Item 6. Investments. | | | | | | |
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Christopher Weil & Company Core Investment Fund |
| | | | Schedule of Investments |
| | | | November 30, 2024 |
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Shares | | | | | | Fair Value | % of Net Assets |
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COMMON STOCKS | | | | | | |
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COMMUNICATIONS | | | | | | |
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Services - Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. | | | | | |
19,235 | | Alphabet Inc. - Class A | | | | $ 3,249,753 | | |
4,013 | | Baidu, Inc. - Class A * ** | | | | 341,306 | | |
912 | | Meta Platforms, Inc. - Class A | | | | 523,780 | | |
48,393 | | Pinterest, Inc. - Class A * | | | | 1,467,276 | | |
| | | | | | 5,582,115 | | |
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Services - Prepackaged Software | | | | | | |
5,423 | | Roblox Corporation - Class A * | | | | 271,855 | | |
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Total for Communications | | | | 5,853,970 | | 8.29% |
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CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY | | | | | | |
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Cable & Other Pay Television Services | | | | | | |
13,485 | | The Walt Disney Co. | | | | 1,584,083 | | |
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Retail - Eating & Drinking Places | | | | | | |
5,100 | | Starbucks Corporation | | | | 522,546 | | |
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Services - Advertising Agencies | | | | | | |
36,129 | | Groupon, Inc. * | | | | 338,890 | | |
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Services - Educational Services | | | | | | |
15,000 | | Lincoln Educational Services Corporation * | | | 246,450 | | |
15,153 | | Universal Technical Institute, Inc. * | | | 392,008 | | |
| | | | | | 638,458 | | |
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Total for Consumer Discretionary | | | | 3,083,977 | | 4.37% |
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ENERGY | | | | | | | | |
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Crude Petroleum & Natural Gas | | | | | | |
17,780 | | Occidental Petroleum Corporation | | | 899,312 | | |
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Total for Energy | | | | 899,312 | | 1.27% |
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FINANCIALS | | | | | | |
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Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance | | | | | | |
10,170 | | Berkshire Hathaway Inc. - Class B * | | | 4,912,313 | | |
1,660 | | Markel Group Inc. * | | | | 2,959,647 | | |
| | | | | | 7,871,960 | | |
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Investment Advice | | | | | | |
4,984 | | Houlihan Lokey, Inc. - Class A | | | | 942,425 | | |
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Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies | | | | | |
228 | | Blackrock Inc. | | | | 233,198 | | |
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Services - Business Services, NEC | | | | | | |
36,259 | | PayPal Holdings, Inc. * | | | | 3,146,193 | | |
6,831 | | WEX Inc. * | | | | 1,288,736 | | |
| | | | | | 4,434,929 | | |
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Total for Financials | | | | 13,482,512 | | 19.09% |
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HEALTH CARE | | | | | | |
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Hospital & Medical Service Plans | | | | | | |
394 | | UnitedHeath Group Incorporated | | | 240,419 | | |
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Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, and Control | | | | |
1,544 | | Danaher Corporation | | | | 370,081 | | |
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Pharmaceutical Preparations | | | | | | |
343 | | Eli Lilly and Company | | | | 272,805 | | |
10,257 | | United Therapeutics Corporation * | | | 3,800,116 | | |
| | | | | | 4,072,921 | | |
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Services - Medical Laboratories | | | | | | |
27,052 | | GRAIL, Inc. * | | | | 473,410 | | |
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Total for Health Care | | | | 5,156,831 | | 7.30% |
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INDUSTRIALS | | | | | | |
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Farm Machinery & Equipment | | | | | | |
2,601 | | Deere & Company | | | | 1,211,806 | | |
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Heavy Construction Other Than Building Construction - Contractors | | | | |
22,277 | | Fluor Corporation * | | | | 1,250,408 | | |
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Instruments for Measuring & Testing of Electricity & Electric Signals | | | | |
20,943 | | Veralto Corporation | | | | 2,265,823 | | |
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Laboratory Analytical Instruments | | | | | | |
1,812 | | Illumina, Inc. * | | | | 261,200 | | |
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Services - Business Services, NEC | | | | | | |
18,827 | | RB Global, Inc. (Canada) | | | | 1,840,527 | | |
24,557 | | Uber Technologies, Inc. * | | | | 1,767,122 | | |
| | | | | | 3,607,649 | | |
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Services - Equipment Rental & Leasing, NEC | | | | | |
697 | | United Rentals, Inc. | | | | 603,602 | | |
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Services - Miscellaneous Equipment Rental & Leasing | | | | | |
8,869 | | WillScot Holdings Corporation - Class A * | | | 339,151 | | |
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Wholesale - Hardware & Plumbing & Heating Equipment & Supplies | | | | |
3,291 | | Ferguson Enterprises Inc. | | | | 710,626 | | |
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Total for Industrials | | | | 10,250,265 | | 14.52% |
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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY | | | | | | |
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Measuring & Controlling Devices, NEC | | | | | | |
18,756 | | Trimble Inc. * | | | | 1,368,625 | | |
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Semiconductors & Related Devices | | | | | | |
20,000 | | SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. * | | | | 316,000 | | |
41,976 | | Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. * | | | | 1,613,138 | | |
| | | | | | 1,929,138 | | |
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Services - Business Services, NEC | | | | | | |
1,000 | | Accenture plc - Class A (Ireland) | | | 362,370 | | |
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Services - Prepackaged Software | | | | | | |
9,164 | | Box, Inc. - Class A * | | | | 321,565 | | |
13,801 | | Dropbox, Inc. - Class A * | | | | 381,736 | | |
7,664 | | PTC Inc. * | | | | 1,533,260 | | |
1,800 | | Salesforce, Inc. | | | | 593,982 | | |
| | | | | | 2,830,543 | | |
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Special Industry Machinery, NEC | | | | | | |
300 | | ASML Holding N.V. ** | | | | 205,983 | | |
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Total for Information Technology | | | | 6,696,659 | | 9.48% |
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MATERIALS | | | | | | | |
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Agricultural Chemicals | | | | | | |
3,620 | | CF Industries Holdings, Inc. | | | | 324,569 | | |
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Converted Paper & Paperboard Prods (No Containers/Boxes) | | | | |
18,000 | | Ranpak Holdings Corp. - Class A * | | | 140,220 | | |
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Metal Mining | | | | | | |
24,063 | | Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. * | | | | 299,584 | | |
12,308 | | Freeport-McMoRan Inc. | | | | 544,014 | | |
| | | | | | 843,598 | | |
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Steel Works, Blast Furnaces & Rolling Mills (Coke Ovens) | | | | | |
7,298 | | Commercial Metals Company | | | | 450,214 | | |
3,013 | | Nucor Corporation | | | | 466,081 | | |
| | | | | | 916,295 | | |
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Total for Materials | | | | 2,224,682 | | 3.15% |
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REAL ESTATE | | | | | | |
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Services - Business Services, NEC | | | | | | |
2,500 | | CoStar Group, Inc. * | | | | 203,350 | | |
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Total for Real Estate | | | | 203,350 | | 0.29% |
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UTILITIES | | | | | | | | |
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Electric Services | | | | | | |
15,417 | | Brookfield Renewable Corporation - Class A (Canada) | | 492,111 | | |
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Natural Gas Transmission & Distribution | | | | | | |
48,023 | | Brookfield Infrastructure Corporation - Class A (Canada) | | 2,155,752 | | |
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Total for Utilities | | | | 2,647,863 | | 3.75% |
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Total for Common Stocks (Cost $35,247,960) | | | 50,499,421 | | 71.51% |
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EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS | | | | | | |
Equity | | | | | | | | |
7,251 | | Invesco Water Resources ETF | | | | 520,332 | | |
28,617 | | iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF | | | 1,554,189 | | |
17,000 | | iShares Emerging Markets Equity Factor ETF | | | 802,910 | | |
26,240 | | iShares MSCI Brazil ETF | | | | 669,645 | | |
10,000 | | iShares MSCI Japan ETF | | | | 696,900 | | |
35,675 | | VanEck Gold Miners ETF | | | | 1,343,520 | | |
Total for Exchange Traded Funds (Cost - $4,900,036) | | | 5,587,496 | | 7.91% |
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MONEY MARKET FUNDS | | | | | | |
13,668,212 | | Goldman Sachs FS Government Fund Institutional Class 4.49% *** | 13,668,212 | | 19.36% |
Total for Money Market Funds (Cost $13,668,212) | | | | | |
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REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS | | | | | | |
19,855 | | American Assets Trust, Inc. | | | | 564,676 | | |
Total for Real Estate Investment Trusts (Cost - $401,966) | | | 564,676 | | 0.80% |
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CALL/PUT OPTIONS PURCHASED | | Notional | | | | |
Expiration Date/Exercise Price | Contracts | Amount | | Fair Value | % of Net Assets |
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Call Options Purchased | | | | | | |
iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF * | | | | | | |
January 17, 2025 Call @ $115.00 | 300 | $ 3,795,900 | | 363,000 | | |
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Put Options Purchased | | | | | | |
NVIDIA Corporation * | | | | | | |
December 20, 2024 Puts @ $110.00 | 125 | $ 1,728,125 | | 2,000 | | |
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Total for Options Purchased (Premiums Paid - $124,387) | $ 5,524,025 | | 365,000 | | 0.51% |
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Total Investment Securities | | | | 70,684,805 | | 100.09% |
| | (Cost $54,342,561) | | | | | | |
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Liabilities in Excess of Other Assets | | | | (66,406) | | -0.09% |
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Net Assets | | | | | | $ 70,618,399 | | 100.00% |
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* Non-Income Producing Securities. | | | | | | |
** ADR - American Depositary Receipt. | | | | | | |
*** The Yield Rate shown represents the 7-day yield at November 30, 2024. | | | | |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. | | | | |
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS | |
CHRISTOPHER WEIL & COMPANY CORE INVESTMENT FUND | |
November 30, 2024 | |
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1.) ORGANIZATION | | | | | | | | | | | |
Christopher Weil & Company Core Investment Fund (the “Fund”) was organized as a series of the PFS Funds (the “Trust”) on December 16, 2011. The Fund is non-diversified. The Trust was established under the laws of Massachusetts by an Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated January 13, 2000, which was amended and restated as of January 20, 2011. The Trust is registered as an open-end investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Trust may offer an unlimited number of shares of beneficial interest in a number of separate series, each series representing a distinct fund with its own investment objectives and policies. As of November 30, 2024, there were eleven series authorized by the Trust. The investment advisor to the Fund is Christopher Weil & Company, Inc. (the “Advisor”). The Fund commenced operations on December 21, 2011. The Fund’s investment objective is to seek long-term capital appreciation.
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2.) SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES | | | | | | | | | |
The Fund is an investment company and accordingly follows the investment company accounting and reporting guidance of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification Topic 946 Financial Services - Investment Companies. The financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). The Fund follows the significant accounting policies described in this section.
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SECURITY VALUATION: All investments in securities are valued as described in Note 3. The Trust’s Board of Trustees (“Board”) has designated the Advisor as “Valuation Designee” pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act.
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SHARE VALUATION: The net asset value (the “NAV”) is generally calculated as of the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“Exchange”) (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) every day the Exchange is open. The NAV for the Fund is calculated by taking the total value of the Fund’s assets, subtracting its liabilities, and then dividing by the total number of shares outstanding, rounded to the nearest cent. The offering price and redemption price per share are equal to the NAV per share. |
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OPTIONS: The purchase and writing of options requires additional skills and techniques beyond normal portfolio management, and involves certain risks. The purchase of options limits a fund’s potential loss to the amount of the premium paid and can afford a fund the opportunity to profit from favorable movements in the price of the underlying security to a greater extent than if the transaction were effected directly. When a fund writes an option, an amount equal to the premium received by the fund is recorded as a liability and is subsequently adjusted to the current fair value of the option written. Premiums received from writing options that expire unexercised are treated by a fund on the expiration date as realized gains on options written. The difference between the premium and the amount paid on effecting a closing purchase transaction, including brokerage commissions, is also treated as a realized gain, or, if the premium is less than the amount paid for the closing purchase transaction, as a realized loss. If a written call option is exercised, the premium is added to the proceeds from the sale of the underlying security or currency in determining whether a fund has realized a gain or a loss. If a written put option is exercised, the premium reduces the cost basis of the securities purchased by the fund. A fund, as writer of an option, bears the market risk of an unfavorable change in the price of the security underlying the written option.
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FEDERAL INCOME TAXES: The Fund’s policy is to continue to comply with the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code that are applicable to regulated investment companies and to distribute all of its taxable income to shareholders. Therefore, no federal income tax provision is required. It is the Fund’s policy to distribute annually, prior to the end of the calendar year, dividends sufficient to satisfy excise tax requirements of the Internal Revenue Code. This Internal Revenue Code requirement may cause an excess of distributions over the book year-end accumulated income. In addition, it is the Fund’s policy to distribute annually, after the end of the fiscal year, net realized capital gains.
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The Fund recognizes the tax benefits of certain tax positions only where the position is “more likely than not” to be sustained assuming examination by tax authorities. Management has analyzed the Fund’s tax positions, and has concluded that no liability for unrecognized tax benefits should be recorded related to uncertain tax positions taken on returns filed for open tax years. The Fund identifies its major tax jurisdictions as U.S. Federal and State tax authorities; however the Fund is not aware of any tax positions for which it is reasonably possible that the total amounts of unrecognized tax benefits will change materially in the next twelve months. The Fund recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense in the Statement of Operations. During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the Fund did not incur any interest or penalties.
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USE OF ESTIMATES: The financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP, which requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of increases and decreases in net assets from operations during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
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DISTRIBUTIONS TO SHAREHOLDERS: Distributions to shareholders, which are determined in accordance with income tax regulations, are recorded on the ex-dividend date. The treatment for financial reporting purposes of distributions made to shareholders during the year from net investment income or net realized capital gains may differ from their ultimate treatment for federal income tax purposes. These differences are caused primarily by differences in the timing of recognition of certain components of income, expense or realized capital gain for federal income tax purposes. Where such differences are permanent in nature, they are reclassified in the components of the net assets based on their ultimate characterization for federal income tax purposes. Any such reclassification will have no effect on net assets, results of operations or NAV per share of the Fund. The Fund may utilize earnings and profits distributed to shareholders on redemption of shares as part of the dividend paid deduction.
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EXPENSES: Expenses incurred by the Trust that do not relate to a specific fund of the Trust are allocated to the individual fund based on each fund’s relative net assets or another appropriate basis. |
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OTHER: The Fund records security transactions based on a trade date for financial statement purposes. Dividend income is recognized on the ex-dividend date, and interest income, if any, is recognized on an accrual basis. Discounts and premiums on fixed income securities are accreted or amortized over the life of the respective securities using the effective interest method. The Fund uses the specific identification method in computing gain or loss on the sale of investment securities. Withholding taxes on foreign dividends have been provided for in accordance with the Fund’s understanding of the applicable country’s tax rules and rates.
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The Fund may invest in real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) that pay distributions to their shareholders based on available funds from operations. It is common for these distributions to exceed the REITs’ taxable earnings and profits resulting in the excess portion of such distribution to be designated as return of capital. Distributions received from REITs are generally recorded as dividend income and, if necessary, are reclassified annually in accordance with tax information provided by the underlying REITs. Additionally, the Fund may hold investments in master limited partnerships (“MLPs”). It is common for distributions from MLPs to exceed taxable earnings and profits resulting in the excess portion of such dividends to be designated as return of capital. Annually, income or loss from MLPs is reclassified upon receipt of the MLPs K-1. For financial reporting purposes, management does not estimate the tax character of MLP distributions for which actual information has not been reported.
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3.) SECURITY VALUATIONS | | | | | | | | | | |
The Fund utilizes various methods to measure the fair value of its investments on a recurring basis. GAAP establishes a hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation methods. The three levels of inputs are:
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Level 1 - Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the Fund has the ability to access.
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Level 2 - Observable inputs other than quoted prices included in level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These inputs may include quoted prices for the identical instrument on an inactive market, prices for similar instruments, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, yield curves, default rates and similar data.
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Level 3 - Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability, to the extent relevant observable inputs are not available, representing the Fund’s own assumptions about the assumptions a market participant would use in valuing the assets or liabilities, and would be based on the best information available. The availability of observable inputs can vary from security to security and is affected by a wide variety of factors, including, for example, the type of security, whether the security is new and not yet established in the marketplace, the liquidity of markets, and other characteristics particular to the security. To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are less observable or unobservable in the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgment. Accordingly, the degree of judgment exercised in determining fair value is greatest for instruments categorized in level 3.
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The inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, for disclosure purposes, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement falls in its entirety, is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety.
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VALUATION OF FUND ASSETS | | | | | | | | | | |
A description of the valuation techniques applied to the Fund’s major categories of assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis follows:
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Equity securities (common stocks, including ADRs, exchange traded funds and REITs). Equity securities generally are valued by using market quotations, but may be valued on the basis of prices furnished by a pricing service when the Valuation Designee believes such prices accurately reflect the fair value of such securities. Securities that are traded on any stock exchange or on the NASDAQ over-the-counter market are generally valued by the pricing service at the last quoted sale price. Lacking a last sale price, an equity security is generally valued by the pricing service at its last bid price. Generally, if the security is traded in an active market and is valued at the last sale price, the security is categorized as a level 1 security, and if an equity security is valued by the pricing service at its last bid, it is generally categorized as a level 2 security. When market quotations are not readily available, when the Valuation Designee determines that the market quotation or the price provided by the pricing service does not accurately reflect the current fair value, or when restricted securities are being valued, such securities are valued as determined in good faith by the Valuation Designee, subject to review of the Board and are categorized in level 2 or level 3, when appropriate.
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Money market funds. Money market funds are valued at NAV provided by the fund and are classified in level 1 of the fair value hierarchy.
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Derivatives. Listed derivatives, including purchased options and written options, that are actively traded, are valued based on quoted prices from the primary exchange on which the option trades and are typically categorized as level 1. Lacking a last sale price, a derivative held long is generally valued by the pricing service at its last bid price and a derivative held short is generally valued by the pricing service at its last ask price. If there is not a bid or ask price on the primary exchange on which the option trades, the option will be valued at fair value as determined under the fair value pricing procedures below. When such bid or ask prices are used for valuation or when the security is not actively traded, those securities are generally categorized in level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.
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In accordance with the Trust’s good faith pricing guidelines, the Valuation Designee is required to consider all appropriate factors relevant to the value of securities for which it has determined other pricing sources are not available or reliable as described above. There is no standard procedure for determining fair value, since fair value depends upon the circumstances of each individual case. As a general principle, the current fair value of an issue of securities being valued by the Valuation Designee would appear to be the amount which the owner might reasonably expect to receive for them upon their current sale. Methods which are in accordance with this principle may, for example, be based on (i) a multiple of earnings; (ii) a discount from market of a similar freely traded security (including a derivative security or a basket of securities traded on other markets, exchanges or among dealers); or (iii) yield to maturity with respect to debt issues, or a combination of these and other methods. The Board maintains responsibilities for the fair value determinations under Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act and oversees the Valuation Designee.
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The following table summarizes the inputs used to value the Fund’s assets measured at fair value as of November 30, 2024:
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Valuation Input of Assets | | | Level 1 | | Level 2 | | Level 3 | | Total |
Common Stocks (including ADRs) | | $ 50,499,421 | | $ - | | $ - | | $50,499,421 |
Exchange Traded Funds | | | 5,587,496 | | - | | - | | 5,587,496 |
Money Market Funds | | | 13,668,212 | | - | | - | | 13,668,212 |
Real Estate Investment Trusts | | 564,676 | | - | | - | | 564,676 |
Options Purchased | | | 365,000 | | - | | - | | 365,000 |
Total | | | $ 70,684,805 | | $ - | | $ - | | $70,684,805 |
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The Fund did not hold any Level 2 or Level 3 assets during the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024.
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4.) INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENTS AND SERVICES AGREEMENTS | | | |
The Fund has an investment advisory agreement (the “Management Agreement”) with the Advisor. Under the Management Agreement, the Advisor, at its own expense and without reimbursement from the Fund, furnishes office space and all necessary office facilities, equipment and executive personnel necessary for managing the assets of the Fund. For its services the Advisor receives a Management Fee equal to 0.75% of the average daily net assets of the Fund.
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As a result of the above calculation, for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the Advisor earned management fees totaling $562,208. At November 30, 2024, the Fund owed $42,679 to the Advisor.
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Additionally, the Fund has a Services Agreement with the Advisor (the “Services Agreement”). Under the Services Agreement the Advisor receives an additional fee of 0.50% of the average daily net assets of the Fund up to $35 million and .20% of the Funds average daily net assets greater than $35 million and is obligated to pay the operating expenses of the Fund excluding, as applicable, management fees and sub-advisory fees, brokerage fees and commissions, 12b-1 fees, taxes, borrowing costs (such as (a) interest and (b) dividend expenses on securities sold short), ADR fees, the cost of acquired funds and extraordinary expenses.
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For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the Advisor earned services fees of $254,921. At November 30, 2024, the Fund owed the Advisor services fees of $19,988.
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5.) OPTION TRANSACTIONS | | | | | | | | | | |
For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the total amount of options written, as presented in the table below, is representative of the volume of activity for these derivative types during the period:
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| | | | Number of | | | | Premiums | | | |
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Options Outstanding at November 30, 2023 | | 0 | | | | $0 | | | |
Options Written | | | | 358 | | | | 205,078 | | | |
Options Terminated in Purchase Transactions | (358) | | | | (205,078) | | | |
Options Expired | | | | 0 | | | | 0 | | | |
Options Exercised | | | | 0 | | | | 0 | | | |
Options Outstanding at November 30, 2024 | | 0 | | | | $0 | | | |
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For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the total amount of options purchased, as presented in the table below, is representative of the volume of activity for these derivative types during the period:
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| | | | Number of | | | | Premiums | | | |
| | | | Contracts | | | | Paid | | | |
Options Outstanding at November 30, 2023 | | 600 | | | | $26,702 | | | |
Options Purchased | | | | 1,005 | | | | 254,900 | | | |
Options Terminated in Sale Transactions | | (550) | | | | (113,646) | | | |
Options Expired | | | | (630) | | | | (43,569) | | | |
Options Exercised | | | | 0 | | | | 0 | | | |
Options Outstanding at November 30, 2024 | | 425 | | | | $124,387 | | | |
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The locations on the Statement of Assets and Liabilities of the Fund’s derivative positions, which are not accounted for as hedging instruments under GAAP, are as follows:
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| Asset | | | | | Liability | | | | | |
| Derivatives | | | | | Derivatives | | | | | |
Options Purchased: | | Options Written | | | | | |
Included In Investment | $365,000 | at Fair Value | $0 | | | | |
Securities at Fair Value | | | | | | | | | | | |
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Realized and unrealized gains and losses on derivatives contracts entered into during the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, by the Fund are recorded in the following locations in the Statement of Operations:
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Equity Contracts | Location | Realized Gain/(Loss) | Location | Unrealized Gain/(Loss) | |
Options Purchased | Net Realized Gain (Loss) on Options Purchased | $57,835 | Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on Options Purchased | $255,315 | |
Options Written | Net Realized Gain (Loss) on Options Written | ($43,911) | Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation (Depreciation) on Options Written | $0 | |
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The Fund engages in option transactions involving individual securities and stock indexes. An option involves either: (a) the right or the obligation to buy or sell a specific instrument at a specific price until the expiration date of the option; or (b) the right to receive payments or the obligation to make payments representing the difference between the closing price of a stock index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple until the expiration date of the option. The Fund may purchase and write options. Options are sold (written) on securities and stock indexes. The purchaser of an option on a security pays the seller (the writer) a premium for the right granted but is not obligated to buy or sell the underlying security. The purchaser of an option on a stock index pays the seller a premium for the right granted, and in return the seller of such an option is obligated to make the payment. A writer of an option may terminate the obligation prior to expiration of the option by making an offsetting purchase of an identical option. Options are traded on organized exchanges and in the over-the-counter market. To cover the potential obligations involved in writing options, a Fund will either: (a) own the underlying security, or in the case of an option on a market index, will hold a portfolio of stocks substantially replicating the movement of the index; or (b) the Fund will segregate with the custodian high grade liquid assets sufficient to purchase the underlying security or equal to the market value of the stock index option, marked to market daily.
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The purchase of options limits a Fund’s potential loss to the amount of the premium paid and can afford the Fund the opportunity to profit from favorable movements in the price of an underlying security to a greater extent than if transactions were effected in the security directly. However, the purchase of an option could result in the Fund losing a greater percentage of its investment than if the transaction were effected directly. When the Fund writes a call option, it will receive a premium, but it will give up the opportunity to profit from a price increase in the underlying security above the exercise price as long as its obligation as a writer continues, and it will retain the risk of loss should the price of the security decline. When the Fund writes a put option, it will assume the risk that the price of the underlying security or instrument will fall below the exercise price, in which case the Fund may be required to purchase the security or instrument at a higher price than the market price of the security or instrument. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund can effect a closing transaction on a particular option it has written. Further, the total premium paid for any option may be lost if the Fund does not exercise the option.
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The Fund engages in option transactions involving securities and stock indices in order to gain exposure to particular securities or markets, in connection with hedging transactions, or to try to enhance returns. Options require additional skills and techniques beyond normal portfolio management. The Fund’s use of options involves risk that such instruments may not work as intended due to unanticipated developments, especially in abnormal market conditions, or if the Advisor makes an error in judgment, or other causes. The use of options may magnify the increase or decrease in the performance of the Fund, and may also subject the Fund to higher price volatility.
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The premiums paid for the options represent the cost of the investment. The Fund recognizes a realized gain or loss when the option is sold or expires. Option holdings within the Fund, which may include put options and call options, are subject to loss of value with the passage of time, and may experience a total loss of value upon expiration. With options, there is minimal counterparty risk to the Fund since they are exchange traded.
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During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the Fund was not subject to any master netting arrangements.
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6.) RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS | | | | | | | | | |
Certain officers and a Trustee of the Trust are also officers of Premier Fund Solutions (the “Administrator”). These individuals receive benefits from the Administrator resulting from administration fees paid to the Administrator of the Fund by the Advisor.
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The Trustees who are not interested persons of the Fund were each paid $1,500, for a total of $6,000, in Trustees’ fees for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, by the Advisor.
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The Chief Compliance Officer ("CCO") of the Fund was paid $6,108, in CCO fees for the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, by the Advisor.
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7.) INVESTMENTS | | | | | | | | | | | |
For the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, purchases and sales of investment securities other than U.S. Government obligations and short-term investments aggregated $59,486,811 and $78,692,364, respectively.
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8.) CONTROL OWNERSHIP | | | | | | | | | | |
The beneficial ownership, either directly or indirectly, of more than 25% of the voting shares of a fund creates a presumption of control of the fund, under section 2(a)(9) of the 1940 Act. At November 30, 2024, National Financial Services, LLC, located at 200 Liberty Street, New York, New York 10281, held for the benefit of its customers, in aggregate, 92.31% of Fund shares. The Trust does not know whether any underlying accounts of National Financial Services, LLC, owned or controlled 25% or more of the voting securities of the Fund.
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9.) TAX MATTERS | | | | | | | | | | | |
For Federal income tax purposes, the cost of investments owned at November 30, 2024, was $54,518,752. At November 30, 2024, the composition of gross unrealized appreciation (the excess of value over tax cost) and depreciation (the excess of tax cost over value) of investment securities (including open positions in options purchased) on a tax basis was as follows:
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Appreciation | Depreciation | Net Appreciation (Depreciation) |
$17,119,201 | (953,147) | $16,166,054 |
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The tax character of distributions was as follows:
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| | Fiscal Year Ended | | | Fiscal Year Ended | |
| | November 30, 2024 | | | November 30, 2023 | |
Ordinary Income | | $ 83,620 | | | $ - | |
Long-Term Capital Gain | | 921,600 | | | 3,144,961 | |
| | $ 1,005,220 | | | $ 3,144,961 | |
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Subsequent to November 30, 2024, the Fund paid a distribution of $0.878645 per share from ordinary income and a distribution of $6.022885 per share from long-term capital gains on December 13, 2024 to the shareholders of record on December 12, 2024. |
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As of November 30, 2024, the components of distributable earnings (accumulated losses) on a tax basis were as follows: |
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Accumulated Undistributed Ordinary Income | | | $ 170,005 | | | | |
Other Accumulated Losses | | | | (115,893) | | | | |
Accumulated Undistributed Realized Gains | | | 7,815,847 | | | | |
Unrealized Appreciation on Investments - Net | | 16,166,054 | | | | |
| | | | | $ 24,036,013 | | | | |
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As of November 30, 2024, the primary differences between book basis and tax basis unrealized appreciation are attributable to the tax deferral of losses on wash sales. As of November 30, 2024, other accumulated losses are attributable to losses on straddles from options of $115,893.
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For the tax year ended November 30, 2024, the following permanent adjustment was recorded. The adjustment was primarily attributed to the use of equalization for tax purposes:
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Paid in Capital | | $1,503,186 | | | | | | | |
Total Distributable Earnings | ($1,503,186) | | | | | | | |
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10.) AFFILIATED ISSUER TRANSCTIONS | | | | | | | | |
When a Fund holds more than 5% of the outstanding shares of an investment, that investment is consider to be an affiliated investment of the Fund. During the fiscal year ended November 30, 2024, the Fund had the following transactions with affiliated companies:
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| | | TCW Transform | | | | | | |
| | | Supply Chain ETF | | | | | | |
Value as of November 30, 2023 | | $ - | | | | | | |
Purchases | | | 2,770,558 | | | | | | |
Sales | | | (3,099,423) | | | | | | |
Change in Unrealized Gain (Loss) | | - | | | | | | |
Realized Gain (Loss) | | | 328,865 | | | | | | |
Value as of November 30, 2024 | | $ - | | | | | | |
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Shares Balance as of November 30, 2024 | - | | | | | | |
Dividends | | | $ 3,104 | | | | | | |
Capital Gain Distributions | | | $ - | | | | | | |
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11.) SUBSEQUENT EVENTS | | | | | | | | | | |
Effective December 5, 2024, the Board has approved a Plan of Liquidation (the “Plan”) relating to the Fund. In accordance with the Plan, the Fund liquidated on December 23, 2024. Any remaining shareholders as of the date of liquidation received a distribution of their remaining investment value in full liquidation of the Fund.
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Subsequent events after the date of the Statement of Assets and Liabilities have been evaluated through the date the financial statements were issued. Management has concluded that except for the December 13, 2024 distributions reported in Note 9 and the execution of the Plan of Liquidation reported above, there were no other events requiring adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.
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