and a short position if the option is a put), rather than to purchase or sell the futures contract, at a specified exercise price at any time during the period of the option. Upon exercise of the option, the delivery of the futures position by the writer of the option to the holder of the option will be accompanied by the delivery of the accumulated balance in the writer's futures margin account which represents the amount by which the market price of the futures contract, at exercise, exceeds (in the case of a call) or is less than (in the case of a put) the exercise price of the option on the futures contract. Purchasers of options who fail to exercise their options prior to the exercise date suffer a loss of the premium paid.

 

Dealer Options

 

The Fund may engage in transactions involving dealer options as well as exchange-traded options. Certain additional risks are specific to dealer options. While the Fund might look to a clearing corporation to exercise exchange-traded options, if the Fund were to purchase a dealer option it would need to rely on the dealer from which it purchased the option to perform if the option were exercised. Failure by the dealer to do so would result in the loss of the premium paid by the Fund as well as loss of the expected benefit of the transaction.

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Exchange-traded options generally have a continuous liquid market while dealer options may not. Consequently, the Fund may generally be able to realize the value of a dealer option it has purchased only by exercising or reselling the option to the dealer who issued it. Similarly, when the Fund writes a dealer option, it may generally be able to close out the option prior to its expiration only by entering into a closing purchase transaction with the dealer to whom the Fund originally wrote the option. While the Fund will seek to enter into dealer options only with dealers who will agree to and which are expected to be capable of entering into closing transactions with the Fund, there can be no assurance that the Fund will at any time be able to liquidate a dealer option at a favorable price at any time prior to expiration. Unless the Fund, as a covered dealer call option writer, is able to effect a closing purchase transaction, it will not be able to liquidate securities (or other assets) used as cover until the option expires or is exercised. In the event of insolvency of the other party, the Fund may be unable to liquidate a dealer option. With respect to options written by the Fund, the inability to enter into a closing transaction may result in material losses to the Fund. For example, because the Fund must maintain a secured position with respect to any call option on a security it writes, the Fund may not sell the assets, which it has segregated to secure the position while it is obligated under the option. This requirement may impair the Fund’s ability to sell portfolio securities at a time when such sale might be advantageous.

 

The Staff of the SEC has taken the position that purchased dealer options are illiquid securities. The Fund may treat the cover used for written dealer options as liquid if the dealer agrees that the Fund may repurchase the dealer option it has written for a maximum price to be calculated by a predetermined formula. In such cases, the dealer option would be considered illiquid only to the extent the maximum purchase price under the formula exceeds the intrinsic value of the option. Accordingly, the Fund will treat dealer options as subject to the Fund’s limitation on illiquid securities. If the SEC changes its position on the liquidity of dealer options, the Fund will change its treatment of such instruments accordingly.

 

Short Sales

 

Short Sales “Against The Box.” The Fund may engage in short sales against the box. In a short sale, the Fund sells a borrowed security and has a corresponding obligation to the lender to return the identical security. The seller does not immediately deliver the securities sold and is said to have a short position in those securities until delivery occurs. The Fund may engage in a short sale if at the time of the short sale the Fund owns or has the right to obtain without additional cost an equal amount of the security being sold short. This investment technique is known as a short sale “against the box.” It may be entered into by the Fund to, for example, lock in a sale price for a security the Fund does not wish to sell immediately. If the Fund engages in a short sale, the collateral for the short position will be segregated in an account with the Fund’s custodian or qualified sub-custodian. No more than 10% of the Fund’s net assets (taken at current value) may be held as collateral for short sales against the box at any one time.

 

 

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The Fund may make a short sale as a hedge, when it believes that the price of a security may decline, causing a decline in the value of a security owned by the Fund (or a security convertible or exchangeable for such security). In such case, any future losses in the Fund’s long position should be offset by a gain in the short position and, conversely, any gain in the long position should be reduced by a loss in the short position. The extent to which such gains or losses are reduced will depend upon the amount of the security sold short relative to the amount the Fund owns. There will be certain additional transaction costs associated with short sales against the box, but the Fund will endeavor to offset these costs with the income from the investment of the cash proceeds of short sales.

 

If the Fund effects a short sale of securities at a time when it has an unrealized gain on the securities, it may be required to recognize that gain as if it had actually sold the securities (as a “constructive sale”) on the date it effects the short sale. However, such constructive sale treatment may not apply if the Fund closes out the short sale with securities other than the appreciated securities held at the time of the short sale and if certain other conditions are satisfied. Uncertainty regarding the tax consequences of effecting short sales may limit the extent to which the Fund may effect short sales.

 

Preferred Stock

 

Preferred stock is a class of stock having a preference over common stock as to the payment of dividends and the recovery of investment should a company be liquidated, although preferred stock is usually junior to the debt securities of the issuer. Preferred stock typically does not possess voting rights and its market value may change based on changes in interest rates.

 

The fundamental risk of investing in common and preferred stock is the risk that the value of the stock might decrease. Stock values fluctuate in response to the activities of an individual company or in response to general market and/or economic conditions. Historically, common stocks have provided greater long-term returns and have entailed greater short-term risks than preferred stocks, fixed-income securities and money market investments. The market value of all securities, including common and preferred stocks, is based upon the market's perception of value and not necessarily the book value of an issuer or other objective measures of a company's worth.

 

Convertible Securities

 

Convertible securities include fixed income securities that may be exchanged or converted into a predetermined number of shares of the issuer's underlying common stock at the option of the holder during a specified period. Convertible securities may take the form of convertible preferred stock, convertible bonds or debentures, units consisting of "usable" bonds and warrants or a combination of the features of several of these securities. Convertible securities are senior to common stocks in an issuer's capital structure, but are usually subordinated to similar non-convertible securities. While providing a fixed-income stream (generally higher in yield than the income derivable from common stock but lower than that afforded by a similar nonconvertible security), a convertible security also gives an investor the opportunity, through its conversion feature, to participate in the capital appreciation of the issuing company depending upon a market price advance in the convertible security's underlying common stock.

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Warrants

 

Warrants are options to purchase common stock at a specific price (usually at a premium above the market value of the optioned common stock at issuance) valid for a specific period of time. Warrants may have a life ranging from less than one year to twenty years, or they may be perpetual. However, most warrants have expiration dates after which they are worthless. In addition, a warrant is worthless if the market price of the common stock does not exceed the warrant's exercise price during the life of the warrant. Warrants have no voting rights, pay no dividends, and have no rights with respect to the assets of the corporation issuing them. The percentage increase or decrease in the market price of the warrant may tend to be greater than the percentage increase or decrease in the market price of the optioned common stock.

 

Certificates of Deposit and Bankers' Acceptances

 

Certificates of deposit are receipts issued by a depository institution in exchange for the deposit of funds. The issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the bearer of the receipt on the date specified on the certificate. The certificate usually can be traded in the secondary market prior to maturity. Bankers' acceptances typically arise from short-term credit arrangements designed to enable businesses to obtain funds to finance commercial transactions. Generally, an acceptance is a time draft drawn on a bank by an exporter or an importer to obtain a stated amount of funds to pay for specific merchandise. The draft is then "accepted" by a bank that, in effect, unconditionally guarantees to pay the face value of the instrument on its maturity date. The acceptance may then be held by the accepting bank as an earning asset or it may be sold in the secondary market at the going rate of discount for a specific maturity. Although maturities for acceptances can be as long as 270 days, most acceptances have maturities of six months or less.

 

Commercial Paper

 

Commercial paper consists of short-term (usually from 1 to 270 days) unsecured promissory notes issued by corporations in order to finance their current operations. It may be secured by letters of credit, a surety bond or other forms of collateral. Commercial paper is usually repaid at maturity by the issuer from the proceeds of the issuance of new commercial paper. As a result, investment in commercial paper is subject to the risk the issuer cannot issue enough new commercial paper to satisfy its outstanding commercial paper, also known as rollover risk. Commercial paper may become illiquid or may suffer from reduced liquidity in certain circumstances. Like all fixed income securities, commercial paper prices are susceptible to fluctuations in interest rates. If interest rates rise, commercial paper prices will decline. The short-term nature of a commercial paper investment makes it less susceptible to interest rate risk than many other fixed income securities because interest rate risk typically increases as maturity lengths increase. Commercial paper tends to yield smaller returns than longer-term corporate debt because securities with shorter maturities typically have lower effective yields than those with longer maturities. As with all fixed income securities, there is a chance that the issuer will default on its commercial paper obligation.

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Information on Time Deposits and Variable Rate Notes

 

Time deposits are issued by a depository institution in exchange for the deposit of funds. The issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the depositor on the date specified with respect to the deposit. Time deposits do not trade in the secondary market prior to maturity. However, some time deposits may be redeemable prior to maturity and may be subject to withdrawal penalties.

 

The commercial paper obligations are typically unsecured and may include variable rate notes. The nature and terms of a variable rate note (i.e., a "Master Note") permit the Fund to invest fluctuating amounts at varying rates of interest pursuant to a direct arrangement between the Fund and the issuer. It permits daily changes in the amounts invested. The Fund, typically, has the right at any time to increase, up to the full amount stated in the note agreement, or to decrease the amount outstanding under the note. The issuer may prepay at any time and without penalty any part of or the full amount of the note. The note may or may not be backed by one or more bank letters of credit. Because these notes are direct investment arrangements between the Fund and the issuer, it is not generally contemplated that they will be traded; moreover, there is currently no secondary market for them. Except as specifically provided in the Prospectus, there is no limitation on the type of issuer from whom these notes may be purchased; however, in connection with such purchase and on an ongoing basis, the Adviser will consider the earning power, cash flow and other liquidity ratios of the issuer, and its ability to pay principal and interest on demand, including a situation in which all holders of such notes made demand simultaneously. Variable rate notes are subject to the Fund’s investment restriction on illiquid securities unless such notes can be put back to the issuer (redeemed) on demand within seven days.

 

Insured Bank Obligations

 

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") insures the deposits of federally insured banks and savings and loan associations (collectively referred to as "banks") up to $250,000. The Fund may elect to purchase bank obligations in small amounts so as to be fully insured as to principal by the FDIC. Currently, to remain fully insured as to principal, these investments must be limited to $250,000 per bank; if the principal amount and accrued interest together exceed $250,000, the excess principal and accrued interest will not be insured. Insured bank obligations may have limited marketability.

 

United States Government Obligations

 

These consist of various types of marketable securities issued by the United States Treasury, i.e., bills, notes and bonds. Such securities are direct obligations of the United States government and differ mainly in the length of their maturity. Treasury bills, the most frequently issued marketable government security, have a maturity of up to one year and are issued on a discount basis.

 

 

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Debt Issued by United States Government Agencies

 

These consist of debt securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the United States government, including the various types of instruments currently outstanding or which may be offered in the future. Agencies include, among others, the Federal Housing Administration, Government National Mortgage Association ("Ginnie Mae"), Farmer's Home Administration, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Maritime Administration, and General Services Administration. Instrumentalities include, for example, each of the Federal Home Loan Banks, the National Bank for Cooperatives, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("Freddie Mac"), the Farm Credit Banks, the Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae"), and the United States Postal Service. These securities are either: (i) backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government (e.g., United States Treasury Bills); (ii) guaranteed by the United States Treasury (e.g., Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed securities); (iii) supported by the issuing agency's or instrumentality's right to borrow from the United States Treasury (e.g., Fannie Mae Discount Notes); or (iv) supported only by the issuing agency's or instrumentality's own credit (e.g., Tennessee Valley Association).

 

Government-related guarantors (i.e. not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government) include Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fannie Mae is a government-sponsored corporation owned entirely by private stockholders. It is subject to general regulation by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Fannie Mae purchases conventional (i.e., not insured or guaranteed by any government agency) residential mortgages from a list of approved seller/servicers which include state and federally chartered savings and loan associations, mutual savings banks, commercial banks and credit unions and mortgage bankers. Pass-through securities issued by Fannie Mae are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by Fannie Mae but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government.

 

Freddie Mac was created by Congress in 1970 for the purpose of increasing the availability of mortgage credit for residential housing. It is a government-sponsored corporation formerly owned by the twelve Federal Home Loan Banks and now owned entirely by private stockholders. Freddie Mac issues participation certificates (“PCs”), which represent interests in conventional mortgages from Freddie Mac's national portfolio. Freddie Mac guarantees the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal, but PCs are not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers also create pass-through pools of conventional residential mortgage loans. Such issuers may, in addition, be the originators and/or servicers of the underlying mortgage loans as well as the guarantors of the mortgage-related securities. Pools created by such non-governmental issuers generally offer a higher rate of interest than government and government-related pools because there are no direct or indirect government or agency guarantees of payments in the former pools. However, timely payment of interest and principal of these pools may be supported by various forms of insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title, pool and hazard insurance and letters of credit. The

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insurance and guarantees are issued by governmental entities, private insurers and the mortgage poolers.

 

On September 7, 2008, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Federal Housing Finance Authority (the "FHFA") announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had been placed into conservatorship, a statutory process designed to stabilize a troubled institution with the objective of returning the entity to normal business operations. The U.S. Treasury Department and the FHFA at the same time established a secured lending facility and a Secured Stock Purchase Agreement with both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to ensure that each entity had the ability to fulfill its financial obligations. The FHFA announced that it does not anticipate any disruption in pattern of payments or ongoing business operations of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

 

Spread Transactions

 

The Fund may purchase covered spread options from securities dealers. These covered spread options are not presently exchange-listed or exchange-traded. The purchase of a spread option gives the Fund the right to put securities that it owns at a fixed dollar spread or fixed yield spread in relationship to another security that the Fund does not own, but which is used as a benchmark. The risk to the Fund, in addition to the risks of dealer options described above, is the cost of the premium paid as well as any transaction costs. The purchase of spread options will be used to protect the Fund against adverse changes in prevailing credit quality spreads, i.e., the yield spread between high quality and lower quality securities. This protection is provided only during the life of the spread options.

 

 

Real Estate Investment Trusts

 

The Fund may invest in securities of real estate investment trusts ("REITs"). REITs are publicly traded corporations or trusts that specialize in acquiring, holding and managing residential, commercial or industrial real estate. A REIT is not taxed at the entity level on income distributed to its shareholders or unitholders if it distributes to shareholders or unitholders at least 90% of its taxable income for each taxable year and complies with regulatory requirements relating to its organization, ownership, assets and income.

 

REITs generally can be classified as "Equity REITs", "Mortgage REITs" and "Hybrid REITs." An Equity REIT invests the majority of its assets directly in real property and derives its income primarily from rents and from capital gains on real estate appreciation, which are realized through property sales. A Mortgage REIT invests the majority of its assets in real estate mortgage loans and services its income primarily from interest payments. A Hybrid REIT combines the characteristics of an Equity REIT and a Mortgage REIT.

 

Investments in the real estate industry involve particular risks. The real estate industry has been subject to substantial fluctuations and declines on a local, regional and national basis in the past and may continue to be in the future. Real property values and income

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from real property continue to be in the future. Real property values and income from real property may decline due to general and local economic conditions, overbuilding and increased competition, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, casualty or condemnation losses, regulatory limitations on rents, changes in neighborhoods and in demographics, increases in market interest rates, or other factors. Factors such as these may adversely affect companies that own and operate real estate directly, companies that lend to such companies, and companies that service the real estate industry.

 

Investments in REITs also involve risks. Equity REITs will be affected by changes in the values of and income from the properties they own, while Mortgage REITs may be affected by the credit quality of the mortgage loans they hold. In addition, REITs are dependent on specialized management skills and on their ability to generate cash flow for operating purposes and to make distributions to shareholders or unitholders REITs may have limited diversification and are subject to risks associated with obtaining financing for real property, as well as to the risk of self-liquidation. REITs also can be adversely affected by their failure to qualify for tax-free pass-through treatment of their income under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or their failure to maintain an exemption from registration under the 1940 Act. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Fund, a shareholder bears not only a proportionate share of the expenses of the Fund, but also may indirectly bear similar expenses of some of the REITs in which it invests.

 

Repurchase Agreements

 

The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements. In a repurchase agreement, an investor (such as the Fund) purchases a security (known as the "underlying security") from a securities dealer or bank. Any such dealer or bank must be deemed creditworthy by the Adviser. At that time, the bank or securities dealer agrees to repurchase the underlying security at a mutually agreed upon price on a designated future date. The repurchase price may be higher than the purchase price, the difference being income to the Fund, or the purchase and repurchase prices may be the same, with interest at an agreed upon rate due to the Fund on repurchase. In either case, the income to the Fund generally will be unrelated to the interest rate on the underlying securities. Repurchase agreements must be "fully collateralized," in that the market value of the underlying securities (including accrued interest) must at all times be equal to or greater than the repurchase price. Therefore, a repurchase agreement can be considered a loan collateralized by the underlying securities.

 

Repurchase agreements are generally for a short period of time, often less than a week, and will generally be used by the Fund to invest excess cash or as part of a temporary defensive strategy. Repurchase agreements that do not provide for payment within seven days will be treated as illiquid investments. In the event of a bankruptcy or other default by the seller of a repurchase agreement, the Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying security and losses. These losses could result from: (a) possible decline in the value of the underlying security while the Fund is seeking to

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enforce its rights under the repurchase agreement; (b) possible reduced levels of income or lack of access to income during this period; and (c) expenses of enforcing its rights.

 

Trading in Futures Contracts

 

A futures contract provides for the future sale by one party and purchase by another party of a specified amount of a specific financial instrument (e.g., units of a stock index) for a specified price, date, time and place designated at the time the contract is made. Brokerage fees are paid when a futures contract is bought or sold and margin deposits must be maintained. Entering into a contract to buy is commonly referred to as buying or purchasing a contract or holding a long position. Entering into a contract to sell is commonly referred to as selling a contract or holding a short position.

 

Unlike when the Fund purchases or sells a security, no price would be paid or received by the Fund upon the purchase or sale of a futures contract. The margin required for a particular futures contract is set by the exchange on which the contract is traded, and may be significantly modified from time to time by the exchange during the term of the contract. Futures contracts are customarily purchased and sold on margins that may range upward from less than 5% of the value of the contract being traded.

 

If the price of an open futures contract changes (by increase in underlying instrument or index in the case of a sale or by decrease in the case of a purchase) so that the loss on the futures contract reaches a point at which the margin on deposit does not satisfy margin requirements, the broker will require an increase in the margin. However, if the value of a position increases because of favorable price changes in the futures contract so that the margin deposit exceeds the required margin, the broker will pay the excess to the Fund.

 

These subsequent payments, called "variation margin," to and from the futures broker, are made on a daily basis as the price of the underlying assets fluctuate making the long and short positions in the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as "marking to the market." The Fund expect to earn interest income on margin deposits.

 

Although certain futures contracts, by their terms, require actual future delivery of and payment for the underlying instruments, in practice most futures contracts are usually closed out before the delivery date. Closing out an open futures contract purchase or sale is effected by entering into an offsetting futures contract sale or purchase, respectively, for the same aggregate amount of the identical underlying instrument or index and the same delivery date. If the offsetting purchase price is less than the original sale price, the Fund realizes a gain; if it is more, the Fund realizes a loss. Conversely, if the offsetting sale price is more than the original purchase price, the Fund realizes a gain; if it is less, the Fund realizes a loss. The transaction costs must also be included in these calculations. There can be no assurance, however, that the Fund will be able to enter into an offsetting transaction with respect to a particular futures contract at a particular time. If the Fund is not able to enter into an offsetting transaction, the Fund will continue to be required to maintain the margin deposits on the futures contract.

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When-Issued, Forward Commitments and Delayed Settlements

 

The Fund may purchase and sell securities on a when-issued, forward commitment or delayed settlement basis. The Fund does not intend to engage in these transactions for speculative purposes but only in furtherance of its investment objectives. In this event, the Custodian will segregate liquid assets equal to the amount of the commitment in a separate account. Normally, the Custodian will set aside portfolio securities to satisfy a purchase commitment. In such a case, the Fund may be required subsequently to segregate additional assets in order to assure that the value of the account remains equal to the amount of the Fund’s commitment. It may be expected that the Fund’s net assets will fluctuate to a greater degree when it sets aside portfolio securities to cover such purchase commitments than when it sets aside cash.

 

The Fund purchases securities on a when-issued, forward commitment or delayed settlement basis only with the intention of completing the transaction. If deemed advisable as a matter of investment strategy, however, the Fund may dispose of or renegotiate a commitment after it is entered into, and may sell securities it has committed to purchase before those securities are delivered to the Fund on the settlement date. In these cases the Fund may realize a taxable capital gain or loss. When the Fund engages in when-issued, forward commitment and delayed settlement transactions, it relies on the other party to consummate the trade. Failure of such party to do so may result in the Fund incurring a loss or missing an opportunity to obtain a price credited to be advantageous.

 

The market value of the securities underlying a when-issued purchase, forward commitment to purchase securities, or a delayed settlement and any subsequent fluctuations in their market value is taken into account when determining the market value of the Fund starting on the day the Fund agrees to purchase the securities. The Fund does not earn interest on the securities it has committed to purchase until it has paid for and delivered on the settlement date.

 

Illiquid and Restricted Investments

 

The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. Illiquid investments include securities subject to contractual or legal restrictions on resale (e.g., because they have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act")) and securities that are otherwise not readily marketable (e.g., because trading in the security is suspended or because market makers do not exist or will not entertain bids or offers). Securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act are referred to as private placements or restricted securities and are purchased directly from the issuer or in the secondary market. Foreign securities that are freely tradable in their principal markets are not considered to be illiquid.

 

Restricted and other illiquid investments may be subject to the potential for delays on resale and uncertainty in valuation. The Fund might be unable to dispose of illiquid securities promptly or at reasonable prices and might thereby experience difficulty in satisfying redemption requests from shareholders. The Fund might have to register restricted securities in order to dispose of them, resulting in additional expense and delay. Adverse market conditions could impede such a public offering of securities.

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A large institutional market exists for certain securities that are not registered under the Securities Act, including foreign securities. The fact that there are contractual or legal restrictions on resale to the general public or to certain institutions may not be indicative of the liquidity of such investments. Rule 144A under the Securities Act allows such a broader institutional trading market for securities otherwise subject to restrictions on resale to the general public. Rule 144A establishes a "safe harbor" from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for resale of certain securities to qualified institutional buyers. Rule 144A has produced enhanced liquidity for many restricted securities, and market liquidity for such securities may continue to expand as a result of this regulation and the consequent existence of the PORTAL system, which is an automated system for the trading, clearance and settlement of unregistered securities of domestic and foreign issuers sponsored by NASDAQ.

 

Under guidelines adopted by the Board, the Adviser may determine that particular Rule 144A securities, and commercial paper issued in reliance on the private placement exemption from registration afforded by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act, are liquid even though they are not registered. A determination of whether such a security is liquid or not is a question of fact. In making this determination, the Adviser will consider, as it deems appropriate under the circumstances and among other factors: (1) the frequency of trades and quotes for the security; (2) the number of dealers willing to purchase or sell the security; (3) the number of other potential purchasers of the security; (4) dealer undertakings to make a market in the security; (5) the nature of the security (e.g., debt or equity, date of maturity, terms of dividend or interest payments, and other material terms) and the nature of the marketplace trades (e.g., the time needed to dispose of the security, the method of soliciting offers, and the mechanics of transfer); and (6) the rating of the security and the financial condition and prospects of the issuer. In the case of commercial paper, the Adviser will also determine that the paper (1) is not traded flat or in default as to principal and interest, and (2) is rated in one of the two highest rating categories by at least two nationally recognized statistical rating organizations ("NRSROs") or, if only one NRSRO rates the security, by that NRSRO, or, if the security is unrated, the Adviser determines that it is of equivalent quality.

 

Rule 144A securities and Section 4(a)(2) commercial paper that have been deemed liquid as described above will continue to be monitored by the Adviser to determine if the security is no longer liquid as the result of changed conditions. Investing in Rule 144A securities or Section 4(a)(2) commercial paper could have the effect of increasing the amount of the Fund’s assets invested in illiquid securities if institutional buyers are unwilling to purchase such securities.

 

Liquidity Risk Management

 

Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act (the “Liquidity Rule”) requires open-end funds to establish a liquidity risk management program (the “Liquidity Program”) and enhance disclosures regarding fund liquidity. As required by the Liquidity Rule, the Fund has implemented a Liquidity Program, and the Board has appointed an administrator of the Liquidity Program. Under the Liquidity Program, the Fund’s liquidity risk is assessed, managed, and periodically reviewed. The Liquidity Rule defines “liquidity risk” as the risk that the Fund

21 
 

could not meet requests to redeem shares issued by the Fund without significant dilution of the remaining investors’ interest in the Fund. The liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio investments is determined based on relevant market, trading and investment-specific considerations under the Liquidity Program.

 

Lending Portfolio Securities

 

For the purpose of achieving income, the Fund may lend its portfolio securities, provided (1) the loan is secured continuously by collateral consisting of U.S. government securities or cash or cash equivalents (cash, U.S. government securities, negotiable certificates of deposit, bankers' acceptances or letters of credit) maintained on a daily mark-to-market basis in an amount at least equal to the current market value of the securities loaned, (2) the Fund may at any time call the loan and obtain the return of securities loaned, (3) the Fund will receive any interest or dividends received on the loaned securities, and (4) the aggregate value of the securities loaned will not at any time exceed one-third of the total assets of the Fund.

 

Passive Foreign Investment Companies

 

The Fund may invest in shares of foreign corporations that may be classified under the Internal Revenue Code as passive foreign investment companies (“PFICs”). In general, a foreign corporation is classified as a PFIC if at least one-half of its assets constitute investment-type assets, or 75% or more of its gross income is investment-type income.

 

Regulation as a Commodity Pool Operator

 

The Adviser, on behalf of the Fund, has filed with the National Futures Association, a notice claiming an exclusion from the definition of the term "commodity pool operator" under the Commodity Exchange Act, as amended, and the rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission promulgated thereunder, with respect to the Fund’s operation. Accordingly, the Fund is not subject to registration or regulation as a commodity pool operator.

 

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

The Fund has adopted the following investment restrictions that may not be changed without approval by a "majority of the outstanding shares" of the Fund which, as used in this SAI, means the vote of the lesser of (a) 67% or more of the shares of the Fund represented at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund are present or represented by proxy, or (b) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. The Fund may not:

 

1. Issue senior securities- This limitation is not applicable to activities that may be deemed to involve the issuance or sale of a senior security by the Fund, provided that the Fund's engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by the 1940 Act, the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or interpretations of the SEC or its staff;

 

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2. Borrow money, except (a) from a bank, provided that immediately after such borrowing there is an asset coverage of 300% for all borrowings of the Fund; or (b) from a bank or other persons for temporary purposes only, provided that such temporary borrowings are in an amount not exceeding 5% of the Fund’s total assets at the time when the borrowing is made. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from entering into reverse repurchase transactions, provided that the Fund has an asset coverage of 300% for all borrowings and repurchase commitments of the Fund pursuant to reverse repurchase transactions;

 

3. Purchase securities on margin, participate on a joint or joint and several basis in any securities trading account, or underwrite securities. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from obtaining such short-term credit as may be necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of its portfolio securities, and except to the extent that the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act, by virtue of disposing of portfolio securities;

 

4. Purchase or sell real estate or interests in real estate. This limitation is not applicable to investments in marketable securities that are secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from investing in mortgage-related securities or investing in companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion of their assets in real estate (including REITs);

 

5. Invest more than 25% of the market value of its assets in the securities of companies engaged in any one industry or group of industries. This limitation does not apply to investment in the securities of the U.S. government, its agencies or instruments;

 

6. Purchase or sell commodities (unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments) or commodity futures contracts, except that the Fund may purchase and sell futures contracts and options to the full extent permitted under the 1940 Act, sell foreign currency contracts in accordance with any rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, invest in securities or other instruments backed by commodities, and invest in companies that are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities; or

 

7. Make loans to others, except that the Fund may, in accordance with its investment objective and policies, (i) lend portfolio securities, (ii) purchase and hold debt securities or other debt instruments, including but not limited to loan participations and sub-participations, assignments, and structured securities, (iii) make loans secured by mortgages on real property where each loan is represented by a note executed by the borrower, (iv) enter into repurchase agreements, (v) enter into transactions where each loan is represented by a note executed by the borrower, and (vi) make time deposits with financial institutions and invest in instruments issued by financial institutions. For purposes of this limitation, the term "loans" shall not include the purchase of a portion of an issue of publicly distributed bonds, debentures or other securities.

 

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The Fund observes the following policies, which are not deemed fundamental and which may be changed without shareholder vote. The Fund may not:

 

1. Invest in any issuer for purposes of exercising control or management;

 

2. Mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or in any manner transfer, as security for indebtedness, any assets of the Fund except as may be necessary in connection with borrowings described in limitation (1) above. Margin deposits, security interests, liens and collateral arrangements with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted investments and techniques are not deemed to be a mortgage, pledge or hypothecation of assets for purposes of this limitation.

 

3. Purchase any security when outstanding borrowings by the Fund represent more than 5% of its total assets.

 

If a restriction on the Fund’s investments is adhered to at the time an investment is made, a subsequent change in the percentage of Fund assets invested in certain securities or other instruments of the Fund’s investment portfolio, resulting from changes in the value of the Fund’s total assets, will not be considered a violation of the restriction; provided, however, that the asset coverage requirement applicable to borrowings shall be maintained in the manner contemplated by applicable law.

 

With respect to fundamental investment restriction #5, if the Fund invests in one or more investment companies that concentrate its investments in a particular industry, the Fund will examine its other investment company holdings to ensure that the Fund is not indirectly concentrating its investments in a particular industry.

 

Although fundamental investment restriction #7 reserves for the Fund the ability to make loans, there is no present intent to loan money and additional disclosure will be provided if such a strategy is implemented in the future.

 

In addition to the requirements set forth in Section 3816 of the Delaware Statutory Trust Act, a shareholder may bring a derivative action on behalf of the Trust only if the shareholder first make a pre-suit demand upon the Board to bring the subject action unless such pre-suit demand is excused. A demand on the Board shall only be excused if a majority of the Board, or a majority of any committee established to consider the merits of such action, has a personal financial interest in the action at issue. A Trustee shall not be deemed to have a personal financial interest in an action or otherwise be disqualified from ruling on a shareholder demand by virtue of the fact that such Trustee receives remuneration from his or her service on the Board.

 

 

 

 

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POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

The Trust has adopted policies and procedures that govern the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. These policies and procedures are designed to ensure that such disclosure is in the best interests of Fund shareholders.

 

It is the Trust's policy to: (1) ensure that any disclosure of portfolio holdings information is in the best interest of Fund shareholders; (2) protect the confidentiality of portfolio holdings information; (3) have procedures in place to guard against personal trading based on the information; and (4) ensure that the disclosure of portfolio holdings information does not create conflicts between the interests of the Fund's shareholders and those of affiliates.

 

The Fund discloses its portfolio holdings by mailing the annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders and by filing Form N-CSR, N-PORT with the SEC. The Fund’s Form N-CSR and Form N-PORT are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

 

The Fund also discloses portfolio holdings to the general public, on the Fund’s website at www.moeruscap.com. Portfolio holdings may be disclosed monthly, no earlier than 30 days following the month end. In addition, top positional holdings and portfolio-related statistical information may be disclosed quarterly no earlier than 14 days after the end of each calendar quarter.

 

The Fund may make portfolio holdings available to industry databases only after such holdings have been disclosed to the general public either through the Fund’s website or SEC filings.

 

The Fund may choose to make portfolio holdings information available to rating agencies such as Lipper, Morningstar or Bloomberg earlier and more frequently on a confidential basis.

 

Under limited circumstances, as described below, the Fund’s portfolio holdings may be disclosed to, or known by, certain third parties in advance of their disclosure on the Fund’s website and/or filing with the SEC. In each case, a determination has been made by the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer that such advance disclosure is supported by a legitimate business purpose of the Fund and that the recipient is subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and is prohibited from trading on material non-public information.

 

Separate account clients of the Adviser have access to their portfolio holdings and are not subject to the Fund’s portfolio holdings disclosure policies. Some of the separate accounts managed by the Adviser may have investment objectives and strategies that are substantially similar or identical to the Fund’s, and therefore potentially substantially similar, and in certain cases nearly identical, portfolio holdings, as the Fund.

 

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The Adviser. Personnel of the Adviser, including personnel responsible for managing the Fund’s portfolio, may have full daily access to Fund portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for the Adviser to provide its management, administrative, and investment services to the Fund. As required for purposes of analyzing the impact of existing and future market changes on the prices, availability, as demand and liquidity of such securities, as well as for the assistance of portfolio managers in the trading of such securities, Adviser personnel may also release and discuss certain portfolio holdings with various broker-dealers.

 

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC. Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC is the transfer agent, fund accountant, administrator and custody administrator for the Fund; therefore, its personnel have full daily access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for them to provide the agreed-upon services for the Fund.

 

The Bank of New York Mellon. The Bank of New York Mellon is custodian for the Fund; therefore, its personnel have full daily access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings since that information is necessary in order for them to provide the agreed-upon services for the Fund.

 

Cohen & Company, Ltd. Cohen & Company, Ltd. is the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm; therefore, its personnel have access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings in connection with auditing of the Fund’s annual financial statements.

 

Thompson Hine LLP. Thompson Hine LLP is counsel to the Fund; therefore, its personnel have access to the Fund’s portfolio holdings in connection with review of the Fund’s annual and semi-annual shareholder reports and SEC filings.

 

Additions to List of Approved Recipients

 

The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer is the person responsible, and whose prior approval is required, for any disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio securities at any time or to any persons other than those described above. In such cases, the recipient must have a legitimate business need for the information in connection with the operation or administration of the Funds, as determined by the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer, and must be subject to a duty to keep the information confidential and not trade on any material, non-public information. There are no ongoing arrangements in place with respect to the disclosure of portfolio holdings. In no event shall the Fund, the Adviser, or any other party receive any direct or indirect compensation in connection with the disclosure of information about the Fund’s portfolio holdings.

 

Compliance With Portfolio Holdings Disclosure Procedures

 

The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer reports periodically to the Board with respect to compliance with the Fund’s portfolio holdings disclosure procedures, and from time to time will provide the Board any updates to the portfolio holdings disclosure policies and procedures.

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There is no assurance that the Trust's policies on disclosure of portfolio holdings will protect the Fund from the potential misuse of holdings information by individuals or firms in possession of that information.

 

MANAGEMENT

The business of the Trust is managed under the direction of the Board in accordance with the Agreement and Declaration of Trust and the Trust's By-laws (the "Governing Documents"), which have been filed with the SEC and are available upon request. The Board consists three (3) individuals, all of whom are not "interested persons" (as defined under the 1940 Act) of the Trust or any investment adviser to any series of the Trust ("Independent Trustees"). Pursuant to the Governing Documents, the Board shall elect officers including a President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, a Principal Executive Officer and a Principal Accounting Officer. The Board retains the power to conduct, operate and carry on the business of the Trust and has the power to incur and pay any expenses, which, in the opinion of the Board, are necessary or incidental to carry out any of the Trust's purposes. The Board, officers, employees and agents of the Trust, when acting in such capacities, shall not be subject to any personal liability except for his own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his duties.

 

Board Leadership Structure

 

The Trust is led by Joseph Breslin, who has served as the Chairman of the Board since July 2015. Under the Governing Documents, the Chairman of the Board is responsible for (a) presiding at Board meetings, (b) calling special meetings on an as-needed basis, (c) executing and administering of Trust policies including (i) setting the agendas for Board meetings and (ii) providing information to board members in advance of each Board meeting and between Board meetings. The Trust believes that its Chairman, the independent chair of the Audit Committee, and, as an entity, the full Board, provide effective leadership that is in the best interests of the Trust, its funds and each shareholder. Additionally, under certain 1940 Act governance guidelines that apply to the Trust, the Independent Trustees will meet in executive session, at least quarterly.

 

Board Risk Oversight

 

The Board has a standing independent Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Contract Review Committee, each with a separate chair. The Board is responsible for overseeing risk management, and the full Board regularly engages in discussions of risk management and receives compliance reports that inform its oversight of risk management from its Chief Compliance Officer at quarterly meetings and on an ad hoc basis, when and if necessary. The Audit Committee considers financial reporting and risk within its area of responsibilities. Generally, the Board believes that its oversight of material risks is adequately maintained through the compliance-reporting chain where the Chief Compliance Officer is the primary recipient and communicator of such risk-related information. The primary purposes of the Nominating and Governance Committee are to

27 
 

consider and evaluate the structure, composition and operation of the Board, to evaluate and recommend individuals to serve on the Board of the Trust, and to consider and make recommendations relating to the compensation of the Trust’s independent trustees.  The Nominating and Governance Committee may consider recommendations for candidates to serve on the Board from any source it deems appropriate. The primary purpose of the Contract Review Committee is to oversee and guide the process by which the Independent Trustees annually consider whether to approve or renew the Trust’s investment advisory, sub-advisory and distribution agreements, Rule 12b-1 plans, and such other agreements or plans involving the Trust as specified in the Contract Review Committee’s charter or as the Board determines from time to time.

 

Trustee Qualifications

 

Generally, the Trust believes that each Trustee is competent to serve because of their individual overall merits including: (i) experience, (ii) qualifications, (iii) attributes and (iv) skills. Mr. Breslin has over 20 years of business experience in the investment management and brokerage business and possesses a strong understanding of the regulatory framework under which investment companies must operate based, in part, upon his years of service as an officer and/or Trustee to other registered investment companies. Thomas Sarkany is qualified to serve as a Trustee based on his experience in various business and consulting positions, and through his experience from service as a board member of the Trust and other investment companies. Since 2010, he has been the President of a financial services firm and from 1994 through 2010, held various roles at a publicly held company providing financial research, publications and money management services to retail and institutional investors, including Director of Marketing and Asset Management, Director of Index Licensing, and member of the Board of Directors. In addition to his service as a Trustee of the Trust, Mr. Sarkany serves as a trustee of the Northern Lights Fund Trust II and has previously served as a director of certain public companies. Charles R. Ranson has more than 20 years’ experience in strategic analysis and planning, risk assessment, and capital formation in the operation of complex organizations and entrepreneurial ventures. In addition to his service to the Trust, Mr. Ranson serves as an independent trustee to another mutual fund complex. Each Trustee’s ability to perform his duties effectively also has been enhanced by his educational background and professional training. The Trust does not believe any one factor is determinative in assessing a Trustee's qualifications, but that the collective experience of each Trustee makes them each highly qualified.

 

The following is a list of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust and each person’s principal occupation over the last five years. The business address of each Trustee and Officer is 225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450, Cincinnati, OH 45246. All correspondence to the Trustees and Officers should be directed to c/o Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, P.O. Box 541150, Omaha, NE 68154.

 

 

 

 

 

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Independent Trustees***

Name, Address and Year of Birth Position/Term of Office* Principal Occupation During the Past Five Years Number of Funds in Fund Complex** Overseen by Trustee Other Directorships held by Trustee During the Past Five Years

Joseph Breslin

Year of Birth: 1953

Independent Trustee and Chairman of the Board since 2015

President and Consultant, Adviser Counsel, Inc. (formerly J.E. Breslin & Co.) (management consulting firm to investment advisers), (since 2009); Senior Counsel, White Oak Global Advisors, LLC. (since 2016).

 

1 Northern Lights Fund Trust IV (for series not affiliated with the Fund since 2015); Director, Kinetics Mutual Funds, Inc. (since 2000); Trustee, Kinetics Portfolios Trust (since 2000); Trustee, Forethought Variable Insurance Trust (since 2013).

Thomas Sarkany

Year of Birth: 1946

Independent Trustee since 2015 Founder and President, TTS Associates Inc. (since December 2022); and Founder and President, TTS Consultants, LLC (financial services) (since 2010). 1 Northern Lights Fund Trust IV (for series not affiliated with the Fund since 2015); Arrow Investments Trust (since 2014), Arrow ETF Trust (since 2012), Trustee, Northern Lights Fund Trust II (since 2011); Director, Aquila Distributors (since 1981)

Charles Ranson

Year of Birth: 1947

Independent Trustee since 2015 Principal, Ranson & Associates (strategic analysis and planning, including risk assessment and capital formation for entrepreneurial ventures) (since 2003). 1 Northern Lights Fund Trust IV (for series not affiliated with the Fund since 2015); Advisors Preferred Trust (since November 2012)  

 

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Officers

Name, Address and Year of
Birth
Position/Term of Office* Principal Occupation During the Past Five Years Number of Funds in Fund Complex** Overseen by Trustee Other Directorships held by Trustee During the Past Five Years
Wendy Wang***
80 Arkay Drive
Hauppauge, NY  11788
Year of Birth: 1970
President since 2015 Senior Vice President, Director of Tax and Compliance Administration, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2012). N/A N/A
Sam Singh
80 Arkay Drive
Hauppauge, NY  11788
Year of Birth: 1976
Treasurer since 2015 Vice President, Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (since 2015). N/A N/A
Jennifer Farrell
80 Arkay Drive
Hauppauge, NY  11788
Year of Birth: 1969
Secretary since 2017 Associate Director (since 2022) and Manager (2018-2022), Legal Administration), Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC; Senior Paralegal, Gemini Fund Services, LLC (since 2015). N/A N/A
James Ash
Year of Birth: 1976
Chief Compliance Officer since 2019 Senior Vice President, Head of Compliance (since 2023); Senior Compliance Officer, Northern Lights Compliance, LLC (2019 - 2023); Senior Vice President, National Sales Gemini Fund Services, LLC (2017-2019).   N/A N/A

* The term of office for each Trustee and officer listed above will continue indefinitely until the individual resigns or is removed.

** As of March 27, 2024, the Trust was comprised of 39 other active portfolios managed by unaffiliated investment advisers.  The term “Fund Complex” applies only to the Fund.  The Fund does not hold itself out as related to any other series within the Trust for investment purposes, nor does it share the same investment adviser with any other series.

*** Ms. Wang served as an interested Trustee from April 24, 2023 to January 25, 2024. She was an interested Trustee because she was also an officer of the Trust.

 

Board Committees

 

Audit Committee

 

The Board has an Audit Committee that consists of all the Independent Trustees. The Audit Committee's responsibilities include: (i) recommending to the Board the selection, retention or termination of the Trust's independent auditors; (ii) reviewing with the independent auditors the scope, performance and anticipated cost of their audit; (iii) discussing with the independent auditors certain matters relating to the Trust's financial statements, including any adjustment to such financial statements recommended by such independent auditors, or any other results of any audit; (iv) reviewing on a periodic basis a formal written statement from the independent auditors with respect to their independence, discussing with the independent auditors any relationships or services disclosed in the statement that may impact the objectivity and independence of the Trust's independent auditors and recommending that the Board take appropriate action in response thereto to

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satisfy itself of the auditor's independence; and (v) considering the comments of the independent auditors and management's responses thereto with respect to the quality and adequacy of the Trust's accounting and financial reporting policies and practices and internal controls. Mr. Breslin serves as the Chairman of the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee operates pursuant to an Audit Committee Charter. During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Audit Committee met ten times.

 

Nominating and Governance Committee

 

The Board has a Nominating and Governance Committee that consists of all the Independent Trustees. The Nominating and Governance Committee’s responsibilities (which may also be conducted by the Board) include: (i) recommending persons to be nominated or re-nominated as Trustees in accordance with the Independent Trustee's Statement of Policy on Criteria for Selecting Independent Trustees; (ii) reviewing the Funds’ officers, and conduct Chief Compliance Officer searches, as needed, and providing consultation regarding other CCO matters, as requested; (iii) reviewing trustee qualifications, performance, and compensation; (iv) review periodically with the Board the size and composition of the Board as a whole; (v) annually evaluating the operations of the Board and its Committees and assisting the Board in conducting its annual self-evaluation; (vi) making recommendations on the requirements for, and means of, Board orientation and training; (vii) periodically reviewing the Board’s corporate governance policies and practices and recommending, as it deems appropriate, any changes to the Board; (viii) consider any corporate governance issues that arise from time to time, and developing appropriate recommendations for the Board; and (ix) supervising counsel for the Independent Trustees. Mr. Ranson serves as the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee. The Nominating and Governance Committee operates pursuant to a Nominating and Governance Committee Charter. During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Nominating and Governance Committee met twice.

 

Contract Review Committee

 

The Board has a Contract Review Committee that consists of all the Independent Trustees. The primary purpose of the Contract Review Committee is to oversee and guide the process by which the Independent Trustees annually consider whether to approve or renew the Trust’s investment advisory, sub-advisory and distribution agreements, Rule 12b-1 plans, and such other agreements or plans involving the Trust as specified in the Contract Review Committee’s charter or as the Board determines from time to time. The Board may also assign to the Contract Review Committee responsibility to evaluate and make recommendations on contracts in unusual situations, for example, where a contract is expected to terminate because of a change of control of an investment adviser. The Contract Review Committee's responsibilities include: (i) identifying the scope and format of information to be requested from service providers in connection with the evaluation of each contract or plan and meet and evaluate such information at least annually in advance of the automatic expiration of such contracts by operation of law or by their terms; (ii) providing guidance to independent legal counsel regarding specific information requests to be made by such counsel on behalf of the Board or the Independent Trustees; (iii) evaluating regulatory and other developments coming to its attention that might reasonably be expected to have an impact on the Independent Trustees’ consideration of how to evaluate and whether or not to renew a contract or plan; (iv) assisting in

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circumscribing the range of factors considered by the Board relating to the approval or renewal of advisory or sub-advisory agreements; (v) recommending to other committees and/or to the Independent Trustees specific steps to be taken by them regarding the renewal process, including, for example, proposed schedules of meetings by Independent Trustees; (vi) investigating and reporting on any other matter brought to its attention within the scope of its duties; and (vii) performing such other duties as are consistent with the Contract Review Committee’s purpose or that are assigned to it by the Board. Mr. Sarkany serves as the Chairman of the Contract Review Committee. The Contract Review Committee operates pursuant to a Contract Review Committee Charter. The Chairman of the Contract Review Committee met with independent trust counsel, Trust Counsel and Trust Officers quarterly to review and discuss the proposed 15(c) questionnaires submitted by each adviser regarding Board approval of investment advisory contract. During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Contract Review Committee met four times.

 

Compensation

 

Each Independent Trustee who is not affiliated with the Trust or an investment adviser to any series of the Trust (each an "Independent Trustee") receives a quarterly fee of $32,500to be paid by the Trust within 10 days of the commencement of each calendar quarter for his service as a Trustee of the Board as well as reimbursement for any reasonable expenses incurred for attending regularly scheduled Board and Committee meetings. In addition to this quarterly fee and any expense reimbursements, the Chair of each of the Audit Committee, Nominating and Governance Committee and Contract Review Committee receives a quarterly fee of $2,500 for his service as a committee chair. In the event that an in-person meeting of the Board other than its regularly scheduled meetings (a "Special Meeting") is required, each Independent Trustee will receive a fee of $5,000 per Special Meeting, as well as reimbursement for any reasonable expenses incurred, to be paid by the Trust or the relevant series of the Trust or its investment adviser depending on the circumstances necessitating the Special Meeting. The Independent Trustees at their sole discretion shall determine when a particular meeting constitutes a Special Meeting for purpose of the $5,000 fee.

 

No executive officers receive compensation from the Trust.

 

The table below details the amount of compensation the Independent Trustees received from the Trust during the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023. The Trust does not have a bonus, profit sharing, pension or retirement plan.

 

Name and Position Estimated Aggregate Compensation From Fund Pension or Retirement Benefits Accrued as Part of Funds Expenses Estimated Annual Benefits Upon Retirement Estimated Total Compensation From Fund Complex* Paid to Trustees
Joseph Breslin $3,470 $0 $0 $3,470
Thomas Sarkany $3,470 $0 $0 $3,470
Charles Ranson $2,470 $0 $0 $3,470

* There are currently numerous series comprising the Trust. The term “Fund Complex” refers only to the Fund, and not to any other series of the Trust.

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Management and Trustee Ownership

 

As of December 31, 2023, the Trustees and officers, as a group, owned no shares of the Fund or any of the Fund Complex’s outstanding shares.

 

CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS

A principal shareholder is any person who owns (either of record or beneficially) 5% or more of the outstanding shares of a fund. A control person is one who owns, either directly or indirectly more than 25% of the voting securities of a company or acknowledges the existence of control. A control person is one who owns beneficially or through controlled companies more than 25% of the voting securities of a company or acknowledged the existence of control.

As of March 1, 2024, the following shareholders of record owned 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund.

 

Institutional Class Shares    
Name & Address Shares Percentage of Shares

Charles Schwab & Co Inc./Special Custody A/C FBO Customers

Attn: Mutual Funds

211 Main Street

San Francisco, CA 94105

2,947,902 69.67%

Amit Wadhwaney

307 W 38th St. Suite 2003

New York, NY 10018

244,963 5.79%
Class N Shares    
Name & Address Shares Percentage of Shares

Charles Schwab & Co Inc./Special Custody A/C FBO Customers

Attn: Mutual Funds

211 Main Street

San Francisco, CA 94105

67,126 60.30%

Vanguard Brokerage Services
Vanguard Brokerage Services

100 Vanguard BLVD

Malvern, PA 19355

 

6,731 6.05%

 

INVESTMENT ADVISER

Investment Adviser and Advisory Agreement

 

Moerus Capital Management LLC, located at 307 West 38th Street, Suite 2003, New York, NY 10018, serves as the Fund's investment adviser. The Adviser is registered with the SEC as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. The Adviser is a Delaware limited liability company formed in 2015, and provides

33 
 

investment advice to the Fund, a private fund and separately managed accounts. Amit Wadhwaney may be deemed to control the Adviser because he owns more than 25% of the membership interests in the Adviser.

 

Subject to the oversight of the Board, the Adviser is responsible for the overall management of the Fund’s investment-related business affairs. Pursuant to an investment advisory agreement (the "Advisory Agreement") with the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, the Adviser, manages the portfolio investment operations of the Fund. The Adviser has overall supervisory responsibilities for the general management and investment of the Fund’s securities portfolio, as detailed below, which are subject to review and approval by the Board. In general, the Adviser's duties include setting the Fund’s overall investment strategies and asset allocation.

 

Pursuant to the Advisory Agreement, the Adviser, under the oversight of the Board, agrees to invest the assets of the Fund in accordance with applicable law and the investment objective, policies and restrictions set forth in the Fund’s current Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, and subject to such further limitations as the Trust may from time to time impose by written notice to the Adviser. The Adviser shall act as the investment adviser to the Fund and, as such shall, (i) obtain and evaluate such information relating to the economy, industries, business, securities markets and securities as it may deem necessary or useful in discharging its responsibilities here under, (ii) formulate a continuing program for the investment of the assets of the Fund in a manner consistent with its investment objective, policies and restrictions, and (iii) determine from time to time securities to be purchased, sold, retained or lent by the Fund, and implement those decisions, including the selection of entities with or through which such purchases, sales or loans are to be effected; provided, that the Adviser or its designee, directly, will place orders pursuant to its investment determinations either directly with the issuer or with a broker or dealer, and if with a broker or dealer, (a) will attempt to obtain the best price and execution of its orders, and (b) may nevertheless in its discretion purchase and sell portfolio securities from and to brokers who provide the Adviser with research, analysis, advice and similar services and pay such brokers in return a higher commission or spread than may be charged by other brokers. The Adviser also provides the Fund with all necessary office facilities and personnel for servicing the Fund’s investments, compensates all officers, Trustees and employees of the Trust who are officers, directors or employees of the Adviser, and all personnel of the Fund or the Adviser performing services relating to research, statistical and investment activities. The Advisory Agreement was most recently renewed by the Board, including by a majority of the Independent Trustees, at a meeting held on April 24, 2023.

 

In addition, the Adviser, provides the management and supplemental administrative services necessary for the operation of the Fund. These services include providing assistance in supervising relations with custodians, transfer and pricing agents, accountants, underwriters and other persons dealing with the Fund; assisting in the preparing of all general shareholder communications and conducting shareholder relations; assisting in maintaining the Fund’s records and the registration of the Fund’s shares under federal securities laws and making necessary filings under state securities

34 
 

laws; assisting in developing management and shareholder services for the Fund; and furnishing reports, evaluations and analyses on a variety of subjects to the Trustees.

 

The Fund pays an annual management fee (computed daily and payable monthly) of 0.95% of the Fund’s average daily net assets to the Adviser pursuant to the Advisory Agreement.

 

The Adviser has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund until at least, March 31, 2025, to ensure that total annual fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or expense reimbursement exclusive of any front-end or contingent deferred loads, brokerage fees and commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, borrowing costs (such as interest and dividend expense on securities sold short), fees and expenses associated with investments in other collective investment vehicles or derivative instruments (including for example option and swap fees and expenses), taxes and extraordinary expenses, such as litigation expenses (which may include indemnification of Fund officers and trustees, contractual indemnification of Fund service providers (other than the Adviser)) will not exceed 1.25% and 1.50% of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to Institutional and Class N shares, respectively; subject to possible recoupment from the Fund in future years on a rolling three-year basis if such recoupment can be achieved within the lesser of the foregoing expense limits or those in place at the time of recapture (after the repayment is taken into account). Fee waiver and reimbursement arrangements can decrease the Fund's expenses and boost its performance.

 

For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2021, the Adviser earned $380,434 in advisory fees, and the Adviser waived and/or reimbursed $106,312 in advisory fees and expenses during the year such that the Adviser received an annual advisory fee, in an amount equal to 0.68% of the Fund’s average daily net assets. For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2022, the Adviser earned $427,820 in advisory fees, and the Adviser waived and/or reimbursed $153,840 in advisory fees and expenses during the year such that the Adviser received an annual advisory fee, in an amount equal to 0.61% of the Fund’s average daily net assets. For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023, the Adviser earned $514,184 in advisory fees, and the Adviser waived and/or reimbursed $226,707 in advisory fees and expenses during the year such that the Adviser received an annual advisory fee, in an amount equal to 0.53% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.

 

Expenses not expressly assumed by the Adviser under the Advisory Agreement are paid by the Fund. Under the terms of the Advisory Agreement, the Fund is responsible for the payment of the following expenses among others: (a) the fees payable to the Adviser, (b) the fees and expenses of Trustees who are not affiliated persons of the Adviser or Distributor (as defined under the section entitled “The Distributor”) (c) the fees and certain expenses of the Custodian and Transfer and Dividend Disbursing Agent (as defined under the section entitled Transfer Agent), including the cost of maintaining certain required records of the Fund and of pricing the Fund’s shares, (d) the charges and expenses of legal counsel and independent accountants for the Fund, (e) brokerage commissions and any issue or transfer taxes chargeable to the Fund in connection with

35 
 

its securities transactions, (f) all taxes and corporate fees payable by the Fund to governmental agencies, (g) the fees of any trade association of which the Fund may be a member, (h) the cost of fidelity and liability insurance, (i) the fees and expenses involved in registering and maintaining registration of the Fund and of shares with the SEC, qualifying its shares under state securities laws, including the preparation and printing of the Fund’s registration statements and prospectuses for such purposes, (j) all expenses of shareholders and Board meetings (including travel expenses of trustees and officers of the Trust who are not directors, officers or employees of the Adviser) and of preparing, printing and mailing reports, proxy statements and prospectuses to shareholders in the amount necessary for distribution to the shareholders and (k) litigation and indemnification expenses and other extraordinary expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of the Fund’s business.

 

The Advisory Agreement continued in effect for two (2) years initially and continues from year to year provided such continuance is approved at least annually by (a) a vote of the majority of the Board, cast in person at a meeting specifically called for the purpose of voting on such approval and by (b) the majority vote of the Board or the vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund. The Advisory Agreement may be terminated without penalty on 60 days written notice by a vote of a majority of the Trustees or by the Adviser, or by holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding shares. The Advisory Agreement shall terminate automatically in the event of its assignment. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s renewal of the Advisory Agreement is available in the Fund’s semi-annual report to shareholders dated May 31, 2023.

 

Codes of Ethics

 

The Trust and the Adviser have each adopted a code of ethics (each a “Code”) under Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act that governs the personal securities transactions of their board members, officers and employees who may have access to current trading information of the Trust. Under the Codes, the Trustees are permitted to invest in securities that may also be purchased by the Fund.

 

In addition, the Trust has adopted a code of ethics (the “Trust Code”), which applies only to the Trust's executive officers to ensure that these officers promote professional conduct in the practice of corporate governance and management. The purpose behind these guidelines is to promote (i) honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships; (ii) full, fair, accurate, timely, and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that the Trust files with, or submits to, the SEC and in other public communications made by the Fund; (iii) compliance with applicable governmental laws, rule and regulations; (iv) the prompt internal reporting of violations of the Trust Code to an appropriate person or persons identified in the Trust Code; and (v) accountability for adherence to the Trust Code.

 

 

 

36 
 

Proxy Voting Policies

 

The Board has adopted Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures ("Policies") on behalf of the Trust, which delegate the responsibility for voting proxies to the Adviser or its designee, subject to the Board's continuing oversight. The Policies require that the Adviser or its designee vote proxies received in a manner consistent with the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders. The Policies also require the Adviser or its designee to present to the Board, at least annually, the Adviser's Proxy Policies, or the proxy policies of the Adviser's designee, and a record of each proxy voted by the Adviser or its designee on behalf of the Fund, including a report on the resolution of all proxies identified by the Adviser as involving a conflict of interest.

 

Where a proxy proposal raises a material conflict between the Adviser's interests and the Fund’s interests, the Adviser will resolve the conflict by voting in accordance with the policy guidelines, rely on the recommendation of a committee or that of an independent third party. If the third party's recommendations are not received in a timely fashion, the Adviser will abstain from voting the securities held by that client's account. A copy of the Adviser's and proxy voting policies is attached hereto as Appendix A.

 

Information regarding how the Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities held by the Fund during the most recent 12-month period ending June 30 will be available (1) without charge, upon request, by calling the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1; and (2) on the U.S. SEC's website www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the Fund’s proxy voting policies and procedures are also available by calling 1-844-MOERUS1 and will be sent within three business days of receipt of a request.

 

THE DISTRIBUTOR

Foreside Fund Services, LLC, a wholy owned subsidiary of Foreside Financial Group, LLC (dba ACA Group), located at Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland, ME 04101 (the "Distributor") serves as the principal underwriter and national distributor for the shares of the Trust pursuant to an underwriting agreement with the Trust (the "Underwriting Agreement"). The Distributor is registered as a broker-dealer under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and each state's securities laws and is a member of the FINRA. The offering of the Shares is continuous. The Underwriting Agreement provides that the Distributor, as agent in connection with the distribution of the Fund’s shares, will use reasonable efforts to facilitate the sale of the Fund’s shares.

 

The Underwriting Agreement provides that, unless sooner terminated, it will continue in effect for two years initially and thereafter shall continue from year to year, subject to annual approval by (a) the Board or a vote of a majority of the outstanding shares, and (b) by a majority of the Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust or of the Distributor by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval.

 

37 
 

The Underwriting Agreement may be terminated by the Fund at any time, without the payment of any penalty, by vote of a majority of the entire Board or by vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund on 60 days written notice to the Distributor, or by the Distributor at any time, without the payment of any penalty, on 60 days written notice to the Fund. The Underwriting Agreement will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment.

 

The Distributor may enter into selling agreements with broker-dealers that solicit orders for the sale of shares of the Fund and may allow concessions to dealers that sell shares of the Fund.

 

The Distributor does not receive compensation from the Fund but is compensated by the Adviser for certain distribution related services.

 

Rule 12b-1 Plan

 

The Trust, with respect to the Fund, has adopted the Trust’s Master Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act (the "Plan") for Class N Shares pursuant to which the Fund is authorized to pay the Distributor, as compensation for the Distributor's account maintenance services under the Plan. The Board has approved a distribution and shareholder servicing fee at the rate of up to 0.25% for Class N Shares of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to the class. Such fees are to be paid by the Fund monthly, or at such other intervals as the Board shall determine. Such fees shall be based upon the Fund’s average daily net assets during the preceding month, and shall be calculated and accrued daily. The Fund may pay fees to the Distributor at a lesser rate, as agreed upon by the Board and the Distributor. The Plan authorizes payments to the Distributor as compensation for providing account maintenance services to Fund shareholders, including arranging for certain securities dealers or brokers, administrators and others ("Recipients") to provide these services and paying compensation for these services. The Fund will bear its own costs of distribution with respect to its shares. The Board has not adopted a Plan for Institutional Class shares.

 

The services to be provided by Recipients may include, but are not limited to, the following: assistance in the offering and sale of Fund shares and in other aspects of the marketing of the shares to clients or prospective clients of the respective recipients; answering routine inquiries concerning the Fund; assisting in the establishment and maintenance of accounts or sub-accounts in the Fund and in processing purchase and redemption transactions; making the Fund’s investment plan and shareholder services available; and providing such other information and services to investors in shares of the Fund as the Distributor or the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, may reasonably request. The distribution services shall also include any advertising and marketing services provided by or arranged by the Distributor with respect to the Fund.

 

 

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The Distributor does not retain any 12b-1 payments as profit. Excess 12b-1 fees are held in retention to be used for distribution related expenses.

 

The Distributor is required to provide a written report, at least quarterly to the Board, specifying in reasonable detail the amounts expended pursuant to the Plan and the purposes for which such expenditures were made. Further, the Distributor will inform the Board of any Rule 12b-1 fees to be paid by the Distributor to Recipients.

 

During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023 the Fund paid $3,040in distribution related fees for Class N Shares pursuant to the Plan. The Fund allocated distribution expenses as follows:

 

Actual 12b-1 Expenditures Paid by the Fund

During the Fiscal Year Ended November 30, 2023

 

   
Advertising/Marketing None
Printing/Postage None
Payment to distributor  None
Payment to dealers  None
Compensation to sales personnel  None
Other  $5,300
Total  $5,300

 

The Plan may not be amended to increase materially the amount of the Distributor's compensation to be paid by the Fund, unless such amendment is approved by the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the affected class of the Fund (as defined in the 1940 Act). All material amendments must be approved by a majority of the Board by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Plan. During the term of the Plan, the selection and nomination of non-interested Trustees of the Trust will be committed to the discretion of the Nominating and Governance Committee. The Distributor will preserve copies of the Rule 12b-1 Plan, any related agreements, and all reports, for a period of not less than six years from the date of such document and for at least the first two years in an easily accessible place.

 

Any agreement related to the Plan will be in writing and provide that: (a) it may be terminated by the Trust or the Fund at any time upon sixty days written notice, without the payment of any penalty, by vote of a majority of the Board, or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust or the Fund; (b) it will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act); and (c) it will continue in effect for a period of more than one year from the date of its execution or adoption only so long as such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a majority of the Board and a majority of the Rule 12b-1 Trustees by votes cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such agreement.

 

 

 

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PORTFOLIO MANAGER

Amit Wadhwaney serves as the portfolio manager of the Fund. As of November 30, 2023, the portfolio manager was responsible for the portfolio management of the following types of accounts in addition to the Fund:

Total Other Accounts

By Type

Total Number of Accounts by Account Type

Total Assets By Account Type

(in millions)

Number of Accounts by Type  Subject to a Performance Fee

Total Assets By Account Type Subject to a Performance Fee

(in millions)

Registered Investment Companies 0 $0 0 $0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles 4 $40

-Class B Shares within

1 Pooled Investment Vehicle

$0.2
Other Accounts 4 $630 0 $0

 

Conflicts of Interest

 

As a general matter, certain conflicts of interest may arise in connection with a portfolio manager's management of the Fund’s investments, on the one hand, and the investments of other accounts for which the portfolio manager is responsible, on the other. For example, it is possible that the various accounts managed could have different investment strategies that, at times, might conflict with one another to the possible detriment of the Fund. Alternatively, to the extent that the same investment opportunities might be desirable for more than one account, possible conflicts could arise in determining how to allocate them. Other potential conflicts might include conflicts created by specific portfolio manager compensation arrangements, and conflicts relating to selection of brokers or dealers to execute the Fund’s portfolio trades and/or specific uses of commissions from the Fund’s portfolio trades (for example, research, or "soft dollars", if any). The Adviser has adopted policies and procedures and has structured the portfolio managers' compensation in a manner reasonably designed to safeguard the Fund from being negatively affected as a result of any such potential conflicts.

 

Compensation

 

Mr. Wadhwaney is eligible to receive both a salary and bonus from the Adviser. Additionally, Mr. Wadhwaney, as a controlling shareholder of the Adviser, will receive his proportional share of the net profits of the Adviser.

 

Ownership of Securities

 

The following table shows the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the portfolio manager in shares of the Fund as of November 30, 2023.

 

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Name of Portfolio Manager

Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Moerus Worldwide Value Fund
Amit Wadhwaney Over $1,000,000

 

ALLOCATION OF PORTFOLIO BROKERAGE

Specific decisions to purchase or sell securities for the Fund are made by the portfolio manager and authorized traders who are employees of the Adviser. The Adviser is authorized by the Board to allocate the orders placed by them on behalf of the Fund to brokers or dealers who may, but need not, provide research or statistical material or other services to the Fund or the Adviser for the Fund’s use. Such allocation is to be in such amounts and proportions as the Adviser may determine.

 

In selecting a broker or dealer to execute each particular transaction, the Adviser will take the following into consideration:

Brokers or dealers executing a portfolio transaction on behalf of the Fund may receive a commission in excess of the amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged for executing the transaction if the Adviser determines in good faith that such commission is reasonable in relation to the value of brokerage and research services provided to the Fund. In allocating portfolio brokerage, the Adviser may select brokers or dealers who also provide brokerage, research and other services to other accounts over which the Adviser exercises investment discretion. Some of the services received as the result of Fund transactions may primarily benefit accounts other than the Fund, while services received as the result of portfolio transactions effected on behalf of those other accounts may primarily benefit the Fund.

 

For the fiscal years ended, November 30, 2021, November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023 the Fund paid brokerage commissions of $33,795, $46,401 and $59,522 respectively.

 

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The Fund’s portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities for the fiscal year by the monthly average of the value of the portfolio securities owned by the Fund during the fiscal year. The calculation excludes from both the numerator and the denominator securities with maturities at the time of acquisition of one year or less. High portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater brokerage commissions and other transaction costs, which will be borne directly by the Fund. A 100% turnover rate would occur if all of the Fund’s portfolio securities were replaced once within a one-year period. For the fiscal years ended November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023 the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 34% and 34%, respectively.

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OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS

Fund Administration, Fund Accounting and Transfer Agent Services

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC, (“UFS”), which has its principal office at 225 Pictoria Drive, Suite 450 Cincinnati, Ohio 45246, serves as administrator, fund accountant and transfer agent for the Fund pursuant to the Fund Services Agreement (the “Agreement”) with the Fund and subject to the supervision of the Board. UFS is primarily in the business of providing administrative, fund accounting and transfer agent services to retail and institutional mutual funds. UFS may also provide persons to serve as officers of the Fund. Such officers may be directors, officers or employees of UFS or its affiliates.

The Agreement became effective on October 20, 2021, and will remain in effect for two years from the effective date and will continue thereafter in effect for one-year periods provided that such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by a majority of the Board. The Agreement is terminable by the Board or UFS on 90 days’ written notice and may be assigned by either party, provided that the Trust may not assign this agreement without the prior written consent of UFS. The Agreement provides that UFS shall be without liability for any action reasonably taken or omitted pursuant to the Agreement.

 

Under the Agreement, UFS performs administrative services, including: (1) monitoring the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to the Trust by others service providers; (2) monitoring Fund holdings and operations for post-trade compliance with the Fund’s registration statement and applicable laws and rules; (3) preparing and coordinating the printing of semi-annual and annual financial statements; (4) preparing selected management reports for performance and compliance analyses; (5) preparing and disseminating materials for and attending and participating in meetings of the Board; (6) determining income and capital gains available for distribution and calculating distributions required to meet regulatory, income, and excise tax requirements; (7) reviewing the Trust's federal, state, and local tax returns as prepared and signed by the Trust's independent public accountants; (8) preparing and maintaining the Trust's operating expense budget to determine proper expense accruals to be charged to the Fund to calculate its daily NAV; (9) assisting in and monitoring the preparation, filing, printing and where applicable, dissemination to shareholders of amendments to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, periodic reports to the Trustees, shareholders and the SEC, notices pursuant to Rule 24f-2, proxy materials and reports to the SEC on Forms N-CEN, N-CSR, N-PORT and N-PX; (10) coordinating the Trust's audits and examinations by assisting the Fund’s independent public accountants; (11) determining, in consultation with others, the jurisdictions in which shares of the Trust shall be registered or qualified for sale and facilitating such registration or qualification; (12) monitoring sales of shares and ensuring that the shares are properly and duly registered with the SEC; (13) monitoring the calculation of performance data for the Fund; (14) preparing, or causing to be prepared, expense and financial reports; (15) preparing authorizations for the payment of Trust expenses and paying, from Trust assets, all bills of the Trust; (16) providing information typically supplied in the investment company

42 
 

industry to companies that track or report price, performance or other information with respect to investment companies; (17) upon request, assisting the Fund in the evaluation and selection of other service providers, such as independent public accountants, printers, EDGAR providers and proxy solicitors (such parties may be affiliates of UFS) and (18) performing other services, recordkeeping and assistance relating to the affairs of the Trust as the Trust may, from time to time, reasonably request.

 

For the administrative services rendered to the Fund by UFS, the Fund pays UFS an asset based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2021, November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023 the Fund paid $64,701, $97,779 and $102,966 respectively, for administrative services.

 

UFS also provides the Fund with accounting services, including: (i) daily computation of NAV; (ii) maintenance of security ledgers and books and records as required by the 1940 Act; (iii) production of the Fund’s listing of portfolio securities and general ledger reports; (iv) reconciliation of accounting records; (v) calculation of yield and total return for the Fund; (vi) maintenance of certain books and records described in Rule 31a-1 under the 1940 Act, and reconciliation of account information and balances among the Custodian and Adviser; and (vii) monitoring and evaluation of daily income and expense accruals, and sales and redemptions of shares of the Fund.

 

For the fund accounting services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays UFS the greater of an annual minimum fee or an asset based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal years ended November 30, 2021, November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023, the Fund paid $27,873, $30,362 and $41,722 respectively, for fund accounting services.

 

UFS also acts as transfer, dividend disbursing, and shareholder servicing agent for the Fund pursuant to the Agreement. Under the Agreement, UFS is responsible for administering and performing transfer agent functions, dividend distribution, shareholder administration, and maintaining necessary records in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.

 

For such services rendered to the Fund under the Agreement, the Fund pays UFS an asset based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays UFS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal years ended November 30, 2021, November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023, the Fund paid $47,154, $34,760 and $51,647, respectively, for transfer, dividend disbursing, and shareholder servicing services.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Custodian

 

The Bank of New York Mellon, 240 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10286 (the "Custodian"), serves as the custodian of the Fund’s assets pursuant to a custody agreement (the "Custody Agreement") by and between the Custodian and the Trust on behalf of the Fund. The Custodian's responsibilities include safeguarding and controlling the Fund’s cash and securities, handling the receipt and delivery of securities, and collecting interest and dividends on the Fund’s investments. Pursuant to the Custody Agreement, the Custodian also maintains original entry documents and books of record and general ledgers; posts cash receipts and disbursements; and records purchases and sales based upon communications from the Adviser. The Fund may employ foreign sub-custodians that are approved by the Board to hold foreign assets.

 

Compliance Officer

 

Northern Lights Compliance Services, LLC, 4221 North 203rd Street, Suite 100, Elkhorn, NE 68022-3474, an affiliate of UFS, provides a Chief Compliance Officer to the Trust as well as related compliance services pursuant to a consulting agreement between NLCS and the Trust. NLCS’s compliance services consist primarily of reviewing and assessing the policies and procedures of the Trust and its service providers pertaining to compliance with applicable federal securities laws, including Rule 38a-1 under the 1940 Act. For the compliance services rendered to the Fund, the Fund pays NLCS a one-time fee plus an annual asset based fee, which scales downward based upon net assets. The Fund also pays NLCS for any out-of-pocket expenses. For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2021, November 30, 2022 and November 30, 2023, the Fund paid $20,314, $18,871 and $26,966, respectively, for compliance services.

 

DESCRIPTION OF SHARES

Each share of beneficial interest of the Trust has one vote in the election of Trustees. Cumulative voting is not authorized for the Trust. This means that the holders of more than 50% of the shares voting for the election of Trustees can elect 100% of the Trustees if they choose to do so, and, in that event, the holders of the remaining shares will be unable to elect any Trustees.

 

Shareholders of the Trust and any other future series of the Trust will vote in the aggregate and not by series except as otherwise required by law or when the Board determines that the matter to be voted upon affects only the interest of the shareholders of a particular series or classes. Matters such as election of Trustees are not subject to separate voting requirements and may be acted upon by shareholders of the Trust voting without regard to series.

 

The Trust is authorized to issue an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest. Each share has equal, per-class, dividend, distribution and liquidation rights. There are no conversion or preemptive rights applicable to any shares of the Fund. All shares issued are fully paid and non-assessable.

 

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ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM

The Trust has established an Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Program (the "Program") as required by the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 ("USA PATRIOT Act"). To ensure compliance with this law, the Program provides for the development of internal practices, procedures and controls, designation of anti-money laundering compliance officers, an ongoing training program and an independent audit function to determine the effectiveness of the Program. The Trust's secretary serves as its Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer.

 

Procedures to implement the Program include, but are not limited to, determining that the Fund’s Distributor and Transfer Agent have established proper anti-money laundering procedures, reporting suspicious and/or fraudulent activity and a providing a complete and thorough review of all new opening account applications. The Trust will not transact business with any person or entity whose identity cannot be adequately verified under the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act.

 

As a result of the Program, the Trust may be required to "freeze" the account of a shareholder if the shareholder appears to be involved in suspicious activity or if certain account information matches information on government lists of known terrorists or other suspicious persons, or the Trust may be required to transfer the account or proceeds of the account to a governmental agency.

 

 

PURCHASE, REDEMPTION AND PRICING OF SHARES

 

Calculation of Share Price

 

As indicated in the Prospectus under the heading "How Shares are Priced," the NAV of the Fund’s shares is determined by dividing the total value of the Fund’s portfolio investments and other assets, less any liabilities, by the total number of shares outstanding of the Fund, by class.

 

Generally, the Fund’s domestic securities (including underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign (non-U.S.) exchanges) are valued each day at the last quoted sales price on each security’s primary exchange. Securities traded or dealt in upon one or more securities exchanges for which market quotations are readily available and not subject to restrictions against resale shall be valued at the last quoted sales price on the primary exchange or, in the absence of a sale on the primary exchange, at the mean between the current bid and ask prices on such exchange. Securities primarily traded in the NASDAQ for which market quotations are readily available shall be valued using the NASDAQ Official Closing Price. If market quotations are not readily available, securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined in good faith by the Fund’s fair value committee in accordance with procedures approved by the Board and as further described below. Securities that are not traded or dealt in any securities exchange (whether domestic or foreign) and for which over-the-counter market quotations are readily available generally shall be valued at the last sale price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask price on such over-the-counter

45 
 

market. Certain securities or investments for which daily market quotes are not readily available may be valued, pursuant to guidelines established by the Board, with reference to other securities or indices. Debt securities not traded on an exchange may be valued at prices supplied by a pricing agent(s) based on broker or dealer supplied valuations or matrix pricing, a method of valuing securities by reference to the value of other securities with similar characteristics, such as rating, interest rate and maturity. Short-term investments having a maturity of 60 days or less may be valued at amortized cost when it approximated fair value.

 

Exchange traded options are valued at the last quoted sales price or, in the absence of a sale, at the mean between the current bid and ask prices on the exchange on which such options are traded. Futures and options on futures are valued at the settlement price determined by the exchange, or, if no settlement price is available, at the last sale price as of the close of business prior to when the Fund calculates NAV. Other securities for which market quotes are not readily available are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by the Board or persons acting at their direction. Swap agreements and other derivatives are generally valued daily depending on the type of instrument and reference assets based upon market prices, the mean between bid and asked price quotations from market makers or by a pricing service or other parties in accordance with the valuation procedures approved by the Board.

 

Under certain circumstances, the Fund may use an independent pricing service to calculate the fair market value of foreign equity securities on a daily basis by applying valuation factors to the last sale price or the mean price as noted above. The fair market values supplied by the independent pricing service will generally reflect market trading that occurs after the close of the applicable foreign markets of comparable securities or the value of other instruments that have a strong correlation to the fair-valued securities. The independent pricing service will also take into account the current relevant currency exchange rate. A security that is fair valued may be valued at a price higher or lower than actual market quotations or the value determined by other funds using their own fair valuation procedures. Because foreign securities may trade on days when Fund shares are not priced, the value of securities held by the Fund can change on days when Fund shares cannot be redeemed or purchased. In the event that a foreign security’s market quotations are not readily available or are deemed unreliable (for reasons other than because the foreign exchange on which it trades closed before the Fund’s calculation of NAV), the security will be valued at its fair market value as determined in good faith by the Fund’s fair value committee in accordance with procedures approved by the Board as discussed below. Without fair valuation, it is possible that 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, but there is no assurance that it will prevent dilution of the Fund’s NAV by short-term traders. In addition, because the Fund may invest in underlying ETFs which hold portfolio securities primarily listed on foreign (non-U.S.) exchanges, and these exchanges may trade on weekends or other days when the underlying ETFs do not price their shares, the value of these portfolio securities may change on days when you may not be able to buy or sell Fund shares.

 

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Investments initially valued in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted to U.S. dollars using exchange rates obtained from pricing services or other parties in accordance with the valuation procedures approved by the Board. As a result, the NAV of the Fund’s shares may be affected by changes in the value of currencies in relation to the U.S. dollar. The value of securities traded in markets outside the United States or denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar may be affected significantly on a day that the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE” or the “Exchange”) is closed and an investor is not able to purchase, redeem or exchange shares.

 

The Fund’s shares are valued at the close of regular trading on the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) (the "NYSE Close") on each day that the NYSE is open. For purposes of calculating the NAV, the Fund normally uses pricing data for domestic equity securities received shortly after the NYSE Close and do not normally take into account trading, clearances or settlements that take place after the NYSE Close. Domestic fixed income and foreign securities are normally priced using data reflecting the earlier closing of the principal markets for those securities. Information that becomes known to the Fund or its agents after the NAV has been calculated on a particular day will not generally be used to retroactively adjust the price of the security or the NAV determined earlier that day. The Trust expects that the Exchange will be closed on the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

 

When market quotations are insufficient or not readily available, the Fund may value securities at fair value or estimate their value as determined in good faith by the Board or its Valuation Designee, pursuant to procedures approved by the Board. Fair valuation may also be used by the Board if extraordinary events occur after the close of the relevant market but prior to the NYSE Close.

 

The Fund may hold securities, such as private placements, interests in commodity pools, other non-traded securities or temporarily illiquid investments, for which market quotations are not readily available or are determined to be unreliable. These securities will be valued at their fair market value as determined using the “fair value” procedures approved by the Board. The Board has designated the Adviser as its Valuation Designee to execute these procedures. The Valuation Designee may also enlist third party consultants such as an audit firm or financial officer of a security issuer on an as-needed basis to assist in determining a security-specific fair value. The Board reviews ratifies the execution of this process and the resultant fair value prices at least quarterly to assure the process produces reliable results.

 

Fair Valuation Process. The Valuation Designee fair values applicable investments collectively via inputs from each of these groups. For example, fair value determinations are required for the following securities: (i) securities for which market quotations are insufficient or not readily available on a particular business day (including securities for which there is a short and temporary lapse in the provision of a price by the regular pricing source), (ii) securities for which, in the judgment of the Adviser, the prices or values available do not represent the fair value of the instrument. Factors which may cause the Adviser to make such a judgment include, but are not limited to, the following: only a bid

47 
 

price or an asked price is available; the spread between bid and asked prices is substantial; the frequency of sales; the thinness of the market; the size of reported trades; and actions of the securities markets, such as the suspension or limitation of trading; (iii) securities determined to be illiquid; (iv) securities with respect to which an event that will affect the value thereof has occurred (a “significant event”) since the closing prices were established on the principal exchange on which they are traded, but prior to the Fund’s calculation of its NAV. Specifically, interests in commodity pools or managed futures pools are valued on a daily basis by reference to the closing market prices of each futures contract or other asset held by a pool, as adjusted for pool expenses. Restricted or illiquid investments, such as private placements or non-traded securities are valued via inputs from the Adviser valuation based upon the current bid for the security from two or more independent dealers or other parties reasonably familiar with the facts and circumstances of the security (who should take into consideration all relevant factors as may be appropriate under the circumstances). If the Adviser is unable to obtain a current bid from such independent dealers or other independent parties, the Valuation Designee shall determine the fair value of such security using the following factors: (i) the type of security; (ii) the cost at date of purchase; (iii) the size and nature of the Fund’s holdings; (iv) the discount from market value of unrestricted securities of the same class at the time of purchase and subsequent thereto; (v) information as to any transactions or offers with respect to the security; (vi) the nature and duration of restrictions on disposition of the security and the existence of any registration rights; (vii) how the yield of the security compares to similar securities of companies of similar or equal creditworthiness; (viii) the level of recent trades of similar or comparable securities; (ix) the liquidity characteristics of the security; (x) current market conditions; and (xi) the market value of any securities into which the security is convertible or exchangeable.

 

Standards for Fair Value Determinations. As a general principle, the fair value of a security is the amount that the Fund might reasonably expect to realize upon its current sale. The Trust has adopted Financial Accounting Standards Board Statement of Financial Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures ("ASC 820"). In accordance with ASC 820, fair value is defined as the price that the Fund would receive upon selling an investment in a timely transaction to an independent buyer in the principal or most advantageous market of the investment. ASC 820 establishes a three-tier hierarchy to maximize the use of observable market data and minimize the use of unobservable inputs and to establish classification of fair value measurements for disclosure purposes. Inputs refer broadly to the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, including assumptions about risk, for example, the risk inherent in a particular valuation technique used to measure fair value including such a pricing model and/or the risk inherent in the inputs to the valuation technique. Inputs may be observable or unobservable. Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the reporting entity. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the reporting entity's own assumptions about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, developed based on the best information available under the circumstances.

 

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Various inputs are used in determining the value of the Fund’s investments relating to ASC 820. These inputs are summarized in the three broad levels listed below.

 

Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical securities.

 

Level 2 – other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar securities, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)

 

Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including the Fund’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments).

 

The Valuation Designee takes into account the relevant factors and surrounding circumstances, which may include: (i) the nature and pricing history (if any) of the security; (ii) whether any dealer quotations for the security are available; (iii) possible valuation methodologies that could be used to determine the fair value of the security; (iv) the recommendation of a portfolio manager of the fund with respect to the valuation of the security; (v) whether the same or similar securities are held by other funds managed by the Adviser or other funds and the method used to price the security in those funds; (vi) the extent to which the fair value to be determined for the security will result from the use of data or formula produced by independent third parties and (vii) the liquidity or illiquidity of the market for the security.

 

Board’s Determination. The Board meets at least quarterly to consider the valuations provided by the Valuation Designee to ratify the valuations made for the applicable securities. The Board considers the reports provided by the Valuation Designee, including follow up studies of subsequent market-provided prices when available, in reviewing and determining in good faith the fair value of the applicable portfolio securities.

 

Purchase of Shares

 

Orders for shares received by the Fund in good order prior to the close of business on NYSE on each day during such periods that NYSE is open for trading are priced at the public offering price, which is NAV plus any sales charge, or at NAV per share on a per-class basis (if no sales charges apply) computed as of the close of the regular session of trading on the Exchange. Orders received in good order after the close of NYSE, or on a day it is not open for trading, are priced at the close of NYSE on the next day on which it is open for trading at the next determined NAV per share plus sales charges, if any. The Fund and the Adviser each reserve the right to waive any investment minimum requirement as described in the prospectus.

 

Redemption of Shares

 

The Fund will redeem all or any portion of a shareholder's shares of the Fund when requested in accordance with the procedures set forth in the "How to Redeem Shares" section of the Prospectus. Under the 1940 Act, a shareholder's right to redeem shares and to receive payment therefore may be suspended at times:

 

49 
 

(a) when the Exchange is closed, other than customary weekend and holiday closings;

(b) when trading on that exchange is restricted for any reason;

(c) when an emergency exists as a result of which disposal by the Fund of securities owned is not reasonably practicable or it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund to fairly to determine the value of net assets, provided that applicable rules and regulations of the SEC (or any succeeding governmental authority) will govern as to whether the conditions prescribed in (b) or (c) exist; or

(d) when the SEC by order permits a suspension of the right to redemption or a postponement of the date of payment on redemption.

 

In case of suspension of the right of redemption, payment of a redemption request will be made based on the NAV next determined after the termination of the suspension.

 

Supporting documents in addition to those listed under "How to Redeem Shares" in the Prospectus will be required from executors, administrators, trustees, or if redemption is requested by someone other than the shareholder of record. Such documents include, but are not restricted to, stock powers, trust instruments, certificates of death, appointments as executor, and certificates of corporate authority and waiver of tax required in some states when settling estates.

 

TAX STATUS

 

The following discussion is general in nature and should not be regarded as an exhaustive presentation of all possible tax ramifications. All shareholders should consult a qualified tax adviser regarding their investment in the Fund.

 

The Fund intends to qualify as regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Tax Code"), which requires compliance with certain requirements concerning the sources of its income, diversification of its assets, and the amount and timing of its distributions to shareholders. Such qualification does not involve supervision of management or investment practices or policies by any government agency or bureau. By so qualifying, the Fund should not be subject to federal income or excise tax on its net investment income or net capital gain, which are distributed to shareholders in accordance with the applicable timing requirements. Net investment income and net capital gain of the Fund will be computed in accordance with Section 852 of the Tax Code.

 

Net investment income is made up of dividends and interest less expenses. Net capital gain for a fiscal year is computed by taking into account any capital loss carryforward of the Fund. Capital losses incurred in tax years may be carried forward indefinitely and retain the character of the original loss. Capital loss carryforwards are available to offset future realized capital gains. To the extent that these carryforwards are used to offset future capital gains it is probable that the amount offset will not be distributed to shareholders.

 

 

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As of November 30, 2023, the components of accumulated earnings/(deficit) on a tax basis were as follows:

 

Undistributed     Undistributed     Post October Loss     Capital Loss     Other     Unrealized     Total  
Ordinary     Long-Term     and     Carry     Book/Tax     Appreciation/     Accumulated  
Income     Gains     Late Year Loss     Forwards     Differences     (Depreciation)     Earnings/(Deficits)  
$ 2,993,785     $     $     $ (3,698,329 )   $     $ 6,668,446     $ 5,963,902  
                                                     

 

The Fund intends to distribute all of its net investment income, any excess of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, and any excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses in accordance with the timing requirements imposed by the Tax Code and therefore should not be required to pay any federal income or excise taxes. Distributions of net investment income and net capital gain will be made after the end of each fiscal year, and no later than December 31 of each year. Both types of distributions will be in shares of the Fund unless a shareholder elects to receive cash.

 

To be treated as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Tax Code, the Fund must also (a) derive at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, net income from certain publicly traded partnerships and gains from the sale or other disposition of securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including, but not limited to, gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to the business of investing in such securities or currencies, and (b) diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each fiscal quarter, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the Fund’s assets is represented by cash, U.S. government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies, and other securities (for purposes of this calculation, generally limited in respect of any one issuer, to an amount not greater than 5% of the market value of the Fund’s assets and 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer) and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its assets is invested in the securities of (other than U.S. government securities or the securities of other regulated investment companies) any one issuer, two or more issuers which the Fund controls and which are determined to be engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or the securities of certain publicly traded partnerships.

 

If the Fund fails to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M in any fiscal year, it may be able to pay a tax penalty on the portion of income that caused to inadvertently violate Subchapter M or it will be treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes. If treated as a corporation, the Fund would be required to pay income taxes on its net investment income and net realized capital gains, if any, at the rates generally applicable to corporations. Shareholders of the Fund generally would not be liable for income tax on the Fund’s net investment income or net realized capital gains in their individual capacities. Distributions to shareholders, whether from the Fund’s net investment income or net realized capital gains, would be treated as taxable dividends to the extent of current or accumulated earnings and profits of the Fund.

 

The Fund is subject to a 4% nondeductible excise tax on certain undistributed amounts of ordinary income and capital gain under a prescribed formula contained in Section 4982 of the Tax Code. The formula requires payment to shareholders during a calendar year of distributions representing at least 98% of the Fund’s ordinary income for the calendar

51 
 

year and at least 98.2% of its capital gain net income (i.e., the excess of its capital gains over capital losses) realized during the one-year period ending October 31 during such year plus 100% of any income that was neither distributed nor taxed to the Fund during the preceding calendar year. Under ordinary circumstances, the Fund expects to time its distributions so as to avoid liability for this tax.

 

The following discussion of tax consequences is for the general information of shareholders that are subject to tax. Shareholders that are IRAs or other qualified retirement plans are exempt from income taxation under the Tax Code.

 

Distributions of taxable net investment income and the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss are taxable to shareholders as ordinary income.

 

Distributions of net capital gain ("capital gain dividends") generally are taxable to shareholders as long-term capital gain, regardless of the length of time the shares of the Fund have been held by such shareholders.

 

Certain U.S. shareholders, including individuals and estates and trusts, will be subject to an additional 3.8% Medicare tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” which should include dividends from the Fund and net gains from the disposition of shares of the Fund. U.S. shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisers regarding the implications of the additional Medicare tax resulting from an investment in the Fund.

 

A redemption of the Fund’s shares by a shareholder will result in the recognition of taxable gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and the shareholder's tax basis in his or her Fund shares. Such gain or loss is treated as a capital gain or loss if the shares are held as capital assets. However, any loss realized upon the redemption of shares within six months from the date of their purchase will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any amounts treated as capital gain dividends during such six-month period. All or a portion of any loss realized upon the redemption of shares may be disallowed to the extent shares are purchased (including shares acquired by means of reinvested dividends) within 30 days before or after such redemption.

 

Distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain will be taxable as described above, whether received in additional cash or shares. Shareholders electing to receive distributions in the form of additional shares will have a cost basis for federal income tax purposes in each share so received equal to the NAV of a share on the reinvestment date.

 

All distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain, whether received in shares or in cash, must be reported by each taxable shareholder on his or her federal income tax return. Dividends or distributions declared in October, November or December as of a record date in such a month, if any, will be deemed to have been received by shareholders on December 31, if paid during January of the following year. Redemptions of shares may result in tax consequences (gain or loss) to the shareholder and are also subject to these reporting requirements.

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Under the Tax Code, the Fund will be required to report to the Internal Revenue Service all distributions of taxable income and capital gains as well as gross proceeds from the redemption or exchange of Fund shares, except in the case of certain exempt shareholders. Under the backup withholding provisions of Section 3406 of the Tax Code, distributions of taxable net investment income and net capital gain and proceeds from the redemption or exchange of the shares of a regulated investment company may be subject to withholding of federal income tax in the case of non-exempt shareholders who fail to furnish the investment company with their taxpayer identification numbers and with required certifications regarding their status under the federal income tax law, or if the Fund is notified by the IRS or a broker that withholding is required due to an incorrect TIN or a previous failure to report taxable interest or dividends. If the withholding provisions are applicable, any such distributions and proceeds, whether taken in cash or reinvested in additional shares, will be reduced by the amounts required to be withheld.

 

Other Reporting and Withholding Requirements

 

Payments to a shareholder that is either a foreign financial institution (“FFI”) or a non-financial foreign entity (“NFFE”) within the meaning of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”) may be subject to a generally nonrefundable 30% withholding tax on: (a) income dividends paid by the Fund and (b) certain capital gain distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Fund shares paid by the Fund after. FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided: (a) by an FFI, subject to any applicable intergovernmental agreement or other exemption, if it enters into a valid agreement with the IRS to, among other requirements, report required information about certain direct and indirect ownership of foreign financial accounts held by U.S. persons with the FFI and (b) by an NFFE, if it: (i) certifies that it has no substantial U.S. persons as owners or (ii) if it does have such owners, reports information relating to them. The Fund may disclose the information that it receives from its shareholders to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties as necessary to comply with FATCA. Withholding also may be required if a foreign entity that is a shareholder of the Fund fails to provide the Fund with appropriate certifications or other documentation concerning its status under FATCA.

 

Options, Futures, Forward Contracts and Swap Agreements

 

To the extent such investments are permissible for the Fund, the Fund’s transactions in options, futures contracts, hedging transactions, forward contracts, straddles and foreign currencies will be subject to special tax rules (including mark-to-market, constructive sale, straddle, wash sale and short sale rules), the effect of which may be to accelerate income to the Fund, defer losses to the Fund, cause adjustments in the holding periods of the Fund’s securities, convert long-term capital gains into short-term capital gains and convert short-term capital losses into long-term capital losses. These rules could therefore affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders.

 

 

 

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To the extent such investments are permissible, a certain percentage of the Fund’s hedging activities (including its transactions, if any, in foreign currencies or foreign currency-denominated instruments) are likely to produce a difference between its book income and its taxable income. If the Fund’s book income exceeds its taxable income, the distribution (if any) of such excess book income will be treated as (i) a dividend to the extent of the Fund’s remaining earnings and profits (including earnings and profits arising from tax-exempt income), (ii) thereafter, as a return of capital to the extent of the recipient's basis in the shares, and (iii) thereafter, as gain from the sale or exchange of a capital asset. If the Fund’s book income is less than taxable income, the Fund could be required to make distributions exceeding book income to qualify as a regular investment company that is accorded special tax treatment.

 

Passive Foreign Investment Companies

 

Investment by the Fund in certain PFICs could subject the Fund to a U.S. federal income tax (including interest charges) on distributions received from the company or on proceeds received from the disposition of shares in the company, which tax cannot be eliminated by making distributions to Fund shareholders. However, the Fund may elect to treat a PFIC as a qualified electing fund ("QEF"), in which case the Fund will be required to include its share of the company's income and net capital gains annually, regardless of whether it receives any distribution from the company.

 

The Fund also may make an election to mark the gains (and to a limited extent losses) in such holdings "to the market" as though it had sold and repurchased its holdings in those PFICs on the last day of the Fund’s taxable year. Such gains and losses are treated as ordinary income and loss. The QEF and mark-to-market elections may accelerate the recognition of income (without the receipt of cash) and increase the amount required to be distributed for the Fund to avoid taxation. Making either of these elections therefore may require the Fund to liquidate other investments (including when it is not advantageous to do so) to meet its distribution requirement, which also may accelerate the recognition of gain and affect the Fund’s total return.

 

Foreign Currency Transactions

 

The Fund’s transactions in foreign currencies, foreign currency-denominated debt securities and certain foreign currency options, futures contracts and forward contracts (and similar instruments) may give rise to ordinary income or loss to the extent such income or loss results from fluctuations in the value of the foreign currency concerned.

 

Foreign Taxation

 

Income received by the Fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to withholding and other taxes imposed by such countries. Tax treaties and conventions between certain countries and the U.S. may reduce or eliminate such taxes. If more than 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets at the close of its taxable year consists of securities of foreign corporations, the Fund may be able to elect to "pass through" to the

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Fund’s shareholders the amount of eligible foreign income and similar taxes paid by the Fund. If this election is made, a shareholder generally subject to tax will be required to include in gross income (in addition to taxable dividends actually received) his or her pro rata share of the foreign taxes paid by the Fund, and may be entitled either to deduct (as an itemized deduction) his or her pro rata share of foreign taxes in computing his or her taxable income or to use it as a foreign tax credit against his or her U.S. federal income tax liability, subject to certain limitations. In particular, a shareholder must hold his or her shares (without protection from risk of loss) on the ex-dividend date and for at least 15 more days during the 30-day period surrounding the ex-dividend date to be eligible to claim a foreign tax credit with respect to a gain dividend. No deduction for foreign taxes may be claimed by a shareholder who does not itemize deductions. Each shareholder will be notified within 60 days after the close of the Fund’s taxable year whether the foreign taxes paid by the Fund will "pass through" for that year.

 

Generally, a credit for foreign taxes is subject to the limitation that it may not exceed the shareholder's U.S. tax attributable to his or her total foreign source taxable income. For this purpose, if the pass-through election is made, the source of the Fund’s income will flow through to shareholders of the Fund. With respect to the Fund, gains from the sale of securities will be treated as derived from U.S. sources and certain currency fluctuation gains, including fluctuation gains from foreign currency-denominated debt securities, receivables and payables will be treated as ordinary income derived from U.S. sources. The limitation on the foreign tax credit is applied separately to foreign source passive income, and to certain other types of income. A shareholder may be unable to claim a credit for the full amount of his or her proportionate share of the foreign taxes paid by the Fund. The foreign tax credit can be used to offset only 90% of the revised alternative minimum tax imposed on corporations and individuals and foreign taxes generally are not deductible in computing alternative minimum taxable income.

 

Original Issue Discount and Pay-In-Kind Securities

 

Current federal tax law requires the holder of a U.S. Treasury or other fixed income zero coupon security to accrue as income each year a portion of the discount at which the security was purchased, even though the holder receives no interest payment in cash on the security during the year. In addition, pay-in-kind securities will give rise to income which is required to be distributed and is taxable even though the Fund holding the security receives no interest payment in cash on the security during the year.

 

Some of the debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of more than one year from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund may be treated as debt securities that are issued originally at a discount. Generally, the amount of the original issue discount ("OID") is treated as interest income and is included in income over the term of the debt security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, usually when the debt security matures. A portion of the OID includable in income with respect to certain high-yield corporate debt securities (including certain pay-in-kind securities) may be treated as a dividend for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

 

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Some of the debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of more than one year from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund in the secondary market may be treated as having market discount. Generally, any gain recognized on the disposition of, and any partial payment of principal on, a debt security having market discount is treated as ordinary income to the extent the gain, or principal payment, does not exceed the "accrued market discount" on such debt security. Market discount generally accrues in equal daily installments. The Fund may make one or more of the elections applicable to debt securities having market discount, which could affect the character and timing of recognition of income.

 

Some debt securities (with a fixed maturity date of one year or less from the date of issuance) that may be acquired by the Fund may be treated as having acquisition discount, or OID in the case of certain types of debt securities. Generally, the Fund will be required to include the acquisition discount, or OID, in income over the term of the debt security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, usually when the debt security matures. The Fund may make one or more of the elections applicable to debt securities having acquisition discount, or OID, which could affect the character and timing of recognition of income.

 

If the Fund holds the foregoing kinds of securities, it may be required to pay out as an income distribution each year an amount, which is greater than the total amount of cash interest the Fund actually received. Such distributions may be made from the cash assets of the Fund or by liquidation of portfolio securities, if necessary (including when it is not advantageous to do so). The Fund may realize gains or losses from such liquidations. In the event the Fund realizes net capital gains from such transactions, its shareholders may receive a larger capital gain distribution, if any, than they would in the absence of such transactions.

 

Shareholders of the Fund may be subject to state and local taxes on distributions received from the Fund and on redemptions of the Fund’s shares.

A brief explanation of the form and character of the distribution accompany each distribution. In January of each year the Fund issues to each shareholder a statement of the federal income tax status of all distributions.

 

Shareholders should consult their tax advisers about the application of federal, state and local and foreign tax law in light of their particular situation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

 

The Board has selected Cohen & Company, Ltd., located at 1835 Market St., Suite 310, Philadelphia, PA 19103, as the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm for the current fiscal year. The firm provides services including audit of annual financial statements.

 

LEGAL COUNSEL

 

Thompson Hine LLP, 41 South High Street, Suite 1700, Columbus, OH 43215, serves as the Trust's legal counsel.

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

The audited financial statements and report of the independent registered public accounting firm required to be included in this SAI are hereby incorporated by reference to the Annual Report for the Fund for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023. You can obtain a copy of the Annual Report without charge by calling the Fund at 1-844-MOERUS1 or by visiting the Fund’s website www.moeruscap.com/regulatory-resources/.

 

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Appendix A

 

Adviser Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

 

PROXY VOTING

PROXY VOTING

As a fiduciary, an investment adviser with proxy voting authority has a duty to monitor corporate events and to vote proxies, as well as a duty to cast votes in the best interest of clients and not subrogate client interests to its own interests. Rule 206(4)-6 under the Advisers Act (the “Proxy Voting Rule”) places specific requirements on registered investment advisers with proxy voting authority. Because the Firm has discretionary authority over the securities held within its Advisory Client accounts, the Firm is viewed as having proxy voting authority (unless this authority is specifically granted to another party in the IMA or other constituent documents). Accordingly, the Firm is subject to the Proxy Voting Rule. These policies and procedures are reasonably designed to ensure that the Firm votes proxies in the best interest of the Advisory Clients and address how the Firm resolves any conflict of interest that may arise when voting proxies.

Employees who receive proxies, notifications, or other correspondence concerning voting on corporate events involving companies in which the Firm or its Advisory Clients have or have had investments should promptly forward such correspondence to the CCO, the Authorized Traders, and the Portfolio Manager.

Moerus currently utilizes Broadridge (ProxyEdge) and ISS (ProxyExchange) (and may engage other service providers in the future) as its independent proxy voting services providers (together known as Proxy-SP). Each Advisory Client account has a Proxy-SP to handle the administrative mechanics and required recordkeeping related to proxy voting as well as to provide the Firm with back-up proxy voting recommendations.

General Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

The Firm’s general policy is to vote proxy proposals, amendments, consents, or resolutions relating to Advisory Client securities, including interests in private investment funds, if any (collectively, “proxies”), in a manner that serves the best interests of the Advisory Clients managed by the Firm, as determined by the Firm in its discretion, taking into account relevant factors, including but not limited to:

·The impact on the value of the securities.
·Client directed proxy guidelines.
·The anticipated costs and benefits associated with the proposal.
·The effect on liquidity.
·Customary industry and business practices.

The Adviser will classify all requests for stockholder voting authority and related proxy materials as routine (e.g., uncontested director elections, reappointment of independent audit firms, and capital structure changes that do not disadvantage our Client funds) or non-routine.

Disclosure of Procedures

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A brief summary of these proxy voting procedures will be included in Moerus’ Form ADV Part 2 and will be updated whenever these policies and procedures are updated. The CCO or their designee will be responsible for sending a copy of this summary to all existing Advisory Clients. Advisory Clients will also be provided with information as to how such Advisory Clients and Investors can obtain information about: (i) the details of the Firm’s procedures (i.e., a copy of these procedures) and (ii) how the Firm has voted proxies that are relevant to the affected Advisory Client or Investor.

Routine Matters

Routine matters are typically proposed by Management (as defined below) of a company and meet the following criteria:

·They do not measurably change the structure, management, control or operation of the company.
·They do not measurably change the terms of or fees or expenses associated with an investment in the company.
·They are consistent with customary industry standards and practices, as well as the laws of the state of incorporation applicable to the company. Routine matters include but are not limited to the election or re-election of board members, appointment of auditors, and other general matters such as setting the time and location of an annual meeting and changing the name of the company.

For routine matters, the Firm will vote based on our assessment of the relevant proxy and our own internal proxy voting guidelines. In general, we seek to vote in ways that will protect the best interests of the Advisory Clients. We listen to the recommendation of a subject company's management, directors, general partners, managing members, or trustees (collectively, “Management”), but may not vote in line with their recommendations.

Non-Routine Matters

Non-routine matters involve a variety of issues and may be proposed by a company's Management or beneficial owners (i.e., shareholders, members, partners, etc.). These proxies may involve one or more of the following:

·A measurable change in the structure, management, control, or operation of the company.
·A measurable change in the terms of or fees or expenses associated with an investment in the company.
·A change that is inconsistent with industry standards and/or the laws of the state of incorporation applicable to the company.

Non-routine matters include but are not limited to term limits of board members, liability of board members, ownership issues, reincorporation, debt issuance, mergers or acquisitions, and termination or liquidation of the company. For proxies related to non-routine matters, the Firm will vote on a case-to-case basis in the best interests of the Advisory Client (as determined by Portfolio Manager(s) and Research Analysts whose responsibilities include coverage of the sector for which the proxies are being voted and, if necessary, the Chief Compliance Officer).

Conflicts of Interest

In evaluating how to vote a proxy, the Firm will first determine whether there is a conflict of interest related to the proxy in question between Moerus and its Advisory Client(s). This examination will include (but will not be limited to) an evaluation of whether Moerus (or any affiliate of Moerus) has any

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relationship with the company (or an affiliate of the company) to which the proxy relates outside an investment in such company by the Advisory Clients of Moerus. Examples of material conflict of interests for investment advisers include (i) an adviser (or its affiliate) managing a pension plan, administering employee benefit plans, or providing brokerage, underwriting, insurance, or banking services to a company whose management is soliciting proxies or (ii) an adviser maintaining business or personal relationships with participants in proxy contests, corporate directors, or candidates for directorships.

If the Firm determines that it has or may be perceived to have a conflict of interest when voting a proxy, the Firm will address matters involving such conflicts of interest as follows:

·If a proposal is addressed by the specific policies herein, the Firm will vote in accordance with such policies.
·If the Firm believes it is in the best interest of the Advisory Clients to depart from the specific policies provided for herein, the Firm would be subject to the requirements of iii or iv below, as applicable.
·If the proxy proposal is (1) not addressed by the specific policies or (2) requires a case-by-case determination by the Firm, the Firm may vote such proxy as it determines to be in the best interest of its Advisory Clients without taking any action described in iv below, provided that such vote would be against the Firm's own interest in the matter (i.e., against the perceived or actual conflict). The Firm will memorialize the rationale of such vote in writing.
·If the proxy proposal is (1) not addressed by the specific policies or (2) requires a case-by-case determination by the Firm and the Firm believes it should vote in a way that may also benefit or be perceived to benefit its own interest, then the Firm must take one of the following actions in voting such proxy: (a) delegate the voting decision for such proxy proposal to the independent proxy service, (b) delegate the voting decision to an independent committee of partners, members, directors, or other representatives of the fund, or account, as applicable, (c) inform the Advisory Client of the conflict of interest and obtain consent to vote the proxy as recommended by the Firm, or (d) obtain approval of the decision from the CCO.

Procedures for Proxies

i.The Adviser or each Advisory Client has engaged independent proxy voting services to handle the administrative mechanics and required recordkeeping related to proxy voting as well as to provide the Firm with back-up proxy voting recommendations.
ii.The Adviser relies upon these independent proxy services to notify the Adviser of any upcoming proxy events. When proxy materials are received by the Adviser's personnel, the materials are provided to one or more members of the Adviser's Investment Team (Including Authorized Traders and Portfolio Manager) who review the materials and determine the vote on each proposal contained within the proxy material.
iii.As a backup procedure, the Adviser has directed this independent proxy service providers to utilize their internal proxy voting guidelines in making recommendations to vote, as those guidelines may be amended from time to time, but maintains the right to vote in accordance with its discretion, where it deems appropriate.
iv.Notwithstanding the foregoing, Moerus intends to review and vote each proxy in accordance with our proxy voting guidelines and of our view as to the best interests of the Advisory Client.
v.An electronic copy of each proxy received by Moerus (on behalf of its Advisory Clients) will be kept in the independent proxy service providers’ files.
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vi.The Portfolio Manager will be responsible for determining whether each proxy is for a “routine” matter or not, as described above.
·All proxies identified as routine will be voted by the Portfolio Manager in accordance with this policy.
·All proxies identified as non-routine will be voted in the best interest of the Advisory Clients as determined by Portfolio Manager (or their designee), Research Analyst(s) whose responsibilities include coverage of the sector for which the proxies are being voted, and, if necessary, the Chief Compliance Officer.
·The Portfolio Manager (or their designee), will execute and submit the proxy to the company and will update the Advisory Client’s proxy voting record.
vii.The Portfolio Manager (or their designee) is responsible for the actual voting of all proxies in a timely manner.
viii.The CCO is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of the policies.
ix.In the event the Firm determines that the Advisory Clients should rely on the advice of an independent third party or a committee regarding the voting of a proxy, the Firm will submit the proxy to such third party or committee for a decision. The Firm will execute the proxy in accordance with such third party's or committee's decision.

Form N-PX/Annual Report of Proxy Voting Record

Form N-PX is used by Mutual Funds to file reports with the SEC containing the Client’s proxy voting record for the most recent 12-month period ending June 30. The Form must be filed not later than August 31 of each year. The following information must be collected for the filing:

·The name of the issuer of the Advisory Client security.
·The exchange ticker symbol of the Advisory Client security.
·The CUSIP number (may be omitted if not available through reasonably practicable means).
·The shareholder meeting date.
·A brief description of the matter voted on.
·Whether the matter was proposed by the issuer or the security holder.
·Whether the Advisory Client cast its vote on the matter.
·How the Advisory Client cast its vote (e.g., for or against proposal; for or withhold regarding election of directors).
·Whether the Advisory Client cast its vote for or against management.

Record of Proxy Voting

Moerus and/or each Advisory Client has engaged an independent proxy service provider to maintain files relating to Moerus’ proxy voting procedures for its Advisory Clients. Records of the following will be included in the files:

·Electronic copies of each proxy statement received and of each executed proxy.
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·Records relating to each proxy including (i) the determination as to whether the proxy was routine or not, (ii) the voting decision with regard to each proxy, and (iii) any documents created by the portfolio manager or the Firm (or others) that were material to making the voting decision.
·The CCO is responsible for ensuring, if requested, that Moerus provides its Advisory Clients or investors with (i) a description of our proxy voting policies and procedures and (ii) instructions about how Advisory Clients or investors may obtain information from the Firm on how it voted with respect to their Fund’s securities.
·The CCO is responsible for responding to requests from investors regarding how Moerus voted proxies. The CCO will maintain a record of each written request from an investor in a Fund (or separately managed account) for proxy voting information and the Firm's written response to any request (oral or written) from an investor in a Fund for proxy voting information.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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