and securities of issuers that may be
negatively impacted by such factors may be purchased and retained by the Fund while the Fund may
divest or not invest in securities of issuers that may be positively impacted by such factors.
On behalf of the Fund, the adviser then buys and sells equity securities,
using the research and valuation rankings as a basis. In general, the adviser buys equity securities that are identified as attractive and considers selling them when they appear less attractive based on the Fund’s process.
Along with attractive valuation, the adviser often considers a number of other criteria,
including:
●
catalysts, such as improving company fundamentals, that could trigger a rise in a stock’s price
●
impact on the overall risk of the portfolio
●
high perceived potential reward compared to perceived potential risk
●
possible temporary mispricings caused by apparent market overreactions.
Investment Process — Options Overlay Strategy: To implement the
Put/Spread Collar strategy, the adviser utilizes exchange traded equity options based either on the Index or on S&P 500 ETFs. The Put/Spread Collar is constructed by buying a put option at a higher strike price while writing a put
option at a relatively lower strike price and simultaneously selling a call option that
substantially offsets the cost of the put option spread. The Put/Spread Collar strategy is an actively managed process and is designed to provide a continuous market hedge for the portfolio. The put option spread is
generally maintained at a level intended to protect the Fund from a decrease in the market of 5%
to 20%, with potential upside generally capped at 3.5-5.5%. The upside cap could be more or less, depending on market conditions. The options are systematically reset on at least a quarterly basis to better capitalize on
current market conditions and opportunities while seeking to provide predictable returns in all
market cycles.
The Fund’s Main Investment
Risks
The Fund is subject to management risk and may not achieve
its objective if the adviser’s expectations regarding particular instruments or markets are
not met.
An investment in this Fund or any other fund may not provide a complete investment program. The suitability of an investment in the Fund
should be considered based on the investment objective, strategies and risks described in this prospectus, considered in light of all of the other investments in your
portfolio, as well as your risk tolerance, financial goals and time horizons. You may want to consult with a financial advisor to determine if this Fund is suitable for you.
The Fund is subject to the main risks noted below, any of which may
adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value (NAV), market price, performance and ability to meet its investment objective.
Equity Market Risk. The price of equity securities may rise or fall because of changes in the broad market or changes in a
company’s financial condition, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. These price movements
may result from factors affecting individual companies, sectors or industries selected for the
Fund’s portfolio or the securities market as a whole, such as
changes in economic or political
conditions. When the value of the Fund’s securities goes down, your investment in the Fund
decreases in value.
General Market Risk. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or
conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other countries
or regions. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in general financial markets, a particular financial market or other asset classes due to a number of factors, including inflation
(or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates,
global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability, debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, trade wars, retaliatory trade measures, sanctions and other trade barriers,
supply chain disruptions, regulatory events, other governmental trade or market control programs
and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters
or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics or pandemics or the threat or
potential of one or more such factors and occurrences.
Strategy Risk. The Fund’s investment strategies may not always provide greater market protection than other equity instruments, particularly in rising equity markets when
the Fund is expected to underperform traditional long-only equity strategies. In addition, as a
result of the structure of the options overlay strategy, the Fund is not expected to provide as much market protection during times when the market is only down slightly; during such periods, the Fund is
expected to perform in line with broad equity markets. While the equity portfolio invests
significantly in companies included in the Index, differences in holdings between the Fund’s equity portfolio and the Index or S&P 500 ETFs may also lead to a less efficient hedge.
Options Risk. The value of the Fund’s option positions will fluctuate in response to changes in the value of the underlying index. The value of options is affected by changes in
the value and dividend rates of the securities held by the S&P 500 ETFs or represented in the
Index underlying the option, changes in interest rates, changes in the actual or perceived volatility of the S&P 500 ETFs or the Index and the remaining time to the options expiration, as well as trading conditions
in the options market. Selling call options can reduce equity market risk, but it limits the
opportunity to profit from an increase in the market value of stocks in exchange for upfront cash at the time of selling the call option. The Fund also risks losing all or part of the cash paid for purchasing put options. Unusual
market conditions or the lack of a ready market for any particular option at a specific time may
reduce the effectiveness of the Fund’s option strategies, and for these and other reasons, the Fund’s option strategies may not reduce the Fund’s volatility to the extent desired and could result in
losses.
Large Cap Company Risk. Because the Fund invests in large cap company securities, it may underperform other funds during periods when the Fund’s large cap securities are out of favor.
Smaller Company Risk. Investments in securities of smaller companies (mid cap and small cap companies) may be riskier, less liquid, more volatile and more vulnerable to
economic, market and industry changes than securities of larger, more