UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM N-CSR
CERTIFIED SHAREHOLDER REPORT OF REGISTERED MANAGEMENT
INVESTMENT COMPANIES
Investment Company Act file number 811-23874
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund
(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)
c/o Buena Capital Advisors, LLC
2261 Market Street #5190
San Francisco, CA 94114
(Address of principal executive offices)
The Corporation Trust Company
Corporation Trust Center
1209 Orange Street
Wilmington, DE 19801
(Name and address of agent for service)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (800) 535-7096
Date of fiscal year end: March 31
Date of reporting period: April 1, 2024 - March 31, 2025
Explanatory Note: The registrant is filing this amendment to its filing on Form N-CSR for the year ended March 31, 2025, which was originally filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 2, 2025 (Accession Number 0001976685-25-000019) and amended on August 6, 2026 (Accession Number 0001976685-26-000024), to include certifications pursuant to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
Item 1. Reports to Stockholders.
(a)
Annual Report
March 31, 2025
Table of Contents
Letter To Shareholders (Unaudited)
Dear
Shareholder,
Buena
Capital Advisors, LLC is pleased to provide the annual report for the
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund.
The
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund (the “Fund”) was launched in March of
2024 to provide investors with access to an endowment-style portfolio, comprised
of institutional quality public and private market investments. This past year was
the first full year of the Fund’s operations.
For the
fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, the Fund’s Founder Class shares (XIVYX)
delivered a net return of 7.67%. Since inception (March 5, 2024), the Fund has
achieved a cumulative net return of 9.93%. The Fund’s net asset value increased
from $10.21 to $10.82 during the year, supported by gains across public and
private investments. The Fund also distributed $0.17 per share, representing
primarily income, over the period.
Portfolio
Update
As of March
31, 2025, the portfolio reflected the Fund’s multi-asset class strategy with a
composition of 39.8% public equities, 20.8% private equity, 9.1% private
credit, 6.0% real estate, 4.6% opportunistic credit, 2.6% infrastructure, and
17.2% in cash and fixed income securities.
During the
year, we expanded the Fund’s exposure to institutional private market managers,
adding six new relationships across private equity, private credit,
opportunistic credit, real estate, and infrastructure. These additions are
aligned with our goal of bringing an institutional portfolio to individual
investors and delivering access to private and alternative asset managers with
deep domain expertise and strong long-term track records. A complete listing of
the Fund’s investments at March 31, 2025 can be found in the Schedule of
Investments.
Market
Commentary & Outlook
The first
part of the Fund’s fiscal year was marked primarily by rising U.S. equity
markets alongside broad risk-on market sentiment. The Fund’s public and private
equity investments delivered strong performance during this period; however,
the portfolio’s private credit, fixed income, and cash allocations weighed on
relative performance.
Over the latter
months of the fiscal year, shifting global trade policies, central bank
uncertainty, and fiscal tightening introduced significant market volatility.
Growth slowed modestly as business investment and consumer confidence softened
under policy unpredictability and persistent inflation expectations. Against
this backdrop, the portfolio’s private market strategies, particularly asset-backed
lending, real estate, and infrastructure, generated consistent income and
positive performance. The portfolio’s private equity investments also outperformed
relative to public market indices.
Looking
forward, we anticipate ongoing policy swings and geopolitical tensions will result
in continued elevated volatility across public equity and fixed income markets.
These conditions underscore the importance of asset class diversification and
manager selection. The Fund remains well-positioned with a multi-asset class
portfolio and ample liquidity to navigate uncertainty and pursue compelling
opportunities. We are committed to a long-term orientation, the pursuit of attractive
risk-adjusted returns, and maintaining a resilient portfolio.
On behalf of
the Buena Capital Advisors team, we thank you for your interest and investment
in the Fund. We will continue to evaluate additional private market
opportunities over the coming year, and we are excited and honored to be making
investments on your behalf.
Sincerely,
Wendy Li
Chief
Investment Officer
Buena Capital
Advisors, LLC
The views expressed in this letter are
exclusively those of the Fund’s investment adviser, Buena Capital Advisors, LLC
as of March 31, 2025. Any such views are subject to change at any time
based on market or other conditions, and the Fund disclaims any responsibility
to update such views. These views are not intended to be a forecast of future
events, a guarantee of future results or advice. These views are intended to assist in understanding the
Fund’s investment methodology. Because
investment decisions for the Fund are based on numerous factors, these views
may not be relied upon as an indication of trading intent on behalf of the
Fund. The information contained herein has been prepared from sources believed
to be reliable but is not guaranteed by the Fund as to its accuracy or
completeness. The performance data quoted here represents past performance. Past performance is not indicative of future
results. Current performance may be lower or higher
than the performance data quoted above. Investment return and principal value
will fluctuate, so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than
their original cost. There is no assurance
that the Fund’s investment objective will be achieved.
Please read
the Fund’s Prospectus carefully before investing. The Fund may not be suitable for all
investors.
Fund Performance (Unaudited)
*The fund commenced operations on March 5, 2024. The performance data above represents past performance that is not
predictive of future results. The investment return and principal value of an
investment in the Fund will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when sold,
may be worth more or less than their original cost. Returns are historical and
include changes in principal and reinvested dividends and capital gains and do
not reflect the effect of taxes. The Endowment-Style Index, S&P 500 Index,
and MSCI ACWI Index are unmanaged
indices and, unlike the Fund, have no management fees or operating expenses to
reduce their reported returns. The Fund does not seek to achieve performance
that is comparative to an index.
TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE PERIOD ENDED MARCH 31, 2025
|
|
One Year
|
Since Inception (annualized)
(03/05/24)
|
|
Founder Class (Formerly
Class I) NAV
|
7.67%
|
9.24%
|
|
Endowment-Style
Index*
|
6.52%
|
8.30%
|
|
MSCI ACWI Index*
|
7.15%
|
9.76%
|
|
S&P 500 Index**
(Prior benchmark†)
|
8.25%
|
11.26%
|
|
|
Since Inception
(non-annualized) (12/18/24)
|
|
|
Investor Class NAV
|
(0.16%)
|
|
|
Endowment-Style
Index*
|
(0.43%)
|
|
|
MSCI ACWI Index*
|
(1.77%)
|
|
Performance data quoted represents past performance, which is no
guarantee of future results and current performance may be lower or higher than
the figures shown. All NAV returns include the deduction of management fees,
operating expenses and all other Fund expenses. The deduction of taxes that a
shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sales of Fund shares is not
reflected in the total returns.
The referenced indices
are unmanaged and not available for direct investment. Index performance does
not reflect transaction costs, fees or expenses.
† The Fund has changed
its primary benchmark from the S&P 500 Index to the MSCI ACWI Index to
better reflect its investment strategy, which may include investments in
foreign and domestic equities, both public and private.
* The Endowment-Style
Index is comprised of 70% MSCI ACWI Index and 30% Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond
Index. The MSCI ACWI Index captures large and mid cap representation across 23
Developed Markets (DM) and 24 Emerging Markets (EM) countries. The Bloomberg
U.S. Aggregate Bond Index measures the investment grade, U.S.
dollar-denominated, fix-rated taxable bond market.
** The S&P 500 Index is a market capitalization-weighted index of
500 widely held common stocks.
| |
Shares |
|
Value† |
| COMMON STOCKS - 39.6% |
| Technology - 11.4% |
| Apple,
Inc. |
1,006 |
|
223,463 |
| Microsoft Corp. |
497 |
|
186,569 |
| NVIDIA Corp. |
1,611 |
|
174,600 |
| Broadcom, Inc. |
307 |
|
51,401 |
| Salesforce, Inc. |
63 |
|
16,907 |
| International Business Machines Corp. |
64 |
|
15,914 |
| Oracle Corp. |
103 |
|
14,400 |
| Accenture plc — Class A |
40 |
|
12,482 |
| Texas Instruments, Inc. |
67 |
|
12,040 |
| Adobe, Inc.* |
31 |
|
11,889 |
| Palantir Technologies, Inc. —
Class A* |
139 |
|
11,732 |
| QUALCOMM, Inc. |
74 |
|
11,367 |
| Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.* |
107 |
|
10,993 |
| Intuit, Inc. |
17 |
|
10,438 |
| ServiceNow, Inc.* |
12 |
|
9,554 |
| Fiserv, Inc.* |
40 |
|
8,833 |
| Applied Materials, Inc. |
52 |
|
7,546 |
| Analog Devices, Inc. |
35 |
|
7,059 |
| Micron Technology, Inc. |
74 |
|
6,430 |
| Lam Research Corp. |
84 |
|
6,107 |
| Intel Corp.* |
248 |
|
5,632 |
| Synopsys, Inc.* |
13 |
|
5,575 |
| KLA Corp. |
8 |
|
5,438 |
| Autodesk, Inc.* |
19 |
|
4,974 |
| Crowdstrike Holdings, Inc. — Class A* |
14 |
|
4,936 |
| NXP Semiconductor N.V. |
24 |
|
4,562 |
| Fortinet, Inc.* |
41 |
|
3,947 |
| Cadence Design Systems, Inc.* |
15 |
|
3,815 |
| Electronic Arts, Inc. |
26 |
|
3,757 |
| Paychex, Inc. |
24 |
|
3,703 |
| Roper Technologies, Inc. |
5 |
|
2,948 |
| Fidelity National Information Services,
Inc. |
35 |
|
2,614 |
| Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. —
Class A |
34 |
|
2,601 |
| Workday, Inc. — Class A* |
10 |
|
2,335 |
| MSCI, Inc. — Class A |
4 |
|
2,262 |
| ON Semiconductor Corp.* |
48 |
|
1,953 |
| Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.* |
9 |
|
1,865 |
| Fair Isaac Corp.* |
1 |
|
1,844 |
| HP, Inc. |
63 |
|
1,744 |
| Gartner, Inc.* |
4 |
|
1,679 |
| ANSYS, Inc.* |
5 |
|
1,583 |
| PTC, Inc.* |
10 |
|
1,549 |
| Dell Technologies, Inc. — Class C |
16 |
|
1,458 |
| Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. |
6 |
|
1,455 |
| Zebra Technologies Corp. — Class A* |
5 |
|
1,413 |
| Microchip Technology, Inc. |
29 |
|
1,404 |
| Tyler Technologies, Inc.* |
2 |
|
1,163 |
| Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. |
2 |
|
1,160 |
| Western Digital Corp.* |
28 |
|
1,132 |
| Super Micro Computer, Inc.* |
33 |
|
1,130 |
| NetApp,
Inc. |
12 |
|
1,054 |
| Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. |
67 |
|
1,034 |
| Leidos Holdings, Inc. |
7 |
|
945 |
| Seagate Technology Holdings plc |
11 |
|
934 |
| Teradyne, Inc. |
9 |
|
743 |
| Akamai Technologies, Inc.* |
9 |
|
724 |
| Skyworks Solutions, Inc. |
9 |
|
582 |
| Dayforce, Inc.* |
8 |
|
467 |
| Paycom Software, Inc. |
2 |
|
437 |
| EPAM Systems, Inc.* |
2 |
|
338 |
| Total
Technology |
|
|
898,613 |
| Consumer, Non-cyclical - 6.6% |
| Eli
Lilly & Co. |
53 |
|
43,773 |
| UnitedHealth Group, Inc. |
62 |
|
32,473 |
| Johnson & Johnson |
158 |
|
26,203 |
| Procter & Gamble Co. |
148 |
|
25,222 |
| AbbVie, Inc. |
115 |
|
24,095 |
| Coca-Cola Co. |
306 |
|
21,916 |
| PepsiCo, Inc. |
124 |
|
18,593 |
| Philip Morris International, Inc. |
102 |
|
16,191 |
| Abbott Laboratories |
114 |
|
15,122 |
| Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. |
29 |
|
14,430 |
| Merck & Company, Inc. |
159 |
|
14,272 |
| Intuitive Surgical, Inc.* |
26 |
|
12,877 |
| Amgen, Inc. |
36 |
|
11,216 |
| Boston Scientific Corp.* |
92 |
|
9,281 |
| S&P Global, Inc. |
18 |
|
9,146 |
| Gilead Sciences, Inc. |
81 |
|
9,076 |
| Stryker Corp. |
24 |
|
8,934 |
| Automatic Data Processing, Inc. |
29 |
|
8,860 |
| Medtronic plc |
95 |
|
8,537 |
| Altria Group, Inc. |
142 |
|
8,523 |
| Pfizer, Inc. |
314 |
|
7,957 |
| Danaher Corp. |
37 |
|
7,585 |
| Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. |
116 |
|
7,075 |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.* |
14 |
|
6,787 |
| Elevance Health, Inc. |
14 |
|
6,089 |
| Mondelez International, Inc. —
Class A |
83 |
|
5,632 |
| CVS Health Corp. |
83 |
|
5,623 |
| Cigna Group |
17 |
|
5,593 |
| McKesson Corp. |
8 |
|
5,384 |
| Colgate-Palmolive Co. |
50 |
|
4,685 |
| Zoetis, Inc. |
28 |
|
4,610 |
| PayPal Holdings, Inc.* |
70 |
|
4,568 |
| Cintas Corp. |
19 |
|
3,905 |
| Becton Dickinson & Co. |
17 |
|
3,894 |
| HCA Healthcare, Inc. |
11 |
|
3,801 |
| Kimberly-Clark Corp. |
23 |
|
3,271 |
| Moody's Corp. |
7 |
|
3,260 |
| Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. |
5 |
|
3,171 |
| Agilent Technologies, Inc. |
25 |
|
2,924 |
| Edwards Lifesciences Corp.* |
40 |
|
2,899 |
| Kellanova |
35 |
|
2,887 |
| General Mills, Inc. |
47 |
|
2,810 |
| Cencora, Inc. — Class A |
10 |
|
2,781 |
| Kenvue, Inc. |
108 |
|
2,590 |
| United Rentals, Inc. |
4 |
|
2,507 |
| Keurig
Dr Pepper, Inc. |
73 |
|
2,498 |
| Sysco Corp. |
33 |
|
2,476 |
| Monster Beverage Corp.* |
42 |
|
2,458 |
| Corteva, Inc. |
39 |
|
2,454 |
| Kroger Co. |
36 |
|
2,437 |
| Verisk Analytics, Inc. — Class A |
8 |
|
2,381 |
| ResMed, Inc. |
10 |
|
2,239 |
| GE HealthCare Technologies, Inc. |
27 |
|
2,179 |
| IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.* |
5 |
|
2,100 |
| Quanta Services, Inc. |
8 |
|
2,033 |
| Cardinal Health, Inc. |
14 |
|
1,929 |
| Humana, Inc. |
7 |
|
1,852 |
| Constellation Brands, Inc. — Class A |
10 |
|
1,835 |
| Centene Corp.* |
30 |
|
1,821 |
| Kraft Heinz Co. |
58 |
|
1,765 |
| Equifax, Inc. |
7 |
|
1,705 |
| Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc. |
15 |
|
1,698 |
| IQVIA Holdings, Inc.* |
9 |
|
1,587 |
| Dexcom, Inc.* |
23 |
|
1,570 |
| Global Payments, Inc. |
15 |
|
1,469 |
| Hershey Co. |
8 |
|
1,368 |
| STERIS plc |
6 |
|
1,360 |
| McCormick & Company, Inc. |
16 |
|
1,317 |
| Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. |
26 |
|
1,248 |
| Quest Diagnostics, Inc. |
7 |
|
1,184 |
| Clorox Co. |
8 |
|
1,178 |
| Waters Corp.* |
3 |
|
1,106 |
| Biogen, Inc.* |
8 |
|
1,095 |
| Molina Healthcare, Inc.* |
3 |
|
988 |
| Labcorp Holdings, Inc. |
4 |
|
931 |
| Hologic, Inc.* |
14 |
|
865 |
| Rollins, Inc. |
16 |
|
864 |
| Cooper Companies, Inc.* |
10 |
|
843 |
| Insulet Corp.* |
3 |
|
788 |
| Charles River Laboratories International,
Inc.* |
5 |
|
753 |
| Revvity, Inc. |
7 |
|
741 |
| Avery Dennison Corp. |
4 |
|
712 |
| West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. |
3 |
|
672 |
| Align Technology, Inc.* |
4 |
|
635 |
| Bunge Global S.A. |
8 |
|
611 |
| Incyte Corp.* |
10 |
|
606 |
| Moderna, Inc.* |
20 |
|
567 |
| Universal Health Services, Inc. —
Class B |
3 |
|
564 |
| Church & Dwight Company, Inc. |
5 |
|
550 |
| Henry Schein, Inc.* |
8 |
|
548 |
| Solventum Corp.* |
7 |
|
532 |
| Baxter International, Inc. |
15 |
|
513 |
| Molson Coors Beverage Co. — Class B |
8 |
|
487 |
| Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. |
8 |
|
426 |
| Conagra Brands, Inc. |
15 |
|
400 |
| Bio-Techne Corp. |
6 |
|
352 |
| Corpay, Inc.* |
1 |
|
349 |
| Brown-Forman Corp. — Class B |
10 |
|
339 |
| DaVita, Inc.* |
2 |
|
306 |
| Total
Consumer, Non-cyclical |
|
|
517,312 |
| Financial - 6.3% |
| Berkshire
Hathaway, Inc. — Class B* |
121 |
|
64,442 |
| JPMorgan Chase & Co. |
201 |
|
49,305 |
| Visa, Inc. — Class A |
119 |
|
41,705 |
| Mastercard, Inc. — Class A |
54 |
|
29,598 |
| Bank of America Corp. |
419 |
|
17,485 |
| Wells Fargo & Co. |
232 |
|
16,655 |
| Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. |
22 |
|
12,018 |
| Morgan Stanley |
102 |
|
11,900 |
| American Express Co. |
41 |
|
11,031 |
| Progressive Corp. |
37 |
|
10,471 |
| Charles Schwab Corp. |
124 |
|
9,707 |
| Citigroup, Inc. |
135 |
|
9,584 |
| Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. |
39 |
|
9,517 |
| Chubb Ltd. |
24 |
|
7,248 |
| American Tower Corp. — Class A REIT |
31 |
|
6,746 |
| Blackrock, Inc. |
7 |
|
6,625 |
| Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. |
38 |
|
6,555 |
| Blackstone, Inc. — Class A |
45 |
|
6,290 |
| Prologis, Inc. REIT |
56 |
|
6,260 |
| Welltower, Inc. REIT |
37 |
|
5,669 |
| PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. |
32 |
|
5,624 |
| CME Group, Inc. — Class A |
21 |
|
5,571 |
| Arthur J Gallagher & Co. |
16 |
|
5,524 |
| Aon plc — Class A |
13 |
|
5,188 |
| MetLife, Inc. |
63 |
|
5,058 |
| Capital One Financial Corp. |
27 |
|
4,841 |
| Aflac, Inc. |
42 |
|
4,670 |
| Realty Income Corp. REIT |
79 |
|
4,583 |
| Simon Property Group, Inc. REIT |
27 |
|
4,484 |
| KKR & Company, Inc. — Class A |
38 |
|
4,393 |
| Travelers Companies, Inc. |
16 |
|
4,231 |
| U.S. Bancorp |
100 |
|
4,222 |
| Public Storage REIT |
14 |
|
4,190 |
| Crown Castle, Inc. REIT |
40 |
|
4,169 |
| Prudential Financial, Inc. |
37 |
|
4,132 |
| Bank of New York Mellon Corp. |
48 |
|
4,026 |
| American International Group, Inc. |
42 |
|
3,652 |
| AvalonBay Communities, Inc. REIT |
17 |
|
3,649 |
| Apollo Global Management, Inc. |
25 |
|
3,424 |
| Ventas, Inc. REIT |
49 |
|
3,369 |
| Truist Financial Corp. |
81 |
|
3,333 |
| Digital Realty Trust, Inc. REIT |
23 |
|
3,296 |
| CBRE Group, Inc. — Class A* |
25 |
|
3,270 |
| Equinix, Inc. REIT |
4 |
|
3,261 |
| Loews Corp. |
35 |
|
3,217 |
| Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc.
REIT |
18 |
|
3,016 |
| Allstate Corp. |
14 |
|
2,899 |
| VICI Properties, Inc. REIT |
86 |
|
2,805 |
| Hartford Insurance Group, Inc. |
21 |
|
2,598 |
| Ameriprise Financial, Inc. |
5 |
|
2,421 |
| Extra Space Storage, Inc. REIT |
16 |
|
2,376 |
| Discover Financial Services |
13 |
|
2,219 |
| CoStar Group, Inc.* |
28 |
|
2,218 |
| Arch Capital Group Ltd. |
23 |
|
2,212 |
| Nasdaq,
Inc. |
28 |
|
2,124 |
| State Street Corp. |
22 |
|
1,970 |
| Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.
REIT |
21 |
|
1,943 |
| Brown & Brown, Inc. |
14 |
|
1,742 |
| Equity Residential REIT |
24 |
|
1,718 |
| Willis Towers Watson plc |
5 |
|
1,690 |
| M&T Bank Corp. |
9 |
|
1,609 |
| Fifth Third Bancorp |
39 |
|
1,529 |
| T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. |
16 |
|
1,470 |
| Citizens Financial Group, Inc. |
34 |
|
1,393 |
| Raymond James Financial, Inc. |
10 |
|
1,389 |
| Iron Mountain, Inc. REIT |
15 |
|
1,291 |
| Northern Trust Corp. |
12 |
|
1,184 |
| Cincinnati Financial Corp. |
8 |
|
1,182 |
| Principal Financial Group, Inc. |
13 |
|
1,097 |
| Synchrony Financial |
20 |
|
1,059 |
| Weyerhaeuser Co. REIT |
25 |
|
732 |
| W R Berkley Corp. |
10 |
|
712 |
| Assurant, Inc. |
3 |
|
629 |
| Camden Property Trust REIT |
5 |
|
611 |
| Kimco Realty Corp. REIT |
15 |
|
319 |
| Total
Financial |
|
|
494,345 |
| Communications - 6.0% |
| Amazon.com,
Inc.* |
622 |
|
118,342 |
| Meta Platforms, Inc. — Class A |
143 |
|
82,420 |
| Alphabet, Inc. — Class A |
385 |
|
59,536 |
| Alphabet, Inc. — Class C |
313 |
|
48,900 |
| Netflix, Inc.* |
27 |
|
25,178 |
| Cisco Systems, Inc. |
300 |
|
18,513 |
| Verizon Communications, Inc. |
306 |
|
13,880 |
| Walt Disney Co. |
132 |
|
13,028 |
| AT&T, Inc. |
431 |
|
12,188 |
| Uber Technologies, Inc.* |
136 |
|
9,909 |
| Booking Holdings, Inc. |
2 |
|
9,214 |
| Comcast Corp. — Class A |
243 |
|
8,967 |
| T-Mobile US, Inc. |
32 |
|
8,535 |
| Palo Alto Networks, Inc.* |
43 |
|
7,338 |
| Motorola Solutions, Inc. |
11 |
|
4,816 |
| Arista Networks, Inc.* |
62 |
|
4,804 |
| DoorDash, Inc. — Class A* |
22 |
|
4,021 |
| Airbnb, Inc. — Class A* |
32 |
|
3,823 |
| eBay, Inc. |
40 |
|
2,709 |
| Charter Communications, Inc. —
Class A* |
6 |
|
2,211 |
| Corning, Inc. |
42 |
|
1,923 |
| Omnicom Group, Inc. |
23 |
|
1,907 |
| CDW Corp. |
9 |
|
1,442 |
| GoDaddy, Inc. — Class A* |
8 |
|
1,441 |
| F5, Inc.* |
5 |
|
1,331 |
| VeriSign, Inc.* |
5 |
|
1,269 |
| Fox Corp. — Class A |
22 |
|
1,245 |
| Expedia Group, Inc. |
7 |
|
1,177 |
| Warner Bros Discovery, Inc.* |
90 |
|
966 |
| Gen Digital, Inc. |
30 |
|
796 |
| Match Group, Inc. |
16 |
|
499 |
| Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. |
15 |
|
408 |
| Fox Corp. — Class B |
7 |
|
369 |
| Juniper Networks, Inc. |
10 |
|
362 |
| Total
Communications |
|
|
473,467 |
| Consumer, Cyclical - 3.3% |
| Tesla,
Inc.* |
186 |
|
48,204 |
| Costco Wholesale Corp. |
30 |
|
28,373 |
| Walmart, Inc. |
315 |
|
27,654 |
| Home Depot, Inc. |
68 |
|
24,921 |
| McDonald's Corp. |
45 |
|
14,057 |
| TJX Companies, Inc. |
88 |
|
10,718 |
| Lowe's Companies, Inc. |
33 |
|
7,697 |
| Starbucks Corp. |
75 |
|
7,357 |
| NIKE, Inc. — Class B |
78 |
|
4,951 |
| Marriott International, Inc. —
Class A |
19 |
|
4,526 |
| Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. —
Class A* |
89 |
|
4,469 |
| O'Reilly Automotive, Inc.* |
3 |
|
4,298 |
| AutoZone, Inc.* |
1 |
|
3,813 |
| Target Corp. |
33 |
|
3,444 |
| PACCAR, Inc. |
35 |
|
3,408 |
| Copart, Inc.* |
58 |
|
3,282 |
| General Motors Co. |
69 |
|
3,245 |
| Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc. |
14 |
|
3,186 |
| Fastenal Co. |
40 |
|
3,102 |
| Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. |
15 |
|
3,082 |
| WW Grainger, Inc. |
3 |
|
2,964 |
| Ross Stores, Inc. |
21 |
|
2,684 |
| DR Horton, Inc. |
21 |
|
2,670 |
| Delta Air Lines, Inc. |
56 |
|
2,442 |
| Yum! Brands, Inc. |
15 |
|
2,360 |
| Lennar Corp. — Class A |
18 |
|
2,066 |
| Tapestry, Inc. |
28 |
|
1,972 |
| Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.* |
15 |
|
1,959 |
| Cummins, Inc. |
6 |
|
1,880 |
| Darden Restaurants, Inc. |
9 |
|
1,870 |
| Deckers Outdoor Corp.* |
16 |
|
1,789 |
| Lululemon Athletica, Inc.* |
6 |
|
1,698 |
| Genuine Parts Co. |
14 |
|
1,668 |
| Tractor Supply Co. |
30 |
|
1,653 |
| Ford Motor Co. |
159 |
|
1,595 |
| MGM Resorts International* |
50 |
|
1,482 |
| United Airlines Holdings, Inc.* |
20 |
|
1,381 |
| Carnival Corp.* |
69 |
|
1,347 |
| PulteGroup, Inc. |
12 |
|
1,233 |
| Aptiv plc* |
20 |
|
1,190 |
| Best Buy Company, Inc. |
15 |
|
1,104 |
| Ralph Lauren Corp. — Class A |
5 |
|
1,104 |
| Dollar General Corp. |
11 |
|
967 |
| Pool Corp. |
3 |
|
955 |
| Las Vegas Sands Corp. |
23 |
|
888 |
| Dollar Tree, Inc.* |
11 |
|
826 |
| Ulta Beauty, Inc.* |
2 |
|
733 |
| CarMax, Inc.* |
8 |
|
623 |
| Hasbro, Inc. |
10 |
|
615 |
| Domino's Pizza, Inc. |
1 |
|
459 |
| Wynn Resorts Ltd. |
5 |
|
417 |
| Caesars Entertainment, Inc.* |
12 |
|
300 |
| Total
Consumer, Cyclical |
|
|
260,681 |
| Industrial - 2.9% |
| General
Electric Co. |
70 |
|
14,011 |
| RTX Corp. |
91 |
|
12,054 |
| Union Pacific Corp. |
45 |
|
10,631 |
| Honeywell International, Inc. |
50 |
|
10,588 |
| Caterpillar, Inc. |
32 |
|
10,554 |
| Deere
& Co. |
19 |
|
8,918 |
| Boeing Co.* |
49 |
|
8,357 |
| Eaton Corporation plc |
28 |
|
7,611 |
| 3M Co. |
44 |
|
6,462 |
| Illinois Tool Works, Inc. |
24 |
|
5,952 |
| Lockheed Martin Corp. |
13 |
|
5,807 |
| United Parcel Service, Inc. —
Class B |
48 |
|
5,279 |
| Amphenol Corp. — Class A |
80 |
|
5,247 |
| General Dynamics Corp. |
19 |
|
5,179 |
| Johnson Controls International plc |
64 |
|
5,127 |
| GE Vernova, Inc. |
16 |
|
4,884 |
| Emerson Electric Co. |
44 |
|
4,824 |
| Carrier Global Corp. |
74 |
|
4,691 |
| Waste Management, Inc. |
20 |
|
4,630 |
| FedEx Corp. |
18 |
|
4,388 |
| Parker-Hannifin Corp. |
7 |
|
4,255 |
| TransDigm Group, Inc. |
3 |
|
4,150 |
| Trane Technologies plc |
12 |
|
4,043 |
| Howmet Aerospace, Inc. |
28 |
|
3,632 |
| Northrop Grumman Corp. |
7 |
|
3,584 |
| Norfolk Southern Corp. |
15 |
|
3,553 |
| Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. |
21 |
|
3,474 |
| CSX Corp. |
111 |
|
3,267 |
| TE Connectivity plc |
23 |
|
3,250 |
| AMETEK, Inc. |
17 |
|
2,927 |
| Republic Services, Inc. — Class A |
11 |
|
2,664 |
| Dover Corp. |
14 |
|
2,459 |
| Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp. |
13 |
|
2,358 |
| Ingersoll Rand, Inc. |
29 |
|
2,321 |
| Axon Enterprise, Inc.* |
4 |
|
2,104 |
| L3Harris Technologies, Inc. |
10 |
|
2,093 |
| Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. |
4 |
|
1,912 |
| Rockwell Automation, Inc. |
7 |
|
1,809 |
| Garmin Ltd. |
8 |
|
1,737 |
| Otis Worldwide Corp. |
16 |
|
1,651 |
| Keysight Technologies, Inc.* |
10 |
|
1,498 |
| Jabil, Inc. |
11 |
|
1,497 |
| Xylem, Inc. |
12 |
|
1,433 |
| Vulcan Materials Co. |
6 |
|
1,400 |
| Smurfit WestRock plc |
31 |
|
1,397 |
| Masco Corp. |
20 |
|
1,391 |
| Veralto Corp. |
14 |
|
1,364 |
| Fortive Corp. |
17 |
|
1,244 |
| Packaging Corporation of America |
6 |
|
1,188 |
| Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.* |
1 |
|
1,181 |
| Textron, Inc. |
15 |
|
1,084 |
| Expeditors International of Washington,
Inc. |
9 |
|
1,082 |
| Ball Corp. |
20 |
|
1,041 |
| Builders FirstSource, Inc.* |
6 |
|
750 |
| J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. |
5 |
|
740 |
| CH Robinson Worldwide, Inc. |
7 |
|
717 |
| Hubbell, Inc. |
2 |
|
662 |
| Jacobs Solutions, Inc. |
5 |
|
604 |
| Stanley
Black & Decker, Inc. |
7 |
|
538 |
| Allegion plc |
4 |
|
522 |
| Pentair plc |
5 |
|
438 |
| Generac Holdings, Inc.* |
3 |
|
380 |
| Trimble, Inc.* |
5 |
|
328 |
| Total
Industrial |
|
|
224,916 |
| Energy - 1.5% |
| Exxon
Mobil Corp. |
316 |
|
37,582 |
| Chevron Corp. |
119 |
|
19,907 |
| ConocoPhillips |
84 |
|
8,822 |
| EOG Resources, Inc. |
51 |
|
6,540 |
| Williams Companies, Inc. |
97 |
|
5,797 |
| Kinder Morgan, Inc. |
158 |
|
4,508 |
| ONEOK, Inc. |
40 |
|
3,969 |
| Hess Corp. |
22 |
|
3,514 |
| Schlumberger N.V. |
75 |
|
3,135 |
| Phillips 66 |
25 |
|
3,087 |
| Marathon Petroleum Corp. |
20 |
|
2,914 |
| Baker Hughes Co. |
61 |
|
2,681 |
| Targa Resources Corp. |
12 |
|
2,405 |
| Valero Energy Corp. |
18 |
|
2,377 |
| Equities Corp. |
34 |
|
1,817 |
| Diamondback Energy, Inc. |
11 |
|
1,759 |
| Occidental Petroleum Corp. |
35 |
|
1,728 |
| Texas Pacific Land Corp. |
1 |
|
1,325 |
| Halliburton Co. |
38 |
|
964 |
| Devon Energy Corp. |
23 |
|
860 |
| Coterra Energy, Inc. — Class A |
27 |
|
780 |
| First Solar, Inc.* |
5 |
|
632 |
| Enphase Energy, Inc.* |
7 |
|
434 |
| Total
Energy |
|
|
117,537 |
| Utilities - 0.9% |
| NextEra
Energy, Inc. |
135 |
|
9,570 |
| Duke Energy Corp. |
70 |
|
8,538 |
| Southern Co. |
86 |
|
7,908 |
| American Electric Power Company, Inc. |
52 |
|
5,682 |
| CMS Energy Corp. |
59 |
|
4,432 |
| Sempra |
58 |
|
4,139 |
| Constellation Energy Corp. |
18 |
|
3,629 |
| Dominion Energy, Inc. |
58 |
|
3,252 |
| Exelon Corp. |
70 |
|
3,226 |
| Entergy Corp. |
32 |
|
2,736 |
| Edison International |
46 |
|
2,710 |
| Xcel Energy, Inc. |
32 |
|
2,265 |
| Vistra Corp. |
19 |
|
2,231 |
| Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc. |
27 |
|
2,222 |
| Consolidated Edison, Inc. |
20 |
|
2,212 |
| WEC Energy Group, Inc. |
20 |
|
2,180 |
| American Water Works Company, Inc. |
12 |
|
1,770 |
| PG&E Corp. |
87 |
|
1,495 |
| Eversource Energy |
20 |
|
1,242 |
| NRG Energy, Inc. |
11 |
|
1,050 |
| DTE Energy Co. |
6 |
|
830 |
| Atmos Energy Corp. |
5 |
|
773 |
| FirstEnergy Corp. |
10 |
|
404 |
| CenterPoint Energy, Inc. |
10 |
|
362 |
| Ameren Corp. |
2 |
|
201 |
| PPL
Corp. |
4 |
|
144 |
| Total
Utilities |
|
|
75,203 |
| Basic Materials - 0.7% |
| Linde
plc |
35 |
|
16,297 |
| Sherwin-Williams Co. |
14 |
|
4,889 |
| Ecolab, Inc. |
18 |
|
4,563 |
| Freeport-McMoRan, Inc. |
113 |
|
4,278 |
| Newmont Corp. |
76 |
|
3,669 |
| Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. |
12 |
|
3,539 |
| DuPont de Nemours, Inc. |
31 |
|
2,315 |
| International Paper Co. |
35 |
|
1,867 |
| Nucor Corp. |
15 |
|
1,805 |
| PPG Industries, Inc. |
14 |
|
1,531 |
| Dow, Inc. |
39 |
|
1,362 |
| International Flavors & Fragrances,
Inc. |
14 |
|
1,087 |
| Steel Dynamics, Inc. |
8 |
|
1,001 |
| LyondellBasell Industries N.V. —
Class A |
14 |
|
986 |
| Albemarle Corp. |
11 |
|
792 |
| CF Industries Holdings, Inc. |
10 |
|
781 |
| Eastman Chemical Co. |
7 |
|
617 |
| Mosaic Co. |
15 |
|
405 |
| Total
Basic Materials |
|
|
51,784 |
| Total Common Stocks |
|
|
| (Cost
$2,952,022) |
|
|
3,113,858 |
| CLOSED-END FUNDS - 33.2%** |
| Carlyle
Alpinvest Private Markets Fund — Class I |
59,488 |
|
845,320 |
| Hamilton Lane Private Assets Fund |
40,953 |
|
712,673 |
| Variant Alternative Income Fund |
16,161 |
|
432,151 |
| Opportunistic
Credit Interval Fund — Class I |
36,141 |
|
414,896 |
| Hamilton Lane Private Infrastructure Fund
— Class I* |
15,209 |
|
208,325 |
| Total Closed-End Funds |
|
|
| (Cost
$2,476,997) |
|
|
2,613,365 |
| BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COMPANIES - 4.8%** |
| Golub Capital Private Credit Fund |
15,096 |
|
378,160 |
| Total Business Development Companies |
|
|
| (Cost
$379,548) |
|
|
378,160 |
| PRIVATE
REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS - 5.9%** |
| Blue
Owl Real Estate Net Lease Trust |
45,822 |
|
467,283 |
| Total Private Real Estate Investment Trusts |
|
|
| (Cost
$450,000) |
|
|
467,283 |
| MONEY
MARKET FUND - 10.9%** |
| Federated
Hermes U.S. Treasury Cash Reserves Fund — Institutional Shares, 4.14%1 |
855,117 |
|
855,117 |
| Total Money Market Fund |
|
|
| (Cost
$855,117) |
|
|
855,117 |
| |
Face
Amount |
|
Value |
| U.S. TREASURY BILLS - 6.3% |
| U.S. Treasury Bills |
| 3.91%
due 04/08/252 |
$165,000 |
|
164,849 |
| 3.96% due 05/08/252 |
165,000 |
|
164,289 |
| 4.05% due 06/05/252 |
165,000 |
|
163,751 |
| Total U.S. Treasury Bills |
|
|
| (Cost
$492,952) |
|
|
492,889 |
| Total Investments - 100.7% |
|
|
| (Cost $7,606,636) |
|
$ 7,920,672 |
| Other Assets & Liabilities, net - 0.7% |
(52,998) |
| Total Net Assets - 100.0% |
|
$ 7,867,674 |
| * |
Non-income producing security. |
| ** |
A copy of each underlying
unaffiliated fund's financial statements is available at the SEC's website at
www.sec.gov. |
| † |
Please see Note 5 in the Notes to Financial Statements for further details regarding the valuation policy of the Fund. |
| 1 |
Rate indicated is the 7-day
yield as of March 31, 2025. |
| 2 |
Rate indicated is the effective
yield at the time of purchase.
|
| |
plc — Public Limited Company |
| |
REIT — Real Estate Investment
Trust |
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
Statement of Assets and Liabilities
| As of March 31, 2025 |
| ASSETS: |
| Investments, at value (cost $7,606,636) | $ | 7,920,672 | |
| Cash | | 11 | |
| Contributions made in advance | | 100,000 | |
| Receivables: |
| Dividends | | 1,618 | |
| Fund shares sold | | 200 | |
| Total assets | | 8,022,501 | |
| |
| LIABILITIES: |
| Payable for: |
| Investments purchased | $ | 150,000 | |
| Investment advisory fees | | 4,825 | |
| Servicing fees - Investor Class | | 2 | |
| Total liabilities | | 154,827 | |
| NET ASSETS | $ | 7,867,674 | |
| |
| NET ASSETS CONSIST OF: |
| Paid-in capital | $ | 7,564,235 | |
| Total distributable earnings (loss) | | 303,439 | |
| NET ASSETS | $ | 7,867,674 | |
| Founder Class: | | | |
| Net assets | $ | 7,856,170 | |
| Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited amount authorized) | | 726,186 | |
| Net asset value per share | $ | 10.82 | |
| Investor Class: | | | |
| Net assets | $ | 11,504 | |
| Shares of beneficial interest outstanding (unlimited amount authorized) | | 1,065 | |
| Net asset value per share | $ | 10.80 | |
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
| Year Ended March 31, 2025 |
| INVESTMENT INCOME: |
| Dividends |
$ | 114,807 | |
| Interest |
| 47,801 | |
| Total
investment income |
| 162,608 | |
| |
| EXPENSES: |
| Investment
advisory fees |
| 42,570 | |
| Servicing
fees - Investor Class |
| 4 | |
| Total
expenses |
| 42,574 | |
| Net investment income |
| 120,034 | |
| |
| NET REALIZED AND UNREALIZED GAIN (LOSS): |
| Net realized gain (loss) on: |
| Investments |
| (28,802 | ) |
| Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on: |
| Investments |
| 279,536 | |
| Net
realized and unrealized gain |
| 250,734 | |
| Net increase in net assets resulting from operations |
$ | 370,768 | |
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
Statements of Changes in Net Assets
| |
| Year Ended
March 31, 2025 | |
| Period from
March 5, 2024(a)
to
March 31, 2024 | |
| |
| INCREASE (DECREASE) IN NET ASSETS FROM OPERATIONS: |
| Net
investment income |
$ | 120,034 | |
$ | 48 | |
| Net
realized gain (loss) on investments |
| (28,802 | ) |
| 830 | |
| Net
change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments |
| 279,536 | |
| 34,500 | |
| Net
increase in net assets resulting from operations |
| 370,768 | |
| 35,378 | |
| |
| DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS: |
| Founder Class |
| (102,691 | ) |
| — | |
| Investor Class |
| (16 | ) |
| — | |
| Total distributions to shareholders |
| (102,707 | ) |
| — | |
| |
| SHAREHOLDER TRANSACTIONS: |
| Proceeds from sale of shares |
| | |
| | |
| Founder Class |
| 4,367,489 | |
| 2,983,565 | |
| Investor Class |
| 21,115 | |
| — | |
| Distributions
reinvested |
| | |
| | |
| Founder Class |
| 102,691 | |
| — | |
| Investor Class |
| 16 | |
| — | |
| Cost of shares redeemed |
| | |
| | |
| Founder Class |
| (1,103 | ) |
| — | |
| Investor Class |
| (9,538 | ) |
| — | |
| Net
increase from shareholder transactions |
| 4,480,670 | |
| 2,983,565 | |
| Net
increase in net assets |
| 4,748,731 | |
| 3,018,943 | |
| |
| NET ASSETS: |
| Beginning
of period |
| 3,118,943 | |
| 100,000 | |
| End of
period |
$ | 7,867,674 | |
$ | 3,118,943 | |
|
(a)
|
Commencement of operations
|
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
| Founder
Class |
| Year Ended
March 31, 2025 | |
| Period Ended
March 31, 2024(a) | |
| Per
Share Data: |
| | |
| | |
| Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 10.21 | |
$ | 10.00 | |
| Income from investment operations: |
| | |
| | |
| Net
investment income(b) |
| 0.23 | |
| — | (c) |
| Net
gain (loss) on investments (realized and unrealized) |
| 0.55 | |
| 0.21 | |
| Total
from investment operations |
| 0.78 | |
| 0.21 | |
| Less distributions from: |
| | |
| | |
| Net
investment income |
| (0.17 | ) |
| — | |
| Total
distributions to shareholders |
| (0.17 | ) |
| — | |
| Net
asset value, end of period |
$ | 10.82 | |
$ | 10.21 | |
| Total
Return(d) |
| | |
| | |
| Net
asset value |
| 7.67 | % |
| 2.10 | % |
| Ratios/Supplemental
Data: |
| | |
| | |
| Net
assets, end of period (in thousands) |
$ | 7,856 | |
$ | 3,119 | |
| Ratio to average net assets of: |
| | |
| | |
| Net
investment income(e) |
| 2.12 | % |
| 0.04 | % |
| Total
expenses(e) |
| 0.75 | % |
| 0.75 | % |
| Portfolio
turnover rate |
| 5 | % |
| 2 | % |
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
| Investor
Class |
| Period Ended
March 31, 2025(f) | |
| Per
Share Data: |
| | |
| Net
asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 10.99 | |
| Income from investment operations: |
| | |
| Net
investment income(b) |
| 0.03 | |
| Net
gain (loss) on investments (realized and unrealized) |
| (0.05 | ) (g) |
| Total
from investment operations |
| (0.02 | ) |
| Less distributions from: |
| | |
| Net
investment income |
| (0.17 | ) |
| Total
distributions to shareholders |
| (0.17 | ) |
| Net
asset value, end of period |
$ | 10.80 | |
| Total
Return(d) |
| | |
| Net
asset value |
| (0.16 | )% |
| Ratios/Supplemental
Data: |
| | |
| Net
assets, end of period (in thousands) |
$ | 12 | |
| Ratio to average net assets of: |
| | |
| Net
investment income(e) |
| 1.00 | % |
| Total
expenses(e) |
| 1.00 | % |
| Portfolio
turnover rate |
| 5 | % |
| | | |
| (a) | |
Since commencement of
operations: March 5, 2024. Percentage amounts for the period,
except total return and portfolio turnover rate, have been annualized. |
| (b) | |
Based on average shares
outstanding. |
| (c) | |
Less than $0.01 per share. |
| (d) | |
Total investment return is
calculated assuming an initial investment made at the net asset value at the
beginning of the period, reinvestment of all dividends and distribution at
net asset value during the period, and redemption on the last day of the period.
Transaction fees are not reflected in the calculation of total investment
return. |
| (e) | |
Does not include expenses of
the underlying funds in which the Fund invests. |
| (f) | |
Since commencement of
operations: December 18, 2024. Percentage amounts for the period,
except total return and portfolio turnover rate, have been annualized. |
| (g) | |
The amount of net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investment per share for the year ended March 31, 2025 does not accord with the amount in the Statement of Operations due to the timing of purchases and sales of Fund shares in relation to fluctuating market values. |
See accompanying Notes to Financial Statements
Notes to Financial Statements
Note 1 — Organization
and Registration
Institutional
Investment Strategy Fund (the “Fund”), a Delaware statutory trust, is a non-diversified,
closed-end management investment company, registered under the Investment
Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), that continuously offers its
shares of beneficial interest and is operated as an “interval fund.” The Fund
was organized as a Delaware statutory trust on January 3, 2023, and commenced investment
operations on March 5, 2024.
The
Fund engages in a continuous offering of two classes of shares of beneficial
interest of the Fund: Investor Class and Founder Class (previously referred to
as Class I). All shares of the Fund have equal rights and privileges. Each
share of the Fund is entitled to one vote on all matters as to which shares are
entitled to vote. In addition, each share of the Fund is entitled to
participate, equally with other shares (i) in dividends and distributions
declared by the Fund and (ii) upon liquidation, in the distribution of its
proportionate share of the assets remaining after satisfaction of outstanding
liabilities. Shares of the Fund are fully paid, non-assessable and fully
transferable when issued and have no pre-emptive, conversion or exchange
rights. Fractional shares have proportionately the same rights, including
voting rights, as are provided for a full share.
Note 2 — Significant
Accounting Policies
The
Fund’s financial statements are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”).
The
Fund is considered an investment company under U.S. GAAP and follows the
accounting and reporting guidance applicable to investment companies in the
Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”), Accounting Standards
Codification (“ASC”) Topic 946, Financial Services - Investment Companies.
(a) Valuation of
Investments
Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940
Act (the "Valuation Rule"), the Fund’s Board of Trustees (the
“Board”) has designated the Adviser, as defined in Note 3, as the Fund’s
valuation designee to perform any fair value determinations for securities and
other assets held by the Fund. The Adviser is subject to the oversight of the
Board and certain reporting and other requirements intended to provide the
Board the information needed to oversee the Adviser’s fair value
determinations. The Adviser is responsible for determining the fair value of
investments for which market quotations are not readily available in accordance
with policies and procedures that have been approved by the Board. Under these
procedures, the Adviser convenes on a regular and ad hoc basis to review such
investments and considers a number of factors, including valuation
methodologies and significant unobservable inputs, when arriving at fair value.
The Board has approved the Adviser’s fair valuation procedures as a part of the
Fund’s compliance program and will review any changes made to the procedures.
The Adviser provides fair valuation inputs. In determining fair valuations,
inputs may include market-based analytics that may consider related or
comparable assets or liabilities, recent transactions, market multiples, book
values and other relevant investment information. Adviser inputs may include an
income-based approach in which the anticipated future cash flows of the
investment are discounted in determining fair value. Discounts may also be applied
based on the nature or duration of any restrictions on the disposition of the
investments. The Adviser performs regular reviews of valuation methodologies,
key inputs and assumptions, disposition analysis and market activity.
Valuations of the Fund's securities and other assets
are supplied primarily by pricing services appointed pursuant to the processes
set forth in the Valuation Rule. At least annually, the Adviser directs (or
assists) the Fund's Principal Financial Officer to assess the material risks
associated with the determination of the fair value of the Fund’s investments,
including a review of any material conflicts of interest and an assessment by
the Adviser’s management of such material risks. The Adviser reviews and
approves a final risk assessment annually.
Equity securities listed or traded on a recognized
U.S. securities exchange or the National Association of Securities Dealers
Automated Quotations (“NASDAQ”) National Market System shall generally be
valued on the basis of the last sale price on the primary U.S. exchange or
market on which the security is listed or traded; provided, however, that
securities listed on NASDAQ will be valued at the NASDAQ Official Closing
Price, which may not necessarily represent the last sale price.
Money market funds, closed-end investment companies,
and business development companies ("BDCs") are valued at the most
recently published net asset value per share ("NAV") of the underlying fund.
Debt securities with a maturity of greater than 60
days at acquisition are valued at prices that reflect broker-dealer supplied
valuations or are obtained from independent pricing services, which may
consider the trade activity, treasury spreads, yields or price of bonds of
comparable quality, coupon, maturity, and type, as well as prices quoted by
dealers who make markets in such securities. Short-term debt securities with a
maturity of 60 days or less at acquisition are valued at amortized cost, provided
such amount approximates market value.
Securities representing an interest in another
pooled investment vehicle (each, an “Underlying Private Fund”) will initially
be assessed at the value provided by that Underlying Private Fund or its
manager (each, an “Underlying Manager”). To arrive at the fair value of
investments in Underlying Private Funds, the Adviser receives monthly or
quarterly capital account statements from the Underlying Private Funds. Upon
receipt of these statements, the Adviser determines whether the account
statements are based on the fair value of underlying investments. In making
such determination, the Adviser reviews and evaluates the valuation policies
and procedures of the entity providing the statement. If necessary, the Adviser
adjusts the account statements for underlying investments not held at fair
value or to bring the fair value estimate in phase with the Adviser reporting
date.
If market quotations are not readily available,
securities are valued at fair value as set forth below. Fair valuation involves
subjective judgments, and it is possible that the fair value determined for a
security may differ materially from the value that could be realized upon the
sale of the security. There is no single standard for determining fair value of
a security. In determining the fair value of a security for which there are no
readily available market quotations, the Valuation Designee may consider
several factors, including: (1) evaluation of all relevant factors, including
but not limited to, pricing history, current market level, supply and demand of
the respective security; (2) comparison to the values and current pricing of
securities that have comparable characteristics; (3) knowledge of historical
market information with respect to the security; (4) other factors relevant to
the security. The Valuation Designee may also consider periodic financial
statements (audited and unaudited) or other information provided by the issuer.
(b) Use of Estimates
The
preparation of the financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP requires
management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts
and disclosures, including contingent assets and liabilities, in the financial
statements during the period reported. Management believes the estimates are
appropriate; however, actual results may differ from those estimates.
(c) Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Debt Securities
For
temporary defensive purposes, the Fund may invest up to 100% of its assets in
cash equivalents and short-term debt securities. Short-term debt investments
having a remaining maturity of 60 days or less when purchased will be valued at
cost, adjusted for amortization of premiums and accretion of discounts.
(d) Mortgage-Backed Securities
The
Fund may invest in a variety of mortgage-related and other asset-backed
securities issued by government agencies or other governmental entities or by private
originators or issuers.
Mortgage-related
securities include mortgage pass-through securities, collateralized mortgage
obligations (“CMO”), commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”), mortgage
dollar rolls, CMO residuals, adjustable rate mortgage-backed securities
(“ARMBS”), stripped mortgage-backed securities (“SMBS”) and other securities
that directly or indirectly represent a participation in, or are secured by and
payable from, mortgage loans on real property.
(e) When-Issued and Forward Commitment Securities
The
Fund may purchase securities on a “when-issued” basis and may purchase or sell
securities on a “forward commitment” basis in order to acquire the security or
to hedge against anticipated changes in interest rates and prices. When such
transactions are negotiated, the price, which is generally expressed in yield
terms, is fixed at the time the commitment is made, but delivery and payment
for the securities take place at a later date.
(f) Business Development Companies
The
Fund may invest in different types of investment companies from time to time,
including business development companies (“BDCs”). A BDC is a less common type
of an investment company that more closely resembles an operating company than
a typical investment company. BDCs generally focus on investing in, and
providing managerial assistance to, small, developing, financially troubled,
private companies or other companies that may have value that can be realized
over time and with managerial assistance.
(g) Foreign
Taxation
Income
received by the Fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to
withholding and other taxes imposed by such countries. Tax treaties and
conventions between certain countries and the U.S. may reduce or eliminate such
taxes. If more than 50% of the value of the Fund's total assets at the close of
its taxable year consists of securities of foreign corporations, the Fund may
be able to elect to “pass through” to the Fund's shareholders the amount of
eligible foreign income and similar taxes paid by the Fund. It is not generally
expected that the Fund will be eligible to make this election.
(h) Security Transactions and Investment Income and Realized Gain and Loss
Investment
security transactions are recorded as of the trade date for financial reporting
purposes. Securities purchased or sold on a when-issued or delayed-delivery basis
may be settled beyond a standard settlement period for the security after the
trade date. Realized gains (losses) from securities sold are recorded on the
identified cost basis. Dividend income is recorded on the ex-dividend date,
except certain dividends from foreign securities where the ex-dividend date may
have passed, which are recorded as soon as the Fund is informed of the
ex-dividend date. Interest income, adjusted for the accretion of discounts and amortization
of premiums, is recorded on an accrual basis from settlement date, with the
exception of securities with a forward starting effective date, where interest
income is recorded on an accrual basis from effective date. For convertible
securities, premiums attributable to the conversion feature are not amortized.
Estimated tax liabilities on certain foreign securities are recorded on an
accrual basis and are reflected as components of interest income or net change
in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments on the Statement of
Operations, as appropriate. Tax liabilities realized as a result of such security
sales are reflected as a component of net realized gain (loss) on investments
on the Statement of Operations. Paydown gains (losses) on mortgage-related and
other asset-backed securities, if any, are recorded as components of interest
income on the Statement of Operations. Income or short-term capital gain
distributions received from registered investment companies, if any, are
recorded as dividend income. Long-term capital gain distributions received from
registered investment companies, if any, are recorded as realized gains.
Debt
obligations may be placed on non-accrual status and related interest income may
be reduced by ceasing current accruals and writing off interest receivables when
the collection of all or a portion of interest has become doubtful based on
consistently applied procedures. A debt obligation is removed from non-accrual
status when the issuer resumes interest payments or when collectability of
interest is probable. A debt obligation may be granted, in certain situations,
a contractual or non-contractual forbearance for interest payments that are
expected to be paid after agreed upon pay dates.
(i) Distributions to Shareholders
The Fund intends to distribute all of its net investment income, any excess of net short-term capital gains
over net long-term capital losses, and any excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital
losses in accordance with the timing requirements imposed by the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Internal Revenue Code") and therefore should not be
required to pay any federal income or excise taxes. Distributions of net investment income will be made
annually and net capital gain will be made after the end of each fiscal year, and no later than December 31
of each year. Both types of distributions will be in shares of the Fund unless a shareholder elects to
receive cash.
(j) Indemnification
The
Fund indemnifies its officers and Board for certain
liabilities that may arise from the performance of their duties to the Fund.
Additionally, in the normal course of business, the Fund enters into contracts
that contain a variety of representations and warranties which provide general
indemnities. The Fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown,
as this would involve future claims that may be made against the Fund that have
not yet occurred. However, the Fund expects the risk of loss due to these
warranties and indemnities to be remote.
(k) Commitments and Contingencies
In the normal course of business, the Fund enters into contracts that provide general indemnifications by the Fund to the counterparty to the contract. The Fund’s maximum exposure under these arrangements is dependent on future claims that may be made against the Fund and, therefore, cannot be estimated; however, based on experience, the risk of loss from such claims is considered remote. The Fund has determined that none of these arrangements requires disclosure on the Fund’s statement of assets and liabilities.
(l) Contributions Made in Advance
Contributions
made in advance represent amounts paid to closed end funds and BDCs for an
investment in their respective companies with an effective date after March 31,
2025.
Note 3 — Investment Advisory Fees
Pursuant
to an Investment Advisory Agreement between the Fund and the Buena Capital
Advisors, LLC (the "Adviser"), the Adviser, among other things,
manages the investment and reinvestment of the Fund’s assets; executes and
delivers all documents relating to the investments of the Fund and the placing
of orders for purchases and sales of portfolio investments; and reviews,
supervises, and administers the Fund’s investments consistent with the Fund’s objectives
and strategies. In consideration of the advisory services provided by the
Adviser to the Fund, the Adviser is entitled to a base management fee. The base
management fee (the "Advisory Fee") is calculated daily and payable
monthly in arrears at the annual rate of 0.75% of the Fund’s average daily net
assets during such period. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, the
Adviser earned $42,570.
The
Adviser agrees to pay all expenses incurred by the Fund except for the Advisory
Fee, interest, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses incurred in
placing or settlement of orders for the purchase and sale of securities and
other investment instruments, acquired fund fees and expenses, accrued deferred
tax liability, extraordinary expenses, shareholder servicing fees, and distribution fees and expenses paid
by the Trust under any distribution plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under
the 1940 Act.
The
Adviser shall be responsible for all reasonable costs and expenses associated
with any special meetings of the Fund or shareholders convened for the primary
benefit of the Adviser (the legal fees associated with preparing a proxy
statement and associated mailing and solicitations costs).
Pursuant
to a Sub-Advisory Agreement between the Adviser and Rhumbline Advisers, LP (the
“Sub-Adviser”), the Sub-Adviser under the supervision of the Board and
the Adviser, provides a continuous investment program for a designated portion
of the Fund’s portfolio; provides investment research; makes and executes
recommendations for the purchase and sale of securities; and provides certain
facilities and personnel. As compensation for its services, the Adviser pays
the Sub-Adviser a fee, in an annual amount equal to 0.04% of the Fund’s average
daily net assets during such period, with a minimum of $15,000 annually. The
Sub-Adviser’s fee is paid from the Advisory Fee and not by the Fund.
Note 4 — Agreements
Fund Administrator,
Fund Accountant and Transfer Agent and Expenses
MUFG
Investor Services (US), LLC (“MUIS”) serves as Fund Administrator, Fund
Accountant and Transfer Agent for the Fund pursuant to a Services Agreement
with the Fund.
In
its role as Fund Administrator and the Fund Accountant, MUIS is responsible for
maintaining the books and records of the Fund’s securities. As Transfer Agent,
MUIS responsible for maintaining all shareholder records of the Fund. For
providing these services, MUIS is entitled to receive a monthly fee and out of
pocket expenses. The amounts owed to MUIS under the Services Agreement are paid
from the Advisory Fee.
Custody Fees and Expenses
Fifth
Third Bank (“FTB”) serves as the custodian for the securities and cash of the
Fund’s portfolio pursuant to a custody agreement with the Fund. FTB holds the Fund’s assets in
safekeeping and maintains all necessary records and documents relating to its
duties and receives customary fees, paid by the Adviser, for such services.
Investor Class Shares
Investor Class shares are sold at the prevailing NAV per
shares and are not subject to any upfront sales charge. Investor Class shares
are not subject to a distribution fee, but are subject to a 0.25% shareholder
servicing fee and a 2.00% redemption fee on
shares held less than 12 months. Investor Class shares require a minimum
investment of $1,000. The Fund or the Adviser may waive the minimum investment
at either’s discretion.
The Fund has adopted a “Shareholder Services Plan” with
respect to its Investor Class shares under which the Fund pays a fee for
ongoing shareholder services for the Investor Class. Such services may include
electronic processing of client orders, electronic fund transfers between
clients and the Fund, account reconciliations with the Fund’s transfer agent,
facilitation of electronic delivery to clients of Fund documentation,
monitoring client accounts for back-up withholding and any other special tax
reporting obligations, maintenance of books and records with respect to the
foregoing, and such other information and liaison services that may be
reasonably requested.
Note 5 — Fair Value
Measurement
The Fund follows ASC Topic 820, Fair Value
Measurements and Disclosures, (“ASC 820”) for measuring the fair value of
portfolio investments. Fair value is defined as the price that the Fund would
receive upon selling an investment or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly
transaction to a market participant in the principal or most advantageous
market for the investment. This accounting guidance emphasizes that valuation
techniques maximize the use of observable market inputs and minimize the use of
unobservable inputs. The valuation hierarchical levels are based upon the
transparency of the inputs to the valuation of the investment as of the measurement date. A
financial instrument’s categorization within the valuation hierarchy is based
upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value
measurement.
The three levels are defined as follows:
Level 1 — Valuations based on quoted prices in
active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the measurement date that
the Fund has the ability to access.
Level 2 — Valuations based on inputs other than
quoted prices in active markets included in Level 1, which are either directly
or indirectly observable at the measurement date. This category includes quoted
prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for
identical or similar assets or liabilities in non-active markets including
actionable bids from third parties for privately held assets or liabilities,
and observable inputs other than quoted prices such as yield curves and forward
currency rates that are entered directly into valuation models to determine the
value of derivatives or other assets or liabilities.
Level 3 — Valuations based on inputs that are
unobservable and where there is little, if any, market activity at the
measurement date. The inputs for the determination of fair value may require
significant management judgment or estimation and are based upon management’s
assessment of the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the
assets or liabilities. These investments include debt and equity investments in
private companies or assets valued using the market or income approach and may
involve pricing models whose inputs require significant judgment or estimation
because of the absence of any meaningful current market data for identical or
similar investments. The inputs in these valuations may include, but are not
limited to, capitalization and discount rates, beta and EBITDA multiples. The
information may also include pricing information or broker quotes, which
include a disclaimer that the broker would not be held to such a price in an
actual transaction. The non-binding nature of consensus pricing and/or quotes
accompanied by disclaimer would result in classification as Level 3
information, assuming no additional corroborating evidence.
Routine fair valuations are intended to reflect fair
valuations that are determined from the application of a consistent methodology
in specific situations with observable inputs. Non-routine fair valuations
include all other fair value situations. In a non-routine fair value situation,
the Valuation Designee will e-mail the Administrator and other applicable Fund
Officers the value to be used along with all relevant information that was used
in determining such fair valuation.
A meaningful input in the Fund's Valuation Procedures will be the valuations provided by the private fund managers. Specifically, the value of the Fund's investment in private funds generally will be valued using the “practical expedient,” in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) Topic 820, based on the valuation provided to the Adviser by the private fund in accordance with the private fund's own valuation policies. Generally, private fund managers value investments of their private funds at their market price if market quotations are readily available. In the absence of observable market prices, private fund managers value investments using valuation methodologies applied on a consistent basis. For some investments little market activity may exist. The determination of fair value by private fund managers is then based on the best information available in the circumstances and may incorporate management's own assumptions and involves a significant degree of judgment, taking into consideration a combination of internal and external factors, including the appropriate risk adjustments for nonperformance and liquidity risks. Investments for which market prices are not observable include private investments in the equity of operating companies, real estate properties or certain debt positions.
The Adviser will review the appropriateness and
accuracy of the aforementioned valuation methodologies at least annually and
make any necessary adjustments and amendments to this policy.
The inputs or methodologies used for valuing
securities are not necessarily an indication of the risk associated with
investing in those securities. The suitability of the techniques and sources
employed to determine fair valuation are regularly monitored and subject to
change.
The following table
summarizes the inputs used to value the Fund's investments at March 31, 2025:
| Investments
in Securities (Assets) |
| Level 1 Quoted Prices | |
| Level 2 Significant Observable
Inputs | |
| Level 3 Significant Unobservable
Inputs | |
| Investments Valued at NAV | |
|
| Total | |
| Common
Stocks |
$ | 3,113,858 | |
$ | –– | |
$ | –– | |
$ | –– | |
|
$ | 3,113,858 | |
| Closed-End
Funds |
| 2,613,365 | |
| — | |
| — | |
| — | |
|
| 2,613,365 | |
| Business
Development Companies(a) |
| — | |
| — | |
| — | |
| 378,160 | |
|
| 378,160 | |
| Private
Real Estate Investment Trusts |
| — | |
| 467,283 | |
| — | |
| — | |
|
| 467,283 | |
| Money
Market Fund |
| 855,117 | |
| — | |
| — | |
| — | |
|
| 855,117 | |
| U.S.
Treasury Bills |
| — | |
| 492,889 | |
| — | |
| — | |
|
| 492,889 | |
| Total
Assets |
$ | 6,582,340 | |
$ | 960,172 | |
$ | –– | |
$ | 378,160 | |
|
$ | 7,920,672 | |
(a) In accordance with ASC 820-10, investments that are measured at fair value using the NAV per share (or its equivalent) practical expedient have not been classified in the fair value hierarchy. The fair value amounts presented in this table are intended to permit reconciliation of the fair value hierarchy to the amounts presented in the Schedule of Investments and Statement of Assets and Liabilities.
Note 6 — Federal
Income Tax Information
The
Fund intends to comply with the provisions of Subchapter M of the Internal
Revenue Code, applicable to regulated investment companies and will distribute
substantially all taxable net investment income and capital gains sufficient to
relieve the Fund from all, or substantially all, federal income, excise and
state income taxes. Therefore, no provision for federal or state income tax or
federal excise tax is required.
Tax
positions taken or expected to be taken in the course of preparing the Fund's
tax returns are evaluated to determine whether the tax positions are "more-likely-than-not"
of being sustained by the applicable tax authority. Tax positions not deemed to
meet the “more-likely-than-not” threshold would be recorded as
a tax benefit or expense in the current year. Management has analyzed the
Fund's tax positions taken, or to be taken, on U.S. federal income tax returns
for all open tax years, and has concluded that no provision for income tax is
required in the Fund's financial statements. The Fund's U.S. federal income tax returns
are subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) for a period
of three years after they are filed.
The
Fund recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to unrecognized tax
benefits as income tax expense in the Statement of Operations. During the year
ended March 31, 2025, the Fund did not incur any interest or penalties.
The
tax character of distributions paid during the year ended March 31, 2025 was as
follows:
|
Ordinary Income
|
Long-Term Capital Gain
|
Total Distributions
|
|
$
102,695
|
$ 12
|
$ 102,707
|
There were no distributions paid during the period ended March 31, 2024.
Note:
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, short-term capital gain distributions are
treated as ordinary income distributions.
The
tax components of distributable earnings/(loss) as of March 31, 2025 were as
follows:
|
Undistributed Ordinary Income
|
Undistributed Long-Term Capital Gain
|
Net Unrealized Appreciation
(Depreciation)
|
Accumulated Capital and Other
Losses
|
Total
|
|
$ 18,194
|
$ -
|
$ 313,525
|
$
(28,280)
|
$ 303,439
|
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, capital loss carryforwards
represent realized losses of the Fund that may be carried forward and applied
against future capital gains. The Fund is permitted to carry forward capital
losses for an unlimited period and such capital loss carryforwards retain their
character as either short-term or long-term capital losses. As of March 31,
2025, capital loss carryforwards for the Fund were as follows:
|
Unlimited
|
|
|
Short-Term
|
Long-Term
|
Total Capital Loss Carryforward
|
|
$
(28,280)
|
$ -
|
$ (28,280)
|
Net investment income and net realized gains (losses) may differ for
financial statement and tax purposes because of temporary or permanent book/tax
differences. These differences are primarily due to investments in real estate
investment trusts and losses deferred due to wash sales. To the extent these
differences are permanent and would require a reclassification between Paid in
Capital and Total Distributable Earnings (Loss), such reclassifications are
made in the period that the differences arise. These reclassifications have no
effect on net assets or NAV per share.
There were no adjustments made on the Statement of Assets and
Liabilities as of March 31, 2025 for permanent book/tax differences.
At March 31, 2025, the cost of investments for U.S. federal income tax
purposes, the aggregate gross unrealized appreciation for all investments for
which there was an excess of value over tax cost and the aggregate gross
unrealized depreciation for all investments for which there was an excess of
tax cost over value, were as follows:
|
|
|
|
Net Tax
|
|
|
Tax
|
Tax
|
Unrealized
|
|
Tax
|
Unrealized
|
Unrealized
|
Appreciation/
|
|
Cost
|
Appreciation
|
Depreciation
|
(Depreciation)
|
|
$
7,607,147
|
$ 487,667
|
$
(174,142)
|
$ 313,525
|
Note 7 — Securities
Transactions
For
the year ended March 31, 2025, the cost of purchases and proceeds from sales of
investment securities, excluding short-term investments, were as follows:
|
Purchases
|
Sales
|
|
$4,896,324
|
$237,548
|
There
were no purchases or sales of U.S. Government securities during the year ended March
31, 2025.
Note 8 — Capital Shares of Beneficial Interest
The
Fund has an unlimited amount of shares of beneficial interest, no par value,
authorized and 727,251 shares issued and outstanding. Transactions in shares of
beneficial interest were as follows:
|
|
Year Ended March 31, 2025
|
Period Ended March 31, 2024
|
|
|
Founder
|
Investor
|
Founder
|
|
Beginning shares
|
305,359
|
—
|
10,000
|
|
Shares issued
|
411,538
|
1,935
|
295,359
|
|
Shares reinvested
|
9,395
|
1
|
—
|
|
Shares redeemed
|
(106)
|
(871)
|
—
|
|
Ending shares
|
726,186
|
1,065
|
305,359
|
Note 9 — Repurchase
Offers
In order to provide liquidity to shareholders, the
Fund has adopted a fundamental policy that it will make quarterly repurchase
offers for no less than 5% of the Fund’s shares outstanding at NAV less any
repurchase fee, unless suspended or postponed in accordance with regulatory
requirements, and each repurchase pricing shall occur no later than the 14th
day after the Repurchase Request Deadline (between 21 to 42 days following the
date the repurchase offer is made (or the preceding business day if the New
York Stock Exchange is closed on that day), as specified by the Fund) or the
next business day if the 14th day is not a business day.
For the year ended March 31, 2025, the Fund completed one quarterly repurchase offer. The Fund offered to repurchase up to 5% of the number of its outstanding shares as of the Repurchase Pricing Dates. The results of the repurchase offers were as follows:
| |
Founders Class
Repurchase Offer |
| Commencement Date |
June 28, 2024 |
| Repurchase Request Deadline |
July 29, 2024 |
| Repurchase Pricing Date |
July 29, 2024 |
| |
|
| Net Asset Value As of Repurchase Offer
Date: |
$10.43 |
| Amount Repurchased: |
$1,043 |
| Total Number of Shares Tendered: |
100 |
| Percentage of Shares Tendered that were
Repurchased: |
0.02% |
There were no repurchases during the year in the Investors Class. The redemptions shown on the Statements of Changes in Net Assets are exchanges between the Investor and Founder classes.
Quarterly repurchases by the Fund of its shares
typically will be funded from borrowing proceeds, available cash or sales of portfolio
securities. However, payment for repurchased shares may require the Fund to
liquidate portfolio holdings earlier than the Adviser otherwise would liquidate
such holdings, potentially resulting in losses, and may increase the Fund’s
portfolio turnover. The Adviser may take measures to attempt to avoid or
minimize such potential losses and turnover, and instead of liquidating
portfolio holdings, may borrow money to finance repurchases of shares. If the
Fund borrows to finance repurchases, interest on any such borrowing will
negatively affect shareholders who do not tender their shares in a repurchase
offer by increasing the Fund’s expenses and reducing any net investment income.
To the extent the Fund finances repurchase proceeds by selling investments, the
Fund may hold a larger proportion of its gross assets in less liquid
securities. Also, the sale of securities to fund repurchases could reduce the
market price of those securities, which in turn would reduce the Fund’s NAV.
Repurchases of shares will tend to reduce the amount
of outstanding shares and, depending upon the Fund’s investment performance,
its net assets. A reduction in the Fund’s net assets may increase the Fund’s
expense ratio to the extent that additional shares are not sold. In addition,
the repurchase of shares by the Fund may be a taxable event to shareholders.
Note 10 –– Control and Ownership
The beneficial ownership, either directly or indirectly, of more than
25% of the voting
securities of a Fund creates a presumption of control of the Fund, under
section 2(a)(9)
of the 1940 Act, as amended. As of March 31, 2025,
Wenwen McElhoe (Wendy Li) (principal of the Adviser and Chief Investment Officer of the Fund) owned
approximately 26% of the oustanding shares of the Fund.
Note 11 — Operating Segments
The Fund has adopted the FASB ASU 2023-07, Segment
Reporting (Topic 280) – Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures. The update is limited to disclosure
requirements and does not impact the Fund’s financial position or results of
operations.
The Fund operates as a single operating segment, which
is an investment portfolio. The Fund’s Portfolio
Manager serves as the Chief Operating Decision Maker (CODM), evaluating
fund-wide results and performance under a unified investment strategy. The CODM uses these measures to assess fund
performance and allocate resources effectively.
Internal reporting provided to the CODM aligns with
the accounting policies and measurement principles used in the financial
statements.
For information regarding segment assets, segment
profit or loss, and significant expenses, refer to the Statement of Assets and
Liabilities and the Statement of Operations, along with the related Notes to
the financial statements. The Fund’s
portfolio holdings provide details of the Fund’s investments that generate
returns such as interest, dividends and realized and unrealized gains or
losses. Performance metrics, including
portfolio turnover and expense ratios, are disclosed in the Financial Highlights.
Note 12 — Subsequent
Events
The
Adviser has evaluated subsequent events through the date of issuance of the
financial statements included herein. There have been no subsequent events that
occurred during such period that would require disclosure or would be required
to be recognized in the financial statements.
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Shareholders and Board Trustees of
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities, including the schedule of investments, of Institutional Investment Strategy Fund (the “Fund”), as of March 31, 2025, the related statement of operations for the year then ended, the statements of changes in net assets for the year then ended and for the period March 5, 2024 (commencement of operations) through March 31, 2024, the financial highlights for the periods presented below, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund as of March 31, 2025, the results of its operations for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for the year then ended and for the period March 5, 2024 through March 31, 2024, and the financial highlights for the periods presented below, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
|
Share Class
|
Financial Highlights
|
|
Founder Class
|
For the year ended
March 31, 2025 and for the period from March 5, 2024 (commencement
of operations) through March 31, 2024
|
|
Investor Class
|
For the period from December 18, 2024 (commencement
of operations) through March 31, 2025
|
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Fund’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement whether due to error or fraud.
Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our procedures included confirmation of securities owned as of March 31, 2025, by correspondence with the custodian, brokers, and other appropriate parties; when replies were not received from brokers, we performed other auditing procedures. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
We have served as the Fund’s auditor since 2023.
COHEN & COMPANY, LTD.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
May 30, 2025
Other Information (Unaudited)
Federal Income Tax
Information
This information is being provided as required by the Internal Revenue
Code. Amounts shown may differ from those elsewhere in the report because of
differences in tax and financial reporting practice.
In January 2026, shareholders will be advised on IRS Form 1099 DIV or
substitute 1099 DIV as to the federal tax status of the distributions received
by shareholders in the calendar year 2025.
The
Fund's investment income (dividend income plus short-term capital gains, if
any) qualifies as follows:
Of
the taxable ordinary income distributions paid during the fiscal year ended
March 31, 2025, the Fund had the corresponding percentages qualify for the
reduced tax rate pursuant to the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief and Reconciliation
Act of 2003 or for the dividends received deduction for corporations. See the
qualified dividend income and dividend received deduction columns,
respectively, in the table below.
Additionally, of the taxable ordinary income distributions paid during
the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025, the Fund had the corresponding
percentages qualify as interest related dividends and qualified short-term
capital gains as permitted by IRC Section 871(k)(1) and IRC Section 871(k)(2),
respectively. See the qualified interest
income and qualified short-term capital gain columns, respectively, in the
table below.
|
Qualified
Dividend
Income
|
Dividend
Received
Deduction
|
Qualified Interest Income
|
Qualified
Short-Term Capital Gain
|
|
20.92%
|
20.69%
|
9.53%
|
0.82%
|
With
respect to the taxable year ended March 31, 2025, the Fund hereby designates
$12 as capital gain dividends, or, if subsequently determined to be different,
the net capital gain of such year.
Sector Classification
Information
in the Schedule of Investments is categorized by sectors using sector-level
classifications used by Bloomberg Industry Classification System, a widely
recognized industry classification system provider. In the Fund’s registration
statement, the Fund has investment policies relating to concentration in
specific industries. For purposes of these investment policies, the Fund generally classifies industries based on industry-level classifications used by
widely recognized industry classification system providers such as Bloomberg
Industry Classification System.
Proxy Voting
A description of the policies and procedures that the Fund uses to determine how to vote proxies relating to portfolio securities owned by the Fund and information regarding how the Fund voted proxies relating to the portfolio of securities for the most recent 12-month period ending June 30th are available to shareholders without charge, upon request by calling the Advisor toll free at (800) 535-7096 or on the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov.
Portfolio Holdings
The
Fund files its complete schedule of portfolio holdings with the SEC for
the first and third quarters of each fiscal year as an exhibit
to Form N-PORT. Form N-PORT are available on the SEC’s website at
http://www.sec.gov. The information on Form N-PORT is also available upon request by calling 1-800-535-7096.
Information on Trustees and Executive Officers
|
Name and Year of Birth
|
Position/Term
of Office
|
Principal
Occupation During the Past Five Years
|
Number
of Portfolios in Fund Complex Overseen by Trustee
|
Other
Directorships held by the Trustee During the Last 5 Years
|
|
INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
|
|
Brian O’Neil (1952)
|
Lead Independent
Trustee and Audit Committee Chair
|
Retired; Chief
Investment Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (philanthropic
organization focused on health) (2003-2023)
|
1
|
None
|
|
Bharath
Potti (1987)
|
Independent
Trustee
|
Corporate
Development Manager, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (2021-present);
Associate Director, AT&T (2017-2021)
|
1
|
None
|
|
Ross Weiner (1971)
|
Independent
Trustee
|
Founder, Partner and General Counsel,
AXOM Partners (advisory firm) (2023-2025); Chief Operating Officer and
General Counsel, CODE Advisors (advisory firm) (2022-2023); Chief
Administrator Officer and General Counsel, Explorer Acquisitions (SPAC platform)
(2021-2022); Partner and General Counsel, Qatalyst Partners (advisory firm) (2012-2021)
|
1
|
None
|
|
INTERESTED TRUSTEE
|
|
Wenwen
McElhoe (Wendy Li) (1984)
|
Interested
Trustee
|
President and Chief Investment Officer,
Buena Capital Advisors (2023-present); Managing Director, Mother Cabrini
Health Foundation (2019-2023)
|
1
|
None
|
|
OFFICERS
|
|
Arash
Ghodoosi (1986)
|
President and
Secretary
|
Chief Executive Officer, Buena Capital
Advisors (2023-present); Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Spulse (market
tracking application) (2019-2023)
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Matthew
Pauker (1981)
|
Treasurer
|
Chairman, Buena Capital Advisors
(2023-present); Co-Founder, Picket Homes (2018-present); General Partner,
Cleo Capital (2021-2022)
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
|
Peter
Guarino (1958)
|
Chief
Compliance Officer
|
Founder and President, Compliance4, LLC
(2008-present)
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
Additional information about the Fund’s Trustees is available in the
Fund’s Statement of Additional Information, which can be obtained
without charge by calling 1-800-535-7096 or by emailing support@ivyinvest.co.
Item 2. Code of Ethics.
The registrant has adopted a code of ethics that applies to the registrant’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer. The registrant has not made any substantive amendments to its code of ethics during the period covered by this report. The registrant has not granted any waivers from any provisions of the code of ethics during the period covered by this report.
A copy of the registrant’s Code of Ethics is filed herewith.
Item 3. Audit Committee Financial Expert
The registrant’s board of trustees has determined that there is at least one audit committee financial expert serving on its audit committee. Brian O'Neil is the “audit committee financial expert” and is considered to be “independent” as each term is defined in Item 3 of Form N-CSR.
Item 4. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.
The following table details the aggregate fees billed or expected to be billed for each of the last two fiscal years for audit fees, audit-related fees, tax fees and all other fees by the principal accountant. “Audit fees” includes amounts related to an audit of the registrant’s annual financial statements or services that are normally provided by the accountant in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements for those fiscal years. “Audit-related fees” covers the assurance and related services by the principal accountant that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit of the registrant’s annual financial statements and are not covered under “audit fees,” including review of the Fund’s prospectus. “Tax fees” covers the professional services rendered by the principal accountant for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning, including review of the Fund’s tax returns, asset diversification and income testing, excise taxes, and fiscal year end income calculations. “All other fees” covers the aggregate fees for products and services provided by the principal accountant, other than the services reported in the foregoing three categories.
| Fee Category | Fiscal Year 2025 Fees | Fiscal Year 2024 Fees |
| Audit Fee | $24,500 | $24,500 |
| Audit-Related Fees | $0 | $0 |
| Tax Fees | $8,000 | $8,000 |
| All Other Fees | $0 | $0 |
The audit committee has adopted pre-approval policies and procedures that require the audit committee to pre-approve all audit and non-audit services of the registrant, including services provided to any entity affiliated with the registrant.
The percentage of fees billed by Cohen & Company, Ltd. for each of the last two fiscal years, applicable to non-audit services pursuant to waiver of pre-approval requirement were as follows:
| Fiscal Year 2025 Fees | Fiscal Year 2024 Fees |
| Audit-Related Fees | 0% | 0% |
| Tax Fees | 0% | 0% |
| All Other Fees | 0% | 0% |
All of the principal accountant’s hours spent on auditing the registrant’s financial statements were attributed to work performed by full-time permanent employees of the principal accountant.
The following table indicates the non-audit fees billed or expected to be billed by the registrant’s accountant for services to the registrant and to the registrant’s investment adviser and any entity controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the registrant’s investment adviser that provides ongoing services to the registrant for the last two fiscal years of the registrant.
| Fiscal Year 2025 Fees | Fiscal Year 2024 Fees |
| Registrant | $0 | $0 |
| Registrant's Investment Adviser | $0 | $0 |
During the last two fiscal years, there have been no non-audit services rendered to the registrant’s investment adviser, and any entity controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the investment adviser that provides ongoing services to the registrant that were not pre-approved pursuant to paragraph (c)(7)(ii) of Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X for the audit committee of the board of trustees to consider whether they were compatible with maintaining the principal accountant’s independence.
Item 5. Audit Committee of Listed Registrants.
Not applicable.
Item 6. Investments.
Schedule of Investments is included as part of the annual report to shareholders filed under Item 1 of this Form N-CSR.
Item 7. Financial Statements and Financial Highlights for Open-End Management Investment Companies.
Not applicable.
Item 8. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants for Open-End Management Investment Companies.
Not applicable.
Item 9. Proxy Disclosures for Open-End Management Investment Companies.
Not applicable.
Item 10. Remuneration Paid to Directors, Officers, and Others of Open-End Management Investment Companies.
Not applicable.
Item 11. Statement Regarding Basis for Approval of Investment Advisory Contract.
Not applicable.
Item 12. Disclosure of Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures for Closed-End Management Investment Companies.
The registrant's board of trustees has adopted the Proxy Voting Policy of Buena Capital Advisors, LLC ("Adviser"), the registrant’s investment adviser and the Proxy Voting Policy of Rhumbline Advisers LP ("Sub-Adviser") as the Registrant’s Proxy Voting Procedures. Subject to the oversight of the registrant’s board of trustees, the registrant has delegated responsibility to the Adviser and Sub-Adviser to vote any proxies the registrant may receive. The Adviser’s general policy is to vote proxy proposals, amendments, consents or reslutions relating to the registrant in a manner that serves the best interests of the registrant with the goals of maximizing the value of the Fund's investments, promoting accountability of a company's management and board of directors to its shareholders, aligning the interests of management with those of shareholders, and increasing transparency of a company's business and operations.
These policies and procedures apply only to the Adviser.
Adviser’s Proxy Voting Policy
The Adviser, as a matter of policy and as a fiduciary to the Fund, permits the Fund to delegate proxy voting authority to the Adviser, consistent with the best economic interests of the Fund. All Fund proxies received by the Adviser are voted in accordance with the Adviser’s Proxy Voting Guidelines, as described below.
As part of its fiduciary duties to the registrant, the Adviser will vote proxies. With respect to each proxy proposal, the Adviser will consider the period of time that the particular security is expected to be held for an account, the size of the holding, the costs involved with the proxy proposal, the existing corporate governance structure, and the current management and operations for the particular company. Typically, the Adviser will vote proxies in accordance with management’s recommendations. However, in situations where the Adviser believes that management is acting on its own behalf or acting in a manner that is adverse to the rights of the company’s shareholders, the Adviser will not vote with management.
For each proxy, the Adviser also considers whether there are any specific facts and circumstances that may give rise to a material conflict of interest on the part of the Adviser in voting the proxy. If it is determined that a material conflict of interest may exist, the proxy will be referred to the Adviser’s chief compliance officer for further guidance. All instances where the Adviser determines a material conflict of interest may exist are resolved in the best interests of the Fund. All instances where the Adviser determines a material conflict of interest may exist are resolved in the best interests of the registrant. The Adviser retains final authority and fiduciary responsibility for proxy voting.
Sub-Adviser's Proxy Voting Policy
The Sub-Adviser is generally authorized by the Adviser to vote proxies for the securities held by the Fund. The Sub-Adviser is required to vote proxies in accord with its own policies and procedures and the investment management agreement between the Adviser and Sub-Adviser.
To assist with proxy voting, the Sub-Adviser has engaged Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), a registered investment adviser that specializes in the provision of proxy research, vote recommendations and related governance research services. The Sub-Adviser has delegated to ISS the authority to vote its proxies consistent with predetermined ISS voting policies. The Sub-Adviser’s client portfolios will be voted according to the ISS U.S. Corporate Governance Policy unless otherwise directed by the Adviser or referred by ISS.
The Sub-Adviser may have a conflict of interest related to voting certain securities of publicly held companies to which it provides investment advisory services. By maintaining the above-described proxy voting process through ISS, the votes are made based on overall predetermined voting parameters rather than their application to any particular company thereby eliminating the effect of any potential conflict of interest. In the event that ISS does not provide a recommendation due to a conflict in voting, the chief compliance officer (CCO), or the CCO's designee, may consult the Sub-Adviser’s chief investment officer, or if necessary, ask for a recommendation. Documentation of any voting decisions will be maintained by the CCO.
Item 13. Portfolio Managers of Closed-End Management Investment Companies.
| Name | Position(s) Held with Company | Principal Occupations Last 5 Years |
| Wenwen McElhoe (Wendy Li) | Trustee, President and Chief Investment Officer | Managing Director, Mother Cabrini Health Foundation (2019-2023) |
The Portfolio Manager is not responsible for the day-to-day management of the portfolio of any other account.
Wenwen McElhoe has ownership and financial interests in, and may receive compensation and/or variable profit distributions from, the Adviser based on the Adviser’s financial performance, such as its overall revenues and profitability. Ms. McElhoe’s compensation is not tied to the Fund’s performance, except to the extent that the fee paid to the Adviser impacts the Adviser’s financial performance.
As of March 31, 2025, the Portfolio Manager beneficially owned over $1,000,000 of shares of the Fund.
Item 14. Purchases of Equity Securities by Closed-End Management Investment Company and Affiliated Purchasers.
Not applicable.
Item 15. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.
Not applicable.
Item 16. Controls and Procedures.
(a) The registrant’s President and Treasurer have reviewed the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 30a-3(c) under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Act”)) as of a date within 90 days of the filing of this report, as required by Rule 30a-3(b) under the Act and Rules 13a-15(b) or 15d-15(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Based on their review, such officers have concluded that the disclosure controls and procedures are effective in ensuring that information required to be disclosed in this report is appropriately recorded, processed, summarized and reported and made known to them by others within the registrant and by the registrant’s service provider.
(b) There were no changes in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 30a-3(d) under the Act) that occurred during the period covered by this report that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.
Item 17. Disclosure of Securities Lending Activities for Closed-End Management Investment Companies
The registrant did not engage in securities lending activities during the fiscal period reported on this Form N-CSR.
Item 18. Recovery of Erroneously Awarded Compensation.
Not applicable.
Item 19. Exhibits.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
|
(Registrant)
|
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund
|
|
By (Signature and Title)
|
/s/ Arash Ghodoosi
|
| |
Arash Ghodoosi, President
|
| |
(Principal Executive Officer)
|
|
Date
|
June 2, 2025
|
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
|
(Registrant)
|
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund
|
|
By (Signature and Title)
|
/s/ Arash Ghodoosi
|
| |
Arash Ghodoosi, President
|
| |
(Principal Executive Officer)
|
|
Date
|
June 2, 2025
|
|
(Registrant)
|
Institutional Investment Strategy Fund
|
|
By (Signature and Title)
|
/s/ Matthew Pauker
|
| |
Matthew Pauker, Treasurer
|
| |
(Principal Financial Officer)
|
|
Date
|
June 2, 2025
|
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