As filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission on
Securities Act File No. 333-94671
Investment Company Act File No. 811-09781
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
___________________
FORM
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 | [X] | |
Pre-Effective Amendment No. ___ | [ ] | |
Post-Effective Amendment No. 253 | [X] | |
and/or | ||
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 | [X] | |
Amendment No. 253 | [X] |
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, California 92020
(Address of Principal Executive Offices, Zip Code)
Registrant's Telephone Number, including Area Code: (619) 588-9700
CT Corporation
155 Federal St., Suite 700, Boston, MA 02110
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)
With Copies to:
James D. Craft PFS Funds 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C El Cajon, California 92020
|
John H. Lively Practus, LLP |
It is proposed that this filing will become effective:
[ ] immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b);
[X] on
[ ] 60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(1);
[ ] on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(1);
[ ] 75 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(2); or
[ ] on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of rule 485.
If appropriate, check the following box:
[ ] This post-effective amendment designates a new effective date for a previously filed post-effective amendment.
Prospectus
As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved of these securities, nor has the Commission determined that this Prospectus is complete or accurate. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Table of Contents | |
Summary Section | 1 |
Investment Objective | 1 |
Fees and Expenses of the Fund | 1 |
The Principal Investment Strategy of the Fund | 1 |
The Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund | 2 |
Performance History | 3 |
Management | 4 |
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares | 4 |
Tax Information | 4 |
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries | 4 |
Investment Objective, Principal Investment Strategies, | |
Related Risks, and Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings | 5 |
Investment Objective | 5 |
The Investment Selection Process Used by the Fund | 5 |
The Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund | 6 |
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure | 7 |
Management | 8 |
The Investment Adviser | 8 |
Shareholder Information | 9 |
Pricing of Fund Shares | 9 |
Customer Identification Program | 9 |
Investing in the Fund | 10 |
Minimum Investments | 10 |
Investments Made Through Brokerage Firms or Other Financial Institutions | 10 |
Payment | 10 |
Types of Account Ownership | 11 |
Instructions For Opening and Adding to an Account | 11 |
Telephone and Wire Transactions | 12 |
Tax-Deferred Plans | 12 |
Types of Tax-Deferred Accounts | 12 |
Automatic Investment Plans | 13 |
Dividend Reinvestment | 13 |
Instructions for Selling Fund Shares | 13 |
Additional Redemption Information | 14 |
Shareholder Communication | 15 |
Redemptions In-Kind | 15 |
Dividends and Distributions | 16 |
Market Timing | 16 |
Taxes | 17 |
Other Fund Service Providers | 18 |
Financial Highlights | 19 |
Privacy Notice | 20 |
The Bretton Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation.
The following table describes the expenses and fees that you may pay if you buy and hold 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.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses | |
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | |
Management Fees | |
Distribution Fees/Service (12b-1) Fees | |
Other Expenses | |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
The following 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% annual return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same each year. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
One Year | Three Years | Five Years | Ten Years |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Funds portfolio turnover rate was
The Bretton Fund seeks to achieve long-term capital appreciation by investing in a small number of undervalued securities. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests primarily in common stocks of companies of all sizes, including small and micro-capitalization companies. The Fund may also invest in other types of equity securities, as well as fixed income securities. Fixed income securities in which the Fund may invest include investment-grade bonds of varying maturities. The Fund will normally hold a core position of between 15 to 20 securities. From time to time, the Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in a particular sector. The Fund's investment adviser, Bretton Capital Management, LLC (the "Adviser"), attempts to evaluate the underlying economic values of securities and invests in securities whose market values are substantially below their estimated economic values, an approach known as "value investing." The Adviser uses fundamental research to seek companies with attractive attributes. These attributes include a defensible competitive advantage, relevant products, competent and shareholder-oriented management, growth, and a low level of debt. The Adviser seeks ethical businesses. Although tending to focus on U.S. companies, the Adviser may also invest in foreign companies with these attributes.
Prospectus 1
The Adviser sells or reduces the Fund's position in a security (1) when it approaches the Adviser's estimate of its fair value, (2) when its economic fundamentals have deteriorated, or (3) when the facts or the analysis surrounding the reason to originally put the security in the Fund's portfolio have changed.
Although the Fund intends to invest primarily in equity and fixed income securities, occasionally the Adviser may not find enough investments that meet the Fund's criteria and maintain without limitation a significant portion of the Fund's assets in cash or cash-equivalents like money-market funds, certificates of deposit and short-term debt obligations.
The Fund is a "non-diversified" fund, which means it can invest in fewer securities at any one time than a diversified fund. Also, from time to time the Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in a limited number of industry sectors, but will not concentrate in any particular industry.
Risks in General. Domestic economic growth and market conditions, interest rate levels, and political events are among the factors affecting the securities markets of the Fund's investments. There is risk that these and other factors may adversely affect the Fund's performance. Additionally, unexpected local, regional, or global events, such as war; acts of terrorism; financial or social disruptions; natural, environmental, or man-made disasters; the spread of infectious illnesses or other public health issues (such as the global pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)); and recessions and depressions could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments. The loss of money is a risk of investing in the Fund.
Risks of Investing in Common Stocks. Overall stock market risks may affect the value of the Fund. Factors such as domestic economic growth and market conditions, interest rate levels, and political events affect the securities markets. When the value of the Fund's investments goes down, your investment in the Fund decreases in value and you could lose money.
Risks of Small and Medium Capitalization Companies. The Fund invests in the stocks of small and medium capitalization companies, which may subject the Fund to additional risks. The earnings and prospects of these companies are more volatile than larger companies. Small and medium capitalization companies may have limited product lines and markets and may experience higher failure rates than do larger companies.
Risks of Micro Capitalization Companies. The prices of micro-cap stocks are generally more volatile and their markets are less liquid relative to larger companies. Therefore, the Fund may experience considerably more risk of loss and its returns may differ significantly from funds investing in larger companies or other asset classes.
Risks of Investing in Undervalued Securities. Undervalued securities are, by definition, out of favor with investors, and there is no way to predict when, if ever, the securities may return to favor. Therefore, investors should purchase shares of the Fund only if they intend to be patient, long-term investors.
Foreign Risks. Foreign investments carry potential risks not associated with domestic investments, which may include currency exchange rate fluctuations; political and financial instability; less liquidity and greater volatility; lack of uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards; less government regulation and supervision; increased price volatility; and delays in transaction settlement in some foreign markets.
Fixed Income Securities Risks. Investing in fixed income securities subjects the Fund to interest rate risk and credit risk. Interest rate risk is the risk that increases in interest rates can cause the prices of the Fund's investments in fixed income securities to decline. Credit risk is the risk that the issuer of the fixed income securities may not be able to meet interest or principal payments when the securities become due.
Prospectus 2
Sector Risks. Sector risk is the possibility that companies that are in similar businesses may be similarly affected by particular economic or market events. If the Adviser invests a significant portion of the Fund's assets in a particular sector, the Fund is subject to the risk that companies in the same sector are likely to react similarly to adverse legislative or regulatory changes, adverse market conditions, and/or increased competition affecting that market segment.
Risk of Non-Diversification. The Fund is a non-diversified fund, which means that it has the ability to take larger positions in a smaller number of securities than a fund that is "diversified." Non-diversification increases the risk that the value of the Fund could go down because of the poor performance of a single investment.
Management Risks. The Adviser's implementation of the Fund's strategy may fail to produce the intended results.
( ) + ( )
AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURN | |||
FOR THE PERIODS ENDED 12/31/23 | 1 Year | 5 Years | 10 Years |
BRETTON FUND | |||
Return Before Taxes | |||
Return After Taxes on Distributions | |||
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | |||
S&P 500 Index (does not reflect deductions for fees, expenses or taxes) |
Prospectus 3
Management
Investment Adviser
Bretton Capital Management, LLC.
Portfolio Managers
Stephen Dodson has managed the Fund since its inception in September 2010. Mr. Dodson is the president of the Adviser. Raphael de Balmann has managed the Fund since April 2015. Mr. de Balmann is a portfolio manager of the Adviser.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
The minimum initial and subsequent investment amounts for various types of accounts offered by the Fund are shown below.
Initial | Additional | |
Regular Account | $2,000 | $100 |
Automatic Investment Plan | $1,000 | $100* |
IRA Account | $1,000 | $100 |
*An Automatic Investment Plan requires a $100 minimum automatic monthly investment. Investors may purchase or redeem Fund shares on any business day through a financial intermediary, by mail (Bretton Fund, c/o Mutual Shareholder Services, 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147), by wire, or by telephone at 1-800-231-2901. Purchases and redemptions by telephone are only permitted if you previously established this option on your account.
Tax Information
The Fund's distributions are generally subject to U.S. federal income tax and may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains unless you are investing through a tax-deferred account, such as a 401(k) plan or an IRA where distributions may be taxed when withdrawn from the tax-deferred account.
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.
Prospectus 4
Investment Objective, Principal Investment Strategies, Related Risks, and Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings
Investment Objective
The Bretton Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation. The Fund may change its objective without shareholder approval, although shareholders will be provided a minimum of 60 days' advance notice of any change to the investment objective.
The Investment Selection Process Used by the Fund
Bretton Capital Management, LLC (the "Adviser"), the Fund's investment adviser, invests the Fund's assets primarily in common stocks of companies of all sizes, including small and micro-capitalization companies, that the Adviser believes to be undervalued and have the potential for capital appreciation. The Fund may also invest in other types of equity securities and fixed income securities. Fixed income securities in which the Fund may invest may include investment-grade bonds of varying maturities. The Fund will normally hold a core position of between 15 to 20 securities.
The Adviser attempts to evaluate the underlying economic values of securities and invests in securities whose market values are substantially below their estimated economic value, an approach known as "value investing." The Adviser uses fundamental research to seek businesses with attractive attributes. These attributes include a defensible competitive advantage, relevant products, competent and shareholder-oriented management, a low level of debt, and growth. The Adviser seeks ethical businesses. Although tending to focus on U.S. companies, the Adviser may also invest in foreign companies with these attributes.
In determining whether a particular company or security may be a suitable investment, the Adviser may evaluate such factors as the source of its competitive advantage (e.g., a compelling brand, economies of scale, loyal customers), the management team (e.g., commitment to shareholders, competency, ethics), the economics of the business (e.g., pricing power, return on invested capital), and its products (e.g., future demand for its products, product lifecycle, scalability). To evaluate these factors, the Adviser examines companies' financial statements, management's public comments, government filings, and third-party research, and may speak to various levels of management and industry experts. The Adviser determines the underlying economic value of common stocks by estimating the amount companies will earn in the future and analyzes historical financial statements to determine this. The Adviser does not focus on any particular type of security, sector or market capitalization range nor does it attempt to mimic the sector weightings of a particular market index.
The Adviser sells or reduces the Fund's position in a security (1) when it approaches the Adviser's estimate of its fair value, (2) when its economic fundamentals have deteriorated, or (3) when the facts or the analysis surrounding the reason to originally put the security in the Fund's portfolio have changed.
Temporary Defensive Positions
The Fund may hold all or a portion of its assets in cash or cash-equivalents like money market funds, certificates of deposit, short-term debt obligations, and repurchase agreements, either due to pending investments or when investment opportunities are limited or market conditions are adverse. Under these circumstances, the Fund may not participate in stock market advances or declines to the same extent it would had it remained more fully invested in common stocks. If the Fund invests in shares of a money market fund, shareholders of the Fund generally will be subject to duplicative management and other fees and expenses. When the Fund takes a defensive position, it may not achieve its investment objective.
Prospectus 5
The Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
Risks in General. Domestic economic growth and market conditions, interest rate levels, and political events are among the factors affecting the securities markets of the Fund's investments. There is risk that these and other factors may adversely affect the Fund's performance. Additionally, unexpected local, regional, or global events, such as war; acts of terrorism; financial or social disruptions; natural, environmental, or man-made disasters; the spread of infectious illnesses or other public health issues (such as the global pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)); and recessions and depressions could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments. You should consider your own investment goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance before investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund may not be appropriate for all investors and is not intended to be a complete investment program. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit in a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.
Risks of Investing in Common Stocks. The Fund invests primarily in common stocks, which subjects the Fund and its shareholders to the risks associated with common stock investing. These risks include the financial risk of selecting individual companies that do not perform as anticipated, the risk that the stock markets in which the Fund invests may experience periods of turbulence and instability, and the general risk that domestic and global economies may go through periods of decline and cyclical change. Many factors affect the performance of each company that the Fund invests in, including the strength of the company's management or the demand for its products or services. You should be aware that a company's share price may decline as a result of poor decisions made by management or lower demand for the company's products or services. In addition, a company's share price may also decline if its earnings or revenues fall short of expectations.
There are overall stock market risks that may also affect the value of the Fund. Over time, the stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods when stock prices rise generally and periods when stock prices decline generally. The value of the Fund's investments may increase or decrease more than the stock markets in general.
Risks of Small and Medium Capitalization Companies. To the extent the Fund invests in small and medium capitalization companies, the Fund may be subject to additional risks. The earnings and prospects of these companies are more volatile than larger companies. Small and medium capitalization companies may experience higher failure rates than do larger companies. The trading volume of securities of small and medium capitalization companies is normally less than that of larger companies and, therefore, may disproportionately affect their market price, tending to make them fall more in response to selling pressure than is the case with larger companies. Small and medium capitalization companies may have limited markets, product lines or financial resources, and may lack management experience.
Risks of Micro Capitalization Companies. Micro-cap companies have additional risks not associated with large capitalization companies. These companies may not be well known to the investing public, may not be significantly owned by institutional investors and may not have steady earnings growth. In addition, the securities of such companies may be more volatile in price, have wider spreads between their bid and ask prices and have significantly lower trading volumes than the securities of larger capitalization companies. The purchase or sale of more than a limited number of shares of the securities of a micro-cap company may affect its market price. Micro-cap companies are generally followed by few, if any, securities analysts, and there tends to be less publicly available information about them. Their securities generally have even more limited trading volumes and are subject to even more abrupt or erratic market price movements than small and mid capitalization companies. Such companies may also have limited markets, financial resources or product lines, may lack management depth and may be more vulnerable to adverse business or market developments.
Risks of Investing in Undervalued Securities. Undervalued securities are, by definition, out of favor with investors, and there is no way to predict when, if ever, the securities may return to favor. Therefore, investors should purchase shares of the Fund only if they intend to be patient, long-term investors.
Prospectus 6
Foreign Risk. To the extent the Fund invests in foreign securities, the Fund may be subject to risks not usually associated with owning securities of U.S. issuers. These risks can include the risks associated with higher transaction costs, delayed settlements, lack of liquidity, currency controls and adverse economic developments. This also includes the risk that fluctuations in the exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies may negatively affect an investment. Adverse changes in exchange rates may erode or reverse any gains produced by foreign currency denominated investments and widen any losses. Exchange rate volatility also may affect the ability of an issuer to repay U.S. dollar denominated obligations, thereby increasing credit risk. In addition, the costs of foreign investing, including withholding taxes, brokerage commissions, and custodial costs, generally are higher than for U.S. investments. In addition, foreign issuers, brokers, and securities markets may be subject to less government supervision than in the U.S.
Fixed Income Securities Risk. To the extent the Fund invests in fixed income securities, it could lose money or experience a lower rate of return if it holds a fixed income security whose issuer is unable to meet its financial obligations, or whose value declines if interest rates decrease or increase, depending on the Fund's investments. These securities may accrue income that is distributable to shareholders even though the income may not yet have been paid. If so, the Fund may need to liquidate some of its holdings and forego the purchase of additional income-producing assets. Fluctuations in interest rates may affect the yield and value of a Fund's investments in income-producing or fixed income or debt securities. Generally, if interest rates rise, the value of the Fund's investments may fall. The Fund may invest in short-term securities that, when interest rates decline, affect the Fund's yield as these securities mature or are sold and the Fund purchases new short-term securities with lower yields. The Fund could lose money if it holds a fixed income security whose issuer is unable to meet its financial obligations.
Sector Risk. Sector risk is the possibility that companies that are in similar businesses may be similarly affected by particular economic or market events. If the Adviser invests a significant portion of the Fund's assets in a particular sector, the Fund is subject to the risk that companies in the same sector are likely to react similarly to legislative or regulatory changes, adverse market conditions, and/or increased competition affecting that market segment. The sectors in which the Fund may be overweighted will vary.
Risk of Non-Diversification. The Fund is a non-diversified portfolio, which means that it has the ability to take larger positions in a smaller number of securities than a portfolio that is "diversified." Non-diversification increases the risk that the value of the Fund could go down because of the poor performance of a single investment.
Management Risks. The Adviser's implementation of the Fund's strategy may fail to produce the intended results.
Portfolio Holdings Disclosure
A description of the Fund's policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund's portfolio securities is available in the Fund's Statement of Additional Information ("SAI").
Prospectus 7
Management
The Investment Adviser
Bretton Capital Management, LLC is the investment adviser of the Fund and has responsibility for the management of the Fund's affairs, under the supervision of the Trust's Board of Trustees. The Adviser is a registered investment adviser. The Fund's investment portfolio is managed on a day-today basis by Stephen Dodson and Raphael de Balmann. Mr. Dodson and Mr. de Balmann each own 50% of the Adviser.
Mr. Dodson is the president of the Adviser. Mr. Dodson has managed the Fund since its inception. The firm was organized in 2010 as a California LLC and its address is 1460 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94103. The firm was reorganized as a Delaware LLC in April 2015. Mr. Dodson founded the Adviser in 2010. From 2002 to 2008, Mr. Dodson worked at Parnassus Investments in San Francisco, California, where he held various positions including president, portfolio manager, and chief operating officer. Prior to joining Parnassus Investments, Mr. Dodson was a venture capital associate with Advent International and an investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley. Mr. Dodson has a B.S. in Business Administration from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.
Mr. de Balmann is a portfolio manager with the Adviser. Mr. de Balmann has managed the Fund since April 2015. Before joining the Adviser, Mr. de Balmann was a partner at One Equity Partners, the private equity arm of JPMorgan. He was previously a principal at Paine & Partners/Fox Paine and worked in the private equity groups of Blackstone and Lazard in New York and London. Mr. de Balmann has an MBA from Stanford University and an AB in social studies from Harvard College.
The Fund's SAI provides information about the portfolio managers' compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers, and the portfolio managers' ownership of Fund shares.
The Adviser manages the investment portfolio of the Fund, subject to policies adopted by the Trust's Board of Trustees.
Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser, at its own expense and without reimbursement from the Trust, furnishes office space and all necessary office facilities, equipment, and executive personnel necessary for managing the Fund and pays the operating expenses of the Fund excluding management fees, brokerage fees and commissions, taxes, borrowing costs (such as (a) interest and (b) dividend expenses on securities sold short), ADR fees, fees and expenses of acquired funds, fees pursuant to Rule 12b-1 distribution plans, and extraordinary or non-recurring expenses. For its services the Adviser receives an investment management fee equal to 1.35% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Adviser received an investment management fee equal to 1.35% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. A discussion regarding the basis of the Board of Trustees' approval of the Investment Advisory Agreement between the Trust and the Adviser is available in the Fund's semi-annual report to shareholders dated June 30, 2023.
Prospectus 8
Shareholder Information
Pricing of Fund Shares
The price you pay for a share of the Fund, and the price you receive upon selling or redeeming a share of the Fund, is called the Fund's net asset value ("NAV"). The NAV is calculated by taking the total value of the Fund's assets, subtracting its liabilities, and then dividing by the total number of shares outstanding, rounded to the nearest cent: Net Asset Value = Total Assets - Liabilities / Number of Shares Outstanding The NAV is generally calculated as of the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) every day the Exchange is open for trading. The New York Stock Exchange generally is open every day other than weekends and holidays. All purchases, redemptions or reinvestments of Fund shares will be priced at the next NAV calculated after your order is received in proper form by the Funds Transfer Agent, Mutual Shareholder Services. If you purchase shares directly from the Fund, your order must be placed with the Transfer Agent prior to the close of the trading of the New York Stock Exchange in order to be confirmed for that days NAV. The Funds Board of Trustees has chosen to designate the Adviser as valuation designee to perform certain valuation functions. The Funds assets are generally valued at their market value. If market prices are not available or, in the valuation designees opinion, market prices do not reflect fair value, or if an event occurs after the close of trading (but prior to the time the NAV is calculated) that materially affects fair value, the valuation designee may value the Funds assets at their fair value according to policies approved by the Funds Board of Trustees. For example, if trading in a portfolio security is halted and does not resume before the Fund calculates its NAV, the valuation designee may need to price the security using the Funds 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 a Funds 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 Funds NAV by short-term traders. The Fund may use pricing services to help determine market value. Because the Fund may have portfolio securities that are primarily listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not price its shares, the net asset value of the Funds shares may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or redeem the Funds shares. With respect to any portion of a Funds assets that are invested in one or more open-end management investment companies that are registered under the Investment Company Act, the Funds net asset value is calculated based upon the net asset values of the registered open-end management investment companies in which the Fund invests. The prospectuses for these investment companies explain the circumstances under which those companies will use fair value pricing and the effects of using fair value pricing.
Customer Identification Program
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT PROCEDURES FOR OPENING A NEW ACCOUNT
To help the government fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering activities, Federal law requires all financial institutions to obtain, verify, and record information that identifies each person who opens an account. This means that, when you open an account, we will ask for your name, address, date of birth, and other information that will allow us to identify you. We may also ask for identifying documents and may take additional steps to verify your identity. We may not be able to open an account or complete a transaction for you until we are able to verify your identity.
Prospectus 9
Investing in the Fund
You may purchase shares directly through the Fund's transfer agent or through a brokerage firm or other financial institution that has agreed to sell the Fund's shares. If you are investing directly in the Fund for the first time, you will need to establish an account by completing a Shareholder Account Application (To establish an IRA, complete an IRA Application). To request an application, call toll-free 1-800-231-2901. Your initial investment minimum can be found in the table below. The Fund reserves the right to change the amount of these minimums from time to time or to waive them in whole or in part for certain accounts. Investment minimums may be higher or lower to investors purchasing shares through a brokerage firm or other financial institution.
Minimum Investments | ||
Initial | Additional | |
Regular Account | $2,000 | $100 |
Automatic Investment Plan | $1,000 | $100* |
IRA Account | $1,000 | $100 |
*An Automatic Investment Plan requires a $100 minimum automatic monthly or quarterly investment.
Investments Made Through Brokerage Firms or Other Financial Institutions
The Fund may be purchased through broker dealers and other intermediaries. If you invest through a brokerage firm or other financial institution, the policies and fees may be different than those described here. Financial advisers, financial supermarkets, brokerage firms, and other financial institutions may charge transaction and other fees and may set different minimum investments or limitations on buying or selling shares. Such brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to receive purchase and redemption orders on the Fund's behalf. Consult a representative of your financial institution if you have any questions. The Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized broker or, if applicable, a broker's authorized designee, received the order. Customer orders will be priced at the Fund's net asset value next computed after they are received by an authorized broker or the broker's authorized designee. Your financial institution is responsible for transmitting your order in a timely manner.
Payment
All purchases must be made in U.S. dollars and checks must be drawn on U.S. banks. No cash, money orders, traveler's checks, credit cards, credit card checks, third-party checks or other checks deemed to be high-risk checks will be accepted. A $20 fee will be charged against your account for any payment check returned to the transfer agent or for any incomplete electronic fund transfer, or for insufficient funds, stop payment, closed account, or other reasons. If a check does not clear your bank or the Fund is unable to debit your pre-designated bank account on the day of purchase, the Fund reserves the right to cancel the purchase. If your purchase is canceled, you will be responsible for any losses or fees imposed by your bank and losses that may be incurred as a result of a decline in the value of the canceled purchase. The Fund (or Fund agent) has the authority to redeem shares in your account(s) to cover any losses due to fluctuations in share price. Any profit on such cancellation will accrue to the Fund. Your investment in the Fund should be intended to serve as a long-term investment vehicle. The Fund is not designed to provide you with a means of speculating on the short-term fluctuations in the stock market. The Fund reserves the right to reject any purchase request that it regards as disruptive to the efficient management of the Fund, which includes investors with a history of excessive trading. The Fund also reserves the right to stop offering shares at any time.
Prospectus 10
Types of Account Ownership
You can establish the following types of accounts by completing a Shareholder Account Application:
Individual or Joint Ownership Individual accounts are owned by one person. Joint accounts have two or more owners
A Gift or Transfer to Minor (UGMA or UTMA) A UGMA/UTMA account is a custodial account managed for the benefit of a minor. To open an UGMA or UTMA account, you must include the minor's social security number on the application.
Trust An established trust can open an account. The names of each trustee, the name of the trust and the date of the trust agreement must be included on the application.
Business Accounts Corporation and partnerships may also open an account. The application must be signed by an authorized officer of the corporation or a general partner of a partnership.
IRA Accounts See "Tax-Deferred Plans".
Instructions for Opening and Adding to an Account
TO OPEN AN ACCOUNT
By Mail
Complete and sign the Shareholder Application or an IRA Application. Make your check payable to Bretton Fund.
For IRA accounts, please specify the year for which the contribution is made.
Mail or overnight the application and check to:
Bretton Fund
c/o Mutual Shareholder Services
8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400
Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147
TO ADD TO AN ACCOUNT By Mail
Complete the investment slip that is included with your account statement and write your account number on your check. If you no longer have your investment slip, please reference your name, account number, and address on your check.
Mail or overnight the slip and the check to:
Bretton Fund
c/o Mutual Shareholder Services
8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400
Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147
TO OPEN AN ACCOUNT
By Wire
Call 1-800-231-2901 for instructions and to obtain an investor account number or an IRA account number prior to wiring to the Fund.
TO ADD TO AN ACCOUNT
By Wire
Call 1-800-231-2901 for instructions.
Prospectus 11
Telephone and Wire Transactions
With respect to all transactions made by telephone, the Fund and its transfer agent will employ reasonable procedures to confirm that instructions communicated by telephone are genuine. Such procedures may include, among others, requiring some form of personal identification prior to acting upon telephone instructions, providing written confirmation of all such transactions, and/or tape recording all telephone instructions. If reasonable procedures are followed, then neither the Fund nor the transfer agent will be liable for any loss, cost, or expense for acting upon an investor's telephone instructions or for any unauthorized telephone redemption. In any instance where the Fund's transfer agent is not reasonably satisfied that instructions received by telephone are genuine, neither the Fund nor the transfer agent shall be liable for any losses which may occur because of delay in implementing a transaction.
If you purchase your initial shares by wire, the transfer agent first must have received a completed account application and issued an account number to you. The account number must be included in the wiring instructions as set forth above. The transfer agent must receive your account application to establish shareholder privileges and to verify your account information. Payment of redemption proceeds may be delayed, and taxes may be withheld unless the Fund receives a properly completed and executed account application.
Shares purchased by wire will be purchased at the NAV next determined after the transfer agent receives your wired funds and all required information is provided in the wire instructions. If the wire is not received by 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, the purchase will be effective at the NAV next calculated after receipt of the wire.
Tax-Deferred Plans
If you are eligible, you may set up one or more tax-deferred accounts. A tax-deferred account allows you to shelter your investment income and capital gains from current income taxes. A contribution to certain of these plans may also be tax deductible. Tax-deferred accounts include retirement plans described below. Distributions from these plans are generally subject to an additional tax if withdrawn prior to age 59 1/2 or used for a nonqualifying purpose. Investors should consult their tax adviser or legal counsel before selecting a tax-deferred account.
The Huntington National Bank serves as the custodian for the tax-deferred accounts offered by the Fund. You will be charged an annual account maintenance fee of $8 for each tax-deferred account you have with the Fund. You may pay the fee by check or have it automatically deducted from your account (usually in December). The custodian reserves the right to change the amount of the fee or to waive it in whole or part for certain types of accounts.
Types of Tax-Deferred Accounts
Traditional IRA
An individual retirement account. Your contribution may or may not be deductible depending on your circumstances. Assets can grow tax-deferred, and distributions are taxable as income.
Roth IRA
An IRA with non-deductible contributions, tax-free growth of assets, and tax-free distributions for qualified distributions.
Spousal IRA
An IRA funded by a working spouse in the name of a non-earning spouse.
SEP-IRA
An individual retirement account funded by employer contributions. Your assets grow tax-deferred and distributions are taxable as income.
Keogh or Profit Sharing Plans
These plans allow corporations, partnerships and individuals who are self-employed to make tax deductible contributions for each person covered by the plans.
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403(b) Plans
An arrangement that allows employers of charitable or educational organizations to make voluntary salary reduction contributions to a tax-deferred account.
401(k) Plans
Allows employees of corporations of all sizes to contribute a percentage of their wages on a tax deferred basis. These accounts need to be established by the trustee of the plan.
Automatic Investment Plans
By completing the Automatic Investment Plan section of the account application, you may make automatic monthly investments ($100 minimum per purchase) in the Fund from your bank or savings account. Your initial investment minimum is $1,000 if you select this option. Shares of the Fund may also be purchased through direct-deposit plans offered by certain employers and government agencies. These plans enable a shareholder to have all or a portion of his or her payroll or Social Security checks transferred automatically to purchase shares of the Fund.
FOR INVESTING
Automatic Investment Plan
For making automatic investments from a designated bank account.
Payroll Direct Deposit Plan
For making automatic investments from your payroll check.
Dividend Reinvestment
All income dividends and capital gains distributions will be automatically reinvested in shares of the Fund unless you indicate otherwise on the account application or in writing.
Instructions for Selling Fund Shares
You may sell all or part of your shares on any day that the New York Stock Exchange is open for trading. Your shares will be sold at the next NAV per share calculated after your order is received in proper form by the transfer agent. The proceeds of your sale may be more or less than the purchase price of your shares, depending on the market value of the Fund's securities at the time of your sale. Your order will be processed promptly, and you will generally receive the proceeds within seven days after receiving your properly completed request. The Fund will not mail any proceeds unless your investment check has cleared the bank, which may take up to fifteen calendar days. This procedure is intended to protect the Fund and its shareholders from loss. If the dollar or share amount requested is greater than the current value of your account, your entire account balance will be redeemed. If you choose to redeem your account in full, any automatic services currently in effect for the account will be terminated unless you indicate otherwise in writing.
Prospectus 13
TO SELL SHARES By Mail Write a letter of instruction that includes: |
The names(s) and signature(s) of all account owners.
Your account number.
The dollar or share amount you want to sell.
Where to send the proceeds.
If redeeming from your IRA, please note applicable withholding requirements.
Obtain a signature guarantee or other documentation, if required.
Mail or overnight your request to:
Bretton Fund
c/o Mutual Shareholder Services
8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400
Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147
By Telephone
You will automatically be granted telephone redemption privileges unless you decline them in writing or indicate on the appropriate section of the account application that you decline this option. Otherwise, you may redeem Fund shares by calling 1-800-231-2901. Redemption proceeds will only be mailed to your address of record.
You may only redeem a maximum of $25,000 per day by telephone.
You will not be able to redeem by telephone and have a check sent to your address of record for a period of 15 days following an address change.
Unless you decline telephone privileges in writing or on your account application, as long as the Fund takes reasonable measures to verify the order, you may be responsible for any fraudulent telephone order.
For specific information on how to redeem your account, and to determine if a signature guarantee or other documentation is required, please call toll-free in the U.S. 1-800-231-2901.
Additional Redemption Information Signature Guarantees
Signature guarantees are designed to protect both you and the Fund from fraud. A signature guarantee of each owner is required to redeem shares in the following situations:
If you change ownership on your account.
If a change of address request has been received by the transfer agent within the last 15 days.
If you wish to redeem $25,000 or more from any shareholder account.
Signature guarantees can be obtained from most banks, savings and loan associations, trust companies, credit unions, broker-dealers, and member firms of a national securities exchange. Call your financial institution to see if they have the ability to guarantee a signature. A notary public cannot provide signature guarantees.
The Fund reserves the right to require a signature guarantee under other circumstances or to delay a redemption when permitted by Federal Law. For more information pertaining to signature guarantees, please call 1-800-231-2901.
Prospectus 14
Corporate, Trust and Other Accounts
Redemption requests from corporate, trust, and other accounts may require documents in addition to those described above, evidencing the authority of the officers, trustees, or others. In order to avoid delays in processing redemption requests for these accounts, you should call the transfer agent at 1800-231-2901 to determine what additional documents are required.
Address Changes
To change the address on your account, call the transfer agent at 1-800-231-2901 or send a written request signed by all account owners. Include the account number(s) and name(s) on the account and both the old and new addresses. Certain options may be suspended for a period of 15 days following an address change.
Transfer of Ownership
In order to change the account registration or transfer ownership of an account, additional documents will be required. In order to avoid delays in processing these requests, you should call the transfer agent at 1-800-231-2901 to determine what additional documents are required.
Redemption Initiated by the Fund
Because there are certain fixed costs involved with maintaining your account, the Fund may require you to redeem all of your shares if your account balance falls below $500. After your account balance falls below the minimum balance, you will receive a notification from the Fund indicating its intent to close your account along with instructions on how to increase the value of your account to the minimum amount within 60 days. If your account balance is still below $500 after 60 days, the Fund may close your account and send you the proceeds. This minimum balance requirement does not apply to accounts using automatic investment plans, to IRAs, and to other tax deferred investment accounts. The right of redemption by the Fund will not apply if the value of your account balance falls below $500 because of market performance. All shares of the Fund are also subject to involuntary redemption if the Board of Trustees determines to liquidate the Fund. Any involuntary redemption will create a capital gain or loss, which may have tax consequences about which you should consult your tax adviser.
Shareholder Communications Account Statements
Every quarter, shareholders of the Fund will automatically receive regular account statements. You will also be sent a yearly statement detailing the tax characteristics of any dividends and distributions you have received.
Confirmations
Confirmation statements will be sent after each transaction that affects your account balance or account registration.
Regulatory Reports
Financial reports will be published semi-annually. The Fund has discontinued mailing paper copies of the Funds financial reports as permitted by new regulations adopted by the SEC, unless you specifically request paper copies from the Fund. The reports will remain available to you on the Funds website (www.brettonfund.com) and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a link to access the report. Annual reports will include audited financial statements. For any shareholder that requests paper copies only one copy of each report will be mailed to each taxpayer identification number even though the investor may have more than one account in the Fund.
Redemptions In-Kind
Generally, all redemptions will be paid in cash. The Fund typically expect to satisfy requests by using holdings of cash or cash equivalents or selling portfolio assets. This method normally will be used during both regular and stressed market conditions. In addition to paying redemption proceeds in cash, the Fund reserve the right to make payment for a redemption in securities rather than cash, which is known as a redemption in kind. If the amount you are redeeming is over the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the Funds NAV, the Fund has the right to redeem your
Prospectus 15
shares by giving you the amount that exceeds the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the Funds NAV in securities instead of cash. A redemption in kind will consist of securities equal in market value to the Fund shares being redeemed, using the same valuation procedures that the applicable Fund uses to compute its NAV. Redemption in kind transactions will typically be made by delivering readily marketable securities to the redeeming shareholder within 7 days after the Funds receipt of the redemption order in proper form. Marketable securities are assets that are regularly traded or where updated price quotations are available. Illiquid securities are investments that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. Certain illiquid securities may be valued using estimated prices from one of the Trusts approved pricing agents. If the Fund redeems your shares in kind, it will value the securities pursuant to policies and procedures adopted by the Board. You will bear the market risks associated with maintaining or selling the securities that are transferred as redemption proceeds. In the event that an in-kind distribution is made, a shareholder may incur additional expenses, such as the payment of brokerage commissions, on the sale or other disposition of the securities received from the Fund.
Dividends and Distributions
The Fund intends to pay distributions on an annual basis and expects that distributions will consist primarily of capital gains. You may elect to reinvest income dividends and capital gain distributions in the form of additional shares of the Fund or receive these distributions in cash. Dividends and distributions from the Fund are automatically reinvested in the Fund, unless you elect to have dividends paid in cash. Reinvested dividends and distributions receive the same tax treatment as those paid in cash. If you are interested in changing your election, you may call the transfer agent at 1-800-2312901 or send a written notification to:
Bretton Fund
c/o Mutual Shareholder Services
8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400
Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147
Market Timing
The Fund discourages market timing. Market timing is an investment strategy using frequent purchases, redemptions, and/or exchanges in an attempt to profit from short-term market movements. Market timing may result in dilution of the value of Fund shares held by long term shareholders, disrupt portfolio management, and increase Fund expenses for all shareholders. The Board of Trustees also has adopted a policy directing the Fund to reject any purchase order with respect to one investor, a related group of investors or their agent(s), where it detects a pattern of purchases and sales of the Fund that indicates market timing or trading that it determines is abusive. This policy applies uniformly to all Fund shareholders. While the Fund attempts to deter market timing, there is no assurance that it will be able to identify and eliminate all market timers. For example, certain accounts called "omnibus accounts" include multiple shareholders. Omnibus accounts typically provide the Fund with a net purchase or redemption request on any given day where purchasers of Fund shares and redeemers of Fund shares are netted against one another and the identity of individual purchasers and redeemers whose orders are aggregated are not known by the Fund. The netting effect often makes it more difficult for the Fund to detect market timing, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to do so. However, the Fund will establish information sharing agreements with intermediaries as required by Rule 22c-2 under the 1940 Act, and otherwise use reasonable efforts to work with intermediaries to identify excessive short-term trading in underlying accounts. The Fund may invest in foreign securities and small to medium capitalization companies and therefore may have additional risks associated with market timing. Because the Fund may invest in securities that are, among other things, priced on foreign exchanges, thinly traded, traded infrequently, or relatively illiquid, the Fund has the risk that the current market price for the securities may not accurately reflect current market values. This can create opportunities for market timing by shareholders. For example, securities trading on overseas markets present time-zone arbitrage opportunities when events affecting portfolio security values occur after the close of the overseas market, but prior to the close of the U.S. market. A shareholder may seek to engage in short-term
Prospectus 16
trading to take advantage of these pricing differences and therefore could dilute the value of Fund shares held by long term shareholders, disrupt portfolio management, and increase Fund expenses for all shareholders.
Taxes
Fund dividends and distributions are taxable to most investors (unless your investment is in an IRA or other tax deferred account). Dividends paid by the Fund out of net ordinary income and distributions of net short-term capital gains are taxable to the shareholders as ordinary income. Distributions by the Fund of net long-term capital gains to shareholders are generally taxable to the shareholders at the applicable long-term capital gains rate, regardless of how long the shareholder has held shares of the Fund.
Redemptions of shares of the Fund are generally taxable events which will generally cause the realization of a gain or loss. The amount of the gain or loss and the rate of tax will depend mainly upon the amount paid for the shares, the amount received from the sale, and how long the shares were held.
The Fund's distributions may be subject to U.S. federal income tax whether received in cash or reinvested in additional shares. In addition to U.S. federal taxes, you may be subject to state and local taxes on distributions.
The Fund may be required to withhold U.S federal income tax (presently at the rate of twenty-four percent (24%) on all taxable distributions payable to a shareholder who fails to provide the Fund with its correct taxpayer identification number, to make required certifications, or who has been notified by the Internal Revenue Service that they are subject to backup withholding. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Rather, it is a way in which the Internal Revenue Service ensures it will collect taxes otherwise due. Any amounts withheld may be credited against a shareholder's U.S. federal income tax liability.
Mutual fund companies must report their shareholders' cost basis, gain/loss, and holding period to the Internal Revenue Service on the Fund's shareholders' Consolidated Form 1099s.
The Fund has chosen average cost as the standing (default) tax lot identification method for all shareholders. A tax lot identification method is the way the Fund will determine which specific shares are deemed to be sold when there are multiple purchases on different dates at differing net asset values, and the entire position is not sold at one time. The Fund's standing tax lot identification method is the method shares will be reported on your Consolidated Form 1099 if you do not select a specific tax lot identification method. You may choose a method different than the Fund's standing method and will be able to do so at the time of your purchase or upon the sale of shares. Please consult your tax adviser with regard to your personal circumstances.
The Fund is not responsible for the reliability or accuracy of the information for any securities that are not covered by these rules. The Fund and its service providers do not provide tax advice. You should consult independent sources, which may include a tax professional, with respect to any decisions you may make with respect to choosing a tax lot identification method.
Possible Tax Law Changes. At the time this prospectus was prepared, there were various legislative proposals under consideration that would amend the Internal Revenue Code. Therefore, it is not possible to determine whether any of these proposals will become law and how these changes might affect the Fund or its shareholders.
The foregoing is not intended to be a full discussion of U.S. federal tax laws and the effect of such laws on you. Because everyone's tax situation is unique, always consult your tax professional about U.S. federal, state, and local tax consequences of an investment in the Fund.
Prospectus 17
Other Fund Service Providers Custodian
The Huntington National Bank
Distributor
Arbor Court Capital, LLC
Fund Administrator
Premier Fund Solutions, Inc.
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Cohen & Company, Ltd.
Investment Adviser
Bretton Capital Management, LLC
Legal Counsel
Practus, LLP
Transfer Agent
Mutual Shareholder Services, LLC
Prospectus 18
Financial Highlights
The financial highlights table is intended to help you understand the Fund's financial performance for the past five years. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate you would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). This information has been audited by Cohen & Company, Ltd., the Funds independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Fund's financial statements, is included in the Fund's annual report, which is available upon request and incorporated by reference in the Statement of Additional Information.
Financial Highlights | |||||||||||||||
Selected data for a share outstanding | |||||||||||||||
throughout each year: | 1/1/2023 | 1/1/2022 | 1/1/2021 | 1/1/2020 | 1/1/2019 | ||||||||||
to | to | to | to | to | |||||||||||
12/31/2023 | 12/31/2022 | 12/31/2021 | 12/31/2020 | 12/31/2019 | |||||||||||
Net Asset Value - | |||||||||||||||
Beginning of Year | $ | 47.81 | $ | 55.77 | $ | 43.93 | $ | 40.63 | $ | 30.01 | |||||
Net Investment Income (Loss) (a) | (0.22 | ) | (0.20 | ) | (0.12 | ) | (0.11 | ) | (0.08 | ) | |||||
Net Gain (Loss) on Investments | |||||||||||||||
(Realized and Unrealized) | 14.04 | (6.81 | ) | 12.31 | 3.54 | 10.70 | |||||||||
Total from Investment Operations | 13.82 | (7.01 | ) | 12.19 | 3.43 | 10.62 | |||||||||
Distributions (From Realized Capital Gains) | - | (0.95 | ) | (0.35 | ) | (0.13 | ) | - | |||||||
Total Distributions | - | (0.95 | ) | (0.35 | ) | (0.13 | ) | - | |||||||
Net Asset Value - | |||||||||||||||
End of Year | $ | 61.63 | $ | 47.81 | $ | 55.77 | $ | 43.93 | $ | 40.63 | |||||
Total Return (b) | 28.91 | % | (12.56 | )% | 27.76 | % | 8.44 | % | 35.39 | % | |||||
Ratios/Supplemental Data | |||||||||||||||
Net Assets - End of Period (Thousands) | $ | 83,367 | $ | 62,645 | $ | 67,455 | $ | 49,085 | $ | 42,052 | |||||
Ratio of Expenses to Average Net Assets | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.35 | % | 1.50 | % | |||||
Ratio of Net Investment Income (Loss) to | |||||||||||||||
Average Net Assets | -0.42 | % | -0.41 | % | -0.24 | % | -0.29 | % | -0.23 | % | |||||
Portfolio Turnover Rate | 0.00 | % | 3.26 | % | 1.38 | % | 14.51 | % | 0.00 | % |
(a) Per share amounts were calculated using the average shares method.
(b) Total return represents the rate that the investor would have earned or lost on an investment in the
Fund assuming reinvestment of dividends and distributions.
Prospectus 19
PRIVACY NOTICE |
The following is a description of the Fund's policies regarding disclosure of non-public personal information that you provide to the Fund or that the Fund collects from other sources. In the event that you hold shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary, the privacy policy of your financial intermediary would govern how your nonpublic personal information would be shared with unaffiliated third parties.
Categories of Information the Fund Collects. The Fund collects the following nonpublic personal information about you:
Information the Fund receives from you on or in applications or other forms, correspondence, or conversations (such as your name, address, phone number, Social Security Number, assets, income and date of birth); and
Information about your transactions with the Fund, its affiliates, or others (such as your account number, balance, payment history, parties to transactions, cost-basis information, and other financial information).
Categories of Information the Fund Discloses. The Fund does not disclose any nonpublic personal information about its current or former shareholders to unaffiliated third parties, except as required or permitted by law. The Fund is permitted by law to disclose all of the information it collects, as described above, to its service providers (such as the Fund's custodian, administrator, and transfer agent) to process your transactions and otherwise provide services to you.
Confidentiality and Security. The Fund restricts access to your non-public personal information to those persons who require such information to provide products or services to you. The Fund maintains physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards that comply with federal standards to guard your nonpublic personal information.
Prospectus 20
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Prospectus 21
Where to Go for Information
For shareholder inquiries, please call toll-free in the U.S. at 1-800-231-2901.
You will also find more information about the Fund on our website at www.brettonfund.com or in the following documents:
Statement of Additional Information
The Statement of Additional Information is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), contains additional and more detailed information about the Fund and is incorporated into this Prospectus by reference. The Fund publishes Shareholder Reports (annual and semiannual reports) that contain additional information about the Funds investments. In the Funds annual report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Funds performance during its last fiscal year.
You may obtain the SAI and Shareholder Reports without charge by contacting the Fund at 1-800-231-2901 or on our Internet site at: www.brettonfund.com. If you purchased shares through a Financial Intermediary, you may also obtain these documents, without charge, by contacting your Financial Intermediary.
Shareholder Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SECs Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.
SEC file number 811-09781
BRETTON
FUND
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION |
May
1, 2024 |
This Statement of Additional Information ("SAI") is not a prospectus. It should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of Bretton Fund dated May 1, 2024. This SAI incorporates by reference the Funds Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (Annual Report). A free copy of the Prospectus and Annual Report can be obtained by going to the Bretton Fund website at www.brettonfund.com, writing the Transfer Agent at 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, OH 44147, or by calling 1-800-231-2901.
TABLE OF CONTENTS | |
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND THE FUND | 1 |
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK CONSIDERATIONS | 1 |
INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS | 5 |
THE INVESTMENT ADVISER | 9 |
THE PORTFOLIO MANAGERS | 9 |
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS | 10 |
AUDIT COMMITTEE | 11 |
BOARD INTEREST IN THE FUND | 13 |
COMPENSATION | 14 |
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES | 14 |
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE | 15 |
ADDITIONAL TAX INFORMATION | 16 |
PRICING OF FUND SHARES | 25 |
PURCHASES AND SALES THROUGH BROKER DEALERS | 26 |
REDEMPTIONS IN-KIND | 26 |
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING PROGRAM | 26 |
CUSTODIAN | 26 |
FUND SERVICES | 27 |
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM | 27 |
LEGAL COUNSEL | 27 |
DISTRIBUTOR | 27 |
DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS | 28 |
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS | 28 |
PROXY VOTING POLICIES | 29 |
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND THE FUND
Bretton Fund (the "Fund") was organized as a non-diversified series of PFS Funds (the "Trust"), on September 21, 2010, and commenced operations on September 30, 2010. The Trust is an open-end investment company established under the laws of Massachusetts by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated January 13, 2000, as amended on January 20, 2011 (the "Trust Agreement"). The Declaration of Trust permits the Trustees to issue an unlimited number of full and fractional shares of multiple separate and distinct portfolio series the assets and liabilities of which are separate and distinct from the assets and liabilities of the other series portfolios of the Trust. Each share of the Fund represents an equal proportionate interest in the Fund with each other share of the Fund and is entitled to a proportionate interest in the dividends and distributions from the Fund. The shares of the Fund do not have any preemptive rights. The investment adviser to the Fund is Bretton Capital Management, LLC (the "Adviser").
Upon termination of any Fund, whether pursuant to liquidation of the Trust or otherwise, shareholders of the Fund are entitled to share pro rata in the net assets of the Fund available for distribution to shareholders. The assets received by the Fund for the issue or sale of its shares and all income, earnings, profits, losses and proceeds therefrom, subject only to the rights of creditors, are allocated to, and constitute the underlying assets of, the Fund. The underlying assets are segregated and are charged with the expenses with respect to the Fund and with a share of the general expenses of the Trust. Any general expenses of the Trust that are not readily identifiable as belonging to a particular Fund are allocated by or under the direction of the Trustees in such manner as the Trustees determine to be fair and equitable. While the expenses of the Trust are allocated to the separate books of account of the Fund, certain expenses may be legally chargeable against the assets of the Fund.
The Trustees may also, without shareholder approval, establish one or more additional separate portfolios for investments in the Trust. Shareholders' investments in such an additional portfolio would be evidenced by a separate series of shares (i.e., a new "Fund"). The Trust Agreement provides for the perpetual existence of the Trust and the Fund. The Fund, however, may be terminated at any time by vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding shares of the Fund or by the Trustees upon notice to shareholders. The Trust Agreement also provides that the Trustees may also terminate the Trust upon written notice to the shareholders, and that shareholders holding at least two-thirds of the Trusts outstanding shares may terminate the Trust.
For information concerning the purchase and redemption of shares of the Fund, see "Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares" in the Prospectus. For a description of the methods used to determine the share price and value of the Fund's assets, see "Pricing of Fund Shares" in the Prospectus and in this Statement of Additional Information.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK CONSIDERATIONS
This section contains a discussion of some of the investments the Fund may make and some of the techniques it may use.
A. Equity Securities. The Fund may invest in equity securities such as common stock, preferred stock, convertible securities, rights and warrants. Common stocks, the most familiar type, represent an equity (ownership) interest in a corporation. Warrants are options to purchase equity securities at a specified price for a specific time period. Rights are similar to warrants, but normally have a short duration and are distributed by the issuer to its shareholders. Although equity securities have a history of long-term growth in value, their prices fluctuate based on changes in a company's financial condition and on overall market and economic conditions.
Equity securities also include SPDRs (S&P Depositary Receipts, known as Spiders), DIAMONDS, QQQs and a number of other exchange traded funds (ETFs). SPDRs represent ownership in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, a unit investment trust that holds a portfolio of common stocks that closely
1 |
tracks the price performance and dividend yield of the S&P 500 Composite Price Index. SPDRs trade on the NYSE under the symbol SPY. DIAMONDS represent ownership in the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust, a unit investment trust that serves as an index to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (the Dow) in that its holdings consists of the 30 component stocks of the Dow. DIAMONDS trade on the NYSE under the symbol DIA. QQQs (NASDAQ-100 Index Tracking Stock) represent ownership in the PowerShares QQQ Index Tracking Trust, a unit investment trust that attempts to closely track the price and yield performance of the NASDAQ 100 Index by holding shares of all the companies in the Index. QQQs are listed on The NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. under the symbol QQQ. The Fund may also invest in a variety of other exchange traded funds. To the extent the Fund invests in a sector product, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with that sector. Additionally, the Fund may invest in new exchange traded shares as they become available. When the Fund invests in ETFs or other investment companies, it will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the investment company.
Many ETFs are organized as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. Investments in the securities of other investment companies, including investments in ETFs and closed-end funds, may involve duplication of advisory fees and certain other expenses. By investing in another investment company, a Fund becomes a shareholder of that investment company. As a result, the Fund's shareholders indirectly will bear the Fund's proportionate share of the fees and expenses paid by shareholders of the other investment company, in addition to the fees and expenses the Fund's shareholders directly bear in connection with the Fund's own operations.
Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the 1940 Act provides that a fund may not purchase or otherwise acquire the securities of other investment companies if, as a result of such purchase or acquisition, it would own: (i) more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired investment company; (ii) securities issued by any one investment company having a value in excess of 5% of the funds total assets; or (iii) securities issued by all investment companies having an aggregate value in excess of 10% of the funds total assets. These limitations are subject to certain statutory and regulatory exemptions including Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act, which permits the Fund to invest in other investment companies beyond the statutory limits, subject to certain conditions. Among other conditions, Rule 12d1-4 prohibits a fund from acquiring control of another investment company (other than an investment company in the same group of investment companies), including by acquiring more than 25% of its voting securities. In addition, Rule 12d1-4 imposes certain voting requirements when a funds ownership of another investment company exceeds particular thresholds. If shares of a fund are acquired by another investment company, the acquired fund may not purchase or otherwise acquire the securities of an investment company or private fund if immediately after such purchase or acquisition, the securities of investment companies and private funds owned by that acquired fund have an aggregate value in excess of 10 percent of the value of the total assets of the fund, subject to certain exceptions. These restrictions may limit the Funds ability to invest in other investment companies to the extent desired. In addition, other unaffiliated investment companies may impose other investment limitations or redemption restrictions which may also limit the Funds flexibility with respect to making investments in those unaffiliated investment companies. The Fund has adopted policies and procedures designed to comply with the requirements of Rule 12d1-4 and the Fund intends to follow such policies and procedures when investing in other investment companies.
B. Foreign Securities. The Fund may invest in foreign equity and fixed income securities. Equity securities include American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) and ETFs that hold foreign securities. ADRs are certificates evidencing ownership of shares of a foreign-based issuer held in trust by a bank or similar financial institution. They are alternatives to the direct purchase of the underlying securities in their national markets and currencies. ADRs are subject to risks similar to those associated with direct investment in foreign securities.
Foreign investments can involve significant risks in addition to the risks inherent in U.S. investments. The value of securities denominated in or indexed to foreign currencies, and of dividends and interest from such securities, can change significantly when foreign currencies strengthen or weaken relative to the U.S. dollar. Foreign securities markets generally have less trading volume and less liquidity than U.S.
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markets, and prices on some foreign markets can be highly volatile. Many foreign countries lack uniform accounting and disclosure standards comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies, and it may be more difficult to obtain reliable information regarding an issuers financial condition and operations. In addition, the costs of foreign investing, including withholding taxes, brokerage commissions, and custodial costs, generally are higher than for U.S. investments.
Foreign markets may offer less protection to investors than U.S. markets. Foreign issuers, brokers, and securities markets may be subject to less government supervision. Foreign security trading practices, including those involving the release of assets in advance of payment, may invoke increased risks in the event of a failed trade or the insolvency of a broker-dealer, and may involve substantial delays. It also may be difficult to enforce legal rights in foreign countries.
Investing abroad also involves different political and economic risks. Foreign investments may be affected by actions of foreign governments adverse to the interests of U.S. investors, including the possibility of expropriation or nationalization of assets, confiscatory taxation, restrictions on U.S. investment or on the ability to repatriate assets or convert currency into U.S. dollars, or other government intervention. There may be a greater possibility of default by foreign governments or foreign government-sponsored enterprises. Investments in foreign countries also involve a risk of local political, economic or social instability, military action or unrest, or adverse diplomatic developments. There is no assurance that an adviser will be able to anticipate or counter these potential events and their impacts on the Funds share price.
The considerations noted above generally are intensified for investments in developing and emerging markets countries. These countries may have relatively unstable governments, economies based on only a few industries and securities markets that trade a small number of securities.
C. Illiquid Investments. In accordance with Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act (the Liquidity Rule), the Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. For these purposes, illiquid investments are investments that cannot reasonably be expected to be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment.
The Fund must classify each portfolio investment at least monthly into one of four liquidity categories (highly liquid, moderately liquid, less liquid and illiquid), which are defined pursuant to the Liquidity Rule. Such classification is to be made using information obtained after reasonable inquiry and taking into account relevant market, trading and investment-specific considerations. Moreover, in making such classification determinations, the Fund determines whether trading varying portions of a position in a particular portfolio investment or asset class, in sizes that the Fund would reasonably anticipate trading, is reasonably expected to significantly affect its liquidity, and if so, the Fund takes this determination into account when classifying the liquidity of that investment. The Fund may be assisted in classification determinations by one or more third-party service providers. Investments classified according to this process as illiquid investments are those subject to the 15% limit on illiquid investments.
D. U.S. Government Securities. U.S. government securities are high-quality debt securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or by an agency or instrumentality of the U.S. government. Not all U.S. government securities are backed by the full faith and credit of, or guaranteed by the United States Treasury. For example, securities issued by the Farm Credit Banks or by the Federal National Mortgage Association are supported by the instrumentality's right to borrow money from the U.S. Treasury under certain circumstances. Moreover, securities issued by other agencies or instrumentalities are supported only by the credit of the entity that issued them.
E. Corporate Debt Securities. Corporate debt securities are long and short term debt obligations issued by companies (such as publicly issued and privately placed bonds, notes and commercial paper). The Adviser considers corporate debt securities to be of investment grade quality if they are rated BBB or higher by S&P or Baa or higher by Moody's, or if unrated, determined by the Adviser to be of comparable
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quality. Investment grade debt securities generally have adequate to strong protection of principal and interest payments. In the lower end of this category, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to pay interest and repay principal than in higher rated categories.
F. Fixed Income Securities. The Fund may invest in all types of U.S. and non-U.S. fixed income securities, including when-issued, delayed delivery, or forward commitment basis. Fixed income securities are subject to credit risk and interest rate risk. Credit risk is the risk that the Fund could lose money if an issuer of a fixed income security cannot meet its financial obligations or goes bankrupt. Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the Fund's investments in fixed income securities may fall when interest rates rise.
Investments in high-yield bonds are considered to be more speculative than higher quality fixed income securities. They are more susceptible to credit risk than investment-grade securities, especially during periods of economic uncertainty or economic downturns. The value of lower quality securities are subject to greater volatility and are generally more dependent on the ability of the issuer to meet interest and principal payments than higher quality securities. Issuers of high-yield securities may not be as strong financially as those issuing bonds with higher credit ratings.
G. Financial Services Industry Obligations. The Fund may invest in each of the following obligations of the financial services industry:
(1) Certificate of Deposit. Certificates of deposit are negotiable certificates evidencing the indebtedness of a commercial bank or a savings and loan association to repay funds deposited with it for a definite period of time (usually from fourteen days to one year) at a stated or variable interest rate.
(2) Time Deposits. Time deposits are non-negotiable deposits maintained in a banking institution or a savings and loan association for a specified period of time at a stated interest rate.
(3) Bankers' Acceptances. Bankers' acceptances are credit instruments evidencing the obligation of a bank to pay a draft which has been drawn on it by a customer, which instruments reflect the obligation both of the bank and of the drawer to pay the face amount of the instrument upon maturity.
H. Repurchase Agreements. The Fund may invest in repurchase agreements fully collateralized by obligations issued by the U.S. government or agencies of the U.S. government ("U.S. Government Obligations"). A repurchase agreement is a short term investment in which the purchaser (i.e., a Fund) acquires ownership of a U.S. Government Obligation (which may be of any maturity) and the seller agrees to repurchase the obligation at a future time at a set price, thereby determining the yield during the purchaser's holding period (usually not more than 7 days from the date of purchase). Any repurchase transaction in which a Fund engages will require full collateralization of the seller's obligation during the entire term of the repurchase agreement. In the event of a bankruptcy or other default of the seller, a Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying security and losses in value. However, the Fund intends to enter into repurchase agreements only with the custodian, other banks with assets of $1 billion or more and registered securities dealers determined by the Adviser to be creditworthy. The Adviser monitors the creditworthiness of the banks and securities dealers with which a Fund engages in repurchase transactions.
I. Borrowing. The Fund is permitted to borrow money up to one-third of the value of its total assets. Borrowing is a speculative technique that increases both investment opportunity and a Fund's ability to achieve greater diversification. However, it also increases investment risk. Because the Fund's investments will fluctuate in value, whereas the interest obligations on borrowed funds may be fixed, during times of borrowing, the Fund's net asset value may tend to increase more when its investments increase in value, and decrease more when its investments decrease in value. In addition, interest costs on borrowings may fluctuate with changing market interest rates and may partially offset or exceed the return earned on the borrowed funds. Also, during times of borrowing under adverse market conditions,
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the Fund might have to sell portfolio securities to meet interest or principal payments at a time when fundamental investment considerations would not favor such sales.
J. Options Transactions. The Fund may engage in option transactions involving individual securities and stock indexes. An option involves either: (a) the right or the obligation to buy or sell a specific instrument at a specific price until the expiration date of the option; or (b) the right to receive payments or the obligation to make payments representing the difference between the closing price of a stock index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple until the expiration date of the option. Options are sold (written) on securities and stock indexes. The purchaser of an option on a security pays the seller (the writer) a premium for the right granted but is not obligated to buy or sell the underlying security. The purchaser of an option on a stock index pays the seller a premium for the right granted, and in return the seller of such an option is obligated to make the payment. A writer of an option may terminate the obligation prior to expiration of the option by making an offsetting purchase of an identical option. Options are traded on organized exchanges and in the over-the-counter market.
The purchase and writing of options requires additional skills and techniques beyond normal portfolio management, and involves certain risks. The purchase of options limits a Fund's potential loss to the amount of the premium paid and can afford the Fund the opportunity to profit from favorable movements in the price of an underlying security to a greater extent than if transactions were effected in the security directly. However, the purchase of an option could result in the Fund losing a greater percentage of its investment than if the transaction were effected directly. When the Fund writes a call option, it will receive a premium, but it will give up the opportunity to profit from a price increase in the underlying security above the exercise price as long as its obligation as a writer continues, and it will retain the risk of loss should the price of the security decline. When the Fund writes a put option, it will assume the risk that the price of the underlying security or instrument will fall below the exercise price, in which case the Fund may be required to purchase the security or instrument at a higher price than the market price of the security or instrument. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund can effect a closing transaction on a particular option it has written. Further, the total premium paid for any option may be lost if the Fund does not exercise the option or, in the case of over-the-counter options, the writer does not perform its obligations.
K. Mortgage-Backed Securities. The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities. These securities represent an interest in a pool of mortgages. Most mortgage-backed securities are pass-through securities, meaning that the payments received by the Fund on such securities consist of both principal and interest as the mortgages in the underlying mortgage pool are paid off. Unscheduled or early payments on the underlying mortgages may shorten the securities effective maturities. The average life of securities representing interests in pools of mortgage loans is likely to be substantially less than the original maturity of the mortgage pools as a result of prepayments or foreclosures of such mortgages. Prepayments are passed through to the registered holder with the regular monthly payments of principal and interest, and have the effect of reducing future payments. To the extent the mortgages underlying a security representing an interest in a pool of mortgages are prepaid, the Fund may experience a loss (if the price at which the respective security was acquired by the Fund was at a premium over par, which represents the price at which the security will be sold upon prepayment). In addition, prepayments of such securities held by the Fund will reduce the share price of the Fund to the extent the market value of the securities at the time of prepayment exceeds their par value. Furthermore, the prices of mortgage-backed securities can be significantly affected by changes in interest rates. Prepayments may occur with greater frequency in periods of declining mortgage rates because, among other reasons, it may be possible for mortgagors to refinance their outstanding mortgages at lower interest rates. In such periods, it is likely that any prepayment proceeds would be reinvested by a Fund at lower rates of return.
L. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). The Fund may invest in REITs may be subject to certain risks associated with the direct ownership of real estate, including declines in the value of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, overbuilding and increased competition, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, and variations in rental income. Generally, increases in interest rates will decrease the value of high yielding securities and increase the costs of obtaining financing, which could decrease the value of the REITs held in the Fund's portfolio. REITs are also subject to heavy
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cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation and the possibility of failing to qualify for the tax-free pass-through of income under the Internal Revenue Code and to maintain their exemption from registration under Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.
M. Derivatives Transactions. Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act governs the Funds use of derivative instruments and certain other transactions that create future payment and/or delivery obligations by the Fund. Rule 18f-4 permits the Fund to enter into Derivatives Transactions (as defined below) and certain other transactions notwithstanding the restrictions on the issuance of senior securities under Section 18 of the 1940 Act. Section 18 of the 1940 Act, among other things, prohibits open-end funds, including the Fund, from issuing or selling any senior security, other than borrowing from a bank (subject to a requirement to maintain 300% asset coverage). In connection with the adoption of Rule 18f-4, the SEC eliminated the asset segregation framework arising from prior SEC guidance for covering Derivatives Transactions and certain financial instruments.
Under Rule 18f-4, Derivatives Transactions include the following: (i) any swap, security-based swap (including a contract for differences), futures contract, forward contract, option (excluding purchased options), any combination of the foregoing, or any similar instrument, under which the Fund is or may be required to make any payment or delivery of cash or other assets during the life of the instrument or at maturity or early termination, whether as margin or settlement payment or otherwise; (ii) any short sale borrowing; (iii) reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions, if the Fund elects to treat these transactions as Derivatives Transactions under Rule 18f-4; and (iv) when-issued or forward-settling securities (e.g., firm and standby commitments, including to-be-announced (TBA) commitments, and dollar rolls) and non-standard settlement cycle securities, unless the Fund intends to physically settle the transaction and the transaction will settle within 35 days of its trade date.
Unless the Fund is relying on the Limited Derivatives User Exception (as defined below), the Fund must comply with Rule 18f-4 with respect to its Derivatives Transactions. Rule 18f-4, among other things, requires the Fund to (i) appoint a Derivatives Risk Manager, (ii) maintain a Derivatives Risk Management Program designed to identify, assess, and reasonably manage the risks associated with Derivatives Transactions; (iii) comply with certain value-at-risk (VaR)-based leverage limits (VaR is an estimate of an instruments or portfolios potential losses over a given time horizon and at a specified confidence level); and (iv) comply with certain Board reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Rule 18f-4 provides an exception from the requirements to appoint a Derivatives Risk Manager, adopt a Derivatives Risk Management Program, comply with certain VaR-based leverage limits, and comply with certain Board oversight and reporting requirements if the Funds derivatives exposure (as defined in Rule 18f-4) is limited to 10% of its net assets (as calculated in accordance with Rule 18f-4) and the Fund adopts and implements written policies and procedures reasonably designed to manage its derivatives risks (the Limited Derivatives User Exception).
Pursuant to Rule 18f-4, if the Fund enters into reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions, the Fund will (i) aggregate the amount of indebtedness associated with all of its reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions with the amount of any other senior securities representing indebtedness (e.g., bank borrowings, if applicable) when calculating the Funds asset coverage ratio or (ii) treat all such transactions as Derivatives Transactions.
The requirements of Rule 18f-4 may limit the Funds ability to engage in Derivatives Transactions as part of its investment strategies. These requirements may also increase the cost of the Funds investments and cost of doing business, which could adversely affect the value of the Funds investments and/or the performance of the Fund.
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INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS
Fundamental. The investment limitations described below have been adopted by the Trust with respect to the Fund and are fundamental ("Fundamental"), i.e., they may not be changed without the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund. As used in the Prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information, the term "majority" of the outstanding shares of the Fund means the lesser of: (1) 67% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund are present or represented at such meeting; or (2) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. Other investment practices which may be changed by the Trusts Board of Trustees (Board) without the approval of shareholders to the extent permitted by applicable law, regulation or regulatory policy are considered non-fundamental ("Non-Fundamental").
1. Borrowing Money. The Fund will not 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.
2. Senior Securities. The Fund will not 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 Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act), the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or interpretations of the SEC or its staff.
3. Underwriting. The Fund will not act as underwriter of securities issued by other persons. This limitation is not applicable to the extent that, in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities (including restricted securities), a Fund may be deemed an underwriter under certain federal securities laws.
4. Real Estate. The Fund will not purchase or sell real estate. This limitation is not applicable to investments in marketable securities which 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 real estate investment trusts).
5. Commodities. The Fund will not purchase or sell commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or futures contracts, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by commodities or from investing in companies which are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.
6. Loans. The Fund will not make loans to other persons, except: (a) by loaning portfolio securities; (b) by engaging in repurchase agreements; or (c) by purchasing nonpublicly offered debt securities. 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.
7. Concentration. The Fund will not invest 25% or more of its total assets in a particular industry. This limitation is not applicable to investments in obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies and instrumentalities or repurchase agreements with respect thereto.
With respect to the percentages adopted by the Trust as maximum limitations on its investment policies and limitations, an excess above the fixed percentage will not be a violation of the policy or
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limitation unless the excess results immediately and directly from the acquisition of any security or the action taken. This paragraph does not apply to the borrowing policy set forth in paragraph 1 above.
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing limitations, any investment company, whether organized as a trust, association or corporation, or a personal holding company, may be merged or consolidated with or acquired by the Trust, provided that if such merger, consolidation or acquisition results in an investment in the securities of any issuer prohibited by said paragraphs, the Trust shall, within ninety days after the consummation of such merger, consolidation or acquisition, dispose of all of the securities of such issuer so acquired or such portion thereof as shall bring the total investment therein within the limitations imposed by said paragraphs above as of the date of consummation.
Non-Fundamental. The following limitations have been adopted by the Trust with respect to the Fund and are Non-Fundamental (see "Investment Limitations - Fundamental" above).
1. Pledging. The Fund will not 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.
2. Borrowing. The Fund will not purchase any security while borrowings (including reverse repurchase agreements) representing more than one third of its total assets are outstanding.
3. Margin Purchases. The Fund will not purchase securities or evidences of interest thereon on "margin." This limitation is not applicable to short term credit obtained by the Fund for the clearance of purchases and sales or redemption of securities, or to arrangements with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted investments and techniques.
4. Options. The Fund will not purchase or sell puts, calls, options or straddles, except as described in this Statement of Additional Information.
5. Illiquid Investments. The Fund will not invest more than 15% of its net assets in securities for which there are legal or contractual restrictions on resale and other illiquid securities.
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THE INVESTMENT ADVISER
The Adviser is Bretton Capital Management, LLC, located at 1460 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103.
Under the terms of the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser manages the investment portfolio of the Fund, subject to policies adopted by the Board. Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser, at its own expense and without reimbursement from the Trust, furnishes office space and all necessary office facilities, equipment and executive personnel necessary for managing the assets of the Fund. Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser assumes and pays all ordinary expenses of the Fund, except that the Fund pays all management fees, brokerage fees and commissions, taxes, interest expense, underlying fund fees and expenses, and extraordinary or non-recurring expenses. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, the Adviser received an investment management fee equal to 1.35% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, the Adviser earned $786,467 in advisory fees. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the Adviser received an investment management fee equal to 1.35% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the Adviser earned $837,684 in advisory fees. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Adviser received an investment management fee equal to 1.35% of the average daily net assets of the Fund. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Adviser earned $956,949 in advisory fees. The Adviser retains the right to use the name "Bretton" or any derivative thereof in connection with another investment company or business enterprise with which the Adviser is or may become associated. The Trust's right to use the name "Bretton" or any derivative thereof automatically ceases ninety days after termination of the Investment Advisory Agreement and may be withdrawn by the Adviser on ninety days written notice.
The Adviser may make payments to banks or other financial institutions that provide shareholder services and administer shareholder accounts. If a bank or other financial institution were prohibited from continuing to perform all or a part of such services, management of the Fund believes that there would be no material impact on the Fund or its shareholders. Financial institutions may charge their customers fees for offering these services to the extent permitted by applicable regulatory authorities, and the overall return to those shareholders availing themselves of the financial institutions services will be lower than to those shareholders who do not. The Fund may from time to time purchase securities issued by financial institutions that provide such services; however, in selecting investments for the Fund, no preference will be shown for such securities.
THE PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
Mr. Stephen Dodson and Mr. Raphael de Balmann (the Portfolio Managers) are the portfolio managers responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. The following provides information regarding other accounts managed by the Portfolio Managers as of December 31, 2023:
Mr. Stephen Dodson | Total Assets By | |||
Number of Accounts | Account Type | |||
Number of Accounts | Total Assets By | by Type Subject to a | Subject to a | |
Account Type | by Account Type | Account Type | Performance Fee | Performance Fee |
Registered | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Investment | ||||
Companies | ||||
Other Pooled | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Investment Vehicles | ||||
Other Accounts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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Mr. Raphael de Balmann | Total Assets By | |||
Number of | Number of Accounts | Account Type | ||
Accounts | Total Assets By | by Type Subject to a | Subject to a | |
Account Type | by Account Type | Account Type | Performance Fee | Performance Fee |
Registered | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Investment | ||||
Companies | ||||
Other Pooled | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Investment Vehicles | ||||
Other Accounts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
As of December 31, 2023, the Adviser does not manage any other accounts besides the Fund and thus has not identified any material conflicts between the Fund and other accounts managed by the portfolio managers.
Mr. Dodsons and Mr. de Balmanns compensation as the Fund's Portfolio Managers consists of earnings from their ownership stake in the Adviser. Mr. Dodson and Mr. de Balmann each own 50% of the Adviser.
The following table shows the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the Portfolio Managers in the Fund as of December 31, 2023.
Name of Portfolio Manager | Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund |
Stephen Dodson | over $1,000,000 |
Name of Portfolio Manager |
Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund |
Raphael de Balmann | over $1,000,000 |
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS
The Board supervises the business activities of the Trust. The names of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust are shown below. The Trustees who are "interested persons" of the Trust, as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, are indicated by an asterisk. Each Trustee serves until the Trustee sooner dies, resigns, retires or is removed. Officers hold office for one year and until their respective successors are chosen and qualified.
The Board is currently composed of three Trustees, including two Trustees who are not "interested persons" of the Fund, as that term is defined in the 1940 Act (each an Independent Trustee). In addition to four regularly scheduled meetings per year, the Board holds special meetings or informal conference calls to discuss specific matters that may require action prior to the next regular meeting. The Board has established an Audit Committee comprised entirely of Trustees who are Independent Trustees. The Audit Committee is generally responsible for (i) overseeing and monitoring the Trust's internal accounting and control structure, its auditing function and its financial reporting process, (ii) selecting and recommending to the full Board the appointment of auditors for the Trust, (iii) reviewing audit plans, fees, and other material arrangements with respect to the engagement of auditors, including permissible non-audit services performed; (iv) reviewing the qualifications of the auditor's key personnel involved in the foregoing activities and (v) monitoring the auditor's independence.
Board Leadership Structure. The Board has established an Audit Committee which allows it to access the expertise necessary to oversee the Trust, identify risks, recognize shareholder concerns and needs and highlight opportunities. The Audit Committee is able to focus Board time and attention to matters of interest to shareholders and, through its private sessions with the Trusts auditor, Chief Compliance Officer and legal counsel, stay fully informed regarding management decisions. The Board had determined that its leadership structure is appropriate based on the size of the Trust, the Boards current
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responsibilities, each Trustees ability to participate in the oversight of the Trust and committee transparency. The Board periodically reviews this leadership structure and believes it to be appropriate because it allows the Board to exercise informed and independent judgment over matters under its purview, and allocates responsibility among the Audit Committee of the Trustees and the full Board in a manner that enhances effective oversight.
Risk Oversight. Mutual funds face a number of risks, including investment risk, compliance risk and valuation risk. The Board oversees management of the Funds risks directly and through its officers. While day-to-day risk management responsibilities rest with the Funds Chief Compliance Officer, investment adviser and other service providers, the Board monitors and tracks risk by: (1) receiving and reviewing quarterly reports related to the performance and operations of the Fund; (2) reviewing and approving, as applicable, the compliance policies and procedures of the Trust, including the Trusts valuation policies and transaction procedures; (3) periodically meeting with the portfolio managers to review investment strategies, techniques and related risks; (4) meeting with representatives of key service providers, including the Funds investment adviser, administrator, distributor, transfer agent and the independent registered public accounting firm, to discuss the activities of the Fund; (5) engaging the services of the Chief Compliance Officer of the Fund to test the compliance procedures of the Trust and its service providers; (6) receiving and reviewing reports from the Trusts independent registered public accounting firm regarding the Funds financial condition and the Trusts internal controls; and (7) receiving and reviewing an annual written report prepared by the Chief Compliance Officer reviewing the adequacy of the Trusts compliance policies and procedures and the effectiveness of their implementation. The Board has concluded that its general oversight of the investment adviser and other service providers as implemented through the reporting and monitoring process outlined above allows the Board to effectively administer its risk oversight function.
AUDIT COMMITTEE
The Board has an Audit Committee, which is comprised of the independent members of the Board, Thomas H. Addis III, Robert L Boerner, Allen C. Brown and John W. Czechowicz. The Audit Committee meets at least once a year, or more often as required, in conjunction with meetings of the Board. The Audit Committee oversees and monitors the Trusts internal accounting and control structure, its auditing function and its financial reporting process. The Audit Committee selects and recommends to the full Board the appointment of auditors for the Trust. The Audit Committee also reviews audit plans, fees, and other material arrangements with respect to the engagement of auditors, including permissible non-audit services performed. It reviews the qualifications of the auditors key personnel involved in the foregoing activities and monitors the auditors independence. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 the Audit Committee met four times.
The Board nominates and appoints trustees to fill vacancies on the Board and to stand for election at shareholder meetings of the Trust. The nomination of any Independent Trustees to the Board is made in the sole and exclusive discretion of the current Independent Trustees. The Trustees do not consider nominations by shareholders for trustee candidates. Each Trustee was nominated to serve on the Board based on their particular experiences, qualifications, attributes and skills. The characteristics that have led the Board to conclude that each of the Trustees should continue to serve as a Trustee of the Trust are discussed below.
Jeffrey R. Provence. Mr. Jeffrey R. Provence has served as a Trustee since the Trusts inception in 2000. Mr. Jeffrey R. Provence is the CEO of Premier Fund Solutions, Inc. which provides the Board with knowledge related to fund administration. Mr. Jeffrey R. Provence is also a General Partner of Value Trend Capital Management, LP, and has worked in the investment management industry since 1995 providing investment management knowledge to the Board.
Thomas H. Addis III. Mr. Addis has served as a Trustee since the Trusts inception in 2000. Mr. Addis is the Executive Director/CEO of the Southern California PGA. His strategic planning, organizational and leadership skills help the Board set long-term goals.
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Robert L. Boerner. Mr. Boerner has served as a Trustee since September 2022. He has been a licensed real estate broker for over 20 years and also has experience as a licensed mortgage lender. Mr. Boerner has extensive experience representing residential buyers and sellers and strong ability to understand complex financial and financing aspects of transactions. The Board believes his experience with the complexities of the highly-regulated aspects of real estate, mortgage lending and sales translate well to the highly-regulated environment under which mutual funds must operate. Consequently, he has experience overseeing layers of regulatory conditions under which an entity must operate which parallels the operations of mutual funds.
Allen C. Brown. Mr. Brown has served as a Trustee since June 2010. He was an estate planning and business attorney from 1970 to 2021. As a practicing attorney for over five decades, Mr. Brown provides a valued legal perspective to the Board.
John W. Czechowicz. Mr. Czechowicz has served as a Trustee since September 2022. He is a Certified Public Accountant. As a Certified Public Accountant, Mr. Czechowicz brings budgeting and financial reporting skills to the Board. Consequently, he has experience analyzing financial statements and related disclosures, as well as a strong understanding of accounting pronouncements and regulations. His experience provides a valued financial reporting prospective to the Board.
The trustees and officers, together with their addresses, age, principal occupations during the past five years are as follows:
Interested Trustees and Officers
Name,
|
Position(s) |
Term
of Office and Length |
Principal
Occupation(s) During |
Number
of Portfolios In Fund Complex Overseen By |
Other Directorships Held By Trustee
|
James D. Craft, Year of Birth: 1982 |
President
|
Indefinite
|
Fund Administrator, Premier Fund Solutions, Inc. (2007-present); Chief Technology Officer, Premier Fund Solutions, Inc. (2011 to present).
|
N/A
|
N/A |
Jeffrey
R. Provence(2), Year of Birth: 1969 |
Trustee, Secretary and Treasurer | Indefinite
Term; Since 2000 |
CEO, Premier Fund Solutions, Inc. (2001 to current). General Partner and Portfolio Manager for Value Trend Capital Management, LP (1995 to current).
|
12 | Blue Chip Investor Funds, Meeder Funds |
Julian
G. Winters, Year of Birth: 1968 |
Chief Compliance Officer |
Chief
Compliance Officer Since 2010 |
Managing Member, Watermark Solutions LLC (investment compliance and consulting firm) since March 2007. | N/A | N/A |
(1)
The address of each trustee and officer is c/o PFS Funds, 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, CA 92020.
(2)
Jeffrey R. Provence is considered "interested person" as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act by virtue of his position
with the Trust.
12 |
Independent
Trustees
Name,
Address(1), |
Position |
Term
of Office and Length |
Principal
Occupation(s) During |
Number
of Portfolios In Fund Complex Overseen By |
Other Directorships Held By Trustee
|
Thomas
H. Addis III, |
Independent
|
Indefinite
Term;
|
Executive Director/CEO, Southern California PGA (2006 to current). |
12
|
None
|
Robert L. Boerner, Year of Birth: 1969
Allen
C. Brown, Year of Birth:
|
Independent
Independent |
Indefinite
Term;
Indefinite
Term; |
Owner / Broker of Gecko Realty (2008 to current)
Law Office of Allen C. Brown. Estate planning and business attorney (1970 to 2021).
|
12
12 |
Blue Chip Investor Funds, Neiman Funds
Blue Chip Investor Funds |
John W. Czechowicz, Year of Birth: 1983
|
Independent Trustee |
Indefinite
Term; Since 2022 |
CPA at CWDL (2016 to current)
|
12 | None |
(1) The address of each trustee and officer is c/o PFS Funds, 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, California 92020.
BOARD INTEREST IN THE FUND
As of December 31, 2023, the Trustees owned the following amounts in the Funds:
Name of Trustee |
Dollar Range of Securities In The Bretton Fund |
Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities In All Registered Investment Companies Overseen By Trustee In Family of Investment Companies |
Jeffrey R. Provence(1) | $10,001-$50,000 | Over $100,000 |
Thomas H. Addis III | $0 | $0 |
Robert L. Boerner | $0 | $0 |
Allen C. Brown | $0 | $0 |
John W. Czechowicz, CPA | $0 | $0 |
(1)Jeffrey R. Provence is considered "interested person" as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act by virtue of his position with the Trust.
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COMPENSATION
Trustee fees are paid by the advisers to the Funds of the Trust, including the Adviser to the Bretton Fund, and Trustees who are deemed "interested persons" of the Trust receive no compensation. Each Independent Trustee shall receive a $375 per meeting fee for each series portfolio of the Trust unless such series portfolio has not reached (i) 5 years of operations (ii) or $5 million in assets, in such case the fee would be $250 per meeting. Additionally, for each series portfolio with less than one year of operation the maximum per meeting fee received by an Independent Trustee is $250. The following table shows Trustee compensation for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023:
Name |
Pension or Retirement Benefits Accrued
as Part of Fund Expenses |
Estimated Annual Benefits Upon Retirement |
Aggregate Compensation from Bretton Fund |
Total Compensation from the Fund Complex | |
Jeffrey R. Provence | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Thomas H. Addis III | $0 | $0 | $1,500 | $19,500 | |
Robert L. Boerner | $0 | $0 | $1,500 | $19,500 | |
Allen C. Brown | $0 | $0 | $1,500 | $19,500 | |
John W. Czechowicz, | $0 | $0 | $1,500 | $19,500 | |
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES
A principal shareholder is any person who owns (either of record or beneficially) 5% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund. A control person is one who owns, either directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the voting securities of the Fund or acknowledges the existence of such control. As a controlling shareholder, each of these persons could control the outcome of any proposal submitted to the shareholders for approval, including changes to the Fund's fundamental policies or the terms of the management agreement with the Adviser. As of April 8, 2024, each of the following shareholders was considered to be either a control person or principal shareholder of the Fund:
Name and Address | Shares | Percent Ownership | Type of Ownership |
Thao Dodson 338 Spear Street, Suite 39B San Francisco, California 94105 |
590,472.06 | 42.58% | Beneficial |
YDB LLC(1) 625 Quarry Hill Road Sonoma, CA 95476 |
344,527.93 | 24.85% | Beneficial |
Stephen Dodson 1460 Mission Street San Francisco, CA 94103 |
200,770.94 | 14.48% | Beneficial |
(1)Raphael de Balmann owns 40% of YDB LLC.
As of April 8, 2024 the Trustees and Officers as a group owned less than 1% of the outstanding shares of the Fund.
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PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE
Subject to policies established by the Board, the Adviser is responsible for the Fund's portfolio decisions and the placing of the Fund's portfolio transactions. In placing portfolio transactions, the Adviser seeks the best qualitative execution for the Fund, taking into account such factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer spread), the execution capability, financial responsibility and responsiveness of the broker or dealer and the brokerage and research services provided by the broker or dealer. The Adviser generally seeks favorable prices and commission rates that are reasonable in relation to the benefits received. The Adviser may not give consideration to sales of shares of the Trust as a factor in the selection of brokers and dealers to execute portfolio transactions. However, the Adviser may place portfolio transactions with brokers or dealers that promote or sell the Funds shares so long as such placements are made pursuant to policies approved by the Funds Board that are designed to ensure that the selection is based on the quality of the brokers execution and not on its sales efforts.
The Adviser is specifically authorized to select brokers or dealers who also provide brokerage and research services to the Fund and/or the other accounts over which the Adviser exercises investment discretion and to pay such brokers or dealers a commission in excess of the commission another broker or dealer would charge if the Adviser determines in good faith that the commission is reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and research services provided. The determination may be viewed in terms of a particular transaction or the Adviser's overall responsibilities with respect to the Trust and to other accounts over which it exercises investment discretion.
Research services include supplemental research, securities and economic analyses, statistical services and information with respect to the availability of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities and analyses of reports concerning performance of accounts. The research services and other information furnished by brokers through whom the Fund effects securities transactions may also be used by the Adviser in servicing all of its accounts. Similarly, research and information provided by brokers or dealers serving other clients may be useful to the Adviser in connection with its services to the Fund. Although research services and other information are useful to the Fund and the Adviser, it is not possible to place a dollar value on the research and other information received. It is the opinion of the Board and the Adviser that the review and study of the research and other information will not reduce the overall cost to the Adviser of performing its duties to the Fund under the Investment Advisory Agreement. Due to research services provided by brokers, the Fund may direct trades to certain brokers. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, the fund paid brokerage commissions of $1,465. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the fund paid brokerage commissions of $647. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the fund paid brokerage commissions of $471.
The portfolio turnover rate for the Fund is calculated by dividing the lesser of amounts of purchases or sales of portfolio securities for the reporting period by the monthly average value of the portfolio securities owned during the reporting period. The calculation excludes all securities, whose maturities or expiration dates at the time of acquisition are one year or less. Portfolio turnover may vary greatly from year to year as well as within a particular year, and may be affected by cash requirements for redemption of shares and by requirements which enables the Fund to receive favorable tax treatment. Portfolio turnover will not be a limiting factor in making portfolio decisions, and the Fund may engage in short-term trading to achieve its investment objective. The portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 was 1.38%. The portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 was 3.26%. The portfolio turnover rate for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 was 0.00%.
Over-the-counter transactions will be placed either directly with principal market makers or with broker-dealers, if the same or a better price, including commissions and executions, is available. Fixed income securities are normally purchased directly from the issuer, an underwriter or a market maker. Purchases include a concession paid by the issuer to the underwriter and the purchase price paid to a market maker may include the spread between the bid and asked prices.
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When the Fund and another of the Adviser's clients seek to purchase or sell the same security at or about the same time, the Adviser may execute the transaction on a combined ("blocked") basis. Blocked transactions can produce better execution for the Fund because of the increased volume of the trans-action. If the entire blocked order is not filled, the Fund may not be able to acquire as large a position in such security as it desires or it may have to pay a higher price for the security. Similarly, the Fund may not be able to obtain as large an execution of an order to sell or as high a price for any particular portfolio security if the other client desires to sell the same portfolio security at the same time. In the event that the entire blocked order is not filled, the purchase or sale will normally be allocated on a pro rata basis. The allocation may be adjusted by the Adviser, taking into account such factors as the size of the individual orders and transaction costs, when the Adviser believes an adjustment is reasonable.
The Trust, the Adviser and the Distributor have each adopted a Code of Ethics under Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The personnel subject to the Code of Ethics are permitted to invest in securities, including securities that may be purchased or held by the Fund. You may obtain a copy of the Code of Ethics from the SEC.
ADDITIONAL TAX INFORMATION
The following discussion is a summary of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations affecting the Fund and its shareholders. The discussion reflects applicable U.S. federal income tax laws as of the date of this SAI, which tax laws may be changed or subject to new interpretations by the courts or the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS), possibly with retroactive effect. No attempt is made to present a detailed explanation of all U.S. income, estate or gift tax, or foreign, state or local tax concerns affecting the Fund and its shareholders (including shareholders owning large positions in the Fund). The discussion set forth herein does not constitute tax advice. Investors are urged to consult their own tax advisers to determine the tax consequences to them of investing in the Fund.
In addition, no attempt is made to address tax concerns applicable to an investor with a special tax status such as a financial institution, real estate investment trust (REIT), insurance company, regulated investment company (RIC), individual retirement account, other tax-exempt entity, or dealer in securities. Furthermore, this discussion does not reflect possible application of the alternative minimum tax (AMT). Unless otherwise noted, this discussion assumes shares of the Fund (Shares) are held by U.S. shareholders (defined below) and that such Shares are held as capital assets.
A U.S. shareholder is a beneficial owner of Shares that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes:
· a citizen or individual resident of the United States (including certain former citizens and former long-term residents);
· a corporation or other entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or any state thereof or the District of Columbia;
· an estate, the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source; or
· a trust with respect to which a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over its administration and one or more U.S. persons have the authority to control all of its substantial decisions or a trust that has a valid election in effect under applicable Treasury regulations to be treated as a U.S. person.
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A Non-U.S. shareholder is a beneficial owner of Shares that is an individual, corporation, trust or estate and is not a U.S. shareholder. If a partnership (including any entity treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds Shares, the tax treatment of a partner in the partnership generally depends upon the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. A partner of a partnership that will hold Shares should consult its tax adviser with respect to the purchase, ownership and disposition of Shares by the partnership.
Taxation as a RIC
The Fund intends to qualify each year for treatment as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code). There can be no assurance that it will so qualify. The Fund will qualify as a RIC if, among other things, it meets the source-of-income and the asset-diversification requirements. With respect to the source-of-income requirement, the Fund must derive in each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income (including tax-exempt interest) from (i) dividends, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures and forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such shares, securities or currencies and (ii) net income derived from an interest in a qualified publicly traded partnership (the Income Test). A qualified publicly traded partnership is generally defined as a publicly traded partnership under Code Section 7704. Income derived from a partnership (other than a qualified publicly traded partnership) or trust is qualifying income to the extent such income is attributable to items of income of the partnership or trust which would be qualifying income if realized by the Fund in the same manner as realized by the partnership or trust.
If a RIC fails the Income Test and such failure was due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect, generally it will not be subject to the U.S. federal income tax rate applicable to corporations. Instead, the amount of the penalty for non-compliance is U.S. federal corporate income tax on the amount by which the non-qualifying income exceeds one-ninth of the qualifying gross income.
With respect to the asset-diversification requirement, the Fund must diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each quarter of each taxable year (i) at least 50% of the value of the Funds total assets is represented by cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, the securities of other RICs and other securities, if such other securities of any one issuer do not represent more than 5% of the value of the Funds total assets or more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of the Funds total assets is invested in the securities other than U.S. government securities or the securities of other RICs of (a) one issuer, (b) two or more issuers that are controlled by the Fund and that are engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or (c) one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships (the Asset Test).
If a RIC fails the Asset Test, such RIC has a 6-month period to correct any failure without incurring a penalty if such failure is de minimis.
Similarly, if a RIC fails the Asset Test and the failure is not de minimis, a RIC can cure the failure if: (i) the RIC files with the U.S. Treasury Department a description of each asset that caused the RIC to fail the Asset Test; (ii) the failure is due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect; and (iii) the failure is cured within six months (or such other period specified by the U.S. Treasury Department). In such cases, a tax is imposed on the RIC equal to the greater of: (i) $50,000 or (ii) an amount determined by multiplying the highest corporate U.S. federal income tax rate (currently 21%) by the amount of net income generated during the period of the Asset Test failure by the assets that caused the RIC to fail the Asset Test.
If the Fund qualifies as a RIC and distributes to its shareholders, for each taxable year, at least 90% of the sum of (i) its investment company taxable income as that term is defined in the Internal Revenue Code (which includes, among other things, dividends, taxable interest, the excess of any net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses and certain net foreign exchange gains as reduced by certain deductible expenses) without regard to the deduction for dividends paid, and (ii) the excess of its gross tax-exempt interest, if any, over certain deductions attributable to such interest that are otherwise disallowed (the Distribution Test), the Fund will be relieved of U.S. federal income tax on any income of
17 |
the Fund, including long-term capital gains, distributed to shareholders. However, any ordinary income or capital gain retained by the Fund will be subject to regular corporate U.S. federal income tax rates (currently at a maximum rate of 21%). The Fund intends to distribute at least annually substantially all of its investment company taxable income, net tax-exempt interest, and net capital gain.
The Fund will generally be subject to a nondeductible 4% U.S. federal excise tax on the portion of its undistributed ordinary income with respect to each calendar year and undistributed capital gains if it fails to meet certain distribution requirements with respect to the one-year period ending on October 31 in that calendar year. To avoid the 4% U.S. federal excise tax, the required minimum distribution is generally equal to the sum of (i) 98% of the Funds ordinary income (computed on a calendar year basis), (ii) 98.2% of the Funds capital gain net income (generally computed for the one-year period ending on October 31), and (iii) any income realized, but not distributed, and on which the Fund paid no U.S. federal income tax in preceding years. The Fund generally intends to make distributions in a timely manner in an amount at least equal to the required minimum distribution and therefore, under normal market conditions, does not expect to be subject to this excise tax.
The Fund may be required to recognize taxable income in circumstances in which it does not receive cash. For example, if the Fund holds debt obligations that are treated under applicable U.S. federal income tax rules as having original issue discount (OID), such as debt instruments with payment of kind interest or, in certain cases, with increasing interest rates or that are issued with warrants, the Fund must include in income each year a portion of the OID that accrues over the life of the obligation regardless of whether cash representing such income is received by the Fund in the same taxable year. Because any OID accrued will be included in the Funds investment company taxable income (discussed above) for the year of accrual, the Fund may be required to make a distribution to its shareholders to satisfy the Distribution Test, even though it will not have received an amount of cash that corresponds with the accrued income.
A RIC is permitted to carry forward net capital losses indefinitely and may allow losses to retain their original character (as short or as long-term). These capital loss carryforwards may be utilized in future years to offset net realized capital gains of the Fund, if any, prior to distributing such gains to shareholders.
Except as set forth below in Failure to Qualify as a RIC, the remainder of this discussion assumes that the Fund will qualify as a RIC for each taxable year.
Failure to Qualify as a RIC
If the Fund is unable to satisfy the Distribution Test or otherwise fails to qualify as a RIC in any year, it will be subject to corporate U.S. federal income tax on all of its income and gain, regardless of whether or not such income was distributed. Distributions to the Funds shareholders of such income and gain will not be deductible by the Fund in computing its taxable income. In such event, the Funds distributions, to the extent derived from the Funds current or accumulated earnings and profits, would constitute ordinary dividends, which would generally be eligible for the dividends received deduction available to corporate U.S. shareholders, and non-corporate U.S. shareholders would generally be able to treat such distributions as qualified dividend income eligible for preferential rates of U.S. federal income taxation, if holding period and other requirements are satisfied.
Distributions in excess of the Funds current and accumulated earnings and profits would be treated first as a return of capital to the extent of the shareholders tax basis in their shares of the Fund, and any remaining distributions would be treated as a capital gain. To qualify as a RIC in a subsequent taxable year, the Fund would be required to satisfy the Income Test, Asset Test, and Distribution Test for that year and distribute any earnings and profits from any year in which the Fund failed to qualify for tax treatment as a RIC. Subject to a limited exception applicable to RICs that qualified as such under the Code for at least one year prior to disqualification and that requalify as a RIC no later than the second year following the nonqualifying year, the Fund would be subject to tax on any unrealized built-in gains in the assets held by it during the period in which the Fund failed to qualify for tax treatment as a RIC that are recognized within the subsequent 10 years, unless the Fund made a special election to pay
18 |
corporate-level tax on such built-in gain at the time of its requalification as a RIC.
Taxation for U.S. Shareholders
Distributions paid to U.S. shareholders by the Fund from its investment company taxable income (which is, generally, the Funds ordinary income plus net realized short-term capital gains in excess of net realized long-term capital losses) are generally taxable to U.S. shareholders as ordinary income to the extent of the Funds earnings and profits, whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional Shares. Such distributions (if designated by the Fund) may qualify (i) for the dividends received deduction in the case of corporate U.S. shareholders to the extent that the Funds income consists of dividend income from U.S. corporations, excluding distributions from tax-exempt organizations, exempt farmers cooperatives or REITs or (ii) in the case of individual U.S. shareholders, as qualified dividend income eligible to be taxed at preferential rates to the extent that the Fund receives qualified dividend income, and provided in each case certain holding period and other requirements are met. Qualified dividend income is, in general, dividend income from taxable domestic corporations and qualified foreign corporations (which generally include foreign corporations incorporated in a possession of the United States or in certain countries with a qualified comprehensive income tax treaty with the United States, or the stock with respect to which such dividend is paid is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States). A qualified foreign corporation generally excludes any foreign corporation, which for the taxable year of the corporation in which the dividend was paid, or the preceding taxable year, is a passive foreign investment company (a PFIC). Distributions made to a U.S. shareholder from an excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses (Capital Gain Dividends), including capital gain dividends credited to such shareholder but retained by the Fund, are taxable to such U.S. shareholder as long-term capital gain if they have been properly designated by the Fund, regardless of the length of time such U.S. shareholder owned the Shares. The maximum tax rate on Capital Gain Dividends received by individuals is generally 20%. Distributions in excess of the Funds earnings and profits will be treated by the U.S. shareholder, first, as a tax-free return of capital, which is applied against and will reduce the adjusted tax basis of the U.S. shareholders Shares and, after such adjusted tax basis is reduced to zero, will constitute capital gain to the U.S. shareholder. The Fund is not required to provide written notice designating the amount of any qualified dividend income or capital gain dividends and other distributions. The Forms 1099 sent to the U.S. shareholders will instead serve this notice purpose.
As a RIC, the Fund will be subject to the AMT, but any items that are treated differently for AMT purposes must be apportioned between the Fund and the shareholders and this may affect the U.S. shareholders AMT liabilities. The Fund intends in general to apportion these items in the same proportion that dividends paid to each shareholder bear to the Funds taxable income, determined without regard to the dividends paid deduction.
For purpose of determining (i) whether the Distribution Test is satisfied for any year and (ii) the amount of Capital Gain Dividends paid for that year, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, elect to treat a dividend that is paid during the following taxable year as if it had been paid during the prior taxable year. If the Fund makes such an election, a U.S. shareholder will still be treated as receiving the dividend in the taxable year in which the distribution is made. However, any dividend declared by the Fund in October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following year, will be treated as if it had been received by the U.S. shareholders on December 31 of the year in which the dividend was declared.
The Fund intends to distribute all realized capital gains, if any, at least annually. If, however, the Fund were to retain any net capital gain, the Fund may designate the retained amount as undistributed capital gains in a notice to shareholders who, if subject to U.S. federal income tax on long-term capital gains, (i) will be required to include in income as long-term capital gain, their proportionate shares of such undistributed amount, and (ii) will be entitled to credit their proportionate shares of the U.S. federal income tax paid by the Fund on the undistributed amount against their U.S. federal income tax liabilities, if any, and to claim refunds to the extent the credit exceeds such liabilities. If such an event occurs, the tax basis of Shares owned will, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, generally be increased by the difference between the amount of undistributed net capital gain included in the shareholders gross income and the tax deemed paid by the shareholder.
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Sales and other dispositions of Shares generally are taxable events. U.S. shareholders should consult their own tax adviser with reference to their individual circumstances to determine whether any particular transaction in the Shares is properly treated as a sale or exchange for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as the following discussion assumes, and the tax treatment of any gains or losses recognized in such transaction. The sale or other disposition of Shares will generally result in capital gain or loss to a U.S. shareholder equal to the difference between the amount realized and the adjusted tax basis in the Shares sold or exchanged, and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year at the time of sale. Any loss upon the sale or exchange of Shares held for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of any Capital Gain Dividends received (including amounts credited as an undistributed Capital Gain Dividend) by such shareholder with respect to such Shares. A loss realized on a sale or exchange of Shares generally will be disallowed if other substantially identical shares are acquired within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date that the Shares are disposed. In such case, the basis of the shares acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Both long-term and short-term capital gain of U.S. corporations are taxed at the rates applicable to ordinary income of corporations. For non-corporate U.S. taxpayers, short-term capital gain is taxed at the rate applicable to ordinary income, while long-term capital gain generally is taxed at a maximum rate of 20%. Capital losses are subject to certain limitations.
The Fund is required to report its shareholders cost basis, gain/loss, and holding period for Shares to the IRS on the Funds shareholders Consolidated Form 1099s. The Fund has chosen average cost as the standing (default) tax lot identification method for all shareholders. A tax lot identification method is the way the Fund will determine which specific Shares are deemed to be sold when there are multiple purchases on different dates at differing net asset values, and the entire position is not sold at one time. The Funds standing tax lot identification method is the method Shares will be reported on a U.S. shareholders Consolidated Form 1099 if the shareholder does not select a different tax lot identification method. U.S. shareholders may choose a method different than the Funds standing method and will be able to do so at the time of the U.S. shareholders purchase or upon the sale of Shares. The Fund is not responsible for the reliability or accuracy of the information for those securities that are not covered. The Fund and its service providers do not provide tax advice. U.S. shareholders should consult independent sources, which may include a tax professional, with respect to any decisions they may make with respect to choosing a tax lot identification method.
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. 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.
Original Issue Discount, Pay-In-Kind Securities, and Market Discount. Some debt obligations 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 obligations that are issued originally at a discount. Generally, the amount of the OID is treated as interest income and is included in the Funds taxable income (and required to be distributed by the Fund) over the term of the debt obligation, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, upon partial or full repayment or disposition of the debt security.
Some debt obligations that may be acquired by the Fund in the secondary market may be treated as having market discount. Very generally, market discount is the excess of the stated redemption price of a debt obligation (or in the case of an obligations issued with OID, its revised issue price) over the purchase price of such obligation. Generally, any gain recognized on the disposition of, and any partial payment of principal on, a debt obligation 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 obligation. Alternatively, the Fund may elect to accrue market discount currently, in which case the Fund will be required to include the accrued market discount in the Funds income (as ordinary income) and thus distribute it over the term of the debt security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, upon partial or full repayment or disposition of the debt security. The rate at which the market discount accrues, and thus is included in the Funds income, will depend upon which of the
20 |
permitted accrual methods the Fund elects. In the case of higher-risk securities, the amount of market discount may be unclear. See below Higher-Risk Securities.
Some
debt obligations that may be acquired by the Fund may be treated as having acquisition discount (very generally, the excess
of the stated redemption price over the purchase price), or OID in the case of certain types of debt obligations. The Fund will be required
to include the acquisition discount, or OID, in income (as ordinary income) over the term of the debt obligation, even though payment
of that amount is not received until a later time, upon partial or full repayment or disposition of the debt security. The Fund may make
one or
more of the elections applicable to debt obligations having acquisition discount, or OID, which could affect the character
and timing of recognition of income.
In addition, payment-in-kind securities will, and commodity-linked notes may, give rise to income that 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.
If the Fund holds the foregoing kinds of securities, it may be required to pay out as an income distribution each year an amount that 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 than they would in the absence of such transactions.
Higher-Risk Securities. To the extent such investments are permissible for the Fund, the Fund may invest in debt obligations that are in the lowest rating categories or are unrated, including debt obligations of issuers not currently paying interest or who are in default. Investments in debt obligations that are at risk of or in default present special tax issues for the Fund. Tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when the Fund may cease to accrue interest, OID or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless securities and how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income. In limited circumstances, it may also not be clear whether the Fund should recognize market discount on a debt obligation, and if so, what amount of market discount the Fund should recognize. These and other related issues will be addressed by the Fund when, as and if it invests in such securities, in order to seek to ensure that it distributes sufficient income to preserve its status as a RIC and does not become subject to U.S. federal income or excise tax.
Tax-Exempt Shareholders. A tax-exempt U.S. shareholder could recognize unrelated business taxable income (UBTI) by virtue of its investment in the Fund if Shares constitute debt-financed property in the hands of the tax-exempt U.S. shareholder within the meaning of Code Section 514(b). Furthermore, a tax-exempt U.S. shareholder may recognize UBTI if the Fund recognizes excess inclusion income derived from direct or indirect investments in residual interests in real estate mortgage investment conduits (REMICs) or equity interests in taxable mortgage pools (TMPs) if the amount of such income recognized by the Fund exceeds the Funds investment company taxable income (after taking into account deductions for dividends paid by the Fund).
In addition, special tax consequences apply to charitable remainder trusts (CRTs) that invest in RICs that invest directly or indirectly in residual interests in REMICs or equity interests in TMPs. A CRT (as defined in Code Section 664) that realizes any UBTI for a taxable year, must pay an excise tax annually of an amount equal to such UBTI. Under IRS guidance issued in October 2006, a CRT will not recognize UBTI solely as a result of investing in the Fund that recognize excess inclusion income. Rather, if at any time during any taxable year a CRT (or one of certain other tax-exempt shareholders, such as the United States, a state or political subdivision, or an agency or instrumentality thereof, and certain energy cooperatives) is a record holder of a Share and the Fund recognizes excess inclusion income, then the Fund will be subject to a tax on that portion of its excess inclusion income for the taxable year that is allocable to such shareholders, at the highest U.S. federal corporate income tax rate. The extent to which this IRS guidance remains applicable is unclear. To the extent permitted under the 1940 Act, the Fund may elect to specially allocate any such tax to the applicable CRT, or other
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shareholder, and thus reduce such shareholders distributions for the year by the amount of the tax that relates to such shareholders interest in the Fund. The Fund has not yet determined whether such an election will be made. CRTs and other tax-exempt investors are urged to consult their own tax advisers concerning the consequences of investing in the Fund.
Passive Foreign Investment Companies. A PFIC is any foreign corporation: (i) 75% or more of the gross income of which for the taxable year is passive income, or (ii) the average percentage of the assets of which produce or are held for the production of passive income is at least 50%. Generally, passive income for this purpose means dividends, interest, royalties, rents, annuities, the excess of gains over losses from certain property transactions and commodities transactions, and foreign currency gains. Passive income for this purpose does not include rents and royalties received by the foreign corporation from active business and certain income received from related persons.
Equity investments by the Fund in certain PFICs could potentially subject the Fund to a U.S. federal income tax or other charge (including interest charges) on the distributions received from the PFIC or on proceeds received from the disposition of shares in the PFIC. This tax cannot be eliminated by making distributions to Fund shareholders. However, the Fund may elect to avoid the imposition of that tax. For example, if the Fund is in a position to and elects to treat a PFIC as a qualified electing fund (QEF), the Fund will be required to include its share of the PFICs income and net capital gains annually, regardless of whether it receives any distribution from the PFIC. Alternatively, the Fund may make an election to mark to market the gains (and to a limited extent losses) in its PFIC holdings as though it had sold and repurchased its holdings in that PFIC on the last day of the Funds 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 by 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 Funds total return. Dividends paid by PFICs will not be eligible to be treated as qualified dividend income. Because it is not always possible to identify a foreign corporation as a PFIC, the Fund may incur the tax and interest charges described above in some instances.
Foreign Currency Transactions. Gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates which occur between the time the Fund accrues income or other receivables or accrues expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time the Fund actually collects such receivables or pays such liabilities generally are treated as ordinary income or loss. Similarly, on disposition of debt securities denominated in a foreign currency and on disposition of certain other instruments, gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in the value of the foreign currency between the date of acquisition of the security or contract and the date of disposition also are treated as ordinary gain or loss. These gains and losses, referred to under the Code as Section 988 gains or losses, may increase or decrease the amount of the Funds investment company taxable income to be distributed to its shareholders as ordinary income.
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 conventions between certain countries and the U.S. may reduce or eliminate such taxes.
The RICs in which the Fund invests may invest in foreign securities. Dividends and interest received by an RICs holding of foreign securities may give rise to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes. If the RIC in which the Fund invests is taxable as a RIC and meets certain other requirements, which include a requirement that more than 50% of the value of such RICs total assets at the close of its respective taxable year consists of stocks or securities of foreign corporations, then the RIC should be eligible to file an election with the IRS that may enable its shareholders, including the Fund in effect, to receive either the benefit of a foreign tax credit, or a tax deduction, with respect to any foreign and U.S. possessions income taxes paid the by Fund, subject to certain limitations.
A qualified fund of funds is a RIC that has at least 50% of the value of its total interests invested in
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other RICs at the end of each quarter of the taxable year. If the Fund satisfied this requirement or if it meets certain other requirements, which include a requirement that more than 50% of the value of the Funds total assets at the close of its taxable year consist of stocks or securities of foreign corporations, then the Fund should be eligible to file an election with the IRS that may enable its shareholders to receive either the benefit of a foreign tax credit, or a tax deduction, with respect to any foreign and U.S. possessions income taxes paid by the Fund, subject to certain limitations.
Non-U.S. Shareholders. Capital Gain Dividends are generally not subject to withholding of U.S. federal income tax. Absent a specific statutory exemption, dividends other than Capital Gain Dividends paid by the Fund to a Non-U.S. shareholder are subject to withholding of U.S. federal income tax at a rate of 30% (or lower applicable treaty rate) even if they are funded by income or gains (such as portfolio interest, short-term capital gains, or foreign-source dividend and interest income) that, if paid to a foreign person directly, would not be subject to withholding.
A RIC is not required to withhold any amounts (i) with respect to distributions (other than distributions to a Non-U.S. shareholder (a) that does not provide a satisfactory statement that the beneficial owner is not a U.S. person, (b) to the extent that the dividend is attributable to certain interest on an obligation if the Non-U.S. shareholder is the issuer or is a 10% shareholder of the issuer, (c) that is within a foreign country that has inadequate information exchange with the United States, or (d) to the extent the dividend is attributable to interest paid by a person that is a related person of the Non-U.S. shareholder and the Non-U.S. shareholder is a controlled foreign corporation) from U.S.-source interest income of types similar to those not subject to U.S. federal income tax if earned directly by a Non-U.S. shareholder, to the extent such distributions are properly reported as such by the Fund in a written notice to shareholders (interest-related dividends), and (ii) with respect to distributions (other than (a) distributions to an individual Non-U.S. shareholder who is present in the United States for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the year of the distribution and (b) distributions subject to special rules regarding the disposition of U.S. real property interests (USRPIs) as described below) of net short-term capital gains in excess of net long-term capital losses to the extent such distributions are properly reported by the RIC (Short-Term Capital Gain Dividends). If the Fund invests in an underlying fund that pays such distributions to the Fund, such distributions retain their character as not subject to withholding if properly reported when paid by the Fund to Non-U.S. shareholders.
The Fund is permitted to report such part of its dividends as interest-related or Short-Term Capital Gain Dividends as are eligible, but is not required to do so. These exemptions from withholding will not be available to Non-U.S. shareholders that do not currently report their dividends as interest-related or Short-Term Capital Gain Dividends.
In the case of Shares held through an intermediary, the intermediary may withhold even if the Fund reports all or a portion of a payment as an interest-related or Short-Term Capital Gain Dividend to shareholders. Non-U.S. shareholders should contact their intermediaries regarding the application of these rules to their accounts.
A Non-U.S. shareholder generally is not subject to U.S. federal income tax on gains (and is not allowed a deduction for losses) realized on the sale of Shares or on Capital Gain Dividends unless (i) such gain or dividend is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business carried on by such shareholder within the United States, (ii) in the case of an individual shareholder, the shareholder is present in the United States for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the year of the sale or the receipt of the Capital Gain Dividend and certain other conditions are met, or (iii) the special rules relating to gain attributable to the sale or exchange of USRPIs apply to the Non-U.S. shareholders sale of Shares or to the Capital Gain Dividend received by the Non-U.S. shareholder (as described below).
Special rules would apply if the Fund were either a U.S. real property holding corporation (USRPHC) or would be a USRPHC but for the operation of certain exceptions to the definition thereof. Very generally, a USRPHC is a U.S. corporation that holds USRPIs the fair market value of which equals or exceeds 50% of the sum of the fair market values of the corporations USPRIs, interests in real property located outside the United States, and other assets. USRPIs are generally defined as any
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interest in U.S. real property and any interest (other than solely as a creditor) in a USRPHC or former USRPHC.
If the Fund were a USRPHC or would be a USRPHC but for certain exceptions, any distributions by the Fund to a Non-U.S. shareholder (including, in certain cases, distributions made by the Fund in redemption of its Shares) attributable to gains realized by the Fund on the disposition of USRPIs or to distributions received by the Fund from a lower-tier RIC or REIT that the Fund is required to treat as USRPI gain in its hands generally would be subject to U.S. federal income withholding tax. In addition, such distributions could result in a Non-U.S. shareholder being required to file a U.S. federal income tax return and pay tax on the distributions at regular U.S. federal income tax rates. The consequences to a Non-U.S. shareholder, including the rate of such withholding and character of such distributions (e.g., as ordinary income or USRPI gain), would vary depending upon the extent of the Non-U.S. shareholders current and past ownership of the Fund. This look-through USRPI treatment for distributions by the Fund, if it were either a USRPHC or would be a USRPHC but for the operation of certain exceptions, to Non-U.S. shareholders applies only to those distributions that, in turn, are attributable to distributions received by the Fund from a lower-tier REIT, unless Congress enacts legislation providing otherwise.
In addition, if the Fund were a USRPHC or former USRPHC, it could be required to withhold U.S. federal income tax on the proceeds of a Share redemption by a greater-than-5% Non-U.S. shareholder, in which case such shareholder generally would also be required to file a U.S. federal income tax return and pay any additional taxes due in connection with the redemption.
Whether or not the Fund is characterized as a USRPHC will depend upon the nature and mix of the Funds assets. The Fund does not expect to be a USRPHC. Non-U.S. shareholders should consult their own tax advisers concerning the application of these rules to their investment in the Fund.
If a Non-U.S. shareholder has a trade or business in the United States, and the dividends from the Fund are effectively connected with the Non-U.S. shareholders conduct of that trade or business, the dividend will be subject to U.S. federal net income taxation at regular income tax rates.
If a Non-U.S. shareholder is eligible for the benefits of a tax treaty, any effectively connected income or gain will generally be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net basis only if it is also attributable to a permanent establishment maintained by that Non-U.S. shareholder in the United States.
To qualify for any exemptions from withholding described above or for lower withholding tax rates under income tax treaties, or to establish an exemption from backup withholding, a Non-U.S. shareholder must comply with special certification and filing requirements relating to its non-US status (including, in general, furnishing an applicable IRS Form W-8). Non-U.S. shareholders should consult their own tax advisers in this regard.
A Non-U.S. shareholder may be subject to U.S. state and local tax and to the U.S. federal estate tax in addition to the U.S. federal income tax referred to above.
Backup Withholding. The Fund generally is required to backup withhold and remit to the U.S. Treasury Department a percentage of the taxable distributions and redemption proceeds paid to any individual shareholder who fails to properly furnish the Fund with a correct taxpayer identification number, who has under-reported dividend or interest income, or who fails to properly certify to the Fund that he or she is not subject to such withholding. The backup withholding tax rate is currently 24%.
Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against the shareholders U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the appropriate information is furnished to the IRS.
Tax Shelter Reporting Regulations. If a shareholder recognizes a loss with respect to Shares of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder, the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886. Direct shareholders of portfolio
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securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. Future guidance may extend the current exception from this reporting requirement to shareholders of most or all RICs. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayers treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders should consult their tax advisers to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
FATCA. 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: (i) income dividends paid by the Fund and (ii) possibly in the future, certain capital gain distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Shares paid by the Fund. FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided: (i) 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 (ii) by an NFFE, if it: (a) certifies that it has no substantial U.S. persons as owners or (b) 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, generally on an applicable IRS Form W-8..
Shares Purchased through Tax-Qualified Plans.
Special tax rules apply to investments through defined contribution plans and other tax-qualified plans. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisers to determine the suitability of Shares as an investment through such plans, and the precise effect of an investment on their particular tax situation.
Conclusion.
The foregoing is a general and abbreviated summary of the provisions of the Code and the Treasury regulations in effect as they directly govern the taxation of the Fund and its shareholders. These provisions are subject to change by legislative and administrative action, and any such change may be retroactive. Shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisers regarding specific questions as to U.S. federal income, estate or gift taxes, or foreign, state, local taxes or other taxes.
PRICING OF FUND SHARES
The price (net asset value) of the shares of the Fund is determined at the close of trading (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business (the Exchange is closed on weekends, most federal holidays, and Good Friday). For a description of the methods used to determine the net asset value (share price), see "Determination of Net Asset Value" in the Prospectus. The Board has designated the Adviser as valuation designee. The Board maintains ultimate responsibility for fair value determinations under Rule 2a-5 of the 1940 Act, and oversees the valuation designee.
Equity securities generally are valued by using market quotations, but may be valued on the basis of prices furnished by a pricing service when the valuation designee believes such prices accurately reflect the fair value of such securities. Securities that are traded on an exchange or on the NASDAQ over-the-counter market are generally valued at the last quoted sale price. Lacking a last sale price, an equity security is generally valued at the last bid price. If market prices are not available or, in the opinion of the valuation designee, market prices do not reflect fair value, or if an event occurs after the close of trading (but prior to the time the NAV is calculated) that materially affects fair value, the valuation designee may value the Fund's assets at their fair value according to policies approved by the Board.
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Fixed income securities generally are valued by using prices provided by a pricing service approved by the Board. A pricing service utilizes electronic data processing techniques based on yield spreads relating to securities with similar characteristics to determine prices for normal institutional-size trading units of debt securities without regard to sale or bid prices. If the valuation designee decides that a price provided by the pricing service does not accurately reflect the fair market value of the securities, when prices are not readily available from a pricing service, or when restricted or illiquid securities are being valued, securities are valued at fair value as determined in good faith by the valuation designee, which may rely upon a valuation committee, which includes a representative of the valuation designee, subject to review of the Board.
PURCHASES AND SALES THROUGH BROKER DEALERS
The Fund may be purchased through broker dealers and other intermediaries. The Fund has authorized one or more brokers to receive on its behalf purchase and redemption orders. 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, if applicable, a broker's authorized designee, received the order. Customer orders will be priced at the Fund's net asset value next computed after they are received by an authorized broker or the broker's authorized designee.
REDEMPTIONS IN-KIND
The Fund does not intend to redeem shares in any form except cash. However, if the redemption amount is over the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the Funds net asset value, pursuant to an election under Rule 18f-1 under the 1940 Act by the Trust on behalf of the Fund, the Fund has the right to redeem your shares by giving you the amount that exceeds the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the Funds net asset value in securities instead of cash. In the event that an in-kind distribution is made, a shareholder may incur additional expenses such as the payment of brokerage commissions on the sale or other disposition of the securities received from the Fund.
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 Trust's 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.
Procedures to implement the Program include, but are not limited to, determining that the Fund's transfer agent has established proper anti-money laundering procedures, reporting suspicious and/or fraudulent activity and a complete and thorough review of all new opening account applications. The Fund will not transact business with any person or entity whose identity cannot be adequately verified under the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act.
CUSTODIAN
Huntington National Bank, 41 South High Street, Columbus, OH 43287 (the "Custodian") has been selected as the Trust's custodian. The Custodian holds in safekeeping certificated securities and cash belonging to the Fund and, in such capacity, is the registered owner of securities held in book entry form belonging to the Fund. Upon instruction, the Custodian will receive and deliver cash and securities of the Fund in connection with Fund transactions and collect all dividends and other distributions made with respect to Fund portfolio securities. The Custodian will also maintain certain accounts and records of the Fund.
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FUND SERVICES
Mutual Shareholder Services, LLC. (MSS), 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, OH 44147, acts as the Fund's transfer agent. MSS maintains the records of the shareholder's account, answers shareholders' inquiries concerning their accounts, processes purchases and redemptions of the Fund's shares, acts as dividend and distribution disbursing agent and performs other transfer agent and shareholder service functions. MSS receives an annual fee from the Adviser of $11.50 per shareholder (direct shareholders) or $8.00 per shareholder (fundserv accounts) (subject to a minimum monthly fee of $775) for these transfer agency services.
In addition, MSS provides the Fund with fund accounting services, which includes certain monthly reports, record-keeping and other management-related services. For its services as fund accountant, MSS receives an annual fee from the Adviser based on the average value of the Fund. These fees are: from $0 to $25 million in assets the annual fee is $22,200, from $25 million to $50 million in assets the annual fee is $31,700, from $50 million to $75 million in assets the annual fee is $37,450, from $75 million to $100 million in assets the annual fee is $43,200, from $100 million to $125 million in assets the annual fee is $48,950, from $125 million to $150 million in assets the annual fee is $54,700, from $150 million to $200 million in assets the annual fee is $60,450, from $200 million to $300 million in assets the annual fee is $60,450 plus .01% on assets greater than $200 million and above $300 in assets the annual fee is $70,450 plus .005% on assets greater than $300 million. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, the Adviser paid MSS $42,571 for transfer agent and accounting services. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the Adviser paid MSS $43,012 for transfer agent and accounting services For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Adviser paid MSS $43,893 for transfer agent and accounting services.
Premier Fund Solutions, Inc. (PFS), 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, California 92020, provides the Fund with administrative services, including regulatory reporting and necessary office equipment, personnel and facilities. PFS receives a monthly fee from the Adviser equal to an annual rate of 0.07% of the Fund's assets under $200 million, 0.05% of the next $500 million of the Fund's average daily net assets, and 0.03% of the average daily net assets of the Fund thereafter (subject to a minimum monthly fee of $2,500 and any waivers). Certain officers and a Trustee of the Trust are also officers of PFS. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, the Adviser paid PFS $40,804 for administrative services. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the Adviser paid PFS $43,424 for administrative services. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Adviser paid PFS $49,660 for administrative services.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
The firm of Cohen & Company, Ltd., 342 N. Water Street, Suite 830, Milwaukee, WI 53202, has been selected as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Fund for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. The independent registered public accounting firm performs an annual audit of the Fund's financial statements and provides financial, tax and accounting consulting services as requested.
LEGAL COUNSEL
Practus, LLP, 11300 Tomahawk Creek Parkway, Suite 310, Leawood, KS 66211, serves as legal counsel for the Trust and Fund.
DISTRIBUTOR
Arbor Court Capital, LLC (the Distributor), located at 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, OH 44147, serves as the principal underwriter of the Funds shares. The Distributor is a broker-dealer and acts as the Funds principal underwriter in a continuous public offering of the Funds shares.
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DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS
The Fund is required to include a schedule of portfolio holdings in its annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders, which is sent to shareholders within 60 days of the end of the second and fourth fiscal quarters and which is filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) on Form N-CSR within 70 days of the end of the second and fourth fiscal quarters. The Fund also is required to file a schedule of portfolio holdings with the SEC on Form N-PORT within 60 days of the end of the first and third fiscal quarters. The Fund must provide a copy of the complete schedule of portfolio holdings as filed with the SEC to any shareholder of the Fund, upon request, free of charge. This policy is applied uniformly to all shareholders of the Fund without regard to the type of requesting shareholder (i.e., regardless of whether the shareholder is an individual or institutional investor). Information contained in annual and semi-annual reports mailed to shareholders, as well as information filed with the SEC on Form N-PORT and information posted on the Funds website, is public information. All other information is non-public information.
The Fund has an ongoing relationship with third party servicing agents to release portfolio holdings information on a daily basis in order for those parties to perform their duties on behalf of the Fund. These third party servicing agents are the Adviser, Transfer Agent, Fund Accounting Agent, Distributor, Administrator and Custodian. The Fund also may disclose portfolio holdings, as needed, to auditors, legal counsel, proxy voting services (if applicable), pricing services, printers, parties to merger and reorganization agreements and their agents, and prospective or newly hired investment advisors or sub-advisors. The Funds Chief Compliance Officer must authorize all disclosures of portfolio holdings. The lag between the date of the information and the date on which the information is disclosed will vary based on the identity of the party to whom the information is disclosed. For instance, the information may be provided to auditors within days of the end of an annual period, while the information may be given to legal counsel or prospective sub-advisors at any time. This information is disclosed to all such third parties under conditions of confidentiality. Conditions of confidentiality include (i) confidentiality clauses in written agreements, (ii) confidentiality implied by the nature of the relationship (e.g., attorney-client relationship), (iii) confidentiality required by fiduciary or regulatory principles (e.g., custody relationships) or (iv) understandings or expectations between the parties that the information will be kept confidential. The Fund also releases information to Morningstar, Thomson Reuters, Bloomberg, and Factset on a delayed basis after the information has been filed with the SEC or otherwise made public. The Fund believes, based upon its size and history, that these are reasonable procedures to protect the confidentiality of the Funds portfolio holdings and will provide sufficient protection against personal trading based on the information.
The Fund is prohibited from entering into any arrangements with any person to make available information about the Funds portfolio holdings without the specific approval of the Board. The Adviser must submit any proposed arrangement pursuant to which the Adviser intends to disclose the Funds portfolio holdings to the Board, which will review such arrangement to determine (i) whether it is in the best interests of Fund shareholders, (ii) whether the information will be kept confidential and (iii) whether the disclosure presents a conflict of interest between the interests of Fund shareholders and those of the Adviser, or any affiliated person of the Fund, or the Adviser. Additionally, the Fund, the Adviser, and any affiliated persons of the Adviser, are prohibited from receiving compensation or other consideration, for themselves or on behalf of the Fund, as a result of disclosing the Funds portfolio holdings.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The financial statements and independent registered public accounting firms report required to be included in the Statement of Additional Information are incorporated herein by reference to the Funds Annual Report to Shareholders for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. The Trust will provide the Annual Report without charge at written or telephone request.
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PROXY VOTING POLICIES
The Trust and the Adviser each have adopted proxy voting policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that proxies are voted in shareholders best interests. As a brief summary, the Trusts policy delegates responsibility regarding proxy voting to the Adviser subject to the supervision of the Board. The Adviser votes the Funds proxies in accordance with its proxy voting policy, subject to the provisions of the Trusts policy regarding conflicts of interests. The Trusts Proxy Voting
Policy and Procedure is attached as Exhibit A. The Advisers Proxy Voting Policy and Procedure is attached as Exhibit B.
The Trusts policy provides that, if a conflict of interest between the Adviser and its affiliates and the Fund arises with respect to any proxy, the Adviser must fully disclose the conflict to the Board and vote the proxy in accordance with the Boards instructions. The Board shall make the proxy voting decision that in its judgment, after reviewing the recommendation of the Adviser, is most consistent with the Advisers proxy voting policies and in the best interests of Fund shareholders.
MORE INFORMATION. The actual voting records relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-Month period ended June 30 will be available after August 31 without charge, upon request by calling toll-free, 1-800-231-2901 or by accessing the SECs website at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the Funds proxy voting policies and procedures are also available by calling 1-800-231-2901 and will be sent within three business days of receipt of a request.
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EXHIBIT A
PFS FUNDS
PROXY VOTING POLICY AND PROCEDURE
PFS Funds (the Trust) is a registered open-end investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (1940 Act). The Trust offers multiple series (each a Fund and, collectively, the Funds). Effective April 14, 2003, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted rule and form amendments under the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the 1940 Act to require registered management investment companies to provide disclosure about how they vote proxies for their portfolio securities (collectively, the rule and form amendments are referred to herein as the Proxy Rule).
Consistent with its fiduciary duties and pursuant to the Proxy Rule, the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the Board) has adopted this proxy voting policy on behalf of the Trust (the Policy) to reflect its commitment to ensure that proxies are voted in a manner consistent with the best interests of the Funds shareholders. While decisions about how to vote must be determined on a case-by-case basis, proxy voting decisions will be made considering these guidelines and following the procedures recited herein. This policy may be amended, from time to time, as determined by the Board.
The Proxy Rule requires that each series of shares of the Trust listed on Exhibit A, attached hereto, (each a Fund), disclose the policies and procedures used to determine how to vote proxies for portfolio securities. The Proxy Rule also requires each Fund to file with the SEC and to make available to their shareholders the specific proxy votes cast for portfolio securities.
Delegation of Proxy Voting Authority to Fund Adviser
The Board believes that the investment adviser (or sub-adviser as the case may be) of each Fund (each an Adviser), as the entity that selects the individual securities that comprise its Funds portfolio, is the most knowledgeable and best-suited entity to make decisions on how to vote proxies of portfolio companies held by that Fund. Therefore, subject to the oversight of the Board, the Trust shall defer to and rely on the Adviser of each Fund to make decisions on how to cast proxy votes on behalf of such Fund.
The Trust hereby designates the Adviser of each Fund as the entity responsible for exercising proxy voting authority with regard to securities held in the Funds investment portfolio. Consistent with its duties under this Policy, each Adviser shall monitor and review corporate transactions of corporations in which the Fund has invested, obtain all information sufficient to allow an informed vote on all proxy solicitations, ensure that all proxy votes are cast in a timely fashion, and maintain all records required to be maintained by the Fund under the Proxy Rule and the 1940 Act. Each Adviser shall perform these duties in accordance with the Advisers proxy voting policy (each an Advisers Voting Policy), a copy of which shall be presented to the Board for its review. Each Adviser shall promptly provide to the Board updates to its proxy voting policy as they are adopted and implemented.
The Board, including a majority of the independent trustees of the Board, shall approve each Advisers Voting Policy as it relates to each Fund. The Board shall also approve any material changes to the Advisers Voting Policy no later than four (4) months after adoption by the Adviser.
Conflict of Interest Transactions |
In some instances, an Adviser may be asked to cast a proxy vote that presents a conflict between the interests of a Funds shareholders, and those of the Adviser or an affiliated person of the Adviser. In such case, the Adviser is instructed to abstain from making a voting decision and to forward all necessary
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proxy voting materials to the Trust to enable the Board to make a voting decision. In addition, provided the Adviser is not affiliated with a Funds principal underwriter or an affiliated person of the principal underwriter and neither the Funds principal underwriter nor an affiliated person of the principal underwriter has influenced the Adviser with respect to a matter to which the Fund is entitled to vote, a vote by the Adviser shall not be considered a conflict between the Funds shareholders and the Funds principal underwriter or affiliated person of the principal underwriter.
When the Board is required to make a proxy voting decision, only the Trustees without a conflict of interest with regard to the security in question or the matter to be voted upon shall be permitted to participate in the decision of how the Funds vote will be cast. In the event that the Board is required to vote a proxy because an Adviser has a conflict of interest with respect to the proxy, the Board will vote such proxy in accordance with the Advisers proxy voting policy, to the extent consistent with the shareholders best interests, as determined by the Board in its discretion. The Board shall notify the Adviser of its final decision on the matter and the Adviser shall vote in accordance with the Boards decision.
Oversight of the Advisers Proxy Voting Compliance Activities
Each Adviser shall present to the Trusts administrator a quarterly report summarizing its proxy voting compliance activities for the preceding quarter. The administrator shall review the report to ensure compliance with the Proxy Rule and with this Policy, and shall determine the steps and procedures, if any, that must be undertaken or adopted by the Trust and any Adviser to ensure further compliance with the relevant laws.
Availability of Proxy Voting Policy and Records Available to Fund Shareholders
Each Fund shall disclose this Policy, or a description of the Policy, to its shareholders by including it as an appendix to its Statement of Additional Information (SAI) on Form N-1A. Each Fund will also notify its shareholders in the Funds shareholder reports that a description of this Policy is available upon request, without charge, by calling a specified toll-free telephone number. The Fund will send this description of the Policy within three business days of receipt of any shareholder request, by first-class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery.
In accordance with the Proxy Rule, each Adviser shall provide a complete voting record, for each series of the Trust for which it acts as adviser, to the Trusts administrator within 15 days following the end of each calendar quarter. The Trusts administrator will file Form N-PX with the SEC on an annual basis with the Securities and Exchange Commission no later than August 31st of each year.
Each Fund, subject to oversight of the Board, shall disclose the Funds complete proxy voting record to its shareholders on Form N-PX, as required by the Proxy Rule, for the twelve-month period ended June 30th. Each Fund shall disclose the following information on Form N-PX for each matter relating to a portfolio security considered at any shareholder meeting held during the period covered by the report and with respect to which to the Fund was entitled to vote: (i) The name of the issuer of the portfolio security; (ii) The exchange ticker symbol of the portfolio security (if available through reasonably practicable means); (iii) The Council on Uniform Security Identification Procedures (CUSIP) number for the portfolio security (if available through reasonably practicable means); (iv) The shareholder meeting date; (v) A brief identification of the matter voted on; (vi) Whether the matter was proposed by the issuer or by a security holder; (vii) Whether the Fund cast its vote on the matter; (viii) How the Fund cast its vote (e.g., for or against proposal, or abstain; for or withhold regarding election of directors); and (ix) Whether the Fund cast its vote for or against management.
Each Fund shall make its proxy voting record available to shareholders either upon request or by making available an electronic version on or through the Funds website, if applicable. If the Fund discloses its
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proxy voting record on or through its website, the Fund shall post the information disclosed in the Funds most recently filed report on Form N-PX on the website beginning the same day it files such information with the SEC.
Each Fund shall also include in its annual reports, semi-annual reports and SAI a statement that information regarding how the Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent twelve-month period ended June 30th is available (1) without charge upon request, by calling a specified toll-free (or collect) telephone number, or (if applicable) on or through the Funds website at a specified Internet address; and (2) on the SECs website. If the Fund discloses that its proxy voting record is available by calling a toll-free (or collect) telephone number, it shall send the information disclosed in the Funds most recently filed report on Form N-PX within three business days of receipt of a request for this information, by first-class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery.
If a Fund has a website, the Fund may post of copy of its Advisers proxy voting policy and this Policy on such website. A copy of such policies and of each Funds proxy voting record shall also be made available, without charge, upon request of any shareholder of the Fund, by calling the applicable Funds toll-free telephone number as printed in the Funds prospectus. The Trusts administrator shall reply to any Fund shareholder request within three business days of receipt of the request, by first-class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery.
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Bretton
Capital Management, LLC
& Bretton Fund
Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures
September
21, 2010
Pursuant to the recent adoption by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) of Rule 206(4)-6 (17 CFR 275.206(4) -6) and amendments to Rule 204-2 (17 CFR 275.204 -2) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Act), it is a fraudulent, deceptive, or manipulative act, practice or course of business, within the meaning of Section 206(4) of the Act, for an investment adviser to exercise voting authority with respect to client securities, unless (i) the adviser has adopted and implemented written policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to ensure that the adviser votes proxies in the best interests of its clients, (ii) the adviser describes its proxy voting procedures to its clients and provides copies on request, and (iii) the adviser discloses to clients how they may obtain information on how the adviser voted their proxies.
In order to fulfill its responsibilities under the Act, Bretton Capital Management, LLC (hereinafter we or our) has adopted the following policies and procedures for proxy voting with regard to companies in investment portfolios of our clients.
KEY OBJECTIVES
Our key objective in how we vote our shares is to maximize long-term shareholder value. We also take into account ethical issues when evaluating shareholder proposals.
We recognize that a companys management is entrusted with the day-to-day operations and longer term strategic planning of the company, subject to the oversight of the companys board of directors. While ordinary business matters are primarily the responsibility of management and should be approved solely by the corporations board of directors, these objectives also recognize that the companys shareholders must have final say over how management and directors are performing, and how shareholders rights and ownership interests are handled, especially when matters could have substantial economic implications to the shareholders.
Therefore, we will pay particular attention to the following matters in exercising our proxy voting responsibilities as a fiduciary for our clients:
Accountability. Each company should have effective means in place to hold those entrusted with running a companys business accountable for their actions. Management of a company should be accountable to its board of directors and the board should be accountable to shareholders.
Alignment of Management and Shareholder Interests. Each company should endeavor to align the interests of management and the board of directors with the interests of the companys shareholders. For example, we generally believe that compensation should be designed to reward management for doing a good job of creating value for the shareholders of the company.
Transparency. Promotion of timely disclosure of important information about a companys business operations and financial performance enables investors to evaluate the performance of a company and to make informed decisions about the purchase and sale of a companys securities.
DECISION METHODS
The portfolio manager is the most knowledgeable and best suites to make decisions with regard to proxy votes, and we rely on that individual to determine how to cast proxy votes.
It is possible that a proxy vote may present a conflict between the interests of a client, on the one hand, and our interests or the interests of a person affiliated with us, on the other. In such a case, we will abstain from making a voting decision and will forward all of the necessary proxy voting materials to the client to enable the client to cast the votes.
SUMMARY OF PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES
Election of the Board of Directors
We believe that good corporate governance generally starts with a board composed primarily of independent directors, unfettered by significant ties to management, all of whose members are elected annually. In addition, key board committees should be entirely independent.
The election of a companys board of directors is one of the most fundamental rights held by shareholders. Because a classified board structure prevents shareholders from electing a full slate of directors annually, we will generally support efforts to declassify boards or other measures that permit shareholders to remove a majority of directors at any time, and will generally oppose efforts to adopt classified board structures.
Approval of Independent Auditors
We believe that the relationship between a company and its auditors should be limited primarily to the audit engagement, although it may include certain closely related activities that do not raise an appearance of impaired independence.
We will evaluate on a case-by-case basis instances in which the audit firm has a substantial non-audit relationship with a company to determine whether we believe independence has been, or could be, compromised.
Equity-based compensation plans
We believe that appropriately designed equity-based compensation plans, approved by shareholders, can be an effective way to align the interests of shareholders and the interests of directors, management, and employees by providing incentives to increase shareholder value. Conversely, we are opposed to plans that substantially dilute ownership interests in the company, provide participants with excessive awards, or have inherently objectionable structural features.
We will generally support measures intended to increase stock ownership by executives and the use of employee stock purchase plans to increase company stock ownership by employees.
Corporate Structure
We view the exercise of shareholders rights, including the rights to act by written consent, to call special meetings and to remove directors, to be fundamental to good corporate governance.
Because classes of common stock with unequal voting rights limit the rights of certain shareholders, we generally believe that shareholders should have voting power equal to their equity interest in the company and should be able to approve or reject changes to a companys by-laws by a simple majority vote.
Because the requirement of a supermajority vote can limit the ability of shareholders to effect change, we will support proposals to remove super-majority (typically from 66.7% to 80%) voting requirements for certain types of proposals and oppose proposals to impose super-majority requirements.
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We will generally support the ability of shareholders to cumulate their votes for the election of directors.
Shareholder Rights Plans
While we recognize that there are arguments both in favor of and against shareholder rights plans, also known as poison pills, such measures may tend to entrench current management, which we generally consider to have a negative impact on shareholder value.
We believe the best approach is for a company to seek shareholder approval of rights plans and we generally support shareholder resolutions requesting that shareholders be given the opportunity to vote on the adoption of rights plans.
We will generally be more inclined to support a shareholder rights plan if the plan (i) has short-term sunset provisions, (ii) is linked to a business strategy that will likely result in greater value for shareholders, (iii) requires shareholder approval to reinstate the expired plan or adopt a new plan at the end of its term, and (iv) is subject to mandatory review by a committee of independent directors.
CLIENT INFORMATION
A copy of these Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures is available to our clients, without charge, upon request, by calling 800-231-2901 and on our website at http://www.brettonfund.com. We will send a copy of these Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures within three business days of receipt of a request, by first-class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery.
In addition, we will provide each client, without charge, upon request, information regarding the proxy votes cast by us with regard to the clients securities.
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PART C
FORM N-1A
OTHER INFORMATION
ITEM 28. Exhibits.
ITEM 29. | Persons Controlled by or Under Common Control with the Registrant. |
No person is controlled by or under common control with the Registrant.
ITEM 30. | Indemnification. |
Reference is made to the Registrant's Declaration of Trust. The application of these provisions is limited by the following undertaking set forth in the rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission
Insofar as indemnification for liability arising under the Securities Act of 1933 (the "1933 Act") may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the 1933 Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defenses of any action, suite or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the 1933 Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
ITEM 31. | Business and Other Connections of the Investment Adviser. |
See the Prospectuses section entitled Management of the FundAdviser and the Statement of Additional Information section entitled Investment Adviser for the activities and affiliations of the officers and directors of the investment advisers of the Registrant (the Advisers). Except as so provided, to the knowledge of Registrant, none of the directors or executive officers of the Advisers is or has been at any time during the past two fiscal years engaged in any other business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature. The Advisers currently serve as investment advisers to other institutional and individual clients.
ITEM 32. | Principal Underwriter. |
(a) | Arbor Court Capital, LLC (ACC) serves as the Trusts principal underwriter. ACC also acts as principal underwriter for the following: Ancora Trust, Archer Investments Series Trust, Berkshire Funds, Clark Fork Trust, Collaborative Investment Series Trust, DSS AmericaFirst Quantitative Funds, Frank Funds, Monteagle Funds, MP63 Fund, Inc., Neiman Funds, Parvin Hedged Equity Solari World Fund, Ranger Funds Investment Trust and WP Trust. |
(b) | ACC is registered with Securities and Exchange Commission as a broker-dealer and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. The principal business address of ACC is 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147. To the best of Registrants knowledge, the following are the officers of ACC: |
Name |
Positions and Offices with Underwriter |
Positions and Offices with the Trust |
Gregory B. Getts | President, Member, Financial Principal and CFO | None |
David W. Kuhr | Chief Compliance Officer | None |
Steven Milcinovic | Chief Operating Officer | None |
(c) | Not Applicable. |
ITEM 33. Location of Accounts and Records.
All accounts, books and documents required to be maintained by the Registrant pursuant to Section 31(a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 and Rules 31a-1 through 31a-3 thereunder are maintained at the office of the Registrant at 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, California 92020 and the Transfer Agent at 8000 Town Centre Drive, Suite 400, Broadview Heights, Ohio 44147 except that all records relating to the activities of the Fund's Custodian are maintained at the office of the Custodian, Huntington National Bank, 41 South High Street, Columbus, OH 43287. Certain books and records relating to the Trusts series portfolios are maintained at the offices of the advisers to the Trusts series portfolios:
(a) Value Trend Capital Management, LP, located at 1939 Friendship Drive, Suite C, El Cajon, California, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Wireless Fund.
(b) Castle Investment Management, LLC, located at 277 S. Washington Street, Suite 210, Alexandria, VA 22314, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Castle Focus Fund.
(c) St. James Investment Company, LLC, located at 3838 Oak Lawn Avenue, Suite 1414, Dallas, Texas 75219, keeps records relating to its function as the sub-adviser to the Castle Focus Fund.
(d) Bretton Capital Management, LLC, located at 535 Mission Street 14th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, keeps records relating to its function as the adviser to the Bretton Fund.
(e) Christopher Weil & Company, Inc., located at 11236 El Camino Real, Suite 200, San Diego, California 92130, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Christopher Weil & Company Core Investment Fund.
(f) Ensemble Capital Management, LLC located at 555 Mission St, Suite 3325 San Francisco, CA 94105, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Ensemble Fund.
(g) Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC located at 18835 N Thompson Peak Pkwy C-215, Scottsdale, AZ 85255, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Taylor Frigon Core Growth Fund.
(h) Cargile Investment Management, Inc. located at 415 West Wall Street, Suite 2200, Midland, Texas 79701, keeps records relating to its function as the investment adviser to the Cargile Fund.
(i) Tandem Investment Advisors, Inc. located at 145 King Street, Suite 400, Charleston, South Carolina 29401, keeps records relating to its function as the sub-adviser to the Castle Tandem Fund.
(j) Alpha Fiduciary, Inc. located at 20645 N Pima Rd Suite N-225, Scottsdale, AZ 85255, keeps records relating to its function as the adviser to the Alpha Fiduciary Quantitative Strategy Fund.
(k) Potomac Fund Management, Inc. located at 777 Brickell Ave, Suite #500-9455, Miami, FL 33131, keeps records relating to its function as the adviser to the Conquer Risk Funds.
ITEM 34. Management Services.
Not Applicable.
ITEM 35. Undertakings.
Not Applicable.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for effectiveness of this Post-Effective Amendment No. 253 pursuant to Rule 485(b) under the Securities Act of 1933 and has duly caused this Amendment to its Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of El Cajon, State of California, on the 25th day of April, 2024.
PFS Funds
By: /s/ James D. Craft
James D. Craft, President
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Post-Effective Amendment No. 253 to the Registration Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated below.
Signature
|
Title | Date |
/s/ James D. Craft James D. Craft |
President of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
/s/
Jeffrey R. Provence Jeffrey R. Provence |
Secretary, Treasurer / Principal Financial Officer, and Trustee of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
/s/ Thomas H. Addis III* Thomas H. Addis III |
Trustee of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
/s/ Robert L. Boerner* Robert L. Boerner
|
Trustee of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
/s/ Allen C. Brown* Allen C. Brown
|
Trustee of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
/s/ John W. Czechowicz* John W. Czechowicz
|
Trustee of the Funds
|
April 25, 2024
|
* By: /s/ Jeffrey R. Provence
Jeffrey R. Provence, Secretary, Treasurer and Attorney-In-Fact
Date: April 25, 2024
PFS FUNDS
PART C - EXHIBIT LIST FOR POST-EFFECTIVE AMENDMENT NO. 253
AS FILED ON APRIL 25, 2024
EXHIBIT INDEX
ITEM 28
(i)(5) Legal Consent with respect to the Bretton Fund.
(j)(3) Consent of Cohen & Company, Ltd. with respect to the Bretton Fund.