COLUMBIA PARTNERS EQUITY FUND
PROSPECTUS
AUGUST 1, 2000
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE:
Long-term capital growth
1775 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
(888) 696-2733
THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION HAS NOT APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THESE
SECURITIES OR DETERMINED IF THIS PROSPECTUS IS TRUTHFUL OR COMPLETE. ANY
REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
RISK/RETURN SUMMARY..........................................................1
FEES AND EXPENSES OF INVESTING IN THE FUND...................................3
HOW TO BUY SHARES............................................................4
HOW TO REDEEM SHARES.........................................................6
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE.............................................7
DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES...........................................7
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND.......................................................8
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS.........................................................9
FOR MORE INFORMATION................................................BACK COVER
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RISK/RETURN SUMMARY
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The investment objective of the Columbia Partners Equity Fund is to provide
long term growth for its shareholders.
PRINCIPAL STRATEGIES
The Fund invests primarily in common stocks of small, medium and large
capitalization U.S. companies. The advisor selects stocks that it believes
offer strong growth prospects and are reasonably valued. The advisor uses
computer analysis and fundamental research to select stocks that have all or
some of the following characteristics:
o strong earnings growth
o improving analysts' expectations for future earnings growth o reasonable
price/earnings ratios relative to their historic ranges o improving stock price
performance and momentum.
The Fund will invest at least 65% of its net assets in common stock. While
it is anticipated that the Fund will diversify its investments across a range
of industry sectors, certain sectors are likely to be overweighted compared to
others because the Fund's advisor seeks the best investment opportunities
regardless of sector. The Fund may, for example, be overweighted at times in
the technology sector. The sectors in which the Fund may be overweighted will
vary at different points in the economic cycle. At times, a portion of the Fund
may be invested in companies with short operating histories (often referred to
as new issuers), including stock offered in initial public offerings (IPOs).
The Fund may sell a security if the advisor's price objective has been
realized or if the fundamental analysis indicates that the company's prospects
for growth have deteriorated. The Fund often sells stocks purchased in IPOs soon
after purchase, which would increase the Fund's portfolio turnover rate.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
o MANAGEMENT RISK. The advisor's strategy may fail to produce the
intended results.
o SMALLER COMPANY RISK. To the extent the Fund invests in smaller
capitalization companies, the Fund will be subject to additional risks.
These include:
o The earnings and prospects of smaller companies are more volatile than
larger companies.
o Smaller companies may experience higher failure rates than do larger
companies.
o The trading volume of securities of smaller companies is normally less
than that of larger companies and, therefore, may disproportionately
affect their market price, tending to make them fall more in response
to selling pressure than is the case with larger companies.
o Smaller companies may have limited markets, product lines or financial
resources and may lack management experience.
o COMPANY RISK. The value of the Fund may decrease in response to the
activities and financial prospects of an individual company in the Fund's
portfolio. The value of an individual company can be more volatile than the
market as a whole.
o
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NEW ISSUER RISK. Investments in relatively new issuers, including stocks
purchased in IPOs, may be more speculative because such companies are
relatively unseasoned.
o New issuers may lack sufficient resources, may be unable to generate
internally the funds necessary for growth and may find external
financing to be unavailable on favorable terms or even totally
unavailable.
o New issuers will often be involved in the development or marketing of a
new product with no established market, which could lead to significant
losses.
o New issuers are often smaller companies and, therefore, the "smaller
company risk" described above often applies to new issuers.
o MARKET RISK. Overall stock market risks may also affect the value of the
Fund. Factors such as domestic economic growth and market conditions,
interest rate levels, and political events affect the securities markets and
could cause the Fund's share price to fall.
o SECTOR RISK. If the Fund's portfolio is overweighted in a certain sector, any
negative development affecting that sector will have a greater impact on the
Fund than a fund that is not overweighted in that sector. The Fund may have a
greater concentration in technology and/or telecommunications companies and
weakness in either sector could result in significant losses to the Fund.
Technology and telecommunications companies may be significantly affected by
falling prices and profits and intense competition, and their products may be
subject to rapid obsolescence. The telecommunications sector is subject to
changing government regulations that may limit profits and restrict services
offered.
o VOLATILITY RISK. Common stocks tend to be more volatile than other investment
choices. The value of an individual company can be more volatile than the
market as a whole. This volatility affects the value of the Fund's shares.
o TURNOVER RISK. The Fund may at times have a portfolio turnover rate that is
higher than other stock funds. Higher portfolio turnover would result in
correspondingly greater brokerage commission expenses (which will lower the
Fund's total return). A high portfolio turnover may result in the
distribution to shareholders of additional capital gains for tax purposes,
some of which may be taxable at ordinary rates.
o An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of any bank and is not insured or
guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other
government agency.
o The Fund's historic returns may in part result from investments in particular
types of securities, such as stocks offered in IPOs or technology stocks.
There is no assurance that investments in those types of securities will
continue to be a source of positive returns for the Fund.
o The Fund is not a complete investment program. As with any mutual fund
investment, the Fund's returns will vary and you could lose money.
o
IS THE FUND RIGHT FOR YOU?
The Fund may be suitable for:
o Long-term investors seeking a fund with a growth investment strategy
o Investors who can tolerate the risks associated with common stock
investments, and the greater risks of focusing on certain sectors of
the economy
o Investors willing to accept the greater market price fluctuations of
smaller companies and new issuers
GENERAL
The investment objective of the Fund may be changed without shareholder
approval.
From time to time, the Fund may take temporary defensive positions which are
inconsistent with the Fund's principal investment strategies, in attempting to
respond to adverse market, economic, political, or other conditions. For
example, the Fund may hold all or a portion of its assets in money market
instruments, securities of other no-load mutual funds or repurchase agreements.
If the Fund invests in shares of another mutual fund, the shareholders of the
Fund generally will be subject to duplicative management fees. As a result of
engaging in these temporary measures, the Fund may not achieve its investment
objective. The Fund may also invest in such instruments at any time to maintain
liquidity or pending selection of investments in accordance with its policies.
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HOW THE FUND HAS PERFORMED
Although past performance of a fund is no guarantee of how it will perform
in the future, historical performance may give you some indication of the risk
of investing in the fund because it demonstrates how its returns have varied
over time. The Bar Chart and Performance Table that would otherwise appear in
this prospectus have been omitted because the Fund is recently organized and has
a limited performance history.
FEES AND EXPENSES OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
The tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold
shares of the Fund.
SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment)
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases .........................NONE
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load)......................................NONE
Redemption Fee............................................................NONE
Exchange Fee..............................................................NONE
ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that are deducted from Fund assets)
Management Fees..........................................................1.20%
Distribution (12b-1) Fees.................................................NONE
Other Expenses ..........................................................0.02%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses ....................................1.22%
Expense Reimbursement1...................................................0.02%
NET EXPENSES (after expense reimbursement)...............................1.20%
1The Fund's advisor has contractually agreed to permanently reimburse fees and
expenses of the trustees who are not "interested persons" as defined in the
Investment Company Act to maintain the Fund's total operating expenses at 1.20%
of net assets.
Example:
The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in
the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example uses the
same assumptions as other mutual fund prospectuses: a $10,000 initial investment
for the time periods indicated, reinvestment of dividends and distributions, 5%
annual total return, constant operating expenses, and sale of all shares at the
end of each time period. Although your actual expenses may be different, based
on these assumptions your costs will be:
1 YEAR 3 YEARS 5 YEARS 10 YEARS
$123 $383 $663 $1,461
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HOW TO BUY SHARES
The minimum initial investment in the Fund is $5,000 ($2,000 for qualified
retirement plans) and minimum subsequent investments are $500. These minimums
may be waived by the advisor for accounts participating in an automatic
investment program. If your investment is aggregated into an omnibus account
established by an investment advisor, broker or other intermediary, the account
minimums apply to the omnibus account, not to your individual investment. If you
purchase or redeem shares through a broker/dealer or another intermediary, you
may be charged a fee by that intermediary.
INITIAL PURCHASE
BY MAIL - To be in proper form, your initial purchase request must
include:
o a completed and signed investment application form (which accompanies
this Prospectus); and
o a check (subject to the minimum amounts) made payable to the Fund.
Mail the application and check to:
U.S. Mail: Overnight:
Columbia Partners Equity Fund Columbia Partners Equity Fund
c/o Unified Fund Services, Inc. c/o Unified Fund Services, Inc.
P.O. Box 6110 431 North Pennsylvania Street
Indianapolis, Indiana 46206-6110 Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
BY WIRE - You may also purchase shares of the Fund by wiring federal funds
from your bank, which may charge you a fee for doing so. To wire money, you must
call Unified Fund Services, Inc. the Fund's transfer agent at (888) 696-2733 to
set up your account and obtain an account number. You should be prepared at that
time to provide the information on the application. Then, provide your bank with
the following information for purposes of wiring your investment:
Firstar Bank, N.A.
ABA #0420-0001-3
Attn: Columbia Partners Equity Fund
Account Name _________________ (write in shareholder name)
For the Account# _______________ (write in account number)
D.D.A.#823257860
You must mail a signed application to Unified Fund Services, Inc. the
Fund's transfer agent, at the above address in order to complete your initial
wire purchase. Wire orders will be accepted only on a day on which the Fund,
custodian and transfer agent are open for business. A wire purchase will not be
considered made until the wired money is received and the purchase is accepted
by the Fund. Any delays which may occur in wiring money, including delays which
may occur in processing by the banks, are not the responsibility of the Fund or
the transfer agent. There is presently no fee for the receipt of wired funds,
but the Fund may charge shareholders for this service in the future.
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ADDITIONAL INVESTMENTS
You may purchase additional shares of the Fund at any time (subject to
minimum investment requirements) by mail, wire, or automatic investment. Each
additional mail purchase request must contain:
-your name -the name of your account(s)
-your account number(s) -a check made payable to Columbia Partners Equity Fund
Checks should be sent to the Columbia Partners Equity Fund at the address listed
above. A bank wire should be sent as outlined above.
AUTOMATIC INVESTMENT PLAN
You may make regular investments in the Fund with an Automatic Investment
Plan by completing the appropriate section of the account application and
attaching a voided personal check. Investments may be made monthly to allow
dollar-cost averaging by automatically deducting $100 or more from your bank
checking account. You may change the amount of your monthly purchase at any
time.
TAX SHELTERED RETIREMENT PLANS
Since the Fund is oriented to longer-term investments, the Fund may be an
appropriate investment medium for tax-sheltered retirement plans, including:
individual retirement plans (IRAs); simplified employee pensions (SEPs); 401(k)
plans; qualified corporate pension and profit-sharing plans (for employees); tax
deferred investment plans (for employees of public school systems and certain
types of charitable organizations); and other qualified retirement plans. You
should contact the Fund's transfer agent for the procedure to open an IRA or SEP
plan, as well as more specific information regarding these retirement plan
options. Please consult with an attorney or tax advisor regarding these plans.
You must pay custodial fees for your IRA by redemption of sufficient shares of
the Fund from the IRA unless you pay the fees directly to the IRA custodian.
Call the Fund's transfer agent about the IRA custodial fees.
OTHER PURCHASE INFORMATION
The Fund may limit the amount of purchases and refuse to sell to any
person. If your check or wire does not clear, you will be responsible for any
loss incurred by the Fund. If you are already a shareholder, the Fund can redeem
shares from any identically registered account in the Fund as reimbursement for
any loss incurred. You may be prohibited or restricted from making future
purchases in the Fund.
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HOW TO REDEEM SHARES
You may receive redemption payments by check or federal wire transfer. The
proceeds may be more or less than the purchase price of your shares, depending
on the market value of the Fund's securities at the time of your redemption.
Presently there is no charge for wire redemptions; however, the Fund may charge
for this service in the future. Any charges for wire redemptions will be
deducted from your Fund account by redemption of shares. If you redeem your
shares through a broker/dealer or other institution, you may be charged a fee by
that institution.
BY MAIL - You may redeem any part of your account in the Fund at no charge
by mail. Your request should be addressed to:
Columbia Partners Equity Fund
c/o Unified Fund Services, Inc.
P.O. Box 6110
Indianapolis, Indiana 46206-6110
Requests to sell shares are processed at the net asset value next
calculated after we receive your order in proper form. To be in proper form,
your request for a redemption must include your letter of instruction, including
the Fund name, account number, account name(s), the address, and the dollar
amount or number of shares you wish to redeem. This request must be signed by
all registered share owner(s) in the exact name(s) and any special capacity in
which they are registered. The Fund may require that signatures be guaranteed by
a bank or member firm of a national securities exchange. Signature guarantees
are for the protection of shareholders. At the discretion of the Fund or the
Fund's transfer agent, a shareholder, prior to redemption, may be required to
furnish additional legal documents to insure proper authorization.
BY TELEPHONE - You may redeem any part of your account in the Fund by
calling the Fund's transfer agent at (888) 696-2733. You must first complete the
Optional Telephone Redemption and Exchange section of the investment application
to institute this option. The Fund, the transfer agent and the custodian are not
liable for following redemption or exchange instructions communicated by
telephone that they reasonably believe to be genuine. However, if they do not
employ reasonable procedures to confirm that telephone instructions are genuine,
they may be liable for any losses due to unauthorized or fraudulent
instructions. Procedures employed may include recording telephone instructions
and requiring a form of personal identification from the caller.
The Fund or the transfer agent may terminate the telephone redemption
procedures at any time. During periods of extreme market activity, it is
possible that shareholders may encounter some difficulty in telephoning the
Fund, although neither the Fund nor the transfer agent has ever experienced
difficulties in receiving and in a timely fashion responding to telephone
requests for redemptions or exchanges. If you are unable to reach the Fund by
telephone, you may request a redemption or exchange by mail.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION - If you are not certain of the requirements
for a redemption please call the Fund's transfer agent at (888) 696-2733.
Redemptions specifying a certain date or share price cannot be accepted and will
be returned. You will be mailed the proceeds on or before the fifth business day
following the redemption. However, payment for redemption made against shares
purchased by check will be made only after the check has been collected, which
normally may take up to fifteen calendar days. Also, when the New York Stock
Exchange is closed (or when trading is restricted) for any reason other than its
customary weekend or holiday closing, or under any emergency circumstances (as
determined by the Securities and Exchange Commission) the Fund may suspend
redemptions or postpone payment dates.
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Because the Fund incurs certain fixed costs in maintaining shareholder
accounts, the Fund may require you to redeem all of your shares in the Fund on
30 days' written notice if the value of your shares in the Fund is less than
$5,000 due to redemption, or such other minimum amount as the Fund may determine
from time to time. An involuntary redemption constitutes a sale. You should
consult your tax advisor concerning the tax consequences of involuntary
redemptions. You may increase the value of your shares in the Fund to the
minimum amount within the 30-day period. Your shares are subject to redemption
at any time if the Board of Trustees determines in its sole discretion that
failure to so redeem may have materially adverse consequences to all or any of
the shareholders of the Fund.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
The price you pay for your shares is based on the Fund's net asset value
per share (NAV). The NAV is calculated at the close of trading (normally 4:00
p.m. Eastern time) on each day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business
(the Stock Exchange is closed on weekends, Federal holidays and Good Friday).
The NAV is calculated by dividing the value of the Fund's total assets
(including interest and dividends accrued but not yet received) minus
liabilities (including accrued expenses) by the total number of shares
outstanding.
The Fund's assets are generally valued at their market value. If market
prices are not available, or if an event occurs after the close of the trading
market that materially affects the values, assets may be valued by the Fund's
advisor at their fair value, according to procedures approved by the Fund's
Board of Trustees.
Requests to purchase and sell shares are processed at the NAV next
calculated after we receive your order in proper form.
DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES
DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS. The Fund typically distributes substantially
all of its net investment income in the form of dividends and taxable capital
gains to its shareholders. These distributions are automatically reinvested in
the Fund unless you request cash distributions on your application or through a
written request. The Fund expects that its distributions will consist primarily
of capital gains.
TAXES. In general, selling shares of the Fund and receiving distributions
(whether reinvested or taken in cash) are taxable events. Depending on the
purchase price and the sale price, you may have a gain or a loss on any shares
sold. Any tax liabilities generated by your transactions or by receiving
distributions are your responsibility. You may want to avoid making a
substantial investment when a Fund is about to make a capital gains distribution
because you would be responsible for any taxes on the distribution regardless of
how long you have owned your shares.
Early each year, the Fund will mail to you a statement setting forth the
federal income tax information for all distributions made during the previous
year. If you do not provide your taxpayer identification number, your account
will be subject to backup withholding.
The tax considerations described in this section do not apply to
tax-deferred accounts or other non-taxable entities. Because each investor's tax
circumstances are unique, please consult with your tax advisor about your
investment.
<PAGE>
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND
Columbia Partners, L.L.C., Investment Management, 1775 Pennsylvania
Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006 serves as investment advisor to the Fund.
As of December 31, 1999 the advisor manages $2.5 billion in assets for
pension funds, endowment funds and individuals in large, medium and small
capitalization equity portfolios and fixed income and balanced portfolios.
The advisor was organized in 1995 and currently has a staff of 25 with
average experience of 18 years among the investment professionals.
The day-to-day management of the Fund will be directed by a team of
three senior professionals: Robert A. von Pentz, CFA, Managing Partner; Gary
Dickinson, CFA, Principal; and Rhys H. Williams, CFA, Principal.
Mr. von Pentz has oversight responsibility for all equity investment
activities at the advisor. Prior to forming the advisor, Mr. von Pentz was
chairman of the board and the chief investment officer at Riggs Investment
Management Company (RIMCO) in Washington. Mr. von Pentz has a BA in
economics and an MBA from the University of New Mexico.
Mr. Dickinson has been responsible for equity research and management
since joining the advisor in 1995. Prior to that time, he was a research analyst
at Riggs Investment Management Company. He has a BS in business administration
(summa cum laude) from Georgetown University.
Mr. Williams also has responsibility for equity research and management at
the advisor and primary responsibility for the firm's hedge fund. From 1990 to
1997, Mr. Williams was Senior Vice President at Prudential Securities, where,
among his responsibilities, he managed small and medium capitalization
portfolios. He has a BA from Duke University (magna cum laude) and a MA in
international economics from Johns Hopkins University.
The Fund is authorized to pay the advisor a fee equal to 1.20% of its
average daily net assets. The advisor pays all of the operating expenses of the
Fund except brokerage, taxes, interest, fees and expenses of non-interested
person trustees and extraordinary expenses. In this regard, it should be noted
that most investment companies pay their own operating expenses directly, while
the Fund's expenses, except those specified above, are paid by the advisor. The
advisor (not the Fund) may pay certain financial institutions (which may include
banks, brokers, securities dealers and other industry professionals) a fee for
providing distribution related services and/or for performing certain
administrative servicing functions for Fund shareholders to the extent these
institutions are allowed to do so by applicable statute, rule or regulation.
<PAGE>
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
The following condensed supplementary financial information for the year
ended March 31, 2000 is derived from the audited financial statements of the
Fund. The financial statements of the Fund have been audited by McCurdy &
Associates CPA's, Inc., independent public accountants, and are included in the
Fund's Annual Report. The Annual Report contains additional performance
information and is available upon request and without charge.
SELECTED PER SHARE DATA
Net asset value, beginning of period $10.00
------------
Income from investment operations
Net investment loss (0.04)
Net realized and unrealized gain 7.59
------------
Total from investment operations 7.55
------------
Less Distributions
From net investment income -0-
From net realized gain (0.39)
------------
Total distributions (0.39)
------------
Net asset value, end of period $17.16
============
TOTAL RETURN 76.56%
RATIOS AND SUPPLEMENTAL DATA
Net assets, end of period (000) $
24,040
Ratio of expenses to average net assets 1.20% Ratio of expenses to average net
assets before reimbursement 1.22% Ratio of net investment income (loss) to
average net assets (0.31)% Ratio of net investment income (loss) to average net
assets before (0.34)% reimbursement Portfolio turnover rate 215.08%
<PAGE>
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Several additional sources of information are available to you. The
Statement of Additional Information (SAI), incorporated into this prospectus by
reference, contains detailed information on Fund policies and operations. Annual
and semi-annual reports contain management's discussion of market conditions,
investment strategies and performance results as of the Fund's latest
semi-annual or annual fiscal year end.
Call the Fund at 888-696-2733 to request free copies of the SAI and the
Fund's annual and semi-annual reports, to request other information about the
Fund and to make shareholder inquiries.
You may review and copy information about the Fund (including the SAI and
other reports) at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Public Reference
Room in Washington, D.C. Call the SEC at 1-202-942-8090 for room hours and
operation. You may also obtain reports and other information about the Fund on
the EDGAR Database on the SEC's Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and copies
of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by
electronic request at the following e-mail address: [email protected], or by
writing the SEC's Public Reference Section of the SEC, Washington, D.C.
20549-0102.
Investment Company Act #811-9096
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COLUMBIA PARTNERS EQUITY FUND
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
August 1, 2000
This Statement of Additional Information ("SAI") is not a prospectus. It
should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of Columbia Partners Equity
Fund dated August 1, 2000. This SAI incorporates by reference the Fund's Annual
Report to Shareholders for the period ended March 31, 2000 ("Annual Report"). A
free copy of the Prospectus or Annual Report can be obtained by writing the
Transfer Agent at 431 N. Pennsylvania Street, Indianapolis, IN 46204, or by
calling 1-888-696-2733.
TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND FUND............................................2
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK CONSIDERATIONS........3
INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS.......................................................7
THE INVESTMENT ADVISOR.......................................................9
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS.......................................................10
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE........................................11
DETERMINATION OF SHARE PRICE................................................12
INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE......................................................12
CUSTODIAN...................................................................13
TRANSFER AGENT AND FUND ACCOUNTING..........................................13
ACCOUNTANTS.................................................................14
DISTRIBUTOR.................................................................14
ADMINISTRATOR...............................................................14
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS........................................................14
<PAGE>
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND FUND
......Columbia Partners Equity Fund (the "Fund") was organized as a diversified
series of AmeriPrime Funds (the "Trust") on February 2, 1999. The Trust is an
open-end investment company established under the laws of Ohio by an Agreement
and Declaration of Trust dated August 8, 1995 (the "Trust Agreement"). The Trust
Agreement permits the Trustees to issue an unlimited number of shares of
beneficial interest of separate series without par value. The Fund is one of a
series of funds currently authorized by the Trustees.
......The Fund does not issue share certificates. All shares are held in
non-certificate form registered on the books of the Fund and the Fund's transfer
agent for the account of the shareholder. Each share of a series represents an
equal proportionate interest in the assets and liabilities belonging to that
series with each other share of that series and is entitled to such dividends
and distributions out of income belonging to the series as are declared by the
Trustees. The shares do not have cumulative voting rights or any preemptive or
conversion rights, and the Trustees have the authority from time to time to
divide or combine the shares of any series into a greater or lesser number of
shares of that series so long as the proportionate beneficial interest in the
assets belonging to that series and the rights of shares of any other series are
in no way affected. In case of any liquidation of a series, the holders of
shares of the series being liquidated will be entitled to receive as a class a
distribution out of the assets, net of the liabilities, belonging to that
series. Expenses attributable to any series are borne by that series. Any
general expenses of the Trust not readily identifiable as belonging to a
particular series are allocated by or under the direction of the Trustees in
such manner as the Trustees determine to be fair and equitable. No shareholder
is liable to further calls or to assessment by the Trust without his or her
express consent.
Any Trustee of the Trust may be removed by vote of the shareholders
holding not less than two-thirds of the outstanding shares of the Trust. The
Trust does not hold an annual meeting of shareholders. When matters are
submitted to shareholders for a vote, each shareholder is entitled to one vote
for each whole share he owns and fractional votes for fractional shares he owns.
All shares of the Fund have equal voting rights and liquidation rights. The
Declaration of Trust can be amended by the Trustees, except that any amendment
that adversely affects the rights of shareholders must be approved by the
shareholders affected. Each share of the Fund is subject to redemption at any
time if the Board of Trustees determines in its sole discretion that failure to
so redeem may have materially adverse consequences to all or any of the Fund's
shareholders.
As of July 14, 2000, the following persons may be deemed to beneficially
own or hold of record five percent (5%) or more of the Fund: Michael F. Horn,
Sr., 4667 Kenmore Drive, NW, Washington, DC 20007, 17.03%; Gerald SJ Cassidy,
700 13th Street, NW, #400, Washington, DC 20005, 11.82%; and Landon Butler, Jr.,
700 13th Street, NW, Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20005, 5.98%.
As of July 14, 2000, the officers and trustees as a group owned less than
one percent of the Fund.
For information concerning the purchase and redemption of shares of the
Fund, see "How to Buy Shares" and "How to Redeem Shares" in the Fund's
Prospectus. For a description of the methods used to determine the share price
and value of the Fund's assets, see "Determination of Net Asset Value" in the
Fund's Prospectus and this Statement of Additional Information.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK CONSIDERATIONS
This section contains a discussion of some of the investments the Fund may
make and some of the techniques it may use.
A. Equity Securities. Equity securities consist of common stock,
convertible preferred stock, convertible bonds, rights and warrants. Common
stocks, the most familiar type, represent an equity (ownership) interest in a
corporation. Convertible stocks and bonds are securities that can be converted
into common stock pursuant to their terms. Warrants are options to purchase
equity securities at a specified price for a specific time period. Rights are
similar to warrants, but normally have a short duration and are distributed by
the issuer to its shareholders. Although equity securities have a history of
long term growth in value, their prices fluctuate based on changes in a
company's financial condition and on overall market and economic conditions. The
Fund may not invest more than 5% of its net assets in either convertible
preferred stocks or convertible bonds. The advisor will limit the Fund's
investment in convertible securities to investment grade (those rated BBB or
better by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. or Standard & Poor's Rating Group) or,
if unrated, of comparable quality in the opinion of the advisor.
Equity securities include S&P Depositary Receipts ("SPDRs") and other
similar instruments. SPDRs are shares of a publicly traded unit investment trust
which owns the stock included in the S&P 500 Index, and changes in the price of
the SPDRs track the movement of the Index relatively closely. Similar
instruments may track the movement of other stock indexes.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in foreign equity
securities by purchasing American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). ADRs are
certificates evidencing ownership of shares of a foreign-based issuer held in
trust by a bank or similar financial institution. They are alternatives to the
direct purchase of the underlying securities in their national markets and
currencies. To the extent that the Fund does invest in ADRs, such investments
may be subject to special risks. For example, there may be less information
publicly available about a foreign company than about a U.S. company, and
foreign companies are not generally subject to accounting, auditing and
financial reporting standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S.
Other risks associated with investments in foreign securities include changes in
restrictions on foreign currency transactions and rates of exchanges, changes in
the administrations or economic and monetary policies of foreign governments,
the imposition of exchange control regulations, the possibility of expropriation
decrees and other adverse foreign governmental action, the imposition of foreign
taxes, less liquid markets, less government supervision of exchanges, brokers
and issuers, difficulty in enforcing contractual obligations, delays in
settlement of securities transactions and greater price volatility. In addition,
investing in foreign securities will generally result in higher commissions than
investing in similar domestic securities.
Investments in equity securities are subject to inherent market risks and
fluctuations in value due to earnings, economic conditions and other factors
beyond the control of the advisor. As a result, the return and net asset value
of the Fund will fluctuate. Securities in the Fund's portfolio may decrease in
value or not increase as much as the market as a whole. Although profits in some
Fund holdings may be realized quickly, it is not expected that most investments
will appreciate rapidly.
At times, a portion of the Fund may be invested in companies with short
operating histories ("new issuers") and in initial public offerings ("IPOs"),
and such investments could be considered speculative. New issuers are relatively
unseasoned and may lack sufficient resources, may be unable to generate
internally the funds necessary for growth and may find external financing to be
unavailable on favorable terms or even totally unavailable. New issuers will
often be involved in the development or marketing of a new product with no
established market, which could lead to significant losses. To the extent the
Fund invests in smaller capitalization companies, the Fund will also be subject
to the risks associated with such companies. Smaller capitalization companies,
IPOs and new issuers may experience lower trading volumes than larger
capitalization, established companies and may experience higher growth rates and
higher failure rates than larger capitalization companies. Smaller
capitalization companies, IPOs and new issuers also may have limited product
lines, markets or financial resources and may lack management depth.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in real estate investment
trusts ("REITs"). A REIT is a corporation or business trust that invests
substantially all of its assets in interests in real estate. Equity REITs are
those which purchase or lease land and buildings and generate income primarily
from rental income. Equity REITs may also realize capital gains (or losses) when
selling property that has appreciated (or depreciated) in value. Mortgage REITs
are those which invest in real estate mortgages and generate income primarily
from interest payments on mortgage loans. Hybrid REITs generally invest in both
real property and mortgages. In addition, REITs are generally subject to risks
associated with direct ownership of real estate, such as decreases in real
estate values or fluctuations in rental income caused by a variety of factors,
including increases in interest rates, increases in property taxes and other
operating costs, casualty or condemnation losses, possible environmental
liabilities and changes in supply and demand for properties. Risks associated
with REIT investments include the fact that equity and mortgage REITs are
dependent upon specialized management skills and are not fully diversified.
These characteristics subject REITs to the risks associated with financing a
limited number of projects. They are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency,
defaults by borrowers, and self-liquidation. Additionally, equity REITs may be
affected by any changes in the value of the underlying property owned by the
trusts, and mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of any credit
extended.
B. Fixed Income Securities. Although the Fund intends to invest primarily
in U.S. common stocks, the advisor reserves the right, during periods of
unusually high interest rates or unusual market conditions, to invest in fixed
income securities for preservation of capital, total return and capital gain
purposes, if the advisor believes that such a position would best serve the
Fund's investment objective. Fixed income securities include corporate debt
securities and U.S. government securities. Fixed income securities are generally
considered to be interest rate sensitive, which means that their value will
generally decrease when interest rates rise and increase when interest rates
fall. Securities with shorter maturities, while offering lower yields, generally
provide greater price stability than longer term securities and are less
affected by changes in interest rates.
CORPORATE DEBT SECURITIES - Corporate debt securities are long and
short term debt obligations issued by companies (such as publicly issued and
privately placed bonds, notes and commercial paper). The advisor considers
corporate debt securities to be of investment grade quality if they are rated
BBB or higher by Standard & Poor's Corporation, or Baa or higher by Moody's
Investors Services, Inc., or if unrated, determined by the advisor to be of
comparable quality. Investment grade debt securities generally have adequate to
strong protection of principal and interest payments. In the lower end of this
category, credit quality may be more susceptible to potential future changes in
circumstances and the securities have speculative elements.
U.S. GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS - U.S. government obligations may be
backed by the credit of the government as a whole or only by the issuing agency.
U.S. Treasury bonds, notes, and bills and some agency securities, such as those
issued by the Federal Housing Administration and the Government National
Mortgage Association (GNMA), are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S.
government as to payment of principal and interest and are the highest quality
government securities. Other securities issued by U.S. government agencies or
instrumentalities, such as securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Banks and
the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, are supported only by the credit of
the agency that issued them, and not by the U.S. government. Securities issued
by the Federal Farm Credit System, the Federal Land Banks, and the Federal
National Mortgage Association (FNMA) are supported by the agency's right to
borrow money from the U.S. Treasury under certain circumstances, but are not
backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
C. Convertible Securities. A convertible security is a bond, debenture,
preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a
prescribed amount of common stock. The Fund may invest up to 5% of its assets in
convertible securities rated BBB or higher by Standard & Poor's Corporation
("S&P") or by Moody's Investors Services, Inc. ("Moody's"), or if unrated,
determined by the advisor to be of comparable quality. Generally, investments in
securities in the lower rating categories provide higher yields but involve
greater volatility of price and risk of loss of principal and interest than
investments in securities with higher ratings. Securities rated lower than Baa
by Moody's or BBB by S&P are considered speculative. In addition, lower ratings
reflect a greater possibility of an adverse change in the financial conditions
affecting the ability of the issuer to make payments of principal and interest.
The market price of lower rated securities generally responds to short term
corporate and market developments to a greater extent than higher rated
securities which react primarily to fluctuations in the general level of
interest rates. Lower rated securities will also be affected by the market's
perception of their credit quality and the outlook for economic growth.
In the past, economic downturns or an increase in interest rates have
under certain circumstances caused a higher incidence of default by the issuers
of these securities and may do so in the future, especially in the case of
highly leveraged issuers.
The prices for these securities may be affected by legislative and
regulatory developments. For example, new federal rules require that savings and
loan associations gradually reduce their holdings of high-yield securities. An
effect of such legislation may be to significantly depress the prices of
outstanding lower rated securities. The market for lower rated securities may be
less liquid than the market for higher rated securities. Furthermore, the
liquidity of lower rated securities may be affected by the market's perception
of their credit quality. Therefore, judgment may at times play a greater role in
valuing these securities than in the case of higher rated securities, and it
also may be more difficult during certain adverse market conditions to sell
lower rated securities at their fair value to meet redemption requests or to
respond to changes in the market.
If the rating of a security by S&P or Moody's drops below investment
grade, the advisor will dispose of the security as soon as practicable
(depending on market conditions) unless the advisor determines based on its own
credit analysis that the security provides the opportunity of meeting the Fund's
objective without presenting excessive risk. The advisor will consider all
factors which it deems appropriate, including ratings, in making investment
decisions for the Fund and will attempt to minimize investment risk through
conditions and trends. While the advisor may refer to ratings, it does not rely
exclusively on ratings, but makes its own independent and ongoing review of
credit quality.
D. Option Transactions. The Fund may write covered call options, and
purchase put or call options, on stocks, bonds, and stock and bond indices
listed on domestic and foreign stock exchanges, in lieu of direct investment in
the underlying securities or for hedging purposes. An option involves either (a)
the right or the obligation to buy or sell a specific instrument at a specific
price until the expiration date of the option, or (b) the right to receive
payments or the obligation to make payments representing the difference between
the closing price of a market index and the exercise price of the option
expressed in dollars times a specified multiple until the expiration date of the
option. Options are sold (written) on securities and market indices. The
purchaser of an option on a security pays the seller (the writer) a premium for
the right granted but is not obligated to buy or sell the underlying security.
The purchaser of an option on a market index pays the seller a premium for the
right granted, and in return the seller of such an option is obligated to make
the payment. A writer of an option may terminate the obligation prior to
expiration of the option by making an offsetting purchase of an identical
option. Options are traded on organized exchanges and in the over-the-counter
market. Call options on securities which the Fund sells (writes) will be covered
or secured, which means that it will own the underlying security; or (for an
option on a stock index) will hold a portfolio of securities substantially
replicating the movement of the index (or, to the extent it does not hold such a
portfolio, will maintain a segregated account with the custodian of high quality
liquid debt obligations equal to the market value of the option, marked to
market daily). When the Fund writes call options, it may be required to maintain
a margin account, to pledge the underlying securities or U.S. government
obligations or to deposit liquid high quality debt obligations in a separate
account with the custodian.
The purchase and writing of options involves certain risks; for example,
the possible inability to effect closing transactions at favorable prices and an
appreciation limit on the securities set aside for settlement, as well as (in
the case of options on a stock index) exposure to an indeterminate liability.
The purchase of options limits the Fund's potential loss to the amount of the
premium paid and can afford the Fund the opportunity to profit from favorable
movements in the price of an underlying security to a greater extent than if
transactions were effected in the security directly. However, the purchase of an
option could result in the Fund losing a greater percentage of its investment
than if the transaction were effected directly. When the Fund writes a covered
call option, it will receive a premium, but it will give up the opportunity to
profit from a price increase in the underlying security above the exercise price
as long as its obligation as a writer continues, and it will retain the risk of
loss should the price of the security decline. When the Fund writes a covered
call option on a stock index, it will assume the risk that the price of the
index will rise above the exercise price, in which case the Fund may be required
to enter into a closing transaction at a loss.
E. Repurchase Agreements. The Fund may invest in repurchase agreements
fully collateralized by obligations of the U.S. Government and its agencies. A
repurchase agreement is a short-term investment in which the purchaser (i.e.,
the Fund) acquires ownership of a U.S. Government or agency obligation (which
may be of any maturity) and the seller agrees to repurchase the obligation at a
future time at a set price, thereby determining the yield during the purchaser's
holding period (usually not more than seven days from the date of purchase). Any
repurchase transaction in which the Fund engages will require full
collateralization of the seller's obligation during the entire term of the
repurchase agreement. In the event of a bankruptcy or other default of the
seller, the Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying
security and losses in value. However, the Fund intends to enter into repurchase
agreements only with Firstar Bank, N.A. (the Fund's custodian), other banks with
assets of $1 billion or more and registered securities dealers determined by the
advisor (subject to review by the Board of Trustees) to be creditworthy. The
advisor monitors the creditworthiness of the banks and securities dealers with
which the Fund engages in repurchase transactions.
INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS
Fundamental. The investment limitations described below have been adopted
by the Trust with respect to the Fund and are fundamental ("Fundamental"), i.e.,
they may not be changed without the affirmative vote of a majority of the
outstanding shares of the Fund. As used in the Prospectus and the Statement of
Additional Information, the term "majority" of the outstanding shares of the
Fund means the lesser of (1) 67% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund
present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares
of the Fund are present or represented at such meeting; or (2) more than 50% of
the outstanding shares of the Fund. Other investment practices which may be
changed by the Board of Trustees without the approval of shareholders to the
extent permitted by applicable law, regulation or regulatory policy are
considered non-fundamental ("Non-Fundamental").
1. Borrowing Money. The Fund will not borrow money, except (a) from a
bank, provided that immediately after such borrowing there is an asset coverage
of 300% for all borrowings of the Fund; or (b) from a bank or other persons for
temporary purposes only, provided that such temporary borrowings are in an
amount not exceeding 5% of the Fund's total assets at the time when the
borrowing is made. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from entering into
reverse repurchase transactions, provided that the Fund has an asset coverage of
300% for all borrowings and repurchase commitments of the Fund pursuant to
reverse repurchase transactions.
2. Senior Securities. The Fund will not issue senior securities. This
limitation is not applicable to activities that may be deemed to involve the
issuance or sale of a senior security by the Fund, provided that the Fund's
engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by the Investment
Company Act of 1940, as amended, the rules and regulations promulgated
thereunder or interpretations of the Securities and Exchange Commission or its
staff.
3. Underwriting. The Fund will not act as underwriter of securities issued
by other persons. This limitation is not applicable to the extent that, in
connection with the disposition of portfolio securities (including restricted
securities), the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under certain federal
securities laws.
4. Real Estate. The Fund will not purchase or sell real estate. This
limitation is not applicable to investments in marketable securities which are
secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not
preclude the Fund from investing in mortgage-related securities or investing in
companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion
of their assets in real estate (including real estate investment trusts).
5. Commodities. The Fund will not purchase or sell commodities unless
acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This
limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or
futures contracts, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by
commodities or from investing in companies which are engaged in a commodities
business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.
6. Loans. The Fund will not make loans to other persons, except (a) by
loaning portfolio securities, (b) by engaging in repurchase agreements, or (c)
by purchasing nonpublicly offered debt securities. For purposes of this
limitation, the term "loans" shall not include the purchase of a portion of an
issue of publicly distributed bonds, debentures or other securities.
7. Concentration. The Fund will not invest 25% or more of its total assets
in a particular industry. This limitation is not applicable to investments in
obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies and
instrumentalities or repurchase agreements with respect thereto.
With respect to the percentages adopted by the Trust as maximum
limitations on its investment policies and limitations, an excess above the
fixed percentage will not be a violation of the policy or limitation unless the
excess results immediately and directly from the acquisition of any security or
the action taken. This paragraph does not apply to the borrowing policy set
forth in paragraph 1 above.
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing limitations, any investment company,
whether organized as a trust, association or corporation, or a personal holding
company, may be merged or consolidated with or acquired by the Trust, provided
that if such merger, consolidation or acquisition results in an investment in
the securities of any issuer prohibited by said paragraphs, the Trust shall,
within ninety days after the consummation of such merger, consolidation or
acquisition, dispose of all of the securities of such issuer so acquired or such
portion thereof as shall bring the total investment therein within the
limitations imposed by said paragraphs above as of the date of consummation.
Non-Fundamental. The following limitations have been adopted by the Trust
with respect to the Fund and are Non-Fundamental (see "Investment Restrictions"
above).
i. Pledging. The Fund will not mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or in any
manner transfer, as security for indebtedness, any assets of the Fund except as
may be necessary in connection with borrowings described in limitation (1)
above. Margin deposits, security interests, liens and collateral arrangements
with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales
and other permitted investments and techniques are not deemed to be a mortgage,
pledge or hypothecation of assets for purposes of this limitation.
ii. Borrowing. The Fund will generally borrow only for liquidity purposes.
The Fund will not purchase any security while borrowings (including reverse
repurchase agreements) representing more than 5% of its total assets are
outstanding. The Fund will not enter into reverse repurchase agreements.
iii. Margin Purchases. The Fund will not purchase securities or evidences
of interest thereon on "margin." This limitation is not applicable to short term
credit obtained by the Fund for the clearance of purchases and sales or
redemption of securities, or to arrangements with respect to transactions
involving options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted
investments and techniques.
iv. Short Sales. The Fund will not effect short sales of securities.
v. Options. The Fund will not purchase or sell puts, calls, options or
straddles, except as described in the Prospectus and the Statement of Additional
Information.
vi. Restricted/Illiquid Securities. The Fund will not purchase restricted
or illiquid securities.
<PAGE>
THE INVESTMENT ADVISOR
The Fund's investment advisor is Columbia Partners, L.L.C., Investment
Management, 1775 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006 (the
"Advisor"). Galway Capital Management, L.L.C., 700 13th Street, N.W., Suite
1169, Washington, D.C. 20005, ("Galway") may be deemed to be a "controlling
person" of the Advisor due to its share of ownership of the Advisor. However, as
Galway is a venture capital firm, the Advisor does not believe itself to be
controlled by Galway.
Under the terms of the management agreement (the "Agreement"), the Advisor
manages the Fund's investments subject to approval of the Board of Trustees and
pays all of the expenses of the Fund except brokerage, taxes, interest, fees and
expenses of the non-interested person trustees and extraordinary expenses. As
compensation for its management services and agreement to pay the Fund's
expenses, the Fund is obligated to pay the Advisor a fee computed and accrued
daily and paid monthly at an annual rate of 1.20% of the average daily net
assets of the Fund. The Advisor may waive all or part of its fee, at any time,
and at its sole discretion, but such action shall not obligate the Advisor to
waive any fees in the future. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2000, the Fund
paid advisory fees of $133,984.
The Advisor retains the right to use the name "Columbia Partners" or any
variation thereof in connection with another investment company or business
enterprise with which the Advisor is or may become associated. The Trust's right
to use the name "Columbia Partners" or any variation thereof automatically
ceases ninety days after termination of the Agreement and may be withdrawn by
the Advisor on ninety days written notice.
The Advisor may make payments to banks or other financial institutions
that provide shareholder services and administer shareholder accounts. If a bank
or other financial institution were prohibited from continuing to perform all or
a part of such services, management of the Fund believes that there would be no
material impact on the Fund or its shareholders. Banks and other financial
institutions may charge their customers fees for offering these services to the
extent permitted by applicable regulatory authorities, and the overall return to
those shareholders availing themselves of the bank services will be lower than
to those shareholders who do not. The Fund may from time to time purchase
securities issued by banks and other financial institutions which provide such
services; however, in selecting investments for the Fund, no preference will be
shown for such securities.
The Trust and the Advisor have each adopted a Code of Ethics under Rule
17j-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The Code significantly restricts
the personal investing activities of all employees of the Advisor. The Code
requires that all employees of the Advisor preclear any personal securities
investment. The preclearance requirement and associated procedures are designed
to identify any substantive prohibition or limitation applicable to the proposed
investment. In addition, no employee may purchase or sell any security which at
the time is being purchased or sold, or to the knowledge of the employee is
being considered for purchase or sale, by the Fund. The substantive restrictions
also include a ban on acquiring any securities in an initial public offering and
provides for trading "blackout periods" which prohibit trading by portfolio
managers of the Fund within periods of trading by the Fund in the same (or
equivalent) security. The restrictions and prohibitions apply to most securities
transactions by employees of the Advisor, with limited exceptions for some
securities (such as securities that have a market capitalization and average
daily trading volume above certain minimums).
<PAGE>
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS
The Board of Trustees supervises the business activities of the Trust. The
names of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust are shown below. Each
Trustee who is an "interested person" of the Trust, as defined in the Investment
Company Act of 1940, is indicated by an asterisk.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
=====================================================================================
NAME, AGE AND ADDRESS POSITION PRINCIPAL OCCUPATIONS DURING PAST 5 YEARS
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C>
*Kenneth D. Trumpfheller President, President, Treasurer and Secretary of
1793 Kingswood Drive Secretary AmeriPrime Financial Services, Inc., the
Suite 200 and Trustee Fund's administrator, and AmeriPrime Financial
Southlake, Texas 76092 Securities, Inc., the Fund's distributor,
Year of Birth: 1958 since 1994; President and Trustee of
AmeriPrime Advisors Trust and AmeriPrime
Insurance Trust; Prior to December, 1994, a
senior client executive with SEI Financial
Services.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Robert A. Chopyak Treasurer Manager of AmeriPrime Financial Services,
1793 Kingswood Drive and Chief Inc., the Fund's administrator, from February
Suite 200 Financial 2000 to present. Self-employed, performing
Southlake, Texas 76092 Officer Y2K testing, January 1999 to January 2000.
Year of Birth: 1968 Vice President of Fund Accounting, American
Data Services, Inc., a mutual fund services
company, October 1992 to December 1998.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve L. Cobb Trustee President of Chandler Engineering Company,
2001 N. Indianwood L.L.C., oil and gas services company; various
Avenue positions with Carbo Ceramics, Inc., oil field
Broken Arrow, OK 74012 manufacturing/supply company, from 1984 to
Year of Birth: 1957 1997, most recently Vice President of
Marketing.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gary E. Hippenstiel Trustee Director, Vice President and Chief Investment
600 Jefferson Street Officer of Legacy Trust Company since 1992;
Suite 350 President and Director of Heritage Trust
Houston, TX 77002 Company from 1994-1996; Vice President and
Year of Birth: 1947 Manager of Investments of Kanaly Trust Company
from 1988 to 1992.
=====================================================================================
</TABLE>
* This person may be deemed an "interested person" of the Trust as defined in
the Investment Company Act of 1940.
The compensation paid to the Trustees of the Trust for the Fund's fiscal
year ended March 31, 2000 is as set forth in the following table. Trustee fees
are Trust expenses and each series of the Trust pays a portion of the Trustee
fees.
=================================================================
AGGREGATE TOTAL COMPENSATION
COMPENSATION FROM TRUST (THE TRUST
NAME FROM TRUST IS NOT IN A FUND COMPLEX)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Kenneth D. Trumpfheller 0 0
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Steve L. Cobb $20,112.50 $20,112.50
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Gary E. Hippenstiel $20,112.50 $20,112.50
-----------------------------------------------------------------
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE
Subject to policies established by the Board of Trustees of the Trust, the
Advisor is responsible for the Fund's portfolio decisions and the placing of the
Fund's portfolio transactions. In placing portfolio transactions, the Advisor
seeks the best qualitative execution for the Fund, taking into account such
factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer
spread), the execution capability, financial responsibility and responsiveness
of the broker or dealer and the brokerage and research services provided by the
broker or dealer. The Advisor generally seeks favorable prices and commission
rates that are reasonable in relation to the benefits received. Consistent with
Rules of Fair Practice of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.,
and subject to its obligation of seeking best qualitative execution, the Advisor
may give consideration to sales of shares of the Trust as a factor in the
selection of brokers and dealers to execute portfolio transactions.
The Advisor is specifically authorized to select brokers or dealers who
also provide brokerage and research services to the Fund and/or the other
accounts over which the Advisor exercises investment discretion and to pay such
brokers or dealers a commission in excess of the commission another broker or
dealer would charge if the Advisor determines in good faith that the commission
is reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and research services
provided. The determination may be viewed in terms of a particular transaction
or the Advisor's overall responsibilities with respect to the Trust and to other
accounts over which it exercises investment discretion.
Research services include supplemental research, securities and economic
analyses, statistical services and information with respect to the availability
of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities and analyses of reports
concerning performance of accounts. The research services and other information
furnished by brokers through whom the Fund effects securities transactions may
also be used by the Advisor in servicing all of its accounts. Similarly,
research and information provided by brokers or dealers serving other clients
may be useful to the Advisor in connection with its services to the Fund.
Although research services and other information are useful to the Fund and the
Advisor, it is not possible to place a dollar value on the research and other
information received. It is the opinion of the Board of Trustees and the Advisor
that the review and study of the research and other information will not reduce
the overall cost to the Advisor of performing its duties to the Fund under the
Agreement. Due to research services provided by brokers, the Columbia Partners
Equity Fund directed to brokers $11,499,457 of brokerage transactions (on which
commissions were $10,468) during the fiscal period ended March 31, 2000."
Over-the-counter transactions will be placed either directly with
principal market makers or with broker-dealers, if the same or a better price,
including commissions and executions, is available. Fixed income securities are
normally purchased directly from the issuer, an underwriter or a market maker.
Purchases include a concession paid by the issuer to the underwriter and the
purchase price paid to a market maker may include the spread between the bid and
asked prices.
To the extent that the Trust and another of the Advisor's clients seek to
acquire the same security at about the same time, the Trust may not be able to
acquire as large a position in such security as it desires or it may have to pay
a higher price for the security. Similarly, the Trust may not be able to obtain
as large an execution of an order to sell or as high a price for any particular
portfolio security if the other client desires to sell the same portfolio
security at the same time. On the other hand, if the same securities are bought
or sold at the same time by more than one client, the resulting participation in
volume transactions could produce better executions for the Trust. In the event
that more than one client wants to purchase or sell the same security on a given
date, the purchases and sales will be made on a pro rata basis.
For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2000, the Fund paid brokerage
commissions of $32,049.
DETERMINATION OF SHARE PRICE
The price (net asset value) of the shares of the Fund is determined as of
4:00 p.m., Eastern time on each day the Trust is open for business and on any
other day on which there is sufficient trading in the Fund's securities to
materially affect the net asset value. The Trust is open for business on every
day except Saturdays, Sundays and the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin
Luther King Day, President's Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day,
Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Securities which are traded on any exchange or on the NASDAQ
over-the-counter market are valued at the last quoted sale price. Lacking a last
sale price, a security is valued at its last bid price except when, in the
Fund's advisor's opinion, the last bid price does not accurately reflect the
current value of the security. All other securities for which over-the-counter
market quotations are readily available are valued at their last bid price. When
market quotations are not readily available, when the Fund's advisor determines
the last bid price does not accurately reflect the current value or when
restricted securities are being valued, such securities are valued as determined
in good faith by the Fund's advisor, subject to review of the Board of Trustees
of the Trust.
Fixed income securities generally are valued by using market quotations,
but may be valued on the basis of prices furnished by a pricing service when the
Fund's advisor believes such prices accurately reflect the fair market value of
such securities. A pricing service utilizes electronic data processing
techniques based on yield spreads relating to securities with similar
characteristics to determine prices for normal institutional-size trading units
of debt securities without regard to sale or bid prices. When prices are not
readily available from a pricing service, or when restricted or illiquid
securities are being valued, securities are valued at fair value as determined
in good faith by the Fund's advisor, subject to review of the Board of Trustees.
Short term investments in fixed income securities with maturities of less than
60 days when acquired, or which subsequently are within 60 days of maturity, are
valued by using the amortized cost method of valuation, which the Board has
determined will represent fair value.
INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE
The Fund may periodically advertise "average annual total return."
"Average annual total return," as defined by the Securities and Exchange
Commission, is computed by finding the average annual compounded rates of return
for the period indicated that would equate the initial amount invested to the
ending redeemable value, according to the following formula:
P(1+T)n=ERV
Where:P = a hypothetical $1,000 initial investment
T = average annual total return
n = number of years
ERV = ending redeemable value at the end of the applicable period
of the hypothetical $1,000 investment made at the beginning
of the applicable period.
The computation assumes that all dividends and distributions are reinvested at
the net asset value on the reinvestment dates and that a complete redemption
occurs at the end of the applicable period.
The Fund's investment performance will vary depending upon market
conditions, the composition of the Fund's portfolio and operating expenses of
the Fund. These factors and possible differences in the methods and time periods
used in calculating non-standardized investment performance should be considered
when comparing the Fund's performance to those of other investment companies or
investment vehicles. The risks associated with the Fund's investment objective,
policies and techniques should also be considered. At any time in the future,
investment performance may be higher or lower than past performance, and there
can be no assurance that any performance will continue. For the fiscal year
ended March 31, 2000, the Fund's average annual total return was 76.56%. The
Fund's return for the year in part resulted from investments in particular types
of securities, such as stocks offered in IPOs or technology stocks. There is no
assurance that investments in those types of securities will continue to be a
source of positive returns for the Fund.
From time to time, in advertisements, sales literature and information
furnished to present or prospective shareholders, the performance of the Fund
may be compared to indices of broad groups of unmanaged securities considered to
be representative of or similar to the portfolio holdings of the Fund or
considered to be representative of the stock market in general. The Fund may use
the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index or the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
In addition, the performance of the Fund may be compared to other groups
of mutual funds tracked by any widely used independent research firm which ranks
mutual funds by overall performance, investment objectives and assets, such as
Lipper Analytical Services, Inc. or Morningstar, Inc. The objectives, policies,
limitations and expenses of other mutual funds in a group may not be the same as
those of the Fund. Performance rankings and ratings reported periodically in
national financial publications such as Barron's and Fortune also may be used.
CUSTODIAN
Firstar Bank, N.A., 425 Walnut Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202, is
custodian of the Fund's investments. The custodian acts as the Fund's
depository, safekeeps its portfolio securities, collects all income and other
payments with respect thereto, disburses funds at the Fund's request and
maintains records in connection with its duties.
TRANSFER AGENT AND FUND ACCOUNTING
Unified Fund Services, Inc. ("Unified"), 431 North Pennsylvania Street,
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204, acts as the Fund's transfer agent and, in such
capacity, maintains the records of each shareholder's account, answers
shareholders' inquiries concerning their accounts, processes purchases and
redemptions of the Fund's shares, acts as dividend and distribution disbursing
agent and performs other transfer agency and shareholder service functions. For
its services as transfer agent, Unified receives a monthly fee from the Advisor
of $1.20 per shareholder (subject to a minimum monthly fee of $750). For the
fiscal year ended March 31, 2000, Unified received a fee of $15,790 from the
Advisor (not the Fund) for transfer agent services. In addition, Unified
provides the Fund with fund accounting services, which includes certain monthly
reports, record-keeping and other management-related services. For its services
as fund accountant, Unified receives an annual fee from the Advisor equal to
0.0275% of the Fund's assets up to $100 million, 0.0250% of the Fund's assets
from $100 million to $300 million and 0.0200% of the Fund's assets over $300
million (subject to various monthly minimum fees, the maximum being $2,000 per
month for assets of $20 to $100 million). For the fiscal year ended March 31,
2000, Unified received $15,600 from the Advisor (not the Fund) for these fund
accounting services.
ACCOUNTANTS
The firm of McCurdy & Associates CPA's, Inc., 27955 Clemens Road,
Westlake, Ohio 44145, has been selected as independent public accountants for
the Fund for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2001. McCurdy & Associates
performs an annual audit of the Funds' financial statements and provides
financial, tax and accounting consulting services as requested.
DISTRIBUTOR
AmeriPrime Financial Securities, Inc. (the "Distributor") 1793 Kingswood
Drive, Suite 200, Southlake, Texas 76092, is the exclusive agent for
distribution of shares of the Fund. Kenneth D. Trumpfheller, a Trustee and
officer of the Trust, is an affiliate of the Distributor. The Distributor is
obligated to sell the shares of the Fund on a best efforts basis only against
purchase orders for the shares. Shares of the Fund are offered to the public on
a continuous basis.
ADMINISTRATOR
The Fund retains AmeriPrime Financial Services, Inc., 1793 Kingswood
Drive, Suite 200, Southlake, TX 76092, (the "Administrator") to manage the
Fund's business affairs and provide the Fund with administrative services,
including all regulatory reporting and necessary office equipment, personnel and
facilities. The Administrator receives a monthly fee from the Advisor equal to
an annual rate of 0.10% of the Fund's assets under $50 million, 0.075% of the
Fund's assets from $50 million to $100 million, and 0.050% of the Fund's assets
over $100 million (subject to a minimum fee of $2,500 per month). The
Administrator, the Distributor, and Unified (the Fund's transfer agent) are
controlled by Unified Financial Services, Inc. For the fiscal year ended March
31, 2000, the Administrator received $30,000 from the Advisor (not the Fund) for
these services.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The financial statements and independent auditor's report required to be
included in the Statement of Additional Information are incorporated herein by
reference to the Trust's Annual Report to Shareholders for the fiscal year ended
March 31, 2000. The Trust will provide the Annual Report without charge by
calling the Fund at 1-888-696-2733.
<PAGE>
THE MARTIN CAPITAL OPPORTUNITY FUNDS
MARTIN CAPITAL AUSTIN OPPORTUNITY FUND
MARTIN CAPITAL TEXAS OPPORTUNITY FUND
MARTIN CAPITAL U.S. OPPORTUNITY FUND
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
August 1, 2000
This Statement of Additional Information ("SAI") is not a prospectus. It
should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus of The Martin Capital
Opportunity Funds dated August 1, 2000. This SAI incorporates by reference the
Austin Opportunity Fund's and the U.S. Opportunity Fund's Annual Report to
Shareholders for the period ended March 31, 2000 ("Annual Report"). A free copy
of the Prospectus or Annual Report can be obtained by writing the Transfer Agent
at 431 North Pennsylvania Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204, or by calling
1-888-336-9757.
TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND FUNDS............................................2
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK
CONSIDERATIONS................................................................3
INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS........................................................13
THE INVESTMENT ADVISOR........................................................15
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS.........................................................16
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE..........................................17
DISTRIBUTION PLAN.............................................................18
DETERMINATION OF SHARE PRICE.................................................18
INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE........................................................19
CUSTODIAN.....................................................................20
TRANSFER AGENT and FUND ACCOUNTING............................................20
ACCOUNTANTS...................................................................21
DISTRIBUTOR...................................................................21
ADMINISTRATOR.................................................................21
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS..........................................................21
<PAGE>
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND FUNDS
The Martin Capital Austin Opportunity Fund, Martin Capital Texas
Opportunity Fund and Martin Capital U.S. Opportunity Fund (each a "Fund", or
collectively, the "Funds", or the "Martin Capital Opportunity Funds") were
organized as non-diversified series of AmeriPrime Funds (the "Trust") on August
14, 1998. The Trust is an open-end investment company established under the laws
of Ohio by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated August 8, 1995 (the
"Trust Agreement"). The Trust Agreement permits the Trustees to issue an
unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest of separate series without par
value. Each Fund is one of a series of funds currently authorized by the
Trustees.
The Fund does not issue share certificates. All shares are held in
non-certificate form registered on the books of the Fund and the Fund's transfer
agent for the account of the shareholder. Each share of a series represents an
equal proportionate interest in the assets and liabilities belonging to that
series with each other share of that series and is entitled to such dividends
and distributions out of income belonging to the series as are declared by the
Trustees. The shares do not have cumulative voting rights or any preemptive or
conversion rights, and the Trustees have the authority from time to time to
divide or combine the shares of any series into a greater or lesser number of
shares of that series so long as the proportionate beneficial interest in the
assets belonging to that series and the rights of shares of any other series are
in no way affected. In case of any liquidation of a series, the holders of
shares of the series being liquidated will been titled to receive as a class a
distribution out of the assets, net of the liabilities, belonging to that
series. Expenses attributable to any series are borne by that series. Any
general expenses of the Trust not readily identifiable as belonging to a
particular series are allocated by or under the direction of the Trustees in
such manner as the Trustees determine to be fair and equitable. No shareholder
is liable to further calls or to assessment by the Trust without his or her
express consent.
Any Trustee of the Trust may be removed by vote of the shareholders
holding not less than two-thirds of the outstanding shares of the Trust. The
Trust does not hold an annual meeting of shareholders. When matters are
submitted to shareholders for a vote, each shareholder is entitled to one vote
for each whole share he owns and fractional votes for fractional shares he owns.
All shares of the Fund have equal voting rights and liquidation rights. The
Declaration of Trust can be amended by the Trustees, except that any amendment
that adversely effects the rights of shareholders must be approved by the
shareholders affected. Each share of the Fund is subject to redemption at any
time if the Board of Trustees determines in its sole discretion that failure to
so redeem may have materially adverse consequences to all or any of the Fund's
shareholders.
As of July 14, 2000, the following persons may be deemed to beneficially
own or hold of record five percent (5%) or more of the Austin Opportunity Fund:
National Investor Services Corp., 55 Water Street, 32nd Floor, New York, New
York 10041, 32.95%; Eileen Vanderlee, P.O. Box 24163, Austin, TX 78755, 12.71%,
and Arnold J. Snygg, 6903 Rimner Cove, Austin TX 78759, 5.83%.
As of July 14, 2000, National Investor Services Corp. may be deemed to
control the Austin Opportunity Fund as a result of its beneficial ownership of
the shares of the Fund. As the controlling shareholder, it would control the
outcome of any proposal submitted to the shareholders for approval including
changes to the Fund's fundamental policies or the terms of the management
agreement with the Fund's advisor.
As of July 14, 2000, the following persons may be deemed to
beneficially own or hold of record five percent (5%) or more of the U.S.
Opportunity Fund: National Investor Services Corp., 55 Water Street, 32nd
Floor, New York, New York 10041, 72.45%.
As of July 14, 2000, National Investor Services Corp. may be deemed to
control the U.S. Opportunity Fund as a result of its beneficial ownership of the
shares of the Fund. As the controlling shareholder, it would control the outcome
of any proposal submitted to the shareholders for approval including changes to
the Fund's fundamental policies or the terms of the management agreement with
the Fund's advisor.
As of July 14, 2000, the officers and trustees as a group owned less than
one percent of the Funds.
For information concerning the purchase and redemption of shares of the
Fund, see "How to Buy Shares" and "How to Redeem Shares" in the Fund's
Prospectus. For a description of the methods used to determine the share price
and value of the Fund's assets, see "Determination of Net Asset Value" in the
Fund's Prospectus and this Statement of Additional Information.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT FUND INVESTMENTS AND RISK CONSIDERATIONS
This section contains a discussion of some of the investments the Fund may
make and some of the techniques it may use.
A. Equity Securities. Equity securities consist of common stock,
convertible preferred stock, convertible bonds, rights and warrants. Common
stocks, the most familiar type, represent an equity (ownership) interest in a
corporation. Warrants are options to purchase equity securities at a specified
price for a specific time period. Rights are similar to warrants, but normally
have a short duration and are distributed by the issuer to its shareholders.
Although equity securities have a history of long-term growth in value, their
prices fluctuate based on changes in a company's financial condition and on
overall market and economic conditions.
Equity securities include S&P Depositary Receipts ("SPDRs") and other
similar instruments. SPDRs are shares of a publicly traded unit investment trust
which owns the stocks included in the S&P 500 Index, and changes in the price of
SPDRs track the movement of the Index relatively closely.
Equity securities also include common stocks and common stock equivalents
of domestic real estate investment trusts ("REITS") and other companies which
operate as real estate corporations or which have a significant portion of their
assets in real estate. A Fund will not acquire any direct ownership of real
estate.
Each Fund may invest up to 35% of its assets in foreign equity securities,
including American Depository Receipts ("ADRs"). ADRs are certificates
evidencing ownership of shares of a foreign-based issuer held in trust by a bank
or similar financial institution. They are alternatives to the direct purchase
of the underlying securities in their national markets and currencies. To the
extent that the Fund does invest in foreign securities, such investments may be
subject to special risks. Purchases of foreign securities are usually made in
foreign currencies and, as a result, the Fund may incur currency conversion
costs and may be affected favorably or unfavorably by changes in the value of
foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar. In addition, there may be less
information publicly available about a foreign company than about a U.S.
company, and foreign companies are not generally subject to accounting, auditing
and financial reporting standards and practices comparable to those in the U.S.
Other risks associated with investments in foreign securities include changes in
restrictions on foreign currency transactions and rates of exchanges, changes in
the administrations or economic and monetary policies of foreign governments,
the imposition of exchange control regulations, the possibility of expropriation
decrees and other adverse foreign governmental action, the imposition of foreign
taxes, less liquid markets, less government supervision of exchanges, brokers
and issuers, difficulty in enforcing contractual obligations, delays in
settlement of securities transactions and greater price volatility. In addition,
investing in foreign securities will generally result in higher commissions than
investing in similar domestic securities.
Investments in equity securities are subject to inherent market risks and
fluctuations in value due to earnings, economic conditions and other factors
beyond the control of the advisor. As a result, the return and net asset value
of a Fund will fluctuate. Securities in a Fund's portfolio may not increase as
much as the market as a whole and some undervalued securities may continue to be
undervalued for long periods of time. Although profits in some Fund holdings may
be realized quickly, it is not expected that most investments will appreciate
rapidly.
B. Fixed Income Securities. Each Fund may invest in fixed income
securities. Each Fund will limit its investment in fixed income securities to
corporate debt securities and U.S. government securities. Fixed income
securities are generally considered to be interest rate sensitive, which means
that their value will generally decrease when interest rates rise and increase
when interest rates fall. Securities with shorter maturities, while offering
lower yields, generally provide greater price stability than longer term
securities and are less affected by changes in interest rates.
CORPORATE DEBT SECURITIES - Corporate debt securities are long and
short-term debt obligations issued by companies (such as publicly issued and
privately placed bonds, notes and commercial paper). The advisor considers
corporate debt securities to be of investment grade quality if they are rated A
or higher by Standard & Poor's Corporation, or Moody's Investors Services, Inc.,
or if unrated, determined by the advisor to be of comparable quality. Investment
grade dept securities generally have adequate to strong protection of principal
and interest payments. In the lower end of this category, credit quality may be
more susceptible to potential future changes in circumstances and the securities
have speculative elements. Each Fund may invest up to 5% of its assets in
corporate debt rated below investment grade.
U.S. GOVERNMENT OBLIGATIONS - U.S. government obligations may be backed by
the credit of the government as a whole or only by the issuing agency. U.S.
Treasury bonds, notes, and bills and some agency securities, such as those
issued by the Federal Housing Administration and the Government National
Mortgage Association (GNMA), are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S.
government as to payment of principal and interest and are the highest quality
government securities. Other securities issued by U.S. government agencies or
instrumentalities, such as securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Banks and
the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, are supported only by the credit of
the agency that issued them, and not by the U.S. government. Securities issued
by the Federal Farm Credit System, the Federal Land Banks, and the Federal
National Mortgage Association (FNMA) are supported by the agency's right to
borrow money from the U.S. Treasury under certain circumstances, but are not
backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
C. When-Issued and Delayed Delivery Securities. Each Fund may purchase
securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis. Delivery of and payment
for these securities may take place as long as a month or more after the date of
the purchase commitment. The value of these securities is subject to market
fluctuation during this period and no income accrues to the Fund until
settlement takes place. The Fund maintains with the Custodian a segregated
account containing high grade liquid securities in an amount at least equal to
these commitments.
D. Leveraging. Each Fund may borrow up to one-third of the value of its
total assets, from banks or through the use of reverse repurchase agreements, to
increase its holdings of portfolio securities. Under the Investment Company Act
of 1940, as amended, each Fund is required to maintain continuous asset coverage
of 300% with respect to such borrowings and to sell (within three days)
sufficient Fund holdings to restore such coverage if it should decline to less
than 300% due to market fluctuations or otherwise, even if such liquidations of
a Fund's holdings may be disadvantageous from an investment standpoint.
Leveraging a Fund creates an opportunity for increased net income but, at the
same time, creates special risk considerations. For example, leveraging may
exaggerate changes in the net asset value of Fund shares and in the yield on the
Fund's portfolio. Although the principal of such borrowings will be fixed, the
Fund's assets may change in value during the time the borrowing is outstanding.
Leveraging will create interest expenses for the Fund which can exceed the
income from the assets retained. To the extent the income derived from
securities purchased with borrowed funds exceeds the interest the Fund will have
to pay, the Fund's net income will be greater than if leveraging were not used.
Conversely, if the income from the assets retained with borrowed funds is not
sufficient to cover the cost of leveraging, the net income of the Fund will be
less than if leveraging were not used, and therefore the amount available for
distribution to shareholders will be reduced.
E. Short Sales. Each Fund may a sell a security short in anticipation of a
decline in the market value of the security. When a Fund engages in a short
sale, it sells a security which it does not own. To complete the transaction,
the Fund must borrow the security in order to deliver it to the buyer. The Fund
must replace the borrowed security by purchasing it at the market price at the
time of replacement, which may be more or less than the price at which the Fund
sold the security. The Fund will incur a loss as a result of the short sale if
the price of the security increases between the date of the short sale and the
date on which the Fund replaces the borrowed security. The Fund will realize a
profit if the security declines in price between those dates.
In connection with its short sales, each Fund will be required to maintain
a segregated account with the Custodian of cash or high grade liquid assets
equal to the market value of the securities sold less any collateral deposited
with its broker. Each Fund will limit its short sales so that no more than 20%
of its net assets (less all its liabilities other than obligations under the
short sales) will be deposited as collateral and allocated to the segregated
account. However, the segregated account and deposits will not necessarily limit
the Fund's potential loss on a short sale, which is unlimited.
F. Option Transactions. The Funds may engage in option transactions
involving individual stocks and bonds as well as stock and bond indexes. An
option involves either (a) the right or the obligation to buy or sell a specific
instrument at a specific price until the expiration date of the option, or (b)
the right to receive payments or the obligation to make payments representing
the difference between the closing price of a market index and the exercise
price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple until the
expiration date of the option. Options are sold (written) on securities and
market indexes. The purchaser of an option on a security pays the seller (the
writer) a premium for the right granted but is not obligated to buy or sell the
underlying security. The purchaser of an option on a market index pays the
seller a premium for the right granted, and in return the seller of such an
option is obligated to make the payment. A writer of an option may terminate the
obligation prior to expiration of the option by making an offsetting purchase of
an identical option. Options are traded on organized exchanges and in the
over-the-counter market. Call options on securities which the Funds sell (write)
will be covered or secured, which means that the Fund will own the underlying
security in the case of a call option. The Funds will sell (write) put options
only if the Fund is selling an equivalent amount of the same security short.
When the Funds write options, they may be required to maintain a margin account,
to pledge the underlying securities or U.S. government obligations or to deposit
assets in escrow with the Custodian. The Funds may also utilize spreads and
straddle strategies. A spread is the difference in price resulting from a
combination of put and call options within the same class on the same underlying
security. A straddle strategy consists of an equal number of put and call
options on the same underlying stock, stock index, or commodity future at the
same strike price and maturity date.
The purchase and writing of options involves certain risks. The purchase
of options limits a Fund's potential loss to the amount of the premium paid and
can afford a Fund the opportunity to profit from favorable movements in the
price of an underlying security to a greater extent than if transactions were
effected in the security directly. However, the purchase of an option could
result in a Fund losing a greater percentage of its investment than if the
transaction were effected directly. When a Fund writes a covered call option, it
will receive a premium, but it will give up the opportunity to profit from a
price increase in the underlying security above the exercise price as long as
its obligation as a writer continues, and it will retain the risk of loss should
the price of the security decline. When a Fund writes a put option, it will
assume the risk that the price of the underlying security or instrument will
fall below the exercise price, in which case the Fund may be required to
purchase the security or instrument at a higher price than the market price of
the security or instrument. In addition, there can be no assurance that a Fund
can effect a closing transaction on a particular option it has written. Further,
the total premium paid for any option may be lost if the Fund does not exercise
the option or, in the case of over-the-counter options, the writer does not
perform its obligations.
G. Derivatives. Each Fund may invest in various instruments that are
commonly known as derivatives. Generally, a derivative is a financial
arrangement, the value of which is based on, or "derived" from, a traditional
security, asset, or market index. Some "derivatives" such as mortgage-related
and other asset-backed securities are in many respects like any other
investment, although they may be more volatile or less liquid than more
traditional debt securities. There are, in fact, many different types of
derivatives and many different ways to use them. There are a range of risks
associated with those uses. Futures and options are commonly used for
traditional hedging purposes to attempt to protect a fund from exposure to
changing interest rates, securities prices, or currency exchange rates and as a
low cost method of gaining exposure to a particular securities market without
investing directly in those securities. However, some derivatives are used for
leverage, which tends to magnify the effects of an instrument's price changes as
market conditions change. Leverage involves the use of a small amount of money
to control a large amount of financial assets, and can in some circumstances,
lead to significant losses. The advisor will use derivatives only in
circumstances where they offer the most efficient means of improving the
risk/reward profile of a Fund and when consistent with a Fund's investment
objective and policies. The use of derivatives for non-hedging purposes may be
considered speculative.
H. Futures Contracts on Stock and Bond Indices. Each Fund may enter into
contracts providing for the making and acceptance of a cash settlement based
upon changes in the value of an index of domestic or foreign securities
("Futures Contracts"). This investment technique may be used as a low-cost
method of gaining exposure to a particular securities market without investing
directly in those securities or to hedge against anticipated future changes in
general market prices which otherwise might either adversely affect the value of
securities held by the Fund or adversely affect the prices of securities which
are intended to be purchased at a later date for the Fund. A Futures Contract
may also be entered into to close out or offset an existing futures position.
When used for hedging purposes, each transaction in Futures Contracts
involves the establishment of a position which will move in a direction opposite
to that of the investment being hedged. If these hedging transactions are
successful, the futures position taken for the Fund will rise in value by an
amount which approximately offsets the decline in value of the portion of the
Fund's investments that is being hedged. Should general market prices move in an
unexpected manner, the full anticipated benefits of Futures Contracts may not be
achieved or a loss may be realized.
The risks of Futures Contracts also include a potential lack of liquidity
in the secondary market and incorrect assessments of market. Brokerage costs
will be incurred and "margin" will be required to be posted and maintained as a
good faith deposit against performance of obligations under Futures Contracts
written for a Fund. A Fund may not purchase or sell a Futures Contract if
immediately thereafter its margin deposits on its outstanding Futures Contracts,
other than Futures Contracts used for hedging purposes, would exceed 5% of the
market value of the Fund's total assets.
I. Floating Rate, Inverse Floating Rate, and Index Obligations. Each Fund
may invest in debt securities with interest payments or maturity values that are
not fixed, but float in conjunction with (or inversely to) an underlying index
or price. These securities may be backed by U.S. Government or corporate
issuers, or by collateral such as mortgages. The indices and prices upon which
such securities can be based include interest rates, currency rates and
commodities prices. However, the Funds will not invest in any instrument whose
value is computed based on a multiple of the change in price or value of an
asset or an index of or relating to assets in which the Funds cannot or will not
invest.
Floating rate securities pay interest according to a coupon which is reset
periodically. The reset mechanism may be formula based, or reflect the passing
through of floating interest payments on an underlying collateral pool. Inverse
floating rate securities are similar to floating rate securities except that
their coupon payments vary inversely with an underlying index by use of a
formula. Inverse floating rate securities tend to exhibit greater price
volatility than other floating rate securities. No Fund will invest more than 5%
of its total assets in inverse floating rate securities. Floating rate
obligations generally exhibit a low price volatility for a given stated maturity
or average life because their coupons adjust with changes in interest rates.
Interest rate risk and price volatility on inverse floating rate obligations can
be high, especially if leverage is used in the formula. Index securities pay a
fixed rate of interest, but have a maturity value that varies by formula, so
that when the obligation matures a gain or loss may be realized. The risk of
index obligations depends on the volatility of the underlying index, the coupon
payment and the maturity of the obligation.
J. Real Estate Investment Trusts. A real estate investment trust ("REIT")
is a corporation or business trust that invests substantially all of its assets
in interests in real estate. Equity REITs are those which purchase or lease land
and buildings and generate income primarily from rental income. Equity REITs may
also realize capital gains (or losses) when selling property that has
appreciated (or depreciated) in value. Mortgage REITs are those which invest in
real estate mortgages and generate income primarily from interest payments on
mortgage loans. Hybrid REITs generally invest in both real property and
mortgages. In addition, REITs are generally subject to risks associated with
direct ownership of real estate, such as decreases in real estate values or
fluctuations in rental income caused by a variety of factors, including
increases in interest rates, increases in property taxes and other operating
costs, casualty or condemnation losses, possible environmental liabilities and
changes in supply and demand for properties. Risks associated with REIT
investments include the fact that equity and mortgage REITs are dependent upon
specialized management skills and are not fully diversified. These
characteristics subject REITs to the risks associated with financing a limited
number of projects. They are also subject to heavy cash flow dependency,
defaults by borrowers, and self-liquidation. Additionally, equity REITs may be
affected by any changes in the value of the underlying property owned by the
trusts, and mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of any credit
extended.
K. Zero Coupon Treasuries and Municipal Securities. Zero coupon securities
are (i) notes or debentures which do not pay current interest and are issued at
substantial discounts from par value, or (ii) notes or debentures that pay
current interest until a stated date one or more years into the future, after
which the issuer is obligated to pay interest until maturity, usually at a
higher rate than if interest were payable from the date of issuance.
The Federal Reserve creates zero coupon treasuries, also known as STRIPS
(Separate Trading of Registered Interest and Principal of Securities) by
separating the coupon payments and the principal payment from an outstanding
Treasury security and selling them as individual securities. A broker-dealer
creates a derivative zero by depositing a Treasury security with a custodian for
safekeeping and then selling the coupon payments and principal payment that will
be generated by this security separately. Examples are Certificates of Accrual
on Treasury Securities (CATs), Treasury Investment Growth Receipts (TIGRs) and
generic Treasury Receipts (TRs). These derivative zero coupon obligations are
not considered to be government securities unless they are part of the STRIPS
program. Original issue zeros are zero coupon securities issued directly by the
U.S. Government, a government agency, or by a corporation.
Zero coupon municipal securities are long and short term debt obligations
issued by or on behalf of states, territories and possessions of the United
States, the District of Columbia and their political subdivisions, agencies,
instrumentalities and authorities, as well as other qualifying issuers
(including the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Guam), the income from which
is exempt from regular federal income tax and exempt from state tax in the state
of issuance. Each Fund will accrue income on such securities for tax and
accounting purposes, in accordance with applicable law. This income will be
distributed to shareholders. Because no cash is received at the time such income
is accrued, the Fund may be required to liquidate other portfolio securities to
satisfy its distribution obligations. Because a zero coupon security does not
pay current income, its price can be very volatile when interest rates change.
In calculating its dividend, the Funds take into account as income a portion of
the difference between a zero coupon security's purchase price and its face
value.
Municipal securities are issued to obtain funds to construct, repair or
improve various public facilities such as airports, bridges, highways,
hospitals, housing, schools, streets and water and sewer works, to pay general
operating expenses or to refinance outstanding debts. They also may be issued to
finance various private activities, including the lending of funds to public or
private institutions for construction of housing, educational or medical
facilities or the financing of privately owned or operated facilities. Municipal
securities consist of tax exempt bonds, tax exempt notes and tax exempt
commercial paper. Tax exempt notes generally are used to provide short term
capital needs and generally have maturities of one year or less. Tax exempt
commercial paper typically represents short term, unsecured, negotiable
promissory notes.
The two principal classifications of municipal securities are "general
obligations" and "revenue" bonds. General obligation bonds are backed by the
issuer's full credit and taxing power. Revenue bonds are backed by the revenues
of a specific project, facility or tax. Industrial development revenue bonds are
a specific type of revenue bond backed by the credit of the private issuer of
the facility, and therefore investments in these bonds have more potential risk
that the issuer will not be able to meet scheduled payments of principal and
interest.
L. Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities include
securities representing interests in a pool of mortgages. These securities,
including securities issued by FNMA, GNMA and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage
Corporation, provide investors with payments consisting of both interest and
principal as the mortgages in the underlying mortgage pools are repaid. The
Funds will only invest in pools of mortgage loans assembled for the sale to
investors by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. government and will limit
their investment to 5% of net assets. Unscheduled or early payments on the
underlying mortgages may shorten the securities' effective maturities.
Other types of securities representing interests in a pool of mortgage
loans are known as collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) and real estate
mortgage investment conduits (REMICs) and multi-class pass-throughs. CMOs and
REMICs are debt instruments collateralized by pools of mortgage loans or other
mortgage-backed securities. Multi-class pass-through securities are equity
interests in a trust composed of mortgage loans or other mortgage-backed
securities. Payments of principal and interest on underlying collateral provides
the funds to pay debt service on the CMO or REMIC or make scheduled
distributions on the multi-class pass-through securities. The Funds will only
invest in CMOs, REMICs and multi-class pass-through securities (collectively
"CMOs" unless the context indicates otherwise) issued by agencies or
instrumentalities of the U.S. government (such as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage
Corporation). None of the Funds will invest in "stripped" CMOs, which represent
only the income portion or the principal portion of the CMO.
CMOs are issued with a variety of classes or "tranches," which have
different maturities and are often retired in sequence. One or more tranches of
a CMO may have coupon rates which reset periodically at a specified increment
over an index such as the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). These
"floating rate CMOs," typically are issued with lifetime "caps" on their coupon
rate, which means that there is a ceiling beyond which the coupon rate may not
be increased. The yield of some floating rate CMOs varies in excess of the
change in the index, which would cause the value of such CMOs to fluctuate
significantly once rates reach the cap.
REMICs, which have elected to be treated as such under the Internal
Revenue Code, are private entities formed for the purpose of holding a fixed
pool of mortgages secured by an interest in real property. REMICs are similar to
CMOs in that they issue multiple classes of securities. As with other CMOs, the
mortgages which collateralize the REMICs in which a Fund may invest include
mortgages backed by GNMA certificates or other mortgage pass-throughs issued or
guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities.
The average life of securities representing interests in pools of mortgage
loans is likely to be substantially less than the original maturity of the
mortgage pools as a result of prepayments or foreclosures of such mortgages.
Prepayments are passed through to the registered holder with the regular monthly
payments of principal and interest, and have the effect of reducing future
payments. To the extent the mortgages underlying a security representing an
interest in a pool of mortgages are prepaid, the Funds may experience a loss (if
the price at which the respective security was acquired by the Fund was at a
premium over par, which represents the price at which the security will be
redeemed upon prepayment). In addition, prepayments of such securities held by
the Funds will reduce the share price of each Fund to the extent the market
value of the securities at the time of prepayment exceeds their par value.
Furthermore, the prices of mortgage-backed securities can be significantly
affected by changes in interest rates. Prepayments may occur with greater
frequency in periods of declining mortgage rates because, among other reasons,
it may be possible for mortgagors to refinance their outstanding mortgages at
lower interest rates. In such periods, it is likely that any prepayment proceeds
would be reinvested by the Funds at lower rates of return.
M. Foreign Currency Exchange Transactions. The Funds may hold foreign
currency deposits from time to time, and may convert dollars and foreign
currencies in the foreign exchange markets. Currency conversion involves dealer
spreads and other costs, although commissions usually are not charged.
Currencies may be exchanged on a spot (i.e., cash) basis, or by entering into
forward contracts to purchase or sell foreign currencies at a future date and
price. Forward contracts generally are traded in an interbank market conducted
directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their
customers. The parties to a forward contract may agree to offset or terminate
the contract before its maturity, or may hold the contract to maturity and
complete the contemplated currency exchange.
The Funds may use currency forward contracts to manage currency risks and
to facilitate transactions in foreign securities. The following discussion
summarizes the principal currency management strategies involving forward
contracts that could be used by any Fund.
In connection with purchases and sales of securities denominated in
foreign currencies, a Fund may enter into currency forward contracts to fix a
definite price for the purchase or sale in advance of the trade's settlement
date. This technique is sometimes referred to as a "settlement hedge" or
"transaction hedge." A Fund also could enter into forward contracts to purchase
or sell a foreign currency in anticipation of future purchases or sales of
securities denominated in foreign currency, even if the specific investments
have not yet been selected by the advisor.
The Funds also may use forward contracts to hedge against a decline in the
value of existing investments denominated in foreign currency. For example, if a
Fund owned securities denominated in Deutschemarks, it could enter into a
forward contract to sell Deutschemarks in return for U.S. dollars to hedge
against possible declines in the Deutschemark's value. Such a hedge (sometimes
referred to as a "position hedge") would tend to offset both positive and
negative currency fluctuations, but would not offset changes in security values
caused by other factors. A Fund also could hedge the position by selling another
currency expected to perform similarly to the Deutschemark -- for example, by
entering into a forward contract to sell Deutschemarks or European Currency
Units in return for U.S. dollars. This type of hedge, sometimes referred to as a
"proxy hedge," could offer advantages in terms of cost, yield, or efficiency,
but generally will not hedge currency exposure as effectively as a simple hedge
into U.S. dollars. Proxy hedges may result in losses if the currency used to
hedge does not perform similarly to the currency in which the hedge securities
are denominated.
Under certain conditions, SEC guidelines require mutual funds to segregate
cash and appropriate liquid assets to cover currency forward contracts. As
required by SEC guidelines, the Funds will segregate cash or U.S. Government
securities or other high-grade liquid debt securities to cover currency forward
contracts, if any, whose purpose is essentially speculative. The Funds will not
segregate assets to cover forward contracts entered into for hedging purposes,
including settlement hedges, position hedges, and proxy hedges. In segregating
assets, the Funds' custodian or a designated subcustodian either places such
assets in a segregated account or separately identifies such assets and renders
them unavailable for investment by the Funds.
Successful use of forward currency contracts will depend on the advisor's
skill in analyzing and predicting currency values. Forward contracts may change
the Funds' currency exchange rates substantially, and could result in losses to
the Funds if currencies do not perform as the advisor anticipates. For example,
if a currency's value rose at a time when the advisor had hedged a Fund by
selling currency in exchange for dollars, the Fund would be unable to
participate in the currency's appreciation. If the advisor hedges currency
exposure through proxy hedges, the Fund could realize currency losses from the
hedge and the security position at the same time if the two currencies do not
move in tandem. Similarly, if the advisor increases a Fund's exposure to a
foreign currency, and that currency's value declines, the Fund will realize a
loss. There is no assurance that the advisor's use of forward currency contracts
will be advantageous to any of the Funds or that the advisor will hedge at an
appropriate time.
N. Options and Futures on Foreign Currencies. Each Fund may write covered
put and call options and purchase put and call options on foreign currencies for
the purpose of protecting against declines in the U.S. dollar value of Fund
securities and against increases in the U.S. dollar cost of securities to be
acquired. A Fund may use options on foreign currency to cross-hedge, which
involves writing or purchasing options on one currency to hedge against changes
in exchange rates for a different, but related currency. As with other types of
options, however, the writing of an option on a foreign currency will constitute
only a partial hedge up to the amount of the premium received, and a Fund could
be required to purchase or sell a foreign currency at disadvantageous exchange
rates, thereby incurring losses. The purchase of an option on foreign currency
may be used to hedge against fluctuations in exchange rates although, in the
event of exchange rate movements adverse to a Fund's position, it may forfeit
the entire amount of the premium plus related transaction costs. In addition, a
Fund may purchase call options on a foreign currency when the investment advisor
anticipates that the currency will appreciate in value.
There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for any
particular option, or at any particular time. If a Fund is unable to effect a
closing purchase transaction with respect to covered options it has written, the
Fund will not be able to sell the underlying currency or dispose of assets held
in a segregated account until it closes out the options or the options expire or
are exercised. Similarly, if the Fund is unable to close out options it has
purchased, it would have to exercise the options in order to realize any profit
and will incur transaction costs. The Funds pay brokerage commissions or spreads
in connection with options transactions.
As in the case of forward contracts, certain options on foreign currencies
are traded over-the-counter and involve liquidity and credit risks which may not
be present in the case of exchange-traded currency options. The Funds' ability
to terminate over-the-counter options ("OTC" Options") will be more limited than
with exchange-traded options. It is also possible that broker-dealers
participating in OTC Options transactions will not fulfill their obligations.
Until such time as the staff of the SEC changes its position, the Funds will
treat purchased OTC Options and assets used to cover written OTC Options as
illiquid securities. With respect to options written with primary dealers in
U.S. government securities pursuant to an agreement requiring a closing purchase
transaction at a formula price, the amount of illiquid securities may be
calculated with reference to the repurchase formula.
Currency futures contracts are similar to forward currency exchange
contracts, except that they are traded on exchanges (and have margin
requirements) and are standardized as to contract size and delivery date. Most
currency futures contracts call for payment or delivery in U.S. dollars. Each
Fund may purchase and sell currency futures to increase or decrease its exposure
to different foreign currencies. Currency futures can be expected to correlate
with exchange rates, but may not reflect other factors that affect the value of
a Fund's investments. A currency hedge, for example, should protect a
Yen-denominated security from a decline in the Yen, but will not protect a Fund
against a price decline resulting from deterioration in the issuer's
creditworthiness. Because the value of a Fund's foreign-denominated investments
change in response to many factors other than exchange rates, it may not be
possible to match the amount of currency futures to the value of the Fund's
investments exactly over time.
O. Repurchase Agreements. Each Fund may invest in repurchase agreements
fully collateralized by U.S. Government obligations. A repurchase agreement is a
short-term investment in which the purchaser (i.e., the Fund) acquires ownership
of a U.S. Government obligation (which may be of any maturity) and the seller
agrees to repurchase the obligation at a future time at a set price, thereby
determining the yield during the purchaser's holding period (usually not more
than seven days from the date of purchase). Any repurchase transaction in which
the Fund engages will require full collateralization of the seller's obligation
during the entire term of the repurchase agreement. In the event of a bankruptcy
or other default of the seller, the Fund could experience both delays in
liquidating the underlying security and losses in value. However, each Fund
intends to enter into repurchase agreements only with Firstar Bank, N.A. (the
Fund's Custodian), other banks with assets of $1 billion or more and registered
securities dealers determined by the advisor (subject to review by the Board of
Trustees) to be creditworthy. The advisor monitors the creditworthiness of the
banks and securities dealers with which the Fund engages in repurchase
transactions.
P. Reverse Repurchase Agreements. Each Fund may invest in reverse
repurchase agreements. Reverse repurchase agreements involve sales of portfolio
securities by a Fund to member banks of the Federal Reserve System, or
recognized dealers, concurrently with an agreement by the Fund to repurchase the
same securities at a later date at a fixed price, which is generally equal to
the original sales price plus interest. The Fund retains record ownership and
the right to receive interest and principal payments on the portfolio security
involved. The Fund's objective in such a transaction would be to obtain funds to
pursue additional investment opportunities whose yield would exceed the cost of
the reverse repurchase transaction. Generally, the use of reverse repurchase
agreements should reduce portfolio turnover and increase yield. In the event of
bankruptcy or other default by the purchaser, the Fund could experience both
delays in repurchasing the portfolio securities and losses.
Q. Illiquid Securities. Illiquid securities generally include securities
which cannot be disposed of promptly and in the ordinary course of business
without taking a reduced price. Securities may be illiquid due to contractual or
legal restrictions on resale or lack of a ready market. The following securities
are considered to be illiquid: repurchase agreements maturing in more than seven
days, nonpublicly offered securities and restricted securities. Restricted
securities are securities the resale of which is subject to legal or contractual
restrictions. Restricted securities may be sold only in privately negotiated
transactions, in a public offering with respect to which a registration
statement is in effect under the Securities Act of 1933 or pursuant to Rule 144
or Rule 144A promulgated under such Act. Where registration is required, the
Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expense, and a
considerable period may elapse between the time of the decision to sell and the
time such security may be sold under an effective registration statement. If
during such a period adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might
obtain a less favorable price than the price it could have obtained when it
decided to sell.
R. Futures Contracts. When a Fund purchases a futures contract, it agrees
to purchase a specified underlying instrument at a specified future date. When a
Fund sells a futures contract, it agrees to sell the underlying instrument at a
specified future date. The price at which the purchase and sale will take place
is fixed when the Fund enters into the contract. Futures can be held until their
delivery dates, or can be closed out before then if a liquid secondary market is
available.
The value of a futures contract tends to increase and decrease in tandem
with the value of its underlying instrument or precious metal. Therefore,
purchasing futures contracts will tend to increase a Fund's exposure to positive
and negative price fluctuations in the underlying instrument, much as if it had
purchased the underlying instrument directly. When a Fund sells a futures
contract, by contrast, the value of its futures position will tend to move in a
direction contrary to the market. Selling futures contracts, therefore, will
tend to offset both positive and negative market price changes, much as if the
underlying instrument or precious metal had been sold.
S. Debt Securities. Lower quality corporate debt securities (commonly
called "junk bonds") often are considered to be speculative and involve greater
risk of default or price change due to changes in the issuer's creditworthiness
or changes in economic conditions. The market prices of these securities will
fluctuate over time, may fluctuate more than higher quality securities and may
decline significantly in periods of general economic difficulty, which may
follow periods of rising interest rates. The market for lower quality securities
may be less liquid than the market for securities of higher quality.
Furthermore, the liquidity of lower quality securities may be affected by the
market's perception of their credit quality. Therefore, judgment may at times
play a greater role in valuing these securities than in the case of higher
quality securities, and it also may be more difficult during certain adverse
market conditions to sell lower quality securities at their fair value to meet
redemption requests or to respond to changes in the market. No Fund will invest
more than 5% of the value of its net assets in junk bonds.
<PAGE>
INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS
Fundamental. The investment limitations described below have been adopted
by the Trust with respect to each Fund and are fundamental ("Fundamental"),
i.e., they may not be changed without the affirmative vote of a majority of the
outstanding shares of each Fund. As used in the Prospectus and the Statement of
Additional Information, the term "majority" of the outstanding shares of the
Fund means the lesser of (1) 67% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund
present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares
of the Fund are present or represented at such meeting; or (2) more than 50% of
the outstanding shares of the Fund. Other investment practices which may be
changed by the Board of Trustees without the approval of shareholders to the
extent permitted by applicable law, regulation or regulatory policy are
considered non-fundamental ("Non-Fundamental").
1. Borrowing Money. The Funds will not borrow money, except (a) from a
bank, provided that immediately after such borrowing there is an asset coverage
of 300% for all borrowings of the Fund; or (b) from a bank or other persons for
temporary purposes only, provided that such temporary borrowings are in an
amount not exceeding 5% of the Fund's total assets at the time when the
borrowing is made. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from entering into
reverse repurchase transactions, provided that the Fund has an asset coverage of
300% for all borrowings and repurchase commitments of the Fund pursuant to
reverse repurchase transactions.
2. Senior Securities. The Funds will not issue senior securities. This
limitation is not applicable to activities that may be deemed to involve the
issuance or sale of a senior security by the Fund, provided that the Fund's
engagement in such activities is consistent with or permitted by the Investment
Company Act of 1940, as amended, the rules and regulations promulgated
thereunder or interpretations of the Securities and Exchange Commission or its
staff.
3. Underwriting. The Funds will not act as underwriter of
------------
securities issued by other persons. This limitation is not applicable to the
extent that, in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities
(including restricted securities), the Fund may be deemed an underwriter
under certain federal securities laws.
4. Real Estate. The Funds will not purchase or sell real estate. This
limitation is not applicable to investments in marketable securities which are
secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not
preclude the Fund from investing in mortgage-related securities or investing in
companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion
of their assets in real estate (including real estate investment trusts).
5. Commodities. The Funds will not purchase or sell commodities unless
acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This
limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or
futures contracts, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by
commodities or from investing in companies which are engaged in a commodities
business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.
6. Loans. The Funds will not make loans to other persons, except (a) by
loaning portfolio securities, (b) by engaging in repurchase agreements, or (c)
by purchasing nonpublicly offered debt securities. For purposes of this
limitation, the term "loans" shall not include the purchase of a portion of an
issue of publicly distributed bonds, debentures or other securities.
7. Concentration. No Fund will invest 25% or more of its total
-------------
assets in a particular industry. This limitation is not applicable to
investments in obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its
agencies and instrumentalities or repurchase agreements with respect thereto.
With respect to the percentages adopted by the Trust as maximum
limitations on its investment policies and limitations, an excess above the
fixed percentage will not be a violation of the policy or limitation unless the
excess results immediately and directly from the acquisition of any security or
the action taken. This paragraph does not apply to the borrowing policy set
forth in paragraph 1 above.
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing limitations, any investment company,
whether organized as a trust, association or corporation, or a personal holding
company, may be merged or consolidated with or acquired by the Trust, provided
that if such merger, consolidation or acquisition results in an investment in
the securities of any issuer prohibited by said paragraphs, the Trust shall,
within ninety days after the consummation of such merger, consolidation or
acquisition, dispose of all of the securities of such issuer so acquired or such
portion thereof as shall bring the total investment therein within the
limitations imposed by said paragraphs above as of the date of consummation.
Non-Fundamental. The following limitations have been adopted by the Trust
with respect to the Fund and are Non-Fundamental (see "Investment Restrictions"
above).
1. Pledging. The Funds will not mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or in any
manner transfer, as security for indebtedness, any assets of the Fund except as
may be necessary in connection with borrowings described in limitation (1)
above. Margin deposits, security interests, liens and collateral arrangements
with respect to transactions involving options, futures contracts, short sales
and other permitted investments and techniques are not deemed to be a mortgage,
pledge or hypothecation of assets for purposes of this limitation.
2. Borrowing. No Fund will purchase any security while borrowings
---------
(including reverse repurchase agreements) representing more than one third of
its total assets are outstanding.
3. Margin Purchases. No Fund will purchase securities or evidences of
interest thereon on "margin." This limitation is not applicable to short term
credit obtained by a Fund for the clearance of purchases and sales or redemption
of securities, or to arrangements with respect to transactions involving
options, futures contracts, short sales and other permitted investments and
techniques.
4. Options. No Fund will purchase or sell puts, calls, options or
-------
straddles except as described in the Funds' Prospectus and Statement of
Additional Information.
5. Illiquid Investments. No Fund will invest more than 5% of its
---------------------
net assets in securities for which there are legal or contractual
restrictions on resale and other illiquid securities.
6. Loans of Portfolio Securities. No Fund will make loans of
--------------------------------
portfolio securities.
<PAGE>
THE INVESTMENT ADVISOR
The investment advisor to each Fund is Martin Capital Advisors, L.L.P., a
Texas limited liability partnership formed on January 29, 1999, 816 Congress
Avenue, Suite 1540, Austin, TX 78701 (the "Advisor"). As the managing partner
and majority owner, Paul Martin may be deemed to control the Advisor.
Under the terms of the management agreement (the "Agreement"), the Advisor
manages each Fund's investments subject to approval of the Board of Trustees and
pays all of the expenses of each Fund except brokerage, taxes, interest, fees
and expenses of the non-interested person trustees and extraordinary expenses.
As compensation for its management services and agreement to pay the Fund's
expenses, each Fund is obligated to pay the Advisor a fee computed and accrued
daily and paid monthly at an annual rate of 1.25% of the average daily net
assets of the Fund. The Advisor may waive all or part of its fee, at any time,
and at its sole discretion, but such action shall not obligate the Advisor to
waive any fees in the future.
For the fiscal periods indicated, the Funds paid the following advisory
fees to the Advisor:
----------------------------------------------------------
PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 $4,479 N/A $22,038
----------------------------------------------------------
The Advisor retains the right to use the names "Austin Opportunity,"
"Texas Opportunity" and "U.S. Opportunity" in connection with another investment
company or business enterprise with which the Advisor is or may become
associated. The Trust's right to use the names "Austin Opportunity," "Texas
Opportunity" and "U.S. Opportunity" automatically ceases ninety days after
termination of the Agreement and may be withdrawn by the Advisor on ninety days
written notice.
The Advisor may make payments to banks or other financial institutions
that provide shareholder services and administer shareholder accounts. If a bank
or other financial institution were prohibited from continuing to perform all or
a part of such services, management of the Fund believes that there would be no
material impact on the Fund or its shareholders. Banks and other financial
institutions may charge their customers fees for offering these services to the
extent permitted by applicable regulatory authorities, and the overall return to
those shareholders availing themselves of the bank services will be lower than
to those shareholders who do not. The Fund may from time to time purchase
securities issued by banks and other financial institutions which provide such
services; however, in selecting investments for the Fund, no preference will be
shown for such securities.
The Trust and the Advisor have each adopted a Code of Ethics under Rule
17j-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The Code significantly restricts
the personal investing activities of all employees of the Advisor. The Code
requires that all employees of the Advisor preclear any personal securities
investment. The preclearance requirement and associated procedures are designed
to identify any substantive prohibition or limitation applicable to the proposed
investment. In addition, no employee may purchase or sell any security which at
the time is being purchased or sold, or to the knowledge of the employee is
being considered for purchase or sale, by the Fund. The substantive restrictions
also include a ban on acquiring any securities in an initial public offering and
provides for trading "blackout periods" which prohibit trading by portfolio
managers of the Fund within periods of trading by the Fund in the same (or
equivalent) security. The restrictions and prohibitions apply to most securities
transactions by employees of the Advisor, with limited exceptions for some
securities (such as securities that have a market capitalization and average
daily trading volume above certain minimums).
TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS
The Board of Trustees supervises the business activities of the Trust. The
names of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust are shown below. Each
Trustee who is an "interested person" of the Trust, as defined in the Investment
Company Act of 1940, is indicated by an asterisk.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
=====================================================================================
NAME, AGE AND ADDRESS POSITION PRINCIPAL OCCUPATIONS DURING PAST 5 YEARS
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C>
*Kenneth D. Trumpfheller President, President, Treasurer and Secretary of
1793 Kingswood Drive Secretary AmeriPrime Financial Services, Inc., the
Suite 200 and Trustee Fund's administrator, and AmeriPrime Financial
Southlake, Texas 76092 Securities, Inc., the Fund's distributor,
Year of Birth: 1958 since 1994; President and Trustee of
AmeriPrime Advisors Trust and AmeriPrime
Insurance Trust; Prior to December, 1994, a
senior client executive with SEI Financial
Services.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Robert A. Chopyak Treasurer Manager of AmeriPrime Financial Services,
1793 Kingswood Drive and Chief Inc., the Fund's administrator, from February
Suite 200 Financial 2000 to present. Self-employed, performing
Southlake, Texas 76092 Officer Y2K testing, January 1999 to January 2000.
Year of Birth: 1968 Vice President of Fund Accounting, American
Data Services, Inc., a mutual fund services
company, October 1992 to December 1998.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steve L. Cobb Trustee President of Chandler Engineering Company,
2001 N. Indianwood L.L.C., oil and gas services company; various
Avenue positions with Carbo Ceramics, Inc., oil field
Broken Arrow, OK 74012 manufacturing/supply company, from 1984 to
Year of Birth: 1957 1997, most recently Vice President of
Marketing.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gary E. Hippenstiel Trustee Director, Vice President and Chief Investment
600 Jefferson Street Officer of Legacy Trust Company since 1992;
Suite 350 President and Director of Heritage Trust
Houston, TX 77002 Company from 1994-1996; Vice President and
Year of Birth: 1947 Manager of Investments of Kanaly Trust Company
from 1988 to 1992.
=====================================================================================
</TABLE>
* This person may be deemed an "interested person" of the Trust as defined in
the Investment Company Act of 1940.
The compensation paid to the Trustees of the Trust for the Funds' fiscal
year ended March 31, 2000 is as set forth in the following table. Trustee fees
are Trust expenses and each series of the Trust pays a portion of the Trustee
fees.
=================================================================
AGGREGATE TOTAL COMPENSATION
NAME COMPENSATION FROM TRUST (THE TRUST
FROM TRUST IS
NOT IN A FUND COMPLEX)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Kenneth D. Trumpfheller 0 0
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Steve L. Cobb $20,112.50 $20,112.50
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Gary E. Hippenstiel $20,112.50 $20,112.50
=================================================================
<PAGE>
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE
Subject to policies established by the Board of Trustees of the Trust, the
Advisor is responsible for each Fund's portfolio decisions and the placing of
each Fund's portfolio transactions. In placing portfolio transactions, the
Advisor seeks the best qualitative execution for each Fund, taking into account
such factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer
spread), the execution capability, financial responsibility and responsiveness
of the broker or dealer and the brokerage and research services provided by the
broker or dealer. The Advisor generally seeks favorable prices and commission
rates that are reasonable in relation to the benefits received. Consistent with
the Rules of Fair Practice of the National Association of Securities Dealers,
Inc., and subject to its obligation of seeking best qualitative execution, the
Advisor may give consideration to sales of shares of the Trust as a factor in
the selection of brokers and dealers to execute portfolio transactions.
The Advisor is specifically authorized to select brokers or dealers who
also provide brokerage and research services to the Funds and/or the other
accounts over which the Advisor exercises investment discretion and to pay such
brokers or dealers a commission in excess of the commission another broker or
dealer would charge if the Advisor determines in good faith that the commission
is reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and research services
provided. The determination may be viewed in terms of a particular transaction
or the Advisor's overall responsibilities with respect to the Trust and to other
accounts over which it exercises investment discretion.
Research services include supplemental research, securities and economic
analyses, statistical services and information with respect to the availability
of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities and analyses of reports
concerning performance of accounts. The research services and other information
furnished by brokers through whom the Funds effect securities transactions may
also be used by the Advisor in servicing all of its accounts. Similarly,
research and information provided by brokers or dealers serving other clients
may be useful to the Advisor in connection with its services to the Funds.
Although research services and other information are useful to the Funds and the
Advisor, it is not possible to place a dollar value on the research and other
information received. It is the opinion of the Board of Trustees and the Advisor
that the review and study of the research and other information will not reduce
the overall cost to the Advisor of performing its duties to the Funds under the
Agreement.
Over-the-counter transactions will be placed either directly with
principal market makers or with broker-dealers, if the same or a better price,
including commissions and executions, is available. Fixed income securities are
normally purchased directly from the issuer, an underwriter or a market maker.
Purchases include a concession paid by the issuer to the underwriter and the
purchase price paid to a market maker may include the spread between the bid and
asked prices.
To the extent that the Trust and another of the Advisor's clients seek to
acquire the same security at about the same time, the Trust may not be able to
acquire as large a position in such security as it desires or it may have to pay
a higher price for the security. Similarly, the Trust may not be able to obtain
as large an execution of an order to sell or as high a price for any particular
portfolio security if the other client desires to sell the same portfolio
security at the same time. On the other hand, if the same securities are bought
or sold at the same time by more than one client, the resulting participation in
volume transactions could produce better executions for the Trust. In the event
that more than one client wants to purchase or sell the same security on a given
date, the purchases and sales will normally be made by random client selection.
<PAGE>
For the fiscal periods indicated, the Funds paid the following in
brokerage commissions:
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PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 $3,271 N/A $7,706
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DISTRIBUTION PLAN
Each Fund has adopted a Distribution Plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the
Investment Company Act of 1940 (the "Plan") under which each Fund is authorized
to incur distribution expenses at an annual rate of 0.25% of the average daily
net assets of the Fund. All distribution expenses incurred by a Fund under its
Plan are Fund expenses, but they are paid by the Advisor pursuant to the
management agreement. The expenses may include payments to securities dealers
and others that are engaged in the sale of shares of the Fund or advising
shareholders regarding the purchase or retention of shares of the Fund; overhead
and telephone expenses; printing and distribution of prospectuses and reports
used in connection with the offering of the Fund's shares to prospective
investors; and preparation, printing and distribution of sales literature and
advertising materials. In addition, each Fund may, under its Plan, make payments
to selected dealers and others which have entered into Service Agreements for
services provided to shareholders of the Fund. The services provided by selected
dealers and others pursuant to each Plan are designed to promote the sale of
shares of the Fund and include the furnishing of office space and equipment,
telephone facilities, personnel and assistance to the Fund in servicing such
shareholders. The services provided pursuant to each Plan also may include
support services to the Fund such as establishing and maintaining shareholders'
accounts and records, processing purchase and redemption transactions, answering
routine client inquiries regarding the Fund, and providing such other services
to the Fund as the Fund may reasonably request. The Advisor may also compensate
such dealers and administrators out of its own assets.
The Plan has been approved by the Fund's Board of Trustees, including a
majority of the Trustees who are not "interested persons" of the Fund and who
have no direct or indirect financial interest in the Plan or any related
agreement, by a vote cast in person. Continuation of the Plan and the related
agreements must be approved by the Trustees annually, in the same manner, and
the Plan or any related agreement may be terminated at any time without penalty
by a majority of such independent Trustees or by a majority of the outstanding
shares of the Fund. Any amendment increasing the maximum percentage payable
under the Plan must be approved by a majority of the outstanding shares of the
Fund, and all other material amendments to the Plan or any related agreement
must be approved by a majority of the independent Trustees. As an executive
officer of the Fund's Distributor, Kenneth Trumpfheller, a Trustee of the Trust,
may benefit indirectly from payments received by the Fund's Distributor.
DETERMINATION OF SHARE PRICE
The price (net asset value) of the shares of each Fund is determined as of
4:00 p.m., Eastern time on each day the Trust is open for business and on any
other day on which there is sufficient trading in the Fund's securities to
materially affect the net asset value. The Trust is open for business on every
day except Saturdays, Sundays and the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin
Luther King Day, President's Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day,
Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Securities which are traded on any exchange or on the NASDAQ
over-the-counter market are valued at the last quoted sale price. Lacking a last
sale price, a security is valued at its last bid price except when, in the
Fund's advisor's opinion, the last bid price does not accurately reflect the
current value of the security. All other securities for which over-the-counter
market quotations are readily available are valued at their last bid price. When
market quotations are not readily available, when the Fund's advisor determines
the last bid price does not accurately reflect the current value or when
restricted securities are being valued, such securities are valued as determined
in good faith by the Fund's advisor, subject to review of the Board of Trustees
of the Trust.
Fixed income securities generally are valued by using market quotations,
but may be valued on the basis of prices furnished by a pricing service when the
Fund's advisor believes such prices accurately reflect the fair market value of
such securities. A pricing service utilizes electronic data processing
techniques based on yield spreads relating to securities with similar
characteristics to determine prices for normal institutional-size trading units
of debt securities without regard to sale or bid prices. When prices are not
readily available from a pricing service, or when restricted or illiquid
securities are being valued, securities are valued at fair value as determined
in good faith by the Fund's advisor, subject to review of the Board of Trustees.
Short term investments in fixed income securities with maturities of less than
60 days when acquired, or which subsequently are within 60 days of maturity, are
valued by using the amortized cost method of valuation, which the Board has
determined will represent fair value.
INVESTMENT PERFORMANCE
The Fund may periodically advertise "average annual total return."
"Average annual total return," as defined by the Securities and Exchange
Commission, is computed by finding the average annual compounded rates of return
for the period indicated that would equate the initial amount invested to the
ending redeemable value, according to the following formula:
P(1+T)n=ERV
Where: P = a hypothetical $1,000 initial investment
T = average annual total return
n = number of years
ERV = ending redeemable value at the end of the applicable
period of the hypothetical $1,000 investment made at
the beginning of the applicable period.
The computation assumes that all dividends and distributions are reinvested at
the net asset value on the reinvestment dates and that a complete redemption
occurs at the end of the applicable period.
For the fiscal periods indicated, the Fund's average annual total return
was as follows:
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PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 N/A N/A 61.69%
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In addition to providing average annual total return, the Funds may also
provide non-standardized quotations of total return for differing periods and
may provide the value of a $10,000 investment (made on the date of the initial
public offering of the Funds' shares) as of the end of a specified period.
Each Fund's investment performance will vary depending upon market
conditions, the composition of the Fund's portfolio and operating expenses of
the Fund. These factors and possible differences in the methods and time periods
used in calculating non-standardized investment performance should be considered
when comparing the Fund's performance to those of other investment companies or
investment vehicles. The risks associated with each Fund's investment objective,
policies and techniques should also be considered. At any time in the future,
investment performance may be higher or lower than past performance, and there
can be no assurance that any performance will continue.
From time to time, in advertisements, sales literature and information
furnished to present or prospective shareholders, the performance of any of the
Funds may be compared to indices of broad groups of unmanaged securities
considered to be representative of or similar to the portfolio holdings of the
Funds or considered to be representative of the stock market in general. The
Funds may use the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index, the NASDAQ Composite Index
or the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
In addition, the performance of any of the Funds may be compared to other
groups of mutual funds tracked by any widely used independent research firm
which ranks mutual funds by overall performance, investment objectives and
assets, such as Lipper Analytical Services, Inc. or Morningstar, Inc. The
objectives, policies, limitations and expenses of other mutual funds in a group
may not be the same as those of any of the Funds. Performance rankings and
ratings reported periodically in national financial publications such as
Barron's and Fortune also may be used.
CUSTODIAN
Firstar Bank, N.A., 425 Walnut Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202, is
Custodian of the Funds' investments. The Custodian acts as the Funds'
depository, safekeeps its portfolio securities, collects all income and other
payments with respect thereto, disburses funds at the Funds' request and
maintains records in connection with its duties.
TRANSFER AGENT AND FUND ACCOUNTING
Unified Fund Services, Inc. ("Unified"), 431 North Pennsylvania Street,
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204, acts as the Fund's transfer agent and, in such
capacity, maintains the records of each shareholder's account, answers
shareholders' inquiries concerning their accounts, processes purchases and
redemptions of the Fund's shares, acts as dividend and distribution disbursing
agent and performs other transfer agency and shareholder service functions. For
its services as transfer agent, Unified receives a monthly fee from the Advisor
of $1.20 per shareholder (subject to a minimum monthly fee of $750). In
addition, Unified provides the Fund with fund accounting services, which
includes certain monthly reports, record-keeping and other management-related
services. For its services as fund accountant, Unified receives an annual fee
from the Advisor equal to 0.0275% of the Fund's assets up to $100 million, and
0.0250% of the Fund's assets from $100 million to $300 million, and 0.0200% of
the Fund's assets over $300 million (subject to various monthly minimum fees,
the maximum being $2,000 per month for assets of $20 to $100 million).
The following chart discloses the fees paid by the Advisor (not the Funds)
to Unified for these Transfer agent services:
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PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 $6,465 N/A $17,935
----------------------------------------------------------
The following chart discloses the fees paid by the Advisor (not the Funds) to
Unified for these Fund accounting services:
----------------------------------------------------------
PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 $4,258 N/A $9,600
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ACCOUNTANTS
The firm of McCurdy & Associates CPA's, Inc., 27955 Clemens Road,
Westlake, Ohio 44145, has been selected as independent public accountants for
the Fund for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2000. McCurdy & Associates
performs an annual audit of the Funds' financial statements and provides
financial, tax and accounting consulting services as requested.
DISTRIBUTOR
AmeriPrime Financial Securities, Inc., (the "Distributor") 1793 Kingswood
Drive, Suite 200, Southlake, Texas 76092, is the exclusive agent for
distribution of shares of the Funds. Kenneth D. Trumpfheller, a Trustee and
officer of the Trust, is an affiliate of the Distributor. The Distributor is
obligated to sell the shares of the Funds on a best efforts basis only against
purchase orders for the shares. Shares of the Funds are offered to the public on
a continuous basis.
ADMINISTRATOR
The Funds retain AmeriPrime Financial Services, Inc., 1793 Kingswood
Drive, Suite 200, Southlake, TX 76092, (the "Administrator") to manage each
Fund's business affairs and provide the Funds with administrative services,
including all regulatory reporting and necessary office equipment, personnel and
facilities. The Administrator receives a monthly fee from the Advisor equal to
an annual rate of 0.10% of the Fund's assets under $50 million, 0.075% of the
Fund's assets from $50 million to $100 million, and 0.050% of the Fund's assets
over $100 million (subject to a minimum fee of $2,500 per month). The
Administrator, the Distributor, and Unified (the Fund's transfer agent) are
controlled by Unified Financial Services, Inc.
The following chart discloses the fees paid by the Advisor (not the Fund)
to the Administrator for these services:
----------------------------------------------------------
PERIOD ENDED AUSTIN TEXAS U.S.
MARCH 31ST OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITY
FUND FUND FUND
----------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
2000 $10,000 N/A $18,333
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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The financial statements and independent auditor's report required to be
included in the Statement of Additional Information are incorporated herein by
reference to the Austin Opportunity Fund's and U.S. Opportunity Fund's Annual
Report to Shareholders for the periods from each Fund's inception through March
31, 2000. The Funds will provide the Annual Report without charge by calling the
Funds at 1-888-336-9757. As of March 31, 2000, the Texas Opportunity Fund had
not yet commenced operations.